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Mechanics | Setting | Mechanic descriptions | Skeleton

Please peruse my Setting and Mechanics pages, and feel free to leave comments.

In particular, comments on the Counter Manipulation section are welcome. Also, is Parrying too complex?

Very nice idea to have each colour allowed to do two kinds of interaction with counters. The categories are probably subtle enough that many players won't realise those precise guidelines are in effect, but they'll still pick up something of the feel, which is no bad thing.

Of course, I've just realised I've already broken those guidelines: Unweave effectively counts your counters, not mine.

There's also something of a hole whereby no colours currently get to remove counters from the opponents' stuff. Offensive uses of Fate Transfer, Ferropede and Leech Bonder are memorable moments, and seem natural in a heavy charge counter environment. OTOH, there's something to be said for avoiding certain types of trick in order to sculpt the play experience you're after.

I note that currently in Arcunda, the effect of Power Conduit could exist on a blue or black card, and Energy Chamber could exist on a blue or white card.

You're right, and I was actually thinking of putting a Fate Transfer "reprint" (except for colour, obviously) in Black. Perhaps I need to loosen my restrictions.

­Unweave would fit in Green, incidentally, but White does probably need some kind of lifegain spell.

In order to reduce complexity at common, I intend to remove one Chargeup (probably the enchantment) and one Chargecast card from common in each colour.

That will then leave 2 cards per colour as holes; I think I may put a cycle in one of spells which help the enemy colours (for instance, perhaps a Blue sorcery which grants flying to a Red or Green creature). These would give a bit more flesh to the feeling that this plane is stable and at peace prior to the events of the set, and the enemy-colour thing may become a minor subtheme.

Re your comment on parrying: On first read it does seem quite complex but after a reread you get the idea of what it wants to do. Is there any way to simplify it? maybe so that it just dioes its full power in damage to every creature it blocks (eliminate the confusing bit about full power damage to parried creature and split normal damage through others).

Chargecast is awesome, as is Chargeup.

The new wording for Parrying is clear and simple. Much better. And I don't see any reason it couldn't be on common creatures.

As for Scrycling, I'm on the fence about it. Mechanically its ok.

Thanks for your comments! Scrycling isn't meant to be super-flavourful (much like Cyclying!), it's just a handy smoothing mechanic.

What do you see as the "new" wording for Parrying? I don't think I've changed it recently...

Perhaps not recently. I am relatively new to this site which, by the way, is great.

I was commenting on Camruth's comment about its complexity (the one on Dec 24). On your mechanics description page you have a rather long description of parrying, something about designating a parried creature and something. But then on Imperial Guard the reminder text much simpler. I guess at some point you simplified it on the mechanics page and then forgot to update the mechanics description?

Also, I was wondering if I could use it for my set Arena?

Ah, I see. No, the rules as they stand are as on the Mechanics description page; however, they're only complicated when a creature with Parrying can block even more creatures via another ability. In that case you "parry" (deal full damage to) as many creatures as you have instances of Parrying, and then divide combat damage normally among the rest.

The reminder text is simple because the ability collapses down to that version when the creature in question has no other means of blocking multiple creatures, and has only one instance of Parrying.

That said, the gameplay gain from the more complex version is probably not worth the complexity, so I'll probably go with the simple version.

Gah. I keep vacillating on Parrying. I actually do like the complex version I have, but that may just be Melvin.

You're free to borrow the mechanic, though.

Right, I've made a decision on Parrying. The point is that the current version is complex to make an unusual case more flavourful - but worse. If the player wants to jump through hoops and get Parrying on a creature more than once, they might as well get a benefit for it.

That makes a lot of sense.

I've updated Chargeup to also ETB with a charge counter.

Unfortunately, this makes an already long reminder text (for an ability I hope is actually quite grokkable!) even longer, to the extent that the cards are probably unprintably full of text.

Can anyone think of a way of shortening it?

Re Chargeup: As its flavoured as "building up magic for later use" why not have it trigger 'At the end of your turn, if there are fewer than \1 charge counters on this, put a charge counter on it' that way it gets a counter the turn it enters the battlefield and you cut 6 words from the reminder text. Plus this is more flavourful as 'storing the scraps of magic left from the spells you cast that turn for later use'.???

Hmm. That would mean the ability was available half a turn earlier, in your opponent's second turn after the chargeup ETBd rather than in your second turn. It doesn't buy you a full extra turn, which will often matter (see the land cycle Tilled Field and friends).

On top of that, "At the end of your turn" isn't a time in Magic any more - it'd need to be "At the beginning of your end step", which is admittedly only one more word. Plus Upkeep is just so much more usual for regularly manipulating counters.

In summary, your idea helps, but I don't think it helps enough.

If you want to save words, I think the only way I can see is to drop the intervening if clause, which would also mean dropping the parameter. Every card with chargeup then accumulates one counter each turn, no matter how many are on it. This probably doesn't actually break much.

Y'know, I think you're right (and, of course, it's how Lux Cannon does it too). Of the current Chargeup cards, only 2 don't require a tap; of those, only Cisaean Wardrite plays much differently if it's stored up.

This also allows me to make cards like Bathe in Scintillae, or a Red spell that burns equal to your charge counters, and have them be more powerful.

Updated Chargeup to grant a counter on ETB and upkeep all the time. Much shorter, while still giving the counter on the first turn. A couple of cards are still "taller" in the visual spoiler than normal, but I think they're printable.

Does my common skeleton look sensible? Have I missed or overdone anything - I still have a few "holes" which could be used for things I've missed.

You seem to have slightly more red medium-size creatures than I'd expect. At common I'd expect at least half the creatures in each colour but green to be "small" (power 2 or less). I don't see any first strike on the skeleton... ah, but I see Laresian Emissary can have it. No, that looks very good to me; looking distinctly better structured than Clockwork Wings's skeleton, in fact.

Ah, you're right about Red's common creatures. Moved Medium Parrying to Small Parrying. Also traded Small Intimidate for Small FS, which I prefer (things in set 1 shouldn't be scary as such; remember, Arcunda "gets on well with itself").

Thanks for the second set of eyes!

What happens when a creature with parrying is made to block more than 2 creatures?

Chris already answered that on the mechanic descriptions page:

> Multiple instances of Parrying are partially redundant. A creature with "Parrying, Parrying" and no other relevant text can block three creatures; it will deal combat damage equal to its power to each of them. > If a creature has Parrying and can also block multiple creatures due to another ability, then it will deal combat damage equal to its power to all of them (regardless of the number of instances of Parrying the creature has).

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