Magic the Gathering - You Make the Card!

[Grimsage Matt]

K, then will add black to the mix. Why? Life and death spill over.

[Frankelshtein]

Matt, just has a heads up, some of your cards as they stand right now are incredibly overpowered. Especially the Mythic. As an example:

Turn 1:

1. Play Swamp
2. Play Dark Ritual
3. Play Entomb, putting Eternal Incarnate into the graveyard
4. Use leftover mana to cast Dark Ritual from graveyard an arbitrary amount of times.
5. Entomb, say, Tendrils of Agony
6. Win

"So long as this card is in the graveyard" effects are incredibly difficult to balance, and cards that let you play things from graveyards even moreso. Look at Yawgmoth's Will, a card that is universally aknowledged as one of the most powerful in the game. Your cards are significantly better than that. I think you can make the theme work, but it's important that you avoid making cards that break the game.

EDIT: Alright, here's my entry. Any and all feedback is appreciated.

Common:

Spoiler

Conscripted Devil 1R{B/W}
Creature - Devil Soldier (C)

Haste*
As you control another Soldier, Conscripted Devil has First Strike, Vigilance, and loses haste.
At the beginning of your upkeep, Conscripted Devil deals 2 damage to you if you don't control a Demon.

3/3
Though unruly by nature, devils make fine soldiers for those cruel enough to command them.

Uncommon:

Spoiler

Sadistic Gambit XWBR
Instant (U)

Creatures you control get +X/-X and First Strike until end of turn. Each creature you control deals X damage to you.

Directed chaos is still chaos.

Rare:

Spoiler

Skarhold Commander 3WBR
Creature -Demon Soldier (R)

Flying
Skarhold Commander costs {1} less to play for each 1 damage dealt to you this turn.

6/6

"Contemn the weak. Conscript the strong. Conquer all."

Mythic Rare:

Spoiler

Skarrenzul, Flail of the Demon Kings 1WBR
Legendary Tribal Artifact - Demon (MR)

Equipped creature gets +4/+2 and has First Strike and Trample.
Whenever equipped creature deals damage, it deals that much damage to you.
Whenever a creature you control would deal damage to you, it deals that much damage to target opponent instead.

Equip {3}

As cruel as the demons who wield it, the might of Skarhold breaks bodies even as the armies bearing its symbol break nations.

EDIT 2: Fixed mana costs. Thanks, radmelon.
EDIT 3: Minor fixes

[radmelon]

Frankelshtein, your rare card is RGW, which is not a wedge, so I'm assuming that it's meant to be RBW like the rest of your cards. You might want to fix that.

[Duos]

I chose the RUG wedge, since I feel like it has a lot of design space, and I enjoy the flavor the wedge has.

Common:

Spoiler

Wildburst Sage 1URG
Creature-Elemental Wizard C
When Wildburst Sage enters the battlefield, creatures you control get +1/+0 and gain haste until end of turn.
2/4
"Sitting up in a tower reading moldy books is far less appealing than the practical applications magic has to offer."

Uncommon:

Spoiler

Softening Reality 4URG
Enchantment U
At the beginning of your upkeep, Scry 2, then draw a card, then discard a card at random.
Sacrifice Softening Reality: Scry 6, then draw two cards, then discard two cards at random.

Rare:

Spoiler

Calder, Surgelord URG
Legendary creature-Elemental Wizard
1URG: Reveal the top card of your library, then put it into your hand. Creatures you control with converted mana cost X or less get +1/+1 and gain first strike and trample until end of turn, where X is the converted mana cost of the revealed card.
2/3

Mythic Rare:

Spoiler

Primordial Supernova X2URG
Sorcery M
Primordial Supernova has X instances of Cascade.
Everybody needs a new universe every now and then.

[tgva8889]

Originally Posted by AgentPaper

That basically mirrors my thoughts on it. I think Aditi could certainly have won, the main thing holding him back was the sheer complexity of his abilities. Planeswalkers are already the most complex type of card in the game, so going above and beyond and making them even MORE complex just isn't tenable.

I can definitely agree with that. The last ability could probably have just made tokens and done what I wanted it to. Perhaps I will try that, though, and see how broken it is...

Anyways, my entry for this contest is GUB, because no one has done it yet.

Common:

Spoiler

Lifespring Guardian 5GUB
Creature - Elemental Horror C
Delve (You may exile any number of cards from your graveyard as you cast this spell. It costs 1 less to cast for each card exiled this way.)
5/4
The Lifespring fuels ancient and long-dead magic, recurring what was once lost, forbidden, or driven into darkness back into a reality that has long since forgotten how to defend itself.

Uncommon:

Spoiler

Old Tribe Diviner GUB
Creature - Human Shaman U
T: Target player reveals the top three cards of his or her library. Put all noncreature cards revealed this way into that player's graveyard, then put all creature cards revealed this way into his or her hand.
1/3
He discovers what horrors have long ago past into memory.

Rare:

Spoiler

Midnight Prophecy GUB
Sorcery R
Each player puts the top ten cards of his or her library into his or her graveyard. Then, each player chooses a nonland card in his or her graveyard and casts it if able. (Each player must still pay all costs for those spells.)
"The Lifespring speaks. We must only listen."
- Durach, Elder of Old Tribe

Mythic Rare:

Spoiler

Lifespring Hydra XGUB
Creature - Hydra Horror MR
Delve
Lifespring Hydra enters the battlefield with X +1/+1 counters on it.
If Lifespring Hydra would leave play, you may instead exile X cards from your graveyard and put that many +1/+1 counters on Lifespring Hydra, where X is the number of +1/+1 counters on Lifespring Hydra.
0/0
The Lifespring's fiercest guards are its most unyielding.

[Strategos]

Alrighty then, let's give RWU a shot.

Common

Spoiler

Stormcloud Vanguard {W/U}R
Creature – Bird Scout – C
Flying, Haste
The vanguard's role was originally served by young aven who had yet to achieve glory. After the creation of the Soulwell, it is served by those who are eager to get into action.
1/1

Uncommon

Spoiler

Highcloud Lorestealer 2RWU
Creature – Bird Ninja – U
Ninjutsu RWU
Flying, Vigilance
1R: Return Highcloud Lorestealer to its owner's hand, discard a card then draw a card
Hiroto cursed as he awoke at the Soulwell. The mage's lightning had caught him by surprise. Next time the book, and the glory, would be his.
3/2

Rare

Spoiler

Soulwell's Blessings RWU
Enchantment – R
Whenever a creature you control is returned to it's owners hand you may pay 2. If you do choose one – Soulwell's Blessings deals 2 damage to target player; or return target creature to it's owner's hand; or gain 4 life.
Birth is but a myth. Death is but a legend. But glory is eternal. - Soulwell Inscription

Mythic

Spoiler

Chika the Stormblade 2RWU
Legendary Creature – Bird Ninja – MR
Ninjutsu: 1RWU
Flying
When Chika the Stormblade enters the battlefield return target creature to its owner's hand. When Chika the Stormblade leaves the battlefield it deals 3 damage to target creature or player.
2: Return Chika the Stormblade to it's owner's hand.
4/3

[AgentPaper]

URG:

Common

Spoiler

Primordial Beast 4RG
Creature - Elemental Beast C
Cascade (When you cast this spell, exile the top card of your library until you exile a nonland card that costs less. You may cast that card without paying its mana cost. Put the exiled cards on the bottom of your library at random.)
4/4

Uncommon

Spoiler

Vital Muck 1GU
Creature - Elemental Ooze U
Whenever you cast a creature spell, put a +1/+1 counter on a creature you control.
1/3

Rare

Spoiler

Blood of Animar UR
Instant R
The next two spells you cast this turn have cascade.

Mythic Rare

Spoiler

Animar, Omnipotent 1URG
Planeswalker - Animar M
+2: Animar, Omnipotent becomes a X/X elemental creature until end of turn, where X is the number of loyalty counters on it.
-3: Choose one: Animar deals 2 damage to target creature, or draw a card, or target creature gets +2/+2 and trample until end of turn.
-8: You get an emblem with “Spells you control have cascade.”
4

[Ninjaman]

I chose UGB

Spoiler

Flawless Dead - (U/G)B
Creature - Zombie Elf - C
Discard a card: Regenerate flawless dead
Sacrifice flawless dead: Draw a card
The problem with most zombies is that their creators are lazy. If they just spent the time needed, they could create something truly magnificent
2/2

Spoiler

Unsought Knowledge - XGBU
Sorcery - U
Reveal the top x+5 cards of your library, you may play a card among them with a converted mana cost x or less without paying it's mana cost. Put the rest into your graveyard.
The secret to knowledge isn't discovering what everybody is looking for. The secret is to discover something nobody has ever thought of looking for

Spoiler

Rotback Monstocity - XGBU
Creature - Mutant Zombie Giant - R
Trample
Rotback Monstocity enters the battlefield with x +1/+1 counters on it.
Remove a +1/+1 counter from Rotback Monstocity: regenerate Rotback Monstocity
Delve (You may exile any number of cards from your graveyard as you cast this spell. It costs 1 less to cast for each card exiled this way.)
0/0

Spoiler

Momir, the undying - 2GBU
Planeswalker - Momir - M
+1: Search your library for a card and put that card into your graveyard.
-1: Search your library for three cards with different names, your opponent chooses one, put that card into your hand and the rest into your graveyard.
-7: You get an emblem with "You may cast spells from your graveyard" and "If a spell or permanent would be put into your graveyard from the battlefield or the stack, exile it instead"
4

[DMofDarkness]

Sorry for the late judging.

Binks:

Spoiler

I like the ideas, but it may be a bit too clunky. To get the synergizing abilities to work in the limited format would be a bit clunky, and if they're all keyed on different abilities, making a coherent deck would be difficult. Death Arrow Volley might be a bit too strong, as well; you sacrifice a creature to destroy all attacking creatures? It's a potent one-sided effect, and punishes alpha strikes, leading to some painful situations. Egrim might be a bit too strong, as well, but it is a creature with restrictive color costs, so it might be okay. It still makes me leery.

The only other thing I found odd was the typing on the Battle Commander. Demons are Black, and Devils are red; it's always been like that. Why change it?

All in all, solid cards and interesting ideas, but a few balance issues and the implementation would probably be a bit clunky.

Grimsage Matt:

Spoiler

This ability terrifies me. Not because of what it does (which the wording obfuscated), but what having it as a keyworded ability implies. Recursion is incredibly powerful. Having a large section of a set built around it? That portion is most likely going to be the strongest one around. With regards to the cards you made, they make Urza's block look as powerful and balanced as Homelands. The common is just odd, as returning things from Exile to Graveyards is not something done lightly, and Reincarnate probably shouldn't be triggering too often. Everything else is broken out of the wazoo. With the uncommon: I start milling myself, say with Dredge, and get it into the graveyard. I can now play all my lands from there for free. With a Zuran Orb, that makes infinite mana and life. Or, it can just be an impossible to remove engine that makes it so that none of my creatures stay dead. The rare land makes Tolarian Academy look tame by comparison (protip: It's easy to get a lot of cards in the graveyard fast), and the Mythic is a Yawmoth's Will that's always on, doesn't exile stuff, and makes infinite mana with a Dark Rit in the graveyard, as well as whatever was in there to start with. I mean, come on: Turn 1: Swamp, Dark Ritual, Entomb this guy, use the remaining mana to Dark Ritual however many times you want, Entomb anything you want, win with your entombed Tendrils of Agony.

To reiterate: The balance level makes Urza's block look as tame as Homelands by comparison.

Frankelshtein:

Spoiler

Conscripted Devil seems a bit too powerful for common. Look at Dreg Mangler, or Cloistered Youth in comparison. It's cool, but the balance feels wonky; without a Demon, it's a big a threat to you as it is to your opponent, and perhaps moreso. Sadistic Gambit likewise; if you get significant benefit out of this, to make it worth the mana cost, it's liable to do a ton of damage to you. Skarhold Commander seems fine, but Skarrenzul? Dear mother of god, not balanced. Compare it to Mage Slayer. This is about the same, but costs C more, and gives +4/+2, Trample, First Strike, and ancilliary damage boosts, and it also works on defense.

Overall, I see where the mechanics are coming from, but damage to yourself is a drawback, and not a particularly interesting or fun one, which Wizards likes to avoid. If you use these cards too much, your opponent won't have to do much to kill you at all, and it doesn't really lead to fun scenarios...

Duos:

Spoiler

Your common and uncommon cards don't really fit in with the NWO. Granting Haste is usually an Uncommon-rarity ability (see also, Flame-Kin Zealot), though it seems pretty well balanced for an uncommon. The Uncommon card is just too complex, though. You scry, draw, discard at random, it costs 7, and while it conveys what you want it to, it costs too much (see also, Mirri's Guile), and is way too complex to be doing every upkeep. The Surgelord is interesting with Scrying, as you can set up overruns, or you can just use it at the end of an opponent's turn with counter mana, and is generally a well-balanced card. The Supernova seems interesting; it's expensive, but it functions as a combination of Epic Experiment and Genesis Wave that would be interesting.

Overall, it's a bit too complicated/wordy, but it's well balanced and interesting.

tgva8889:

Spoiler

I like this set of cards. Lifespring Guardian might be a bit too big/expensive for a common, but it's more or less balanced. Old-Tribe Diviner seems like a really powerful engine, though. Compare it to Archivist: It costs less, has a higher toughness, adds to the graveyard as well, and can easily get more cards. Probably too powerful for an uncommon, but I like the thought behind it. The rare is interesting and probably balanced, and the mythic is awesome. It's impractical to get more than a few uses out of it, unless you set it at one, but it's a cool card that's difficult to get rid of, and all in all a great mythic.

Overall: There may be a few balance issues, but the cards are interesting and for the most part well balanced.

Strategos:

Spoiler

Interesting. Ninjutsu certainly seems to work here, mechanics wise, and I like how you go about it. The Vanguard is your standard Enabler, Lorestealer is your standard Ninjutsu target with an interesting ability (though, it may be a bit too wordy for an uncommon, and Vigilance is odd when Ninjutsu puts the creature on the battlefield tapped), Soulwell's Blessing is your standard interesting support card, and Chika is your mythic that takes over the game by itself. It may have to be rebalanced- I mean, you're taking away blockers when Ninjutsu activates, killing them when Chika returns, and all in all making a positive feedback loop making it hard to stop her. She's also able to dodge most removal, making her a bit too strong. Nevertheless, it's a cool idea for the wedge, and well-executed. My only complaint is that it doesn't do enough cool, unique stuff; it's red, white, and blue mechanics stapled together (albeit very well) that don't really blend to create something unique to the Wedge. Still solid, though, and WUR is hard to design for.

AgentPaper:

Spoiler

I like this minimalistic approach. The result is clear and straightforward, while still being interesting; it's about causing cascade chains, and then using cards that synergize with casting the spells. My only complaint is Animar; I don't see how he really works with the rest of the wedge. He doesn't work with Cascade, because of the Legend rule, his first ability is confusing to new players (damage is still dealt to him if he attacks, the added counters are included for Animar's power and toughness, and so on; these things are going to be FAQ for judges), the second ability is "Do generic Green, Red, or Blue thing", and the ultimate is your standard overwhelming advantage engine. I could really get behind the wedge's design, except for Animar being the mythic. The rest of the design is rock-solid.

Ninjaman:

Spoiler

The card designs just don't seem to flow very well together. Looking at it from a distance, I see what you're trying to do with this; Flawless Dead dumps cards in the graveyard for advantage, Unsought Knowledge is something to fill your bin while still providing something you need and flexibility, and Rotback Monstrosity is your generic huge creature for cheap to finish someone off. And randomly a cool planeswalker. The problem is in the way these are implemented, though. Unsought Knowledge is going to act like a milling Rampant Growth most of the time, and occasionally get a blocker if you desperately need one, the Monstrosity's Delve and build-in Evasion and Protection may make it too big, too fast, and too powerful, and Flawless Dead seems like a random discard outlet that sacrifices itself and can be a good blocker. The problem is that they feel like BUG cards that happen to work together, rather than cards made to outline the mechanics and feel of a Wedge.

As for Momir... it feeds Delve (since you haven't shown any reanimator-style cards yet, I assume they're not really a big part of the Wedge), doesn't protect itself, and can act as a really powerful card advantage engine. It's a generic chase planeswalker that doesn't defend itself. I am more or less ambivalent about it.

The Runners up and Winner:

Spoiler

3rd Place: Strategos. The cards work well mechanically, but they don't really have a unique mechanic that fits well into the colors that screams "WUR".
2nd Place:

Spoiler

Agent Paper. The mechanics and focus were clear, the cards were powerful and interesting, and it had the best Common/Uncommon/Rare design of the lot. I feel that you dropped the ball on Animar, though, because of the odd rules interactions, the generic feel of it (to me, at least), and the fact that it doesn't work particularly well with the rest of the Wedge.
The Winner:

Spoiler

tgva8889. The designs were solid, synergized well, and created a good feel for the plane. There are a couple of balance issues, but the cards were interesting, weren't too complex, and in general worked rather well. Congradulations!

[AgentPaper]

Looking back, I do agree that I probably could have done better with Animar. Or rather, simply that I shouldn't have done a planeswalker to begin with. Animar doesn't fit with the theme because that's not what planeswalkers are supposed to do.

I think he's a good design for a planeswalker, but not a good fit for the challenge.

Anyways, looking forwards to the next one. I'd suggest that we lay off on the many-card challenges for a little while as well, but of course it's ultimately up to the judges.

[Frankelshtein]

Congratulations tgva!

Looking back, there are definitely some things I could have done better. Especially with Skarrenzul. I made a very silly mistake there. I intended the card to have "Whenever equipped creature deals damage to an opponent", but for whatever reason that last bit didn't make it on there. I think it'd still be powerful, but no more so than comparable mythic equipment. Mistakes happen, I guess.

As far as the self-inflicted damage goes, I tried to make it more of a risk/reward mechanic, with the player dropping a bit lower in an effort to get the 6/6 flyer out on turn 3 or 4, or losing a chunk of life and a small creature or two to pull off the perfect combat trick. The mechanic didn't strike me as unfun at the time, and I did my best to balance the cards accordingly. I'll just have to be better at recognizing unfun mechanics next time, I guess.

I must respectfully disagree with your assessment of Conscripted Devil, though. While I concede that it is a bit too complex for a common, I feel that its power level is in a good place. Without a Demon or Soldier on the field, it's strictly worse than Dreg Mangler. With a Soldier it becomes a very efficient creature, *but that 2 damage a turn will still add up. With only a Demon in play, it becomes a Dreg Mangler without scavenge that dealt you 2 damage if you played it on turn 3. If you were to play it on turns 4 or 5 (assuming turn 3 as the earliest turn one could reliably play a Demon), then it's a 3/3 Haste at a point in the game when hasty 3/3s *are less relevant. Only with both a Demon and a Soldier does it become a decent creature.

Writing this, I realize that this card shouldn't be common for a variety of reasons. Point taken.

Anyhow, good entries, everyone. I look forward to next week.

[tgva8889]

The biggest problem with Animar that immediately jumped out to me is that his +2 is, frankly, terrible. Planeswalkers as creatures is a poor way to build up their loyalty, as just getting into combat without Gideon's ability costs you loyalty counters.

I knew there was a reason I felt Old Tribe Diviner was perfect at CMC4, but I couldn't remember what it was...I guess Archivist would explain it. Also, clearly the answer for me is to just make Hydras, I seem to win contests when I do it.

My contest for this week is going to be somewhat abstract, but I think it'll be a good break after some very difficult rounds. In celebration of happy tidings in my life: Make a card that begins something. Interpret this how you will; however, it should be pretty clear exactly what your card is "beginning" or how it relates to the theme.

[Duos]

Return From Extinction 3WGG
Enchantment-M
At the beginning of your upkeep, put a genesis counter on [CARDNAME].
Sacrifice [CARDNAME]: Shuffle your graveyard into your library, then search your library for X creatures with converted mana cost X or less and put them onto the battlefield, then shuffle your library. Activate this ability only if you control no creatures and only if a creature you controlled died this turn.

[Binks]

Beginning of the End 5BBBBB
Enchantment - M
Whenever a creature dies put an End counter on ~
At the beginning of your upkeep all other players lose life equal to the number of End Counters on ~. You gain life equal to the total amount lost.

[Istari]

Mutually Assured Destruction - 2RR
Enchantment
At the beginning of your upkeep place a time counter on this card and deal damage to each player equal to the number of time counters on this card.
"A strange game. The only winning move is not to play."

Had a hard time deciding what card to choose, so
Bonus Card

Spoiler

Age of Peace - 3WWW
Enchantment - M
Creatures can not deal damage
"They shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning-hooks: nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more."

[HypoSoc]

Future's Dawning 2U
Enchantment
If ~ is in your opening hand, you may begin the game with it on the battlefield.

Hideaway (When this permanent enters the battlefield, look at the top four cards of your library, exile one face down, then put the rest on the bottom of your library.)

At the beginning of you upkeep, but a time counter on ~.

Sacrifice ~ : You may play the exiled card without paying its mana cost if ~ has five of more time counters on it.

Tomorrow begins today.

[Frankelshtein]

The Fail-Safe *{6}
Legendary Artifact (MR)

{6}: Put a charge counter on The Fail-Safe.

At the beginning of your upkeep, double the number of charge counters on The Fail-Safe. Then put X 0/1 Myr creature tokens into play, where X is the number of charge counters on The Fail-Safe.

As long as The Fail-Safe has 15 or more charge counters on it, Myr you control are indestructible.

As long as The Fail-Safe has 255 *or more charge counters on it, Myr you control get +1/+1 for each Myr you control.

With a small beep, the machine whirred to life. Thus began the downfall of New Phyrexia.

[Strategos]

Merchant Apprentice 1UU
Creature - Human Rogue - MR
Whenever you draw a card outside of your draw phase, put a profit counter on Apprentice Merchant. During your upkeep if Merchant Apprentice has five or more profit counters on it, remove all profit counters from it and transform it.
Casimir smiled and waved goodbye to the customer. His very first sale had earned him two whole gold pieces. He wondered if he'd ever see such wealth again...
0/1
//////////////////////////
Merchant Empire
Enchantment - MR
(Merchant Empire is Blue)
Whenever you would draw a card outside of your draw phase, draw twice that many cards instead.
Casimir smiled and waved goodbye to the customer. This latest sale had earned him two chests of gold. A meager sum to be sure but business is business.

[DMofDarkness]

Mysterious Egg G
Enchantment - R
Tap an untapped creature you control with power greater than the number of Evolution counters on Mysterious Egg: Put an Evolution counter on Mysterious Egg.
Sacrifice Mysterious Egg: Search your library for a creature card with a converted mana cost equal to the number of Evolution counters on Mysterious Egg and put it onto the battlefield. Shuffle your library.
With so many parents, who knows what will come out of there?

[AgentPaper]

Kabira Seeker WW
Creature - Human Soldier R
Whenever Kabira Seeker deals damage, put a level counter on it. 2/2
Level 1-3 Vigilance 3/3
Level 4+ Vigilance, double strike 4/4

[Lady Tialait]

Paradox Schism UUXX
Instant - MR

Target player takes X upkeeps at the beginning of his or her next turn.

"Oh no! Oh no! Oh no!" - Karn Research Intern

[tgva8889]

Contest closed! However, due to it being my finals week, grades may be a bit late. I will try for tomorrow, but I give no promises.

[tgva8889]

Duos:

Spoiler

Originally Posted by Duos

Return From Extinction 3WGG
Enchantment-M
At the beginning of your upkeep, put a genesis counter on [CARDNAME].
Sacrifice [CARDNAME]: Shuffle your graveyard into your library, then search your library for X creatures with converted mana cost X or less and put them onto the battlefield, then shuffle your library. Activate this ability only if you control no creatures and only if a creature you controlled died this turn.

For some reason, this card being white doesn't quite make sense to me. Green definitely fits for me, but I wasn't sure where, flavorwise or mechanically, the white was coming from since Green can really do a lot of what this does by itself and I don't really feel White does any of those things. With a different flavor, it could easily be Green/Black, but I think the card wants to be mono-Green.

In any case, the design is pretty interesting. It's the kind of card that I'd be excited to try in Commander but that probably wouldn't end up going anywhere. I think it can actually be cheaper. Though I think the most interesting way to make this card is to remove "or less" from the mana cost. That way, you find 5 creatures with converted mana cost 5. It requires a lot more work for the Johnnies to make good, and since that's who this card is for, I think it'd be a good change. As it is, I think it tickles Johnny but attempts to please Spike when a 6-mana do-nothing enchantment probably won't.

Binks:

Spoiler

Originally Posted by Binks

Beginning of the End 5BBBBB
Enchantment - M
Whenever a creature dies put an End counter on ~
At the beginning of your upkeep all other players lose life equal to the number of End Counters on ~. You gain life equal to the total amount lost.

Holy black mana, Batman! I think this card costs too much for a do-nothing enchantment. I could see it costing 3BBBBB (if you want it to be super-black) and not being unfair. While it's more powerful in multiplayer by a lot, your opponents will team up on you when you play this if they don't have a way to destroy it outright. It reminds me a great deal of Vicious Shadows, except it seems quite a lot worse.

Overall, I think you could have made this way more exciting than it is.

Istari:

Spoiler

Originally Posted by Istari

Mutually Assured Destruction - 2RR
Enchantment
At the beginning of your upkeep place a time counter on this card and deal damage to each player equal to the number of time counters on this card.
"A strange game. The only winning move is not to play."

I'm honestly not sure how Mutually Assured Destruction has anything to do with beginning anything; it's actually entirely about preventing something from happening.

In any case, this card actually functions opposite the theory of Mutually Assured Destruction. I imagine that kind of card acting very similar to Standstill, where when any player acts, he suffers some kind of great consequence. This card is less Mutually Assured Destruction the theory and more "everyone dies." I think if you were trying to reference the theory (and you clearly were by the flavor text you included), I think you could have done something much better. One of the key elements of Mutually Assured Destruction was that, in actuality, no one got destroyed.

HypoSoc:

Spoiler

Originally Posted by HypoSoc

Future's Dawning 2U
Enchantment
If ~ is in your opening hand, you may begin the game with it on the battlefield.

Hideaway (When this permanent enters the battlefield, look at the top four cards of your library, exile one face down, then put the rest on the bottom of your library.)

At the beginning of you upkeep, but a time counter on ~.

Sacrifice ~ : You may play the exiled card without paying its mana cost if ~ has five of more time counters on it.

Tomorrow begins today.

First off, your card doesn't fit the general structure. Check the first post of the thread for that structure and please use it in the future. I won't judge you down for it since I can actually read your submission.

Unfortunately, I'm pretty sure the first and second ability don't work with each other. Because you start the game with it in play, Future's Dawning will never actually trigger Hideaway because technically, it never entered the battlefield, it was just there before the game started. You'd have to try a wording that mixes the Leylines with the Lieges to get this to work.

Assuming the card worked the way you intended, it's pretty interesting. It basically suspends a card in the top 4 cards of your library for 5+ turns, which is interesting. It also amuses me that you can just sacrifice Future's Dawning for no effect if you want. I'm pretty sure that it could make for a lot of very broken situations and is a pretty easy way to cheat mana costs. Not knowing what's coming makes for a different kind of feeling than Suspend, though.

Overall, interesting submission.

Frankelstein:

Spoiler

Originally Posted by Frankelshtein

The Fail-Safe *{6}
Legendary Artifact (MR)

{6}: Put a charge counter on The Fail-Safe.

At the beginning of your upkeep, double the number of charge counters on The Fail-Safe. Then put X 0/1 Myr creature tokens into play, where X is the number of charge counters on The Fail-Safe.

As long as The Fail-Safe has 15 or more charge counters on it, Myr you control are indestructible.

As long as The Fail-Safe has 255 *or more charge counters on it, Myr you control get +1/+1 for each Myr you control.

With a small beep, the machine whirred to life. Thus began the downfall of New Phyrexia.

I'm not really sure how this fits into the theme of beginning. I also don't understand the flavor of this being a failsafe in any sense.

Making 0/1 Myr tokens is confusing to me because Myr have pretty much always been 1/1 tokens. Your Myr are also not artifacts. Not that you can't create tokens that don't match the original, but most tokens have similar qualities to their past designs so it's helpful to maintain those whenever possible. If you wanted different tokens, there are 0/1 options available (Pests).

Doubling counters and then having odd numbers for your goals is a little weird. Also, doubling counters can get out of hand quickly, especially when you are also making a ton of random creatures. It isn't that hard to make creature tokens relevant, even ones with no power. It is especially easy to do so when they have a relevant creature type.

I worry that this card is trying to do too many things. The interesting part of your design is the way you tried to double the counters and make that effective. Then you started adding on things like a 255 counter threshold. The abilities that activate at certain counter limits aren't interesting. Your 15 counter limit ability is just so much better than your 255 counter one, and even then the amount of work you are putting in makes it seem a little minimal. These effects are so much less than the really interesting one (the doubling counters and swarming the field with tokens) that they take away from the impact of your card.

Overall, I feel you were trying to design a Johnny card, but you took away from the wow factor by adding on so many weird abilities with some very strange number choices.

Strategos:

Spoiler

Originally Posted by Strategos

Merchant Apprentice 1UU
Creature - Human Rogue - MR
Whenever you draw a card outside of your draw phase, put a profit counter on Apprentice Merchant. During your upkeep if Merchant Apprentice has five or more profit counters on it, remove all profit counters from it and transform it.
Casimir smiled and waved goodbye to the customer. His very first sale had earned him two whole gold pieces. He wondered if he'd ever see such wealth again...
0/1
//////////////////////////
Merchant Empire
Enchantment - MR
(Merchant Empire is Blue)
Whenever you would draw a card outside of your draw phase, draw twice that many cards instead.
Casimir smiled and waved goodbye to the customer. This latest sale had earned him two chests of gold. A meager sum to be sure but business is business.

This card is interesting. You more or less have a small creature with no abilities that turns into Thought Reflection, which is pretty cool. I don't know how hard this would be to flip or how much of a benefit the ability actually is, but I could see it being pretty interesting.

Not too much to say about this card. It's very clear design that has some exciting and interesting elements to it that attracts the players it's designed for.

DMofDarkness:

Spoiler

Originally Posted by DMofDarkness

Mysterious Egg G
Enchantment - R
Tap an untapped creature you control with power greater than the number of Evolution counters on Mysterious Egg: Put an Evolution counter on Mysterious Egg.
Sacrifice Mysterious Egg: Search your library for a creature card with a converted mana cost equal to the number of Evolution counters on Mysterious Egg.
With so many parents, who knows what will come out of there?

This card unfortunately doesn't really do anything. So I sacrifice Mysterious Egg, search my deck for a creature, and then do nothing with it. And also don't shuffle my deck. I think you forgot some important lines there.

Under the assumption that you meant to have this card put the creature you search for onto the battlefield and then shuffle your library, the card is interesting. I imagine that can be easily broken with some ridiculous low-drops like Rofellos. It does hit the people you want to hit when you design it, however, and it's pretty interesting. I definitely appreciate the restriction used to put counters on it.

AgentPaper:

Spoiler

Originally Posted by AgentPaper

Kabira Seeker WW
Creature - Human Soldier R
Whenever Kabira Seeker deals damage, put a level counter on it. 2/2
Level 1-3 Vigilance 3/3
Level 4+ Vigilance, double strike 4/4

I'm really not sure how this card fits with the theme of beginning.

The largest form is impressive, but unlike other Level creatures where they get there faster the later in the game you draw them, this one will always take 3 or 4 turns to get there no matter what. Late in the game, it can still as weak as any 2/2 for WW. What I appreciated about Level Up was the different value you got out of playing the creatures at different times in the game. A late-game leveler could be a 6/6 whereas early on it could protect you as a 0/6 body. Early on a leveler could be a 2/3 flier while later it was a Serra Angel. These kinds of cards are more interesting to me and a more interesting use of the level mechanic.

This card a very basic card. I like that, but it doesn't impress me. Unfortunately creatures nowadays do more interesting things than this, even when they are just designed to beat people up. The last form is really the selling point, but the getting there, while different than other Level Up cards in the past, ends up falling flatter than those in my opinion.

Lady Tialait:

Spoiler

Originally Posted by Lady Tialait

Paradox Schism UUXX
Instant - MR

Target player takes X upkeeps at the beginning of his or her next turn.

"Oh no! Oh no! Oh no!" - Karn Research Intern

Did you mean for this to be X or X plus 1? As is it's a UU Instant that makes target player skip his or her next upkeep, which is pretty interesting in and of itself. But after that it only starts being useful at 4UU, at which point you really should be doing something else if you want to get more Upkeeps or give someone more Upkeeps.

I think you were very conservative on this card and it could have been something like X1UU or even X2U.

Also you formatted the mana cost incorrectly, colorless values go before colored mana symbols. Not a judge down, just a small notice.

Winner:

Spoiler

Strategos, for his card Merchant Apprentice//Merchant Empire. Overall I felt this design both hit on the theme in a clear way and brought something interesting to the design table that excited me and immediately made me want to see what it could do.

[Duos]

Gratz to the winner! Good submission all around this time. Very tight competition.

TGVA:

Spoiler

I was mostly thinking about cards like Faith's Reward, Second Sunrise, and Marshal's Anthem when I made the card white, since white cares about the 'now-ness' of things dying, and does, on occasion, go looking through your library for dudes, a la Ranger of Eos and the Rebels from Masques.

[tgva8889]

Duos:

Spoiler

Fair, although you'll note that Green does a lot of searching itself (quite a bit more than White) and also has death triggers and graveyard-to-deck conversion. You aren't bringing back the creature that died necessarily, so it's a different kind of thing than Faith's Reward. I can why you might have gone in that direction but Green does everything you want to do in pretty recent cards and I didn't really see the flavor of White being enough to warrant its inclusion.

[Frankelshtein]

Congratulations to the winner! I really like the winning entry this week. Interesting mechanics and superb flavor. A well deserved victory, to be sure.

Spoiler

Thanks for the feedback, tgva.

With the "fail-safe" portion, I was trying to make it out to be some sort of machine built into Mirrodin that, when it detected corruption etc., would churn out Myr until the problem is solved. I had hoped to get the "beginning" theme across as kind of a "machine slowly begins the process of spewing out hordes of Myr.", but evidently I could have done a better job with that. Also, I now realize that calling it a "fail-safe" is probably a bit of a stretch.

As for the numbers, I made them so that if the player spent the mana to create an additional charge counter each turn, the other effects would activate earlier. Which was a terrible idea in retrospect, seeing as how the additional counter would become negligible after only a few turns. The Myr were 0/1 because I wanted things to slowly escalate from "Oh, these things are just chump blockers" to "Well now they're indestructible. This could be a problem." and end up with "HUNDREDS OF GIANT MYR HOLY-". But yeah, I definitely think I could have done a better job streamlining the abilities. And forgetting to make the Myr Artifacts is just icing on the Cake of Shame. But yeah, a lot of stuff I need to work on.

[Strategos]

Aha! I knew there was already an enchantment that let you double your draws, and when searching Gatherer didn't get any results I thought I must have been making it up. I was just using the wrong search terms.

Anyway, for this week's challenge:

Design a Card with the Snow supertype and/or that interacts with cards from the Snow supertype.

[Grimsage Matt]

I got a idea Now, just need to find a picture.....

Robo Santa 3SS
Snow Legendary Artifact Creature- Golem- MR

S- Put a X-Mass token on Robo Santa.
Remove 3 X-Mass Tokens- Choose a Creature other then Robo Santa. Destroy X number of permanants, where X is the chossen creatures power.
Remove 5 X-Mass Tokens- Chosse a Creature other then Robo Santa. Target player must place X number of cards from the field, hand or top of their liabrary into their graveyard. X is the Chossen creatures Power.
Remove 10 X-Mass Counters- Flip Robo Santa
"It's looking like a Red X-Mass."
5/5
////////////////////
Santa 3{W/S}{W/S}
Legendary Snow Creature- Human Wizard- MR

S- Put a X-Mass Token on Santa
Remove 3 X-Mass Tokens- Chosse a creature other then Santa. Target player either draws X cards, or gains 2X life. X is equal to the creatures Toughness.
Remove 5 X-Mass Tokens- Chose a Creature other then Santa. You may either place up to a total of X +1/+1 tokens among creatures you control, or remove up to X -1/-1 Tokens among the creatures you control. X is equal to the chosen creatures Toughness.
Remove 10 X-Mass Tokens- Flip Santa.
"A merry old Soul, he gives joy to the boys and girls."
4/6


And there is my Robo Santa/Santa Snow creature parody. If you want me to take it down and submit something else, I understand.

[AgentPaper]

Winter Globe 3
Artifact C
T: Add 1 to your mana pool.
T: Add one mana of any color to your mana pool. Activate this ability only if you control four or more snow permanents.

[Lady Tialait]

Spoiler

See what I get for being rushed when writing a card? I re-read the card, and was upset with myself on how I wrote it. I do think X1UU would be the proper price for that effect...bah, I need to up my game for this one!

Winter Hart 1G
Snow Creature- Elk - C

G, Sacrifice Winter Hart: Search your library for a snow land, put it in your hand. Shuffle your library.
S, Sacrifice Winter Hart: Search your library for a basic land, put into the battlefield tapped. Shuffle your library.

2/2