"The Dragon Redeemed"

"The Dragon Redeemed"

by:

Virgilio F. De leon Jr. MD

The night provided perfect cover for the 5 figures who was on their bellies awaiting a black van which was the designated target. The Yuu have countless such squads all over the world but this one was handpicked for this mission. While they have warriors that could go all out these 5 were known for their precision and control. 

"Why are we doing this again hyung?" The red headed man asked as he peered through his scope.

"Because the Elder ordered it you idiot." The Hyung was the oldest in the squad but only by a couple of months than the first man.

"So the head of our clan wants the princess of our clan , who represents our future to be ambushed on the road as she is on her to perform to a college?" The idiot who was not beginning to sound like an idiot asked. "And so to make it clear we are not supposed to hurt her but scare the hell out of her when it was the elder himself who sent her on this mission 2 years ago?"

"You think way too much for a soldier of the Yuu , Junsun. You carry out the order or you become a traitor to the clan."

"Hmmmm and we aren't so big on traitors right?" Junsun fingered the sleek black rifle in his hand that was only made possible by the betrayal of the Yuu against the dragons."I guess we don't expect any dragons on this expedition right Hyung? Otherwise we would not have these dragon piercers with us."

The hyung was already losing patience with the dongsaeng known as Junsun.

"Shut your mouth.It is not your place to think.Everyone is in their position. The van is approaching."

"Yes, Hyung." Junsun said without much conviction.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Encounters with dragons normally ended in two things for the Yuu. The Yuu Kills the Dragon or the Dragon kills the Yuu.When Junsun felt the punch penetrate his chest squashing his heart he knew that the latter was true. There was no dramatic pause , no blood spurting out of his mouth like he has seen in so many kung fu movies. Nothing of the sort. Just him falling on his back and him laughing at the notion of the dragon while being human form able to do this without even a drop of a sweat breaking down his brow. 

He laughed at all those hours of training , honing his skills to the point of perfection only to be killed 10 seconds into this fight. "Oh well. At least it is over." Junsun whispered to himself as he felt the ground on his side and saw the body of his Hyung fall beside him as well.

This was not death though. Junsun found his thoughts way too noisy for someone who had just died. Wasn't there a death god who was supposed to lead him to the other side by now? For all 5 of them who attempted this fool hardy mission of scaring a princess into submission but was met by a dragon body guard out of nowhere? 

A strong wind was blowing now here on the side of the road and the hollow in his chest made a sound as the air circulated in it. He reached out to this void and confirmed that he was missing a beating heart but he could still feel. And then he felt something warm beating. He removed his hand and he felt the hole in his chest close and he sat down suddenly to breathe in air and coughed.

All around him the other 5 stirred and looked confused that they were still breathing. Then he saw the disc of silver  that was on his chest that sealed his wound.He had never heard of a dragon sparing the life of an opponent. He had read about the mark of the Silver disk though. The Yuu branded their traitors with it but this was different. They had encountered a Silver Dragon. A creation dragon. Something that was not seen in hundreds of years. And it was with the princess. How in the hell did that happen?

The others were looking at their Hyung for instructions. The Hyung looked at Junsun. "We are all traitors." He said in horror. "The brand of the Silver disc."

"No Hyung. We are Redeemed. I do not know what the Elder wanted but if a Dragon would protect a princess from her own clan then that is saying something isn't it?"

"What are we supposed to do now Junsun? When we return to shrine we will be murdered as Dragon collaborators."

"Then we will be neither Yuu or Dragon collaborators. We will be Redeemed and ask this Silver Dragon the truth of why he spared us when he should have not."

The 5 rose and gathered their gear. They would need to approach the dragon a second time and this time with more caution. 

"Doc In , Doc Out August 2017 #3 : Uber and Under"

"Doc In , Doc Out August 2017 #3 : Uber and Under"

by:

Virgilio F.De leon Jr.MD

Patient: Doc ok naman ang BP ko. Yung Uber lang ang mataas minsan.
Me: Ano po?
Patient: Yung Uber ba. Yung taas.Yung under eh mababa naman.
Me: Ah. Ok po.

Stalking Leonin: Must...Not...Look...at...opponent:Instant revealation!"

"Stalking Leonin: Must...Not...Look...at...opponent:Instant revealation!"

by:

Virgilio F. De leon Jr.MD

Magic has introduced a somewhat sneaky mechanic this commander 2017. So when Stalking Leoning enters the battlefield you secretly choose an opponent.

I can see it now , people trying to avoid an opponents gaze as they secretly choose them. It may be a bit obvious if just one player has a significant board presence and you choose not to pick him or her. 

So what happens? At instant speed you can reveal your chosen opponent and if he or she has a target creature attacking you then you can exile that creature.

You can only choose this ability once.This is the sneaky mechanic.

So how are you going to keep track of the opponent you chose and how are your opponents going to know that you have chosen them when Stalking Leonin came into play? Should you point to them under the table? Write their name on a piece of paper? Let Jace read your mind so they all know you are telling the truth?

This ought to be interesting enough when it hits the battlefield.Time to be sneaky.

"Traverse the Outlands: Omnath's New friend."

"Traverse the Outlands: Omnath's New friend."

by:

Virgilio F. De leon Jr. MD

I have been planning my Omnath , Locus of Rage EDH deck for awhile after I fought against a version of it that my friend Mark Abude ran in one of our Seattle's Best EDH match ups.

I like the landfall mechanic going insane here. Coupled with Rampaging Baloths , you create a hell lot of large beefy tokens.

Traverse the Outlands is something that I want to have in this deck since this 5 mana sorcery will look at the biggest creature you have in the battlefield and dump that much basic lands  , tapped into your side. So with an Omnath , Locus of Rage(5/5) and Rampaging Baloths(6/6) you are looking at  

6 lands coming in and with both of them in play 6 5/5 Elementals and 6 4/4 Beasts. Imagine if you have Urabrask in play or even an Anger in your Graveyard and a mountain. Hasty beefy tokens. 30 damage from the Elementals and 28 damage from the Beasts.

The Amulet of Vigor will have a spot in this deck as well as there is no need to let those lands coming in go to waste. They untap and you can use it to cast something else. 

I also want to look at another landfall staple.Avenger of Zendikar when triggered by the Traverse the Outlands means that all your creatures also get a +5/+5 stat pump in the process. 

I am guessing that Omnath will probably lose some of his rage when he sees this sorcery. Let's put a smile on his elemental face today.

"Doc In , Doc Out August 2017 #2 : Exhale din po pag may time"

"Doc In , Doc Out August 2017 #2 : Exhale din po pag may time"

by:

Virgilio F. De leon Jr. MD

Doc:Hingang Malalim po.
Patient:(inhales)
Doc: (places steth on other side of back) Ok po hingang malalim ulit.
Patient:(inhales again)
Doc:Isa pa po.
Patient: (Inhales for 3rd time)
Doc: Puwedeng ilabas yung hangin ulit ha
Patient: Salamat doc nahihirapan na nga ako eh

"Balan, Wandering Knight: The Cat knight that was promised(to New Phyrexia)"

"Balan, Wandering Knight: The Cat knight that was promised(to New Phyrexia)"

by:

Virgilio F. De leon Jr.MD

There have been a lot of Legendary Cats that have held the Commander spots all through the years. And some of them are very effective in the role such as Brimaz or Kemba , Kha Regent. The latter even taking advantaged of all the metal being attached to her by producing 2/2 tokens each upkeep.

Balan the Wandering Knight also takes advantage of all the steel lying around by having it attach to itself for a measly 2 mana cost. This has gotten me thinking about another "Boy Bakal" deck that takes advantage of the fact. 

I mean Balan is a 4 mana cost creature that will let you drop early equipment first and then when you are ready plop him down , get all those weapons on him and attack! 

Important equipment to have of course will be Basilisk's Collar , Strata Scythe , Lightning Gr eaves , Any of the Swords , Whispersilk Cloak. 

If you play your cards right Balan could attack and swing things in your favor right away. 

I mean there is nothing much an opponent could do about a Haste , Double-striking , Life-linking , Death touching , Hexproof and unblockable creature that could deal damage equal to the number of Plains you control.

Short of having you sacrifice a creature or  just mass removing everything Balan could wander right back into the battlefield when you have enough mana and then take on all of the weapons that you have lying around and boom. 

Imagine this guy with Exalted creatures and permanents in play. Imagine him passing through everything like butter. Imagine your victory.

I can also imagine(and this is one of my favorite day dreams so far) The Phyrexianized version of Balan when eh attaches a Grafted Exoskeleton on himself and gains +2/+2 and Infect! Why even with the Grafted Exoskeleton and Whispersilk Cloak he can deal 10 Infect damage to end one player. Unblockable , Double Striking Infect damage with Hexproof. Living the Phyrexian Dream! 

And this is why Balan is the Cat knight who was promised(to New Phyrexia). All will be one.

Of course a well timed Granulate can ruin your day here. So be careful not to be too careless in this regard.

Now back to imagining that your promised Catknight will deliver that victory you have always wanted.

"Doc In , Doc Out August 2017 #1 : Takes Mo Pa Din"

"Doc In , Doc Out August 2017 #1 : Takes Mo Pa Din"
by:
Virgilio F. De leon Jr.MD

Patient: May gamot na po ako kaso di ko na po tinitakes.Di ko naman nararamdaman highblood ko kaya di ko na tinitakes.

Me: Takes mo pa din.