they could be printed on clear plastic/die-cut so that they could be overlaid on top of each other in a variety of ways.
or they are like very complicated meld cards. (see picture)
I actually like this idea. They could come as tokens or have a checklist component so you could always build them if you were playing riggers even without the contraption cards (like tokens).
they could be printed on clear plastic/die-cut so that they could be overlaid on top of each other in a variety of ways.
or they are like very complicated meld cards. (see picture)
When I read the OPs post, I had this vision of another HeroClix. Ugh....
I like your idea better but they come with problems.
Clear plastic cards get scratched incredibly easy. Even sleeved, I see them getting cloudy or worse, yellowed, over the years. If WotC creates a new Jace with these "cards", can you imagine the skyrocketing price on them 5 years down the road?
I like the latter option more because it's more consistent with WotC products. However, it would take up a lot of table space. Sometimes I'm already rubbing elbows with the people next to me. How much more table space can we get to utilize this idea? But if I had to vote, it would be this one over the clear cards.
Clear plastic cards get scratched incredibly easy. Even sleeved, I see them getting cloudy or worse, yellowed, over the years. If WotC creates a new Jace with these "cards", can you imagine the skyrocketing price on them 5 years down the road?
I like the latter option more because it's more consistent with WotC products. However, it would take up a lot of table space. Sometimes I'm already rubbing elbows with the people next to me. How much more table space can we get to utilize this idea? But if I had to vote, it would be this one over the clear cards.
Keep in mind that MaRo has already established that contraptions will be a silver-bordered mechanic in Unhinged, so your concerns about price are moot. There will be no "new Jace" with cards that can never be used outside of limited and casual formats.
That said, printing costs would still be an issue, and Wizards putting something other than card stock into boosters would be a significant decision even by silver-border standards.
Clear plastic cards get scratched incredibly easy. Even sleeved, I see them getting cloudy or worse, yellowed, over the years. If WotC creates a new Jace with these "cards", can you imagine the skyrocketing price on them 5 years down the road?
I like the latter option more because it's more consistent with WotC products. However, it would take up a lot of table space. Sometimes I'm already rubbing elbows with the people next to me. How much more table space can we get to utilize this idea? But if I had to vote, it would be this one over the clear cards.
Keep in mind that MaRo has already established that contraptions will be a silver-bordered mechanic in Unhinged, so your concerns about price are moot. There will be no "new Jace" with cards that can never be used outside of limited and casual formats.
That said, printing costs would still be an issue, and Wizards putting something other than card stock into boosters would be a significant decision even by silver-border standards.
Really? I wasn't aware he made that statement about contraptions. That's interesting to hear.
The punch-out technology we have seen in Amonkhet could work here, we could get multiple parts that come together like puzzle pieces. Of course, they could make the puzzle 3D, but I consider that unlikely.
We have to remember that Assembling a Contraption is something creatures apparently do, Riggers in particular. My guess is it works a bit like Crewing a Vehicle; it involves tapping one or more creatures and it makes use of creature power, which Steamflogger Boss supports. Making it a T ability also seems evident as that would make the haste granted by Steam Boss more sensible. Assembling a Contraption has to be something simple enough that a Rigger can assemble two at once.
Private Mod Note
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Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
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.
they could also be artifact split cards where you can assemble the halves of different cards. the hybrid faction (g/w) also has a similar theme of assembling things (animals) so i wonder if they could be mechanical overlap between how making contraptions and hybrid creatures is executed.
EDIT: i think it's also worth mentioning that mairsil from commander has a mechanic that assembles random other cards into wacky combinations. the riggers could do something similar by exiling artifacts from the battlefield/graveyard to create a contraption with the effects of those artifacts. a contraption could be like a morph, with a base power/toughness. the set could then have a lot of artifacts with effects that would combine in humorous ways. you could have non-creature artifacts with keyword abilities like trample, double strike, triple strike, grandeur, and flample. that would be an easy way to print good assembly targets that could function outside of rigger decks as regular artifacts.
the hybrid faction could do a similar thing by exiling creatures to make hybrids. the hybrid would combine the p/t of the target creatures and gain all of it's creature types and abilities. again this would allow the set to contain a variety of creatures that work well together. a 1/3 double strike creature and a 4/2 haste creature would make a 5/5 haste double striker. you could also have cards that boost creature's power and toughness based on how many creature types they have. then when you combined a shambleshark with a scrounging bandar the creature would get an exponential bonus based on the number of silly creatures types it has. (fish crab cat monkey)
they could also be artifact split cards where you can assemble the halves of different cards. the hybrid faction (g/w) also has a similar theme of assembling things (animals) so i wonder if they could be mechanical overlap between how making contraptions and hybrid creatures is executed.
EDIT: i think it's also worth mentioning that mairsil from commander has a mechanic that assembles random other cards into wacky combinations. the riggers could do something similar by exiling artifacts from the battlefield/graveyard to create a contraption with the effects of those artifacts. a contraption could be like a morph, with a base power/toughness. the set could then have a lot of artifacts with effects that would combine in humorous ways. you could have non-creature artifacts with keyword abilities like trample, double strike, triple strike, grandeur, and flample. that would be an easy way to print good assembly targets that could function outside of rigger decks as regular artifacts.
the hybrid faction could do a similar thing by exiling creatures to make hybrids. the hybrid would combine the p/t of the target creatures and gain all of it's creature types and abilities. again this would allow the set to contain a variety of creatures that work well together. a 1/3 double strike creature and a 4/2 haste creature would make a 5/5 haste double striker. you could also have cards that boost creature's power and toughness based on how many creature types they have. then when you combined a shambleshark with a scrounging bandar the creature would get an exponential bonus based on the number of silly creatures types it has. (fish crab cat monkey)
I like this idea but I don't see how exiking it could really work for the creature one. I imagine it will be more of a spin off bestow, where you play creatures onto creatures to make one whacky creature, but if it dies, all the cards are put into the graveyard.
you would just have a 2/2 contraption token in the set. or a non-creature artifact token. when you assemble a contraption you would exile two artifacts from your graveyard and create a contraption token. that token would have all abilities of the exiled artifacts. then if the contraption was destroyed you could return the exiled artifacts to your graveyard. (to make it easier to create more contraptions)
the hybrid mechanic could use creatures in play instead of in the graveyard to give it a bit of distinction. you would have a */* hybrid creature token to represent any hybrids that you made.
What if they are swap out able jigsaw puzzles that form a card and you can move in and out different parts of the card (mana cost - effect, type - name). If they could make that work it would be pretty amazing - that would feel like an inventor. Look at the reveal of contraptions right now... it seems possible
Then they do something.
or they are like very complicated meld cards. (see picture)
I actually like this idea. They could come as tokens or have a checklist component so you could always build them if you were playing riggers even without the contraption cards (like tokens).
Dunes of Zairo
SHANDALAR
Innistrad - The Darkest Night
~THE RAVNICAN CONSORTIUM~
A Community Set
Commander: Allies & Adversaries
When I read the OPs post, I had this vision of another HeroClix. Ugh....
I like your idea better but they come with problems.
Clear plastic cards get scratched incredibly easy. Even sleeved, I see them getting cloudy or worse, yellowed, over the years. If WotC creates a new Jace with these "cards", can you imagine the skyrocketing price on them 5 years down the road?
I like the latter option more because it's more consistent with WotC products. However, it would take up a lot of table space. Sometimes I'm already rubbing elbows with the people next to me. How much more table space can we get to utilize this idea? But if I had to vote, it would be this one over the clear cards.
Keep in mind that MaRo has already established that contraptions will be a silver-bordered mechanic in Unhinged, so your concerns about price are moot. There will be no "new Jace" with cards that can never be used outside of limited and casual formats.
That said, printing costs would still be an issue, and Wizards putting something other than card stock into boosters would be a significant decision even by silver-border standards.
Really? I wasn't aware he made that statement about contraptions. That's interesting to hear.
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.
EDIT: i think it's also worth mentioning that mairsil from commander has a mechanic that assembles random other cards into wacky combinations. the riggers could do something similar by exiling artifacts from the battlefield/graveyard to create a contraption with the effects of those artifacts. a contraption could be like a morph, with a base power/toughness. the set could then have a lot of artifacts with effects that would combine in humorous ways. you could have non-creature artifacts with keyword abilities like trample, double strike, triple strike, grandeur, and flample. that would be an easy way to print good assembly targets that could function outside of rigger decks as regular artifacts.
the hybrid faction could do a similar thing by exiling creatures to make hybrids. the hybrid would combine the p/t of the target creatures and gain all of it's creature types and abilities. again this would allow the set to contain a variety of creatures that work well together. a 1/3 double strike creature and a 4/2 haste creature would make a 5/5 haste double striker. you could also have cards that boost creature's power and toughness based on how many creature types they have. then when you combined a shambleshark with a scrounging bandar the creature would get an exponential bonus based on the number of silly creatures types it has. (fish crab cat monkey)
I like this idea but I don't see how exiking it could really work for the creature one. I imagine it will be more of a spin off bestow, where you play creatures onto creatures to make one whacky creature, but if it dies, all the cards are put into the graveyard.
Dunes of Zairo
SHANDALAR
Innistrad - The Darkest Night
~THE RAVNICAN CONSORTIUM~
A Community Set
Commander: Allies & Adversaries
the hybrid mechanic could use creatures in play instead of in the graveyard to give it a bit of distinction. you would have a */* hybrid creature token to represent any hybrids that you made.
Might be one card but in a jigsaw form