1. Is the CCL host permitted to vote in the finals?
2. Do we allow ties in the final poll?
3. Should the voting stay open until the last possible second, or close now out of courtesy to this month's host?
Well, it's time to close the poll, so we can award bonus points for September's CCL. Since it's a dead heat at the moment, I'll give it another day leave it open through the 14th to see if anyone else wants to get their vote in before September's critique deadline passes.
I think my cycle is going to be five ally-color knights with exotic mounts.
WIP
Rhox Sundiver5GW
Creature - Rhino Knight {R}
Flying, first strike 3GW, T: Rhox Sundiver deals damage equal to its power to target attacking or blocking creature.
When Rhox Sundiver dies, create a 4/4 white Bird creature token with flying. "Even shall I fall in battle, wings alabaster will champion my cause."
7/7
Vedalken Riddlestrider5WU
Creature - Vedalken Knight {R}
Flying, vigilance
Attacking creatures your opponents control lose all abilities.
When Vedalken Riddlestrider dies, create a 4/4 blue Sphinx creature token with flying. "Even shall I fall in battle, the wise one will not let justice die."
6/6
Kederekt Veinlancer4UB
Creature - Vampire Knight {R}
Menace, prowess
Whenever you cast a noncreature spell, Kederekt Veinlancer gains prowess until end of turn. (If a creature has multiple instances of prowess, each triggers separately.)
When Kederekt Veinlancer dies, create a 3/3 black Horror creature token with menace. "Even shall I fall in battle, your blood will feed my next life!"
4/4
Rip-Clan Dragonmaster5BR
Creature - Human Knight {R}
Flying, menace
When Rip-Clan Dragonmaster dies, create a 5/5 Dragon creature token with flying. "Even shall I fall in battle, my slayers will be bathed in dragonfire."
7/7
Cylian Godspurrer6RG
Creature - Elf Knight {R}
Trample, haste
When Cylian Godspurrer dies, create a 6/6 green Beast creature token with trample.
"Even shall I fall in battle, my companion will stomp your entire army underpaw!"
8/8
doomfish
In order of appearance:
The Harbringer of Conquest3UU
Legendary Creature - Avatar Knight (M)
When The Harbringer of Conquest enters the battlefield, gain control of all creatures your opponents control for as long as you control The Harbringer of Conquest.
Other creatures you control have base power and toughness 1/1. The first horse rider came to rule with an iron fist and under her reign the world withered.
3/3
The Harbringer of Beasts4GG
Legendary Creature - Avatar Knight (M)
Beasts you control have trample.
At the beginning of your declare attackers step, for each opponent, create a 4/4 green Beast creature token that's tapped and attacking that opponent. The second horse rider brought with her the wild beasts of the world to end all civilization.
5/5
The Harbringer of War3RR
Legendary Creature - Avatar Knight (M)
All creatures have haste and attack each turn if able.
Each postcombat main phase is replaced with an additional combat phase.
At the end each combat phase, untap all creatures that attacked this turn. The third horse rider ignited a war to last until the end of days.
3/3
The Harbringer of Pestilence2B
Legendary Creature - Avatar Knight (M)
When The Harbringer of Pestilence enters the battlefield or whenever one or more creatures die, deal 1 damage to all creatures other than The Harbringer of Pestilence. The fourth horse rider plagued the world with never ending sickness.
3/3
The Harbringer of Death3WWW
Legendary Creature - Skeleton Avatar Knight (M)
When The Harbringer of Death enters the battlefield or attacks, destroy all other creatures.
When The Harbringer of Death is put into a graveyard from anywhere, shuffle it into its owner's library. The fifth and last horse rider came to reap all souls in an act of merciful release.
1/1
My cards are inspired by the biblical Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse. Obviously, Magic would have five of them. While most of popculture has them depicted as Pestilence, War, Famine and Death, it turns out the original four were Conquest, War, Famine and Death. Pestilence has been made up from the line "They were given power over a fourth of the earth to kill by sword, famine, plague, and by the wild beasts of the earth." I decided with Magic being popculture and all that I'd adapt that, for better resonance. So turns out green and blue where rather hard to match, so I picked up the theme of making up some from that sentence and made green the one about "the wild beasts of the earth". Famine and pestilence both sounded very black to me, so decided I'd match black to the one I'd have the better idea for, pestilence. That left me with either conquest or famine for blue. In the end I named that one after conquest, but the blue card now is also a match for famine, because your creatures become weak under it's rule. Note that I called them horse riders in the flavortext, instead of horsemen and assigned genders to them, to have some equality, which is something Magic does more and more. Blue and green are female, as their flavortext specifies and red and black are male. The white one is death and has no gender as I felt it would be a shame to have "the" Death in Magic and not have it be a skeleton.
Lavinia, Sunhome Vanguard2RW
Legendary Creature - Human Soldier (R)
Vigilance, protection from creatures
When Lavinia, Sunhome Vanguard enters the battlefield, until your next turn, creatures your opponents control attack you or a planeswalker you control if able. "The feeling of facing transgressors head on, without warrants or extensive backup, is something that the Azorius will never experience nor understand."
5/1
Design - (2.5/3) Appeal: If only this were an angel, this would be a 10/10 for Timmy. Johnny thinks the card is too obvious and self-contained, but might possibly try using it as a convoluted blink target, and Spike cackles maniachly at the prosect of forcing opponents to attack into this thing (2/3) Elegance: If a card can be both complicated and elegant, it's this one. I really dislike "until your next turn" effects because of the memory issues they cause, but I can't deny how well everything fits together here. Not being as harsh as I feel inclined to be.
Development - (1.5/3) Viability: I did some digging, cause the taunt effect didn't strike me like a very red or white thing to do. Red definitely has a lot of forced attacking, but never with the stipulation of choosing WHO gets attacked. Master Warcraft I think comes the closest, since you can choose how the creatures block. On the other hand, blue is the only color I'm aware of with this particular effect, and it's very uncommon. Maybe R/W is an acceptable way to reintroduce it? I don't personally think so, but I'm not gonna throw the book at you for it. Rarity-wise, this is borderline too good at rare in limited. What's keeping me from saying you definitely got the rarity wrong is that the taunt effect only triggers once. (2/3) Balance: It slots into basically any red OR white limited deck, and will frequently win the game on its own. Bombs are allowed to do that sometimes, of course. I just can't help thinking it would get oppressive quickly. It's easy to remove with noncombat damage by the time it comes down, and the trigger only happens once.. I'm just still skeptical that this is a fair card in limited. It might find a home in some standard decks, but will be an absolute EDH darling. Such a powerful, board-wide effect that can be easily blinked.
Creativity - (2/3) Uniqueness: These two keywords sound relatively unique together, but as you'll see in Flavor, this is very much not the case. Vigilance creatures that get blocking bonuses aren't new at all, but this card in particular has a fun balance between hyper-aggression and strategic defense. Cards with high power and 1 toughness are also not especially unique in-and-of themselves, but the interplay between the uncommon, risky P/T and the vigilance/protection/mass lure effect is definitely spicy enough for a point. (0.5/3) Flavor: (I'm scoring flavor very strictly on account of how central it is to this particular challenge. Flavor scores will start at 0. Entries must earn more points than they lose in order to come out ahead on this one)
The good: The dig on Azorius in the flavor text gives a satisfying zing. Overall the mechanics feel Boros-ish, with some reservations. There's never been a red vanguard, and that term in Magic is an unofficial signifier of solid defenses, as evidenced here and here. A 5/1 shouldn't normally be able to be a vanguard, but giving this vigilance I think takes care of all of those quibbles. This represents a reasonably well-executed red vanguard.
The bad: This exact combination of keyword abilities can already be found on another Dragons Maze legend, and an Orzhov one. That's a pretty big Vorthos fail, there. And you seem to be forgetting that the Boros are a LEGION. They don't rush in without backup; they thrive on teamwork and combat synergies. Seriously, this same set featured the BATALLION keyword!
Polish - (3/3) Quality: I see no errors. (2/2) *Main Challenge: Sticking to just mechanics, I got a good chuckle out of how you designed the total opposite of a mass arrest. (2/2) Subchallenges: Despite my relatively harsh review of the card so far, I think you basically nailed both subchallenges.
Total: 17.5/25
*An entry with 0 points here is subject to disqualification.
Basam the Benevolent2GW
Legendary Creature - God (M)
Vigilance, indestructible
Basam the Benevolent can't attack or block unless you control at least three nonbasic lands. 1GW, Sacrifice a basic land: Search your library for a nonbasic land card and put it onto the battlefield tapped. Then shuffle your library.
6/6
Design - (3/3) Appeal: Simply put, I see all the archetypes fnding favor with this for different reasons. Timmy will make it work despite the drawback. Johnny will use the drawback, and Spike will build so as to minimize the drawback. (3/3) Elegance: Very clean. Plays well with itself, but isn't totally self-contained. Simple to understand, but still interesting to consider.
Development - (1/3) Viability: So, this is on the strong end of the spectrum for a CMC4 6/6. It needs to be mythic because of how much shop it will wreck in limited, which it is. Now, there's a big issue with the colors. Green often refers to nonbasic lands, but always while punishing opponents for playing them, never as an incentive to play them yourself. White has much fewer references to nonbasic lands, but it always treats them the same as green. A G/W card that rewards you for playing nonbasics (and even sacs your basics for nonbasics!) is simply an egregious color break. (1.5/3) Balance: Power level might just destroy any limited game it's a part of, since it's very tough to remove. Its main drawback isn't so bad since it's fine just sitting around for a few turns. It's definitely a bomb, at the very least. In standard, the drawback will sometimes be a complete non-issue, making this easily overpowered with little effort. Throw in a Ramunap Excavator, and this becomes an effective ramp engine as well as an offensive AND defensive powerhouse. I think the card just does too much too well for limited and standard. Eternal formats have better tools available to keep this in check, and there are better ways to fetch nonbasics in commander. It'll get played in budget decks, so as not to have to fill them with as many expensive nonbasics, maybe, but I doubt it'll be a G/W staple.
Creativity - (3/3) Uniqueness: I was actually really impressed by how cleverly this card does what it does. Except for a few glaring oversights, this could have been my personal favorite card of the round on account of how cohesive it is without feeling contrived or stale. Very, very few cards have abilities or effects like these, and you've put them together in a way that makes them feel like they were designed just for this card. (1/3) Flavor: (I'm scoring flavor very strictly on account of how central it is to this particular challenge. Flavor scores will start at 0. Entries must earn more points than they lose in order to come out ahead on this one)
The good: It's sort of a Theros-formatted god, which is fine. Instead of it not being a creature until a condition is met, it's just pacified. it plays really, really well with Ramunap Excavator, as mentioned. Set cohesion can be a very effective flavor vehicle. I guess the idea of benevolence can be evoked by turning basics into something better? This one's kind of a stretch for me.
The bad: Benevolence has little to do with aggression being dependant on having access to rich resources. Other gods in HOU are clearly depicted (and named) as a particular insect. They aren't given proper names beyond that. This one has a proper name, but no insect type. The justification for your choice needed to be baked into the design itself, not solely provided as a footnote.
Polish - (3/3) Quality: I see no errors. (0.5/2) *Main Challenge: Man... I liked this card so much, but you really didn't stick to the challenge at all. You didn't name a set, besides picking The Locust God as your legend. Your card isn't an alternate version of the chosen card in name, flavor, or mechanics. There's no clear reference to alternate history or hypothetical future... It makes me sad. (2/2) Subchallenges: #1 is met very well. I'm digging the even swap between CMC and P/T. Very clever. #2 is mostly met, except that you are only calling the card G/W in name. The defining element of the card is neither green nor white, but it's not exactly U/R, either I guess.
Total: 18/25
*An entry with 0 points here is subject to disqualification.
Glissa, the SaviorGW
Legendary Creature - Elf Warrior (M)
Vigilance, lifelink T: Destroy target artifact if its converted mana cost less than or equal to the amount of life you gained this turn. She had once saved Mirrodin from the clutches of Memnarch. Now, an even greater threat jeopardizes the plane.
2/1
Design - (1/3) Appeal: Timmy won't run this except maybe as a late draft pick. Too narrow for his tastes. Johnny doesn't see enough combo or synergy potential to make it worth building around, and it doesn't enable any current combos that I'm aware of. Spike isn't excited about it, but recognizes that it's a strong enough card to be picked early-ish and to include in sideboards. (2.5/3) Elegance: Extremely elegant. Very well-designed. The relation between gaining life and nuking artifacts feels a little awkward, but it's at least templated cleanly.
Development - (2/3) Viability: Excellent use of colors here. Everything is either clearly green, clearly white, or even both. Mythic seems a stretch here. The card won't have an impact the turn it comes down, and its best uses will only come up some of the time. It's not a limited bomb, either... It honestly feels like a weak rare. Without the vigilance, or with a mana cost in the ability, it could even pass as uncommon. (3/3) Balance: It will be "fine" in basically all formats without breaking any of them. Balanced, if unexciting.
Creativity - (2/3) Uniqueness:(Just noticing how all of the entries have either vigilance or indestructible. Odd...) Anyway, I'm not aware of a card that tempers artifact destruction with a lifegain check, but those two mechanics aren't conceptually related at all. It's unique, but not especially inventive or fitting. (1.5/3) Flavor: (I'm scoring flavor very strictly on account of how central it is to this particular challenge. Flavor scores will start at 0. Entries must earn more points than they lose in order to come out ahead on this one)
The good: It TOTALLY makes sense for Glissa to have vigilance after what went down on Mirrodin. I loved this. Lifelink seems more arbitrary, but since it fuels her artifact hate (which also makes tons of sense for her character), that can be partially forgiven.
The bad: Honestly... I have to admit that this bland flavor text would have best been left off entirely. The rest of the card tastes great already, and this cookie-cutter, "unnamed looming threat" business fails to enrich it any further.
Polish - (1.5/3) Quality: You're missing a verb in the activated ability (probably "is") (-1). The only other card that checks life lost or gained this turn that uses the phrasing, "Equal to the amount of life..." follows it with "...you've gained this turn." (-0.5) (2/2) *Main Challenge: Very nice approach to the "alternate future" challenge. (2/2) Subchallenges: Yup and yup!
Total: 17.5/25
*An entry with 0 points here is subject to disqualification.
Konda, Vengeful Progenitor6WB
Legendary Creature - Spirit Samurai (M)
Indestructible
Konda, Vengeful Progenitor has bushido X, where X is your life total. (Whenever this creature blocks or becomes blocked, it gets +X/+X until end of turn.)
Whenever Konda deals combat damage to a player, you may exchange life totals with that player.
4/4
Design - (3/3) Appeal: Johnny and Spike obviously have their respective uses for this, but they can hardly think over the sound of Timmy screaming in hysterical exuberance. (2/3) Elegance: I WANT this to be as elegant as it feels once it's fully understood. The interplay between the 2nd and 3rd abilities is phenomenal, but basing his bushido value on your life total forces that very awkward templating for it. In addition, if played like
Development - (3/3) Viability: You've taken no huge liberties with color here, but the only precedent for white getting a Mirror Universe-type effect wasn't exactly the same thing, and it was on a joke card. Still, there's enough going on that IS white that this color combo seems pretty much perfect for the main idea of what you've designed. Obviously a mythic, for sure. (2.5/3) Balance: You've filled this gigantic multicolor mana cost with about as much value and shenanigans as it can hold. It feels odd to call into question the strength of such a high-costed card. But in the end, that 8 mana is gonna be a pretty big obstacle for most decks to clear. Even in limited, this will be a risky include.
Creativity - (3/3) Uniqueness:It's a far more interesting and useful Serra Avatar. One of the better epic-feeling, life total-referencing cards I've seen. (1.5/3) Flavor: (I'm scoring flavor very strictly on account of how central it is to this particular challenge. Flavor scores will start at 0. Entries must earn more points than they lose in order to come out ahead on this one)
The good: Except for some fairly nerdy criticisms, I actually really dig the flavor. He died during his imprisonment, prsumably, and came back as a vengeful spirit, pathologically determined to carry on stealing the life force of others.All-around solid treatment of the character.
The bad: Why is he a "progenitor?" Just because he had a daughter? I think the use of that word was a bit sloppy, flavor-wise. What gave Konda his indestructibility was his enslavement of the spirit, Kyodai, within That Which Was Taken. Kyodai was released by Toshiro Umezawa, and Konda imprisoned. Without flavor text, it's not clear to me why Konda should still have indestructible.
Polish - (3/3) Quality:As usual, I see no issues. (2/2) *Main Challenge: Very nice approach to the "alternate future" challenge. (2/2) Subchallenges: Yup and yup!
Total: 22/25
*An entry with 0 points here is subject to disqualification.
This MCC and the CCL I'm hosting will likely be my last design-related contributions to these forums. Getting kind of burnt out, and I want to free up some time for other pursuits.
Please be quick. There have already been several delays this month. I've been lenenient in Roccos case because I think a Hisotric Natural Disaster is a reasonable excuse for being a little late. However the Round 4 thread needs to be up by midnight EST or it will be an infraction.
Which of my contest contributions have been late this month?
Welcome to the Card Creation League! Everyone is free to participate in either or both of the first two rounds. Come join us!
Theme
Card cycles have been a mainstay of Magic design since the very beginning. They accomplish many varied goals, from highlighting the themes and flavor of an expansion set to exploring different approaches to a new mechanic. Card cycles call our attention to the form and function of cards in ways that wouldn't be possible without them.
This month you'll be coming up with new ways to think about existing cards as well as designing custom cycles from the ground up (or from the top-down, whatever suits your fancy).
Challenge
Design a five-card horizontal cycle that's bound together more by flavor elements than than structural similarity. (see stipulations)
All five cards must have flavor text (Remember to make room).
The structure of the cards should not resemble each other too closely:
RaikouRider -
Morphling - 3 of the 4 abilities are as expected, which is good as far as I'm concerned. The third ability is interesting. It renders the -1/+1 ability all but use useless though.
Modal - I think the +2/+2 in the fight ability should probably be be +1/+1 at the most, although it probably shouldn't give a boost at all. Everything else seems fine.
doomfish -
Morphling - Haste and skulk huh? Neither one of those abilities seems synonamous with black. I do like how skulk interacts with the P/T manipulation that is inherent in the Morphling design though. I'm not sure the -1/+1 does all that much here due to the high toughness that the card starts out with. Also, the unequal P/T is a bit of a break from the cycle.
Modal - This card seems a bit pushed for the cycle, but it's not totally out of control.
void_nothing -
Morphling - If I made the white card, 4 of the five abilities would've been the same as this card. Of course, it's the middle ability that would have been different (I think it would be the obvious choice: lifelink). Your middle ability seems creative, but would probably be a bit too powerful if the card had a symmetrical P/T, which I think it should. The extremely high toughness on this card makes the -1/+1 ability seems a bit useless, and is a pretty big break from the cycle.
Modal - The first choice is weird. Partially because it's weird to have a choice within a choice. Why not just list three choices? I'm just not sure I could see this being printed as part of the cycle. The boardwipe aspect just seems out of place.
IcariiFA -
Morphling - Solid design. I could see this being printed, although it's not the obvious choice.
Modal - This is a cool riff on Bonds of Faith, but it completely breaks with the cycle as far as I'm concerned. So much so that I don't think it technically passes the challenge.
It was very difficult to come up with a top 3 for this challenge. I had a hard time choosing between the top 2, and it would've been even more difficult if IcariiFA hadn't basically ignored the modal challenge by making an enchantment for an instant/sorcery challenge. I feel like people tried too hard to be different. While I usually enjoy uniqueness and creativity in a design, I don't think that this a challenge that lends well to that. If I was heading up development, and I asked for someone to complete these cycles, I would be looking for consistency within the cycle and balance, not creativity. People need to understand, there are times when R&D is just not trying to create something that is wildly creative and unique. I think this would be one of those times.
1st: RaikouRider
2nd: doomfish
3rd: void_nothing
Your reasoning in your top three explains why this challenge is a bad one.
How many more times does this need saying? It's moved beyond critical feedback into being just mean.
Raikou: This hurricane has thrown a wrench into my attempts to streamline things. I'll wait till the original deadline after all because of the confusion.
EDIT: Scores will be final as of about an hour from now. Check back soon for the final round.
Your August finalists are RaikouRider and doomfish, by a pretty big margin, actually. Good luck in the final round, guys. It'll be posted momentarily.
Sub_Silentio, I'll PM you the list of voters.
1. Is the CCL host permitted to vote in the finals?
2. Do we allow ties in the final poll?
3. Should the voting stay open until the last possible second, or close now out of courtesy to this month's host?
give it another dayleave it open through the 14th to see if anyone else wants to get their vote in before September's critique deadline passes.LANK
As always, voting in this poll nets you 2 total bonus points across the first two rounds of September's CCL.
Challenge
WIP
Rhox Sundiver 5GW
Creature - Rhino Knight {R}
Flying, first strike
3GW, T: Rhox Sundiver deals damage equal to its power to target attacking or blocking creature.
When Rhox Sundiver dies, create a 4/4 white Bird creature token with flying.
"Even shall I fall in battle, wings alabaster will champion my cause."
7/7
Vedalken Riddlestrider 5WU
Creature - Vedalken Knight {R}
Flying, vigilance
Attacking creatures your opponents control lose all abilities.
When Vedalken Riddlestrider dies, create a 4/4 blue Sphinx creature token with flying.
"Even shall I fall in battle, the wise one will not let justice die."
6/6
Kederekt Veinlancer 4UB
Creature - Vampire Knight {R}
Menace, prowess
Whenever you cast a noncreature spell, Kederekt Veinlancer gains prowess until end of turn. (If a creature has multiple instances of prowess, each triggers separately.)
When Kederekt Veinlancer dies, create a 3/3 black Horror creature token with menace.
"Even shall I fall in battle, your blood will feed my next life!"
4/4
Rip-Clan Dragonmaster 5BR
Creature - Human Knight {R}
Flying, menace
When Rip-Clan Dragonmaster dies, create a 5/5 Dragon creature token with flying.
"Even shall I fall in battle, my slayers will be bathed in dragonfire."
7/7
Cylian Godspurrer 6RG
Creature - Elf Knight {R}
Trample, haste
When Cylian Godspurrer dies, create a 6/6 green Beast creature token with trample.
"Even shall I fall in battle, my companion will stomp your entire army underpaw!"
8/8
The Harbringer of Conquest 3UU
Legendary Creature - Avatar Knight (M)
When The Harbringer of Conquest enters the battlefield, gain control of all creatures your opponents control for as long as you control The Harbringer of Conquest.
Other creatures you control have base power and toughness 1/1.
The first horse rider came to rule with an iron fist and under her reign the world withered.
3/3
The Harbringer of Beasts 4GG
Legendary Creature - Avatar Knight (M)
Beasts you control have trample.
At the beginning of your declare attackers step, for each opponent, create a 4/4 green Beast creature token that's tapped and attacking that opponent.
The second horse rider brought with her the wild beasts of the world to end all civilization.
5/5
The Harbringer of War 3RR
Legendary Creature - Avatar Knight (M)
All creatures have haste and attack each turn if able.
Each postcombat main phase is replaced with an additional combat phase.
At the end each combat phase, untap all creatures that attacked this turn.
The third horse rider ignited a war to last until the end of days.
3/3
The Harbringer of Pestilence 2B
Legendary Creature - Avatar Knight (M)
When The Harbringer of Pestilence enters the battlefield or whenever one or more creatures die, deal 1 damage to all creatures other than The Harbringer of Pestilence.
The fourth horse rider plagued the world with never ending sickness.
3/3
The Harbringer of Death 3WWW
Legendary Creature - Skeleton Avatar Knight (M)
When The Harbringer of Death enters the battlefield or attacks, destroy all other creatures.
When The Harbringer of Death is put into a graveyard from anywhere, shuffle it into its owner's library.
The fifth and last horse rider came to reap all souls in an act of merciful release.
1/1
Lavinia, Sunhome Vanguard 2RW
Legendary Creature - Human Soldier (R)
Vigilance, protection from creatures
When Lavinia, Sunhome Vanguard enters the battlefield, until your next turn, creatures your opponents control attack you or a planeswalker you control if able.
"The feeling of facing transgressors head on, without warrants or extensive backup, is something that the Azorius will never experience nor understand."
5/1
Design -
(2.5/3) Appeal: If only this were an angel, this would be a 10/10 for Timmy. Johnny thinks the card is too obvious and self-contained, but might possibly try using it as a convoluted blink target, and Spike cackles maniachly at the prosect of forcing opponents to attack into this thing
(2/3) Elegance: If a card can be both complicated and elegant, it's this one. I really dislike "until your next turn" effects because of the memory issues they cause, but I can't deny how well everything fits together here. Not being as harsh as I feel inclined to be.
Development -
(1.5/3) Viability: I did some digging, cause the taunt effect didn't strike me like a very red or white thing to do. Red definitely has a lot of forced attacking, but never with the stipulation of choosing WHO gets attacked. Master Warcraft I think comes the closest, since you can choose how the creatures block. On the other hand, blue is the only color I'm aware of with this particular effect, and it's very uncommon. Maybe R/W is an acceptable way to reintroduce it? I don't personally think so, but I'm not gonna throw the book at you for it. Rarity-wise, this is borderline too good at rare in limited. What's keeping me from saying you definitely got the rarity wrong is that the taunt effect only triggers once.
(2/3) Balance: It slots into basically any red OR white limited deck, and will frequently win the game on its own. Bombs are allowed to do that sometimes, of course. I just can't help thinking it would get oppressive quickly. It's easy to remove with noncombat damage by the time it comes down, and the trigger only happens once.. I'm just still skeptical that this is a fair card in limited. It might find a home in some standard decks, but will be an absolute EDH darling. Such a powerful, board-wide effect that can be easily blinked.
Creativity -
(2/3) Uniqueness: These two keywords sound relatively unique together, but as you'll see in Flavor, this is very much not the case. Vigilance creatures that get blocking bonuses aren't new at all, but this card in particular has a fun balance between hyper-aggression and strategic defense. Cards with high power and 1 toughness are also not especially unique in-and-of themselves, but the interplay between the uncommon, risky P/T and the vigilance/protection/mass lure effect is definitely spicy enough for a point.
(0.5/3) Flavor: (I'm scoring flavor very strictly on account of how central it is to this particular challenge. Flavor scores will start at 0. Entries must earn more points than they lose in order to come out ahead on this one)
The good: The dig on Azorius in the flavor text gives a satisfying zing. Overall the mechanics feel Boros-ish, with some reservations. There's never been a red vanguard, and that term in Magic is an unofficial signifier of solid defenses, as evidenced here and here. A 5/1 shouldn't normally be able to be a vanguard, but giving this vigilance I think takes care of all of those quibbles. This represents a reasonably well-executed red vanguard.
The bad: This exact combination of keyword abilities can already be found on another Dragons Maze legend, and an Orzhov one. That's a pretty big Vorthos fail, there. And you seem to be forgetting that the Boros are a LEGION. They don't rush in without backup; they thrive on teamwork and combat synergies. Seriously, this same set featured the BATALLION keyword!
Polish -
(3/3) Quality: I see no errors.
(2/2) *Main Challenge: Sticking to just mechanics, I got a good chuckle out of how you designed the total opposite of a mass arrest.
(2/2) Subchallenges: Despite my relatively harsh review of the card so far, I think you basically nailed both subchallenges.
Total: 17.5/25
*An entry with 0 points here is subject to disqualification.
Basam the Benevolent 2GW
Legendary Creature - God (M)
Vigilance, indestructible
Basam the Benevolent can't attack or block unless you control at least three nonbasic lands.
1GW, Sacrifice a basic land: Search your library for a nonbasic land card and put it onto the battlefield tapped. Then shuffle your library.
6/6
Design -
(3/3) Appeal: Simply put, I see all the archetypes fnding favor with this for different reasons. Timmy will make it work despite the drawback. Johnny will use the drawback, and Spike will build so as to minimize the drawback.
(3/3) Elegance: Very clean. Plays well with itself, but isn't totally self-contained. Simple to understand, but still interesting to consider.
Development -
(1/3) Viability: So, this is on the strong end of the spectrum for a CMC4 6/6. It needs to be mythic because of how much shop it will wreck in limited, which it is. Now, there's a big issue with the colors. Green often refers to nonbasic lands, but always while punishing opponents for playing them, never as an incentive to play them yourself. White has much fewer references to nonbasic lands, but it always treats them the same as green. A G/W card that rewards you for playing nonbasics (and even sacs your basics for nonbasics!) is simply an egregious color break.
(1.5/3) Balance: Power level might just destroy any limited game it's a part of, since it's very tough to remove. Its main drawback isn't so bad since it's fine just sitting around for a few turns. It's definitely a bomb, at the very least. In standard, the drawback will sometimes be a complete non-issue, making this easily overpowered with little effort. Throw in a Ramunap Excavator, and this becomes an effective ramp engine as well as an offensive AND defensive powerhouse. I think the card just does too much too well for limited and standard. Eternal formats have better tools available to keep this in check, and there are better ways to fetch nonbasics in commander. It'll get played in budget decks, so as not to have to fill them with as many expensive nonbasics, maybe, but I doubt it'll be a G/W staple.
Creativity -
(3/3) Uniqueness: I was actually really impressed by how cleverly this card does what it does. Except for a few glaring oversights, this could have been my personal favorite card of the round on account of how cohesive it is without feeling contrived or stale. Very, very few cards have abilities or effects like these, and you've put them together in a way that makes them feel like they were designed just for this card.
(1/3) Flavor: (I'm scoring flavor very strictly on account of how central it is to this particular challenge. Flavor scores will start at 0. Entries must earn more points than they lose in order to come out ahead on this one)
The good: It's sort of a Theros-formatted god, which is fine. Instead of it not being a creature until a condition is met, it's just pacified. it plays really, really well with Ramunap Excavator, as mentioned. Set cohesion can be a very effective flavor vehicle. I guess the idea of benevolence can be evoked by turning basics into something better? This one's kind of a stretch for me.
The bad: Benevolence has little to do with aggression being dependant on having access to rich resources. Other gods in HOU are clearly depicted (and named) as a particular insect. They aren't given proper names beyond that. This one has a proper name, but no insect type. The justification for your choice needed to be baked into the design itself, not solely provided as a footnote.
Polish -
(3/3) Quality: I see no errors.
(0.5/2) *Main Challenge: Man... I liked this card so much, but you really didn't stick to the challenge at all. You didn't name a set, besides picking The Locust God as your legend. Your card isn't an alternate version of the chosen card in name, flavor, or mechanics. There's no clear reference to alternate history or hypothetical future... It makes me sad.
(2/2) Subchallenges: #1 is met very well. I'm digging the even swap between CMC and P/T. Very clever. #2 is mostly met, except that you are only calling the card G/W in name. The defining element of the card is neither green nor white, but it's not exactly U/R, either I guess.
Total: 18/25
*An entry with 0 points here is subject to disqualification.
Glissa, the Savior GW
Legendary Creature - Elf Warrior (M)
Vigilance, lifelink
T: Destroy target artifact if its converted mana cost less than or equal to the amount of life you gained this turn.
She had once saved Mirrodin from the clutches of Memnarch. Now, an even greater threat jeopardizes the plane.
2/1
Design -
(1/3) Appeal: Timmy won't run this except maybe as a late draft pick. Too narrow for his tastes. Johnny doesn't see enough combo or synergy potential to make it worth building around, and it doesn't enable any current combos that I'm aware of. Spike isn't excited about it, but recognizes that it's a strong enough card to be picked early-ish and to include in sideboards.
(2.5/3) Elegance: Extremely elegant. Very well-designed. The relation between gaining life and nuking artifacts feels a little awkward, but it's at least templated cleanly.
Development -
(2/3) Viability: Excellent use of colors here. Everything is either clearly green, clearly white, or even both. Mythic seems a stretch here. The card won't have an impact the turn it comes down, and its best uses will only come up some of the time. It's not a limited bomb, either... It honestly feels like a weak rare. Without the vigilance, or with a mana cost in the ability, it could even pass as uncommon.
(3/3) Balance: It will be "fine" in basically all formats without breaking any of them. Balanced, if unexciting.
Creativity -
(2/3) Uniqueness:(Just noticing how all of the entries have either vigilance or indestructible. Odd...) Anyway, I'm not aware of a card that tempers artifact destruction with a lifegain check, but those two mechanics aren't conceptually related at all. It's unique, but not especially inventive or fitting.
(1.5/3) Flavor: (I'm scoring flavor very strictly on account of how central it is to this particular challenge. Flavor scores will start at 0. Entries must earn more points than they lose in order to come out ahead on this one)
The good: It TOTALLY makes sense for Glissa to have vigilance after what went down on Mirrodin. I loved this. Lifelink seems more arbitrary, but since it fuels her artifact hate (which also makes tons of sense for her character), that can be partially forgiven.
The bad: Honestly... I have to admit that this bland flavor text would have best been left off entirely. The rest of the card tastes great already, and this cookie-cutter, "unnamed looming threat" business fails to enrich it any further.
Polish -
(1.5/3) Quality: You're missing a verb in the activated ability (probably "is") (-1). The only other card that checks life lost or gained this turn that uses the phrasing, "Equal to the amount of life..." follows it with "...you've gained this turn." (-0.5)
(2/2) *Main Challenge: Very nice approach to the "alternate future" challenge.
(2/2) Subchallenges: Yup and yup!
Total: 17.5/25
*An entry with 0 points here is subject to disqualification.
Konda, Vengeful Progenitor 6WB
Legendary Creature - Spirit Samurai (M)
Indestructible
Konda, Vengeful Progenitor has bushido X, where X is your life total. (Whenever this creature blocks or becomes blocked, it gets +X/+X until end of turn.)
Whenever Konda deals combat damage to a player, you may exchange life totals with that player.
4/4
Design -
(3/3) Appeal: Johnny and Spike obviously have their respective uses for this, but they can hardly think over the sound of Timmy screaming in hysterical exuberance.
(2/3) Elegance: I WANT this to be as elegant as it feels once it's fully understood. The interplay between the 2nd and 3rd abilities is phenomenal, but basing his bushido value on your life total forces that very awkward templating for it. In addition, if played like
Development -
(3/3) Viability: You've taken no huge liberties with color here, but the only precedent for white getting a Mirror Universe-type effect wasn't exactly the same thing, and it was on a joke card. Still, there's enough going on that IS white that this color combo seems pretty much perfect for the main idea of what you've designed. Obviously a mythic, for sure.
(2.5/3) Balance: You've filled this gigantic multicolor mana cost with about as much value and shenanigans as it can hold. It feels odd to call into question the strength of such a high-costed card. But in the end, that 8 mana is gonna be a pretty big obstacle for most decks to clear. Even in limited, this will be a risky include.
Creativity -
(3/3) Uniqueness:It's a far more interesting and useful Serra Avatar. One of the better epic-feeling, life total-referencing cards I've seen.
(1.5/3) Flavor: (I'm scoring flavor very strictly on account of how central it is to this particular challenge. Flavor scores will start at 0. Entries must earn more points than they lose in order to come out ahead on this one)
The good: Except for some fairly nerdy criticisms, I actually really dig the flavor. He died during his imprisonment, prsumably, and came back as a vengeful spirit, pathologically determined to carry on stealing the life force of others.All-around solid treatment of the character.
The bad: Why is he a "progenitor?" Just because he had a daughter? I think the use of that word was a bit sloppy, flavor-wise. What gave Konda his indestructibility was his enslavement of the spirit, Kyodai, within That Which Was Taken. Kyodai was released by Toshiro Umezawa, and Konda imprisoned. Without flavor text, it's not clear to me why Konda should still have indestructible.
Polish -
(3/3) Quality:As usual, I see no issues.
(2/2) *Main Challenge: Very nice approach to the "alternate future" challenge.
(2/2) Subchallenges: Yup and yup!
Total: 22/25
*An entry with 0 points here is subject to disqualification.
Raptorchan — 18/25
RickyRickster — 17.5/25
IcariiFA — 22/25
This MCC and the CCL I'm hosting will likely be my last design-related contributions to these forums. Getting kind of burnt out, and I want to free up some time for other pursuits.
Which of my contest contributions have been late this month?
Good luck, doomfish and RaikouRider
“A Story Circle”
The gods of Theros, by various artists, © Wizards of the Coast
Theme
Card cycles have been a mainstay of Magic design since the very beginning. They accomplish many varied goals, from highlighting the themes and flavor of an expansion set to exploring different approaches to a new mechanic. Card cycles call our attention to the form and function of cards in ways that wouldn't be possible without them.
This month you'll be coming up with new ways to think about existing cards as well as designing custom cycles from the ground up (or from the top-down, whatever suits your fancy).
Challenge
Be sure to keep an eye out for the Finals Poll after this round's deadline. Voting grants you 2 bonus points for next month's CCL.
RaikouRider
doomfish
Schedule
How many more times does this need saying? It's moved beyond critical feedback into being just mean.
Raikou: This hurricane has thrown a wrench into my attempts to streamline things. I'll wait till the original deadline after all because of the confusion.
EDIT:
Scores will be final as of about an hour from now. Check back soon for the final round.Your August finalists are RaikouRider and doomfish, by a pretty big margin, actually. Good luck in the final round, guys. It'll be posted momentarily.