Recently life gain has been attached to cards like Pristine Talisman and Timely Reinforcements that both have a useful effect on their own and help you stabilize against aggressive decks so you have time to execute your strategy.

When I first opened the image of our preview card, I have to admit I was a little disappointed. "Big expensive fatty with a bunch of cool abilities that won't get played because he costs 7." He's a great Timmy card, but probably not something that will see a lot of play in Standard. On the other hand, life gain looks better than ever. This is what you want to see, so no reason to slow roll the reveal:

It's true that a converted mana cost of 7 isn't the end of the world. We've seen quite a few Elesh Norn, Grand Cenobites and Karn Liberated on the battlefield recently, and at six mana there are Titans and Consecrated Sphinxes galore. One difference is that all of these creatures do something pretty quickly - either as they come into play or during your opponent's next draw step. Drogskol Reaver doesn't have an immediate effect, and is a big commitment that can be Doom Blade'd away without giving you any benefit.

On the other hand, Drogskol Reaver has two things Control players love to see: "draw a card" and "lifelink". Those are the kinds of words that make people see if they can find a way to make this 7 cost work. It's also missing a word that's pretty relevant: "Legendary". It doesn't die to Phantasmal Image or the mirror match.

If you untap with Drogskol Reaver in play, you're going to have a huge turn. A single swing means a twelve point life swing, and because of double strike you draw at least two cards. And that's just when you attack. As a 3/5 double-striking flyer, he's going to trade with almost anything your opponent plays. And by trade I mean you both lose a creature, but you gain six life and draw two cards to replace him.

Drogskol Reaver even makes Pristine Talisman say, "Tap: Add 1 to your mana pool and draw a card. You gain 1 life." And that's just crazy for a 3-mana common artifact.

Mill/reanimation decks aren't currently doing well in standard, but if you've been playing Innistrad-block constructed you may have a seen a blue-green mill deck that wins with Kessig Cagebreakers, Boneyard Wurms, and Spinterfrights. It already runs Unburial Rites, which makes Drogskol Reaver both cheaper to put into play, and keeps bringing it back for more. Gnaw to the Bone goes perfectly with Drogskol Reaver and helps find you any answer you need.

Will Drogskol Reaver make an impact in the current Standard environment, or will he have to wait until after Scars of Mirrodin and M12 rotate out? We're betting you'll see him on the battlefield very soon.