It appears hardly imaginable to new players, i thought the same way when i saw this card for the first time.
But this was likely done because first strike is something seen only very rarely on green cards, it's something which is actually off-color.
Wizards likely wouldn't print a card as a Rare for that reason these days though, as we could see in the set Planar Chaos.
Posted By:
Mode
(10/27/2009 6:45:30 PM)
I think the comment about off-colour abilities being the reason this card is rare is probably right.
Enemy-colour landwalk used to make a card rare if memory serves too... (like Pygmy Allosaurus)
Posted By:
dybeck
(10/10/2010 7:09:58 AM)
Love the old cards :)
Posted By:
pwdrrider
(2/20/2010 8:09:33 PM)
@Eved; How do we know what anyone said at the Battle of Thermopylae? Herodotus may have used creative license in Histories vol VII.
Posted By:
Ibn_Shisha
(6/24/2011 1:24:33 PM)
WTF Archer w/o Reach!
Posted By:
RunedServitor
(1/17/2012 3:30:26 PM)
The flavor text is indeed a reference to Hdt. 7.226.1. "ὡς ἐπεὰν οἱ βάρβαροι ἀπίωσι τὰ τοξεύματα, τὸν ἥλιον ὑπὸ τοῦ πλήθεος τῶν ὀιστῶν ἀποκρύπτουσι: τοσοῦτο πλῆθος αὐτῶν εἶναι. " It is tucked inside a whole lot of indirect discourse.... so it turns out Herodotus heard about this guy named Dieneces who heard from the Trachinians that "When the barbarians shot their arrows, that they hid the sun by the great number of arrows... so large was the number of arrows." Translated by me.
Cool, eh? 5 stars for a Herodotus reference.
Posted By:
Drvst
(2/3/2012 7:41:45 AM)
So it turns out 300 stole that line. Go figure :P
Posted By:
izzet_guild_mage
(6/11/2010 12:34:36 PM)
@izzet_guild_mage
Nice joke
@everyone who doesn't know
The movie 300 was based on the Battle of Thermopylae.
This card's flavor text is referencing a quote made during that battle.
The battle happened over 2,000 years before MTG came out.
Posted By:
Eved
(1/24/2011 5:34:55 AM)
I cant believe that this is a rare...
Posted By:
Volcre
(9/6/2009 7:01:27 AM)
This is one of my all-time favourite magic cards.
Posted By:
deep_shadow
(1/29/2014 6:23:39 PM)