ENCOUNTERS - GAME ON!

Korora12

(It looks like I'm gonna have to step out for a bit. I'm going to have extremely limited wifi for the next week or so.)

jpastor

First off, I forgot to show the fatesealed cards to the community from @cadstar369's spell.
The cards were:

Phantom of the Veil by jpastor | MTG Cardsmith

The Phantasmal Specter, seeing the community's response, decides to take swift action to counter their moves. 


Mystic Disruption by jpastor | MTG Cardsmith

The Phantasmal Specter aims to disrupt the casting of Ectoplasma Discharge by countering it unless the community pays a cost based on the number of cards in their graveyard.



The Phantasmal Specter utilizes Shadow Reclamation to bring back Phantom of the Veil from its graveyard, returning it to the battlefield under its control. The Phantasmal Specter sacrifices life equal to the creature's converted mana cost to accomplish this feat.

With these cards played, the Phantasmal Specter aims to maintain control and disrupt the community's strategies. How will the community respond to these cunning moves?

jpastor

@Korora12
Okay! No worries pal. We'll be here any time you can jump in or when you return. Cheers!

Robo_Kitty

Well if the phantasmal specter thinks it can control us, I think we should show it that we can control it as well. So I’ll play —

And with the protection from veil of summer I’ll cast —

Ha! Try casting spells from your graveyard now!

LvB

The Ghost responds to mystic disruption by paying 0 mana, since he doesnt have any cards in the graveyard. So ectoplasma discharge wont be countered i guess.

jpastor

The Phantasmal Specter, recognizing the community's efforts to protect themselves and disrupt its strategy, adjusts its plan accordingly.

1. The Phantasmal Specter plays:
(Edit: Changed It's to Its)


Shadow's Embrace by jpastor | MTG Cardsmith
Diminishing Returns - [Trigger], return [card name] to its owner's hand. Its mana cost increases by {1}.

The Phantasmal Specter targets one of the community's token Knight creatures with Shadow's Embrace, weakening it with a -2/-2 debuff. Additionally, the enchantment will return to the Phantasmal Specter's hand since the enchanted creature dies. Then the Phantasmal Specter casts it again on the other token Knight.

2. The Phantasmal Specter plays:



Selecting:


3. The Phantasmal Specter plays:


Fleshgrasp Nightmare by jpastor | MTG Cardsmith

The Phantasmal Specter targets one of the community's creatures with the Nightmare, destroying it. Then it searches its library for a creature card with mana value equal to or less than the destroyed creature's mana value, putting it onto the battlefield.

With these plays, the Phantasmal Specter aims to remove threats from the community's side while further advancing its own strategy. How will the community react to these?

Cards played: 9

smax765

Easy! Just do this:

Robo_Kitty

With Aven Mindcensor’s effect, that will make this card a lot more powerful.

Now we basically get a tutor every turn while the foe can only search the top four cards of its library.

jpastor

This has shut the Phantasmal Specter down! - VICTORY for the Community.

Encounter - Phantasmal Specter (Complete)

jpastor

Encounter - The Aetherbound

Deep within the heart of the ancient city, the community thrives amidst the shadows of towering structures. United by a shared purpose, they navigate the labyrinthine streets, their resilience tested by the ceaseless waves of turmoil. The air crackles with anticipation as they face a new challenge, unaware of the looming presence that watches from above.

The community finds itself facing some kind of colossal threat. At first, the city was plagued by seemingly misfortunate events, as several construction projects were halted due to unexpected accidents.

The foe plays:

Crippling Accidents by jpastor | MTG Cardsmith

Then, several inspirational leaders and motivational speakers started to display delusional behaviors, acting mad and confused. 

The foe plays:

Delusional Reverie by jpastor | MTG Cardsmith

The media began to paint this as an "Unknown Disease" affecting the sanity of the city. It wasn't until the major damages began that the city was beginning to pay attention to the matter. A few memorials and other significant structures began to collapse, apparently due to weakened infrastructure. A bridge connecting the two parts of the city began to sway in the wind, as if it would collapse any time.

It wasn't until someone caught a glimpse of something one night on camera that the community began to shift its understanding of the situation. High above the streets, above an impressive building, someone caught the glimpse of a giant winged creature disappearing out of view over the building's spire. The next morning, the building had a massive structural collapse and fell into another skyscraper. 

The foe plays:

Winged Menace by jpastor | MTG Cardsmith

The video went viral and media front-paged an image, titled "Culprit?"

The sightings only escalated from there, but never was anything detected beyond the normal flock of birds or occasional helicopter.

These cards represent the escalating turmoil and chaos brought upon by the unseen menace. The city's infrastructure crumbles, delusion takes hold of influential figures, and a winged creature strikes fear into the hearts of the community. The foe strategically plays these cards to sow further disruption and despair, setting the stage for an intense encounter with the community.

Roles

@Korora12 - The Entity

• The entity embodies a potential future foe but tries to defeat the current foe.

@Jadefire - The Queen

• The queen can only play cards with mana value 1 or less for the duration of the encounter.

@cadstar369 - The Librarian

• The can only post old cards they've created for the duration of the encounter.

@LvB - The King

• The king can only play cards with mana value 8 or greater for the duration of the encounter.

@Robo_Kitty - The Zoo Keeper (NEW!)

• The zookeeper can only play custom creature cards (any subtypes) or existing mtg creature cards with animal subtypes.

@smax765 - No role

jpastor

The above cards cannot be countered and are not in the game. They still count towards the foe's play count though.

Robo_Kitty

All right. Let’s start this encounter off with some pure bulk. We are going to need some defense against whatever this thing is.

smax765

We also have to defend the air. Let’s try using this:

Jadefire

The Queen, nice! I do like a challenge. I'll play Many Partings to counter the effects of Crippling Accidents.

jpastor

A crowd gathered in the streets to witness the arrival of the Ivorytusk Fortress. As some citizens have begun to flee the city, safely parting its threats and leaving whatever may be attacking the city to have less lives to ruin,  the efforts to rebuild and fortify the city against the unknown threat were welcomed with awe and applause as the massive elephant was escorted through the streets like a parade float.

Along with the arrival of the elephant, a bank of fog intruded from the bay, providing a feeling of security to the city. Whatever flies the skies will have trouble seeing much of anything with this fog bank... or so they thought. A loud whoosh overhead the foggy city cast a brief shadow over the streets, followed by crackling sound, like a sonic boom. Everyone looked in horror, as the fortress being hauled by the Ivorytusk was consumed by static electricity.

Shattering Pulse by jpastor | MTG Cardsmith

The foe aims to disrupt the community's defenses by destroying the fortress, leaving only a weakened ivorytusk elephant to withstand the impending threat. The event shocked the city, eliminating all doubt that something hostile seeks to cause harm, penetrating any aerial defense the city might have had with the fog bank.

How will the community strategize in response to the foe's play?

Korora12

A duo of suited individuals arrives on the scene. Strangely, no one knows who they are or who called for them, but they assure everyone that they're there to help.

(Yay, my internet's working again!)

Robo_Kitty

Ah electricity. As the zookeeper I know exactly what creature can handle this! Ladies and gentlemen, let me present to you, the king of storms, the sultan of the skies! The one, the only… STORM CROW!!!!!!!!!!!!

This glorious creature will know how to defend our city from this threat. I know it.

LvB

The King plays something the Storm Crow can sit upon when its not flying around.

That should help protect the air.

jpastor

@Korora12
Nice card.

The foe responds to the community's plays with a card of its own:


Ethereal Manipulation by jpastor | MTG Cardsmith

--> Ethereal Manipulation counters the Insurance Appraisers' triggered ability that would return a target artifact card from the graveyard to the owner's hand. The foe aims to prevent the community from retrieving artifacts and generating additional resources. <--

Each of your creature spells all resolve, but the triggered ability on Korora's play does not.

How will the community adapt and strategize in the face of the foe's interference?

Jadefire

The Queen's gonna have to respond to the Ethereal Manipulation.

Korora12

Thanks to the Queen's quick actions, the Insurance Appraisers are able to get to work overseeing the repairs to the Elephant's fortress. But first, one of them steps aside to make a call.

Robo_Kitty

Thanks to the Insurance Appraisers and a few of my animal companions, we have managed to rebuild the Ivorytusk Fortress to be even more powerful!

jpastor

The sight of the elephant jubilee was too inspiring for the city. It gripped the tower atop
the skyscraper with disgust. In an instant, it landed in the town square, away from the crowd and incoming fortress. Its arrival ends the celebration of the incoming new hope.

The spell represents the foe showing itself for the first time to the city. In an instant, the foe lands and lays waste to the town square, destroying treasured buildings and iconic art sculptures and decorations. 

The sounds of destruction could be heard across the city in the port where the new fortress had just arrived. The city and fortress rushed to the town square, but it was too late. The foe had left nothing but rubble and had since disappeared. 

The image in the card artwork was captured by survivor who was pulled from the wreckage. No one had ever seen such a disturbing creature, except for one... 

Korora12

Soon after returning home, the survivor receives a visitor.

Jadefire

In response to Void Disruption the Queen makes a play.

cadstar369

The librarian tasks a small group with searching the attacked areas for clues about the creature. While they’re out, the librarian begins looking through restricted archives for useful (perhaps even forbidden) information.

jpastor

Among a crowd of spectators gathered to hear a press conference from the mayor, an old man silently raises a sign that only the mayor could see. "I know what it is," is reads. The old man lowers the sign and raises it slowly, to catch the attention of the mayor. The man lowers the sign and begins to walk away. The mayor calls for security and ends the press conference. The man is detained for questioning. The mayor and a small cluster of authorities gathered at a public bench near the town hall.

The old man is questioned about his knowledge. He speaks of a time in his past one stormy night when he was reading a book by his window in his high-rise apartment. Across the avenue, atop the adjacent building, he sees it - a large and dark figure looking down at the city. He got up to close the curtains in fear, right as the winged creature turned to make eye contact with him. He waited a second, but cracked the curtain to find nothing standing on the building anymore.

The next morning, he went for his walk and took a small detour down an alley due to construction. He slowed his pace as he felt uneasy, as if being followed. He stopped to look around, then he looked up and saw it, clear as day, staring back at him...a Gargoyle!



It stood motionless but staring directly at the man. He felt the same sense of fear as he did the night before. Unsure if his eyes were fooling him, he kept walking while maintaining eye contact with the gargoyle. As he quickened his pace, he tripped over a trash can. When he looked back up, the gargoyle was gone, and he knew it was the same creature he'd seen the night before.

One authority began chuckling at the story, while the mayor remained perplexed, yet amused. He let the old man finish his story uninterrupted before asking a strange question, "Have you spoken to anyone about this... anyone with an insurance company by chance?"



The foe chooses not to play any card this turn. The above play is a representation of the flashback of the memory as the old man recounts the story. The image is not a representation of the foe.

What will the community play?

Robo_Kitty

Well firstly, a lot of the city is still in ruin. We should search it for anything suspicious. So I’ll send my hawk to search the area.

Korora12

The Zookeeper, the Librarian, the Queen, and the King each receive an invite to an extremely high-end club in one the nicer parts of town. Upon arriving, they are soon ushered into a back room, where they meet a woman in a red dress, who offers them a deal. "We all have the same enemy. Why don't we cooperate?" She doesn't explain who she is, nor who, if anyone, she works for. But she assures them her aid is sincere, and potentially significant.

jpastor

Mid-meeting, a butler approaches the woman in the red dress to whisper something in her ear. She addresses the group, "It appears as though we may have underestimated our common foe." The community group looks at one another then back to the lady. She continues, "There's a horrifying creature running through the streets of the city as we speak, and it doesn't have wings." 

The group moves to a room with a TV on, a news station showing live destruction as a horrifying creature is rampaging through an industrial park along the harbor of the city. The group shares a gasp. "What the blazes is that," the Queen blurts. The Zookeeper with a chuckle replies, "Obviously it's a monster." 

The group watches on when suddenly the menace vanishes into thin air. "Where is it," the King demands as he gets closer to the TV. Suddenly a crane is knocked down as the creature reappears trampling it. 

The Librarian addresses the group, "Whatever our common foe is, from my knowledge, it must be something that taps into the Aether." The group looks around in confusion while the Zookeeper responds, "The Tetherwhater?" With a reassuring gesture, the Librarian turns to the lady in red, "The Aether. The energy of the cosmos..." The King interrupts, "Like another dimension?" 

The group in deliberation is halted by the woman in the red dress, "If you're not with me, you're of no further use."

The foe plays:

Unseen Menace by jpastor | MTG Cardsmith

The foe sends forth its own menacing creature to disrupt the community's plans and force them to discard some options they had in mind, potentially disrupting their strategies and limiting their resources.

What will they play next?