New Mechanic - Immovable
Custom Cards forum
Posted on Oct. 17, 2014, 10:51 a.m. by Gruss029
So I've been wondering what it would look like, what it would take, if you wanted to design a card that absolutely could not be removed from play by any means. One way would be to just give it a whole bunch of keywords: hexproof, indestructible, cannot be countered or sacrificed. But that still doesn't count shuffle effects, mass return to hand, etc. I know that MtG is built on the premise that there is always an answer to everything, somehow. What if there was an exception to that? Just one little exception... How about a new ability like:
Immovable - once in play, (cardname) cannot be removed from play until the end of game.
(cardname) is uncounterable.
orImmovable - (cardname) cannot be moved to any zone other than the battlefield until the game is over.
It could be a keyword of its own, or could be on auras that could enchant other permanents and turn them from their previous type to an Immovable type.
Now, what kinds of effects would this have? I'm thinking non-creature, world-altering effects. Build around cards that affect everyone but that you can build your deck and strategy around. It would need to be powerful, otherwise why would you play it, but subtle so that it isn't broken. A triggered ability seems to fit: "Whenever a player (plays a spell/draws a card/is dealt damage/etc.), something happens".
So, ideas?
It should be a cycle, so no one feels left out
white: damage prevention ; graveyard recursion
blue: card draw ; tapping/untapping permanents
black: life for card advantage ; graveyard recursion?
red: damage ; draw/discard
green: mana/creature manipulation
I feel like the Gods from Theros are kind of what I'm thinking of but they can still be removed, can become creatures, and don't have the "change the whole battlefield" kinds of effects I'm thinking about.
Just something to think about, please leave some ideas!
yeah it just doesn't work. the whole point of magic is loop holes to rules. so an infallible rule like that doesn't fit and everything gets all wonky. Last thing we need is target creature gains immovable, targeting Blightsteel Colossus or something like that, who is already indestructible as is. It would eliminate the point of Black Sun's Zenith and the like all together and make games boring because there would be absolutely nothing you could do.
October 17, 2014 11:09 a.m.
Epochalyptik says... #4
In general, it's a very bad idea to design something that can't be answered.
October 17, 2014 11:12 a.m.
it sounds like you're describing a planeswalker emblem.
October 17, 2014 11:21 a.m.
Well, they could simply make Emblems into a castable card type. But then they would be shoehorned into making cards that answer Emblems.
October 17, 2014 12:21 p.m.
10vernothin says... #7
I tried making a mechanic like that when I was designing the Endless, but then I realized that if I make zone-changing effects impossible, it makes for too many OP things.
It ended up as:
"At the beginning of each upkeep, if ~ is in your graveyard, return it onto the battlefield. If ~ would be put into exile from anywhere, return it to your hand instead."
So in the end I did put up a counter-effect: shuffling them into your library.
October 17, 2014 12:38 p.m.
MagicalHacker says... #8
"If ~ would leave the battlefield, instead it doesn't."
October 17, 2014 2:51 p.m.
You could do a bounce effect making it sort-of fair... "if ~ dies or is exiled, return it to play under its owner's control at the end of the turn" It could still be returned to the library or your hand, so it wouldn't break the game. It would fit along the undying/ persist axis. To make it more fair, instead of counters, maybe its returning would do damage to its owner or make the owner sacrifice a permanent, etc.
October 20, 2014 11:53 a.m.
MagicalHacker says... #10
Oh, also, this might work better without being totally unanswerable (because of effects that gain control of creatures):
"~ can't leave the battlefield."
October 20, 2014 12:21 p.m.
lothshteth says... #11
Still a rules headache because of toughness reduction effects. It's like if Humility was a keyword, but even worse.
erabel says... #2
Um. No.
You've kind of got two options here:
This discussion kind of comes up a lot with people newer to making custom cards, because they think it's an exciting thing, but honestly, it's a rules headache at best.
October 17, 2014 10:59 a.m.