Thursday, November 10, 2011

M13 Party with Top Down (3)

I got so much good feedback from yesterday's post that I couldn't help but share the revised cards.

I liked enough of Greg and Chah's feedback on Eager Brute that I think we've got two neat cards here easily. First is the big rare that potentially takes over the game by eating everything your opponent plays that would otherwise block it. Ravenous Wurm may deserve higher toughness as a rare, but we'll have to test to see.
This red-Nekrataal version of Eager Brute is pretty exciting to me. Sometimes it's an expensive Lightning Bolt, sometimes it's a 3/2 for three and sometimes it's both. Take that, Griffin Sentinels of the world!

I like the nerfed version of Spellsealed Gargoyle more since it's so much simpler, but I was also tempted by Chah's suggestion of a Gargoyle that activates whenever a certain spell-type is cast. I limited it specifically to instants for simplicity and because that choice offers the most neat interactions. Allowing you to activate it during your opponent's attack or to punish your opponent for countering your pre-combat main phase spells.

Inspiring Angel gets Hamlet Captain's wording minus the Human restriction. I've played a lot of Innistrad Limited and somehow have missed until now that his ability works on defense as well. Huh.
This wording no longer boosts your ally's creatures in 2HG, but that seems worth cutting the text in half.
Anonymous is right that vigilance would feel good here since you'd get double use out of its inspiration. I'm not sure it needs it, but if we were to add it, we'd have to change something so it's not strictly better than long-time fan-favorite Serra Angel.

We had to change Reckless Summoning so that the unused cards go back into the library rather than into your graveyard to prohibit the Narcomoeba auto-win. At the same time, I liked where Chah was going with tying X to a number you have less control over. Ultimately, I wanted this to require mana though, so I went with another method of ensuring you don't have full control over what you get. This will turn off the johnnies a bit, but turn on the spikes (maybe) and timmies (surely). Now thinking this probably needs to be rare just because of the amount of text and strangeness of the ability.

Removed deathtouch from Death Widow. I had been thinking the same thing and getting confirmation was all the impetus I needed to make it so.

Greg is right that Telekinetic Push, at least as I worded it, was way too busy for too little effect. A legitimate instance of "too much flavor." I liked his suggestion of simplifying Telekinesis, so here's that.

I'm not convinced that a 3/3 that can't be chump- or gang-blocked isn't worth it, but it's worth considering the larger 4/4 version as well. This one makes me nervous that it's too good, but that's probably a good sign. We'll test it and see, I guess.

Thanks for the great suggestions, folks. I feel like we've got a strong handful of flavorful cards for our set. Are any of them Reassembling Skeleton awesome? Probably not, but they are pretty sweet, just the same.

EDIT: Adding Shivan Hatchling thanks to Nich's remarks on Part 2. Nich updated my design from the wiki in which you could sack the hatchling for an adult dragon from your deck after combat, but Nich made it self-contained which is a clear improvement. I changed his vampire trigger to a half Dragon Whelp / half Ashling the Pilgrim trigger. In retrospect, this should be rare.

54 comments:

  1. Death widow: without the black it definitely shouldn't have deathtouch - good change.

    Ravenous wurm and eager brute are fantastic. I don't think the wurm will need more toughness but I guess it needs playtesting to be sure.

    Warding gargoyle: I think it's better as instant or sorcery but costing 3. I agree that it shouldn't have indestructible though. Also, I love the name spellsealed.

    Dragon's Horde: if not including the whole cycle, this may not need to be a land. In fact, maybe we should invert the flavour a little bit. You steal an artifact from an opponent and when they try to get it back, your dragon comes to your defense. Something like:

    Dragon's Treasure (6)
    Artifact - Rare

    When ~ CITP, exile target artifact card from an opponent's library. ~ is a copy of the card exiled this way. When ~ leaves the battlefield, put a 4/4 red dragon with haste OTB under your control.

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  2. I love the wurm. For a card design contest I once designed a RGW legendary Giant with the same ability, though with bigger stats as well as Vigilance (for more combat!).

    This Eager Brute definitely is not common material, though. That kind of removal + body ought to be an uncommon.

    The Widow is actually a spidery riff on the "Symbiotic" creatures from Onslaught, now that I think about it.

    I like the concept for the Cyclops but I don't like the "Noble" part. There's nothing noble about a Cyclops. Their whole schtick is that they're uncivilized brutes.

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  3. To me, it seems that the current Wurm and Brute are in the opposite colors. This is the first core set since the keywording of Fight, and as such an opportunity to try and figure out its place within the color pie. The Tracker activated ability may as of yet be up for grabs (or shared, Daybreak Ranger-style). I would put forward that the ETB ability be green, and the take-all-comers ability be Red.

    Green could really use this opportunity to expand with a decent 2-for-1; and the fact that you don't have control over whether or not it fights makes the Wurm's ability scream red to me.

    (Also, the ETB brute feels to me like "Why isn't this FTK?", which red has had before. I get that there's more complexity there, but it doesn't seem more interesting in my opinion.)

    How would the old brute, as a 3/2 rare costing R, hold up against Scythe Tiger?

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  4. I don't see any great reason for Eager Brute to be changed in rarity. Its effective application is somewhere between Fire Imp (when it kills a 1/X) and Poor Man's Incinerate (when it kills an X/3).

    I would like to see it moved to Green though, as Pasteur is suggesting.

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  5. That flexibility is in itself a big deal, even if you'll only get the two-for-one under a narrow band of circumstances.

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  6. Not sure what exactly Spellsealed Gargoyle is good for, how many non-removal spells can target artifacts?

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  7. I forgot that I changed Dragon's Hoard so it /doesn't/ ETB tapped but has an activation cost. I'm honestly not sure what the right card type is. Maybe it should be a sorcery?

    When mocking these multi-fight guys up, I flipped between making Ravenous Wurm and Ravenous Hellion a few times. It's a close call. I went with the Wurm because the repeated hunt felt green to me but I can't disagree that it works at least as well in red.

    I kept Eager Brute at common for the reasons metaghost states. It's not an effect that is going going to blow anyone out even as a 4x.

    I could also see making Eager Brute green, though I'd make it 2/3 and 3G instead. That probably does know it up to uncommon.

    Pasteur, I could see a rare version of Eager Brute for less, but R 3/2 means you're going to hit your opponent with a 1cc 3-power creature AND lightning bolt their first blocker at no cost. Kinda makes Goblin Guide look lazy.

    Good point, Jade. I was thinking another solution would be a 0/4 defender that becomes a 4/4 flyer or something so that auras bring it to life.

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  8. I prefer the "Whenever a player casts X" version of the Gargoyle. It feels more appropriate to react to something external rather than wake up when you poke it. Or maybe it wakes up when its controller becomes the target of a spell or ability (that an opponent controls). Then it's getting up to protect its master, rather than because someone interrupted its nap.

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  9. As additional commentary on Eager Brute, its ultimate rarity will really have to come down to greater information on what the Limited environment looks like. While it currently outclasses Torch Slinger in the abstract, there's something to be set for speed of Zendikar, the actual flexibility of kicked vs. unkicked, and the fact that you can't cast Eager Brute unless there's something on your opponent's board for it to kill, as the fight clause isn't a may ability.

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  10. I think I prefer the "whenever casts" version of the gargoyle too.

    I agree with metaghost on Eager Brute (again) but am compelled to point out that you can cast a permanent spell with an ETB targeted ability, it's just the ability will fizzle when it triggers.

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  11. Oh, and I added a dragon to the page.

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  12. It seems a lot (and may be a lot) but at R–3/2, you can't play any additional aggressive creatures, and your opponents removal spells and creatures both act as removal spells.

    Is that too much? Probably. But the double-drawback of it does provide an interesting change in the way creatures interact, and is certainly a study of tempo on its own.

    If your opponent gets a blocker down before, it can block normally, and they play a would-be-blocker after he's in play, it's a one-for-one trade. Your opponent has some control over the situation as long as he or she plays creatures in their deck.

    (For clarity's sake, through all of this, of course, I mean the take-all-comers ability that the Wurm has right now, not the ETB-choose ability.)

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  13. Sure would make 0/4 walls main-deckable in the metagame. Wall of Omens reprint?

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  14. Kraken Hatchling.dec, yeah. Of course, the real reason I'm fighting doing this is to reignite my love affair with Torpid Moloch.


    Wait! What if Giant Spider fought target flyer when it ETB? The idea of it is probably a lot better than the play of it (because anything it fights, it could take down in combat/block all day). Either way, it's certainly another plummetable, green-ish option, especially if any number of Jagwasp Swarms make it into the final set.

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  15. I do like the dragon, by the way. Flavor seems reasonable. Meanwhile:

    Giant Web Spider 2GG (U)
    Creature - Spider
    When ~ ETB, you may have it fight any number of target creatures with flying.
    2/4


    The attempted flavor here is that the spider has gossamer thin webs spread all around that they don't see until bam! it gets them. (As opposed to, say, a spitting spider.) Name eludes me, though. (Will post in the wiki along with a corresponding idea).

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  16. I missed that Eager Brute says "another target creature" and was thinking it would just fight itself. Thus I was insinuating no one would do such a thing, even though technically you could.

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  17. Actually, in case you're interested, in the wiki I have a demon that fights itself. I don't know what set would want it, but if you undercost it (I have it at 2BB for 8/6) then it's a neat Johnny fatty if you can boost its toughness or, more simply, switch its P/T in response. Merfolk Thaumaturgist into Demon Narcissus?

    I'm overly fond of cards with few words that mean a lot.

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  18. For the record the Shivan Hatchling I posted was more Kragan Dragonlord (exciting) and less Dragon Whelp (sucky).

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  19. Why do the words "after combat" appear in Shivan Hatchling's textbox?

    I like the Angel, reads better with this wording too.

    Be sure to try Ravenous Wurm. I am afraid it won't be a Timmy card with such low toughness. Timmy doesn't understand the value proposition here, he wants to have his fatty and eat your fatty too. Stop trying to make this into a constructed card.

    The Red FTK style version is interesting in the more spike way, but I think you need to let Green have Fight as its removal, and as its 2-for-1 uncommon as well. 2GG 3/3 etb = fight, or somesuch. Keep the stats even for simplicity's sake.

    I like the progress / discussion on the Gargoyle. I'm not sure what I would do with it, exactly. Compare to Dormant Gomazoa - which is much harder to trigger, and which ended up as a somewhat failed Spike-Johnny card.

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  20. Dormant Gomazoa wasn't an intentionally bad card? I find that hard to believe.

    And maybe this is pushing things into an overly cutesy direction, but to make Eager Brute distinctly red, what if it could only fight creatures with power 1 or less, the exact subset that it can survive a fight with. A regular ol' Bully of the Meek.

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  21. Indeed, that is what it would appear to become...

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  22. One of my pet effects for red is destroying creatures with Defender, the modern equivalent to destroying Walls. It's usually not too relevant so it doesn't show up often but when it does I'm always happy to see it. What better way to get through an obstacle than to blow it up?

    Destroying creatures with low power is a variation on that mechanic, but gets much broader in flavor obviously. Now you can blow up walls/defenders as well as pick on little guys. Which is fine, because those are the sorts of things that red removal is best at dealing with anyway. It's one of those ways to make red and black removal feel distinct, as Tom LaPille discussed in Latest Developments a while back.

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  23. Yeah, I think we had discussed how that effect should be put into red in an earlier comment thread, perhaps in relation to me using it as a mode on one of my Melody charms.

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  24. Telekinetic Hold does two things that are often, but not always redundant together. Usually, you're happy either to tap it or have it deal no combat damage. Doing both feels awkward.

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  25. Yeah, I don't like Telekinetic Hold very much, even the initial version I proposed on the wiki. There's a cleaner implementation of this still waiting to be discovered. It don't think it's worth it though when we already have the flavorful Frost Breath available.

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  26. Maybe Eager Brute is an uncommon 3/3 for 3GG (that /may/ fight a creature when it ETB) and Ravenous Wurm is a rare 6/6 for 6GG (4GGG?) that fights every creature an opponent plays.

    I'm not in love with TK Hold.

    What's the flavor of "Destroy target creature with defender?" It's not demolition like "Destroy target wall." I agree red has little respect for defenders, but I'm not sure how it destroys them outside of combat or burn.

    What's the hesitation against Warding Gargoyle (once we kill Spellsealed G and steal its name)?

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  27. Well, we can look at something like Grotag Siege-Runner for a recent use of the mechanic. How does it destroy creatures with defender? By blowing them up, presumably. But what's the connection to defenders, specifically? I'd guess that the goblin charges at the walls of the fort and/or the people guarding it, basically suicide-bombing the place. The walls can't get out of the way, so they're destroyed. A non-wall defender is dedicated enough to their position that they won't abandon their post, facing the goblin without flinching (and getting blown up for their trouble). It's not a perfect analogy, but it works for me. And honestly, I'm willing to fudge a little bit on logic in order to spice up red's removal suite with a little more variety than "N damage to target creature."

    I like the second Gargoyle just fine, even if the flavor isn't all that perfect. It makes less sense for this stone guardian to animate itself when its controller casts Mighty Leap or something similar. It's not that big of an issue, but it doesn't exactly scream "top-down" to me. M11 kind of knocked that out of the park with its Gargoyle already. But Artifact -> Artifact Creature is a version of the gargoyle trope that hasn't really been done yet so I want to see that done too. I was really disappointed that there was no double-faced card like that in Innistrad, and the presence of Manor Gargoyle means it's not all that likely we'll seeing that later in the block.

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  28. Seems fair. The fact that the wall destroyer has to sacrifice himself helps the flavor. Even without, I did enjoy Ogre Gatecrasher when it was legal, even if most defenders were still walls at the time. Let's not overlook the less useful but easier-to-justify Noggle Bandit ability: "~ can't be blocked by creatures with defender."

    Good point on the Gargoyle. If we can't match the flavor of Gargoyle Castle, Gargoyle Sentinel or Manor Gargoyle, we probably shouldn't even try. This latest ability seems a bit more at home in an expert set anyhow.

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  29. These are some interesting designs, but I'd definitely want to tweak them.

    First off, Eager Brute:

    Labyrinth Champion 1RR
    Creature Minotaur U
    When Labyrinth Champion enters the battlefield, it fights target creature you don't control.
    2/3

    While I'm all for Greg's suggestions on this, this ability works flavorfully on a Minotaur. Green getting something like this would just be a huge colorbleed. And while symetrical P/T are nice, 1RR 2/3 is just a pretty iconic pair for a minotaur. Finally, giving it toughness higher than it's power means that it takes down bears without a problem, where the 3/2 version is usually just a 3 point burn spell against anything but 1/1s.

    It's also awkward that it kills itself or creatures or control, and "may" suggests that it's not too eager.

    Warding Gargoyle 3
    Artifact U
    Warding Gargoyle is a 4/6 Flying artifact creature as long as your opponents control three or more creatures.

    The instant trigger is cute, but it seems swingy (combat trick, blow out your combat//nothing) and awkward (You don't want to force players to do things they don't want to do) And what's the flavor?

    This guy takes a page from classic Gargoyle mythology, coming to life when enemy troops amass. It puts your opponent in a bind of committing to the board, and effects the board even when it isn't a creature.

    Inspiring Angel 3WW
    Creature Angel U
    Flying
    Whenever Inspiring Angel attacks or blocks, other creatures you control get +1/+1 until end of turn.
    3/3

    The only tweak here would be to change the P/T. First, we've been brainstorming different Angels to fit the Serra slot in the skeleton, and this is a flavor hit for me. That means that it probably want to be an uncommon instead of a rare. Which is good, I'd want the flavorful cards to be uncommons/commons if possible so that they get seen more. That said, a 4/4 flier is a high pick already, and this ability seems huge. I'd test it at 3/3 to start, and play with it from there.

    Reckless Summoning still just seems insane to me. I would cast this for 3 all day long. I don't know what slot this is trying to fill, and I'm not sure I see the flavor. How is it "Reckless"? Especially if it's not milling cards. If we're going for a splashy, flavorful red spell, I'd say:

    Dragon's Revenge 4RR
    Sorcery R
    Search target opponent's library for a card and and cast it without paying it's mana cost. Then that player shuffles his or her library and puts a 5/5 red Dragon creature token with flying onto the battlefield.

    This takes the concept of Dragon's treasure, makes it a little less narrow. It just becomes your opponent's best card, even a spell. Considering the popularity of Bribery in EDH, this seems like a fun one for multiplayer.

    Death Widow is fine, but I'm not sure it's more flavorful than Hornet Queen. Maybe if it gave you more spiders when it dies? I don't know.

    Telekinetic Hold- I'm not sold on the flavor of this concept, if we're designing these for flavor.


    Cyclops Noble- At 4/4 for 3RR it's going to be Red's premier uncommon. It's got big time evasion and is hard to kill with any of the common burn spells. I'm not sure about the flavor connection of not being able to be killed by a few clever little humans, but I get it on defense. I'd still go for my original suggest of the "manditory-Rhox" ability, but I guess that got axed.

    Shivan Hatchling 2RR
    Creature Dragon R
    Flying
    R: +1/+0 until end of turn.
    At the beginning of your end step, put a +1/+1 counter on Shivan Hatchling if it's power greater than four.
    2/2

    I like that once this guy gets a critical mass, he just keeps growing.

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  30. If you want a big, splashy green creature with Fight, think really big

    Alpha Predator 6GG
    Creature- Beast
    Trample
    When Alpha Predator enters the battlefield, it fights all creatures your opponent's control.
    /Survival of the biggest/
    8/8

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  31. Actually,

    Alpha Predator 6GG
    Creature- Beast
    Trample, Reach
    When Alpha Predator enters the battlefield, it fights all creatures your opponent's control.
    /Survival of the fattest/
    8/8

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  32. Duncan, your gargoyle is my favorite one I've seen in this brainstorm by far. I guess it might get a little awkward if it stops being a creature mid-combat thanks to first strike damage or instant tricks, but that's a pretty small price to pay for an otherwise cool and clean design.

    I have no problem with green creatures Fighting when they enter the battlefield. I've been designing those in my idle time long before Innistrad. Prey Upon only solidifies it more. In the end it's really more of a variant of Provoke than anything, which is a perfectly fine form of green removal. Even if it isn't literally combat, Fighting is still exactly the sort of thing where green can legitimately kill stuff.

    That Hatchling is really cool, too. The Johnny in me would probably want to speed up the growth process by slapping an Aura on, or even just a Giant Growth (talking about Limited of course).

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  33. I don't know why I didn't see it before, but mandatory-Rhox for a big Cyclops makes a lot of sense- can't see the trees for the forest -and feels plenty at home in red (where green would have trample).

    Could be wrong, but I think Duncan may've been on to something.

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  34. But ugh, the word "assign" feels so ugly in a textbox. Otherwise, though, while we're spinning things out, what about mixing them back in again?

    Cyclops Scoundrel 1RRR
    Creature - Cyclops Rogue
    When Cyclops Scoundrel enters the battlefield, it deals 4 damage to target creature.
    Cyclops Scoundrel assigns combat damage as though it weren't blocked.
    4/4

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  35. All this discussion around the big green fight creature and it maybe having only to do with flying creatures led to this thought:

    Ravenous Widow 3GG
    Creature Spider R
    Reach

    Whenever a creature an opponent controls attacks, if it has flying it fights ravenous widow.

    When ravenous widow dies, put three 1/2 green spider tokens with reach into play.

    3/6

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  36. Eh, I like it better as two separate cards. Smushing them together makes something that's too busy.

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  37. Yeah, I'd stick with "single idea" as much as possible.

    And I agree that "assign" looks terrible. I really don't know why they changed it from "deal". That said, Spinbitter shows that they still use this ability with the new wording, and assign does appear on other cards. For example, there are several M12 commons with trample.

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  38. I think Duncan's Dragon's Revenge is the best execution of Dragon's Hoard so far, at least for our purposes. That said, I'm not sure it's a red card and I suspect it can cost notably less. Perhaps:

    I agree we need a good red minotaur, but I like fight better in green than in red. Someone make a better minotaur than this:

    Minotaur of the Maze 1RR
    Creature-Minotaur Warrior (cmn)
    ~ has haste as long as you've been attacked since your last turn.
    2/3

    I like what you did with Alpha Predator since it's now just a one-sided wrath instead of, "you can't cast creature spells." I'd hate to lose my Alpha Predator to a Markov Patrician and Rotting Fensnake. How about:

    Alpha Predator 5GGG
    Creature-Beast (mythic?)
    When Alpha Predator enters the battlefield, it fights any number of target creatures.
    8/8

    Can I get more opinions? Do folks prefer Shivan Hatchling as I posted it or as Duncan proposed? Do we like the Cyclops who's tall and doesn't look down or the one that only see players? It's uncommon either way, I think. I like the proposal to make Inspiring Angel an uncommon, but 3/3 feels, frankly, uninspiring. 3/4? 4/4 but 4WW? It feels weird to have a white uncommon that costs more than 5, but I'm not sure it should.

    Another possible Shivan Hatchling
    XR: Put a +1/+1 counter on ~ if X is the number of +1/+1 counters already on it.
    This one would start at 1/1. It's more complicated than the alternatives, but I like how growing it becomes harder rather than easier.

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  39. Make that Alpha Predator a Hydra, sir, this instant!

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  40. Minotaur of the Maze 2R
    Creature-Minotaur Warrior (cmn)
    ~ gets +1/+1 and has trample as long as you've been attacked since your last turn.
    2/2

    Too Benalish Veteran?

    Minotaur Bully 2R
    Creature-Minotaur Warrior (cmn)
    Whenever a source you control deals noncombat damage to a player, ~ gets +2/+0 until EOT.
    2/3

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  41. Sir, yessir!

    Rancorous Hydra 5GGG
    Creature-Hydra (mythic?)
    When ~ enters the battlefield, it fights any number of target creatures.
    8/8

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  42. It also just occurred to me that "Dragon's Revenge" would be the opposite effect: "Target opponent searches your library for a card with CMC 5- and casts it for free. You get a Dragon." That could be red. The current wording would be more like "Steal from the Dragon." Preference?

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  43. Hmm. I love the idea of stealing from a dragon and putting that on a card would be great, but both of these executions are rife with feel-bad, making them bad for Timmy. We could make it for Spike or Johnny, but it's *stealing*from*a*Dragon*. I have a better understanding now of how they ended up with Hoarding Dragon.

    Here's one last effort:
    Plunder the Hoard 2R
    Enchantment (rare)
    3: Reveal the top card of your library. If the total converted mana cost of cards revealed this way this turn is 6 or greater, sacrifice Plunder the Hoard and put a 6/6 red Dragon creature token with flying onto the battlefield under an opponent’s control. Otherwise you may play the revealed card without paying its mana cost.

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  44. That version of Plunder the Hoard seems like our big dumb Red rare enchantment. I can see a really great multiplayer tweak.

    At the beginning of each players upkeep, that player reveals the top card of his or her library. If it is a spell with converted mana cost of 5 or less, the player may cast it without paying its mana cost. If its converted mana cost is 6 or greater, put a 5/5 red Dragon creature token with flying onto the battlefield under your control.

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  45. Oh, and I posted a new evergreen suggestion on my Top-Down page at the wiki. I didn't post it here because I didn't want to derail the card conversation.

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  46. Interesting twist. I love that it's harder to game it since it looks at decks other than your own. It does feel odd that your giving everyone free anything. That's a lot of gifting. Maybe:

    At the beginning of each players upkeep, that player reveals the top card of his or her library. If it's a land card, ignore it. If it's a spell card with converted mana cost 5 or less, you may cast it without paying its mana cost. Otherwise, sacrifice ~ and put a 5/5 red Dragon creature token with flying onto the battlefield.

    Like Hoarding Dragon, you get the Dragon and the Hoard in the end (which isn't great flavor, but is mighty sexy), but what's unpredictable is how long you get free spells. I dunno.

    Responded on the wiki.

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  47. Reckless Summoning gave me an idea.

    Forceful Conscription XRR
    Sorcery
    Search your opponent's library for up a creature card with converted mana cost X or less and put it onto the battlefield under your control, the shuffle your library.
    It gains haste and "whenever this creature is dealt damage, its owner gains control of it."

    The sorcery Plunder the Hoard is really awesome. I think it would be interesting if you could choose to continue revealing cards or not and it triggers when the total cc is over 6. It's too easy to play only 1cc spells though, so the condition needs to be tweaked.

    Maybe if it revealed cards from the opponent's deck. That would feel like plundering.

    Plunder the Hoard 3RR
    Reveal the top 3 cards of target player's library. You may cast a card from those cards without paying its mana cost. If the total converted mana cost of the revealed cards cost 6 or greater, put a 6/6 flying Dragon under opponent's control.

    This would satisfy people who crave adrenaline rushes with chaos cards.

    There could be a Red or White creature that says,
    "When this enters the battlefield, it fights target creature that dealt damage to you last turn."
    or,
    "Avenger Knight 4W 2/4
    Flash. When this enters the battlefield, it fights target creature that dealt damage to a creature you control or targeted a creature you control with its ability this turn."

    The single-minded Cyclops that only deals damage with a forced Thorn Elemental ability seems flavorful, but the Cyclops that ignores small things does seem weird.

    It could be, "Can't block creatures with power 4 or less. Can't be blocked except by creatures with total power 4 or less" (Where 4 is the Cyclops' power.)

    Or, it should be a gigantic Colussus instead of a Cyclops.

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  48. It occurred to me last night that the Rhox version of the Cyclops has no disadvantage blocking. This wording fixes that and avoids the word "assign":
    If Cyclops would deal damage to a creature, it deals that much damage to that creature's controller instead.

    Another iteration on Plunder the Hoard:
    Sorcery 3R?
    Reveal the top card of target opponent’s library. You may play it without paying its mana cost or put it on the bottom of his or her library. If the total converted mana cost of cards revealed this way is 6 or greater, he or she puts a 5/5 Dragon creature token with flying onto the battlefield. Otherwise, you may repeat this process.

    Forceful Conscription is pretty interesting. Bribery that the creature can wake up from. I'd remove the X. 2RR—Search for any creature card.

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  49. Rancorous Hydra is great but NEEDS to either X and should have a way to grow. What about this?

    Rancorous Hydra XGG
    Creature-Hydra (mythic?)
    ~ enters the battlefield with X +1/+1 counters.
    When ~ is dealt combat damage remove that many +1/+1 counters.
    G: ~ fights target creature. If that creature dies, add a +1/+1 counter to ~.
    0/0

    That last iteration of Plunder the Hoard is fantastic.

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  50. I don't know that hydras NEED to have +1/+1 counters. There's more than one way to skin a cat/express a flavor. The fact that it's interacting with multiple different permanents at once can be indicative enough.
    It is interesting how power and toughness work differently when fighting multiple creatures.

    For my take on things fight-spidery and hoard-plundery, I will shill the link here.
    http://tinyurl.com/topdownpasteur

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  51. Pasteur's Hoards Unlooted is pretty sweet:
    Sorcery (Rare) 3R
    Search your library for four cards with different names and reveal them.
    Put those cards into your hand. Discard three cards at random.

    I want to push it so it only discards two cards or only costs 2R. I wonder if this is the same instinct that causes broken cards.

    We may be able to put both of these in the same set since, once again, Plunder the Hoard is probably blue rather than red.

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  52. Urge to combine can't be resisted:

    Loot the Dragon's Hoard (Rare) 2R

    Search your library for three cards with different names and reveal them. Put those cards into your hand. Then, put a 5/5 dragon into play under an opponent's control unless you discard three cards at random.

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  53. It's very unfortunate that the name Labyrinth Minotaur is already taken. And so weirdly blue. But for another take on this, whether Mazebred Minotaur or Minotaur of the Maze (the name is obviously mutable as usual);


    Mazebred Minotaur 1RR
    Creature – Minotaur
    ~ can't be blocked by creatures with defender.
    "It knows its way around a wall."
    2/3

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