How many cards would you delete/nerf?

[DirkGently]

You have access to a time machine, the ability to hack into R&D's servers, and for some reason don't want to do anything actually productive, like killing baby Hitler, Stalin, or Jake Paul.

How many cards in magic's history would you want to remove or nerf? No one will even be sad that they didn't get to play them, since they will never exist (at least, in their current form). No overhead of a banlist. Broken cards? Poof. Pet peeves? Gone. That commander that you know is fair-ish but you just hate playing against? That'll be our little secret.

What's your (magic card) death toll?

edit: these changes would only affect commander, no other formats would be affected (somehow).

[Serenade]

Just Heartless Act.

[TheGildedGoose]

None.

Vintage and Legacy are fun, and I wouldn't want those formats - dominated by the most broken cards in the game's history - to not exist. Curated banlists are an elegant solution to the problem of imbalanced design for paper play.

[Jemolk]

I would alter an absolutely ludicrous number of cards. First, I'd make a lot of currently one-sided effects into global ones. Narset and Hullbreacher would affect you. So would all other currently-one-sided stax effects. Anthems and tribal lord effects, meanwhile, would also affect your opponents. Be careful with that Master of the Pearl Trident if your opponent has any random merfolk! Indestructible would be turned into the Mossbridge Troll ability -- a permanent regen shield. Hexproof would become Shroud. "Can't be countered" would become "costs more to target on the stack" like Kaervek's Torch or an "if this is countered, draw cards" effect inspired by Multani's Presence. Emblems would be enchantment tokens. I'd also add downside abilities to a ton of recent cards. I'd bring about the return of fading, echo, static upkeep costs, and cumulative upkeep as ways to moderate the costs of otherwise very strong cards. (For example, I'd give Ragavan, Nimble Pilferer Cumulative Upkeep 1 in place of Dash.) I'd also significantly tone down a lot of ETB triggers. Also, while this isn't a direct nerf, it sort of is one anyway -- I'd make Solemnity affect Planeswalkers, and Overwhelming Splendor wouldn't arbitrarily exclude loyalty abilities from its effect. To sum up what I'm aiming for with these changes in a single line -- You will interact, damn it, and you will not just windmill slam whatever you topdeck without any thought, or else you will lose!

Of course, while I was in there, I would also buff some other cards that are really close to being interesting, but just need a little push to be generally applicable enough even in a toned-down environment, but those are much more specific and a little off-topic.

[Sporegorger_Dragon]

EVERY SINGLE ONE OF THE HUMANOID SLIVERS.

EVERY.

LAST.

ONE.

[DirkGently]

None.

Vintage and Legacy are fun, and I wouldn't want those formats - dominated by the most broken cards in the game's history - to not exist. Curated banlists are an elegant solution to the problem of imbalanced design for paper play.

Let's say for sake of argument that these changes affect commander only. Obviously there's no way for that to actually happen, but we're already travelling in time.

[Sinis]

2001-5000.

There are ~23 thousand non-silver bordered cards in circulation. The Pareto principle would suggest that perhaps as many as 4.6k of them cause 80% of my problems (though I believe the number to be far lower). 571 cards are reserved list, and this is an easy way to abolish the reserved list. I do care about silver bordered cards, but, I can only think of a handful I would obliterate; half the point of silver bordered cards is to be unexpected, or trip you up, though some cards would no longer make sense after I were done (like people would wonder what Blacker Lotus was a reference to, for example).

So, to be safe, 2001-5000. If I find there are far fewer than 2001 cards I would like to obliterate if given the opportunity, there are a million Squire (that is, uninteresting, boring, and essentially unplayable) analogues no one will miss.

EVERY SINGLE ONE OF THE HUMANOID SLIVERS.

Me laying Bonescythe Sliver to rest, knowing the only analogue is Fury Sliver at mv 6.

[PrimevalCommander]

I voted 1-20, just so I could alter or delete some of the recent overly power crept cards that keep getting printed. I have a feeling many who complained (including myself) about certain cards in the ban list thread will offer similar opinions here since they are essentially doing the same thing by removing cards we don't like from the card pool.

I know some of these are banned, but I would erase them anyway as uninspired examples of bad card design.

• Hull breacher
• Golos, Tireless Pilgrim
• Derevi, Imperial Tactician
• Emenence as an ability
• Expropriate
• Thassa's Oracle
• Bolas's Citadel

Also I would nerf Primeval Titan to only fetch up ONE land per trigger so it would be unbannable and I'd still get a strong ramp effect and tutor for Diamond Valley. Ulvenwald Hydra is about as close as I get right now.

There are many broken cards that I would leave alone, mostly because they do something that no other card does and anyone looking to play a powerful unique effect like that should get to if they want. Example Ad Nauseam

[pokken]

It's got to be hundreds for me. All the stuff like Rhystic Study that pays off extra in multiplayer and soaks game time, efficient on-the-stack win conditions like Torment of Hailfire, fast ramp like Mana Crypt, tutors like Vampiric Tutor.

So much of this game is propped up by scarcity of old cards and most of these old cards are grotesquely overpowered.

I feel like it would take some serious doing to correctly balance the ramp and tutors but I would definitely make the effort. If I only got one swing at it I'd likely be extra conservative, but an annual balancing patch I think you could get to the point where it's reasonably balanced and doesn't rely on wallet-control. It's tough to say exactly how much of the "fun" of Magic is playing with unbalanced cards, but I played modern for years and it wasn't really a broken format in the way EDH at the high levels is. We still had fun.

[RowanKeltizar]

hmm... I'm not really in favor of outright deleting too many cards. I'm more of a revisionist. Many cards could to stand to be buffed or nerfed.

I have to agree with turning non-symmetrical cards into global effects. A lot of those type of cards are funner if you are able to break parity on them. I'd also change a lot of cards from "on your upkeep" to "on your end step" Oath of Druids for example.

I would also like to change a lot of cards to "only once each turn." I think that's a good way to balance the format. Still create powerful effects but make us work a little harder to gain benefit and not have them go infinite quite so readily.

Other things could be changed to "except for the first draw/spell/whatever per turn...." especially things like Rhystic Study and Smothering Tithe just to tone down their power a bit more and not hose the player that's topdecking, only punish players who are pushing the edge.

Old Gnawbone is a stupid card. This really just needed to be 2 mana less and make a single treasure any time a creature connected. Attack and connect with three creatures? Make 3 treasures.

There are so many cards that if just tweaked slightly would make them playable in today's world. Older cards with fun effects that are just grossly overcosted.

Furthermore, Gishath, Sun's Avatar needs to have "Eminence: During your draw step you may pay 1. If you do, instead of drawing your first card this turn, name land or non-land. Reveal cards from the top of your library until you a reveal a card of the chosen type. Put that card into your hand, and the rest on the bottom of your library in any order."

That way I would never be land screwed again and would always draw into gas lategame

[ConstantMists]

I went with 21-50. But if I could only erase 1 card it would be Cyclonic Rift Worst mistake ever made. If you are playing blue you probably have a counter in hand when you cast it. The ultimate "I win" out of nowhere card.

[duducrash]

Grinding Station . I hate sitting there for a long time just waiting for my opponent to maybe win.

I also dislike repeated fetch effects but mostly because people take to freaking long

[Jemolk]

I went with 21-50. But if I could only erase 1 card it would be Cyclonic Rift Worst mistake ever made. If you are playing blue you probably have a counter in hand when you cast it. The ultimate "I win" out of nowhere card.

Easy fix for Cyclonic Rift -- remove the "you don't control" bit from its text. No longer can it be used as a weapon. Maybe make it 3CMC at base to compensate for the fact that it's now a more versatile Disperse, just to avoid invalidating other cards (because I care about that).

[ISBPathfinder]

I would mostly not buff any cards so much as tweak down those that are egregious (aka most cards that are on the ban list or talked about commonly)

[Cyberium]

0. We should learn from mistakes instead of changing the past.

[RxPhantom]

If I never heard "In response, I'll top" ever again, I'd spontaneously ascend into heaven.

[DirkGently]

0. We should learn from mistakes instead of changing the past.

You're no fun.

If I never heard "In response, I'll top" ever again, I'd spontaneously ascend into heaven.

How can you do something based on something never happening? What if you start to ascend and someone says "hang on, in response to you ascending…"

[EonAon]

Honestly, I only loath Jace the mind sculptor and Snapcaster Mage. I'm not fond of cryptic command and its pick two but it's still not being able to reuse it or any other cheap counter with snapcaster. Yes, it takes six, but control decks can get there decently if/when.

Jace if fixed would be fine, it would be fatesteal +1, Brainstorm -1, Unsummon -2, keep ultimate same. Way less able to manipulate its board state in total domination while having to give up something to use the ult. You want to manipulate the deck well you're going to have to actually pay some loyalty. You want Jace safe well it's going to eat a bit more loyalty so you're not going to ult me any time soon nor brainstorm as much.

Snapcaster can all burn in a fire for all I care. There are too many cheap counters or other bothersome cards that I dont need to see you manipulate it from the yard to counter me/draw and effect over and over and over.....

[Gashnaw]

There are probably about 50 i would nerf, and one ability i would nerf (infect. 15 instead.of 10. 20 os too.much and i find that 10 is too little (i have won games in just a few turns woth my old rafiq.deck. there.is even a game on youtube where i was unimposing a then decimating)

Now that said one card that always jumps to the tip.of my list. I hate it. I hate decks that run it despite how powerful they are. O do everything in my power.to eliminate that player and always will.
Derevi, Empyrial Tactician
No other card has ever generated so.much hate from me. It triggers me. I have PTSD from a deck that ran him as a.commander, so i just haye them out of the game quickly.

[toctheyounger]

I surprised myself with 0. I gave it a little thought but these sort of questions are best going on instinct and gut feeling right off the bat, and I genuinely don't think there's anything gross enough out there that it shouldn't exist at all. I want Kinnan and treasure goblin for bans, but some people enjoy them so whatever I guess. I find increasingly over time its less the cards that bug me, and more the people playing them in an inappropriate setting or in applications beyond the scope of the table.

[Legend]

1. In-house printing.
2. Never sell out to a major corporation.
3. No reserve list.
4. Reword the game to contemporary Mango.
5. Add reminder text to Ring of Ma'rûf: (In tournaments, choose from your sideboard. Otherwise, choose from your collection.)
6. Use white borders for uncards instead of for reprints.
7. Beta border only. No modern or alternate border (other than white border for uncards).
8. No fetches.
9. Much less colored ramp.
10. No color-hosers.

[RxPhantom]

If I never heard "In response, I'll top" ever again, I'd spontaneously ascend into heaven.

How can you do something based on something never happening? What if you start to ascend and someone says "hang on, in response to you ascending…"

My ascension will have split second.

[hyalopterouslemur]

I would mostly not buff any cards so much as tweak down those that are egregious (aka most cards that are on the ban list or talked about commonly)

I'd say tweak MLD and tweak or ban tutors mostly. With Stax cards it's more debatable, but Winter Orb should probably cost more, maybe 4 or 5 because it has an easy way to break it.

Extra turns should all exile themselves for one-shots, while permanents with activated or triggered abilities should probably come with some sort of limiter. (Admittedly, an unbreakable Time Vault sucks.)

[TheAmericanSpirit]

I'd do nothing. The game is what it is and I like it for what it is. There's things I dislike, sure, but deleting them would likely only leave other currently innocuous things to annoy me. Besides, some of magic's mistakes have created great cards. Necropotence ruined the winter of '96, but that's not my problem. The game survived it and now I and everyone else can play Necropotence. That's a net gain if you ask me.

[3drinks]

If we're changing anything, we're gonna go full Thanos and start a new game from the ground up.

I've played this game for over two decades now, and while egregious fast mana, cheap universal tutours, and Golos are obvious classic mistakes that everything is strictly better without, the fact is this game has been what I've known for so long that anything else just wouldn't be the same. Except Golos, because screw that piece of crap easy mode do all the things in all the colours hack ass bullcrap.