Clarion Herd5GU
Snow Creature - Spirit Aurochs
Flying, trample
When ~ attacks, it gets +1/+0 until end of turn for each other attacking Aurochs.
Discard two nonland cards with the same name: Create a 2/3 green Aurochs cretaure token with trample and "When this creature attacks, it gets +1/+0 until end of turn for each other attacking Aurochs."
5/6
Skybreach3WW
Instant
Exile target artifact, creature, or enchantment.
If a source an opponent controlled dealt damage to your this turn, instead exile all artifacts, creatures, and enchantments.
I absolutely love Swans of Bryn Argoll, and really hate that it found its way into such a dull combo. I have never played it in a deck with Seismic Assault.
Really, it's neither monowhite nor monoblue, they were reaching on many of these hybrid cards in shadowmoor since they didn't allow themselves to use proper multicolored cards. As a rare it's fine though, it's not egregiously far from either white or blue.
I'm a big fan of these cards that force your opponent to do something ostensibly positive. Forced Fruition is probably more on-the-nose about it, but this tickles that bone as well. You like card advantage? Choke on your card advantage and die!
Waking Nightmares2BBB
Instant
Create a 1/1 black Nightmare creature token with shadow.
Create a 2/2 black Nightmare Zombie creature token with shadow.
Create a 3/3 black Nightmare Beast creature token with shadow.
Bolg, Smasher Extraordinaire4BRG
Legendary Creature - Giant Ogre
Trample, haste
When ~ attacks, each player chooses a permanent other than ~. Destroy each chosen permanent.
7/7
Next:
An abzan commander for all the great removal in those colors.
Bizarre. A flavor mess and mechanically breaks the color pie.
They probably told the artist the name of the card, but not what it did, or who the An-Zerrins were, so he just made something that looked cool.
I know there were R&D problems in homelands, I'd guess the effect vs the flavor were designed independently, then merged without care to the result.
Especially interesting is that, in this era many creatures types were just part of their names again, giving large numbers of creatures unique creature types and significantly weakening the effect compared to how we view it from this end of history.
I think that Ulgrotha has plenty of story left to mine, and we could return there in a future set. They're just unduly influenced by the poor perception of the Homelands set, and inaccurately attribute the story and flavor of Ulgrotha a share of that negative perception.
Quintaxxus3RUG
Legendary Creature - Djinn Wizard
Flying
Whenever you cast a spell or activate an ability with X in it's cost, the value of X is 5.
Whenever a spell or ability has you choose one or more modes, you may choose one additional mode.
5/5
Wit of QuintaxxusXUR
Instant
Choose one -
- ~ deals X+2 damage to any target.
- scry X, then draw a card.
Wish of QuintaxxusXGU
Instant
Choose one -
- Create an X/X green Djinn creature token with hexproof.
- Return up to X target nonland permanents target opponent controls to their hand, then that player puts a card from their hand on top of their library.
Whim of QuintaxxusXRG
Instant
Choose one -
- Put X +1/+1 counters on target creature, that creature gains indestructible until end of turn.
- Destroy each artifact with converted mana cost X or less.
Transplanar Spinner3CC
Creature - Eldrazi Spider
Ingest
Whenever a card an opponent owns is put into exile, add mana equal to that card's mana cost. (Mana cost includes color)
3/5
Clarion Herd 5GU
Snow Creature - Spirit Aurochs
Flying, trample
When ~ attacks, it gets +1/+0 until end of turn for each other attacking Aurochs.
Discard two nonland cards with the same name: Create a 2/3 green Aurochs cretaure token with trample and "When this creature attacks, it gets +1/+0 until end of turn for each other attacking Aurochs."
5/6
Instant
Exile target artifact, creature, or enchantment.
If a source an opponent controlled dealt damage to your this turn, instead exile all artifacts, creatures, and enchantments.
Really, it's neither monowhite nor monoblue, they were reaching on many of these hybrid cards in shadowmoor since they didn't allow themselves to use proper multicolored cards. As a rare it's fine though, it's not egregiously far from either white or blue.
I'm a big fan of these cards that force your opponent to do something ostensibly positive. Forced Fruition is probably more on-the-nose about it, but this tickles that bone as well. You like card advantage? Choke on your card advantage and die!
I do kinda wish they had done them with no backgrounds, like the old ones.
Instant
Create a 1/1 black Nightmare creature token with shadow.
Create a 2/2 black Nightmare Zombie creature token with shadow.
Create a 3/3 black Nightmare Beast creature token with shadow.
Next:
Patron of the Moon
Legendary Creature - Giant Ogre
Trample, haste
When ~ attacks, each player chooses a permanent other than ~. Destroy each chosen permanent.
7/7
Next:
An abzan commander for all the great removal in those colors.
They probably told the artist the name of the card, but not what it did, or who the An-Zerrins were, so he just made something that looked cool.
I know there were R&D problems in homelands, I'd guess the effect vs the flavor were designed independently, then merged without care to the result.
Especially interesting is that, in this era many creatures types were just part of their names again, giving large numbers of creatures unique creature types and significantly weakening the effect compared to how we view it from this end of history.
I think that Ulgrotha has plenty of story left to mine, and we could return there in a future set. They're just unduly influenced by the poor perception of the Homelands set, and inaccurately attribute the story and flavor of Ulgrotha a share of that negative perception.
World Enchantment
Artifacts and creatures enter the battlefield tapped.
Triggered abilities of artifacts and creatures don't trigger.
It is a significant discount, but also prevents you from exceeding 5, making X spells highly efficient, but bounded.
The intent of the spells was to keep the two effects within the colors, and to provide some utility to them when X=0, that's where the X+2 came from.
Legendary Creature - Djinn Wizard
Flying
Whenever you cast a spell or activate an ability with X in it's cost, the value of X is 5.
Whenever a spell or ability has you choose one or more modes, you may choose one additional mode.
5/5
Wit of Quintaxxus XUR
Instant
Choose one -
- ~ deals X+2 damage to any target.
- scry X, then draw a card.
Wish of Quintaxxus XGU
Instant
Choose one -
- Create an X/X green Djinn creature token with hexproof.
- Return up to X target nonland permanents target opponent controls to their hand, then that player puts a card from their hand on top of their library.
Whim of Quintaxxus XRG
Instant
Choose one -
- Put X +1/+1 counters on target creature, that creature gains indestructible until end of turn.
- Destroy each artifact with converted mana cost X or less.
Creature - Eldrazi Spider
Ingest
Whenever a card an opponent owns is put into exile, add mana equal to that card's mana cost. (Mana cost includes color)
3/5
Next:
Ayula, Queen Among Bears