January MCC Round 3 - A sign in the stars

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bravelion83
MKM MCC going on now
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Post by bravelion83 » 4 years ago

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(This month's banner is my own elaboration on the cycle of basic lands by Sam Burley.)


January MCC Round 3

A sign in the stars


The story continues.
Intro
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Okite spent the next days looking at the sky, waiting for Phenax's signal. While he was waiting, he thought:
"What a stupid I've been! What a stupid all leonin are, willingly choosing not to believe in being that actually exist. Why can't we see the truth? This is the truth: that we're blind to the truth just because we put a blindfold on our own eyes all by ourselves. Is there a way to escape if Phenax, the so-called god of deception, was actually deceiving me? Maybe he's laughing of me behind my shoulders and there is no falling star to wait for. Maybe I should go back to him. Or maybe not, do I want to go back to him just to let him deceive me again. It's us, as a whole race, who deceived ourselves. A god can't deceive you if you don't believe in them, but you can easily deceive yourself if you think you're the owner of the world, if you think there is no being higher than himself. It's this self-deception that ruins us leonin. Now I see it. And I also see that we should have indeed helped that human, regardless of him invoking a god. Heliod. According to what Erebos said between one whip and another one Heliod exists too, even if I haven't seen him yet here. Anyway, it's clear now that Jeff was right. Jeff, wherever you might be now, know that you did good by disobeying to me, your boss. You were right. My order was wrong. I was wrong."
One day, while still looking thoughtful at the sky, he saw it.
"Here it is! The falling star! Phenax wasn't deceiving me, at least not this time. I have to go back to him right now."
He ran to the same spot of the previous times.
"Oh, here it is. My fugitive little bird."
"What do I have to do?"
"Oh, you want to go directly to our business. I was hoping you were open to some small talk before..."
"No, no more of that nonsense, please!"
"You're just lucky I have no whip like Erebos's one. If I had one its tip would be hurting your back right now."
"How can I leave this hell of a place?!?"
"Oh, it's quite literally a hell. Well, not all of it. Ilysia, where those who were heroes in life are allowed to spend their afterlife, is actually a beautiful place. But it's not for you. You're not required to go there. Your mission is another."
"Now we're talking. What is it?"
"A simple task that will allow you to leave this place with a mask but your identity intact!"
"What is it?"
"Your ticket back to the world of the living!"
"What. Is. It!"
"Your ultimate prize!"
"You're just deceiving me!"
"Who knows? Maybe. Do you still want to escape or not?"
"Of course I do."
"Good. Just solve me a little problem... and freedom will be yours again!"
"What's the problem?"
"I know that you leonin don't care about our own private matters... but thereìs a war here! A war among the gods!"
"What a pity!"
"Keep your sarcasm to yourself."
"Says the god of sarcasm!"
"Well, in a sense sarcasm is a form of deception, so I guess you're actually right about that. Anyway, I'll tell you a secret..."
"How many people have you already told it to?"
"Ah, I like the way you reason! Let's say 'enough'. You've finally realized we gods exist, but what if I told you we weren't the first?"
"Go on."
"Oh, come on, show at least a little stupor on your face... No? Fine, I'll just tell you. Titans! Gigantic beings who thought they ruled the world!"
"It reminds me of someone..."
"Oh, no. No, no, no. We gods are different."
"In which way, specifically?"
"We're powerful!"
"Weren't them?"
"More powerful! We fought, and we sealed them away here in the Underworld. One of us, called Klothys, the god of destiny, even offered to seal herself here as their jailer. But here's where my problem starts. As if Erebos and his whip weren't enough to hinder my people escaping, she also had to interfere! How dared she!"
"And what does this have to do with the war among the gods?"
"Because my direct enemies are Erebos and her."
"And how did this war start?"
"That's not much of your business, but let's say there has been an intrusion... With Klothys sealing herself here, her place in Nyx was briefly taken by an impostor, who had the brilliant idea of showing to the world that a mortal could become a god. Yes, I'm also the god of sarcasm. I've been keeping it a secret for a long time, then this satyr comes, ascends to godhood, and look! Now everybody knows they can become a god! And if they become gods, where will we go? All of us turned paranoid, and what happens when you put together fifteen such beings who just became suspicious of each other?"
"War?"
"Exactly!"
"So how is she your direct enemy? Has she got a weapon like Erobos's whip?"
"She has the best weapon you could have. People."
"People?"
"Yes, she calls them 'agents of fate', and she sends them after people who, as she says, want to escape their destiny of staying in the Underworld. So, I make people like you escape and both Erebos and Klothys get mad at you and at me, and one whips you while the other sends enemies after you."
"How about going back to my mission?"
"I'm getting there. There are two parts. The first is to just kill as many agents of fate as you can."
"Without weapons?"
"We'll talk about that in just a second."
"And anyway, how do I recognize them?"
"By the webs they all carry. They and their creator gave them some pathetic name like 'webs of destiny' or something like that. They use them to trap fugitives! Unacceptable! They must be taken out."
"Ok, so this is part one. Killing these agents of fate. What's part two?"
"There is a specific agent of fate that I would particularly appreciate if he were brought down. His name is Calix. He's been created by Klothys to go after one person who's trying to escape. She would have done better to come to me, just like you did, but she's still looking for freedom, and I look at her in a sympathetic way, let's say. Every soul that escapes, regardless of how, is one more hit to Erebos and Klothys. Oh, how beautiful would an empty Underworld be! Everbody has escaped! The highest of visions! Wouldn't you like if it turned real?"
"I care about myself, and my people. I have to go tell my people about you! That's what I would like! That my fellow leonin knew the truth!"
"And to do that you need a mask so they don't recognize you and kill you again on sight, and to retain your identity. We've already gone through that."
"That's what's important to me!"
"You will have that and more if you kill Calix. That's your mission. Kill Calix, and freedom is yours!"
"How do I recognize him in particular?"
"I'm planting into your mind his image right now, for that specific purpose."
"I'm not feeling anything."
"Normal. But you will recognize him, trust me."
"Are you really asking me to trust the god of deception?"
"You're already trusting me by accepting my mission."
"True. I admit this was a good trick."
"Thank you. So, let's recap. In short: side goal, kill as many agents of fate as you can; main goal: kill Calix and let the person he's after escape to freedom. And extra goal: if you're even able to dispose of Klothys herself, that would be the maximum. But I'll be generous and I will deem Calix enough to grant you your own freedom. Is everything clear?"
"Yes. I'll do it."
"Good. But wasn't there some detail left?"
"Which one?"
"The weapons! You need them!"
"Oh yes, I do. What have you got for me?"
"Take a look at these. Nyx daggers forged by Purphoros himself."
"Is he on your side in the war? Is he your ally?"
"He's everybody's ally. To him, keeping the freedom to forge his weapons is enough. I went to him to ask for a weapon specifically for your mission, and these are what he forged for me... No, for you! They even have a name, like all weapons that Purphoros make. They're called 'aktifotas', which means 'rays of starlight', because Purphoros literally forged them from light coming from the stars of Nyx. Take them and try them. Try shattering them against the hardest rock around here!"
Okite unsuccessfully attempted several times.
"They don't break. Something's up here, isn't it?"
"Yes. They've been made to be unbreakable."
In fact, the daggers were of a kind Okite had never seen before, shining with the starry sky of Nyx, that made them divine weapons and thus unbreakable.
"Now you can go, Okite. Your hunt has just begun."

Main Challenge - Design a regular rare card that has exactly one of the four named mechanics from THB (Constellation, devotion, escape, Sagas).

Subchallenge 1 - Your card is not a land.

Subchallenge 2 - Your card has no mana symbols in its rules text.
Clarifications
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Main Challenge

• Your card has to belong at the required rarity. You can't just take Llanowar Elves, put in a regular rare rarity (yay alliterations!) instead of common and submit it as is. Or better, you technically can, but expect huge deductions in several areas of the rubric if you do. Trust me, it's not a good idea.

• Your card must have exactly one or the four mechanics from THB: it has to have one (no cards without any of the four mechanics), and it can't have more than one (no mix-and-match cards).

• Your choices will NOT be tracked this month, so don't worry about them influencing future rounds. They won't. You will be able to make all four rounds with the same mechanic if you want.

• For Sagas, having the Saga mechanic means that your card is a Saga. It can't simply reference Sagas, it has to be a Saga itself.


Subchallenge 1

• Your card passes this subchallenge as long as it does not have the card type "Land" on its type line.

• The word "Land" can be mentioned with any meaning, including the Magic card type, in rules text or flavor text. This subchallenge only looks at the type line.


Subchallenge 2

• No mana symbols of any type.

• From the discussion thread:
bravelion83 wrote:
4 years ago
Gateways7 wrote:
4 years ago
For Subchallenge 2 of the new MCC, does reminder text count as rules text? Asking since one of the mechanics requires a mana symbol in the reminder text.
No, reminder text is not rules text. You can have all the mana symbols you want in reminder text. That's relevant for both escape and devotion.

DEADLINES

Design deadline: Saturday, January 25th 2020, 23:59 EDT

Judging deadline: Tuesday, January 28th 2020, 23:59 EDT



RUBRIC
MCC Rubric
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Design
(X/3) Appeal - Do the different player psychographics (Timmy/Johhny/Spike) have a use for the card?
(X/3) Elegance - Is the card easily understandable at a glance? Do all the flavor and mechanics combined as a whole make sense?

Development
X/3) Viability - How well does the card fit into the color wheel? Does it break or bend the rules of the game? Is it the appropriate rarity?
(X/3) Balance - Does the card have a power level appropriate for contemporary constructed/limited environments without breaking them? Does it play well in casual and multiplayer formats? Does it create or fit into a deck/archetype? Does it create an oppressive environment?

Creativity
(X/3) Uniqueness - Has a card like this ever been printed before? Does it use new mechanics, ideas, or design space? Does it combine old ideas in a new way? Overall, does it feel "fresh"?
(X/3) Flavor - Does the name seem realistic for a card? Does the flavor text sound professional? Do all the flavor elements synch together to please Vorthos players?

Polish
(X/3) Quality - Points deducted for incorrect spelling, grammar, and templating.
(X/2) Main Challenge (*) - Was the main challenge satisfied? Was it approached in a unique or interesting way? Does the card fit the intent of the challenge?
(X/2) Subchallenges - One point awarded per satisfied subchallenge condition.

Total: X/25
*An entry with 0 points here is subject to disqualification.

JUDGES

bravelion83
Ryder
Sojourner Dusk


PLAYERS

[mention]Gateways7[/mention]
[mention]Icarii[/mention]
[mention]netn10[/mention]
[mention]Raptorchan[/mention]
[mention]slimytrout[/mention]
[mention]Subject16[/mention]


A reminder to everyone:
In the MCC, putting rarity on cards is mandatory! If you don't put a rarity on your card, expect huge deductions in both Viability AND Quality.
Please check out the MCC Guidelines and FAQ if you have the will and time. Link here and in my signature. Among the many things you can find there are a detailed explanation of the rubric (section 6.2) and the recommended card formatting (section 4) that you should use to format your text cards. Expect deductions in Quality otherwise.


BRACKETS

This is the versus round. The player with the highest combined score in each pair advance to the final round.

Judge: Ryder
Gateways7 vs. Icarii
Raptorchan vs. Subject16

Judge: bravelion83
netn10 vs. slimytrout
Gateways7 vs. Icarii

Judge: Sojourner Dusk
Raptorchan vs. Subject16
netn10 vs. slimytrout
Last edited by bravelion83 4 years ago, edited 3 times in total.
Author of the MCC Guidelines and FAQ. | For my projects, including Jeff Lionheart, my murder mystery story "One pierced heart, two mindful horns", and republished articles from my series "The Lion's Lair", see Leo's content index (Last updated on March 24th 2024 - Added OPHTMH Episode 4).
After I'm done republishing my articles I want to reprise the series focusing it more on editing, wording, and templating. Suggest potential future article topics here.
My CCCG Resume (Updated on February 27th 2024)
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Blue = MTGSalvation Green = MTGNexus
MCC - Winner (9): Oct 2014, Apr Nov 2017, Jan 2018, Apr Jun 2019, Jan Mar 2022, Apr 2023 || Host (30): Dec 2014, Apr Jul Aug Dec 2015, Mar Jul Aug Oct 2016, Feb Jul 2017, Jun Nov 2018, Feb Jul 2019 (last on MTGS), Aug 2019 (first on MTGN) Oct 2019, Jan Jun 2020 Apr Oct 2021, Feb May Sep Dec 2022, Mar Jun Sep Dec 2023, Mar 2024 || Judge (58): every month from Nov 2014 to Nov 2016 except Oct 2015, every month from Feb to Jul 2017 except Apr 2017, then Oct 2017, May Jun Nov 2018, Feb Jul 2019 (last on MTGS), every month from Aug 2019 (first on MTGN) to Feb 2020, May Jun 2020, Mar Apr Sep Oct 2021, Feb May Sep Dec 2022, Mar May Jun Sep Dec 2023, Jan Mar 2024
CCL - Winner (4): Jul 2016 (tied with Flatline), May 2017, Jul 2019 (last on MTGS), Jun 2021 (tied with slimytrout) || Host (5): Feb 2015, Mar Apr May Jun 2016
DCC - Winner (3): Mar 2015 (tied with Piar), Feb Apr 2022 || Host (12): May Oct 2015, Jan 2016, Jun Sep Dec 2021, Mar Jun Sep Dec 2022, Mar Jun 2023

slimytrout
Posts: 1861
Joined: 4 years ago
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Post by slimytrout » 4 years ago

Tricks of Callaphe 4UU
Enchantment - Saga (R)
(As this Saga enters and after your draw step, add a lore counter. Sacrifice after III.)
I - Exchange control of Tricks of Callaphe and target permanent.
II - Tap target creature you control.
III - Each opponent draws a card.
Last edited by slimytrout 4 years ago, edited 1 time in total.

netn10
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Post by netn10 » 4 years ago

Nyklos, Meletian Philosopher 3WU
Legendary Creature - Human Adviser (Rare)
When Nyklos enters the battlefield, if it escaped, draw three cards. Otherwise, each player draws three cards.
Escape - Discard three white and/or blue cards, exile five other cards from your graveyard.
"Life is meaningless without dying, and dying gave meaning to my second life."
3/3

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Icarii
Posts: 84
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Post by Icarii » 4 years ago

Winged Asterism 2U
Enchantment (R)
Constellation — Whenever Winged Asterism or another enchantment enters the battlefield under your control, Winged Asterism becomes a X/X creature with flying that's still an enchantment until your next turn, where X is that enchantments converted mana cost.
"I had debated whether the wings were attached to a horse or a fish. The answer was both." —Callaphe the mariner

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Subject16
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Post by Subject16 » 4 years ago

Macar's Curse 1BB
Enchantment — Saga (Rare)
(As this Saga enters the battlefield and after your draw step, add a lore counter. Sacrifice after III.)
I - Create a Gold token.
II - Sacrifice a creature. Create two Gold tokens.
III - Discard your hand. Create that many Gold tokens.

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Raptorchan
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Location: Red Jungle, Babwe

Post by Raptorchan » 4 years ago

The Theriad 3w
Enchantment - Saga (R)
(As this Saga enters the battlefield and after your draw step, add a lore counter. Sacrifice after III.)
I — Put two +1/+1 counters on target creature.
II — Creatures you control gain vigilance and indestructible until your next turn.
III — Exile target creature or enchantment. You gain life equal to its converted mana cost.

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Gateways7
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Post by Gateways7 » 4 years ago

Phyrexia's Fervor 1
Enchantment (rare)
( can be paid with either b or 2 life.)
When Phyrexia's Fervor enters the battlefield, destroy target creature if its power is less than or equal to your devotion to Phyrexia. (Each in the mana costs of permanents you control counts towards your devotion to Phyrexia.)
Sacrifice a creature and Phyrexia's Fervor: You draw a card and lose 2 life.

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bravelion83
MKM MCC going on now
Posts: 4041
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Location: Florence, Italy

Post by bravelion83 » 4 years ago

The round is closed.

BRACKETS

This is the versus round. The player with the highest combined score in each pair advance to the final round.

Judge: Ryder
Gateways7 vs. Icarii
Raptorchan vs. Subject16

Judge: bravelion83
netn10 vs. slimytrout
Gateways7 vs. Icarii

Judge: Sojourner Dusk
Raptorchan vs. Subject16
netn10 vs. slimytrout



Judgments complete.
netn10
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netn10 wrote:
4 years ago
Nyklos, Meletian Philosopher 3WU
Legendary Creature - Human Adviser (Rare)
When Nyklos enters the battlefield, if it escaped, draw three cards. Otherwise, each player draws three cards.
Escape - Discard three white and/or blue cards, exile five other cards from your graveyard.
"Life is meaningless without dying, and dying gave meaning to my second life."
3/3
Design
Appeal 1.5/3 - Timmy doesn't care that much. Johnny can definitely use this card in several ways. Spike is disappointed in the initial stats, but she appreciates a recurring 3/3 for no mana (using escape).
Elegance 3/3 - The number of cards drawn and the required discard for escape being the same is very good aesthetically. No problems with the rest.
Development
Viability 3/3 - The recent addition of "everybody draws" to white makes this fine color-pie-wise. I agree with rarity. No problems with the rules.
Balance 1.5/3 - You just want to use escape here. The printed stats are underwhelming. I'm not sure I'd play this in limited. There is a higher chance in constructed in a deck built around escape, but I think such a deck wouldn't be competitive, only casual. This is because I've tried to build a constructed escape deck, and escape costs on real cards are just too high. No problems in multiplayer.
Creativity
Uniqueness 3/3 - I don't think there are cards in THB with no mana in their escape cost.
Flavor 2/3 - The name is way too similar to Nykthos, they'd get confused all the time. The flavor text is very good and printable as is.
Polish
Quality 2/3 - In the type line, "Adviser" should be "Advisor" (-0.5). There should be no spaces between the keyword escape and the dash (accepting a hyphen instead of an em dash, like in the type line), and between the dash and the cost (-0.5).
Main Challenge 2/2 - Good.
Subchallenges 2/2 - Both met.
TOTAL 20/25
slimytrout
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slimytrout wrote:
4 years ago
Tricks of Callaphe 4UU
Enchantment - Saga (R)
(As this Saga enters and after your draw step, add a lore counter. Sacrifice after III.)
I - Exchange control of Tricks of Callaphe and target permanent.
II - Tap target creature you control.
III - Each opponent draws a card.
Design
Appeal 2/3 - Timmy doesn't care. Johnny loves this card. Spike also appreciates the skill needed to play this card in the best way.
Elegance 2.5/3 - The play pattern doesn't look like the most intuitive, but for the rest no problems here.
Development
Viability 3/3 - No problems with the color pie, rarity, or the rules.
Balance 3/3 - Definitely playable in limited, but especially in constructed. This is as good as the thing you steal in chapter one. In constructed, I can easily picture this going in a Donate deck, that already plays similar tricks. This is true even more so in multiplayer, where saying "each opponent" is also very relevant obviously.
Creativity
Uniqueness 3/3 - The way this Saga functions is totally original.
Flavor 3/3 - Ok, this card is definitely tricky, and the mechanical flavor is very good, as is the name. Sagas have no room for flavor text, so no problem there.
Polish
Quality 3/3 - All good.
Main Challenge 2/2 - Good.
Subchallenges 2/2 - Both met.
TOTAL 23.5/25
Gateways7
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Gateways7 wrote:
4 years ago
Phyrexia's Fervor 1
Enchantment (rare)
( can be paid with either b or 2 life.)
When Phyrexia's Fervor enters the battlefield, destroy target creature if its power is less than or equal to your devotion to Phyrexia. (Each in the mana costs of permanents you control counts towards your devotion to Phyrexia.)
Sacrifice a creature and Phyrexia's Fervor: You draw a card and lose 2 life.
Design
Appeal 2/3 - Timmy hates playing against this card as much as Spike loves playing with it. Johnny has the challenge to maximize the devotion to Phyrexia.
Elegance 3/3 - No problems here.
Development
Viability 2.5/3 - There is the usual problem of Phyrexian mana: the effects are black, but they're really usable by anybody by paying life. No problems with rarity or the rules.
Balance 1.5/3 - You have to keep into account that everybody can play this, so I'd say it needs to cost at least one mana more than a Murder. I think many non-black decks would like to play this, essentially the Dismember problem. I would have tried to find a way to push this more towards black. I see this as playable everywhere, in limited, constructed, casual, and multiplayer, especially in non-black decks. Black decks have probably better options. The opposite of the design intent, in my opinion. Not good. But it's not you, it's just that you fell in the natural trap of Phyrexian mana.
Creativity
Uniqueness 3/3 - Devotion to Phyrexia is a rather easy place to go, but it still deserves full points here.
Flavor 2.5/3 - The name makes me expect a connection to Fervor that isn't there. No flavor text, but MSE tells me it was the correct choice in this case.
Polish
Quality 2.5/3 - Currently devotion can only be to colors (-0.5), but I'll assume that "devotion to Phyrexia" would be defined in the CR in the set this comes from.
CR ELD Edition Rule 700.5 wrote:A player's devotion to [color] is equal to the number of mana symbols of that color among the mana costs of permanents that player controls. A player's devotion to [color 1] and [color 2] is equal to the number of mana symbols among the mana costs of permanents that player controls that are [color 1], [color 2], or both colors.
Notice how it only talks about colors. All the rest is good.
Main Challenge 2/2 - Good.
Subchallenges 2/2 - I've said reminder text doesn't count as rules text, so this is fine.
TOTAL 21/25
Icarii
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Icarii wrote:
4 years ago
Winged Asterism 2U
Enchantment (R)
Constellation — Whenever Winged Asterism or another enchantment enters the battlefield under your control, Winged Asterism becomes a X/X creature with flying that's still an enchantment until your next turn, where X is that enchantments converted mana cost.
"I had debated whether the wings were attached to a horse or a fish. The answer was both." —Callaphe the mariner
Design
Appeal 1.5/3 - Timmy just prefers to play actual creatures. Johnny is the one who likes this card the best. Some Spikes can like this, but not every one. The fact that this requires to play an enchantment on each of your turns to keep it a creature is a relevant drawback to her.
Elegance 2/3 - This doesn't lose the constellation ability when it turns into a creature. Some players will certainly play this as if it did.
Development
Viability 3/3 - No problems with the color pie, rarity, or the rules.
Balance 2.5/3 - Regardless of format, this as playable wherever there are enough viable enchantments, including enchantment creatures for limited. I've built a constellation deck in constructed, and it's quite strong. This could be a nice addition, too bad that deck is GW. Maybe one could build a Bant version? No problems in casual or multiplayer.
Creativity
Uniqueness 2/3 - No new elements, but a new way to put together known ones.
Flavor 3/3 - Name and flavor text are good and printable as is, once the flavor text attribution is put on a separate line (see Quality).
Polish
Quality 0/3 - "Constellation" should be in italics as it's an ability word (very well-known, so -1). An apostrophe missing: "...that enchantment's CMC..." (serious grammar mistake so -1). Another serious and well-known mistakes in the flavor text: the attribution should be on a separate line (-1). I also have my doubts about "a X/X" needing to be "an X/X", but we're already at zero, so that's what you get here. I'm sorry.
Main Challenge 2/2 - Good.
Subchallenges 2/2 - Both met.
TOTAL 18/25
Results
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netn10: 20
slimytrout: 23.5

Gateways7: 21
Icarii: 18
Author of the MCC Guidelines and FAQ. | For my projects, including Jeff Lionheart, my murder mystery story "One pierced heart, two mindful horns", and republished articles from my series "The Lion's Lair", see Leo's content index (Last updated on March 24th 2024 - Added OPHTMH Episode 4).
After I'm done republishing my articles I want to reprise the series focusing it more on editing, wording, and templating. Suggest potential future article topics here.
My CCCG Resume (Updated on February 27th 2024)
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Blue = MTGSalvation Green = MTGNexus
MCC - Winner (9): Oct 2014, Apr Nov 2017, Jan 2018, Apr Jun 2019, Jan Mar 2022, Apr 2023 || Host (30): Dec 2014, Apr Jul Aug Dec 2015, Mar Jul Aug Oct 2016, Feb Jul 2017, Jun Nov 2018, Feb Jul 2019 (last on MTGS), Aug 2019 (first on MTGN) Oct 2019, Jan Jun 2020 Apr Oct 2021, Feb May Sep Dec 2022, Mar Jun Sep Dec 2023, Mar 2024 || Judge (58): every month from Nov 2014 to Nov 2016 except Oct 2015, every month from Feb to Jul 2017 except Apr 2017, then Oct 2017, May Jun Nov 2018, Feb Jul 2019 (last on MTGS), every month from Aug 2019 (first on MTGN) to Feb 2020, May Jun 2020, Mar Apr Sep Oct 2021, Feb May Sep Dec 2022, Mar May Jun Sep Dec 2023, Jan Mar 2024
CCL - Winner (4): Jul 2016 (tied with Flatline), May 2017, Jul 2019 (last on MTGS), Jun 2021 (tied with slimytrout) || Host (5): Feb 2015, Mar Apr May Jun 2016
DCC - Winner (3): Mar 2015 (tied with Piar), Feb Apr 2022 || Host (12): May Oct 2015, Jan 2016, Jun Sep Dec 2021, Mar Jun Sep Dec 2022, Mar Jun 2023

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Ryder
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Post by Ryder » 4 years ago

Gateways7
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Gateways7 wrote:
4 years ago
Phyrexia's Fervor 1
Enchantment (rare)
( can be paid with either b or 2 life.)
When Phyrexia's Fervor enters the battlefield, destroy target creature if its power is less than or equal to your devotion to Phyrexia. (Each in the mana costs of permanents you control counts towards your devotion to Phyrexia.)
Sacrifice a creature and Phyrexia's Fervor: You draw a card and lose 2 life.
Design
Appeal 2/3 - Spike likes the efficiency and Johnny sees a cheap sacrifice outlet with an upside.
Elegance 1/3 - "destroy target X if [...]" is a less readable version of "destroy target X with [...]". It creates a "problem" where the effect of the spell may change between the cast time and resolution time. You worded it correctly, but it's elegance. I'm also worried about the second ability: If you're playing devotion to Phyrexia, why would you want to sacrifice your permanents? The card works against its core concept this way.

Development
Viability 2/3 - Multiple Black effects with purely phyrexian mana. One is a stretch already. Should be an Uncommon, nothing too special about it.
Balance 2.5/3 - Balanced when compared with Dismember, but that card's balance is questionable too. It trades sheer power and instant speed for some additional utility.

Creativity
Uniqueness 3/3 - Devotion to Phyrexia is an excellent novelty.
Flavor 2/3 - Makes sense, a pity it lasts so short (just until your second compleation at best).

Polish
Quality 3/3 - No problems here.
Main Challenge 2/2 - Met.
Subchallenges 2/2 - Both met.

TOTAL 19.5/25
Icarii
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Icarii wrote:
4 years ago
Winged Asterism 2U
Enchantment (R)
Constellation — Whenever Winged Asterism or another enchantment enters the battlefield under your control, Winged Asterism becomes a X/X creature with flying that's still an enchantment until your next turn, where X is that enchantments converted mana cost.
"I had debated whether the wings were attached to a horse or a fish. The answer was both." —Callaphe the mariner
Design
Appeal 1/3 - The card barely has value on it's own, so Timmy is not impressed, Johnny could do something with it, but he's not impressed by the raw animation either. If he wanted enchantment creatures, they exist. Spike prefers more impactful cards.
Elegance 1.5/3 - It's pretty weird that is basically enters the battlefield as a creature, but you can't attack with it. I would rather see this kind of effect in another color and with haste. Oh wait, Daxos's Torment. There.

Development
Viability 3/3 - I'd argue this could be an Uncommon, but for Limited purposes probably good at Rare too.
Balance 2.5/3 - Unless you can play a beefy enchantment every turn, this is quite subpar for Constructed. In Limited however, this is a pretty sweet hidden bomb.

Creativity
Uniqueness 0.5/3 - Cheaper and less powerful Daxos's Torment.
Flavor 3/3 - Great stuff, resonates immediately. Good work.

Polish
Quality 0/3 - Constellation. "becomes an X/X creature". "that enchantment's converted mana cost". Attribution should be in the new line. That was bad.
Main Challenge 2/2 - Met.
Subchallenges 2/2 - Both met.

TOTAL 15.5/25
Raptorchan
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Raptorchan wrote:
4 years ago
The Theriad 3w
Enchantment - Saga (R)
(As this Saga enters the battlefield and after your draw step, add a lore counter. Sacrifice after III.)
I — Put two +1/+1 counters on target creature.
II — Creatures you control gain vigilance and indestructible until your next turn.
III — Exile target creature or enchantment. You gain life equal to its converted mana cost.
Design
Appeal 2.5/3 - Attractive card for everyone. Timmy likes his creatures getting bigger and being able to swing carelessly, Johnny can work with both counters and free indestructibility on the next turn, Spike could use this in a token deck.
Elegance 2/3 - The last ability feels less epic than the middle one, which is slightly off. "until your next turn" feels overdone. Other than this, good.

Development
Viability 3/3 - Appropriate rarity and all effects are White.
Balance 3/3 - Each effect is relevant. It's very strong only in certain types of decks, which is great.

Creativity
Uniqueness 0.5/3 - No new effects, just a new combination.
Flavor 1.5/3 - The name is not descriptive enough. It should be strongly resonating, as it's a Rare Saga. I'm not sure what the Theriad is about except it involves some kind of a heroic offensive and a death of someone.

Polish
Quality 3/3 - No problems here.
Main Challenge 2/2 - Met.
Subchallenges 2/2 - Both met.

TOTAL 19.5/25
Subject16
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Subject16 wrote:
4 years ago
Macar's Curse 1BB
Enchantment — Saga (Rare)
(As this Saga enters the battlefield and after your draw step, add a lore counter. Sacrifice after III.)
I - Create a Gold token.
II - Sacrifice a creature. Create two Gold tokens.
III - Discard your hand. Create that many Gold tokens.
Design
Appeal 1.5/3 - Jenny is in her paradise. Tammy is not willing to sacrifice her creatures. Spike sees potential in creatureless decks, but fears the last ability.
Elegance 3/3 - All clear, all good.

Development
Viability 2.5/3 - The second ability should require the creature to be sacrificed in order to generate more gold. Everything else is good. Very Black.
Balance 2/3 - Hard to judge here. It's definitely swingy. Either you get great value out of it (especially if your deck runs no creatures), or you essentially become One with Nothing. That said, excellent for madness! Maybe even too excellent... I personally like it though.

Creativity
Uniqueness 2.5/3 - Oddly enough, turning creatures into gold/treasure was only done on Vraska, Relic Seeker. You did it better.
Flavor 3/3 - Oozes flavor! Great job!

Polish
Quality 2/3 - The last ability should read: "Discard your hand. For each card discarded this way, create a Gold token."
Main Challenge 2/2 - Met.
Subchallenges 2/2 - Both met.

TOTAL 20.5/25
Results
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Gateways7: 19.5
Icarii: 15.5

Subject16: 20.5
Raptorchan: 19.5

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Sojourner Dusk
Dominarian Hitchhiker
Posts: 189
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Post by Sojourner Dusk » 4 years ago

slimytrout
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Design
(2/3) Appeal: S likes to steal, as does J. T doesn't quite see the appeal.
(2.5/3) Elegance: I have no problem understanding the card. Then again, I'm used to playing with Sleeper Agent.

Development
(1/3) Viability: Blue is the color of non-temporary theft, and still has access to tapping creatures (behind White) and drawing cards (behind Green). The first effect has been seen at Uncommon, and the other triggers (single card draw, tap one creature) are far too lacklucter for a Rare. This is much closer in power to Shifting Loyalties than Conjured Currency.
(2.5/3) Balance: Nothing gamebreaking here. It'll find more use in Limited than Constructed.

Creativity
(1/3) Uniqueness: Nothing we haven't seen before.
(1.5/3) Flavor: Except for the exchange, the other "tricks" feel minor, especially the second.

Polish
(3/3) Quality: No issues found.
(2/2) *Main Challenge: Rare-ish. Saga.
(2/2) Subchallenges: Nonland. No mana symbols in rules text.

Total: 17.5/25
*An entry with 0 points here is subject to disqualification.
netn10
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Design
(2/3) Appeal: T doesn't like group hug. J and S see the potential here.
(2/3) Elegance: Much like the new Elder Giants, the mechanics are a little clunky due to the either/or of the ETB trigger.

Development
(2/3) Viability: I don't see the White in this card. This could have easily been mono Blue.
(2.5/3) Balance: Five mana for a 3/3 that draws you (and maybe everyone) three cards? We're more than a decade removed from Sphinx of Lost Truths, so, based on power creep, this would likely now be acceptable. The discard restriction for Escape keeps this from being more useful in Limited.

Creativity
(2.5/3) Uniqueness: "Draw three cards" is the magic phrase for Blue players, and there have been plenty of additional hoops to jump through to make this happen since Mercadian Masques. This is an interesting twist to add to the pile.
(1/3) Flavor: I'm kiunda meh on the quote. The phrase "second life" conjures up some negative connotations for me.

Polish
(0.5/3) Quality: 'Human Advisor.' "When Nyklos enters the battlefield, each player draws three cards unless it escaped. Otherwise, draw three cards." The 'normal' trigger should be mentioned first. There is space for Escape reminder text. It should be included. "Discard three cards that are white and/or blue, Exile..." The only card I could find that mentioned a choice of color to discard was Surge of Strength, so this is unusual territory. The proposed change is for clarity. You forgot to capitalize the 'E' in 'Exile'.
(2/2) *Main Challenge: Rare. Escape.
(2/2) Subchallenges: Nonland. No mana symbols in rules text.

Total: 14.5/25
*An entry with 0 points here is subject to disqualification.
Subject16
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Design
(2/3) Appeal: This is pure J and S territory. T doesn't care to lose resources just for mana.
(2.5/3) Elegance: The wording on some of the abilities is a little archaic, but the effects are conveyed.

Development
(3/3) Viability: Mana ramping in Black with a drawback or sacrifice isn't unusual. This is a solid Rare.
(2/3) Balance: Macar's Curse would be questionable in Limited, as it could be difficult to build around. In Constructed, this is very much a build around card.

Creativity
(2.5/3) Uniqueness: The third ability feels very LED inspired, which is unusual to see, but would work very well in a set with Escape.
(3/3) Flavor: The flavor of the name and abilities is entirely on point.

Polish
(1.5/3) Quality: "Sacrifice a creature. If you do, create two Gold tokens." "Discard all the cards in your hand, then create that many Gold tokens." Phrasing has been updated since Soratami Seer was printed.
(2/2) *Main Challenge: Rare. Sage.
(2/2) Subchallenges: Nonland. No mana symbols in rules text.

Total: 20.5/25
*An entry with 0 points here is subject to disqualification.
Raptorchan
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Design
(2/3) Appeal: This has appeal to J and T more than S, as it isn't as impactful when it comes down.
(3/3) Elegance: All the abilities are easy to understand.

Development
(3/3) Viability: All the abilities fit into White. It doesn't quite push into Mythic territory, so Rare suits.
(2.5/3) Balance: This can be backbreaking in Limited, and very strong in Constructed, especially if you boardwipe after the second trigger goes off.

Creativity
(2/3) Uniqueness: Unbreakable Formation is a recent card, and the first two triggers come across as a slower version. The third trigger is an Exile variant, which is deisgn space that hasn't been explored much since it was first printed.
(1/3) Flavor: While the name is evocative, the abilities don't really tell a cohesive story.

Polish
(3/3) Quality: No issues found.
(2/2) *Main Challenge: Rare. Saga.
(2/2) Subchallenges: Nonland. No mana symbols in rules text.

Total: 20.5/25
*An entry with 0 points here is subject to disqualification.
Scores
slimytrout: 17.5
netn10: 14.5

Subject16: 20.5
Raptorchan: 20.5
May your games be chaotic and your decks be rogue.



UBR Nekusar (EDH)
RGW Mayael, Naturally (EDH)

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bravelion83
MKM MCC going on now
Posts: 4041
Joined: 4 years ago
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Location: Florence, Italy

Post by bravelion83 » 4 years ago

Bold advance

Gateways7: 19.5 + 21 = 40.5
Icarii: 15.5 + 18 = 33.5

netn10: 20 + 14.5 = 34.5
slimytrout: 23.5 + 17.5 = 41

Raptorchan: 20.5 + 19.5 = 40
Subject16: 20.5 + 20.5 = 41

The finalists are Gateways7, slimytrout, and Subject16. Final round (without story, I still have to write it) up in a few minutes.
Author of the MCC Guidelines and FAQ. | For my projects, including Jeff Lionheart, my murder mystery story "One pierced heart, two mindful horns", and republished articles from my series "The Lion's Lair", see Leo's content index (Last updated on March 24th 2024 - Added OPHTMH Episode 4).
After I'm done republishing my articles I want to reprise the series focusing it more on editing, wording, and templating. Suggest potential future article topics here.
My CCCG Resume (Updated on February 27th 2024)
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Blue = MTGSalvation Green = MTGNexus
MCC - Winner (9): Oct 2014, Apr Nov 2017, Jan 2018, Apr Jun 2019, Jan Mar 2022, Apr 2023 || Host (30): Dec 2014, Apr Jul Aug Dec 2015, Mar Jul Aug Oct 2016, Feb Jul 2017, Jun Nov 2018, Feb Jul 2019 (last on MTGS), Aug 2019 (first on MTGN) Oct 2019, Jan Jun 2020 Apr Oct 2021, Feb May Sep Dec 2022, Mar Jun Sep Dec 2023, Mar 2024 || Judge (58): every month from Nov 2014 to Nov 2016 except Oct 2015, every month from Feb to Jul 2017 except Apr 2017, then Oct 2017, May Jun Nov 2018, Feb Jul 2019 (last on MTGS), every month from Aug 2019 (first on MTGN) to Feb 2020, May Jun 2020, Mar Apr Sep Oct 2021, Feb May Sep Dec 2022, Mar May Jun Sep Dec 2023, Jan Mar 2024
CCL - Winner (4): Jul 2016 (tied with Flatline), May 2017, Jul 2019 (last on MTGS), Jun 2021 (tied with slimytrout) || Host (5): Feb 2015, Mar Apr May Jun 2016
DCC - Winner (3): Mar 2015 (tied with Piar), Feb Apr 2022 || Host (12): May Oct 2015, Jan 2016, Jun Sep Dec 2021, Mar Jun Sep Dec 2022, Mar Jun 2023

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