This is a mechanic I've thought up for a supplementary set called Magic: the Gathering - Civilization. CIV emulates economic strategy games like the Civilization PC games and Catan, where you gather resources and spend them to build up settlements, population, and defenses.
The central mechanic of the set is gaining resources. You gain resources from lands, be they lands you control or those controlled by another player (some cards allow you to gain resources from another player's lands, particularly when creatures you control deal combat damage to that player). Each basic land type produces a specific resource, and lands without basic land types also produce a specific resource.
Plains - Grain
Island - Water
Swamp - Oil
Mountain - Stone
Forest - Wood
Other - Metal
Resources can be spent much like mana or life, and many cards ask for specific types of resource. This can include resources not available to that card's color, encouraging players to play additional land types and to trade with or raid other players. Certain cards also allow you to exchange one resource for another, though usually at a rate higher than 1:1.
Players are allowed to trade resources with other players during their main phase (players can't initiate trade during other players' turns). If a land has two or more basic land types, you choose which resource to gain for each 1 resource you gain from that land (for example, if a card tells you to gain 2 resources from a Plains Island, you can gain 1 Grain and 1 Water).
The set's packs include insert tokens (similar to Innistrad's DFC stand-ins) that list the six resources and allow players to keep track of how much they have of each resource. The inserts also include a reminder that players can trade resources during their main phase.
Here are a few cards that give some ideas of how resources work:
Resource HarvesterW
Creature - Human Scout
When ~ enters the battlefield, you may gain 1 resource from target land you control (Plains produce grain, Islands produce water, Swamps produce oil, Mountains produce stone, Forests produce wood, and all other lands produce metal.)
1/1
Trade Advisor1U
Creature - Human Advisor
At the beginning of each end step, if you traded resources with another player this turn, each player who traded with you this turn may scry 1. (Each player may trade resources with other players during his or her main phase.)
1/3
Hired MercenaryB
Creature - Human Mercenary
~ can't attack or block unless you pay 1 resource. (Grain, water, oil, stone, wood, and metal are resources.)
2/2
Resource Raider1R
Creature - Human Warrior
Whenever ~ deals combat damage to a player, you may gain 1 resource from target land that player controls. (Plains produce grain, Islands produce water, Swamps produce oil, Mountains produce stone, Forests produce wood, and all other lands produce metal.)
2/1
Scout for ResourcesG
Sorcery
Search your library for a basic land card and put it onto the battlefield tapped, then shuffle your library. You may gain 1 resource from that land.
Resources started out as artifact tokens, of which Civilization was intended to include many (and might still include a decent few like Gold). However, I realized that keeping track of so many resources would be difficult with traditional tokens, so I switched resources over to this new format.
Private Mod Note
():
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
MTGS Wikia Article about "New World Order"
Every time I read a comment about "Well if this card had card draw/trample/haste/indestructible/hexproof/life gain...", I think "You're missing the point." They're armchair developer comments that fail to take into account the card's role in the greater Limited and Standard environment. No, it may not be as good as whatever card you're comparing it to. There's a reason for that. Not every burn spell is Lightning Bolt, nor does it need to be or should be.
PSA to everyone who keeps forgetting about the Reserved List:
You're on a website dedicated to talking about MtG. You're only a few keystrokes away from finding out what cards are on the Reserved List. You're also only a few keystrokes away from finding out why some cards on the Reserved List got foil printings in FtV, as Judge promos, or whatnot, as well as why that won't happen again. Stop doing this.
Aside from cards that specifically get resources (like harvester, raider, and scout), how do you get resources? The problem here is that cards that _require_ resources are too parasitic. For example, hired mercenary is useless unless you have resource harvester/raider/scout. It's even more parasitic than splice into arcane, and that's saying something.
This is also a bookkeeping nightmare. Insert tokens don't fix it, it just highlights that it is a bookkeeping nightmare that needs props to handle.
Flavorwise, this is very good.
Private Mod Note
():
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
"Sometimes, the situation is outracing a threat, sometimes it's ignoring it, and sometimes it involves sideboarding in 4x Hope//Pray." --Doug Linn
I see that you've created a resource for each color, and the ability to exchange them, but not a reason for them to be different. You've mentioned there would be ways to use them but with out an example it sounds needlessly complicated. Honestly, it seems like you are making Energy but are trying to make it cosmetically different while not making it functionally different.
Very nicely flavored. It's a supplementary set, so extra bookkeeping (like that seen in Conspiracy 1 & 2) is fine as long as it's worthwhile. Have you developed another mechanical layer to make "colored energy" distinct from "colorless" energy?
Civilization is intended to have ample Resource providers, including some that gain more than 1 Resource at a time. There's a cycle of six common lands, five of which have basic land types and enter the battlefield tapped, who each provide you with 2 Resources on their own. A cycle of common Merchants allow you to trade 2 of their in-color Resource for 1 Resource of any type (similar to the Resource exchange feature in Catan), and a common land allows you to exchange any 2 Resources for 1 metal. An uncommon cycle of Sorceries give you 1 Resource from each land you control.
Yes, Resources work a lot like Energy. The intended distinction is that where Energy is versatile, Resources are efficient; that is, you can get more for 1 Resource than one Energy counter. I'm considering ways to make the use of resources both functional and flavorful. Mechanically, they can work like mana that stays in your mana pool. The tricky part is that the resources are a little more limited in flavor than mana; grain works for lifegain, Horse tokens, and maybe +1/+1 counters, but how exactly would one use it to, say, summon an Angel or deal damage to attacking creatures? The main intent is to use them to create tokens and pay for activated abilities.
Another option is somehow implementing buildings that you create using resources, such as farms and fortresses. Having something akin to Structures that you build using Resources would be a great way to justify making Civilization a supplementary set; you can't cast Structures with mana, you spend Resources to build them. Farmland? Wood and Grain. Water Wheel? Metal and Water. Forge? Oil and Metal. The effects of Structures is in-color with the Resources used to build them; a Structure built using water will have blue influence in its effects. You build your settlements, build your population, and ultimately build a civilization.
And yes, the Mercenary could use some work. I want Mercenaries to feel like Mercenaries; you pay, they fight. I suppose the Mercenary could ask for a cost of either 2 life or 1 resource, so you can attack without resources but are penalized. Mercenaries are meant to be focused in black and red as cheap but double-edged aggro creatures, and among the most common Resource raiders (creatures that gain Resources from your opponents' lands). Though now I'm on the idea of using Resources specifically to build Structures.
And now I'm thinking Civilization could be a precon supplemental akin to Commander, Planechase, or Archenemy, with each deck featuring a variety of resource providers plus a fold-out mat that lists the available Structures you can build using Resources. Each Structure is represented by a non-standard card akin to Conspiracies, Planes, or Schemes. Each deck also features a legendary creature who can double as a commander. And each deck features a Resource counter you can use to keep track of resources.
Of course, each Resource can still be used for creature abilities and the like; paying metal to get artifact tokens such as Equipment, paying grain to get Horse tokens, and so forth. Non-Structure uses for Resources are relatively simple while the Structures themselves ask for combinations of resources.
MTGS Wikia Article about "New World Order"
Every time I read a comment about "Well if this card had card draw/trample/haste/indestructible/hexproof/life gain...", I think "You're missing the point." They're armchair developer comments that fail to take into account the card's role in the greater Limited and Standard environment. No, it may not be as good as whatever card you're comparing it to. There's a reason for that. Not every burn spell is Lightning Bolt, nor does it need to be or should be.
PSA to everyone who keeps forgetting about the Reserved List:
You're on a website dedicated to talking about MtG. You're only a few keystrokes away from finding out what cards are on the Reserved List. You're also only a few keystrokes away from finding out why some cards on the Reserved List got foil printings in FtV, as Judge promos, or whatnot, as well as why that won't happen again. Stop doing this.
As a person that is working on different Settlers of Catan/Magic the Gathering crossovers I'm mostly sad about the lack of sheep. Just kidding.
Ressources are probably
The reminder text worries me since it consumes a lot of space that is equivalent to "Plains produce white man, Islands produce blue mana, ..." on each mana source.
The resources here definitely need something more interesting than "energy but restricted by the land types you have".
---
Your showcase makes one terrible mistake: The only example card you show that uses resources (Hired Mercenary) does not even care about the kind of resource you pay it. How are you going to make a case for this mechanic being distinct from energy if your best and only example uses resources indiscriminately as though it was energy?
If I were you I would introduce a keyword action, e. g. "harvest/gather resources", so you could have very simple text and just use that: "When ~ enters the battlefield, gather one resource."
Currently you can harvest your lonely Swamp multiple times in a turn despite maybe being the only one in an otherwise blue deck (maybe to fire the flight machines on their airships with oil...) and you have to wonder whether that is intentional. I personally would tap a land to harvest from it.
Interesting question: Would you rather for resources to be counters, permanents, cards or a new type of game object? Each of those opens opportunities to interactions. I personally e. g. prefer to have resources as interactive game objects that can be interacted with and they are cards in (depending on the test version) the hand or a special zone (the hoard which I created for another Magic variant and allows the cards to be stolen by attacking creatures).
The hand version is obviously inspired by Settlers of Catan but comes with interesting interactions e. g. hand size limit but also the benefit of being able to discard resource cards when looting or rumaging.
---
Your main goals right now should be to find design avenues for resources that are distinct from mana/energy.
Private Mod Note
():
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Planar Chaos was not a mistake neither was it random. You might want to look at it again.
[thread=239793][Game] Level Up - Creature[/thread]
I considered having resources be artifact tokens; in fact that was how they started before I decided to try the life/energy-esque approach. Civilization is in fact meant to be token-heavy, both in creature and artifact tokens. It all started when I thought of using Populate as a mechanic to represent population growth, then got the idea to try a variant that can populate tokens of any type, called Expand, so as to copy tokens like Gold or Scrolls (Clues with a different flavor).
I'm working on a card type called Structures that you build by spending resources rather than cast by spending mana. Like, if you want to build a Farm, you spend 1 wood and 1 grain. The Farm could produce Food tokens which you can sac for lifegain or +1/+1 counters. Structures use resource symbols in their costs similar to how most cards use mana symbols.
I'm also considering another Catan-inspired element where each player rolls a special D6 at the start of his or her turn. Each side of this D6 features one of the six mana symbols, and whenever that symbol comes up, each player gains 1 resource for each land of the appropriate type he or she controls. So, if you roll the Resource die and it comes up grain, each player gains 1 grain for each Plains he or she controls. Certain cards could allow the player to roll the Resource die an additional time that turn.
Alternatively, the Resource die is instead a D12 with the metal symbols at the "poles" and the five color resources arranged around the adjacent faces in WUBRG order. That way each resource type is always adjacent to the other five, giving each a roughly equal chance of being rolled. It would map roughly like this:
MTGS Wikia Article about "New World Order"
Every time I read a comment about "Well if this card had card draw/trample/haste/indestructible/hexproof/life gain...", I think "You're missing the point." They're armchair developer comments that fail to take into account the card's role in the greater Limited and Standard environment. No, it may not be as good as whatever card you're comparing it to. There's a reason for that. Not every burn spell is Lightning Bolt, nor does it need to be or should be.
PSA to everyone who keeps forgetting about the Reserved List:
You're on a website dedicated to talking about MtG. You're only a few keystrokes away from finding out what cards are on the Reserved List. You're also only a few keystrokes away from finding out why some cards on the Reserved List got foil printings in FtV, as Judge promos, or whatnot, as well as why that won't happen again. Stop doing this.
The Catan dice game already has these dice for the Catan resources (including gold).
Since you get inspired so much from Catan anyway I should point out a weakness in your system that is a strength for Catan: Unless you build a really skewed board (or are randomizing it unluckily) a single die result will not produce just a single resource type. Your current idea of giving everyone who has access to Plains a lot of grains while every other resource will be scarce has the disadvantage of never encouraging trading.
In general the flow of resources between players is a key element of Catan (less so in the Civilization games so I don't know how strong you want to go there). Since you want to have a trading mechanic you should be aware that the currently proposed die solution will discourage trading by flooding everyone with the same resource at the same time.
Also these floods go counter your proposal that resources should be more potent than energy since you now can gain resources for "free" by just being in the game and controling a land.
---
Note: A d6 and a d12 with each symbol appearing twice are in theory indistinguishable regarding the probabilities of their results.
EDIT: Another Note: Your one example requires two specific resources to be build. But since resources seem to last longer than mana resources are actually less adequate for one time costs and more adequate for repeatable sinks. That's something Wizards figured out for energy, but comes from the fact that it can be saved up and is not an arbitrary decision.
Private Mod Note
():
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Planar Chaos was not a mistake neither was it random. You might want to look at it again.
[thread=239793][Game] Level Up - Creature[/thread]
Hm, then perhaps each player only gains resources from their own Resource die. This makes me think it might be preferable for the decks to be dual-color as opposed to tricolor, though I was considering having two tricolor decks and two dualcolor decks with metal. For example:
GWU - Wood, Grain, Water
WBR - Grain, Stone, Oil
CUR - Metal, Water, Stone
CBG - Metal, Oil, Wood
That way each deck only has access to half the total resources. If the decks make use of duals however, those duals will have to have basic land types so as not to give the tricolor decks access to four resources. This setup also means certain combinations, like Grain + Metal, are not as feasible in the initial product cycle, though since trading and raiding can still make it possible for players to acquire resources to which they do not personally have access, the combination result can still be listed on the mat. Presumably subsequent iterations of the Civilization product would make use of different color combinations, and thus could more readily produce Structures requiring certain resource combinations.
I'm also open to the suggestion that more than one Structure exists for particular resource pairs, given different combinations. Like, 2 Wood + 1 Grain versus 2 Grain + 1 Wood. That could mean the difference between a Farm and an Orchard. We can also consider the option of Structures using three different types of resource.
The use of D12 over D6 is mostly aesthetic layout; A D6 will put metal opposite one of the colors, resulting in uneven color distribution. A D12 arranges the color resources in the same pattern as the WUBRG symbol on the back of the cards, assuming the metal face is in the middle. This also results in each material always being adjacent to the other materials on the die. Although, if each deck is only going to have access to half the resources, is it better to use a universal D12 that doesn't yield anything 50% of the time, or specialized D6s that always yield one of three resources? My inclination is that the D12 option is still better as it's less variance in the molding and coloring process, and creates greater variance in the gameplay (you aren't accumulating resources every turn).
Also, I find myself wanting each deck to have Structures that provide some form of sustenance, some form of defense, and some form of offense, based on the logic that any surviving let alone thriving society meets these three basic needs. These three needs can be met in different ways; for example, one deck has Farms, another has Hunting Grounds, a third has an Orchard, and the fourth has a Fishery to provide different kinds of food. The Farm provides Crops which can be sacced for lifegain, the Hunting Grounds provide Meat for +1/+1 counters, the Orchard provides Fruit for mana, and the Fishery provides Fish for card draw (those Omega-3s found in fish are good for your brain, after all). One deck's idea of offense could be to arm your Warriors and Soldiers with Equipment tokens, while another produces Bomb tokens to sac for direct damage. These methods can create the sense of different factions who trade with and raid one another.
I think it would be cute if the Structures are all viewed from a top-down perspective, like an isometric PC game.
Since each deck would be a precon and have access to specific resources, maybe each deck can include three resource "tokens" that allow you to keep track of how much of that resource you have, similar to poison, experience, and energy? Yeah, I know the resources could probably be done as counters and would benefit from proliferate, but saying that you have a wood counter just sounds a little weird. Resources could be done as tokens, and that would interact favorably with Expand, but I don't see that the tokens would do anything on their own. Sac them for two mana of the appropriate color?
Regarding making this a precon product vs. a booster product, what if both formats were supported? You'd have the precon decks to get you started, then you can buy booster packs to gain access to new cards and structures not included in the precons. Drafting Civilization could be difficult however, which impacts the viability of making it a booster product.
I'm thinking about dialing back the dependency on cards for resource accumulation and trusting the resource die to provide most of the resource acquisition. I'm looking at a new card volume somewhere between Planechase (21) and Commander (56). I think it might be beneficial to start a topic in Custom Set creation and discussion to cover the needs of the set as a whole and leave this topic to discussion about Resources and Structures.
MTGS Wikia Article about "New World Order"
Every time I read a comment about "Well if this card had card draw/trample/haste/indestructible/hexproof/life gain...", I think "You're missing the point." They're armchair developer comments that fail to take into account the card's role in the greater Limited and Standard environment. No, it may not be as good as whatever card you're comparing it to. There's a reason for that. Not every burn spell is Lightning Bolt, nor does it need to be or should be.
PSA to everyone who keeps forgetting about the Reserved List:
You're on a website dedicated to talking about MtG. You're only a few keystrokes away from finding out what cards are on the Reserved List. You're also only a few keystrokes away from finding out why some cards on the Reserved List got foil printings in FtV, as Judge promos, or whatnot, as well as why that won't happen again. Stop doing this.
To post a comment, please login or register a new account.
The central mechanic of the set is gaining resources. You gain resources from lands, be they lands you control or those controlled by another player (some cards allow you to gain resources from another player's lands, particularly when creatures you control deal combat damage to that player). Each basic land type produces a specific resource, and lands without basic land types also produce a specific resource.
Plains - Grain
Island - Water
Swamp - Oil
Mountain - Stone
Forest - Wood
Other - Metal
Resources can be spent much like mana or life, and many cards ask for specific types of resource. This can include resources not available to that card's color, encouraging players to play additional land types and to trade with or raid other players. Certain cards also allow you to exchange one resource for another, though usually at a rate higher than 1:1.
Players are allowed to trade resources with other players during their main phase (players can't initiate trade during other players' turns). If a land has two or more basic land types, you choose which resource to gain for each 1 resource you gain from that land (for example, if a card tells you to gain 2 resources from a Plains Island, you can gain 1 Grain and 1 Water).
The set's packs include insert tokens (similar to Innistrad's DFC stand-ins) that list the six resources and allow players to keep track of how much they have of each resource. The inserts also include a reminder that players can trade resources during their main phase.
Here are a few cards that give some ideas of how resources work:
Resource Harvester W
Creature - Human Scout
When ~ enters the battlefield, you may gain 1 resource from target land you control (Plains produce grain, Islands produce water, Swamps produce oil, Mountains produce stone, Forests produce wood, and all other lands produce metal.)
1/1
Trade Advisor 1U
Creature - Human Advisor
At the beginning of each end step, if you traded resources with another player this turn, each player who traded with you this turn may scry 1. (Each player may trade resources with other players during his or her main phase.)
1/3
Hired Mercenary B
Creature - Human Mercenary
~ can't attack or block unless you pay 1 resource. (Grain, water, oil, stone, wood, and metal are resources.)
2/2
Resource Raider 1R
Creature - Human Warrior
Whenever ~ deals combat damage to a player, you may gain 1 resource from target land that player controls. (Plains produce grain, Islands produce water, Swamps produce oil, Mountains produce stone, Forests produce wood, and all other lands produce metal.)
2/1
Scout for Resources G
Sorcery
Search your library for a basic land card and put it onto the battlefield tapped, then shuffle your library. You may gain 1 resource from that land.
Resources started out as artifact tokens, of which Civilization was intended to include many (and might still include a decent few like Gold). However, I realized that keeping track of so many resources would be difficult with traditional tokens, so I switched resources over to this new format.
Every time I read a comment about "Well if this card had card draw/trample/haste/indestructible/hexproof/life gain...", I think "You're missing the point." They're armchair developer comments that fail to take into account the card's role in the greater Limited and Standard environment. No, it may not be as good as whatever card you're comparing it to. There's a reason for that. Not every burn spell is Lightning Bolt, nor does it need to be or should be.
Could resources be counters, a la energy?
I̟̥͍̠ͅn̩͉̣͍̬͚ͅ ̬̬͖t̯̹̞̺͖͓̯̤h̘͍̬e͙̯͈̖̼̮ ̭̬f̺̲̲̪i͙͉̟̩̰r̪̝͚͈̝̥͍̝̲s̼̻͇̘̳͔ͅt̲̺̳̗̜̪̙ ̳̺̥̻͚̗ͅm̜̜̟̰͈͓͎͇o̝̖̮̝͇m̯̻̞̼̫̗͓̤e̩̯̬̮̩n͎̱̪̲̹͖t͇̖s̰̮ͅ,̤̲͙̻̭̻̯̹̰ ̖t̫̙̺̯͖͚̯ͅh͙̯̦̳̗̰̟e͖̪͉̼̯ ̪͕g̞̣͔a̗̦t̬̬͓͙̫̖̭̻e̩̻̯ ̜̖̦̖̤̭͙̬t̞̹̥̪͎͉ͅo͕͚͍͇̲͇͓̺ ̭̬͙͈̣̻t͈͍͙͓̫̖͙̩h̪̬̖̙e̗͈ ̗̬̟̞̺̤͉̯ͅa̦̯͚̙̜̮f͉͙̲̣̞̼t̪̤̞̣͚e̲͉̳̥r͇̪̙͚͓l̥̞̞͎̹̯̹ͅi͓̬f̮̥̬̞͈ͅe͎ ̟̩̤̳̠̯̩̯o̮̘̲p̟͚̣̞͉͓e͍̩̣n͔̼͕͚̜e̬̱d̼̘͎̖̹͍̮̠,͖̺̭̱̮ ̣̲͖̬̪̭̥a̪͚n̟̲̝̤̤̞̗d̘̱̗͇̮͕̳͕͔ ͖̞͉͎t̹̙͎h̰̱͉̗e̪̞̱̝̹̩ͅ ̠̱̩̭̦p̯̙e͓o̳͚̰̯̺̱̰͔̘p̬͎̱̣̼̩͇l̗̟̖͚̠e̱͉͔̱̦̬̟̙ ̖͚̪͔̼̦w̺̖̤̱e͖̗̻̦͓̖̘̜r̭̥e͔̹̫̱͕̦̰͕ ̗͔̠p̠̗͍͍̱̳̠r̰͔͎̰o͉̥͓̰͚̥s̟͚̹̱͔̣t͉̙̳̖͖̪̮r̥̘̥͙̹a͉̟̫̟̳̠̟̭t͈̜̰͈͎e̞̣̭̲̬ ͚̗̯̟͙i͍͖̰̘̦͖͉ṇ̮̻̯̦̲̩͍ ̦̮͚̫̤t͉͖̫͕ͅͅh͙̮̻̘̣̮̼e͕̺ ͙l͕̠͎̰̥i̲͓͉̲g̫̳̟͈͇̖h̠̦̖t͓̯͎̗ ̳̪̘̟̙̩̦o̫̲f̙͔̰̙̠ ̹̪̗͇̯t͖̼̼͉͖̬h̹͇̩e͚̖̺̤͉̹͕̪ ͚͓̭̝̺G͎̗̯̩o̫̯̮̟̮̳̘d̜̲͙̠-̩̳̯̲̗̜P̹̘̥͉̝h͍͈̗̖̝ͅa͍̗̮̼̗r̜̖͇̙̺a̭̺͔̞̳͈o̪̣͓̯̬͙̯̰̗h̖̦͈̥̯͔.͇̣̙̝
This is also a bookkeeping nightmare. Insert tokens don't fix it, it just highlights that it is a bookkeeping nightmare that needs props to handle.
Flavorwise, this is very good.
"Sometimes, the situation is outracing a threat, sometimes it's ignoring it, and sometimes it involves sideboarding in 4x Hope//Pray." --Doug Linn
Yes, Resources work a lot like Energy. The intended distinction is that where Energy is versatile, Resources are efficient; that is, you can get more for 1 Resource than one Energy counter. I'm considering ways to make the use of resources both functional and flavorful. Mechanically, they can work like mana that stays in your mana pool. The tricky part is that the resources are a little more limited in flavor than mana; grain works for lifegain, Horse tokens, and maybe +1/+1 counters, but how exactly would one use it to, say, summon an Angel or deal damage to attacking creatures? The main intent is to use them to create tokens and pay for activated abilities.
Another option is somehow implementing buildings that you create using resources, such as farms and fortresses. Having something akin to Structures that you build using Resources would be a great way to justify making Civilization a supplementary set; you can't cast Structures with mana, you spend Resources to build them. Farmland? Wood and Grain. Water Wheel? Metal and Water. Forge? Oil and Metal. The effects of Structures is in-color with the Resources used to build them; a Structure built using water will have blue influence in its effects. You build your settlements, build your population, and ultimately build a civilization.
And yes, the Mercenary could use some work. I want Mercenaries to feel like Mercenaries; you pay, they fight. I suppose the Mercenary could ask for a cost of either 2 life or 1 resource, so you can attack without resources but are penalized. Mercenaries are meant to be focused in black and red as cheap but double-edged aggro creatures, and among the most common Resource raiders (creatures that gain Resources from your opponents' lands). Though now I'm on the idea of using Resources specifically to build Structures.
And now I'm thinking Civilization could be a precon supplemental akin to Commander, Planechase, or Archenemy, with each deck featuring a variety of resource providers plus a fold-out mat that lists the available Structures you can build using Resources. Each Structure is represented by a non-standard card akin to Conspiracies, Planes, or Schemes. Each deck also features a legendary creature who can double as a commander. And each deck features a Resource counter you can use to keep track of resources.
Of course, each Resource can still be used for creature abilities and the like; paying metal to get artifact tokens such as Equipment, paying grain to get Horse tokens, and so forth. Non-Structure uses for Resources are relatively simple while the Structures themselves ask for combinations of resources.
Every time I read a comment about "Well if this card had card draw/trample/haste/indestructible/hexproof/life gain...", I think "You're missing the point." They're armchair developer comments that fail to take into account the card's role in the greater Limited and Standard environment. No, it may not be as good as whatever card you're comparing it to. There's a reason for that. Not every burn spell is Lightning Bolt, nor does it need to be or should be.
Ressources are probably
The reminder text worries me since it consumes a lot of space that is equivalent to "Plains produce white man, Islands produce blue mana, ..." on each mana source.
The resources here definitely need something more interesting than "energy but restricted by the land types you have".
---
Your showcase makes one terrible mistake: The only example card you show that uses resources (Hired Mercenary) does not even care about the kind of resource you pay it. How are you going to make a case for this mechanic being distinct from energy if your best and only example uses resources indiscriminately as though it was energy?
If I were you I would introduce a keyword action, e. g. "harvest/gather resources", so you could have very simple text and just use that: "When ~ enters the battlefield, gather one resource."
Currently you can harvest your lonely Swamp multiple times in a turn despite maybe being the only one in an otherwise blue deck (maybe to fire the flight machines on their airships with oil...) and you have to wonder whether that is intentional. I personally would tap a land to harvest from it.
Interesting question: Would you rather for resources to be counters, permanents, cards or a new type of game object? Each of those opens opportunities to interactions. I personally e. g. prefer to have resources as interactive game objects that can be interacted with and they are cards in (depending on the test version) the hand or a special zone (the hoard which I created for another Magic variant and allows the cards to be stolen by attacking creatures).
The hand version is obviously inspired by Settlers of Catan but comes with interesting interactions e. g. hand size limit but also the benefit of being able to discard resource cards when looting or rumaging.
---
Your main goals right now should be to find design avenues for resources that are distinct from mana/energy.
Finally a good white villain quote: "So, do I ever re-evaluate my life choices? Never, because I know what I'm doing is a righteous cause."
Factions: Sleeping
Remnants: Valheim
Legendary Journey: Heroes & Planeswalkers
Saga: Shards of Rabiah
Legends: The Elder Dragons
Read up on Red Flags & NWO
I'm working on a card type called Structures that you build by spending resources rather than cast by spending mana. Like, if you want to build a Farm, you spend 1 wood and 1 grain. The Farm could produce Food tokens which you can sac for lifegain or +1/+1 counters. Structures use resource symbols in their costs similar to how most cards use mana symbols.
I'm also considering another Catan-inspired element where each player rolls a special D6 at the start of his or her turn. Each side of this D6 features one of the six mana symbols, and whenever that symbol comes up, each player gains 1 resource for each land of the appropriate type he or she controls. So, if you roll the Resource die and it comes up grain, each player gains 1 grain for each Plains he or she controls. Certain cards could allow the player to roll the Resource die an additional time that turn.
Alternatively, the Resource die is instead a D12 with the metal symbols at the "poles" and the five color resources arranged around the adjacent faces in WUBRG order. That way each resource type is always adjacent to the other five, giving each a roughly equal chance of being rolled. It would map roughly like this:
Top half
----W
--G-M-U
---R-B
Bottom half
---B-R
--U-M-G
----W
Every time I read a comment about "Well if this card had card draw/trample/haste/indestructible/hexproof/life gain...", I think "You're missing the point." They're armchair developer comments that fail to take into account the card's role in the greater Limited and Standard environment. No, it may not be as good as whatever card you're comparing it to. There's a reason for that. Not every burn spell is Lightning Bolt, nor does it need to be or should be.
Since you get inspired so much from Catan anyway I should point out a weakness in your system that is a strength for Catan: Unless you build a really skewed board (or are randomizing it unluckily) a single die result will not produce just a single resource type. Your current idea of giving everyone who has access to Plains a lot of grains while every other resource will be scarce has the disadvantage of never encouraging trading.
In general the flow of resources between players is a key element of Catan (less so in the Civilization games so I don't know how strong you want to go there). Since you want to have a trading mechanic you should be aware that the currently proposed die solution will discourage trading by flooding everyone with the same resource at the same time.
Also these floods go counter your proposal that resources should be more potent than energy since you now can gain resources for "free" by just being in the game and controling a land.
---
Note: A d6 and a d12 with each symbol appearing twice are in theory indistinguishable regarding the probabilities of their results.
EDIT: Another Note: Your one example requires two specific resources to be build. But since resources seem to last longer than mana resources are actually less adequate for one time costs and more adequate for repeatable sinks. That's something Wizards figured out for energy, but comes from the fact that it can be saved up and is not an arbitrary decision.
Finally a good white villain quote: "So, do I ever re-evaluate my life choices? Never, because I know what I'm doing is a righteous cause."
Factions: Sleeping
Remnants: Valheim
Legendary Journey: Heroes & Planeswalkers
Saga: Shards of Rabiah
Legends: The Elder Dragons
Read up on Red Flags & NWO
GWU - Wood, Grain, Water
WBR - Grain, Stone, Oil
CUR - Metal, Water, Stone
CBG - Metal, Oil, Wood
That way each deck only has access to half the total resources. If the decks make use of duals however, those duals will have to have basic land types so as not to give the tricolor decks access to four resources. This setup also means certain combinations, like Grain + Metal, are not as feasible in the initial product cycle, though since trading and raiding can still make it possible for players to acquire resources to which they do not personally have access, the combination result can still be listed on the mat. Presumably subsequent iterations of the Civilization product would make use of different color combinations, and thus could more readily produce Structures requiring certain resource combinations.
I'm also open to the suggestion that more than one Structure exists for particular resource pairs, given different combinations. Like, 2 Wood + 1 Grain versus 2 Grain + 1 Wood. That could mean the difference between a Farm and an Orchard. We can also consider the option of Structures using three different types of resource.
The use of D12 over D6 is mostly aesthetic layout; A D6 will put metal opposite one of the colors, resulting in uneven color distribution. A D12 arranges the color resources in the same pattern as the WUBRG symbol on the back of the cards, assuming the metal face is in the middle. This also results in each material always being adjacent to the other materials on the die. Although, if each deck is only going to have access to half the resources, is it better to use a universal D12 that doesn't yield anything 50% of the time, or specialized D6s that always yield one of three resources? My inclination is that the D12 option is still better as it's less variance in the molding and coloring process, and creates greater variance in the gameplay (you aren't accumulating resources every turn).
Also, I find myself wanting each deck to have Structures that provide some form of sustenance, some form of defense, and some form of offense, based on the logic that any surviving let alone thriving society meets these three basic needs. These three needs can be met in different ways; for example, one deck has Farms, another has Hunting Grounds, a third has an Orchard, and the fourth has a Fishery to provide different kinds of food. The Farm provides Crops which can be sacced for lifegain, the Hunting Grounds provide Meat for +1/+1 counters, the Orchard provides Fruit for mana, and the Fishery provides Fish for card draw (those Omega-3s found in fish are good for your brain, after all). One deck's idea of offense could be to arm your Warriors and Soldiers with Equipment tokens, while another produces Bomb tokens to sac for direct damage. These methods can create the sense of different factions who trade with and raid one another.
I think it would be cute if the Structures are all viewed from a top-down perspective, like an isometric PC game.
Since each deck would be a precon and have access to specific resources, maybe each deck can include three resource "tokens" that allow you to keep track of how much of that resource you have, similar to poison, experience, and energy? Yeah, I know the resources could probably be done as counters and would benefit from proliferate, but saying that you have a wood counter just sounds a little weird. Resources could be done as tokens, and that would interact favorably with Expand, but I don't see that the tokens would do anything on their own. Sac them for two mana of the appropriate color?
Regarding making this a precon product vs. a booster product, what if both formats were supported? You'd have the precon decks to get you started, then you can buy booster packs to gain access to new cards and structures not included in the precons. Drafting Civilization could be difficult however, which impacts the viability of making it a booster product.
I'm thinking about dialing back the dependency on cards for resource accumulation and trusting the resource die to provide most of the resource acquisition. I'm looking at a new card volume somewhere between Planechase (21) and Commander (56). I think it might be beneficial to start a topic in Custom Set creation and discussion to cover the needs of the set as a whole and leave this topic to discussion about Resources and Structures.
Every time I read a comment about "Well if this card had card draw/trample/haste/indestructible/hexproof/life gain...", I think "You're missing the point." They're armchair developer comments that fail to take into account the card's role in the greater Limited and Standard environment. No, it may not be as good as whatever card you're comparing it to. There's a reason for that. Not every burn spell is Lightning Bolt, nor does it need to be or should be.