Share Your Favorite Hidden Gem

Do you have a favorite custom card that you feel deserves more attention? Share it here and let's give it the spotlight it deserves! This is a place for us to discover and appreciate unique and well-designed cards that might not get as much attention as they should. Please make sure to provide a brief explanation of the card's abilities and why you think it's a hidden gem.

Instructions: To participate, simply post the name of the card, its image, and a brief explanation of its abilities. Feel free to rate its design 1 to 10 and include any other details that you think would be relevant. Once you've posted your card, take some time to browse through the other submissions and leave a comment or review on the ones that catch your eye. Let's show some love to these hidden gems!

Comments

  • Who is this cardsmith you speak of?
  • The first hidden gem cardsmith and my inspiration for making this challenge is @TheBiggestBrainMindsculptor. This cardsmith is largely unnoticed because they joined recently so I choose a few of their cards that I personally liked.


    https://mtgcardsmith.com/view/mysterious-comrade-1?list=set&set=69243

    The first of their cards that I enjoyed is Mysterious Comrade. This card is simple, consise, but carries alot of flavor. The changeling ability not only adds to versatility, but it also adds to customizability and flavor. The partner ability alows you to have a commander with a color identity in your deck, keeping this card from being limited, while adding to the intrigue. The choose a background ability helps give our mysterious comrade a backstory, and allows our comrade to be able to dish benefits to the deck as a whole.

    With this card you can have your Acolyte of Bahamut in your Miirym, Sentinel Wyrm or Tiamat dragon decks and still have it benifit from being a dragon due to changeling. You can run devastatating combos like Cult Orzhov Krenko with devastating results and lot of foder left over. Finally you can just simply make the Mysterious comrade more mysterious by introducing confusion to the table with both it and your partner commander using shameless charlatan.

    Overall I would rate this card 10/10 for flavor, 10/10 for wording, and 10/10 for applicability. This card has potential to really pop off or flump depending on how you customise your mysterious partner.



    https://mtgcardsmith.com/view/haraflen-seeker-of-talents?list=set&set=69243

    The next card from the rightfully named BigMind is Haraflen, Seeker Of Traits. I love this card because it puts a focus on the number of creature types rather than the creature types itself. Afterall it is only natural that a seeker of talents would seek many talented creatures. My biggest qualm with this is with the current wording, cards with the changeling ability can easily and consistently trigger this marker kind of destroying the flavor in my opinion. With this card as your commander you can conscript talented individuals such as big game hunter which has syrenergy with his recruiting agency Amrou Scout and Blight Speaker. Civic Wayfinder can serve as a talented guide, as well a a warrior. To close it off you can have Goldnight Commander Motivate your team and gain syrenergy with Haraflen. Overall flavor wise I would rate this card 8/10, wording has a few minor typos and loopholes so I would rate it 6/10, and I would rate applicability 7/10.


    https://mtgcardsmith.com/view/yaddic-rapacious-tyrant-1?list=set&set=68915

    Finally we have Yaddic, Rapacious Tyrant. A cheap early game commander who has syrenergy with poison counters with a high risk but easily mitigatable repeatable draw for white. Yaddic essentially acts like a mini immortal sun for your orzhov deck while offering a commander which can kill in as few as ten hits if allowed to. If I was building on this card I would build a duo toxic/lifegain deck using cards like cleric class, Skrelv's hive, Necrogen communion, as well as cards that enable doublestrike like duelist's heritage. This card has the potential to be a leathal piece if left an answered. It is also a potent and hard to remove commander if built right. The card feels tyranty so I will give the card 5/10 on the flavor scale could use a bit more salt though (maybe toxic 2) in my opinion to spice things up. On the wording I would personally rate it a 10/10, looks clean and structured to me. On the applicability I would rate this card a 8/10
  • @jpastor I lenghtly reviewed them for your convinence. Show em some love! :smile:
  • edited April 2023
    As per the suggestions of @jpastor, I have broadened this to allow everyone to post a comprehensive review on cardsmiths they feel deserve recognition.

    Simply use the criteria listed and try to aim for three good cards that you think are a good representation of the cardsmith
  • ?GEM ALERT ??
    Here's a couple cards by @Creid233 that I'd rate 9.5/10, though I seem to be the only one to favorite them so far. Let me know what you think about these two if you have time!

    Altar of Ascension
    Altar of Ascension by Creid233 | MTG Cardsmith

    It's a well-designed card that with Offering (Betrayers of Kamigawa), which, alone as a mechanic, synergizes well with the concept of a commander. The fact that, on this card, it applies to all commanders you own in the command zone is a nice touch that encourages players to build around a particular creature type. The only potential downside, which knocks .5 off my overall rating, is that it may be a bit too powerful in some commander decks, but that can be balanced by adjusting the mana cost or other factors. Overall, it's a great card with a lot of potential, and I'm all for mythic rare cards with 2 sentences of ability text when it works!

    Azusa Her Steps Foretold
    Azusa, Her Steps Foretold by Creid233 | MTG Cardsmith

    This card has a strong ability that fits well within the green color identity, allowing the player to play an additional land each turn. The Eminence ability (Commander 2017) adds another layer of utility, allowing the player to exile a basic land card from their library and play it later when the time counters have been removed. The card is also well-balanced and appropriately costed, with a reasonable power and toughness for its mana cost and rarity. Overall, a very strong and well-designed card. Of course, it lacks a little flavor with the set symbol and no subtypes, as well as a subpar artwork for a custom magic card, but these are all beside the design itself and simply just don't complete the package, deducting 0.5 points from a perfect score in my eyes.
  • Altar Of Ascension definetely has the potential to pop off in commander. A big downside would probably be the shenigans warping madness this has the potential to cause. 
  • Yes - hence my deduction of .5 from a perfect score. Stuff like that can't be stopped. WotC accidentally makes cards they need to ban often. There's always combos hidden away somewhere that may or may not have been factored into the design.
  • GEM ALERT from @andylewis42037

    Remiem Temple Calm before Sin
    Remiem Temple, Calm before Sin by andylewis42037 | MTG Cardsmith

    The card has a unique and powerful effect, providing both indestructibility and hexproof. Its ability to generate any color of mana makes it versatile, while the card draw effect is a nice bonus that synergizes well with aeon-themed decks. The only potential downside is that it is a legendary land, meaning you can only have one in play at a time, but that is a small trade-off for the benefits it provides.
  • GEM ALERT(?)

    Dark Depths From https://mtgcardsmith.com/user/Derivator
    https://mtgcardsmith.com/view/dark-depths-14


    I simply just love the concept of the card. summoning card that creates an op card, but balanced by a costly stalling. It's basically a ticking timebomb due to the difficulty and rarity of land destruction. Though it is possible since it cant be activated until at least turn 12, with ideal circumstances. Not everyone's cup of tea, but I'm sure I'm not the only one who wants to see more cards like this.

    Here's also the Avatar token.



  • This GEM seems to continue to go under the radar.
    From @FireOfGolden
    Reaper the AU Balancer
    Reaper, the AU Balancer by FireOfGolden | MTG Cardsmith

    This card has a really cool ability that lets you create soul tokens and use them to gain mana, which is pretty neat! Plus, the combination of deathtouch and indestructible makes it a really tough creature to take down. However, the cost of {4}{b}{b/g} is a bit high, and the ability might not always come in handy. That being said, overall, it's a really flavorful and interesting card that could definitely have a place in certain decks! 9?
  • I think it is a neat concept. I think the spirit tokens should still sac. Maybe "{t}, Exile a creature from your graveyard: Add one mana of any color." That would make the second ability more usefull as it bypasses exile. 
  • @jpastor Awesome, thanks!
  • Here's dope card that I really enjoy, but it has no faves

    Depthcaller Turi
    https://mtgcardsmith.com/view/depthcaller-turi?list=user

    The card has a strong and synergistic ability that fits well with its creature type and theme. The condition tied to controlling a Kiora planeswalker adds an additional layer of synergy and strategic decision-making. The flavor text adds context and depth to the card, suggesting a familial connection and growth in knowledge.
    - rewards spellcasting and synergy
    - encourages strategic deck-building to Merfolk or spell-focused
    - provides a theme and flavor
    - offers flexibility and potential for explosive token gen
  • I thought this topic was the video sharing topic but it isn't, so I didn't mess up and post my own card here by accident thank God lol. Anyways this looks fun, I went ahead and favored all of these cards they look very cool and useful. I'm going to go through some I had favorited before and post up here. Hopefully you guys might like what I pick.

  • https://mtgcardsmith.com/view/stubborn-will?list=set&set=32500

    @fraziel07 deserves some credit for this card from a few years back. It's one that I think should be play tested if it hasn't been already. Anyways, it only has one favorite from me so that is another reason why I picked this card.
  • I feel like this card would have more flavor if it was cheaper but had a sacrifice clause. It would also line up more with the flavor. @fraziel07, @exaltedmarauder
  • @Tonysparks I see what you mean yeah, it could also give it a lesser mana value casting cost. I still just like the simpleness of this card yet it packs a punch. Btw I gave you a follow on both your accounts tony with my Exalted account.
  • Rahel Serran Angel
    Rahel, Serran Angel by spookoops | MTG Cardsmith

    Another bigtime card with no favorites. I really like this one. 
    1. The +1 provides flexibility and can be used defensively or offensively depending on the situation.
    2. The -X gives the planeswalker the ability to act as removal.
    3. The mana cost of the card reflects its powerful abilities and the range of colors required to cast it. This makes it more suitable for mid-to-late game scenarios.
    4. It offers flexibility, removal, and a game-winning ultimate ability.
    5. It can be a centerpiece of certain strategies or deck archetypes.
    Good stuff - 90/100 for my thoughts here.
  • Knight Wolf Leader
    Knight Wolf Leader by DJDoubless | MTG Cardsmith

    The Wolves upon entering adds evasive board presence for 4 mana in black/red. This ability can help the player to establish a strong offensive presence and apply pressure to the opponent. 

    The passive ability rewards the player for their opponent's creature removal or combat losses, balancing life total with black/red onslaughts. 

    versatile and impactful
    offensive and defensive
    useful in a variety of game situations
    promotes an aggressive playstyle while also providing some resilience
    offers strategic options and synergies
    token strategies, aggression, or life gain

    90/100
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