Unveiling The Power Of Flametongue Kavu: A Game-Changing Creature In Magic History 

Wow, it wasn't until they were on screen together side-by-side that I realized the art for _Fury_ pretty much just straight up is _Flametongue Kavu._

I agree. Kavu today would still be quite the limited all-star I think.

I'm surprised this hasn't had any standard set reprints. It's a pretty clean card design. If they started doing core sets again it'd be a nice inclusion.

I will once again advocate for Blastoderm being on this series!

FTK was so good that other cards just got called the "new FTK". Love that card

Just wanted to say I love this new series. Thanks

Nekrataal was the Flametongue Kavu before the Kavu hit standard

I had a kavu land destruction that ran through almost every tournament I entered in extended.

Erhnam Djinn waiting room

Shivan Wurm + Kavu combo is so cool and so, so Gruul

FTK is the creature I remember most from when I started playing Magic. I came in during the Invasion-Odyssey standard. FTK, Wild Mongrel, Psychatog, and Natuko Shade were GOATed. Spiritmonger as well. Also I'm glad to see Sex Monkeys peek their heads (and other parts) onto the video....IYKYK😂

This was the time I was playing magic competitively. I remember this thing! I ran this in both a Mono Red aggro Deck and a Red / Green stompy deck. The card is pretty much a minimum 2 for 1: it takes 1 creature down... and then it would eat a removal spell, a burn spell, or another creature thanks to its 4 power. In the event that the opponent couldnt mount a defense... either via bad draws or you killing them with your own burn spells, this thing is a 5 turn clock on its own... usually shorter since aggro decks would already have dealt damage by turn 4 This card taught me the importance of formats and why you NEED to know what card is out there and plan accordingly. Before then, I played with cards I liked... not really cards after reviewing a format. For example: I played Lhurgoyf... a great card back then, but when I summoned it as a 2/3 creature, Kavu just came and said "Nope" to it... basically, I paid 4 for nothing but pain and misery. Its funny that a similar card from Visions called Nekrataal came nowhere close to the notoriety of the Kavu, even if they're functionally the same (ETB, get rid of a card, then its a decent creature)... but I remembered that the most prominent decks back then was black focused, so the "Terror" effect of the Nekrataal doesnt always come up. So yea, great card! Thanks for covering it! This was one of my earliest lessons in the game, which gave me more appreciation to deck building and planning.

I'm just commenting for the algorithm today, no jokes. I like the series.

I started playing during Invasion. FTK was nuts when it came out. So good in draft too!

7:41 there are no such thing as psychatog before flametongue kavu. invasion block came right before odyssey

"How good was Psychatog actually?" should be next. Especially considering how the new Psychic Frog is now doing to Legacy exactly what Psychatog did to Standard and Extended during its time.

This prolly has to be my favorite mtg content as of late “How good was it.” Amazing work dude! So much time has passed and as a mtg player of over 20 years it’s great to see the past of these cards all the while celebrating the new types of gameplay we enjoy today!

I got something like a 6th or 7th pick FTK in Dominiaria Remastered in pack 3 and couldn’t believe it. I would have P1P1 that guy.

Nice series, this card was great, I remember even playing Grixis Psychatog because of this & Fire/Ice: 25 Lands 4 Tog 4 Familiar 2 Kavu 4 Counterspell 3 Circular Logic 2 Memory Lapse 4 Edict 4 Fire/Ice 4 Fact or Fiction 2 Opt 2 Deep Analysis 2 more Kavu in the board along with Duress, Slay, Ghastly Demise & Gainsay

I have the original Gold Border Brian Kibler "Red Zone 2K2" championship deck from the 2002 Sydney World Championships. Playing it against some other championship decks I have, I can say that FTK is a MONSTER. I was only 7 months old when that tournament happened, but having a family that's played MTG since its conception has opened my eyes to the glory of the old days. What I'd do to go back in time and play some of those old standards. They look so fun.

Hell yeah. I remember running two of these in my pre-release deck and making it further than I ever had before.

Another fine video. I for one really enjoyed that little comparison you had with Fury. FTK would probably see play in standard again.

Awesome video nizzahon!

Stellar content. As an Unlimited/Revised player that has come back a year or so ago, this kind of content format is spot on. Thanks for your work!

I still run this card in my EDH Minsc & Boo deck and it feels just as good to play it as it did back in 2001

Love this series! Would be cool to see a top ten of how good was this actually cards when you have a critical mass of them!

There's also some creatures that imitate the Kavu in recent years but the damage they deal depends on something, such as the number of party memebers or creatures that share a creature type you control.

My first ever MtG purchase was the Whirlpool precon from Apocalypse. It had one FTK and Fire/Ice, a good pair of rares, and a great theme. I turned it into a UR control focusing on pingers, permission, and lots of removal. I love that deck so much and it will forever be my favorite.

Squirrel opposition was my 1st competitive deck, ftk was my mvp , “play ftk , kill your call token, before your attack phase use ftk to tap your other guy “

I have very fond memories of Kavu in my Red Go deck. He was fantastic.

"Everyone knew what you meant when you said FTK." Yeah. I'd have thought about Channel-Fireball too.

Ah i remember this card from the invasion block. It was great in fires wurm deck. Playing this on turn4 and bouncing it back on the next turn with shivan wurm to play it again the turn after... I really liked the meta back then.. lots of fun.. i played against it in a T2 tourney, where i used the new apocalypse orzhov cards and won. Voice of all was for sure the card that won me the game and i used that black angel from apocalypse when kicked it would destroy all lands.. Lots of great memories back then :)

Oh yeah, let's go! I love Kavu!

Technically not first, but the first was spam so I'll take what I can get. Love the show!

Honestly still seems fine

I'd love to see a video on Decree of Justice or Standstill.

As someone completed exhausted by the last 5ish of MtG, these are a nice lil trip

I played FTK Blue in the standard it existed in, was literally mono blue control splashing FTK. Wasnt great but worked against the meta in my area.

FTK was my favourite card when I started playing (A few weeks before Legions came out).

Bravo!

love this guy, still great in commander

I love Flame Tongue! You forgot about the time spiral Flame Tongue Kavu nod (I don't remember the name), but it was also pretty powerful for awhile if I remember right.

I remember playing FTK in my Gruul deck. I would use Fires of Yarimiah

Ummmm... didn't Nekretaal come out before FtK? So, aren't the "kill something when it comes into play" creatures really the decendants of Nek?

Listening to the format warping FTK did, it's a lot like what Orcish Bowmasters now does to formats where 1 toughness creatures are a liability.

Love these false swipe gaming-esque vids

I still squeeze him into commander decks when i can

"Guess how many of them were creatures?" Well, at least one, since Metalworker was banned in Commander between- "That's right, zero." Eh? EDIT: Goblin Lackey, Cloud of Fairies, and Rofellos too.

Love Flametongue Kavu. 4 mana to kill a lot of different creatures and have a 4 power body that can either deal good damage or force a block is nice. Even despite the 2 toughness, Flametongue Kavu is still a very legit card

just waiting for them to downshift this card so can use it in pauper

Pyrogoyf is the newest and probably best version of this card, but even after decades of power creep FTK holds up.

They did print a ""counter"" to Flametongue Kavu, "Shoreline raider" a 3 mana 2/2 merfolk with protection from kavu. Without knowing of Flametongue Kavu that line of text is very puzzling.

The 2001 invasion block constructed only had 2 of 3 sets available as Apocalypse had not released at that point.

Kavu is sick.

My favorite creature card❤

FTK and orcish bowmasters both setting the tone of the how a creature’s toughness was seen viable or good

The kavu would absolutely see play if it was printed in standard today.

All of a sudden, I have this urge to Tishana's Tidebinder a Flametongue Kavu. One thing I don't get...if the card was THAT dominant, why was it never banned? I knew it was good, I didn't realize it was THAT good.

It was no Balduvian Horde

Fires was the deck that got me to move away from my ball lightning + berserk deck. I had Horned Kavu in there and not as many mana dorks.

FTK was so good that every creature with toughness 4 were $10 cheaper than with toughness 5 in standard

Justice for Ernham Djinn! 😂

I drafted the kavu in dominaria remastered in a blink deck 😂

How about Nantuko Husk, thanks to the damage goes to the stack rule it got some play

the deck that won it in 2001 worlds was piloted by Tom van de Logt

Hope you'll do Masticore as well. :)

Nekrataal and ftk together was a powerful pair

Kavus need to make a comeback.

Only today I realized the similarities between FTK and Orchish Bowmasters

I want a history on Masticore sooo bad. It was the best creature along Morphling and now it’s laughable. I’d like to relieve the Masticore dominance

FtK was a late addition to Fires deck that was already dominant. Blastoderm was not added to combat it.

Psychatog was printed after Flametongue. It's not like UB Psychatog decks reacted to the printing of Flametongue by adding red.

I would love to see it reprinted in Arena. It Would be a powerful but fair card in Brawl I feel.

I do agree that for pioneer and standard FTK would still be good (not mentioning any limited format with it will be warped by him) but the yearling think shows that he wouldn’t be able to make it in modern nowadays… yearling can come down earlier to pick of something important and can also be dropped on 4 with kicker to be the same as FFK but 1 less power and damage. If Yearling has seen zero play I don’t think that FTK with the upgrade against the 4 mana mode of yearling can make up the difference

I feel like FTK is still almost standard playable. Imagine if we had gotten a 3/1 for cmc 4 that did 5 etb while Shelly was in standard

should have at least mentioned nekrataal. the first creature printed with an etb that can kill another creature

Gonna need an MTG Top Ten: Kavus

I think the new titan Phlage shows how good a PTK has to be to be played in modern.

How would you compare FTK's dominance back in the day to Bonecrusher Giant's dominance more recently?

How good was Tarmogoyf actually?

Pyrogoyf only recently replaced FTK in vintage cube

Where is the glorious lobster emperor

You are telling me starting on invasion they started to make the game for Timmy instead of Jhonny?

I thought FTK was a misprint as a more pushed version of it accidentally got sent off for printing instead??

What would a 'fair' modern Flametongue Kavy look like? What would be other ways to combine this type of ability with modern keywords and abilities?

aaaah agreed with everything but if ravenous chupa cabra is a descendent of anything it is nekrataal

"Does this creature pass the FTK Test?"

Lightning Angel would have been higher up the Jeskai top 10 list if it wasn't for FTK. Flametongue basically invalidated what was supposed to be a flagship creature from Apocalypse.

bring back core sets!!!

Still a good card even with how much power creep has happened over the years

Isn't Ravenous chupacabra a descendant of Nekrataal not Flametounge Kavu?

Justice for Masticore!

I hate Flametongue Kavu with a passion. Back in 2000 I had a killer rogue deck that I could consistently beat all the top decks in Standard with. (Its bad matchups were all with decks that lost badly to one or more of the top decks.) Then Flametongue Kavu was printed and it was the perfect card for the Fires of Yavimaya deck to screw mine over. I went from having a good matchup to a bad one and I stopped putting up good results. :(

Commenting during the intro to say that you don't see many creatures with ETB damage to a creature these days, more so payoffs to deal damage if you do certain things, like casting an instant or sorcery, or whenever a creature attacks/dies

It is a 2-for-1. Of course it's good!

I hope this one is reprinted in Foundations!

FTK! FTK!

Yeah make I a Dino n it’s in.

Just imagine if they reprint FTK at common

2:38 I'm sorry, what? Why would they unban Shahrazad?