Card Talk 7

Arni Metalbrow card art

Today is the seventh post in my Card Talk series.

Reminder how Card Talk works:

• I go to Scryfall and select 'Random Card'
• I present and blog about the card. I could discuss any aspect: the art, abilities, cost, set, impact on the game, and so on. Stream of consciousness.

Card Talk is a fun, uncurated way to look at Magic's cards, mechanics, history, art, sets, and so on. And of course it exposes some of my own preferences, biases, and memories of the game. 

Today's card is . . .

Arctic Wolves

Hmmmm . . . Arctic Wolves. A green creature from Weatherlight.

Green! Finally. Green is my favorite color in this game. I was drawn to this the first time I played Magic (in 1995) for its large creatures.

The wording in this printing (Weatherlight came out in 1997) is dated: now, it would read "When Arctic Wolves enters the battlefield, draw a card."

Cumulative upkeep is an obsolete mechanic that appeared for only a short time (1995-97, in Ice Age, Alliances, Mirage, Visions, and Weatherlight). Only 88 cards have it. Cumulative upkeep's ability isn't always explained on the cards. It is: "at the beginning of your upkeep. put an age counter on this card. Then sacrifice it unless you play its upkeep cost for each age counter on it." Since the turn order in Magic starts "untap, upkeep, draw," that means you have to pay upkeep before you have a chance to draw or play lands or spells. Arctic Wolves' upkeep is pretty steep: an extra 2 mana each turn. It won't stay in play long.

Arctic Wolves' "Enter The Battlefield" ability, draw a card, means it 'replaces itself' (in other words, you'll have the same amount of cards in your hand before and after you play it). For that reason alone, it bears consideration in casual deck builds. It can be especially potent if you combine it with green enchantments/artifacts like Up the Beanstalk or The Great Henge; in these cases, playing Arctic Wolves would net you two cards. Nice.

Arctic Wolves has been printed only once, presumably due to the upkeep aspect:

- Weatherlight (1997)

Other card observations

• Though I didn't play Magic at this time, I appreciate the artwork and general flavor of the cards of this era. I miss it.