The goal of Signature Spells is to provide players with simple spells that can be cast very reliably. Ever since the printing of Planeswalker cards, I have questioned why Planeswalkers can essentially cast a spell each and every turn, but due to disproportionate mana draws, players (who also represent Planswalkers) often can't.
Signature spells essentially grant players something similar to Spellshaper status. Spellshapers were cards originally printed in Mercadian Masques, Nemesis, and Prophecy. Spellshapers had the ability, "pay mana, tap, discard a card: get spell effect". Many Spellshaper cards were solid cards for limited, but the only two I recall making it into competitive Standard decks were Waterfront Bouncer and Mageta the Lion.
Signature spells generate weak effects for their respective mana costs. But a weak effect is better than no effect, which is often the case when you are mana screwed or mana flooded. Under no circumstance should casting a signature spell feel unfair. Much of the enjoyment of games is subjective, after all.
All Signature spells have the following rules text:
Signature X (You may cast this spell from exile or from outside the game, but as an additional cost to do so, exile X cards from your hand.)
In booster draft or sealed deck, each card with Signature is paradoxically weak and probably not worth picking highly... yet objectively good enough to be cast from time to time. With a variety of Signature cards available in common slots and to a lesser extent in uncommon slots, will it become normal to play a 19-20 land deck in booster draft?
Regarding constructed formats, since these cards occupy slots in your sideboard, the big question is this: how much sideboard space should you allocate to your Signature spells?
Below, I have created 46 Signature spell cards. 36 of these would occupy common slots, and 10 would occupy uncommon slots. So that means that in a draft, each pack would have about 4 Signature cards.
FESNYG OF FERRETS
mana cost: W
Creature - Ferret 1/1
Signature 1 (You may cast this spell from exile or from outside the game, but as an additional cost to do so, exile 1 card from your hand.)
BED OF OYSTERS
mana cost: U
Creature - Oyster 1/1
Signature 1 (You may cast this spell from exile or from outside the game, but as an additional cost to do so, exile 1 card from your hand.)
INTRUSION OF COCKROACHES
mana cost: B
Creature - Insect 1/1
Signature 1 (You may cast this spell from exile or from outside the game, but as an additional cost to do so, exile 1 card from your hand.)
BARREL OF MONKEYS
mana cost: R
Creature - Monkey 1/1
Signature 1 (You may cast this spell from exile or from outside the game, but as an additional cost to do so, exile 1 card from your hand.)
MASK OF RACOONS
mana cost: G
Creature - Racoon 1/1
Signature 1 (You may cast this spell from exile or from outside the game, but as an additional cost to do so, exile 1 card from your hand.)
MUTE OF HOUNDS
mana cost: 1W
Creature - Hound 2/1
Signature 1 (You may cast this spell from exile or from outside the game, but as an additional cost to do so, exile 1 card from your hand.)
SMACK OF JELLYFISH
mana cost: 1U
Creature - JELLYFISH 2/1
Signature 1 (You may cast this spell from exile or from outside the game, but as an additional cost to do so, exile 1 card from your hand.)
PLAGUE OF LOCUSTS
mana cost: 1B
Creature - Insect 2/1
Signature 1 (You may cast this spell from exile or from outside the game, but as an additional cost to do so, exile 1 card from your hand.)
BAND OF COYOTES
mana cost: 1R
Creature - Coyote 2/1
Signature 1 (You may cast this spell from exile or from outside the game, but as an additional cost to do so, exile 1 card from your hand.)
CETE OF BADGERS
mana cost: 1G
Creature - Badger 2/1
Signature 1 (You may cast this spell from exile or from outside the game, but as an additional cost to do so, exile 1 card from your hand.)
YOKE OF OXEN
mana cost: 2W
Creature - Ox 2/2
Signature 1 (You may cast this spell from exile or from outside the game, but as an additional cost to do so, exile 1 card from your hand.)
CAST OF CRABS
mana cost: 2U
Creature - Crab 2/2
Signature 1 (You may cast this spell from exile or from outside the game, but as an additional cost to do so, exile 1 card from your hand.)
NEST OF VIPERS
mana cost: 2B
Creature - Snake 2/2
Signature 1 (You may cast this spell from exile or from outside the game, but as an additional cost to do so, exile 1 card from your hand.)
DROVE OF GOATS
mana cost: 2R
Creature - Goat 2/2
Signature 1 (You may cast this spell from exile or from outside the game, but as an additional cost to do so, exile 1 card from your hand.)
PACK OF WOLVES
mana cost: 2G
Creature - Wolf 2/2
Signature 1 (You may cast this spell from exile or from outside the game, but as an additional cost to do so, exile 1 card from your hand.)
BENALISH UNICORN
mana cost: 3W
Creature - Unicorn 2/3
Signature 1 (You may cast this spell from exile or from outside the game, but as an additional cost to do so, exile 1 card from your hand.)
TOLARIAN HOMARID
mana cost: 3U
Creature - Homarid 2/3
Signature 1 (You may cast this spell from exile or from outside the game, but as an additional cost to do so, exile 1 card from your hand.)
URBORG HORROR
mana cost: 3B
Creature - Horror 3/2
Signature 1 (You may cast this spell from exile or from outside the game, but as an additional cost to do so, exile 1 card from your hand.)
KELDON MINOTAUR
mana cost: 3R
Creature - Minotaur 3/2
Signature 1 (You may cast this spell from exile or from outside the game, but as an additional cost to do so, exile 1 card from your hand.)
YAVIMAYA YETI
mana cost: 3G
Creature - Yeti 3/3
Signature 1 (You may cast this spell from exile or from outside the game, but as an additional cost to do so, exile 1 card from your hand.)
DARU PHALANX
mana cost: 4W
Creature - Human Nomad 2/3
First strike
Signature 1 (You may cast this spell from exile or from outside the game, but as an additional cost to do so, exile 1 card from your hand.)
CEPHALID GUARDS
mana cost: 4U
Creature - Cephalid 2/3
Hexproof
Signature 1 (You may cast this spell from exile or from outside the game, but as an additional cost to do so, exile 1 card from your hand.)
APHETTO CUTTHROATS
mana cost: 4B
Creature - Human Assassin 3/2
Menace
Signature 1 (You may cast this spell from exile or from outside the game, but as an additional cost to do so, exile 1 card from your hand.)
PARDIC BERSERKERS
mana cost: 4R
Creature - Human Barbarian 3/2
Haste
Signature 1 (You may cast this spell from exile or from outside the game, but as an additional cost to do so, exile 1 card from your hand.)
KROSAN CENTAURS
mana cost: 4G
Creature - Centaur Warrior 3/3
Trample
Signature 1 (You may cast this spell from exile or from outside the game, but as an additional cost to do so, exile 1 card from your hand.)
EPITOME OF CONVICTION (uncommon)
mana cost: 4WW
Creature - Incarnation 4/4
Vigilance
At the beginning of your upkeep, gain 2 life.
Signature 2 (You may cast this spell from exile or from outside the game, but as an additional cost to do so, exile 2 cards from your hand.)
EPITOME OF ACUITY (uncommon)
mana cost: 4UU
Creature - Incarnation 4/4
Hexproof
At the beginning of your upkeep, scry 2.
Signature 2 (You may cast this spell from exile or from outside the game, but as an additional cost to do so, exile 2 cards from your hand.)
EPITOME OF DEPRAVITY (uncommon)
mana cost: 4BB
Creature - Incarnation 4/4
Deathtouch
At the beginning of your upkeep, each oppoent loses gain 1 life and you gain 1 life.
Signature 2 (You may cast this spell from exile or from outside the game, but as an additional cost to do so, exile 2 cards from your hand.)
EPITOME OF MALEVOLENCE (uncommon)
mana cost: 4RR
Creature - Incarnation 4/4
Menace
At the beginning of your upkeep, this deals 1 damage to any target.
Signature 2 (You may cast this spell from exile or from outside the game, but as an additional cost to do so, exile 2 cards from your hand.)
EPITOME OF EVOLUTION (uncommon)
mana cost: 4GG
Creature - Incarnation 4/4
Trample
At the beginning of your upkeep, put a +1/+1 counter on target creature.
Signature 2 (You may cast this spell from exile or from outside the game, but as an additional cost to do so, exile 2 cards from your hand.)
REFRESH
mana cost: 1W
Instant
Gain 3 life. Exile this spell and up to one card with Signature from your graveyard as this spell resolves or is countered.
Signature 1 (You may cast this spell from exile or from outside the game, but as an additional cost to do so, exile 1 card from your hand.)
CONTEMPLATE
mana cost: 1U
Instant
Scry 2. Exile this spell and up to one card with Signature from your graveyard as this spell resolves or is countered.
Signature 1 (You may cast this spell from exile or from outside the game, but as an additional cost to do so, exile 1 card from your hand.)
DISGUST
mana cost: 1B
Instant
Up to one target creature gets -2/-1 until end of turn. Exile this spell and up to one card with Signature from your graveyard as this spell resolves or is countered.
Signature 1 (You may cast this spell from exile or from outside the game, but as an additional cost to do so, exile 1 card from your hand.)
SEETHE
mana cost: 1R
Instant
Seethe deals 2 damage to target player. Exile this spell and up to one card with Signature from your graveyard as this spell resolves or is countered.
Signature 1 (You may cast this spell from exile or from outside the game, but as an additional cost to do so, exile 1 card from your hand.)
SWELL
mana cost: 1G
Instant
Up to one target creature gets +1/+1 until end of turn. Exile this spell and up to one card with Signature from your graveyard as this spell resolves or is countered.
Signature 1 (You may cast this spell from exile or from outside the game, but as an additional cost to do so, exile 1 card from your hand.)
ABSOLVE
XWW
Instant
Destroy target enchantment with converted mana cost X.
Signature 1 (You may cast this spell from exile or from outside the game, but as an additional cost to do so, exile 1 card from your hand.)
UNCAST
XUU
Instant
Return target nonland permanent with converted mana cost X to its owner's hand.
Signature 1 (You may cast this spell from exile or from outside the game, but as an additional cost to do so, exile 1 card from your hand.)
DECAPITATE
X1BB
Instant
Destroy target creature with converted mana cost X.
Signature 1 (You may cast this spell from exile or from outside the game, but as an additional cost to do so, exile 1 card from your hand.)
WRECK
XRR
Instant
Destroy target artifact with converted mana cost X.
Signature 1 (You may cast this spell from exile or from outside the game, but as an additional cost to do so, exile 1 card from your hand.)
ENGORGE
XGG
Instant
Target creature gets +X/+X until end of turn.
Signature 1 (You may cast this spell from exile or from outside the game, but as an additional cost to do so, exile 1 card from your hand.)
SHIELD (uncommon)
2WW
Instant
Prevent all damage that would be dealt to you, creatures you control, and planswalkers you control this turn.
Signature 2 (You may cast this spell from exile or from outside the game, but as an additional cost to do so, exile 2 cards from your hand.)
TOUGUETWIST (uncommon)
2UU
Instant
Counter target spell.
Signature 2 (You may cast this spell from exile or from outside the game, but as an additional cost to do so, exile 2 cards from your hand.)
DEMENT (uncommon)
2BB
Sorcery
Target opponent discards 2 cards at random.
Signature 2 (You may cast this spell from exile or from outside the game, but as an additional cost to do so, exile 2 cards from your hand.)
CRATER (uncommon)
2RR
Sorcery
Destroy target land and deal 2 damage to that land's controller.
Signature 2 (You may cast this spell from exile or from outside the game, but as an additional cost to do so, exile 2 cards from your hand.)
BOLSTER (uncommon)
2GG
Instant
Put a +1/+1 counter on each creature you control.
Signature 2 (You may cast this spell from exile or from outside the game, but as an additional cost to do so, exile 2 cards from your hand.)
ARCANE FOCUS
3
Artifact
Hexproof, indestructible.
X: Exile up to X cards with Signature you own from any zone or combination of zones.
Signature 1 (You may cast this spell from exile or from outside the game, but as an additional cost to do so, exile 1 card from your hand.)
And now, a few cards with Signature that could work in Ixalan block. These cards cost a little more mana, but take advantage of tribal affiliations.
AZCANTA GUARD
mana cost: 1, U/G, U/G
Creature - Merfolk Warrior 2/2
Kicker 2
When this enters the battlefield, if it was kicked, put a +1/+1 counter on another target Merfolk.
DUSK LEGION INQUISITOR
mana cost: 1, W/B, W/B
Creature - Vampire Soldier 2/2
Kicker 2
When this enters the battlefield, if it was kicked, target opponent loses 1 life and you gain 1 life.
BRAZEN HOOLIGAN
mana cost: 1, U/R, B 2/2
Creature - Human Pirate
Kicker 2
When this enters the battlefield, if it was kicked, create a Treasure token.
SUN WARRIOR
mana cost: 1, W/R, G
Creature - Human Warrior 2/2
Kicker 2
When this enters the battlefield, if it was kicked, it deals 1 damage to target creature.
The solution to variance causing feel-bad moments is to print smoothing cards with mechanics like scry and cycling, not to remove variance completely and obviate deckbuilding choices.
Both primordial lands and signature would serve to disproportionately tip the balance of a metagame in favor of a single deck type, in this case control. When the control deck doesn't have to run any finishers and can just sideboard them into its hand at will, and every card can be a counter or part of the lock, then combo and aggro are both starting well behind.
I loathe the idea of a spell that you absolutely cannot stop from coming back again, especially that the sample cards cover nearly everything so that you can't even rely on any single solution. Even just the bounce spell existing is too much.
And tonguetwist. HEll no. Forbid with buyback was bad enough.
Private Mod Note
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Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
"Sometimes, the situation is outracing a threat, sometimes it's ignoring it, and sometimes it involves sideboarding in 4x Hope//Pray." --Doug Linn
I suppose I could boycott playing draft with sets that don't include mechanics such as cycling or plenty of scry cards. But that wouldn't be much fun. I think WotC needs to push the playability of cards that provide mana consistency just as hard as they have rare multi-lands like pain lands, fetch lands, and fast lands.
Perhaps the only Signature card we need is in the attached image:
Yes, Signature is quite similar to Retrace. Retrace was an excellent game mechanic that wasn't appreciated much simply because the spells with Retrace were collectively not powerful enough. Perhaps a series of new Retrace cards should be created by WotC. As for me, I've been trying to think of more balanced cards that alleviate mana flood. This Signature mechanic seems to be a dud.
Signature spells essentially grant players something similar to Spellshaper status. Spellshapers were cards originally printed in Mercadian Masques, Nemesis, and Prophecy. Spellshapers had the ability, "pay mana, tap, discard a card: get spell effect". Many Spellshaper cards were solid cards for limited, but the only two I recall making it into competitive Standard decks were Waterfront Bouncer and Mageta the Lion.
Signature spells generate weak effects for their respective mana costs. But a weak effect is better than no effect, which is often the case when you are mana screwed or mana flooded. Under no circumstance should casting a signature spell feel unfair. Much of the enjoyment of games is subjective, after all.
All Signature spells have the following rules text:
Signature X (You may cast this spell from exile or from outside the game, but as an additional cost to do so, exile X cards from your hand.)
In booster draft or sealed deck, each card with Signature is paradoxically weak and probably not worth picking highly... yet objectively good enough to be cast from time to time. With a variety of Signature cards available in common slots and to a lesser extent in uncommon slots, will it become normal to play a 19-20 land deck in booster draft?
Regarding constructed formats, since these cards occupy slots in your sideboard, the big question is this: how much sideboard space should you allocate to your Signature spells?
Below, I have created 46 Signature spell cards. 36 of these would occupy common slots, and 10 would occupy uncommon slots. So that means that in a draft, each pack would have about 4 Signature cards.
FESNYG OF FERRETS
mana cost: W
Creature - Ferret 1/1
Signature 1 (You may cast this spell from exile or from outside the game, but as an additional cost to do so, exile 1 card from your hand.)
BED OF OYSTERS
mana cost: U
Creature - Oyster 1/1
Signature 1 (You may cast this spell from exile or from outside the game, but as an additional cost to do so, exile 1 card from your hand.)
INTRUSION OF COCKROACHES
mana cost: B
Creature - Insect 1/1
Signature 1 (You may cast this spell from exile or from outside the game, but as an additional cost to do so, exile 1 card from your hand.)
BARREL OF MONKEYS
mana cost: R
Creature - Monkey 1/1
Signature 1 (You may cast this spell from exile or from outside the game, but as an additional cost to do so, exile 1 card from your hand.)
MASK OF RACOONS
mana cost: G
Creature - Racoon 1/1
Signature 1 (You may cast this spell from exile or from outside the game, but as an additional cost to do so, exile 1 card from your hand.)
MUTE OF HOUNDS
mana cost: 1W
Creature - Hound 2/1
Signature 1 (You may cast this spell from exile or from outside the game, but as an additional cost to do so, exile 1 card from your hand.)
SMACK OF JELLYFISH
mana cost: 1U
Creature - JELLYFISH 2/1
Signature 1 (You may cast this spell from exile or from outside the game, but as an additional cost to do so, exile 1 card from your hand.)
PLAGUE OF LOCUSTS
mana cost: 1B
Creature - Insect 2/1
Signature 1 (You may cast this spell from exile or from outside the game, but as an additional cost to do so, exile 1 card from your hand.)
BAND OF COYOTES
mana cost: 1R
Creature - Coyote 2/1
Signature 1 (You may cast this spell from exile or from outside the game, but as an additional cost to do so, exile 1 card from your hand.)
CETE OF BADGERS
mana cost: 1G
Creature - Badger 2/1
Signature 1 (You may cast this spell from exile or from outside the game, but as an additional cost to do so, exile 1 card from your hand.)
YOKE OF OXEN
mana cost: 2W
Creature - Ox 2/2
Signature 1 (You may cast this spell from exile or from outside the game, but as an additional cost to do so, exile 1 card from your hand.)
CAST OF CRABS
mana cost: 2U
Creature - Crab 2/2
Signature 1 (You may cast this spell from exile or from outside the game, but as an additional cost to do so, exile 1 card from your hand.)
NEST OF VIPERS
mana cost: 2B
Creature - Snake 2/2
Signature 1 (You may cast this spell from exile or from outside the game, but as an additional cost to do so, exile 1 card from your hand.)
DROVE OF GOATS
mana cost: 2R
Creature - Goat 2/2
Signature 1 (You may cast this spell from exile or from outside the game, but as an additional cost to do so, exile 1 card from your hand.)
PACK OF WOLVES
mana cost: 2G
Creature - Wolf 2/2
Signature 1 (You may cast this spell from exile or from outside the game, but as an additional cost to do so, exile 1 card from your hand.)
BENALISH UNICORN
mana cost: 3W
Creature - Unicorn 2/3
Signature 1 (You may cast this spell from exile or from outside the game, but as an additional cost to do so, exile 1 card from your hand.)
TOLARIAN HOMARID
mana cost: 3U
Creature - Homarid 2/3
Signature 1 (You may cast this spell from exile or from outside the game, but as an additional cost to do so, exile 1 card from your hand.)
URBORG HORROR
mana cost: 3B
Creature - Horror 3/2
Signature 1 (You may cast this spell from exile or from outside the game, but as an additional cost to do so, exile 1 card from your hand.)
KELDON MINOTAUR
mana cost: 3R
Creature - Minotaur 3/2
Signature 1 (You may cast this spell from exile or from outside the game, but as an additional cost to do so, exile 1 card from your hand.)
YAVIMAYA YETI
mana cost: 3G
Creature - Yeti 3/3
Signature 1 (You may cast this spell from exile or from outside the game, but as an additional cost to do so, exile 1 card from your hand.)
DARU PHALANX
mana cost: 4W
Creature - Human Nomad 2/3
First strike
Signature 1 (You may cast this spell from exile or from outside the game, but as an additional cost to do so, exile 1 card from your hand.)
CEPHALID GUARDS
mana cost: 4U
Creature - Cephalid 2/3
Hexproof
Signature 1 (You may cast this spell from exile or from outside the game, but as an additional cost to do so, exile 1 card from your hand.)
APHETTO CUTTHROATS
mana cost: 4B
Creature - Human Assassin 3/2
Menace
Signature 1 (You may cast this spell from exile or from outside the game, but as an additional cost to do so, exile 1 card from your hand.)
PARDIC BERSERKERS
mana cost: 4R
Creature - Human Barbarian 3/2
Haste
Signature 1 (You may cast this spell from exile or from outside the game, but as an additional cost to do so, exile 1 card from your hand.)
KROSAN CENTAURS
mana cost: 4G
Creature - Centaur Warrior 3/3
Trample
Signature 1 (You may cast this spell from exile or from outside the game, but as an additional cost to do so, exile 1 card from your hand.)
EPITOME OF CONVICTION (uncommon)
mana cost: 4WW
Creature - Incarnation 4/4
Vigilance
At the beginning of your upkeep, gain 2 life.
Signature 2 (You may cast this spell from exile or from outside the game, but as an additional cost to do so, exile 2 cards from your hand.)
EPITOME OF ACUITY (uncommon)
mana cost: 4UU
Creature - Incarnation 4/4
Hexproof
At the beginning of your upkeep, scry 2.
Signature 2 (You may cast this spell from exile or from outside the game, but as an additional cost to do so, exile 2 cards from your hand.)
EPITOME OF DEPRAVITY (uncommon)
mana cost: 4BB
Creature - Incarnation 4/4
Deathtouch
At the beginning of your upkeep, each oppoent loses gain 1 life and you gain 1 life.
Signature 2 (You may cast this spell from exile or from outside the game, but as an additional cost to do so, exile 2 cards from your hand.)
EPITOME OF MALEVOLENCE (uncommon)
mana cost: 4RR
Creature - Incarnation 4/4
Menace
At the beginning of your upkeep, this deals 1 damage to any target.
Signature 2 (You may cast this spell from exile or from outside the game, but as an additional cost to do so, exile 2 cards from your hand.)
EPITOME OF EVOLUTION (uncommon)
mana cost: 4GG
Creature - Incarnation 4/4
Trample
At the beginning of your upkeep, put a +1/+1 counter on target creature.
Signature 2 (You may cast this spell from exile or from outside the game, but as an additional cost to do so, exile 2 cards from your hand.)
REFRESH
mana cost: 1W
Instant
Gain 3 life. Exile this spell and up to one card with Signature from your graveyard as this spell resolves or is countered.
Signature 1 (You may cast this spell from exile or from outside the game, but as an additional cost to do so, exile 1 card from your hand.)
CONTEMPLATE
mana cost: 1U
Instant
Scry 2. Exile this spell and up to one card with Signature from your graveyard as this spell resolves or is countered.
Signature 1 (You may cast this spell from exile or from outside the game, but as an additional cost to do so, exile 1 card from your hand.)
DISGUST
mana cost: 1B
Instant
Up to one target creature gets -2/-1 until end of turn. Exile this spell and up to one card with Signature from your graveyard as this spell resolves or is countered.
Signature 1 (You may cast this spell from exile or from outside the game, but as an additional cost to do so, exile 1 card from your hand.)
SEETHE
mana cost: 1R
Instant
Seethe deals 2 damage to target player. Exile this spell and up to one card with Signature from your graveyard as this spell resolves or is countered.
Signature 1 (You may cast this spell from exile or from outside the game, but as an additional cost to do so, exile 1 card from your hand.)
SWELL
mana cost: 1G
Instant
Up to one target creature gets +1/+1 until end of turn. Exile this spell and up to one card with Signature from your graveyard as this spell resolves or is countered.
Signature 1 (You may cast this spell from exile or from outside the game, but as an additional cost to do so, exile 1 card from your hand.)
ABSOLVE
XWW
Instant
Destroy target enchantment with converted mana cost X.
Signature 1 (You may cast this spell from exile or from outside the game, but as an additional cost to do so, exile 1 card from your hand.)
UNCAST
XUU
Instant
Return target nonland permanent with converted mana cost X to its owner's hand.
Signature 1 (You may cast this spell from exile or from outside the game, but as an additional cost to do so, exile 1 card from your hand.)
DECAPITATE
X1BB
Instant
Destroy target creature with converted mana cost X.
Signature 1 (You may cast this spell from exile or from outside the game, but as an additional cost to do so, exile 1 card from your hand.)
WRECK
XRR
Instant
Destroy target artifact with converted mana cost X.
Signature 1 (You may cast this spell from exile or from outside the game, but as an additional cost to do so, exile 1 card from your hand.)
ENGORGE
XGG
Instant
Target creature gets +X/+X until end of turn.
Signature 1 (You may cast this spell from exile or from outside the game, but as an additional cost to do so, exile 1 card from your hand.)
SHIELD (uncommon)
2WW
Instant
Prevent all damage that would be dealt to you, creatures you control, and planswalkers you control this turn.
Signature 2 (You may cast this spell from exile or from outside the game, but as an additional cost to do so, exile 2 cards from your hand.)
TOUGUETWIST (uncommon)
2UU
Instant
Counter target spell.
Signature 2 (You may cast this spell from exile or from outside the game, but as an additional cost to do so, exile 2 cards from your hand.)
DEMENT (uncommon)
2BB
Sorcery
Target opponent discards 2 cards at random.
Signature 2 (You may cast this spell from exile or from outside the game, but as an additional cost to do so, exile 2 cards from your hand.)
CRATER (uncommon)
2RR
Sorcery
Destroy target land and deal 2 damage to that land's controller.
Signature 2 (You may cast this spell from exile or from outside the game, but as an additional cost to do so, exile 2 cards from your hand.)
BOLSTER (uncommon)
2GG
Instant
Put a +1/+1 counter on each creature you control.
Signature 2 (You may cast this spell from exile or from outside the game, but as an additional cost to do so, exile 2 cards from your hand.)
ARCANE FOCUS
3
Artifact
Hexproof, indestructible.
X: Exile up to X cards with Signature you own from any zone or combination of zones.
Signature 1 (You may cast this spell from exile or from outside the game, but as an additional cost to do so, exile 1 card from your hand.)
And now, a few cards with Signature that could work in Ixalan block. These cards cost a little more mana, but take advantage of tribal affiliations.
AZCANTA GUARD
mana cost: 1, U/G, U/G
Creature - Merfolk Warrior 2/2
Kicker 2
When this enters the battlefield, if it was kicked, put a +1/+1 counter on another target Merfolk.
DUSK LEGION INQUISITOR
mana cost: 1, W/B, W/B
Creature - Vampire Soldier 2/2
Kicker 2
When this enters the battlefield, if it was kicked, target opponent loses 1 life and you gain 1 life.
BRAZEN HOOLIGAN
mana cost: 1, U/R, B 2/2
Creature - Human Pirate
Kicker 2
When this enters the battlefield, if it was kicked, create a Treasure token.
SUN WARRIOR
mana cost: 1, W/R, G
Creature - Human Warrior 2/2
Kicker 2
When this enters the battlefield, if it was kicked, it deals 1 damage to target creature.
Both primordial lands and signature would serve to disproportionately tip the balance of a metagame in favor of a single deck type, in this case control. When the control deck doesn't have to run any finishers and can just sideboard them into its hand at will, and every card can be a counter or part of the lock, then combo and aggro are both starting well behind.
I̟̥͍̠ͅn̩͉̣͍̬͚ͅ ̬̬͖t̯̹̞̺͖͓̯̤h̘͍̬e͙̯͈̖̼̮ ̭̬f̺̲̲̪i͙͉̟̩̰r̪̝͚͈̝̥͍̝̲s̼̻͇̘̳͔ͅt̲̺̳̗̜̪̙ ̳̺̥̻͚̗ͅm̜̜̟̰͈͓͎͇o̝̖̮̝͇m̯̻̞̼̫̗͓̤e̩̯̬̮̩n͎̱̪̲̹͖t͇̖s̰̮ͅ,̤̲͙̻̭̻̯̹̰ ̖t̫̙̺̯͖͚̯ͅh͙̯̦̳̗̰̟e͖̪͉̼̯ ̪͕g̞̣͔a̗̦t̬̬͓͙̫̖̭̻e̩̻̯ ̜̖̦̖̤̭͙̬t̞̹̥̪͎͉ͅo͕͚͍͇̲͇͓̺ ̭̬͙͈̣̻t͈͍͙͓̫̖͙̩h̪̬̖̙e̗͈ ̗̬̟̞̺̤͉̯ͅa̦̯͚̙̜̮f͉͙̲̣̞̼t̪̤̞̣͚e̲͉̳̥r͇̪̙͚͓l̥̞̞͎̹̯̹ͅi͓̬f̮̥̬̞͈ͅe͎ ̟̩̤̳̠̯̩̯o̮̘̲p̟͚̣̞͉͓e͍̩̣n͔̼͕͚̜e̬̱d̼̘͎̖̹͍̮̠,͖̺̭̱̮ ̣̲͖̬̪̭̥a̪͚n̟̲̝̤̤̞̗d̘̱̗͇̮͕̳͕͔ ͖̞͉͎t̹̙͎h̰̱͉̗e̪̞̱̝̹̩ͅ ̠̱̩̭̦p̯̙e͓o̳͚̰̯̺̱̰͔̘p̬͎̱̣̼̩͇l̗̟̖͚̠e̱͉͔̱̦̬̟̙ ̖͚̪͔̼̦w̺̖̤̱e͖̗̻̦͓̖̘̜r̭̥e͔̹̫̱͕̦̰͕ ̗͔̠p̠̗͍͍̱̳̠r̰͔͎̰o͉̥͓̰͚̥s̟͚̹̱͔̣t͉̙̳̖͖̪̮r̥̘̥͙̹a͉̟̫̟̳̠̟̭t͈̜̰͈͎e̞̣̭̲̬ ͚̗̯̟͙i͍͖̰̘̦͖͉ṇ̮̻̯̦̲̩͍ ̦̮͚̫̤t͉͖̫͕ͅͅh͙̮̻̘̣̮̼e͕̺ ͙l͕̠͎̰̥i̲͓͉̲g̫̳̟͈͇̖h̠̦̖t͓̯͎̗ ̳̪̘̟̙̩̦o̫̲f̙͔̰̙̠ ̹̪̗͇̯t͖̼̼͉͖̬h̹͇̩e͚̖̺̤͉̹͕̪ ͚͓̭̝̺G͎̗̯̩o̫̯̮̟̮̳̘d̜̲͙̠-̩̳̯̲̗̜P̹̘̥͉̝h͍͈̗̖̝ͅa͍̗̮̼̗r̜̖͇̙̺a̭̺͔̞̳͈o̪̣͓̯̬͙̯̰̗h̖̦͈̥̯͔.͇̣̙̝
And tonguetwist. HEll no. Forbid with buyback was bad enough.
"Sometimes, the situation is outracing a threat, sometimes it's ignoring it, and sometimes it involves sideboarding in 4x Hope//Pray." --Doug Linn
Perhaps the only Signature card we need is in the attached image:
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