Distract (A player can’t block creatures without distract unless they also block all creatures with distract attacking them.)
Green gets lure effects and big creatures that could benefit from a distraction or be used as one. Blue generally gets evasive abilities or abilities that protect their creatures in combat. This ability allows GU to push damage through without undermining their weaknesses and while leaning into their strengths. This ability encourages more aggressive play and pressures the defending player into more interaction.
This ability could also potentially show up in black or red for flavor reasons and because it does fit a sacrificial/aggressive playstyle, but it would be centered in green and blue, as GU doesn’t have an evergreen keyword yet the way BR does with Menace or WB does with Lifelink.
Nested Arbor 3G
Creature - Treefolk
3/3
When ~ enters the battlefield, create a 1/1 green Squirrel creature token with distract. (A player can’t block creatures without distract unless they also block all creatures with distract attacking them.)
Dazzling Phantasm U
Creature - Illusion
1/1
Flash
Distract (A player can’t block creatures without distract unless they also block all creatures with distract attacking them.)
In most situations, this is just "must be blocked if able", but with the corner cases that if you give the creature with distract a form of evasion they cannot interact with then your whole team is unblockable. It is probably too swingy for a keyword because its either an easy chump block or you're getting through with everything.
The combination with unblockable is a problem. Though that can be solved with a slight tweak. Instead of creating a restriction impose a condition. The nuance is lost on the casual player but for the rules when blocking you have to fulfill the most conditions possible while not violating restrictions. Meaning you can ignore impossible conditions such as blocking an unblockable creature.
When declaring blockers, creatures with distract must be blocked if able before creatures without distract.
I believe this sounds fine as reminder text. This should allow you to just ignore unblockable distract creatures.
When declaring blockers, creatures with distract must be blocked if able before creatures without distract.
The issue with this as reminder text is that it's more confusing to new players than the actual rules text. Blockers are declared all at once, there is no "blocked before." You kind of have to do this with a blocking restriction. There is also no difference I can see between your reminder text and "When declaring blockers creatures with distract must be blocked if able," period.
When declaring blockers, creatures with distract must be blocked if able before creatures without distract.
The issue with this as reminder text is that it's more confusing to new players than the actual rules text. Blockers are declared all at once, there is no "blocked before." You kind of have to do this with a blocking restriction. There is also no difference I can see between your reminder text and "When declaring blockers creatures with distract must be blocked if able," period.
That is much better wording for the ability.
To clarify blocking conditions and blocking restrictions. A restriction is a "can't" while a condition is a "must" musts can be ignored if they can't be fulfilled but can'ts are always enforced which is why I changed the original ability from can't block unless to must block before. Your ability is still a condition meaning it fulfills the goal of allowing blocking if a distract creature is unblockable.
Green gets lure effects and big creatures that could benefit from a distraction or be used as one. Blue generally gets evasive abilities or abilities that protect their creatures in combat. This ability allows GU to push damage through without undermining their weaknesses and while leaning into their strengths. This ability encourages more aggressive play and pressures the defending player into more interaction.
This ability could also potentially show up in black or red for flavor reasons and because it does fit a sacrificial/aggressive playstyle, but it would be centered in green and blue, as GU doesn’t have an evergreen keyword yet the way BR does with Menace or WB does with Lifelink.
Nested Arbor 3G
Creature - Treefolk
3/3
When ~ enters the battlefield, create a 1/1 green Squirrel creature token with distract. (A player can’t block creatures without distract unless they also block all creatures with distract attacking them.)
Dazzling Phantasm U
Creature - Illusion
1/1
Flash
Distract (A player can’t block creatures without distract unless they also block all creatures with distract attacking them.)
When declaring blockers, creatures with distract must be blocked if able before creatures without distract.
I believe this sounds fine as reminder text. This should allow you to just ignore unblockable distract creatures.
The issue with this as reminder text is that it's more confusing to new players than the actual rules text. Blockers are declared all at once, there is no "blocked before." You kind of have to do this with a blocking restriction. There is also no difference I can see between your reminder text and "When declaring blockers creatures with distract must be blocked if able," period.
To clarify blocking conditions and blocking restrictions. A restriction is a "can't" while a condition is a "must" musts can be ignored if they can't be fulfilled but can'ts are always enforced which is why I changed the original ability from can't block unless to must block before. Your ability is still a condition meaning it fulfills the goal of allowing blocking if a distract creature is unblockable.