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Renaissance Set — Design Phase
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And here are examples of artworks that resonate especially well with our sets:
@everyone I just found a pretty decent Mona Lisa, my only issue is that it's not very wide so cropping it to a MTG card size will cut around her shoulder
On a different note, are there elves on Rezzata? I'm working on a card that I think might be flavourful for the set, but I'm debating whether to make it an elf or a human.
I understand if you don't want to put this into the set. You already mentioned that all of the rares have been finished, but I thought the flavour could work in the set. Feel free to let me know of any problems you see with putting this in, aside from the lack of slots.
What? No, I didn't say the Rares were finished at all, maybe you confused with another set design going on at the same time? So far we're accumulating ideas but we still need to fill the first version of the design skeleton which starts from the commons before making our way up the Rares, so we're faaaaaaar from finished XD
On Arezzi, I like the overall concept though I think there are some tiny issues:
- Tricoloured cards are very very unlikely in a set that's not heavily multicoloured. They require a very specific set skeleton structure. From a general point of view, try to use monocoloured designs first if you can, because we get much less multicoloured slots than monocoloured ones, so we have to make them count ^^ I could see the use for a Blue/Black legendary Rogue for instance because of Commander, but it would have to really be designed specifically for it then.
- I like the idea of accumulating counters then Composing that much every upkeep, but the way to get the counters feels very circonvoluted and involve triggering the next turn which players are bound to forget half the time. I'd be perfectly fine with the same card but with a simpler trigger.
- I find the concept of a creature that either gets the damage through or cancel combat interesting enough to be its own design ^^ It's a perfectly fine finisher by itself.
The problem with having Arezzi be bicoloured is that in Izzet, he wouldn't fit with rogues, but in Dimir, it wouldn't fit with the art. Grixis solves both of these problems in my opinion.
I'm not quite sure how to keep the concept while simplifying the trigger.
I feel like elves fit better than humans as a masked, artistic rogue. That's the only reason why I asked.
Here's an example of simplification:
Evasion ability (CARDNAME can't be blocked unless all attacking Art creatures are blocked?)
Whenever CARDNAME becomes untapped, Compose X, where X is the number of NAME counters on CARDNAME.
Whenever CARDNAME attacks, put a NAME counter on it.
==> On a side note, I would avoid using the name "Renown counter" because of the already existing Renown mechanic. To boost the power level of this new version, +1/+1 counters could be considered?
On creature type, we could potentially use the green/black elves (since they pre-exist from Lorwyn) to make it fit colourwise? My issue is that they compete for the same spot in the creature grid than Gorgons and I think Gorgons are a better fit to this world. Honestly this art just feels either Human or something weird like Aetherborn to me ^^
Sadly the best art I could find was te one I show below, which I'm pretty sure no one is going to get the reference unless we find a really clever name or it
(Click on the image to go the Deviantart page of the illustration.)
Maybe we could call them notoriety counters? That fits with the idea of his name spreading and gaining more attention, but it doesn't conflict with another mechanic.
I'm one of those strange people that allows elves to be interchangeable with humans in many cases, i.e. it doesn't have to be green to be an elf.
With the current simplifications you've given, what would you say the mana cost should be? I'm thinking of URR or UUR if we don't use +1/+1 counters, and 1URR or 1UUR if we do.
@ningyounk, can I get a runthrough of the design so far? (That is of course, if you don't mind XD)
- Most of what's written in the introduction message still holds true, you don't need to worry about the minor discussions like creature grid etc ^^
- The next milestone is to get a complete set of commons. You can help by bringing structural ideas (we should have the same number of removal than THIS set because REASON, etc.), making a full set of commons yourself (though it's very long to do properly), just single cards that you think make themes and mechanics really shine (what's THE common you're expecting to see in the set knowing we have THIS mechanic or THAT theme?), or by doing the commons for just a colour or archetype (count 19 commons per colour and around 4 commons of each of the two-colour of the archetypes.) You can follow the last archetype grid (http://forums.mtgcardsmith.com/discussion/comment/88127/#Comment_88127) or propose your own archetype if you want, just try to take the general synergies of the set into account.
- In parallel, any single exciting design or idea is always good to take. Cycles are especially welcome (Muses, uncommon multicolour signposts, planeswalkers,...) But a surprising build-around-me, or a really cool Rare are just as important for a set.
- Anything you'd find exciting to have in the story, or just some tropes about Renaissance or any other theme that you thought of. It can be cards or just a pitch ^^
- We're going to make a full set, so we're going to need a tremendous amount of good illustrations, don't hesitate to hunt for those and bring them back here
- Finally, any feedback on cards and ideas you see is always appreciated
Sculpting 1W
Instant
Create two 0/1 colorless Clay artifact creature tokens.
Crafter of Clay 2G
Creature - Human Artist
When ~ enters the battlefield, create an 0/1 Clay artifact creature token.
2/1
Alternatively, do you think we could find space to keyword Clay creation, like "Sculpt N"?
For example, this rare:
Masterful Sculptor 3G
Creature - Human Artist
Clay creatures you control get +1/+1.
Whenever ~ attacks, sculpt 2. (Create two colorless 0/1 Clay artifact creature tokens.)
2/4
What do you think?
Flavourwise, those Clay tokens are also a bit blend. Maybe there's a way to make the Clay tokens have a more defined mechanical identity? I liked the idea of the 0/1 Faeries tokens that give you a psylian life when they died for instance. Clay tokens could be made out of Lands for instance (as in you would always have to sacrifice a land to make one, or they could have a land type to produce mana, etc.) Or maybe they're actually much larger than your regular creature token, making them 5/1 or something crazy like this?
Here's a concept uncommon card:
---An Eye for a Stone 3BG---
Sorcery
Put two -1/-1 counters on target creature. When that creature dies this turn, create a 0/X colorless Clay artifact creature token. Where X is the number of -1/-1 counters on that creature.
---
We could even have some things that interact with the tokens. Here's a neat mechanic! (Couldn't find another word to describe this mechanic, so I had to use sculpt as well XD)
---Gorgon Sculptor 2G---
Creature - Gorgon
XB: Sculpt X (Target creature you control gets your choice of +X/-X or -X/+X until end of turn.)
2/3
---
---Petrified Perfection 1BG---
Sorcery
Sculpt X. Where X is that creature's toughness divided by two, rounded up.
--
Could work with +1/+1 counter synergies.
The mechanic and this idea is just an idea that is open to change and suggestions.
---
As for art, Craig Mullins is someone to think about.
---Seeker of the Wilds 1UG---
Creature - Human Scout
If you would reveal Seeker of the Wilds from the top of your deck, you may put it on the battlefield under your control. If you do, scry 2.
1UG: Put Seeker of the Wilds on top of its owner's library.
2/2
---
They even have a mechanic called Virtuoso xD It's a heavily multicoloured set, so it's quite different from Rezatta mechanically ^^ Still, the critics is very interesting and well done, we should definitely take some advice from the video for our own set
Artist of the Plains 2W
Creature - Human Artist
Double strike
At the beginning of your upkeep, choose one:
- Compose 1.
- Sculpt 1. (Choose a color. Create a colorless 0/1 Clay artifact creature token with “{t}: Add the chosen color to your mana pool.”)
2/2
The set doesn't have -1/-1 counters
You have to take into account that increasing the number of keywords exponentially increases the complexity of the set since we're saying "this specific feature is especially important in our set, remember this." Right now, I'm not sold on a "Sculpt" keyword simply because it sounds like sculpting is something especially important in the set as opposed to painting or singing, which it is not.
The Sculpt version that gives +N/-N or -N/+N is basically what the green/black archetype is trying to do but the design space sounds very limited a priori. I don't think the set needs to keyword this, we can just put it on a couple cards that really need it, in my opinion.
Craig Mullin's art is gorgeous indeed! I especially like those two pieces for the set, I like the tone of them:
@TezzeretofCarmot21
It was more a flavour example when I said that Clay tokens could produce mana ^^ About Sculpt in general I see two main problems:
1) The set doesn't really need another keyword right now. If we added one it would need to bring something especially exciting, fill a mechanical void, and/or increase the synergy of the set that could use a little smoothing. The theme of the mechanic would likely be emotions since that doesn't overlap with another mechanic like Sculpt does with Compose?
2) Even not keyworded, the mechanic itself creates a lot of friction with some other aspects of the set. We already have a token mechanic (Compose), and we already have a mana mechanic (psylian life).
So, I think Clay tokens could definitely be a mechanic in themselves, we don't have to keyword everything, the name "Clay" itself is basically used as a keyword in this case. Think things the tribal tokens of Ixalan, they started as a mechanic (Enlist), and they decided to use them without keyword in the end. As for what they do, giving mana seems like too much ramp in conjunction with psylian life, a priori. I'm picturing something in relation to lands since clay is dirt, but really you can come up with anything ^^
P.S: For those interested, the story behind the Ixalan keyword Enlist is here --> https://magic.wizards.com/en/articles/archive/making-magic/just-ixalan-part-2-2017-09-11
If psylian life produced any color, that'd be incredibly busted.
Not if we increase the life needed to produce mana.