For my entry, I wanted to do a deconstruction of what the playmat is representing. I didn't just want to go with the easy route of "generic wordy black card tied to dark magic." Pretty much everyone is doing that, including some of the best and most well-known smiths on the site. Instead, I started by looking at the art on the playmat. The first thing I noticed was that the warlock looked like an Azra. They are a brand new race from the most recent Magic product, Battlebond. The Azra Warlock also appears to be a more traditional wizard, perfering to throw fire and lightning instead of purple rays of death. That said, he appears to still work with necromantic magic. The playmat art also suggests that the warlock is a black-red magic user, judging by it's color scheme. With all of that in mind, I set out to create an interesting, elegant design.
Without further ado, may I present, Azra Sorceress!
So what exactly am I doing with this card? First, I made my sorceress a female Azra. I did this to differentiate it's feel from the playmat while still having clear thematic ties. Her first ability allows players to re-use their creatures. However, as you'll soon find out, shes using them as fodder for her fire. With her second ability, the sorceress can deal direct damage to anything at the -minor- cost of discarding a creature or a land. The main goal here was to allow players to make any "dead" card they draw useful. One can either get back a relevant creature, simply kill something, or even win the game by damaging the opponent. Although the design may seem fairly simple, there is a lot you can do with this from a gameplay perspective, and it's flavor is built top-down from the playmat.
Dang it I missed it. Would it be possible to still get the avatar even though I'm a little late? I'm going to post the card I was going to enter anyway even if it doesn't count. Edit: I added the artist to it.
Comments
Without further ado, may I present, Azra Sorceress!
So what exactly am I doing with this card? First, I made my sorceress a female Azra. I did this to differentiate it's feel from the playmat while still having clear thematic ties. Her first ability allows players to re-use their creatures. However, as you'll soon find out, shes using them as fodder for her fire. With her second ability, the sorceress can deal direct damage to anything at the -minor- cost of discarding a creature or a land. The main goal here was to allow players to make any "dead" card they draw useful. One can either get back a relevant creature, simply kill something, or even win the game by damaging the opponent. Although the design may seem fairly simple, there is a lot you can do with this from a gameplay perspective, and it's flavor is built top-down from the playmat.
I hope you enjoy,
-Kramp
Illustration by dleoblack on deviantart.
Credit where credit is due, @Scott_Anderson and @CastorCrozz helped me out with the wording!
My card entry.
As image form instead of link
Edit: I added the artist to it.
https://mtgcardsmith.com/view/gastok-master-of-pain
&
@WurmKing925
The challenge is over. They've already started judging!
Find out the winners on Friday 6/15/18 during our live stream, 5pm PST.
https://mtgcardsmith.com/view/grasp-at-nullity?list=contest&id=mayhem
https://mtgcardsmith.com/view/sadistic-ritual-1?list=contest&id=mayhem
https://mtgcardsmith.com/view/way-of-the-doll?list=contest&id=mayhem
https://mtgcardsmith.com/view/crackle-imp?list=contest&id=mayhem
https://mtgcardsmith.com/view/contemptuous-offering?list=contest&id=mayhem
https://mtgcardsmith.com/view/imp-possible?list=contest&id=mayhem
@Faiths_Guide, @TheCenterOfTheUniverse, @Tomigon, @jpastor, @Aryanf, @Involutus
First Place:
Grasp at Nullity
by TheCenterOfTheUniverse
https://mtgcardsmith.com/view/grasp-at-nullity
Second Place:
Contemptuous Offering
by Faiths_Guide
https://mtgcardsmith.com/view/contemptuous-offering
Third Place:
Way of the Doll
by jpastor
https://mtgcardsmith.com/view/way-of-the-doll
Honorable Mentions!
https://mtgcardsmith.com/view/imp-possible - Fun and hilarious
https://mtgcardsmith.com/view/sadistic-ritual-1 - Very thematic, great work
https://mtgcardsmith.com/view/crackle-imp - Super realistic, very solid