With a mana cost like hers, it's a good bet that
she's only getting into play through
shenanigans. Rise from the Grave, Polymorph,
Summoning Trap, and (if someone in the match is
really lucky) Telemin Performance could all get
this out for you, but not paying 6WWW, at least
not in any format I know of.
The good news is, not only is she resistant to
kill spells, you can make your opponent stop
playing kill spells at all when she hits! If
your opponent plays monocolor, you can stop
every nonland card in his deck! And you've got a
7/7 flyer!
There was a time when some people believed that
any card with a converted mana cost of four or
greater had to win the game, either literally or
effectively, on the spot, and anything that
didn't or that cost more wasn't even worth a
second look. This was a strange thing to think,
considering that it was well after Animate Dead
and Reanimate made their mark on both casual and
competitive play. Learn from those cards'
example. Ignore Iona's mana cost. She is cool.
Put her in a deck. You'll like the results.
Constructed: She is the big sister of Voice of
All.
Casual & Multiplayer: Can really put alot of
players that are playing the same color in a
multplayer game out on the sidelines. Great
addition to any Angel deck.
Limited: I would pick for it Myhtic rarity, but
would not use her in my deck. Cost is a little
steep. I think Zendikar limited is a fast
format, and it might be to late when she hit. I
am sure the game would be over if she made it
onto the battlefield.
Today's card of the day is Iona, Shield of Emeria
a very dangerous card to anyone playing a single
color or even a deck that is primarily one
color. This is very much mitigated by the
casting cost of nine, but tricks exist to get
this into play. The real danger that can
even take out Five Color Control is combining
this with Painter's Servant. Other tricks
using Painter's Servant can be played in the
same deck along with options for summoning
without the painful six colorless and three
White casting cost.
For Constructed, Casual, and Multiplayer the
potential exists for impossible to win scenarios
for your opponent(s) and that makes this a very
tempting card. Without a combo this angel
may never get played, so it may be best to run
in a Green themed deck with Summoning Trap,
Elvish Piper, or similar options. Blue is
also a major concern as they can counter Iona
outright and options for avoiding that are based
more on play than specific cards. Aside
from that major weakness a well built deck can
and will win many games in any format.
With Limited the high cost is a hindrance as is
the three White mana involved, but more
concerning is the smaller number of decks
running a single color. Still a large
threat both as a Flying 7/7 and preventing most
of a deck, but not as often an immediate game
winner. Very much a first pick in Booster
as there is no way you want to see this played
against you and also quite playable later in the
game. This does limit the deck to mostly
White or possible White/Green, but the strength
is worth it. In Sealed if the pool
supports it Iona can be played effectively, but
very few decks will be a single color so proper
planning is key. Try to isolate the
biggest threat in your opponent's available
colors and plan accordingly.
Welcome back readers today’s card of the day is
a powerful angel from Zendikar, for the high
price of nine mana three of it white you get a
7/7 flying angel, when Iona enters the
battlefield chose a color your opponents cant
cast spells of that color. The ability to single
handedly shut down an entire color is an
enticing prospect, say black and your opponent
can’t use black spot removal to destroy it say
blue and don’t worry about counter spells
gumming up your works. A perfect finisher for
any deck heavily into white or with the ability
to get this card on the field. In standard this
card has shown itself a contender in decks
utilizing white and ruins of emeria to bring
this card back late game for another go. A
powerful card that will see more and more
standard play. In extended it’s a powerful
enough card but hasn’t been proven a part of a
powerful deck yet although I am sure it will
make a splash in extended. In eternal and
vintage a possible target for reanimation in
dredge or plain old Reanimation decks. In casual
and multiplayer this card is a powerhouse, a lot
of casual players stay monocolored and if they
bring more then one deck to the table you can
take advantage of this fact and shut them down
and have your angel fly into the red zone. In
limited if your drafting white a must grab.
Overall a powerful and game ending creature that
is like Cruel Ultimtum, expensive but a game
finisher.
