We all know how strong Cursed Scroll is. Sure Magus is a 1/1 and thus can be removed much more often than the artifact. BUT it can hold a sword and can be searched up by Ranger of Eos.
Is he worth a try at 450 or 500?
I'd say anything's worth a try. Another thing that's nice about cursed scroll is if you topdeck it late and you're holding a land you can just get them/a creature immediately. This requires you to wait a whole turn to get a use out of it. I'd say 500 is ambitious but maybe around 640 it could be solid.
It's a decent option but don't expect to be blown away by him. One nice advantage over Cursed Scroll is if you drop him turn 1 you can probably swing for a little damage before he becomes obsolete in the redzone.
Cursed Scroll is colorless. And the Magus is the effect a fragile body. This guy isn't Cursed Scroll #2 any more than Magus of the Disk is Nevinyrral's Disk #2.
He's playable only because you need to reach a critical mass of playable 1-drops in red, and you can do that in 360 and 450 without him.
Cursed Scroll is colorless. And the Magus is the effect a fragile body. This guy isn't Cursed Scroll #2 any more than Magus of the Disk is Nevinyrral's Disk #2.
Cursed Scroll being colorless isn't that giant of an advantage, I find the vast majority of the time the decks playing Cursed Scroll are red, so this guy fits in.
Magus of the Disk has two colored mana symbols and the creature disadvantage is greater there as Doom Blade / Go For The Throat / Nekrataal / Aether Adept etc are much better spent on a 2WW creature than on a R creature.
And for the record, describing Magus of the Disk as Nevinyrral's Disk #2 wouldn't be inaccurate, the comparison is obvious and intended from Wizards' point of view.
I don't play Magus of the Disk because Nevinyrral's Disk is boarderline as is, I don't think I would play a second if they just reprinted it with a different name.
Sorry, I just don't believe this guy is cursed scroll #2. it's easier to remove, has summoning sickness, can only be played in red decks, (you'd have to be desperate to want to splash this). How many red one-drops are you playing? I can't imagine this breaks the top 8 or so, how many do you want? I guess maybe that many but at 360 its tough.
All the things I like most about Cursed Scroll are missing from Magus of the Scroll. It's colorless, so I can add it in as extra removal and reach to colors without access to red. It's not a creature, so it's not a casualty of wrath effects and doesn't die to all creature removal. It can be played and activated immediately in the later stages of the game when your hand size is small, which guarantees value from it no matter if my opponent has answers in hand or not.
We played Magus for a long time. But then they printed better red 1-drops, and I don't have to anymore. I think cubes that are in the 540+ range are still in need of it, but anything that it would exclude from a 360 list by including Magus would be a pretty big disparity in power-level.
All the things I like most about Cursed Scroll are missing from Magus of the Scroll. It's colorless, so I can add it in as extra removal and reach to colors without access to red. It's not a creature, so it's not a casualty of wrath effects and doesn't die to all creature removal. It can be played and activated immediately in the later stages of the game when your hand size is small, which guarantees value from it no matter if my opponent has answers in hand or not.
We played Magus for a long time. But then they printed better red 1-drops, and I don't have to anymore. I think cubes that are in the 540+ range are still in need of it, but anything that it would exclude from a 360 list by including Magus would be a pretty big disparity in power-level.
Pretty much all this and since Cursed Scroll is colorless it also dodges pro red. I rate him a little higher but not much, something like 500+ cards.
If they wanted to make this guy really good he'd be a Black Vise Magus instead of a Cursed Scroll Magus.
I like this guy in my 540 still, he's a beater early on and in the late game is cursed scroll, seems like the perfect red guy to me. And if they remove him... well he only cost 1 red, it's not like you're losing out on tempo or anything. Solid for 540, but I could see him getting cut at lower levels.
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I do run the Magus in my 450. The reach is nice but he's pretty borderline. The criticisms made above are valid. Sometimes he gets there, but maybe another decent burn spell would have done just as well.
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We all know how strong Cursed Scroll is. Sure Magus is a 1/1 and thus can be removed much more often than the artifact. BUT it can hold a sword and can be searched up by Ranger of Eos.
Is he worth a try at 450 or 500?
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He's Cursed Scroll #2. If Cursed Scroll is good enough for 360, this guy is just slightly worse and he can actually be better.
Everyone in my playgroup doesn't understand how cubes don't run him.
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He's playable only because you need to reach a critical mass of playable 1-drops in red, and you can do that in 360 and 450 without him.
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Cursed Scroll being colorless isn't that giant of an advantage, I find the vast majority of the time the decks playing Cursed Scroll are red, so this guy fits in.
Magus of the Disk has two colored mana symbols and the creature disadvantage is greater there as Doom Blade / Go For The Throat / Nekrataal / Aether Adept etc are much better spent on a 2WW creature than on a R creature.
And for the record, describing Magus of the Disk as Nevinyrral's Disk #2 wouldn't be inaccurate, the comparison is obvious and intended from Wizards' point of view.
I don't play Magus of the Disk because Nevinyrral's Disk is boarderline as is, I don't think I would play a second if they just reprinted it with a different name.
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We played Magus for a long time. But then they printed better red 1-drops, and I don't have to anymore. I think cubes that are in the 540+ range are still in need of it, but anything that it would exclude from a 360 list by including Magus would be a pretty big disparity in power-level.
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Pretty much all this and since Cursed Scroll is colorless it also dodges pro red. I rate him a little higher but not much, something like 500+ cards.
If they wanted to make this guy really good he'd be a Black Vise Magus instead of a Cursed Scroll Magus.
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Oh man, that would be sick.
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