How is the New Ghalta Balanced?
General forum
Posted on Dec. 27, 2023, 11:43 p.m. by DemonDragonJ
I know that I ask this question every time that a powerful new creature is printed, but I believe that it is justified, each time, so how is the new Ghalta, Stampede Tyrant balanced? It is a 12/12 creature for 8 mana, which is already an insanely good bargain, but it even has a powerful triggered ability, with no downside, so I fail to see how it is at all balanced.
What does everyone else say about this? How is the new Ghalta remotely balanced?
DemonDragonJ says... #3
legendofa, that does make sense, so I think that I now need to start a thread that asks why creatures have been becoming so mana-efficient, recently.
December 28, 2023 8:56 a.m.
Loses to Torpor Orb/Hushbringer and Thoughtseize/Despise and Counterspell/Essence Scatter.... lol jk jk jk
Certainly powerful.... but you need to not only consistently ramp into it but also have threats in hand to capitalize on its effect.... personally i think the new cascade/discover cards are just more problematic than this but that's a separate debate.
December 28, 2023 2:08 p.m.
TypicalTimmy says... #5
As a Timmy, I can tell you I would absolutely blink him with Sneak Attack or Deadeye Navigator. And if you have something such as Elemental Bond, you can replenish your hand. If you have Fervor, you can swing en mass.
But, it's also going to mean you are public enemy number 1
If you don't build for that, you'd basically want to unload only what you need to secure a minor win in that position, and not lose your entire grip to something stupid
January 2, 2024 8:34 p.m.
TypicalTimmy Not to detract from your main point, but Cyclonic Rift might be one of the better outcomes for Ghalta, especially if you have a lot of ETB abilities.
Yeah, with good setup, Ghalta can blow a game wide open.
legendofa says... #2
The ability is more or less single use, and it depletes your hand. It's not unreasonable to use it to try to win the game that turn, but 1. That comes with the territory of being a high-mana mythic, and 2. It doesn't really win the game by itself. It doesn't grant haste, and it doesn't directly deal damage or mill. If you use it incorrectly, it becomes worse than useless, as you over extend into a board wipe or something, losing both your board and your hand.
Of course, it's easy enough to say "if you play wrong, you're going to lose." Looking at whether the ability is actually overpowered, Ghalta, Stampede Tyrant has an effect comparable to Myojin of Life's Web (which has an option for indestructibility) or Rise of the Dark Realms (a black deck's graveyard can easily be on par with a green deck's hand), and less efficient than Primal Surge (play everything in hand vs. play everything in your deck). So the ability exists in this mana range, trading heavier color weight for a slightly lower cost.
For the mana value/stats ratio, creatures have been generally trending better, especially in green. When Ghalta and Mavren team up, the result is even more mana-efficient. Yargle and Multani has 24 total P/T for just six mana and no restrictions. So Ghalta's mana value/stats ratio is notable, but not extreme or unprecendented.
Ghalta, Stampede Tyrant provides a lot of value for a high cost, and when used intelligently can win the game on the spot. The same can be said for almost every other high-mana mythic rare card, many of which are on the same or higher power level.
December 28, 2023 12:28 a.m.