Preface: These are ideas aimed at standard environments and intended to be similar power level to shocklands. For simplicity, they will all have basic types, but that isn’t important to their design, meaning that it’s fine if those get removed.
Most of these involve interacting with the opponent in some way, which I believe is an interesting, nearly untapped well of design space for duals. Some are probably worse than shocks for that reason, and definitely feel tricky, but I believe this kind of interaction would enhance gameplay by raising the stakes a little and potentially kickstarting counterplay.
Anyway, let me know what you think, and which is your favorite.
Tolled Canyon
Land - Mountain Plains
As ~ enters the battlefield, you may have an opponent create a Treasure token. If you don’t, it enters the battlefield tapped.
Canyon Tableau
Land - Mountain Plains
As ~ enters the battlefield, you may have an opponent create a Clue token. If you don’t, it enters the battlefield tapped.
Guarded Canyon
Land - Mountain Plains
As ~ enters the battlefield, you may have an opponent manifest the top card of their library. If you don’t, it enters the battlefield tapped.
Canyon Archive
Land - Mountain Plains
As ~ enters the battlefield, you may have an opponent scry 2. If you don’t, it enters the battlefield tapped.
Expansive Canyon
Land - Mountain Plains
As ~ enters the battlefield, you may sacrifice another land or discard a land card. If you don’t, it enters the battlefield tapped.
Taxed Canyon
Land - Mountain Plains
As ~ enters the battlefield, any opponent may pay {mana}1{/mana}. If they do, it enters the battlefield tapped.
Toxic Canyon
Land - Mountain Plains
As ~ enters the battlefield, any opponent may pay 2 life. If they do, it enters the battlefield tapped.
Canyon Library
Land - Mountain Plains
As ~ enters the battlefield, any opponent may have you draw a card. If they do, it enters the battlefield tapped.
I think that the opponent having the choice if your land coming into play tapped would be very bad for gameplay.
Giving your opponent a treasure or especially a manifest is a really high cost in the early game. The clue and the scry are probably the most balanced, and the sac/discard a land is just a bad tradeoff.
They should all be may have target opponent do x. That way you control the outcome. I will say they are all over the place though. They don't fit into the color scheme of what the Mana they produce does. At least most of them don't. Like the blue black one should do the thing where they look at the top card and decide if they want to put it in the graveyard or keep it there. The blue red one would be a good one for scry the green white one should allow them to put a +1/+1 counter on up to one creature they control.
Make it feel like they are getting to do something the color pair does but in a small amount to properly represent the color combination.
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Most of these involve interacting with the opponent in some way, which I believe is an interesting, nearly untapped well of design space for duals. Some are probably worse than shocks for that reason, and definitely feel tricky, but I believe this kind of interaction would enhance gameplay by raising the stakes a little and potentially kickstarting counterplay.
Anyway, let me know what you think, and which is your favorite.
Tolled Canyon
Land - Mountain Plains
As ~ enters the battlefield, you may have an opponent create a Treasure token. If you don’t, it enters the battlefield tapped.
Canyon Tableau
Land - Mountain Plains
As ~ enters the battlefield, you may have an opponent create a Clue token. If you don’t, it enters the battlefield tapped.
Guarded Canyon
Land - Mountain Plains
As ~ enters the battlefield, you may have an opponent manifest the top card of their library. If you don’t, it enters the battlefield tapped.
Canyon Archive
Land - Mountain Plains
As ~ enters the battlefield, you may have an opponent scry 2. If you don’t, it enters the battlefield tapped.
Expansive Canyon
Land - Mountain Plains
As ~ enters the battlefield, you may sacrifice another land or discard a land card. If you don’t, it enters the battlefield tapped.
Taxed Canyon
Land - Mountain Plains
As ~ enters the battlefield, any opponent may pay {mana}1{/mana}. If they do, it enters the battlefield tapped.
Toxic Canyon
Land - Mountain Plains
As ~ enters the battlefield, any opponent may pay 2 life. If they do, it enters the battlefield tapped.
Canyon Library
Land - Mountain Plains
As ~ enters the battlefield, any opponent may have you draw a card. If they do, it enters the battlefield tapped.
Giving your opponent a treasure or especially a manifest is a really high cost in the early game. The clue and the scry are probably the most balanced, and the sac/discard a land is just a bad tradeoff.
Make it feel like they are getting to do something the color pair does but in a small amount to properly represent the color combination.