EDH: My mono-W charity case

Custom Cards forum

Posted on July 24, 2018, 4:05 p.m. by Coward_Token

Here's my latest thought exercise/forum front page clogger. Based on takes on the weaknesses of mono- from e.g. deck: http://tappedout.net/mtg-decks/iona-shield-of-emeria-1/ , I've tried to come up with cards that would remedy this situation. Here you'll find my attempts to address white's lack of card advantage, tutoring and stack interaction, plus some stuff that just rewards you for playing white.. Some of these are simply a few existing good cards which I've had legs removed from/added to with appropriate flavor, since this would alleviate problems that comes with singleton limitations. I've tried to make most of the cards primarily appealing to mono- by e.g. using lots of the color's symbols in mana costs since White is far from a bad color when combined with others, and I didn't want to make e.g. Karador, Ghost Chieftain much stronger.

This thread ended up being posted in a bit of a rush, since Wizards claim they've listened to EDH-related feedback in Commander 2018 and seems to be on their way of proving it with Endless Atlas, which kinda makes the whole "Advantage" category below redundant. (For those who are curious, it made me downright cut a card and its five variants, all which were permanents that let you discard/sac Plains to draw.)

Stack interaction

Blanket Grace Show

Instant

All permanents and all players gain shroud until end of turn.

“Don’t worry, you are all under my protection.”

Comment: Okay so historically, temporarily giving things shroud has mostly been a thing ( http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Search/Default.aspx?text=+[gain]+[shroud]&format=[%22Commander%22]&sort=color+ ). However, the way I see it, since the mechanic is primarily defensive and has a symmetrical "same for everyone" nature, it feels right for to use it. Blanket Grace is meant as a sort of counterspell vs targeted spells and abilities without explicitly going into Mana Tithe's Planar Chaos shenanigans, and since shroud isn't hexproof it can stop people from targeting their own stuff to combo in addition to just blocking a Go for the Throat or something aimed at your guys.

Desperate Plea Show

Instant

Convoke (Your creatures can help cast this spell. Each creature you tap while casting this spell pays for 1 or one mana of that creature’s color.)

Exile all spells from the stack.

Comment: Another attempt at a counterspell that isn't a counterspell, as both exiling and indiscriminate effects are associated with the color. Dunno if Convoke should be removed and/or the mana cost adjusted, I just don't want it to be too cheap compared to regular counterspells (but still usable under the right circumstances!), nor fetchable by Sunforger.

Cloak Caster Show

Creature - Human Wizard

1/1

Flash

When Cloak Caster enters the battlefield, you may have target artifact, creature or enchantment gains shroud until end of turn.

, : Target artifact, creature or enchantment gains shroud until end of turn.

“What I hide will be found by neither friend nor foe.”

Comment: Same basic idea as Blanket Grace. Dunno if the ETB should have a drawback; I used to attach exert to it. (Also, compare Mother of Runes, dunno how appropriate the additional costs are.)

Pact of Grace Show

Instant

You can’t lose the game this turn and your opponents can’t win the game this turn. Until end of turn, damage that would reduce your life total to less than 1 reduces it to 1 instead.

At the beginning of your next upkeep, pay . If you don’t, you lose the game.

Comment: Obvious merge between Angel's Grace and Intervention Pact, as the latter was something I found underwhelming compared to Pact of Negation. Dunno if the upkeep cost is reasonable, nor if it needs Split Second.

Angelic Intervention Show

Instant

Nonland permanents you control gain hexproof and indestructible until end of turn.

Comment: I never got why mono- didn't have a permanent type-agnostic source of indestructible when got Boros Charm and even was given Heroic Intervention (what the hell Wizards, it could be White and still be Ajani-flavored!) "Nonland" is specifically there to make it a bit distinct from its obvious green inspiration.

Misc

Generous Farmlands Show

Land - Plains

(: Add .)

: Add . Each opponent gains 1 life. Activate this ability only if you control three or more Plains.

In prosperous times, charity comes easily.

Comment: White Grove of the Burnwillows, kind of. Just something I thought of to specifically reward going mono color. (Also synergizes with the Charity cards below.)

Meeting of Heroes Show

Sorcery

Cast this spell only if you control a planeswalker.

Search your library for a planeswalker card, put that card onto the battlefield, then shuffle your library.

“Jace Beleren,” he said. “I need your help.”

Comment: White has a decent amount of planeswalker support cards (Ajani Steadfast, Djeru, With Eyes Open etc.), so I thought I'd expand on this theme. As a bonus, this gives Tibalt a purpose in life! (Fetching Ugin in decks.) I've been working on some more white PW-stuff, but it's not quite done yet and I want to see what Commander 2018 will address before posting. (Also, I'd prefer to have a Godsend quote from the part that Solidarity of Heroes references, but I haven't read that novel. Instead we'll have to go with the ever controversial Jace, quoting https://magic.wizards.com/en/articles/archive/magic-story/catching-2015-07-22 )

Road Building Show

Sorcery

Look at the top 5 cards of your library. Put up to two Plains revealed this way onto the battlefield tapped. Put the other cards at the bottom of your library in a random order.

Comment: Dunno if this is too situational to be useful often enough, but since Land Tax + Scroll Rack is a thing I thought this would be decent.

Sunborn Hero Show

Enchantment Creature - Human Soldier

0/0

Creatures you control get +X/+X and have double strike, where X is your devotion to white. (Each in the mana costs of permanents you control counts toward your devotion to white.)

In their darkest hour, Heliod sent a single ray of hope to the city’s protectors.

Comment: I've tried to balance the cost a bit compared to True Conviction, dunno if it worked out. While it's pretty much always be at least a 3/3, its 0 toughness means Recruiter of the Guard can tutor for it in addition to various enchantment tutors.

Advantage

Charity's Reward Show

Enchantment

Whenever a spell or ability you control causes one or more opponents to draw one or more cards, gain life and/or search their library one or more times, you may draw a card or put a land card from your hand onto the battlefield.

Comment: So I always thought Armistice was a neat card that was dragged down by the balance conservatism of the Masques block, so I wanted to see if the basic concept as a way to give white card advantage could be salvaged without just creating a sort of reverse Necropotence. This was one attempt; I dunno if it ended up being too much anyway. Note that it doesn't work with Alms Collector (I think), since replacement effects just modifies existing ones and don't count as their own source (I think). (Also, if you want legs on the card I also made a 0/1 Enchantment Spirit called Eidolon of Charity with the same ability.)

Forceful Peace Seeker Show

1/2

Creature - Human Knight Advisor

First Strike

Whenever Forceful Peace Seeker becomes blocked by a creature, Forceful Peace Seeker gets +3/+0 until end of turn.

Whenever Forceful Peaceseeker attacks and isn’t blocked, it deals no combat damage during this phase. Defending player gains 3 life and you draw a card.

“Harmony, at any cost.”

Comment: Another Armistice derivation. First strike + neo-rampage will hopefully convince your opponent to let it trough.

Ivory Library Show

Enchantment

At the beginning of your upkeep, name a card type. You may look at the top five cards of your library and reveal a card of the named type. If you do, put it in your hand, then put the rest at the bottom of your library in a random order.

Comment: Obvious Sylvan Library + Board the Weatherlight derivation. Five cards might be too much here, but I didn't want the card to create too many "feel bad" moments for when a player doesn't get anything.

Legs on/off

Eidolon of Enlightenment Show

Version 1:

Enchantment Creature - Spirit

1/1

Flash

When Eidolon of Enlightenment enters the battlefield, search your library for an artifact or enchantment card and reveal that card. Shuffle your library, then put the card on top of it.

Version 2:

Enchantment Creature - Spirit Spellshaper

1/1

, , Discard a card: Search your library for an artifact or enchantment card and reveal that card. Shuffle your library, then put the card on top of it.

Comment: So both are obviously derived from Enlightened Tutor. I dunno if the Spellshaper version would lead to overly linear and boring gameplay; the three existing tutoring Spellshapers just find basic lands.

Guard Recruitment Show

Instant

If you control a Plains, you may tap an untapped creature you control rather than pay this spell’s mana cost.

Search your library for a creature card with toughness 2 or less and reveal that card. Shuffle your library, then put the card on top of it.

Comment: Recruiter of the Guard meets Enlightened Tutor, with the alternative cost mostly being me having fun but also kind of taking advantage of white's love of vigilance.

Scroll Assistant Show

Artifact Creature

1/1

, : Exile any number of cards from your hand face down. Put that many cards from the top of your library into your hand. Then look at the exiled cards and put them on top of your library in any order.

"I think Hanna would have appreciated having this in the field."

-Jhoira

Comment: Scroll Rack. Moving on.

Physiocrat Show

Creature - Human Advisor

0/1

At the beginning of your upkeep, if an opponent controls more lands than you, you may search your library for up to three basic land cards, reveal them, put them into your hand, then shuffle your library.

“A nation’s wealth comes from the land.”

Comment: Obvious Land Tax on legs. Also: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Physiocracy

Caerwyn says... #2

I disagree with the intent behind this thread. Mono-White does not need to be remedied--the drawbacks of a certain colour are as important to the colour pie as the benefits. Here's my thoughts of the cards:

• Blanket Grace - I do not like this card. While there are some white permanents that grant Shroud (and one White instant granting you shroud), the ability you've described is outside of White's colour identity. It does not matter that you can justify with Lore-appropriate reasoning--the mechanics are what matters. White's instant-speed protection is "Indestructible until end of turn."

• Cloak Caster - Again, not really what White is supposed to do. I would find it more acceptable if you limited it just to Enchantments or enchanted permanents, harking to Greater Auramancy.

• Pact of Grace - This is fine as-is.

• Angelic Intervention - I would remove the hexproof and just leave it as "Permanents you control gain indestructible until end of turn." As for Heroic Intervention - Hexproof is primarily found in Green as an enemy colour to Blue. Again, mechanics > flavour.

• Generous Farmlands - I like this in theory. I would make it a Legendary Land and then remove the Plains subtype. As it stands, this can give you 6 mana on turn 3.

• Meeting of Heroes - not overly fond of this card--it would be really problematic in many formats. Arena Rector at least requires some deal of work--either having an opponent kill it or you having drawn a sacrifice engine/removal spell. In Gideon Tribal or Superfriends, you'll almost always have a Planeswalker available, making this really easy to cast.

• Road Building - I don't think White should have that much ramp, but limiting this to plains at least keeps it in-line with some older cards (Land Tax is a problematic card). I might limit it to basic plains.

• Sunborn Hero - this card effectively reads "creatures you control get at least +6/+6." I might just give creatures first strike--that still should be plenty powerful.

• Charity's Reward - I do not think this should be mono-White. Chaining one colour's trait with another's is typically found in multicoloured cards.

• Forceful Peace Seeker - This would be a fun card for ; not so sure about mono-White.

• Ivory Library - Not a fan. This bridges far too much into Blue (Artifacts) and Green (Creatures/Lands). I feel this should be limited to Enchantments.

• Eidolon of Enlightenment v1 - Enlightened Tutor on a body should not be at the same cost as Enlightened Tutor. This could work, but should cost more and have Flash removed.

• Eidolon of Enlightenment v2 - White does not tend to discard a card as part of a cost. Further, tutors on a stick are extremely problematic.

• Guard Recruitment - I might up the cost some and require you to tap two untapped creatures, but this doesn't seem too problematic.

• Artifact Creature - the mana cost should be updated some to reflect providing a body, and Scroll Rack is a pretty powerful ability that I think would receive a higher cost if it were released today. seems reasonable.

• Physiocrat - this should be costed higher to reflect it being on a body. Further, Land Tax is a problematic card to begin with.

July 25, 2018 3:57 p.m.