A fun way of throwing damage around wantonly.
Again, this creates some fun multiplayer
scenarios, where people are encouraged to tap
out every turn. It could also be quite powerful
if it and Manabarbs are out at the same time.
It'd be nice if you have some way of protecting
yourself from it, even if it's just a creature
with fire breathing to ensure you're not leaving
lands needlessly untapped.
Constructed- 3
Casual- 3.5
Limited-?
Aethereal
Thursday -
Power Surge
Essentially the opposite of the classic
Manabarbs. I could see this being naughty
against a draw-go style deck, if you can get it
to resolve, which if you play it on turn 2
shouldn't be that hard. I imagine a deck focused
around getting this, Manabarbs, and a life gain
engine onto the table all at once would be very
fun to play, because you can sit there and
negate the life loss yourself while your
opponent will lose life each turn whether they
tap lands or not. However, I wouldn't play this
in a tournament, because it's way too slow for
the formats it is legal in.
In limited, it's too symmetrical and you can't
guarantee you'll be able to tap out every turn.
I wouldn't bother.
Constructed - 2
Casual - 4
Limited - 1
David Fanany
Player since
1995
Power Surge
Power Surge was the first in a long line of red
cards that encouraged both players to actually
play spells and do things. It probably helps the
most against black or white control decks that
don't have a lot of instants they can play at
the end of your turn to avoid the Surge, since
it will force them to minimize its damage or get
burned down by the direct damage in your hand.
As current tournament play stands, it's an
interesting effect without a deck; in
multiplayer, it's a threat that must be removed.
In limited play, I imagine this would have been
a pretty hefty speed boost to your clock (if a
slightly suicidal one).
Constructed: 2/5
Casual: 2/5
Limited: 2/5
v0rac10u5
Power Surge
A similar reprint of this card (Citadel of Pain)
spawned a deck based around Chimeric Idol,
Scoria Cat, and lots of burn. Has some
potential, but lacks the power of other cards in
its environment.
