"You obviously put a lot of work into Edge of Paradise, but I assure you that the End of Paradise is coming" - Quote from SVM "Zed" Bma
I'll be honest, I didn't like Edge of Paradise as a set. The release of Handless Blood was one of the greatest design mistakes ever created in my opinion, and to finally be rid of it, is truly an angelic blessing. That said, too bad, unlimited players, you're still going to have to deal with that abomination which has plagued your format since release.
But without further ado, see below the list of high profile cards rotating out from Edge of Paradise, alongside their recent playrate.
Goodbye, Angelic Blessing
The most impactful changes from a neutral perspective will be Angelic Blessing and Glittering Angel. Angelic Blessing needs no introduction, a card that has warped the way that people play the game with their evolution points, served as a critical control tool, and was a way of balancing first vs second.
Most impacted will be archetypes like Spellboost Rune and Discard Dragon, but we have seen this card as a generically splashable card, emphasised by the fact that it sees play in 39% of decks. In a sense, we have seen cards like Goblin's Gratitude fulfil a similar niche, but that depends heavily on Academic Cards, which in many cases have been fairly lacklustre, and will no doubt be powercreeped in future sets.
Glittering Angel does not see much play currently, but it serves as a valuable tool for keeping invocation decks in check. In particular, Ultimate Bahamut does not rotate out until Roar of the Godwyrm, and players can only hope that significant support isn't printed for it prior to rotation.
Aside from Stay in Paradise, which will have no use after the Festive Cards rotate out, the other neutral cards were only really used in Enhance Portal, and they'll surely live without Burst Tackle and the Ogre.
Swordcraft - From Hero To Zero
For some players, the biggest rotation is Mars, which will effectively force the hero package into obscurrity once more.
But perhaps the other big topic of discussion are the rotation of two "staple" sword cards, Bumpkin Recruit, one of the premier 1-costs of the class, as well as Taketsumi, a card which has singlehandedly propped up almost every mid-range/control strategy since release, will carry significant implications to the overall consistency and game plan of future Sword decks.
Dragoncraft - Major Hits To Discard Dragon, Minor Hits To Buff Dragon And The Death Of Si Long
It's time for Si Long to go on vacation permanently this time, a card which has propped up the entire class as a ramp, healing and board control option ever since it was buffed.
In addition, Noir and Blanc, a card that was so strong it had to be nerfed, will finally be leaving the meta. Aside from its strength as a ward, it was also enabling OTKs with Lumiore, which will no longer be possible.
Buff Dragon will also be losing the tropical mermaid, a premium 2-cost follower that Cygames will need to replace moving forward.
Bloodcraft - Finally.
Yeah, I'm not even going to bother trying to hide my disdain for the Bloodcraft cards in this expansion. Goodbye Handless Blood, you will not be missed, good riddance.
Also, Vengeance Blood takes significant hits in consistency, losing access to one of its vengeance triggers and also the Itsurugi/Room Service Demon package. This also hits the Evo Blood package a bit too.
Even so, Wrath Blood is practically unaffected by this rotation, which means that Blood players will still have at least one strong deck to fall back to.
Portal - Surprisingly Impactful
While it's not exactly like the class really used any festive cards, except Magna Saber, the class is losing a large amount of powerful generic cards.
Cards like Craftman's Pride and Merciless Voiding were key to a variety of aggressive and mid range strategies, while even Artifact (if it ever does return), loses a powerful tutor and one of the strongest tempo Artifact spells in Rotation. In addition, all manners of Control Strategies will no longer be viable with the loss of Shion, which was one of the stronggest control tools in the entire game.
This is not including the currently unplayed, but previously strong cards like Tinkering Shopkeeper and Full Blast Gunner.
Forestcraft - Hozumi And Control Forest Were Already Dead
The only real card rotating out is Woodland Pest Control, a powerful bounce card that immediately replaced itself with a draw.
Aside from that Hozumi was already nerfed out of the meta, and Yggdrasil is practically unplayable in the current state of the game anyway.
Which in reality means that Forest has everything to gain with this next expansion and very little to lose.
Runecraft - Devastating Losses To Spellboost
Story of a Lifetime is generically good in a majority of rune decks, whether it's Spellboost, Mysteria, Seven Forces or anywhere in between. This card was a major element of consistency for the entire craft and will be sorely missed.
In addition, Chakram Wizard has always been one of the ultimate Spellboost cards in terms of managing the board state and bridging you to the rest of your gameplan. Although Spellboost is rarely seen in the current expansion, the loss of Chakram Wizard will significantly impact future Spellboost decks.
Shadowcraft - Funeral For Burial Rite Players
It's alright Burial Rite, you had a good run. We all knew Cygames only buffed you this hard because you were rotating out the next set anyway.
It goes without saying that Lakandula was a major element of ensuring hand size and controlling board, but the rest of the Burial Rite Cards leaving Rotation were amongst the best of the engine. Without serious support from Cygames, it's time for this archetype to finally rest in peace.
Havencraft - Oh Okay, They Lose One Non Essential Card.
Like realistically, Spiritual Blow is the only major loss from this expansion. Haven players have practically everything to gain from the upcoming set.
