The legendary spy Scarlet Jane died. How and why was unknown, but her death drove groups of her colleagues, proteges, ex-lovers and even her old enemies to try and figure out the whole story. What they uncovered has launched a killing spree, now known as the War of Shadow, that left the ranks of the spy business nearly empty, as agents and informant found their deaths in various ways.
This has been Jane's plan all along. By pitting her many acquaintances against each other, she managed to get rid of anyone who might interfere with her desire to leave the spy world.
But Jane's plan was not perfect. Even after she tried to tie the loose ends, there were still survivors, and they sought vengeance. Two succeeded, or at least that's what they believe.
Now those two are the last and the best of the spies left in the world after the War of Shadow. And now their going head to head against each other, until there is only one grand spymaster left.
Welcome to the final poll!
In this arena two spymasters fight for glory (and for the opportunity to get an ending to the story). Enter, the fighters:
Hiding in the shadows, once a trusted colleague of Scarlet Jane, now scarred by her betrayal, a thought-trader turned dream maker is...
Ninja Caterpie
... And disguised as an innocent pen-pusher, a student of Jane now bent on proving that he can outdo his treacherous mistress. Formally known as 'Mindcrime', now seeming as a simple city servant is...
Prophylaxis
The mission given to our two contestants: 1) Design a land card to be your new headquarters. Will you hide in the slums? Some clandestine branch of the government? Or perhaps hide in plain sight, within the palaces of the royalty? (you may choose other options as well, up to you) 2) Design an enchantment that best described the ideal that guides you. Are you patriotic? Making your own move for power? Doing this out of force of habit alone? (Once again, you can choose whatever you want, not just the options listed. You may also name your card a name already in use, for example Duplicity, as long as the design is original)
(This two challenges will affect your ending!) 3) Design two creature cards to be your new recruits. They need to have some synergy with you (and by that I mean your new identity from round 4) 4) Design a card to get rid of the other guy (and by that, I mean their round 4 identities)
Hall of Dreams
Land (R) T: Add 1 to your mana pool. 3WU,T, Tap an untapped creature you control: Draw a card.
Ideal
Justice2WW
Enchantment (R)
At the beginning of each end step, exile each creature that dealt damage this turn unless its controller taps it. Creatures tapped this way don't untap during their controller's next untap steps.
Sidekicks
Novice Lullmage1U
Creature - Human Wizard (U)
Flash
Sacrifice Novice Lullmage: Tap target creature. It doesn't untap during its controller's next untap step.
2/1
Dream Extractor2U
Creature - Human Wizard (U) 1U,T: Target player reveals X cards from his or her hand, where X is the number of tapped creatures he or she controls.
1/3
Ending Prophylaxis
Eternal Slumber2WU
Enchantment - Aura (U)
Enchant creature
At the beginning of each upkeep, if enchanted creature is untapped, tap it. If you do, each player draws a card.
Ghostly Landscape
Land (R) T: Add 1 to your mana pool. 1WB,T, sacrifice Ghostly Landshifter: Search target opponent's library for a land and put it onto the battlefield tapped under your control. "The ghosts take on the form of what new landscapes the traveling spirits bring back."
Crol of Arkan
IN>>>>>SNAITY
Insanity4UR
Enchantment (R)
Whenever you cast an instant or sorcery spell that targets only a single permanent or player, copy that spell for each other permanent or player the spell could target. Each copy targets a different one of those permanents and players.
Useful utility creature.
Lawful Banisher3W
Creature - Human Wizard (U)
When Lawful Banisher enters the battlefield, exile target creature with two time counters on it. If it doesn't have suspend, it gains suspend.
2/4
Splashy Relentless Assault variant
Endless Warmonger2RRR
Creature - Human Berserker (R)
When Endless Warmonger enters the battlefield, untap all creatures that attacked this turn. Creatures you control gain haste until end of turn. After this main phase, there is an additional combat phase followed by an additional main phase.
2/2
ENDING NINJA CATERPIE
Tracking Network4BB
Enchantment (R)
At the beginning of your upkeep, destroy all creatures with tracking counters on them, then put a tracking counter on target creature. "I'll make a GUI interface using Visual Basic to track the killer's IP address."
And now it's up to you, they hidden players in the spy game. Vote for the best spy of them all!
Ninja:
As opposed to the Dream Halls. Seems fine I suppose.
Justice is a little awkward, when would you ever choose to exile the guy? It doesn't specify they have to be untapped, so you can attack and just miss your next untap instead of being exiled.
Lullmage, I guess, I wish it was like Matsu-Tribe ability or whatever so he could just flash in and block.
I guess Dream Extractor is ok, useful to gain knowledge in Limited but wouldn't want to spend the mana on it very often.
Not sure what is going on with Narcolepsy + everybody draw for double the cost.
Prophy:
Stealing lands is kind of neat I suppose, not sure if white has very much to do with it though. Black green maybe?
Insanity is cool, would like to see a permanent Radiate.
Banisher, ok, seen this sort of thing a lot but it's good in white.
Warmonger is just a sad version of Aurelia that can't even attack in the first attack step
I like the kill spell.
Verdict: Prophylaxis was pushing stuff more. Revealing X cards was the most interesting ability on Ninja's side, but permanent Radiate, stealing lands out of library, and tracking counters were all good for Prophy. He shall be the current top small child.
Hall of Dreams
Land (R) T: Add 1 to your mana pool. 3WU,T, Tap an untapped creature you control: Draw a card.
Ideal
Justice2WW
Enchantment (R)
At the beginning of each end step, exile each creature that dealt damage this turn unless its controller taps it. Creatures tapped this way don't untap during their controller's next untap steps.
Sidekicks
Novice Lullmage1U
Creature - Human Wizard (U)
Flash
Sacrifice Novice Lullmage: Tap target creature. It doesn't untap during its controller's next untap step.
2/1
Dream Extractor2U
Creature - Human Wizard (U) 1U,T: Target player reveals X cards from his or her hand, where X is the number of tapped creatures he or she controls.
1/3
Ending Prophylaxis
Eternal Slumber2WU
Enchantment - Aura (U)
Enchant creature
At the beginning of each upkeep, if enchanted creature is untapped, tap it. If you do, each player draws a card.
Hall of Dreams is a decent card that can be really powerful in certain situations. I'm not sure if Wizards would ever print a multi-color, uncounterable Whispers of the Muse that also serve as a mana accelerator in early game, but it's not broken or anything imo.
Justice is weird. Why would anyone ever choose not to tap their creature if it means exiling it? No Mercy was never powerful, and a white version, especially a strange one like this does not improve it's status.
Novice Lullmage is ok. I wish Wizards would make up their mind on which color gets this ability. It makes sense in blue, but the card itself feels more white to me. Might be a good candidate for hybrid. It's also more efficiant than I'd like for a blue creature, but that probably deends on the metagame.
Dream Extractor would make sense in a set where there was an actual downside to revealing your hand (like the set I'm designing in the January CCL), but on it's own it looks off. With some black mana thrown in, you could easily add an "choose a card from it, that player discard that card" clause, and make it more powerful.
Eternal Slumber is a cross between Narcolepsy and Howling Mine, and the global effect does not do it good. Rarify it, and make it "draw a card", and you would have really got something.
Where would Noxe want to live in?
Ghostly Landscape
Land (R) T: Add 1 to your mana pool. 1WB,T, sacrifice Ghostly Landshifter: Search target opponent's library for a land and put it onto the battlefield tapped under your control. "The ghosts take on the form of what new landscapes the traveling spirits bring back."
Crol of Arkan
IN>>>>>SNAITY
Insanity4UR
Enchantment (R)
Whenever you cast an instant or sorcery spell that targets only a single permanent or player, copy that spell for each other permanent or player the spell could target. Each copy targets a different one of those permanents and players.
Useful utility creature.
Lawful Banisher3W
Creature - Human Wizard (U)
When Lawful Banisher enters the battlefield, exile target creature with two time counters on it. If it doesn't have suspend, it gains suspend.
2/4
Splashy Relentless Assault variant
Endless Warmonger2RRR
Creature - Human Berserker (R)
When Endless Warmonger enters the battlefield, untap all creatures that attacked this turn. Creatures you control gain haste until end of turn. After this main phase, there is an additional combat phase followed by an additional main phase.
2/2
ENDING NINJA CATERPIE
Tracking Network4BB
Enchantment (R)
At the beginning of your upkeep, destroy all creatures with tracking counters on them, then put a tracking counter on target creature. "I'll make a GUI interface using Visual Basic to track the killer's IP address."
The ability's colors on Ghostly Landscape are off. Blue gets to steal things out of opponent's libraries, and green usually searches for land. The flavor was not enough for me to justify the color choice. Balance is fine, ability might even cost a little less.
Insanity reminds me of a card I designed once. It was exactly the same, except blue and named Globalism. Since I obviously can't complain about designs I made myself, the card is fine. I'd knock off one mana from the cost, since it's a Johnny card anyway.
I like Lawful Banisher, but I think you could have made the effort to make it a common, for limited. It's not really removal after all, and as a 2/2 would make it a high pick utility creature.
Endless Warmonger feels pretty generic, and also screams for haste. It's just Relentless Assault with a body, and it doesn't even gets to join in on the alpha strike. Pretty meh.
Tracking Network is a good Timmy rare, and also a decent remaking for The Abyss. I'm not a fan of the fourth-wall breaking flavor, though, but I guess it might make sense if your avatar is insane.
My vote goes to:
Prophylaxis
And the winner is..... Prophylaxis. Congrats.
In addition to the usual rewards of winning a CCL, you also get your own special ending:
The merchants of the market bow their heads as you walk pass them. They don't really recognize you, but they respect the marks of a civil servant. Of course, that's only a cover for you, but it has it's benefits. Some of the more eager merchants try and approach you with offers of some exotic merchandise, but they change their minds when they look into your eyes. You're not here to shop anyway. You enjoy the market mostly because it gives you the opportunity to hear some local gossip, and with it, an opportunity to track your work.
This evening, the merchant are all whispering rumors of the disappearance of the Fifth Imperial Legion. Ah... yes that was a fun little excursion. And the Sultanate is going to be blamed, of course. That's always a nice touch. It's amazing how easy it is to stir things up if you only pull on a few little strings.
There is a metallic taste to the air. The wind has changed its directions. The noise of the street grows louder. A storm is coming, and the merchants are packing their stalls in a hurry. You should probably return to the headquarters.
The ephemeral features of the ghostly landscape greet you as you enter. No one in their right mind would choose to live here, which is of course why you did. The various ghosts travel around you. You don't really care anymore if they are actually there or are figments of your imagination. You no longer feel bound by the need for sanity that everyone else clings to these days. Life is so much more liberating when you don't need to worry about the implications, and just enjoy the show. It also helps that the show is on as grand a scale as possible.
There is a package, though. Payment for services rendered. You usually pay these no mind. If some ruler wants to think you work in their services, that's their problem. You're just doing what's more interesting to you. The payments are just a way of keeping score, really.
There something that catches your eye though. A bottle, dark reddish glass, the faded label shows a laughing demon's head. Devil's Due, Year of the Tortoise. Quite the luxury. It reminds you of different times, when you were... someone else. This would be the perfect companion as you watch the army getting ready to march on the Sultanate.
You get everything ready. You yell at the ghosts to leave. Some things are far more enjoyable alone. You mutter to yourself as you struggle with the cork. It's old, and doesn't yield easily. When you open the bottle the scent of it fills you with giddiness. This is going to be a good night. You take your glass and tip the bottle into it.
There is no liquid, but something else falls into the glass. You pick it up, and nearly scream in anger when you realize what it is.
Epilogue – Whatever the Game Brings
The Story So Far:
Round One
Round Two
Round Three
Top 8
Semifinals
Finals
The legendary spy Scarlet Jane died. How and why was unknown, but her death drove groups of her colleagues, proteges, ex-lovers and even her old enemies to try and figure out the whole story. What they uncovered has launched a killing spree, now known as the War of Shadow, that left the ranks of the spy business nearly empty, as agents and informant found their deaths in various ways.
This has been Jane's plan all along. By pitting her many acquaintances against each other, she managed to get rid of anyone who might interfere with her desire to leave the spy world.
But Jane's plan was not perfect. Even after she tried to tie the loose ends, there were still survivors, and they sought vengeance. Two succeeded, or at least that's what they believe.
Now those two are the last and the best of the spies left in the world after the War of Shadow. And now their going head to head against each other, until there is only one grand spymaster left.
Welcome to the final poll!
In this arena two spymasters fight for glory (and for the opportunity to get an ending to the story). Enter, the fighters:
Hiding in the shadows, once a trusted colleague of Scarlet Jane, now scarred by her betrayal, a thought-trader turned dream maker is...
1) Design a land card to be your new headquarters. Will you hide in the slums? Some clandestine branch of the government? Or perhaps hide in plain sight, within the palaces of the royalty? (you may choose other options as well, up to you)
2) Design an enchantment that best described the ideal that guides you. Are you patriotic? Making your own move for power? Doing this out of force of habit alone? (Once again, you can choose whatever you want, not just the options listed. You may also name your card a name already in use, for example Duplicity, as long as the design is original)
(This two challenges will affect your ending!)
3) Design two creature cards to be your new recruits. They need to have some synergy with you (and by that I mean your new identity from round 4)
4) Design a card to get rid of the other guy (and by that, I mean their round 4 identities)
Their answer to the challenge:
And now it's up to you, they hidden players in the spy game. Vote for the best spy of them all!
Good luck to both players, you've been awesome.
Host, December 2015: A Winter Wonderland? - R1|R2|R3|Top 8|Semifinals|Finals|Poll
Host, CCL April 2014: A Game of Fate - Signup|R1|R2|R3|Top 8|Semifinal|Finals|Poll
Host, CCL December 2012: Spy Games - Signup|R1|R2|R3|Top 8|Semifinals|Finals|Poll
Host, CCL November 2010: The Perfect Crime - Signup|R1|R2|R3|Top 8|Semifinals|Finals|Poll
Host, CCL August 2009: A Commander's Journey: Signups|R1|R2|R3|Top 8|Semifinals|Finals|Poll
I've got tons of art from the web. Want art for a render? PM me! Want to create your own collection? Start here!
I would appreciate any feedback on our cards.
I'll give some crits after I get my cards done for the CCL Round 2.
You got 99 attackers but I'm blocking with 1.
The Winner is Judge | 7
This Winner is Also Judge | 6
Club Flamingo | Lots
As opposed to the Dream Halls. Seems fine I suppose.
Justice is a little awkward, when would you ever choose to exile the guy? It doesn't specify they have to be untapped, so you can attack and just miss your next untap instead of being exiled.
Lullmage, I guess, I wish it was like Matsu-Tribe ability or whatever so he could just flash in and block.
I guess Dream Extractor is ok, useful to gain knowledge in Limited but wouldn't want to spend the mana on it very often.
Not sure what is going on with Narcolepsy + everybody draw for double the cost.
Prophy:
Stealing lands is kind of neat I suppose, not sure if white has very much to do with it though. Black green maybe?
Insanity is cool, would like to see a permanent Radiate.
Banisher, ok, seen this sort of thing a lot but it's good in white.
Warmonger is just a sad version of Aurelia that can't even attack in the first attack step
I like the kill spell.
Verdict: Prophylaxis was pushing stuff more. Revealing X cards was the most interesting ability on Ninja's side, but permanent Radiate, stealing lands out of library, and tracking counters were all good for Prophy. He shall be the current top small child.
Host, December 2015: A Winter Wonderland? - R1|R2|R3|Top 8|Semifinals|Finals|Poll
Host, CCL April 2014: A Game of Fate - Signup|R1|R2|R3|Top 8|Semifinal|Finals|Poll
Host, CCL December 2012: Spy Games - Signup|R1|R2|R3|Top 8|Semifinals|Finals|Poll
Host, CCL November 2010: The Perfect Crime - Signup|R1|R2|R3|Top 8|Semifinals|Finals|Poll
Host, CCL August 2009: A Commander's Journey: Signups|R1|R2|R3|Top 8|Semifinals|Finals|Poll
I've got tons of art from the web. Want art for a render? PM me! Want to create your own collection? Start here!
Hall of Dreams is a decent card that can be really powerful in certain situations. I'm not sure if Wizards would ever print a multi-color, uncounterable Whispers of the Muse that also serve as a mana accelerator in early game, but it's not broken or anything imo.
Justice is weird. Why would anyone ever choose not to tap their creature if it means exiling it? No Mercy was never powerful, and a white version, especially a strange one like this does not improve it's status.
Novice Lullmage is ok. I wish Wizards would make up their mind on which color gets this ability. It makes sense in blue, but the card itself feels more white to me. Might be a good candidate for hybrid. It's also more efficiant than I'd like for a blue creature, but that probably deends on the metagame.
Dream Extractor would make sense in a set where there was an actual downside to revealing your hand (like the set I'm designing in the January CCL), but on it's own it looks off. With some black mana thrown in, you could easily add an "choose a card from it, that player discard that card" clause, and make it more powerful.
Eternal Slumber is a cross between Narcolepsy and Howling Mine, and the global effect does not do it good. Rarify it, and make it "draw a card", and you would have really got something.
The ability's colors on Ghostly Landscape are off. Blue gets to steal things out of opponent's libraries, and green usually searches for land. The flavor was not enough for me to justify the color choice. Balance is fine, ability might even cost a little less.
Insanity reminds me of a card I designed once. It was exactly the same, except blue and named Globalism. Since I obviously can't complain about designs I made myself, the card is fine. I'd knock off one mana from the cost, since it's a Johnny card anyway.
I like Lawful Banisher, but I think you could have made the effort to make it a common, for limited. It's not really removal after all, and as a 2/2 would make it a high pick utility creature.
Endless Warmonger feels pretty generic, and also screams for haste. It's just Relentless Assault with a body, and it doesn't even gets to join in on the alpha strike. Pretty meh.
Tracking Network is a good Timmy rare, and also a decent remaking for The Abyss. I'm not a fan of the fourth-wall breaking flavor, though, but I guess it might make sense if your avatar is insane.
My vote goes to:
Prophylaxis
And the winner is..... Prophylaxis. Congrats.
In addition to the usual rewards of winning a CCL, you also get your own special ending:
The merchants of the market bow their heads as you walk pass them. They don't really recognize you, but they respect the marks of a civil servant. Of course, that's only a cover for you, but it has it's benefits. Some of the more eager merchants try and approach you with offers of some exotic merchandise, but they change their minds when they look into your eyes. You're not here to shop anyway. You enjoy the market mostly because it gives you the opportunity to hear some local gossip, and with it, an opportunity to track your work.
This evening, the merchant are all whispering rumors of the disappearance of the Fifth Imperial Legion. Ah... yes that was a fun little excursion. And the Sultanate is going to be blamed, of course. That's always a nice touch. It's amazing how easy it is to stir things up if you only pull on a few little strings.
There is a metallic taste to the air. The wind has changed its directions. The noise of the street grows louder. A storm is coming, and the merchants are packing their stalls in a hurry. You should probably return to the headquarters.
The ephemeral features of the ghostly landscape greet you as you enter. No one in their right mind would choose to live here, which is of course why you did. The various ghosts travel around you. You don't really care anymore if they are actually there or are figments of your imagination. You no longer feel bound by the need for sanity that everyone else clings to these days. Life is so much more liberating when you don't need to worry about the implications, and just enjoy the show. It also helps that the show is on as grand a scale as possible.
There is a package, though. Payment for services rendered. You usually pay these no mind. If some ruler wants to think you work in their services, that's their problem. You're just doing what's more interesting to you. The payments are just a way of keeping score, really.
There something that catches your eye though. A bottle, dark reddish glass, the faded label shows a laughing demon's head. Devil's Due, Year of the Tortoise. Quite the luxury. It reminds you of different times, when you were... someone else. This would be the perfect companion as you watch the army getting ready to march on the Sultanate.
You get everything ready. You yell at the ghosts to leave. Some things are far more enjoyable alone. You mutter to yourself as you struggle with the cork. It's old, and doesn't yield easily. When you open the bottle the scent of it fills you with giddiness. This is going to be a good night. You take your glass and tip the bottle into it.
There is no liquid, but something else falls into the glass. You pick it up, and nearly scream in anger when you realize what it is.
In your hand is a single red thread.
Host, December 2015: A Winter Wonderland? - R1|R2|R3|Top 8|Semifinals|Finals|Poll
Host, CCL April 2014: A Game of Fate - Signup|R1|R2|R3|Top 8|Semifinal|Finals|Poll
Host, CCL December 2012: Spy Games - Signup|R1|R2|R3|Top 8|Semifinals|Finals|Poll
Host, CCL November 2010: The Perfect Crime - Signup|R1|R2|R3|Top 8|Semifinals|Finals|Poll
Host, CCL August 2009: A Commander's Journey: Signups|R1|R2|R3|Top 8|Semifinals|Finals|Poll
I've got tons of art from the web. Want art for a render? PM me! Want to create your own collection? Start here!
Thanks for the win, everybody! This was probably one of the better CCL's I've played in and the flavor was excellent. Thanks, Asrama, for hosting!