Seedy Bargain

[Titanium Dragon]

Seedy Bargain
BG
Sorcery (Uncommon)
Reveal the top five cards of your library. Put all land cards revealed this way into your hand, then lose 1 life for each nonland card revealed this way. Then shuffle your library.

I'm not sure if this has the appropriate power level, and/or if the drawback is arranged the right way. The way I made it, I was trying to make both matter; sometimes you'll get a great deal (3 lands for 2 life), sometimes an okay one (2 lands for 3 life), and occaisionally it will swing further (1 land, 4 life or 4 lands, 1 life). I'm curious as to whether you think this card is fair and as to whether you think I should keep the drawback as-is or should invert it (so that you lose life equal to the number of lands revealed).

[Fistandantilus]

It seems like a good card, but I'd probably play Mulch before I played this.

[Anusien]

I like it.

[jro]

That's an amazing card name.  I think maybe it needs a little something more if you want to keep the cost the way it is.  For instance, it could put the nonland cards in the graveyard (like Mulch), which is a perfectly BG thing to do, and helps set up strategies like dredge or threshold.  As is, the EV for a typical land distribution is "Draw two lands and lose 3 life."  Mulch is "Draw 1.7 lands and mill 2.3 cards", which seems much more useful.  Inverting the cost (losing life for the number of lands) seems very reasonable, and helps to prevent abuse in high land count decks.

I think a rare version of this card that incorporated a player choice would be pretty interesting.  Something like "Pick a number.  Reveal cards from the top of your library until you reveal that many lands, then lose life equal to the number of nonland cards revealed this way.  Put all lands revealed this way into your hand, then shuffle your library."