I had a hard time deciding which cards to feature today, so I'm going to just do a quick rundown on three of them. Why not?
First up:
Here's a quick gander at my foil Magic Jar (Urza's Legacy). Not worth quite as much as I was hoping it would be. I guess I was hoping it may be used in Commander/EDH which would really crank up the value! Maybe I should get my foil playset before that happens?
Magic Jar was a card I used in my Discard deck for a long time, I kept taking them out and putting them back in. It's just a lot of fun, but it can also be pretty brutal for your opponents. So much so that I believe it was preemptively banned in most formats and restricted (meaning players can only use one copy of the card in their decks) in the Vintage format. I guess I can see why, it's pretty powerful for costing only five colorless mana.
It was particularly powerful in a Discard deck combined with the key piece I've mentioned time after time, during this A to Z Challenge:
Megrim (Stronghold) is the primary card of my (and most) Discard decks. This is because it deals damage to opponents for each card they discard. And the effect stacks if you have multiple in play, potentially dealing double and/or triple damage for each card they discard! With Memory Jar you could possibly force players to discard seven cards (unless they draw cards from Magic Jar's ability that they can cast right away — usually only a handful, if any). So, as you can imagine I played with many cards forcing discarding, mostly those targeting all opponents and/or all players, since I played a lot of Chaos (basically multiplayer).
It's not really worth anything, even in foil versions, but I wanted that all-foil Discard deck. It's probably because it's been printed many times and could be overshadowed by Liliana's Caress, which does the same thing but costs one less. Ah well, Megrim will always have a place in my heart!
And then there is Moat (Legends).
I remember being excited when getting this card in a collection I bought ages ago, even though I've never played with it. I just really wanted it! Unfortunately there are two markings that look like fingernail indents on it. Bummer! Regardless, it was one of the most expensive pieces of my collection for along time. It currently sits at about $350 maybe? I'm not sure what value mine holds with those markings, though.
Moat is played in the Legacy format, but I'm unfamiliar with what decks. I'm assuming those with control aspects, since this one stops creatures from attacking, similar to Ensnaring Bridge.
So there you have it! Some more pieces that made up my Discard Decks, and a control card I've never played with. Hope you enjoyed!
Have you ever played with any of these cards? If so, which and in what decks? Do you know why Magic Jar was banned in Legacy formats and restricted in Vintage? Was there a specific deck build that was insanely overpowered card with it's use?