Magic: The Gathering Gatecrash Review Part 1: Simic and Orzhov

On February 1, Wizards of The Coast's most popular card game, Magic: The Gathering, release the second set in their Return to Ravinca Block. Titled Gatecrash, this set focused on the last 5 guilds in the city plane of Ravinca: Gruul, Dimir, Simic, Orzhov and Boros. In the first of 3 reviews will focus on Simic and Orzhov, two of my favorite guilds this block.

SIMIC

The Simic Combine are a group of biological scientists looking to evolve the creatures and people of Ravinca. Using the colors Blue and Green, the Simic mechanic Evolve can be deadly to opponents if used correctly. The mechanic works like this: when a creature comes into play with a higher power or toughness than a creature with evolve, the creature with the lower power/toughness gets a +1/+1 counter. Of course there are ways to move counters around to keep the evolution going too. This is the guild I personally play. My favorite combo is Elusive Krasis with Forced Adaptation. While not specifically a Simic card, the green mana Forced Adaptation enchantments works wonders with the guild. It gives a creature a +1/+1 counter at the beginning of the creature's controller's upkeep. Paired with Elusive Krasis, normally a 0/4 unblockable with evolve, it can mean a nightmare for opponents. I won a game using that combo alone. With the spells and enchantments of blue and massive creatures of green, Simic works wonders.

ORZHOV

The Orzhov Syndicate are the group of bankers and priests on Ravinca, look to extort the citizens of their money. Using the colors Black and White, the Orzhov mechanic Extort is one of the best ways to drive your opponents crazy.  The way Extort works is if you have a creature or enchantment, you can pay 1 black or white mana to cause your opponents to lose one life and you gain that much life. Paired with lifelink from other sets, an Orzhov deck can be an easy win if you have defenders to protect yourself.  The biggest win condition is the Orzhov guild leader, Obzedat, seen here:

As you can see, Obzedat is pretty much unstoppable if you can protect him. The constant life loss means a loss for all those you play against.  If you figure out the many different ways to extort life from your opponents, the black/white guild of Orzhov means you''l never go low on health again.

Check back later for part 2 featuring Dimir and the planeswalkers of Gatecrash!