I wonder if the fairy tale setting could be combined with what I call a "Knight's Fair" setting; ten knightly houses, each aligned with a color pair and ruled by a Lord or Lady, competing in a tournament to decide the rightful heir to the throne.
My inkling was that it could be a two-set deal: the first set takes place mostly in the capital of the kingdom where the ten Houses meet and where a yearly fair is held, normally to earn a championship award for one's House and on occasion to earn the right to marry into the royal family, but in the year of the set the king has passed away and no heir can be found, so the ten Houses must instead compete for the honor of succession.
The second set takes place outside the city and focuses instead on fairy tales and adventure, downplaying the Houses in favor of Dragons, Fairies, Giants, and the like. The protagonist's main quest could be finding a legendary sword which is said to be hidden within the far reaches of the kingdom. The adventure would take us through the domains of the ten Houses and reveal more of their respective lifestyles.
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.
I wonder if the fairy tale setting could be combined with what I call a "Knight's Fair" setting; ten knightly houses, each aligned with a color pair and ruled by a Lord or Lady, competing in a tournament to decide the rightful heir to the throne.
My inkling was that it could be a two-set deal: the first set takes place mostly in the capital of the kingdom where the ten Houses meet and where a yearly fair is held, normally to earn a championship award for one's House and on occasion to earn the right to marry into the royal family, but in the year of the set the king has passed away and no heir can be found, so the ten Houses must instead compete for the honor of succession.
The second set takes place outside the city and focuses instead on fairy tales and adventure, downplaying the Houses in favor of Dragons, Fairies, Giants, and the like. The protagonist's main quest could be finding a legendary sword which is said to be hidden within the far reaches of the kingdom. The adventure would take us through the domains of the ten Houses and reveal more of their respective lifestyles.
I wonder if the fairy tale setting could be combined with what I call a "Knight's Fair" setting; ten knightly houses, each aligned with a color pair and ruled by a Lord or Lady, competing in a tournament to decide the rightful heir to the throne.
My inkling was that it could be a two-set deal: the first set takes place mostly in the capital of the kingdom where the ten Houses meet and where a yearly fair is held, normally to earn a championship award for one's House and on occasion to earn the right to marry into the royal family, but in the year of the set the king has passed away and no heir can be found, so the ten Houses must instead compete for the honor of succession.
The second set takes place outside the city and focuses instead on fairy tales and adventure, downplaying the Houses in favor of Dragons, Fairies, Giants, and the like. The protagonist's main quest could be finding a legendary sword which is said to be hidden within the far reaches of the kingdom. The adventure would take us through the domains of the ten Houses and reveal more of their respective lifestyles.
While I think that a Knight fair could be used as an element of a fairy tale world, the 10 house thing could be it own world. (I've been making a 3 color game of thrones set based on this idea XD).
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“There are no weak Jews. I am descended from those who wrestle angels and kill giants. We were chosen by God. You were chosen by a pathetic little man who can't seem to grow a full mustache"
"You can tell how dumb someone is by how they use Mary Sue"
i also had this thought. i like norse mythology but we can't just have a new cycle of gods every set. i wonder if they might handle them differently. i could see them being somewhat standard legendary creatures with a flip side or a unique but situational mechanic.
I think they'll be artifacts that turn into creatures (kinda like how the Theros ones were Enchantments) Kind of the whole 'carved from stone' motif.
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Rose tint my world, keep me safe from my trouble and pain.
I don't know how they could possibly pull of a western world and still feel like magic. But they did do "steampunk" with Kaladesh, so I suppose its possible.
Its fairy tale as in Lorwyn is meant to feel like a story book and plays into Celtic mythology. What I want (and expect) is magics take on disney type fairy tales mixed with "original" Grimm type fairy tales.
Okay... that's a different definition of fairy tale than I'm familiar with. Celtic mythology is basically fairy tales - because most of them are about fairies (the Sidhe). Shadowmoor was, basically, the original Grimm type fairy tales combined with the darker side of Celtic myth (since that's where most of Bro. Grimm's stories came from - old old Celtic and Germanic folk legends)
I'm a lot more skeptical of a 'Disney-esque' set than I am a western one.
Its fairy tale as in Lorwyn is meant to feel like a story book and plays into Celtic mythology. What I want (and expect) is magics take on disney type fairy tales mixed with "original" Grimm type fairy tales.
Okay... that's a different definition of fairy tale than I'm familiar with. Celtic mythology is basically fairy tales - because most of them are about fairies (the Sidhe). Shadowmoor was, basically, the original Grimm type fairy tales combined with the darker side of Celtic myth (since that's where most of Bro. Grimm's stories came from - old old Celtic and Germanic folk legends)
I'm a lot more skeptical of a 'Disney-esque' set than I am a western one.
Here in American when you say fairy tales most people think like like Snow White or Cinderella, less Midsummer Nights Dream kind of faeries or celtic myths. Stuff like royals under cruses broken by true love, helping the old woman who really is witch and get a blesses or gift (or curse if your rude), wicked stepmothers, ect. As an amateur folklorist I'd like to see them delve into some of the darker roots of the tales (I so want a kill spell that shows birds pecking out some noble woman face) the more familiar and trope stuff has been popularized by Disney movies (which in themselves have tropes that could be used for flavorful cards) on the fairy tales and are what most people think of when they think of these tales so I'd hope for wizard to meld them together.
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“There are no weak Jews. I am descended from those who wrestle angels and kill giants. We were chosen by God. You were chosen by a pathetic little man who can't seem to grow a full mustache"
"You can tell how dumb someone is by how they use Mary Sue"
I guess a cool way to do a Western Plane would be if all the cowboy stand-in characters had been transported there by some sort of seismic event, and they were prospecting for something that would help them get back to where they were from.
Sounds vaguely similar to the original Mirrodin block's plot where creatures from various planes were pulled to Mirrodin by Memnarch's Soul Traps, but different enough that I would be totally fine with it.
Man, a wild west setting sounds so cheap and tacky. For me, Ixalan feels cheap. Not a fan of the Hollywood B-movie settings Magic has taken on lately.
Compared to what? Practically every one of Magic's settings could be dismissed as B-movie if you're of that mindset. Not me though. I just have fun with the card game being what it is, a game where you can summon magical faeries and unicorns and put boots on them.
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.
A wild west themed MTG set wouldn't be hard to make fit within MTG's look and would be a fairly easy thing to do for WOTC. Its pretty much an existing literary genre that evolved into a trope at this point called "Weird West".
People maybe familiar with tabletop things like Doomtown, Rifts, Shadows of Brimstone, Deadlands, Malifaux or All Flesh Must Be Eaten's supplementry book called "Fistful O' Zombies". Settings that take place in the wild west and incorporate various supernatural stuff.
You name it, its probably been done already. You get your werewolves, vampires, zombies, spirits, demons, lovecraft horrors, etc. Even things like steampunk and mad science are a bit of a common thing in Weird West. Par for the course, native american / western indian characters tend to be incorporated and they are often dealing with supernatural threats and/or are causing it. There is even material out there of guns firing magical bullets.
Like if I wanted to give you an example in video games, that is easy, Red Dead Redemption: Undead Nightmare. Which is basically cowboys slaying zombies.
It depends on the story that WOTC wants to tell. As there are several lens that can be implemented. Just like how with Ixalan it took on a adventure look, it could easily be swapped with the horror look that Shadows over Innistrad had.
For me, the most appealing aspects of Westerns are adrenaline-pumping running, jumping, and gunslinging action, awe-inspiring feats of skill, tongue-in-cheek comedy like wanted posters that mention "square dance calling" or "raspberry blowing", and of course mellow downtime between buddies or couples, though that last one's hard to implement in Magic cards. It's about playing the tropes faithfully enough to have impact.
For Vikings, anybody pulling to see Raid a third time? Fits their MO pretty well. Question is, do Vikings belong in Norse world, or should they be part of a different world where they can be properly contrasted with Monks and the like, the targets of Viking raids? See, the trick with Pirates, Vikings, and other marauders is that they need to have some form of contrast in their setting. Vikings need victims they can raid and pillage, ideally who aren't too similar to the Vikings themselves, otherwise it just feels like tribal warfare.
Perhaps Vikings, like Pirates, need to be one of several distinct factions to make their actions stand out. For example, they could be included in a setting that also has Knights or Soldiers, pitting warriors of savagery against warriors of civility. Perhaps the Vikings have Druids and Shamans to support them while their Knightly adversaries have Clerics and Wizards.
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.
They've done mellow downtime in the past with their cards. That is not an issue. it could be a fog effect with the art portraying some wild west characters sitting around a campfire at night, maybe even one of them is playing a guitar. Mellowness is just like adventure or horror, a lens.
Raid I can see making a comeback. It rewards being aggressive with creature combat. Goes hand in hand with many of the norse myths, stereotypes, and historical notes. Vikings need a bit more distinction though as "need victims they can raid and pillage" is too close to pirates who pretty much fulfill that naval fantasy for the next couple years.
Rather than have another multi-tribe faction war, push more for the fantasy of Norse myth with tribal for barbarians and/or berserkers being a secondary or tertiary thing.
For Vikings, anybody pulling to see Raid a third time? Fits their MO pretty well. Question is, do Vikings belong in Norse world, or should they be part of a different world where they can be properly contrasted with Monks and the like, the targets of Viking raids? See, the trick with Pirates, Vikings, and other marauders is that they need to have some form of contrast in their setting. Vikings need victims they can raid and pillage, ideally who aren't too similar to the Vikings themselves, otherwise it just feels like tribal warfare.
Perhaps Vikings, like Pirates, need to be one of several distinct factions to make their actions stand out. For example, they could be included in a setting that also has Knights or Soldiers, pitting warriors of savagery against warriors of civility. Perhaps the Vikings have Druids and Shamans to support them while their Knightly adversaries have Clerics and Wizards.
Or the Norse world could adopt the theme of the Ragnarok, with the Vikings fighting giants, undead and such. The "seafaring plunderers" trope would probably feel a bit too close to pirates, especially if we are talking about the near future. And it would be nice to see the Vikings not reduced to marauders, there is a lot more to them than that. On the other hand, it would be a good opportunity to throw in some odd pirate or two, maybe even a legend, to further support the tribe, like Kari Zev was in Kaladesh.
Yes, but when people hear the word Viking, they see dragon-shaped longboats, horned helmets, and battle axes. And in a game about combat, that's what Wizards is going to play up. Ixalan's Pirates trade products with each other too, but Raid and Treasure are their gameplay hooks.
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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.
Yes, but when people hear the word Viking, they see dragon-shaped longboats, horned helmets, and battle axes. And in a game about combat, that's what Wizards is going to play up. Ixalan's Pirates trade products with each other too, but Raid and Treasure are their gameplay hooks.
Horned helmets... Thanks to freaking opera costumes, everybody will picture Vikings wrong forever. However dumb that is, I guess it is so entrenched that it is almost certain to appear in a Norse set. Not sure if I still want to see Vikings in Magic all that much anymore...
Then they won't look like Vikings. They'll just be plain Warriors. Ninjas didn't wear dark cloth all the time, but that's the trope Kamigawa and Unstable played up, and it worked. Look, why can't we just have fun? It's a game called Magic: The Gathering for pete's sake, not a school history exam. Let the vikings have horns. They look cool, and they're iconic. Not to mention a lot of players will be disappointed if they don't have horns.
For Western, how about Dwarf prospectors? The classic western prospector is already a short, beardy guy with a pick axe and gold fever, so Dwarves would fit the trope like a glove.
I'm also thinking Western world wouldn't just focus on gold. You'd also have farmers, ranchers, and other tradespeople simply trying to make a living. Kinda like Zendikar but with stetsons.
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.
Then they won't look like Vikings. They'll just be plain Warriors. Ninjas didn't wear dark cloth all the time, but that's the trope Kamigawa and Unstable played up, and it worked. Look, why can't we just have fun? It's a game called Magic: The Gathering for pete's sake, not a school history exam. Let the vikings have horns. They look cool, and they're iconic. Not to mention a lot of players will be disappointed if they don't have horns.
Warstorm Surge is one of the few cards I've seen that depicts Magic's apparent take on the Nords (the plane of Valla, to be more specific), and it depicts guys with and without horned helmets.
Then they won't look like Vikings. They'll just be plain Warriors. Ninjas didn't wear dark cloth all the time, but that's the trope Kamigawa and Unstable played up, and it worked. Look, why can't we just have fun? It's a game called Magic: The Gathering for pete's sake, not a school history exam. Let the vikings have horns. They look cool, and they're iconic. Not to mention a lot of players will be disappointed if they don't have horns.
For Western, how about Dwarf prospectors? The classic western prospector is already a short, beardy guy with a pick axe and gold fever, so Dwarves would fit the trope like a glove.
I'm also thinking Western world wouldn't just focus on gold. You'd also have farmers, ranchers, and other tradespeople simply trying to make a living. Kinda like Zendikar but with stetsons.
Then they won't look like Vikings. They'll just be plain Warriors. Ninjas didn't wear dark cloth all the time, but that's the trope Kamigawa and Unstable played up, and it worked. Look, why can't we just have fun? It's a game called Magic: The Gathering for pete's sake, not a school history exam. Let the vikings have horns. They look cool, and they're iconic. Not to mention a lot of players will be disappointed if they don't have horns.
Sure, it is a game, but it is also an opportunity to fight a common misconception. We just got feathered dinosaurs, hornless Vikings is the same thing. A Viking is not recognized by the horns, but rather by the overall style. I am pretty sure that when people see a warrior in a norman helmet, chainmail and furs with a round shield and an axe (yes, I am aware that this depiction is not perfect either), they will mostly say "yep, that's a Viking", horns or no horns. Magic has the potential for education here, it would be nice if they used it.
You don't think the Vikings wouldn't have worn horned helmets into battle if it was more practical to do so? It's like how Ninjas actively propagated myths surrounding themselves. And the fact is, the horned helmet is the single most iconic aspect of Vikings. The rest is basically generic warrior affects. Let history books fight common misconceptions and let games have fun with tropes. Especially since it's not like there are a lot of modern day Vikings protesting against the trope. If anything I think they'd be flattered to know they have such a strong cultural image. And at this point it isn't so much a misconception as us shrugging and saying "Oh well, Vikings look cool with horns".
In the case of the Dinosaurs, they were able to make them look cooler with feathers, plus it meshed with the Mayincatec aesthetic of the Sun Empire, so being slightly more realistic there served an actual purpose. But making Vikings hornless just to try and be more realistic in a card game called Magic? That's just taking away the fun for most of us to satisfy some historical-acedemic compulsion.
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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.
At this point, it almost feels like the knowledge of the misconception is more prevalent than the actual misconception.
They could, however, probably get away with it by having the vikings contain a horned race of some kind (like the Fomori but more appropriate for the culture, perhaps?).
Alternatively, make a joke about it on a piece of equipment.
The thing is, they could easily do a western inspired theme without involving ten gallon hats and revolvers. They would have to focus more on themes and narrative elements that are common to those settings. The lone wanderer, wide open landscapes, travelling caravans, native vs. settler conflicts... There were quite a few sets where Wizards has shown that they can create settings that not only emulate a theme visually, but also in terms of cultural context. Theros block didn't have Athens or Sparta, but beyond having Akros they also had elements that were clearly borrowed from Greek mythology on a much more subtle level, such as cards reflecting hubris, Sisyphean tasks, et cetera. I'm sure a balance can be struck where the setting and narrative have very strong Old West themes without creating a visual style that deviates too far from 'fantasy'.
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My inkling was that it could be a two-set deal: the first set takes place mostly in the capital of the kingdom where the ten Houses meet and where a yearly fair is held, normally to earn a championship award for one's House and on occasion to earn the right to marry into the royal family, but in the year of the set the king has passed away and no heir can be found, so the ten Houses must instead compete for the honor of succession.
The second set takes place outside the city and focuses instead on fairy tales and adventure, downplaying the Houses in favor of Dragons, Fairies, Giants, and the like. The protagonist's main quest could be finding a legendary sword which is said to be hidden within the far reaches of the kingdom. The adventure would take us through the domains of the ten Houses and reveal more of their respective lifestyles.
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.
While I think that a Knight fair could be used as an element of a fairy tale world, the 10 house thing could be it own world. (I've been making a 3 color game of thrones set based on this idea XD).
"You can tell how dumb someone is by how they use Mary Sue"
Your asking for a Atlantis themed plane then.
I think they'll be artifacts that turn into creatures (kinda like how the Theros ones were Enchantments) Kind of the whole 'carved from stone' motif.
Your comment made me think of this;
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=khURaB3AAqY&t=39s
We already have this - Lorwyn.
EDIT
Okay... that's a different definition of fairy tale than I'm familiar with. Celtic mythology is basically fairy tales - because most of them are about fairies (the Sidhe). Shadowmoor was, basically, the original Grimm type fairy tales combined with the darker side of Celtic myth (since that's where most of Bro. Grimm's stories came from - old old Celtic and Germanic folk legends)
I'm a lot more skeptical of a 'Disney-esque' set than I am a western one.
Here in American when you say fairy tales most people think like like Snow White or Cinderella, less Midsummer Nights Dream kind of faeries or celtic myths. Stuff like royals under cruses broken by true love, helping the old woman who really is witch and get a blesses or gift (or curse if your rude), wicked stepmothers, ect. As an amateur folklorist I'd like to see them delve into some of the darker roots of the tales (I so want a kill spell that shows birds pecking out some noble woman face) the more familiar and trope stuff has been popularized by Disney movies (which in themselves have tropes that could be used for flavorful cards) on the fairy tales and are what most people think of when they think of these tales so I'd hope for wizard to meld them together.
"You can tell how dumb someone is by how they use Mary Sue"
It could work in a one-off set, now that those are a thing.
Sounds vaguely similar to the original Mirrodin block's plot where creatures from various planes were pulled to Mirrodin by Memnarch's Soul Traps, but different enough that I would be totally fine with it.
Compared to what? Practically every one of Magic's settings could be dismissed as B-movie if you're of that mindset. Not me though. I just have fun with the card game being what it is, a game where you can summon magical faeries and unicorns and put boots on them.
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.
People maybe familiar with tabletop things like Doomtown, Rifts, Shadows of Brimstone, Deadlands, Malifaux or All Flesh Must Be Eaten's supplementry book called "Fistful O' Zombies". Settings that take place in the wild west and incorporate various supernatural stuff.
You name it, its probably been done already. You get your werewolves, vampires, zombies, spirits, demons, lovecraft horrors, etc. Even things like steampunk and mad science are a bit of a common thing in Weird West. Par for the course, native american / western indian characters tend to be incorporated and they are often dealing with supernatural threats and/or are causing it. There is even material out there of guns firing magical bullets.
Like if I wanted to give you an example in video games, that is easy, Red Dead Redemption: Undead Nightmare. Which is basically cowboys slaying zombies.
It depends on the story that WOTC wants to tell. As there are several lens that can be implemented. Just like how with Ixalan it took on a adventure look, it could easily be swapped with the horror look that Shadows over Innistrad had.
For Vikings, anybody pulling to see Raid a third time? Fits their MO pretty well. Question is, do Vikings belong in Norse world, or should they be part of a different world where they can be properly contrasted with Monks and the like, the targets of Viking raids? See, the trick with Pirates, Vikings, and other marauders is that they need to have some form of contrast in their setting. Vikings need victims they can raid and pillage, ideally who aren't too similar to the Vikings themselves, otherwise it just feels like tribal warfare.
Perhaps Vikings, like Pirates, need to be one of several distinct factions to make their actions stand out. For example, they could be included in a setting that also has Knights or Soldiers, pitting warriors of savagery against warriors of civility. Perhaps the Vikings have Druids and Shamans to support them while their Knightly adversaries have Clerics and Wizards.
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.
Raid I can see making a comeback. It rewards being aggressive with creature combat. Goes hand in hand with many of the norse myths, stereotypes, and historical notes. Vikings need a bit more distinction though as "need victims they can raid and pillage" is too close to pirates who pretty much fulfill that naval fantasy for the next couple years.
Rather than have another multi-tribe faction war, push more for the fantasy of Norse myth with tribal for barbarians and/or berserkers being a secondary or tertiary thing.
Or the Norse world could adopt the theme of the Ragnarok, with the Vikings fighting giants, undead and such. The "seafaring plunderers" trope would probably feel a bit too close to pirates, especially if we are talking about the near future. And it would be nice to see the Vikings not reduced to marauders, there is a lot more to them than that. On the other hand, it would be a good opportunity to throw in some odd pirate or two, maybe even a legend, to further support the tribe, like Kari Zev was in Kaladesh.
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.
Horned helmets... Thanks to freaking opera costumes, everybody will picture Vikings wrong forever. However dumb that is, I guess it is so entrenched that it is almost certain to appear in a Norse set. Not sure if I still want to see Vikings in Magic all that much anymore...
For Western, how about Dwarf prospectors? The classic western prospector is already a short, beardy guy with a pick axe and gold fever, so Dwarves would fit the trope like a glove.
I'm also thinking Western world wouldn't just focus on gold. You'd also have farmers, ranchers, and other tradespeople simply trying to make a living. Kinda like Zendikar but with stetsons.
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.
Warstorm Surge is one of the few cards I've seen that depicts Magic's apparent take on the Nords (the plane of Valla, to be more specific), and it depicts guys with and without horned helmets.
I'm a Scandinavian, and I say go with the horns!
Sure, it is a game, but it is also an opportunity to fight a common misconception. We just got feathered dinosaurs, hornless Vikings is the same thing. A Viking is not recognized by the horns, but rather by the overall style. I am pretty sure that when people see a warrior in a norman helmet, chainmail and furs with a round shield and an axe (yes, I am aware that this depiction is not perfect either), they will mostly say "yep, that's a Viking", horns or no horns. Magic has the potential for education here, it would be nice if they used it.
In the case of the Dinosaurs, they were able to make them look cooler with feathers, plus it meshed with the Mayincatec aesthetic of the Sun Empire, so being slightly more realistic there served an actual purpose. But making Vikings hornless just to try and be more realistic in a card game called Magic? That's just taking away the fun for most of us to satisfy some historical-acedemic compulsion.
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.
They could, however, probably get away with it by having the vikings contain a horned race of some kind (like the Fomori but more appropriate for the culture, perhaps?).
Alternatively, make a joke about it on a piece of equipment.