The design team you are on has decided to add a sixth color to Magic: the Gathering. In theory, purple cards are only supposed to be in this block, but we'll be keeping an eye on this mechanic to see if it will work in future Magic expansions.

While the design team knows they want to go forward with this plan, they can't seem to agree on what the color purple means, so it is up in the air. Purple is to have it's own basic land type. The basic land has been temporarily been referred to as "Underdark" and taps to add 1 purple mana to your mana pool. Don't let the name of the land confuse you, though. It has a name, just so we can refer to the land as something, but the concept is not locked into place.

When creating purple cards, use the snow symbol "" to represent purple mana. Keep in mind, we aren't creating snow cards really, but it's the closest we have right now.

That's really interesting. What things make a color distinctive that haven't already been done? What would its strengths and weaknesses be?

First effort, copies of my "extraplanar elf" cards from Gentlemen Magicians, playing up the old flavour of elves as otherworldly beings: Wild Hunt Scout, Wild Hunt Renegades and Elf Queen's Ride.

This is... a lot more difficult than back when we speculated that Desert was going to bring in yellow mana.

The obvious thing to do is go for a theme - like snow did. Snow cards weren't particularly anything mechanical (though there was a slight focus on upkeep costs) they were just, well, cold.

I just... dunno. Will think.

I have a tendency to bring the really tricky design challenges with me, I know. I'm sure people can get there with this one, though. Even if the end result is being unsatisfied with the results, it would probably tell you something in the process...

Purple as the "interacts with Planeswalker" color.

Why to play purple? To hose or support big spells, planeswalkers, etc, and to play with creatures with good effects. Why not to play purple? No efficient creatures, weak against instants and sorceries and small permanents.

­Planar Bug, Planar Chauvinist, Procrustean Chop

I like this concept, Jack, but I think "what a color hates" is not as important as "what a color likes". Though I can easily imagine Purple as the 'anti-green', preferring small creatures and effects, and gunning for large splashy cards. That would also give more breathing room for the other colors, since they wouldn't feel like they had to make minor effects happen as often. Purple could end up with the lion's share of cantrips, and small token producers.

Ah, purple... the favorite candy of amateur designers. I toyed with it/ employed it in Dienoct, which is my first attempt at a set, but that set needs a lot of work now, and has many decisions to be made.
I'll think about this for a bit. Maybe I'll design some Night cards, maybe I'll make some different kind of purple cards.

Tricky.

Created Shiftling Vanguard, Extract Vitality and Soul Surgery.

Decided to focus on Purple being about secrets, shadows and confusion. I know this has appeared before in Blue/Black (and maybe a touch of Red chaos magic) but when you're trying to slice up a new piece of the color pie, you're almost always going to cut into some color's territory, I suppose. Tartoolian Lasher, Blind Cover, Dilemma Gate.

I created Phase Reflection, Eternity Servant, and Future Slip.

I wanted to make something here, but I didn't have the time.

I'd envision Purple mana being a limited resource (which detracts slightly from the basic land type, but can be worked around, I think). Some ideas, some of which are overpowered:
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• Creatures cast with purple mana have haste ­
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• Instants/sorceries cast with purple mana have an extra copy put on the stack ­
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• Instants/sorceries cast with purple mana can't be countered ­
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• Cards which do something more powerful if cast with purple mana.
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What could Purple be...?

I'm envisioning something like interacting with parts of the game that aren't usually interacted with; exile and planeswalkers, sure, like the ideas @Jack V had, but also a color that utilizes control concepts for aggro effects...? We'll see.

Purple is also apparently a great opportunity for the Faith No More references... ;)

Recoil
Surprise! You're Dead
Sel'nath, the Hidden One

I'll probably be doing a lot of editing on this one in the coming months...