Toilet paper, squirt guns and toast? Sounds like Friday Night Magic to me. That, or the cult classic that is The Rocky Horror Picture Show! It's been playing in some theatres for well over 30 years, giving it more staying power than white weenie. So why not translate that to a deck? You can bust out your own audience participation lines every time you cast a spell. And if you ever had the urge to spontaneously break out in song and prance around in drag while playing Magic - and who hasn't? - here's your big chance!
The Cast
1 Bone Dancer (Frank N. Furter)
1 Ass(embly) Hall (Brad)
1 Gwendlyn Di Corci (Janet)
1 Enslaved Horror (Rocky Horror)
1 Sengir Autocrat (Riff Raff)
1 Coffin Queen (Magenta)
1 Wind Dancer (Columbia)
1 Musician (Eddie)
1 Wizard Mentor (Doctor Scott)
1 Archivist (The Criminologist)
1 Tolarian Enchanter (The Transylvanians)
The Show
1 Abduction
1 All Hallow's Eve
1 Lightning Bolt
1 Nightmare
1 Jinxed Ring (wedding)
1 Diabolic Machine (creation of Rocky)
1 Cyclopean Mummy (creation of Rocky)
1 Dance of Many (Floor Show)
1 Heat Ray (Riff Raff's laser)
The Songs
2 Vesuvan Doppelganger ("Science Fiction Double Feature")
1 Songs of the Damned ("Dammit, Janet")
1 Frankenstein's Monster ("Over at the Frankenstein Place")
1 Time Warp
1 Transmutation ("Sweet Transvestite")
1 Sword of the Ages ("Sword of Damocles")
1 Heat Wave ("Hot Patootie")
1 Touch of Darkness ("Touch-A Touch-A Touch Me")
1 Sunglasses of Urza ("Rose Tint My World")
1 Wild Colos ("Wild and Untamed Thing")
1 Goblin Hero ("Super Heroes")
The Props
1 Incinerate (toast)
1 Hydroblast (squirt gun)
1 Kaervek's Torch (matches)
1 Talruum Piper (toilet paper)
The Set
1 Castle Sengir
1 Rocky Tar Pit
4 City of Brass
7 Swamp
6 Island
5 Mountain
Monday, June 28, 2010
Wednesday, June 23, 2010
Ante Up
Ante cards were an interesting but generally disliked part of the Magic universe. In the game's beginnings, playing for ante was the expected thing to do - cards were on the line, and if you won it was considered good form to offer to trade your opponent's ex-ante card back for something else. Of course, with remarks of advocating satanism already on the game's head, Wizards didn't want the idea of supporting gambling in there as well. Also, rumour has it people don't like losing their cards. So, ante cards are all banned and no one really plays for ante anymore.
That doesn't mean it never happens. And if it does, there are some pretty rude tricks one can pull.
An evil deck can be built with just 56 swamps and four copies of Darkpact, a black sorcery that lets you switch the top card of your library with either ante card. You'll probably flip up a swamp as your ante card. You can later cast Darkpact to switch your top library card - another Swamp - with your opponent's ante card. Then concede and laugh maniacally.
Another nasty trick involves one of the few ante creatures, Tempest Efreet. Once your opponent has played something particularly nice, cast the Efreet, which lets you switch ownership of it and any card in your opponent's hand. Use discard to knock out his hand, then a bounce spell like Boomerang to pop a cool card back to his hand to be nailed by the Efreet. Not bad, but the clincher? Make a token of the Efreet and use it instead! Yes, you legally take one of your opponent's cards (or just win) and he gets squat. Pulling it off with Dance of Many is pretty mean, but see what happens when you enchant him with Splinter Twin.
Lastly, Contract from Below. What's the mean trick involving this card? Oh, just playing it. People said Ancestral Recall is okay for netting you three card for one mana; this gets you seven for the same amount. Plus, if you're playing 5-colour Magic, it has errata saying you don't ante anything if you're not playing for ante... meaning it has no real drawback. Whee....
That doesn't mean it never happens. And if it does, there are some pretty rude tricks one can pull.
An evil deck can be built with just 56 swamps and four copies of Darkpact, a black sorcery that lets you switch the top card of your library with either ante card. You'll probably flip up a swamp as your ante card. You can later cast Darkpact to switch your top library card - another Swamp - with your opponent's ante card. Then concede and laugh maniacally.
Another nasty trick involves one of the few ante creatures, Tempest Efreet. Once your opponent has played something particularly nice, cast the Efreet, which lets you switch ownership of it and any card in your opponent's hand. Use discard to knock out his hand, then a bounce spell like Boomerang to pop a cool card back to his hand to be nailed by the Efreet. Not bad, but the clincher? Make a token of the Efreet and use it instead! Yes, you legally take one of your opponent's cards (or just win) and he gets squat. Pulling it off with Dance of Many is pretty mean, but see what happens when you enchant him with Splinter Twin.
Lastly, Contract from Below. What's the mean trick involving this card? Oh, just playing it. People said Ancestral Recall is okay for netting you three card for one mana; this gets you seven for the same amount. Plus, if you're playing 5-colour Magic, it has errata saying you don't ante anything if you're not playing for ante... meaning it has no real drawback. Whee....
Tuesday, June 1, 2010
Copper-plated Frogmite
A few years ago, while Mirrodin block was still in vogue, I was going through a 10-cent bin. Along the way I found... a Frogmite.
A very special Frogmite.
A goddamn copper-plated Frogmite.
So what's the story? Maybe some guy was sitting around at a Mirrodin draft, bored out of his skull as he waited, and decided to pimp out his Froggie. A copper gel pen, a solid common and too much time ended up as this. So yes, after decking out his mechanical frog with what should be at least a visual +0/+1 bonus, he stuffed it back into the bins. Now, it serves as the general of the 4 Frogmites in my Affinity deck - Hell, if I get a gold and a silver gel pen, I could have an entire heirachy of them.
I think we're on to something.
A very special Frogmite.
A goddamn copper-plated Frogmite.
So what's the story? Maybe some guy was sitting around at a Mirrodin draft, bored out of his skull as he waited, and decided to pimp out his Froggie. A copper gel pen, a solid common and too much time ended up as this. So yes, after decking out his mechanical frog with what should be at least a visual +0/+1 bonus, he stuffed it back into the bins. Now, it serves as the general of the 4 Frogmites in my Affinity deck - Hell, if I get a gold and a silver gel pen, I could have an entire heirachy of them.
I think we're on to something.
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