April MCC, Finals - The Savior is Humble

[void_nothing]

Banner based on Evra, Halcyon Witness, by Johannes Voss and Wizards of the Coast. Thanks to bravelion83 for the "Core Set Style" MCC Logo

April MCC, Finals - The Savior is Humble

Welcome to the April MCC! It's Divine Month here at the MCC.

Main Challenge: Design a legendary Cleric creature card with base power and toughness 1/1.
Subchallenge 1: Your card has all five colors in its color identity
Subchallenge 2: Your card does not have the T symbol in its text

DEADLINES

Design deadline: Saturday, May 21st 23:59 EDT

Judging deadline: Monday, May 23rd 23:59 EDT

Clarifications

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None yet.

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.

Judges:
void_nothing
Ink-Treader

Players:
@slimytrout
@Henlock

[slimytrout]

Uxata, Praetors' Herald {w/p}{u/p}{b/p}{r/p}{g/p}
Legendary Creature - Phyrexian Cleric (R)
Uxata, Praetors' Herald enters the battlefield with a +1/+1 counter on it for each color of mana spent to cast it.
2, Remove a +1/+1 counter from Uxata, Praetors' Herald: Search your library for a Phyrexian creature card with mana value less than or equal to Uxata's power and put it onto the battlefield under your control.
Whenever you pay life for the first time each turn, put a +1/+1 counter on Uxata.
1/1

[void_nothing]

@Henlock just checking in...

[Henlock]

Will have it tomorrow. Sorry

[Henlock]

Arius, Tormented Augur w
Legendary Creature - Bird Cleric (r)
Flying, vigilance
Arius, Tormented Augur enters the battlefield with six +1/+1 counters on it if wwwww was spent to cast it.
When Arius enters the battlefield, exile target permanent if wubrg was spent to cast it.
His search for peace is endless, forever haunted by the profecies he is tracing himself.
1/1

[void_nothing]

And that will do it. @Ink-Treader let us now judge.

[Ink-Treader]

Let's get this started... and done.

slimytrout

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Design
(3/3) Appeal - I'd say this is a hit for all three.
(2/3) Elegance - A little wordy. The fact that the activated ability uses Uxata's power as part of the search condition while the cost lowers that power can be a little annoying to keep in mind.

Development
(3/3) Viability - Seems appropriately flashy enough for a 5 color card. Rare is fine, but I suspect Mythic would be more likely. The tribal focus (and general flavor of Phyrexian cards as seen in the last Mirrodin set) helps ensure that casting it with any combination of colors feels fine.
(3/3) Balance - Sure, you could have this for 'free', but 10 life for a 1/1 with a growth condition tied to spending yet more life is likely to end poorly without a plan. There's a selection of things you can grab with even 1 power. Amusingly, the only Praetor this can grab without it's triggered ability (or other sources) growing it more are both Urabrask's. Phyrexian mana is a dangerous mechanic, but I think this handles it very well.

Creativity
(3/3) Uniqueness - First ability is nothing new being Sunburst, though pairing it with life payment to avoid spending colors feels novel. Second ability is a new execution for this kind of effect. The third ability is quite novel though, with only Font of Agonies being anything like it.
(3/3) Flavor - Yeah, this feels like the herald of the Praetor's alright. Not really any room for flavor text, but I think this stands on its own without it.

Polish
(2/3) Quality - Absolutely needs a "Then shuffle" on that activated ability.
(2/2) Main Challenge (*) - Is indeed a legendary cleric with base P/T 1/1
(2/2) Subchallenges - 5 Color identity and no T.

Total: 23/25
*An entry with 0 points here is subject to disqualification.

Henlock

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Design
(1.5/3) Appeal - The mana cost vs. abilities forces me to try and evaluate from a Commander perspective. I think Timmy and Spike will both be annoyed this has to be cast twice before subsequent casts are actually interesting. Then Timmy might find this kind of cool. Johnny might consider ways to try and spend that kind of mana on the initial cast.
(2/3) Elegance - Costing a mere W but requiring an expenditure of 5 mana to do anything with is far from elegant, with Commander being the only notable home for this.

Development
(2/3) Viability - It works in its color, and rare is fine, though uncommon would be alright. In context of Commander, I think Wizards would make it so it had abilities that did something on the second casting at least, similar to the cycle of Commanders with scaling effects based on mana spent.
(1/3) Balance - A 1/1 flying vigilance for W is a fine rate. A 1/1 flying vigilance for 2W, not so much. A 7/7 flying vigilance for WWWWW? Highly efficient P/T to mana value, but also color heavy. A 1/1 flying vigilance that exiles a perm for WUBRG is considerably less exciting. And yeah, you get both worlds with WWWWWUBRG. This doesn't even get to be cute with flicker. I think it does too little, and far too late for the hoops required.

Creativity
(2.5/3) Uniqueness - Some fairly basic effects, but the package is unique.
(3/3) Flavor - The need to recast to get the fun stuff kind of feels in line with what the flavor text suggests. Prophecy and augury usually suggests some sort of library or hand manipulation, but the build up works too.

Polish
(2/3) Quality - For the WUBRG triggered ability, the "if WUBRG was spent to cast it" should come before "exile target permanent" (cards such as Gruul Scrapper and Ogre Savant suggest that syntax). Should be 'prophecies', not 'profecies'
(2/2) Main Challenge (*) - Is a 1/1 legendary Cleric.
(2/2) Subchallenges - 5 color identity and no T

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

Scores

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slimytrout - 23
Henlock - 18

[void_nothing]

slimytrout

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Design
(3/3) Appeal - Txmmy wants their Phyrexian army. Jxnny would like to add counters to this and go crazy. Spike sees a versatile wincon in a tribal deck.
(2.5/3) Elegance - A bit wordy, and there are a lot of options for how to pay the mana cost, but pretty understandable.

Development
(2.5/3) Viability - Rarity looks fine. This doesn't really seem all that much like a five-color card - more like BG, but as a lord for a 5c tribe in EDH it's perfectly understandable.
(3/3) Balance - Looks fine - not that there's any lack of 5CMC Phyrexians to tutor out using the first activation of the (usual) starting maximum number of counters, but the costs are enough that the versatility and potential to spit out a bunch of creatures are justified.

Creativity
(1.5/3) Uniqueness - Five-color Phyrexian mana hasn't been done before, but it's been parallel custom designed many times, of course. Tutor ability is somewhat new, but the ETB ability is a de-keyworded sunburst.
(2.5/3) Flavor - Serves its purpose, but the name is a bit generic/boilerplate.

Polish
(2.5/3) Quality - Missing the "shuffle" at the end of the activated ability.
(2/2) Main Challenge (*) - Done.
(2/2) Subchallenges - And done.

Total: 21.5/25

Henlock

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Design
(2/3) Appeal - Txmmy does like the rewards of spending extra commander tax mana. Jxnny would like to find ways to use these abilities outside of EDH (and to pay WWWWWUBRG for this card). Spike's not into the idea of a commander that really has no impact until dying and recasting multiple times.
(2/3) Elegance - Abilities are comprehensible but two different "enhanced spell" abilities that usually only matter when this is a commander certainly make for a layer of complication.

Development
(2.5/3) Viability - Colors and rarity look fine, but one-format-only relevance dings this a little bit.
(2/3) Balance - This would really only find a home at the helm of a particular EDH deck, and I'm not sure that deck exists - yes, a 7/7 flying and vigilance beater or a creature that exiles the biggest threat both have potential in the format (particularly the former when casting for five mana), but what's the plan until then? Aristocrats using the commander? Goodstuff?

Creativity
(2/3) Uniqueness - The base body is not unique at all, but the enhanced-spell effects provide something new.
(3/3) Flavor - It's a bit abstract, but I like this a lot.

Polish
(2.5/3) Quality - "Prophecies" is misspelled in the flavor text.
(2/2) Main Challenge (*) - Done.
(2/2) Subchallenges - And done.

Total: 20/25

[void_nothing]

23 + 21.5 = 44.5
18 + 20 = 38

Congratulations to our winner for April, @slimytrout!