I agree with almost everything, but I think Harvester is pretty close to a 5. That crew 1 is just nuts.

- Universal Solvent.

- Scored a 0.

- Must be a typo.

I don't think it's format defining because the format has already changed to accommodate it. You're not including more Artifact removal in your deck because Harvester exists, you already started doing that last season thanks to Copter.

It might actually change how powerful copter is though, but now that I see the logic I think I agree with you. Thanks for the explanation.

Peacewalker Colossus seems really slow at what it does tbh.
3.0 seems optimistic.

Am I the only one who doesn't think so highly of Walking Ballista ?

I would love to see your reason as to why you don't think highly of the card.

Copter plays defense sometimes (plus we got a 4/4 flying vigilance 2cc vehicle coming our way soon), and in the aggro mirror, I might want Push if opps Chopper hits first.

That said, I'm not certain either replace the madness options in current form Rakdos aggro. If I just want racey-burny, I don't know why I need black muddling up the mana base. Figure black gets its attractiveness from madness options and/or straight up removal.

But in the end, i think Rakdos anything still pauses for a moment to consider Push in a way G/X aggro beat down doesn't do with Druid. Not everything with green cares about ramp; I think everything with black cares about removal. But this whole discussion is moot because Universal Solvent owns everything.

I see no scenario where the card feels really strong on it's own. At no manacost do I feel like you are getting something worth the cost. 2 mana 1/1 that can shoot 1 damage? 6 mana 3/3?
Paying 4 mana to add a +1/+1 counter on it also seems really underwhelming.

So to make it good you have to put counters on it some other way. Looking at green there mostly. Verdurous Gearhulk looks great, but that's your one off mythic. The other options add 1 counter at a time and currently see no play.
If the +1/+1 counter deck actually is a thing the balista will probably be in it. Though I don't think that deck is going to be verry competitive and the balista isn't worth playing anywhere else.

I don't know what Pythe thinks (but see now I got ninjad), but I'm not very high on it. 1/1 for 2 that doesn't even hit as hard as goblin arsonist - or maybe I could get a 5/5 for 10 instead of casting Ulamog?

It prob has a place in some builds that go slow and have 4 mana to spend on opps endstep, or a combo deck that can abuse its 0cc - but I don't really think a ton of decks care about it at all.

I feel exactly the same. For what it does.. is it EXTREMELY overcosted. So you pay 4 mana for a 2/2.. then later you pay 4 more mana to put a counter on it. That's an 8 mana 3/3, which can shoot three damage somewhere. At what point does the production justify the investment?

Whoever compares this to Hangarback Walker is smoking the stickiest of the icky.

Wow. WB got a 4! Same rating level as Flagship? Am I completely missing something about that card? Even in the variety of decks you mention, it doesn't feel like an auto-include to me (consideration, sure, and maybe it makes the cut, but it's not going to make or break anything and it's not a card I feel like I need to answer ASAP or die). I could see a 2, but putting it in the same category as Liliana and Flagship seems off...

That's about the only one I seriously disagree with here. The reason Hangerback was OP as balls was being an oxymoron for removal. If I target your Ballista with removal, I eat 1 damage for every 4 points of mana after its original investment. I do the same with Hangerback, and I'm starring down however many 1/1 permanents that could easily double that value if I'm lacking a sweeper the following turn (unless it was an exile effect). 3.0 at best for me.

EDIT: 8 mana for 3 damage? And Planar Portal/Solvent were 0?

I dunno, cast ballista for x=1 suddently your opponent needs to remove your 2 drop before casting his own 1 toughness dudes unless he's ok with you paying 4 to kill them, and it gets more annoying if they casted something with 1 toughness beforehand.

Still not the most cost efficient pinger however.

I have worked on A janky retreat deck I want to stick him in. Combos nicely with Retreat to Hagra and Retreat to Kazandu (load the pistol and fire). I think the fact you can stick counters on him and know that there will be value even if the card is removed is nice. I will reserve my final judgment until I get a chance to actually play around with some of the mechanics it can help.

I can see it's rating not because it's so powerful but because of how many places it can reasonably go. It's a versatile card that can be played at any even mana cost with no color requirement and sacrificed at will (revolt). It is also a mana sink if you are running a rampy deck and good for artifacts matter decks and its a creature that is also capable of instant creature removal. I can see a lot of decks able to take advantage of it. It probably isn't for fast agro that isn't revolt/crats or emerge decks. Time will tell.

This!

In Aggro it's a t2 artifact synergy enabler for Nerd Ape and its ilk, it can be cast for 0 to provide 50% of Delirium, Scrap Trawler returns it, when it dies, it's a great top-deck late. None of these facts make it an auto-include, but definitly an auto-consider.

Time to break out the Beast...sorry...the DJ argument again. In the decks (outside of GB countersmatter) that COULD run this card, what are you NOT running to include it, and does it really improve those decks that much?

- Control straight up doesn't want this.
- Aggro has faster ways to use the mana.
- Ramp wants to spend itself on big threats like Ulamog or Gaea's Revenge, and it recently had to find even more room to include 4x Druid.

You people aren't seeing the top secret winding constrictor/walking balista/Scrounging Bandar tech.

Look at it this way, in a grindy game, its a 4 mana way to stop a walker from going ultimate or to those last few couple of points of damage through...

WB is an okay but not good card imo, it has some special decks where it could do well so 2/5 for me.

"ok not good"

"good not great"

What trend has Fel started