Instant Component 1U (As you cast an instant spell, you may exile this card from your hand and pay its component cost. If you do, add this card's effects to that spell.)
Fighter's Spirit
Component (Uncommon)
First strike, haste
Creature Component 2R (As you cast a creature spell, you may exile this card from your hand and pay its component cost. If you do, add this card's effects to that spell.)
Pacifying Dust
Component (Rare)
Creatures can't attack you.
Enchantment Component 4WW (As you cast an enchantment spell, you may exile this card from your hand and pay its component cost. If you do, add this card's effects to that spell.)
Ignited Spark
Component (Mythic)
This creature enters the battlefield with three loyalty counters on it. It's a planeswalker in addition to its other types. Prevent all damage that would be dealt to this creature.
[-1] Put a +1/+1 counter on each other creature you control.
Legendary Creature Component 3 (As you cast a legendary creature spell, you may exile this card from your hand and pay its component cost. If you do, add this card's effects to that spell.)
IIW: Components
The challenge asks for subtypes (i.e. Trap, Aura, or Arcane), not types (i.e. Instant, Creature, or Scheme).
Grizzly Spectacle
Instant (U)
Put a 2/2 green Bear creature token onto the battlefield. It fights target creature an opponent controls.
Conspire
Pandamic
Tribal Enchantment - Bear Aura (R)
Enchant creature
Enchanted creature is a green Bear with base power and toughness 2/2 and loses all abilities.
Whenever blocks or becomes blocked by the enchanted creature put a token that's a copy of Pandamic onto the battlefield enchaining that creature.
IIW: Wibbly wobbly
That's bearly a pandamic if the bears maul each other to death in combat! Consider adding a claws that would keep them from caving in each other's skulls.
EDIT: also, whenever what blocks or becomes blocked?
Two Birds with One Loan3WU
Sorcery (R)
Tap each untapped land target opponent controls. For each land tapped this way, put two 1/1 white Bird tokens with flying onto the battlefield. Without your backing, we would have never taken off.
In response, they tap all their lands?
True, and adding something like split second seems cheesy/out of flavor... hmmmm. I'll think about that one.
Using something based on Drain Power's wording could make it work.
Mighty Hydra1GG
Creature - Hydra (R)
Mighty Hydra enters the battlefield with 2 +1/+1 counters.
Whenever a source deals damage to Mighty Hydra, put twice that many +1/+1 counters on it at the beginning of your next upkeep.
(T) Deal 1 damage to Mighty Hydra.
Missing power and toughness; missing IIW. The correct wording of the last line is : Mighty Hydra deals 1 damage to itself.
Lich's Tome8
Artifact {M}
If you would lose life, instead draw twice that many cards.
When Lich's Tome leaves the battlefield, exile your library.
If a card would be put into your library from anywhere, exile it instead.
IIW: Bearded things.
Nice variant on Lich. This one is mostly upside, but at eight mana that seems fair. Good card, but you're up against some stiff competition this round.
Mox Jasper0
Legendary Artifact (M) Landfall - Whenever a land enters the battlefield under your control, Mox Jasper gains "t: Add to your mana pool one mana of any type that a land you control could produce" until end of turn.
IIW: yeah just keep making overpowered mythic rares until you win
This overpowered mythic rare will not win you this challenge. Moxes aren't inherently very flavorful and I don't see the connection between a jasper and landfall.
Otherworldly Apparatus5
Legendary Artifact (M) 3, t: Choose an artifact card you own from outside the game and put it onto the battlefield. "Do you remember, Muzzio, when Master Renniga would tell us to think outside of the box? Imagine if she could see us now."
-Daretti, Scrap Savant
IIW: Strive
Wishing a card straight onto the battlefield is a rather dangerous effect, particularly at instant speed. I dig the flavor, though.
Blood Forge2
Artifact [M]
Whenever a creature dies, put a blood counter on Blood Forge. (R/P), t: Put a blood counter on Blood Forge. 2, t, Remove X blood counters from Blood Forge: Put a colorless Bloodforged Blade artifact equipment token onto the battlefield. It has "Equipped creature gets +X/+0" and "Equip (R/P)." If X is 4 or more, that artifact also has "Equipped creature has double strike."
Now this card is oozing with flavor. Blood, check. Forge, check. The only complaints I can come up with for this card are that memorizing the values on a bunch of different equipment tokens could be a bit of a hassle and the last sentence seems a little arbitrary. Perhaps changing it to always require four counters and always give double strike would solve both these problems.
Alexabrus, Blade of Heroes
Legendary Artifact - Equipment (M)
Alexabrus can only be equipped to a creature that has defeated a creature this turn.
Equipped creature gets +5/+5 and gains protection from Angels, Demons, Dragons, Hydras, and Sphinxes.
Equip
Small rules addition with this card: 'defeated/defeats' is kinda following the same vein as dies from a few years back. Whenever a creature dies due to lethal damage, the last source/s to have dealt it damage is/are considered to have defeated it. This does mean that if two creatures block the same attacker, they both count as defeating that creature (the damage is dealt simultaneously).
I would expect defeated to start showing up in place of effects that trigger when a creature damaged by a creature dies this turn (this would not retroactively change the effects, it would just mean that newer vampires might read "Whenever ~ defeats a creature, put a +1/+1 counter on ~.")
IIW: Chancellors or Defeats/Defeated
I would add a clause to the meaning of defeats to require that the defeated creature died the same turn that that source defeating it last damaged it. "Attach Alexabrus only to a creature..." would solve the problems AA brought up, I think. Good design, but not quite enough flavor to win this one.
Stone-Locked Sword3
Artifact (M)
Whenever a legendary creature enters the battlefield under your control, transform Stone-Locked Sword and attach it to that creature.
//
Hero's Blade
Artifact - Equipment (M)
Hero's Blade can be attached only to a legendary creature.
Equipped creature gets +3/+3, has protection from all colours it isn't and gains "Whenever this creature attacks, put a +1/+1 counter on each other creature you control."
Equip 5
Mox Shadow0
Artifact (M)
Mox Shadow has all mana abilities of all lands in all graveyards. "As Ender consumes our world, his Shadow will mimic the desolate landscape as it was, so that Zallo looking above is none the wiser. Perhaps this already happened, and everything is merely a figment of the Shadow."
Now this is how to make a top-down mox. Specifying mana abilities was a good choice in a world of fetchlands. Probably fairly balanced in that getting a land with a mana ability into your graveyard turn one is not simple. Amusingly good with Mox Diamond.
Lamp of Wonders5
Legendary Artifact (M) U, T: Draw three cards. Lamp of Wonders loses this ability. R, T: Lamp of Wonders deals 3 damage each creature without flying. Lamp of Wonders loses this ability. W, T: Put three 1/1 white Spirit creature tokens with flying onto the battlefield. Lamp of Wonders loses this ability.
IIW: Flavourful cards with no flavour text.
Brilliant.
I was very impressed with most of these entries, but Chemtrails takes the round. HMs to everyone except scarbo. (Sorry man, just telling it like it is.)
Next round: Flavourful cards with no flavour text.
Baleful Star1WB
Sorcery (R)
Destroy target permanent you don't control.
Sacrifice a permanent: You may choose a new target for Baleful Star. Any player may activate this ability but only if Baleful Star is on the stack. (You can't choose a permanent controlled by Baleful Star's controller.)
Reinforce(2/W)
Instant (C)
Target creature gets +1/+1 and gains indestructible until end of turn. If that creature is an artifact creature, instead put a +1/+1 counter on it and it gains indestructible until end of turn.
Reaper's Bite(2/B)(2/B)(2/B)
Sorcery (U)
Destroy target nonartifact creature. If that creature's converted mana cost is greater than or equal to Reaper's Bite's mana cost, its controller loses life equal to its power and you gain that much life. It's harvest time again.
IIW: Lightning round
Doesn't work the way you've worded it. Mana cost is not a number and thus cannot be compared to converted mana cost. The mana cost of Reaper's Bite, furthermore, will always be (2/B)(2/B)(2/B) regardless of what you paid to cast it. See IcariiFA's card Channel Wrath for an approach to this that does work.
Nightcoven SupplicantBB
Creature - Human Cleric (U)
At the beginning of each end step, if two or more creatures died this turn, transform Nightcoven Supplicant. Soon, the dark in me is all that will remain.
2/1
//
Ravenous Shade
• Creature - Shade (U) 1B: Target creature gets -1/-1 until end of turn. Ravenous Shade gets +1/+1 until end of turn. Now the nightmare's real.
0/1
Haven't we established, that if something needs a quick addition to the comprehensive rules, it's assumed to be done?
The quick addition to the comprehensive rules you're suggesting would cause dozens of existing cards with hexproof to be untargetable while they're on the stack. I never said that that part of your card was a bad design, only that it needs some development to make it work.
Giving players hexproof is strictly the domain of white (and occasionally artifacts).
Four rares do not solidify an effect into a color. The effect is completely justifiable in the two primary colors for standard hexproof. And why do you think giving spells the attribute of "Can't be targetted by spells and abilities you don't control" be bad?
Giving spells "can't be the target of spells or abilities your opponents control" is not the same as giving spells "hexproof". Slippery Bogle has hexproof while it's on the stack, but it can still be countered by Cancel.
To be clear:
Quote from Magic Comprehensive Rules »
702.11. Hexproof
702.11a Hexproof is a static ability.
702.11b “Hexproof” on a permanent means “This permanent can’t be the target of spells or abilities your opponents control.”
702.11c “Hexproof” on a player means “You can’t be the target of spells or abilities your opponents control.”
702.11d Multiple instances of hexproof on the same permanent or player are redundant.
Note that there is no entry for hexproof on any object other than a permanent or player.
As Sylvan Preserver enters the battlefield, name a nonbasic land.
Nonbasic lands with the chosen name cannot enter the battlefield.
2/2 "This forest is sacred. I suggest you immediately leave before the forest seeks it's revenge on you."
IIW: An actual Hate Bear.
Not very playable compared to Meddling Mage and I have a hard time picturing what else would go in a cycle with these two cards -- between nonland cards and nonbasic lands they have just about everything covered.
Riddling ShamanRG
Creature - Human Shaman (R)
As Riddling Shaman enters the battlefield, name a nonland card.
The named card can't be countered.
2/2
Graceful WisentGW
Creature - Beast (R)
Haste
Whenever Graceful Wisent deals combat damage to a player, that player can't cast noncreature spells during his or her next turn.
2/2
IIW: Bears with abilities that aren't ETB abilities
Riddling Shaman: Should say "can't be countered by spells or abilities." Otherwise printable, but doesn't compare very favorably to Vexing Shusher.
Graceful Wisent: Haste feels a little weird on a card costing GW, but overall it works.
Cycleness: I wouldn't put both of these in a cycle with Meddling Mage due to the asymmetry, but I could see either one working on its own.
Mirror of NemesesUB
Creature - Shapeshifter (R)
Whenever a creature attacks you or a planeswalker you control, you may have Mirror of Nemeses become a copy of that creature until end of turn.
2/2
IIW: nontoken copies
Good design. I'd like it a little better if it gave you the chance to attack back with the copied creature, but it's still pretty good.
Sabotor MageRU
Creature - Goblin Wizard (R)
When ~ enters the battlefield, name an artifact card.
When the named card enters the battlefield, destroy it. If it has no defect, make one!
2/2
IIW: Winter
This pretty much does the same thing as Meddling Mage but worse. Not what I was looking for.
Maintaining MageGW
Creature - Human Wizard (R)
As Maintaining Mage enters the battlefield, name a creature, artifact, enchantment, land or planeswalker card.
Permanents with the chosen name have indestructible.
2/2
IIW: Constructed lifegain
"Name a card" would be sufficient, since the second ability only affects permanents anyway. I'd rather not see indestructible bears running around in standard, but I could see printing it in an eternal only set like conspiracy.
Savaging Mage
Creature - Human Druid (R)
As Savaging Mage enters the battlefield, name a card.
The named card can't be countered. Damage from the named card can't be prevented. "A people complacent in their own demise. Its no wonder this land has been reduced to a vile slough."
2/2
Forfending Mage
Creature - Human Mystic (R)
As Forfending Mage enters the battlefield, name a card.
Permanents you control have protection from the named card. "A land rotting its people from the inside. Their throes lack conviction or grace."
2/2
Dissuading Mage
Creature - Human Cleric (R)
As Dissuading Mage enters the battlefield, name a nonland card.
When a player casts the named card that player reveals cards from the top of his or her library until he or she reveals three land cards, then puts all cards revealed this way into his or her graveyard. "A people that boast of their savagery. A land that requires guidance and must be dominated."
2/2
Decimating Mage
Creature - Human Shaman (R)
As Decimating Mage enters the battlefield, name a nonland card.
Whenever the named card becomes the target of a spell or ability exile it and Decimating Mage deals 3 damage to its controller. "A pristine land wasted on its denizens. A people so fraught with pomp they can't see their own demise."
2/2
IIW: mono-hybrid artifacts
Savaging Mage and Forfending mage are both good designs, but the other two are awkward. Dissuading Mage will almost always be worse than Meddling Mage, and Decimating Mage seems forced and too difficult to use effectively. If this is meant to be retroactively printed in Alara block, Dissuading Mage should be an artifact creature.
HexfurUG
Creature - Bear (R)
Flash
As Hexfur enters the battlefield, choose a permanent, spell or player.
The chosen object has hexproof.
2/2
Giving players hexproof is strictly the domain of white (and occasionally artifacts). I don't think giving a spell hexproof works the way you want it to. I like the idea, but it'll take some more development to make it work.
Moonlock MageWU
Creature — Human Wizard [R]
Flash
When Moonlock Mage enters the battlefield, exile target spell.
When Moonlock Mage leaves the battlefield, the exiled spell's owner may cast it without paying its mana cost. If they don't, return it to their hand.
2/2
IIW: Your opponent can't predict your plan if you never had one to begin with
May or may not be overpowered in a format where Cancel is the baseline counterspell. I've never seen a cycle containing two cards of the same rarity and mana cost before.
Just in case it wasn't obvious, my cycle completion specifically was speaking to Meddling Mage placement in Alara Reborn, the flavor text on each is supposed to be speaking of the opposing shard.
and, I suppose I'll make another card for the broader challenge
Gutter Dredger
Creature - Elf Shaman(R)
Deathtouch
At the beginning of your upkeep, if Gutter Dredger is in your graveyard, exile a card from your graveyard and you may put a +1/+1 counter on target creature. "It's amazing the things people throw away when they're dead."
2/2
IIW: Wind up
I would word this as "... and put a +1/+1 counter on a creature you control" if you intend for the effect to occur even if there are no creatures it can target. Requiring you to exile a creature card rather than any card might make this a little more flavorful and a little more balanced, but it's still pretty well designed.
PaincallerRB Creature - Human Shaman R
As ~ enters the battlefield, name a card.
If a card named with ~ would take or deal damage, that card takes or deals double that amount instead.
2/2
The wording could use some work but the design is good and it fits the challenge.
Supporting SorcererUR
Creature - Human Wizard (R)
As Supporting Sorcerer enters the battlefield, name a card.
Whenever you cast an instant or sorcery spell with the chosen name, you may copy it. You may choose new targets for the copy.
2/2
IIW: Song lyrics as flavor text
Yeah, this works. Alliteration is, as always, appreciated.
Blistering SorcererBR
Creature - Human Wizard (R)
As Blistering Sorcerer enters the battlefield, name a nonland card.
Whenever the named card is cast, its owner loses 3 life.
2/2
This pretty much does the same thing as Meddling Mage but not as well. Not what I was looking for.
Meddling ApprenticeWU
Creature - Human Wizard (C)
Spells cost 1 more to cast.
2/2
Meddling AdeptWU
Creature - Human Wizard (U)
Each player can't cast more than one spell each turn.
2/2
Meddling MastermindWWUU
Creature - Human Wizard (M)
As Meddling Mastermind enters the battlefield, an opponent searches your library for a nonland card and reveals it, then you shuffle your library.
When you cast a spell with the same name as the revealed card, you win the game at the beginning of your next upkeep.
3/3
iiw: from the bible
Sphere of Resistance does not belong on a common bear. Meddling Adept is fine, and Meddling Mastermind could work with some tweaking.
Chemister of CreativityUR
Creature - Human Wizard (R)
Players can't cast spells that share a name with a permanent they control or a card in their graveyard. "Redundant! Derivative! Uninspired! Are you even trying?"
2/2
IIW: Conspiracy 2
Nice flavor. I'm a little wary of what this might do to a format that can support it, but the symmetry does make it more difficult to break. (Unintentionally) hoses flashback. It might be difficult to build a whole cycle out of this and Meddling Mage, but it might work with a UG and a UB as the other members.
Sinister MageUB
Creature - Human Wizard (R)
When Sinister Mage enters the battlefield name a card.
Whenever a player cast the named card, exile the top ten cards of target player's library.
2/2
iiw: Futuristic Goblin Card
I was going to say something about doing the same thing as Meddling Mage but worse, but then I noticed that it targets a player. Seems okay, but maybe a little forced to fit the challenge.
Bloodward MageWB
Creature - Human Wizard
Pay 3 life: Target creature you control gains protection from the color of your choice until end of turn. "Protection always comes at a price. What are you willing to pay?"
2/2
IIW: Creatures with unusual jobs
This sort of effect tends to make players pull out their hair in frustration. Three life would be a fair price to pay, but just threatening the ability screws up your opponent's options even if you never activate it.
Stalker of AphellusUB
Creature - Shapeshifter {R}
When Stalker of Aphellus enters the battlefield, name a card.
Whenever a creature with the chosen name leaves the battlefield, you may have Stalker of Aphellus become a copy of that creature.
2/2
IIW: Hibernation.
A cheaper but narrower Clone. I don't see any problems with it but it's not too exciting.
Winning MageUR
Creature - Atogaholic (M)
As Winning Mage enters the thread, the challenge becomes "Song lyrics as flavor text."
2/2
Note: the cards for this challenge need not have anything to do with naming cards. Two mana multicolored 2/2s with unique and interesting abilities, for example, could do just fine.
Cards that essentially do the same thing as Meddling Mage but less effectively will be judged harshly, though.
^Flash seems a bit unsporting (your opponent should know the minigame he's playing), maybe drop flash and add some compensatory ability like First Strike or something? Card is otherwise awesome.
I considered that when I put flash on the card; this is part of the reason why it's mythic. The card mainly serves as an anti-control weapon, with the secondary effect of punishing players who stall on land drops or keep hands without enough early game action. Maybe it's too pushed, but the design is justified if not correct.
Consider the card: I'm bored1RR
Sorcery (R)
Choose target opponent that didn't cast a spell during his or her last turn. Look at that player's hand. You may cast a nonland card from it without paying its mana cost.
Restless Rascal will have more trouble getting you a free spell than this card because your opponent still has the chance to cast something after you play it or remove the creature before your upkeep rolls around.
Restless Rascal1RR
Creature - Devil (M)
Flash
At the beginning of your upkeep, for each opponent who didn't cast a spell during his or her last turn, look at that player's hand. You may cast a nonland card from it without paying its mana cost. Few things are more perilous than a bored devil.
3/1
Idle hands are the devil's playground, of course. I'd have liked to make casting a card mandatory, but things like the additional cost on Gaze of Justice make that too much of a rules headache.
IIW: One or more cards that would fit in a cycle with Meddling Mage.
The challenge asks for subtypes (i.e. Trap, Aura, or Arcane), not types (i.e. Instant, Creature, or Scheme).
EDIT: also, whenever what blocks or becomes blocked?
Next round: Flavourful cards with no flavour text.
Sorcery (R)
Destroy target permanent you don't control.
Sacrifice a permanent: You may choose a new target for Baleful Star. Any player may activate this ability but only if Baleful Star is on the stack. (You can't choose a permanent controlled by Baleful Star's controller.)
IIW: A top-down mythic rare artifact.
Instant (C)
Target creature gets +1/+1 and gains indestructible until end of turn. If that creature is an artifact creature, instead put a +1/+1 counter on it and it gains indestructible until end of turn.
IIW: A top-down mythic rare artifact.
Creature - Human Cleric (U)
At the beginning of each end step, if two or more creatures died this turn, transform Nightcoven Supplicant.
Soon, the dark in me is all that will remain.
2/1
//
Ravenous Shade
• Creature - Shade (U)
1B: Target creature gets -1/-1 until end of turn. Ravenous Shade gets +1/+1 until end of turn.
Now the nightmare's real.
0/1
Ravenous Shade: *WARNING: MAJOR SPOILER* https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BIvxoMJVVTE
Giving spells "can't be the target of spells or abilities your opponents control" is not the same as giving spells "hexproof". Slippery Bogle has hexproof while it's on the stack, but it can still be countered by Cancel.
To be clear:Note that there is no entry for hexproof on any object other than a permanent or player.
Creature - Human Wizard (R)
As Judging Mage enters the thread, name a challenge.
Players can't enter cards in the named challenge.
2/2
Balanced and a good candidate for sharing a cycle. Pretty good overall, but I'm not blown away.Not very playable compared to Meddling Mage and I have a hard time picturing what else would go in a cycle with these two cards -- between nonland cards and nonbasic lands they have just about everything covered.Riddling Shaman: Should say "can't be countered by spells or abilities." Otherwise printable, but doesn't compare very favorably to Vexing Shusher.
Graceful Wisent: Haste feels a little weird on a card costing GW, but overall it works.
Cycleness: I wouldn't put both of these in a cycle with Meddling Mage due to the asymmetry, but I could see either one working on its own.Good design. I'd like it a little better if it gave you the chance to attack back with the copied creature, but it's still pretty good.This pretty much does the same thing as Meddling Mage but worse. Not what I was looking for."Name a card" would be sufficient, since the second ability only affects permanents anyway. I'd rather not see indestructible bears running around in standard, but I could see printing it in an eternal only set like conspiracy.Savaging Mage and Forfending mage are both good designs, but the other two are awkward. Dissuading Mage will almost always be worse than Meddling Mage, and Decimating Mage seems forced and too difficult to use effectively. If this is meant to be retroactively printed in Alara block, Dissuading Mage should be an artifact creature.Giving players hexproof is strictly the domain of white (and occasionally artifacts). I don't think giving a spell hexproof works the way you want it to. I like the idea, but it'll take some more development to make it work.May or may not be overpowered in a format where Cancel is the baseline counterspell. I've never seen a cycle containing two cards of the same rarity and mana cost before.
Creature - Atogaholic (M)
As Winning Mage enters the thread, the challenge becomes "Song lyrics as flavor text."
2/2
Cards that essentially do the same thing as Meddling Mage but less effectively will be judged harshly, though.
I considered that when I put flash on the card; this is part of the reason why it's mythic. The card mainly serves as an anti-control weapon, with the secondary effect of punishing players who stall on land drops or keep hands without enough early game action. Maybe it's too pushed, but the design is justified if not correct.
Consider the card:
I'm bored 1RR
Sorcery (R)
Choose target opponent that didn't cast a spell during his or her last turn. Look at that player's hand. You may cast a nonland card from it without paying its mana cost.
Restless Rascal will have more trouble getting you a free spell than this card because your opponent still has the chance to cast something after you play it or remove the creature before your upkeep rolls around.
Creature - Devil (M)
Flash
At the beginning of your upkeep, for each opponent who didn't cast a spell during his or her last turn, look at that player's hand. You may cast a nonland card from it without paying its mana cost.
Few things are more perilous than a bored devil.
3/1