Spark Elemental

[Matt]

Spark Elemental
2RR
Creature -- Elemental
2/2
Whenever a red spell resolves, Spark Elemental deals two damage to target creature.
Spark elementals reproduce by infusing the very air around them with a lightning charge. When one settles in an inhabited area, the locals are often forced to flee without warning. Luckily, they are as rare as they are dangerous.

Notice that eventually it forces you to stop playing red spells or else it kills itself.
I wanted to make it "whenever a red card is put into a graveyard from play" but that would trigger on milling effects and I didn't want it to do that.

[Matt]

Spark Elemental
2RR
Creature -- Elemental
2/2
Whenever a red spell is played, Spark Elemental deals two damage to target creature.
Spark elementals reproduce by infusing the very air around them with a lightning charge. When one settles in an inhabited area, the locals are often forced to flee without warning. Luckily, they are as rare as they are dangerous.

[The Grim Reaper]

I like it. I think it's balanced for 2RR and while useful in burn decks, is still fragile. I don't see any needed changes.

[stijndon]

Well, you were probably waiting for this, and I bet you have your answer ready, but here goes: why use the word 'resolves?' What's wrong with plays?

"Then it also works when the spell gets countered."

Oh, right, yeah. That really matters... I don't think you should use the word 'resolves' on a card when you can just keep it 'play.'

And I think that it could use an activation cost of R. That way it becomes a worse card, but it got better from the 'play/resolve' change (should that occur), and it no longer accidentally kills itself. It becomes more like lightning cloud, then.

[Marco]

I like "whenever a red card is put into a graveyard from play". Are you sure that would trigger on milling effects? Wouldn't "whenever a red card is put into a graveyard from your library" trigger on milling effects?

[Matt]

Well it's SUPPOSED to be triggering off lightning bolt and stuff like that - cards that are never in play. I didn't want to do "red instant or sorcery" because that's too narrow, and I didn't want to do "goes to the graveyard from the stack or from play" because, well, mentioning "stack" is just really ugly.

Also, I used 'resolves' because if the Bolt or whatever never actually makes it onto the battlefield, the elemental should not get to spark. But something tells me that no wording is going to be both non-narrow and do exactly what I want, so the decision is to decide which of several good options I want.

[stijndon]

Resolves is ugly. Just use Plays.

If it becomes too good then, give it an activation cost. As I proposed before.

[Matt]

Twenty-four hour clock.

[Matt]

Closed and added.[/color]