Animal Speaker

[Bram]

I was reading Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman again, and stumbled upon the charactor Lord Ratspeaker. It dawned on me that it might make a cool mechanic. This guy sort of talks to the animals on the opposing side, revealing their master's strategy. I tacked it on a 1/1 for G. Compare, I guess, to Wandering Eye, a 1/3 flyer for 2U where everyone plays woth their hands revealed.

I realise the mechanic is kind of blue (e.g. Telepathy) but that fact that it makes you choose a creature type as well as the flavor is kinda green. I'm not hung up on color / size / mana cost at all. Opinions?

Animal Speaker - G
Creature -- Druid
1/1
When Animal Speaker comes into play, choose a creature type.
As long as any player controls a creature of the chosen type, he or she plays with his or her hand revealed.

Current wording:

Animal Speaker - 1G
Creature -- Druid
1/1
When Animal Speaker comes into play, choose a creature type.
As long as any player controls a creature of the chosen type, he or she plays with his or her hand revealed.

[Marco]

Cool!

[Matt]

Looks good.

[Machinus]

Would you rather make it a 1/3 for 1G? I think if you had this in play you would want it to stick around.

[Bram]

Uh, yeah, I guess so. But don't you think it should be easy-ish to kill? Let's here some more opinions.

[Ephraim]

I think this needs to cost more anyhow. It's definitely an ability that typically belongs to blue, so it shouldn't be available cheaply in green. Compare this to Telepathy -- for the same cost, you're getting a similar ability with a 1/1 body (blessing, curse, etc.) I think there are many formats, in which, due to the prevalance of creatures, this would almost be strictly better than Telepathy. Wandering Eye, although blue (which means it's going to be fairly weak, for a creature), had fairly unimpressive stats and the drawback of affecting all players. I definitely think that this would be aggressively costed at {G} and fairly costed at {G} (not, by the way, because I think it's a powerful effect – merely because I think it's one that can't be pushed too hard in green.)

[Bram]

Compare this to Telepathy -- for the same cost, you're getting a similar ability with a 1/1 body (blessing, curse, etc.) I think there are many formats, in which, due to the prevalance of creatures, this would almost be strictly better than Telepathy.

How could this be strictly better than Telepathy? It's conditional and if you play the same creatures as your opponent, you're screwed, too. Also: I should think a 1/1 creature should be easier to get rid of than an enchantment. Also, Telepathy is only played in casual if at all, as far as I know, so even if you would be strictly better, I don't really see the problem.

Furthermore, it's green. Blue is the color best suited to take advantage of this effect (as in: control decks) but I believe that that right there is an interesting reason not to give it to blue. You wanna know what to counter? Fine, splash green. The fact that this interacts with creatures seems very green to me.

Having said all that, I think I made up my mind about the color: this needs to be green. The mana cost can be slightly higher, however. I'd be fina with a 1/1 for 1G. How's that?

[Ephraim]

I didn't properly read it, so I didn't realize that this could affect you too. In that case, {G} is fine.

Concerning my argument, though, it has nothing to do with whether or not Telepathy is a good card. It has everything to do with Telepathy belonging to the colour that has previously been firmly established as the colour of spying on an opponent's hand. We should not lightly give that away.

[Bram]

OK, in that case: clock.

[The Atog Lord]

Green is the color of undercosted creatures. CHK block features several green creatures for two mana with two power and a modestly useful ability. I understand that this ability itself may be more blue than green; however, paying two mana for a 1/1 creature whose ability is questionable is very inconsistent with green's flavor. Consider that a single green mana will pay for a 1/2 creature with landwalk. And consider also that there will be plenty of instances in which the opponent controls no creatures, and other instances in which the opponent controls only creatures of a type you also control.

Moreover, while looking at the hand per se is a blue ability, being hand-conscious is also in the flavor of green; examples of this off the top of my head are Maro and Storm Seeker.

So, if you'd like to create a card that will be a "skill tester" like Mud Hole, Chimney Imp, and Yawgmoth's Edict, then keep this thing at 1/1 for 1G. However, if this card is to get picked before 14th in draft (not fifteenth, because its still better than a foil land), then I suggest making the creature a bit more reasonable.

How about GG for a 2/1? This cost still shows a hefty price being paid for the "off color" ability. For this sort of mana, Green can have an elf who functions as a disenchant with legs. For a less expensive 1G, green gets itself Loam Dweller, a larger creature with what is most likely a better ability. Budoka Gardener is another creature of the same size costing 1G with a much more useful ability -- two abilities if you count the flipping one. And I won't bother comparing this guy at GG to Wild Mongrel at 1G.

[Nova442]

Yes 1/1 for 1G with this ability is severely weak.  It's printable but useless.  Here's one vote for 2/1 GG.

[Bram]

Time to bump some (or rather a lot) of my cards.

Clock?

[Matt]

Perfect. Let's do this.

[dandan]

This is overcosted at 1G. For G I can have a 0/1 that means I don't give a damn what they have in their hand. I see no problem with this at G. Green gets 1/1s for G with a useful ability.
I agree that the ability is not clearly Green but the flavour is. In order to get the CC to something playable (i.e. G) I think we should make the ability activated with a cost of G (keep the creature type named when this CIP). You need to expend energy to chat with the critters.

If you want to get funky, give it critterwalk and make the opponent reveal his or her hand whenever this deals combat damage. Morphlingwalk would be awesome in casual and BallofLightningwalk would rival Bands-with-other for worst ability.

[Odern420]

hehe...... you should give it regenerating to makeit really annoying

[Bram]

Adding regeneration is sort of random.

Dandan: I really don't see how I could put an activation cost on there without ruining the mechanic. I just woke up, so maybe I don't see it yet, though.

I have an eerie feeling Wizards would never print this is a 1/1 for G. I don't want to make it double green, because that way, it wouldn't be splashable for casual blue mages. I have no problem making bad cards. We needs those. This could be a common this way.

[dandan]

Wacky version

Animal Speaker - G
Creature -- Druid
1/1
When Animal Speaker comes into play, choose a creature type.
{chosen creature}walk  (optional abilty - possibly too wacky and too good?)
Whenever ~this~ damages a player, that player reveals his or her hand if they control at least one creature of the type chosen

Activated ability version
Animal Speaker - G
Creature -- Druid
1/1
When Animal Speaker comes into play, choose a creature type.
G: Target player reveals his or her hand if they control at least one creature of the type chosen

Clearer? (obviously the obove would need a little reworking on the wording but I think the concept is clear)

[Bram]

Clock, again.