October 2009 - MCC - Discussion Thread (Spooky Spooky)

[Streetz]

Discuss the contest, your interpretation of Halloween-esque, and your your competitors' submissions here!

Remember, have fun! This is just a fun casual contest!

[Tekkactus]

Wasn't this the theme for last October?

[Azrael Subucni]

Originally Posted by Tekkactus

Wasn't this the theme for last October?

Yes, except last time, you couldn't make it a black card. This may have been the cause of a lot of poorly scored entries for that round.

Though personally I find the holiday theme to be a little constrained to begin with. What really is 'halloween-y' is up to a person's opinion, I'd say. Still, I'll try to come up with something.

[Streetz]

If Halloween was last year's theme, it matters not. If you didn't score well in that contest, find it as an inspiration to do better in this years! Besides, I'm judging this one!

[JakeKessler]

I like that "spooky spooky" is a tag.

EDIT

Alright, here's my first proposal. I already had this card sitting around in my file, but we aren't usually allowed to add new keywords.

Spoiler:

Unsure about the specifics of the keyword. Regrow is a powerful effect to spread across colors, but then Soulshift from Kamigawa block was basically Raise Dead spread across colors. It just had to have the proper limitations...

Unsure about the timing. Should you be able to pitch it at instant-speed to get back a counterspell or killspell? Vedalken Æthermage or Homing Sliver can each be pitched at instant-speed to tutor up Nameless Inversion. I need to think about this more.

I have no problem with calling it 'Cycling' even though it doesn't draw you a card... 'XCycling' doesn't draw you cards, it tutors, but it can still be called cycling because it puts a card in your hand by discarding a card. Same here.

[CoglineErro]

Eh, ~cycling is a keyword. It's debatable, but either way you must state what the card must cost less than. Its implied that it is the card being grave cycled, but better safe than sorry in card design. It should read, "Grevecycle X (X, Discard this card: Return target card that costs less than ~ from your graveyard to your hand.)

[JakeKessler]

Originally Posted by CoglineErro

Eh, ~cycling is a keyword. It's debatable, but either way you must state what the card must cost less than. Its implied that it is the card being grave cycled, but better safe than sorry in card design. It should read, "Grevecycle X (X, Discard this card: Return target cards that costs less than ~ from your graveyard to your hand.)

Disagree. In defense of my wording, I'll cite the reminder text for cascade:

Cascade (When you cast this spell, exile cards from the top of your library until you exile a nonland card that costs less. You may cast it without paying its mana cost. Put the exiled cards on the bottom in a random order.)

[CoglineErro]

Also note the length of cascade's reminder text. They had t cut words out of it. Yours does not suffer such. But regardless, you need to use disentomb's wording with regards to returning cards to your hand from the grave. Look closer at my change up there for that correction.

[JakeKessler]

I'm not sure it needs to target, either. Soulshift does, but Cruel Ultimatum doesn't. I don't like the idea that a cycling effect can fizzle.

... Or be unusable without a corresponding target available. I kind of want you to be allowed to Gravecycle even if there's nothing you could get back, like how you could Plainscycle Pale Recluse even if there aren't any Plains in your deck.

Hmm.

[Le_Mirage]

It's just a matter of taste. The original cycling makes you draw a card, and, for obvious reason, there's no target in this. Fetch-cycling also has no target, since cards in library are not public, nor permanents. Still, if there is the chance to take back a card from graveyard without targeting it, as in Cruel Ultimatum, that's just one more option then, considering that, as an effect, is slightly more powerful since the card cant' fizzle.

On the other hand, effects based on cycling (even if not tiled with cycling itself, but as triggered ability), that involves cards in the public zones of the game, usually have a target. If there is no reason in making an effect more powerful than others cycling related effects, i would make it as a target one.

[CoglineErro]

Originally Posted by JakeKessler

I'm not sure it needs to target, either. Soulshift does, but Cruel Ultimatum doesn't. I don't like the idea that a cycling effect can fizzle.

Cruel Ultimatum also does a lot more than Gravecycling. Also, having this ability as an uncounterable is only gonna be balanced if you let it be able to fizzle. Right now it is above the level of insane good. Everydeck would run this card. 3 colorless for an uncounterable raise dead on any card CMC 3 or less. 4 plz.

Originally Posted by JakeKessler

... Or be unusable without a corresponding target available. I kind of want you to be allowed to Gravecycle even if there's nothing you could get back, like how you could Plainscycle Pale Recluse even if there aren't any Plains in your deck.

Hmm.

I don't know in what situation you are worried about not being able to gravecycle where there are no cards in your grave. The reason Landcycling doesn't have a target is it is aimed at a hidden section of the field (the library) whereas yours is not.

[p-chan]

Hell, again a little off-topic for me theme for this month. Here in Spain we don't have a lor of Halloween tradition. In any case, thanx for the link Streetz, I'm gonna read it and try to make the most original card I can.

@CoglineErro: Man, you should restrict it to noncreature spell, or creature spell, or up it's cost. If you don't, I think it's quite overpowered

[ALEX Ryugami]

Here's my submission, what do you think??

Spoiler:

[CoglineErro]

Originally Posted by p-chan

@CoglineErro: Man, you should restrict it to noncreature spell, or creature spell, or up it's cost. If you don't, I think it's quite overpowered

So you are saying that instead of a strong counter I should make it a strictly-better-in-some-situations-strictly-worse-in-others negate? The counter anything balances out the not being in control of whether it goes off or not. In more cases than not this will actually be fairly weak. This is not a counter for knocking out their combo peice. If you play it to stop their game winner, you may have just lost unless you can tutor up an answer. But in the end thats the idea.

[evol_intentions]

coglineerro your card is brill