This cycle is part of a simple, low-powered stand-alone set. But I'm stumped for a 4U design to finish this cycle. Like the rest, it must be sorcery speed, target up to two creatures you control (in order to enable a heroic riff), and be relevant postcombat (which is the stumpy part). Any ideas? tyia
EDIT: It’s to trigger Heroic so flickering and bounce will not suffice.
Knightly Duty (Common) W
Sorcery
Untap up to two target creatures.
Kickback (If you attacked with a creature this turn, you may cast this card from your graveyard and exile it.)
Card Name (Common) 4U
Sorcery
...
Kickback (If you attacked with a creature this turn, you may cast this card from your graveyard and exile it.)
Despotic Whim (Common) 1B
Sorcery
Choose up to two target creatures you control. You may sacrifice one of them. If you do, draw two cards.
Kickback (If you attacked with a creature this turn, you may cast this card from your graveyard and exile it.)
Double Strike (Common) 3R
Sorcery
Up to two target creatures you control each deals damage equal to its power to another target creature.
Kickback (If you attacked with a creature this turn, you may cast this card from your graveyard and exile it.)
Natural Boon (Common) 2G
Sorcery
Put a +1/+1 counter on each of up to two target creatures.
Kickback (If you attacked with a creature this turn, you may cast this card from your graveyard and exile it.)
Exile up to two target creatures. At the beginning of the next end step, return them to the battlefield under their owner's control.
Removes blockers the first time and untaps your attackers the second time. Delayed flickering is a bit more white than blue but this seems like acceptable color bleed.
While there are some interesting options at uncommon and rare, the only acceptable options for such an effect at common would be flickering and bouncing. Flickering wants a cost of 3 without and extra effect and you don't really want to bounce your own stuff. I know restrictions breed creativity but you seem to have gotten into a corner. If you swap green and blues cost then you can make blue flickering at an attractive cost and simply put more counters for green.
It has occurred to me that I should have mentioned that these cards are Heroic enablers, so flickering will not suffice. My bad for not making that apparent in the op. Op updated for clarity.
Doesn't have to be a direct buff.
"Up to two target creatures gain the ability Tap: Bounce target creature"
or
"Up to two target creatures gain the ability Tap: Draw X cards where X is this creatures power until your next turn".
I was aware that this was meant as a heroic enabler (saw your other thread dealing with the black one) but I'm afraid that I don't quite understand how being a heroic enabler stops flickering. If you look back at theros, there are a whole bunch of Heroic effects that aren't just "put a +1/+1 counter on this creature".
I'm not good at the formating, but maybe something like up to two target creatures gain "when this creature deals combat damage to a player, draw a card".
I feel like a tap ability would weaken Kickback, and make players less likely to play it.
I really like this concept. I think it's going to be really though to make this work with all of your constraints - I'm not sure but it seems like you want them all to have different CMCs in addition to targeting two of your own creatures? I think it'd be easier to come up with cards that work if you pick some the most important of your constraints and drop the others. Given that these effects need to work postcombat, there is already going to be a limited number of things you can put on them.
In addition to looking for a blue effect, your red and black effects are pretty clunky. The black one only differs from "Additional cost sac a creature: draw a card" in terms of a few rules technicalities and interacting with other effects - it feels like a card that was made to technically be a heroic enabler, but violate the spirit of that effect. The red one isn't as bad, it just feels a bit weird to me - feels more green than red, and I think it would also be pretty easy to misread it as each of your creatures getting to target a separate enemy creature.
One thing you could do to solve your blue problem is make the untap be the blue effect, and give white a different effect, like gain life equal to power. Alternately, you could give a draw effect to blue (Such as 2 target creatures gain "T: draw a card") and give black something different ("T: Target player loses 2 life"?).
IDK what I would do for red if you don't do Double Strike, most of the obvious effects involve clearing a path for your attackers precombat. This might be really cute, but deal 1 damage to each of up to two target creatures - technically this allows you to trigger heroic but it's not perfect.
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Blue doesn't have such access to many expensive effects you want to use post combat on your own creatures. By limiting it to common you have even less options and none of them look good. Assuming you are open to shifting around costs as long as they stay 1 through 5 you can get some more options. Stepping up to Uncommon level of complexity and shifting around your costs you can get an interesting Divination/Frost Breath card.
2U
Sorcery
Tap up to two target creatures. Those creatures don't untap during their controller's next untap step.
Draw a card for each creature you control targeted this way.
Kickback (If you attacked with a creature this turn, you may cast this card from your graveyard and exile it.)
This means you need a new green one to fit the 5 slot, but green is the most flexible here as you can just modify its current effect to cost 5. 4G
Sorcery
Distribute five +1/+1 counters among one or two target creatures.
Kickback (If you attacked with a creature this turn, you may cast this card from your graveyard and exile it.)
Also your wording on Double Strike is slightly off, because it options plural you have to keep using plural even though it might be singular when it happens. So it needs to use "their" instead of "Its".
Up to two target creatures you control each deal damage equal to their power to target creature.
If you aren't open to these changes but are open to others what is exceptable should be spelled out. If you aren't open to any changes then I believe you won't be able to fill the slot as desired.
EDIT: It’s to trigger Heroic so flickering and bounce will not suffice.
Knightly Duty (Common)
W
Sorcery
Untap up to two target creatures.
Kickback (If you attacked with a creature this turn, you may cast this card from your graveyard and exile it.)
Card Name (Common)
4U
Sorcery
...
Kickback (If you attacked with a creature this turn, you may cast this card from your graveyard and exile it.)
Despotic Whim (Common)
1B
Sorcery
Choose up to two target creatures you control. You may sacrifice one of them. If you do, draw two cards.
Kickback (If you attacked with a creature this turn, you may cast this card from your graveyard and exile it.)
Double Strike (Common)
3R
Sorcery
Up to two target creatures you control each deals damage equal to its power to another target creature.
Kickback (If you attacked with a creature this turn, you may cast this card from your graveyard and exile it.)
Natural Boon (Common)
2G
Sorcery
Put a +1/+1 counter on each of up to two target creatures.
Kickback (If you attacked with a creature this turn, you may cast this card from your graveyard and exile it.)
Exile up to two target creatures. At the beginning of the next end step, return them to the battlefield under their owner's control.
Removes blockers the first time and untaps your attackers the second time. Delayed flickering is a bit more white than blue but this seems like acceptable color bleed.
"Up to two target creatures gain the ability Tap: Bounce target creature"
or
"Up to two target creatures gain the ability Tap: Draw X cards where X is this creatures power until your next turn".
Agent of Fates
Akroan Conscriptor
Akroan Crusader
Arena Athlete
Ashiok's Adept
Chorus of the Tides
Elite Skirmisher
Labyrinth Champion
Leonin Iconoclast
Meletis Astronomer
Phalanx Leader
Setessan Battle Priest
Wavecrash Triton
That isn't even the full list. Is your heroic riff literally just "whenever targeted, put a +1/+1 counter"?
That was my first thought. It's notably also useful before combat, so that's adding depth to the card for free.
Double Strike seems beyond common. A convoluted sentence structure that will confuse players to the number of damagable targets.
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
I feel like a tap ability would weaken Kickback, and make players less likely to play it.
kinda
In addition to looking for a blue effect, your red and black effects are pretty clunky. The black one only differs from "Additional cost sac a creature: draw a card" in terms of a few rules technicalities and interacting with other effects - it feels like a card that was made to technically be a heroic enabler, but violate the spirit of that effect. The red one isn't as bad, it just feels a bit weird to me - feels more green than red, and I think it would also be pretty easy to misread it as each of your creatures getting to target a separate enemy creature.
One thing you could do to solve your blue problem is make the untap be the blue effect, and give white a different effect, like gain life equal to power. Alternately, you could give a draw effect to blue (Such as 2 target creatures gain "T: draw a card") and give black something different ("T: Target player loses 2 life"?).
IDK what I would do for red if you don't do Double Strike, most of the obvious effects involve clearing a path for your attackers precombat. This might be really cute, but deal 1 damage to each of up to two target creatures - technically this allows you to trigger heroic but it's not perfect.
I'm forum!
2U
Sorcery
Tap up to two target creatures. Those creatures don't untap during their controller's next untap step.
Draw a card for each creature you control targeted this way.
Kickback (If you attacked with a creature this turn, you may cast this card from your graveyard and exile it.)
This means you need a new green one to fit the 5 slot, but green is the most flexible here as you can just modify its current effect to cost 5.
4G
Sorcery
Distribute five +1/+1 counters among one or two target creatures.
Kickback (If you attacked with a creature this turn, you may cast this card from your graveyard and exile it.)
Also your wording on Double Strike is slightly off, because it options plural you have to keep using plural even though it might be singular when it happens. So it needs to use "their" instead of "Its".
If you aren't open to these changes but are open to others what is exceptable should be spelled out. If you aren't open to any changes then I believe you won't be able to fill the slot as desired.