Rating Homelands, the Worst Set in Magic: The Gathering (MTG Set Review)

Rating Homelands, the Worst Set in Magic: The Gathering (MTG Set Review)
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[@SuddenReal]

Fun fact: Originally Baron Sengir was a 6/6 with a better effect for 6 mana but was deemed too powerful by playtesters. They adviced to either raise the mana cost or to nerf the ability, but the design team did both. And since the set was already in delay, they didn't have time to playtest the new version anymore and just printed it as is. Shame, because this card would have been good at 6 mana, except maybe for the lack of Vampires in the set, or in general even (there were only two at the time since Legendaries didn't have a creature type).

[@pauldefillippo8490]

The baron is also one of the only cards that references + 2 /+ 2 counters. As opposed to 2 +1/+1 counters.

[@oldmagemtg7008]

Oh man. 13 year old me would've been overjoyed if the Baron was 6/6 for 6. If only.

[@chaedi8457]

Few interesting things are cards you made mention of. Autumn Willow was previously considered one of the best cards to come out of this set. The ability to remove Shroud as you needed was unique at the time. When the set came out there was a tournament rule that your deck needed to include a minimum of 5 cards from every expansion. Homelands was so bad that players had difficulty fulfilling this requirement. The most common card used to meet the 5 card requirement was Serrated Arrows.

[@christopherlapp4553]

They also played the lands which is why the mana base in those decks were weird

[@funnymcfunfuns1455]

Autumn Willow and Baron Sengir were in the "top ten selling cards of the month" in Inquest magazine. I remember them both going for around $15 in the price guide.

[@chaedi8457]

@@funnymcfunfuns1455 I definitely remember Autumn Willow being the most expensive card in the set, but I think it was already down to like $5 when I started during Mirage block, but I definitely remember friends playing with it. I don't remember anyone ever using Baron Sengir though. It always seemed more of a Timmy card and didn't see any play in my play group. Always binder fodder.

[@JD-gk7eh]

Yup. Autumn Willow replaced Erhnam Djinn in the Armageddon deck once he rotated out.

[@Nuclace]

Dear lord Serrated Arrows that takes me back

[@GrendelNin]

Back in the day...Ihsan's Shade was a beast. The best removal at the time was 'Swords to Plowshares' and it couldn't touch him, red usually needed at least two burn spells to kill him, many black removal spells couldn't target black creatures, and with 2 'Dark Rituals' you could get him out on turn 2.

[@MuchachoC]

yeah, Ihsan's Shade was sick ❤️ I used it in every black deck at the time :D

[@JD-gk7eh]

And don't forget how Mark Justice lost the World championship casting Demonic Consultations trying to get Dark Rituals to cast him, only to drain his library so much he didn't have enough cards left to win once he did cast it.

[@pyrotempestwing]

I would watch a Netflix series about Joven and Chandler. Maybe the rest of Homelands, too. At least for one season. 8 episodes sounds right.

[@flameofmage1099]

The lore seems to be well written based off flavor text

[@pentatronic]

Could I BE a better thief!?

[@Dreikoo]

I think the flavor in Dark Maze is supposed to be that the dungeon is crumbling and crashing down on you when it becomes able to attack so after that it's just ruins so it get removed from play. Not a good card by any means but I think the flavor is fine.

[@sebbbi2]

Serrated Arrows doesn’t kill one 3/3. It kills three Ragavans. 3:1 card advantage. It’s a bit like Pyrokinesis but you can keep it in play waiting for the next target.

[@EbonAvatar]

When I was a kid Baron Sengir was my favorite card. I jammed it into every deck I cluld whether or not it made any sense.

[@funnymcfunfuns1455]

Same here. Probably the most excited I've ever been pulling a card from a pack was Baron out of a $1 booster.

[@doctorteethomega]

Back when Homelands was the latest set I ran a Minotaur deck that combo'd Didgeridoo with Aether Storm to decent effect.

[@egyptian316]

Serrated Arrows was played EVERYWHERE after Homelands came out. It was a hard counter for the Fallen Empires pump knights, and killed Whirling Dervish before it could get rolling. Ihsan's Shade also saw lots of play because they were protected, and that just wasn't easy to find back then.

[@thorin1045]

leaches used in medicine all over the world. technically it was useful in some case, as the body forced to make fresh blood, also helped a few issues, to the point that it the idea (bloodletting) is still in use for a very limited medical issues.

[@ぬんぬんビム]

Homelands had the weakest cards but some of the best art and flavor text, up there with The Dark and Antiquities.

[@MuchachoC]

Forget + Polar Kraken (the 11/11 blue creature from Ice Age, the cycle after Homelands) was a good combo for reanimator decks at the time

[@QuicksilverSG]

There's no hint on her card, but Irini Sengir is a Vampire Dwarf. Dwarven Pony was no doubt earmarked as a gift to Irini from Baron Sengir.

[@PlacidBogle]

I love that people call homelands the worst set. If it is so bad then why is it literally the most balanced set ever created. Besides that upkeep was put into set to help prevent mana burn before the removed mana burn from the rules.

[@yeasstt]

Giant Oyster is such a neat card. It is the only Oyster creature in all of MTG, and it's effect is pretty unique. Probably my favorite Homelands card

[@mightyfp]

Nika: homelands is the worst expansion Fallen empires: exhales nervously

[@thomasfplm]

I just noticed that Giant Oyster can be useful against infect and things like that, since it doesn't remove just the counters it placed. Your creatures can block or be blocked by an infect creature and tap the Oyster to remove the counters at your next untap step.

[@palaguin]

21 years ago I wrote an article on SCG where I compared the 20 best cards of Homelands with the 20 best from Legions, as it was also deemed a bad set. I personally remember it as the first set where I had no problem get packs for it, as sometimes back then it took weeks to get a decent amount of packs from new sets. I had a Falcon WW deck that did me quite well that used cards from Hoemlands like SOraya, Mesa Falcons, and Serra Aviary.

[@sinisterindustries6166]

First started playing during Homelands. I bought so many of those 8-card booster packs hoping to get a Baron Sengir, but finally only got in as a promo in a comic-book that cost me $20...never got to build a vampire-deck with him either, since he was my only vampire at the time.

[@ogolthorp]

Serra Bestiary doesn’t even stop repeatable activated effects. Only ones that require tapping. It does shut down mana dorks though

[@TetraTimboman]

I have 4x copies of the card "Prophecy" in paper! I also have Portent! It's in a Psychogenic Probe deck, and the deck does have Lantern of Insight like you were thinking you watch what your opponent is going to draw into and then mill them / make them shuffle. Haven't touched the deck since 2010 so it could probably use an upgrade.

[@christopherb501]

Yes indeedy to older set reviews. Might I suggest Ice Age Block or Masques Block? TONS of forgotten chaff to exhume.

[@benjones1717]

I really liked it's style though. Feast of the unicorn and Jovens ferrets seemed so cool to me as a kid. Also serrated arrows saw play up until recently in pauper.

[@Trip_Fontaine]

Reknit is a card that regenerates any permanent without having to jump through hoops. Of course this was way after Homelands though. The reason Aether Storm has the awkward "can't be regenerated" wording is that originally it just said "bury." The definition of "bury" was "destroy without the possibility of regeneration." Eventually that term was phased out. Now even regeneration itself is more-or-less phased out.

[@eric4946]

Stuff like Serra bestiary would be interesting if it was 0/1/ϕ mana to cast… like if you could cast it for no mana but required you to upkeep it after…

[@JoeCamarillo]

It’s funny; for an older player the original text boxes make sense, Oracle needs translation 😂

[@jamessnedeker4799]

Reveka, Wizard Savant: Never brag about the latest wonder you've created, students. Chandler might be listening. Mark Robin: Well, you see - the box says Serrated Arrows but it actually contains a device that releases fart spray and microglitter everywhere.

[@dancing_odie]

I only play Pauper and I saw Serrated Arrows the other day in a Profilerate deck with weird lands I'd never seen before

[@jumpsteady1777]

Not that it changes much but I assume like the city in a bottle, the text for removing all cards from homelands is probably updated to basically say remove any card whose original print is in homelands.

[@NikachuMTGLive]

that's correct

[@jumpsteady1777]

I dare wotc to make another expansion wipe card 😅

[@deeterful]

If you check out the sport Ferret Stuffing you'll understand the freeze mechanic.

[@wolfwing1]

my favorite bad card that I made good at the time,though still had a terribe casting cost, was tolarian serpent. 5UU, during your upkeep put the top 7 cards of your library into your graveyard, worked with gaea's blessing from the same set to always cycle your important cards, only downside was the huge cost making it hard to get out when it was useful, also was fun to put mist form or such on it and give it to oponent.

[@JD-gk7eh]

Serrated Arrows is the Homelands card with the most PT Top 8s. During an early Pro Tour, WotC put in a rule that all decks had to have at least 5 cards from each legal expansion in Standard at the time. The pros really had a hard time with Homelands and most turned to Serrated Arrows as at least it does something pretty reasonable. It appeared in nearly all the sideboards of decks at that event.

[@Finngrinder]

Wow, Ruins and Primal Order are fantastic! Also, I want to do the Aether Sylex thing and I wonder why Prophecy was not used by white Legacy decks that were not UW Miracles in the age of its dominance. You could perfectly mess up Terminus plays with that if you were not locked by Counterbalance already, which probably was a reason against doing it

[@tobiaspause1775]

Homelands wasnt that terrible. But sure comparing it 30 years later with modern powerlevel... sure its gone. Honestly i like sets without theese huge Gamebreaking cards. Apocalypse chime BROKEN in draft. Willow for example was nice. keep in mind that this was the very first cant be targeted card ever. And it has the option to remove it when you want to add something? yeah that card was good back than. Baron sengir was a big deal too back than.

[@lokifeyson]

I feel commander is more than possible with 20 life, we used to play with who ever and how ever many people, decks as big as you wanted as long as it had at least 60 cards and only 4 copies of any one card with 20 starting life, fun times

[@sylvanhc]

I was running primal order in a commander deck until just last week - only took it out because it doesn't affect the board, but I was sad to do it. I didn't realise until I took it out that I had been running a homelands card.

[@clbaker8356]

Castle Sengir and the other 4 cards that cycle were first to offer way have access 3 different types mana (4 if count colorless).

[@DarthMetool]

Okay, Homelands is my favorite set just because of how quirky it is. I'll come back and edit my comment after I see how you treat the set. EDIT: You did good. Thanks.

[@snotflakes]

I crack up every time nikachu mistakenly types in a message thinking its a card name. Falls rules!

[@Ratty_77]

back in the day when I used to play magic, I collected 3 full sets.4th edition, Stronghold and Homelands. Homelands sucked bad even back then, but I just liked the theme and lore on that one.

[@catfishrob1]

31:59 i think they were saying Karn's Sylex could be used to prevent the ability that destroys Aether Storm, which would turn it into a legit stax piece. I think. Lol Edit: nvm, that was explained later 😅

[@Corescos]

Honestly Aether storm seems like a weak but fun politics card that I would use for fun in a counterspell deck that doesn't play too many creatures If it had any sort of recursion ability it would be actually usable and much more fun but as it stands I think you could plop Aether storm down late game and force an interesting play from other players but since 40 life is so much it would take a lot of work to use this one card

[@barrywade3774]

You missed Carapace, Abbey Gargoyles, The Falconer, the Slayer, and Grandmother Sengir. I started the game when this came out and collected the set. Drafting This and Fallen Empires was cheap crazy fun.

[@jimhopkins3972]

I actually made most of my money back from Homelands by dumping a couple of Didgeridoos when they were stupid expensive, along with a few of the other 'high' value cards (high being relative). I agree that the flavor and the art were pretty cool, and I still have most of the set, including my OG Memory Lapses and Merchant Scrolls.

[@chrisreeves3991]

I have a copy of Apocalypse Chime. I double-sleeved it and keep it in a top loader, because it makes me laugh every damn time I see it. I contend that it is the singular worst card in magic. Even WHEN homelands was a thing, this was useless.

[@ripvanwinkle9648]

I am ashamed to admit that I actually have an unopened booster box of Homelands. In my defense, this is because I decided to purchase a full set of the Ice Age block unopened. Still have: (2) Ice Age Starter boxes, (2) Alliances Booster Boxes, and the lone Homelands booster box. I had more boxes of the former, but before they went up in value much, I got bored a few times and opened those. No cards were removed from the packs, I just opened them, looked at what I got, and put them back in the packs - then the box - as they were. Damn, looked up the cost of these and they've gone up a large amount since I last checked. - Also, with An-Zerrin Ruins, if they have something like a Kismet in play -- your poor Merfolk don't even get one attack -- since they enter the battlefield already tapped.

[@cax1175]

My name is Chandler and I do indeed run a commander deck with him. His effect is funny with liquimetal torque and my opponents' commanders

[@jsnunya]

In regards to the card Truce, who wouldn't draw 2 cards? Me, with Pursuit of Knowledge in play, that's who. Portal also offers momentary truce wich is exactly the same, but one colorless less.

[@jamesgasik3424]

Nikachu was thinking of Hoss Delgado.

[@NikachuMTGLive]

Hahaha, I wasn't thinking of him, but he DOES match the description

[@wolfwing1]

it wasn't text, but the first 1-2 sets of miridon were SO hard to tell at a glance if they were white or artifact as the colour/design scheme was so similar, they made it more obvious with later sets.

[@Finngrinder]

Worst set by far is Dragon's Maze though. Homelands had atmosphere, if nothing else

[@DracoSuave]

Did it? Does anyone even know the story of it?

[@TehSeksyManz]

Look at the value of DM cards on TCG Player. Straight awful!

[@jimhopkins3972]

@@DracoSuave There wasn't a particular story, just a bunch of subplots.

[@SomeGuy712x]

Wow, I'm surprised Dragon's Maze has so little value. Checking on Scryfall, the most valuable card right now is Master of Cruelties, at about $4. (Not counting foils. The foil version of Master of Cruelties is currently over $26.)

[@chaos_ae]

Ok so I don't know how this game works and just lurk on your streams, but couldn't you use Baki's curse while targeting your own card? Like I put a bunch of enchants on my own creature, then it deals a ton of damage to everything?

[@murlocaggrob2192]

It doesn't target, it deals damage to everything. It's not looking for a creature with enchantments, it's looking at each creature independently and dealing damage based on the number of enchantments they have. Also, even if it did work that way, that would be a huge loss of value. You would have to sacrifice a creature and a bunch of enchantments AND cast this card just to clear the board.

[@dustinmartin3442]

Primal Order was a really good addition to my rule 0 Tamanoa commander deck!

[@cstaie85]

Combine An-Zerrin ruins with Thalia to make creatures enter tapped. Then to nail in the coffin. Make all creatures changlings

[@lainhikaru5657]

In my playgroup like 15 years or so ago we called Veldrane sengir Steve Tyler 😂

[@wolfwing1]

Baki's curse.....WOW....I played homelands, I bought packs...never heard of that one.

[@LyleH-13]

as someone who has been playing since 1994, its amazing the game made it past fallen empires, the dark, ice age, alliances and homelands. they REALLY weren't trying at that time. Mirage wasn't great, but improved but then when Tempest came out they finally came up to speed making real cards.

[@NikachuMTGLive]

I didn't ever think about it like that, but you're right.

[@SMAXZO]

Wait..he thought of Snake Plissken with a chainsaw arm? Good God..that's Haas Delgado!

[@Mellence]

Whether many of the old sets are good or bad cards, I do like how much of them just have sick art. Clockwork Swarm looks cool

[@andynonya1490]

Back then the color pie was more like a color suggestion.

[@SomeGuy712x]

I'm surprised you didn't rate these Homelands cards using the SABCD tier list chart. Like, you "buzzed" Autumn Willow, but I could see her being B or C, but definitely not D.

[@an3582]

Got Baron Sengir on my first and only Homelands Booster pack I bought.

[@wolfwing1]

memory lapse was such a troll card :> they cast sell memory lapse their next turn memory lapse their next turn memory lapse their next turn, I'm out of memory lapse, COUNTER SPELL. or mungungu, mundungu, mundungu, memory lapse, and that card that you name a card and if it's the top card of their library they take damage or something like that :>

[@michaeltorres544]

I wish the resistance had to decide to "press the red button" and release emrakul in order to defeat the phyrexians.

[@blueheartorangeheart3768]

Instant speed leeches would be great. At sorcery speed it does nothing vs rotpriest storm

[@tspin5642]

You should do a video on mono white humans in pioneer even know you only play blue decks

[@dancing_odie]

I put some of these cards in my deck. they may be expensive but some of them are very unique.

[@dustins9464]

We play 30 life in commandeer. That life total makes the games smoother and not so long, IMO. Also, we get more games in.

[@OdePery]

i remember when i was like 13 years old i baught 12 packs because i wanted baron sengir. i didnt know at this time that all the cards in that set are shit xD

[@metal--babble346]

My buddy gave me all his Homelands cards. My decks became traumatized and never quite recovered.

[@Littledeadfly]

We should bring this back but now we rank each Homelands cards…which means a lot of them will be in D tier

[@Wraithknight2]

Snake Pliskin - Escape from NY / LA

[@lberghaus]

It’s funny how clockwork swarm could have just been a 4 mana 4/3 with can’t be blocked by walls and it would still be unplayable.

[@charlescothran4946]

You HAVE to do a show on Fallen Empires ❤

[@greyphaqse]

You literally referenced Fighting Foodons' "Spaghett aboutit"

[@tylercosner4509]

Hold up, is "Prophecy" a one drop card draw for white? "Draw a card at the beginning of the next turn's upkeep" doesn't specify YOUR turn.

[@SimonDouville1]

Homelands: Remastered, do it wizards

[@maestro3947-b9g]

They are cowards... they wouldnt dare to attract the gaze of the Baron.... or the expantion is really bad. But i know that is fear of the Baron

[@derHexenhammer]

Forget is good in a discard or Reanimate deck.

[@flameofmage1099]

Is Abbot THAT unplayable?

[@billvolk4236]

They're referencing all the deep cuts in March of the Machine. They're even going back to Mercadia, home of another of the worst sets in Magic, and Shandalar, a plane created for a really, really bad PC game. But not Ulgrotha; fuck that plane.

[@Rorschachqp]

Autumn Willow made top 8s and won tournaments back in 95/96. Also it’s a portrait of Kaja Foglio.

[@cstaie85]

I bought 9 homelands packs for 27 dollars and ran a draft w 2 other people. Where we had to use all the cards drafted. Lol

[@sdmayday]

Serrated Arrows used to be a pauper staple.

[@polocatfan]

Ante cards always interest me

[@rexluna5430]

Didgeridoo+Artificial evolution=3 mana to cast emrakul at instant speed

[@paullavoie5542]

I think Aether storm is saying the Life lost can't be regenerated.

[@bryantan492]

Homelands $1.50/pack, Fallen empires $1/pack. I didn't care if their power level was bad, they didn't cost alot

[@clbaker8356]

Fallen Empires was complete crap also.

[@johntardibuono625]

Thallids were pretty good, as well as the Merfolk in Fallen Empires. Todays MTG cards are way to powerful for their costs.

[@pyrotempestwing]

I pulled a Thrull Champion that I pulled from a Fallen Empires pack in the mid-2000s that I combo’d with Imagecrafter to permasteal any creature by tapping them both. Works with Amoeboid changeling as well

[@clbaker8356]

@@pyrotempestwing Fallen Empires was about same as Homelands overall. Thrull Champion was a decent card, but for every decent card in the set (High Tide, Goblin Grenade,) there were what seemed like a dozen bad ones

[@JoeCamarillo]

Homelands and other “weak” sets are necessary to combat the inevitable power creep. Where are we at now?

[@GleepGlop2]

We didn't care how bad Fallen Empires was because we were just getting into the game. By the time Homelands came out we knew exactly how shit it was and everyone I knew quit playing Magic.

[@lancemagmer9701]

AysenCrusader originally said heroes not soildiers and warriors

[@MistyPurp]

Am i the only one that thought Eron the relentless was Michael Keaton at first?

[@乾坤一擲-o9o]

Nikachu do the same thing for Prophecy. It's actually a much worse set than Homelands.

[@pyrotempestwing]

Serrated Arrows wouldn’t be TERRIBLE in a proliferate deck, but there are better options.

[@nicholasmcmahan-watson9405]

STREAM IDEA! Cards that failed at flavor

[@xagon2012]

A super weak Return to Homelands set would be a lot of fun. 😄

[@Wraithknight2]

I play serrated arrows in my proliferate deck. Its not useless.

[@sebbbi2]

Pithing Needle + Aether Storm.

[@mutsuhanma7807]

Maskwood nexus with didgeridoo oooooohhhhh

[@crowcoregames1785]

there's bad then there's homelands bad XD anyway yeh zelthor makes you draw 3 in commander funny but very jank