Thanks for visiting my thread. I wanted to make a mechanic that showcased the Phyrexian idea of "Incompleat". The idea here is that casting something as incompleat allows you to cast a worsened version of the creature but at a cheaper cost. I created an iteration of my concept at all four rarities. As always, constructive criticism is welcome.
Incompleat X - Whenever you cast a creature with incompleat you may pay up to X less colorless mana to cast that creature. That creature enters the battlefield with X -1/-1 counters where X is the difference between the converted cost and the amount you paid.
Sample Cards
Ichor Titan6B
Artifact Creature- Titan (C)
Deathtouch
Incompleat 3 (You may pay up to 3 less to cast Ichor Titan. It enters the battlefield with a -1/-1 counter for each mana less spent to cast this spell).
6/6
Notes: At common and uncommon, many Incompleat creatures would be vanilla/french vanilla creatures with limited flexibility as to when they are cast as determined by the value of the incompleat number. With Ichor Titan you can cast this from 3B for a 3/3 deathtouch to 6B for a 6/6 deathtouch.
Twinblade Engine3RR
Artifact Creature - Construct (U)
Double Strike
Incompleat 2 (You may pay up to 2 less to cast Twinblade Engine. It enters the battlefield with a -1/-1 counter for each mana less spent to cast this spell).
3/3
Notes: Twinblade Engine is another French Vanilla only here the incompleat mechanic is paired with double-strike allowing for 3 modes 1RR for a 1/1 double-strike, 2RR for a 2/2 double strike and 3RR for a 3/3 double strike. The final mode is the most efficient and like most of the incompleat designs the "compleat" version is intended to be the most value for your mana, but requires that you held off from the temptation to cast the creature early for less value.
Ichor-Growth Cultivator1G
Artifact Creature - Construct (R)
Infect
Incompleat 1 (You may pay up to 1 less to cast Ichor-Growth Cultivator. It enters the battlefield with a -1/-1 counter for each mana less spent to cast this spell).
T: Add one mana of any color. If Ichor-Growth Cultivator has a -1/-1 counter add G instead.
1/3
Notes: This card presents some interesting choices. You can cast it on turn 1 for G for a 0/2 ramping creature that taps for G or you can cast it on turn 2 to get the full value of the creature (1/3, taps for any color). Infect also provides extra incentive to waiting until the second turn so that this can be an effective blocker that gives poison or -1/-1 counters.
Angel of Norn4WW
Artifact Creature - Angel (M)
Flying, Vigilance, Lifelink
Incompleat 3 (You may pay up to 3 less to cast Angel of Norn. It enters the battlefield with a -1/-1 counter for each mana less spent to cast this spell).
If Angel of Norn has no -1/-1 counters other creatures you control get +1/+1
5/6
Notes: Angel of Norn has considerable flexibility ranging from an Aerial Responder if played on turn 3 to a battlecruiser with an anthem included when played on turn 6. Like the other designs playing her in her "compleat" form is optimal but she has the ability to be cast at multiple costs.
Final notes: Most incompleat cards would have smaller incompleat values of 1 or 2 as the design is intended to provide flexibility in casting windows but generally not to the extreme of Angel of Norn as the idea isn't to have a ton of creatures which can be cast at a wide range of costs. I'm not trying to turn every creature into an Ivy Elemental variant. I thought making these colored artifact creatures would contribute to the phyrexian flavor of the cards and provide some additional synergies with artifacts matter themes (or Tinker) while making them more fragile against artifact removal.
One thought is having it come with being able to cast them as non-Artifacts if it's done to the furthest extent, allowing for it to be used for some cases of upsides when cast for its minimum cost. This would be referring to the fact that "Completion" is mostly in reference to the merger of flesh and metal of Phyrexians, so a minimum cost would be a creature that isn't Completed at all. Also allows for the presence of good Artifact hate with a lot heavier Artifact backbone than otherwise permissible, as vital deck functions aren't stuck vulnerable to basically all removal.
Of course, much of this could instead be phrased as a Completion keyword that does the opposite of making the creature an Artifact when fully Completed (which is to say cast at highest cost) so CMC inflation doesn't set in, possibly a variant of Level Up that gives parts of the final statline gradually or a subset of Transform that shifts the creature from Mirran to Phyrexian.
Also, it's spelled "Incomplete".
Private Mod Note
():
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
I love Slivers, Myr, Saprolings and generally any creature type best served by spamming loads of tokens
One thought is having it come with being able to cast them as non-Artifacts if it's done to the furthest extent, allowing for it to be used for some cases of upsides when cast for its minimum cost. This would be referring to the fact that "Completion" is mostly in reference to the merger of flesh and metal of Phyrexians, so a minimum cost would be a creature that isn't Completed at all. Also allows for the presence of good Artifact hate with a lot heavier Artifact backbone than otherwise permissible, as vital deck functions aren't stuck vulnerable to basically all removal.
Of course, much of this could instead be phrased as a Completion keyword that does the opposite of making the creature an Artifact when fully Completed (which is to say cast at highest cost) so CMC inflation doesn't set in, possibly a variant of Level Up that gives parts of the final statline gradually or a subset of Transform that shifts the creature from Mirran to Phyrexian.
When someone thinks they're giving you a spelling lesson, but actually just doesn't know the reference.
Kidding aside, adding yet another layer of complexity to the mechanic by being able to cast creatures with incompleat as artifacts or non-artifacts is not what I'm aiming for. Incompleat already makes creatures better in that it gives them a range of different casting windows, being an artifact and by extension being susceptible to more removal helps balance this advantage. Thanks for your feedback.
Minor note: the way you worded the description of this ability makes it clear that X is the difference between the printed cost and the cost you pay. As such, the "where X is the difference between the converted cost and the amount you paid" line in the description seems kinda redundant. Here's how I'd word it:
"Incompleat X - When you cast this creature, you may reduce its casting cost by up to X, and if you do, it enters the battlefield with that many -1/-1 counters on it."
https://mtg.gamepedia.com/Compleation[/quote]
...The etymology geek in me is disappointed to learn of this only today. And I kinda still prefer the more usual spelling/meaning so that it can be used elsewhere, rather than limiting the mechanic specifically to Phyrexia. Using Compleat for a level-up or transform variant would work out better, as it'd specifically be related to the Artifact Creature change, and wouldn't be as conflicting with Proliferate and Infect in the same set, as a single -1/-1 counter disables some major value effects, and any Incompeatness causes the creature to wither away pretty quickly.
Conversely, if there's a separate counter that ticks up, then Proliferate can be used to accelerate it and Infect doesn't disable it outright. Which is of questionable lore validity, given that Infect is supposed to be Phyresis, which the Compleated are supposed to be already totally consumed by.
When someone thinks they're giving you a spelling lesson, but actually just doesn't know the reference.
Kidding aside, adding yet another layer of complexity to the mechanic by being able to cast creatures with incompleat as artifacts or non-artifacts is not what I'm aiming for. Incompleat already makes creatures better in that it gives them a range of different casting windows, being an artifact and by extension being susceptible to more removal helps balance this advantage. Thanks for your feedback.
That'd be why I'd suggested the inverse of it as a level up variant (card frame shifting towards colored-artifact as it goes down?) or subset of Transform, so that some of the fetching stuff seen with Birthing Pod could be present without becoming extremely nasty with these creatures (mind, the effect is, in general, a pain in the ass to ever balance, but I would rather the mechanics not make such effects even more broken). Artifact Creatures have a ton of vulnerability, as Artifacts are often much more in need of and subject to dedicated removal than creatures, meaning that anything like this that's a keystone isn't going to work very well. And, as mentioned above, the -1/-1 counters cause there to be difficulties with Infect and Proliferate in the same set.
Private Mod Note
():
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
I love Slivers, Myr, Saprolings and generally any creature type best served by spamming loads of tokens
To post a comment, please login or register a new account.
Incompleat X - Whenever you cast a creature with incompleat you may pay up to X less colorless mana to cast that creature. That creature enters the battlefield with X -1/-1 counters where X is the difference between the converted cost and the amount you paid.
Sample Cards
Ichor Titan 6B
Artifact Creature- Titan (C)
Deathtouch
Incompleat 3 (You may pay up to 3 less to cast Ichor Titan. It enters the battlefield with a -1/-1 counter for each mana less spent to cast this spell).
6/6
Notes: At common and uncommon, many Incompleat creatures would be vanilla/french vanilla creatures with limited flexibility as to when they are cast as determined by the value of the incompleat number. With Ichor Titan you can cast this from 3B for a 3/3 deathtouch to 6B for a 6/6 deathtouch.
Twinblade Engine 3RR
Artifact Creature - Construct (U)
Double Strike
Incompleat 2 (You may pay up to 2 less to cast Twinblade Engine. It enters the battlefield with a -1/-1 counter for each mana less spent to cast this spell).
3/3
Notes: Twinblade Engine is another French Vanilla only here the incompleat mechanic is paired with double-strike allowing for 3 modes 1RR for a 1/1 double-strike, 2RR for a 2/2 double strike and 3RR for a 3/3 double strike. The final mode is the most efficient and like most of the incompleat designs the "compleat" version is intended to be the most value for your mana, but requires that you held off from the temptation to cast the creature early for less value.
Ichor-Growth Cultivator 1G
Artifact Creature - Construct (R)
Infect
Incompleat 1 (You may pay up to 1 less to cast Ichor-Growth Cultivator. It enters the battlefield with a -1/-1 counter for each mana less spent to cast this spell).
T: Add one mana of any color. If Ichor-Growth Cultivator has a -1/-1 counter add G instead.
1/3
Notes: This card presents some interesting choices. You can cast it on turn 1 for G for a 0/2 ramping creature that taps for G or you can cast it on turn 2 to get the full value of the creature (1/3, taps for any color). Infect also provides extra incentive to waiting until the second turn so that this can be an effective blocker that gives poison or -1/-1 counters.
Angel of Norn 4WW
Artifact Creature - Angel (M)
Flying, Vigilance, Lifelink
Incompleat 3 (You may pay up to 3 less to cast Angel of Norn. It enters the battlefield with a -1/-1 counter for each mana less spent to cast this spell).
If Angel of Norn has no -1/-1 counters other creatures you control get +1/+1
5/6
Notes: Angel of Norn has considerable flexibility ranging from an Aerial Responder if played on turn 3 to a battlecruiser with an anthem included when played on turn 6. Like the other designs playing her in her "compleat" form is optimal but she has the ability to be cast at multiple costs.
Final notes: Most incompleat cards would have smaller incompleat values of 1 or 2 as the design is intended to provide flexibility in casting windows but generally not to the extreme of Angel of Norn as the idea isn't to have a ton of creatures which can be cast at a wide range of costs. I'm not trying to turn every creature into an Ivy Elemental variant. I thought making these colored artifact creatures would contribute to the phyrexian flavor of the cards and provide some additional synergies with artifacts matter themes (or Tinker) while making them more fragile against artifact removal.
Thanks for checking out my custom mechanic!
Of course, much of this could instead be phrased as a Completion keyword that does the opposite of making the creature an Artifact when fully Completed (which is to say cast at highest cost) so CMC inflation doesn't set in, possibly a variant of Level Up that gives parts of the final statline gradually or a subset of Transform that shifts the creature from Mirran to Phyrexian.
Also, it's spelled "Incomplete".
-Chandra Nalaar
When someone thinks they're giving you a spelling lesson, but actually just doesn't know the reference.
Kidding aside, adding yet another layer of complexity to the mechanic by being able to cast creatures with incompleat as artifacts or non-artifacts is not what I'm aiming for. Incompleat already makes creatures better in that it gives them a range of different casting windows, being an artifact and by extension being susceptible to more removal helps balance this advantage. Thanks for your feedback.
"Incompleat X - When you cast this creature, you may reduce its casting cost by up to X, and if you do, it enters the battlefield with that many -1/-1 counters on it."
...The etymology geek in me is disappointed to learn of this only today. And I kinda still prefer the more usual spelling/meaning so that it can be used elsewhere, rather than limiting the mechanic specifically to Phyrexia. Using Compleat for a level-up or transform variant would work out better, as it'd specifically be related to the Artifact Creature change, and wouldn't be as conflicting with Proliferate and Infect in the same set, as a single -1/-1 counter disables some major value effects, and any Incompeatness causes the creature to wither away pretty quickly.
Conversely, if there's a separate counter that ticks up, then Proliferate can be used to accelerate it and Infect doesn't disable it outright. Which is of questionable lore validity, given that Infect is supposed to be Phyresis, which the Compleated are supposed to be already totally consumed by.
That'd be why I'd suggested the inverse of it as a level up variant (card frame shifting towards colored-artifact as it goes down?) or subset of Transform, so that some of the fetching stuff seen with Birthing Pod could be present without becoming extremely nasty with these creatures (mind, the effect is, in general, a pain in the ass to ever balance, but I would rather the mechanics not make such effects even more broken). Artifact Creatures have a ton of vulnerability, as Artifacts are often much more in need of and subject to dedicated removal than creatures, meaning that anything like this that's a keystone isn't going to work very well. And, as mentioned above, the -1/-1 counters cause there to be difficulties with Infect and Proliferate in the same set.