I'm currently writing a primer on Parasitic mechanics and designs as I believe its a area that is often misunderstood and that needs a bit more terminology defined so we can properly discuss why some parasitic mechanics are better than others.
Anyway I wanted to ask everyone two questions to get an idea of what people think so I can address any issues in the primer directly.
My two questions: What is your favourite Parasitic Mechanic? What is your least favourite Parasitic Mechanic?
ok I think this is the time in the conversation were I weigh in with a definition to base our discussion on.
I'd like to hear if you agree or disagree with this definition
Parasitic Mechanic:
A mechanic that only works as intended in the context of itself or a very restricted environment.
Being parasitic does not equate to being bad and is also a matter of degrees, meaning some mechanic can be more parasitic than others.
How parasitic a mechanic is can be heavily effect by the context of card pool. For example, Mechanics can work together to reduce parasitism such as Proliferate and Infect.
A linear parasitic mechanic such as Allies is the same as Elf tribal, but due to there being such a huge amount of elves printed the mechanic is considered to only be linear.
In a similar vein slivers are less parasitic than allies simply because there are more of them.
Bad linear mechanics (In my opinion) are those that are both extremely insular AND un-interactive. Infect interacts with combat, proliferate, combat tricks, removal and many other things while something like Splice into Arcane is nearly impossible to variate and interact with.
Individual card designs can be parasitic such as Break Open or Hero's Drake. These are the usual examples of modular parasitic designs.
Horsemanship or Shadow only work as intended with themselves and there original environment and so are parasitic. That they still work incorrectly outside of that context makes them less parasitic though.
This term is based on Mark Rosewater's, and other mtg designer's articles and blog posts.[1][2][3][4][5][6][7]
Note that I have not provided a definition here of what a parasitic mechanic is. If you don't know or only vaguely know I'd love to hear your responses as well, as addressing any kind of misunderstandings are important for the primer I'm writing..
Thanks for all you help.
Best: Poison counters. Maybe this isn't the best example of parasitism, and I know how divisive infect is, and I do acknowledge all of its problems both from a design and balance standpoint. But I love alternate win conditions, I love how simple this one is (you get to win in combat in half the time for the price of overcommitting/overspecializing), and how it interacts with stuff like double strike and proliferate.
Worst: Soulshift. Certainly not the most parasitic mechanic in Kamigawa (that dishonor in a crowded field goes to splice), but it's still fairly so, being dependent on a creature type that got major support only in that block. And while splice could cause some exciting plays to be made and "spiritcraft" (the "Whenever you cast a Spirit or Arcane spell..." non-keyword) was serviceable and provided good linear rewards, soulshift gave you only the barest of incentives to go all-out in Spirits. You got to... recur one of your lesser Spirits from your graveyard to your hand when a more expensive one died. Diminishing returns, in other words. And because of all this recursion, many a Kamigawa Spirit had to be hideously overcosted.
being dependent on a creature type that got major support only in that block
Spirits also got quite a bit of support in Innistrad block, not as much as they did in Kamigawa but they were there in numbers, had a lord, a Legendary creature and everything.
The sad thing is that had they not insisted on being overly clever and printing Promised Kannushi, Soulshift would be perfectly reusable the way Prowl is because it wouldn't, technically, rely on a specific type.
being dependent on a creature type that got major support only in that block
Spirits also got quite a bit of support in Innistrad block, not as much as they did in Kamigawa but they were there in numbers, had a lord, a Legendary creature and everything.
The sad thing is that had they not insisted on being overly clever and printing Promised Kannushi, Soulshift would be perfectly reusable the way Prowl is because it wouldn't, technically, rely on a specific type.
being dependent on a creature type that got major support only in that block
Spirits also got quite a bit of support in Innistrad block, not as much as they did in Kamigawa but they were there in numbers, had a lord, a Legendary creature and everything.
The sad thing is that had they not insisted on being overly clever and printing Promised Kannushi, Soulshift would be perfectly reusable the way Prowl is because it wouldn't, technically, rely on a specific type.
How, exactly?
Right. In the CompRules, the mechanic is keyed to Spirits, not "a card that shares a creature type with this," and would be without Promised Kannushi, which, along with Forked-Branch Garami, was one of the variants that made the mechanic at least a tiny bit interesting.
The hypothetical alternate version - that recurred creatures that shared a type, or without reference to type at all - would be a fine keyword in terms of reusability.
In the strictest sense, "enchant creature" and "equip" are hands down the most parasitic abilities of all time (and yet they're really awesome). Though I'm not quite sure if they're really considered "mechanics" even though they're keyword abilities - are they?
Ripple is indeed really terrible, but I wouldn't count it because I think it was a deliberate throwback to the bad mechanics of the Ice Age era.
Soulshift and Prowl and other tribal mechanics are the best form of parasitism. Having recently played with and played against Soulshift in MM2 draft, I have a new appreciation for it and Spirit tribal in general.
Arcane is the worst form of parasitism imo because it's completely self-contained and has no backwards compatibility.
EDIT: Also, I think it's important to consider even the worst parasitic mechanic from Timmy, Johnny, and Spike's unique perspectives.
In the strictest sense, "enchant creature" and "equip" are hands down the most parasitic abilities of all time (and yet they're really awesome). Though I'm sure if they're really considered "mechanics" - are they?
How are they parasitic? Is Giant Growth parasitic because it does nothing if there are no creatures to target? Is Shatter parasitic because it does nothing if there are no artifacts to target?
"Parasitic" doesn't mean "dependent on interactions with other cards."
In the strictest sense, "enchant creature" and "equip" are hands down the most parasitic abilities of all time (and yet they're really awesome). Though I'm sure if they're really considered "mechanics" - are they?
Is Giant Growth parasitic because it does nothing if there are no creatures to target? Is Shatter parasitic because it does nothing if there are no artifacts to target?
Yes and yes, but those are cards not mechanics or abilities. "Enchant creature" and "equip" are abilities (and I believe are therefore mechanics).
EDIT: Haven't you ever accidentally made a draft deck with too much creature support but not enough creatures? Or simply drawn all of your creature buff/support cards but no creatures to buff/support? When you do, you suddenly realize just how parasitic cards like Giant Growth and Holy Strength are.
I also am a fan of tribal interactions (Slivers and Allies being the best "parasitic" rather than just linear tribal mechanics) but not tribal the card type.
How could I have missed saying my love for prowl earlier? Because I love prowl a lot.
To hell with like half the mechanics or more from Kamigawa though. Bushido and ninjutsu are good, splice would have been good if not for the awful, janky arcane component like others have said and unfortunately overload has ruined splice onto instant/sorcery... and I'll just disavow any knowledge of sweep.
I always find it interesting when people call infect or poison counters the worst. Even if you hate the mechanic personally, as a designer it's important to recognize that too many people love it for it to be considered the worst.
Mechanics like Soulshift are better examples, because despite there being quite a few cool things you can do with it the in build card advantage requires the cost of most creatures with soulshift to be so high that the cards look absolutely awful. Development must have cried themselves to sleep when they were forced to put those costs on Pus Kami and Crawling Filth.
Ripple at least has more potential for awesome stuff to happen, because the mechanic is weak enough for the cards to still potentially look attractie. It's just the RNG factor that means it's unpopular to see such designs at a competitive level, leading to a lot of the cads being weak.
I always find it interesting when people call infect or poison counters the worst. Even if you hate the mechanic personally, as a designer it's important to recognize that too many people love it for it to be considered the worst.
While a lot of the posts here do say "best" or "worst", the wording from the OP says "favorite" and "least favorite", so I don't mind people saying they don't like Infect. I'm going to try to dig deep for some different answers here to help with collecting different mechanics. Before anyone jumps down my throat, consider each response to have the asterisk: "that isn't already mentioned."
Favorite: Kindle & company. There's something about playing multiple copies of a card and being rewarded for it that's fun. I realize this is technically worse than Arcane in terms of parasitism, but it's much more self-contained than Arcane was which gives the cards a different vibe.
Least Favorite: Modular. It lead to one of Magic's worst player slumps in a long time... IMO even more than Affinity did.
imo "Best": Transmute. It requires specific CMCs and really warps a deck if you want to make best use of it, but it gives players flexibility that most other parasitic mechanics don't.
imo "Worst": Hard to not go with the hivemind on this one. I think an argument could be made for Radiance here. It depends on having a lot of creatures of the same color, but it also by nature of the mechanic can HELP your opponent. Casting a spell shouldn't feel like you're helping your opponent when it's supposed to help you. This complaint could be levied at slivers, but since they give you a permanent they'll help you more of the time.
None of these could really be considered parasitic. Parasitic basically means that they rely on other things in the same set (For example, allies rely on other allies, things that care about arcane and arcane itself only appeared in the same block). There are plenty of artifact creatures, cards with specific CMCs, and colored permanents throughout all of magic.
None of these could really be considered parasitic. Parasitic basically means that they rely on other things in the same set (For example, allies rely on other allies, things that care about arcane and arcane itself only appeared in the same block). There are plenty of artifact creatures, cards with specific CMCs, and colored permanents throughout all of magic.
My understanding is that they are parasitic but not insular. I'll admit that I intentionally picked some mechanics that skirt the edge here to try to inform a nuanced discussion about parasitism for the benefit of the future article. I consider your example of Allies to be a linear mechanic moreso than a parasitic one (though linearity is often a subtype of parasitism).
One thing that I think could be good to include are distinctions between linear, parasitic, and insular. Linear would seem to be a strategy being promoted, whereas parasitic is used to describe a type of mechanic which promotes linear strategies.
Insular and parasitic mean the same thing. Parasitic is the term used by R&D to describe mechanics that are insular.
Insular and parasitic mean the same thing. Parasitic is the term used by R&D to describe mechanics that are insular.
I agree that they are synonyms, but I think there are important and perhaps subtle differences in their (proper) use. Even if Wizards' R&D uses them interchangeably, that doesn't mean they ought to have redundant meanings. Insular designs focus deeply, to the point of exclusion, on their own subset of cards. Designs like Arcane or Infect are insular. Parasitic designs focus deeply, to the point of exclusion, on a subset of cards. I think the big distinction to be made here is that insular cards are part of their own subset, while parasitic cards don't have to be.
Insular and parasitic mean the same thing. Parasitic is the term used by R&D to describe mechanics that are insular.
I agree that they are synonyms, but I think there are important and perhaps subtle differences in their (proper) use. Even if Wizards' R&D uses them interchangeably, that doesn't mean they ought to have redundant meanings. Insular designs focus deeply, to the point of exclusion, on their own subset of cards. Designs like Arcane or Infect are insular. Parasitic designs focus deeply, to the point of exclusion, on a subset of cards. I think the big distinction to be made here is that insular cards are part of their own subset, while parasitic cards don't have to be.
QFT
There's also "dependent" mechanics, such as Intimidate that aren't parasitic but can at times feel just as useless as a parasitic mechanic depending on the situation.
These two lists comprise every mechanic in Magic. Do you agree with my lists?
PARASITIC MECHANICS (Abilities that simply require mana shouldn't be considered parasitic - not even cumulative upkeep.)
Attach (which covers Bestow, Enchant, Equip, and Fortify)
Affinity
Amplify
Aura Swap
Bands with other (not to be confused with Banding)
Bolster
Bloodthirst
Champion
Cipher
Conspire
Convoke
Delve
Devour
Evolve
Extort
Fight
Graft
Gravestorm
Haunt
Madness
Modular
Ninjutsu
Offering
Proliferate
Prowl
Recover
Reinforce
Retrace
Ripple
Soulbond
Soulshift
Splice
Storm
Transform (the only mechanic on both lists)
Battalion
Chroma
Ferocious
Formidable
Heroic
Join forces
Kinship
Metalcraft
Morbid
Raid
Threshold
Prowess
Radiance
NOT PARASITIC MECHANICS (It's interesting to note that, with the exception of Attach, the evergreens aren't parasitic. Also note that there are some abilities that may have a parasitic activation cost at times, but I'm not considering them parasitic unless they require a nonmana cost every time - such as Devour.)
Deathtouch
Defender
First strike
Double strike
Flash
Flying
Haste
Hexproof
Indestructible
Intimidate
Landwalk
Lifelink
Protection
Reach
Shroud
Trample
Vigilance
Counter (as in Counterspell)
Exile
Fear
Regenerate
Sacrifice
Tap/Untap
Absorb
Annihilator
Banding
Battle cry
Bushido
Buyback
Cascade
Changeling
Clash
Cumulative upkeep
Cycling
Dash
Detain
Echo
Entwine
Epic
Evoke
Exalted
Exploit
Fading
Fateseal
Flanking
Flashback
Flip
Forecast
Frenzy
Hideaway
Horsemanship
Infect
Kicker
Level up
Living weapon
Manifest
Megamorph
Miracle
Monstrosity
Morph
Multikicker
Overload
Persist
Phasing
Poisonous
Populate
Provoke
Rampage
Rebound
Replicate
Scavenge
Scry
Shadow
Split second
Sunburst
Suspend
Totem armor
Transfigure
Transform (the only mechanic on both lists)
Transmute
Typecycling
Undying
Unearth
Unleash
Vanishing
Wither
Bloodrush
Channel
Fateful hour
Hellbent
Imprint
Outlast
Sweep
Landfall
Domain
Coincidentally, this little project made me realize that Bushido would make a fantastic U evergreen mechanic (renamed of course).
You are working with an absurdly broad definition of parasitic that I don't think is helpful to OP. If I were able to phone an R&D member right now and ask if, say, reinforce, storm, and bloodthirst were parasitic I'd probably get a "no" followed by an explanation as if to a beginner of what parasitism is.
Legend, I honestly have no idea what your criteria for "Parasitic" is. There's a whole lot of mechanics on that list that literally require "a creature" to work, like Bolster and Reinforce. By that logic, Fight is parasitic because it requires creatures. Rampage, which requires being blocked by two or more creatures isn't parasitic, but Ninjutsu, which requires not being blocked, is. How is Fear parasitic when Intimidate isn't? It's literally just a color fixed Intimidate. Landfall requires you to play lands. That's totally confined to and only works in a limited amount of sets right?
Parasitic also doesn't mean "unreusable." Slivers are parasitic and reusable, while, say, miracle is largely unparasitic but unreusable. They're unrelated metrics.
Also, your "insular" examples are strange because one finds that shadow and horsemanship are a billion billion times better outside of their sets.
Is Bushido considered parasitic? Maybe a newbie question, but I wasn't sure if it's parasitic or not for the following three reasons:
1) It uses a name which is overly specific to a certain context (Japanese mythos).
2) It was tied to a specific creature type (more of an implementation thing).
3) It may lead some to believe if Samurai ever return, they must have Bushido.
These all apply to Ninjutsu as well. If it were just called 'Infiltrate' it could be used more broadly. But not sure if that means less parasitic.
The parasitism of a mechanic has nothing to do with its flavor ties, but rather its gameplay ties. Flying, for example, could be renamed as winged (still somewhat fitting), dodge (on the blurred line), or even rqowm (which makes absolutely no sense whatsoever) and still have the same effect, and it'd still be considered as great gameplay-wise. The same could apply for soulshift and some other name substitutes, such as spiritism, retrieve, cheese, and flargl.
Private Mod Note
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Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
How to use card tags (please use them for everybody's sanity)
[c]Lightning Bolt[/c] -> Lightning Bolt
[c=Lightning Bolt]Apple Pie[/c] -> Apple Pie
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Anyway I wanted to ask everyone two questions to get an idea of what people think so I can address any issues in the primer directly.
My two questions:
What is your favourite Parasitic Mechanic?
What is your least favourite Parasitic Mechanic?
ok I think this is the time in the conversation were I weigh in with a definition to base our discussion on.
I'd like to hear if you agree or disagree with this definition
Parasitic Mechanic:
A mechanic that only works as intended in the context of itself or a very restricted environment.
Being parasitic does not equate to being bad and is also a matter of degrees, meaning some mechanic can be more parasitic than others.
Note that I have not provided a definition here of what a parasitic mechanic is. If you don't know or only vaguely know I'd love to hear your responses as well, as addressing any kind of misunderstandings are important for the primer I'm writing..Thanks for all you help.
EDIT: Added definition.
Are you designing commons? Check out my primer on NWO.
Interested in making a custom set? Check out my Set skeleton and archetype primer.
I also write articles about getting started with custom card creation.
Go and PLAYTEST your designs, you will learn more in a single playtests than a dozen discussions.
My custom sets:
Dreamscape
Coins of Mercalis [COMPLETE]
Exodus of Zendikar - ON HOLD
Worst: Soulshift. Certainly not the most parasitic mechanic in Kamigawa (that dishonor in a crowded field goes to splice), but it's still fairly so, being dependent on a creature type that got major support only in that block. And while splice could cause some exciting plays to be made and "spiritcraft" (the "Whenever you cast a Spirit or Arcane spell..." non-keyword) was serviceable and provided good linear rewards, soulshift gave you only the barest of incentives to go all-out in Spirits. You got to... recur one of your lesser Spirits from your graveyard to your hand when a more expensive one died. Diminishing returns, in other words. And because of all this recursion, many a Kamigawa Spirit had to be hideously overcosted.
I̟̥͍̠ͅn̩͉̣͍̬͚ͅ ̬̬͖t̯̹̞̺͖͓̯̤h̘͍̬e͙̯͈̖̼̮ ̭̬f̺̲̲̪i͙͉̟̩̰r̪̝͚͈̝̥͍̝̲s̼̻͇̘̳͔ͅt̲̺̳̗̜̪̙ ̳̺̥̻͚̗ͅm̜̜̟̰͈͓͎͇o̝̖̮̝͇m̯̻̞̼̫̗͓̤e̩̯̬̮̩n͎̱̪̲̹͖t͇̖s̰̮ͅ,̤̲͙̻̭̻̯̹̰ ̖t̫̙̺̯͖͚̯ͅh͙̯̦̳̗̰̟e͖̪͉̼̯ ̪͕g̞̣͔a̗̦t̬̬͓͙̫̖̭̻e̩̻̯ ̜̖̦̖̤̭͙̬t̞̹̥̪͎͉ͅo͕͚͍͇̲͇͓̺ ̭̬͙͈̣̻t͈͍͙͓̫̖͙̩h̪̬̖̙e̗͈ ̗̬̟̞̺̤͉̯ͅa̦̯͚̙̜̮f͉͙̲̣̞̼t̪̤̞̣͚e̲͉̳̥r͇̪̙͚͓l̥̞̞͎̹̯̹ͅi͓̬f̮̥̬̞͈ͅe͎ ̟̩̤̳̠̯̩̯o̮̘̲p̟͚̣̞͉͓e͍̩̣n͔̼͕͚̜e̬̱d̼̘͎̖̹͍̮̠,͖̺̭̱̮ ̣̲͖̬̪̭̥a̪͚n̟̲̝̤̤̞̗d̘̱̗͇̮͕̳͕͔ ͖̞͉͎t̹̙͎h̰̱͉̗e̪̞̱̝̹̩ͅ ̠̱̩̭̦p̯̙e͓o̳͚̰̯̺̱̰͔̘p̬͎̱̣̼̩͇l̗̟̖͚̠e̱͉͔̱̦̬̟̙ ̖͚̪͔̼̦w̺̖̤̱e͖̗̻̦͓̖̘̜r̭̥e͔̹̫̱͕̦̰͕ ̗͔̠p̠̗͍͍̱̳̠r̰͔͎̰o͉̥͓̰͚̥s̟͚̹̱͔̣t͉̙̳̖͖̪̮r̥̘̥͙̹a͉̟̫̟̳̠̟̭t͈̜̰͈͎e̞̣̭̲̬ ͚̗̯̟͙i͍͖̰̘̦͖͉ṇ̮̻̯̦̲̩͍ ̦̮͚̫̤t͉͖̫͕ͅͅh͙̮̻̘̣̮̼e͕̺ ͙l͕̠͎̰̥i̲͓͉̲g̫̳̟͈͇̖h̠̦̖t͓̯͎̗ ̳̪̘̟̙̩̦o̫̲f̙͔̰̙̠ ̹̪̗͇̯t͖̼̼͉͖̬h̹͇̩e͚̖̺̤͉̹͕̪ ͚͓̭̝̺G͎̗̯̩o̫̯̮̟̮̳̘d̜̲͙̠-̩̳̯̲̗̜P̹̘̥͉̝h͍͈̗̖̝ͅa͍̗̮̼̗r̜̖͇̙̺a̭̺͔̞̳͈o̪̣͓̯̬͙̯̰̗h̖̦͈̥̯͔.͇̣̙̝
Worst: Ripple. the mechanic was parasitic to the point that it didn't care about a scpecific mechanic, but a single card.
The sad thing is that had they not insisted on being overly clever and printing Promised Kannushi, Soulshift would be perfectly reusable the way Prowl is because it wouldn't, technically, rely on a specific type.
How, exactly?
- Main Cube
- No Brains, All Feelings Cube
Right. In the CompRules, the mechanic is keyed to Spirits, not "a card that shares a creature type with this," and would be without Promised Kannushi, which, along with Forked-Branch Garami, was one of the variants that made the mechanic at least a tiny bit interesting.
The hypothetical alternate version - that recurred creatures that shared a type, or without reference to type at all - would be a fine keyword in terms of reusability.
I̟̥͍̠ͅn̩͉̣͍̬͚ͅ ̬̬͖t̯̹̞̺͖͓̯̤h̘͍̬e͙̯͈̖̼̮ ̭̬f̺̲̲̪i͙͉̟̩̰r̪̝͚͈̝̥͍̝̲s̼̻͇̘̳͔ͅt̲̺̳̗̜̪̙ ̳̺̥̻͚̗ͅm̜̜̟̰͈͓͎͇o̝̖̮̝͇m̯̻̞̼̫̗͓̤e̩̯̬̮̩n͎̱̪̲̹͖t͇̖s̰̮ͅ,̤̲͙̻̭̻̯̹̰ ̖t̫̙̺̯͖͚̯ͅh͙̯̦̳̗̰̟e͖̪͉̼̯ ̪͕g̞̣͔a̗̦t̬̬͓͙̫̖̭̻e̩̻̯ ̜̖̦̖̤̭͙̬t̞̹̥̪͎͉ͅo͕͚͍͇̲͇͓̺ ̭̬͙͈̣̻t͈͍͙͓̫̖͙̩h̪̬̖̙e̗͈ ̗̬̟̞̺̤͉̯ͅa̦̯͚̙̜̮f͉͙̲̣̞̼t̪̤̞̣͚e̲͉̳̥r͇̪̙͚͓l̥̞̞͎̹̯̹ͅi͓̬f̮̥̬̞͈ͅe͎ ̟̩̤̳̠̯̩̯o̮̘̲p̟͚̣̞͉͓e͍̩̣n͔̼͕͚̜e̬̱d̼̘͎̖̹͍̮̠,͖̺̭̱̮ ̣̲͖̬̪̭̥a̪͚n̟̲̝̤̤̞̗d̘̱̗͇̮͕̳͕͔ ͖̞͉͎t̹̙͎h̰̱͉̗e̪̞̱̝̹̩ͅ ̠̱̩̭̦p̯̙e͓o̳͚̰̯̺̱̰͔̘p̬͎̱̣̼̩͇l̗̟̖͚̠e̱͉͔̱̦̬̟̙ ̖͚̪͔̼̦w̺̖̤̱e͖̗̻̦͓̖̘̜r̭̥e͔̹̫̱͕̦̰͕ ̗͔̠p̠̗͍͍̱̳̠r̰͔͎̰o͉̥͓̰͚̥s̟͚̹̱͔̣t͉̙̳̖͖̪̮r̥̘̥͙̹a͉̟̫̟̳̠̟̭t͈̜̰͈͎e̞̣̭̲̬ ͚̗̯̟͙i͍͖̰̘̦͖͉ṇ̮̻̯̦̲̩͍ ̦̮͚̫̤t͉͖̫͕ͅͅh͙̮̻̘̣̮̼e͕̺ ͙l͕̠͎̰̥i̲͓͉̲g̫̳̟͈͇̖h̠̦̖t͓̯͎̗ ̳̪̘̟̙̩̦o̫̲f̙͔̰̙̠ ̹̪̗͇̯t͖̼̼͉͖̬h̹͇̩e͚̖̺̤͉̹͕̪ ͚͓̭̝̺G͎̗̯̩o̫̯̮̟̮̳̘d̜̲͙̠-̩̳̯̲̗̜P̹̘̥͉̝h͍͈̗̖̝ͅa͍̗̮̼̗r̜̖͇̙̺a̭̺͔̞̳͈o̪̣͓̯̬͙̯̰̗h̖̦͈̥̯͔.͇̣̙̝
Ripple is indeed really terrible, but I wouldn't count it because I think it was a deliberate throwback to the bad mechanics of the Ice Age era.
Soulshift and Prowl and other tribal mechanics are the best form of parasitism. Having recently played with and played against Soulshift in MM2 draft, I have a new appreciation for it and Spirit tribal in general.
Arcane is the worst form of parasitism imo because it's completely self-contained and has no backwards compatibility.
EDIT: Also, I think it's important to consider even the worst parasitic mechanic from Timmy, Johnny, and Spike's unique perspectives.
How are they parasitic? Is Giant Growth parasitic because it does nothing if there are no creatures to target? Is Shatter parasitic because it does nothing if there are no artifacts to target?
"Parasitic" doesn't mean "dependent on interactions with other cards."
I̟̥͍̠ͅn̩͉̣͍̬͚ͅ ̬̬͖t̯̹̞̺͖͓̯̤h̘͍̬e͙̯͈̖̼̮ ̭̬f̺̲̲̪i͙͉̟̩̰r̪̝͚͈̝̥͍̝̲s̼̻͇̘̳͔ͅt̲̺̳̗̜̪̙ ̳̺̥̻͚̗ͅm̜̜̟̰͈͓͎͇o̝̖̮̝͇m̯̻̞̼̫̗͓̤e̩̯̬̮̩n͎̱̪̲̹͖t͇̖s̰̮ͅ,̤̲͙̻̭̻̯̹̰ ̖t̫̙̺̯͖͚̯ͅh͙̯̦̳̗̰̟e͖̪͉̼̯ ̪͕g̞̣͔a̗̦t̬̬͓͙̫̖̭̻e̩̻̯ ̜̖̦̖̤̭͙̬t̞̹̥̪͎͉ͅo͕͚͍͇̲͇͓̺ ̭̬͙͈̣̻t͈͍͙͓̫̖͙̩h̪̬̖̙e̗͈ ̗̬̟̞̺̤͉̯ͅa̦̯͚̙̜̮f͉͙̲̣̞̼t̪̤̞̣͚e̲͉̳̥r͇̪̙͚͓l̥̞̞͎̹̯̹ͅi͓̬f̮̥̬̞͈ͅe͎ ̟̩̤̳̠̯̩̯o̮̘̲p̟͚̣̞͉͓e͍̩̣n͔̼͕͚̜e̬̱d̼̘͎̖̹͍̮̠,͖̺̭̱̮ ̣̲͖̬̪̭̥a̪͚n̟̲̝̤̤̞̗d̘̱̗͇̮͕̳͕͔ ͖̞͉͎t̹̙͎h̰̱͉̗e̪̞̱̝̹̩ͅ ̠̱̩̭̦p̯̙e͓o̳͚̰̯̺̱̰͔̘p̬͎̱̣̼̩͇l̗̟̖͚̠e̱͉͔̱̦̬̟̙ ̖͚̪͔̼̦w̺̖̤̱e͖̗̻̦͓̖̘̜r̭̥e͔̹̫̱͕̦̰͕ ̗͔̠p̠̗͍͍̱̳̠r̰͔͎̰o͉̥͓̰͚̥s̟͚̹̱͔̣t͉̙̳̖͖̪̮r̥̘̥͙̹a͉̟̫̟̳̠̟̭t͈̜̰͈͎e̞̣̭̲̬ ͚̗̯̟͙i͍͖̰̘̦͖͉ṇ̮̻̯̦̲̩͍ ̦̮͚̫̤t͉͖̫͕ͅͅh͙̮̻̘̣̮̼e͕̺ ͙l͕̠͎̰̥i̲͓͉̲g̫̳̟͈͇̖h̠̦̖t͓̯͎̗ ̳̪̘̟̙̩̦o̫̲f̙͔̰̙̠ ̹̪̗͇̯t͖̼̼͉͖̬h̹͇̩e͚̖̺̤͉̹͕̪ ͚͓̭̝̺G͎̗̯̩o̫̯̮̟̮̳̘d̜̲͙̠-̩̳̯̲̗̜P̹̘̥͉̝h͍͈̗̖̝ͅa͍̗̮̼̗r̜̖͇̙̺a̭̺͔̞̳͈o̪̣͓̯̬͙̯̰̗h̖̦͈̥̯͔.͇̣̙̝
Yes and yes, but those are cards not mechanics or abilities. "Enchant creature" and "equip" are abilities (and I believe are therefore mechanics).
EDIT: Haven't you ever accidentally made a draft deck with too much creature support but not enough creatures? Or simply drawn all of your creature buff/support cards but no creatures to buff/support? When you do, you suddenly realize just how parasitic cards like Giant Growth and Holy Strength are.
But seriously, I think tribal is the best and Arcane is the worst.
How could I have missed saying my love for prowl earlier? Because I love prowl a lot.
To hell with like half the mechanics or more from Kamigawa though. Bushido and ninjutsu are good, splice would have been good if not for the awful, janky arcane component like others have said and unfortunately overload has ruined splice onto instant/sorcery... and I'll just disavow any knowledge of sweep.
I̟̥͍̠ͅn̩͉̣͍̬͚ͅ ̬̬͖t̯̹̞̺͖͓̯̤h̘͍̬e͙̯͈̖̼̮ ̭̬f̺̲̲̪i͙͉̟̩̰r̪̝͚͈̝̥͍̝̲s̼̻͇̘̳͔ͅt̲̺̳̗̜̪̙ ̳̺̥̻͚̗ͅm̜̜̟̰͈͓͎͇o̝̖̮̝͇m̯̻̞̼̫̗͓̤e̩̯̬̮̩n͎̱̪̲̹͖t͇̖s̰̮ͅ,̤̲͙̻̭̻̯̹̰ ̖t̫̙̺̯͖͚̯ͅh͙̯̦̳̗̰̟e͖̪͉̼̯ ̪͕g̞̣͔a̗̦t̬̬͓͙̫̖̭̻e̩̻̯ ̜̖̦̖̤̭͙̬t̞̹̥̪͎͉ͅo͕͚͍͇̲͇͓̺ ̭̬͙͈̣̻t͈͍͙͓̫̖͙̩h̪̬̖̙e̗͈ ̗̬̟̞̺̤͉̯ͅa̦̯͚̙̜̮f͉͙̲̣̞̼t̪̤̞̣͚e̲͉̳̥r͇̪̙͚͓l̥̞̞͎̹̯̹ͅi͓̬f̮̥̬̞͈ͅe͎ ̟̩̤̳̠̯̩̯o̮̘̲p̟͚̣̞͉͓e͍̩̣n͔̼͕͚̜e̬̱d̼̘͎̖̹͍̮̠,͖̺̭̱̮ ̣̲͖̬̪̭̥a̪͚n̟̲̝̤̤̞̗d̘̱̗͇̮͕̳͕͔ ͖̞͉͎t̹̙͎h̰̱͉̗e̪̞̱̝̹̩ͅ ̠̱̩̭̦p̯̙e͓o̳͚̰̯̺̱̰͔̘p̬͎̱̣̼̩͇l̗̟̖͚̠e̱͉͔̱̦̬̟̙ ̖͚̪͔̼̦w̺̖̤̱e͖̗̻̦͓̖̘̜r̭̥e͔̹̫̱͕̦̰͕ ̗͔̠p̠̗͍͍̱̳̠r̰͔͎̰o͉̥͓̰͚̥s̟͚̹̱͔̣t͉̙̳̖͖̪̮r̥̘̥͙̹a͉̟̫̟̳̠̟̭t͈̜̰͈͎e̞̣̭̲̬ ͚̗̯̟͙i͍͖̰̘̦͖͉ṇ̮̻̯̦̲̩͍ ̦̮͚̫̤t͉͖̫͕ͅͅh͙̮̻̘̣̮̼e͕̺ ͙l͕̠͎̰̥i̲͓͉̲g̫̳̟͈͇̖h̠̦̖t͓̯͎̗ ̳̪̘̟̙̩̦o̫̲f̙͔̰̙̠ ̹̪̗͇̯t͖̼̼͉͖̬h̹͇̩e͚̖̺̤͉̹͕̪ ͚͓̭̝̺G͎̗̯̩o̫̯̮̟̮̳̘d̜̲͙̠-̩̳̯̲̗̜P̹̘̥͉̝h͍͈̗̖̝ͅa͍̗̮̼̗r̜̖͇̙̺a̭̺͔̞̳͈o̪̣͓̯̬͙̯̰̗h̖̦͈̥̯͔.͇̣̙̝
Mechanics like Soulshift are better examples, because despite there being quite a few cool things you can do with it the in build card advantage requires the cost of most creatures with soulshift to be so high that the cards look absolutely awful. Development must have cried themselves to sleep when they were forced to put those costs on Pus Kami and Crawling Filth.
Ripple at least has more potential for awesome stuff to happen, because the mechanic is weak enough for the cards to still potentially look attractie. It's just the RNG factor that means it's unpopular to see such designs at a competitive level, leading to a lot of the cads being weak.
Remaking Magic - A Podcast for those that love MTG and Game Design
The Dungeon Master's Guide - A Podcast for those that love RPGs and Game Design
Sig-Heroes of the Plane
Favorite: Kindle & company. There's something about playing multiple copies of a card and being rewarded for it that's fun. I realize this is technically worse than Arcane in terms of parasitism, but it's much more self-contained than Arcane was which gives the cards a different vibe.
Least Favorite: Modular. It lead to one of Magic's worst player slumps in a long time... IMO even more than Affinity did.
imo "Best": Transmute. It requires specific CMCs and really warps a deck if you want to make best use of it, but it gives players flexibility that most other parasitic mechanics don't.
imo "Worst": Hard to not go with the hivemind on this one. I think an argument could be made for Radiance here. It depends on having a lot of creatures of the same color, but it also by nature of the mechanic can HELP your opponent. Casting a spell shouldn't feel like you're helping your opponent when it's supposed to help you. This complaint could be levied at slivers, but since they give you a permanent they'll help you more of the time.
Remaking Magic - A Podcast for those that love MTG and Game Design
The Dungeon Master's Guide - A Podcast for those that love RPGs and Game Design
Sig-Heroes of the Plane
For example, the 2nd definition of Insular is pretty clear that only blue cards can be insular.
QFT
There's also "dependent" mechanics, such as Intimidate that aren't parasitic but can at times feel just as useless as a parasitic mechanic depending on the situation.
QFF
These two lists comprise every mechanic in Magic. Do you agree with my lists?
PARASITIC MECHANICS (Abilities that simply require mana shouldn't be considered parasitic - not even cumulative upkeep.)
Attach (which covers Bestow, Enchant, Equip, and Fortify)
Affinity
Amplify
Aura Swap
Bands with other (not to be confused with Banding)
Bolster
Bloodthirst
Champion
Cipher
Conspire
Convoke
Delve
Devour
Evolve
Extort
Fight
Graft
Gravestorm
Haunt
Madness
Modular
Ninjutsu
Offering
Proliferate
Prowl
Recover
Reinforce
Retrace
Ripple
Soulbond
Soulshift
Splice
Storm
Transform (the only mechanic on both lists)
Battalion
Chroma
Ferocious
Formidable
Heroic
Join forces
Kinship
Metalcraft
Morbid
Raid
Threshold
Prowess
Radiance
NOT PARASITIC MECHANICS (It's interesting to note that, with the exception of Attach, the evergreens aren't parasitic. Also note that there are some abilities that may have a parasitic activation cost at times, but I'm not considering them parasitic unless they require a nonmana cost every time - such as Devour.)
Deathtouch
Defender
First strike
Double strike
Flash
Flying
Haste
Hexproof
Indestructible
Intimidate
Landwalk
Lifelink
Protection
Reach
Shroud
Trample
Vigilance
Counter (as in Counterspell)
Exile
Fear
Regenerate
Sacrifice
Tap/Untap
Absorb
Annihilator
Banding
Battle cry
Bushido
Buyback
Cascade
Changeling
Clash
Cumulative upkeep
Cycling
Dash
Detain
Echo
Entwine
Epic
Evoke
Exalted
Exploit
Fading
Fateseal
Flanking
Flashback
Flip
Forecast
Frenzy
Hideaway
Horsemanship
Infect
Kicker
Level up
Living weapon
Manifest
Megamorph
Miracle
Monstrosity
Morph
Multikicker
Overload
Persist
Phasing
Poisonous
Populate
Provoke
Rampage
Rebound
Replicate
Scavenge
Scry
Shadow
Split second
Sunburst
Suspend
Totem armor
Transfigure
Transform (the only mechanic on both lists)
Transmute
Typecycling
Undying
Unearth
Unleash
Vanishing
Wither
Bloodrush
Channel
Fateful hour
Hellbent
Imprint
Outlast
Sweep
Landfall
Domain
Coincidentally, this little project made me realize that Bushido would make a fantastic U evergreen mechanic (renamed of course).
I̟̥͍̠ͅn̩͉̣͍̬͚ͅ ̬̬͖t̯̹̞̺͖͓̯̤h̘͍̬e͙̯͈̖̼̮ ̭̬f̺̲̲̪i͙͉̟̩̰r̪̝͚͈̝̥͍̝̲s̼̻͇̘̳͔ͅt̲̺̳̗̜̪̙ ̳̺̥̻͚̗ͅm̜̜̟̰͈͓͎͇o̝̖̮̝͇m̯̻̞̼̫̗͓̤e̩̯̬̮̩n͎̱̪̲̹͖t͇̖s̰̮ͅ,̤̲͙̻̭̻̯̹̰ ̖t̫̙̺̯͖͚̯ͅh͙̯̦̳̗̰̟e͖̪͉̼̯ ̪͕g̞̣͔a̗̦t̬̬͓͙̫̖̭̻e̩̻̯ ̜̖̦̖̤̭͙̬t̞̹̥̪͎͉ͅo͕͚͍͇̲͇͓̺ ̭̬͙͈̣̻t͈͍͙͓̫̖͙̩h̪̬̖̙e̗͈ ̗̬̟̞̺̤͉̯ͅa̦̯͚̙̜̮f͉͙̲̣̞̼t̪̤̞̣͚e̲͉̳̥r͇̪̙͚͓l̥̞̞͎̹̯̹ͅi͓̬f̮̥̬̞͈ͅe͎ ̟̩̤̳̠̯̩̯o̮̘̲p̟͚̣̞͉͓e͍̩̣n͔̼͕͚̜e̬̱d̼̘͎̖̹͍̮̠,͖̺̭̱̮ ̣̲͖̬̪̭̥a̪͚n̟̲̝̤̤̞̗d̘̱̗͇̮͕̳͕͔ ͖̞͉͎t̹̙͎h̰̱͉̗e̪̞̱̝̹̩ͅ ̠̱̩̭̦p̯̙e͓o̳͚̰̯̺̱̰͔̘p̬͎̱̣̼̩͇l̗̟̖͚̠e̱͉͔̱̦̬̟̙ ̖͚̪͔̼̦w̺̖̤̱e͖̗̻̦͓̖̘̜r̭̥e͔̹̫̱͕̦̰͕ ̗͔̠p̠̗͍͍̱̳̠r̰͔͎̰o͉̥͓̰͚̥s̟͚̹̱͔̣t͉̙̳̖͖̪̮r̥̘̥͙̹a͉̟̫̟̳̠̟̭t͈̜̰͈͎e̞̣̭̲̬ ͚̗̯̟͙i͍͖̰̘̦͖͉ṇ̮̻̯̦̲̩͍ ̦̮͚̫̤t͉͖̫͕ͅͅh͙̮̻̘̣̮̼e͕̺ ͙l͕̠͎̰̥i̲͓͉̲g̫̳̟͈͇̖h̠̦̖t͓̯͎̗ ̳̪̘̟̙̩̦o̫̲f̙͔̰̙̠ ̹̪̗͇̯t͖̼̼͉͖̬h̹͇̩e͚̖̺̤͉̹͕̪ ͚͓̭̝̺G͎̗̯̩o̫̯̮̟̮̳̘d̜̲͙̠-̩̳̯̲̗̜P̹̘̥͉̝h͍͈̗̖̝ͅa͍̗̮̼̗r̜̖͇̙̺a̭̺͔̞̳͈o̪̣͓̯̬͙̯̰̗h̖̦͈̥̯͔.͇̣̙̝
Its helpful in that I can discuss how that definition isn't correct or useful in my primer.
Are you designing commons? Check out my primer on NWO.
Interested in making a custom set? Check out my Set skeleton and archetype primer.
I also write articles about getting started with custom card creation.
Go and PLAYTEST your designs, you will learn more in a single playtests than a dozen discussions.
My custom sets:
Dreamscape
Coins of Mercalis [COMPLETE]
Exodus of Zendikar - ON HOLD
Also, your "insular" examples are strange because one finds that shadow and horsemanship are a billion billion times better outside of their sets.
I̟̥͍̠ͅn̩͉̣͍̬͚ͅ ̬̬͖t̯̹̞̺͖͓̯̤h̘͍̬e͙̯͈̖̼̮ ̭̬f̺̲̲̪i͙͉̟̩̰r̪̝͚͈̝̥͍̝̲s̼̻͇̘̳͔ͅt̲̺̳̗̜̪̙ ̳̺̥̻͚̗ͅm̜̜̟̰͈͓͎͇o̝̖̮̝͇m̯̻̞̼̫̗͓̤e̩̯̬̮̩n͎̱̪̲̹͖t͇̖s̰̮ͅ,̤̲͙̻̭̻̯̹̰ ̖t̫̙̺̯͖͚̯ͅh͙̯̦̳̗̰̟e͖̪͉̼̯ ̪͕g̞̣͔a̗̦t̬̬͓͙̫̖̭̻e̩̻̯ ̜̖̦̖̤̭͙̬t̞̹̥̪͎͉ͅo͕͚͍͇̲͇͓̺ ̭̬͙͈̣̻t͈͍͙͓̫̖͙̩h̪̬̖̙e̗͈ ̗̬̟̞̺̤͉̯ͅa̦̯͚̙̜̮f͉͙̲̣̞̼t̪̤̞̣͚e̲͉̳̥r͇̪̙͚͓l̥̞̞͎̹̯̹ͅi͓̬f̮̥̬̞͈ͅe͎ ̟̩̤̳̠̯̩̯o̮̘̲p̟͚̣̞͉͓e͍̩̣n͔̼͕͚̜e̬̱d̼̘͎̖̹͍̮̠,͖̺̭̱̮ ̣̲͖̬̪̭̥a̪͚n̟̲̝̤̤̞̗d̘̱̗͇̮͕̳͕͔ ͖̞͉͎t̹̙͎h̰̱͉̗e̪̞̱̝̹̩ͅ ̠̱̩̭̦p̯̙e͓o̳͚̰̯̺̱̰͔̘p̬͎̱̣̼̩͇l̗̟̖͚̠e̱͉͔̱̦̬̟̙ ̖͚̪͔̼̦w̺̖̤̱e͖̗̻̦͓̖̘̜r̭̥e͔̹̫̱͕̦̰͕ ̗͔̠p̠̗͍͍̱̳̠r̰͔͎̰o͉̥͓̰͚̥s̟͚̹̱͔̣t͉̙̳̖͖̪̮r̥̘̥͙̹a͉̟̫̟̳̠̟̭t͈̜̰͈͎e̞̣̭̲̬ ͚̗̯̟͙i͍͖̰̘̦͖͉ṇ̮̻̯̦̲̩͍ ̦̮͚̫̤t͉͖̫͕ͅͅh͙̮̻̘̣̮̼e͕̺ ͙l͕̠͎̰̥i̲͓͉̲g̫̳̟͈͇̖h̠̦̖t͓̯͎̗ ̳̪̘̟̙̩̦o̫̲f̙͔̰̙̠ ̹̪̗͇̯t͖̼̼͉͖̬h̹͇̩e͚̖̺̤͉̹͕̪ ͚͓̭̝̺G͎̗̯̩o̫̯̮̟̮̳̘d̜̲͙̠-̩̳̯̲̗̜P̹̘̥͉̝h͍͈̗̖̝ͅa͍̗̮̼̗r̜̖͇̙̺a̭̺͔̞̳͈o̪̣͓̯̬͙̯̰̗h̖̦͈̥̯͔.͇̣̙̝
The parasitism of a mechanic has nothing to do with its flavor ties, but rather its gameplay ties. Flying, for example, could be renamed as winged (still somewhat fitting), dodge (on the blurred line), or even rqowm (which makes absolutely no sense whatsoever) and still have the same effect, and it'd still be considered as great gameplay-wise. The same could apply for soulshift and some other name substitutes, such as spiritism, retrieve, cheese, and flargl.
[c]Lightning Bolt[/c] -> Lightning Bolt
[c=Lightning Bolt]Apple Pie[/c] -> Apple Pie
Vowels-Only Format
Minimum deck size: 60
Maximum number of identical cards: 4
Ban list: Cards whose English names begin with a consonant, Unglued and Unhinged cards, cards involving ante, Ancestral Recall