December MCC Round 1
Deeper underground
As is tradition by now, this month we will celebrate the latest set, in this case The Lost Caverns of Ixalan, by exploring its mechanics and themes, as usual in this kind of MCC months.
You're on the surface of the continent of Ixalan now, and you see the entrance of a cave. What do you do? Are you ready to venture deeper underground?
Main Challenge - Design a single-faced card with descend 4, descend 8, fathomless descent, and/or the text "descended this turn".
Subchallenge 1 - The card is not a creature.
Subchallenge 2 - The card has no black mana symbols in its mana cost AND in its rules text.
Clarifications
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Main Challenge
• Your card has to meet two requirements at the same time:
- It has only one face. In other words, it's not a DFC. It also cannot be any other special kind of card, like planes (from Planechase), schemes (from Archenemy), etc… It must be a regular Magic card with only one face.
- It has at least one among the following:
1- the ability word "Descend 4" with the corresponding text in that ability, and/or
2- the ability word "Descend 8" with the corresponding text in that ability, and/or
3- the ability word "Fathomless descent" with the corresponding text in that ability, and/or
4- the exact text "descended this turn" in its rules text.
The card CAN have more than one among these four options, all that matters is that it has AT LEAST one of the four.
Subchallenge 1
• The card can have any card type(s) EXCEPT "creature".
• This Subchallenge doesn't care about supertypes (like "legendary", "snow", or "basic") or subtypes, only card types. You can have all the supertypes and subtypes that you want on your card.
• If your card is a split card, flip card, adventurer card, or whatever card that has multiple type lines on a single face, NONE of those type lines can contain the "creature" card type.
• As a reminder, the following are card types: artifact, battle, creature, enchantment, kindred (formerly tribal), instant, land, planeswalker, sorcery.
Subchallenge 2
• No black mana cost of ANY kind are allowed in the card's mana cost and in the card's rules text. In other words, the card's color identity does not include black.
• Forbidden symbols include regular black mana (), all hybrid mana with a black component (, , , ), black "twobrid" (), black Phyrexian mana (), and any mana symbol that can be paid using black mana, including custom ones of your own creation.
If you have any questions, feel free to post them in the MCC discussion thread.
• Your card has to meet two requirements at the same time:
- It has only one face. In other words, it's not a DFC. It also cannot be any other special kind of card, like planes (from Planechase), schemes (from Archenemy), etc… It must be a regular Magic card with only one face.
- It has at least one among the following:
1- the ability word "Descend 4" with the corresponding text in that ability, and/or
2- the ability word "Descend 8" with the corresponding text in that ability, and/or
3- the ability word "Fathomless descent" with the corresponding text in that ability, and/or
4- the exact text "descended this turn" in its rules text.
The card CAN have more than one among these four options, all that matters is that it has AT LEAST one of the four.
bravelion83 wrote: ↑5 months agoNo, it has to be keyworded (technically ability-worded, but I'm saying it that way for clarity). The actual words "Descend 4 —" MUST be there, and in that ability the text that corresponds to the ability word descend 4 ("[if/as long as] there are four or more permanent cards in your graveyard") must appear unaltered, as is. You can put whatever you want before or after that text, but that exact line of text AND the ability word "Descend 4 —" MUST be there for the Main Challenge to be met at all.Komandon wrote: ↑5 months agoTwo questions. First does the main challenge meaning for example "the ability word "Descend 4" with the corresponding text in that ability, and/or"
mean it can have rule text of the mechanic without the name. For example the mechanic Landfall and how cards that don't have the keyword such as Maja, Bretagard Protector , Druid Class [/card] or Roaring Earth .
The same goes with "Descent 8 —" and "[if/as long as] there are eight or more permanent cards in your graveyard", "Fathomless descent —" and "[where X is/equal to] the number of permanent cards in your graveyard", and the string "descended this turn" (which also must be unaltered).
Your proposed wording is exactly what descend 4 is, so just put a "Descend 4 —" right before it and you're good to go. For example, the following would pass the Main Challenge:So I just have a card that says for example "As long as there are four or more permanent cards in your graveyard **some ability**"
The reason I ask is if I wanted to include mechanics that is not in The Lost Cavern of Ixalan to make it worded more as if it existed in other planes.
Descend 4 — As long as there are four or more permanent cards in your graveyard, **some ability**
No need to apologize. I am a high school professional teacher in real life. I always tell my students never to be afraid to ask, making questiona is not an annoyance or a sign or weakness, it just means you haven't properly understood something, and it's my job as your teacher to make you understand it. If anything, it's my fault if you don't understand, not yours. Well, what I say to my students in the classroom is also perfectly true for me when I host an MCC month. I make the challenges, and if a player doesn't understand them, fully or in part, it's my job to explain them better to make them understand. So no guilt on your part and no need to apologize. Whatever you don't understand fully, ask. Remember: do not ever be afraid to ask. Ever.Second question (sorry for length)
No, sorry, that's not allowed. No matter how small it is, it still qualifies as extra content in the submission post, and that's a cause of DQ. The card must speak for itself without any additional notes (unless requested by the round challenges, but that's not the case here).Am I allow a small disclaimer. The actual one I was thinking (but might not make a card. Just still thinking.). Saying ***part of an nonexistent cycle***
That verbatim. The two questions are unrelated I'm still thinking of an entry just narrowing down what I want to make.
Adding this to the clarifications spoiler. Thank you for asking. Don't be afraid to ask again should you have any more doubts or need more explanation.
Subchallenge 1
• The card can have any card type(s) EXCEPT "creature".
• This Subchallenge doesn't care about supertypes (like "legendary", "snow", or "basic") or subtypes, only card types. You can have all the supertypes and subtypes that you want on your card.
• If your card is a split card, flip card, adventurer card, or whatever card that has multiple type lines on a single face, NONE of those type lines can contain the "creature" card type.
• As a reminder, the following are card types: artifact, battle, creature, enchantment, kindred (formerly tribal), instant, land, planeswalker, sorcery.
Subchallenge 2
• No black mana cost of ANY kind are allowed in the card's mana cost and in the card's rules text. In other words, the card's color identity does not include black.
• Forbidden symbols include regular black mana (), all hybrid mana with a black component (, , , ), black "twobrid" (), black Phyrexian mana (), and any mana symbol that can be paid using black mana, including custom ones of your own creation.
If you have any questions, feel free to post them in the MCC discussion thread.
DEADLINES
Design deadline: Thursday, December 7th 2023 at 23:59 Eastern Time
Judging deadline: Monday, December 11th 2023 at 23:59 Eastern Time
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
bravelion83
void_nothing
We might or might not need more judges. If you're interested, sign up in the judge signup thread.
PLAYERS
Everyone can enter this round. Just reply to this thread posting a card that meets the Main Challenge and any number (that includes zero) of Subchallenges. Future rounds will only be open to those who advance. Come join us!
Please check out the MCC Guidelines and FAQ if you have the will and time. You can also find the link 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.
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.
BRACKETS
Judge: bravelion83
Caspernicus
Freyleyes
Komandon
kwanyeegor-ii
shullz
Subject16
Judge: void_nothing
AnotherAlias
haywire
netn10
Raptorchan
slimytrout
Top 4 from each bracket advance to the next round. Good luck to everyone! Judging may begin right now.
