Muraganda Set

Custom Cards forum

Posted on Oct. 20, 2018, 5:24 a.m. by Lhurgyof

Hey tappedout! I just wanted to post a set that I've been working on for quite a while. Here's the imgur album: Muraganda

The main new mechanic is primal. A creature with primal may enter the battlefield with a +1/+1 counter on it. If it does, it loses all other abilities. It's similar to unleash, but much more muraganda-y in flavor. Since all we've seen of the plane are The Mimeoplasm, Muraganda Petroglyphs, and Imperiosaur I worked oozes, dinosaurs, and vanilla matters effects into the set. I've been working on this set and making revisions based on feedback for a couple years now (on and off of course.) Any constructive input would be appreciated!

shadow63 says... #2

I know it's a small thing but everything with primal had primal then their ability but the one white 1 drop had first strike then primal

October 20, 2018 11:36 a.m.

shadow63 says... #3

Really like the art in the set

October 20, 2018 11:37 a.m.

Lhurgyof says... #4

@shadow63: Thanks, formatting advice is useful as well. Primal should come before any abilities so I'll have to fix that.

As for the art, that's what takes the longest to find. I try and find art that I can give credit for, though the cards without an artist line I couldn't find an artist.

October 21, 2018 12:19 a.m.

Funkydiscogod says... #5

It's a good set. Some of the effects on the cards I think could be adjusted.

The mechanic Primal is a great idea. The biggest change I would make, would be to phrase the mechanic like "Primal X", because not all abilities are worth a single +1/+1 counter.

You have Basking Plateosaur as a 3/3 with an ETB Naturalize, and I think the ETB is stronger than the +1/+1 it would get from Primal. I'd compare it to Knight of Autumn, which is kinda like a 2/1 with "Primal 2", if you squint and turn your head slightly.

October 21, 2018 12:52 p.m.

shadow63 says... #6

Shuddering light shouldn't be green. Green doesn't have any exile effects.

Stone callander while a good card is almost too good it's a can trip and gives land ramp outside of green. I'd make it cost mana to sac it. Compare it to Wayfarer's Bauble

Spell sludge should be you may cast cards exiled with it. Not copy

You could push seal of silence up a mana

Give saber spear ambusher flash for flavor maybe make it cost 3

Polups +1 seems weak maybe push it to two cards from each player or 3 life

Hope this helps you out

October 21, 2018 1:34 p.m.

Lhurgyof says... #7

Funkydiscogod, thanks for the input. It definitely makes sense. I wanted to prevent the ability from being too pushed, but it was original an activated ability that read "cost: primal X (this creature gets +x/+x and loses all other abilities until end of turn)". Many abilities are worth more than just one counter, so I'll look into changing that.

shadow63: Should I change it to just destroy then, and maybe remove the tapped clause?

I'll fix the wording on Spell sludge and increase Pulop's +1. Saber Spear should probably have flash, yeah.

Seal of silence is no more costly than Silence. Other seals are the same Mana cost as the spells they are based on.

Thanks for the feedback!

October 23, 2018 9:01 a.m.

shadow63 says... #8

Itd be fine of you changed shuddering light to green black. Green cam destroy lands but its normally non creature permanent. So if wanted to keep it green white you could do destroy target tapped creature and non land perm. Well Seal of Doom cost 1 more then a doom blade and Seal of Fire is a shock not a Lightning Bolt. It just seems slightly stronger then silence. And I've always felt that card was a tad strong at 1 mana. Just my thoughts about the card

October 23, 2018 11:13 a.m.

Funkydiscogod says... #9

I'd like to point out that Seal of Doom was meant to be Dark Banishing, not Doom Blade, and Seal of Fire was printed at a time before Lightning Bolt had returned, when it was still thought to be too strong for the game.

I think the cost of Seal of Silence is fine.

Although, I'm not sure the inclusion of seals in Muraganda really fits with the theme. Those two seals were included in Ravnica block, because that was when they introduced the Hellbent mechanic for the Rakdos guild, so you could still effectively respond to opponents. Similar cards, like Font of Fortunes were included in Theros because they could increase Devotion while on the battlefield. Cards like Seal of Primordium were in the Time Spiral block, because they had a "timing matters" theme, with Might of Old Krosa and others.

I don't really see them on theme in Muraganda.

October 23, 2018 2:57 p.m.

Funkydiscogod says... #10

About the specific cards in the set:

Arc-trail Hardshell: Way too cheap compared to Bramblecrush and way too big compared to Mold Shambler. Needs to have a higher manacost and a smaller body.

Sharptooth Croc: He looks fairly balanced when compared to Two-Headed Zombie and Dross Crocodile, but for a Primal creature, I think the high power makes it too desirable to have Menace. To make it more of a choice, compared to the Zombie, I'd vote, make it a 3/2, Primal 1. Also, why does a Croc have the creature type "Alligator"?

Hunting Settlement: The ability that gives your creature Lifelink will prevent them from getting benefit from Muraganda Petroglyphs style-effects. I think that would be an unfortunate interaction. The ability should change.

Tibalt, Havoc-Bringer: should a mono-red planeswalker summon red and black critters?

Wooly Grazer: this ability would go perfect with Primal.

Ubo-luk's Idol: the wording is awkward, and the effect is insane powerful for the cost. It's like your own personal Wheel of Fate, but you're not forced to use it during a later upkeep, you can use it at any time. That card would be banned for the same reasons as Smuggler's Copter. Needs serious power reduction.

Ancient Gharial: They use the creature type Crocodile, now. Even Rootwater Alligator is officially a Crocodile in Oracle text.

Basking Plaeosaur: I'm not sure how much I like the "enter the battlefield" ability with Primal. IF you don't want to make it "Primal 2", then a sacrifice-type ability like Viridian Zealot would definitely be worth only +1/+1.

Bloodfall Axe: The equip cost is prohibitive. The Murderer's Axe cost worked because the set had a Madness theme. The effect is just Barbed Battlegear. It might work if it had a Skullclamp on death ability, to recover the cost.

Chieftain Ubo-Luk: I'd compare him to Sek'Kuar, Deathkeeper. He should make simple 1/1 red goblins (to stay on theme with "no abilities") whenever any nontoken creature you control dies, not just Goblins. I would say instead of giving an ability like Menace, (because it goes against the theme), it should be the simple "can't block" ability.

Clever Improvisor: It's insane that he makes better equipment than the Conch-tipped Spear. They should be +1/+1. Also, instead of making it every creature that enters the battlefield after him, just create 4 of them, kinda like a slower red Verdurous Gearhulk. Otherwise, there will be an ever-increasing supply of power that will never leave the battlefield.

Cloak of Leeches: I would say you should vote to avoid giving the creature an ability. Something like Blessing of Leeches would be interesting, since they no longer use regeneration.

Conch-tipped Spear: It's a No-Dachi. Can you do anything more on-theme, that doesn't give the equipped creature an ability?

Daelin's Spellbinder: This card seems almost too powerful. The "nontoken creature" thing is awkward. Can it be "discard a card" or something more elegant?

Diving Fluoraptor: His activated ability is too expensive. It could be the same as Bloodpyre Elemental without too much loss, or cost only 2 and stay instant.

Downpour: I think this effect has incredible potential. Instead of a sorcery with bulky rules text, an instant "Tap all Permanents" would basically be the same thing, with far more simplicity.

Egg Nabber: Just exile the card, and skip the craziness.

Encase in Magma: Cannot be allowed to enchant enchantments; it's not red's deal. It should just be a colorshifted Imprisoned in the Moon.

Enraging Provocation: I dislike having a temporary ability and a permanent effect on the same card. I don't have any examples of any cards that do this.

Enriching Pitcher Plant: Love it.

Enticing Pollen Spewer: I think it's too expensive, when we compare it to its symmetric counterpart: Rage Nimbus.

Fangs of the Terrosaur: Perfect equipment for this set.

Fight Once More: It seems out of place on a world where humans are basically cavemen. It would be more on theme with a set like Innistrad, but here it's not really on flavor with primitive tribal humans.

Flame-Spewing Ruckus: I don't understand how this card is meant to be used: the turn you play it, you could pump your two creatures with prowess triggers, but the goblin can't attack without Haste. It would be interesting to have an enchantment "whenever you play a noncreature spell, enchanted creature gets +1/+1 until end of turn" (because I don't think you want to avoid effects that give creatures abilities in this set).

Fossil Sage: This might not be the right card for this set, because reanimating a creature with an extra ability plays poorly with Primal. You will always want to not make the token Primal, so you can keep the indestructibility.

I'll write some more thoughts later, since I'm only up to F.

October 27, 2018 11:47 p.m.

Lhurgyof says... #11

I'm definitely keeping track of your suggestions. I'll make some changes before I upload another round of card images.

November 2, 2018 1:57 p.m.

Funkydiscogod says... #12

















Oaken Club: Perfect equipment for this set.








Radiant Purge: Good sweeper for this set.

Don't worry, I'll get the rest later...

November 3, 2018 3:05 a.m.

Lhurgyof says... #13

A side note about the artwork: It's hard finding art that perfectly reflects what I wanted so I had to settle sometimes. Pulop was definitely one of them.

November 3, 2018 11:59 p.m.

Funkydiscogod says... #14

Yeah, that happens quite often, even in the actual sets. There's an old story that Birds of Paradise's art was originally painted for Volcanic Island. The art didn't fit, so they made a new one for Volcanic Island. They created Birds of Paradise to fit the artwork.

Rampaging Primosaur: I love this idea: in a set that focuses heavily on "abilities matter", the "basic lands matter" ability is right on theme. I would like to see more "basic lands matter", if there's room for them in this set. I dislike excessively mathy cards, and that particular ability seems like too much. Let me suggest a replacement: Name it "Rampaging Imperiosaur", cost it at , and make it a 5/5 with Trample and "Spend only mana produced by basic lands to cast Rampaging Imperiosaur".

Sidenote: The classic Imperiosaur does have an ability, and much to the surprise of new players, is not affected by Muraganda Petroglyphs. This is unfortunate because it would have been a great candidate for reprint. If you use this Imperiosaur ability on other creatures, I would give them another ability so it's unambiguous.

Rapt Hatchling: This is another situation where you're hamstrung by art. This looks more like a sorcery than a 2/2.

Razor-edge Thicket: I first read this as Razorverge Thicket. I love the ability on this card. It could probably be cheaper, because the opponent can just make creatures Primal to avoid it. This brings up the next question: where are all the 2-toughness Flying Primal creatures? A Gatherer search for Core Set 2019, Flying, and Toughness <= 2, gives about 10 creatures.

Rebellious Torcher: Absolutely not. This card would be format-warping: that kind of repetitive land destruction, that early in the game would quickly put people to 0 lands, hoping that there's a Shock and an untapped land in their top 10 cards, or else they lose. Many games would end with that creature as the only permanent on the battlefield.

Saber-Spear Ambusher: This card has an unfortunate interaction, where it can first strike, and then bounce itself before the opponent hits them.

Sacrificial Dirk: It's a costly equip for a Gorgon Flail.

Savannah Prowler: Just give it Haste and First Strike, and save the craziness. It would be in good company with Cerodon Yearling, Skyknight Legionnaire and Sky Terror.

Shielding Heron: That hurts because I really enjoyed Muck Drubb. The ability was made useless once they decided that it can't be used to counter spells for invalid target. You don't want to make a card that's useless before it gets to paper.

Spigot-shell Mollusk: Beautiful art, it's sad that it's being used on a card few people would ever play. Maybe its ability should be free? I'd compare it to Death Cultist.

Spiral-shell Spawner: was mill going to be a theme for blue?

Stutter-spell: Significantly more powerful than Runeboggle. As a general rule, tacking "Draw a card" on to something costs . For the card I mentioned, it's Force Spike. Looks like you're tacking it on to Mana Leak, so the cost should be .

Submerging Shonisaur: I can't be sure, but it's probably too big to have protection, and evasion built in.

Swift Pterodrone: Are they called Pteron, Pterodon, Pteranodon, or Pterodrone? I think I've seen all of them. You and Wizards need to pick one and stick to it.

Tar Pit: The Maze of Ith effect is very strong. Mystifying Maze was meant to be a fixed version of it.

Territorial Lizodon: It seems too cheap to have the option to be a Canal Monitor. Should probably cost 5?

Vaerin Infantry: Seems weak. Can it be pumped to a 2/1? or 2/2?

Wantan Disaster: Check your spelling.

Xenophobia: The ability "Protection" has been deprecated. And if it wasn't, this would be crazy powerful in this set, as creatures with no abilities already have few redeeming qualities. This card needs a complete redesign.

November 4, 2018 3:30 p.m.

Lhurgyof says... #15

I have now updated cards and added some more based on everyone's suggestions. Please feel free to give it another look-see! @Funkydiscogod, @shadow63

December 9, 2018 9:39 a.m.

Lhurgyof says... #16

I guess I should specify, I changed the link in the OP to link to the new imgur album. Or you can find it here: Muraganda Updated

December 9, 2018 6:44 p.m.

shadow63 says... #17

Looks good

December 9, 2018 9:42 p.m.

Funkydiscogod says... #18

Have you seen the new Gruul mechanic spoiled for Return to Return to Return to Ravnica?

"Riot (This creature enters the battlefield with your choice of a +1/+1 counter, or Haste)"

It looks a lot like Primal.

December 21, 2018 1:53 p.m.

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