[MTG] June Bans

[Flame Dragon]

The first that we know of are the ones for Commander. The losses are
[img]http://magiccards.info/scans/en/avr/106.jpg[/img][img]http://magiccards.info/scans/en/fvr/13.jpg[/img]

We'll know the other constructed format bans in a few hours. When we get them I'll update.

[Resident Fascist]

Why Sundering Titan? Isn't EDH the format of non-basic lands?

[Simping For Hina]

A lot of people do use basic lands in EDH for many reasons. Fetchlands and Tap lands most of the time. And Sundering would normally just destroy anyone's chances of using them, and they are quite useful in EDH.

[Flame Dragon]

[quote name='Јordan' timestamp='1340150623' post='5959483']
Why Sundering Titan? Isn't EDH the format of non-basic lands?
[/quote]
http://mtgcommander.net/Forum/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=12073

Goes into why they were banned.

[Flame Dragon]

So, changes are:
Legacy
Land Tax unbanned.

No other changes.

Reason given for no other changes
"The DCI looked at the results of competitive Standard events. We found that while a high percentage of the participants played WU Delver decks, that the win rate of those decks was very close to par. For instance, in a recent MTGO PTQ, the win rate of WU Delver decks against non-Delver decks was a bit under 51%. In general there are decks that the Delver deck is strong against, and decks that it is weak against, but on average the deck tends to get results close to average. Additionally the number of people playing high level Standard events is the highest ever.

Looking at the Magic 2013 card set, it appears that there may be more tools for other decks than for the UW Delver deck, though time will tell if this bears out. The DCI will continue to observe how this plays out, but is taking no action."

[Wave_Sine]

Good thing I never bothered getting a Griselbrand for my Kaliaa.EDH.

Glad Avacyn wasn't banned, though she clearly didn't make nearly as much impact as a bizarre creature version of Necropotence that is much more relevant outside of Kaliaa.

[Mysty]

[quote name='Wave_Sine' timestamp='1340180900' post='5959785']
Glad Avacyn wasn't banned, though she clearly didn't make nearly as much impact as a bizarre creature version of Necropotence that is much more relevant outside of Kaliaa.
[/quote]

Griselbrand was comparable in power to Yawgmoth's Bargain (the banned EDH card), if not more powerful.

First, Griselbrand doesn't skip your draw phase, so you get one extra card per turn.
Second, he's a creature, so you can reanimate him and his mana cost likely won't matter.
Third, he has 7 power and lifelink, which means he helps pay for 7 cards in one combat phase.
Fourth, he's a Legendary Creature - you can make him a general.
Fifth, if your opponent Mindslavers you, you probably have a way on your opponent's turn to sacrifice Griselbrand or, at the very least, you have to be at a multiple of 7 life to lose the game.

The three downsides to him are:
He costs 8 mana as a general or to hard-cast him while the Bargain only cost 6
His deals are in increments of 7.
He's a creature, making him easier to deal with.

If played as a general, mono-black has so much mana ramp that the mana cost would be insignificant (and you'd always have Griselbrand available to you). Even if not playing monoblack or Griselbrand not as a general, you're still obviously playing black, so Entomb/Buried Alive and reanimation is an option for Griselbrand while for Bargain they are not. In any other case, we are talking about EDH; a jump from 6 mana to 8 mana (and from 2 black to 4 black) shouldn't be too significant if black is at all important to deck using the color.
His deals being in an increment of 7 is a slight inhibitor. However, in EDH, with a starting life total of 40, 7 life is much less significant. The only problem would then be the extra cards that you have to discard at the end of the turn. Oh wait, we're playing black, so we can just discard the big creatures for more reanimation. Or we could dig for our Venser's Journal or Reliquary Tower.
As for him being a creature, being easier to deal with will usually mean that the way to get rid of him are less permanent (unless he's not the general and is exiled). As a general, the only decent way to deal with him is by putting him into the deck. If you do that, though, they could, in response, use his ability until they hit any of Black's tutoring cards, and then, after Griselbrand gets put back, just use one to add him back to the hand again.

Now let's look at Avacyn. She can do anything from letting you blow the disk up infinite times to combat tricks, but in all cases, a poorly-timed (for you) Swords to Plowshares or other banishing or tucking effect can ruin your whole day. Honestly, I think it's a perfectly fair ability for 8 mana (even in a color with a slight amount of reanimation).

However, repeatable 1 life for 1 card (even required in intervals of 7) isn't really fair at any mana cost.