Ok, we're back on track with the finals of the September 2012 Card Creation League! Our finalists are Ninja Caterpie, creator of the Innistradian fire and lightning mage Kerick van Filo (not to be confused with Kerrick), and KoolKoal, who has brought the Alaran Rhox artificer Venge to life. They have each surmounted great obstacles to come this far, but now they come face to face with each other. Who will come out on top?
Challenge:
Each of you is designing one half of Duel Decks: Kerick vs Venge. Your final submission will be a decklist, including the following:
Your Planeswalker
The entire planeswalker-related cycle from the Top 8 round
Four cards newly designed for this challenge
Up to five reprints of existing cards that you have selected to receive alternate art treatment (you don't need to provide the art, this is basically just flavor to highlight your key/exciting reprints)
Any number of other reprints of existing cards
Your deck can contain a maximum of 8 rare cards in addition to the planeswalker and the rare from his cycle. You may add one color outside your color identity if you think that is necessary. Otherwise, 60 cards, build around your theme, and you may include multiples of non-rare cards. A brief explanation of your deck's path to victory would be nice to help readers understand what they are looking at.
Let me know if you have any questions, try to be done around the end of the week if possible.
Venge is a Rhox of action, but don't let his aggressive nature fool you. This planeswalker is smarter than he acts, with plenty of deadly tricks for when speed and brute force don't work.
The Venge deck offers versatility. Pound in with your small artifacts while your opponent struggles to mount a defense, then finish them off with one of your power hitters like Hellkite Igniter. Cards like Steel Overseer and Spine of Ish Sah will give your deck so much fuel, you'll never have to stop burning your opponent to the ground. There are powerful card combinations everywhere in this deck, take a look at Furnace Golem and Lightning Coils and put them together with all the different ways you can sacrifice your artifacts. How can your opponent stand against Venge's Shockrollers when he makes them indestructible? Or the Volt Ticks that have been given Forge Armor to wear?
Harness this deck, and harness the true power of artifice.
Venge, Burning Tinkerer1RR
Planeswalker - Venge (M)
[+2] Up to one target artifact is indestructible this turn.
[-1] Artifacts you control gain ":symtap:, Discard a card: Draw a card." until end of turn.
[-7] Sacrifice any number of artifacts. For each artifact sacrificed in this way, Venge, Burning Tinkerer deals damage equal to twice that artifact's converted mana cost to target creature or player.
{2}
Venge's Shockroller4
Artifact Creature - Construct (C)
Whenever Venge's Shockroller becomes blocked, it deals damage equal to its power to defending player. "My machine's are fragile, you say? That reminds me of the Loxodon that called me fat... I killed him too."
—Venge, Burning Tinkerer
3/1
Venge's CharmR
Sorcery (U)
As an additional cost to cast Venge's Charm, sacrifice an artifact.
Choose one — Deal damage to target creature equal to the sacrificed artifact's converted mana cost; or return target artifact card from your graveyard to your hand; or draw two cards, then discard a card at random.
Venge's Hydraskelion7
Artifact Creature - Hydra Construct (R)
Venge's Hydraskelion enters the battlefield with four +1/+1 counters.
Sacrifice an artifact: Put a +1/+1 counter on Venge's Hydraskelion.
Remove two +1/+1 counters from Venge's Hydraskelion: Return another target artifact card from your graveyard to your hand.
0/0
Volt Tick2
Artifact Creature - Insect Construct (C)
When Volt Tick dies, it deals damage equal to its power to target creature or player. Its spark is worse than its bite.
1/1
Furnace Golem5
Artifact Creature - Golem (U)
Whenever you sacrifice an artifact, put two +1/+1 counters on Furnace Golem. "Every artificer should have one. It's a waste disposal system that can also cook food or intruders."
—Venge, Burning Tinkerer
3/3
Molten Reforger3
Artifact (U)
Sacrifice an artifact creature, :symtap:: Return target artifact card with converted mana cost less than or equal to the sacrificed creature's power from your graveyard to your hand. Activate this ability only any time you could cast a sorcery.
Mercury Valkyrie8
Artifact Creature - Angel Construct (R)
Flying 4: When target artifact other than Mercury Valkyrie is put into a graveyard this turn, return it to the battlefield under your control.
6/6
Arcbound Reclaimer - The Reclaimer's energy limbs glow a bright red to contrast the dark storm in the picture. Its hands have been plunged below the earth, and in the background two shockrollers are floating in the air, wrapped in energy that matches the Reclaimer's limbs.
Feedback Bolt - The Rhox artificer, Venge, stands in the background, his arm thrust forward sending a bolt of lighting that zips straight into a small mechanical ball, darts at a 90 degree angle to a small shockroller, bends up into the air to hit some sort of mechanical bird, and down off-frame again. The bolt of lightning seems to get brighter and wider as it passes through each artifact.
Lightning Coils - The focus is on Venge's backside, taking in his shoulders and the back of his head. On each shoulder sits a metal pole with thin coils around it, a bolt of lightning is passing from one to the other over Venge's head. Far in the background, there are five small creatures made of electricity that are surrounding a mage, presumably Kerick. Venge is clearly watching them attack his enemy.
Pyrite Spellbomb - A mechanical ball with four holes that shoot golden sparks wrapped around it equidistantly around the circumference takes up the majority of the frame. There are a few thin cracks in the ball that glow a dangerously bright yellow. In the bottom right corner, Venge stands in a pose that shows he has just thrown this item.
Savage Beating - Venge is holding Kerick above his head, his mouth open in a roar and his face giving away the endless rage that boils within him. Sparks of lightning fly around the rest of Venge's body in an uncontrolled and uncaring way.
Venge, Burning Tinkerer - A massive Rhox in red robes stands in a dully lit workshop colored of dull metal. Contraptions litter the tables, though only one is mostly in view, the other tables barely have a corner in the frame. Venge's clothes are also covered in small devices, such as the strange coils on his shoulders and the monocle on a rod that starts from somewhere on his chest, beneath a cloak, to stretch up to sit in front of his eye. The monocle is telescoping to give him a better view of his current project, which he holds in one hand. It is a small ball, which he is pointing his free hand at from above, sending a single spark of electricity into its top. The ball is responding by releasing a constant gout of flame to each side. Venge is smiling maniacally at the device.
Venge's Shockroller - A cylinder of spikes and electricity that seems to be rolling blazingly fast along the ground.
Private Mod Note
():
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
I'll bet you wish you had a non-unglued/unhinged card that shared your first name.
Kerick van Filo is nothing if not efficient. With the Spelltwiner's deck filled with instants and sorceries, never fear about card disadvantage every again! Every card in the deck, from Call to Mind to Wee Dragonauts lets you get more out of your instants and sorceries.
Start off small with your Delver of Secrets or Blistercoil Weird, which get extra large in a deck filled with instants and sorceries. Then, unleash your instants and sorceries upon the opponent! Lunar Mystic lets you replace all of them with more cards, while Snapcaster Mage and Increasing Vengeance let you use the same card multiple times! Don't worry: even if you do start to run out of cards, Isochron Scepter can keep you running off a single card.
When you play, don't be afraid to discard instants or sorceries when using Careful Consideration or Desolate Lighthouse. While it may seem like a bad idea, many of the spells in the deck have flashback, meaning you can reuse them even when they're in the graveyard. Even if they don't, you can target them with Recoup and cast them again anyway, or use them to fuel a massive Reignite.
Once you've grabbed the early advantage, refill with Erratic Research and Kerick's Exprimentation, or use Kerick's Order to star the assault all over again! If you have a large grip of cards, you can finish them off with Kerick himself and his huge final ability, a perfect Storm of Brilliance, or just point all your burn spells at your opponents face and watch them melt away.
Erratic Research2U
Sorcery (U)
Draw three cards. Then discard two cards unless you discard an instant or sorcery card.
Reignite3R
Sorcery (U)
Reignite deals damage equal to the number of instant or sorcery cards in your graveyard to target creature or player. "It's important to learn from one's mistakes. I've learnt from yours, at the very least."
Manastatic Engine4
Artifact (U)
Whenever you cast an instant or sorcery spell, Manastatic Engine deals 1 damage to target creature or player.
Storm of Brilliance4UR
Enchantment (R)
Whenever you cast an instant or sorcery spell, return target instant or sorcery card with converted mana cost less than that spell's from your graveyard to your hand.
Challenge:
Each of you is designing one half of Duel Decks: Kerick vs Venge. Your final submission will be a decklist, including the following:
Let me know if you have any questions, try to be done around the end of the week if possible.
You got 99 attackers but I'm blocking with 1.
The Winner is Judge | 7
This Winner is Also Judge | 6
Club Flamingo | Lots
1 Buried Ruin
20 Mountain
1 Stalking Stones (Alt Art)
2 Teetering Peaks
Planeswalker
1 Venge, Burning Tinkerer (custom)
Creatures
1 Arcbound Reclaimer (Alt Art)
1 Crumbling Colossus
1 Darksteel Sentinel
1 Furnace Golem (custom)
1 Hellkite Igniter
1 Hematite Golem
2 Krark-Clan Grunt
1 Mercury Valkyrie (custom)
1 Megatog
1 Myr Retriever
1 Oxidda Golem
1 Perilous Myr
1 Primal Clay
1 Steel Overseer
1 Venge's Hydraskellion (custom)
2 Venge's Shockroller (custom)
2 Volt Tick (custom)
1 Vulshok Replica
1 Feedback Bolt (Alt Art)
1 Forge Armor
1 Galvanic Blast
1 Geosurge
1 Ichor Wellspring
1 Lightning Coils (Alt Art)
1 Molten Reforger (custom)
2 Panic Spellbomb
1 Pyrite Spellbomb (Alt Art)
1 Savage Beating (Alt Art)
1 Spine of Ish Sah
1 Venge's Charm (custom)
1 Worn Powerstone
The Venge deck offers versatility. Pound in with your small artifacts while your opponent struggles to mount a defense, then finish them off with one of your power hitters like Hellkite Igniter. Cards like Steel Overseer and Spine of Ish Sah will give your deck so much fuel, you'll never have to stop burning your opponent to the ground. There are powerful card combinations everywhere in this deck, take a look at Furnace Golem and Lightning Coils and put them together with all the different ways you can sacrifice your artifacts. How can your opponent stand against Venge's Shockrollers when he makes them indestructible? Or the Volt Ticks that have been given Forge Armor to wear?
Harness this deck, and harness the true power of artifice.
Planeswalker - Venge (M)
[+2] Up to one target artifact is indestructible this turn.
[-1] Artifacts you control gain ":symtap:, Discard a card: Draw a card." until end of turn.
[-7] Sacrifice any number of artifacts. For each artifact sacrificed in this way, Venge, Burning Tinkerer deals damage equal to twice that artifact's converted mana cost to target creature or player.
{2}
Venge's Shockroller 4
Artifact Creature - Construct (C)
Whenever Venge's Shockroller becomes blocked, it deals damage equal to its power to defending player.
"My machine's are fragile, you say? That reminds me of the Loxodon that called me fat... I killed him too."
—Venge, Burning Tinkerer
3/1
Venge's Charm R
Sorcery (U)
As an additional cost to cast Venge's Charm, sacrifice an artifact.
Choose one — Deal damage to target creature equal to the sacrificed artifact's converted mana cost; or return target artifact card from your graveyard to your hand; or draw two cards, then discard a card at random.
Venge's Hydraskelion 7
Artifact Creature - Hydra Construct (R)
Venge's Hydraskelion enters the battlefield with four +1/+1 counters.
Sacrifice an artifact: Put a +1/+1 counter on Venge's Hydraskelion.
Remove two +1/+1 counters from Venge's Hydraskelion: Return another target artifact card from your graveyard to your hand.
0/0
Artifact Creature - Insect Construct (C)
When Volt Tick dies, it deals damage equal to its power to target creature or player.
Its spark is worse than its bite.
1/1
Furnace Golem 5
Artifact Creature - Golem (U)
Whenever you sacrifice an artifact, put two +1/+1 counters on Furnace Golem.
"Every artificer should have one. It's a waste disposal system that can also cook food or intruders."
—Venge, Burning Tinkerer
3/3
Molten Reforger 3
Artifact (U)
Sacrifice an artifact creature, :symtap:: Return target artifact card with converted mana cost less than or equal to the sacrificed creature's power from your graveyard to your hand. Activate this ability only any time you could cast a sorcery.
Mercury Valkyrie 8
Artifact Creature - Angel Construct (R)
Flying
4: When target artifact other than Mercury Valkyrie is put into a graveyard this turn, return it to the battlefield under your control.
6/6
Feedback Bolt - The Rhox artificer, Venge, stands in the background, his arm thrust forward sending a bolt of lighting that zips straight into a small mechanical ball, darts at a 90 degree angle to a small shockroller, bends up into the air to hit some sort of mechanical bird, and down off-frame again. The bolt of lightning seems to get brighter and wider as it passes through each artifact.
Lightning Coils - The focus is on Venge's backside, taking in his shoulders and the back of his head. On each shoulder sits a metal pole with thin coils around it, a bolt of lightning is passing from one to the other over Venge's head. Far in the background, there are five small creatures made of electricity that are surrounding a mage, presumably Kerick. Venge is clearly watching them attack his enemy.
Pyrite Spellbomb - A mechanical ball with four holes that shoot golden sparks wrapped around it equidistantly around the circumference takes up the majority of the frame. There are a few thin cracks in the ball that glow a dangerously bright yellow. In the bottom right corner, Venge stands in a pose that shows he has just thrown this item.
Savage Beating - Venge is holding Kerick above his head, his mouth open in a roar and his face giving away the endless rage that boils within him. Sparks of lightning fly around the rest of Venge's body in an uncontrolled and uncaring way.
Venge's Shockroller - A cylinder of spikes and electricity that seems to be rolling blazingly fast along the ground.
Also, can we reprint cards that we did in earlier CCL challenges under "existing cards"?
1 Desolate Lighthouse (Rare)
1 Halimar Depths
13 Island
8 Mountain
2 Terramorphic Expanse
Instants and Sorceries (22)
2 Call to Mind (Alt Art)
1 Careful Consideration
1 Dismiss (Alt Art)
1 Erratic Research (Custom)
1 Fanning the Flames
1 Flash of Insight (Alt Art)
1 Firebolt
2 Geistflame
1 Increasing Vengeance (Alt Art) (Rare)
1 Kerick's Experimentation (Cycle)
1 Kerick's Order (Rare)
1 Kerick's Trickery (Cycle)
1 Mystic Retrieval
1 Recoup (Alt Art)
1 Reignite (Custom)
1 Reiterate (Rare)
1 Shattering Pulse
1 Spelltwine (Rare)
2 Think Twice
1 Kerick, Spelltwiner
Creatures (10)
2 Archaeomancer
1 Blistercoil Weird
1 Delver of Secrets
2 Kerick's Analyst (Cycle)
1 Kiln Fiend
1 Lunar Mystic (Rare)
1 Snapcaster Mage (Rare)
1 Wee Dragonauts
Artifacts and Enchantments (3)
1 Isochron Scepter
1 Manastatic Engine (Custom)
1 Storm of Brilliance (Rare) (Custom)
Kerick van Filo is nothing if not efficient. With the Spelltwiner's deck filled with instants and sorceries, never fear about card disadvantage every again! Every card in the deck, from Call to Mind to Wee Dragonauts lets you get more out of your instants and sorceries.
Start off small with your Delver of Secrets or Blistercoil Weird, which get extra large in a deck filled with instants and sorceries. Then, unleash your instants and sorceries upon the opponent! Lunar Mystic lets you replace all of them with more cards, while Snapcaster Mage and Increasing Vengeance let you use the same card multiple times! Don't worry: even if you do start to run out of cards, Isochron Scepter can keep you running off a single card.
When you play, don't be afraid to discard instants or sorceries when using Careful Consideration or Desolate Lighthouse. While it may seem like a bad idea, many of the spells in the deck have flashback, meaning you can reuse them even when they're in the graveyard. Even if they don't, you can target them with Recoup and cast them again anyway, or use them to fuel a massive Reignite.
Once you've grabbed the early advantage, refill with Erratic Research and Kerick's Exprimentation, or use Kerick's Order to star the assault all over again! If you have a large grip of cards, you can finish them off with Kerick himself and his huge final ability, a perfect Storm of Brilliance, or just point all your burn spells at your opponents face and watch them melt away.
Erratic Research 2U
Sorcery (U)
Draw three cards. Then discard two cards unless you discard an instant or sorcery card.
Reignite 3R
Sorcery (U)
Reignite deals damage equal to the number of instant or sorcery cards in your graveyard to target creature or player.
"It's important to learn from one's mistakes. I've learnt from yours, at the very least."
Manastatic Engine 4
Artifact (U)
Whenever you cast an instant or sorcery spell, Manastatic Engine deals 1 damage to target creature or player.
Storm of Brilliance 4UR
Enchantment (R)
Whenever you cast an instant or sorcery spell, return target instant or sorcery card with converted mana cost less than that spell's from your graveyard to your hand.
You got 99 attackers but I'm blocking with 1.
The Winner is Judge | 7
This Winner is Also Judge | 6
Club Flamingo | Lots
You got 99 attackers but I'm blocking with 1.
The Winner is Judge | 7
This Winner is Also Judge | 6
Club Flamingo | Lots