Ambush

Request for Card

Please make a three-mana Ambush Viper with no additional upsides. I need it for a cube; Ambush Viper is too good because it outshines Ashcoat Bear, but at three mana it would be about right.

A very narrow ask. : )

Ambush Viper Ashcoat Bear Bear Draft Formats Humor Mana

Cats in Color Pie

Why aren't cats, especially house cats, primarily in blue and black? "The sneaky colors." Most cats are ambush predators, including tigers and lions. I don't really see the connection to green at all, and only mildly do I see the connection to white

They’re animals. Green is the main colors of animals. White, because they’re usually domesticated.

Ambush Black Blue Cat Color Pie Colors Green White

Elephants on Beeble Scale

I'm a big fan of the loxodon (very excited for Quintorius) and I love Elephant Ambush. Where are elephants on the beeble scale?

A 3.

Ambush Beeble Scale Elephant Elephant Ambush

Support for Werewolf Decks

In my last post, a lot of people were confused about the intent of my post. I apologize for being redundant but here goes...If one builds a werewolf deck, they are forced to play with the same cards (that aren't very good) for three years. Meanwhile, vampires get cards in every set. Some are even legendary. 6 legendary in VOW, werewolves got zero btw.There have been multiple sets the past two years where wolves and werewolves exists on that plane. Dominaria. Eldraine. MOM. Yet, they get nothing. What is the point of making Midnight Hunt/Vow if the tribe would not be supported even by an extra card or two during standard rotation? (Especially after the blunders in dark ascension and eldritch moon, you would think treating them better would be a priority). Wicked Wolf, Nightpack ambusher, werewolf packleader...these cards exist...outside of innistrad. There is literally no excuse to not throw in a single card for this tribe every once in a while. So again, if someone builds a werewolf deck and receives no new cards that help them, what do you say to them playing the same weak cards for three years straight?

I understand when you are focused on a single theme that it’s frustrating because there are many potential opportunities for us to make cards. From our perspective though, there are a lot of themes in Standard. We try to hit upon as many as we can, but it’s just hard to hit them all. Werewolves are particularly tricky as we usually make them double-faced.

Dark Ascension Dominaria Eldritch Moon Innistrad Nightpack Ambusher Standard Vampire Werewolf Wicked Wolf Wolf

Werewolf References in MOM

Hi mark, how're you doing? I get why MOM dont have any werewolves, but what about few effects like arlinn, voice of pack and nightpack ambusher (effects that care about werewolves, despite the set have none of them, just because they sinergize with wolves in general)?

March of the Machine referenced the entire multiverse (well, at least a lot of it). Almost anything we’d ever done could have fit, but we only had so much space.

March of the Machine Nightpack Ambusher Werewolf Wolf

Ambush Viper Analysis

Is Ambush Viper (green flash deathtouch 2/1) a break?

I believe so.

Ambush Viper Bend / Break Deathtouch Flash Green

Magic Story vs Card Preview

Maybe it's infeasible and a sign I'm not taking the name "spoiler season" literally enough, but could the Magic Story episodes for a given set finish releasing before that set's actual cards are previewed? From a Vorthos perspective, having e.g. Olivia's Midnight Ambush previewed long before reading the story is kinda anticlimatic.

The problem is a timing one. If you start doing things before the preview of one set, you’re doing it during the preview of a different set.

Ambush Olivia's Midnight Ambush Spoilers Story / Lore Vorthos

Permissibility of Green Flash Deathtouch

Hi Mark! So if a green Flash Deathtouch creature is not allowed, then does that mean Ambush Viper was a break?

More of a “we shouldn’t have made it” than a break.

Ambush Viper Bend / Break Creatures Deathtouch Flash Green

Sequencing of Crimson Vow

Are you allowed to comment on the timetable of Crimson Vow in relation to MID. It feels like they are either going to be concurrent or immediately sequential based on the flavor text of Midnight Ambush(?), it speaks of Olivia's wedding. Perhaps it would give some audience members a little hope to think their currently absent favorite is simply busy elsewhere

Obviously, I can’t speak in absolutes, but if you have a favorite Innistrad character that wasn’t in Midnight Hunt, there’s a decent chance they’re in Crimson Vow.The stories are sequential not concurrent, but one directly follows the other.

Ambush Flavor Text Innistrad

Online-only Cards in Paper Magic

Mark, Historic Horizons looks just great, and the new online-only additions to Magic Arena are an exciting bunch of experiments. Seek, perpetually, conjure can exist only online. That said, there are a couple of new cards without those mechanics that can work just fine in paper – such as Skyshroud Ambush and Subversive Acolyte. What are the chances those cards are printed into paper Magic?

Those cards could see a printing in paper one day.

Ambush Historic Magic Arena Mechanics Skyshroud Ambush Subversive Acolyte

Printing Digital Cards Feasibility

If a card originally printed in digital ever be printed in physical if it mechanically works of course because Skyshroud Ambush seems like it could work?

This is all new ground, so there aren’t definitive answers yet.

Ambush Skyshroud Ambush

Terminology for One-Sided Fight Effects

Mark, what is the R&D lingo for one-sided fight effects (e.g. Domri’s Ambush)? Could “ambush” be a keyword to replace “target creature you control deals damage equal to its power to target creature or planeswalker”?

We call it bite.

Ambush Creatures Domri's Ambush Fight / Bite Game Design Keywords Planeswalkers

Keywords and Subtypes

Hey there, I think it was Gavin that said on an interview that it would be problamatic using some keywords in a standard set that they doesn't matter it (Like printing a card that cares about flashback but in a set that does not have flashback), but yet, we see Nightpack Ambusher and Arlinn, voice of the pack that cares about Werewolves. Does that mean that we're getting werewolves in standard so that those keywords matters? I thought we were going to see some in Eldraine but I was wrong...

He was taking about non-evergreen keywords. We can reference sub types and supertypes to our heart’s content.

Arlinn, Voice of the Pack Card Printing Evergreen Flashback Keywords Nightpack Ambusher Premier Sets Standard Subtype Supertype

Request for Foil Reprints

Hey Mark, can I make a weird request? There are a few old Portal cards that I and others need in foil for Cube. Can you try to push them into a future Horizons or Masters-esque set? The cards are: Omen, Fire Ambush, Three Visits, and Devastation.

I can pass along the info.

Card Printing Cube Draft Fire Ambush Foils Portal Three Visits

Flash Trait Evolution

Now that flash is given sometimes to black, would Ambush Viper be a black card today?

Probably.

Ambush Viper Black Flash

Hexproof vs Deathtouch

I'm still confused about Question #27. If I look at recent sets, hexproof is used more frequently than deathtouch, especially at common. In addition, a mistake with deathtouch can easily lead to a color pie break (Ambush Viper). I was really hoping for more explanation on this one.

The question asks about “being the most careful” not the “being done the least often”.

Ambush Viper Color Pie Colors Deathtouch Hexproof

Elephant Ambush Concepting

Did you do the card concepting for Elephant Ambush?

Not technically, but I was very involved in it.

Elephant Elephant Ambush

Mono White Haste

Now that I think about it, there only has been one MONO white creature with Haste, huh? That'd be everyone's favorite, Akroma, Angel of Wrath. All the other times it's white paired with another color(red usually). For a recent example: Munda, Ambush Leader is Red/White, but Haste is Primary in Red, so it's fine for him to have it, right?

A White card that requires Red to have haste is getting the haste from Red.

Akroma, Angel of Wrath Angel Boros (R/W) Colors Creatures Haste Munda, Ambush Leader Primary Red White

Ambush Krotiq Naming

why no flash on ambush krotiq? it's name doesn't seem to fit it

Flash is not the only signature of surprise or speed.

Ambush Krotiq Flash

Card Naming Logic

I sent this to you in an e-mail, but I want the Question Marks to hear it as well: Ambush of the Elephant doesn't work, all the other (Chatter, Call and Roar) are noises! The correct name would be Silence of the Elephant!

That is correct. It is probably why it’s Elephant Ambush. : )

Elephant Elephant Ambush Question Marks