M11 is right around the corner and the spoiler sites are already showing the boxes and intro packs, which means we're just a few short days away from starting to see what this set has to offer.
Before that all happens, as a rookie to these sets, I want to make my own predictions as to what's coming in this set, and what's going away. So here we go:
1. Baneslayer is out
Sorry fanboys, Baneslayer Angel is rotated out of play. For the past year this card has been a staple in any deck that had the word "white" in it. It doesn't matter if it made any sense in the deck. Weenie swarm? Needs Baneslayer. White control? Baneslayer. Blue green control? Better splash some white so you can have a Baneslayer. The price is coming down on these cards as people wait with bated breath to see if it makes the cut or not. Either way, expect to see the price drop in the next month.
2. Nocturnus is out
This one hurts a bit, but Nocturnus is being rotated out, however, Vampires will have a new staple card to help them win games, it may be the Nirkana Revenant we saw from last set, or it may be something new. We'll see soon.
3. Path to Exile is out ... Swords to Plowshares is in
Path to Exile is the current one drop white spell that causes everyone to curse a little bit when they get hit by it. With Oblivion Ring and Path to Exile both leaving our hands this October, Wizards is going to bring back a piece of power on par with Lightning Bolt in M10. Welcome back Swords to Plowshares (or something very close to it). White still does need some form of instant removal, and Path to Exile is keeping games fast by offering land at the cost of a creature. Swords to Plowshares will slow things up a little bit by offering life instead of land. Players are now far less likely to remove their own creatures to find that vital piece of land they need.
4. Introducing your M11 Planeswalkers
Planeswalkers are back, but none of them are new, and they're all from things we've seen recently. Sorin comes back as black's Planeswalker, and Nissa returns as green, despite being in desperate need of a new red planeswalker, Chandra Ablaze comes back disappointing red fans everywhere (watch the next set for the new red planeswalker!). In a stunning surprise, Wizards brings Jace the Mindsculptor back for blue's, and Gideon comes in again for White. The secondary market cries openly and players who haven't gotten to spend their $280 on a set of Jace's will have a second shot at them.
5. Big creatures
Wizards is trying to slow down the current game, and its shown from the previous sets. They want to add a couple turns to the game, and they're making big creatures to be the end game condition. This set drives another nail into the coffin of the fast decks, making Timmy's everywhere rejoice.
There's my predictions for the set. We'll take a look at them in a couple months to see how I did. In the meantime, may all your opening hands have at least two land in them (unless you're playing me).
