That's true. I'd prefer as few sources as possible for visual continuity's sake, and having magic style art would be nice. But in the end deviant art is really the easiest way to find art.
Maybe the 5 uncommon synergy planes could be enemy colored. (Uncommons are a bit weird after all).
For instance, a UR plane would just buff all instants and sorceries, instead of actually mentioning the colors themselves. (there actually is a plane like this, but re-printing isn't such a terrible thing)
Well one way is to take a universal mechanic, one which every color uses like:
Scrying Steppe
Plane - ?
Whenever you cast a spell, you may scry X, where X is that spell's converted mana cost C: Whenever you roll C, ...?
or
Cycling Pools
Plane - ?
All cards in your hand have Cycling 2. C: Whenever you roll C, discard your hand, then draw that many cards.
Another method would be to just straight up buff or nerf everything
Wandering Library
Plane - ?
You have no Maximum hand size C: Whenever you roll C, draw 3 cards.
Smog Field
Plane - ?
All creatures get -1/-1 C: Whenever you roll C, target creature gets -2/-2 until end of turn.
these aren't very creative, but you get the picture.
any rarity works, though when designing them, the rarer the plane, the more powerful it is, but the more specific it is (commons are the building blocks while rares are what you build around)
By neutral I mean planes like Cliffside Market, Eloren Wilds, Krosa, Pools of Becoming, Isle of vesuva, Raven's run, Sanctum of Serra, Skybreen, The Eon Fog, The Hippodrome, and The Maelstrom. Many of them have very slight color alignments (it's hard to find true "colorless" abilities), but over they help/hurt each player equally, regardless of color.
That doesn't mean they're throwaway planes. Each has a different use and decks can certainly be built around each of them. Just think of them like artifacts: some are more useful than others in some colors, but all of them have "general" uses.
Planechase added a cool new game mechanic without breaking the flow of magic. While planechase is definitely fun, the rules of the game and the nature of the plane cards makes it hard to be anything other than "random multiplayer" fun. While there's nothing wrong with that (and that was after all the purpose of it), I'd like to see planechase in a more "standard" like environment.
The Goal
To create a set built around the mechanics of planechase that would be playable in a standard setting. This means that planes must be balanced and focused more on duels rather than multiplayer games.
The Rules
The rolling of planar die will work identically (X - roll a planar die, where X is the number of times you've rolled a planar die this turn. Roll only as a sorcery), as will the construction and function of a planar deck.
The Premise
This part is a bit tricky. It's hard to write a backstory for a set that happens between many planes. Perhaps 5 planeswalkers are in a war and these are their personal armies and spells? Maybe a single plane's become unstable causing random teleportation? Settling on a premise will help us down the line.
The Mechanics
Each color gets its own unique mechanic. Note that each of these mechanics can spill a little into that color's allies.
WWhiteW
"Blank" Matters - white wants peace and equality, so it likes to stay in one place where it can even the odds rather than hop around or fight in chaos. This ability would not have an actual word associated with it, but would be based around the blank sides of the die. An example would be:
Fortified Troop 2W
Creature - Soldier
Whenever you roll a planar die, put a +1/+1 counter on Fortified Troop.
Whenever a player rolls C or planeswalks, remove all counters from Fortified Troop.
2/2
UBlueU
Planar Deck Matters - Blue in this set would be focused on manipulating the plane cards. Looking at the top plane, bouncing planes back to the top of their owner's decks, or even milling an opponent's deck are all things blue might do. Here's an example:
Glance Ahead U
Sorcery
Look at the top plane in target player's planar deck. You may put that plane on the bottom of that player's planar deck.
BBlackB
Dice Manipulation - What does black do when it sees a new, unstable form of power? Abuse it of course. Black seeks to cheat the system so that things always turn out right for them and wrong for their opponents. Black can also tax die, an example being:
Aether Keeper 1B
Creature - Skeleton Guard
Whenever an opponent rolls a planar die, they may pay an additional 1. If they don't, they loose 1 life and you gain 1 life.
1/1
RRedR
Chaos - Chaos is an ability word. These abilities would read "Chaos - If a player rolled C this turn, [effect]" An example would be:
Wild Fire R
Instant
Wild Fire deals 2 damage to target creature or player. Chaos - If a player rolled C this turn, Wild Fire deals 4 damage to target creature or player instead.
(As with all abilities, the name can be changed)
GGreenG
Explore - Explore is another ability word. (I don't really like this name, so if someone has a better one please suggest it.) These abilities would read "Explore - Whenever a player planeswalks, [Effect]" An example would be:
Planar Explorer 1G
Creature - Human Explorer
Planar Explorer comes into play with a +1/+1 counter on it. Explore - Whenever a player planeswalks, put a +1/+1 counter on Planar Explorer for each +1/+1 counter already on Planar Explorer.
0/0
The Planes
In addition to all of the normal cards, this set will feature 30 new plane cards. These planes will be the "Standard" planes, while the original planes will be considered "Extended."
(Synergy Planes are planes that fit into the color pie but do not actually mention the color. For instance, a white synergy plane might let you gain life, while a white color plane will specifically mention white)
Help Wanted!
The area I need the most help in is the art. Putting the art in the frame is easy, but it's hard when you don't have art to begin with.
Any other help with designing the planes, mechanics, or individual cards would be welcome. Even if you don't want to help continuously, but just have a quick idea, feel free to post it. Anything and everything on here can be changed. Thanks in advanced for your help. Hopefully, you'd like to see this just as much as I do!
My friends and I have thought about this set many times. However, when we imagined it, we thought of it like a "Shadowmoor Alara." What would each of the shards be like in a twisted, mirror world? (We also named each shard by their legendary dragon name.)
WBR - Oros is the anti-Bant. The nobel castes of Bant are now ruthless overlords and slave drivers, which oppress and torture their subjects. The W of the shard are its angels, which are ambitious as they are cruel. The Angels of Oros use religion as a stranglehold on the shard, twisting the population to their own advantage. The RW are the warlords, mostly rhox and human. Though they, like the boros, claim their actions are holy, but they constantly pillage villages, branding and torturing the civilians until they're assimilated into their ranks. The WB of Oros is the bureaucracy. These human and aven Orzhov look to assimilate through other means; poisoning food supplies or cutting trade routes with their legions of undead. The undead may not be as effective a task force, but they're cheap, which is all that matters.
URG - Intet is the anti-Esper. Intet is a plane of chaos. Etherium on this shard (or whatever you want to call it) is not an alloy, but a unstable form of energy. Instead of developing a ridged society of control, the inhabitants of Intet have become as wild and savage as the Etherium that now runs through their veins. Think of Izzet ingenuity combined with Simic disregard for life and you can imagine what kind of experiments happen within the walls of Intet. The U are the Sphinxes and Ethermages, dedicated to doing anything and everything with etherium, which can be used to enhance spells or warp creatures (UR and GU respectively).
BGW - Teneb is the anti-Grixis. Instead of a cold-hearted, ruthless dregscape, Teneb is a flourishing and harmonious world. In it, the undead citizens live peacefully with each other and their Necromancer masters. B demons still rule over the world, but much like the Angels of Oros, Tenebian Demons have a vastly different outlook on life, or the after life rather. Instead of using death as a means to an end, they use it as a means of rebirth. Citizens are regularly, sometimes brutally sacrificed (WB), and then brought back as undead citizens (BG). What would seem like a horrible cycle on other planes is a way of life and prosperity on Teneb.
RWU - Numot is the anti-Jund. Imagine an Azorious perspective hitting goblins, viashino, dragons, and all the other creatures of Jund. They created a government for themselves based on their natural Red instincts of passion and freedom. They start their life out as savage youngsters, but at a sort of "puberty" (or as they call it, enlightenment) they are blessed with a more civilized manner and brighter mind. Though the Dragons of the high council are by far the smartest, and rule over the rest of the plane, many of the other species have utilized their intelligence to enhance battle strategy (RW) and their magical abilities (this scientific UR field is ironically inhabited by mostly goblins).
GUB - Vorosh is the anti-Naya. A sickly infection has swiped through the once prosperous Nayan jungles, turning the flora and fauna into warped versions of themselves. This infection is carried by a sentient race of insects called the Actrid. Part mosquito, part spider, part ant, and part bee, they have infected most of the wildlife and used them to their advantage. Their Queen seeks nothing more than to feed of the strong life essence present in the gargantuans of Vorosh (BG), and while she sits in her hive the King leads their swarms into battle, one in which the inhabitants have no hope or method of avoiding. (UB)
You don't have to use these, but they're a little more fleshed out than your OP and have the small, added benefit of the shadowmoor syndrome (mirror cards)
Cantripping doesn't seem that op to me.
and yes, a story would be nice. can't really move forward with the actual cards without it.
Common color aligned planes with standard color abilities and chaos "hose" abilities. These might be too powerful.
New uncommon neutral planes
1 test synergy plane, it's supposed to be green, but i'm not sure how i'm liking it yet
2 uncommon synergy planes, BG and UG
2 rare color aligned (WU and GW)
But like i said, it can always be changed.
For instance, a UR plane would just buff all instants and sorceries, instead of actually mentioning the colors themselves. (there actually is a plane like this, but re-printing isn't such a terrible thing)
Scrying Steppe
Plane - ?
Whenever you cast a spell, you may scry X, where X is that spell's converted mana cost
C: Whenever you roll C, ...?
or
Cycling Pools
Plane - ?
All cards in your hand have Cycling 2.
C: Whenever you roll C, discard your hand, then draw that many cards.
Another method would be to just straight up buff or nerf everything
Wandering Library
Plane - ?
You have no Maximum hand size
C: Whenever you roll C, draw 3 cards.
Smog Field
Plane - ?
All creatures get -1/-1
C: Whenever you roll C, target creature gets -2/-2 until end of turn.
these aren't very creative, but you get the picture.
any rarity works, though when designing them, the rarer the plane, the more powerful it is, but the more specific it is (commons are the building blocks while rares are what you build around)
By neutral I mean planes like Cliffside Market, Eloren Wilds, Krosa, Pools of Becoming, Isle of vesuva, Raven's run, Sanctum of Serra, Skybreen, The Eon Fog, The Hippodrome, and The Maelstrom. Many of them have very slight color alignments (it's hard to find true "colorless" abilities), but over they help/hurt each player equally, regardless of color.
That doesn't mean they're throwaway planes. Each has a different use and decks can certainly be built around each of them. Just think of them like artifacts: some are more useful than others in some colors, but all of them have "general" uses.
Planechase added a cool new game mechanic without breaking the flow of magic. While planechase is definitely fun, the rules of the game and the nature of the plane cards makes it hard to be anything other than "random multiplayer" fun. While there's nothing wrong with that (and that was after all the purpose of it), I'd like to see planechase in a more "standard" like environment.
The Goal
To create a set built around the mechanics of planechase that would be playable in a standard setting. This means that planes must be balanced and focused more on duels rather than multiplayer games.
The Rules
The rolling of planar die will work identically (X - roll a planar die, where X is the number of times you've rolled a planar die this turn. Roll only as a sorcery), as will the construction and function of a planar deck.
The Premise
This part is a bit tricky. It's hard to write a backstory for a set that happens between many planes. Perhaps 5 planeswalkers are in a war and these are their personal armies and spells? Maybe a single plane's become unstable causing random teleportation? Settling on a premise will help us down the line.
The Mechanics
Each color gets its own unique mechanic. Note that each of these mechanics can spill a little into that color's allies.
WWhiteW
"Blank" Matters - white wants peace and equality, so it likes to stay in one place where it can even the odds rather than hop around or fight in chaos. This ability would not have an actual word associated with it, but would be based around the blank sides of the die. An example would be:
Fortified Troop 2W
Creature - Soldier
Whenever you roll a planar die, put a +1/+1 counter on Fortified Troop.
Whenever a player rolls C or planeswalks, remove all counters from Fortified Troop.
2/2
UBlueU
Planar Deck Matters - Blue in this set would be focused on manipulating the plane cards. Looking at the top plane, bouncing planes back to the top of their owner's decks, or even milling an opponent's deck are all things blue might do. Here's an example:
Glance Ahead U
Sorcery
Look at the top plane in target player's planar deck. You may put that plane on the bottom of that player's planar deck.
BBlackB
Dice Manipulation - What does black do when it sees a new, unstable form of power? Abuse it of course. Black seeks to cheat the system so that things always turn out right for them and wrong for their opponents. Black can also tax die, an example being:
Aether Keeper 1B
Creature - Skeleton Guard
Whenever an opponent rolls a planar die, they may pay an additional 1. If they don't, they loose 1 life and you gain 1 life.
1/1
RRedR
Chaos - Chaos is an ability word. These abilities would read "Chaos - If a player rolled C this turn, [effect]" An example would be:
Wild Fire R
Instant
Wild Fire deals 2 damage to target creature or player.
Chaos - If a player rolled C this turn, Wild Fire deals 4 damage to target creature or player instead.
(As with all abilities, the name can be changed)
GGreenG
Explore - Explore is another ability word. (I don't really like this name, so if someone has a better one please suggest it.) These abilities would read "Explore - Whenever a player planeswalks, [Effect]" An example would be:
Planar Explorer 1G
Creature - Human Explorer
Planar Explorer comes into play with a +1/+1 counter on it.
Explore - Whenever a player planeswalks, put a +1/+1 counter on Planar Explorer for each +1/+1 counter already on Planar Explorer.
0/0
The Planes
In addition to all of the normal cards, this set will feature 30 new plane cards. These planes will be the "Standard" planes, while the original planes will be considered "Extended."
The Planes will be distributed as such:
Commons - 15
5 Neutral Planes
5 Synergy Planes
5 Colored Planes
Uncommons - 9
4 Neutral Planes
5 Synergy Planes (enemy)
Rares - 5
5 Multicolored (allied) Planes
Mythics - 1
1 "Ultimate" Plane (Neutral)
(Synergy Planes are planes that fit into the color pie but do not actually mention the color. For instance, a white synergy plane might let you gain life, while a white color plane will specifically mention white)
Help Wanted!
The area I need the most help in is the art. Putting the art in the frame is easy, but it's hard when you don't have art to begin with.
Any other help with designing the planes, mechanics, or individual cards would be welcome. Even if you don't want to help continuously, but just have a quick idea, feel free to post it. Anything and everything on here can be changed. Thanks in advanced for your help. Hopefully, you'd like to see this just as much as I do!
WBR - Oros is the anti-Bant. The nobel castes of Bant are now ruthless overlords and slave drivers, which oppress and torture their subjects. The W of the shard are its angels, which are ambitious as they are cruel. The Angels of Oros use religion as a stranglehold on the shard, twisting the population to their own advantage. The RW are the warlords, mostly rhox and human. Though they, like the boros, claim their actions are holy, but they constantly pillage villages, branding and torturing the civilians until they're assimilated into their ranks. The WB of Oros is the bureaucracy. These human and aven Orzhov look to assimilate through other means; poisoning food supplies or cutting trade routes with their legions of undead. The undead may not be as effective a task force, but they're cheap, which is all that matters.
URG - Intet is the anti-Esper. Intet is a plane of chaos. Etherium on this shard (or whatever you want to call it) is not an alloy, but a unstable form of energy. Instead of developing a ridged society of control, the inhabitants of Intet have become as wild and savage as the Etherium that now runs through their veins. Think of Izzet ingenuity combined with Simic disregard for life and you can imagine what kind of experiments happen within the walls of Intet. The U are the Sphinxes and Ethermages, dedicated to doing anything and everything with etherium, which can be used to enhance spells or warp creatures (UR and GU respectively).
BGW - Teneb is the anti-Grixis. Instead of a cold-hearted, ruthless dregscape, Teneb is a flourishing and harmonious world. In it, the undead citizens live peacefully with each other and their Necromancer masters. B demons still rule over the world, but much like the Angels of Oros, Tenebian Demons have a vastly different outlook on life, or the after life rather. Instead of using death as a means to an end, they use it as a means of rebirth. Citizens are regularly, sometimes brutally sacrificed (WB), and then brought back as undead citizens (BG). What would seem like a horrible cycle on other planes is a way of life and prosperity on Teneb.
RWU - Numot is the anti-Jund. Imagine an Azorious perspective hitting goblins, viashino, dragons, and all the other creatures of Jund. They created a government for themselves based on their natural Red instincts of passion and freedom. They start their life out as savage youngsters, but at a sort of "puberty" (or as they call it, enlightenment) they are blessed with a more civilized manner and brighter mind. Though the Dragons of the high council are by far the smartest, and rule over the rest of the plane, many of the other species have utilized their intelligence to enhance battle strategy (RW) and their magical abilities (this scientific UR field is ironically inhabited by mostly goblins).
GUB - Vorosh is the anti-Naya. A sickly infection has swiped through the once prosperous Nayan jungles, turning the flora and fauna into warped versions of themselves. This infection is carried by a sentient race of insects called the Actrid. Part mosquito, part spider, part ant, and part bee, they have infected most of the wildlife and used them to their advantage. Their Queen seeks nothing more than to feed of the strong life essence present in the gargantuans of Vorosh (BG), and while she sits in her hive the King leads their swarms into battle, one in which the inhabitants have no hope or method of avoiding. (UB)
You don't have to use these, but they're a little more fleshed out than your OP and have the small, added benefit of the shadowmoor syndrome (mirror cards)
sorry for the wall of text