General Custom Cards: The Lab

[Onderzeeboot]

I've been updating my customs most of tonight and damn, I just have to give another shoutout card conjurer

Finally got around to trying it out, and the quality is definitely better than MSE's (which is understandable, since MSE purposefully downgrades the quality of exported card images). I even had to downsize the image considerably to be able to upload it to the forum!



(Note that this sneakily is two halves of two Card Conjurer images combined with Paint.net, because you can't actually make an aftermath card with two different colored sides in Card Conjurer as far as I can tell. You can in MSE, so I guess that's one thing MSE has going over Card Conjurer!)

 

[Brad]

i think you are going in the right direction here, better lands make for better games! if you’re concerned about getting too wild, i would recommend sticking to effects that have been printed on a utility land in the past

Yeah. That's why these have a foundation based on an existing land. How are your Shockmanlands compared to the other stuff you've got? What if they lost the basic land types? Shock-utilities with no basic land types is the most appealing to me right now.

I love the idea of a darkhouse.

Like if you have a place that is simply too bright, you could build a darkhouse and aaaaaaaaaah, you have a nice and quiet nice dim lit place.

Lmao. I didn't even consider what it was. Just threw a name on it to make it clear what the design was. Useful for vampires, I suppose.

 

[blacksmithy]

Yeah. That's why these have a foundation based on an existing land. How are your Shockmanlands compared to the other stuff you've got? What if they lost the basic land types? Shock-utilities with no basic land types is the most appealing to me right now.

Lmao. I didn't even consider what it was. Just threw a name on it to make it clear what the design was. Useful for vampires, I suppose.

in testing, the shockmanlands are probably way better than normal duals because of the utility they offer, but they fall off after the first or second one since it’s hard to animate more than one a turn. also, you can have too much of a good thing - lots of utility duals makes board states very complex. so a little spice is great but a lot can be overwhelming.

EDIT: also they’d still be very good with no basic land types

 

[Brad]

in testing, the shockmanlands are probably way better than normal duals because of the utility they offer, but they fall off after the first or second one since it’s hard to animate more than one a turn. also, you can have too much of a good thing - lots of utility duals makes board states very complex. so a little spice is great but a lot can be overwhelming.

EDIT: also they’d still be very good with no basic land types

I'd only be doing one cycle of utilities. What do you think about Desolate Darkhouse shock-utility versus a shockmanland? The Darkhouse is probably less powerful because it doesn't impact the board, ya? It also aids the themes rather than just being a threat, so that seems like a plus.

 

[blacksmithy]

in terms of pure power, “dual that kills opponent” is really hard to beat. even the bad ones are good.
however, on the opposite end of the spectrum i’ve got “campus shocks” that are literally just the campus scry ability tacked on a shockland, and those are STILL really good even if you only activate them once a game. so i think you’re correct that Darkhouse is less powerful, but gosh having fixing and a threat on one card is sweet

 

[Brad]

in terms of pure power, “dual that kills opponent” is really hard to beat. even the bad ones are good.
however, on the opposite end of the spectrum i’ve got “campus shocks” that are literally just the campus scry ability tacked on a shockland, and those are STILL really good even if you only activate them once a game. so i think you’re correct that Darkhouse is less powerful, but gosh having fixing and a threat on one card is sweet

Are your lands not in your list?

Remember when you thought Evolving Wilds was the pinnacle?

 

[blacksmithy]

hey wilds is still awesome as a budget fetchland with huge slot equity!
and no they are not, i can’t be arsed to keep the list updated, it’s more of a placeholder.
here’s my cycles:

Spoiler

note that i try to avoid running more than 1 shock cycle at a time to prevent complexity overload

 

[Brad]

Hey! You stole my idea before I made it!

How would you rank those? Dual vs Shocampus vs Shockman vs Shocktility?

Are the mans and utilities the exact cycles as WotC designed them? I assume there's a fetch or two in your list? Dual dual fetch fetch and a shock cycle or something?

 

[blacksmithy]

Hey! You stole my idea before I made it!

How would you rank those? Dual vs Shocampus vs Shockman vs Shocktility?

in GENERAL, Creature shocks > Innistrad shocks > Campus lands > Basic duals - but the caveat is you want 1-2 shocks and the rest duals because they’re all fetchable so you don’t need a bunch of mana sinks, otherwise you die to your own manabase. so it balances itself nicely in that the returns diminish greatly on multiple utility shocks.

Are the mans and utilities the exact cycles as WotC designed them? I assume there's a fetch or two in your list? Dual dual fetch fetch and a shock cycle or something?

MOSTLY the same. i tweaked Nephalia Drownyard to only mill 2 since it’s being played in a 40 card format instead of a 60 card format, and “Stensia Bloodhall” is actually Rix Maadi’s effect (each player discards a card).
and i run 50-50 fetches-duals, leaning slightly towards duals. here’s my basic chart but i play with the exact numbers a lot:
4 players: 20 fetches, 30 duals
6 players: 30 fetches, 30-40 duals
8 players: 40 fetches, 50 duals

 

[kModz]

(Note that this sneakily is two halves of two Card Conjurer images combined with Paint.net, because you can't actually make an aftermath card with two different colored sides in Card Conjurer as far as I can tell. You can in MSE, so I guess that's one thing MSE has going over Card Conjurer!)

CC will allow you to upload custom masks to put together frames any way you can imagine, however your method is MUUUCH simpler, lol

 

[Brad]

Spoiler: ?

Tapped, color-tweaked typeless duals.

 

[ravnic]

I'd make the Den produce , even in your cube. Feels weird otherwise. But I like those alot.

 

[Brad]

I'd make the Den produce , even in your cube. Feels weird otherwise. But I like those alot.

I changed the Tower effect to BB/BG/GG like Twilight Mire.

 

[Velrun]

View attachment 5388

Good job on the art. They go perfectly together!


(I think I would cost War at 4 mana to not risk ending games before opponent feels like they had a change to interact.)

 

[Onderzeeboot]

Good job on the art. They go perfectly together!


(I think I would cost War at 4 mana to not risk ending games before opponent feels like they had a change to interact.)

Thanks! I debated costing it at 4, but Seismic Shift is basically unplayable draft chaff, so I think I have to make the effect a true Stone Rain (in cost at least) to make it viable. Obviously it's stapled to another decent effect here, but I'm not too afraid that a three mv land destruction spell is going to ruin games Definitely will keep an eye on it though.

 

[Velrun]

Thanks! I debated costing it at 4, but Seismic Shift is basically unplayable draft chaff, so I think I have to make the effect a true Stone Rain (in cost at least) to make it viable. Obviously it's stapled to another decent effect here, but I'm not too afraid that a three mv land destruction spell is going to ruin games Definitely will keep an eye on it though.

I mean.. it’s only 50 % of the card.

Would Shift also be unplayable if it also had “Draw a card” stabled onto it?

 

[Onderzeeboot]

I mean.. it’s only 50 % of the card.

Would Shift also be unplayable if it also had “Draw a card” stabled onto it?

At ? Yeah... I think it would be only marginally playable in a cube draft deck. Maybe as a one-off. The effects are simply not that desirable in typical draft games. At I think it's something you'ld be moderately excited for, at it's just... underpowered.

 

[blacksmithy]

i mean most of us already are not cubing stone rain

 

[Velrun]

i mean most of us already are not cubing stone rain

The difference between Stone Rain and “Create two 1/1s, destroy a land and push through for damage one turn” is pretty extreme.

 

[sigh]

also to do all of that at once, not . Stone rain is pretty bad. Adding Nightbird's Clutches to a Wasteland effect isn't breaking the game I think.

 

[Velrun]

also to do all of that at once, not . Stone rain is pretty bad. Adding Nightbird's Clutches to a Wasteland effect isn't breaking the game I think.

Of course. It is implied that you pay for the card. But it's all bonus text. Just like Lurrus of the Dream Den was not a 3 mana 3/2 but a free card with card text. Context really matters in this case.

I can promise you all that this custom card is more powerful than Stone Rain. It's actually a strict upgrade from Raise the Alarm because it also has a land destruction attached that also pushed damage through.

 

[sigh]

It is more powerful.

Which is ok, because the compared card is bad. Raise the Alarm is also pretty bad in most cubes.

 

[Chris Taylor]

Why the change from Trumpet Blast on the backside?

 

[Onderzeeboot]

Why the change from Trumpet Blast on the backside?

I wanted some kind of effect that could target your own heroic creatures and/or push through damage. Trumpet Blast was fine, but a bit too all or nothing, and it lacked synergy with the heroic package I run. I had Coordinated Assault on the backside for a while as well, but that was a bit too pushed as an instant combat trick because off the frontside. Nightbird's Clutches actually fits very well in the heroic deck, so I thought, why not try out an additional card with that effect!

 

[Velrun]

It is more powerful.

Which is ok, because the compared card is bad. Raise the Alarm is also pretty bad in most cubes.

Yes I agree. Now let us get back on topic: do you think it should cost 3 or 4? I know individually these two cards are low powered Stone Rain and Raise the Alarm but this is both cards and not just one of them.