Because you can't Terror Juzam Djinn for two mana...
Posted By:
scumbling1
(3/13/2011 5:42:37 PM)
They should have done a version of this in Kamigawa naming Mirrodin. :D
Posted By:
Gako
(1/27/2012 9:59:32 PM)
Enough is enough! I have had it with these motherfuckin' Shahrazads in this motherfuckin' card game!
Posted By:
Kryptnyt
(7/21/2012 8:31:03 AM)
In a game where reprints are so common, this mechanic couldn't really exist for more than a few expansions and indeed, this is only one of the 3 "expansion hosers" that exist in black-bordered Magic. They seem like a neat idea, though. If your group doesn't mind Un-set cards, look to World Bottling Kit.
Posted By:
Lord_Ascapelion
(11/15/2012 11:17:18 AM)
Did the Oracle really need to specify that it only works on "non token" Arabian Nights permanents? I wasn't aware that a token got an expansion symbol when it was generated.
Posted By:
gut.gemacht
(5/5/2013 8:53:27 PM)
The comp rules update for M14 changes how this works. Now it will destroy every card whose first printing was in Arabian Nights:
109.3
Expansion symbols are no longer a characteristic. Magic cards are recognized as individual game pieces by their English card names. One of the central tenets of that system is that all cards with the same name are considered the same for deck building and play purposes. This system lets us reprint cards, print promo cards, and have cards appear in many languages. But three older cards referred to cards from a specific expansion, and that runs contrary to the system. The Arabian Nights Bird Maiden and the Fourth Edition version should be the same, but City in a Bottle says they're not. In fact, it makes the original version worse!
So, cards will no longer refer to expansion symbol as a characteristic. The three cards that used to do this (City in a Bottle, Golgothian Sylex, and Apocalypse Chime) will receive errata in a future update to refer ... (see all)
Posted By:
Zetan
(7/15/2013 7:32:14 AM)
A lot of people are commenting about things like how this is so narrow or how it screws with limited formats.
These people are forgetting the environment this card was printed into. When it was printed, there were four sets: Alpha, Beta, Unlimited, and Arabian Nights. Alpha, Beta, and Unlimited were basically the same cardset (ignoring the errors in Alpha and the white borders for Unlimited) containing 292 unique cards and 10 alternate arts. Arabian Nights contained 78 unique cards and four alternate arts. This one action could eliminate about 20% of the cards in the game environment. That's not at all 'narrow'.
As for the booster draft issue (which, admittedly, is amusing :P), there wasn't really a 'competitive' scene at the time, and limited formats basically were not around yet. And I think the fact that the only basic land in the set is Mountains would cause more problems! (Of course, the mountain wasn't supposed to be there...)
Posted By:
keiyakins
(6/19/2010 5:23:52 PM)
Imagine this card in an Arabian Nights draft back in the day.
A: I play Kird Ape!
B: I play City in a Bottle!
A: Well....what do we do now?
B: Wait for time to be called? I....really don't know. Didn't think that far ahead. We could call it a draw I guess....
Posted By:
lukemol
(5/3/2010 10:47:13 PM)
From the Oracle text: "Only affects cards with the Arabian Nights scimitar symbol on them, or permanents that are copies of those cards." So... it does destroy cards from Chronicles with the Arabian Nights symbol? That was always the biggest headache with both this and Golgothian Sylex (heh, Golgotha. I can't believe I only just got that).
Actually for a while for me personally, the biggest headache came from that paragon of accuracy, InQuest magazine, thanks to their perpetually leaving off the rather important clause of "except for City in a Bottle" in their player's guide. I could never figure out how the card was supposed to work if it killed itself! Although InQuest, pre-Gamer, were the ones who told me that the card was inspired by Neil Gaiman's Sandman comic book series. Given InQuest's track record I'm not sure if that was actually true, but I'd like to think so, or at least that Magic drew from the same source as Neil Gaiman did.
Posted By:
stygimoloch
(2/15/2009 3:28:16 PM)
Bridge from Below
Field of Souls
Savra, Queen of the Golgari
You may play multiple copies of each, except Savra, and you'll get the benefit multiple times. Play with any of the low cost Arabian Nights creatures. Opponents are afraid to block and kill your attacking weenies. Then play City in a Bottle and watch the lols. Decaying Soil and Enduring Renewal will let you recycle the Arabian Nights creatures if you want to nuke your own city in a bottle and play another.
Hmm... haven't done this yet but now I gotta try it some time.
Posted By:
Nathreet
(12/31/2010 9:26:34 PM)