Xytheria, Empress of Stone
Custom Cards forum
Posted on Sept. 5, 2021, 1:47 a.m. by TypicalTimmy
Xytheria, Empress of Stone
Legendary Creature - Gorgon
Deathtouch, Menace
Whenever Xytheria, Empress of Stone destroys another nontoken creature, you may pay 3 life. If you do, exile that creature and create a colorless artifact token named Petrified Statue. It has ", , sacrifice this token: Prevent all damage dealt by target source this turn."
Xytheria, Empress of Stone gets +1/+1 for each token you control named Petrified Stone.
2/4
Probably a really nice Precon Commander. First thoughts that come to mind are putting Fight cards in the deck with her, so she doesn't actually have to attack. Cards such as Epic Confrontation would be beautiful. Another solid pairing with her is Foe-Razer Regent for some additional +1/+1 counters. You could also introduce Doubling Season for that as well, and Parallel Lives and Primal Vigor. Once she's thiccer than your library, you can begin attacking relentlessly for some combat damage as your primary wincon via 21 Commander Damage. Slapping some Lifelink onto her is a great way to not die to the -3 payment, and adding on Trample is a good way to ensure she connects.
There are plenty of enchantments, equipment, instants and sorceries to ensure she always gets through. Basically, she's Voltron with an appreciation for tokens. For example, Thornbite Staff and Sword of Fire and Ice immediately come to mind.
Thematically, the tokens are being destroyed when damaged, and that's what is "taking the damage".
I was originally going to make the tokens be Artifact Creatures - Constructs with Defender, but then I decided to drop Artifact and changed Construct to Golem as that was more appropriate flavor-wise. It was going to be a 0/0 with toughness equal to the exiled creatures. Exiling a massive 10/10 should yield a 0/10 statue, not a 0/1 statue or something like that. The thoughts are that a bigger creature should be able to brunt more damage before being destroyed. But, this turned into word-soup and became very clunky. I also was not a fan of the idea that the statue you just created could also attack if you remove Defender. That felt cheesy and not thematically appropriate. It was also going to be difficult to track who was what toughness and what they exiled, so I settled on just a generic 0/3, but again that felt horrible. I compromised by going the route of noncreature artifacts that can be sacrificed to prevent damage, if you are willing to pay the . Basically it's a really shitty Fog, but it does allow you to precisely pinpoint when and where you want to stop the hurt, which is something I feel is actually pretty powerful and has room for design growth.
A hidden special power of her deck is that, with this current iteration, the Petrified Statues are immune to wraths. Because they aren't creatures, when the boardstate blows up, they remain intact (pun purposefully intended).
What's interesting with this wording and structure is you can play politics and sacrifice a token to stop another opponent from taking some serious damage, in exchange for a called-in favor later on. For example, you could prevent 12 incoming damage from a very large creature or spell, and in exchange you don't want to be attacked for the next turn, or you want a spell to resolve, or something. Clever players will spot appropriate moments to call these favors in.
seshiro_of_the_orochi says... #3
*"no actual defined meaning"
God dammit...
September 5, 2021 5:01 a.m.
TypicalTimmy says... #4
Well I mentioned Fight as well as a few equipment that ping for damage.
So, yes. If she kills a creature, it counts.
September 5, 2021 3:48 p.m.
Gidgetimer says... #5
I think their point is that Xytheria has no way to destroy creatures, and no easy way to give her a way to. Your intent is clear, but MTG templating is very precise and has no way to parse your intent. Damage dealt never destroys anything, it is either CR 704.5g, CR 704.5h, or effects that specifically say "destroy" (Avatar of Woe, Doom Blade, Wrath of God etc).
To fulfil your intent you would need to template the ability like Sengir Vampire. If you want the destruction to have to be a result of specifically the damage Xytheria deals, you are going to have to find a creative way to template it to make it work. Every effect that I can find specifies "dealt damage ... dies this turn" for added benefit triggers.
120.5. Damage dealt to a creature or planeswalker doesn’t destroy it. Likewise, the source of that damage doesn’t destroy it. Rather, state-based actions may destroy a creature or planeswalker, or otherwise put it into its owner’s graveyard, due to the results of the damage dealt to that permanent. See rule 704
701.7b The only ways a permanent can be destroyed are as a result of an effect that uses the word “destroy” or as a result of the state-based actions that check for lethal damage (see rule 704.5g) or damage from a source with deathtouch (see rule 704.5h). If a permanent is put into its owner’s graveyard for any other reason, it hasn’t been “destroyed.”
704.5g If a creature has toughness greater than 0, it has damage marked on it, and the total damage marked on it is greater than or equal to its toughness, that creature has been dealt lethal damage and is destroyed. Regeneration can replace this event.
704.5h If a creature has toughness greater than 0, and it’s been dealt damage by a source with deathtouch since the last time state-based actions were checked, that creature is destroyed. Regeneration can replace this event.
seshiro_of_the_orochi says... #2
Love the design, as I've wanted to build Sisters of Stone Death for quite a while. But I noticed something: You keep on using the wording "whenever ~ destroys a creature", but there's actual defined meaning to that. Is it meant to be the Sengir Vampire ability? Would giving her a pinger ability plus deathtouch count? How about combat? Fight spells? Nobody knows. What counts as "agency" of the creature?
September 5, 2021 5:01 a.m.