Makes sense that they would reprint this, seeing as how Lightning Helix was just in Modern Masters.
NARFNra
★★★★☆ (4.8/5.0)(6 votes)
It's pretty good, though perhaps has gotten a little worse by comparison over the years. Still, instant speed is a major plus.
DarthParallax
★★★☆☆ (3.4/5.0)(4 votes)
A simple damage spell, not a creature? Alas! But apropo!...
Kind of sad that Red gets quite a bad rap going by Vault stats. :/
Dragons: Lots of Timmy Rares. Bogardan Hellkite and Dragonstorm were alright though. Nicol Bolas absolutely should count more as a Black card than a Red card, it was only good with Animate Dead. Red is Fun, Red is Good when it's Gold.
Exiled: Goblin Lackey? Really? Channel from Channel-Fireball...Kird Ape..? Red is Good when it's Green and when it's Cheap.
Legends: Kiki-Jiki, Mirror-Breaker....Red is good at Combos and Commander?
Realms: Shivan Gorge. Some good comments on that card...but compared to what other colors got, it's sad how this reinforces the uninteresting-ness of Red. It's Good in Casual, or Good in Combo, or it's Best Cards are Weaker than other colors' Best Cards, there's just a lot of them...
So wait...is there anything that shows Red can fight and has an actually Strong Game against Strong Decks? Well....no really. Red has lots of different options for taking cheap shots, but it can't fight a direct decent battle and win, none of it's cards stand out and say "I WANNA BUILD A RED DECK". All the good Red Cards are "Kind of like a Lightning Bolt". Red is great for tossing into non-Red decks though to get the extra bit of reach. :P
Enchantment_Removal
★★★★★ (5.0/5.0)(4 votes)
Perhaps red is the red-haired step-child of the colors of magic. lol
On a serious note, I think the main injustice to mono-red in this set is that they used the 2006 slot to choose a red card, which was a multicolor-heavy expansion. They're only other reasonable options were Demonfire and Rakdos Pit-Dragon (maybe).
this is the definition of fire. indiscriminate. it burns you and your enemy.
MithosFall
★★★★☆ (4.2/5.0)(4 votes)
Ravnica is my favourite plane. Always has been. In fact, I began Magic when the City of Guilds was still standard, though I didn't know about formats at the time. That block had so many good cards in it, and so I was disheartened when I saw this as its one card to represent that year, especially coming out of RTR, which, in my opinion, did not do the plane justice at all. R&D doesn't seem to like Ravnica much, at least it appears that way as of recent events. :/
However I do feel somewhat vindicated to see that this card is the lowest rated card in FTV:20 since it means that at least some of you feel similar to how I do; that this was the wrong choice of card for the Ravnica block.
Toes_of_Krosa
★★★★★ (5.0/5.0)(5 votes)
"Char you."
SirLibraryEater
★☆☆☆☆ (1.8/5.0)(2 votes)
I would still rather have lightning bolt. 4 damage for 3 mana and 2 life, or 3 damage for 1 mana and no life? I don't understand why they didn't reprint lightning bolt instead of this. Having jace in the set doesn't leave much room for this set to get more broken. They might as well have.
SirZapdos
★★★☆☆ (3.9/5.0)(4 votes)
What is on top of the deck? What is on top of the deck?
ParallaxtheRevan
★★★☆☆ (3.7/5.0)(7 votes)
The Top Comment of this card reflects what WoTC would say to me if they read the Following:
The Top Comment and WoTC are WRONG
Since this was revealed, I have reconsidered whether Char is a worthy card at all.
Char is a great example of the "Lightning Bolt is kind of Bad for MAGIC' argument. Bolt DOES somewhat give you a Tunnel Vision with regards to judging red cards, thinking purely of 'points of damage for mana', and not enough of 'utility/versatility'. Char is not directly more useful, But, it is Different in a way that allows lots of Designs for cards that are 'more Useful but Weaker' than Bolt. Like how the Ravnica Shocklands are more compelling mechanically, visually, and flavorfully than the Beta Duals. "Worse Card, but it's for a Good Cause."
Char's similarity to Chandra's Outrage can make it seem especially disappointing to see at Mythic Rare in Foil. Since thinking more about Char, I've decided it actually is alright to put at Rare in a Reprint Product like Commander or Duel Decks, a) because it was Rare in it's original printing, b) because outside of the sheltered bubble of thinking about Lightning Bolt, it's actually an alright card. In a Standard-legal Expert expansion, I would hope to see it as Uncommon, not Rare, though.
However, just because I don't mind imagining Alternate Art promos of Char anymore, DOESN'T MEAN I think he belongs in the VAULT! THINK of this now! For REAL!
It would be like having a Reflecting Pool or a Shard Charm in Cruel Ultimatum's spot. You know, because thanks to the Vivid Lands, 5-color control was able to run all kinds of Whacky Colors all together, and we'd had a lot of Lorwyn Goodies in Modern Masters so what is left? COME ON.
That Million-Dollar Top Deck? Char was the sidekick, NOT the star. Sure, it WAS the Best Buddy, the Friends Forever card, BUT it was the SIDEKICK.
It would be exactly as if they'd given us Squadron Hawk in Jace's spot. And you know the funny thing? They COULD have justified doing THAT. But there is really No Particularly Good Reason why Char was not
Anywhere but the Vault, I have now made my peace with the difference between Char and Bolt. But this is the Vault. And you went and frikking put Cruel Ultimatum in it too, to make me think of Famous Tournament Top Decks. And you FLIPPING USED THE VIDEO in your promo article.
Char should be Lightning Helix. Calling Char Lightning Helix is like calling Dick Grayson Batman. There's pros and cons, and I find that the cons outweigh the pros.
Char is Nightwing. Better than any Robin, but still not THE Batman. Got it? Okay then :P
I'm saying Lightning Helix should have been in both Modern Masters and this set. Or that Char should have been a Modern Masters Uncommon.
troll_berserker
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
I feel like by today's standard, this card should either cost less or not deal 2 damage to yourself. Considering that Searing Spear has been the standard burn spell in standard, paying and 2 more life just to do 1 extra damage is not exciting.
lorendorky
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
The Wizard casting the spell in the art looks like he's saying "PAIN IN THE GLAVEN!!!"
Tiggurix
★★★☆☆ (3.5/5.0)(1 vote)
Definitely not the best representative of Ravnica block. This is just a colour-shifted Psionic Blast, for crying out loud!
Megadog
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
Stop complaining about how red has bad cards in FTV, it still has the most of any monocolor in all the groups. White has FOUR cards!
at0micpickle
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
Not anywhere near mythic level, I'm extremely disappointed by the fact that there are better common burn spells than this
Comments (17)
Kind of sad that Red gets quite a bad rap going by Vault stats. :/
Dragons: Lots of Timmy Rares. Bogardan Hellkite and Dragonstorm were alright though. Nicol Bolas absolutely should count more as a Black card than a Red card, it was only good with Animate Dead. Red is Fun, Red is Good when it's Gold.
Exiled: Goblin Lackey? Really? Channel from Channel-Fireball...Kird Ape..? Red is Good when it's Green and when it's Cheap.
Relics: Let's be REAL nice here and count Isochron Scepter and the Mirari. :)
Legends: Kiki-Jiki, Mirror-Breaker....Red is good at Combos and Commander?
Realms: Shivan Gorge. Some good comments on that card...but compared to what other colors got, it's sad how this reinforces the uninteresting-ness of Red. It's Good in Casual, or Good in Combo, or it's Best Cards are Weaker than other colors' Best Cards, there's just a lot of them...
So wait...is there anything that shows Red can fight and has an actually Strong Game against Strong Decks? Well....no really. Red has lots of different options for taking cheap shots, but it can't fight a direct decent battle and win, none of it's cards stand out and say "I WANNA BUILD A RED DECK". All the good Red Cards are "Kind of like a Lightning Bolt". Red is great for tossing into non-Red decks though to get the extra bit of reach. :P
On a serious note, I think the main injustice to mono-red in this set is that they used the 2006 slot to choose a red card, which was a multicolor-heavy expansion. They're only other reasonable options were Demonfire and Rakdos Pit-Dragon (maybe).
... so why wasn't Wheel of Fortune in FTV:Exiled?
I think all colors got reasonable treatment in FTV: Legends.
The red card in FTV:Relics is AEther Vial lol.
However I do feel somewhat vindicated to see that this card is the lowest rated card in FTV:20 since it means that at least some of you feel similar to how I do; that this was the wrong choice of card for the Ravnica block.
The Top Comment and WoTC are WRONG
Since this was revealed, I have reconsidered whether Char is a worthy card at all.
Char is a great example of the "Lightning Bolt is kind of Bad for MAGIC' argument. Bolt DOES somewhat give you a Tunnel Vision with regards to judging red cards, thinking purely of 'points of damage for mana', and not enough of 'utility/versatility'. Char is not directly more useful, But, it is Different in a way that allows lots of Designs for cards that are 'more Useful but Weaker' than Bolt. Like how the Ravnica Shocklands are more compelling mechanically, visually, and flavorfully than the Beta Duals. "Worse Card, but it's for a Good Cause."
Char's similarity to Chandra's Outrage can make it seem especially disappointing to see at Mythic Rare in Foil. Since thinking more about Char, I've decided it actually is alright to put at Rare in a Reprint Product like Commander or Duel Decks, a) because it was Rare in it's original printing, b) because outside of the sheltered bubble of thinking about Lightning Bolt, it's actually an alright card. In a Standard-legal Expert expansion, I would hope to see it as Uncommon, not Rare, though.
However, just because I don't mind imagining Alternate Art promos of Char anymore, DOESN'T MEAN I think he belongs in the VAULT! THINK of this now! For REAL!
It would be like having a Reflecting Pool or a Shard Charm in Cruel Ultimatum's spot. You know, because thanks to the Vivid Lands, 5-color control was able to run all kinds of Whacky Colors all together, and we'd had a lot of Lorwyn Goodies in Modern Masters so what is left? COME ON.
THE STORY was about CRUEL ULTIMATUM and Gabriel Nassif!
This is FROM THE VAULT: PRO TOUR!!
That Million-Dollar Top Deck? Char was the sidekick, NOT the star. Sure, it WAS the Best Buddy, the Friends Forever card, BUT it was the SIDEKICK.
It would be exactly as if they'd given us Squadron Hawk in Jace's spot. And you know the funny thing? They COULD have justified doing THAT. But there is really No Particularly Good Reason why Char was not
LIGHTNING HELIX.
Anywhere but the Vault, I have now made my peace with the difference between Char and Bolt. But this is the Vault. And you went and frikking put Cruel Ultimatum in it too, to make me think of Famous Tournament Top Decks. And you FLIPPING USED THE VIDEO in your promo article.
Char should be Lightning Helix. Calling Char Lightning Helix is like calling Dick Grayson Batman. There's pros and cons, and I find that the cons outweigh the pros.
Char is Nightwing. Better than any Robin, but still not THE Batman. Got it? Okay then :P
I'm saying Lightning Helix should have been in both Modern Masters and this set. Or that Char should have been a Modern Masters Uncommon.