Ulgrotha: Darkness Falls Forever: Recent Activity
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Recent updates to Ulgrotha: Darkness Falls Forever: (Generated at 2025-05-02 05:58:34)
or Hound of Konda.
This guy is so, so weak. Check Valiant Guard, Wall of Hope, or (looking at Homelands era) Icatian Moneychanger.
I checked gatherer, and I was surprised that this card had never been printed! Nice common!
This card is strictly worse than Highknight of the Order, in the same set. That is aggravating to me.
This is a cool, powerful card. It would be at home in any other set, but your set is extremely low power on average, and I feel like this card is too far over the curve in comparison.
Should probably have a second creature type, probably Soldier.
Serra's Sanction is a good name.
I agree that this card is very weak. Comparisons to Lashknife Barrier or Lumithread Field are appropriate.
Should read either "Exile target creature you control. Return the exiled card to the battlefield under its owner's control at the beginning of the next end step." or "Exile target creature. Return the exiled card to the battlefield under your control at the beginning of the next end step."
Either way, this is strictly worse than Otherworldly Journey. Why not make it 1 mana, so that it's similar-but-different to Cloudshift?
One of the worst things about Hornet Sting is that it will be perpetually cited as an example by amateur designers.
For the record, I'm more a Vorthos than a Melvin, but I think that internally consistency trumps both. Also, I'm not calling Hornet Sting a mistake; Mark Rosewater, Head Designer is.
Ok, I fixed the card - by adding flavor text.
Man, what an old argument this is. I'm sure they were debating this problem in 1993 as well, and I'm pretty sure they'll be arguing about it in 2033. Classic Vorthos vs. Melvin. Most of the time, in WotC, it seems like Melvin wins the argument... but then a card like Horent Sting gets printed, Vorthos gets a win, Melvin doesn't count the ocaasional win, calling it a 'mistake', and the argument begins again.
Here's the good news: It's a healthy argument. I don't think Magic should ever have flavor trump mechanics, or mechanics trump flavor. I also think it's important for both sides to win on occasion. That taps me as far as advice goes, though. I'm pretty sure this isn't an argument that you can 'win'.
Arashi: flying only. Choking Vines: too old. Durkwood Tracker: fights. Garruk Relentless: "fights". Greatbow Doyen: combat based. Hornet Sting: a mistake. None if your examples are valid. Flavor is not an acceptable excuse to stretch the color pie.
I'm not disagreeing with the fact that some people might disagree with a green card that deals damage to creatures unconditionally. But the simple fact is, is that dealing damage in this way isn't so far out of green anymore. Taking a look at green cards that deal damage or an effect of such:
Arashi, the Sky Asunder, Choking Vines, Durkwood Tracker, Garruk Relentless, Greatbow Doyen, Hornet Sting and others. the Screeching Spider design isn't so out of color or flavor at all for green as long as it is implemented correctly - which I do believe I have done.
@Joz: That's fair. But I'm not really talking about possibilites so much as player expectations. Players seem to be okay with things they recognize in the real world taking on fantastic proportions in the Magic world, and being allowed to break the color pie because of it. I don't know why, exactly. I could speculate, but I assume I'd be here for another 5 paragraphs talking out my bum.
Show a player a perfectly reasonable animal that doesn't exist, as far as they know, and stretch the color pie, and all of the sudden that can't be done. I suspect it has something to do with the fact that, instead of a screaching spider, you could have made a screaching lizard that's red. You're not forced to stay in green; you're choosing to stay in green, and that makes some players buggy.
As for animals that attack by tossing sound like a cannon: I'd be surprised if there wasn't an animal that didn't do that. I know that there are fish that stun other fish by lighting up like a thermal grenades in the darkest parts of the ocean. Using sound to induce a similar effect doesn't seem that far off.
jmpariepy, you mention that "screeching spiders" don't exist in nature" and I'd like to address that:
Green gets the sniper ability; but yeah, only against flyers - Matsu-Tribe Sniper.
This calls out to that, with reach; so that's how I'd change it to fit. But it's a huge cost, so I might give it a pass as just "Ok, green pays through the nose to get it"
It should be pointed out that, while I agree with Alex and Link, things do get very weird in the color pie for green sometimes... especially around hornets and wasps for some reason. See also Unyaro Bees, Giant Dustwasp, Hornet Sting, Hornet Queen and... um... Beast Within (which I personally think is too far out of color pie, but everyone else seems to enjoy, so what do I know?)
So, yes, green sometimes uses flavor to exhibit non-standard color pie traits. But it usually does it by looking at an animal that would be green (Hornets) and pointing to the thing that that animal does that isn't very green (deal damage to people and fly). Screaching Spiders (as awesome as that idea is) don't exist in nature, so the color pie stretch is harder to justify. Especially when, flavor aside, the creature could just be red/white or red/green (blue/red? white/black?)
That said, I do like the creature. I'd give it a pass as just an oddball. I'm sure others wouldn't agree with me.
In the modern color pie, green does not do pinging effects. If you want green to deal damage to a creature, either that damage should be limited to creatures with flying, or the damage should be dealt in the form of a fight. Completely unrestricted pinging is red.
Green also doesn't really tap things, to my knowledge. That ability is white.
This ability appears Stun Sniper, a card which is red and white.
How so?
Well, for one, Archaeological Dig is a land; two this is also a draft set. A 2-cost mana rock that produces
is still on par at common for most sets. Yes, Prismatic Lens is a tiny bit more powerful, but it is from a different concept (futuresight block and all) Nor did I wan't to do a functional reprint of Prismatic Lens. Something a tad bit weaker is fine. And mana rocks are always received nicely in draft. Its use in EDH might be a bit less, but I do know several decks that would have no problem with adding it.
You should know that's very outside the modern colour pie, then.
I guess... I don't see why you'd deliberately reduce the power of standard utility cards though. I can certainly see wanting to get away from the recent power-creep in strong creatures and spells, but utility cards? Why make a mana rock that's worse than Archaeological Dig? It seems to be destined to make players grumble and avoid players getting excited about your set.
I mean, it is your set so you should feel free to do it however you want. But reduced power levels like this don't seem to fit with your stated aims of making cards that are worth playing in EDH or Cube, or that are of the "same perceived power level" as recent cards.
Its not a grove of trees :D Its an grove of Elementals!
I was hoping this would reference Grove of the Burnwillows.
The card seems like it has a lot of things going on. Is the first ability to prevent allow it to continue coming back more easily, by preventing shenanagins that don't cause it to technically die? If so, you may be able to wrap the abilities together. Here's my twist:
"Whenever ~ dies or is exiled, if its toughness was greater than 0, return it to the battlefield at the beginning of the end step. Put a -1/-1 counter on it.
Counters remain on ~ as it moves to any zone other than a player's hand or library."
My other issue is that a grove of trees shouldn't be able to attack. Putting defender on a mythic would be no fun, though.
Since Dispatch would only exile it if its controller has Metalcraft, it would only be untargetable if metalcraft is activated, since Dispatch can't exile it if metalcraft isn't active.
I'll have to fix it so it can't come back after being a 1/1. Working on it.
Are you supposed to be allowed to target this with Dispatch? Does it matter how many artifacts you control, or whether that number could change in response?
(Equinox is not the most shining example of a rigorous template the game has ever had.)
Also, this will eventually come back as a 0/0, then a -1/-1, and so on for what's mostly some pointless busy work every turn, but generic ETB and death triggers will demand that you play it out, and play it properly, turn after turn as its power and toughness get more negative each time.
OK. I removed the whole exile thing, saving it from graveyard hate really isn't that important. How is it now?