Great card, one of my favorite years ago (actually, even nowadays)! The ability to switching from creature to enchantment and vice-versa keeps him away from dangers. Used to save him even from combat damage, not anymore, it seems... Taking control of an opponent creature is one of the mightest effect, but you can't sacrifice it, if you want to keep this card alive. 4.5/5
Commander_Claw
★★★★☆ (4.0/5.0)(2 votes)
This is for me, the best licid out there, as it maintains the tough to kill attributes of other licids and is the only true "Mind Control" one, reinforcing licids as alien body snatchers
John-Bender
★★★★☆ (4.5/5.0)(2 votes)
Wow! Just imagine a novice getting the Dominator pre-con back in the day and reading this card. Little bit confusing eh?
Anyways this isn't half-bad control card. Being able to change card types is nice. Also you can keep doing his ability, which means he can constantly do board control.
4.5 stars.
izzet_guild_mage
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
So...it's a Control Magic that doesn't die well at all...seems fine.
Saxophonist
★★★☆☆ (3.9/5.0)(4 votes)
Huh. Reminds me of the brain slugs from Futurama.
Treima
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
Impressive piece of work. Its ability is cheaper than spells like Mind Control and can be used and re-used as you please. They just don't make cards this flavorful anymore.
allmighty_abacus
★★★★★ (5.0/5.0)(11 votes)
A friend had a blue control deck with a pretty standard array of countermagic, but then he also ran four of this guy. This was by far the most annoying card in the deck, because you just couldn't kill it.
"terror? In response I steal your devouring strossus, terror fizzles." "disenchant does nothing as this isn't an enchantment anymore." "dominating licid dodges the tranquility, then becomes a control magic on your thorn elemental." "in response to wrath of god, I steal akroma."
ASDFGASFD STOP STEALING MY STUFF AND LET ME KILL THE DAMNED THING
djbon2112
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
Why have these guys not been reprinted/redone a la Slivers, etc.? Amazing idea. And, contrary to Vorthosian, these cards are hardly confusing, just wordy (kinda like Suspend). If you can't figure out what this is trying to do there's no hope left for you in the world of Magic.
Gabriel422
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
SO sadistic!
dberry02
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
Who would have thought that such an old card could take down the mightest eldrazi of today?
@abacus: Wrath of God does kill this... but then, that's because it also kills Akroma (or any other creature it is on that isn't indestructible) ;)
TPmanW
★★★★☆ (4.8/5.0)(3 votes)
Licids are pretty sweet. The idea could have been implemented a little more gracefully though. Also I'm pretty sure licid is a real word. $#&^ +@spell checker
adinsx3
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
@John-Bender:
Dominator was my very first pre-con deck. And yes, I was very confused.
4.5 stars from me too. I still use it in my control decks.
Edit: I also like how the oracle text has "you control enchanted creature" be a static ability of the licid *even when it is a creature*.
rinoh20
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
this still dies to wrath. if its a enchantment, it's sent to the graveyard from no enchanted creature. if its a creaure, it dies from the wrath.
blindthrall
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
If it's already an enchantment, it doesn't die to wraths. Let the sweeper resolve, then pay the {U}.
MuffinMafia
★★★★★ (5.0/5.0)(3 votes)
What happens when you copy enchantment him? can you turn the enchantment into the licid again?
XTwistedsoulX
★★☆☆☆ (2.6/5.0)(6 votes)
These were difficult to get rid of, aside from nailing it before the summoning sickness was done.
Heres a few ways to deal with them now if you got a friend who uses (Abuses) these old school gems.
#1 : Krosan Grip,Sudden Death, Sudden Shock Or anything simular. Split Second will not allow time for any switcharoo antics.
#2 : Planar Cleansing or any other mass removal that hits both cretures and enchantments at the same time.
#3 : Abeyance, Cursed Totem, City of solitude or any other card that can throw off activated abilitys. Some, like Bind simply require common sense timing.
#4 : You can always upend the table, yell like a barbarian and refuse to play. Its not proper ettiquite but good lord is it effective. :)
Tanaka348
★★★★★ (5.0/5.0)(3 votes)
@blindthrall: That won't work. Once the wrath resolves, state based actions put the Licid into the graveyard for not enchanting anything before you can get priority, and ending the effect is a special action that you can only take when you have priority.
@muffinmafia: Copy effects always copy only the printed values of the card, with the sole exception of other copy effects. So if you copy enchantment a Licid, you get the Licid as a creature to begin with.
DarthParallax
★★★★★ (5.0/5.0)(3 votes)
Is this the most powerful Control Magic effect in the game?
If so, I want four of them, Foil and New Art, in Premium Deck Series: Gagh!
(Premium Deck Series: Gagh! will be the name of the deck that reprints Force of Will as a Mythic, comes with a Foil version of Jace's Fact or Fiction, and various other "No"-themed and "I'm Blue, what did you expect, fairness?" cards) :D
Atali
★★★★★ (5.0/5.0)(2 votes)
This (and the other Licids) would be perfect as double-faced cards.
Arachnos
★★★★★ (5.0/5.0)(2 votes)
A slightly more expensive Mind Control in total CMC, but can be paid over two turns. Also can switch targets if needed, and dodge both creature-kill and aura-kill spells, which is pretty neat. Probably the absolute best of the licids.
N3rf
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
The best way to get rid of him is to force out his ability (by attacking for instance) and then using any destruction while licid's ability is on the stack. Since the licid tapped, he cant reactivate it again.
Lord_Ascapelion
★★★★★ (5.0/5.0)(2 votes)
I don't care what anyone says, Licids are awesome and this is the best of the bunch.
syrazemyla
★★★★★ (5.0/5.0)(2 votes)
@XTwistedsoulX: Sudden Death and Sudden Shock will work, but Krosan Grip won't. Ending the licid's effect is a special action that doesn't use the stack, like morph.
115.2c Some effects allow a player to take an action at a later time, usually to end a continuous effect or to stop a delayed triggered ability from triggering. Doing so is a special action. A player can take such an action any time he or she has priority, but only if the ability or effect allows it.
So you can pop a licid off any time you have priority, even when a spell with split second is on the stack.
The actual answer to licids is Mortify. It's not a modal spell, so it'll kill it even if it changes between casting and resolution.
Kirbster
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
Licids are probably the only tribe where the creature depicted on the card is not the most prominent thing in the art.
LordRandomness
★★★★★ (5.0/5.0)(2 votes)
Experiment Kraj places a +1/+1 counter on this and uses the ability. Amusingly the oracle text wording changes how this works: On the card it's part of the ability, whereas on Oracle the "control" part is a static ability on the Licid and therefore not copied by Kraj.
I *THINK* how this works is Kraj becomes an aura that enchants a creature and does literally nothing. However, since the only ability he loses is this one he gets to keep all of his other delicious activated abilities while in enchantment form. Sounds fun!
...wait. What happens if Kraj then uses a fight ability, like the one on Durkwood Tracker for instance? Probably the same thing as someone trying to deal combat damage to a Lumithread Field, but still.
Aquillion
★★★★★ (5.0/5.0)(2 votes)
This card lost a huge amount of power when that M10 rules change removed damage from the stack. Back when damage used the stack, you could steal an opponent's creature, use it to chump-block or suicide attack, then pull the Licid off it while it has lethal damage on the stack and it'd die, leaving you with a Licid you could use to steal something else.
No longer works. And unlike most such tricks, you can't do it at all anymore, because pulling the Licid off before combat damage is done results in the creature being removed from combat and surviving. Oh well.
atemu1234
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
Y'know, I have a way to make a licid that I find pretty cool.
X Licid (not actual name) {1}{W/U/B/R/G} Creature- Licid {W/U/B/R/G}{T} X Licid becomes an aura and attaches to target creature. Enchanted creature (x). Put a +1/+1 counter on X Licid at the beginning of each of your opponent's upkeeps. If X Licid's power exceeds the toughness of the enchanted creature, destroy that creature and X Licid becomes a creature on your side of the field. 1/1 I meant the WUBRG to represent one mana of any color, not them all.
Gameguy602
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
I once killed one in a multiplayer match... by conceding when it was on one of my creatures.
Norin-the-Wary
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
So, I was making an Experiment Kraj EDH deck, and I went to look through gatherer of all the nice activated abilities that he could borrow. This card popped up, and I decided to give it a shot. This licid is INCREDIBLE. It dodges so many attempts to remove it, and most of the other attempts that would kill it (such as Maelstrom Pulse were countered. One of the only ways to truly remove this is a board wipe or a spell that sacrifices as a cost. I can honestly say I won games solely off the back of this card.
Comments (31)
The ability to switching from creature to enchantment and vice-versa keeps him away from dangers. Used to save him even from combat damage, not anymore, it seems...
Taking control of an opponent creature is one of the mightest effect, but you can't sacrifice it, if you want to keep this card alive.
4.5/5
Anyways this isn't half-bad control card. Being able to change card types is nice. Also you can keep doing his ability, which means he can constantly do board control.
4.5 stars.
"terror? In response I steal your devouring strossus, terror fizzles."
"disenchant does nothing as this isn't an enchantment anymore."
"dominating licid dodges the tranquility, then becomes a control magic on your thorn elemental."
"in response to wrath of god, I steal akroma."
ASDFGASFD STOP STEALING MY STUFF AND LET ME KILL THE DAMNED THING
Emrakul, the Aeons Torn? Why thank you! :D
Also I'm pretty sure licid is a real word. $#&^ +@spell checker
Dominator was my very first pre-con deck. And yes, I was very confused.
4.5 stars from me too. I still use it in my control decks.
Edit: I also like how the oracle text has "you control enchanted creature" be a static ability of the licid *even when it is a creature*.
Heres a few ways to deal with them now if you got a friend who uses (Abuses) these old school gems.
#1 : Krosan Grip,Sudden Death, Sudden Shock Or anything simular. Split Second will not allow time for any switcharoo antics.
#2 : Planar Cleansing or any other mass removal that hits both cretures and enchantments at the same time.
#3 : Abeyance, Cursed Totem, City of solitude or any other card that can throw off activated abilitys. Some, like Bind simply require common sense timing.
#4 : You can always upend the table, yell like a barbarian and refuse to play. Its not proper ettiquite but good lord is it effective. :)
@muffinmafia: Copy effects always copy only the printed values of the card, with the sole exception of other copy effects. So if you copy enchantment a Licid, you get the Licid as a creature to begin with.
If so, I want four of them, Foil and New Art, in Premium Deck Series: Gagh!
(Premium Deck Series: Gagh! will be the name of the deck that reprints Force of Will as a Mythic, comes with a Foil version of Jace's Fact or Fiction, and various other "No"-themed and "I'm Blue, what did you expect, fairness?" cards) :D
115.2c Some effects allow a player to take an action at a later time, usually to end a continuous effect or to stop a delayed triggered ability from triggering. Doing so is a special action. A player can take such an action any time he or she has priority, but only if the ability or effect allows it.
So you can pop a licid off any time you have priority, even when a spell with split second is on the stack.
The actual answer to licids is Mortify. It's not a modal spell, so it'll kill it even if it changes between casting and resolution.
I *THINK* how this works is Kraj becomes an aura that enchants a creature and does literally nothing. However, since the only ability he loses is this one he gets to keep all of his other delicious activated abilities while in enchantment form. Sounds fun!
...wait. What happens if Kraj then uses a fight ability, like the one on Durkwood Tracker for instance? Probably the same thing as someone trying to deal combat damage to a Lumithread Field, but still.
No longer works. And unlike most such tricks, you can't do it at all anymore, because pulling the Licid off before combat damage is done results in the creature being removed from combat and surviving. Oh well.
X Licid (not actual name) {1}{W/U/B/R/G}
Creature- Licid
{W/U/B/R/G}{T} X Licid becomes an aura and attaches to target creature. Enchanted creature (x). Put a +1/+1 counter on X Licid at the beginning of each of your opponent's upkeeps. If X Licid's power exceeds the toughness of the enchanted creature, destroy that creature and X Licid becomes a creature on your side of the field.
1/1
I meant the WUBRG to represent one mana of any color, not them all.
5/5 without a doubt.