This is the first preview article I’ve written for Metagame.com, and I’ve got a feeling that I’m going to draw some heat from some of the more established writers; I think (without having seen any of the other cards) that I have the best one of the bunch. Don’t you just hate it when the new guy at work gets the sweet desk position facing the window with the beautiful view? That’s how I feel at the moment. I’m the new guy with the sweet deal.

“Play Time Thief only if you control Dr. Doom or Kang.”

Okay, no problem, I can live with that.

“Search an opponent’s deck for a card and remove it from the game.”

Oh. My. God. Okay, okay, so where’s the downside?

“Play Time Thief only if you control Dr. Doom or Kang.”

Yeah, I read that bit, but where’s the real downside? Surely that’s not it? I only have to control Dr. Doom or Kang? My god, R&D, I love you so much!

What you just read above is pretty close to the internal monologue I had when I first laid eyes on my preview card. I say “my” because that’s what it is. Mine. Mine. Stay away from the precious!

Okay . . . so maybe I’m getting a little overexcited, but Time Thief has really sparked my interest. About a month or so ago, I rebuilt my Common Enemy deck for some Hobby League action. Shortly after, I took it apart again after I traded some of the pieces away. One thing is for sure; I’ll be getting those cards back ASAP.

Dr. Doom has always been about control. I guess that comes from being a super-intelligent, power-hungry megalomaniac. As a team, Doom has always been one of the strongest control-orientated factions in Vs. System, but as with any megalomaniac, everything must revolve around the central character. The majority of the team’s abilities either require you to control Dr. Doom or may only be used by the good doctor. We can see that this card has a similar restriction. But what’s this? Another name on the card? Kang? Kang takes things to a whole other level. He’s such a self-absorbed control freak that he won’t even let anyone else on his team! Is there room on a Vs. card for two such monumental egos? Well, apparently so, and it certainly gets a janky brain like mine ticking.

Enemy of My Enemy has caused quite a stir in many ways. It has allowed deckbuilders everywhere to create marvelous hybrid decks that fuse together members of various teams and form a very powerful whole. A lot of these decks include one-of characters that cater to every situation.

Other search cards like Ahmed Samsarra, Alfred Pennyworth, and Kooey Kooey Kooey have always been popular for a good reason; they improve consistency and allow the player to fit more in a deck by giving you the means to search out what you want when you need it.

Time Thief does exactly what the name says. It allows you to go ahead in time and search your opponent’s deck (which is a pretty powerful ability in its own right), then steal something that he or she is relying on for later. For example, the Villains United / X-Statix deck generally runs only one copy of its later turn characters. Time Thief will let you delve into the deck to remove that problematic Spider-Man, The Amazing Spider-Man or the oh-so-scary Imperiex.

One thing that I particularly like about this card is that despite its “only if you control . . .” restriction, there are very few downsides to it. As a 3 threshold plot twist, you can play it early enough to stand a reasonable chance your opponent hasn’t already drawn the cards you’re after. Also, you don’t have to target a card in particular. This means that you don’t have to have any foreknowledge of the deck you’re facing. You can play the card, search through your opponent’s deck (making mental notes as you go), and then just pick any randomly powerful card that you see. I’ve always enjoyed using cards like Alistair Smythe, but you have to be very sure about the deck your opponent is running. Time Thief doesn’t require anything like that kind of effort.

The fact that it doesn’t target the opponent is another aspect that I like. The only things you need worry about are Fizzle-esque cards and abilities. Even then, having Time Thief negated is not the end of the world. All you lose is one card, so it’s not like getting your Savage Beatdown nerfed and having an attack fail. You also have no restriction on when you can play the card. If your Deep Green opponent uses Ahmed to find his or her Rook Control, you can get a step ahead and make Merlyn, Deadly Archer’s chances of keeping his cosmic counter very slight indeed.

All said, I think this card is fantastic. It certainly inspires me to build a control deck again. If you disagree, that’s fine. Please feel free to email me and I will give you my address, and you can send me any copies of Time Thief that you manage to pull.

I hope you all enjoy your Sneak Preview tournament. Why not take a friend who hasn’t played the game before? I have a feeling that this set is going to be a real gem!

Cheers,