"The new Green planeswalker is a hunter with expert knowledge of beasts. In spite of this, she shares deep bond with the animals and has a lot of respect for them. But this time with a bow instead of an axe!"
Come on! That's such a flat character, the color has so much unexplored territory. Do all blue walkers live on islands and have water powers? And she's a human (elf?) as well, once again failing to fill in the G "weird" race that every other color has. Looks like green is the new red.
I also don't like the card itself, flavor-cohesion-wise, seems all over the place. First ability kinda works for "tracking", though it reads extremely Kiora-like and muddles the identity. Second is... shooting arrows, but mostly naturalizing (can't kill an artifact with a bow), which usually implies Nature's destructive anger at artificial things or outsiders: so she is The Protector of the Forest, its avatar, already Nissa's job? Ult buffs your team, a stampede effect but more sophisticated, yet beast army is clearly mono-G Garruk's gimmick. And abilities barely work with each other in-game: I guess weak synergy between +1 and ult, "card advantage synergyzes with anthems", duh.
Power level is fine, I guess, but the card's very reactive. Climb to ult is slow and it's not an insta-win considering throwing +1'd creatures in front of attackers as the only way of protecting Vivien probably leaves you with not enough of a force to swing for lethal - although manadorks help, as well as vigilance+indestructible combo. Card selection/advantage her + provides is pretty good but not insane, so without valid targets for - she can scarcely compete with opposing engines. Sideboardwalkers feel kinda bad from a design standpoint, to be honest.
Bliss of Being1WG Enchantment{R}
Whenever mana enters your mana pool, it doesn't empty as steps and phases end until you lose life.
Whenever a creature enters the battlefield under your control, it gains Vigilance and Trample until a creature dies. Talk of misery and you'll expedite it. The yearlings still have time. Let them revel in innocence.
Crimson SovereignBB Creature - Demon Soldier{R}
Crimson Sovereign gets +X/+X, where X is the amount of life you've lost this turn.
For the rest of the game, if you would be dealt damage, instead you get that many wound counters. At the beginning of your upkeep, you lose life equal to the amount of wound counters on you. (This effect continues even after this creature leaves the battlefield)
1/1
Mergatroid_Jones: More fragile Show and Tell is still as dangerous as Show and Tell. I enjoy the design, but it could only be printed in a Commander/Conspiracy set and even that is argueable. Nevertheless, among cards that cheat stuff into play, this one seems to be the fairest.
Flatline: Jammer kills Infect decks but it's too direct in its effect, in my opinion. Elegant hate cards are not that obvious at who they screw over. Adjucator is much nicer in that respect.
Phyrexian_Editor: Nice, tapping equipment! As a plus, this doesn't seem too degenerate, although I'm sure there's some clunky 4-cards combo in there.
JaceTheBodySculptor: It's rare that a card is too top-down; flavor is captured perfectly but I can't imagine why would anybody play this. At least it's funny.
Winner: Flatline with Grim Adjucator
HM: M_Jones, Phyrexian_Editor
Challenge: An Angel, Sphinx, Demon, Dragon, or Hydra with a CMC of 2 or less that doesn't have x in its mana cost.
Image of Divinity1W Creature - Human{R}
Other creatures that have the same base power and toughness as Image of Divinity's get +2/+2.
When Image of Divinity dies, target creature gains its abilities and name.
0/2 Resembling perfection is bliss. Being perfection is torture.
IIW: features of the modern world translated into fantasy (i.e., guns -> harpoon cannons) // unusual hate cards
SyzygyUUU Instant{M}
Cast Syzygy only if there is a spell with converted mana cost 1, 2 and 3 on the stack.
Return each spell you control to its owner's hand. You take an extra turn after this one. End the turn. The world, obstreperously imprecise and illogical, rejects the description of scholarly laws - but once in a millennium, when it gives in, the weilders of the rigid abstract may finally exercise their geometric power.
I know using the word "stack" on the card is taboo, but this is mythic and pretty grokable.
Parade of the PlanetsXU Instant{M}
Cast Parade of the Planets only if for each number between 1 and X, you've cast a spell with that converted mana cost this turn. X can't be zero.
Repeat the following process X times. Scry X, then draw X cards, then you may cast a spell with converted mana cost X or less from your hand without paying its mana cost.
Battlemage's Banner1 Artifact{R}
Whenever a creature is tapped as part of paying a cost, its controller may activate any of its other activated abilities. They cost T less to activate. (Tapping is a cost of attacking) "They claimed that they could deal with anything I threw at them - so I just threw everything."
- Erchius, Frontline Sorcerer
Prismatic Dragonfly2G Creature - Insect{U}
Flying
Sacrifice Prismatic Dragonfly, T: Creatures you control get +X/+X until the end of turn, where X is the number of different colors of mana in your mana pool.
0/1
Polychromatic Firefly1R Creature - Insect{U}
Flying
Sacrifice Polychromatic Firefly, T: Add X R to your mana pool, where X is the number of different colors of mana in your mana pool.
0/1
Kaleidoscopic ButterflyW Creature - Insect{U}
Flying
Sacrifice Kaleidoscopic Butterfly , T: Gain two times X life, where X is the number of different colors of mana in your mana pool.
0/1
Helixial UplifterWRG Creature - Human Mutant Druid{R} T: Choose one -
Target creature loses Reach. If it does, it gains Flying.
Target creature loses First Strike. If it does, it gains Double Strike.
Target creature loses Trample. If it does, it gains "You may have this creature assign any amount of its combat damage as though it weren't blocked".
3/3
Same design space but completely unprintable:
Radiation Field1UG Enchantment{R}
At the beginning of your upkeep, choose First Strike, Vigilance, Lifelink, Trample, Hexproof, Haste, Deathtouch, Double Strike, Menace, Flying, Prowess or Reach, then target creature loses it. If it does, it gains two abilities among them that it neither has gained or lost before.
LeatherworksG Enchantment{U}
Whenever a Beast dies, you may tap an untapped creature you control. If you do, create an artifact token named Gold with "Sacrifice Gold: Add one mana of any color to your mana pool".
Ancestral Alchemy2U Enchantment{R} 2, Discard a card: If you discarded an artifact card, search your library for an enchantment card with the same converted mana cost, reveal it and put it in your hand, then shuffle your library. If you discarded an enchantment, search for an instant or sorcery; if you discarded an instant or sorcery, search for a creature; if you discarded a creature, search for an artifact.
Judge only the first card, the rest are just finishing a cycle.
Mile-Range Killshot2UB Creature - Elf Archer{R} 1: Target opponent reveals a non-revealed card from his or her at random and plays with it revealed hand until the end of turn. T: Target opponent discard target revealed creature card from his or her hand if its toughness is equal or lower than Mile-Range Killshot's power.
3/1 "The humans are loud, but I wish they were louder - you can't hear the screams from so far away."
- Ashera, Drow Sniper
Challenge-Seeking Cavalier2WG Creature - Human Knight{R}
Vigilance 1: Target opponent reveals a non-revealed card from his or her hand at random and plays with it revealed until the end of turn. T: Challenge-Seeking Cavalier gets +X/+X until the end of turn, where X is the toughness of a revealed creature card in target opponent's hand.
2/2
Battle-Dancer Adept2UR Creature - Dwarf Monk{R}
Haste 1: Target opponent reveals a non-revealed card from his or her hand at random and plays with it revealed until the end of turn. UR: Swap a creature that is blocking or being blocked by Battle-Dancer Adept with a revealed creature card in its owner's hand.
3/4 "They listen to my orders better than the ones commander gives them."
Fullplate Knight1WW
Creature - Human Knight U
Vigilance
Creatures blocking or being blocked by fullplate Knight have First Strike.
3/5
Courtly KnightWW
Creature - Human Knight C
Lifelink
Courtly Knight can't attack if no creatures opponent controls can block it.
2/3
Prideful Knight2WW
Creature - Human Knight R
First Strike
Prideful Knight can't attack unless it has the highest power among all atacking creatures.
4/6
IIW: Unexplored split card territory (with both new and old mechanics)
Kevra Thunderchief2RG Creature - Giant Warrior{U}
Whenever an attacking creature you control is not blocked, if an opponent controls a creature that is able to block it, Kevra Thunderchief deals 2 damage to target creature or player.
3/4
Come on! That's such a flat character, the color has so much unexplored territory. Do all blue walkers live on islands and have water powers? And she's a human (elf?) as well, once again failing to fill in the G "weird" race that every other color has. Looks like green is the new red.
I also don't like the card itself, flavor-cohesion-wise, seems all over the place. First ability kinda works for "tracking", though it reads extremely Kiora-like and muddles the identity. Second is... shooting arrows, but mostly naturalizing (can't kill an artifact with a bow), which usually implies Nature's destructive anger at artificial things or outsiders: so she is The Protector of the Forest, its avatar, already Nissa's job? Ult buffs your team, a stampede effect but more sophisticated, yet beast army is clearly mono-G Garruk's gimmick. And abilities barely work with each other in-game: I guess weak synergy between +1 and ult, "card advantage synergyzes with anthems", duh.
Power level is fine, I guess, but the card's very reactive. Climb to ult is slow and it's not an insta-win considering throwing +1'd creatures in front of attackers as the only way of protecting Vivien probably leaves you with not enough of a force to swing for lethal - although manadorks help, as well as vigilance+indestructible combo. Card selection/advantage her + provides is pretty good but not insane, so without valid targets for - she can scarcely compete with opposing engines. Sideboardwalkers feel kinda bad from a design standpoint, to be honest.
Bliss of Being 1WG
Enchantment {R}
Whenever mana enters your mana pool, it doesn't empty as steps and phases end until you lose life.
Whenever a creature enters the battlefield under your control, it gains Vigilance and Trample until a creature dies.
Talk of misery and you'll expedite it. The yearlings still have time. Let them revel in innocence.
IIW: Mystery and/or pulp
Creature - Demon Soldier {R}
Crimson Sovereign gets +X/+X, where X is the amount of life you've lost this turn.
For the rest of the game, if you would be dealt damage, instead you get that many wound counters. At the beginning of your upkeep, you lose life equal to the amount of wound counters on you. (This effect continues even after this creature leaves the battlefield)
1/1
IIW: Non-creature tokens
Mergatroid_Jones: More fragile Show and Tell is still as dangerous as Show and Tell. I enjoy the design, but it could only be printed in a Commander/Conspiracy set and even that is argueable. Nevertheless, among cards that cheat stuff into play, this one seems to be the fairest.
Flatline: Jammer kills Infect decks but it's too direct in its effect, in my opinion. Elegant hate cards are not that obvious at who they screw over. Adjucator is much nicer in that respect.
Phyrexian_Editor: Nice, tapping equipment! As a plus, this doesn't seem too degenerate, although I'm sure there's some clunky 4-cards combo in there.
JaceTheBodySculptor: It's rare that a card is too top-down; flavor is captured perfectly but I can't imagine why would anybody play this. At least it's funny.
Winner: Flatline with Grim Adjucator
HM: M_Jones, Phyrexian_Editor
Challenge: An Angel, Sphinx, Demon, Dragon, or Hydra with a CMC of 2 or less that doesn't have x in its mana cost.
Image of Divinity 1W
Creature - Human {R}
Other creatures that have the same base power and toughness as Image of Divinity's get +2/+2.
When Image of Divinity dies, target creature gains its abilities and name.
0/2
Resembling perfection is bliss. Being perfection is torture.
IIW: features of the modern world translated into fantasy (i.e., guns -> harpoon cannons) // unusual hate cards
Instant {M}
Cast Syzygy only if there is a spell with converted mana cost 1, 2 and 3 on the stack.
Return each spell you control to its owner's hand. You take an extra turn after this one. End the turn.
The world, obstreperously imprecise and illogical, rejects the description of scholarly laws - but once in a millennium, when it gives in, the weilders of the rigid abstract may finally exercise their geometric power.
I know using the word "stack" on the card is taboo, but this is mythic and pretty grokable.
Parade of the Planets XU
Instant {M}
Cast Parade of the Planets only if for each number between 1 and X, you've cast a spell with that converted mana cost this turn. X can't be zero.
Repeat the following process X times. Scry X, then draw X cards, then you may cast a spell with converted mana cost X or less from your hand without paying its mana cost.
IIW: Folk tales // SAT words
Artifact {R}
Whenever a creature is tapped as part of paying a cost, its controller may activate any of its other activated abilities. They cost T less to activate. (Tapping is a cost of attacking)
"They claimed that they could deal with anything I threw at them - so I just threw everything."
- Erchius, Frontline Sorcerer
IIW: Military strategies and tactics
Creature - Insect {U}
Flying
Sacrifice Prismatic Dragonfly, T: Creatures you control get +X/+X until the end of turn, where X is the number of different colors of mana in your mana pool.
0/1
Polychromatic Firefly 1R
Creature - Insect {U}
Flying
Sacrifice Polychromatic Firefly, T: Add X R to your mana pool, where X is the number of different colors of mana in your mana pool.
0/1
Kaleidoscopic Butterfly W
Creature - Insect {U}
Flying
Sacrifice Kaleidoscopic Butterfly , T: Gain two times X life, where X is the number of different colors of mana in your mana pool.
0/1
IIW: Changing abilities
Creature - Human Mutant Druid {R}
T: Choose one -
- Target creature loses Reach. If it does, it gains Flying.
- Target creature loses First Strike. If it does, it gains Double Strike.
- Target creature loses Trample. If it does, it gains "You may have this creature assign any amount of its combat damage as though it weren't blocked".
3/3Same design space but completely unprintable:
Radiation Field 1UG
Enchantment {R}
At the beginning of your upkeep, choose First Strike, Vigilance, Lifelink, Trample, Hexproof, Haste, Deathtouch, Double Strike, Menace, Flying, Prowess or Reach, then target creature loses it. If it does, it gains two abilities among them that it neither has gained or lost before.
IIW: Changing abilities
Enchantment {U}
Whenever a Beast dies, you may tap an untapped creature you control. If you do, create an artifact token named Gold with "Sacrifice Gold: Add one mana of any color to your mana pool".
IIW: Far North
Enchantment {R}
2, Discard a card: If you discarded an artifact card, search your library for an enchantment card with the same converted mana cost, reveal it and put it in your hand, then shuffle your library. If you discarded an enchantment, search for an instant or sorcery; if you discarded an instant or sorcery, search for a creature; if you discarded a creature, search for an artifact.
IIW: Combat tricks
Mile-Range Killshot 2UB
Creature - Elf Archer {R}
1: Target opponent reveals a non-revealed card from his or her at random and plays with it revealed hand until the end of turn.
T: Target opponent discard target revealed creature card from his or her hand if its toughness is equal or lower than Mile-Range Killshot's power.
3/1
"The humans are loud, but I wish they were louder - you can't hear the screams from so far away."
- Ashera, Drow Sniper
Challenge-Seeking Cavalier 2WG
Creature - Human Knight {R}
Vigilance
1: Target opponent reveals a non-revealed card from his or her hand at random and plays with it revealed until the end of turn.
T: Challenge-Seeking Cavalier gets +X/+X until the end of turn, where X is the toughness of a revealed creature card in target opponent's hand.
2/2
Battle-Dancer Adept 2UR
Creature - Dwarf Monk {R}
Haste
1: Target opponent reveals a non-revealed card from his or her hand at random and plays with it revealed until the end of turn.
UR: Swap a creature that is blocking or being blocked by Battle-Dancer Adept with a revealed creature card in its owner's hand.
3/4
"They listen to my orders better than the ones commander gives them."
Fullplate Knight 1WW
Creature - Human Knight U
Vigilance
Creatures blocking or being blocked by fullplate Knight have First Strike.
3/5
Courtly Knight WW
Creature - Human Knight C
Lifelink
Courtly Knight can't attack if no creatures opponent controls can block it.
2/3
Prideful Knight 2WW
Creature - Human Knight R
First Strike
Prideful Knight can't attack unless it has the highest power among all atacking creatures.
4/6
IIW: Unexplored split card territory (with both new and old mechanics)
Creature - Giant Warrior {U}
Whenever an attacking creature you control is not blocked, if an opponent controls a creature that is able to block it, Kevra Thunderchief deals 2 damage to target creature or player.
3/4
IIW: Magical anomalies