Uncharted Realms: Zendikar's Last Stand
Lore forum
Posted on Feb. 17, 2016, 10:44 a.m. by RussischerZar
The air smelled ancient, disintegrated, as if even the dust granules from Ulamog's wake had fallen apart into tinier and tinier pieces until Zendikar's ruin was a film spread across the world.
RussischerZar says... #4
A pretty somber ending to a very exciting story.
Somewhat weird, and there's also no real confirmation of any kind that the Titans are really dead.
I also wonder what Jace did to Kiora's spell ... :D
February 17, 2016 11:08 a.m.
GoldGhost012 says... #5
I want card art of Jace Dissipateing Kiora's spell.
February 17, 2016 11:18 a.m.
GoldGhost012 - I think the line scans better if you go "Hallelujah it's raining Drones!"
RussischerZar - That might be the point, but we'll probably find out all the details next week.
February 17, 2016 11:40 a.m.
It was a final battle worthy of being called a final battle.
Also point Chandra for griffindor.
February 17, 2016 1:22 p.m.
RicketyEng says... #8
I didn't expect to see the climax of the OGW story happen so soon. I foresee a long denouement including some reflections from various characters' viewpoints and the beginning of Zendikar's healing.
February 17, 2016 1:31 p.m. Edited.
JakeHarlow says... #9
Are they dead? If so, Emrakul is still out there someplace...
February 17, 2016 1:36 p.m.
I may be the only persin, but I wasn't really into this one. Everything just happened too perfectly. No serious problems, no tragedy, just the end of 2 of the supposedly most powerful beings in existence. I kind of expected more. Sad that I'm on Emrakul's side now lol
February 17, 2016 5:25 p.m.
I think Kiora still falls in the friend category for the most part, she was just trying to do what she thought was the safest option for everyone/Zendikar.
February 17, 2016 6:22 p.m.
good, but i agree with mpeach1. even though i like her, i think it would've been crazy if the fire also consumed chandra and killed her
February 18, 2016 12:44 a.m.
bennybubbles says... #15
This was a pretty epic climax to a pretty epic story. The ending was on point as to how I would expect a situation like that to turn out. Cred to WOTC for amazing story.
February 18, 2016 6:10 a.m.
So, what now for our heroes? Where to go from here?
My predictions:
Gideon will likely stay behind to help finish off the remaining drones, as well as to assist in rebuilding. - It may be some time before we see him in stories again.
Nissa will remain on her home plane to oversee it's restoration, paying special attention to certain areas like Heart of Khalni, and planting the seeds given to her by an ill-fated Vampire. - Things she finds there may eventually lead to a story line where she must search for Ob Nixilis.
Jace, as we have seen, will soon arrive on Innistrad. I believe he likely goes there in search of Liliana as he said he would assist her after dealing with the Eldrazi threat on Zendikar.
Chandra will likely return to Keral Keep. Although she has taken an Oath to protect the Multiverse, she knows she also has a responsibility there as well. - She will likey stay here until the Plane come under some threat in a future story.
Kiora is a bit of a loose canon. She may ensure the Merfolk have begun their rebuilding process, but will not likely remain on Zendikar for long. - As we have seen through her interactions with the Bident, she is becoming consumed with gaining (and showing off) her abilities. - This will likely send her in search of new 'toys'.
Is there enough here for another Zendikar story? - Will the rebuilding of the Plane and the departure of the Walkers be interesting enough for another story arc, ow will Wizards take some 'time-off' and then begin the Innistrad story (with some sort of 'tie-in')?
February 18, 2016 8:44 a.m. Edited.
RicketyEng says... #17
Kiora is a proud person which makes it unacceptable to admit being wrong. She may be a little bitter that she was wrong to attack Nissa, but ultimately it was her attack that forced the others' hands to Chandra at the critical moment. I can still see her being glad it's over, but she wanted to be a more definitive part of it I think and she's going to need some time alone to reflect.
I wonder if Chandra's back injury or Nissa's apparent blindness are going to last any length of time. I would guess not, but I wonder if there will be any explanation WotC feels necessary to tell us.
February 18, 2016 9:34 a.m.
JakeHarlow says... #18
The Planeswalkers seem absurdly durable, despite the Mending. I'm sure they'll be fine.
February 18, 2016 5:08 p.m.
DemonDragonJ says... #19
As I said, before, I still find it to be difficult to believe that the heroes could defeat two Eldrazi titans when one along was destroying the entire plane. There is no good reason for WotC to not have given each titan their own block, so they clearly wish to conclude the Elrazi storyline sooner than expected, which is odd, given how hugely they were hyping the Eldrazi as a threat to the multiverse.
Now that the heroes have defeated two Eldrazi titans, there is no way that the battle against Emrakul will not be anti-climactic, in comparison, because, even if Emrakul is the most powerful Eldrazi of them all, there is no way that it can be more powerful than the other two combined, as I have long thought that they were all relatively close to each other in power.
The fact that no major protagonist died in this battle definitely detracts from the drama, so I hope for some actual suspense and tension at some point, in the future. Also, given that Ugin warned Jace that killing the Eldrazi would be a bad idea, I am expecting there to be unintended consequences to having done so, as it would be poor storytelling for the heroes to defeat two eldritch beings of unfathomable power without there being repercussions.
When Nissa channeled Zendikar's power through Chandra, I was reminded of channelers in The Wheel of Time often linking themselves together to increase the power of their abilities. Was anyone else reminded of that?
This story was satisfying in it own right, but I really wish that WotC had chosen for only Ulamog to be defeated, leaving both Kozilek and Emrakul to be fought at a later time. Apparently, the story writers wish to introduce a new threat sooner rather than later.
February 18, 2016 10:48 p.m.
FAMOUSWATERMELON says... #20
...that's it? I mean, these two titans were supposed to be some of the most powerful beings in the Multiverse. And, they just died. Wow. I was expecting something a bit better :(
February 18, 2016 11:09 p.m.
GoldGhost012 says... #21
To be fair, it was Zendikar that got rid of the titans. The Gatewatch just helped/served as a focal point for Zendikar's very angry mana.
February 18, 2016 11:14 p.m.
RicketyEng says... #22
Actually, DemonDragon, both Ulamog and Kozilek had been destroying the plane the whole time. Kozilek was just hidden underground.
I wouldn't be surprised if there is still more adventure to be had. I was figuring that we were heading into a long denouement, but somewhere in that there could be room for discovery of new complications. There ought to be something in there also that propels the story toward Innistrad. I don't recall any details about Ugin's actions in the few days since Jace left him at the Eye, but he may make an appearance and deliver some of this much needed exposition.
February 19, 2016 2:06 a.m.
Zendikar is one of the bigger, more mana-rich, Planes. (yet dwarfed by Dominaria) - The Planeswalkers were (barely) albe to turn the whole Plane into a weapon.
It was only Zendikar's power, and Nissa's strong connection with the Plane's Leylines that allowed for this plan to work.
On any other Plane (barring Dominaria) that we know of, you would not have as much mana available, nor a Planeswalker this in-tune with the essence/soul of the Plane.
Emrakul will not be nearly as easy to kill, if you have no weapons to kill it. - For Emrakul, they will need to either A) find another way to kill it, B) Lure it back to Zendikar (which may not work because of how drained/damaged it is), or C) resort to Ugin's original plans of 'trap, not kill'.
That, however, is likely an issue for another time... 3-4 years down the road. - If a group of 5 powerful individuals kill my family and were likely after me next, I know I would go into hiding for a while... and Emrakul has the whole Multiverse and the Blind Eternities to hide in.
February 19, 2016 11:39 a.m. Edited.
GoldGhost012 says... #24
I'd imagine a giant, reality-eating behemoth that spawns lots of Mini-Mes would have a hard time hiding, haha.
February 19, 2016 11:49 a.m.
On a Plane, sure, it may be noticeable... but if it goes home, to the Blind Eternities, it may be able to hide under the blankets.
February 19, 2016 12:36 p.m.
RicketyEng says... #26
A few of us were supposing last week that Nissa's ability to manipulate leylines could quite possibly work on other planes. I supposed that she might need a chance to get familiar with the plane's soul first, but I think it is plausible. If they ever try this again there might be a few tweaks to the formula in hopes of making it go smoother, but I could see it working again on another plane. Rayenous's concerns over how much mana that other plane has seem do seem non-trivial though; maybe it's Zendikar's abundance of mana that allowed it to handle two titans where any "lesser" plane (not meant to demean other planes of course) might only be able to handle one.
However, for the sake of good story telling, I doubt the same process will be given a proper chance to succeed again.
TheFoilAjani says... #2
It's the final countdown
February 17, 2016 10:46 a.m.