Ulamog's Devourer (Common)
{6}{G}
Creature - Eldrazi Wurm
CARDNAME is colorless.
Ingest 1 (Whenever CARDNAME becomes blocked by a creature with lesser power, exile that creature and put a +1/+1 counter on CARDNAME.)
6/6
Ondu Refugee (Common)
{1}{W}
Creature - Kor Cleric
Teamwork - Whenever CARDNAME attacks with exactly one other creature, they both gain lifelink until end of turn.
1/3
Guul Draz Vivisector (Uncommon)
{2}{B}{B}
Creature - Vampire Assassin
When CARDNAME enters the battlefield, you may destroy target colorless creature.
3/2
Desperate Rage (Common)
{3}{R}
Instant
Target creature gets +4/+0 and gains first strike until end of turn.
I'm not sure you want "colorless matters" to live in the same set as colorless things that cost colored mana.
ReplyDeleteWhy is that? I think the most compelling reason to have colorless things that cost colored mana is that you've chosen "colorless matters" as a mechanical theme.
DeleteThe more I think about it, the more I think you don't want colorless stuff you pay for with colored mana. The thing that is interesting about colorless cards is that every color has access to them. When you decide that colorless is just a property of cards you pay colored mana for, you've taken away what makes colorless colorless. The mechanic loses what's special about it and it winds up feeling like a parasitic subtype theme (like Arcane.)
DeleteThe reason why colored artifacts had the impact that they did is because they had automatic synergy with thousands of cards that were already printed that cared about artifacts.
For my money, the way to make colorless matter is to amp up the number of cards that care about color. That way, the colorless cards are either immune to them, or don't contribute to them.
DeleteGuul Draz Vivisector kinda goes entirely opposite to the idea that the Eldrazi were incredibly difficult to remove and face down.
ReplyDeleteI don't really like Teamwork - it feels like a less fun Exalted. If you want 'pairs in battle', Icarael had this wonderful idea a while back for a Boros faction: Cohort (You may pair this with another unpaired attacking or blocking creature you control whenever either of them attacks or blocks. They remain paired until end of combat.)
Colorless things you cast for colored mana are okay. I've never been a big fan of them, though - it's just confusing until you see a card that makes it worth it. In the same 'booster pack' as Guul Draz Vivisector, though, it sees like a drawback, not a boon.
That's a good point. The Vivisector probably isn't the right "colorless matters" card to showcase the set.
DeleteNot to mention the potential flavor disconnect with nonesper, nonphyrexian artifact creatures...
DeleteAmusingly, a custom set I was working on was called exactly this; "Ruins of Zendikar".
ReplyDeleteI wouldn't be surprised if WotC used that exact name.
DeleteIt's a damn good name.
DeleteIt really tells you everything about the world. My idea for the set was a top-down post-apocalyptic setting and I realised Zendikar worked really well for that.
DeleteI don't get ingest. Why don't we want little creatures to be able to team up with the Eldrazi? I could see going for a Sengir Vampire ability; in fact, it would come up more since then you can have the Eldrazi blocked by a bunch of stuff and then use a pump spell and get some triggers.
ReplyDeleteThe ability does look uninteractive — for most big creatures, it would be better gameplay if small creatures could team up to fight it.
DeleteBut I guess that for very late-game finisher creatures, the ability could make it feel like a countdown of doom that you can only delay but not avoid. It also won't be as unpopular as annihilator seems to be for some casual players.
Ingest is a safe attack enabler, so that once you've built up a weenie army on one side and a big Eldrazi on the other, you don't get a ground stand-off. Like Annihilator, it makes attacking so good that you'll just do it, and your creature is SO! BIG! that they can't beat it with numbers.
DeleteIt's from this site's exploration of Cowboys-vs-Eldrazi.
DeleteThink of it as A-Kinder-Gentler-Annihilator.
It's also terrifying and dripping with flavor.
(That doesn't mean it won't ruin gameplay—I just wouldn't assume that without trying it.)
More math-y, but I would be interested in "Ingest 1 - Whenever CARDNAME becomes blocked by a creature with power 1 or less, exile that creature and put a +1/+1 counter on CARDNAME." Some wurms can eat tiny things, others, much bigger ones.
DeleteI'm not a fan of printing {G} and then adding extra text that it's not Green. I guess it's less confusing when you have a colorless frame, but still it feels like a very artificial thing to do.
ReplyDeleteWhat if it's colorless, but gains an extra ability if you paid G to cast it or if you control a forest?
Also a good option. I could see doing this with kicker for +1/+1 counters, or temporary pump. Many keywords wouldn't work great with Ingest, though.
DeleteThis is a neat idea to explore--
DeleteUlamog's Devourer 7
Creature - Eldrazi Wurm
Ingest 1
When ~ enters the battlefield, you may destroy target noncreature permanent if you spent G to cast it.
6/6
As a side note: I have always thought Ghostfire was a stupid gimmick card, but enough people like it that this seemed like a feasible future direction for the Eldrazi.
ReplyDeleteI had forgotten about Ghostflame! I guess part of the appeal of that card was that many Red players had traumatic memories of being foiled by Circle of Protection: Red.
DeleteWhat bothers me about teamwork is that my pair of creatures refuse to work together if a third creature also attacks. Why not just "Whenever ~ attacks, choose another attacking creature. If you do, they both gain [ability] until EOT?"
ReplyDeleteThat's a possibility. I think it could lead to complicated board states when you have multiple teamwork creatures and no visual indication of targets. Also, attacking with more than one creature feels like too easy a hoop to jump through.
DeletePerhaps have one of them stay behind while the other attacks? Sort of a "I'll cover you" feel
DeleteWhich I guess turns into less of a keyword and more of a "{T}: Target attacking creature you control has this thing happen to it" so I dunno if that's a good idea
DeleteI know this is old, but can we talk about how Havelock nailed Devoid and a mechanic called Ingest tied to Ulamog's brood?
ReplyDelete