The Cornwall

I'm doing streaming now at www.twitch.tv/thecornwall go check me out, I stream Tuesdays, Thursdays and Sundays!

[thecornwall]

Cornwall's Random Card of the Day 21/07/2026: Auriok Glaivemaster

Auriok Glaivemaster is a common from Darksteel.

This guy is part of a group of cards in white in Mirrodin block that got better with equipment. This one was in the second set, which meant that it was probably the second best implementation of the idea. The common one in Mirrodin I believe got flying, this one gets first strike, which is a bit tougher to balance. That said, it DOES leverage the extra power granted by the buff and the equipment quite a bit. Overall, a pretty good 1-drop, especially in a time where 1-drops tended to be underpowered.

I give it a Neat 1-Drop/10.

[markrosewater]

Hi Mark, about your long answer to the long question recently. I do think there is a fourth path in dealing with Magic's transformation. It doesn't take much work: we just need one 60-card format where UB sets are not in it. Just one. It doesn't have to be a qualification lane/pro tour format. It doesn't have to go all the way back to Vintage. It can be small, mid, large, whatever. It just needs to exist officially on MTGO and Arena so that we can play it and LGS can host small tournaments with that. Is that a possible 4th path? If not, why not? Thanks in advance

I wouldn’t call that a fourth path. It’s a request for Wizards to officially help with the second path. It is a topic we’ve been discussing.

[thecornwall]

Cool thing about formats is that WotC doesn't have to support them for them to exist. They didn't invent commander and it was a long time between it existing and them supporting it. If you wanna do a "No UB" format, start one with your friends, and see if it expands from there. You do not need WotC's permission to play how you like.

[thecornwall]

Cornwall's Random Card of the Day 20/07/2026: Living Plane

Living Plane is a rare from Legends.

World enchantments were supposed to reflect the players traveling to another world in their duel. In this place, the land is ALIIIIVE!!! So everyone's lands get to be Dryad Arbors. By which I mean, they have to be Dryad Arbors. I'm sure plenty of people used to use this with Pyroclasm to get a budget Armageddon. The oracle rules note on this one also notes that the lands will have summoning sickness when played after this thing, which also slows the game down. That said, this is a wacky card that reads more wacky fun than wacky annoying, which makes it one of the better old rares.

I give it an Interesting Card/10.

[ohwhatagloomyshow]

do you remember why you followed prev

yes :)

no :)

Remaining time: 2 days 22 hours

[aloneandforsakenbyfateandbyman]

Claudette Colbert dressed as Pierrot the Clown, 1930s

[decapod-of-the-day]

Decapod of the day: Charybdis feriata | Coral Swimmer Crab

[thecornwall]

Cornwall's Random Card of the Day 19/07/2026: Sokenzan Spellblade

Sokenzan Spellblade is a common from Saviours of Kamigawa.

Well, this is quite the underpowered card, so no surprise it's from Saviours of Kamigawa, one of the weakest sets in Magic history. It's odd that a samurai is an oni, and also odd that it's a shaman, and this guy is both, a real weirdo.

For 5 mana you're mostly not paying for the stats, but rather for that pump ability, which you still need more than 2 cards in your hand to make it better than just plain firebreathing. If you have a ton of cards, you can pump this evasionless guy to the heavens, but if you have a ton of cards, you're probably winning the game anyhow, which was really the balancing trouble with Saviours' "cards in hand" mechanics. That, and the fact that people really prefer to PLAY their cards rather than hoard them.

I give it a Typical Saviours Card/10.

[grannybobo]

dumbass (affectionate)

[mammalianmammals]

Waigeou Spotted Cuscus (Spilocuscus papuensis), family Phalengeridae, order Diprotodontia, endemic to Waigeou Island, Raja Ampat, New Guinea

photograph by Drem Wat

[thecornwall]

Cornwall's Random Card of the Day 18/07/2026: Bear Cub

Bear Cub is a common from Portal Second Age, seen here in its Jumpstart: Historical Horizons printing.

So, at the start of Magic a 2/2 was multiple Grizzly Bears, and now it's just one Bear Cub. I know the flavour is that the mama is protecting it, but really, Magic has other ways to show that, like it did with that baby dino. As is, it's just kinda baffling that a soldier can be killed by a Bear Cub and the cub survives.

I give it a Confusingly Flavoured Vanilla/10.

[modwyr]

the problem with liking video games is that the gaming industry is genuinely so evil and needs to be wiped out

[thecornwall]

Don't worry, the gaming industry is on it

[thememedaddy]

[thecornwall]

Cornwall's Random Card of the Day 17/07/2026: Burning-Rune Demon

Burning-Rune Demon is a mythic rare from Kaldheim.

So, this guy tutors for two cards: one to the hand and the other to the graveyard. Unfortunately, people are likely to only really use this the same way they use Gifts Ungiven: one card to return anything from the graveyard, and one card you really want. I seen enough Eternal Wardens combined with that card to be a little annoyed that it's just that circumventable as a "choice". At least they cost it for you getting both cards here, but reliable and good tutors that also add to the board do lead to more consistent, and therefore less fun, games.

I give it a Gifts Ungiven On A Stick/10.

[maja-paja]

[thecornwall]

Mirrodin had no showers and that was really the problem that led to New Phyrexia

[cryptotheism]

I have thought about sending you an anon describing my particular take on death and such, but I'm terrified you'll say something like "Oh this is a lot like Johnathan "racism" Cumburg, who was both gay and homophobic. He was a 1600s wizard and he also believed that you could lick dirt to attain enlightenment, but only if you hated minorities hard enough" and then I'll Google it and he'll be real

You've done it! You've reduced studying the occult to it's barest essentials! It's like this forever!!!

[rednines]

It’s Cumburg all the way down

[thecornwall]

This ask sounds like it was written by Ponder Stibbons

[thecornwall]

Cornwall's Random Card of the Day 16/07/2026: Draconic Destiny

Draconic Destiny is a mythic rare from The Brothers' War.

This card is a callback both to early favourite Shivan Dragon, with its flying and firebreathing, as well as a callback to auras which return to their owner's hand upon the enchanted permanent dying, like Rancor. Overall it makes a pretty decent aura, seriously upgrading whatever you slap it on and coming back every time that thing is killed. You'd think in a fast limited environment like The Brothers' War that this kind of enchantment would be too slow to matter, but I personally have seen quite a few limited matches get dominated by it, so it was some good.

Why no need for {R} in the firebreathing? Well, The Brothers' War had Powerstones as it's noncreature token, and those could tap to add {<>} that couldn't be used to cast nonartifact spells. But that means they COULD be used to power activated abilities, like this one.

I give it an Impressive Aura/10.

[ames-draws]

Gee I wonder why people stopped using it...