Another interesting blue creature for the set

[GerryMander]

Before anyone gets all up-ity about me having like 6 open threads, all of them have been pmed for closure/finalization.  Matt's computer is goofy or something, so he can't do it right now.


NAME
{1}{U}
Creature -- Illusion
You may play NAME anytime you could play an instant.
Flying
NAME comes into play with X +1/+1 counters on it.
Discard two cards from your hand:  Return NAME to its owner's hand.
0/0


The idea behind this card is that you can keep on recasting it to make it bigger.  If you had enough mana and cards in your hand, this monster could fight off an entire alpha strike.

CURRENT WORDING

NAME
XUU
Creature -- Shapeshifter
You may play NAME as an instant during your opponent's combat step.
NAME comes into play with X +1/+1 counters on it.
Discard two cards from your hand:  Return NAME to its owner's hand.
0/0

CHANGES:
-dropped flying and changed mana cost *Some People*
-can be played in the combat step *Matt*
-Shapeshifter *GerryMander*

[Ephraim]

I think that you should remove the instant-speed playability and make the bounce effect cost only one card. Fewer abilities work better and I'm not sure this strictly needs to be playable at instant-speed.

[Jacob Orlove]

This is really, really strong. A splashable 3/3 flyer for 5 in limited is very good, and this has instant speed playability and the bounce.

I'd say up the cost to XUU adn remove the instant-speed part.

[dandan]

I say XUU, keep the instant and keep the unsummon at 2 cards

[Ephraim]

Oops. I didn't notice that it has flying. Yeah, my suggestions don't fly, then. {U}{X} sounds good. I definitely want to see the instant-speed gone. I still think I want to see the cost of the bounce effect lowered to one card. When I think of effects that cost two cards, I imagine the Prophecy spellshapers. I'd hardly consider those weak, but I've never seen them played, almost certainly because the huge card disadvantage was just too much to bear.

[GerryMander]

I really want the instant speed in there.  I want you to be able to stop a big attack if you have enough mana for it.  Couldn't a {U}{U} non flyer with a 2 card bounce payment be able to be played like an instant?

[Ephraim]

If you're going to keep the instant speed, I think the bounce needs to go. The nature of this card is that it's kind of like a burn spell. The circumstances under which it may be played are kind of limiting, but in essence, it jumps from your hand to damaging your opponent's creature right away. As such, it can't have "buyback" of any sort, since that's giving blue too much power, even if it all seems to be done in a blue-themed way.

[GerryMander]

Honestly, I think that the harsh bounce ability gives it enough of a warrent for it to be played as an instant.  This creature is such a big mana/card investment that it should be able to do good things.

[Matt]

What if, instead of being just any instant, you could play this only during combat?

[Laurie Cheers]

Are you saying you want to block with this, bounce it, play it again, and block another creature? You can't. All blockers must be declared at once.

By the way, does this really belong in blue? It's Ivy Elemental with a green (King Cheetah) ability.

[GerryMander]

i like the idea of being playable durring the opponent's combat step.


this creature is on par for blue.  The only thing that may be a little off is its X mana cost.  Who ever said that that was just a green ability though...


also, to mirror that [something]plasm from urza's legacy, I think I am going to make this a shapeshifter.

[Ephraim]

No, Laurie's quite right about creatures that are playable at instant-speed, now that I think about it. Of the eleven creatures that may be played whenever you could play an instant, five are mono-green and two are green/x. Three are mono-white. Only two of them don't contain either green or white: Defender of Chaos (red; a mirror of Defender of Law) and Needlebug (artifact). Only one such creature has blue in it at all: Mystic Snake.

I think I'm going to revise my opinion on this card and go with Laurie. This is not a blue-flavoured card, regardless of it being weak enough to be blue, it's using several non-blue mechanics.

[GerryMander]

ok, fine.  If this thing has too many nonblue abilities, then I am ditching it.