I'm new to the forums (just registered today at around 2PM)
I'm working on a new set using the MSE2 software, and had an idea for a new mechanic to base a new block around...
Fused X + Y (As an additional cost to cast this spell, sacrifice a nontoken X creature and a nontoken Y creature you control.)
X and Y are supposed to be creature types.
In the set I'm currently designing, I've designed the blue cards first, so those are the only "fused" cards I've got right now.
Wanted to see what you guys had to say about these cards and the mechanic idea:
I've also created these cards to affect the mechanic:
I may require some help with the wording of the mechanic-effecting cards
The fused creatures will only spread through U-B-R in the first set (as Nicol Bolas is tied to the fusing of creatures itself) and will eventually spread to all colors in the second and third sets in the block.
Improperly credited renders removed. You may edit this post to include renders with proper credits or text cards, but do not remove this text. -Gerrard's Mom
Those cards are way too expensive for one thing. One, it's really hard to get those kinds of cards out... it's dead in your hand unless you have two specific kinds of cards, and there's even a non-token clause!
Let me put it this way... a lot of these cards I wouldn't play for their costs even if you DIDN'T have to sacrifice something. If you have to sacrifice two specific kinds of cards, you better be getting a monster card for a cheap cost. As the cards are now, there's no point to jumping through all those hoops.
A better idea to do fusion would be to sacrifice a certain kind of creature in order to grant an ability, and you should definitely allow tokens to be sacrificed. If you had a card that said something like, "Sac a bird creature: This creature gains "flying", that would be interesting, because you'd be giving flying to creatures that usually don't get it, but at a cost.
First of all, PLEASE CREDIT ARTISTS. It is also good practice to post text cards, not everyone has images on.
Second, how many huge creatures do you have in blue? Blue isn't really a creature color to begin with, and you've got Mutated Lamprey, Flying Fish, and Aquabound Drakeling at common? Where the room for all the cheap vanilla creatures you'll need to have to support these?
Let's see what types you're calling to sacrifice, secondly.
Fish
Beast
Bird
Serpent
Octopus
Jellyfish
Horror
Drake
8 types. You'll want to have at least one of each of these at common. You are probably asking for too many types. None of these cards call for the same fusion pair either, so you're going to have to run at multiple copies of at least three creature types in your deck if you want to have even two fusion creatures. This is extremely parasitic design.
Then you have the removal issue. If someone Doom Blades your Mutated Lamprey, you've been 3-for-1ed at a severe mana disadvantage.
Adaptive Elemental and Genetic Mutation should simply make use of changeling.
I think LnGrrrR's idea is a good one — you could implement it like this:
Mutated Lamprey2UU
Creature — Fish
Kicker: Sacrifice a Beast creature.
As ~ enters the battlefield, if it was kicked, put two +1/+1 counters on it.
As long as ~ has a +1/+1 counter on it, it is a Mutant in addition to its other types, and has, "Whenever ~ deals combat damage to an opponent, you may draw a card."
2/4
So, if you use the pseudo-fusion effect here, you end up with a fairly impressive 4/6 Ophidian, but if you don't have a Beast on the battlefield, it doesn't become a dead card in your hand.
Edit:
Also, I suggest choosing a mechanic that signifies 'being fused' — here I used "has +1/+1 counters" — and a creature type for the same — Mutant — and using the same mechanic and creature type for every fusion. This way you can build mechanics that interact with these things more easily, like...
Finding the Original FaceB
Instant
Remove a +1/+1 counter from target creature. If it's a Mutant, remove all +1/+1 counters from it instead.
PlasmalignancyBBGG
Enchantment
At the beginning of your upkeep, put a +1/+1 counter on each creature you control. Then, if a creature you control has three or more +1/+1 counters, sacrifice it.
I kinda like the mechanic but I can see the 3-for-1 argument, also the creature types would have to be more generic, and the cost to play much cheaper to make it "worth it" but it'd be hard to balance.
I'm not a fan of the suggested +1/+1 mechanic, just doesn't capture the same essence (and it seems more like "Devour <Type>")
The mechanic as a whole feels pretty.. Yugioh-ish, and the biggest thing I think you're going to run into is balance as a whole. Also proper rarities/distribution of creature types will be a nightmare.
Private Mod Note
():
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Proud Member of the "Help Fblthp Get Home in DGM" Society
Mastalouis, you could do something akin to Soulbond, for instance
Winged Fish 2U
Creature - Fish (U)
Islandwalk
Fused - Sacrifice a bird creature. If you do so, Winged Fish gains flying.
2/2
It might also might make it more useful if you don't make the sacrifice upon ETB. (That way, if you pop out a bird token later, you could sac it whenever to give the fish flying and make it a combat trick.)
OK...
Here I go...
Someone here said that this seems too close to Yugioh... They're right.
I've decided to ditch the idea of Fused.
Instead, I have a new mechanic idea. But in order for this mechanic to make sense, I need to shed some light on the backstory here...
The plane of Hexis is plagued by demons, zombies and other supernal creatures for one week each year. This time, called the Carnival, allows those creatures to live among those on the surface, but with a catch... they can't die during the Carnival.
The mechanic:
Carnival (cost) (When this is put into your graveyard, exile it. You may cast this from exile by paying (cost) in addition to its mana cost.
Not sure how well this will work, or how OP it is. Suggestions welcomed.
An interesting idea, but it has the problem of being a bit too repetitive. Most recursion mechanics (rebound, unearth, persist, undying, flashback, etc.) all let you get something back only once. This is for a couple of reasons. One is that it's a lot harder to abuse. Another is that recurring things too much leads to repetitive gameplay (dredge, buyback, etc.) In terms of this mechanic, once you reach a critical mass of lands you can cast the creature as much as you want.
One interesting idea might be to use an EDH-style mechanic; you can cast the creature as much as you want but it gets more and more expensive each time it dies. It would be hard to do mechanically (you'd have to use counters or something) but might be kinda interesting.
Private Mod Note
():
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
"In the beginning, MTG Salvation switched to a new forum format.
This has made a lot of people very angry and been widely regarded as a bad move."
It was at that moment that I realized: I'm kinda just making these things up. We can just write the rules the way we want them to work. People will have fun, and people will get it.
This needs, minimally, a counter of some kind on it to work, or an until end of turn duration.
I would think a token would be good enough. Afterall, if you're going with a mechanic like the OP suggested, memory issues are bound to be there anyways. (Which cards did you sac to fuse again...?)
It's common courtesy to provide text cards. Images of cards are hard to quote and work with and discourage others from commenting if they are provided without text cards/spoiler-tags.
Fused X + Y (As an additional cost to cast this spell, sacrifice a nontoken X creature and a nontoken Y creature you control.)
X and Y are supposed to be creature types.
How much cooler would this ability be if it was an alternate cost rather than an additional cost?
I'm not a perfect fan of the "nontoken" restriction here. You could get with a word rather than the "+" symbol: "Fuse Bird and Human" etc.
After a single look I really feel that the "fused" creature should have both creature types of its fusion. "Fish Beast" >> "Fish Mutant"
...
...
That's especially true since you don't default to "Mutant" for all fusions. "Bird Fish" would make sense.
In general the other drawback of choosing to "fuse" as an additional cost is that it not only sets you up for a 3-to-1 of any removal, but that you personally have the feeling that five mana and two quite specific creatures are an appropriate cost for a 5/5 with islandwalk.
Carnival (cost) (When this is put into your graveyard, exile it. You may cast this from exile by paying (cost) in addition to its mana cost.
So this is infinite flashback a. k. a. buyback that you only have to pay on re-use. There is no way to stop it with a counterspell either.
Or can they? The reminder text could mean that. Is it creature only? In that case it still is an infinite unearth (sans haste at least).
I've seen similar mechanics done right - this seems like a deck playing the same spell over and over again bound to happen.
Ok...
Carnival seems to be a great mechanic to fit in with the storyline of the set I'm working on. The main reason I like this effect is that they can't die, and that is exactly how it fits the storyline.
I could also try something like an "infinite" undying, but there would end up being a drawback that would eventually kill the creature. I'm trying to, simply put, create a way for the creature in question to never be able to truly "die"
As posted, these cards are underwhelming. Not only are they unplayable unless you have two very specific creatures out, but you shrink your creatures numbers into one, leading to spot removal being 3-for-1. You are better off using the Changeling mechanic in this set on small, cheap creatures, or making the 'fused' creature type be consistent (i.e. 'Spawn' or something).
"Spawn infusion (As this creature enters the battlefield you may sacrifice a Spawn creature you control. If you do, this creature enters the battlefield with N +1/+1 counters on it.)"
You could then have various effects for those little sacrificial creatures which trigger upon death. Fun for all!
Private Mod Note
():
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Gaymer
Custom Card / Set Reviewer
When reviewing custom cards / sets, I look for (a) flavour, (b) function, and (c) cohesiveness, generally through a risk focus.
To post a comment, please login or register a new account.
I'm new to the forums (just registered today at around 2PM)
I'm working on a new set using the MSE2 software, and had an idea for a new mechanic to base a new block around...
Fused X + Y (As an additional cost to cast this spell, sacrifice a nontoken X creature and a nontoken Y creature you control.)
X and Y are supposed to be creature types.
In the set I'm currently designing, I've designed the blue cards first, so those are the only "fused" cards I've got right now.
Wanted to see what you guys had to say about these cards and the mechanic idea:
I've also created these cards to affect the mechanic:
I may require some help with the wording of the mechanic-effecting cards
The fused creatures will only spread through U-B-R in the first set (as Nicol Bolas is tied to the fusing of creatures itself) and will eventually spread to all colors in the second and third sets in the block.
Improperly credited renders removed. You may edit this post to include renders with proper credits or text cards, but do not remove this text. -Gerrard's Mom
Let me put it this way... a lot of these cards I wouldn't play for their costs even if you DIDN'T have to sacrifice something. If you have to sacrifice two specific kinds of cards, you better be getting a monster card for a cheap cost. As the cards are now, there's no point to jumping through all those hoops.
A better idea to do fusion would be to sacrifice a certain kind of creature in order to grant an ability, and you should definitely allow tokens to be sacrificed. If you had a card that said something like, "Sac a bird creature: This creature gains "flying", that would be interesting, because you'd be giving flying to creatures that usually don't get it, but at a cost.
Club Flamingo Wins: 1!
First of all, PLEASE CREDIT ARTISTS. It is also good practice to post text cards, not everyone has images on.
Second, how many huge creatures do you have in blue? Blue isn't really a creature color to begin with, and you've got Mutated Lamprey, Flying Fish, and Aquabound Drakeling at common? Where the room for all the cheap vanilla creatures you'll need to have to support these?
Let's see what types you're calling to sacrifice, secondly.
Fish
Beast
Bird
Serpent
Octopus
Jellyfish
Horror
Drake
8 types. You'll want to have at least one of each of these at common. You are probably asking for too many types. None of these cards call for the same fusion pair either, so you're going to have to run at multiple copies of at least three creature types in your deck if you want to have even two fusion creatures. This is extremely parasitic design.
Then you have the removal issue. If someone Doom Blades your Mutated Lamprey, you've been 3-for-1ed at a severe mana disadvantage.
Adaptive Elemental and Genetic Mutation should simply make use of changeling.
I think LnGrrrR's idea is a good one — you could implement it like this:
Mutated Lamprey 2UU
Creature — Fish
Kicker: Sacrifice a Beast creature.
As ~ enters the battlefield, if it was kicked, put two +1/+1 counters on it.
As long as ~ has a +1/+1 counter on it, it is a Mutant in addition to its other types, and has, "Whenever ~ deals combat damage to an opponent, you may draw a card."
2/4
So, if you use the pseudo-fusion effect here, you end up with a fairly impressive 4/6 Ophidian, but if you don't have a Beast on the battlefield, it doesn't become a dead card in your hand.
Edit:
Also, I suggest choosing a mechanic that signifies 'being fused' — here I used "has +1/+1 counters" — and a creature type for the same — Mutant — and using the same mechanic and creature type for every fusion. This way you can build mechanics that interact with these things more easily, like...
Finding the Original Face B
Instant
Remove a +1/+1 counter from target creature. If it's a Mutant, remove all +1/+1 counters from it instead.
Plasmalignancy BBGG
Enchantment
At the beginning of your upkeep, put a +1/+1 counter on each creature you control. Then, if a creature you control has three or more +1/+1 counters, sacrifice it.
I'm not a fan of the suggested +1/+1 mechanic, just doesn't capture the same essence (and it seems more like "Devour <Type>")
The mechanic as a whole feels pretty.. Yugioh-ish, and the biggest thing I think you're going to run into is balance as a whole. Also proper rarities/distribution of creature types will be a nightmare.
RRR Khorenthos - The Red Block (Feedback needed!) RRR
Fused (creature type) + keyword
Example, for Flying Fish: Fused Fish + flying
Any other suggestions???
I'll also edit the mana costs... They are certainly too high! Thanks guys for pointing that out!!!
Winged Fish 2U
Creature - Fish (U)
Islandwalk
Fused - Sacrifice a bird creature. If you do so, Winged Fish gains flying.
2/2
It might also might make it more useful if you don't make the sacrifice upon ETB. (That way, if you pop out a bird token later, you could sac it whenever to give the fish flying and make it a combat trick.)
Club Flamingo Wins: 1!
This needs, minimally, a counter of some kind on it to work, or an until end of turn duration.
Here I go...
Someone here said that this seems too close to Yugioh... They're right.
I've decided to ditch the idea of Fused.
Instead, I have a new mechanic idea. But in order for this mechanic to make sense, I need to shed some light on the backstory here...
The plane of Hexis is plagued by demons, zombies and other supernal creatures for one week each year. This time, called the Carnival, allows those creatures to live among those on the surface, but with a catch... they can't die during the Carnival.
The mechanic:
Carnival (cost) (When this is put into your graveyard, exile it. You may cast this from exile by paying (cost) in addition to its mana cost.
Not sure how well this will work, or how OP it is. Suggestions welcomed.
One interesting idea might be to use an EDH-style mechanic; you can cast the creature as much as you want but it gets more and more expensive each time it dies. It would be hard to do mechanically (you'd have to use counters or something) but might be kinda interesting.
This has made a lot of people very angry and been widely regarded as a bad move."
Comic Book Set
Archester: Frontier of Steam (A steampunk set!)
A Good Place to Start Designing
I would think a token would be good enough. Afterall, if you're going with a mechanic like the OP suggested, memory issues are bound to be there anyways. (Which cards did you sac to fuse again...?)
Club Flamingo Wins: 1!
How much cooler would this ability be if it was an alternate cost rather than an additional cost?
I'm not a perfect fan of the "nontoken" restriction here. You could get with a word rather than the "+" symbol: "Fuse Bird and Human" etc.
After a single look I really feel that the "fused" creature should have both creature types of its fusion. "Fish Beast" >> "Fish Mutant"
...
...
That's especially true since you don't default to "Mutant" for all fusions. "Bird Fish" would make sense.
In general the other drawback of choosing to "fuse" as an additional cost is that it not only sets you up for a 3-to-1 of any removal, but that you personally have the feeling that five mana and two quite specific creatures are an appropriate cost for a 5/5 with islandwalk.
So this is infinite flashback a. k. a. buyback that you only have to pay on re-use. There is no way to stop it with a counterspell either.
Or can they? The reminder text could mean that. Is it creature only? In that case it still is an infinite unearth (sans haste at least).
I've seen similar mechanics done right - this seems like a deck playing the same spell over and over again bound to happen.
Finally a good white villain quote: "So, do I ever re-evaluate my life choices? Never, because I know what I'm doing is a righteous cause."
Factions: Sleeping
Remnants: Valheim
Legendary Journey: Heroes & Planeswalkers
Saga: Shards of Rabiah
Legends: The Elder Dragons
Read up on Red Flags & NWO
Carnival seems to be a great mechanic to fit in with the storyline of the set I'm working on. The main reason I like this effect is that they can't die, and that is exactly how it fits the storyline.
I could also try something like an "infinite" undying, but there would end up being a drawback that would eventually kill the creature. I'm trying to, simply put, create a way for the creature in question to never be able to truly "die"
"Spawn infusion (As this creature enters the battlefield you may sacrifice a Spawn creature you control. If you do, this creature enters the battlefield with N +1/+1 counters on it.)"
You could then have various effects for those little sacrificial creatures which trigger upon death. Fun for all!
Custom Card / Set Reviewer
When reviewing custom cards / sets, I look for (a) flavour, (b) function, and (c) cohesiveness, generally through a risk focus.