So, does anyone else feel me?
Modern forum
Posted on March 30, 2015, 12:04 a.m. by gnarlicide
Anticipate is the nuts in any deck running blue. Namely, BUG control/midrange. Holy shit, I am in love with it.
Don't tell my wife.
Anyone got any foils of it? I want them.
My friend got one and it looks so nice, the two blue bodies are highlighted in the foiling and it makes it pop. He won't give it up for that reason. What are some of the good lists that will be using it though, Im not very in tune with what standard might look like with the changes...
March 30, 2015 12:09 a.m.
Servo_Token says... #4
I personally don't like paying any more than one mana to draw a card and look at some other cards.
While the card seems ok, and might even be the real deal, I don't think that it will show any practicality - based especially on the performance of other two mana cantrips.
My cantrip curve goes Serum Visions - Ponder - Brainstorm - Sphinx's Revelation.
March 30, 2015 12:14 a.m.
vampirelazarus says... #5
Honestly, I feel like Serum Visions is better.
Sure its not an instant, but....
March 30, 2015 12:15 a.m.
bijschjdbcd says... #6
I want foils aswell. I can't see a deck that wants it in Modern.
Maybe Scapeshift.
March 30, 2015 12:15 a.m.
GlistenerAgent Is Anticipate a thing in Scapeshift or nah?
March 30, 2015 12:16 a.m.
I know this is unrelated, but I still think the name doesn't really work well with the effect. What exactly am I anticipating if the cards I know are on the bottom of my library?
March 30, 2015 12:37 a.m.
bigguy99 some of the peeps on the last page of the mtg salvation primer were trying it out.. Might be a thing...
March 30, 2015 12:48 a.m.
I tested it in bug control in modern and it was extremely underwhelming. vampirelazarus is right, Serum Visions is the best option. Though if you intended this to be a standard forum you may actually be right.
ThatJunkMage are you talking about modern or legacy? Cause those are banned in modern.
March 30, 2015 1:03 a.m.
I think were talkin about it being modern since its in the modern forum.. Pertaining to Scapeshift I just assumed modern as well..
I think the extra mana for 3 cards to do what with you are able isnt worth it.. But I dont play scapeshift so I dont know that. :P
March 30, 2015 1:13 a.m.
gnarlicide says... #13
I already run 4x Serum Visions in my BUG list. Remand was underwhelming for me, and I had issues with thought scour milling the shit that I wanted.
Right now the reason why I like it in BUG is because it's instant speed, it can dig for an important answer for something if need be and I don't have to pitch stuff to the yard... Which you would think that with Tasigur I want stuff in the yard, but he still drops as a 1 mana turn 3 regularly.
I still have more testing to do. But I am feeling it so far.
March 30, 2015 1:27 a.m.
bijschjdbcd says... #16
Like Humble Defector, I have a foiled on of that thtat is like $7.
March 30, 2015 3:17 a.m.
I goldfished my Storm deck a few times with Anticipate and it's just nutso. Right now it's replacing Desperate Ravings, but I could see splitting it 2-2 with Sleight of Hand as 2 mana is a bit much without a Goblin Electromancer in play. But it's just insane when going off as you'll always find what you're looking for.
March 30, 2015 3:32 a.m.
I actually have been playing these as a four-of in Scapeshift over the Telling Times. I know there's been a lot of discussion here on the forum that its just not as good because it leaves an unknown card up top and you only get one of the three, but I never found either to these to be a problem. Anticipate lends itself well to draw-go shells and Storm I feel, if I was playing a build of Scapeshift that aimed to blitz for the win I wouldn't play it. But seeing as my list is more of a draw-go shell that says "oops I win" I am in love with it.
March 30, 2015 3:40 a.m.
Sorry for the double post, but the guy I played 3rd round on Friday was playing BUG Control too gnarlicide and we talked about the card after FNM. He's testing it right now as a two-of in his list over one of his Serum Visions and a random one-of Consume the Meek that he had in the deck, said he hadn't quite realized that the card was that good.
I think that part of the problem people have had with evaluating Anticipate has been the need to compare it to Telling Time. Granted, they are incredibly similar but they do not serve the same purpose/have the same role in a decklist. Anticipate is just what a control deck needs, it digs three cards deeper for that Cryptic Command or an Abrupt Decay or whatever answer you're trying to find. Shipping away another two cards just isn't really an issue when you play a bunch of spells that cantrip anyways and fetches to take good stuff you ship to the bottom back towards the top.
March 30, 2015 3:50 a.m.
bijschjdbcd says... #20
No I disagree, Control decks want pure card advantage not selection, Anticipate is 1 card which grabs another card, there is a reason UWR in modern plays Think Twice and Shadow of doubt.
As for Storm I'll quote Jon Finkel not directly but the general idea.
"Always play Desperate Ravings over Faithless looting, There are only to cards you care about discarding, One has flashback (Past in Flames) and the other gets played T2. Discarding in a storm deck is more often than not a good thing.
March 30, 2015 4:11 a.m.
You're actually right I should rephrase that bijschjdbcd (damn is that name hard to get right typing on my phone), Anticipate goes in a more tempo shell. I like it a lot in Scapeshift, I could see a copy or two in Twin assuming there's slots (I'm not a Twin player so I don't know), I think BUG Control likes it too given the deck is more tempo/attrition oriented anyways, and a two-of in Storm actually seems totally fine.
Anticipate goes well in decks with some level of control elements that I wouldn't classify as classical control decks, this doesn't go into UWR Control by any stretch of the imagination.
March 30, 2015 4:23 a.m.
bijschjdbcd says... #22
It warrants testing and it may find a home.
Storm potentially, When I played Storm I found that Blue mana can often be a slight stretch whilst going off and you only have the the Manamorphose to compensate, That being said I like the idea of it over say Sleight of Hand as it is significantly better when going off and really bad when you have it in your opening hand and have no other relevant plays.
Storm specifically becomes quote marginal, The main deck is comprised of a lot of 4 ofs to boost the effectiveness and consistency of Pyromancer Ascension so it comes doen to the statistics, Is a card which is worse on turn one and worse at getting Ascension online for its slight upside worth it?
My guess would be no because the -1 card from SoH vs Anticipate seems horrible when you consider an active Ascension and the value it generates.
Twin is an archetype I am up to date with and my guess would be no, Twin is a Control deck for the most part that has a combo finish, Relying to heavily on the combo is pretty bad. Regardless ill test it out and see how it goes, I like to stay neutral so I don't form bias opinions on new cards.
BUGs best shell isn't necessarily tempo, If I was to guess I would suggest Midrange or Control decks are just better, Having Blue over white seems great in both Junk and Twin matchups.
As for the name I apologise :P
March 30, 2015 4:41 a.m.
So, with Anticipate, you are going 4 cards deep. But you are unable to set up top decks or hide cards on top of deck to go off through disruption.
Telling time gets you 2 cards deep, but if you don't like what you are going to draw, you need a fetch or shuffle effect.
March 30, 2015 5:10 a.m.
bijschjdbcd says... #24
The two cards are situational better/worse, Most cards are like this so its not really fair.
March 30, 2015 5:17 a.m.
I agree bijschjdbcd (my phone's auto correct knows your username now!), it really warrants testing. As such, I can't speak to any archetypes outside of Scapeshift since I haven't actually tried it anywhere else.
Kinda hit the nail on the head LeaPlath. Which is why a lot of people have been saying Anticipate doesn't replace Telling Time in Scapeshift due to there being 12-16 shuffle effects, but I like that I can go 4 cards down in a deck that only has one way to win and only needs one card to do so. Sometimes after revolving an Anticipate and seeing a Scapeshift and a Cryptic Command I think that it would be nice if I had Telling Time instead, but usually it comes down to a Farseek, a land, and a Snapcaster Mage for example and then I'm just stoked that I get a snappy and ship away two bad draws.
March 30, 2015 5:44 a.m.
JexInfinite says... #26
I've tested it in Grixis tempo, and it works really well. It's what you want to be doing.
Anticipate is not a control card, it's a tempo card to play end of turn if you have nothing better to do.
March 30, 2015 6:53 a.m.
slovakattack says... #27
My opinion? It's good in a deck as a 1 of. It's a fantastic topdeck lategame, but it has the capacity to be useless as an early cantrip, especially for decks that want to pressure the board. Modern is kinda lacking in good brainstorm/ponder-esque effects, so I could see it being feasible as an instant, but my point still stands.
March 30, 2015 8:35 a.m.
Right now, I'm running Telling Time, but I am gonna be testing Antcipate in the Electrolyze slot, and going back to running Bolts as well.
March 30, 2015 9:42 a.m.
Im actually not too big on the card. theres too many other cards that do something similar for it to deserve a spot, although im not sure what you are running. bug midgrange?
I will definitely let ya know if I pull any foils though!
March 30, 2015 9:56 a.m.
bijschjdbcd - I can see Anticipate splitting time with Sleight of Hand since they do relatively similar effects, but I'm still testing it in the place of Desperate Ravings since they are both 2 CMC "cantrips". That could end up being incorrect, but it's working well in Goldfishing so far.
March 30, 2015 11:33 a.m.
GlistenerAgent says... #33
In Scapeshift it's not as good as Telling Time. Otherwise, it's really quite strong.
March 30, 2015 2:53 p.m.
I don't think it'll see a ton of play after testing runs its course. It'll probably see about as much play as Telling Time which is not a ton, but still some. In the end I reckon it'll boil down to preference between the two as opinions seem so mitigated.
bigguy99 says... #2
I've actually found it to be pretty underwhelming. But that's from my experience with Esper. Not sure how it is with BUG, but if you end up not using two mana then whatever. I have shit like Restoration Angel to flash in EOT as a threat.
March 30, 2015 12:08 a.m.