MCC Round 3 - Frame Job

slimytrout
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Post by slimytrout » 3 weeks ago

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Banner based on Denry Klin, Editor in Chief, by Aaron J. Reilly and Wizards of the Coast. Thanks to bravelion83 for the "Core Set Style" MCC Logo
May MCC, Round 3 - Frame Job

Welcome to the May MCC! It's Graphic Design Month here at the MCC. We'll be celebrating an underappreciated team in R&D: Graphic Design.

Main Challenge: Design a card with a new frame.

Subchallenge 1: Your card has and/or mentions at least three evergreen or deciduous keyword abilities.

Subchallenge 2: Your card's textbox(es) contains no more than 200 characters, including symbols, reminder text, and flavor text but not including spaces.

DEADLINES

Design deadline: Saturday, May 25, 23:59 EDT

Judging deadline: Tuesday, May 28, 23:59 EDT


If time extensions are required, they WILL eat time from the next round to realign with the calendar, so please ask them only if you really need them. This is for both players and judges.
Clarifications
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Main Challenge:
There are plenty of mechanics that would have met this challenge when they were printed: Sagas, Cases, Classes, Level-up, Battles, Planeswalkers, TDFCs, MDFCs, Fuse, Aftermath, and many more. There are others that would have received partial credit, since they were technically "new frames" but the changes were purely cosmetic, such as Vehicles, cards with reconfigure, or enchantment creatures. What will be disqualified is cards that are purely based on color changes: a colorless Class would technically need a "new frame" since it's never existed before, but that does not count for the purpose of this challenge.

To put it another way, there must be some sort of new mechanical element to the card to avoid disqualification, and to earn full points the new frame must play an important role in this new mechanical function. Even something like Miracle would meet this criterion, since the frame changes were necessary to give the players a visual cue immediately upon drawing the card.

You may provide some visual description of your card's layout, e.g.

The first spell is aligned normally, except that the art is much shorter than a typical card art with a wide aspect ratio. The second spell is aligned perpendicular to the first, with a similar layout and aspect ratio to a standard split card.

However, any mechanical elucidation of how the new mechanic works must be clear from the rules or reminder text itself, e.g.:

Aftermath (Cast this spell only from your graveyard. Then exile it.)

Subchallenge 1:
The card can either have the ability (obviously) or just mention it, which could mean that it gains/grants the ability or that it references it in some other way. The only thing that doesn't count is having it in the reminder text.

Evergreen keyword abilities (Keyword actions don't count!)

Deciduous mechanics (N.B. sorting by type allows you to group all the keyword abilities together)

Subchallenge 2:
Microsoft word includes a convenient "Word Count" feature under "Tools" that will give you a character count excluding spaces.

This limit does not include any "symbols" you include to demarcate physical boundaries within your card (///, ---, {}, or the like), nor does it include the name, typeline, power, toughness, loyalty, or anything else that is not within the rules/flavor textbox(es).
CONTESTANTS

@bravelion83
@shullz
@Freyleyes
@Subject16
@void_nothing
@Komandon

RUBRIC
MCC Rubric
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The MCC Rubric is given below, in an easily "copy and pasted" form. (Courtesy of Rithaniel.)

Code: Select all

[b]Design[/b]
[b](X/3) Appeal[/b] - Do the different player psychographics (Timmy/Johhny/Spike) have a use for the card?
[b](X/3) Elegance[/b] - Is the card easily understandable at a glance? Do all the flavor and mechanics combined as a whole make sense?
 
[b]Development[/b]
[b](X/3) Viability[/b] - 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?
[b](X/3) Balance[/b] - 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?
 
[b]Creativity[/b]
[b](X/3) Uniqueness[/b] - 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"?
[b](X/3) Flavor[/b] - 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?
 
[b]Polish[/b]
[b](X/3) Quality[/b] - Points deducted for incorrect spelling, grammar, and templating.
[b](X/2) Main Challenge (*)[/b] - Was the main challenge satisfied? Was it approached in a unique or interesting way? Does the card fit the intent of the challenge?
[b](X/2) Subchallenges[/b] - One point awarded per satisfied subchallenge condition.
 
[b]Total: X/25[/b]
*An entry with 0 points here is subject to disqualification.
JUDGES

slimytrout
Ink-Treader

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bravelion83
OTJ MCC going on now
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Post by bravelion83 » 3 weeks ago

Gifted Firesoul 3RW
Creature — Elemental Angel (M)
Flying, vigilance
Prowess (Whenever you cast a noncreature spell, this creature gets +1/+1 until end of turn.)
{R/W}{R/W}{R/W}: Alter target unaltered creature you control with power 2 or less. (Turn this card to its other side and put it under that creature. Alter only as a sorcery.)
Always in fire alert.
3/3

//

(The creature this card is under gains the following colors, creature types, and abilities in addition to its own and gets the following increase in power and toughness. A creature can only have one alteration under it. This card and the creature above it are considered a single permanent. If that permanent would leave the battlefield, only the top card does, and this card's owner turns it back to its other side.)
+R +W +Elemental +Angel (M)
Flying, vigilance
Prowess (Whenever you cast a noncreature spell, this creature gets +1/+1 until end of turn.)
+3/+3
Author of the MCC Guidelines and FAQ. | The June MCC is ongoing. Theme is OTJ. Most recent thread: Round 2. Design deadline on the 15th.


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MCC - Winner (9): Oct 2014, Apr Nov 2017, Jan 2018, Apr Jun 2019, Jan Mar 2022, Apr 2023 || Host (31): 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 Jun 2024 || Judge (59): 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 Jun 2024
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slimytrout
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Post by slimytrout » 3 weeks ago

Just letting everyone know that I made the edits to void_nothing's judgement from last round which ended up giving them 1 more point, so the bracket is now set (there was a tie, which was settled at random):

@Subject16 vs. @Komandon
@void_nothing vs. @Freyleyes
@bravelion83 vs. @shullz

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void_nothing
Undersea Emperor
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Post by void_nothing » 3 weeks ago

Inquisitorial Methods 4W
Enchantment (R)
(Unlock chained abilities as a sorcery by paying a key of the chain color, BBB after sacrificing a creature for black chains, or RRR after dealing noncombat damage for red chains.)
Ward 2
Spells and permanents you control and cards you own that aren't on the battlefield have lifelink ⛓『and deathtouch.
⛓『If a source you control would deal damage to a permanent or player, it deals that much damage plus 1 instead.
Frame description
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Cards with chained abilities would have grayscale chain symbols running up and down the edges of their frames, and the chained abilities themselves would be marked with a chain symbol of the appropriate color as well as brackets and a colored background a la prototype.
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

Komandon
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Post by Komandon » 3 weeks ago

Stalking Shuck 2B
Creature — Nightmare Dog (rare)
Menace, deathtouch
—————————————————————————————————————————————
Divulge3B While you are searching your library you may cast this spell with different mana cost and size. It gains the following ability.)
—————————————————————————————————————————————
When Stalking Shuck enters the battlefield, it gains indestructible until end of turn.
4/4
—————————————————————————————————————————————
3/3

Description of frame:
Inbetween the ———- the look is similar to Prototype with its boarder for cost and p/t except it has another break such as in level up cards giving the total card three different tones/shades/tints getting darker with each break or change of color. No actual other lines, other than the prototype like frame, having a black such as in classes and sagas. Just the color change.

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Subject16
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Post by Subject16 » 3 weeks ago

Radiant Dawnfist 1W
Creature — Elemental Monk (R)
Stance 1 (This creature enters in its leftmost stance. Whenever this creature attacks or blocks, you may pay 1 to change its stance.)
Strike Stance
Ward 1
Double Strike
1/1
// Guard Stance
// Ward 2
// 2W: Put a +1/+1 counter on Radiant Dawnfist.



Artist Credit
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Radiant Dawnfist Fin.png

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shullz
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Post by shullz » 3 weeks ago

Crowned
Enhancement (R)
(An enhancement is attached to a commander before the game begins and is treated as part of that card. That card stays enhanced as it moves to any zone. The enhancement's name, mana cost, color and abilities are added to the enhanced card. A player can only use one enhancement.)
Affinity for creatures
Defender, ward
When this permanent enters the battlefield, you become the monarch.
Frame description and mockup
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Frame description: The left half has a somewhat transparent overlay, sized like the right half of another card. This half only contains the enhancement reminder text. The right half contains the rest of the card information. The title bar contains the mana cost first and the name second.
Crowned.jpg
Illustration created with hotpot.ai

slimytrout
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Post by slimytrout » 3 weeks ago

12 hours remain, just missing @Freyleyes. Do let me know if you need an extension.

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Freyleyes
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Post by Freyleyes » 3 weeks ago

Legion Commander 1R
Creature — Human Legion {M}
Legion (You may pay the recruit cost when casting this spell and once per turn during your main phase to summon the recruited Legion creature tokens.)
Flash
Recruit Vanguard 1R
First strike, prowess | 2/2
Recruit Enforcer 2RW
Trample
Legion creatures you control get +1/+1. | 3/3
2/2
Frame
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The top part is the creature, and the sections are the "templates" for the tokens to be created when recruited. The color of the tokens are based on the color of the section's BG, in this case, red, like how the prototype creature becomes the color of the BG the Prototype part is on.
Attachments
Legion Commander Render.png

slimytrout
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Post by slimytrout » 2 weeks ago

Round is closed! We'll each judge all entries following the bracket I posted above.

Ink-Treader
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Post by Ink-Treader » 2 weeks ago

And done.


Subject16
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Design
(2/3) Appeal - Timmy will find this cool to play. Johnny can somewhat appreciate the counters, but it's not really for them. Spike likes efficient creatures, though this isn't that efficient at being its own source of counters.
(3/3) Elegance - Tying the trigger to change stances to combat is helpful, as is left to right.

Development
(3/3) Viability - White and rare are fine, though uncommon isn't entirely out of the question. As far as the mechanic as presented, I think this is plausible.
(3/3) Balance - This seems reasonable overall. Potentially a win con, but it takes some time to get rolling strong.

Creativity
(2/3) Uniqueness - Stance aside, nothing here is terribly unique.
(2/3) Flavor - Generic, but functional.

Polish
(3/3) Quality - Looks good.
(2/2) Main Challenge (*) - I'd say this qualifies for full credit.
(2/2) Subchallenges - I will grant that a new keyword should count (counting ward twice instead would feel out the spirit of the challenge), and this appears to just barely fit under 200 characters.

Total: 22/25
*An entry with 0 points here is subject to disqualification.

vs.
Komandon
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Design
(2/3) Appeal - It's big enough for Timmy, even if Divulge is a bit weird. Johnny's interest hinges on this being like Panglacial Wurm and its nonsense; as worded, this might not be that, and I believe it will be generally more beneficial if I don't consider it like the wurm (which I will explain in the relevant categories). Spikes likes the efficiency, and the fact that it can be a surprise accessed by a mere fetchland.
(2/3) Elegance - That being said, it is quite unclear what your intent is; is this Panglacial Wurm, or is this an option available from your hand while you're searching your library? The Wurm explicitly mentioned being cast from your library, while the reminder text here does not.

Development
(2/3) Viability - Black and rare are fine. So let's talk Divulge. I would judge you very harshly here if this were intended to function as Panglacial Wurm does; the wurm is a rules nightmare, and the world does not need more of that. But being able to cast this for an alternate cost from your hand while searching your library? It shares some of the same issues, but not all. I don't think they'd bother with a whole new card frame; they'd just treat it as an alternate cost with perhaps a bonus if it was divulged.
(3/3) Balance - It's solid. Unpleasant to block, but not overwhelmingly powerful. The divulge bonus is also fine, offering a sort of combat kill spell option.

Creativity
(2/3) Uniqueness - Divulge is pretty unique with either interpretation. Everything else is pretty standard.
(2.5/3) Flavor - "shuck" here is apparenly a reference to English folklore. This seems to fit in with that folklore, and the stalking potential is implied by divulge's pseudoflash.

Polish
(1.5/3) Quality - Reminder text for divulge is missing the left parenthesis. This is also clearly intended to be a keyword, not an ability word; it should not be italicized, and because the cost is only mana, the m-dash (—) isn't needed. This would need a radically different format if it is intended to be an ability word.
(2/2) Main Challenge (*) - I believe this may qualify for full credit.
(1/2) Subchallenges - Contains three keyword abilities, but this appears to be just over 200 characters.

Total: 18/25
*An entry with 0 points here is subject to disqualification.



void_nothing
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Design
(2/3) Appeal - Timmy likes mass lifelink, and mass deathtouch (even if the method is a bit distasteful to them), and more damage. It's intriguing to Johnny, especially giving lifelink and deathtouch to cards that aren't on the battlefield. This feels rather costly to Spike, and the color requirements plus the additional hoop for a specific color can be quite tricky.
(2/3) Elegance - "Spells and permanents you control and cards you own that aren't on the battlefield" is always unpleasantly lengthy, if necessary at times. Your reminder text is confusing; unlocking is only as a sorcery, but its worded like a cost you pay after something occurs.

Development
(2.5/3) Viability - At base, white and rare seem appropriate, and the black and red chain abilities are also on color. Each color have its own unique trigger for unlock, while cute, seems like needless complexity, and trickier to balance.
(2.5/3) Balance - Whip of Erebos is my best point of comparison it seems, which is a solid card I'd say. This covers more options, but doesn't have the activated ability. And for additional costs at certain moments, this can get even stronger. It might be overcosted (or perhaps, over color weighted?) it some aspects, but I definitely think this card has an audience: Commander.

Creativity
(2.5/3) Uniqueness - The concept of unlocking as presented here is pretty fresh, as is handing out lifelink and deathtouch to everything.
(1.5/3) Flavor - It's the off color abilities that seem to work best with the flavor, but I think people would expect more information gathering, or more torture.

Polish
(3/3) Quality - It looks good; my main concerns were already mentioned in Elegance.
(2/2) Main Challenge (*) - I'd say this qualifies for full credit.
(1/2) Subchallenges - Contains the required amount of keywords, but is not just more than 200 but more than 300 characters.

Total: 19/25
*An entry with 0 points here is subject to disqualification.

vs.
Freyleyes
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Design
(2/3) Appeal - Timmy thinks this is just plain cool. Not really for Johnny, but it has some novelty. Spike likes how efficient this is, especially the first token.
(2/3) Elegance - Can I both pay on casting and during a main phase of the turn I cast this? Also, is this a special action? It's worded like one, as opposed to an activated ability, which has its own consequences.

Development
(2.5/3) Viability - Can't deny red, and mythic does work here; that is the simple power mythics tend to have. The enforcer doesn't need to be white.
(3/3) Balance - On its own, a 2/2 for 2 with flash is decent, but that's it. A 2/2 for 4 with flash that brings in a 2/2 with first strike and prowess is a much nicer proposition. And then it can keep producing those strong tokens for a good price, if only once per each of your turns. This is strong, but is fortunately not very resilient.

Creativity
(2/3) Uniqueness - It's ultimately just a token maker, with a somewhat unique method.
(2/3) Flavor - Quite generic. The name loosely implies a Boros association, as does the colors of the second token, but I'm not sure if that's intended.

Polish
(3/3) Quality - Looks fine.
(2/2) Main Challenge (*) - Certainly qualifies for full points.
(1/2) Subchallenges - Sufficient keyword abilities, but more than 200 characters.

Total: 19.5/25
*An entry with 0 points here is subject to disqualification.



bravelion83
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Design
(2/3) Appeal - Timmy likes this, though being unable to alter larger creatures with this is irksome. Johnny's knowledge of how mutate works gives them some ideas of how that "only one alteration" can be circumvented. This isn't the best example of the mechanic for them, though. Spike finds it a decent enough creature, and the fact that using this to buff another creature would appear to not be card disadvantage, and arguably card advantage, is very nice.
(2.5/3) Elegance - You've done your damnedest to avoid as much of mutate's oddities as possible, but some still remain.

Development
(3/3) Viability - Red, white, and mythic: certainly is. This is doing a pretty good job of avoiding mutate's problems, though it does feel like the child of that and bestow.
(3/3) Balance - Thankfully alter is sorcery speed. Still sufficient to make this a very slippery creature. Having to alter relatively small creatures is also helpful for balance. The creature itself is solid enough.

Creativity
(2.5/3) Uniqueness - It's like a cross between bestow and mutate, but used from the battlefield. The rest of the mechanics aren't super unique, but alter is pretty fresh despite the comparisons.
(2.5/3) Flavor - Pretty cool, and the name seems to work with the concept of the new ability. The flavor text reads a little odd, but works.

Polish
(3/3) Quality - The flavor text could probably use a comma between fire and alert. Just a nitpick.
(2/2) Main Challenge (*) - Full credit.
(1/2) Subchallenges - Sufficient keywords, but I don't need to check to know this is well over 200 characters.

Total: 21.5/25
*An entry with 0 points here is subject to disqualification.

vs.
shullz
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Design
(2/3) Appeal - Defender isn't Timmy's favorite mechanic, at least in a vacuum, but this has some charm. Adding a whole other color to a commander is something both Johnny and Spike can appreciate, though Spike is leery of the cost increase this does bring.
(2/3) Elegance - A whole new card type, and it's not exactly normal (I'd call battles relatively normal), being neither spell nor permanent. It also raises some questions mechanically. Does this technically stay in the command zone? If not, what happens if the commander moves to a hidden zone? Not to mention cards that care about the amount of a thing. I imagine it does stay in the command zone, as that's the most elegant solution, but it is important to know.

Development
(2/3) Viability - White is fine, as is rare. The fact that this is presented as an option for any commander is certainly a mistake. There are a lot of commander's that would gladly accept access to another color, even if this has a couple of drawbacks. There's a reason partner is limited the way it is, same with Backgrounds. This basically is a Background that you must cast with your commander.
(2.5/3) Balance - In a vacuum, the drawbacks are notable. But an extra color can still be a very strong boon in Commander.

Creativity
(3/3) Uniqueness - Being a new card type is definitely worth something here, despite some similarities to the background mechanic.
(2.5/3) Flavor - The nature of the card type does severely limit what you can convey, but this is doing a good job with those limits.

Polish
(3/3) Quality - This seems correct.
(2/2) Main Challenge (*) - Indeed.
(1/2) Subchallenges - The keywords certainly count, and I must count the reminder text towards your character count, so this is over 200.

Total: 20/25
*An entry with 0 points here is subject to disqualification.



Scores
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Subject16 - 22 vs Komandon - 18
void_nothing - 19 vs Freyleyes - 19.5
bravelion83 - 21.5 vs shullz - 20

slimytrout
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Post by slimytrout » 2 weeks ago

Subject16
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Design
(2/3) Appeal - Timmy certainly likes double strikers and cards that can grow, so they're in. Spike enjoys the challenge of figuring out when to switch modes. Johnny is not really interested, since it's mostly just a beater.
(2.5/3) Elegance - Very clear despite the more complex frame, so nice job on that. The one issue I have, which I'm putting in this section for lack of a good alternative, is that I don't think that allowing transformation on blocks is a good idea, because it will lead to a lot of feel-bad moments for your opponent -- let's say this is in guard stance with a counter on it and you have 4 mana open, then they attack with a 3/3. You can block, put a counter on in response to the trigger, then switch stances and they just threw away a creature.

Development
(3/3) Viability - White is definitely right. Flirting with uncommon given recent printings like Illuminator Virtuoso, but I think rare is correct.
(2.5/3) Balance - It's maybe a little low on power level for a rare -- for it to be much better than a Fencing Ace you have to attack with it, pay 1 to switch stances, then 2w to add a counter, then 1 to get back, at which point you've paid 7 mana and waited two turns for a Blade-Blizzard Kitsune. That might be feasible in the late game, but early on it's not a standout which means it's unlikely to be a big player in constructed formats.

Creativity
(2.5/3) Uniqueness - I think this feels fairly fresh, even if it is mostly an elegant and flavorful alternative method to make TDFC's.
(2.5/3) Flavor - I kinda wish that guard stance felt a little more guard-y, or that it was called "meditation stance" or something, but otherwise I like it a lot.

Polish
(3/3) Quality - Looks good.
(2/2) Main Challenge (*) - Definitely.
(1.5/2) Subchallenges - Okay, technically I didn't specify "different keyword abilities" so ward 1 and ward 2 count twice, but I think it's pretty clear that's not the spirit of the challenge, so docking half a point here. 192 characters by my count.

Total: 21.5/25
Komandon
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Design
(2.5/3) Appeal - Definitely weird, so Johnny likes it. Spike sees the potential for value and blowouts, so they're in. Timmy doesn't mind a good beater, but they're not overly excited.
(1.5/3) Elegance - The reminder text is pretty ambiguous -- can you cast it from your hand while searching your library (in which case, why bother with "while" instead of a more normal triggered ability), or can you cast it from your library while searching it (in which case you need to specify "from your library"). I'm going to assume the former based on the literal text, but people would be confused for sure.

Development
(2/3) Viability - Black rare is fine, but there are rules issues with this card as written. It's not quite as bad as the notorious Panglacial Wurm, but it's still a major headache. For instance, what if you start searching your library, then you go to cast this, and while you're doing so you activate Millikin to pay the cost. Does the card get milled before the search, in which case you can't find the card that got milled, or after? Suffice it to say that having one effect occur within the resolution of another effect is not something that meshes well with the CR.
(2.5/3) Balance - I don't think this is inherently unbalanced, but it's very swingy -- either it's a Grimdancer lookalike, which is fine but not rare-worthy, or you have a fetch land and it's an indestructible deathtouch blocker that gets to eat any creature without evasion.

Creativity
(2/3) Uniqueness - Pretty clearly drawing from Panglacial Wurm as mentioned. The twist is interesting, but not wildly new.
(2.5/3) Flavor - I had never heard of Black Shuck before this, so good job on that score. I'm not sure I really understand the flavor of why it comes from your library though.

Polish
(1.5/3) Quality - Missing a parenthesis (-0.5). Divulge has got to be a keyword, but it's formatted as an ability word (-0.5). Mana-only payments for keywords like this don't need the em-dash (-0.5).
(2/2) Main Challenge (*) - Yep.
(1/2) Subchallenges - Menace, deathtouch, and indestructible, but I count 206 characters (207 if you add in the missing parenthesis).

Total: 17.5/25
void_nothing
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Design
(1.5/3) Appeal - Johnny loves weird enchantments like this and things like giving spells extra abilities so they're very in. Timmy doesn't mind gaining a ton of life but would prefer if there was a body to go with it. Spike needs cards to do something on their own and the base version of this just doesn't do enough.
(2/3) Elegance - I did have to read it a couple times to make sure I understood the reminder text (didn't want a repeat of last round), but I was able to get there. The whole thing is a bit clumsily phrased -- "cards you own that aren't on the battlefield" is pretty clunky and narrow, and honestly it made me gloss over the fact that "permanents" was on the list which is pretty important.

Development
(2.5/3) Viability - Definitely a white rare, and I can see there being an ability printed that does this sort of "unlocking." I do kind of think it should have some sort of counter though as a memory aid.
(2/3) Balance - This is fairly weak at its base rate -- kind of a combination of Soulfire Grand Master and Whip of Erebos, but both of those cards have important other abilities. If you can start adding the chained abilities then it adds power, but the hoops you have to jump through and the sheer volume of colored mana required makes that hard to pull off. I think it's more realistic if it's 2B and 2R.

Creativity
(3/3) Uniqueness - Yeah, I can't think of anything that unlocks abilities in this way.
(2/3) Flavor - Not quite sure what the inquisition has to do with lifelink -- the chains make sense, as does the deathtouch and extra damage, but the base card is kinda the most important and it just doesn't click for me.

Polish
(3/3) Quality - I'm going to give the benefit of the doubt on reminder text, even though it doesn't quite seem like a proper sentence to me.
(2/2) Main Challenge (*) - For sure.
(1/2) Subchallenges - Deathtouch, lifelink, and ward, but just the reminder text is almost 150 characters so nowhere close on the length.

Total: 19/25
Freyleyes
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Design
(2/3) Appeal - Timmy definitely likes things like this that just enormous boards for them to attack with. Spike likes recurring value and choices. Johnny has no real interest in a once per turn token generator.
(2/3) Elegance - This is another card with reminder text that doesn't quite explain it. Can you do each of these once a turn, or just one of them? Similarly, "when casting" doesn't really have much rules meaning, so it's kind of unclear when those costs are actually paid.

Development
(2/3) Viability - Red mythic works, but having three new creature types on the same card (all of which are fairly generic) seems like a stretch. Also, I don't believe there would be a creature type with the same name as a keyword ability.
(2.5/3) Balance - This isn't totally busted, but man would it be a pain to play against. Every deck playing red in standard would play 4 of these, and the fact that your opponent can flash it in as a 2/2 that makes a 2/2 first strike prowess when they untap, or two 2/2's that make a 3/3 (that buffs the 2/2) when they untap, means that the whole format is going to revolve around either leaving up instant speed removal or playing a bunch of wraths.

Creativity
(2/3) Uniqueness - Ultimately it's a lot like kicker to make tokens, even if it does it in a somewhat novel way.
(2/3) Flavor - Kinda generic, and also I'm a bit rubbed the wrong way by a Legion Commander having the creature type Legion, when Legion literally means "many people," so is the legion being commanded by a legion?

Polish
(2.5/3) Quality - Again, the "when casting" in the reminder text seems wrong. Otherwise looks good.
(2/2) Main Challenge (*) - Yep.
(1/2) Subchallenges - First strike, prowess, flash, but way too many characters.

Total: 18/25
bravelion83
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Design
(2/3) Appeal - Timmy looooves this in many different ways. Spike likes that they won't get 2-for-1'd, but doesn't like the idea of playing this for 5 mana, then putting 3 mana into altering it and then losing it to a single burn or removal spell. Johnny likes that the back face is doing unusual stuff, but mostly that stuff is just in service of whacking their opponent in the face, which is too usual for their tastes.
(2.5/3) Elegance - That is a biiiiig block of reminder text on the back. Fortunately, it's pretty straightforward, but it's still not the most elegant.

Development
(3/3) Viability - Red, white, and mythic, all appropriate.
(2.5/3) Balance - As I mentioned earlier, while it's not vulnerable to 2-for-1's, it is pretty easy to get put way behind on mana with this card, so I actually don't think it would make too much of a dent in constructed, but I'm sure some EDH players would try to use it in Voltron strategies.

Creativity
(2.5/3) Uniqueness - I mean, it is *very* reminiscent of bestow and mutate, but at the same time it definitely feels like it's taking its own path. So not quite fully unique, but close.
(3/3) Flavor - Flavor text is a bit oddly phrased, but the concept is cool enough that I'll let it slide.

Polish
(3/3) Quality - No problems.
(2/2) Main Challenge (*) - Yep.
(1/2) Subchallenges - Flying, vigilance, prowess, but more than 200 characters on the front face alone.

Total: 21.5/25
shullz
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Design
(2.5/3) Appeal - Johnny really likes this sort of thing and would love to turn a drawback into an upside. Spike just sees the drawback as being worth it for getting to add white and gain value from the monarch. Timmy is interested, but is a bit turned off by defender, which they don't love on their commander especially.
(2.5/3) Elegance - There would be a whole bunch of new rules to handle this card type, which seems like it's uninteractable with? Not even a permanent, I guess? That being said, I don't think it would cause confusion otherwise.

Development
(2/3) Viability - White and rare is fine, but I do not think they would print things that could just be put on any commander like this -- the combinatorics are insane. Just off the top of my head, this takes The Pride of Hull Clade (already one of the more played commanders from MKM) and adds a color, affinity for creatures, and ward nearly for free.
(1.5/3) Balance - I respect the effort to add a drawback, but there are too many commanders that just don't need to attack to do their thing and that would love to get affinity for creatures. In fact, it's pretty easy to imagine a whole deck full of infinite combos that would be enabled by this, and there's very little your opponent could do about it.

Creativity
(2.5/3) Uniqueness - It is a bit like background, but obviously there's a lot of new stuff going on here as well.
(3/3) Flavor - I like it -- you were very limited in what you could communicate, but nevertheless it really gets the point across.

Polish
(3/3) Quality - No problems.
(2/2) Main Challenge (*) - Absolutely.
(1/2) Subchallenges - Defender, ward, affinity. I waffled on giving half a point since technically the reminder text on your card isn't in the text box, but the challenge specifically mentions that reminder text counts against your 200 characters so I decided against it.

Total: 20/25

slimytrout
Posts: 1906
Joined: 5 years ago
Pronoun: Unlisted

Post by slimytrout » 2 weeks ago

Ok, I have not received any messages, so the scores are:

Subject16: 22+21.5=43.5
vs.
Komandon: 18+17.5=35.5

void_nothing: 19+19=38
vs.
Freyleyes: 19.5+18=37.5

bravelion83: 21.5+21.5=43
vs.
shullz: 20+20=40

Finals to come shortly! (Before the end of May!)

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