CCDD 081620 - Locked in Combat

Here's one of those card designs where the concept is clear and the challenge is how to make it appealing, because the concept just doesn't do that much. How often would you want this effect over Smite or Celestial Flare?

CCDD 111418—learn a lesson

Cool Card Design of the Day
During the weeks between learning I'd made the top 100 for GDS3 and the initial design test, I designed and playtested a Magic world and a number of potential mechanics for it, knowing that work would either be directly relevant or at least good practice. One of the keywords I tested had been stewing in my head for quite some time.

CCDD 010417—Mad Whispers

Cool Card Design of the Day
1/4/2017 - Mad Whispers means you never have to choose whether to draw cards yourself or ding your opponent for 2 life with Sign in Blood. Symmetry!

CCDD 010317—Seedcaster

Cool Card Design of the Day
1/3/2017 - I love the way that Eager Construct smooths the game for everyone. The game needs smoothing, and making cards that smooth for everyone but are still worth playing (sometimes) helps make smoothing happen more. That said, fully symmetrical effects can feel a little bad when they help your opponent more than you; So can we make a card that can smooth for everyone that needs it, but clearly benefits its caster most?

CCDD 080614—Parade of Gnomes

Cool Card Design of the Day
8/6/2014 - Symmetrical effects are some of the most challenging designs because they tend to look unappealing and the line between too good and too bad is thinner; it can't be balanced by costs alone. There needs to be something about the effect that benefits its caster enough for her to spend the mana and the card to make it happen, but there needs to be a significant cost to abusing it thoroughly. Creatureless decks turn Day of Judgment into a one-sided effect, but playing no creatures means they need to find another way to win, and are vulnerable to decks that can't push through their removal. Anyhow.

CCDD 020413—Vampire's Secret

Cool Card Design of the Day
2/4/2013 - What if Demonic Tutor were symmetrical?

CCDD 082212—Electric Pulse

Cool Card Design of the Day
8/22/2012 - Sorry it's been so long since I've posted. I was dealing with a lot of last-minute preparations for GenCon, the event itself, and the ordeal of getting home. (US Airways screwed me big time coming and going—It was brutal. But I'm tired of telling that story.)

For whatever reason I was thinking about the way that lords have become strictly good for their controller and how that trend has been migrating to other cards that would have been symmetrical years ago. It made me think about a one-sided Pyroclasm.