"Avacyn, Guardian Angel:An ounce of Prevention..."

"Avacyn, Guardian Angel:An ounce of Prevention..."

by:

Virgilio F. De leon Jr.

An ounce of Prevention is better than a pound of cure...

Many have been disappointed with the latest incarnation of Avacyn in M15. First they complain of the name. Avacyn , Guardian Angel. Doesn't sound like a creature for Magic? fits better in some nursery rhyme right? However that name is quite misleading. Avacyn does tend to look out for you but she is no softy either. While I might agree about the name  , there are a lot of cooler names out there. Like I don't know...Avacyn , Circle of Protection Avatar for example.In essence this is what Avacyn has become.Instead of the cool Angel of Hope that makes everything you control Indestructible she now has the ability to Circle of Protect you , Think of her as Avacyn , Magic casting Body guard.

For those of you who have just joined Magic in the recent years , Circle of Protection was a cycle of 2 to cast enchantments that were named to protect you from the different colors of Magic. Circle of Protection:Red for example was a bane to all those attacking red creatures or targeting red spells that would have affected you. You pay mana and all of these troubles go away. In recent years COP has still been a staple of magic , only a bit more refined or watered down , like in the form of Story Circle. While a lot of people frown upon the use of COP's and many a friendship has been ruined for calling people weak by hiding behind this enchantment people still continue to use this it because of the simple reason that it annoys other people.

Now to annoy people further , COP already comes in creature form and in a 5 to cast  , Flying , Vigilance 5/4 frame to boot. So now , not only does a COP protect you , you also have the power to hurt some of your friends who have been looking down on you. Take that!

Now Avacyn , Guardian Angel does have 2 abilities and I would like to look at them further. For 2 mana you could prevent damage that would be dealt to another target creature this turn by sources of the color of your choice. For example you have a 4/4 creature against 2 3/3 Green Beasts. you attack with your creature and it becomes mass blocked by the 2 3/3 Beasts. You could use Avacyns ability and just say protect from Green , your creature is still considered blocked and however all the damage that would be dealt to it is prevented. However your creature deals damage to one of the 3/3 beasts and will kill one. As a reminder , Avacyn could not target herself with this ability , you need to protect her with something else if you want to do that.

Now on to Avacyn ,Guardian Angels big mana ability. a 7 mana cost activation that Prevents all damage to target player this turn by sources of the color of your choice. In one on one games this ability could make you live again and again against brutal assaults and live long enough to come up with a plan to win.If you are being attacked by Mono Colored creatures like a horde of Black Zombies or Relenteless Rats...

"Dibs on the bones heheheh"

I think this ability will be a great political tool in Multiplayer EDH games. Imagine literally holding another players life in the palm of your hands. If you have the mana you could just pay and with instant speed you have managed to save one potential allies life. Gaining a friend in a harsh table is very important. Who knows ,with this activation you might have actually might have  bought yourself some time. Watch as people butter up to you so that they too can be saved by your angel. Take note though that different colored critters need several activations for absolute protection. So the best decision to choose the predominant color or the color which has the more damage dealing creatures on the board. 

Avacyn may have lost that coolness factor but she is actually more attainable , much easier to cast and summon to your side. It may not sound as cool as Angel of Hope but having a Guardian Angel is much better in different situations.  I mean making everything on the side of your table indestructible does not guarantee a win or guarantee that all damage directed to you would be prevented. For that you need the M15 Avacyn. I'm glad I have a copy.