May CCL, Top 4: Half and Half

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void_nothing
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Post by void_nothing » 3 years ago

CCL May Top 4/Round 4

"Half and Half"


Image
Civilized Scholar, taken from The End Games, by Michael C. Hayes and Wizards of the Coast
Welcome to the Card Creation League! Everyone is free to participate in either or both of the first two rounds. Come join us!

Theme

It's Colors Month here in the CCL! The five colors, their corresponding mana, and the mechanical color pie are the very foundation of Magic. This month we'll see how the colors themselves can matter mechanically.

Challenge
Design two cards: a colored double-faced card that transforms into a colored card that shares no colors with the front face; and a split card with two colored sides that share no colors.
Clarifications
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Contestants:
@netn10
@Phyrexian Editor
@Subject16
@Ink-Treader
Your submissions are due Thursday, May 28th, 23:59 EST.
Schedule
  • Round 1 — Open to Everyone (May 1st–7th)
  • Round 2 — Open to Everyone (May 8th–14th)
  • Rounds 1 and 2 Critiques (Due May 17th)
  • Top 8 — Open to top 8 finishers (May 19th–22nd)
  • Top 8 Critiques (Due May 24th)
  • Top 4 — Open to top 4 finishers (May 25th–28th)
  • Top 4 Critiques (Due May 30th)
  • Final (June, winner determined by public poll)
Psst, check the second page of Custom Card Contests & Games! Because of the daily contests, a lot of games fall down to there.

The greatest (fake) pro wrestling on the internet - Collaborative Create-A-Booster - My random creations (updated regularly)

Important Facts: Colorless is not a color, Wastes is not a land type, Changeling is not a creature type

Ink-Treader
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Post by Ink-Treader » 3 years ago

Annointed Slayer 1RW
Creature - Human Warrior (R)
First strike, vigilance
Whenever Annointed Slayer attacks, it gets +1/+0 for each creature card in your graveyard until end of turn.
2/2
//
Cry in the Night 1B
Sorcery - Adventure (R)
Each player sacrifices a creature.
Who would dare stand against the darkness?

Desperate Hope 2W
Enchantment (U)
When Desperate Hope enters the battlefield, if your life total is less than an opponent's, you gain 4 life.
At the beginning of your upkeep, if your life total is less than or equal to half your starting life total, transform Desperate Hope. Otherwise, you gain 1 life.
Hope is a fragile defense against the harshness of the world.
///
Lashing Despair
{B/R} Enchantment (U)
When this enchantment transforms into Lashing Despair and at the beginning of your upkeep, Lashing Despair deals 1 damage to each player.
Those that embrace that harshness might overcome it, but at what cost?
Last edited by Ink-Treader 3 years ago, edited 6 times in total.

netn10
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Post by netn10 » 3 years ago

Primal Incarnated 1UR
Creature - Elemental (Mythic)
Flying, haste
Whenever Primal Incarnated attacks, it deals 2 damage to any target and you draw a card.
Duality (You may cast the other side of this card)
2/2
////
Lunar Incarnated 1WB
Creature - Elemental (Mythic)
Flying, indestructible
Whenever Lunar Incarnated attacks, return target creature card with converted mana cost 2 or less from your graveyard to the battlefield.
Duality (You may cast the other side of this card)
2/2

Inspire 2U
Sorcery (Rare)
Until end of turn, whenever you cast a spell, draw a card.
/// Aftermath ///
Create 1RG
Instant (Rare)
Add WUBRG.
Last edited by netn10 3 years ago, edited 3 times in total.

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Subject16
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Post by Subject16 » 3 years ago

Generous Socialite 2W
Creature — Human Noble (Rare)
At the beginning of your upkeep, each player creates a treasure token.
Whenever you are dealt combat damage, transform Generous Socialite.
"Everything I do, I do for this city..."
2/2
//
Vengeful Nightstalker
Creature — Human Warrior (Rare)
Menace
Whenever Vengeful Nightstalker deals combat damage to a player, that player discards two cards and sacrifices a permanent.
"...including ridding it of criminal scum like you."
4/3


Agree 1W
Sorcery (Rare)
Each player draws a card. The next spell you cast this turn can't be countered.
//
Disagree 1UU
Instant (Rare)
Aftermath (Cast this spell only from your graveyard, then exile it.)
Counter target spell. You can't cast any more spells this turn.

Phyrexian Editor
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Post by Phyrexian Editor » 3 years ago

Cursed Amphibian 2r
Creature - Frog {U}
Menace
r, Discard a card: Transform Cursed Amphibian.
Whenever this creature transforms into Cursed Amphibian, put a +1/+1 counter on it.
Powerful legs. A giant throat. And an almost-human face with a look of desperation.
3/2

Desperate Researcher
[Blue] Creature - Human Wizard
Whenever Desperate Researcher deals combat damage to a player, you may draw a card. If you do, transform Desperate Researcher.
No kiss is enough to save him—but he hasn't given up on finding a way.
2/3


Toast 4RR
Sorcery {R}
Toast deals 5 damage to each creature and player.
////////
Drink
Instant {R}
Create X 1/1 white and black Vampire creature tokens, where X is equal to the life you lost this turn.
---
Fuse

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void_nothing
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Post by void_nothing » 3 years ago

The round is closed! Please critique all the other contestants, and organize them into a top 3.
Psst, check the second page of Custom Card Contests & Games! Because of the daily contests, a lot of games fall down to there.

The greatest (fake) pro wrestling on the internet - Collaborative Create-A-Booster - My random creations (updated regularly)

Important Facts: Colorless is not a color, Wastes is not a land type, Changeling is not a creature type

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Post by Ink-Treader » 3 years ago

netn10
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DFC: Duality is an interesting idea, and one that a lot of card designers seem to come up with. Functionally, the mechanic is just a split card where the halves can be permanents. As for the card itself, both sides are utterly ridiculous in terms of powerlevel. One is easily a two for once on the turn it's played if it's not immediately dealt with, and scales out of control if not addressed. The other one is simple very difficult to remove, and can be a fearsome value engine in its own right.

Split card: Inspire is a broader but costlier Glimpse of Nature. The higher cost is helpful and probably keeps it from doing anything too crazy too soon. Create might is the bigger issue here, being tailor made for self-mill decks.
Phyrexian Editor
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DFC: Cool little card. Doesn't even bend the pie, but makes everything feel pretty natural. The flavor feels a little wonky as far as the conditions for transforming go, but it's decent enough.

Split card: Toast is alright, nothing terribly fancy. Drink is a card with a lot of potential power, and is the part more likely to see use, primarily in combo decks, but also as a nasty surprise after combat since it's an instant. As a sorcery it might be fine with a little more cost, as an instant it'd need to cost yet more than that.
Subject16
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DFC: Ah, Batman eh? I feel like the transform condition is too easy; the nightstalker side transforming back after connecting would make it fine, since it'd still be relatively flavorful. DFC's doing weird color pie things isn't abnormal, but it could be argued the nightstalker's discard two and sacrifice is a bit too much.

Split card: Agree is cute. The "next spell can't be countered" bit is unusual in white, but not egregious. Disagree is a little worrying as far as supplying an easy access counterspell for grave based decks, but the downside might allow it to be played around. Though I wonder how often one really needs to cast two counterspells in faster paced formats.
Top 3
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1. Phyrexian Editor
2. Subject16
3. netn10

Phyrexian Editor
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Post by Phyrexian Editor » 3 years ago

Ink-Treader
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Anointed Slayer seems strong, though how strong of course would depend on the environment. I'm glad someone did an Adventure. The halves work together well. Hope/Despair seems like it's pulling in two different directions and if things are going well, you're not going to transform it. I'm also not sure how white the effect on the back is, though I guess your intention here might be for the transformation to be accessible only if you're playing a deck with life payment or cards that deal damage to all players, which would be red or black.
netn10
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I would take haste and indestructible off the Incarnateds. Unfortunately, Inspire is never getting cast and Create is going to be abused by graveyard shenanigans.
Subject16
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I like the idea, but I'm afraid Batman is not only the night but also a color pie break. Agree to Disagree is my favorite flavor of the round.
1. Ink-Treader
2. Subject 16
3. netn10

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void_nothing
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Post by void_nothing » 3 years ago

I'll extend critiques for 24 hours.
Psst, check the second page of Custom Card Contests & Games! Because of the daily contests, a lot of games fall down to there.

The greatest (fake) pro wrestling on the internet - Collaborative Create-A-Booster - My random creations (updated regularly)

Important Facts: Colorless is not a color, Wastes is not a land type, Changeling is not a creature type

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Subject16
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Post by Subject16 » 3 years ago

Ink-Treader
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I love Innocent Blood effects and Anointed Slayer plays well of it. The flavor works quite nicely too.

I like that Lashing Despair does interesting things with Spectacle, and works well for a "suicide black" kind of deck, but I feel like it's pulling in two different directions that don't complement each other.
netn10
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Both sides of this card seem very pushed, each one being a cheap, repeatable value engine. The izzet one basically being Sword of Fire and Ice which is arguably the best sword of the entire cycle, and the Orzhov one being a reanimation engine with indestructible to boot? I feel like both sides of this card are a bit too good, so being able to cast either definitely pushes it beyond what I'm comfortable with.

Inspire to Create is a nice design and one I could see become a favourite of storm style decks.
Phyrexian Editor
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Ah, the elusive Were-Frog. Red is an odd color for a frog, but I like the "engine" you set up here by turning an evasive creature into a saboteur, but speficically by discarding a card, so you end up not actually getting any real card advantage. Neat design.

'Toast and Drink' isn't a phrasing I've ever heard but maybe that's not my part of the world. Toast is a great play on the word, essentially "toasting" everything with fire. Drink works well with it and is flavorful, but probably undercosted? Fuse is definitely better than aftermath in this case.
Top three:
1: Phyrexian Editor
2: Ink-Treader
3: netn10

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void_nothing
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Post by void_nothing » 3 years ago

Your two finalists are Phyrexian Editor and Ink-Treader! Thanks to everyone for playing, and the final round will be up soon!
Psst, check the second page of Custom Card Contests & Games! Because of the daily contests, a lot of games fall down to there.

The greatest (fake) pro wrestling on the internet - Collaborative Create-A-Booster - My random creations (updated regularly)

Important Facts: Colorless is not a color, Wastes is not a land type, Changeling is not a creature type

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