Cool Card Design of the Day3/21/2011 - Cards like Lead the Stampede reward you for playing more creatures in your deck than you might otherwise, but they also limit the number you can play because they are, themselves, non-creatures. Mother Bear is an exploration of removing that liability.
I'm not saying the sorcery versions of this effect are bad, nor am I even saying the tension they cause in deckbuilding is bad, just that there is a possibility for a positive tweak on an existing effect that some players enjoy. A twist that might allow a few more players to enjoy it.
Mother Bear ends up looking like a simpler version of Llanowar Empath and Colfenor's Sapling. That's a good thing, actually. While both of those cards are fun and interesting, it is usually in a designer's best interest to find the simplest version of a mechanic and remove all the excess around it. Mother Bear is a straight-forward card that is a strict upgrade to Grizzle Bears, but isn't too powerful. It's also a relatively marginal effect, so here's an uncommon version with a bit more potential:
And, let us not forget the obligatory splashy rare.
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