- Your card still refers to itself as a minion even though it is an Artifact
- I know minions do but do Artifacts have Deathwatch? Looking at Soul Grimwar it gives your general Deathwatch
Fan Card Design Hub: Discussion (+Card Design Contest Discussion)
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- When you commented I had the wording changed already, so you’re probably referring to the old quotation in this thread.
- Thanks, I changed that now.
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Essentially:
Stats wasn’t so much a question, it was just a note on that the card still had creature traits, making things a bit confusing.
While you’re afraid specifically of Lathe, it still is fairly anti-synergic to the remainder of abyss’ artifact setup, mostly as it is the only space i recall they have of increasing damage dealt directly by generals. This punishes previously setting up Spectral, Grimwar, Azalea and a fairly hard-earned Relic, and the multi-proc could be wondrous with Horn - it only makes a good usage of Releaser and taking Releaser by itself is a questionable choice.
While the concept is neat, i see the healing aspect having relatively little usage as this will likely just be a 3 mana: finish the match a la laser golem.
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EMETH
not even once
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You’re right, I forgot about sacrifice spells… 
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Feedback is appreciated:
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The simple solution is to switch the faction to Vanar. Which saddens me as an Abyss main. But it would be less abuse-able over there.
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No, I’m tossing this idea and making something better.
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How does that ruin the two faction deal? Its currently an Abyss minion with a Vanar effect. Swapping the factions does not change that?
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I realized that too late. I’ll do that for now but try to think of something better. How about this? 
Confusing Aberration
3 Mana
Neutral Minion (3/4)
Infiltrate: Zeal: Deathwatch: Gain Backstab (0) and Blast this turn.
When this backstabs, it gains “Grow: +1/+1.”
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I like the concept but, despite Vanar’s mobility potential i feel their displacing power is a little too ‘unreliable’/situational for this to work at this power level - i wouldn’t use it over a Cloaker as is, but making it a 3/3 with Backstab 3 could be more feasible, i think.
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That statline is pretty much strictly weaker in every way though. Mana cost between two and three is massive. Equal attack to health is a drawback. Not to mention it messes with the flavor a tiny bit as I intended it to be a dark mirror of Kaido.
That being said thanks for the feedback, are you saying you think it is to weak? I was trying to make sure I did not overdo it. A small buff it could take would be to give it the Vespyr Tag.
Or alternatively perhaps Kaido is the wrong one to mirror perhaps maybe Massacre Artist would be better:
High cost variant:
Vanar Minion Vespyr
4 mana (2/5)
Infiltrate: Backstab 6
After this minion attacks and backstabs all attacks are backstabs this turn.
Or maybe similar to Katara (assuming she was nerfed to backstab two and not murdered from three to one.)
Low cost Variant:
Vanar Minion Vespyr
1 mana (1/3)
Infiltrate: Backstab 5
Current with Vespyr:
Vanar Minion Vespyr
2 mana (2/3)
Infiltrate: Backstab 4
- High Cost Variant
- Low Cost Variant
- Current with Vespyr
0 voters
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So which features you think work and which don’t? I’d appreciate some feedback on the current card description 
.
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I don’t feel it is that weak as much as it is just out of its proper context. Even with Hearthsisters and Mesmerizes i feel the baseline concept would end up as a frosty Rust Crawler - more often just a body than an effect. Accounting for Rebuke might be useful yet it has been months i don’t see one cast since all lizards i find are playing Commander in MTG, so i can’t exactly say it is really worth doing so.
Personally i’d go for the route of giving it more tools to actually reach there. Making it a vespyr simply put should suffice if followed by Dryad, although i could see myself looking for other answers.
@atheistmantis
What i feel is that it doesn’t know whether it wants to be a finisher or a recovery tool. Fluctuating costs based on enemy health makes it essentially just a death sentence to foes already too low, thus healing yourself shouldn’t be necessary at this point - it becomes a nearly free Ankh, but better. Also spirals into deep win-more as you can just cassy spell-rake people down to shreds and the act of winning makes winning even easier.
That said, if making it a recovery tool, taking away your other tools to clear board with it suddenly makes it inefficient.
All in all it could use a better defined goal. The mechanics are interesting, but i feel it is bloated.
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Please, I have too many ideas for the competition, tell me which one you like the best (and any balance stuff):
Ram’ssyba, Seed of Destruction
8 Mana
Abyssian Minion (1/1)
Invulnerable
Deathwatch: Gains “Grow: +1/+1.”
Embrace Death
7 Mana
Magmar Spell
For the rest of the game, your Grow abilities act like Deathwatch abilities instead.
Dishonorable Captain
2 Mana
Lyonar Minion (2/3)
Your Zeal abilities act like Infiltrate abilities instead.
False Knight
4 Mana
Lyonar Minion (3/5)
Provoke, Backstab: (1)
When this backstabs, transform it into a Shifting Tengu.
Shifting Tengu (token)
4 Mana
Songhai Minion (3/5)
When this moves through a minion, this transforms into an EXACT copy of that minion with this ability.
- Ram’ssyba, Seed of Destruction
- Embrace Death
- Dishonorable Captain
- False Knight
0 voters
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As not only the host but also a previous judge of the CDC, I should not be playing favorites.
However, as a player, your seed is too strong due to the invulnerable, your captain seems lack lustre, and your Knight seems too confusing.
Embrace death needs a name change but fits the best for me. However appeal to the judges not me.
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False Knight/Shifting Tengu is the most inspired one of the bunch and i adore the potential position play this can have. Extra madness if considering stealing the shape of a flier in order to move through big foes and pull surprise murder by turning a bird into a WORLDBREAKING GOLEM.
Everything here is delightfully inspired, my only qualms on how Ram’ssyba is a bit too slow (although no one can blame, given how absurdly resilient it is) and how Embrace Death needs perhaps a bit too much setup to be immediately impactful, but oh boy how it shifts Magmar’s visage from simple fat dudes to ravenous predators.
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I had to sleep on this to think about what I disliked, because I was thinking about how to break it. Vanar (I think) has only 2 ways to move a friendly unit, Hearth Sister and Lightning Blitz, Sister is obviously the more reliable, but a Lightning Blitz does sound somehwat scary with this unit to be honest.
So firstly I’ll say I’m a fan of the simple/clean design that has a lot more going on when you think about it, I think Infiltrate and Backstab are a great pairing thematically and mechanically. Before I saw your design I was thinking about the pairing from a Songhai unit perspective where the Infiltrate gave you an additional reward for doing a successful backstab.
That out of the way, dislike how high the backstab value is, 6 damage is a lot, and it feels like this guy can backstab better than near all of the Songhai roster, once you get in position of course. At worst the 2/3 body is a servicable opener though, but you’re trying to do a difficulty/reward balance that I don’t quite like, it feels like when this goes off it will be bloody, and at 3hp it may get to do so again.
Consider this play: open this minion P1.
Turn 2 take the mana tile, deploy gravity well, hearth sister into position, clear the enemy unit. They are now position-compromised, provoked and unit-less, with more damage or minion clears incoming if they do not clear the 2/3.
Of course there are ways to get out of the situation safely, but that seems like a pretty easy to accomplish high reward play.
Obviously as Armchair designers we don’t really get to playtest our cards to know how often and how hard they go off, maybe the situation I’m describing is quite rare, or not effective as I’m envisioning. Maybe it’s comparable to Songhai’s Backstab shenanigans in ease and efficiency and would be okay. But my feeling is that 6 damage is A LOT in the early game.
On the flip side if you don’t get it off, it’s not too interesting, a 2/3 is fine as an opening play, but probably isn’t going to be too scary later with both of its restrictions. So it feels like there’s a big gap between it’s best and worst case scenario, which makes evaluating it hard to be honest.
I don’t like any of your possible changes, as I don’t think adding Vespyr to it make sense, and don’t think it should enable all of Vanar to backstab as Massacre Artist.
@anjosustrakr my favourite of those is easily Captain, as i mentioned up slightly I like those elegant designs that have more going on than they seem, and transforming your Honor Guard into a Rogue Splinter Cell definitely sounds interesting for an aggressive deck that closes the enemy into their side quickly. I think power level wise Zeal is the better keyword, and a better fit for most of the minions that have it, but I really like the idea and what it could bring.
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Giving feedback is not the same as playing favorites, m8. You can’t vote anymore, so there is no way you could influence the competition…
Could it be that you hate Abyssian too? Most people would say that it is trash and far too slow because it’s a 1/1 for 8. I know it would be very powerful, but due to its slowness your opponent still has a few turns left to try and win (more if they run). Do you think it should cost 9?
You mean the ability is not good? Perhaps you’re right. Not sure how to improve it though.
It is complicated, but not confusing… unlike this, I must say:
Yeah, maybe.
Ok. @thematsjo, @oranos, @halcyon98, @anon52821416, you heard the boss! I would appreciate your opinions here.
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Honestly, that sounds offensive to people.
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