Highlander Magic

MagicPlayer Highlander => Highlander Strategy => Banned List & Rules => Topic started by: Dr. Opossum on 29-09-2019, 03:53:49 PM

Title: Results Survey 21/9/2019 (Finnish Championship)
Post by: Dr. Opossum on 29-09-2019, 03:53:49 PM
This survey was handed out by Council member pyyhttu at the Finnish Championships tournament in Helsinki, Finland, Sept. 21th. There were 62 players and 33 participated in the survey.

How often do you play Highlander (highlandermagic.info rules)?
(absolute frequencies)

(https://i.imgur.com/HeZj5Pt.png)


How satisfied are you with the format currently on a scale from 1 to 10 (1=not at all, 10=very much)?
(absolute frequencies)

(https://i.imgur.com/h408z1E.png)

(mean)
(median -> resistant to outliers)

(https://i.imgur.com/d2yKLkc.png)

satisfaction according to how often Highlander is played

(https://i.imgur.com/BHtNsRP.png)


These card(s) should be banned/ unbanned:
(absolute frequencies)
(relative frequencies)
Ban wishes:

(https://i.imgur.com/uVENrp6.png)

Unban wishes:

(https://i.imgur.com/7tBSnfP.png)


Reasonings (single cards):
(I tried to make the written reasonings as unadulterated as possible, even if there were synonymous formulations (eg "too strong" vs. "too powerful").)

Demonic Tutor
- 2 mana, sorcery is ok
- cool card
- card is too powerful
- we have enough tutors
- it usually finds answers 2x
- if banned, several archetypes lose to combo / aggro
- tutors are fine as long as there is non-basic land hate to keep the decks in check
- auto-include 2x
- makes games way too long (have to think a lot of lines)
- vampiric and mystical are not legal but demonic is?
- all black decks play this but dont feel unfair
- iconic
- needed to give control/ combo its tools against aggro
- enables boring games
- makes blue way too strong color to play
- is just a copy of best card in deck
- combo can manage without it
- repetitive game play

Dig Through Time
- staple in U decks, but not oppressive
- ban this or cruise
- just value
- against ban but this is closest to bannable
- UU instant too effective
- like playing with them
- first to cast this in blue mirror wins
- oppressive
- good when ahead
- fair control card
- needs setup
- easy to play against -> risk vs. reward

Entomb
- needs build around
- too easy to find combo pieces
- Reanimator is not too prominent
- fair card (for reanimator) 2x
- only benefits "the best deck" -> Animate
- too fast
- enables weird decks

Mana Drain
- ok I guess
- just another counterspell with upside
- creates unfun games when cast early
- too big swings in game state for very little cost
- 99% of the time just counterspell
- makes one-sided games
- blue is too strong color -> one blue ban is good
- too different of a powerlevel
- sometimes loppsided
- too randomly powerful
- randomly annoying, not too good
- most of the time just counterspell, sometimes rarely broken
- needed for control, otherwise combo gets too good
- can go if entomb goes, but requires commitment

Tainted Pact
- can't be used so well in combo
- requires good deckbuilding
- is a bit too strong in midrange
- gives multicolor decks instant Demonic Tutor
- fair tutor as requires to build deck around x2
- should not because power level
- instant speed tutor for answers is too good
- instant speed tutor that often wins the game
- after resolving finds the needed combo piece
- this card is actively bad
- low basic count to be really good
- instant demonic
- crazy tutor, broken instant speed
- no drawback tutor for combo

Tolarian Academy
- totally ok
- card is busted
- if not this -> ban mishra's workshop
- too powerful
- requires full build around
- maybe
- does too unfair things and reduces interaction
- should not as enables archetype
- unfair decks cant be beaten when on the draw
- deck not powerful enough
- academy decks would not exist without
- don't feel too unfair
- just fair
- random deck
- strong but not op
- stupid and uninteractive

Treasure Cruise
- totally ok
- blue is strong enough
- ban this or dig, not both
- just value
- a lot fairer than DTT
- cost is reasonable large and cards are random
- like playing with them
- first to cast this in blue mirror wins
- oppressive
- format is currently to focused on resolving this or dig
- good draw, too good when ahead
- needs setup
- easy to play against -> risk vs. reward

True-Name Nemesis
- enough ways to deal in format  2x
- a lot of decks don't even care about Nemesis
- unsure about this card
- stupid non-interactive card
- should be banned in all 2-player formats
- not because it's "powerfull", but just plain awful game design
- fair blue beatdown
- blue is too strong color -> one blue ban is good
- does not have enough answers in HL
- often "i win card" without interaction
- every time this resolves, game turns to stupid and has no interaction
- plain stupid x2
- lot of decks in format dont have answer for the card that has protection from player
- really oppressive card to play against
- way to oppressive and random
- some decks don't have answers
- come on WTF? Seriously?
- dies to everything
- can be raced
- non-interactive

Oath of Druids
- ruins all fair creature decks
- 1 card win
- stops aggro from progressing
- way too powerful

Wasteland
- autoinclude
- wins randomly too many games
- silver bullet
- non-games

Fetchlands
- funds delve
- makes stupidly good manabases
- makes games super long and round time becomes an issue
- shuffling is not fun
- no thought to be put in building manabases
- too much shuffling takes time

Valakut, the Molten Pinnacle
- 1 card win, no need huge build around it
- 1 card combo in midrange/control deck that does not require specific deck building around it
- can't be interacted with removal
- unnecessary and unfair 1-win-the-game card
- land ramp in that deck is completely optional, can play value spells instead

Savage Knuckleblade
- too stronk

Teferi, Time Reveler
- breaks control mirror matchups
- who ever has this wins
- static ability way too strong

Karakas
- getting better and better
- hoses pretty much all decks randomly

Blood Moon
- makes red in 3 color decks to dominant

General
- all of those cards are so high on powerlevel that they decide games by themselves
- legacy banlist would be a decent start
- format is in a good place -> no need for bans / unbans currently
- Highlander needs a sideboard
- Blood Moon and Back to Basics should NOT be banned -> otherwise 3c+ decks would dominate and format would become worse without 1-2 color decks

Skullclamp
- no please
- no thanks
- card is busted
- dont unban, horror midrange mirrors
- too much stupid combo potential
- more power for aggro
- card still broken, no need
- have tested -> too oppressive
- this one is tilting
- might create new decks
- are you in your right mind?
- i don't know but this card looks broke
- no simply just no
- never unban Skullclamp please

Umezawa's Jitte
- no please
- on the fence
- disruptable, many good artifact hate cards
- would be willing to test/ try this out
- dont unban, horror midrange mirrors
- easy to answer
- interesting decisions for both players
- creature matchups become a race to get Jitte
- card still broken, no need
- have tested -> too oppressive
- would be too decisive top deck in aggro mirrors
- way too strong and makes Stoneforge too
- Jitte could have try

Natural Order
- can also be used in fair decks
- Oath is legal while this is banned
- unban makes green decks better
- the card is expensive and fair since the cost of 4
- no reason to keep it banned
- power level of decks can compete with this nowadays
- the card is just fine
- 4cc sorcery with drawback of being green

Gifts Ungiven
- slow and decent control draw
- very slow card
- disruptable
- good unban if Academy gets banned
- worse than Cruise or Dig
- powerlevel of other cards is far beyond this
- was never ban worthy, again 4cc card

Library of Alexandria
- slow in a format that's fast and puuatol (?)
- so slow nowadays

Mystical Tutor
- there are better tutors now legal 2x

Birthing Pod
- this might be stretching but would like to see

Balance
- symmetrical and fair

Mind Twist
- Why not? Slow, strong but really good

Shahrazad
- just learn to play fast

Flash
- too random to be powerful


What Mulligan do you prefer?
(absolute frequencies)
(relative frequencies)

(https://i.imgur.com/WKKdDpw.png)


Reasonings (Mulligan):
(I tried to make the written reasonings as unadulterated as possible, even if there were synonymous formulations (eg "too strong" vs. "too powerful").)

FM + LM:
- less non-games
- current mulligan is weaker than Vancouver
- HL is inconsistent due to 100 cards, even with London there are too many non-games due to increased variance of 100 card decks

LM:
- efficient and strategic
- better for new players
- fast
- removes non games 4x
- it's ok
- least shuffling
- same in all formats for clarity 5x
- easy to explain
- the best mulligan ever
- it's balanced
- seems fair and gives games even when going down to 5 and below
- is very fine
- is good 4x
- same as official by WotC 3x
- makes the format more approachable
- while it helps combo decks a little, it also makes mulliganing much easier
- great mulligan

FM + VC:
- I liked the previous rule better, since it obviously gave more games with 7 card hands


How many lands did you play? Did you or would you adjust your deck to the mulligan?
(absolute frequencies)
(relative frequencies)

(https://i.imgur.com/gpDBVdb.png)


I would adjust...

- added lands x7
- check landcount
- more land tutors
- cut 1-2 lands



Edit: fixed some spelling errors
fixed some translation errors
Title: Re: Results Survey 21/9/2019 (Finnish Championship)
Post by: Nastaboi on 29-09-2019, 08:56:06 PM
As already stated in FB, "Pilaa kaikki railut ukkodekit" [sic] translates into "ruins all fair creature decks".

railu = misspelled (or copied) reilu = fair
ukko = an old man (any nicknames for men can refer to creatures in Magic) or Karelian Finnish weather god; ukkonen = thunder
Title: Re: Results Survey 21/9/2019 (Finnish Championship)
Post by: Dr. Opossum on 29-09-2019, 11:33:44 PM
TBH I am more in the "ruin all thundergods" mood now. Please don't destroy it! :-[
Title: Re: Results Survey 21/9/2019 (Finnish Championship)
Post by: DarkLight on 30-09-2019, 11:26:08 PM
Quote from: Dr. Opossum on 29-09-2019, 11:33:44 PM
TBH I am more in the "ruin all thundergods" mood now. Please don't destroy it! :-[

Poor Keranos (https://scryfall.com/card/jou/151/keranos-god-of-storms)