Aww that's cute Piar, I love it! I still think the creature shouldn't be immune to (and charge up from) goblin punches, but that's a cool return trigger.
Haha, a LOT of us violated the WotC Red flavor pie!
I think the problem is that the first phoenix we think of is Fawkes... or we think of Phoenix Down from Final Fantasy RPGs. Phoenixes are VERY healy in other fantasy works, white is pretty much their second color after the obvious Fire/Red thing.
But a WOTC phoenix, specifically, is mostly about hitting people in the face and being tough to kill. Which maybe we lost sight of in our desire to make the ideal fantasy phoenix.
So that's on us. But maybe you better understand why so many of us designed angels. Phoenixes in fiction often share the role of a WOTC phoenixangel, especially in non-religious-themed fantasy works of fiction that don't have angels in them whatsoever.
You folks though!
You folks repeatedly criticized our cards for not being satisfying to Timmy! But you NEVER told us don't make a Spike card! Hello, that would be part of why you got some spikey, number-finnicky designs. If you want a Timmy card, say so - don't use "Legendary" as a code for "Timmy", because some Legendary cards aren't Timmy cards!
Very fun challenge though, and it was really good to hear all these little bits of concrete advice that we can use for future designs!
The winning design: should it absorb damage from all sources? Or should it absorb damage from noncombat sources? It having protection from ogres )but not hydras!) is a smidge odd imo.
It lessens the chances of drawing a creature card - or if it's the only creature you run it can allow you to rearrange your entire library? I don't know still seems interesting.
That's fantastic. I love that you could use it to rearrange your entire library however you want. That's awesome.
TO be technically correct, you are only revealing the top card of your library. "you may reveal the top card of your library until you reveal a creature card" does not instruct you to keep revealing cards until you hit a creature. Even though you're revealing the card and probably holding it in your hand, it's still the top card of your library... I guess you're welcome to keep revealing it in the hopes that it becomes a creature!
Split A
Split B
Fuseback (You may cast both halves of this card from your graveyard. Then exile it.)
This is exactly what I was thinking when I read it! It neatly solves the problem of "players refuse to cast one half a fuse spell because they want the bigger effect from casting both sides". Of course, if it's costed fairly it's much more of a gold card and much less of a relevant-in-mono decks, but there's not really a way to solve all of split/fuse's problems at once.
The episode with all the variations on Lightning Bolt definitely still ranks in one of my top 3. The advice gleaned from these blitz review sessions tends to be very concrete. I think I'm down for more of these type of episodes! This prompt might have aimed a little high, leading to more work for the reviewers, but it was every bit as fun to listen to as a buch of "classic" lightning bolt esque designs.
The Fancy Version! Eternal Phoenix2RR Legendary Creature - Phoenix
Flying
Sacrifice ~: Target creature gains indestructible until end of turn. 2 : Return ~ from your graveyard to your hand. If you spent any R to use this ability, the next creature that enters the battlefield under your control gains haste. For each W you spent to use this ability, gain 2 life. Whenever she is reborn, so, too, is Hope.
Simple version! Eternal Phoenix2RR Legendary Creature - Phoenix
Flying, haste RWW: Return ~ from your graveyard to your hand. Gain 4 life.
Sacrifice ~: Target creature gains indestructible until end of turn. Whenever she is reborn, so, too, is Hope.
3/3
Yeah, linear forums are too tedious. If this stuff was organized into nested replies, I'd read the top level replies and then drill down into the good ones... as it stands, on a linear forum I'm gonna look at the first page and last page only.
However! Now that I know you've kinda "taken it over", I'll skim back and read your longest-looking posts for more info. Up til now, I assumed the OP was still running the show. Perhaps split your version of the project off into its own thread, so people can see its current state more easily, without the distraction of replies that are only meant for the OP?
Okay, so I had no idea who you are or anything about your sets, but I ended up drafting this due to Commander Z testing his online set drafter thing.
It played really well and I loved all the little "scry 1" tacked onto otherwise straightforward R/G beaters, which made RG feel a lot less ... "no decisions, turn sideways" than it usually feels.
I'd love to hear all your thoughts and design philosohy and whatnot on Scry! It feels like you used it differently than Theros block is, and i"m very curious how intentional that was, and what the intent was!
Also, foreshadow LOOKED like it was going to be somewhat of a waste of mana - several of the cards feel like they'd be more useful as surprises rather than giving your opponent info to play around the shadow'd cards. But it played quite well! both modes of dryad's boon were interesting and relevant, and having the ability to pack some extra power into an upcoming creature while you try to find enough lands to play it, was actually quite nice!
We've also decided to try out cards that affect the auction, such as a card that you can later swap out for any card in the auction without having to pay for that one (the new card, you've got to buy the original one of course).
Hey, that sounds like Sushi Go! I love that game! The primary tension in that one is in the moments of "well, I don't actually want this piece of sushi... but can I afford to let the player to my left/right have it?!" But with chopsticks you can just be like "HELLO FRIENDS, I have now collect all the wasabis. You get none wasabi!"
What player count is being assumed? I feel that 8 player games are interminably long, so I would suggest expecting, and designing for, 2v2 and 3v3 matches.
Also, because there's no laning phase, this really has more to do with RPG mechanics than the specific multiplayer-RPG gamestyle known as MOBAs. This is all teamfights all the time!
Gonna try some champs whose level abilities don't lean as hard on the word "whenever" as my previous champs do.
You have to leave yourself wide open to your opponents' attacks and use your damage spells to protect your allies, in order to make the most of this champion. Your best deck is probably Red control, rather than the low-cmc Red aggro and burn archetypes that are more typical in Modern.
Sus-Scrofa, Angry Boar
Champion R
__________________________________
+4 XP - Whenever you lose life.
(This would be super easy if you were RB, but as mono-Red, you have to use "damage everyone" spells and try to leave yourself open to attacks)
__________________________________
Level 2 - The next time a source you control deals damage to one or more players, deal 9 damage to one of those players.
Level 4 - The next time a source you control deals damage to one or more players, deal 16 damage to one of those players.
Level 6 - The next time a source you control deals damage to one or more players, deal 25 damage to one of those players.
How bout another champion that likes to lose life? We'll give it an appropriately over-the-top, super-serious, DARK FANTASY name, too!
The Lichomancer
Champion B
__________________________________
+2 XP - Whenever you lose life.
__________________________________
Level 2 - You may target cards in other players' graveyards as if those cards were in your graveyard.
Level 4 - At the beginning of your upkeep, draw a card unless target opponent sacrifices a creature or pays 3 life.
Level 6 - The next time you are defeated, the player who defeated you is also defeated at the end of this phase. (The phases are: end, postcombat main, combat, precombat main, and beginning.)
And finally!
Null Entity
Champion (you may not cast spells that require colored mana. If you would pay Phyrexian mana, you must pay with life, not colored mana. You can pay activated abilities using mana normally.)
__________________________________
+1 XP - Whenever another player casts a non-artifact spell.
__________________________________
Level 2 - Whenever you play an artifact creature, choose a permanent that has a counter on it. You may add one counter of a kind already there.
Level 4 - Spells that are one or more colors cost your opponents more to cast during your turn.
Level 6 - Search any player's library for a colorless card. You may cast that card without paying its mana cost.
I think the problem is that the first phoenix we think of is Fawkes... or we think of Phoenix Down from Final Fantasy RPGs. Phoenixes are VERY healy in other fantasy works, white is pretty much their second color after the obvious Fire/Red thing.
But a WOTC phoenix, specifically, is mostly about hitting people in the face and being tough to kill. Which maybe we lost sight of in our desire to make the ideal fantasy phoenix.
So that's on us. But maybe you better understand why so many of us designed angels.
phoenixangel, especially in non-religious-themed fantasy works of fiction that don't have angels in them whatsoever.You folks though!
You folks repeatedly criticized our cards for not being satisfying to Timmy! But you NEVER told us don't make a Spike card! Hello, that would be part of why you got some spikey, number-finnicky designs.
Very fun challenge though, and it was really good to hear all these little bits of concrete advice that we can use for future designs!
The winning design: should it absorb damage from all
Edit: oops, failed to say Angel
TO be technically correct, you are only revealing the top card of your library. "you may reveal the top card of your library until you reveal a creature card" does not instruct you to keep revealing cards until you hit a creature. Even though you're revealing the card and probably holding it in your hand, it's still the top card of your library... I guess you're welcome to keep revealing it in the hopes that it becomes a creature!
This is exactly what I was thinking when I read it! It neatly solves the problem of "players refuse to cast one half a fuse spell because they want the bigger effect from casting both sides". Of course, if it's costed fairly it's much more of a gold card and much less of a relevant-in-mono decks, but there's not really a way to solve all of split/fuse's problems at once.
Taking a little inspiration from this design challenge, I presented Reddit with a partially-filled-in "Mad Lib" card: https://www.reddit.com/r/custommagic/comments/38jwu9/custom_card_mad_libs_1_you_fill_in_the_blanks/
The Fancy Version!
Eternal Phoenix 2RR
Legendary Creature - Phoenix
Flying
Sacrifice ~: Target creature gains indestructible until end of turn.
2
Whenever she is reborn, so, too, is Hope.
Simple version!
Eternal Phoenix 2RR
Legendary Creature - Phoenix
Flying, haste
RWW: Return ~ from your graveyard to your hand. Gain 4 life.
Sacrifice ~: Target creature gains indestructible until end of turn.
Whenever she is reborn, so, too, is Hope.
3/3
However! Now that I know you've kinda "taken it over", I'll skim back and read your longest-looking posts for more info. Up til now, I assumed the OP was still running the show. Perhaps split your version of the project off into its own thread, so people can see its current state more easily, without the distraction of replies that are only meant for the OP?
It played really well and I loved all the little "scry 1" tacked onto otherwise straightforward R/G beaters, which made RG feel a lot less ... "no decisions, turn sideways" than it usually feels.
I'd love to hear all your thoughts and design philosohy and whatnot on Scry! It feels like you used it differently than Theros block is, and i"m very curious how intentional that was, and what the intent was!
Also, foreshadow LOOKED like it was going to be somewhat of a waste of mana - several of the cards feel like they'd be more useful as surprises rather than giving your opponent info to play around the shadow'd cards. But it played quite well! both modes of dryad's boon were interesting and relevant, and having the ability to pack some extra power into an upcoming creature while you try to find enough lands to play it, was actually quite nice!
Also, because there's no laning phase, this really has more to do with RPG mechanics than the specific multiplayer-RPG gamestyle known as MOBAs. This is all teamfights all the time!
You have to leave yourself wide open to your opponents' attacks and use your damage spells to protect your allies, in order to make the most of this champion. Your best deck is probably Red control, rather than the low-cmc Red aggro and burn archetypes that are more typical in Modern.
Sus-Scrofa, Angry Boar
Champion R
__________________________________
+4 XP - Whenever you lose life.
(This would be super easy if you were RB, but as mono-Red, you have to use "damage everyone" spells and try to leave yourself open to attacks)
__________________________________
Level 2 - The next time a source you control deals damage to one or more players, deal 9 damage to one of those players.
Level 4 - The next time a source you control deals damage to one or more players, deal 16 damage to one of those players.
Level 6 - The next time a source you control deals damage to one or more players, deal 25 damage to one of those players.
How bout another champion that likes to lose life? We'll give it an appropriately over-the-top, super-serious, DARK FANTASY name, too!
The Lichomancer
Champion B
__________________________________
+2 XP - Whenever you lose life.
__________________________________
Level 2 - You may target cards in other players' graveyards as if those cards were in your graveyard.
Level 4 - At the beginning of your upkeep, draw a card unless target opponent sacrifices a creature or pays 3 life.
Level 6 - The next time you are defeated, the player who defeated you is also defeated at the end of this phase. (The phases are: end, postcombat main, combat, precombat main, and beginning.)
And finally!
Null Entity
Champion
(you may not cast spells that require colored mana. If you would pay Phyrexian mana, you must pay with life, not colored mana. You can pay activated abilities using mana normally.)
__________________________________
+1 XP - Whenever another player casts a non-artifact spell.
__________________________________
Level 2 - Whenever you play an artifact creature, choose a permanent that has a counter on it. You may add one counter of a kind already there.
Level 4 - Spells that are one or more colors cost your opponents
Level 6 - Search any player's library for a colorless card. You may cast that card without paying its mana cost.