Flame Javelin

Artifacts Granting Abilities

How do you feel about cards like Spine of Ish Sah, Flame Javelin and Oblivion Stone giving colors access to effects they normally can't have, albeit at a high mana cost?

That’s something artifacts do. The trick is making sure they don’t do it too cheaply.

Artifacts Colors Flame Javelin Mana Oblivion Stone Spine of Ish Sah

Hybrid Card Ranking

If you had to rank the Shadowmoor colorless-colored hybrids in order of 'best design' to 'worst', what rough order would you put them in? I can't imagine you liking Flame Javelin's 4 damage for 6 in green or blue as much as drawing cards or tutoring.

There is a big difference for me between a color getting access to things through colorless means (artifacts, colorless spells, two-brids from Shadowmoor, etc.) than that color getting the ability in its own color. I don’t have issue with green, for example, going to colorless means to get creature removal. It’s going to be considerably worse than the spells in the color that are good at creature removal. What I don’t want is that spell in green. Separation of flavor is very, very important. Green having to go get a weapon to kill creatures feels so much better than green just having a spell that does it. One of the rules, for the Shadowmoor spells (all of which I like) is that they had to be costed such that they would make sense as artifacts costwise.

Artifacts Blue Card Draw Colorless Colors Creatures Flame Javelin Flavor Green Rules Shadowmoor Spells Tutoring Tutoring

Hybrid Mana Reception

I thought the question about half mana/half digit was about the Shadowmoor cards like the Flame Javelin cycle or Reaper King. How was that twist on hybrid received? (For what it's worth, they weren't my favorite but I thought they were interesting in small doses.)

We refer to those as “two-brids” in R&D. They went over well in Shadowmoor. For a while they were in New Phyrexia but were eventually replaced by Phyrexian mana. I’m sure we’ll see them again someday.

Flame Javelin Hybrid Mana New Phyrexia Phyrexian Reaper King Shadowmoor

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