[Racial Profile] -- Merfolk: Recent Activity
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Recent updates to [Racial Profile] -- Merfolk: (Generated at 2025-09-04 08:14:14)
| [Racial Profile] -- Merfolk: Cardlist | Visual spoiler | Export | Booster | Comments | Search | Recent activity |
| Mechanics |
Recent updates to [Racial Profile] -- Merfolk: (Generated at 2025-09-04 08:14:14)
extra line breaks is from incompetent layout style on this site. otherwise they look too bunched up.
I think having tahaz's ability might be really cool, what with all the attempts to get a player to control islands. Very merfolk-y in flavor, tryna make the world natural? A little less than Islandwalk, but much better mechanically. If you do that, I'd suggest copying it with the other cards that have Islandwalk, and maybe also if you're going for a coherent set, adding a few cards that would have that ability.
I don't see it as redundant, even Maro has stated (if my memory serves me) he'd like to see more options (though specifically he said he'd like to see more cards start with target player rather than You). I often misunderstand him tho, so don't take my word on this one
Yup. I +1 removing all line breaks from always. Wurm's MINIStrad passing cards had the same issue, as did some of mine when i first joined.. They are somewhat offputting :P
"may draw up to two cards" is kinda redundant.
Unnecessary line breaks.
Hah, wasn't that a thing in the very first GDS3 challenges, where WotC accidentally omited 'combat' from the saboteur trigger of a very similar hypothetical card and gave into the possibility that the card could be
as well, and hence accepted that as an answer as well in addition to 
?
Landwalks suck indeed. You could just write it out as
> ~ can't be blocked if the defending player controls an Island.
That should also make you realize how bad of an ability it looks.
very red blue, but also merfolks would NEVER be red, it's like making a azorius goblin, the heck?
Anyway, mono blue could do this, because it's not dangerous randomosity, just more of like a proof check thingy in science method.
Eight-sided die? Why not six sided die? Well, i know the answer, but it might be more appropriate, if wordier to just say rolla six-sided day, and then subtract two from the bar
Landwalk is very merfolk-y, although it is a despicable mechanic, it wouldn't be terrible for it to show it's ugly face in this set, just for historical reasons.
deals damage? shouldnt that almost definitely be combat damage, very likely to a player as well?
merfolk dont have burn or life loss effects, so i'd think combat damage was a given. Given blue's history, as well as merfolk history, it seems foolish not to change the trigger to when it deals combat damage to a player
The abilities are all in color pie, but that's ignoring the fact this is a [potentially] esper merfolk. Where they have ALWAYS been blue, and just recently green. Seems like a giant thing to break the creature type, for what reason??
This all looks very blue green, but the land sacrifice seems very out of place. Maybe return a land to it's owners hand? Or shuffle into the library? it's rare so it can be a bit more complex if needed..
Why would anyone play this? Isn't this just purely negative?
that's an interesting interaction with the stack i've never seen before. I think it's legal. Good job
I wonder what kinds of mana ramp blue gets. Or any non-green color for that matter... White has their niche 'If an opponent controls more lands than you' thing, and red/black get rituals... But what can blue do? I thought making this a high-tide like card would be the only choice, but from what im getting Secret thinks that is a bend/break from a point when magic didnt know how to treat blue?
I do think to fix this you could just tap it (maybe pay too?) to get a high tide effect UEOT ?
This seems incredibly red from the trigger to the way the card draw works. I'd play it in a red/blue instants and sorceries deck, but m quite sure this is a bend
I like this very much, but I'm not sure if it would normally have Flash on a card like this... I suppose it's a good way to fetch an answer, but i'm on the fence whether or not this should have flash
That's a really efficient blue body... Especially for a merfolk rather than a Leviathaan, Serpent or Kraken...
I understand that the first line is a downside, but the next two lines have no synergy wit it, or with each other either. Seems like a lot of different abilities on one card :P
I don't know if blue mechanically or flavorfully discriminates against enchantments, and I'm sure not artifacts.
Though I suppose blue would like to bounce artifacts they control, that might be needed to make clear though? It seems a bit more black to not want anybody to get something if they can't be the only ones to have it.
Otherwise very cool charm
I really do like this card, but those concerns are very valid and show a good understanding of play design.
Should this be a Legendary?
Blue gets Kraken, Serpent, Leviathan. While they can be seen as finishers for defensive blue decks surviving until they have the mana to pay for them, I imagine they also create a desire to match green ramping into big beasts or red ramping into dragons.
That or the idea that ramp allows you to actually shift gears and make any given proactive play while still keeping mana open. That's my working theory.
I personally feel that this is an intentional weakness of blue though, so the more like a Dark Ritual the effect feels the more it is a High Tide-anachronism - a card that doesn't know yet how blue is supposed to be.
I personally am more forgiving if blue ramps through something gradual as Treasure tokens of trading one land for two or using its artifact tendencies to use the ramp capabilities of mana artifacts - the indirect or more deliberate route.
Ignoring the power level of this card, I consider it an outright break, because it's basically taking a card that could be colorshifted from e. g. a red Elemental (sorry, maybe Pyrfolk?) lord and epitomize why red (and/or green) is that blue isn't: explosive.
Agreed this is far too much mana for blue to make.
But there's something weird here - I also had the drive to make lots of mana in blue. Not sure why it feels like blue ''should'' have that ability, but worth investigating maybe?
Funnily enough its middle name is "My".
> "I think this combos too well with the most basic resource of the game - in a way that is atypical to the color."
That's putting it mildly. A mono-
deck tapping for 
on turn 4 is nothing sort of atrocious xD Add in some untapping and we're in business.
This is a weird name for a creature btw.
Perfectly fine concept. Landwalk is an abomination.
You can chain those, right? Tap an Island, activate this once, tap another Island, activate this twice, tap another Island, activate this four times, play your fourth Island after dropping this on turn three and activate that fourth Island for eight mana...
I think this combos too well with the most basic resource of the game - in a way that is atypical to the color.
Really anything that gives you hard counters for a single mana should cost closer to Mind over Matter than to Merfolk of the Pearl Trident.
I could see something like Avoid Fate as the acgtivated ability's effect?
That ability isn't worth keywording since it can't be used with high enough of a frequency at common. Generating card advantage is an automatic red-flag there after all.
This is an interesting card mechanically. However, rhystic abilities aren't that popular since the other player has to essentially 'allow' you to get something out of them and it seems (polling data indicates) that many players don't find that interaction enjoyable.