MTG Salvation

Ruined Sword - Fine. However, a few wording issues - "from your hand" is unnecessary; they discarded (no pun intended) that clause since Kamigawa block. Also, why make it come into play attached, instead of just reducing the unearth cost by :1mana:?

Next:
Overflowing Disaster 3BR
Instant
All creatures get -2/-2 until end of turn.
Until end of turn, whenever a creature is put into a graveyard from play, its controller loses 1 life.
Two’s company, three’s a crowd
Turning back is not allowed
—Aurora, Travel Through Eternity

Overflowing Disaster - i like it. instant speed for a wipe fest. i want it to be a -3/-3, but that would probably warrant it being a sorcery. however it's plenty easy to do some extra damage. great balance and design.

Sunrise Prophet WW
Creature - Human Cleric
Whenever Sunrise Prophet comes into play, name a creature card.
When the named creature card comes into play, you gain 5 life. Return Sunrise Prophet to owner’s hand.
1/1

Sunrise Prophet - Interesting card, certainly makes lifegain something to be feared. It also inherently has a 2 card combo with other Sunrise Prophets, if you have a second one in your hand Sunrise Prophet has "WW: Gain 5 life" by naming itself. Perhaps a bit on the strong side. That could be fixed easily, though, by not allowing it to name itself, then it would work great as recurring 5 life if you pay WW premptively.

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Expansive Search - GU
Instant [c]

Reveal cards off the top of your library until you reveal a non-land card. Put those cards into your hand.

Expansive search: I feel like it could end up causing you to draw a LOT. Like, a scary lot. I feel like it could be a little too powerful of a card draw. Maybe reveal the top 4 or 5 and put all non-land cards into your hand. Otherwise, it could draw 10 cards and up.

Revnard, the Berserker 3RW
Legendary Creature - Human Warrior
Haste
Whenever Revnard, the Berserker is dealt damage, prevent that damage and put that many +1/-1 counters on it instead.
Whenever Revnard, the Berserker has a power of 3 or greater, it gains vigilance.
Whenever Revnard, the Berserker has a power of 6 or greater, it gains first strike.
1/7

Looks good. I certainly don't see anything wrong with it. Only change I can suggest is change of wording from 'Whenever' to 'If'. And perhaps also "as long as" instead of "Whenever ~ has..."


Love your monocolors.

Steal Vitality XBB
Instant
Target creature gets -X/-X until end of turn. If you spent only B on Steal Vitality, you gain X life.
"I love to watch others suffer, especially when I am laughing."
- Daga, Vitakleptist

I wonder if I should change that B into black mana, but nevertheless, you get the idea: This is a creature kill, first and foremost, but if you play monoblack, it also doubles up as a life gain spell too. What say you?

Personally, life gain is mostly white, so its either WB or "If X was paid with only white mana, you gain that much life". Then again look at Absorb Vis It goes fine with me then. Not much problem.

Dredge Cannon 5
Artifact
BBB,T Sacrifice a creature you control, deal X damage to target creature or planeswalker where X is the combined power and toughness of the sacrificed creature.

Quote from RukarumelFieldJournal

Dredge Cannon 5
Artifact
BBB,T Sacrifice a creature you control, deal X damage to target creature or planeswalker where X is the combined power and toughness of the sacrificed creature.

Usually you won't find a word that's already a mechanic in the name of a card that doesn't have it, but that is a minor concern.
If you compare Dredge Cannon with Fodder Cannon, in the second case a token is enough to deal 4 damage, whereas your card, to deal as much, requires the sacrifice of a good creature. You can't lower much the cost without making it broken in Limited, but with the colored artifacts technology that's all over the place these days, I'd make it cost 2BB and make its activation cost 2B, a sort of homage to Scepter of Fugue.

Tomb of a Thousand Heroes
Legendary Land [ Mythic ]
:symtap:: Add 1 to your mana pool.
Players can't play legendary spells.

Quote from magac

Looks good. I certainly don't see anything wrong with it. Only change I can suggest is change of wording from 'Whenever' to 'If'. And perhaps also "as long as" instead of "Whenever ~ has..."


Love your monocolors.

Steal Vitality XBB
Instant
Target creature gets -X/-X until end of turn. If you spent only B to play Steal Vitality, you gain X life.
"I love to watch others suffer, especially when I am laughing."
- Daga, Vitakleptist

I wonder if I should change that B into black mana, but nevertheless, you get the idea: This is a creature kill, first and foremost, but if you play monoblack, it also doubles up as a life gain spell too. What say you?

I actually like this card as is. I don't think white is necessary because it functions as an indestructible killing drain life/death grasp and I think that's fine (And a better way to word things honestly.)

Drain life is great but the whole you may only spend B on X is clunky. I think it's much more elegant and provides deeper design space if you let people use other colors of mana but reward the specific use of a certain color over the others.

I'm not sure what to make of this:

Tomb of a Thousand Heroes
Legendary Land [ Mythic ]
:symtap:: Add to your mana pool.
Players can't play legendary spells.

I mean it's very narrow and doesn't affect planeswalkers but hoses most of Kamigawa block lol. There's no real drawback so it feels like it should actually cost something. I wish I had better feedback for you. It seems too cheap but at the same time too narrow.

Inspired by...me from another thread.

Faith and Science - UW
Instant - Common
Choose two - Prevent the next 3 damage that would be dealt to target creature or player this turn; or target player gains 3 life; or target player draws a card.

And I'm sure that's been done before and riffed from salve and cantrip but I like the idea of choosing two when there's only three choices.

Faith and Science seems fine. Simple enough choices for common. At worst it cantrips and gains some life, at best it could be card advantage. I can't help feeling it's more white than blue, maybe make one of the options a "hybrid" ability, so the card is evenly coloured?

I'm just going to lash out. Sick of the boring stuff. (I'm also not 100% on the rules in this area, so it might not work at all)

Paragon of Impermanence
Artifact Creature - Angel (mr)
Flying
If a player would win the game, that player loses the game instead.
4/4

Paragon of Impermanence is a nice foil for Platinum Angel. Very goofy.

Vision of Strength 8UU
Affinity for cards in hand. (This card costs 1 less to play for each other card in your hand.)
5/6

Basically a four mana 5/6 for aggressive Control decks. Good against weenies and Red decks, both of which I'd expect blue control decks to be a little weak against.

Vision of Strength -- An instant with power and toughness? Who ever heard of such a thing.

Oh; it's an enchantment. Er -- a Planeswalker. Uh -- what type is it?

Your reminder text is wrong; by the time its costs are being determined, it's on the stack, not in your hand. Otherwise, uh, it's nice.

.

Bokorran Retch -- BB
Sorcery
Target player discards a card. Then he or she chooses a card in his or her graveyard with the same card type as that card and removes it from the game.
The ghouls of the barrows spill the stomachs upon the graves of the recently-fallen. The witches of Bokorra read these for signs of the future.

Seems decent. I think even a 1B should be still fair enough, but 1cc is most likely out of the question.


After you hear a Hideous Laughter, you will hear a

Deafening Silence 2B
Enchantment
At the beginning of each player's upkeep, target creature gets -1/-1 for each player who didn't play a spell last turn.
Nothing is worse than anything else.

So, the turn after you play this, most likely your victim will only take -1/-1 at most, unless your opponent also plays spells on the turn you play it. On the next turns, however, you can start reliably killing weenies by withholding cards as long as you see fit. Too cheap for a very repeatable kill effect?

Very interesting concept. I didn't get it at first, but now I understand the idea. I don't see an issue with it: cost seems perfect, and it isn't too powerful. Nice piece for multiplayer too. Could be as big as -5/-5 if you draw and pass. Sweet.

Bran, Giant King 3RRG
Legendary Creature - Dwarf Warrior
First Strike, Trample
Bran, Giant King does not untap during it's controller's untap step.
RRGG: Untap Bran, the Giant King
8/5

Ooh, nice. A bit costly, and trample in red-white is confusing (maybe lifelink, or change to red-green), but I like it.

Mythic Rare:
Azurae, Canopy Haven
Legendary Land - Forest
When this land comes into play, pay GGG or return it to your hand.
- ,T: Reveal a nonland card from your hand. Add X G to your mana pool, where X is that card's converted mana cost.
- All creatures you control get +1/+1 for each mana in you mana pool.

Instead of 'When', use 'As'. When a triggered ability is on the stack, you can still play mana abilities, and thus you can drop this, put the trigger on stack, make lots of mana, then bounce this back into your hand for your next shenanigans. Also, the mana ability needs to have higher mana cost, probably 2 bar minimum, but could be higher too, like discarding the card instead of merely revealing it. See Cabal Coffers to make up your mind for it. As for the last ability, drop it. +10/+10 to all your creatures, even if it's just in one combat, is just unbelievably insane.


Instant win, no, lose in black

Crucial Infiltration 3BB
Enchantment
Whenever one or more creatures you control attack, if defending player controls seven or more creatures and all of those creatures are tapped, that player loses the game.
"Only a fool would trust mortals to protect his throne."
- Havett, Onyx Moon Nightwarden

So yeah, to 'kill' an opponent, that opponent must have too many unreliable creatures under his control. I myself love the flavor, but what say you about the overall card?

the flavor is nice, although i feel that maybe you should add one B to the card's mana cost. The only problem I see with it is that I feel that the flavor text is somewhat not connected to the overall flavor of the card. by saying "mortals", the first thing that comes into mind are weak creatures and not tapped creatures. other than that, the card is good.

Merrow Perimeter Guard 2(U/B)(U/B)
Creature - Merfolk Soldier
Defender, Wither
3/7

how 'bout this?

Merrow Perimeter Guard- Solid, but I think it might have too much in the way of toughness. I would make it a 3/5, but it might just as well be fine the way it is.

Sweetblossom- This would see ruinous amounts of play, since it triggers off itself. Drawing 6+ damage a turn in a high-land count Seismic Assault deck? Yes please. Don't even get me started on having more than one of these in play. This needs to cost like 2GG or 3GG easy.

Dreamer's Eye
1U
Instant
Reveal the top four cards of your library. Target opponent separates them into two equal piles. Choose one of those piles and put those cards into your graveyard. Then choose one of the other cards revealed this way and put it into your hand. Put all other cards revealed this way on the bottom of your library.

The strange wording comes from the slight chance your library has less than four cards in it. "all other cards revealed this way" will never be more than one, but could theoretically end up being zero.

Quote from ZanGerai

Merrow Perimeter Guard- Solid, but I think it might have too much in the way of toughness. I would make it a 3/5, but it might just as well be fine the way it is.

Sweetblossom- This would see ruinous amounts of play, since it triggers off itself. Drawing 6+ damage a turn in a high-land count Seismic Assault deck? Yes please. Don't even get me started on having more than one of these in play. This needs to cost like 2GG or 3GG easy.

It does cost 4, Primitive Etchings is similar but far worse and costs 4 so I'd say it needs to cost a lot more or be nerfed.

Namu don't forget the rules of the thread: number one is comment on the card posted before you post your own card for critique.

Dreamer's Eye
1U
Instant
Reveal the top four cards of your library. Target opponent separates them into two equal piles. Choose one of those piles and put those cards into your graveyard. Then choose one of the other cards revealed this way and put it into your hand. Put all other cards revealed this way on the bottom of your library.

These cards always confuse me. Ok so you get 4 cards. The opponent separates them into two piles (2 and 2). You've said equal piles so 3 cards doesn't really work without reminder text. You choose the pile to put in your graveyard basically and you get your best card of the four no matter what. But essentially the difference from a regular Impulse is that .... some of the cards go to your yard and one goes to your library and one goes in your hand.... I'm confused then why this is better than Impulse or different enough to warrant its own card (unless your goal was to fill your graveyard?)

It feels like the opponent really has no point in the equation. So I guess the question is why mention him at all?

Look at the top four cards of your library. Put on on the bottom of your library, one into your hand and the rest into your graveyard.

Seems cleaner to me.

Ok next:

Storm Geiser - 3R
Sorcery
Reveal cards from the top of your library until you reveal a nonland card. Add x to your mana pool where X is equal to that card's converted manacost. Then shuffle your library.

BTW Magac: I love the concept of Deafening Silence. "If you don't play a spell then there's no sound and THAT's going to drive you insane." I'd like to see a ...is it called vertical?....cycle of those cards with that one being at uncommon a discard version at rare and a graveyard removal one at common. (The common one would be really cheap I think) Blue really hates the discard one but it'd be so effective. Play spells but you're still going to have to discard (and in that case it'd probably have to be both players). You could even make another uncommon life drain one. At the beginning of each player's upkeep target player loses one life and you gain one life for each player that didn't play a spell in the previous turn.

Storm Geyser -- Seems fair, since having high-cmc cards is ultimately self-limiting, and your down four mana for having played the Geyser. Might even be able to make this one cheaper (or have a secondary effect) and get away with it.

.

Goroggan Dam -- 3
Artifact
Whenever a land is tapped for mana, put a dam counter on it.
Lands with dam counters lose all abilities and have ":symtap:: Remove a dam counter from this land."
Skerrigan threw a stone across the water. Soon the stone would grow large, and stop the entire river.

Quote from Le Chat

Storm Geyser -- Seems fair, since having high-cmc cards is ultimately self-limiting, and your down four mana for having played the Geyser. Might even be able to make this one cheaper (or have a secondary effect) and get away with it.

True. Might be better at 2R but I don't want it to be too good. In the right deck it can add an eff-ton of mana to your pool (Greater gargadon seems about right) I might make it cheaper and add an "If it's red" clause so that you only play it in red decks without artifacts (thus you'd have to spend the mana on something other than colorless spells unless you have a Reaper King in your hand and one on top of your deck hehe.)

.

Goroggan Dam -- 3
Artifact
Whenever a land is tapped for mana, put a dam counter on it.
Lands with dam counters lose all abilities and have ":symtap:: Remove a dam counter from this land."
Skerrigan threw a stone across the water. Soon the stone would grow large, and stop the entire river.

Hm. Interesting. It basically says whenever a player taps a land for mana that player can't untap that land during their next turn. ... but it also says "I probably win" with things that raise activated costs or prevent activated abilities that aren't mana abilities. Monogreen deck with some activated ability hate either in artifact or support from a splash of white means you can wreck your opponent. (Especially with some karoos)

Very Controlly.

Barzan Metalworker - 3
Artifact Creature - Gnome Artificer
,t, Discard an Artifact card: Remove target creature from the game. If it doesn't have Shimmer it gains Shimmer - 3
,t, Discard an artifact card: Choose one - Add one mana of any color to your mana pool; or Add 2 to your mana pool.
1/2

Shimmer is an ability that we're using in the Enemy Shards custom threads (but it may exist in the abilities database thread)

Basically:

Shimmer - X (You may play this card for its shimmer cost if it's removed from the game)

Recurring Illusion <-> Undiscovered Paradise... I guess it's pretty balanced. Lands aren't easy for me to judge, but it seems fine.

Next:

Depth Digger 1B
Creature - Merfolk Wizard
At the beginning of your upkeep, you may pay 2 life. If you do, look at the top card of your library. You may remove that card from the game. If you do, you may repeat this process.
2/1

Quote from Illuminations

Recurring Illusion <-> Undiscovered Paradise... I guess it's pretty balanced. Lands aren't easy for me to judge, but it seems fine.

Next:

Depth Digger 1B
Creature - Merfolk Wizard
At the beginning of your upkeep, you may pay 2 life. If you do, look at the top card of your library. You may remove that card from the game. If you do, you may repeat this process.
2/1

I'm guessing this is an uncommon or a bad rare? No real card advantage and not better than Sensei's Divining top or Dark Confidant. The life investment should be lower if you're trying to make it pretty powerful but otherwise this guy is barely limited fodder I believe. Even so, it's a decent filler card in a set and could see print as is.

Fill in the Blanks - WU
Artifact
Cards that aren't in play, and have an X in their costs gain "You may not spend mana to pay for X. Instead, discard a card with a converted manacost of X."


Hrm.... Does that even work? Not sure. Maybe it should be "Cards with X in their costs that aren't in play have Instant Offering (You may play this card any time you could play an instant by discarding an Instant card in your hand and paying the difference in manacosts)

Not sure how to word it ":(

Quote from keeperofzion24

by saying "mortals", the first thing that comes into mind are weak creatures and not tapped creatures. other than that, the card is good.

My reasoning on putting 'mortals' there is because living creatures need sleep. Thus, Havett mocks those people who protects themselves with other people, for those protecting people may not always keep their guard up at all times. Compare spirits of the dead, gargoyles, or moats


As for your artifact, blue, the wording probably can be this: "Players may not spend mana on X to play spells with X in their mana cost. Rather than mana, players may discard a card to spend on X to play spells with X in their mana cost, X becomes the discarded card's converted mana cost". Interesting effect, but despite the symmetry, I suggest that it is nerfed in one or more ways, for example increased cost, or one spell per turn. Imagine discarding a card to play Mind Spring, or heck, Banefire...... Speaking of those X burn spells, this card really can get busted by them....


Anyway, continuing my black streak, here's an old card which I decide to fix a bit:

Onyx Moon Dragon 3BBB
Creature - Dragon
Flying
Creatures you control have "T: Target nonartifact, nonblack creature gets -1/-1 until end of turn."
4/4

Back then, my Onyx Moon Dragon grants -1/-0 effect instead, which I eventually consider too weak. Thus now I put -1/-1 instead, but when you compare this to my other card, Ruby Star Dragon, you'll see that Ruby's 1 damage effect is obviously inferior to Onyx's -1/-1, thus Onyx gets an addional Terror-like restriction. What do you think?

I kinda have a dragon fetish, and he just made me very happy. Seems nice and balanced. Makes everything into a nice piece of removal. I like very much. And now, for something a little mythological. Norse, to be exact.

Fafnir, Dwarven Prince 1BBR
Legendary Creature - Dwarf
Whenever an opponent loses an amount of life, put that many greed counters on Fafnir, Dwarven Prince. When Fafnir, Dwarven Prince has 5 or more greed counters on it, flip it.
2/2

Fafnir, Dragon Guardian
Legendary Creature - Dragon
Flying, Double Strike
4/4

Fafnir -- Well, ki counters would be right out of place in Scandinavia. That being said, it's not a terrible difficult condition to meet (for either black or red alone, yet alone both together); one creature or burn spell could get him to flip the turn he enters play. And a 4/4 double striking dragon for 1BBR is slightly broken. Since "vanilla" + "french vanilla" = "kinda boring, even on a flip card," Le Chat suggests thinking of something more unique for the dragon side.

.

But, in a like frame of mind,

Orlod's Kaleidobolt -- 3R
Sorcery
When you play Orlod's Kaleidobolt, if you spent more than two colors of mana to play it, flip it.
Orlod's Kaleidobolt deals three damage to target creature.
< - - - - - >
Orlod's Kaleidobolt
Sorcery
Orlod's Kaleidobolt deals three damage to each creature that shares a color with the mana spent to play Orlod's Kaleidobolt.