The best part about Swords to Plowshares is playing it on some creature that would obviously never be a farmer and yelling something like "Looks like your Avatar of Woe wants to be a farmer now!" ...okay, maybe the one-mana, instant speed, exiling removal is the best part about Swords to Plowshares, but making Niv-Mizzet the Firemind take up a simpler life has to be the second best part.
Posted By:
JohnADreams
(8/6/2010 2:24:58 PM)
Comparing this card to PtE is much more complicated than "both cost W, both do the same job". because they fill different roles in different archetypes.
Posted By:
oatusmcflee
(7/11/2010 8:00:22 AM)
A must have in a white deck. A 1 mana solution to 95% of the creatures in MtG. "Oh, is that a first turn Darksteel Colossus?" "Buh-bye".
Posted By:
markarmor
(5/1/2010 12:15:08 PM)
In most situations I'd rather give my opponents life from Swords than the land from Path to Exile but there are many situations where Path to Exile will be a superior card. At the end of the day most decks win by getting their opponents to 0 life. Sometimes you will win by scraping through that last 1 or 2 damage, in a situation like that you would probably not want to play this card over Path to Exile, particularly if you can win before they even get to use the land they tutored from the Path to Exile.
This card delays your opponents death (which will almost always matter), Path to Exile accelerates your opponent's win (which only matters if you can't win first). Depending on your strategy, deck and their deck, either card could be better at that time.
Posted By:
Temple_Garden
(8/7/2010 11:44:10 AM)
The problem with Path is that you're letting your opponent get their expensive cards out faster. And what if the creature you just Pathed was the only one they've been able to play because they don't have the proper color or number of lands to play other cards?
Granted, Path can be good if it's late enough in the game that it won't make much of a difference (or if they use few, if any, basic lands; one of my friends has a 5-color with only non-basic lands), but I'd much rather give them life than give them land otherwise.
How many ways can you get rid of life? Too many to count.
How many ways can you get rid of land? Very few, and they're practically non-existent outside of {R}.
Posted By:
Diachronos
(9/3/2010 2:39:09 PM)
It's more versatile, too. I've played this card a lot and there have been times when I've used it to gain a bit of life back for myself, a-la Healing Salve. I realize 95% of the time you're using it offensively, but that aspect puts it even further ahead of Path to Exile.
Posted By:
brian_james
(8/7/2010 2:27:44 PM)
swords is not just "strictly" better than path. you are talking aboout card advantage and mana advantage, but let's say it is turn 12 and players have 7 and 8 lands. your opponent has 9 life and casts a baneslayer with no other cards in hand. then would be better giving him a land than 5 life.
Posted By:
don_miguel
(8/26/2010 4:51:24 AM)
I really don't know how anyone could come up with PtE is better than StP.
There are alot of ways you could turn an opponent's lifegain into your advantage like say, Donate your Transcendence to them then StP their fattie or just slap in an Everlasting Torment in play and they'll learn to fear StP
Posted By:
klauth
(9/4/2010 6:53:26 PM)
my mono white controll deck dosnt win by reducing my opponents life to 0
in fact i never deal a point of damage to them in a game
so this card has virtually no drawback
:D !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
heres the link to that deck by the way
http://www.mtgvault.com/ViewDeck.aspx?DeckID=48980
Posted By:
ZirilanoftheClaw
(12/8/2010 10:01:57 PM)
Can we not compare this to Path to Exile and just admire it for the great card it is?
Posted By:
divine_exodus
(3/14/2011 6:32:36 AM)