(This month's banner is my own elaboration on the art of the card Ferocious Pup by Rudy Siswanto.)
August MCC Round 4 (finals)
Preemptive planning
August MCC Round 4 (finals)
Preemptive planning
"A battle doesn't start when the two enemy armies face each other, but well before, when the commander's advisors and tacticians first meet to decide what strategy to employ. It's there and then, when the attack is first planned out, that the fight really begins. Not on the battlefield, but on the tablecloth."
—Taar Noriken, strategy expert
Main Challenge - Design a card with an ability that works from your opening hand before the game even begins. See clarifications for examples.
Subchallenge 1 - Your card is multicolored.
Subchallenge 2 - Your card is not an enchantment and not a creature.
Clarifications
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Main Challenge
• All the currently existing cards that do this are: the three cycles of Leylines (from Guildpact, M11, and M20), the cycle of Chancellors from New Phyrexia, Gemstone Caverns, Providence, and Sphinx of Foresight.
Subchallenge 1
• This challenge only cares about the actual colors of the card, not about color identity. In other words, mana symbols in rules text do NOT count.
• Both traditional multicolored (gold) and hybrid count.
Subchallenge 2
• Your card can have any combination of any number of card types in its type line as long as the types "enchantment" and "creatures" aren't there.
• The spirit of the challenge is excluding card types that already have this kind of cards.
If you have any other questions, feel free to ask in the discussion thread.
• All the currently existing cards that do this are: the three cycles of Leylines (from Guildpact, M11, and M20), the cycle of Chancellors from New Phyrexia, Gemstone Caverns, Providence, and Sphinx of Foresight.
Subchallenge 1
• This challenge only cares about the actual colors of the card, not about color identity. In other words, mana symbols in rules text do NOT count.
• Both traditional multicolored (gold) and hybrid count.
Subchallenge 2
• Your card can have any combination of any number of card types in its type line as long as the types "enchantment" and "creatures" aren't there.
• The spirit of the challenge is excluding card types that already have this kind of cards.
If you have any other questions, feel free to ask in the discussion thread.
DEADLINES
Design deadline: Sunday, September 1st 23:59 EDT
Judging deadline: Wednesday, September 4th 23:59 EDT Thursday, September 5th 23:59 EDT. A 24-hour time extension has been asked and granted.
RUBRIC
The rubric has undergone no changes in the transition from MTGSalvation to MTGNexus. As a reminder for everyone, here it is. As usual, it will be there in all round threads. If you want a more detailed explanation of the rubric, you can find it in the brand new MTGNexus MCC Guidelines and FAQ, written by me and approved by void_nothing (Custom Card moderator). The detailed explanation of the rubric is in section 6.2. If you have time and will to read that (admittedly long) document in its entirety, I invite you to do so.
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.
(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
void_nothing
Rithaniel
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.
Also, you should format your text cards accordingly to the brand new MTGNexus MCC Guidelines and FAQ. Again, expect deductions in Quality otherwise. The recommended card formatting is in section 4. As I've said before, if you have time and will to read that document in its entirety, I invite you to do so. It should be useful to everybody, hosts, judges, and players. And speaking of players...
PLAYERS
barbecube
Jimmy Groove
SecretInfiltrator
All judges will judge all cards. The player will the highest combined score will be the winner.