For the cost of 1 power, you get an additional 3 toughness. Griffin was also able to dodge small-scale burn like Incinerate in M12 limited, where this can die to something small like Geistflame. But toughness doesn't directly affect First Strike. Like power with Deathtouch, unless it's 0, it can be over 9000 and it won't make a difference in its effect.
So although the numbers don't add up, you can't say Peregrine Griffin is strictly better.
Powercat
★★☆☆☆ (2.8/5.0)(2 votes)
The flavor text is good, and the art is OK. But it is pretty badly overcosted. Plain and simple, you aren't putting this in a constructed deck, and it's a last resort to fill out a limited deck.
At least it is only passively bad, instead of actively bad. 2/5
Abl
★★★★★ (5.0/5.0)(4 votes)
NO THE POOR ROOF
Villainous1
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
Compare to Porcelain Legionnaire. Is flying really worth extra, loss of the phyrexian mana and loss of its much better tribe and artifact status?
No. No it isn't. Not even a little bit.
SkyknightXi
★★★☆☆ (3.3/5.0)(3 votes)
Even better, compare to Shepherd of the Lost. Yes, that one's an uncommon, but I doubt rarity's supposed to affect raw metrics.
majinara
★★★★☆ (4.0/5.0)(2 votes)
Ok in limited, crappy outside of it. Gets better in multiples, since few creatures can get past six power of flying first strike.
raptorman333
★★★★★ (5.0/5.0)(1 vote)
Mana... mana? ... mana. Mana?!?!?! They can come up with cards like Lyev Skyknight that costs three with a stricter mana cost. Could it have killed them to make it 2 white and one less or just 3 white? They can print Serra Avenger and not slightly improve this. I get that doing that would drastically change limited. Then change limited! Make it more fun, faster paced and absolutely ridiculous. If poison counters and Urza's set taught us anything, faster paced isn't a bad thing. No one wants to be sitting there for a half hour extorting, and then extorting back, and then extorting, then reciprocating, and then... All I'm saying is that it's a griffin! It has great art; do it justice and make it at least a decent card.
Nagoragama
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
Good in limited, nowhere else. Let's move on.
NoobOfLore
★★★☆☆ (3.2/5.0)(5 votes)
Timmyforever: Wizards doesn't sell singles. They sell packs, precons, and boxes. They get the same money whether the pack you opened has a Serra Angel or a Baneslayer Angel. If you decide to pay however many dollars for a card off Ebay, that's not money wizards is "milking you" for. That's you getting (willingly) charged a hilarious markup over a card someone paid 4 dollars for in a pack.
nemokara
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
"Ok in limited, crappy outside of it. Gets better in multiples, since few creatures can get past six power of flying first strike."
That may be the case, but personally I'd wait to make sure my opponent wasn't playing red before siding in a second copy. Too high a chance of getting blown out by Gruul Charm, Izzet Staticaster, Homing Lightning, or worst of all Electrickery (a 2-for-1 against two five-drops for just two mana - *GULP*).
Moleland
★★☆☆☆ (2.8/5.0)(2 votes)
Too expensive really
Rootkit9208
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
This guy is a win condition in limited. There's not a lot in limited that can swat this guy out of the sky. There are plenty of burnb spells, but many can be just as expensive as he is.
Vogie
★★★★★ (5.0/5.0)(1 vote)
Next, on the DeVanilla project, where we take overcosted vanilla cards, and inspire them with unique mechanics.
For Steeple Roc, I'd give: If you started the game with a library with 60 or more cards, Steeple Roc has +0/+2 and vigilance.
DrJack
★★★★★ (5.0/5.0)(2 votes)
NoobOfLore, I think you can figure out what TimmyForever was pointing out. In order to keep up with other players and maintain competitive decks, one has no choice but to either 1) Purchase large amounts of booster packs in hopes of getting those mythic rares and other overpowered "Spike" cards or 2) Paying big piles of cash for those same cards individually. If you do not do one or the other, you cannot compete in tournament settings, nor in many casual settings where the other players shell out big bucks for powerful cards.
You could use proxy cards, of course, if you only want to play in casual circles where other players are cool with that. Aside from that, there is no getting around the fact you have to pay big bux, either to the "Wizards" (Hasbro) or to other people who themselves shelled out lots of money in the process of obtaining the cards you're after.
Continue
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
Sabertooth Wyvern. Red shouldn't have better flyers than white outside of dragons.
casual_melvin
★★★★☆ (4.2/5.0)(2 votes)
@continue, with the exception of dragons red is supposed to have worse flyers than white, but with the exception of knights white is supposed o have worse first strikers than red.
@skyknightxi
my understanding is that rarity doesn't affect the range of power levels a card can have. Any card be a 0.5-1 or a 4.5-5. Rarity does affect how often a card will be "pushed" into the upper parts of the range of power levels . Rares and mythics are supposed to be exciting and the simplest way to do that is by upping its power level. Lazy, but effective on a time crunch.
Uncommons aren't pushed as much as rares and mythics but still more often than commons. Therefore, the average uncommon will be better than the average common even, if the best commons and the best uncommons match up pretty well.
Uncommons are a bit of an exception actually, since while it's cards are more likely to be pushed, truly useless cards tend to be uncommon so they don't mess up the value of a pack like a useless rare, while their affect on limited is also more "limited" by showing up less often.
Phelplan
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
So.... I get that this is limited fodder, but I don't see why this couldn't have been at least a 3/2. Or maybe a 4/1??? All I'm saying is that even in limited this makes you feel like you got mana gypped.
bleedingreen925
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
For the same CMC as Baneslayer Angel, you now get -2/-4, loss no lifelink, no protection from demons or dragons. Why is Wizards doing this to us? ) 0.5/5
Comments (21)
*giggle*
Otherwise...
Which is better: This or Peregrine Griffin?
For the cost of 1 power, you get an additional 3 toughness. Griffin was also able to dodge small-scale burn like Incinerate in M12 limited, where this can die to something small like Geistflame.
But toughness doesn't directly affect First Strike. Like power with Deathtouch, unless it's 0, it can be over 9000 and it won't make a difference in its effect.
So although the numbers don't add up, you can't say Peregrine Griffin is strictly better.
At least it is only passively bad, instead of actively bad. 2/5
No. No it isn't. Not even a little bit.
They can come up with cards like Lyev Skyknight that costs three with a stricter mana cost. Could it have killed them to make it 2 white and one less or just 3 white? They can print Serra Avenger and not slightly improve this. I get that doing that would drastically change limited. Then change limited! Make it more fun, faster paced and absolutely ridiculous. If poison counters and Urza's set taught us anything, faster paced isn't a bad thing. No one wants to be sitting there for a half hour extorting, and then extorting back, and then extorting, then reciprocating, and then...
All I'm saying is that it's a griffin! It has great art; do it justice and make it at least a decent card.
That may be the case, but personally I'd wait to make sure my opponent wasn't playing red before siding in a second copy. Too high a chance of getting blown out by Gruul Charm, Izzet Staticaster, Homing Lightning, or worst of all Electrickery (a 2-for-1 against two five-drops for just two mana - *GULP*).
For Steeple Roc, I'd give:
If you started the game with a library with 60 or more cards, Steeple Roc has +0/+2 and vigilance.
You could use proxy cards, of course, if you only want to play in casual circles where other players are cool with that. Aside from that, there is no getting around the fact you have to pay big bux, either to the "Wizards" (Hasbro) or to other people who themselves shelled out lots of money in the process of obtaining the cards you're after.
@skyknightxi
my understanding is that rarity doesn't affect the range of power levels a card can have. Any card be a 0.5-1 or a 4.5-5. Rarity does affect how often a card will be "pushed" into the upper parts of the range of power levels . Rares and mythics are supposed to be exciting and the simplest way to do that is by upping its power level. Lazy, but effective on a time crunch.
Uncommons aren't pushed as much as rares and mythics but still more often than commons. Therefore, the average uncommon will be better than the average common even, if the best commons and the best uncommons match up pretty well.
Uncommons are a bit of an exception actually, since while it's cards are more likely to be pushed, truly useless cards tend to be uncommon so they don't mess up the value of a pack like a useless rare, while their affect on limited is also more "limited" by showing up less often.