Fat Elf Simpleton

[jro]

So in the spirit of trying to make simple cards, I'd like to see what people think of this.  I've long wanted to see a 2GG 4/4 at common in green.  WotC has made it pretty clear that a 4/4 for 2GG is close to fair (look at Ravenous Baloth, Kodama of the South Tree, Brooding Saurion, and Cytoplast Rootkin, although note that these are all rares).  I see this as part of the ongoing improvement in green creatures that's been taking place since WotC cleaned up the color pie.  One that's permanently retired the stinker common 4G 4/4 Durkwood Boars.  Previously, it's given us common cards like Elvish Warrior, a card which, had it been around in Alpha, would have trumped Black Knight and White Knight.

Part of the challenge of making this card is to make it work as a common without making it either 1) as good as Baloth 2) strictly worse than Baloth 3) as complex as Cytoplast Root-kin.  Giving it a useful ability like Trample is out of the question.  I'd also like for it to be reprintable in Nth edition, so making it have a tricky ability or other strangeness is out.  The only approach I can think of that works would be to give it useful creature types.  In green, that means being an Elf or a Beast, so I thought "Why not give it both?"  Of course that creates a flavor problem, but it's currently the best solution I can think of.

Fat Elf Simpleton
2GG
Creature -- Elf Beast
4/4

Current Wording:
Contented Baloth
2GG
Creature -- Beast
4/4

[parallax]

Order of the Sacred Bell says this is fine power-level-wise for a common. This should not be both an Elf and a Beast. Choose one. It's okay for a common to be strictly worse than a similar rare.

[netherspirit]

I like it, I've always thought the same about creatures on this sort of power level. Gnarled Mass is a 3/3 for 1GG, so why not have a 4/4 for 2GG? The only thing I don't like is the creature type, I'd either make it a standard beast, or an elf mutant. Nice card though!

[jro]

It's okay for a common to be strictly worse than a similar rare.

I know WotC's okay with it, but I try to resist it as much as possible.  If there was any way to get away with not making it strictly worse, then I would like to do that.  I think it's scandalous that Craw Wurm (which has always been terrible) and Ancient Silverback (which is about a hundred times better) are both in 9th.  For instance, making it a Beast (the most natural creature type for it, I think), would just make it strictly worse than Baloth.  Making it an Elf is bad for flavor, though, and I don't think an Elf Mutant at common in Nth edition makes sense.  I guess the other option is to make it an Elephant, but there's not much value to being an Elephant, so it's even worse than making it a Beast.  The other option is to give it a very marginal ability, but I kind of like it being vanilla.  Bah, I guess it will just be a Beast.

[Matt]

Vanilla creatures are kind of boring, is there NO ability this could have?

[asi]

Vanilla creatures are kind of boring, is there NO ability this could have?

Vindicatice Mob to the Rescue! There are a LOT of obscure abilities a card could have. Let me just shake this hat and we'll find some:

- Protection from an obscure creature type (Elves, other Beasts, Pixie-Queen. So many possibilities).
-Protection from a weird card type (Equipment, Land, Enchantment / Aura)
-RAMPAGE (sorry audience. Back in the hat for you to Banding and Affinity.)
-Block-Triggers (Whenever this is blocked, gain 1 life/ look at the to card of some library/ destroy target equipment)
- When this is put into a graveyard from, shuffle it into your library.
- T: Add to your mana pool. Or copy and paste a random Legends legend ability.

[jcb193]

Make it pumpable in some way (like the more it eats, the bigger it gets).  +1/+1 each turn, each turn it damages, GG, whatever.  That gives it some power.  Or each turn it gets +1/+1, but you lose a forest.

Just an idea. 

[jro]

While I wouldn't object to it having some minor ability, I think there's merit in leaving it as a vanilla creature.  For a card that (again) I was thinking should be a common in Nth edition, I think its plainness is a virtue.  Grizzly Bears still gets printed, even though there's strictly better 1G 2/2s in just about every expansion.   I'd be all for printing variations of this at common that have minor abilities in expansions.  But adding something like protection to a common in Nth edition is just not possible.  The only ability I kind of like is making it tap for mana, since it's a lousy ability on a dude you should be smashing face with.  But I think that just clutters up the card, and adds more flavor problems.

Vanilla creatures are kind of boring, is there NO ability this could have?

While it may not ultimately end up to be a terribly interesting card, I do think it's interesting to consider how one can balance such a card.  And since most of us just think up these cards instead of playing with them, I'd say that there's a great virtue in discussing these kinds of cards.  How can we hope to balance the complex cards if we can't make a vanilla creature work?

I was thesaurus hunting for names for it, and I found that the expression "in clover" is a synonym for happy and contented.  I would love to name this card "Baloth in Clover", but I don't think that would ever work.  It would be a nice break from the "Adjective Noun" style of card naming, though.

[dandan]

This is fine in vanilla flavour

[parallax]

Making this a Baloth is just begging for the negative comparison to Ravenous Baloth. Beasts can frequently have nonsense names. Alternately, this can have a less useful, but more flavorful creature type. Possibilities include Wurm, Elemental, Lizard, Treefolk, Boar, and Kavu. Everybody loves Kavu.

Beast names: Hundroog Runt, Nesting Wumpus, Hunting Beast

[Anusien]

There are very few actually vanilla creatures in expert-level sets, even if they have crappy abilities instead.  Gnarled Mass and Watchwolf were different because they were very very efficient.  2GG is slightly overpriced for a 4/4, so they have room to put a halfway decent ability on it.  What about something like "Discard a land card from your hand: <this> gets +1/+1 until end of turn."  You could even tack on a "play this ability only once per turn."  Realistically it's just going to be vanilla, but it adds an interesting twist.

[parallax]

They do print vanilla creatures in expert sets if they need something to use in the next base set. I think Fugitive Wizard was printed for this reason. They were removing Merfolk from the game, and wanted a 1/1 for in the base set to replace Merfolk of the Pearl Trident. 

[Illissius]

2GG is slightly overpriced for a 4/4, so they have room to put a halfway decent ability on it.  What about something like "Discard a land card from your hand: <this> gets +1/+1 until end of turn."  You could even tack on a "play this ability only once per turn."  Realistically it's just going to be vanilla, but it adds an interesting twist.

That would be way too similar to Simian Brawler. I think the card is fine as proposed, not every card has to push the power envelope, and this would still be great in limited. Or perhaps the cost could be , if the comparison vs. Hill Giant isn't too blatant.

[asi]

That would be way too similar to Simian Brawler. I think the card is fine as proposed, not every card has to push the power envelope, and this would still be great in limited. Or perhaps the cost could be , if the comparison vs. Hill Giant isn't too blatant.

Order of the Sacred Bell is what green should get for , so I think this is alright as-is.

[parallax]

I would feel bad about obsoleting Order of the Sacred Bell. I think it's fine as a vanilla 4/4, but if it seems too weak, is 4/5 for too good?

[Illissius]

Let's just leave it as is, I think.

[Anusien]

2GG is different than 3G, so this doesn't obsolete Sacred Bell.  I'm fine with this, but we need flavor text.

[parallax]

2GG is different than 3G, so this doesn't obsolete Sacred Bell.  I'm fine with this, but we need flavor text.

I was just objecting to a suggestion to lower the cost to . I think the card is perfect as is. It just needs a name and flavor text.

[Anusien]

Could we make this some sort of Gorilla or Ape?  That's a really fun and under-used creature type, and it fits the stats.