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Pojo's Magic The Gathering
Card of the Day

Daily Since November 2001!

Vexing Devil
Image from Wizards.com

Vexing Devil
Avacyn Restored

Reviewed May 18, 2012

Constructed: 3.90
Casual: 4.20
Limited: 3.85
Multiplayer: 3.70

Ratings are based on a 1 to 5 scale
1 being the worst.  3 ... average.  
5 is the highest rating

Click here to see all of our 
Card of the Day Reviews 

BMoor

Vexing Devil

Any player with an ounce of sense will take the 4 damage. If they don't the Devil will swing for 4 damage every turn until they find a kill spell or a big enough blocker. And even then it's Fling fodder or a decent blocker in its own right. Still, one mana to make your opponent cringe and say "okay, I'll take the 4" isn't bad. Even better in multiplayer, where you get to make all your opponents look at each other nervously and play a little game of Chicken in each other's eyes-- and if nobody blinks, you might get a 4/3 for one mana. Of course, if you really want to find a way to abuse this card, Pandemonium, Juniper Order Ranger, or Morbid triggers would be a good place to start.

Constructed- 2.5
Casual- 3.5
Limited- 2
Multiplayer- 3.75

David Fanany

Player since 1995

Vexing Devil
 
When Dave Price was winning world-level events with his Sligh deck back in 1997, I wonder if he could ever have dreamed that one day aggressive red decks would have access to plays like this. If you'd printed a one-mana sorcery that dealt four damage to a player in Alpha, it probably would have been out of print in the late 1990s. The same goes for a 4/3 for one mana. Ironically, the kind of Dave Price-style deck that wants creatures like this hasn't been particularly good in competitive Magic recently, but if any card has a chance of resurrecting them, Vexing Devil is it. Even if it doesn't, there's always Blood Artist and the like.
 
Constructed: 3/5
Casual: 4/5
Limited: 4/5
Multiplayer: 3/5

Paul

Welcome back readers todays card of the day is Vexing Devil a powerful creature that more often than not is just a better Lava Spike most of the time just going to players faces early in the game. In standard most decks running red and going for the burn approach should run this card providing a decent body sometimes or a powerful burn spell is amazing. In extended and modern even with the plethora of powerful burn cards available I still think this card is nuts even if your opponent gets to choose the effect this card is still nuts, providing a body when your opponent can deal with it or 4 damage to the face when your opponent thinks he or she can spare the life its still everything a burn deck could use making it an awesome card in my book.

 In legacy there are much better burn cards available for decks I could foresee this seeing a small amount of play but overall I don’t think it will make much of a dent in legacy. In vintage this card is not good enough to make it into main decks or sideboards barring some unlikely situation. In casual and multiplayer its not as good but combined with Torpor Orb you get a 4/3 for a single mana and with other cards with bad enter the battle field triggers you could have a fun deck. In limited its decent in aggressive red decks. Overall a card I feel is completely underrated and provides an amazing power boost to red decks.
 
Constructed: 4.5
Casual: 4.0
Limited: 3.0
Multiplayer: 3.0

Michael "Maikeruu" Pierno

Today's card of the day is Vexing Devil which is a one mana Red 4/3 that any opponent can force to be sacrificed by having it deal four damage to them.  Early on most opponents will just take the four damage which is acceptable for a burn theme as it exceeds a Lightning Bolt, but reduces the potential compared to creatures over time.  The middle and later stages of the game may see larger creatures or removal as a response, which can be overcome with support.  With the low cost of one to cast this it should not be difficult to attach an available equipment to improve the odds of survival.  Overall this is a strong card for Red decks, particularly direct damage based, and will likely be more popular in older formats than newer as a larger pool of burn is available to make a dedicated build.
 
For Limited this is almost always going to be four damage to the opponent or rarely absorb a removal spell, which makes it quite powerful.  One mana creatures are generally useful even if this one doesn't manage an attack and it works as support for Morbid.  A solid first pick in Booster and a good starting point for a Red focus or sub-theme in Sealed.
 
Constructed: 4.5
Casual: 4.5
Limited: 4.5
Multiplayer: 4.5

John
Shultis
Phoenix
Gaming

      Welcome to the Pojo.com card of the day section. We are closing out our week looking at Vexing Devil from Avacyn Restored. Vexing Devil is a rare red creature devil that costs one red mana for a 4/3. When Vexing Devil enters the battlefield, any opponent may have it deal four damage to him or her, if a player does, sacrifice Vexing Devil.

     Hard to say how I feel about the Vexing Devil. I do really enjoy the fact that regardless, you should be able to assign four damage with the Vexing Devil. But the problem is most players will choose the initial four damage. There are ways around it, but then you have to use two spells to keep him out, and in multiplayer, that is still not guaranteed. But I have also learned to fear him being allowed to stay. I’ve played him only to see him Path to Exiled, or Oblivion Ringed right off my field. Perhaps some of the best advice I can offer is use him late game, never as a first turn drop. Sure, four damage first turn may seem nice, but four damage late game could well be the deciding factor, so his chance of hitting the table are great. That, and late game you could have the determining factors in place already. Should you have a Mikeaus the Unhallowed out, they would have to pay eight life for him to stay gone. Then if you have out Warstorm Surge, they would be taking four anyways, and would likely not want to deal with eight damage.
 
Limited: 5/5
Constructed: 5/5
Casual: 5/5
Multiplayer: 3/5


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