Orchestrion1 Artifact {UC} T, Tap an untapped creature you control: Add C. Add CC instead if you tapped an Artificer this way. "Who would have thought that the same sequence that controls the engine would create such a delicate sound when played on an instrument?"
IIW: Transform cards where each side has a different color identity
My yesterday's IIW is today's challnge, so, SIWT: Cards that would have two legendary characters in their artwork
Izzet Battlecaster(U/R)(U/R)
Creature — Human Wizard (U)
Whenever you cast an instant or sorcery spell, target creature you control gets +1/+1 until end of turn. Not all Izzet mages work in a lab.
2/2
Design .:. (2/3) Appeal: A nice toy for Jxnny and a good limited card for Spike. (3/3) Elegance: The card is easy to understand and makes sense.
Development .:. (2,5/3) Viability: Hybrid cards like these could be cast for either of their colors. That means that by design they should have an effect either color could have alone. Maximize Altitude shows us that blue is allowed to pump creatures a little, as a one time (technically two times, but one time per cast) effect. Usually you don't see this. Still I find the ability to repeatable pump a creature a little weird for blue. Red mostly upps the powert but has a fair share of p/t enhancing spells nontheless. Uncommon is fine. (3/3) Balance: This is a powerful limited uncommon. Adding a little buff to each instant and sorcery should add up quick and also makes combat for the opponent tricky to deal with. The card does a good job at enabling a strategy that's based on creatures and instants and sorceries.
Creativity .:. (2,5/3) Uniqueness: While pumping creatures is nothing new, there are only two cards with the line that comes after the trigger. Might appear weird as it looks like such a basic effect. But probably also too weak on its own to be used a lot. (3/3) Flavor: The flavor text already hints at this card's flavor bend a little. I think it's fine.
Polish .:. (3/3) Quality: No flaws detected! (2/2) Main Challenge: Main challenge satisfied! (2/2) Subchallenges: Both subchallenges satisfied!
Total: 23/25
Mist Lurker(U/B)(U/B)
Creature - Vampire {U}
Flying
Whenever Mist Lurker deals combat damage to a player, that player puts the top X cards from their library into their graveyard, where X is the the number of times you surveilled this turn. "What is worst? Knowing you have been wronged, or being wronged and not knowing it?"
—Lazav
1/2
Design .:. (1/3) Appeal: This card is not very good in limited and needs a strong commitment to surveil to shine in constructed. Seems like a task for Jxnny. (3/3) Elegance: The card is easy to understand and makes sense.
Development .:. (3/3) Viability: This is a fine dimir uncommon. (3/3) Balance: There are several playable surveil cards and a bunch of mill cards in standard right now. Could maybe make the mill deck more viable.
Creativity .:. (2,5/3) Uniqueness: We have seen mill cards in all varieties but not in combination with surveil. (3/3) Flavor: That's some dimir flavor here.
Polish .:. (3/3) Quality: No flaws detected! (2/2) Main Challenge: Main challenge satisfied! (2/2) Subchallenges: Both subchallenges satisfied!
Total: 22,5/25
Steam Enigma
Creature - Weird {U}
Flying : Steam Enigma gets +0/+1 until end of turn.
Whenever you cast an instant or sorcery spell, you may switch Steam Enigma's power and toughness until end of turn. "Turning not just the lab, but the whole Fifth Precinct into a sauna? I'd call that a smashing success!"
--Lizzie, vent engineer 1/1
Design .:. (1/3) Appeal: This is a good limited card, nice for Spike. (3/3) Elegance: The card is easy to understand and makes sense.
Development .:. (2/3) Viability: The ability to pump its own toughness is strongly associated with white. There are only a few cards that don't have a W somewhere with this kind of ability and all of them are old and/or green. While this can act as a power pumping ability I'd consider this a break. (3/3) Balance: The card is certainly powerful in limited and probably standard. Compared to Wee Dragonauts this card shines in a situations where you're low on cards and waiting for a good top deck. With this, any 1-mana instant or sorcery becomes a good late game top deck. It also blocks well, of course.
Creativity .:. (2,5/3) Uniqueness: Thoughness boost in ur is very unusual. P/t switching effects we have a few already. (3/3) Flavor: This is the kind of silly izzet flavor I like so much.
Polish .:. (3/3) Quality: No flaws detected! (2/2) Main Challenge: Main challenge satisfied! (2/2) Subchallenges: Both subchallenges satisfied!
Total: 21,5/25
Gravetiller2
Creature - Troll (Common)
When Gravetiller dies, put the top four cards of your library into your graveyard, then return another creature or land card from your graveyard to your hand. When a troll dies, other trolls visit its den to pay their respects. And also to scavenge any nice looking junk they might have picked up.
2/4
Design .:. (2/3) Appeal: This is a good limited card, nice for Spike. Filling the graveyard also always nice for Jxnny. (3/3) Elegance: The card is easy to understand and makes sense.
Development .:. (3/3) Viability: This is a fine golgari card. (2,5/3) Balance: It enables graveyard strategies and also virtually draws you a card. On top of that it's a reasonable attacker and blocker. Maybe a bit much for a common.
Creativity .:. (1/3) Uniqueness: There have been plenty of gravedigger-esque and self mill cards now. This is Grapple with the Past on a stick. (3/3) Flavor: The flavor text tells you about the doings of the troll while also explaining a little what the card does, quite nice.
Polish .:. (3/3) Quality: No flaws detected! (2/2) Main Challenge: Main challenge satisfied! (2/2) Subchallenges: Both subchallenges satisfied!
Pebble Farm Land {R}
Pebble Farm enters the battlefield with a +1/+1 counter on it.
Whenever a creature an opponent controls attacks you or a planeswalker you control, move all counters from Pebble Farm onto that creature. T: Add C. You may add one mana of any color instead if there's no counter on Pebble Farm.
Frantic Search by Mitchell Malloy.
Orchestrion 1
Artifact {UC}
T, Tap an untapped creature you control: Add C. Add CC instead if you tapped an Artificer this way.
"Who would have thought that the same sequence that controls the engine would create such a delicate sound when played on an instrument?"
IIW: Transform cards where each side has a different color identity
My yesterday's IIW is today's challnge, so, SIWT: Cards that would have two legendary characters in their artwork
Creature — Human Wizard (U)
Whenever you cast an instant or sorcery spell, target creature you control gets +1/+1 until end of turn.
Not all Izzet mages work in a lab.
2/2
Design .:.
(2/3) Appeal: A nice toy for Jxnny and a good limited card for Spike.
(3/3) Elegance: The card is easy to understand and makes sense.
Development .:.
(2,5/3) Viability: Hybrid cards like these could be cast for either of their colors. That means that by design they should have an effect either color could have alone. Maximize Altitude shows us that blue is allowed to pump creatures a little, as a one time (technically two times, but one time per cast) effect. Usually you don't see this. Still I find the ability to repeatable pump a creature a little weird for blue. Red mostly upps the powert but has a fair share of p/t enhancing spells nontheless. Uncommon is fine.
(3/3) Balance: This is a powerful limited uncommon. Adding a little buff to each instant and sorcery should add up quick and also makes combat for the opponent tricky to deal with. The card does a good job at enabling a strategy that's based on creatures and instants and sorceries.
Creativity .:.
(2,5/3) Uniqueness: While pumping creatures is nothing new, there are only two cards with the line that comes after the trigger. Might appear weird as it looks like such a basic effect. But probably also too weak on its own to be used a lot.
(3/3) Flavor: The flavor text already hints at this card's flavor bend a little. I think it's fine.
Polish .:.
(3/3) Quality: No flaws detected!
(2/2) Main Challenge: Main challenge satisfied!
(2/2) Subchallenges: Both subchallenges satisfied!
Total: 23/25
Creature - Vampire {U}
Flying
Whenever Mist Lurker deals combat damage to a player, that player puts the top X cards from their library into their graveyard, where X is the the number of times you surveilled this turn.
"What is worst? Knowing you have been wronged, or being wronged and not knowing it?"
—Lazav
1/2
Design .:.
(1/3) Appeal: This card is not very good in limited and needs a strong commitment to surveil to shine in constructed. Seems like a task for Jxnny.
(3/3) Elegance: The card is easy to understand and makes sense.
Development .:.
(3/3) Viability: This is a fine dimir uncommon.
(3/3) Balance: There are several playable surveil cards and a bunch of mill cards in standard right now. Could maybe make the mill deck more viable.
Creativity .:.
(2,5/3) Uniqueness: We have seen mill cards in all varieties but not in combination with surveil.
(3/3) Flavor: That's some dimir flavor here.
Polish .:.
(3/3) Quality: No flaws detected!
(2/2) Main Challenge: Main challenge satisfied!
(2/2) Subchallenges: Both subchallenges satisfied!
Total: 22,5/25
Creature - Weird {U}
Flying
Whenever you cast an instant or sorcery spell, you may switch Steam Enigma's power and toughness until end of turn.
"Turning not just the lab, but the whole Fifth Precinct into a sauna? I'd call that a smashing success!"
--Lizzie, vent engineer
1/1
Design .:.
(1/3) Appeal: This is a good limited card, nice for Spike.
(3/3) Elegance: The card is easy to understand and makes sense.
Development .:.
(2/3) Viability: The ability to pump its own toughness is strongly associated with white. There are only a few cards that don't have a W somewhere with this kind of ability and all of them are old and/or green. While this can act as a power pumping ability I'd consider this a break.
(3/3) Balance: The card is certainly powerful in limited and probably standard. Compared to Wee Dragonauts this card shines in a situations where you're low on cards and waiting for a good top deck. With this, any 1-mana instant or sorcery becomes a good late game top deck. It also blocks well, of course.
Creativity .:.
(2,5/3) Uniqueness: Thoughness boost in ur is very unusual. P/t switching effects we have a few already.
(3/3) Flavor: This is the kind of silly izzet flavor I like so much.
Polish .:.
(3/3) Quality: No flaws detected!
(2/2) Main Challenge: Main challenge satisfied!
(2/2) Subchallenges: Both subchallenges satisfied!
Total: 21,5/25
Creature - Troll (Common)
When Gravetiller dies, put the top four cards of your library into your graveyard, then return another creature or land card from your graveyard to your hand.
When a troll dies, other trolls visit its den to pay their respects. And also to scavenge any nice looking junk they might have picked up.
2/4
Design .:.
(2/3) Appeal: This is a good limited card, nice for Spike. Filling the graveyard also always nice for Jxnny.
(3/3) Elegance: The card is easy to understand and makes sense.
Development .:.
(3/3) Viability: This is a fine golgari card.
(2,5/3) Balance: It enables graveyard strategies and also virtually draws you a card. On top of that it's a reasonable attacker and blocker. Maybe a bit much for a common.
Creativity .:.
(1/3) Uniqueness: There have been plenty of gravedigger-esque and self mill cards now. This is Grapple with the Past on a stick.
(3/3) Flavor: The flavor text tells you about the doings of the troll while also explaining a little what the card does, quite nice.
Polish .:.
(3/3) Quality: No flaws detected!
(2/2) Main Challenge: Main challenge satisfied!
(2/2) Subchallenges: Both subchallenges satisfied!
Total: 21,5/25
Freyleyes 22,5
RaikouRider 21,5
Subject16 21,5
Very impressed by today's cards.
Pebble Farm
Land {R}
Pebble Farm enters the battlefield with a +1/+1 counter on it.
Whenever a creature an opponent controls attacks you or a planeswalker you control, move all counters from Pebble Farm onto that creature.
T: Add C. You may add one mana of any color instead if there's no counter on Pebble Farm.