Bonus Points (only given to card's which fulfill the round requirements):
Not an elf or Beast - 1 Point
CMC of 6 or greater - 1 Point
Use Mana Symbols in card (must be in ALL places for mana symbols, and on both textcard and render (if submitted) to count) - 1 Point
Supply rendered card art - 1-2 Points (1 for supplying art, 1 additional discretionary for judges)
Point Breakdown:
Bonus (X/5): Judge how the card fits the bonus point parameters
Balance (X/10): Judge how the card is balanced, it's power level, and how it could break/make each format.
Flavor/Creativity/Quality (X/10): Judge how flavorful, cool, and well-worded the card is. Basically, the 'slick' category. (If a card fails to fit into the round, points should be deducted from here)
Now with that out of the way, you all have until midnight EST on Thursday the 28th (when Thursday becomes Friday).
Judges, please don't judge until the round is over, given this time set. You may start postings at 12:01 AM EST, even if we (Stax & Moss_Elemental) are not on just then to close the round. In the case of a tie, both players move on to the next round. However, please try to avoid ties if possible!
Belgareth
SALAd
Istanbul
PlanesJaywalker
Krashbot
Moss_Elemental
Good luck, everyone.
Reminder to all players: Please have all discussions in the discussion thread. This thread is for cards and judgings only. Placeholders are still okay. If you post a placeholder, it will be linked to your name in this post.
VXF vs Everyone!
Good luck Everyone!
The honourable Judge {Belgareth, SALAd, Istanbul, PlanesJaywalker, Krashbot, Moss_Elemental} presiding.
.....Six iterations later.....
Technical/Rules Notes:
1. Affinity for Faeries/Treefolk means: (This spell costs 1 Mana less to play for each Faerie/Treefolk you control.)
2. Faeriecycling :symug::symug: means: (:symug::symug:, Discard this card: Search your library for a Faerie card, reveal it, and put it into your hand. Then shuffle your library.)
Maju, Faerie Godmother4:symgu::symgu:
Legendary Creature - Treefolk (R)
Affinity for Faeries.
All Faerie cards you own have Affinity for Treefolk.
All Faeries you control get +1/+1 and can't be the target of spells or abilities your opponents control.
Faeriecycling :symgu::symgu: Wherever there are Faerie folk, the Godmother will be there to guide and protect them.
2/6
Artist: Chen Rong
2006 VXF
Verdant Swarm 4GG
Creature - Insect
Flying
Whenever Verdant Swarm becomes blocked, you may remove it from the game, then put X 1/1 green Insect tokens into play attacking the defending player, where X is the power of Verdant Swarm minus defending creatures toughness.
Sacrifice five Insects: Return Verdant Swarm to play. Play this ability only during your upkeep and only if Verdant Swarm is removed from the game.
5/3
Persistence Wurm :3mana::symg::symg::symg:
Creature - Wurm
Trample
Whenever you play a spell or activated ability that has a single target named Persistence Wurm, replace all instances of "until end of turn" on that spell or ability with "permanently".
5/5 The wurms tend to live near druid clans, feeding off the energries from the sacred rituals and acting with anger against anyone who would harm their human providers.
Natureborn XGG
Creature - Elemental (R)
Flash, Split Second, Morph XG
When you play Natureborn or turn it face up, gain X life.
Natureborn comes into play or is turned face up with X +1/+1 counters on it.
1/1 Nature's spontaneity incarnate.
Astral Escort - 2WG
Creature - Spirit
Suspend X — XGW
Flying
All non-combat damage dealt to creatures you control is reduced to zero.
As long as ~ is suspended, creatures you control cannot be the target of spells or abilities.
2/2
"They are the ones who watch over us as we gently slip into another world.'' - Conclave elder
Thorn-Leaf Rootwalla5G
Creature - Lizard Mutant (rare)
Kicker U and/or B
Thorn-Leaf Rootwalla costs 1 less to play for each basic land type among lands you control. 1G: Thorn-Leaf Rootwalla gets +2/+2 until end of turn. Play this ability only once each turn.
If the U kicker cost was paid, Thorn-Leaf Rootwalla has flying.
If the B kicker cost was paid, Thorn-Leaf Rootwalla has "Whenever this creature deals combat damage to a player, he or she gets that many poison counters." 2/4Illus. Michael Waters
SCOOB [VNC] WUBRG Slivers and mono-gold control side-deck
Melee Demigod. [FNM] Draft Addict _ Trade Me!
Quote from SqueektheWeek »
i think this card is Freakin' awesome just imagine zoo with this even on the draw u flex "Nutz" any mana drawing the extra card u can pitch and turning up the gas on tempo and it still taps for mana easily a 3 of most likely a 4 of
Primal Avenger 4RG
Creature - Elemental
When Primal Avenger comes into play, destroy all nonbasic lands. For each land destroyed this way, put a +1/+1 counter on Primal Avenger. He eliminates unnatural things at their source. 2/2
Nethram Wanderstorm2RRGG
Legendary Creature - Human Warrior Druid
Whenever Nethram Wanderstorm deals combat damage to a player, destroy target land that player controls. If you do, search your library for basic land card and put that card into play tapped. Then shuffle your library.
Sacrifice a land: Nethram Wanderstorm gets +1/+1 and gains trample until end of turn. "You have ripped our beloved Gaea away from us. You have raped her, ruined her, and mocked her. I have come to bring her home." 4/4
Gaea's Chosen 4GG
Creature - Spirit
Creatures you control with power 1 or less are indestructible.
Other creatures you control with power 2 or more cannot attack.
:symg:, Sacrifice a creature: Put a 1/1 green Saproling token into play. The meek has inherited the world.
4/4
Illus. Jess Gaude
Closing time
Time for you to go out to the places you will be from.
Closing time
This room won't be open 'til your brothers or your sisters come.
So gather up your jackets; move it to the exits.
I hope you have found a friend.
Closing time
Every new beginning comes from some other beginning's end.
And with that, round closed as of almost 2 hours ago. Judgings to come.
Bonus - CMC less than 6. The uninteresting art looks more like it's acne incarnate. 3/5
Balance - Strictly better than Ivy Elemental (except for the rare circumstance where you get color-screwed for green), or instant Stream of Life that gives you a creature in the process. Granted that I'd like more nice fatties like this to be printed, it's too undercosted at XGG. 4/10
FCQ - 'Natureborn' has a nice ring to it. Third ability wording is iffy, since unmorphing is a triggered ability. Excessive capitalization for first line. 5.5/10
Total: 14.5/25
Bonus - Less than 6 CMC. Fitting art. 4/5
Balance - Could get pretty silly with milling effects like Oath of Druids or Vedalken Entrancer, or sacrificing lands for effects like Lithatog or Zuran Orb, but legends are meant to be abused anyway. I'd add one more colorless to her cost and give her 1 more point of toughness, just to be on the safe side. 6/10
FCQ - She gets blessed when nature falls apart? 7/10
Total: 17/25
Bonus - First three points. And the art fits the card perfectly. 5/5
Balance - Quite overcosted considering that the ability does nothing without the help of other cards, namely Auras. Could be a 4/5 that costs :4mana::symg::symg:. 6.5/10
FCQ - Awesome, awesome flavor. The convoluted wording turned me off a bit, but somehow I understand it without having to read twice. This gets a full score from me. 10/10
Total: 21.5/25
Bonus - First three points. Very wurmy art, but lacks the persistence. Flavor text steps into text box. 4/5
Balance - 5/5 tramplers are alright. Since the ability doesn't do anything without the help of another card, I'd say the cost is just right. Johnny/Spike card that could appear in a Top 8 rogue deck or two. 8/10
FCQ - It's persistent enough alright. You gotta spellcheck before ytou submit your card though. 8/10
Total: 20/25
Bonus - First three points. Art needs more Saproling-producing action. 4.5/5
Balance - If I'm playing green, most likely I'd want to attack with fatties, not sacrificing them for measly 1/1s. You don't get any card or tempo advantage from sacrificing your own creatures either. Also, it could be bigger. 6/10
FCQ - If I have to choose a word to describe green, 'meek' is the last word I'd choose. I don't need no stinkin' indestructibility, just give me my face-smashing creatures! Also, Gaea, being the goddess of nature and growth or something like that, wouldn't stop her creations from attacking. Her child is 7/7! 4/10
Total: 14.5/25
Bonus - First three points, and the next two. The art fits the name perfectly. 5/5
Balance - The Stratadon ability seems rather random, and with that it should cost more. It's a nice fatty though. 7/10
FCQ - Argh... wordy. It has too many abilities, and the Stratadon ability just doesn't have synergy with the rest. Terribly inelegant. 5/10
Total: 17/25
Bonus - First three points, and the next two. Very nice art that fits with the rest of the card. 5/5
Balance - Why hasn't Wizards printed this? Could be bigger (3/3) or have haste. 2/2 for 6 mana just doesn't look impressive. 7.5/10
FCQ - Simple yet flavorful name. I love this card! Slight nitpick that 'He' in flavor text should be 'it'. 9/10
Total: 21.5/25
Bonus - CMC less than 6. Distorted art. 3/5
Balance - Now that's what I call creature protection! But when you have X=0, an anti-red 2/2 flying creature for two mana is overpowered.8.5/10
FCQ - Really nice name and flavor text. Flying and suspend should be in separate lines. Grammar mistake ('All' should be followed by 'are', not 'is'). 7/10
Total: 18.5/25
Bonus - First three points. The art is both cute and creepy in its own way, but a bunch of doe-eyed insects just doesn't speak "5/3" to me. Rules text is too small. 4/5
Balance - Seems white or black, but not green. Green doesn't do flickering effects. Green also doesn't get 5/3 flyers at this cost. 6/10
FCQ - Out of color ability, but very cool flavor. Wording causes a loophole when Swarm is blocked by more than one creature. 7/10
Total: 17/25
Bonus - You got the first three points, and the additional two. The art is amazing. 5/5
Balance - Like Kangee, Aerie Keeper, Maju wouldn't be that powerful until Wizards released the Candyland block in Fall 2008. Balanced lord, though in the wrong environment. 7.5/10
FCQ - I understand you meant 'godmother of faeries', but I'd expect a faerie godmother to be, you know, a faerie. Extra period after 'Affinity for Faeries'. The second 'affinity' shouldn't be capitalized. Appropriately sized treefolk. 7/10
Total: 19.5/25
Bonus - First three points. Very nice art, but it doesn't deliver enough impact. 4.5/5
Balance - The other card with a similar cost was a 7/6 trampler that pumped all your creatures. This is quite inferior when compared to that, even with built-in Frenzied Tilling. With mana requirements like that, it could be a 5/5. 7.5/10
FCQ - If he holds a beef against others "ripping, raping, ruining and mocking" "his beloved Gaea", why doesn't he have any qualms about sacrificing your own lands? 7/10
Total: 19/25
Bonus: 3.5/5. By default, X counts as 0, so this card’s CMC is actually 2. Also, I find the art too dark.
Balance: 7/10. This has the same casting cost as Krakilin, but this has a lot more. In fact, I think there’s too much. I think it could have made do without one or of the keywords (flash, split second and morph.)
FCQ: 7/10. The flavour text makes me understand why it has flash. Green creatures with X in its casting cost have been done before (see Krakilin and [card],) but not like this. Finally, I think the wording is a little off. It should be "~ comes into play with X +1/+1 counters on it. When ~ comes into play, you gain X life. When ~ is turned face over, you gain X life and put X +1/+1 counters on it."
TOTAL: 17.5/25
No card submitted
Bonus: 4/5 CMC is not 6 or greater. Art is beautiful.
Balance: 7/10. With land destruction, this card is good. With Armageddon, this card can be broken.
FCQ: 8/10. Some flavour text would have been nice, because I can’t understand why this character grows on land destruction. Other than that, I think you did well here.
TOTAL: 19/25
Bonus: 5/5. Nice art.
Balance: 5/10. I think this has the potential to be abused. Imagine giving it Rancor or Inviolability. Also, this can work against you. One Pacifism will make all your creatures paperweights.
FCQ: 7/10. This card’s ability sounds familiar. I think someone tried to submit this in one of those "You make the card" features, and this was rejected for being a rules nightmare. I’m not sure. Anyway, I think this sharing sound more like a white ability than a green one. Also, I think the wording should start with "Auras attached to ~this~…"
TOTAL: 17/25
Bonus: 5/5
Balance: 5/10. Oh, wow! A creature with its own personal Staying Power ability that applies only to itself. Ever wondered why Staying Power is in Unhinged?
FCQ: 6/10. Since Staying Power is white, I think this card should be white as well. Also, I think the wording should be "As long as ~ is in play, effects with "until end of turn" or "this turn" that target ~ don’t end."
TOTAL: 16/25
Bonus: 5/5.
Balance: 7/10. A creature with a built-in Meekstone that makes weenies hard to kill. While this looks like a good card, it can hurt you. Cards like Juntu Stakes, Coat of Arms and Mutilate can ruin your strategy. Still, this has potential.
FCQ: 10/10. In this category, I only have one word: Flawless.
TOTAL: 22/25
Bonus: 5/5
Balance: 6/10. I don’t think the "affinity for basic land types" is necessary. Also, the black kicker cost is a bit much. I think it should give just one poison counter to a player, instead of (potentially) four.
FCQ: 7/10 Some flavour text would have been nice. I just don’t see the blue and black aspect of this creature. Other than that, it’s okay
TOTAL: 18/25
Bonus: 5/5
Balance: 8/10. Against decks that are heavy on nonbasic lands, this can be broken, but not that broken. At least it doesn’t have trample.
FCQ: 10/10. Beautiful. I can’t find anything wrong here.
TOTAL: 23/25
Bonus: 3.5/5. CMC is less than 6. Also, the artwork looks scrunched.
Balance: 6/10. The suspend cost is just wrong. Why pay 2GW when you can pay just GW? Not only does it come into play immediately, it has haste. Okay, you probably pay X, to protect your creatures, but it’s better when it’s in play, I think. After all, it protects them from burn spells (even Demonfire, since it doesn’t use the word "prevent") and pingers.
FCQ: 9/10. Not bad. Hardly anything wrong with it.
TOTAL: 20/25
Bonus: 5/5
Balance: 8/10. Not bad. If you can find a way to generate Insect tokens, this creature can be hard to kill.
FCQ: 9/10. Flying is usually not found in green, but I won’t hold that against you. Other than that, it’s good.
TOTAL: 22/25
Bonus: 5/5
Balance: 7/10. This is only useful if your deck is full of Faeries and Treefolk. Other than that, it’s just a creature that’s good for blocking most creatures.
FCQ: 8/10. I’ll say this much: It’s original. Nice twist on both affinity and cycling. The only thing I’m not sure of is the connection between Faeries and Treefolk. One affinity would have been enough. Other than that, it’s not bad.
TOTAL: 20/25
Bonus: 4.5/5. The person looks more like a knight than a druid.
Balance: 8/10. Not bad. A Frenzied Tilling on legs. My only gripe is the difficult mana cost.
FCQ: 9/10. If it weren’t for the flavour text, I’d be wondering why a Druid would be sacrificing and destroying lands. Other than that, not bad.
TOTAL: 21.5/25
Bonus: 4.5/5
Very nice art, but nothing treefolkish about that tree. [EDIT: Okay, when I look at it on a bright monitor and squint, I can see the face. And...that's it. Score stands.]
Balance: 6/10
Okay, let's be honest. You're gonna play this in a Faerie deck. I can't think of any other treefolk that you WOULD put into a Faerie deck, so this is a card with the potential to cost as little as 2 mana (though it'll probably be a turn 3 or 4 drop). It subsequently makes all of your faeries stronger...and cheaper...and untargetable by your opponent. It's like a super-Lord. As it stands, it's got ability after ability after ability piled onto it, which makes it a little too good; if it didn't have affinity for Faeries, that might make things a little different, but as it stands? Dyamn.
FCQ: 7/10
I kinda like the flavor on this card. Faeries have to live somewhere, why not on a treefolk? Produces a nice symbiotic relationship. The abilities are nicely creative as well, though an overabundance of Affinity seems kinda...meh. I dunno, just sorta feels wrong. Still a decent card overall. Score: 17.5
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Viroid
Bonus: 5/5
All criteria fulfilled. Art is creepy, but good.
Balance: 7/10
So what we have here is 6 mana for a 5/3 flying creature with supertrample that can't be killed with combat damage. In green. Hmm, I wonder how we can abuse its when-blocked trigger...seriously though, this thing is a little too good for its mana cost. The fact that you reduce the number of tokens recieved by the blocking creature's toughness is a VERY good idea; without it, you would have lost several more balance points.
FCQ: 6/10
So here we have a good, green flying creature, big and fat.
...
...what?!
Green generally only does really good flying creatures as part of a cycle of other cards. Alone, this guy doesn't make a whole lot of sense. Also, why don't the tokens that get put into play have flying? They're still insects, after all, and are meant (if I understand correctly) to represent portions of the swarm. Not great points for flavor, but you get some nice creativity points; I'm pleased with what I'm seeing here in terms of innovation. Score: 18
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muchsarcasm
Bonus: 5/5
All criteria fulfilled, and yup, that looks like a wurm all right.
Balance: 6/10
Okay. Six mana for a 5/5 trampler. Sure, that sounds on par for green. Wait, what? So if I Giant Growth him, he's an 8/8? Permanently? And anything else I do sticks like glue too? I imagine this guy with Power Matrix, and internal bleeding sets in. (Ow.) If he started as a 3/3 or cost 8 mana, he might be balanced. As he is? He gives me the jibblies.
FCQ: 7/10
Okay, the name fits the ability well, I'll give you that. But the flavor text doesn't really seem to connect with anything else about the card. And while it is decently creative, nothing about it really wows me - it's like someone stapled Upwelling to a creature. Both aspects are good, just not great. Score: 18
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Cantripmancer
Bonus: 3/5
CMC 2. I can't see a thing in your art.
Balance: 4/10
Dude, you gotta lay off the cough syrup. Seriously. I'm worried about you.
...seriously, though. Here we have an uncounterable, instant-speed Stream of Life that comes with a phatty. And if you want to maximize him, hey, lay him face down and morph him next turn. And what's the additional cost for all that extra power? Um...:symg:. If you choose not to morph him. If you do, no extra charge. Honestly, this would be pretty strong if all it did was come into play as a X/X creature with the Stream ability. The other two just put it over the top.
FCQ: 6.5/10
Flash doesn't really feel very green to me - I wouldn't call nature a very spontaneous thing, to be honest. The spontaneous portion of nature is about ferocity and combat, and this is nothing more than a big fatty (let's be honest, you're never gonna cast this for less than 4) attached to lifegain. As for creativity...while it's interesting, honestly, it's just a bunch of keywords thrown onto a card. Akroma-esque without having Akroma's flavor. Not bad, just not great. Score: 13.5
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VesuvanUS
Bonus: 3.5/5
CMC 4. The art would have been nice if it weren't stretched to hellenbach.
Balance: 8/10
Easily the most balanced card in the round. A flying 2/2 for 4 mana isn't that great, especially dual-color...but it's improved by the addition of immunity to non-combat damage spread among your creatures. His suspend is an excellent balance trick; do you suspend him for a long time, leaving your guys untargetable for a protracted period of time but spending a lot of mana on him? Or do you suspend him for 1 turn, making him a 3-mana 2/2 flyer but sacrificing the potential protection? A very nice effort.
FCQ: 7/10
I'm not really sure how 'Astral' fits into this, but I'm willing to give you the benefit of the doubt. What really strikes me is the fact that the card feels like it should have blue in it...white/blue or green/blue both feel like they work. If anything, I think green/blue would have been perfect. Still, it's not a huge departure from white/green, so no big reductions here. You get full points for an interesting use of suspend as far as creativity goes. I think this is probably my favorite submission of the round. Score: 18.5
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Scoob
Bonus: 5/5
All criteria fulfilled, and if that isn't a Thorn-Leaf Rootwalla...
Balance: 6/10
Oftentimes, when I get to the final round, I find that the issue with balance is that the submissions are too powerful. This, if anything, is the opposite. Pretty much no matter how you play this card, it's overcosted. :5mana::symg: for a 2/4 that can become a 4/6 if you feed it 2 mana? Meh. Rootwalla costs half as much and is a 2/2 that basically does the same thing. :5mana::symg::symu: for a flying version? I look at Simic Sky Swallower, and realize that it'd tear this thing to pieces. :5mana::symg::symb: for a poison version? With no evasion, it's just another poison creature. Bigger, sure, but by the time you can play it your opponent is probably already close enough to death that the poison counters come in too late to be relevant. (And if not, you're...probably boned, I'm sorry to say.) And the 8-mana version...bleah. 8-mana spells should win you the game, not give you a creature that a Wall of Air can take care of. [EDIT: Missed the Domain part. That means he'll go back and forth between being badly overcosted and badly undercosted. As someone pointed out, this thing can come out fully kicked on turn 3.]
FCQ: 6/10
You get points for flavor, I'll give you that. I can see where the leaves and thorns could provide flying and poison, respectively. But creativity-wise, I'm just not seeing it. I'm looking at Anavolver and Rootwalla...and you basically just mooshed the two together and changed the black ability to something...well, less useful. Score: 16
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Silver Seraph
Bonus: 5/5
All criteria fulfilled, neat-lookin' critter.
Balance: 5/10
A little on the weak side. Even if he destroys three nonbasics, he's still only a 5/5 for 6 mana. You'd need to take out four to make him worth your while, and even then, he has no abilities - he's just another random fatty. And that's if you're lucky enough to nuke several lands with him. Actually, upon further inspection, he's more than just a little weak; if he does what he's supposed to do, he's a fatty with no evasion that takes out a few nonbasics. If he doesn't, he's a severely overcosted 2/2.
FCQ: 6.5/10
I get the flavor aspect of this card - the name fits the ability, which fits the flavor text. It's a little weak on the creativity side, though; he's Just Another Nonbasic Hoser, and lord only knows that there are enough of those out there (although they've admittedly fallen into disfavor in recent years, with Ravnica being in full swing). Skyshroud Elite did it better. Score: 16.5
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Zyrakris
Bonus: 4.5/5
All criteria fulfilled, very nice art, but...that's no druid. Look at his armor and sword!
Balance: 5/10
I will say that the first thing that bothered me upon reading your card is the fact that he is theoretically a lock; if you can get your opponent down with a little land destruction, this guy will keep them there. This is balanced by the fact that he does need to do combat damage in order to eat land, and he IS six mana, four of which is color-specific. No haste, either, meaning no nasty surprises on that end. Trouble is, his activated ability gives +1/+1 AND trample...meaning that you can force the issue if you really have to, and get more land to throw to him. In fact, the more I look at him, the more problems I see. If all he did was destroy land and didn't fetch it, that would be fine. If his ability - any of them - cost mana to activate, that would be fine. But as it stands, this guy is a total house; he'll thin land out of your deck, keep a mana-screwed opponent held down until you can kill him...I'd rather have him on my side than Magnivore in a LD deck, and that says a lot. As it is, he has the perfect arrangement of abilities to be overpowered - there were so many things you could have done to balance him out, but you didn't. A bit disappointing in that regard.
FCQ: 6/10
Okay. I'm sorry, but I'm reading this guy's flavor text, and let me translate what he says into plain English, combined with his ability. "You've ruined the land...so I'm gonna blow it up!"
...what? Destroying land is, like, the single least druidic thing I can think of. That's like creating a Mother Theresa card and having her run around hitting people in the crotch with a cricket bat. Makes no sense! And while his ability is marginally creative, he's basically Frenzied Tilling with a body attached. Like most entries this round, he's not end-of-the-world bad, but he's not very good. (Also, it's "search your library for a basic land".) Score: 15.5
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Kraj
Bonus: 5/5
All criteria fulfilled, and yeah...that looks like a centaur spirit, all right. (Freaky...)
Balance: 6.5/10
At first, I was a little worried about this guy. I mean, auras being shared among all creatures you control? That seems a little overpowering with almost anything. Then I realized that unless you're churning out Saprolings (a very viable strategy with this guy), it's not going to be THAT overpowering...and otherwise, you're paying 7 mana for a 3/5 creature. Even something like Gaea's Embrace isn't that strong with this guy when you imagine the words, "In response to you declaring your attack, Terror/Bounce/Disenchant/etc. your Altruist." I imagine many changes of pants needed, with a similar number of, "Uh, can I change my attack?"
FCQ: 6.5/10
I'm not seeing how "primordial" or "altruist" relates to his abilities, though the flavor text fits perfectly. The creativity is nice; it hasn't been done before, and I'm hard-pressed to think of examples that are very similar, though I would have liked to see something more than "what happens to him, happens to all your guys". Score: 18
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nightshift
Bonus: 5/5
All criteria fulfilled, and that looks like a Gaea's Chosen to me.
Balance: 6.5/10
Honestly, I ph33r this card. We have a creature capable of churning out 1/1 indestructible creatures at will; remember, you can even sacrifice dudes who are about to die to his ability. Fortunately, this isn't inacolorthatmakeslotsoftokens...oh, wait. Well, at least it can't just preventthecombatdamagefromacounterattack...um. Oh. Right. Sure, the guy himself doesn't get his own indestructibility...but he's still a bit on the strong side.
FCQ: 6.5/10
Okay, you get full points for creativity. But the flavor is all wrong, where the color is concerned. Meekstone effects are almost always white...look at Marble Titan. If anything, green likes big. Big and strong. And while it'll let little critters in to play, it won't hold the big ones back so they can play around. This card feels very white to me. Also, the flavor text? The meek have inherited the earth. Not has. Score: 18
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ivkost
Bonus: 4/5
Beautiful art, but the CMC 3 hurts you.
Balance: 5/10
I'm going to make this short and sweet: if her ability required some kind of activation cost, she'd be decent. (Preferably mana.) As it stands, there's no excuse for not throwing her into any of a dozen decks. Seismic Assault decks? Sure! Float mana and drop her after Upheaval? Why not? Play her on turn 2 in a LD deck with a little help, and provide yourself with an automatic finisher? Sure! How about Freyageddon? (Ow. I think that sensation was my brain trying to eat itself.)
FCQ: 7/10
Zyrakris, are you paying attention? THIS is the sort of thing a druid does. "If you mess with the land around me, I'm gonna keep replanting...and if you KEEP doing it, I'm gonna come and bash your face in!" Minor points on the creativity aspect here - I'm sure you could have done more with this than fetch a land or grow bigger, although it did make flavorful sense. Overall, a nice card, but it needs some retooling. Score: 16
Natureborn xGG
Creature - Elemental (R)
Flash, Split Second, Morph xG
When you play Natureborn or turn it face up, gain X life.
Natureborn comes into play or is turned face up with X +1/+1 counters on it.
1/1 Nature's spontaneity incarnate.
Bonus: 4/5 CMC < 6
Balance: 5/10 Compare to Krakilin. Same mana cost, no life gain, no flash or split second, no morph. It has regeneration, but that alone doesn't equal the rest. An instant-speed nigh-uncounterable creatureball with benefits is a bit much for the same cost as something far less.
F/C/Q 8/10
C: It's Krakilin + Stream of Life at instant speed. And uncounterable. In green. Woo-hoo.
Total: 17/25
Poopie!
Freya, Nature's Blessed 1GG
Legendary Creature - Human Druid
Whenever a land is put into a graveyard from anywhere, choose one - search your library for a basic land card and put it into play tapped, then shuffle your library; or put a +1/+1 counter on ~.
2/2
B: 3.5/5 Default Expansion symbol, text just bad-looking. also CMC too low
Bal: 5/10 - This + Armageddon=GG. This + multi land destruction=GG. Hell, normal LD would break this card. Not to mention discarding lands, etc.
F/C/Q 7.5/10
F: Needs flavor text.
Q: "Whenever a land card..."
Total = 16/25
Primordial Altruist 5GG
Creature - Centaur Spirit
Auras enchanting Primordial Altruist affect all creatures you control that could be enchanted by them as if they were enchanting those creatures. Each gift bestowed on him is shared with all of creation.
3/5
B: 5/5 Nice render and sweet art.
Bal: 7.5/10 - This card is just begging to be HWE (hit while enchanted). It'll be a quick target from the time the first Aura is attached to it. It's one of those cards that's too good to be good.
F/C/Q 9/10
C: Kudos for a nice concept; unfortunately, I couldn't see it working.
Q: "...as though they were..."
Total: 21.5/25
Persistence Wurm 3GGG
Creature - Wurm
Trample
Whenever you play a spell or activated ability that has a single target named Persistence Wurm, replace all instances of "until end of turn" on that spell or ability with "permanently".
5/5 The wurms tend to live near druid clans, feeding off the energries from the sacred rituals and acting with anger against anyone who would harm their human providers.
B: 5/5
Bal: 8/10 - Decently costed, especially in green.
F/C/Q 8.5/10
F: Like the flavor text
Q: The ability should read "Effects from spells or activated abilities that target only Persistence Wurm that would end at end of turn instead don't end." (ref (kinda) Staying Power) Also, due to the rule-changing effect, the card should have some white in it.
Total: 21.5/25
Gaea's Chosen 4GG
Creature - Spirit
Creatures you control with power 1 or less are indestructible.
Other creatures you control with power 2 or more cannot attack. G, Sacrifice a creature: Put a 1/1 green Saproling token into play. The meek has inherited the world.
4/4
Illus. Jess Gaude
B: 5/5
Bal: 7.5/10 - 6 Mana seems a bit expensive. I would probably make this legendary and drop the cost by about :2mana:.
F/C/Q 7.5/10
F: "The meek have inherited the world."
Q: "Put a 1/1 green Saproling creature token into play." Also, "can't" rather than "cannot"
Total: 20/25
Thorn-Leaf Rootwalla 5G
Creature - Lizard Mutant (rare)
Kicker U and/or B
Thorn-Leaf Rootwalla costs 1 less to play for each basic land type among lands you control. 1G: Thorn-Leaf Rootwalla gets +2/+2 until end of turn. Play this ability only once each turn.
If the U kicker cost was paid, Thorn-Leaf Rootwalla has flying.
If the B kicker cost was paid, Thorn-Leaf Rootwalla has "Whenever this creature deals combat damage to a player, he or she gets that many poison counters."
2/4 Illus. Michael Waters
B: 5/5
Bal: 6/10 - I was feeling you until the second kicker ability "...that many poison counters"?! This creature basically cuts your opponent's life total in half. He can win the game in one swing, esp with the blue kicker.
F/C/Q 8.5/10
Q: On the kicker abilities, it should be "~ comes into play with..." instead of "~ has..." (ref: Check the Volvers)
Total: 19.5/25
Primal Avenger 4RG
Creature - Elemental
When Primal Avenger comes into play, destroy all nonbasic lands. For each land destroyed this way, put a +1/+1 counter on Primal Avenger. He eliminates unnatural things at their source.
2/2
B: 5/5
Bal: 6.5/10 This card is too expensive where it's relevant (Vintage and Legacy), and overcost to the point of almost useless everywhere else.
F/C/Q 8.5/10
F: Not sold on the flavor text. Personally, I'd have gone with Thoreau: "There are a thousand hacking at the branches of evil to one who is striking at the root."
C: Elegant.
Q: No issues. Although I'd put the second clause as "For each land card put into a graveyard this way..." No deduction, just an idea.
Total: 20/25
Astral Escort - 2WG
Creature - Spirit
Suspend X — xGW
Flying
All non-combat damage dealt to creatures you control is reduced to zero.
As long as ~ is suspended, creatures you control cannot be the target of spells or abilities.
2/2 "They are the ones who watch over us as we gently slip into another world.'' - Conclave elder
B: 4/5 CMC < 6, sorry, dude
Bal: 9/10 - This I like. 4 mana for a 2/2 flier is okay, especially with two colors, one of them being green. The Suspend ability is really sweet, however. It isn't too beefy since a) it has a set duration, and 2) it affects you too. Very nicely done.
F/C/Q 8.5/10
F: Not sold on the flavor text. I'd rephrase it thusly: "They are the ones who watch over us as we pass from this world to the next." More flavorful, less like they're watching you watch a soap opera.
C: Suspend X? I'll buy that for X mana!
Q: No issues. There are no rules for Suspend X, but yours works for me.
Total: 21.5/25
Verdant Swarm 4GG
Creature - Insect
Flying
Whenever Verdant Swarm becomes blocked, you may remove it from the game, then put X 1/1 green Insect tokens into play attacking the defending player, where X is the power of Verdant Swarm minus defending creatures toughness.
Sacrifice five Insects: Return Verdant Swarm to play. Play this ability only during your upkeep and only if Verdant Swarm is removed from the game.
5/3
B: 5/5
Bal: 7.5/10 This is about rightly-costed, and the "swarm" effect is nice, but you expect just a bit more from green at this mana level, especially with a GG requirement.
F/C/Q 7.5/10
F: So the insects lose flying when they leave the swarm? The bugs have paratroopers?
Q: Here's the actual wording for the first ability, were it in an actual Magic card: "Whenever ~ becomes blocked, you may remove it from the game. If you do, put X 1/1 green Insect creature tokens into play tapped and attacking, (Another flavor note: after being broken off from the main swarm I doubt they'd suddenly become vigilant, hence the tapping action) where X is equal to ~'s power minus the total toughness of creatures blocking it." (Have to make sure all bases are covered.)
Total: 20/25
Maju, Faerie Godmother :4mana::symug::symug:
Legendary Creature - Treefolk (R)
Affinity for Faeries.
All Faerie cards you own have Affinity for Treefolk.
All Faeries you control get +1/+1 and can't be the target of spells or abilities your opponents control.
Faeriecycling :symug::symug: Wherever there are Faerie folk, the Godmother will be there to guide and protect them.
2/6
Artist: Chen Rong
B: 5/5
Bal: 5/10 - Wow, a slightly-below-average legend that boosts two almost-unplayable creature types. I'm thinking about all the treefolk in Magic, and I'm having a hard time thinking of one I'd play. Including this one.
F/C/Q: 10/10
F: Very flavorful card. Some random Johnny will finally have the missing link to complete his faerie-treefolk theme deck. Congratulations.
Q: No issues on quality.
Total: 20/25
Nethram Wanderstorm 2RRGG
Legendary Creature - Human Warrior Druid
Whenever Nethram Wanderstorm deals combat damage to a player, destroy target land that player controls. If you do, search your library for basic land card and put that card into play tapped. Then shuffle your library.
Sacrifice a land: Nethram Wanderstorm gets +1/+1 and gains trample until end of turn. "You have ripped our beloved Gaea away from us. You have raped her, ruined her, and mocked her. I have come to bring her home."
4/4
B: 5/5
Bal: 7.5/10 - Limited thermonuclear bomb. This card wins games. By itself. IMHO it's just too good.
F/C/Q 6.75/10
F: The flavor on this guy's all wrong in 18 great-smelling colors. Mr. and Mrs. Wanderstorm must hate their poor kid to have named him "Nethram". And what kind of name is "Wanderstorm" anyhow? Also, the flavor text talks about ruining and raping Gaea, when the guy's activated ability does some hard-core raping itself. And "I have come to bring her home"?! I think "I am here to defend her honor with my life." or something equally noble, as opposed to a chaperone on a prom date. (okayimdone)
Q: Nothing much except for a missing "a" as in "a basic land card..."
Bonus: The art's a little dark and it's CMC is less than 6. 3.5/5 Balance: This card is just flatly better than Ivy Elemental in almost every way. That card was not all that great itself, but this card is much better. For basically the same price, you can get to add morph, flash, split second, and life gain. Even in constructed this could turn into a reasonable finisher. If you play it turn 5-6, you get can probably get an uncounterable, instant speed 5/5 that gains you 4 life when it comes into play. Even if it just cost 4GG, that would probably be too good, but this is much better. I think this card has the potential to be an amazingly powerful finisher. However, it really cannot break open a game, which does help (no evasion or the like). 6/10 F/C/Q: The flavor here is a little shakey. The colors fit, but I don't really understand how this guy has flash, and some of the other abilities don't really fit together. I think you could have done something better. On the creativity front, You took some already-used stuff and did something interesting with it. It's creative the way you put everything together, but I think you could have done a little more. On the quality front, there is only one issue. The only real way to make the counters work when you flip it up is to make it a triggered ability. Given that it is a 1/1 to begin with, I think you would have been better off making the last two abilities one thing that read as follows: When ~ comes into play or is turned face up, put X +1/+1 counters on it and gain X life.
Otherwise, nothing wrong. 5.5/10 Total Score:15/25
No Card Submission. Honestly, I hate it when people do that in the final round.
Bonus: Low-Quality render and CMC of 3, but nice art. 3.5/5 Balance: This card seems relatively balanced, but potentially extremely abusable. In most decks (including limited), it will be a 2/2 for 3 that sometimes digs a land out or becomes a 3/3, but will rarely do anything. However, if you toss this into a constructed G/R LD deck with things like Avalanche Riders and [card]Mwonvuli Acid-Moss[card], it becomes amazing. Already good cards get even better, and this could get very large very fast or simply accelerate you into something rediculous. The legendary status does help, but not nearly enough to balance it out. On the up side, it probably wouldn't do anything outside of Standard and block. 6.5/10 F/C/Q: On the flavor front, I see how it could go find land for you (simply a replacement for something that was destroyed), but how can it get more powerful from land being destroyed? Also, you could use some flavor text. On the creativity side, you did a really good job. This creates some new, interesting interactions and does things that really haven't been done before. I have no issues on the quality. 8/10 Total Score:18/25
Bonus: I like the art. 5/5 Balance: This card seems potentially very powerful, but actually underpowered. At CMC 7 and double cost, you can generally pull something pretty powerful. Either a nice effect (like you have), or very large p/t (which you don't have). 3/5 is large enough to do something as a creature, but not so big that it eats up almost all of the 7 mana. If you enchant a this guy with a nice echantment, you get said powerful effect on all of your creatures. This can, with the right enchantment, simply win the game. However, this guy can also completely destroy you. What happens when you play him, and then on their next turn they Faith's Fetters him. Now none of your creatures will be able to attack, block, or use activated abilities that aren't mana abilities until you either get rid of this guy or the enchantment. Overall, he is much to situational and has the potential to devistate your side of the board at least as easily as he can really help you. 7/10 F/C/Q: The flavor here is great. "Spreading the wealth" so-to-speak is a very green thing, and that's exactly what this guy is doing. Also, the name and flavor text really help it out. The flavor here is fantastic. I also really like this guy on a creative side. His ability feels a little like a Magemark stuck on a creature, but it is done in a different way that I really like. On the quality side, the ability seems a little ambiguous and difficult to understand at first. That said, I'm not quite sure how to fix it. 9/10 Total Score:21/25
Bonus: Nice art, render is ok. 5/5 Balance: This card is just rediculous. A 5/5 for 6 with a decent ability is already good (by no means overpowered, but still good), and this guy is a 5/5 for 6 with an amazing ability. Now your littlecombattrick turns into something rediculous. Plus, it already has trample. This card just simply wins the game as soon as it hits the board if you have any way of doing anything to it. Just way too good. 4/10 F/C/Q: The flavor on this guy is decent. The flavor text helps, and the name explains the mechanic. On the creativity front, it isn't bad. A 5/5 green trampler for 6 is nothing new (Moss Kami anyone?), but you added Staying Power to it. It's not completely original as you really didn't do anything new with either of those abilities, but it isn't bad. On quality, I'm not sure if that's how you would actually word that ability, but I don't know how you actually would, so I really can't take points off here. 6/10 Total Score:15/25
Bonus: The render is rather low quality, and I'm not sure on the art. 4/5 Balance: This card is really interesting. I think this guy is a little underpowered. As a 4/4 for 6, his ability is to make all of your little guys indestructable is a little powerful, but I think making all of your other big guys almost useless is a little too much of a drawback. He really just turns into a stalling tactic to stop you from losing the game until you can muster up the strength to sac it to itself and then win the game. I really don't think this guy would do anything anywhere. 6/10 F/C/Q: I like the flavor here. It's an interesting interaction, but I think you did a good job explaining the flavor in the name and flavor text. As for creativity, this guy is amazing. It's a really creative interaction and I just like the way it all fits together. On the quality front, the only thing I can find is that the flavor text should be "The meek have inhereted the world."9.5/10 Total Score:19.5/25
Bonus: That render is really hard to read. 4.5/5 Balance: This guy a little overpowered. You will often be able to play it for 5 mana with at least 1 of the kickers (sometimes cheeper in the right deck), at which point it is a 2/4 with flying, or rediculous poisonous and it can pump. That seems a little rediculous. Also, The poison counter ability is just insane. If you can hit them 3 times and pump it two of them, you just win the game. Overally, this guy can just win the game outright not long after you play him which is a little good for that versitility (and mana cost). 5.5/10 F/C/Q: The flavor here is a little shakey. I understand the rootwalla ability and the something else based on the mutant type, but it's just a little far-fetched to get the rest in there, especially without flavor text. On the creativity front, this guy feels like a Battlemage/rootwalla with little else. However, you did put the stuff together in an interesting way, so some points here. No real quality issues. 7/10 Total Score:17/25
Note: I am done for the night, more to come tomorrow if at all possible.
Saving. I'm not sure when I can actually finish these, but I will continue working on them when I have the chance. Sorry for the delays this month. They are the reason I did not sign up for October and may not sign up for November. I unfortunately may not get these done today, and after that it depends how much rl work I have. Hopefully they will be done by tomorrow at the latest.
Short and simple. Make a green creature card.
Bonus Points (only given to card's which fulfill the round requirements):
Not an elf or Beast - 1 Point
CMC of 6 or greater - 1 Point
Use Mana Symbols in card (must be in ALL places for mana symbols, and on both textcard and render (if submitted) to count) - 1 Point
Supply rendered card art - 1-2 Points (1 for supplying art, 1 additional discretionary for judges)
Point Breakdown:
Bonus (X/5): Judge how the card fits the bonus point parameters
Balance (X/10): Judge how the card is balanced, it's power level, and how it could break/make each format.
Flavor/Creativity/Quality (X/10): Judge how flavorful, cool, and well-worded the card is. Basically, the 'slick' category. (If a card fails to fit into the round, points should be deducted from here)
Players may wish to reference the Player List.
Now with that out of the way, you all have until midnight EST on Thursday the 28th (when Thursday becomes Friday).
Judges, please don't judge until the round is over, given this time set. You may start postings at 12:01 AM EST, even if we (Stax & Moss_Elemental) are not on just then to close the round. In the case of a tie, both players move on to the next round. However, please try to avoid ties if possible!
Match List:
Belgareth
SALAd
Istanbul
PlanesJaywalker
Krashbot
Moss_Elemental
Good luck, everyone.
Reminder to all players: Please have all discussions in the discussion thread. This thread is for cards and judgings only. Placeholders are still okay. If you post a placeholder, it will be linked to your name in this post.
Good luck Everyone!
The honourable Judge {Belgareth, SALAd, Istanbul, PlanesJaywalker, Krashbot, Moss_Elemental} presiding.
.....Six iterations later.....
Technical/Rules Notes:
1. Affinity for Faeries/Treefolk means: (This spell costs 1 Mana less to play for each Faerie/Treefolk you control.)
2. Faeriecycling :symug::symug: means: (:symug::symug:, Discard this card: Search your library for a Faerie card, reveal it, and put it into your hand. Then shuffle your library.)
Maju, Faerie Godmother 4:symgu::symgu:
Legendary Creature - Treefolk (R)
Affinity for Faeries.
All Faerie cards you own have Affinity for Treefolk.
All Faeries you control get +1/+1 and can't be the target of spells or abilities your opponents control.
Faeriecycling :symgu::symgu:
Wherever there are Faerie folk, the Godmother will be there to guide and protect them.
2/6
Artist: Chen Rong
2006 VXF
Creature - Insect
Flying
Whenever Verdant Swarm becomes blocked, you may remove it from the game, then put X 1/1 green Insect tokens into play attacking the defending player, where X is the power of Verdant Swarm minus defending creatures toughness.
Sacrifice five Insects: Return Verdant Swarm to play. Play this ability only during your upkeep and only if Verdant Swarm is removed from the game.
5/3
Also, judgeholder.
Always trading for more Kezzerdrixes...drixen...drixii...for more!
"Of course I'm crazy, but that doesn't mean I'm wrong. I'm mad but not ill." - . _Werewolf Bridge_, Robert Anton Wilson
CHAMPION of Survivor MTG News vs. MTG Salvation!
WINNER of DC5 #1!
WINNER of Sept. '06 DCC!
Owner of Stax's Soul!
Think.
Persistence Wurm :3mana::symg::symg::symg:
Creature - Wurm
Trample
Whenever you play a spell or activated ability that has a single target named Persistence Wurm, replace all instances of "until end of turn" on that spell or ability with "permanently".
5/5
The wurms tend to live near druid clans, feeding off the energries from the sacred rituals and acting with anger against anyone who would harm their human providers.
Judged by All
Card: Natureborn
Good luck, you 11 crazy peeps.
Natureborn XGG
Creature - Elemental (R)
Flash, Split Second, Morph XG
When you play Natureborn or turn it face up, gain X life.
Natureborn comes into play or is turned face up with X +1/+1 counters on it.
1/1
Nature's spontaneity incarnate.
Creature - Spirit
Suspend X — XGW
Flying
All non-combat damage dealt to creatures you control is reduced to zero.
As long as ~ is suspended, creatures you control cannot be the target of spells or abilities.
2/2
"They are the ones who watch over us as we gently slip into another world.'' - Conclave elder
Thorn-Leaf Rootwalla 5G
Creature - Lizard Mutant (rare)
Kicker U and/or B
Thorn-Leaf Rootwalla costs 1 less to play for each basic land type among lands you control.
1G: Thorn-Leaf Rootwalla gets +2/+2 until end of turn. Play this ability only once each turn.
If the U kicker cost was paid, Thorn-Leaf Rootwalla has flying.
If the B kicker cost was paid, Thorn-Leaf Rootwalla has "Whenever this creature deals combat damage to a player, he or she gets that many poison counters."
2/4 Illus. Michael Waters
Melee Demigod. [FNM] Draft Addict _ Trade Me!
Creature - Elemental
When Primal Avenger comes into play, destroy all nonbasic lands. For each land destroyed this way, put a +1/+1 counter on Primal Avenger.
He eliminates unnatural things at their source.
2/2
Legendary Creature - Human Warrior Druid
Whenever Nethram Wanderstorm deals combat damage to a player, destroy target land that player controls. If you do, search your library for basic land card and put that card into play tapped. Then shuffle your library.
Sacrifice a land: Nethram Wanderstorm gets +1/+1 and gains trample until end of turn.
"You have ripped our beloved Gaea away from us. You have raped her, ruined her, and mocked her. I have come to bring her home."
4/4
Creature - Centaur Spirit
Auras enchanting Primordial Altruist affect all creatures you control that could be enchanted by them as if they were enchanting those creatures.
Each gift bestowed on him is shared with all of creation.
3/5
Current New Favorite Person™: Mallory Archer
She knows why.
Creature - Spirit
Creatures you control with power 1 or less are indestructible.
Other creatures you control with power 2 or more cannot attack.
:symg:, Sacrifice a creature: Put a 1/1 green Saproling token into play.
The meek has inherited the world.
4/4
Illus. Jess Gaude
And with that, round closed as of almost 2 hours ago. Judgings to come.
Bonus - CMC less than 6. The uninteresting art looks more like it's acne incarnate. 3/5
Balance - Strictly better than Ivy Elemental (except for the rare circumstance where you get color-screwed for green), or instant Stream of Life that gives you a creature in the process. Granted that I'd like more nice fatties like this to be printed, it's too undercosted at XGG. 4/10
FCQ - 'Natureborn' has a nice ring to it. Third ability wording is iffy, since unmorphing is a triggered ability. Excessive capitalization for first line. 5.5/10
Total: 14.5/25
Bonus - Less than 6 CMC. Fitting art. 4/5
Balance - Could get pretty silly with milling effects like Oath of Druids or Vedalken Entrancer, or sacrificing lands for effects like Lithatog or Zuran Orb, but legends are meant to be abused anyway. I'd add one more colorless to her cost and give her 1 more point of toughness, just to be on the safe side. 6/10
FCQ - She gets blessed when nature falls apart? 7/10
Total: 17/25
Bonus - First three points. And the art fits the card perfectly. 5/5
Balance - Quite overcosted considering that the ability does nothing without the help of other cards, namely Auras. Could be a 4/5 that costs :4mana::symg::symg:. 6.5/10
FCQ - Awesome, awesome flavor. The convoluted wording turned me off a bit, but somehow I understand it without having to read twice. This gets a full score from me. 10/10
Total: 21.5/25
Bonus - First three points. Very wurmy art, but lacks the persistence. Flavor text steps into text box. 4/5
Balance - 5/5 tramplers are alright. Since the ability doesn't do anything without the help of another card, I'd say the cost is just right. Johnny/Spike card that could appear in a Top 8 rogue deck or two. 8/10
FCQ - It's persistent enough alright. You gotta spellcheck before ytou submit your card though. 8/10
Total: 20/25
Bonus - First three points. Art needs more Saproling-producing action. 4.5/5
Balance - If I'm playing green, most likely I'd want to attack with fatties, not sacrificing them for measly 1/1s. You don't get any card or tempo advantage from sacrificing your own creatures either. Also, it could be bigger. 6/10
FCQ - If I have to choose a word to describe green, 'meek' is the last word I'd choose. I don't need no stinkin' indestructibility, just give me my face-smashing creatures! Also, Gaea, being the goddess of nature and growth or something like that, wouldn't stop her creations from attacking. Her child is 7/7! 4/10
Total: 14.5/25
Bonus - First three points, and the next two. The art fits the name perfectly. 5/5
Balance - The Stratadon ability seems rather random, and with that it should cost more. It's a nice fatty though. 7/10
FCQ - Argh... wordy. It has too many abilities, and the Stratadon ability just doesn't have synergy with the rest. Terribly inelegant. 5/10
Total: 17/25
Bonus - First three points, and the next two. Very nice art that fits with the rest of the card. 5/5
Balance - Why hasn't Wizards printed this? Could be bigger (3/3) or have haste. 2/2 for 6 mana just doesn't look impressive. 7.5/10
FCQ - Simple yet flavorful name. I love this card! Slight nitpick that 'He' in flavor text should be 'it'. 9/10
Total: 21.5/25
Bonus - CMC less than 6. Distorted art. 3/5
Balance - Now that's what I call creature protection!
But when you have X=0, an anti-red 2/2 flying creature for two mana is overpowered.8.5/10FCQ - Really nice name and flavor text. Flying and suspend should be in separate lines. Grammar mistake ('All' should be followed by 'are', not 'is'). 7/10
Total: 18.5/25
Bonus - First three points. The art is both cute and creepy in its own way, but a bunch of doe-eyed insects just doesn't speak "5/3" to me. Rules text is too small. 4/5
Balance - Seems white or black, but not green. Green doesn't do flickering effects. Green also doesn't get 5/3 flyers at this cost. 6/10
FCQ - Out of color ability, but very cool flavor. Wording causes a loophole when Swarm is blocked by more than one creature. 7/10
Total: 17/25
Bonus - You got the first three points, and the additional two. The art is amazing. 5/5
Balance - Like Kangee, Aerie Keeper, Maju wouldn't be that powerful until Wizards released the Candyland block in Fall 2008. Balanced lord, though in the wrong environment. 7.5/10
FCQ - I understand you meant 'godmother of faeries', but I'd expect a faerie godmother to be, you know, a faerie. Extra period after 'Affinity for Faeries'. The second 'affinity' shouldn't be capitalized. Appropriately sized treefolk. 7/10
Total: 19.5/25
Bonus - First three points. Very nice art, but it doesn't deliver enough impact. 4.5/5
Balance - The other card with a similar cost was a 7/6 trampler that pumped all your creatures. This is quite inferior when compared to that, even with built-in Frenzied Tilling. With mana requirements like that, it could be a 5/5. 7.5/10
FCQ - If he holds a beef against others "ripping, raping, ruining and mocking" "his beloved Gaea", why doesn't he have any qualms about sacrificing your own lands? 7/10
Total: 19/25
Level 2 Judge
Token and Playmat Store
Beyond the Guildpact
Balance: 7/10. This has the same casting cost as Krakilin, but this has a lot more. In fact, I think there’s too much. I think it could have made do without one or of the keywords (flash, split second and morph.)
FCQ: 7/10. The flavour text makes me understand why it has flash. Green creatures with X in its casting cost have been done before (see Krakilin and [card],) but not like this. Finally, I think the wording is a little off. It should be "~ comes into play with X +1/+1 counters on it. When ~ comes into play, you gain X life. When ~ is turned face over, you gain X life and put X +1/+1 counters on it."
TOTAL: 17.5/25
Balance: 7/10. With land destruction, this card is good. With Armageddon, this card can be broken.
FCQ: 8/10. Some flavour text would have been nice, because I can’t understand why this character grows on land destruction. Other than that, I think you did well here.
TOTAL: 19/25
Balance: 5/10. I think this has the potential to be abused. Imagine giving it Rancor or Inviolability. Also, this can work against you. One Pacifism will make all your creatures paperweights.
FCQ: 7/10. This card’s ability sounds familiar. I think someone tried to submit this in one of those "You make the card" features, and this was rejected for being a rules nightmare. I’m not sure. Anyway, I think this sharing sound more like a white ability than a green one. Also, I think the wording should start with "Auras attached to ~this~…"
TOTAL: 17/25
Balance: 5/10. Oh, wow! A creature with its own personal Staying Power ability that applies only to itself. Ever wondered why Staying Power is in Unhinged?
FCQ: 6/10. Since Staying Power is white, I think this card should be white as well. Also, I think the wording should be "As long as ~ is in play, effects with "until end of turn" or "this turn" that target ~ don’t end."
TOTAL: 16/25
Balance: 7/10. A creature with a built-in Meekstone that makes weenies hard to kill. While this looks like a good card, it can hurt you. Cards like Juntu Stakes, Coat of Arms and Mutilate can ruin your strategy. Still, this has potential.
FCQ: 10/10. In this category, I only have one word: Flawless.
TOTAL: 22/25
Balance: 6/10. I don’t think the "affinity for basic land types" is necessary. Also, the black kicker cost is a bit much. I think it should give just one poison counter to a player, instead of (potentially) four.
FCQ: 7/10 Some flavour text would have been nice. I just don’t see the blue and black aspect of this creature. Other than that, it’s okay
TOTAL: 18/25
Balance: 8/10. Against decks that are heavy on nonbasic lands, this can be broken, but not that broken. At least it doesn’t have trample.
FCQ: 10/10. Beautiful. I can’t find anything wrong here.
TOTAL: 23/25
Balance: 6/10. The suspend cost is just wrong. Why pay 2GW when you can pay just GW? Not only does it come into play immediately, it has haste. Okay, you probably pay X, to protect your creatures, but it’s better when it’s in play, I think. After all, it protects them from burn spells (even Demonfire, since it doesn’t use the word "prevent") and pingers.
FCQ: 9/10. Not bad. Hardly anything wrong with it.
TOTAL: 20/25
Balance: 8/10. Not bad. If you can find a way to generate Insect tokens, this creature can be hard to kill.
FCQ: 9/10. Flying is usually not found in green, but I won’t hold that against you. Other than that, it’s good.
TOTAL: 22/25
Balance: 7/10. This is only useful if your deck is full of Faeries and Treefolk. Other than that, it’s just a creature that’s good for blocking most creatures.
FCQ: 8/10. I’ll say this much: It’s original. Nice twist on both affinity and cycling. The only thing I’m not sure of is the connection between Faeries and Treefolk. One affinity would have been enough. Other than that, it’s not bad.
TOTAL: 20/25
Balance: 8/10. Not bad. A Frenzied Tilling on legs. My only gripe is the difficult mana cost.
FCQ: 9/10. If it weren’t for the flavour text, I’d be wondering why a Druid would be sacrificing and destroying lands. Other than that, not bad.
TOTAL: 21.5/25
VXF
Bonus: 4.5/5
Very nice art, but nothing treefolkish about that tree. [EDIT: Okay, when I look at it on a bright monitor and squint, I can see the face. And...that's it. Score stands.]
Balance: 6/10
Okay, let's be honest. You're gonna play this in a Faerie deck. I can't think of any other treefolk that you WOULD put into a Faerie deck, so this is a card with the potential to cost as little as 2 mana (though it'll probably be a turn 3 or 4 drop). It subsequently makes all of your faeries stronger...and cheaper...and untargetable by your opponent. It's like a super-Lord. As it stands, it's got ability after ability after ability piled onto it, which makes it a little too good; if it didn't have affinity for Faeries, that might make things a little different, but as it stands? Dyamn.
FCQ: 7/10
I kinda like the flavor on this card. Faeries have to live somewhere, why not on a treefolk? Produces a nice symbiotic relationship. The abilities are nicely creative as well, though an overabundance of Affinity seems kinda...meh. I dunno, just sorta feels wrong. Still a decent card overall.
Score: 17.5
-
Viroid
Bonus: 5/5
All criteria fulfilled. Art is creepy, but good.
Balance: 7/10
So what we have here is 6 mana for a 5/3 flying creature with supertrample that can't be killed with combat damage. In green. Hmm, I wonder how we can abuse its when-blocked trigger...seriously though, this thing is a little too good for its mana cost. The fact that you reduce the number of tokens recieved by the blocking creature's toughness is a VERY good idea; without it, you would have lost several more balance points.
FCQ: 6/10
So here we have a good, green flying creature, big and fat.
...
...what?!
Green generally only does really good flying creatures as part of a cycle of other cards. Alone, this guy doesn't make a whole lot of sense. Also, why don't the tokens that get put into play have flying? They're still insects, after all, and are meant (if I understand correctly) to represent portions of the swarm. Not great points for flavor, but you get some nice creativity points; I'm pleased with what I'm seeing here in terms of innovation.
Score: 18
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muchsarcasm
Bonus: 5/5
All criteria fulfilled, and yup, that looks like a wurm all right.
Balance: 6/10
Okay. Six mana for a 5/5 trampler. Sure, that sounds on par for green. Wait, what? So if I Giant Growth him, he's an 8/8? Permanently? And anything else I do sticks like glue too? I imagine this guy with Power Matrix, and internal bleeding sets in. (Ow.) If he started as a 3/3 or cost 8 mana, he might be balanced. As he is? He gives me the jibblies.
FCQ: 7/10
Okay, the name fits the ability well, I'll give you that. But the flavor text doesn't really seem to connect with anything else about the card. And while it is decently creative, nothing about it really wows me - it's like someone stapled Upwelling to a creature. Both aspects are good, just not great.
Score: 18
-
Cantripmancer
Bonus: 3/5
CMC 2. I can't see a thing in your art.
Balance: 4/10
Dude, you gotta lay off the cough syrup. Seriously. I'm worried about you.
...seriously, though. Here we have an uncounterable, instant-speed Stream of Life that comes with a phatty. And if you want to maximize him, hey, lay him face down and morph him next turn. And what's the additional cost for all that extra power? Um...:symg:. If you choose not to morph him. If you do, no extra charge. Honestly, this would be pretty strong if all it did was come into play as a X/X creature with the Stream ability. The other two just put it over the top.
FCQ: 6.5/10
Flash doesn't really feel very green to me - I wouldn't call nature a very spontaneous thing, to be honest. The spontaneous portion of nature is about ferocity and combat, and this is nothing more than a big fatty (let's be honest, you're never gonna cast this for less than 4) attached to lifegain. As for creativity...while it's interesting, honestly, it's just a bunch of keywords thrown onto a card. Akroma-esque without having Akroma's flavor. Not bad, just not great.
Score: 13.5
-
VesuvanUS
Bonus: 3.5/5
CMC 4. The art would have been nice if it weren't stretched to hellenbach.
Balance: 8/10
Easily the most balanced card in the round. A flying 2/2 for 4 mana isn't that great, especially dual-color...but it's improved by the addition of immunity to non-combat damage spread among your creatures. His suspend is an excellent balance trick; do you suspend him for a long time, leaving your guys untargetable for a protracted period of time but spending a lot of mana on him? Or do you suspend him for 1 turn, making him a 3-mana 2/2 flyer but sacrificing the potential protection? A very nice effort.
FCQ: 7/10
I'm not really sure how 'Astral' fits into this, but I'm willing to give you the benefit of the doubt. What really strikes me is the fact that the card feels like it should have blue in it...white/blue or green/blue both feel like they work. If anything, I think green/blue would have been perfect. Still, it's not a huge departure from white/green, so no big reductions here. You get full points for an interesting use of suspend as far as creativity goes. I think this is probably my favorite submission of the round.
Score: 18.5
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Scoob
Bonus: 5/5
All criteria fulfilled, and if that isn't a Thorn-Leaf Rootwalla...
Balance: 6/10
Oftentimes, when I get to the final round, I find that the issue with balance is that the submissions are too powerful. This, if anything, is the opposite. Pretty much no matter how you play this card, it's overcosted. :5mana::symg: for a 2/4 that can become a 4/6 if you feed it 2 mana? Meh. Rootwalla costs half as much and is a 2/2 that basically does the same thing. :5mana::symg::symu: for a flying version? I look at Simic Sky Swallower, and realize that it'd tear this thing to pieces. :5mana::symg::symb: for a poison version? With no evasion, it's just another poison creature. Bigger, sure, but by the time you can play it your opponent is probably already close enough to death that the poison counters come in too late to be relevant. (And if not, you're...probably boned, I'm sorry to say.) And the 8-mana version...bleah. 8-mana spells should win you the game, not give you a creature that a Wall of Air can take care of. [EDIT: Missed the Domain part. That means he'll go back and forth between being badly overcosted and badly undercosted. As someone pointed out, this thing can come out fully kicked on turn 3.]
FCQ: 6/10
You get points for flavor, I'll give you that. I can see where the leaves and thorns could provide flying and poison, respectively. But creativity-wise, I'm just not seeing it. I'm looking at Anavolver and Rootwalla...and you basically just mooshed the two together and changed the black ability to something...well, less useful.
Score: 16
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Silver Seraph
Bonus: 5/5
All criteria fulfilled, neat-lookin' critter.
Balance: 5/10
A little on the weak side. Even if he destroys three nonbasics, he's still only a 5/5 for 6 mana. You'd need to take out four to make him worth your while, and even then, he has no abilities - he's just another random fatty. And that's if you're lucky enough to nuke several lands with him. Actually, upon further inspection, he's more than just a little weak; if he does what he's supposed to do, he's a fatty with no evasion that takes out a few nonbasics. If he doesn't, he's a severely overcosted 2/2.
FCQ: 6.5/10
I get the flavor aspect of this card - the name fits the ability, which fits the flavor text. It's a little weak on the creativity side, though; he's Just Another Nonbasic Hoser, and lord only knows that there are enough of those out there (although they've admittedly fallen into disfavor in recent years, with Ravnica being in full swing). Skyshroud Elite did it better.
Score: 16.5
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Zyrakris
Bonus: 4.5/5
All criteria fulfilled, very nice art, but...that's no druid. Look at his armor and sword!
Balance: 5/10
I will say that the first thing that bothered me upon reading your card is the fact that he is theoretically a lock; if you can get your opponent down with a little land destruction, this guy will keep them there. This is balanced by the fact that he does need to do combat damage in order to eat land, and he IS six mana, four of which is color-specific. No haste, either, meaning no nasty surprises on that end. Trouble is, his activated ability gives +1/+1 AND trample...meaning that you can force the issue if you really have to, and get more land to throw to him. In fact, the more I look at him, the more problems I see. If all he did was destroy land and didn't fetch it, that would be fine. If his ability - any of them - cost mana to activate, that would be fine. But as it stands, this guy is a total house; he'll thin land out of your deck, keep a mana-screwed opponent held down until you can kill him...I'd rather have him on my side than Magnivore in a LD deck, and that says a lot. As it is, he has the perfect arrangement of abilities to be overpowered - there were so many things you could have done to balance him out, but you didn't. A bit disappointing in that regard.
FCQ: 6/10
Okay. I'm sorry, but I'm reading this guy's flavor text, and let me translate what he says into plain English, combined with his ability.
"You've ruined the land...so I'm gonna blow it up!"
...what? Destroying land is, like, the single least druidic thing I can think of. That's like creating a Mother Theresa card and having her run around hitting people in the crotch with a cricket bat. Makes no sense! And while his ability is marginally creative, he's basically Frenzied Tilling with a body attached. Like most entries this round, he's not end-of-the-world bad, but he's not very good. (Also, it's "search your library for a basic land".)
Score: 15.5
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Kraj
Bonus: 5/5
All criteria fulfilled, and yeah...that looks like a centaur spirit, all right. (Freaky...)
Balance: 6.5/10
At first, I was a little worried about this guy. I mean, auras being shared among all creatures you control? That seems a little overpowering with almost anything. Then I realized that unless you're churning out Saprolings (a very viable strategy with this guy), it's not going to be THAT overpowering...and otherwise, you're paying 7 mana for a 3/5 creature. Even something like Gaea's Embrace isn't that strong with this guy when you imagine the words, "In response to you declaring your attack, Terror/Bounce/Disenchant/etc. your Altruist." I imagine many changes of pants needed, with a similar number of, "Uh, can I change my attack?"
FCQ: 6.5/10
I'm not seeing how "primordial" or "altruist" relates to his abilities, though the flavor text fits perfectly. The creativity is nice; it hasn't been done before, and I'm hard-pressed to think of examples that are very similar, though I would have liked to see something more than "what happens to him, happens to all your guys".
Score: 18
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nightshift
Bonus: 5/5
All criteria fulfilled, and that looks like a Gaea's Chosen to me.
Balance: 6.5/10
Honestly, I ph33r this card. We have a creature capable of churning out 1/1 indestructible creatures at will; remember, you can even sacrifice dudes who are about to die to his ability. Fortunately, this isn't in a color that makes lots of tokens...oh, wait. Well, at least it can't just prevent the combat damage from a counterattack...um. Oh. Right. Sure, the guy himself doesn't get his own indestructibility...but he's still a bit on the strong side.
FCQ: 6.5/10
Okay, you get full points for creativity. But the flavor is all wrong, where the color is concerned. Meekstone effects are almost always white...look at Marble Titan. If anything, green likes big. Big and strong. And while it'll let little critters in to play, it won't hold the big ones back so they can play around. This card feels very white to me. Also, the flavor text? The meek have inherited the earth. Not has.
Score: 18
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ivkost
Bonus: 4/5
Beautiful art, but the CMC 3 hurts you.
Balance: 5/10
I'm going to make this short and sweet: if her ability required some kind of activation cost, she'd be decent. (Preferably mana.) As it stands, there's no excuse for not throwing her into any of a dozen decks. Seismic Assault decks? Sure! Float mana and drop her after Upheaval? Why not? Play her on turn 2 in a LD deck with a little help, and provide yourself with an automatic finisher? Sure! How about Freyageddon? (Ow. I think that sensation was my brain trying to eat itself.)
FCQ: 7/10
Zyrakris, are you paying attention? THIS is the sort of thing a druid does. "If you mess with the land around me, I'm gonna keep replanting...and if you KEEP doing it, I'm gonna come and bash your face in!" Minor points on the creativity aspect here - I'm sure you could have done more with this than fetch a land or grow bigger, although it did make flavorful sense. Overall, a nice card, but it needs some retooling.
Score: 16
Always trading for more Kezzerdrixes...drixen...drixii...for more!
"Of course I'm crazy, but that doesn't mean I'm wrong. I'm mad but not ill." - . _Werewolf Bridge_, Robert Anton Wilson
CHAMPION of Survivor MTG News vs. MTG Salvation!
WINNER of DC5 #1!
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Owner of Stax's Soul!
Think.
Creature - Elemental (R)
Flash, Split Second, Morph xG
When you play Natureborn or turn it face up, gain X life.
Natureborn comes into play or is turned face up with X +1/+1 counters on it.
1/1
Nature's spontaneity incarnate.
Bonus: 4/5 CMC < 6
Balance: 5/10 Compare to Krakilin. Same mana cost, no life gain, no flash or split second, no morph. It has regeneration, but that alone doesn't equal the rest. An instant-speed nigh-uncounterable creatureball with benefits is a bit much for the same cost as something far less.
F/C/Q 8/10
C: It's Krakilin + Stream of Life at instant speed. And uncounterable. In green. Woo-hoo.
Total: 17/25
Legendary Creature - Human Druid
Whenever a land is put into a graveyard from anywhere, choose one - search your library for a basic land card and put it into play tapped, then shuffle your library; or put a +1/+1 counter on ~.
2/2
B: 3.5/5 Default Expansion symbol, text just bad-looking. also CMC too low
Bal: 5/10 - This + Armageddon=GG. This + multi land destruction=GG. Hell, normal LD would break this card. Not to mention discarding lands, etc.
F/C/Q 7.5/10
F: Needs flavor text.
Q: "Whenever a land card..."
Total = 16/25
Creature - Centaur Spirit
Auras enchanting Primordial Altruist affect all creatures you control that could be enchanted by them as if they were enchanting those creatures.
Each gift bestowed on him is shared with all of creation.
3/5
B: 5/5 Nice render and sweet art.
Bal: 7.5/10 - This card is just begging to be HWE (hit while enchanted). It'll be a quick target from the time the first Aura is attached to it. It's one of those cards that's too good to be good.
F/C/Q 9/10
C: Kudos for a nice concept; unfortunately, I couldn't see it working.
Q: "...as though they were..."
Total: 21.5/25
Creature - Wurm
Trample
Whenever you play a spell or activated ability that has a single target named Persistence Wurm, replace all instances of "until end of turn" on that spell or ability with "permanently".
5/5
The wurms tend to live near druid clans, feeding off the energries from the sacred rituals and acting with anger against anyone who would harm their human providers.
B: 5/5
Bal: 8/10 - Decently costed, especially in green.
F/C/Q 8.5/10
F: Like the flavor text
Q: The ability should read "Effects from spells or activated abilities that target only Persistence Wurm that would end at end of turn instead don't end." (ref (kinda) Staying Power) Also, due to the rule-changing effect, the card should have some white in it.
Total: 21.5/25
Creature - Spirit
Creatures you control with power 1 or less are indestructible.
Other creatures you control with power 2 or more cannot attack.
G, Sacrifice a creature: Put a 1/1 green Saproling token into play.
The meek has inherited the world.
4/4
Illus. Jess Gaude
B: 5/5
Bal: 7.5/10 - 6 Mana seems a bit expensive. I would probably make this legendary and drop the cost by about :2mana:.
F/C/Q 7.5/10
F: "The meek have inherited the world."
Q: "Put a 1/1 green Saproling creature token into play." Also, "can't" rather than "cannot"
Total: 20/25
Creature - Lizard Mutant (rare)
Kicker U and/or B
Thorn-Leaf Rootwalla costs 1 less to play for each basic land type among lands you control.
1G: Thorn-Leaf Rootwalla gets +2/+2 until end of turn. Play this ability only once each turn.
If the U kicker cost was paid, Thorn-Leaf Rootwalla has flying.
If the B kicker cost was paid, Thorn-Leaf Rootwalla has "Whenever this creature deals combat damage to a player, he or she gets that many poison counters."
2/4 Illus. Michael Waters
B: 5/5
Bal: 6/10 - I was feeling you until the second kicker ability "...that many poison counters"?! This creature basically cuts your opponent's life total in half. He can win the game in one swing, esp with the blue kicker.
F/C/Q 8.5/10
Q: On the kicker abilities, it should be "~ comes into play with..." instead of "~ has..." (ref: Check the Volvers)
Total: 19.5/25
Creature - Elemental
When Primal Avenger comes into play, destroy all nonbasic lands. For each land destroyed this way, put a +1/+1 counter on Primal Avenger.
He eliminates unnatural things at their source.
2/2
B: 5/5
Bal: 6.5/10 This card is too expensive where it's relevant (Vintage and Legacy), and overcost to the point of almost useless everywhere else.
F/C/Q 8.5/10
F: Not sold on the flavor text. Personally, I'd have gone with Thoreau: "There are a thousand hacking at the branches of evil to one who is striking at the root."
C: Elegant.
Q: No issues. Although I'd put the second clause as "For each land card put into a graveyard this way..." No deduction, just an idea.
Total: 20/25
Creature - Spirit
Suspend X — xGW
Flying
All non-combat damage dealt to creatures you control is reduced to zero.
As long as ~ is suspended, creatures you control cannot be the target of spells or abilities.
2/2
"They are the ones who watch over us as we gently slip into another world.'' - Conclave elder
B: 4/5 CMC < 6, sorry, dude
Bal: 9/10 - This I like. 4 mana for a 2/2 flier is okay, especially with two colors, one of them being green. The Suspend ability is really sweet, however. It isn't too beefy since a) it has a set duration, and 2) it affects you too. Very nicely done.
F/C/Q 8.5/10
F: Not sold on the flavor text. I'd rephrase it thusly: "They are the ones who watch over us as we pass from this world to the next." More flavorful, less like they're watching you watch a soap opera.
C: Suspend X? I'll buy that for X mana!
Q: No issues. There are no rules for Suspend X, but yours works for me.
Total: 21.5/25
Creature - Insect
Flying
Whenever Verdant Swarm becomes blocked, you may remove it from the game, then put X 1/1 green Insect tokens into play attacking the defending player, where X is the power of Verdant Swarm minus defending creatures toughness.
Sacrifice five Insects: Return Verdant Swarm to play. Play this ability only during your upkeep and only if Verdant Swarm is removed from the game.
5/3
B: 5/5
Bal: 7.5/10 This is about rightly-costed, and the "swarm" effect is nice, but you expect just a bit more from green at this mana level, especially with a GG requirement.
F/C/Q 7.5/10
F: So the insects lose flying when they leave the swarm? The bugs have paratroopers?
Q: Here's the actual wording for the first ability, were it in an actual Magic card: "Whenever ~ becomes blocked, you may remove it from the game. If you do, put X 1/1 green Insect creature tokens into play tapped and attacking, (Another flavor note: after being broken off from the main swarm I doubt they'd suddenly become vigilant, hence the tapping action) where X is equal to ~'s power minus the total toughness of creatures blocking it." (Have to make sure all bases are covered.)
Total: 20/25
Legendary Creature - Treefolk (R)
Affinity for Faeries.
All Faerie cards you own have Affinity for Treefolk.
All Faeries you control get +1/+1 and can't be the target of spells or abilities your opponents control.
Faeriecycling :symug::symug:
Wherever there are Faerie folk, the Godmother will be there to guide and protect them.
2/6
Artist: Chen Rong
B: 5/5
Bal: 5/10 - Wow, a slightly-below-average legend that boosts two almost-unplayable creature types. I'm thinking about all the treefolk in Magic, and I'm having a hard time thinking of one I'd play. Including this one.
F/C/Q: 10/10
F: Very flavorful card. Some random Johnny will finally have the missing link to complete his faerie-treefolk theme deck. Congratulations.
Q: No issues on quality.
Total: 20/25
Legendary Creature - Human Warrior Druid
Whenever Nethram Wanderstorm deals combat damage to a player, destroy target land that player controls. If you do, search your library for basic land card and put that card into play tapped. Then shuffle your library.
Sacrifice a land: Nethram Wanderstorm gets +1/+1 and gains trample until end of turn.
"You have ripped our beloved Gaea away from us. You have raped her, ruined her, and mocked her. I have come to bring her home."
4/4
B: 5/5
Bal: 7.5/10 - Limited thermonuclear bomb. This card wins games. By itself. IMHO it's just too good.
F/C/Q 6.75/10
F: The flavor on this guy's all wrong in 18 great-smelling colors. Mr. and Mrs. Wanderstorm must hate their poor kid to have named him "Nethram". And what kind of name is "Wanderstorm" anyhow? Also, the flavor text talks about ruining and raping Gaea, when the guy's activated ability does some hard-core raping itself. And "I have come to bring her home"?! I think "I am here to defend her honor with my life." or something equally noble, as opposed to a chaperone on a prom date. (okayimdone)
Q: Nothing much except for a missing "a" as in "a basic land card..."
Total: 19.25/25
So, in conclusion:
Cantripmancer: 17/25
Gwald:ivkost: 16/25
Kraj: 21.5/25
muchsarcasm: 21.5/25
nightshift: 20/25
Scoob: 19.5/25
Silver Seraph: 20/25
VesuvanUS: 21.5/25
Viroid: 20/25
VXF: 20/25
Zyrakis: 19.25/25
Now, Ima go to bed.
Balance: This card is just flatly better than Ivy Elemental in almost every way. That card was not all that great itself, but this card is much better. For basically the same price, you can get to add morph, flash, split second, and life gain. Even in constructed this could turn into a reasonable finisher. If you play it turn 5-6, you get can probably get an uncounterable, instant speed 5/5 that gains you 4 life when it comes into play. Even if it just cost 4GG, that would probably be too good, but this is much better. I think this card has the potential to be an amazingly powerful finisher. However, it really cannot break open a game, which does help (no evasion or the like). 6/10
F/C/Q: The flavor here is a little shakey. The colors fit, but I don't really understand how this guy has flash, and some of the other abilities don't really fit together. I think you could have done something better. On the creativity front, You took some already-used stuff and did something interesting with it. It's creative the way you put everything together, but I think you could have done a little more. On the quality front, there is only one issue. The only real way to make the counters work when you flip it up is to make it a triggered ability. Given that it is a 1/1 to begin with, I think you would have been better off making the last two abilities one thing that read as follows:
When ~ comes into play or is turned face up, put X +1/+1 counters on it and gain X life.
Otherwise, nothing wrong. 5.5/10
Total Score: 15/25
Balance: This card seems relatively balanced, but potentially extremely abusable. In most decks (including limited), it will be a 2/2 for 3 that sometimes digs a land out or becomes a 3/3, but will rarely do anything. However, if you toss this into a constructed G/R LD deck with things like Avalanche Riders and [card]Mwonvuli Acid-Moss[card], it becomes amazing. Already good cards get even better, and this could get very large very fast or simply accelerate you into something rediculous. The legendary status does help, but not nearly enough to balance it out. On the up side, it probably wouldn't do anything outside of Standard and block. 6.5/10
F/C/Q: On the flavor front, I see how it could go find land for you (simply a replacement for something that was destroyed), but how can it get more powerful from land being destroyed? Also, you could use some flavor text. On the creativity side, you did a really good job. This creates some new, interesting interactions and does things that really haven't been done before. I have no issues on the quality. 8/10
Total Score: 18/25
Balance: This card seems potentially very powerful, but actually underpowered. At CMC 7 and double cost, you can generally pull something pretty powerful. Either a nice effect (like you have), or very large p/t (which you don't have). 3/5 is large enough to do something as a creature, but not so big that it eats up almost all of the 7 mana. If you enchant a this guy with a nice echantment, you get said powerful effect on all of your creatures. This can, with the right enchantment, simply win the game. However, this guy can also completely destroy you. What happens when you play him, and then on their next turn they Faith's Fetters him. Now none of your creatures will be able to attack, block, or use activated abilities that aren't mana abilities until you either get rid of this guy or the enchantment. Overall, he is much to situational and has the potential to devistate your side of the board at least as easily as he can really help you. 7/10
F/C/Q: The flavor here is great. "Spreading the wealth" so-to-speak is a very green thing, and that's exactly what this guy is doing. Also, the name and flavor text really help it out. The flavor here is fantastic. I also really like this guy on a creative side. His ability feels a little like a Magemark stuck on a creature, but it is done in a different way that I really like. On the quality side, the ability seems a little ambiguous and difficult to understand at first. That said, I'm not quite sure how to fix it. 9/10
Total Score: 21/25
Balance: This card is just rediculous. A 5/5 for 6 with a decent ability is already good (by no means overpowered, but still good), and this guy is a 5/5 for 6 with an amazing ability. Now your little combat trick turns into something rediculous. Plus, it already has trample. This card just simply wins the game as soon as it hits the board if you have any way of doing anything to it. Just way too good. 4/10
F/C/Q: The flavor on this guy is decent. The flavor text helps, and the name explains the mechanic. On the creativity front, it isn't bad. A 5/5 green trampler for 6 is nothing new (Moss Kami anyone?), but you added Staying Power to it. It's not completely original as you really didn't do anything new with either of those abilities, but it isn't bad. On quality, I'm not sure if that's how you would actually word that ability, but I don't know how you actually would, so I really can't take points off here. 6/10
Total Score: 15/25
Balance: This card is really interesting. I think this guy is a little underpowered. As a 4/4 for 6, his ability is to make all of your little guys indestructable is a little powerful, but I think making all of your other big guys almost useless is a little too much of a drawback. He really just turns into a stalling tactic to stop you from losing the game until you can muster up the strength to sac it to itself and then win the game. I really don't think this guy would do anything anywhere. 6/10
F/C/Q: I like the flavor here. It's an interesting interaction, but I think you did a good job explaining the flavor in the name and flavor text. As for creativity, this guy is amazing. It's a really creative interaction and I just like the way it all fits together. On the quality front, the only thing I can find is that the flavor text should be "The meek have inhereted the world." 9.5/10
Total Score: 19.5/25
Balance: This guy a little overpowered. You will often be able to play it for 5 mana with at least 1 of the kickers (sometimes cheeper in the right deck), at which point it is a 2/4 with flying, or rediculous poisonous and it can pump. That seems a little rediculous. Also, The poison counter ability is just insane. If you can hit them 3 times and pump it two of them, you just win the game. Overally, this guy can just win the game outright not long after you play him which is a little good for that versitility (and mana cost). 5.5/10
F/C/Q: The flavor here is a little shakey. I understand the rootwalla ability and the something else based on the mutant type, but it's just a little far-fetched to get the rest in there, especially without flavor text. On the creativity front, this guy feels like a Battlemage/rootwalla with little else. However, you did put the stuff together in an interesting way, so some points here. No real quality issues. 7/10
Total Score: 17/25
Saving. I'm not sure when I can actually finish these, but I will continue working on them when I have the chance. Sorry for the delays this month. They are the reason I did not sign up for October and may not sign up for November. I unfortunately may not get these done today, and after that it depends how much rl work I have. Hopefully they will be done by tomorrow at the latest.
Winner of the Weekly Signature & Avatar Contest Weeks 51, 59, 78, & 118.
I don't care if I was framed for murder if I only got a warning I would let it go.
That won't be necessary, Krashbot. I have a clear winner.
Cantripmancer: 62.5
Gwald: 0
ivkost: 68
Kraj: 78
muchsarcasm: 75.5
nightshift: 72.5
Scoob : 70.5
Silver Seraph : 81
VesuvanUS: 78.5
Viroid: 77
VXF: 77
Zyrakris: 75.25
Congratulations, Seraph!