MTG Salvation

Quote from BlackWaltz3 »

Gratzi. Learn new things designing every day. Thoughts on the cards themselves?

They're alright. I'm not sure WW for an in-combat flash Anthem makes the cut. W for an anthem post-combat when you've attacked with three dudes is considerably better.

Quote from BlackWaltz3 »

Cinder, Volcanic Mage 5R
Legendary Creature - Human Wizard (M)
Protection from Instants and Sorceries
Cinder, Volcanic Mage costs 1 less for each 1 noncombat damage dealt to opponents this turn.
Whenever a Mountain enters the battlefield under your control you may search your library for an instant or sorcery with a converted mana cost of 3 or less and put it into your hand. Shuffle your library afterwards.
3/3
Notes: Idea here was to create the 2nd good red 6 drop for cube (Currently it is just Inferno Titan). Cinder works exceptionally well with burn and also provides some support for lands matter. He also has a nice splashable cost/cost reduction ability to make him viable in multiple builds.

Pro instants and sorceries does not seem particularly red. I'm also not sure if it counts as a six drop if you're regularly going to be casting it for ~4-5. That search ability seems pretty absurd and also not particularly red.

Flashfires 2R
Instant (R)
Kicker 2R (You may pay an additional 2R as you cast this spell.)
Flashfires deals 2 damage to each creature. If the kicker was paid, Flashfires deals 4 damage to each creature and non-red Planeswalker instead.

Notes: Wanted to make a playable pyroclasm variant. So here we have Pyroclasm that can be kicked to become a burn pseudo-wrath that also doesn't hit red PW's!

I like the design of the card, it feels overall fairly balanced. Note that Flashfires is already a card.

Sufuric Servant 1RR
Creature - Elemental (R)
At the beginning of each players’ upkeep Sulfuric Servant deals 2 damage to that player.
Players can’t gain life.
2/4

Note: I know this effect is generally worse on a body, but Sulfric Vortex is pretty powerful and 4 toughness gives this staying power.

Seems very good. Probably would have to be a 2/3.

Avatar of Existence 1GGG
Creature- Avatar (M)
Avatar of Existence has power and toughness equal to the number of lands you control.
When Avatar of Existence enters the battlefield return target permanent from your graveyard to your hand.
If you control another creature Avatar of Existence gains trample. If you control an artifact or enchantment, Avatar of Existence gains hexproof. If you control a Planeswalker, Avatar of Existence gains vigilance.
(*/*)
Notes: I started with an Eternal Witness like recursion ability, but then I got hooked on the idea of a creature that really cares about card types, but in keeping with green I wanted it to just care about permanent card types. I think I tied in each card type to the avatar in a smart way. Lands affect P/T, another creature gives it Trample, Artifacts/Enchantments grant hexproof, and with a PW it can play offense and defense.

Needs to be "target permanent card" and not just target permanent. I think this probably does a little too much overall for the cost. The artifact/enchantment clause seems weird as green rarely cares about those things.

Magus of Evolution 2GG
Creature - Centaur Wizard (R)
XXG, , Sacrifice another creature you control: Search your library for a creature with converted mana cost equal to the sacrificed creature’s converted mana cost plus X or less and put it onto the battlefield. Then shuffle your library.
3/4
Notes: Always have a softspot for Eldritch Evolution though it just wasn't quite good enough. I'm thinking maybe a creature variant tied to a decent body would get us there. Fun thing is you can have X = 0 to just pay G to replace a creature you control for another of the same cost from your library or you can use the X to turn your Thragtusk into an Elsh Norn!

I think XX is a bit too punishing. I feel like I'd rarely do it for more than 1 because the cost would be too prohibitive.

Primal Instigator 1GG
Creature - Bear Shaman (R)
When Primal Instigator enters the battlefield put a +1/+1 counter on target creature you control. That creature fights target creature an opponent controls.
Dash 3RG (You may cast this spell for its dash cost. If you do, it gains haste, and it’s returned from the battlefield to its owner’s hand at the beginning of the next end step.)
2/2
Notes: We need more bears in cube! Note the fight isn't optional here so that is one tradeoff for the awesome power of this card. Great Blink potential and that Dash means that paired with a beatstick this card can be repeated removal!

I think 1GG for a 3/3 that fights on ETB is probably a little too good to see print, and this also adds a bunch of other stuff.

Arcane Combatant
Creature - Wierd Wizard Warrior (R)
Prowess
When you cast your second instant or sorcery in a turn you may pay R and/or U. If R was paid Arcane Combatant gains double strike. If U was paid Arcane Combatant gains “Whenever this creature deals combat damage to an opponent, draw a card.” (Do both if both R and U were paid.)
1/1

Notes: All the Izzet flavor! Wierd Wizzard Warrior! It pumps with instant and sorceries, but it especially rewards playing two in the same turn. If you can do that and have mana to spare Arcane Combatant has the potential to be a 3/3 Double Strike that draws you 2 cards! Having to pay the additional mana in addition to casting two spells is intentional to be a check on the power level of the card, but Izzet has plenty of cheap spells to make clearing this hurdle more than doable.

I think this probably needs to be two separate triggred abilities, which probably also makes this a touch too complex. Very interesting design though.

That's correct. Reducers that reduce colored costs like Edgewalker need to specify that they can't reduce colorless, but not vise versa.

Quote from WizardMN »

Necromancy will trigger twice since it is a permanent entering the battlefield. Each trigger will resolve separately. The first trigger resolves and brings back the target and Necromancy attaches to it.

Then, the second trigger returns the second target and attaches to the new creature. Since Necromancy says "When Necromancy leaves the battlefield, that creature's controller sacrifices it" and it hasn't left the field yet, the first won't be sacrificed.

You will end up with both creatures until Necromancy leaves the field.

Of course, there is always the caveat that new rules will change how this works.

New rules should not change how this works, given that you can already recreate this scenario with Strionic Resonator. There's no reason WotC would have to change how doubling up an ETB with a linked trigger works.

You can probably get away with this at FNM, but I would caution you a few things:

1) Having cards that are not in your deck in your deckbox can be construed as an attempt to cheat and can earn you penalties up to and including disqualification. Make sure that if you are using actual cards as tokens, they are stored in a separate area.
2) Make sure that the card is extremely clearly not part of your deck (i.e. put it in a different sleeve and make significant sharpie alterations to it) so that it does not get shuffled into your library at the end of the game, because again this can earn you a penalty if your deck ends up different from what it started as.

Quote from AvalonAurora »

Sudden Inspiration 2UU
Instant
Scry 3, then draw two cards.
During your next upkeep, scry 1.

3U used to draw you two card at instant speed. That's gotten pushed a bit, with Glimmer of Genius. I think this is probably too much like Foresee but at instant speed which probably means it needs to cost more than 2UU. I think Scry 3 draw 2 for 2UU would be fine, or Scry 2 Draw 2, then upkeep scry 1, though I don't like the memory issues of the latter.

Warden's Law W
Instant
Choose one-
* Your opponent's can't cast spells this turn.
* Target creature gains protection from the color of your choice or from colorless until end of turn.

Interesting, it's a split Silence and Stave Off. You can usually get a slight bonus attached to Stave at one mana (see Emerge Unscathed, Blessed Breath, Gods' Willing) so that's probably fine, especially as Silence isn't a great card in Cube. But I'm not sure this actually makes the cut in Cube unless you've got like a STRONG Storm theme in need of maindeckable counters.

Aura Magnet 2W
Enchantment
Flash
When Aura Magnet enters the battlefield, you may reveal cards from the top of your library until you reveal an aura enchantment card, put that card into your hand, then put the rest on the bottom of your library in a random order.
Permanents you control that are the targets of aura spells you control have hexproof. (aura spells you control are aura spells you are casting that are on the stack)
Whenever an aura you own would enter your graveyard from the battlefield, you may pay W, if you do, put it into your hand instead.

This seems wacky and weird. Some thoughts
You can just say "aura", as all auras are enchantments
This does a lot, but I'm not sure it's actually good enough for Cube because there are so few playable Auras.
I'm not sure why this has flash? I mean, I guess you can flash it in in response to a removal spell on a guy you're trying to enchant?
You don't need to specify "aura you own" as other player's cards can never go to your graveyard. You also need to either drop "instead" (as this is currently worded as a trigger and not a replacement effect) or change it to "If an aura you control would go to the graveyard from the battlefield". But given that it asks for a cost to be paid, it's better to leave it as a trigger IMO.

Hopeful Destiny 2WWW
Enchantment - Aura
Flash
When you cast Hopeful Destiny, gain 4 life, and prevent the next 5 damage to you this turn, then scry 1, then draw a card.
Enchant Creature.
Hexproof, Indestructible.
Enchanted creature has +1/+2, hexproof, vigilance, first strike, and lifelink.
If Hopeful Destiny would enter the graveyard or exile zone from the stack or battlefield, it's owner may shuffle it into their library instead.

This also does a lot of things. The combination of Scry and Draw feels very unwhite.
I don't think this needs to be hexproof and indestructible as there's not a ton of aura removal that isn't just killing the dude it's on, and the dude's already hexproof.
Referencing the stack is pretty verboten. Why not just give this the Darksteel Colossus clause and shuffle in from anywhere?

Eyes of Oblivion 2BBB
Instant
Once Eyes of Oblivion is cast, if either of the permanents targeted by it aren't exiled by it this turn, the controller(s) of those permanents at the time Eyes of Oblivion was cast lose 5 life for each of them that wasn't exiled by Eyes of Oblivion at the beginning of the next end step.
Exile two target creatures.

I get what you're trying to do here, but this is seriously making my brain hurt. The wording is extremely awkward and I could never see them printing this as-is. The best way I can think to word this to maybe almost work would be:

"Choose two target creatures controlled by target player. Exile them. For each creature that was not exiled this way, that player loses 5 life". Throwing in a third target means this doesn't fizzle if both creatures are sac'd, and as long as we're talking 1v1 Cube the functionality remains.

Avalanche Racer 2RR
Creature - Elemental
Menance, Trample, Haste, Double Strike
Avalanche Racer attacks each turn if able.
If Avalanche Racer attacks alone, it gets +X/+0, where X is half the number of other creatures you control, rounded down.
When Avalanche Racer dies, if it was the target of a spell or ability an opponent controlled this turn, or damaged by a creature an opponent controlled this turn, that player's lands don't untap during their next untap step.
1/5

We've also got word soup going on here. Four keywords is a LOT for a four mana dude with six points of stats, especially when several of those keywords are extremely high value like doublestrike and haste. It's also got a pseudo Exalted thing going on, which doesn't seem to make a lot of sense?
Also the death trigger can probably just be simplified to when it dies, target player's lands don't untap next turn. Or just drop this, WotC seems to have decided that red getting land freeze isn't really working out which is why we haven't seen it since Amonkhet.
I feel like this could probably lose Doublestrike and the "half" part of its attack trigger, just make it get +1/+0 for each other creature you control when it attacks alone. Though the whole attacking alone thing doesn't feel very Red either. I dunno, this card just seems like a mess, honestly.

Mysteries of the Glimmering Dew 1G
Instant
Mysteries of the Glimmering Dew can't be countered.
Choose one -
* Target permanent you control gets hexproof and indestructible until end of turn. If it is a creature, it gets +1/+1 until end of turn.
* Target creature you control gets +1/+2 and reach until end of turn. Untap it and put a +1/+1 counter on it.
* The next creature card you would cast this turn may be cast as though it had flash and can't be countered. That creature enters the battlefield with a +1/+1 counter on it and has hexproof until end of turn.

This is an interesting mix of abilities. It's a removal blanker meets a combat trick meets a Savage Summoning. I feel like the middle mode is fairly redundant with the top mode, since the top mode is already a fairly effective combat trick? Two modes on this seems less wordy than three as well (since this isn't framed as a Charm). Maybe just make the first and third modes kind of mirrored and buff the first a little?

Choose one -
* Untap target creature you control and put a +1/+1 counter on it. It gains hexproof and indestructible until end of turn
* The next creature card you cast this turn can be cast as though it had flash. That spell can't be countered. That creature enters the battlefield with an additional +1/+1 counter on it and has hexproof and indestructible until end of turn.

Quote from BlackWaltz3 »

Wanted to make a pushed looter blue 1 drop that I think most people would cube and might be printable.

Seafloor Looter U
Creature - Merfolk (R)
Multikicker 1U (You may pay an additional 1U any number of times as you cast this spell.)
When Seafloor Looter enters the battlefield draw a card plus an additional card for each time Seafloor Looter was kicked, then discard a card.
Seafloor Looter enters the battlefield with a +1/+1 counter for each time it was kicked
1/1

Notes: So the idea is if played on turn 1 this guy will loot as an ETB. If played kicked once it is a Catalog strapped to a bear for 1UU and if kicked twice it is Sift and a 3/3 for 2UUU. If this is too good a couple ideas could be for this to begin as a 2 drop for 1U, it could begin as a 0/1 or if you want to get really spicy it could begin as a 1/0.

So I think you pinpointed your own problem here. An ETB 1/1 looter is already slightly pushed for 1 mana given that it's stronger than Hapless Researcher, and Vodalian Merchant is a 1/2 ETB looter for 2 mana.
Catalog is already a 3 mana spell. It's an instant, not a sorcery, but stapling it to a bear is a LOT of value. A cantripping bear with a drawback costs 3 (Phyrexian Rager) and a straight cantripping bear is 4 (Nimble Innovator). This mode is already stronger than straight cantripping since you're drawing two and discarding one, which is about a Two mana Effect.
Sift is 4 mana as a sorcery, meaning a single mana over that you're getting a 3/3.
And the flexibility of all of these modes in one is just too good.

Honestly, just:

Dude U
Creature
Multikicker 1U
Draw a card, plus an additional card for each time Dude was kicked, then discard a card for each card drawn this way
1/1

is already pushed and probably very good.

Quote from BlackWaltz3 »

Twintomaton is not Wurmcoil Engine good, but Wurmcoil is insane. I've seen how busted this ability can be with Karn and the shells that run him and I think 5 mana is probably just too efficient for this. With one artifact this is 6 power. With 3 artifacts--which is going to be more common-this is 10 power.

As always, thank you for your wording assist! I hope you are coming to wherever we go after this because I need your wording help. You're the Bernie Taupin to my Elton John...lol. Godo does let you pick your equipment but is also incredibly vulnerable between the turn you cast him and the turn you play the equip on him. Also, the decks that run this are probably only going to run equip targets that work well with this. Not going to see too many skullclamps on here.

Yeah, I thought that The Wanderer might make a good blink archetype walker so I decided to name her. The Custom Card Creation Forum had a field day with this...oh well. Truth is nobody knows enough about this character yet to say what it should look like or what iterations it could feasibly take on. Wanted to note that Elia is only a creature until EOT. It can be attacked. It is just the noncombat damage clause that sticks until next turn--she cant be burned. I think the -2 can be really powerful against certain archetypes and since it only limits your opponent it gives you the ability to resolve powerful 4/5 drop Angels/Hero/Etc. that they can't answer with their own large creature threats.

I'm definitely going to be in the next iteration of MTGS, I'm one of the admins who's been running the place for years.

Wanderer definitely feels more reasonable with the creaturing until EOT. Seems weird that there's different durations on that and the burn protection, though.

Quote from WizardMN »

I second this. I was actually in the middle of writing a Primer for one of my EDH decks (and may do others) so I can certainly contribute that way.

With that in mind, will there be anything prior to the site launching to explain some of the forum rules, structure, how to sign up, and different tags that will be available? I assume custom tags, like card and deck tags, will make it over.

The announcement for the new site will definitely include much of this information when it comes.

The intent is for the new site to use most if not all of our current custom tags, but again check the announcement when it hits for full information. We are working as hard as we can to get everything set up in time and the exact list of features that will make it into the launch are not set in stone yet.

Quote from JaceBluesMaster »

I figured something like this would happen after Curse Media was spun off. I am hopeful that someone will make a new forum and we can all just migrate over there.

We (the senior staff) are working on a new community to take MTGS's place. Stay tuned as we get closer to closure.

Quote from Shea_0 »

To the Mods/Site dev's/anyone relevant:

There are plenty of passionate and skilled people who frequent this site who may be willing to offer you assistance in getting a new site on its feet.

It would be a tragedy to lose content/fail to get all of us a new home just because the workload was insurmountable for too few people. There are those who are willing to help if you ask us.

I don't have skill in coding/comp sci but I have dollar bills that can help. If there is funding needed for the creation of a new home for us, I would gladly pitch in to guarantee that reality.

Thank you for your work on this site

We have received numerous offers of financial support, and we are exceptionally grateful. Fortunately, that is not a limiting factor at this time. The biggest thing we will need is people who are willing to contribute content (Primers, articles, etc) for the new site when it opens.

Quote from DanzBorin »

I'll miss this place. Been posting here for quite some time. It's like a little home on the net.

Can't wait for the new site. Is there something we should be looking for?

I'll see you all over there.

Look for another mainpage article and announcement here.

We have something in the works, please stay tuned as the time draws closer. I'll address a few specific concerns here. But rest assured, if you like what we have now, you'll like what's coming. And hopefully we'll have something for people who aren't totally satisfied with what we have now, as well. We know that our community here is great, and we hope to salvage as much of that as possible.

Quote from soramaro »

Whatever the option for movers ends up being, I hope it's not a Reddit or "Social Media" type of place were you have to sign on/comment with Google or Facebook accounts or something. (Dang, this makes me sound old…)

No plans to require social media logins.

Quote from Kedvesem »

I, too, am wondering where to go for deck-building stuff. Reddit is not my cup of tea.

We will definitely have a deck-building focus. I strongly agree that Reddit does not handle deck discussion well.

Quote from netn10 »

I just hope they will open forums like the forums in this site, with good moderators and the same quality...

Most of the current staff is involved in the effort to build a replacement, so you should be happy with the result. The owners are leaving, but the staff that has been involved in all of the day-to-day is remaining.

Quote from clubalien »

i wonder if they would be willing to sell the site to someone to continue

Believe me when I say that we have explored the available options and that this is not possible.

Quote from RSSR »

Have this site’s individuals who pay the bills to move over the lisence of this site to a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 3.0 License for others to pick up the costs and run with the site, we just need people willing to chip in month to month a brand new gang to run this site. Boom. Problem solved.

As above, we have explored our available options and that is not a possibility. We already have a solution in place, it is just a matter of getting things ironed out before MTGS closes.