Category: Banlist updates

  • April 2006 Banlist Update

    April 2006 Banlist Update

    The following changes are effective from April 15, 2006 for all tournaments in the MagicPlayer.org Highlander format:

    Banned:

    Unbanned:

    We hope that these changes will lead to an even broader and more diversified metagame.

  • January 2006 Banlist Update

    January 2006 Banlist Update

    After long discussions and intense deliberations, we have decided to reset the banned list at the start of the year. A total of 14 cards have been unbanned and only one card has been banned. We hope this will bring fresh energy to the format and help us develop the ideal banned list for the Highlander format.

    This marks a significant departure from our previous approach of continuous maintenance of the list, which was originally based on the old 1.5 format. We are now venturing into a new space where combo decks may find their place in the format.

    All unbannings are to be understood as test unbannings, meaning that it should be expected that cards which prove to be too strong will be returned to the banned list at the next update (the next update is scheduled for April 15, 2006).

    We now invite everyone to put the cards to the test and help identify which cards may be too powerful for our format.

    Banned Cards

    All “Ante” Cards (Banned)

    Unglued & Unhinged

    All cards from the sets “Unglued” and “Unhinged” are banned, with the exception of basic lands.

  • October 2005 Banlist Update

    October 2005 Banlist Update

    Changes to the MagicPlayer Highlander Format as of October 15, 2005, 12:00 a.m. CET:

    Banned

    • Umezawa’s Jitte

    Unbanned

    • No changes

    Added to the Watchlist

    • Back to Basics
    • Gifts Ungiven
    • Wonder

    Removed from the Watchlist

    • Eternal Witness
    • Price of Progress
    • Regrowth
    • Umezawa’s Jitte

    Reasoning

    The council has decided to ban Umezawa’s Jitte for the following reasons:

    1. Power Level and Casting Cost:
      For its cost (2 mana) and type (artifact), Umezawa’s Jitte has a power level that is too high. It serves several strong functions at once — board control and faster kills — for too little mana. Unlike Sword of Fire and Ice, the equipped creature does not need to deal damage to a player but only needs to deal combat damage at all, meaning the Jitte is usually active immediately.
    2. Lack of Self-Regulation:
      The self-regulation mechanism intended by R&D due to the Jitte’s Legendary type (where “my Jitte destroys your Jitte”) does not work in the Highlander format. In Highlander, it is very unlikely to draw one’s own Jitte at just the right moment, unlike in other formats where this happens more frequently. As a result, the Aggro vs. Aggro matchup becomes highly luck-dependent, since an unanswered Jitte, even for just 2-3 turns, often creates an insurmountable lead.

    Additionally, the council has recognized the issue of a metagame-dominating U/G Aggro-Control deck but wishes to give players the opportunity to address this development through their own deck-building choices. However, to prevent further stagnation of the format, additional bans will be made on January 1, 2006, if necessary.

  • July 2005 Banlist Update

    July 2005 Banlist Update

    Effective from July 15, 2005, 00:00 CET, the MagicPlayer Highlander format will be updated as follows:

    Banned:

    Unbanned:

    Watchlist:

    Added:

    Reasoning:

    1. Strip Mine:
    Despite its completely symmetrical design, a large number of Highlander players consider the card to be unfair and fun-destroying. As a result, the council, despite some reservations, decided to ban the card from the Highlander format. Originally added as a replacement for Dust Bowl to provide more than just Wasteland as a means to deal with annoying non-basic lands like Maze of Ith or Volrath’s Stronghold, it unfortunately turned out that Strip Mine was much more frequently used as an early attempt to color-screw or mana-screw the opponent. The effect could also be repeatedly abused with cards like:

    These interactions made the lock effect far too strong.

    2. Imperial Seal:
    Although very few players actually own this card, it had to be added to the banned list for the sake of completeness. The number of strong and playable tutors should remain limited to prevent combo decks from becoming too strong. Vampiric Tutor has always been banned, and for consistency, Imperial Seal is now banned as well.

    3. Necropotence:
    In light of the current strength of Tier 1 decks and the BBB casting cost, it was decided to allow Necropotence again. The goal is to give heavy-black decks a card that can compete with the power level of frequently played blue cards like Gifts Ungiven and Intuition. In the Highlander format, Necropotence has access to fewer effective life-gain effects than in traditional formats, meaning that playing the card carries a significantly higher risk. As a result, it is considered fair for this format.

    4. Enlightened Tutor:
    The color white is traditionally one of the weaker colors in Magic overall, and especially in Highlander. To give white mages a way to respond more flexibly to situations and to slightly counteract Red Deck Wins (RDW), since specific “hoser” cards can now be effectively available twice, Enlightened Tutor is being unbanned.

  • April 2005 Banlist Update

    April 2005 Banlist Update

    Effective from April 15, 2005, 00:00 CET, the MagicPlayer Highlander format will be updated as follows:

    Banned:

    • No changes

    Unbanned:

    • Mox Diamond
    • Relentless Rats

    Watchlist:

    • No changes

    Reasoning:

    Mox Diamond:
    Since discarding a land is part of the casting cost, its usage is limited, and the card is considered fair.

    Relentless Rats:
    Unbanned due to the errata text from December 1, 2004. Thanks to Michael Steinbach for the reminder. The errata states:

    “Dec 1, 2004 – This card’s text does not override other format-imposed restrictions on the number of cards. For example, in a Highlander format, you would still only be allowed one Relentless Rat.”

  • January 2005 Banlist Update

    January 2005 Banlist Update

    Effective from January 15, 2005, the MagicPlayer Highlander format will be updated as follows:

    Banned:

    Unbanned:

    • No changes

    Watchlist (Changes):

    Added:

    Removed:

  • October 2004 Banlist Update

    October 2004 Banlist Update

    Unbanned / Allowed in Highlander decks as of October 15, 2004:

    Banned / No longer allowed in Highlander decks as of October 15, 2004:

    Buyback
    Buyback cards may be played with the buyback ability starting from October 15, 2004.

    Champions of Kamigawa
    The new set Champions of Kamigawa will be tournament-legal starting from October 15, 2004, 00:00 CET.

  • Highlander 1.5+ Rules

    Highlander 1.5+ Rules

    Please note that this posting does not contain the up-to-date rules. This posting is retained for historic reference.

    Valid as of June 11, 2004.

    Deck Construction

    Each card only once

    The fundamental rule for selecting cards for a Highlander deck is that each card, except for basic lands (and snow-covered basic lands), may only be included once per deck. As always, the determining factor is the English name of the card.

    Minimum of 100 cards

    Additionally, the deck must contain at least 100 cards.

    Card Pool

    In principle, all Magic cards produced by Wizards of the Coast™ may be used for deck construction. The following exceptions apply:

    • Cards on the (modified) banned list may not be included in the deck. The banned list is based on the DCI Type 1.5 format (Type 1 without restricted cards), with some changes that are sensible for the Highlander 1.5+ format.
    • All cards from the set Unglued are banned, except for basic lands.
    • Cards from Portal, Portal II, and Portal – Three Kingdoms are tournament legal.
    • Cards from the following sets are tournament legal, provided they cannot be distinguished from the back. To ensure that the cards from the editions with square corners cannot be distinguished from regular Magic cards, the corners of the cards must be rounded accordingly. The cards must be played in sleeves with non-transparent backs.
      • Alpha Edition
      • International Edition
      • Collector’s Edition
      • World Championship Decks
    • Proxies are not allowed.
    • Cards with the Buyback ability may be used, but they are played as if they do not have the Buyback ability.
    • Dust Bowl may only destroy non-basic lands with non-mana-producing abilities (e.g., Maze of Ith, Mishra’s Factory).

    Mulligan

    Extended Mulligan

    To mitigate the increased chance of “mana screw” (too few lands) or “mana flood” (too many lands) on the starting hand caused by the 100-card rule, the following special Mulligan applies for the first drawn starting hand (based on the “old” Mulligan rule):

    If a player has zero, one, or seven lands on their initial starting hand, they may show their hand to their opponent (who has the opportunity to view the cards), shuffle the hand back into the library, and then draw seven new cards. This Mulligan does not grant the opponent the right to take a similar Mulligan.

    Alternatively, the player may opt for the standard “one card less” Mulligan (also known as the “Paris Mulligan”), which is also available after the special Mulligan.

    Sideboard

    No Sideboard!

    Play is conducted without a sideboard. Tournaments with a small number of players are generally played in a “round-robin best-of-one” format. Since sideboards cannot be used in this format, players who rely on their sideboards for deck construction would be at a disadvantage.

    This rule also forces players to better adapt their decks to the expected metagame (the deck types most likely to be played) by constructing their decks accordingly.

    For example, slow decks should be able to overcome the “Genesis Engine.” Players who expect more beatdown decks might include more mass removal or life-gain in their decks. Such considerations should be factored into deck construction. In “round-robin” tournaments, the player’s deck must be able to beat every other deck (or at least most of the field) to win the tournament.

    Banned List

    All ante cards:

    Additionally banned: