An Avalanche of Inevitability

Traverse the frozen peaks of Aria’s fabled mountain ranges and nestled away, you will find the icy stronghold, Isenloft. Among its many stout residents lives one who not only knows of the frozen nights and wild gusts, but of the grass beneath the snow. The hibernation of life waiting only for seasons passed.

Oldhim, Grandfather of Eternity is a hero who truly embodies longevity. Someone who truly knows the value of patience, for there is no rushing the elements. This is demonstrably apparent with Oldhim’s hero ability. Valuing both Ice and Earth resource cards, Oldhim gains many advantages over time, thanks to his endless streams of renewal and prevention. Freezing the opponent’s plan to a withering halt. Then, his opponent, bewildered by the blizzard of Earth and Ice, plays right into Oldhim’s arsenal of Guardian pulverization.

Oldhim’s greatest strength lies not only in his physical prowess, like most Guardians, but with his theme of renewal. With his defense reaction available at any time, it is very difficult to push damage past Oldhim’s defenses, especially with Oldhim’s earthen ability, preventing any type of damage, which is extremely potent against those pesky sorcery wielding Runeblades! If that wasn't enough to convince you to pick up a hammer, without constant pressure from your opponent, they will find themselves unable to set up their desired combo turns, as Oldhim’s ‘Ice’ defense reactions disable your opponent’s attempts at card preservation. Additionally, cards like Channel Lake Frigid and Emerging Avalanche limit their offensive capabilities while leaving yours completely unaffected. Or, in the case of Emerging Avalanche, bolstered even!

In the eventuality that an opponent manages to weather the storm of disruption and survive until the very end against your amalgamation of elements, they will find the seeds that you have sown throughout the game waiting for them. Pulse of Isenloft is truly a shining beacon of victory in Oldhim decks. Having the ability to activate both sides of Oldhim’s elemental ability with one card every second or third turn of the late game on loop is astonishingly powerful if you can set it up.

Oh speaking of loops, if you can already envision the frozen tears of your enemies’ visage, just wait until they see multiple copies of Evergreen in your sealed pool. Along with any Ice or Earth card with 3 defense they are one of the biggest reasons to take on Oldhim as the captain of your sealed pool. Just having a source of reliable defense while you are able to effectively activate Oldhim’s hero ability makes your turn-to-turn core gameplay so reliable your deck will feel like classic constructed, and in the case of Evergreen, when hasn’t looping attacks in limited been one of the best ways to generate advantage? This gentleman of the frozen peaks always has the tools to take on any crazy shenanigans your opponent may be plotting.

Oldhim is my favorite new hero for playing in the flesh and blood. The simple, yet intricate, yet elegant ways he can be played truly takes my breath away. If you sit down in front of your six packs wondering what to do, I would recommend sleeving up everything Ice and Earth and picking up a hammer once more. It’s Snow Time!