I don't think people get the point of this guy... he does something that mind rot doesnt do unless you have something like hypersonic dragon out... you could force the opponent to discard on their turn. At best this guy stalls the board while you get mana or draw into a kill spell for that loxodon smiter they've either been keeping in hand or waiting for. Attacking with drainpipe vermin probably plays into your opponent's game plan, unless its gotrancor on it. So keeping it on the defensive means that your opponent has to take a chance on whether you want to block with it or not.
He's a turn 1 play that the opponent will either waste removal on before you get the chance to pay for the triggered ability, in which case that pillar of flame will no longer be a threat to that deathrite shaman you were holding onto, or something your opponent won't be willing to att... (see all)
Posted By:
Gheridarigaaz
(11/22/2012 1:04:04 PM)
No matter what you guys (and ladies) think, but I think this is pretty adorable to you, and annoying to your opponents. And, if you are playing with recycle/reanimator deck (like me), all kinds of abillities that trigger upon death are usefull.
Posted By:
TheZombifier
(11/8/2012 9:35:48 PM)
This is intended to empower re-animator decks: a chump blocker that lets you put monsters like Teysa, Envoy of Ghosts into your graveyard, so you can pull her out with Obzedat's Aid.
Posted By:
Jhyrryl
(5/22/2013 1:01:09 AM)
I was ready to compare this to an old favorite of mine, Insidious Bookworms, however the non-random discard really tends to hurt it. I'd still prefer my Bookworms, but this is a cute option for any Rat deck that doesn't mind setting aside a little extra mana to ensure the trigger goes through. The problem with this card over, say, Ravenous Rats, however, is that your opponent can better play around the discard and only get rid of the Drainpipe Vermin when it is least hurtful for them.
Posted By:
Eternal_Blue
(9/27/2012 1:59:17 AM)
I'm sick of how all the rats in Magic are black and evil-looking, so this is a godsend for the owner of two adorable pet rats.
I have 20 copies of this guy. I named him püffy.
Posted By:
Soarel
(11/7/2012 11:36:00 AM)
Thought it would be ok in Limited, but turned out it wasn't. Still the cutest rat in Magic, though, apart from Lab Rats.
Posted By:
Okuu-chan
(9/30/2012 4:46:17 AM)
Yet another early drop that doesn't have to be a dead draw late game (if you're running sacrifice, you can use it to burn their draw before they get a chance to use it. Very potent if they're topdecking and need an answer)
Posted By:
LordRandomness
(9/27/2012 5:22:51 AM)
A decent card, but typhoid rats was definitely a better rat than this.
Posted By:
Ferlord
(10/4/2012 9:38:55 AM)
I have a feeling this is meant to be used with Mind Slash. 
for a discard of your choice and a discard of theirs?
Posted By:
Satak_Oz
(10/11/2012 3:16:55 AM)
This is the darlingest-looking rat I have ever seen.
Posted By:
Totema
(9/25/2012 7:15:09 PM)