Pointed Discussion

Hey, look, it's the Helvault of the set...

A nice play on Pandora's Box, and it seems there actually is a Modern deck into which this fits right in, but still, this is a clear jank dollar-bin rare...

Well this looks fun. Would be funny if it let the spells be cast free too. All kinds of stuff popping off.

I like this card a lot more than Helvault. Exile cards until you can afford it and you might get really cool stuff! And it's an amazingly fun casual multiplayer card.

It appears I've found another card for that Chaos deck I'll someday get around to building...

This right here might make for some super-fun casual games.

Now of course, this is a set with Scry out the ears, so considering you're the one controlling the activation of its effects, you can totally abuse this thing. 7 mana is steep, but bear in mind that you're going to have a decent idea of what your top card IS most of the time, or at least what it isn't in the case of Scry 1.

My only gripe about this card is, she looks like the box stinks and she's covering her nose... it's probably the small card art frame.

It doesn't pretend to be Pandora's box, but has enough flavor to hint. I like it Wizards. Like most equal effects If you build a deck around it you're going to come out better. You'll be exiling your opponents Cancels and Doom Blades and Sphinx's revelations while you're bringing out Angel of Serenitys Ashen Riders and Colossal whales - everything you need to take care of any bombs they do get.

Does anyone know if the activation of the 7 mana ability applies to all cards exiled with that specific Pyxis of Pandemonium only, or to all cards exiled with any Pyxis of Pandemonium?

The only think I wish is that the last ability had "any player may activate this ability". How much fun would that be, hm? They could even have reduced the activation cost to make up for it, which would make it more viable in regular settings.

Multiplayer all star. A fun build around in a deck with very few instants and sorceries and could actually have some use messing with the scrys in Theros.

This card makes me think how much would the phyxians change this plane if they invade it!

The Greek word "Pyxis" means "box." As in Pandora's box.

I can relate to Pandora. I too was blessed (or some could say cursed) with Wonder.

Due to this curiosity, I ripped this card apart. I was surprised that evil incarnations did not come out. If that isn't a missed flavor opportunity, I don't know what is.

I really want to make a Standard deck with this and bring it to FNM. With tons and tons of scry, you can see what you put in most of the time, and fill Pandora's Box with juicy permanents.

You can tap the Pyxis on your upkeep after Thassa's daily scry.

There are some sick things you can do with devotion ETB triggers: with just three Gray Merchants in the Pyxis, I'm pretty sure you would drain your opponents for 18.

I actually used this in a Draft deck with Akroan Horse, a couple Evangels of Heliod, and Purphoros, God of the Forge. I even broke it open once with Purphoros on the field, but I didn't scry very much so it was a shot in the dark. I only had three creatures inside, and no Evangels. My opponent doesn't know how lucky he was.

I believe that each card exiled will identify to each pyxis that exiled it. You could put all exiled cards under the specific card as long as you have different sleeves. Not a horrible 1 drop in a mill deck, and can mess with scry at instant speed, when they get used to you taking their top card and rearrange their scry to stop the pyxis just don't use it, discuised to look bad it can really mess up people in limited.

It's a cool card. Nice casual slot.

I don't see this ever being powerful- it seems extremely engineered to be VERY casual-- 'bad, but admittedly in a fun way'- which is slightly different from 'designed to be powerful in multiplayer', or, 'designed to be Shivan Dragon-good, which normally doesn't cut it in cutthroat'. What sets it APART from some other Johnny Cards, is that it's not UNdesigned either XD (Knowledge Pool? Warp World? Eye of the Storm? Those cards look 'UNDesigned' to me :P They exist to make the game terrible. They make you be the Joker or not use them. XD ) This card, you CAN actually....DO things with. Weak things. or Slow things. :P But still, Things. :)

1. It effects all players. That means it gives even your opponents a chance at ridiculous free plays.

2. It costs 7 to activate, meaning it needs a slow format or mana ramp or something. If you want to win, this is the top of your curve probably.

3. It's an artifact, one of the most blow-up-able card types. Though, it does give you something to do on Turn 1. It does not even have Hexproof, which could technically have been flavorfully justified. It is not an Indestructible Enchantment Artifact either.


Now, my three points are NOT complaints. I point them out as what I consider to be the Features of the card, not Bugs. :P You are not supposed to like this card, unless you see and know these things about it, and like it for these reasons. :)

Pretty much unless you find some crazy CRAZY long loop of combos (like a recent one discovered with Angel of Glory's Rise o.O ) then I don't ever see this being "useful" or "effective". (The Angel + Laboratory Maniac combo is just an example of how many links in the combo I expect would have to exist. to my knowledge Angel is not being used with Pyxis...yet. Pyxis just needs a combo roughly equally complicated.)

It is trying to be something entirely different to that.

What I LIKE is how it sTILL seems carefully crafted and DESIGNED to do something kind of-ish like what Knowledge Pool and Helvault look like they were trying to do. Trying to make Knowledge Pool and Helvault WORK at ALL is kinda rough xP

This, it isn't really all that difficult to make it do what it's supposed to do. It's still as clear-cut as, say, Survival of the Fittest.

It's a really really awful bad crappy terrible stinky horrible no good Survival of the Fittest XD

This card might be underrated. Show and Tell and Oath of Druids "suffers" from the same disadvantage as this card: each player gets the exact same advantage, so it's strength instead relies on the assumption that the cards you put into your deck intending to cheat into play (no deck tries to "hardcast" Progenitus) will outstrip the power of any card your opponent puts into play.

And since this card puts permanents into play on a mass scale, it actually gives you card advantage if both/either your opponent has a good number of non-permanents in his deck, and/or the permanents in your deck have a disproportionate number of CiP abilities. Sure, you have to guard it for 6 turns (with no mana ramping), but that was a problem Delver of Secrets didn't mind undertaking.

What happens to the exiled cards when the pyxis is destroyed by a spell? Seems exploitable.

While this card does effect all players, it doesn't take too much to turn the odds in your favor. This is a Johnny card for sure, but I think the cost means this isn't just the casual stuff we often get tossed. I believe this card has some real power behind it.

I am currently making a modern deck around this card. The idea is to use Lantern of Insight, this and other small mill effects (Mindshrieker, Codex Shredder) to control what my opponents and I can draw. Forcing shuffles with instant speed effects that search their libraries (Path to Exile, Ghost Quarter). Win cons will be mill (of course), possibly Tezzeret ultimate, and unleashing some bomber creatures with pandora. Including some controlling permanents like Oblivion Ring to nullify any threats opponents get out with the box. I worry that in order to make the deck effective I will also have to make it very unfun to play with, (As control often ends up) but I am hoping that won't be the case.

Probably best with Pestilence Demon and ETB effects. Something to wipe everyone and get a lot of value. Trinket mage also makes this pretty neat.

Note that you'll get a lot of lands out of this as well. Useful in artifact decks as well (untapping and tapping can cause it to go off quickly; lots of permanents.) Probably brutal with Craterhoof.

Great draw denial card when paired with Witches' Eye.
Don't like your top card, but your opponent does? Tap Pyxis and deny your opponent a card they want.
Don't like your top card and they don't know if they want theirs? Tap Pyxis and have your opponent lose a card without knowing what it might have been.
They finally destroy Pyxis? You know you lost nothing of value in the exchange while they could well have lost a God or Planeswalker.

Conversely, if you know your opponent doesn't have artifact/permanent removal spells you can load up on expensive creatures and use multiple Pyxis to draw them onto the field.

If nothing else, it's a card that makes opponents stop and reassess the board state.

Combo with a courser of kruphix and you'll always know what you're gonna get by that 7th turn.

One of the few ways to permanently remove commanders from the game in EDH. Seems worth playing around with just for that.