Base Set: Reimagined Edition: Reimagined Color Pie

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Color Pie Reimagined

The refreshed color identities and relationships:

White = Protection  
WU = Protection with Knowledge = Laws   
WB = Protection of Desire = Elitism  
WR = Protection with Passion = Martial  
WG = Protection of Nature = Cultivation  

Blue = Knowledge  
UB = Knowledge as Desire = Omniscience  
UR = Knowledge with Passion = Creativity  
UG = Knowledge of Nature = Science  
UW = Knowledge for Protection = Laws  

Black = Desire  
BR = Desire for Passion = Hedonism  
BG = Desire via Nature = Hunger  
BW = Desire with Protection = Elitism  
BU = Desire for Knowledge = Omniscience  

Red = Passion  
RG = Passion by Nature = Impulse  
RW = Passion for Protection = Martial  
RU = Passion for Knowledge = Creativity  
RB = Passion via Desire = Hedonism  

Green = Nature  
GW = Nature with Protection = Cultivation  
GU = Nature as Knowledge = Science  
GB = Nature of Desire = Hunger  
GR = Nature of Passion = Impulse  

Black's Identity

One major contention from WotC's color philosophy is their identity for black. They declare that black is the selfish color, however, the mechanics for black don't quite make sense, and their rationalizations are full of inconsistencies. Like how is discard selfish? reanimating from grave is selfish how? why is -X/-X selfish but not +X/+X?

To further that, WotC decided that RGWU is altruistic against black's selfish. However nowhere in the color pie has red and blue been decided to be altruistic at all. Moreover the mechanics found on the red or blue cards certainly don't feature any altruism or generosity at all.

Instead, the colors' identities and conflict between colors make a lot more sense if one thinks of black as being driven by eternal desire, hunger, consumption, and ambition. Discard is like consuming an opponent's brain. Reanimation is utilizing and consuming every last bit of resource, including exploiting the oft-neglected dead. Where the other colors would eat once from fresh sources, black eats not only fresh flesh, but even goes as far as consuming rotten flesh. That's how extreme their drive for hunger goes. Life drain and lifelink are explicitly feeding off the opponent's life force. -X/-X effects eat away a creature's health.

Under this new interpretation, the entire picture of the color wheel falls in place neatly, coherently, and consistently. In the original color wheel, black is selfish against white/green community. But they poorly define what black has against red/blue.

Fortunately in the alternative wheel, black fits in perfectly against all 4 other colors, not just against 2. Where black is hunger vs white/green nourishment, and black is ambitious against red/blue creative. In totality, B is consumption against WURG creation.

Even the characteristic and iconic creature type that WotC chose for black fits much better as hunger-driven rather than just selfish. How can one tell if a black zombie is selfish but not a green beast? Fortunately, one can easily tell a zombie is so hungry, that they would even gnaw at their controller--because that's how much they desire to feed. They can never stop feeding, so must attack every turn to look for prey. Vampires in the classical sense must survive by always drinking fresh blood. Mechanically this is commonly depicted by lifelink. Demons are arguably the most ambitious race, always seeking power and knowledge advantage over their enemies--at all costs, including feeding off its controller's life force and resources.

Alternative Color Wheel

We acknowledge that Magic has 5 colors. Thus they can form 10 unique color pairs.

The original color wheel is organized in very specific order: WUBRG. In this pattern, it favors only 5 of 10 color pairs. Colloquially such colors have allies and enemies. We are brainwashed to see colors in this viewpoint only.

Unfortunately such order totally neglects the other 5 color pairs. However since modern design demands that all color pairs be represented equally, we should also equally balance the color pairs. For that matter, the only way to balance the wheel is an alternative order--namely WBGUR.

Both orders--WUBRG and WBGUR coexist and together form a more complete picture of the color pie. They are two sides of the same coin.

This can be verified by the order in which WotC puts the mana symbols in mana costs for all two and three color combinations. The official order for mana costs will follow the order where the colors are adjacent in either wheel. So, the WUBRG order is complied by the original 'allied' color pairs and by the Alara shards color trios (e.g. Azorius WU and Esper WUB are adjacent colors in the WUBRG wheel). Likewise, the WBGUR order is complied by the original 'enemy' color pairs and by the Tarkir wedge color trios (e.g. Orzhov WB and Abzan WBG are adjacent colors in the WBGUR wheel).

In the same way that the original color wheel defines allies and enemies, the same can done with the alternative wheel. In this alternative order, what used to be commonly seen as enemy colors are now allies, and vice versa. Such that these truths are apparent:

WB 's enemy is U - worship vs question
BG 's enemy is R - persistence vs impulse
GU 's enemy is W - evolution vs status quo
UR 's enemy is B - creativity vs ambition
RW 's enemy is G - tactics vs brute force

The original right-side up color wheel still works as intended:

WU 's enemy is R - restraint vs freedom
UB 's enemy is G - mental vs physical
BR 's enemy is W - anarchy vs order
RG 's enemy is U - rashness vs planning
GW 's enemy is B - nourishment vs hunger

Interesting consequence is that any given color or color pair actually has two opposing factions; such that this trio forms a triangle of oppositions. For instance, R is the lack of GWUB. Thus, R is enemy to both BG and WU. Furthermore, BG is the lack of R and WU; thus BG is enemy to both R and WU. Finally, WU is the lack of R and BG; thus WU is enemy to both R and BG.

Another way to view these triangles by opposition of values:

W order vs BR anarchy  
BR disharmony vs GU symbiosis  
GU evolution vs W status quo  

U calculating vs RG rash  
RG barbarism vs WB elitism  
WB blind worship vs U open-minded skepticism  

B hunger vs GW nourishment  
GW agriculture vs UR artisanship  
UR capricious creativity vs B focused ambition  

R freedom vs WU regulation  
WU artificial laws vs BG natural laws  
BG long-term persistence vs R short-sighted impulse  

G physical vs UB mental  
UB subterfuge vs RW confrontation  
RW tactics vs G brute force  

Such that an article trying to expound any color or color pair must necessarily also call out both of its enemies.

Four-color Opposition

W is balance against UBRG instability
U is reaction against BRGW aggression
B is consumption against RGWU creation
R is volatile against GWUB enduring
G is organic against WUBR artificial

Updated on 18 Apr 2022 by amuseum