Cool Card Design of the Day9/15/2016 - Revisiting the first CCDD posted to this site. I'm still attracted to cards that can help players get real games of Magic, in this case by smoothing out their opening hand. Elusive (originally gamecycling) gives you more chances to draw the cards you need in the early game, by helping you save the cards you want in the late game until later.
It originally shuffled your deck, giving you hope of drawing your elusive card before the game ends. Shuffling here isn't a huge cost, since you'd be mulliganing without this mechanic, and there's not much happening at game start anyhow, but shipping to the bottom of your deck is so fast, and gives players more control: If you want to see your elusive cards again, include shuffling effects in your deck. Otherwise, don't worry about it.
Unlike cycling, elusive doesn't want to be on conditionally-relevant cards as much as it does mid- and late-game cards which you either can't play early or would rather save until you can play for their full value.
Would you play any of these?
Design your own elusive card in the comments below.
Elusive Mentor 4W
ReplyDeleteCreature - Human Soldier
If this is in your opening hand, you may reveal it and put it on the bottom of your deck. If you do, create a white 2/1 Human Soldier token.
3/5
Ancestral Echoes 4U
Sorcery
Shuffle your graveyard into your library, then draw three cards.
Elusive
Riddle-Writ Waterfall
Land
CARDNAME enters the battlefield tapped.
T: Add U to your mana pool.
If CARDNAME is in your opening hand, you may put it on the bottom of your deck. If you do, scry 3.
Ohhh. Your eluders aren't granting an effect in addition to replacing the card, but instead. That's really neat!
DeleteMentor is interesting, because its face value is weak in Limited and straight-up unplayable in Constructed, but the elusive mode could be devastating in either.
Does opening hand included mulliganed hands? I guess it can't, right?
Echoes is good here (drawing after shuffle can slow things down, slightly less so at 5cc).
Retreating Iceburg.
Delete{T}: Add {C}.
Elusive — If this is in your opening hand, you may reveal it and put it on the bottom of your deck. If you do, search your library for a basic land card and put into your hand, then shuffle your library.
According to current rules (e.g. on New Phyrexian Chancellors, Providence, Leylines, etc) your starting hand is what you have after you've finished resolving all mulligans.
DeleteTrembling Earth
ReplyDelete2R
Sorcery - Uncommon
Creatures without flying can't block this turn.
Elusive
Perfect.
Delete