MTG DESIGN
Explore the interaction between the mechanics and the fiction
Design concept
Flavor
Make the card gameplay align with its name, color, and story background, allowing players to feel immersed when using the card.
Playability
1. Incorporate existing gameplay patterns in the game environment to make these cards useful in practical battles.
2. Utilize card mechanics to guide players into actions that align with the flavor and the diverse experiences offered by cards of different colors, while allowing cards of the same color to complement each other when used, ensuring that players consistently obtain the desired gaming experiences when using these cards.
3. Based on the actual in-game situations, roughly estimate the value of each ability, and find existing cards that are similar to my intended design. Modify my design based on the value of the abilities and the numerical values of these cards to ensure that the strength of my designed cards falls within a normal range.
Story background
The story unfolds in a gaming world where a game company holds dominion, bestowing individuals with reputation and wealth corresponding to their game rankings. Numerous peculiar phenomena exist here: nobody engages in labor to create material or spiritual wealth for the world, yet the game company continually supplies resources; the process of joining the game company has never been disclosed, yet the company's enforcement personnel persist; there is no means for human perpetuation in this place, and the loss of population can never be replenished. Within the gaming world, a group of perceptive and inquisitive players clandestinely assembles, peeling away the surface to uncover the secrets of this world.
Unique ability: Duel
Effect
When entering the battlefield, may engage in combat with any target creature.
Both creatures recover all their damage, and the defeated creature becomes tapped.
Connection to the story
In the gaming world, "Duel" is a commonly used iconic social interaction. It's merely a game competition and does not result in death; the losing side temporarily ceases actions due to low morale and is thus tapped.
Progress in design
In Magic: The Gathering design, flavor and mechanics are the difficulties in designing.
At first, my design had the problem of insufficient and inadequate explanation of flavor by mechanics. For example, this card that I didn’t adopt, “Iron-faced Judge”, the mechanic “If they can't” explained the “iron-faced”, and the “target opponent discards a card” explained the “judge’s” “penalty”. But the judge is not only about penalty, the real “Iron-faced Judge” should be clear about reward and punishment. At the same time, the mechanics focused on the punishment of the opponent, which did not match the white flavor.
Later, I wanted to use a relatively complex mechanic to restore the flavor to the maximum extent. “Killer Driver” was designed under such a guiding idea. The mechanics explained “killer” and “driver” in detail, and the setting of gaining powerful effects by killing other creatures also matched the black flavor. But the harsh condition of achieving the final effect of the kill counter and the high cost of amplify, doomed this to be a card that players would not use.
I realized that I can’t design a card just to fit the flavor. The flavor is suitable to enhance the immersion of the players when they use it, but if it is unusable, it will make these designs futile. At the same time, the mechanism is designed for the experience, not the more complex the better. When designing, in addition to the flavor, I also have to take into account the color identity and the meta, boldly propose new mechanisms, and create interesting ways of playing that can cleverly combine with the existing ones. “Data Transfer” is a card designed in the later stage that does not have a complex mechanism, but it fits the flavor, and has clever applications in different situations, increasing the diversity of playing methods, and can provide players with an interesting experience.
Iron-faced Judge
Iron
2U1W
Creature - Human/Enforcer
2/2
When Iron-faced Judge enters the battlefield, target opponent discards a card. If they can’t, you return target creature they control to its owner’s hand.
Killer Driver
Iron
2U1Black
Creature - Human/Gamer
3/2
Deathtouch
Amplify: 1B2U
Whenever Killer Driver kills a creature, put a kill counter on it. If it has 5 kill counters on it, remove all kill counters from it, put all creatures your opponents control into their graveyards. If this spell was amplified, change 5 to 4.
Data Transfer
Silver
1Blue
Instant
When a creature you control becomes the target of a spell an opponent controls, put a data counter on another creature you control. The creature with a data counter on it has all the abilities of the creature that became the target of the spell
In the later stage of design, I made obvious progress compared to the initial stage. I mastered a process of creating interesting Magic cards, which I summarized as “bold innovation, careful polishing”, that is: boldly propose new mechanisms, and then modify them according to the flavor, color, existing ways of playing, and balance. In addition, when designing Magic cards, I was able to practice the interaction between the mechanics and the fiction constantly, which will help me with my future game design.
Card design: White
Design concept
White represents the gaming company, which is the governing authority in the gaming world, symbolizing justice, power, and order. The gameplay is centered around providing protection and other enhancements to your creatures, as well as offering healing effects to the player, creating a sense of wielding authoritative power.
Examples
Plainclothes Enforcer
Iron
1W
Creature - Human/Enforcer
1/1
Vigilance
When Plainclothes Enforcer enters the battlefield, if a creature entered the battlefield under your opponent’s control during their last turn, Plainclothes Enforcer gets +1/+0 until your next turn. Otherwise, it gets +0/+1 until your next turn.
Bounty Event
Silver
1U2W
Enchantment
At the beginning of your upkeep, create a 1/1 red and white Player creature token with lifelink.
Whenever a nonland permanent with converted mana cost greater than 4 is put into your opponent’s graveyard from anywhere, draw a card and put Bounty Event into your graveyard.
In all displayed cards below, U, W, Black, G, R, Blue respectively represent the six types of mana costs for Generic, White, Black, Green, Red, and Blue
Card design: Black
Design concept
Black represents a terrifying organization founded by a group of disillusioned players, characterized by twisted values and principles. Black embodies an evil, macabre flavor, and its gameplay is closely tied to concepts of "sin" and "death". Many cards have potent effects but require players to pay a price for them.
Examples
Human Trafficker
Gold
2U1Black
Creature - Human/Terrorist
3/3
Haste
1B2U, Tap: Choose one~
Move any creature from your opponent’s battlefield to your battlefield. Your opponent gets Treasure tokens equal to the mana cost of that creature.
Move any creature from your battlefield to your opponent’s battlefield. Your opponent loses mana equal to the mana cost of that creature.
Vivisector
Gold
2X1U1Black
Creature - Human/Terrorist
*/*+1
When Vivisector enters the battlefield, mill cards until X creature cards are put into your graveyard, then give those creature cards haste and put them onto the battlefield. At the beginning of the end step, return them to your graveyard.
This creature’s power is equal to the number of creature cards in your graveyard, and its toughness is equal to that number plus one.
Desperate Gambler
Mythic
2U2Black
Creature - Human
4/4
Indestructible
At the end of your turn, if Desperate Gambler is on the battlefield, reveal the top four cards of your library.
If the mana values of the four cards are consecutive, create a Treasure token for each mana value among them. Put those cards into your graveyard.
If the mana values of the four cards are the same, put them onto the battlefield.
If the types of the four cards are different, for each type among them, each opponent loses 4 life for each card of that type in their hand. Put those cards into your graveyard.
If the types of the four cards are the same, each opponent exiles four cards of that type from their hand or battlefield. For each card they can’t exile this way, they lose 4 life. Put those cards into your graveyard.
If none of the above conditions are met, you lose 4 life.
Card design: Green
Design concept
Green is mainly the color of the creatures that act as NPCs in the game world, and they are the targets of the players’ hunting. The flavor of green is huge, wild and powerful. The main gameplay of green is to provide buffs for the creatures, create large and massive creatures, and let the players win by crushing their opponents.
Examples
Charged Titan
Gold
3U2G
Artifact Creature - Construct/Giant
9/9
Trample; Haste
When Charged Titan enters the battlefield, destroy target artifact or enchantment.
At the beginning of your upkeep, untap Charged Titan.
3U: Until the beginning of your next upkeep, Charged Titan doesn’t untap.
Opportunistic Strike
Silver
1U1G
Enchantment - Aura
Enchant creature
When Opportunistic Strike enters the battlefield, tap enchanted creature and it gains vigilance.
If enchanted creature didn’t attack on your turn, put a +1/+1 counter on it at the beginning of the end step.
When enchanted creature attacks, remove all +1/+1 counters from it.
New World Cockroach One
Mythic
1U1G
Creature - Cockroach
1/1
Intimidate
Whenever a creature is put into a graveyard from the battlefield, create a 1/1 green Stubborn Cockroach creature token with the same abilities as this card.
When New World Cockroach One enters the battlefield, if there are more than 8 cockroaches on the battlefield, sacrifice it and put a +1/+1 counter on any cockroach.
Savage Growth
Gold
1U2G
Enchantment
Whenever you use green mana, put that many +1/+1 counters on target creature
Whenever a creature you control has more than 3 +1/+1 counters on it, you lose 3 life
Card design: Red
Design concept
In the story, red is the group of raiders, composed of various organizations of game enthusiasts who aim to impact the game rankings, reflecting the flavor of violence and impatience, playing mainly with fast attacks, making each card play its maximum value in a short time, and ending the battle before the opponent can react.
Examples
Vain Brawler
Gold
2U1R
Creature - Human/Gamer
3/3
Duel
At the beginning of your upkeep and when you enter the battlefield, you may cast any card from your hand and pay its mana cost. If you can’t, pay all available mana and life equal to the remaining mana cost.
If you don’t, transform Vain Brawler into Rampage Brawler.
Rampage Brawler
Red
3/1
Creature - Human/Gamer
Double strike
If Rampage Brawler hasn’t killed any creatures by the beginning of the end step this turn, sacrifice it at the beginning of the end step.
Dungeon Sweeper
Gold
2U2R
Creature - Human/Gamer
5/3
Menace
When Dungeon Sweeper enters the battlefield, it deals 2 damage to each creature.
Whenever Dungeon Sweeper destroys a creature, you get a Treasure token.
X Treasure tokens: Dungeon Sweeper gets +X/+X until end of turn.
Sifu
Gold
2R
Creature - Human/Gamer
2/3
When Sifu enters the battlefield, put an age counter on it.
Whenever you cast a spell with mana value equal to the number of age counters on Sifu, put another age counter on it and deal damage to target player equal to the number of age counters on it.
Flame Nunchaku
Silver
1R
Artifact - Equipment
When Flame Nunchaku enters the battlefield, attach it to target creature you control.
Equipped creature gets +1/+0.
Whenever equipped creature deals damage to any creature, each player loses 1 life.
Equip: 1R
Hyperactive Juggler
Silver
1U1R
Creature - Human/Gamer
1/2
Haste
Whenever a creature enters or leaves the battlefield, you draw a card and discard a card.
Risk It All
Gold
2R
Instant
Create a red Gamer creature token with haste that has power equal to the number of creatures you control and toughness equal to your life total. When it leaves the battlefield, you lose the game.
Card design: Blue
Design concept
Blue is the Secret Research Society, an underground organization in the game world that aims to uncover the truth of the world while avoiding being detected by the authorities. The flavor of blue in this deck is secrecy and wisdom, and the gameplay focuses on designing complex rules that allow cards to have different effects in different situations, giving players the experience of engaging in interesting intellectual games.
Examples
Silent Storm Brewer
Mythic
4U3Blue
Legendary Creature - Human/Gamer
7/7
When Silent Storm Brewer enters the battlefield, put a silence counter on it.
As long as it has a silence counter on it, it has hexproof and you draw an additional card for each creature you control during your draw step.
Whenever it attacks, remove the silence counter from it. You may also remove the silence counter from it at any time.
When you remove the silence counter from it, tap all creatures your opponents control, counter all spells your opponents cast, and you may cast spells from your hand without paying their mana costs until end of turn.
Equivalent Exchange
Gold
1Blue
Sorcery
For the rest of the turn, whenever you cast a spell, you may swap its mana value with that of another card in your hand, as long as the difference between the two cards’ mana values is less than 3.
If the spell you cast has a lower mana value than the card you swapped with, draw cards equal to the difference.
If the opposite is true, discard cards equal to the difference.
Riddle Imp
Gold
1U1Blue
Creature - Human/Gamer
1/2
When Riddle Imp enters the battlefield, put any number of guess counters on it.
Whenever an opponent casts a spell, if its mana value is equal to the number of guess counters on Riddle Imp, counter that spell. If its mana value is not equal to the number of guess counters on Riddle Imp, change the number of guess counters on Riddle Imp to make them equal.
Retreat to Advance
Gold
2Blue
Instant
Whenever an opponent casts a spell or instant with converted mana cost 4 or less, copy that spell. The copy has converted mana cost 0 and you may cast it without paying its mana cost. Put the copy into your hand.
At the beginning of the end step, you gain life equal to the damage dealt to you this turn.
Clue Excavator
Gold
1U2Blue
Creature - Human/Player 1/3
Whenever you draw a land card during your draw step, you may discard that card and draw a card. If you do, repeat this process until you draw a nonland card. Create a number of blue 1/1 Investigator creature tokens equal to the number of land cards discarded this way
Card design: Multicolored
Design concept
The flavor needs to be a mix of colors, and the gameplay should reflect the flavor while having different color play styles. The aim is to encourage players to use these cards to build multicolor decks, thereby expanding the diversity of gameplay.
Examples
Brainwash
Gold
1Blue1Black
Sorcery
Reveal your opponent’s hand. You may choose to put X cards from it into their graveyard. If you do, that player draws 2X cards, reveals them, and you put X cards from them into their graveyard
Swordmaster’s Ghost
Silver
1U1R1Black
Creature - Spirit
3/2
Flash; Haste
When Swordmaster’s Ghost is blocked, you may cancel this combat and deal damage to your opponent equal to Swordmaster’s Ghost’s power.
Evoke: 2U1R1Black
Kind Shepherd
Gold
1U2W1G
Creature - Human
1/3
Lifelink; Indestructible
When Kind Shepherd enters the battlefield, draw cards equal to the number of creatures you control, then discard that many cards.
Whenever a creature enters the battlefield under your control, you gain 2 life and put a grazing counter on Kind Shepherd. When there are three grazing counters on Kind Shepherd, remove all of them and put a Plains onto the battlefield under your control.
Undead Summoner
Gold
X1R1Black
Creature - Human/Player
1/1
When Undead Summoner enters the battlefield, return target creature with converted mana cost X from your graveyard to the battlefield with haste. Transform Undead Summoner.
Tap, X1R1Black: Return target creature with converted mana cost X from your graveyard to the battlefield with haste. Transform Undead Summoner.
Undead Servant
Red
0/1
Creature - Human/Player
Indestructible
When the summoned creature leaves the battlefield, transform Undead Servant.
Qiongqi
Mythic
2U2G2Black
Legendary Creature - Qiongqi
6/5
Flash; Haste;
2G: Qiongqi gains Menace, Trample and can’t be tapped until the beginning of your next upkeep. Put a +1/+1 counter on Qiongqi.
1G1Black: Qiongqi gains Flying and can’t be tapped until the beginning of your next upkeep.
2Black: Exile Qiongqi and target creature you don’t control.
Ironblood Protector
Silver
1U2W1R
Creature - Human/Enforcer
2/4
Vigilance
Whenever its controller is dealt damage, they may choose to have Ironblood Protector be dealt that damage instead. If they don’t, Ironblood Protector deals damage equal to its power to the source of that damage.
Whenever Ironblood Protector kills a creature, exile it instead.