Amrou Dodger can't be blocked by creatures with power 3 or greater.
[2/2]
Seafloor Elemental3UU
Creature — Elemental [C]
Islandwalk
Whenever Seafloor Elemental attacks, look at the top card of your library. You may put that card into your graveyard.
[2/5]
Shrieking Wraith2B
Creature — Wraith [U]
Swampwalk
When Shrieking Wraith enters the battlefield, target player reveals a number of cards from his or her hand equal to the number of Swamps you control. You choose one of them. That player discards that card.
Dodger is probably fine at :1mana::symw:, but I don't mind it at :symw::symw: either. It's actually probably a lot better than Ajani's Sunstriker, for instance, and I like seeing this kind of evasion at common.
Seafloor Elemental is classic uncommon material. (See: Belltower Sphinx.) Admittedly Islandwalk isn't as good as flying, but the ability is complex enough to warrant it, and the stats are good, too.
Thumb Collector is a perfect name and a cute card.
I'd prefer it if Shrieking Wraith just flew, to be honest. It's weird that he rewards your Swamps and punishes opposing Swamps. I guess the stats get suspiciously similar to Liliana's Shade that way, but I'm fine with that. Though also a black-heavier cost makes sense on this guy, too...
Sure on Bull Hippo, though I am worried about a slight preponderance (heh) of Hill Giants running around in your limited format.
Dodger is probably fine at :1mana::symw:, but I don't mind it at :symw::symw: either. It's actually probably a lot better than Ajani's Sunstriker, for instance, and I like seeing this kind of evasion at common.
...
Sure on Bull Hippo, though I am worried about a slight preponderance (heh) of Hill Giants running around in your limited format.
In response to your two statements — which are related even if you didn't realize it — let me simply point out two other cards in the set: Euthanize and my O-Naginata reprint.
Seafloor Elemental is classic uncommon material. (See: Belltower Sphinx.) Admittedly Islandwalk isn't as good as flying, but the ability is complex enough to warrant it, and the stats are good, too.
For complexity's sake, it could be uncommon. But so could Merfolk Spy. I want to blow some of my NWO common complexity points, here. The reason I want to blow them on this modest-looking guy is that this card is acting as an anchor for many different concepts in both the XI Limited environment and the Standard meta. Let me enumerate them:
He's above the threshold of the set's biggest damage spells. (Limited)
He's the most expensive creature in the set that can get taken out by the previously-mentioned Euthanize. (Limited)
His Rummaging Wizard ability ties him to the milling subtheme of the previous block. (Dominaria, Standard.)
His Rummaging Wizard ability ties him to the primary combat theme of the next block. (Call to Glory, Standard.)
Islandwalk also ties him to the landwalk subtheme of the next block. (Call to Glory, Standard.)
I want an Islandwalker at common to interact with Sea Sculptor.
Because he lives at all of these crossroads simultaneously, I would say he's the closest thing I have to a poster child for Eleventh Edition at this point. That's why I want him at common.
I'd prefer it if Shrieking Wraith just flew, to be honest. It's weird that he rewards your Swamps and punishes opposing Swamps.
I wanted a strong (Standard-competitive) landwalker in this set, for the theoretical landwalk.deq that I'm hoping might emerge from Call to Glory block. Landwalk is mostly going to live in black and blue in CtG block, with maybe a tiny touch of green.
I know right now that landwalk.deq is going to have not very much overlap with the traditional MBC build that I'm also pushing in this environment. I wanted to seed a card into this set that landwalk.deq can maindeck, and that MBC will have a hard time answering. I hope that Shrieking Wraith is that card.
Two parts inertia (3/3 landwalkers for 3G have always been uncommon,) one part "color hosers belong at uncommon," and one part "I don't need any more common Hill Giants in this set."
Elemental should scry when damage is dealt, just because every other card works that way.
I hate Wraith. Burnt out from Duress and Thoughtseize.
Hippo should be beast type. Isn't Hippo one of the types they changed (like they changed bee to insect)?
Seafloor Elemental - I'm not treating scry as evergreen until WotC says that it's evergreen. But even if it was, this ability is functionally different, and I still prefer it here.
Shrieking Wrath - I'm giving black a different-from-usual discard suite in this set. There is no Duress or other 1 CMC Duress variant. Instead it's Horrifying Revelation and Stupor. This Wraith is much slower than Duress and it works on a scale. The reason I want it this way, believe it or not, is because I don't want black to be able to cherry-pick your hand very easily. So, I'm right there with you in the anti-Duress camp, at least for this set. But discard is central to black's pie, so it's going to be in the set, and I want that discard to be playable. This Wraith is part of a strategy to give you more opportunity to protect your key cards.
Bull Hippo - Hippo is still a supported creature type. There just aren't very many of them. The trend to turn everything into a Beast has been well on the road to reversal ever since Onslaught block. What it boils down to is this: I don't care if WotC's godbook study shows that new players think Beasts or Wolves are more radicool than Hippos, I'm a Hippo man and I'm sticking to my Hippo plan.
Creature — Kithkin Rogue [C]
Amrou Dodger can't be blocked by creatures with power 3 or greater.
[2/2]
Creature — Elemental [C]
Islandwalk
Whenever Seafloor Elemental attacks, look at the top card of your library. You may put that card into your graveyard.
[2/5]
Creature — Wraith [U]
Swampwalk
When Shrieking Wraith enters the battlefield, target player reveals a number of cards from his or her hand equal to the number of Swamps you control. You choose one of them. That player discards that card.
[2/1]
Creature — Goblin Warrior [C]
Intimidate
[1/1]
Creature — Hippo [U]
Islandwalk
[3/3]
Seafloor Elemental is classic uncommon material. (See: Belltower Sphinx.) Admittedly Islandwalk isn't as good as flying, but the ability is complex enough to warrant it, and the stats are good, too.
Thumb Collector is a perfect name and a cute card.
I'd prefer it if Shrieking Wraith just flew, to be honest. It's weird that he rewards your Swamps and punishes opposing Swamps. I guess the stats get suspiciously similar to Liliana's Shade that way, but I'm fine with that. Though also a black-heavier cost makes sense on this guy, too...
Sure on Bull Hippo, though I am worried about a slight preponderance (heh) of Hill Giants running around in your limited format.
In response to your two statements — which are related even if you didn't realize it — let me simply point out two other cards in the set: Euthanize and my O-Naginata reprint.
For complexity's sake, it could be uncommon. But so could Merfolk Spy. I want to blow some of my NWO common complexity points, here. The reason I want to blow them on this modest-looking guy is that this card is acting as an anchor for many different concepts in both the XI Limited environment and the Standard meta. Let me enumerate them:
I wanted a strong (Standard-competitive) landwalker in this set, for the theoretical landwalk.deq that I'm hoping might emerge from Call to Glory block. Landwalk is mostly going to live in black and blue in CtG block, with maybe a tiny touch of green.
I know right now that landwalk.deq is going to have not very much overlap with the traditional MBC build that I'm also pushing in this environment. I wanted to seed a card into this set that landwalk.deq can maindeck, and that MBC will have a hard time answering. I hope that Shrieking Wraith is that card.
I dunno. Why do you think so?
Personally, I am saddened by the lack of Hippos in Magic. And Badgers.
What does WotC have against Hippos, anyway?
Probably the same thing that they have against Brushwaggs.
On another note, why is the hippo uncommon?
Storm Crow is strictly worse than Seacoast Drake.
Two parts inertia (3/3 landwalkers for 3G have always been uncommon,) one part "color hosers belong at uncommon," and one part "I don't need any more common Hill Giants in this set."
Compare: Zendikar Farguide.
Ditto.
Also, Turtles.
Elemental should scry when damage is dealt, just because every other card works that way.
I hate Wraith. Burnt out from Duress and Thoughtseize.
LOL
Hippo should be beast type. Isn't Hippo one of the types they changed (like they changed bee to insect)?
But I also propose even distribution of number of cards in each rarity: Large set: 60 c, 60 u, 60 r, 60 m.
Probabilities of particular cards: Common 7/60, Uncommon 1/12, Rare 1/20, Mythic 1/60.
Seafloor Elemental - I'm not treating scry as evergreen until WotC says that it's evergreen. But even if it was, this ability is functionally different, and I still prefer it here.
Shrieking Wrath - I'm giving black a different-from-usual discard suite in this set. There is no Duress or other 1 CMC Duress variant. Instead it's Horrifying Revelation and Stupor. This Wraith is much slower than Duress and it works on a scale. The reason I want it this way, believe it or not, is because I don't want black to be able to cherry-pick your hand very easily. So, I'm right there with you in the anti-Duress camp, at least for this set. But discard is central to black's pie, so it's going to be in the set, and I want that discard to be playable. This Wraith is part of a strategy to give you more opportunity to protect your key cards.
Bull Hippo - Hippo is still a supported creature type. There just aren't very many of them. The trend to turn everything into a Beast has been well on the road to reversal ever since Onslaught block. What it boils down to is this: I don't care if WotC's godbook study shows that new players think Beasts or Wolves are more radicool than Hippos, I'm a Hippo man and I'm sticking to my Hippo plan.