Hunter of Deep Shadows UU
Creature - Merfolk (Rare)
Whenever a spell or ability an opponent controls would target Calacalve Outcast, counter it unless it's controller pays 2.
Creatures can not block Calaclave Outcast unless their controller pays 2 for each creature blocking it. "Those damn fish are slippery like... well.. you know." - Horner, Vishano Raider
2/1
IIW: Throwback (A card that references a past card, include the name of the card you are referencing for ease of judgment) OR Chaos
t: Add U to your mana pool. GT: Add 2 to yojr mana pool and gain 2 life.
Tell me what could be more beatiful than the realization of how vast and empty it all really is.
This is simple and pretty reasonable. It might be a tad high in terms of its power, since if you don't need the U and have the G it is effectively 2 life each turn for free, but I feel that it is at least close to being balanced at this point.
Alkav, the Shifting Waves
Legendary Land (R)
Alkav, the Shifting Waves enters the battlefield tapped. T: Add U to your mana pool. X, Tap an untapped wizard creature you control: Choose one:
Change the target of target spell with converted mana cost X or less.
Alkav, the Shifting Waves becomes a X/X elemental creature with Prowess that's still a legendary land until end of turn.
To me this feels like a bunch of incomplete cards rather than one cohesive one. Being a repeatable Clash of Wills is pretty powerful, and being an efficiently scaling man-land on top of that is just crazy. The abilities seem like they kinda work together, since control decks want both repeatable card advantage and enjoy having the man-land as a finisher, but there is just too much going on, let alone the power level of what is going on, for me to really get excited about this.
Depth DwellerUU
Creature - Eldrazi (R)
Devoid
Whenever Depth Dweller deals combat damage to a player, draw a card.
Return an Island you control to its owner's hand: Depth Dweller gains hexproof until end of turn.
1/3
I like this. It's an interesting Ophidian/Scroll Thief variant. Better in mono-blue, worse elsewhere, with an occasionally relevant ability. Given this would likely be in a Zendikar set, I also see the ability being more upside (albiet blue is the 'least landfally' colour) than normal. The only two comments that I have on this card are that I really wish that it were a Merfolk and that I think that in terms of it's power level and it's effect it is more of an uncommon than a rare, if for no other reason that that even as a 2 mana Scroll Thief can still be blocked by pretty much anything.
Koligos, Bringer of Despair4UUBB Legendary Creature - Kraken M
Trample
At the beginning of your upkeep, put a sorrow counter on ~.
Whenever a player casts a spell, counter that spell, unless it's controller pays X and X life, when X is the number of sorrow counters on ~. Then remove a sorrow counter from ~.
7/7
Lightless Depths Land R
When ~ enters the battlefield, it doesn't untap during it's controllers next untap step.
T: Add U or B to your mana pool.
Sorrowblade Cutter2BB Creature - Merfolk Rogue R
Deathtouch
Whenever ~ deals combat damage to a player, that player gains an emblem with "At the beginning of each upkeep, lose 1 life."
1/4
Sadistic LoremasterUB Creature - Merfolk Wizard U
When ~ enters the battlefield, if an opponent lost life this turn, draw a card.
2/2
Merfolk Endbringer1UB Creature - Merfolk Wizard U T: Draw a card, discard a card. If you discarded a non-land card this way, each opponent loses 1 life.
2/2
Suffocating DenialUB Instant C
Counter target spell unless it’s controller pays 3 and 3 life.
Sorrowblade SeekerUB Creature - Merfolk Rogue C
If an opponent has lost life this turn, ~ gets +1/+0 and can't be blocked.
2/2
To quickly run through this, the two high points for me were the Kraken and the land. The Kraken has a huge ability and feels cohesive, although at a cost of 8 I wish that this could somehow get counter's faster, or choose not to 'pop' them on a spell cast, sine in it's current form I suspect that a lot of times the effect will just be taxing for 1 and a life each turn, which feels a bit weak at 8 given some of our other options. The land is good and is a design angle I would not be surpised if I saw wizards print in the future. I'd be curious to see whether this or the Scars fastlands end up being better, but I like that this always gives you mana on the turn you play it.
Ocean Wide Enough3UU
Enchantment (R)
If a creature would attack you, instead exile it. Return it to the battlefield under its owner's control tapped and attacking at the beginning of the declare attackers step on that player's next turn.
This is a card that I want to like but just can't quite bring myself to get behind. I like the idea, if you get attacked, you delay the attack for a turn, clearing them from the board in the process. It's powerful. And at 5 it should be. But it triggers your opponents ETB abilities, and there are a lot of times that I could see your opponent wanting to attack you more often just to get the ETB triggers. It has a lot of potential, but to me it feels like it would probably be that rare in the set that is a mid-pack pick in limited that people always try to make work in constructed but never really do. It's close, but I feel that it just needs that little something extra to get me excited.
SCARBO with Depth Dweller
Congratulations to scarbo, he/she/preferred pronoun is the next judge.
Runner Up: Winterspring with Lightless Depths
Honourable Mention: willows with Ocean Wide Enough
Saurite Shield-Guard
1WU
Creature - Vedalken Soldier
Flash
When Saurite Shield-Guard enters the battlefield, creature's assign combat damage with their toughness instead of their power until the end of the turn.
0/3
Tyrant of the Meek 5BG
Creature - Beast
Trample Titanic - As long as you control the creature with the greatest power or tied for the greatest power, creature's our opponent controls get -1/-1 2BG: Regenerate Tyrant of the Meek
7/7
Next: Valiance - As long as an opponent controls more creatures than you, EFFECT
Errr.... I'm not sure. Sure, if you end up getting lands when you don't need them, you can toss them, but the window of one turn to cast the bomb you are about to lose while taking crapload of damage.... then again, Bob usually isn't supposed to be played in high-cost decks, so I guess, ok?
Next
Brooding Ooze2G
Creature - Ooze (R)
Brooding Ooze enter the battlefield with two +1/+1 counters on it.
Whenever a player casts a spell, remove a +1/+1 counter from Brooding Ooze.
At the beginning of your upkeep, put a copy of Brooding Ooze onto the battlefield for each +1/+1 counter it has.
0/0
Comments?
Honestly, the card seems cool, but the combination of abilities means that it doesn't really do anything. If cast on turn 3, at best on your next turn you might get a single 1/1 out of it before they are both wiped out by players casting spells. It could get better if you had a lot of ways of putting +1/+1 counters on it, but that would require a lot of mana and a lot of spells, and it would still punish you for doing anything and get's shut down by your opponent casting spells. It's a cool idea, but it needs to be reworked a bit (I'd consider making it bigger, more expensive, and changing the remove trigger to only when opponents cast spells.
Air of the Everchanging
3WW
Enchantment
At the beginning of your upkeep, shuffle target enchantment into it's owner's library, then reveal the top card of that player's library until they reveal an enchantment card, then put that card onto the battlefield. That player then shuffles his or her library.
Cairn Guardian 3RRR
Creature - Dragon
Flying
R: Cairn Guardian get's +1/+0 until the end of the turn
Threshold - When Cairn Guardian deal's combat damage to a player, if there are 7 or more cards in your graveyard, you may have it deal damage equal to its power to target creature that player controls. Dragon's don't take kindly to the Cabal stealing the bones of their kin.
5/5
Beacon of the Gods 7
Artifact Enchantment
When Beacon of the Gods enters the battlefield, choose a colour.
Beacon of the Gods increases your devotion to the chosen colour by 1.
Basic lands that produce mana of the chosen colour are X/X Enchantment creatures in addition to their other types, where X is your devotion to the chosen colour. When a god calls, the world answers
Mass Mutation X1UG
Sorcery
As an additional cost of casting Mass Mutation, sacrifice a creature with at least X +1/+1 counters on it.
Search your library for any number of blue or green creatures with a total converted mana cost of X or less and put them onto the battlefield. Then shuffle your library. Despite Vig's monstrosities, there are some of us in the Simic who still believe that bigger is not necessarily better.
Darkwood Dryad 1BG
Creature - Dryad
Defender
At the beginning of your upkeep, remove a -1/-1 counter from Darkwood Dryad.
Syphoon (Put a -1/-1 counter on this creature: Add 1 to your mana pool)
When Darkwood Dryad dies, you loose 2 life for each -1/-1 counter on it.
0/3
Next: Intercept (Whenever another creature you control becomes the target of a spell and this creature is not already a target of the spell, you may change one of that spell's targets to this creature. You may only do so if this creature would be a legal target of that spell.) Feel free to reword this ability.
Kaedos, Elven Supremarch
WBG
Legendary Creature - Elf Warrior
At the begining of each opponents upkeep, if you control more creatures than that player, put a 2/2 Black and Green Elf Warrior token into play. Then, if you have more cards in hand than that opponent, they discard a card. Then, if you have more life than that opponent, you gain 3 life. "No matter how good you think you are, remember that we are always better"
3/3
Hoster, Mount of Heliod 3WWW
Legendary Enchantment Creature - Hippogryff
Flying, Vigilance, First Strike
Hoster, Mount of Heliod get's +1/+0 for each other white creature you control. Even without his rider, the mount rallies the faithful in Theros's war against the gods.
3/6
Next: Most UG commander's are disappointing. Make one that doesn't suck.
The +1 ability is bonkers. A 4/4 a turn as a plus ability gets out of hand, fast. Yes, they are destroyed if targeted by anything, but realistically speaking in most cases it means that they are still spending a removal spell on a token. At this power level it would be pretty warping for standard. I would probably drop the power and toughness down to 2/2. The minus ability also seems a little on the strong side, and should probably be -X to bounce X you control. I like that the ult plays well with the - ability, and is powerful, but also seems pretty fair. All in all, I like the design, but the first too abilities need to be toned down.
Parasitic Incubation 2BG
Enchantment - Aura
When ~ enter's the battlefield, put a -1/-1 counter on the enchanted creature.
At the beginning of your upkeep, for each -1/-1 counter on the enchanted creature, put another -1/-1 counter on it.
When the enchanted creature dies, put an X/X Black and Green Insect creature token onto the battlefield, where X is the enchanted creature's converted mana cost.
Beacon of Many 3WWGG
Creature - Avatar
Trample
Beacon of Many gets +1/+1 for each other creature named Beacon of Many on the battlefield. Horde 4 - When Beacon of Many enters the battlefield, if you control 5 or more creatures, you may have any number of creatures you control become a copy of Beacon of Many.
5/5
Silent Voice UB
Creature - Shade
Insanity (This creature deals damage to players in the form of insanity counters. At the start of that players turn, they exile the top X cards of their library, where X is the number of insanity counters they have) U/: Silent Voice gets +1/+0 until the end of the turn. UB: Silent Voice becomes unblockable until the end of the turn.
0/2
Next: Purity (Attribute) - As long as you control no nonland perments without (Attribute), EFFECT (examples: Purity (Artificts) - As long as you control no non-land permanents that are not artifacts, effect. Purity (Green), as long as you control no non-land permanents that are not green, EFFECT).
Hunter of Deep Shadows
UU
Creature - Merfolk (Rare)
Whenever a spell or ability an opponent controls would target Calacalve Outcast, counter it unless it's controller pays 2.
Creatures can not block Calaclave Outcast unless their controller pays 2 for each creature blocking it.
"Those damn fish are slippery like... well.. you know." - Horner, Vishano Raider
2/1
IIW: Throwback (A card that references a past card, include the name of the card you are referencing for ease of judgment) OR Chaos
This is simple and pretty reasonable. It might be a tad high in terms of its power, since if you don't need the U and have the G it is effectively 2 life each turn for free, but I feel that it is at least close to being balanced at this point.
To me this feels like a bunch of incomplete cards rather than one cohesive one. Being a repeatable Clash of Wills is pretty powerful, and being an efficiently scaling man-land on top of that is just crazy. The abilities seem like they kinda work together, since control decks want both repeatable card advantage and enjoy having the man-land as a finisher, but there is just too much going on, let alone the power level of what is going on, for me to really get excited about this.
I like this. It's an interesting Ophidian/Scroll Thief variant. Better in mono-blue, worse elsewhere, with an occasionally relevant ability. Given this would likely be in a Zendikar set, I also see the ability being more upside (albiet blue is the 'least landfally' colour) than normal. The only two comments that I have on this card are that I really wish that it were a Merfolk and that I think that in terms of it's power level and it's effect it is more of an uncommon than a rare, if for no other reason that that even as a 2 mana Scroll Thief can still be blocked by pretty much anything.
To quickly run through this, the two high points for me were the Kraken and the land. The Kraken has a huge ability and feels cohesive, although at a cost of 8 I wish that this could somehow get counter's faster, or choose not to 'pop' them on a spell cast, sine in it's current form I suspect that a lot of times the effect will just be taxing for 1 and a life each turn, which feels a bit weak at 8 given some of our other options. The land is good and is a design angle I would not be surpised if I saw wizards print in the future. I'd be curious to see whether this or the Scars fastlands end up being better, but I like that this always gives you mana on the turn you play it.
This is a card that I want to like but just can't quite bring myself to get behind. I like the idea, if you get attacked, you delay the attack for a turn, clearing them from the board in the process. It's powerful. And at 5 it should be. But it triggers your opponents ETB abilities, and there are a lot of times that I could see your opponent wanting to attack you more often just to get the ETB triggers. It has a lot of potential, but to me it feels like it would probably be that rare in the set that is a mid-pack pick in limited that people always try to make work in constructed but never really do. It's close, but I feel that it just needs that little something extra to get me excited.
Congratulations to scarbo, he/she/preferred pronoun is the next judge.
Runner Up: Winterspring with Lightless Depths
Honourable Mention: willows with Ocean Wide Enough
Mono-Blue Aggro. Tread with caution
1WU
Creature - Vedalken Soldier
Flash
When Saurite Shield-Guard enters the battlefield, creature's assign combat damage with their toughness instead of their power until the end of the turn.
0/3
Relevant: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RhvIISDoarU
Also, judging will occur Friday between 4 and 6 or after 10 entries, whichever occurs first.
WU
Instant
Target creature's power becomes zero until the end of the turn.
Draw a card
5BG
Creature - Beast
Trample
Titanic - As long as you control the creature with the greatest power or tied for the greatest power, creature's our opponent controls get -1/-1
2BG: Regenerate Tyrant of the Meek
7/7
Next: Valiance - As long as an opponent controls more creatures than you, EFFECT
Honestly, the card seems cool, but the combination of abilities means that it doesn't really do anything. If cast on turn 3, at best on your next turn you might get a single 1/1 out of it before they are both wiped out by players casting spells. It could get better if you had a lot of ways of putting +1/+1 counters on it, but that would require a lot of mana and a lot of spells, and it would still punish you for doing anything and get's shut down by your opponent casting spells. It's a cool idea, but it needs to be reworked a bit (I'd consider making it bigger, more expensive, and changing the remove trigger to only when opponents cast spells.
Air of the Everchanging
3WW
Enchantment
At the beginning of your upkeep, shuffle target enchantment into it's owner's library, then reveal the top card of that player's library until they reveal an enchantment card, then put that card onto the battlefield. That player then shuffles his or her library.
3RRR
Creature - Dragon
Flying
R: Cairn Guardian get's +1/+0 until the end of the turn
Threshold - When Cairn Guardian deal's combat damage to a player, if there are 7 or more cards in your graveyard, you may have it deal damage equal to its power to target creature that player controls.
Dragon's don't take kindly to the Cabal stealing the bones of their kin.
5/5
Beacon of the Gods
7
Artifact Enchantment
When Beacon of the Gods enters the battlefield, choose a colour.
Beacon of the Gods increases your devotion to the chosen colour by 1.
Basic lands that produce mana of the chosen colour are X/X Enchantment creatures in addition to their other types, where X is your devotion to the chosen colour.
When a god calls, the world answers
Mass Mutation
X1UG
Sorcery
As an additional cost of casting Mass Mutation, sacrifice a creature with at least X +1/+1 counters on it.
Search your library for any number of blue or green creatures with a total converted mana cost of X or less and put them onto the battlefield. Then shuffle your library.
Despite Vig's monstrosities, there are some of us in the Simic who still believe that bigger is not necessarily better.
Next:
Birthing Pod in Innistrad
Riku of Two Reflections in Commander 2015
Fact or Fiction in Fate Reforged
1BG
Creature - Dryad
Defender
At the beginning of your upkeep, remove a -1/-1 counter from Darkwood Dryad.
Syphoon (Put a -1/-1 counter on this creature: Add 1 to your mana pool)
When Darkwood Dryad dies, you loose 2 life for each -1/-1 counter on it.
0/3
Next: Intercept (Whenever another creature you control becomes the target of a spell and this creature is not already a target of the spell, you may change one of that spell's targets to this creature. You may only do so if this creature would be a legal target of that spell.) Feel free to reword this ability.
WBG
Legendary Creature - Elf Warrior
At the begining of each opponents upkeep, if you control more creatures than that player, put a 2/2 Black and Green Elf Warrior token into play. Then, if you have more cards in hand than that opponent, they discard a card. Then, if you have more life than that opponent, you gain 3 life.
"No matter how good you think you are, remember that we are always better"
3/3
Next: A reanimator commander.
3WWW
Legendary Enchantment Creature - Hippogryff
Flying, Vigilance, First Strike
Hoster, Mount of Heliod get's +1/+0 for each other white creature you control.
Even without his rider, the mount rallies the faithful in Theros's war against the gods.
3/6
Next: Most UG commander's are disappointing. Make one that doesn't suck.
Parasitic Incubation
2BG
Enchantment - Aura
When ~ enter's the battlefield, put a -1/-1 counter on the enchanted creature.
At the beginning of your upkeep, for each -1/-1 counter on the enchanted creature, put another -1/-1 counter on it.
When the enchanted creature dies, put an X/X Black and Green Insect creature token onto the battlefield, where X is the enchanted creature's converted mana cost.
2WWW
Enchantment
Prevent all non-combat damage
Beacon of Many
3WWGG
Creature - Avatar
Trample
Beacon of Many gets +1/+1 for each other creature named Beacon of Many on the battlefield.
Horde 4 - When Beacon of Many enters the battlefield, if you control 5 or more creatures, you may have any number of creatures you control become a copy of Beacon of Many.
5/5
Silent Voice
UB
Creature - Shade
Insanity (This creature deals damage to players in the form of insanity counters. At the start of that players turn, they exile the top X cards of their library, where X is the number of insanity counters they have)
U/: Silent Voice gets +1/+0 until the end of the turn.
UB: Silent Voice becomes unblockable until the end of the turn.
0/2
Next: Purity (Attribute) - As long as you control no nonland perments without (Attribute), EFFECT (examples: Purity (Artificts) - As long as you control no non-land permanents that are not artifacts, effect. Purity (Green), as long as you control no non-land permanents that are not green, EFFECT).