Zendikar, Zendikar, Zendikar... how I love thee. The beautiful landscapes, the full art land cards, the adventuring motif found in card names, art and execution... all of it seems amazing at a quick glance. Except for the "priceless treasures"... that's just insane!

Insanely amazing!

It was an intense rumor season, with cards coming from all over the internet. When will Magic Deck Vortex get it's own Magic card to spoil? I mean, MDV has been around for over seven years now. Is it not deserving? I think MDV is intense enough for the challenge.

But even more intense are Zendikar's Green cards that I get the pleasure of reviewing. And despite my attentive eye towards cards spoiled this season, these really will be my first impressions. At the time of writing this, I haven't even attended the prerelease or midnight draft sessions!

I could go on and on about the absolute goodness found in our Fall set of Magic: the Gathering, but I'll save that for later. In the meantime, please find my impressions of the trampling, verdant color of Magic in Zendikar!

Baloth Cage Trap 3GG
Instant - Trap
If an opponent had an artifact enter the battlefield under his or her control this turn, you may pay {1}{G} rather than pay Baloth Cage Trap's mana cost.
Put a 4/4 green Beast creature token onto the battlefield.

Grade: B
Quickly stated, the traps are fantastic. At least, most of them are fantastic. It's like a reverse kicker in which instead of paying more for an effect, you are paying less... I'm not sure I said that right, but whatever. Fun, Fun, Fun with a side of possibly cheap to cast.

This trap in particular is great at 3GG, if you consider you are getting an instant speed 4/4 token. It's not A+ quality for the mana and would need trample to be such, but it's still extremely useful. Stack on top of being useful that you can maybe pay only two mana for a 4/4 token at instant speed, and you have "amazing" in my book. Especially with all of the great equipment in the set, this will be extra good in Limited.

By the way, I'd hate to be that Goblin shown in the artwork!

Baloth Woodcrasher 4GG
Creature - Beast
Landfall - Whenever a land enters the battlefield under your control, Baloth Woodcrasher gets +4/+4 and gains trample until end of turn.
4/4

Grade: B-
This card reads to me as an 8/8 trampling creature for six mana during your turn and a 4/4 for six mana during your opponents turn. Excellent for limited, but lacking in most other formats. Are there enough Baloths now to make them their own creature type? Never mind, I'll just make a theme deck:

The goal of the above deck? Beat some serious face with a bunch of flying, trampling, indestructible Baloth cards and tokens! If you don't draw the one Eldrazi Monument, just overwhelm (Overrun) your opponent with Enormous, Ravenous, Towering Baloth creatures!

When are they going to make a Huge Baloth, Monumental Baloth or Freaking Gigantic Baloth card???

I digress...

Beast Hunt 3G
Sorcery
Reveal the top three cards of your library. Put all creature cards revealed this way into your hand and the rest into your graveyard.

Grade: C
Without library manipulation, which Green has limited access to, not counting Sylvan Library, this card is a worse Concentrate. I would play Harmonize over this almost every time. Still, if you are playing this with Sensei's Diving Top and its ilk, have at it. It will almost always net you three cards, with some help.

Beastmaster Ascension 2G
Enchantment
Whenever a creature you control attacks, you may put a quest counter on Beastmaster Ascension.
As long as Beastmaster Ascension has seven or more quest counters on it, creatures you control get +5/+5.

Grade: B-
Three mana and seven creatures attacking gives you a permanent +5/+5 to creatures you control. Seems attainable in just a few turns, but more often than not it's going to take a few turns to get the full effect of this card. When you get the effect, it's totally worth it. In a group game, this card will be awesome! In a duel, not so much.

Cobra Trap 4GG
Instant - Trap
If a noncreature permanent under your control was destroyed this turn by a spell or ability an opponent controlled, you may pay {G} rather than pay Cobra Trap's mana cost.
Put four 1/1 green Snake creature tokens onto the battlefield.

Grade: B
It's a good hard cast at six mana, because you are getting four creature tokens at instant speed. Combine with Beastmaster Ascension when the quest is done, and you are really getting four 6/6 Snake creature tokens... But if your opponent destroyed a land, enchantment, artifact, etc, you can play it for one mana. That's an absolute bargain if I've ever seen one.

Frontier Guide 1G
Creature - Elf Scout
{3}{G}, {T}: Search your library for a basic land card and put it onto the battlefield tapped. Then shuffle your library.
1/1

Grade: C-
This is great for ensuring an every turn landfall for mid to late game. However, it is very fragile and will lock up your mana every turn. This really only has a use in Limited. Beyond that, it's a dust collector.  It good to see they finally found a card for this artwork.

Gigantiform 3GG
Enchantment - Aura
Kicker {4}
Enchant creature
Enchanted creature is 8/8 and has trample.
When Gigantiform enters the battlefield, if it was kicked, you may search your library for a card named Gigantiform, put it onto the battlefield, then shuffle your library.

Grade: B
This is actually a good Aura. It's flexible, with great art, and completely capable of making your win condition, as long as you have a creature or two for it to enchant. Kicked or unkicked, this is a great card. Note though that it isn't giving a creature +8/+8; it's making the creature 8/8.

Grazing Gladehart 2G
Creature - Antelope
Landfall - Whenever a land enters the battlefield under your control, you may gain 2 life.
2/2

Grade: C
I'm just glad they printed another Antelope.

Greenweaver Druid 2G
Creature - Elf Druid
{T}: Add {G}{G} to your mana pool.
1/1

Grade: C
Hello Fyndhorn Elder! Back in the day this was an exceptional card that accelerated you into a super huge beatstick creature much faster than other decks could. While it is still capable of doing that, the removal in Magic is much better and will ensure this guy doesn't make it to that juncture. 1/1's die to just about everything.

Harrow 2G
Instant
As an additional cost to cast Harrow, sacrifice a land.
Search your library for up to two basic land cards and put them onto the battlefield. Then shuffle your library.

Grade: A+
This card was good during Invasion and is now even better in Zendikar. Not only does it even out your mana base if you need to get that second or third color, it ensures two land drops in one turn. Thus activating Landfall twice and possibly your win condition to mauling over an opponent or two!

Joraga Bard 3G
Creature - Elf Rogue Ally
Whenever Joraga Bard or another Ally enters the battlefield under your control, you may have Ally creatures you control gain vigilance until end of turn.
1/4

Grade: D
Despite this card getting a bad grade, I do love the concept of Ally creatures in Zendikar. It gives you the real feeling of adventuring with a party of characters as if you were playing a little Dungeons and Dragons. Clerics, Druids, Warriors, Rangers, Bards, Mages... and they are all here in Zendikar. Each one gives your "party" a unique effect.

Vigilance, on this guy, isn't that good by itself. This will be a great Limited card, but otherwise not so much even in the most casual of tables. Still, being a bard is a redeeming quality to the card.

Khalni Heart Expedition 1G
Enchantment
Landfall - Whenever a land enters the battlefield under your control, you may put a quest counter on Khalni Heart Expedition.
Remove three quest counters from Khalni Heart Expedition and sacrifice it: Search your library for up to two basic land cards, put them onto the battlefield tapped, then shuffle your library.

Grade: F
There are a lot of other cards I'd rather be playing over this. The only good part of this card is the art (which is breath taking).

Lotus Cobra 1G
Creature - Snake
Landfall - Whenever a land enters the battlefield under your control, you may add one mana of any color to your mana pool.
2/1

Grade: A+
I'm not going to go into the whole crazy Violent Ultimatum on turn three, because it's already viral enough on the Internet. I will however state that this card is fantastic and deserves as much removal attention as Birds of Paradise. It's capable of some mean acceleration with or without a Harrow. I also like how this is a guaranteed two mana with the fetch lands, like those found in Zendikar.

Mold Shambler 3G
Creature - Fungus Beast
Kicker {1}{G} (You may pay an additional {1}{G} as you cast this spell.)
When Mold Shambler enters the battlefield, if it was kicked, destroy target noncreature permanent.
3/3

Grade: B-
Kicked this is a Desert Twister with a 3/3 body. Unkicked its just a 3/3 for four. I would almost always play this kicked unless I needed a creature to block with before I reached six mana. While this set is EXTREMELY flavorful, I think they could have paid homage to Desert Twister a little better.

Nissa Revane 2GG
Planeswalker - Nissa
+1: Search your library for a card named Nissa's Chosen and put it onto the battlefield. Then shuffle your library.
+1: You gain 2 life for each Elf you control.
-7: Search your library for any number of Elf creature cards and put them onto the battlefield. Then shuffle your library.
Loyalty 2

Grade: C+
I'm not sure how I feel about Nissa. Great art! Great third ability! Great synergy in the first ability considering the Chosen cards shuffle themselves back into the library when they hit the graveyard. Still, the second ability isn't all that amazing. Combine all of this with a very weak starting loyalty and she is dead to even a patient Lightning Bolt.

Nissa's Chosen GG
Creature - Elf Warrior
If Nissa's Chosen would be put into a graveyard from the battlefield, put it on the bottom of its owner's library instead.
2/3

Grade: C
Great for Nissa. Kind of boring in every other situation despite being efficient for two green mana.

Oracle of Mul Daya 3G
Creature - Elf Shaman
You may play an additional land on each of your turns.
Play with the top card of your library revealed.
You may play the top card of your library if it's a land card.
2/2

Grade: A
Son of Azusa! I welcome you! Green appears to be getting a little better at library manipulation through this guy. I love that not only can you play an extra land a turn, but if you don't have it in your hand, you get the opportunity to play one from the top of your library. Some people may not like that your opponent(s) can also see the top card of your library. However, if you are playing the right deck, it won't matter.

Oran-Rief Recluse 2G
Creature - Spider
Kicker {2}{G} (You may pay an additional {2}{G} as you cast this spell.)
Reach (This creature can block creatures with flying.)
When Oran-Rief Recluse enters the battlefield, if it was kicked, destroy target creature with flying.
1/3

Grade: B
A versatile spider is appreciated. Especially in limited. This guy's Reach and ability to spot remove any flying threat (including Baneslayer Angel) is extremely useful in Standard and Limited.

Oran-Rief Survivalist 1G
Creature - Human Warrior Ally
Whenever Oran-Rief Survivalist or another Ally enters the battlefield under your control, you may put a +1/+1 counter on Oran-Rief Survivalist.
1/1

Grade: B
Seeing that you can cast this on turn two and potentially grow it into your win condition makes this guy more useful than the Bard from earlier. Combine it with some other allies that give other abilities like Trample and First Strike and this guy can turn out quite good.

Predatory Urge 3G
Enchantment - Aura
Enchant creature
Enchanted creature has "{T}: This creature deals damage equal to its power to target creature. That creature deals damage equal to its power to this creature."

Grade: D
Is this really Rare? Really?! This is not a good card at it's present casting cost. I can see it being useful on a really big creature that can survive the return blow, but otherwise, it's just not rare quality in my opinion.

Primal Bellow G
Instant
Target creature gets +1/+1 until end of turn for each Forest you control.

Grade: A
I like it. It's Giant Growth on Blanchwood Armor crack. Instant speed growth that has potential to get crazy in the late game all for one little Green mana.

Quest for the Gemblades 1G
Enchantment
Whenever a creature you control deals combat damage to a creature, you may put a quest counter on Quest for the Gemblades.
Remove a quest counter from Quest for the Gemblades and sacrifice it: Put four +1/+1 counters on target creature.

Grade: C
Flavorfully, this is like your creatures gaining experience and gaining a level. I like it both in design and in execution. But is this a great power house of a card? Not really. I'll play this at the casual tables all day long but I don't see this making an impact at all on the tournament scenes. And that's fine -- I'm all about casual.

Rampaging Baloths 4GG
Creature - Beast
Trample
Landfall - Whenever a land enters the battlefield under your control, you may put a 4/4 green Beast creature token onto the battlefield.
6/6

Grade: A+
Love it. Love it. Love it. New Frontiers and Primal Rage LOVE this card too. Try it. You'll fall for it too.

Relic Crush 4G
Instant
Destroy target artifact or enchantment and up to one other target artifact or enchantment.

Grade: C+
Options are good but five mana is expensive.

River Boa 1G
Creature - Snake
Islandwalk
{G}: Regenerate River Boa.
2/1

Grade: A
Maybe I'm off my rocker, but I had great fun with this card in my earlier days of playing Magic and I think this card is as good now as it ever was back in the Mirage Block. Regenerations for one Green mana AND Islandwalk is efficient and effective.

Savage Silhouette 2G
Enchantment - Aura
Enchant creature
Enchanted creature gets +2/+2 and has "{1}{G}: Regenerate this creature."

Grade: C
I can compare this all day long to other three mana Aura cards in Green, but why bother? I can't say I'd play this in many decks (mainly because I'd rather use an Equipment that doesn't cause me as much card disadvantage) but then again it is very useful in Limited, especially since it grants Regeneration, which can be extremely troublesome for an opponent without an answer to it.

Scute Mob G
Creature - Insect
At the beginning of your upkeep, if you control five or more lands, put four +1/+1 counters on Scute Mob.
1/1

Grade: B+
I'm seeing a recurring theme of cards that give both early game and late game options. This card is one of them. After turn four, this cute little mob of insects can get crazy big. A+ on the artwork!

Scythe Tiger G
Creature - Cat
Shroud (This creature can't be the target of spells or abilities.)
When Scythe Tiger enters the battlefield, sacrifice it unless you sacrifice a land.
3/2

Grade: C-
DON'T CAST THIS ON TURN ONE unless you have no other choice! This is a card meant to play only during the mid to late game.

Summoning Trap 4GG
Instant - Trap
If a creature spell you cast this turn was countered by a spell or ability an opponent controlled, you may pay {0} rather than pay Summoning Trap's mana cost.
Look at the top seven cards of your library. You may put a creature card from among them onto the battlefield. Put the rest on the bottom of your library in any order.

Grade: B+
This is a Chord of Calling with a semi-fixed cost that searches only the top seven cards of your library. At six mana, this can still be a maindeck card instead of being restricted to only the sideboard. And if your up against a control deck, this card is the bomb-diggity!

Tajuru Archer 2G
Creature - Elf Archer Ally
Whenever Tajuru Archer or another Ally enters the battlefield under your control, you may have Tajuru Archer deal damage to target creature with flying equal to the number of Allies you control.
1/2

Grade: C+
Useful but mediocre.

Tanglesap 1G
Instant
Prevent all combat damage that would be dealt this turn by creatures without trample.

Grade: C
Now this is an interesting variant for Fog. I love how you can build around this to make it a one sided Fog. Primal Rage for the win. All at the same time, this card isn't that amazing.

Terra Stomper 3GGG
Creature - Beast
Terra Stomper can't be countered.
Trample
8/8

Grade: B+
This is reminiscent of one of my favorite Green Legends in Magic, Silvos, Rogue Elemental. The casting cost, the trample and eight power... It's amazing how the power curve has shifted over the last five years. Terra Stomper isn't a Legend and yet still has two abilities and three more toughness than one of my favorite Green Legends. While I think Regeneration is more powerful than 'cannot be countered' when comparing abilities, I don't think it justifies an extra three toughness for a non-Legendary creature.

But! Green mages around the world can rejoice and add another thorn in a Blue Mage's side to their collection. Especially such a large thorn for a relatively lower cost. If only they could do something about the bland artwork.

Territorial Baloth 4G
Creature - Beast
Landfall - Whenever a land enters the battlefield under your control, Territorial Baloth gets +2/+2 until end of turn.
4/4

Grade: D
Filler, Filler, Filler.

Timbermaw Larva 3G
Creature - Beast
Whenever Timbermaw Larva attacks, it gets +1/+1 until end of turn for each Forest you control.
2/2

Grade: C
I keep looking at the art wondering how THAT is a Larva! Anyway, this has great artwork, mediocre stats for its casting cost, but a built-in Primal Bellow effect (Blanchwood Armor effect). This is another card that becomes better and better as the game proceeds and the more lands you control. I like the options but the card is still kind of so-so.

Turntimber Basilisk 1GG
Creature - Basilisk
Deathtouch (Creatures dealt damage by this creature are destroyed. You can divide this creature's combat damage among any of the creatures blocking or blocked by it.)
Landfall - Whenever a land enters the battlefield under your control, you may have target creature block Turntimber Basilisk this turn if able.
2/1

Grade: C+
Finally! Deathtouch! I like the flavor behind this card being that it's a Basilisk and has an appropriate provoke ability whenever you drop a land. Its stats could be better to survive being blocked, but who cares, if you have the ability to pick off your opponent's best creature? Three mana creature destruction for Green!

Turntimber Ranger 3GG
Creature - Elf Scout Ally
Whenever Turntimber Ranger or another Ally enters the battlefield under your control, you may put a 2/2 green Wolf creature token onto the battlefield. If you do, put a +1/+1 counter on Turntimber Ranger.
2/2

Grade: A
Now this is a great Ally. Great art, great token generating ability, and capable like the Survivalist at getting bigger with another Ally drop. Let's see if I can put together a quick Adventuring Party deck using only Green and Artifact cards:

One thing to remember is that the Allies like Changelings. Green had a nice selection of Ally creatures spanning casting costs of 1G, 2G, 3G and 3GG. With that in mind, I had nothing for turn one and nothing for the late game. I decided to add Changeling Titan, which assists with the Allies coming into play, and Chameleon Colossus, who can become a fantastic win condition. To add some flavor to the deck, also known as flavorifying a deck, I added a handful of fun and powerful equipment cards you can pretend is booty after you win a few rounds of combat.

The rest of the deck is rounded out by some standard Green spells like Creeping Mold to deal with lands, artifacts and enchantments, Gaea's Anthem to make your allies bigger, and Harmonize for some card draw.

Don't feel restricted to one color when you are building your own Ally deck. Splash some other colors, go the blink and bounce route, or just make a five-color adventuring party deck. This was just a rough throw together.

Vastwood Gorger 5G
Creature - Wurm
5/6

Grade: C-
No trample? No good. Common filler.

Vines of Vastwood G
Instant
Kicker {G} (You may pay an additional {G} as you cast this spell.)
Target creature can't be the target of spells or abilities your opponents control this turn. If Vines of Vastwood was kicked, that creature gets +4/+4 until end of turn.

Grade: B+
This is a phenomenal variant of Giant Growth that I will be including in many Green decks from now on. At one mana you get to protect your creature from an impending removal or control spell. For two you get to beat some serious face at the same time. It's like a miniature Stonewood Invocation.

Zendikar Farguide 4G
Creature - Elemental
Forestwalk
3/3

Grade: C
Forestwalk has a little more importance in a block that focuses more on one color decks instead of tri-color decks. Still, this card is mediocre at best. I do like that they fit Zendikar onto the name of a card. However, I think they could have made it a little more splashy and exciting. Perhaps I'm expecting too much out of a common.

I have to say, I enjoyed doing that review. Instead of closing with some all encompassing words of Zendikar Green, I will leave you with an unexplained top ten list or two. Feel free to discuss my comments and my top ten lists in the forum! Thanks for reading and more importantly thank you for visiting Magic Deck Vortex! What the casual players use!

The Best Casual Green Cards in Zendikar Top Ten List:

10. Primal Bellow
9. Terra Stomper
8. River Boa
7. Turntimber Ranger
6. Rampaging Baloths
5. Scute Mob
4. Oracle of Mul Daya
3. Lotus Cobra
2. Harrow
1. Vines of Vastwood

The Best Green Artwork in Zendikar Top Ten List:

10. Lotus Cobra
9. Beastmaster Ascension
8. Harrow
7. Vastwood Gorger
6. Oran-Rief Survivalist
5. Nissa Revane
4. Turntimber Ranger
3. Timbermaw Larva
2. Scute Mob
1. Khalni Heart Expedition

John Streetz
www.magicdeckvortex.com

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