Card Talk 11

Arni Metalbrow card art

Today is the eleventh 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 . . .

Keen-Eyed Archers

Hmmmm . . . Keen-Eyed Archers. A common white creature from Portal.

Portal was released in 1997. Per MTG Wiki, it was a starter set aimed at new players. To stand out, it was aesthetically different (examples: bold ability text in the text box, and symbols next to a creature's power/toughness). It was also simpler: there were only three card types (creatures, sorceries, and lands), excluding the three others (artifacts, instants, and enchantments) at the time. 

This deliberately 'vanilla' set, even lighter than core sets, was not overly popular (I think), though some cards have maintained nice value or seen reprints in later sets.

- 158 cards were first printed in Portal

- 45 cards have been printed only in Portal

- 42 cards were reprinted in Portal (so they appeared in earlier sets)

- 155 cards have been subsequently reprinted (I think I did that logic correctly)

This card mentions the word 'intercept;' this was an alternate word for 'block' (as in blocking an attacking creature). I don't know why they changed the word to intercept for Portal; every other Magic set says block. Normally, only creatures with flying can block other creatures with flying. In the first Magic set, Giant Spider was the first creature that did not fly itself but could block fliers:

Notice the initial verbiage: "does not fly, but can block flying creatures." As with many Magic concepts, this wording has evolved over time. Subsequent iterations of this card read:

- "can block creatures with flying"

- "Giant Spider can block creatures with flying"

- "Giant Spider can block as though it had flying"

- Reach, a keyword introduced in Future Sight (2007), replaced this text. Its ability: (This creature can block creatures with flying)

Final thought: while I don't think Portal was that popular, two subsequent sets (Portal Second Age in 1998 and Portal Three Kingdoms in 1999) followed, so I guess it had some appeal. Still, the altered aesthetics and wording are enough to discourage me from collecting.