I read the bones? I read the bones! Guys, I READ THE BONES!!!
.Blaze.
★★★★☆ (4.3/5.0)(8 votes)
I think this is better than Sign in Blood. Its easily splashable and going Scry into Draw is VERY good.
Lord_of_Tresserhorn
★★★☆☆ (3.5/5.0)(3 votes)
Today, the Bones tell me... nothing.
Guys, don't let this happen to you! Get the new Scry Addon and READ EM AND WEEP! :D
Very sweet common!
XTwistedsoulX
★★☆☆☆ (2.8/5.0)(2 votes)
Naw, I already read em. Too wordy.
Lord_Skoonie
★★★☆☆ (3.8/5.0)(4 votes)
Beautiful card. Theros has some powerhouse commons!
JaxsonBateman
★★★★★ (5.0/5.0)(9 votes)
If we look at it as a Night's Whisper variant, it's effectively scry 2 for an extra mana. That seems well worth it. Compare it in mana cost to Divination, and 2 life for scry 2 seems well worth it.
It's just an example of one of those cards that isn't a bomb, or removal, or an evasive creature, but one that you'd love to have in your limited deck. Will also potentially see play in constructed, showing how good it is.
In other formats, will be strong in casual, and will pop up in many EDH decks. It's just all around good.
Personally, hoping to get some foils; it's a great card and the color scheme seems like it'd lend itself well to the foil ways.
This is a set with a lot of very nice commons, I've noticed. Refreshing!
Although due to the circle, it kind of looks like the dude's playing a very deranged game of Pickup Sticks or something.
Continue
★★★★★ (5.0/5.0)(4 votes)
Compare to Night's Whisper, Divination, and Preordain. This stacks up quite well to all three of them. The potential to dig four cards deep is more than enough to get a 5/5 from me.
sweetgab
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
This is a very reasonable card in any black deck. It is also a very good replacement for Think Twice in Esper control.
Eternal_Blue
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
At first I'd been weighing this against Sign In Blood, which is a staple in my Pauper MBC deck. Is it worth an additional mana to ensure that the cards I draw aren't merely Swamps? Well, I have to say two things: #1) Yes. My deck has a few keys cards it needs to set itself off and this will help in getting them; and #2) Why compare them when I can just run both? Divination sees some play and it doesn't even get to scry beforehand, so I'm confident this will be played in Standard and then find itself a home in many black Pauper decks.
This is one of three commons in this set I am truly excited about adding to a Pauper deck. Pauper, unfortunately, usually doesn't get many toys. So when it does I'm happy to find a place for them. For those curious, the other two cards are: Gray Merchant of Asphodel (which goes well with this card), and Akroan Crusader (a nice build-around-me card).
I'm loving the flavor here, even if my interpretation is a bit different from what the flavor text suggests. "I need to read the future...need to find some bones...wait...I have bones!" *tears out rib* "Success!" *notes bleeding* "Sh!t."
supafly13
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
Stronger card than many realize... (Love to see something like this as an instant however...)
HuntingDrake
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
@XepherXero, space-coyote: Especially this Casting of Bones! :D
SeriouslyFacetious
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
So many references... The World Series of Dice, the shifty Mennonites on the Simpsons, that one Rush song (yes, I know it's actually Roll the Bones)...
Toquinha1977
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
We go out in the world and take our chances / Fate is just the weight of circumstances / That's the way that lady luck dances / Roll the bones.
blurrymadness
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
Finds what you need or digs 4 for it. What's more? It's color light, it's card advantage, and requires nothing to work effectively. It's just good itself.
BongRipper420
★★★★★ (5.0/5.0)(1 vote)
Powerful, efficient utility. will definitely find a slot in Black EDH decks everywhere. In addition, this is definitely a bone thrown to control decks in standard, and is even playable in modern while still being excellent in pauper. Well designed if you ask me. Being relevant to so many formats while still being a perfectly balanced card.
5/5 easy. Not for power level, but for design. These kinds of cards are good for the game at both a casual and competitive level.
CapmCrunch
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
This card keeps sinking in my evaluation of this set, at least in draft. At first I saw the Black Foresee, but there are a number of archetypes in this format that just kill you before the card advantage can help. Best in the WB lifegain deck, with the Drain Turtles to help stall and gain some life back. Still, WU, RU, WR and RB all laugh in the face of this card. Sadly a three drop that can attack and block is just better most of the time.
Crawling_Chaos
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
Love this card, 2 life is a small price to pay to get what you need.
kiseki
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
Draft this card. Scry 2 is more powerful than you think, especially in limited. Most spells with scry cost 1-2 more than the version that don't have scry, but this adds a powerful scry for free.
N03y3D33R
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
The extra one mana is often worth paying over Sign in Blood. If you're going to lose two life to draw two cards you might as well get the most out of it.
bertuccia32
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.5/5.0)(3 votes)
@Campcrunch
A little tip: the people who are good at magic actually construct decks of their own with the cards they have! It's ok, I used to limited was the extent of magic, too. You'll turn 12 soon, though.
Toraka
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
From the moment this was printeed, future to any time, Divination is now known as "Read the Bones for wussies".
And it's great.
MasterOfParadox
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
Time for some flavor explaining. Believe it or not, this card was based off of a divination device from early China. Back in the days of early China, the Shang Dynasty, China's second dynasty, invented this little thing called Oracle Bones. If someone had a question, they would get one of these, go to the royal court, write their question on the bones, and then the priests would burn it until it had cracks in it. Then the priests would interpret what the cracks meant. The message was thought to be from dead ancestors, hence the flavor text. Long after the fall of the Shang dynasty, the early Greek copied the whole Oracle Bones concept. That's what this card is about.
TexasDice
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
The foil looks pretty dissapionting. :/
Still, good card is good. In non-mono black mirrors, you can easily play this over Underworld Connections and leave all their enchantment-removal stranded without a single target.
Comments (31)
Guys, don't let this happen to you! Get the new Scry Addon and READ EM AND WEEP! :D
Very sweet common!
It's just an example of one of those cards that isn't a bomb, or removal, or an evasive creature, but one that you'd love to have in your limited deck. Will also potentially see play in constructed, showing how good it is.
In other formats, will be strong in casual, and will pop up in many EDH decks. It's just all around good.
Personally, hoping to get some foils; it's a great card and the color scheme seems like it'd lend itself well to the foil ways.
Although due to the circle, it kind of looks like the dude's playing a very deranged game of Pickup Sticks or something.
This is one of three commons in this set I am truly excited about adding to a Pauper deck. Pauper, unfortunately, usually doesn't get many toys. So when it does I'm happy to find a place for them. For those curious, the other two cards are: Gray Merchant of Asphodel (which goes well with this card), and Akroan Crusader (a nice build-around-me card).
Digging four deep for 3 mana is pretty damn good. Its not Ancient Cravings, but its almost as good.
- Jasper
Was getting tired of the Skulltap variants.
"I need to read the future...need to find some bones...wait...I have bones!"
*tears out rib*
"Success!"
*notes bleeding*
"Sh!t."
Especially this Casting of Bones! :D
5/5 easy. Not for power level, but for design. These kinds of cards are good for the game at both a casual and competitive level.
Scry 2 is more powerful than you think, especially in limited. Most spells with scry cost 1-2 more than the version that don't have scry, but this adds a powerful scry for free.
A little tip: the people who are good at magic actually construct decks of their own with the cards they have! It's ok, I used to limited was the extent of magic, too. You'll turn 12 soon, though.
And it's great.
Back in the days of early China, the Shang Dynasty, China's second dynasty, invented this little thing called Oracle Bones. If someone had a question, they would get one of these, go to the royal court, write their question on the bones, and then the priests would burn it until it had cracks in it. Then the priests would interpret what the cracks meant. The message was thought to be from dead ancestors, hence the flavor text. Long after the fall of the Shang dynasty, the early Greek copied the whole Oracle Bones concept.
That's what this card is about.
Still, good card is good.
In non-mono black mirrors, you can easily play this over Underworld Connections and leave all their enchantment-removal stranded without a single target.