These designs are first drafts. They are designed half top-down, half bottom-up. Each of these legendary creatures is supposed to represent one of the rising heroes protagonists of the reborn clans during their struggle against the Dragonlords. Each clan will receive a second legendary creature showing another aspect of th clan, but these five are supposed to show a strong rejection of the values of the Broods - so strong in fact that they no longer feature the former main color of the Clans/Broods.
The idea is about re-inventing the clan with a new focus on the lone enemy color without severing the bond to the not present third color of the clan; after the initial rejection the clans will return to wedge status - though with a new outlook.
Being two-colored these clan legendaries also are able to fit well with other clans - important since the war Dragonlords versus Clans wil force the people to cooperate.
Gvar Barzeel, Horde General
Legendary Creature - Orc Soldier (M)
Whenever ~ attacks, put a 1/1 white Soldier creature token onto the battlefield tapped and attacking [for each attacking nontoken creature].
, Sacrifice an attacking creature: Target blocking creature gets -1/-1 until end of turn.
2/4
Arel, Unseen Whisperer
Legendary Creature - Human Shaman (M)
Whenever you cast a spell, you may scry 1.
, Exile a card at random from your hand until end of turn: If the exiled card is a creature card, target creature gets +X/+0 for as long as it remains exiled, where X is the exiled card's power.
2/3
Difor, Secret Treewarden
Legendary Creature - Hound Soldier (M)
Trample, deathtouch
: Remove all counters from ~, then put a number of +1/+1 counters equal to the number of creature cards in your graveyard on ~.
3/2
Zhiada, Bloodfire Initiate
Legendary Creature - Human Warrior (M)
Whenever you cast a creature spell, target creature you control gains double strike until end of turn.
: Creatures you control get +1/+0 until end of turn.
3/3
Asazu, Bayou Druid
Legendary Creature - Naga Druid (M)
Whenever you play a land, you may untap a permanent you control.
, Exile two cards that share a type from an opponent's graveyard: Put two +1/+1 counters on ~.
2/3
Some of the names are purposefully taken from the PLaneswalker's Guides, while others are new. There would be a second cycle featuring quite obvious plants from the Guides for the uprising that did not fit the tight constraints of this cycle (e. g. Commander Faiso).
All of these are contenders for the position of Khan if the uprising succeeds and the clans are not soon-forgotten, but certainly not all will achieve that state.
So the idea is to drop the central color of the clan? That seems to confuse the identity somehow; it would make more sense to drop the color that the main color is allied with so you have red-white Mardu versus black-red Kolaghan, for example. Mardu and Kolaghan agree that speed is paramount and that waging constant battle is best in life, after all.
You actually have red-white-black Mardu vs. black-red Kolaghan. Nothing about the overall colors changes. It is just that not all Mardu legendary creatures are three-colored e. g. this cycle.
All Clans shift their new central color to the color that is not present in the corresponding Dragon Brood (signifying their rejection of the Brood). It's not the clan that drops the former main color, it is just the members of this cycle - there can and might be another counterclockwise cycle of legendary creatures (which I hinted at with the missing characters).
If you want to, you can consider them the Ajani Vengeant to Naya or the Jhessian Infiltrator to Bant - these are outliers and extremes by the old standards of the clan. The cards do not change the three-color allegiance of the overall shard - they just expore a different subspace within the concept.
Private Mod Note
():
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Planar Chaos was not a mistake neither was it random. You might want to look at it again.
[thread=239793][Game] Level Up - Creature[/thread]
I've been working on a couple enemy-color Tarkir legend cycles myself, one of which uses the very concept presented in the OP. I dub my legends the "Outcasts of Tarkir"; both cycles represent legends that either a) still embraced the core value of their brood but deviated in a way that eventually outed them as heretics; or b) willingly forswore their Brood and its central color and philosophy, instead turning to the enemy color of that Brood. I call the two cycles "Heretics" and "Defectors" respectively. Collectively, they would be considered the ten primary protagonists of a Tarkir return block, which could very well be named after the protagonists. Mechanically, each is designed to play nicely with an enemy-color theme from either KTK block or "OoT" block.
The Heretics embrace their Brood's central philosophy and color, but deviate from the orthodox by eschewing the ally color for the long-absent enemy color. Most of them attempt to keep this hidden from the Brood at large for fear of persecution, though inevitably each of them is discovered and driven out by threats of death. Because these characters have more conflicted loyalties, each of them gets a modal ability with an associated name similar to the Siege cycle from Fate Reforged.
NAME, Enduring Guardian2WB
Legendary Creature - Human Warrior
Whenever a creature you control with a +1/+1 counter on it dies, choose Reverence or Survival.
Reverence - Exile that creature, then put a +1/+1 counter on each creature you control.
Survival - Return that creature to the battlefield under its owner's control.
2/4
The Enduring Guardian is one of many Dromoka heretics secretly upholding the Kin-Tree traditions.
NAME, Cunning Trickster1UR
Legendary Creature - Djinn Wizard
Whenever a player casts an instant or sorcery spell with a single target, you may pay UR and discard a card. If you do, choose Reflection or Misdirection.
Reflection - Copy that spell. You may choose new targets for the copy.
Misdirection - Choose a new target for that spell.
2/3
This legend follows the way of the Trickster as some Jeskai of old used to, which doesn't sit well with Ojutai's more serious and dignified approach to enlightenment.
NAME, Ruthless Hunter2BG
Legendary Creature - Naga Warrior BG, Sacrifice another creature: Choose Dead or Alive.
Dead - Target opponent sacrifices a creature.
Alive - Reveal cards from the top of your library until you reveal a creature card. Put that card into your hand and the rest on the bottom of your library in a random order.
2/4
I have two possible backstory ideas for this character: Either a Naga who practices more "primitive" forms of ruthlessness like hunting and trapping, or an Ainok who was taken as a slave by the Silumgar years ago and escaped, using her instincts to survive in the harsh environment of the Gurmag.
NAME, Lightning Rider2RW
Legendary Creature - Orc Warrior
Whenever ~ attacks, choose Glory or Survival.
Glory - Until end of turn, attacking creatures gain trample.
Survival - Until end of turn, attacking creatures gain lifelink.
3/3
Despite associations with Kolaghan, this is actually meant to be one of the more heroic Outcasts of Tarkir, an Orc commander who puts focus on the welfare of the team as opposed to mindless slaughter, and ends up the leader of a ragtag band of former Kolaghan soldiers who remained loyal to him even as the dragons drove him away. His companions include a female Orc Shaman who has saved her comrades more than once with her magic, a pair of Human siblings, one male and one female, and a trio of Goblin brothers.
NAME, Tracker of the Savage3GU
Legendary Creature - Human Scout
Whenever another creature enters the battlefield under your control, choose Instinct or Intellect.
Instinct - Reveal the top X cards of your library, where X is that creature's power. You may put a creature or land card revealed this way into your hand, then put the rest into your graveyard.
Intellect - Scry X, where X is that creature's power.
2/4
This is one of the hidden Shamans spoken of in the Planeswalker's Guide to Tarkir Part 2, who serve as Scouts for Atarka and secretly use their shamanic abilities to augment their tracking skills.
Unlike the Heretics, the Defectors willingly rebel against the Dragons, and are more actively opposed to them. Whereas the Heretics retained the color of the Brood but swap the ally color for the enemy color, the Defectors instead abandon the central color of their former Brood in favor of the enemy color, possibly influenced by the Clan centered in the enemy color. The Defectors are designed so that they don't necessarily play into the Brood's strategies, but still play well with the enemy color archetypes from KTK block as well as the old Clan mechanics. Their abilities are meant to enable them to fight Dragons, for each Defector eventually attempts to slay the Dragonlord of the forsaken Brood.
Krumar, Forsaken Survivor3WB
Legendary Creature - Orc Warrior
Whenever you gain life, you may put that many +1/+1 counters on ~.
At the beginning of your end step, you may move any number of +1/+1 counters from ~ onto other creatures.
3/3
When this Orc was still Kolaghan, he was wounded during a raid on Dromoka territory and left to die, only to be saved by a band of outcast survivors living on the border between Dromoka and Kolaghan territories. Krumar's name was inspired by the all-but-forgotten Abzan tradition of taking in the orphaned children of slain enemies, and now values loyalty above all else. Krumar's abilities each are inspired by flavor: The lifegain trigger represents successful acquisition of food and other supplies, while the counter distribution rewards creatures who stick around (as opposed to, say, Kolaghan's Dashers). And yes, Ageless Entity and Forgotten Ancient were inspirations for Krumar's abilities.
NAME, Defiant Elementalist2UR
Legendary Creature - Human Shaman
Elemental creatures you control get +1/+1 and have haste. 1UR, : Put onto the battlefield a token that's a copy of another target creature, except it's an Elemental in addition to its other types. Exile that token at the beginning of the next end step.
2/3
This Shaman is sick of living in secrecy for fear of being devoured by Atarka and her "flying lizards", and conjures Elementals able to match and even exceed Dragons in battle. While red cloning effects usually grant haste to copy tokens themselves, in this case making the haste a tribal benefit also allows the Defiant Elementalist to play nicely in an Elemental tribal deck.
NAME, Ancestral Avenger1BG
Legendary Creature - Human Avatar
~ gets +2/+2 for each creature card you own in exile. 2BG, Exile a creature card from your graveyard: You gain life equal to the exiled card's toughness.
2/2
This Human sought to avenge the persecuted ancestors of their people, the Abzan, and allowed the spirits of those ancestors to possess their body, granting the resulting Avatar immense strength. The activated ability references both the spiritual possession and BG's toughness theme, while the +2/+2 ability works off both the exile ability and mechanics like Delve and Scavenge.
NAME, the Wayward Blaze1RW
Legendary Creature - Human Monk
Whenever you cast a noncreature spell, choose one -
~ deals 2 damage to target creature or player.
Prevent the next 2 damage that would be dealt to target creature or player this turn. If damage is prevented this way, you gain that much life.
2/3
This martial artist wields Bloodfire and Soulfire in equal amounts to bring justice to Tarkir, forgoing subtle cunning in favor of speed and ferocity. Subsequently, this fiery monk has been branded a major threat by the Ojutai, and is viewed and hunted as a Dragon slayer like those Jeskai once employed. The concept is based on characters like Son Goku and Ryu, with the first ability reresenting fireballs like commonly seen in video games and more fantastical martial arts stories, while the second ability started as a lifegain effect flavored as meditation and transformed into something similar to Hallow. I'm uncertain about using a modal ability on a Defector seeing as the Heretics already have modal abilities as their current shtick. The original design would basically have added a Lightning Helix effect onto every noncreature spell.
NAME, Elusive Sage2GU
Legendary Creature - Naga Shaman
Hexproof
Face-down creatures you control have hexproof. 3: Turn target creature you control face down.
1/4
This Naga rejected the corrupt and decadent lifestyle of the Silumgar, hiding out in the Sagu as a hermit who values wisdom. The Sage Ascetic would be the one to ultimately pull the Outcasts together, providing them with knowledge of the circumstances surrounding Sarkhan's travel through time and the resulting dominion of the Dragons.
I'm debating though whether the Heretics wouldn't instead be monocolor legends with hybrid off-color abilities much like the FRF Khans, but I wanted the symmetry of an enemy-color legend for each wedge that would include that pair. Given their more moderate philosophies, I'd also considered making it so the Heretics end up becoming Dragons themselves, now Wedge-colored.
MTGS Wikia Article about "New World Order"
Every time I read a comment about "Well if this card had card draw/trample/haste/indestructible/hexproof/life gain...", I think "You're missing the point." They're armchair developer comments that fail to take into account the card's role in the greater Limited and Standard environment. No, it may not be as good as whatever card you're comparing it to. There's a reason for that. Not every burn spell is Lightning Bolt, nor does it need to be or should be.
PSA to everyone who keeps forgetting about the Reserved List:
You're on a website dedicated to talking about MtG. You're only a few keystrokes away from finding out what cards are on the Reserved List. You're also only a few keystrokes away from finding out why some cards on the Reserved List got foil printings in FtV, as Judge promos, or whatnot, as well as why that won't happen again. Stop doing this.
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heroesprotagonists of the reborn clans during their struggle against the Dragonlords. Each clan will receive a second legendary creature showing another aspect of th clan, but these five are supposed to show a strong rejection of the values of the Broods - so strong in fact that they no longer feature the former main color of the Clans/Broods.The idea is about re-inventing the clan with a new focus on the lone enemy color without severing the bond to the not present third color of the clan; after the initial rejection the clans will return to wedge status - though with a new outlook.
Being two-colored these clan legendaries also are able to fit well with other clans - important since the war Dragonlords versus Clans wil force the people to cooperate.
Legendary Creature - Orc Soldier (M)
Whenever ~ attacks, put a 1/1 white Soldier creature token onto the battlefield tapped and attacking [for each attacking nontoken creature].
, Sacrifice an attacking creature: Target blocking creature gets -1/-1 until end of turn.
2/4
Legendary Creature - Human Shaman (M)
Whenever you cast a spell, you may scry 1.
, Exile a card at random from your hand until end of turn: If the exiled card is a creature card, target creature gets +X/+0 for as long as it remains exiled, where X is the exiled card's power.
2/3
Legendary Creature - Hound Soldier (M)
Trample, deathtouch
: Remove all counters from ~, then put a number of +1/+1 counters equal to the number of creature cards in your graveyard on ~.
3/2
Legendary Creature - Human Warrior (M)
Whenever you cast a creature spell, target creature you control gains double strike until end of turn.
: Creatures you control get +1/+0 until end of turn.
3/3
Legendary Creature - Naga Druid (M)
Whenever you play a land, you may untap a permanent you control.
, Exile two cards that share a type from an opponent's graveyard: Put two +1/+1 counters on ~.
2/3
Some of the names are purposefully taken from the PLaneswalker's Guides, while others are new. There would be a second cycle featuring quite obvious plants from the Guides for the uprising that did not fit the tight constraints of this cycle (e. g. Commander Faiso).
All of these are contenders for the position of Khan if the uprising succeeds and the clans are not soon-forgotten, but certainly not all will achieve that state.
Post inspired by the discussion in Blood & Fire.
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
I̟̥͍̠ͅn̩͉̣͍̬͚ͅ ̬̬͖t̯̹̞̺͖͓̯̤h̘͍̬e͙̯͈̖̼̮ ̭̬f̺̲̲̪i͙͉̟̩̰r̪̝͚͈̝̥͍̝̲s̼̻͇̘̳͔ͅt̲̺̳̗̜̪̙ ̳̺̥̻͚̗ͅm̜̜̟̰͈͓͎͇o̝̖̮̝͇m̯̻̞̼̫̗͓̤e̩̯̬̮̩n͎̱̪̲̹͖t͇̖s̰̮ͅ,̤̲͙̻̭̻̯̹̰ ̖t̫̙̺̯͖͚̯ͅh͙̯̦̳̗̰̟e͖̪͉̼̯ ̪͕g̞̣͔a̗̦t̬̬͓͙̫̖̭̻e̩̻̯ ̜̖̦̖̤̭͙̬t̞̹̥̪͎͉ͅo͕͚͍͇̲͇͓̺ ̭̬͙͈̣̻t͈͍͙͓̫̖͙̩h̪̬̖̙e̗͈ ̗̬̟̞̺̤͉̯ͅa̦̯͚̙̜̮f͉͙̲̣̞̼t̪̤̞̣͚e̲͉̳̥r͇̪̙͚͓l̥̞̞͎̹̯̹ͅi͓̬f̮̥̬̞͈ͅe͎ ̟̩̤̳̠̯̩̯o̮̘̲p̟͚̣̞͉͓e͍̩̣n͔̼͕͚̜e̬̱d̼̘͎̖̹͍̮̠,͖̺̭̱̮ ̣̲͖̬̪̭̥a̪͚n̟̲̝̤̤̞̗d̘̱̗͇̮͕̳͕͔ ͖̞͉͎t̹̙͎h̰̱͉̗e̪̞̱̝̹̩ͅ ̠̱̩̭̦p̯̙e͓o̳͚̰̯̺̱̰͔̘p̬͎̱̣̼̩͇l̗̟̖͚̠e̱͉͔̱̦̬̟̙ ̖͚̪͔̼̦w̺̖̤̱e͖̗̻̦͓̖̘̜r̭̥e͔̹̫̱͕̦̰͕ ̗͔̠p̠̗͍͍̱̳̠r̰͔͎̰o͉̥͓̰͚̥s̟͚̹̱͔̣t͉̙̳̖͖̪̮r̥̘̥͙̹a͉̟̫̟̳̠̟̭t͈̜̰͈͎e̞̣̭̲̬ ͚̗̯̟͙i͍͖̰̘̦͖͉ṇ̮̻̯̦̲̩͍ ̦̮͚̫̤t͉͖̫͕ͅͅh͙̮̻̘̣̮̼e͕̺ ͙l͕̠͎̰̥i̲͓͉̲g̫̳̟͈͇̖h̠̦̖t͓̯͎̗ ̳̪̘̟̙̩̦o̫̲f̙͔̰̙̠ ̹̪̗͇̯t͖̼̼͉͖̬h̹͇̩e͚̖̺̤͉̹͕̪ ͚͓̭̝̺G͎̗̯̩o̫̯̮̟̮̳̘d̜̲͙̠-̩̳̯̲̗̜P̹̘̥͉̝h͍͈̗̖̝ͅa͍̗̮̼̗r̜̖͇̙̺a̭̺͔̞̳͈o̪̣͓̯̬͙̯̰̗h̖̦͈̥̯͔.͇̣̙̝
All Clans shift their new central color to the color that is not present in the corresponding Dragon Brood (signifying their rejection of the Brood). It's not the clan that drops the former main color, it is just the members of this cycle - there can and might be another counterclockwise cycle of legendary creatures (which I hinted at with the missing characters).
If you want to, you can consider them the Ajani Vengeant to Naya or the Jhessian Infiltrator to Bant - these are outliers and extremes by the old standards of the clan. The cards do not change the three-color allegiance of the overall shard - they just expore a different subspace within the concept.
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
NAME, Enduring Guardian 2WB
Legendary Creature - Human Warrior
Whenever a creature you control with a +1/+1 counter on it dies, choose Reverence or Survival.
Reverence - Exile that creature, then put a +1/+1 counter on each creature you control.
Survival - Return that creature to the battlefield under its owner's control.
2/4
The Enduring Guardian is one of many Dromoka heretics secretly upholding the Kin-Tree traditions.
NAME, Cunning Trickster 1UR
Legendary Creature - Djinn Wizard
Whenever a player casts an instant or sorcery spell with a single target, you may pay UR and discard a card. If you do, choose Reflection or Misdirection.
Reflection - Copy that spell. You may choose new targets for the copy.
Misdirection - Choose a new target for that spell.
2/3
This legend follows the way of the Trickster as some Jeskai of old used to, which doesn't sit well with Ojutai's more serious and dignified approach to enlightenment.
NAME, Ruthless Hunter 2BG
Legendary Creature - Naga Warrior
BG, Sacrifice another creature: Choose Dead or Alive.
Dead - Target opponent sacrifices a creature.
Alive - Reveal cards from the top of your library until you reveal a creature card. Put that card into your hand and the rest on the bottom of your library in a random order.
2/4
I have two possible backstory ideas for this character: Either a Naga who practices more "primitive" forms of ruthlessness like hunting and trapping, or an Ainok who was taken as a slave by the Silumgar years ago and escaped, using her instincts to survive in the harsh environment of the Gurmag.
NAME, Lightning Rider 2RW
Legendary Creature - Orc Warrior
Whenever ~ attacks, choose Glory or Survival.
Glory - Until end of turn, attacking creatures gain trample.
Survival - Until end of turn, attacking creatures gain lifelink.
3/3
Despite associations with Kolaghan, this is actually meant to be one of the more heroic Outcasts of Tarkir, an Orc commander who puts focus on the welfare of the team as opposed to mindless slaughter, and ends up the leader of a ragtag band of former Kolaghan soldiers who remained loyal to him even as the dragons drove him away. His companions include a female Orc Shaman who has saved her comrades more than once with her magic, a pair of Human siblings, one male and one female, and a trio of Goblin brothers.
NAME, Tracker of the Savage 3GU
Legendary Creature - Human Scout
Whenever another creature enters the battlefield under your control, choose Instinct or Intellect.
Instinct - Reveal the top X cards of your library, where X is that creature's power. You may put a creature or land card revealed this way into your hand, then put the rest into your graveyard.
Intellect - Scry X, where X is that creature's power.
2/4
This is one of the hidden Shamans spoken of in the Planeswalker's Guide to Tarkir Part 2, who serve as Scouts for Atarka and secretly use their shamanic abilities to augment their tracking skills.
Krumar, Forsaken Survivor 3WB
Legendary Creature - Orc Warrior
Whenever you gain life, you may put that many +1/+1 counters on ~.
At the beginning of your end step, you may move any number of +1/+1 counters from ~ onto other creatures.
3/3
When this Orc was still Kolaghan, he was wounded during a raid on Dromoka territory and left to die, only to be saved by a band of outcast survivors living on the border between Dromoka and Kolaghan territories. Krumar's name was inspired by the all-but-forgotten Abzan tradition of taking in the orphaned children of slain enemies, and now values loyalty above all else. Krumar's abilities each are inspired by flavor: The lifegain trigger represents successful acquisition of food and other supplies, while the counter distribution rewards creatures who stick around (as opposed to, say, Kolaghan's Dashers). And yes, Ageless Entity and Forgotten Ancient were inspirations for Krumar's abilities.
NAME, Defiant Elementalist 2UR
Legendary Creature - Human Shaman
Elemental creatures you control get +1/+1 and have haste.
1UR, : Put onto the battlefield a token that's a copy of another target creature, except it's an Elemental in addition to its other types. Exile that token at the beginning of the next end step.
2/3
This Shaman is sick of living in secrecy for fear of being devoured by Atarka and her "flying lizards", and conjures Elementals able to match and even exceed Dragons in battle. While red cloning effects usually grant haste to copy tokens themselves, in this case making the haste a tribal benefit also allows the Defiant Elementalist to play nicely in an Elemental tribal deck.
NAME, Ancestral Avenger 1BG
Legendary Creature - Human Avatar
~ gets +2/+2 for each creature card you own in exile.
2BG, Exile a creature card from your graveyard: You gain life equal to the exiled card's toughness.
2/2
This Human sought to avenge the persecuted ancestors of their people, the Abzan, and allowed the spirits of those ancestors to possess their body, granting the resulting Avatar immense strength. The activated ability references both the spiritual possession and BG's toughness theme, while the +2/+2 ability works off both the exile ability and mechanics like Delve and Scavenge.
NAME, the Wayward Blaze 1RW
Legendary Creature - Human Monk
Whenever you cast a noncreature spell, choose one -
This martial artist wields Bloodfire and Soulfire in equal amounts to bring justice to Tarkir, forgoing subtle cunning in favor of speed and ferocity. Subsequently, this fiery monk has been branded a major threat by the Ojutai, and is viewed and hunted as a Dragon slayer like those Jeskai once employed. The concept is based on characters like Son Goku and Ryu, with the first ability reresenting fireballs like commonly seen in video games and more fantastical martial arts stories, while the second ability started as a lifegain effect flavored as meditation and transformed into something similar to Hallow. I'm uncertain about using a modal ability on a Defector seeing as the Heretics already have modal abilities as their current shtick. The original design would basically have added a Lightning Helix effect onto every noncreature spell.
NAME, Elusive Sage 2GU
Legendary Creature - Naga Shaman
Hexproof
Face-down creatures you control have hexproof.
3: Turn target creature you control face down.
1/4
This Naga rejected the corrupt and decadent lifestyle of the Silumgar, hiding out in the Sagu as a hermit who values wisdom. The Sage Ascetic would be the one to ultimately pull the Outcasts together, providing them with knowledge of the circumstances surrounding Sarkhan's travel through time and the resulting dominion of the Dragons.
I'm debating though whether the Heretics wouldn't instead be monocolor legends with hybrid off-color abilities much like the FRF Khans, but I wanted the symmetry of an enemy-color legend for each wedge that would include that pair. Given their more moderate philosophies, I'd also considered making it so the Heretics end up becoming Dragons themselves, now Wedge-colored.
Every time I read a comment about "Well if this card had card draw/trample/haste/indestructible/hexproof/life gain...", I think "You're missing the point." They're armchair developer comments that fail to take into account the card's role in the greater Limited and Standard environment. No, it may not be as good as whatever card you're comparing it to. There's a reason for that. Not every burn spell is Lightning Bolt, nor does it need to be or should be.