Here is a card that is at once powerful, simple
to play and easy to collect (because it’s an
uncommon and not a rare) that plays great in all
formats, constructed and limited. In Time Spiral
limited formats, he is a two drop that can’t be
blocked by very many two or even three drops on
your opponent’s side. If he is destroyed in
battle, he regenerates automatically unless your
opponent has extra mana set aside to stop the
effect. On top of these great features, Knight
of the Holy Nimbus is a cheap Rebel in a limited
format that includes a very playable two casting
cost common Rebel search card, Amrou Scout. In
constructed, this card revives the Rebel deck,
though not without a couple of the other Rebel
cards found in Time Spiral.
Rebel decks thus return to Standard constructed
play. Extended will also profit from Knight of
the Holy Nimbus and his new Rebel friends.
A 2/2 for two mana is usually pretty good. This
card simply suffers from being printed at the
wrong time. There are too many other quality
cards in white in the one to two mana range
currently. And some of those other cards have
better abilities. So, unfortunately, these guys
are going to be left at home in a lot of
cardboard boxes.
Essentially, it's an indestructible 2/2 flanker.
Yes, your opponent can pay 2 to destroy it, but
that's mana that might otherwise have been used
for other things. And don't forget the flanking
either. Remember Hand of Honor? He was great
becasue, among other things, he had Bushido.
Flakning in practice works similarly to Bushido.
And on top of all that, he's a Rebel, searchable
with Amrou Scout. Two white mana hasn't gotten
us this much for quite a while, and it might not
again for a while either.
I always loved the Clergy of the Holy Nimbus. It
was sort of indestructible before the term
existed. Of course, it wasn't a very strong
card, but it was interesting. The Knight on the
other hand is a very strong card. It's one of a
host of new flanking knights which make white a
very strong force. Don't think this guy is
invincible though. His ability will probably
very rarely come into play. Instead, it's like a
cheap creature which has an ability which says
"sometime, somewhere, your opponent will have to
pay 2 mana". That's not bad though. If your
opponent wants to deal with this guy early
(already a problem with any flanking knight),
they need to pay a little bit of mana. That's
the kind of tempo edge that can put you ahead in
the creature race.
Of all the flankers in this set, I’d have to say
that Nimbus is probably the best. It presents an
unusual threat for your opponent- destroying it
requires a bit more mana than usual, and it
probably means Nimbus will be tougher to kill
off. Even Wrath can’t get rid of it, and this is
a two-drop for two! It’s by far one of the
better white weenie you’re going to see in this
set, and in limited, your opponent had better
have a quick answer to your un-destroyable
knight.
Constructed: 3.5
Casual: 3
Limited: 3.8
KC MetroGnome
Knight of the
Holy Nimbus
This is a fun, efficient little beater. I like
him a lot. 2/2 Flanking for 2 is pretty good
already. Your opponent has to hit it with at
least a 3/3 to kill it in combat, and you're not
likely to put it into that situation if your
opponent has 2 open mana, so it is unlikely to
die in combat. It also essentially reads "All of
your opponent's removal spells cost an
additional 2", which is a pretty sweet thing to
have on a card. I could see this showing up in
white weenie in constructed, or possibly even
trying to find a spot among the 2cc 2/2's of BDW.
I expect this will be quite popular in casual as
well. It's not a big enough threat to draw all
the attention to you, but it will do its job
quite well.
Constructed - 3
Casual - 3
Limited - 4
Aethereal
Knight of the
Holy Nimbus
Clergy of the Holy Nimbus on serious steroids.
This is a good card for white weenie, as it's
cheap, and forces your opponent to spend some
extra resources to deal with it. Of course, any
"destroy without regen" kill spell (like
Putrefy) gets around this, but at least this
makes them pay 2 more if they want to Mortify
it. The Flanking is just icing on the cake. The
only problem is, at least right now, I don't see
white weenie being superior to Zoo, and Zoo has
better creatures to play on turn 2 (also, the
double white can cause problems). A good card,
but I don't think it'll find a home.
In casual, it dodges a handful of kill spells
and is a solid weenie creature, so it's fine
here.
In limited, if you're playing white, play this.
Flanking is good here, as it messes up the
combat math, and the ability makes them have to
keep an extra 2 open if they want to kill this,
potentially slowing down their development.
Also, this is a rebel, so it's searchable.
Constructed - 2.5
Casual - 3
Limited - 3.5
Gackley Ferguson
I really like
today's card. It fits perfectly into any white
weenie deck anywhere. You get a 2/2 for 2.
Pretty much the staple of any white weenie. I
also like this better than Samurai of the Pale
Curtain. While Samurai gives you bushido which
is all well and good, I happen to like the
flanking power better than bushido. While
bushido makes your guys more powerful...flanking
makes their guys weaker. so in effect if they
were blocking with a 55/1 it would die before
damage was done. So that makes your opponents a
little more hesitant about blocking. Plus the
fact that it can regenerate is a big plus.
Granted, the fact that your opponent can take
that power away is a drawback, but if you think
about it, if they do they've tapped two
available mana, thus giving them less options.
What's the verdict?
Constructed: 4/5, perfect for any white weenie
draft.
Casual: 4/5, again a perfect fit even if whtie's
not your main focus.
Limited 4.5/5 A 2/2 that your opponent would be
hard pressed to get rid of? I'll take 4 please!
