At the beginning of your upkeep, you may discard an Island card. If you do, draw a card. If you don't, tap Hyrdrophage.
[2/2]
Time Grifter1UUU
Creature - Djinn
Flying
Whenever Time Grifter deals combat damage to a player, choose untap step, upkeep step, or draw step. After this combat phase, there is an additional instance of the chosen step.
[3/4]
Gremlin JoyriderXUU
Creature - Ouphe Rigger
When Gremlin Joyrider enters the battlefield, you may search your library for an artifact creature card with converted mana cost X or less and put it onto the battlefield. If you do, shuffle your library.
[2/1]
Zephling CavalierUU
Creature - Illusion Knight
Flying, shroud
Whenever Zephling Cavalier attacks, switch its power and toughness until end of turn.
[1/2]
Sea Spiral2UU
Creature - Sponge
Your maximum hand size is zero.
If you would draw a card, you may instead put a token onto the battlefield that’s a copy of Sea Spiral.
Time Grifter is interesting and powerful, but probably not broken.
Gremlin Joyrider just seems weird to me. The pool of artifact creatures that could benefit from haste if they also had defender is pretty small; you might as well cut both of those abilities and make the text simpler and more grokkable. Ridiculous with Sundering Titan.
Private Mod Note
():
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A designer knows he has achieved perfection not when there is nothing left to add, but when there is nothing left to take away.
Joyrider is also crazy with duplicant, and Solemn Simulacrum gives you a land this turn, plus another land next turn plus your land drop and a creature.
Gremlin Joyrider: "It gains" is ambiguous. I assume you mean the tutored-in creature. Still ridiculous with any kind of etb ability, as previously noted.
I can do Gremlin Joyrider much simpler. I think I was just trying to cram as much :symu:-ness into it as possible, but that made it weird. So:
Gremlin Joyrider1UU
Creature - Ouphe Rigger
When Gremlin Joyrider enters the battlefield, you may search your library for an artifact creature card, put it onto the battlefield, then shuffle your library. If you do, it gains defender, haste and “At end of turn, return this permanent to its owner’s hand.”
[2/1]
Gremlin JoyriderXUU
Creature - Ouphe Rigger
When Gremlin Joyrider enters the battlefield, you may search your library for an artifact creature card with converted mana cost X or less and put it onto the battlefield. If you do, shuffle your library.
How so? Harm's way can only redirect damage that would be dealt to you or a permanent you control. I guess if your opponent uses it to deal some of time grifter's damage back to you, you can get an extra draw step out of it or something.
Private Mod Note
():
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
A designer knows he has achieved perfection not when there is nothing left to add, but when there is nothing left to take away.
Zephling Cavalier is pushing the envelope with both flying and shroud. One or the other would be fine, but putting both on such an efficient body is a bit too much.
Sea spiral should say "if you would draw" rather than "whenever you would draw." Power level seems to be acceptable given the drawback.
Private Mod Note
():
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
A designer knows he has achieved perfection not when there is nothing left to add, but when there is nothing left to take away.
Zephling Cavalier is pushing the envelope with both flying and shroud. One or the other would be fine, but putting both on such an efficient body is a bit too much.
Sea spiral should say "if you would draw" rather than "whenever you would draw." Power level seems to be acceptable given the drawback.
Sea Spiral: Fixed.
Zephling Cavalier: My parameters are
Blue
Flying
Shroud
CMC 2
Power > 0
As good as it can be given the above.
So, what do you think would be fair, given those parameters?
The highest I could really see pushing this card given your parameters would be 1/2 with flying and shroud without the P/T swap trigger or a 2/1 with the trigger. Even at 1/1 it would would actually still be a pretty decent pick in limited. Don't underestimate the power of a creature that is hard to block and hard to remove. The only way this would be acceptable at two mana with flying, shroud, and more than one power on the attack would be to give it some significant drawback.
Private Mod Note
():
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
A designer knows he has achieved perfection not when there is nothing left to add, but when there is nothing left to take away.
How about making the p/t switch last indefinately? Well, at least until it attacks again, so first he attacks for 2, then 1, then 2, then 1, and so on.
Private Mod Note
():
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I care less about us making mistakes that lead to degenerate environments than I am when we don’t push ourselves and make something that’s boring to play. - MaRo
How about making the p/t switch last indefinately? Well, at least until it attacks again, so first he attacks for 2, then 1, then 2, then 1, and so on.
Well...
I'm no expert in competitive aggro deck construction (or any competitive deck construction for that matter), but I'm at least trying to design this with a mind to the aggro curve that could use it.
The general principle of MRA / Goblins / Sligh / Whatever is to throw as much damage at your opponent's dome before he/she can stabilize the board. Then, assuming the stabilization happens around turn 3-4, you drop a finisher that is typically (hopefully) un-answerable to deal the last few points of damage to win. If you haven't won the game by that point, you're pretty much effed, because none of your cards are in it for the long haul. So, you scoop.
The way I'm seeing an MUA deck curving out, you're a bit more resilient to the inevitable stabilization, but at the cost of damage in the early turns. I don't envision it being reliant on finishers as much as MRA. Zephling Cavalier kind of exemplifies what I'm thinking for the MUA curve. You get an early, evasive pinger on the board, it's hard to remove (i.e. stabilize against) and once you've dumped your hand, it becomes more aggressive (because now you can afford the P/T switching ability). So, in this kind of MUA archetype, you're going to be hitting for 1 damage for a few turns anyway, because you are still going to be playing out your hand as fast as possible, rather than spending that mana on the ability. So, there's no need to complicate the P/T switching thing anymore than it is: it'll probably end up being half 1's and half 2's.
To look at another card, Hydrophage is designed to give MUA a bit more up-front aggression (both through the higher power and through converting lands to more usable creatures), but it is somewhat luck-dependent. So, that's looking at the curve through a different angle.
Hydrophage -- This is too good for a one mana blue creature. The "drawback" on this pretty insignificant and it actually helps your draws. You could probably mix this around a little and it would still be interesting at two mana.
1U
Creature -- Elemental (C)
At the beginning of your upkeep, tap CARDNAME unless you discard a card. If you discard a land card this way, draw a card.
2/2
Time Grifter -- This is trying to do too much and it is rather confusing even if it does work as it is intended. Why don't you just have the effects "draw a card" or "untap all permanents you control" listed out? There are other creatures like Scroll Thief that already draw cards and I'm not sure we need another Paradox Haze variant. A trigger like this might be interesting enough on a 3/4 creature with flying:
Whenever CARDNAME deals combat damage to a player, untap up to that many permanents.
Gremlin Joyrider -- This should have an artifact sacrifice like Reshape and similar effects. It would also simplify the card to remove X and just put the card into your hand. It is effectively the same unless you are searching for an Esper artifact anyway.
When CARDNAME enters the battlefield, sacrifice a noncreature artifact. If you do, search your library for an artifact creature card, reveal it, put it into your hand, then shuffle your library.
... Just had this idea: to open it up a little, the sacrifice could also be modified to "you may discard a noncreature artifact card". The benefit is that you don't have to spend time casting the artifact first. The drawback is that you can't get extra effects from cards like Chromatic Star.
Zephling Cavalier -- You could maybe make it 2/2 if the other abilities are activated. That is simpler and seems a little more balanced for whatever reason.
UU
Creature -- Illusion Knight U: CARDNAME gains your choice of flying or shroud until end of turn.
2/2
EDIT: or raise the mana cost a little and make it a riff on Morphling:
Morphette2U
Creature -- Shapeshifter (U) U: CARDNAME gains your choice of flying, shroud, or vigilance until end of turn. Activate this ability only once each turn. 1: CARDNAME gets +1/-1 or -1/+1 until end of turn. Activate this ability only once each turn.
2/2
Sea Spiral -- This isn't very blue, and Words of Wilding already did this simpler and with fewer drawbacks.
Creature - Elemental
At the beginning of your upkeep, you may discard an Island card. If you do, draw a card. If you don't, tap Hyrdrophage.
[2/2]
Creature - Djinn
Flying
Whenever Time Grifter deals combat damage to a player, choose untap step, upkeep step, or draw step. After this combat phase, there is an additional instance of the chosen step.
[3/4]
Creature - Ouphe Rigger
When Gremlin Joyrider enters the battlefield, you may search your library for an artifact creature card with converted mana cost X or less and put it onto the battlefield. If you do, shuffle your library.
[2/1]
Creature - Illusion Knight
Flying, shroud
Whenever Zephling Cavalier attacks, switch its power and toughness until end of turn.
[1/2]
Creature - Sponge
Your maximum hand size is zero.
If you would draw a card, you may instead put a token onto the battlefield that’s a copy of Sea Spiral.
[2/2]
Time Grifter is interesting and powerful, but probably not broken.
Gremlin Joyrider just seems weird to me. The pool of artifact creatures that could benefit from haste if they also had defender is pretty small; you might as well cut both of those abilities and make the text simpler and more grokkable. Ridiculous with Sundering Titan.
A designer knows he has achieved perfection not when there is nothing left to add, but when there is nothing left to take away.
Sieging Your Tower
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Gremlin Joyrider: "It gains" is ambiguous. I assume you mean the tutored-in creature. Still ridiculous with any kind of etb ability, as previously noted.
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Gremlin Joyrider 1UU
Creature - Ouphe Rigger
When Gremlin Joyrider enters the battlefield, you may search your library for an artifact creature card, put it onto the battlefield, then shuffle your library. If you do, it gains defender, haste and “At end of turn, return this permanent to its owner’s hand.”
[2/1]
Creature - Ouphe Rigger
When Gremlin Joyrider enters the battlefield, you may search your library for an artifact creature card with converted mana cost X or less and put it onto the battlefield. If you do, shuffle your library.
[2/1]
It's like Sphinx Summoner, but, you know... for Memnites and Ornithopters.
How so? Harm's way can only redirect damage that would be dealt to you or a permanent you control. I guess if your opponent uses it to deal some of time grifter's damage back to you, you can get an extra draw step out of it or something.
A designer knows he has achieved perfection not when there is nothing left to add, but when there is nothing left to take away.
Sea spiral should say "if you would draw" rather than "whenever you would draw." Power level seems to be acceptable given the drawback.
A designer knows he has achieved perfection not when there is nothing left to add, but when there is nothing left to take away.
Sea Spiral: Fixed.
Zephling Cavalier: My parameters are
Wat?
So, you're saying, UU for a 1/1 + flying + shroud + nothing else?
That's a terrible card. Even at 1U, it's a late pick in Limited.
The card needs to actually be a threat, not a "Sucks for you that you played that" creature.
A designer knows he has achieved perfection not when there is nothing left to add, but when there is nothing left to take away.
Creature - Illusion Knight
Flying, shroud
:symu:: Switch Zephling Cavalier's power and toughness until end of turn.
[1/2]
?
I like it as an uncommon.
R Citizen Cane (Feldon of the Third Path)
I'm no expert in competitive aggro deck construction (or any competitive deck construction for that matter), but I'm at least trying to design this with a mind to the aggro curve that could use it.
The general principle of MRA / Goblins / Sligh / Whatever is to throw as much damage at your opponent's dome before he/she can stabilize the board. Then, assuming the stabilization happens around turn 3-4, you drop a finisher that is typically (hopefully) un-answerable to deal the last few points of damage to win. If you haven't won the game by that point, you're pretty much effed, because none of your cards are in it for the long haul. So, you scoop.
The way I'm seeing an MUA deck curving out, you're a bit more resilient to the inevitable stabilization, but at the cost of damage in the early turns. I don't envision it being reliant on finishers as much as MRA. Zephling Cavalier kind of exemplifies what I'm thinking for the MUA curve. You get an early, evasive pinger on the board, it's hard to remove (i.e. stabilize against) and once you've dumped your hand, it becomes more aggressive (because now you can afford the P/T switching ability). So, in this kind of MUA archetype, you're going to be hitting for 1 damage for a few turns anyway, because you are still going to be playing out your hand as fast as possible, rather than spending that mana on the ability. So, there's no need to complicate the P/T switching thing anymore than it is: it'll probably end up being half 1's and half 2's.
To look at another card, Hydrophage is designed to give MUA a bit more up-front aggression (both through the higher power and through converting lands to more usable creatures), but it is somewhat luck-dependent. So, that's looking at the curve through a different angle.
Creature -- Elemental (C)
At the beginning of your upkeep, tap CARDNAME unless you discard a card. If you discard a land card this way, draw a card.
2/2
Time Grifter -- This is trying to do too much and it is rather confusing even if it does work as it is intended. Why don't you just have the effects "draw a card" or "untap all permanents you control" listed out? There are other creatures like Scroll Thief that already draw cards and I'm not sure we need another Paradox Haze variant. A trigger like this might be interesting enough on a 3/4 creature with flying:
Gremlin Joyrider -- This should have an artifact sacrifice like Reshape and similar effects. It would also simplify the card to remove X and just put the card into your hand. It is effectively the same unless you are searching for an Esper artifact anyway.
Zephling Cavalier -- You could maybe make it 2/2 if the other abilities are activated. That is simpler and seems a little more balanced for whatever reason.
Creature -- Illusion Knight
U: CARDNAME gains your choice of flying or shroud until end of turn.
2/2
EDIT: or raise the mana cost a little and make it a riff on Morphling:
Creature -- Shapeshifter (U)
U: CARDNAME gains your choice of flying, shroud, or vigilance until end of turn. Activate this ability only once each turn.
1: CARDNAME gets +1/-1 or -1/+1 until end of turn. Activate this ability only once each turn.
2/2
Sea Spiral -- This isn't very blue, and Words of Wilding already did this simpler and with fewer drawbacks.