Gifts Ungiven

Potential Gifts Ungiven Reprint

If or When, is Gifts Ungiven going to be reprinted into Standard?

Big if.

Gifts Ungiven If/When Reprints Standard

Trivia on Intuition and Gifts Ungiven

I shall tap 44 mana to play "Birthday Trivia" on my turn. 'Target Maro must search thru his deck and reveal information pertaining to my favorite card, Gifts Ungiven. If he cannot, he is forced to give up trivia on the Storm mechanic itself.' :)

When I designed Intuition (in Tempest), the intent was you had to pick all different cards, but I didn’t write it clear enough and people were picking the same card. I pointed out that wasn’t what I intended, but they were enjoying the card as it was so they wouldn’t change it. Gifts Given was me redoing Intuition that way I intended it to play. Happy Birthday!

Birthday Gifts Given Gifts Ungiven Intuition Mana Mark Rosewater Mechanics Search Tap / Untap Tempest

Completing the Cycle

Since we have Gifts Ungiven in blue, and Realms Uncharted in green, can we maybe get similar cards in white, black, and red to compete the cycle? Or would that sort of effect be a bend/ break in white and/ or red?

It’s not an ability easily cycled.

Bend / Break Black Blue Cycles Gifts Ungiven Green Realms Uncharted Red White

Bends vs. Breaks

When determining whether a card is a bend or a break, is theory or practice more important? For example, is Gifts Ungiven a break in blue, since in practice it allows you to tutor two cards into your graveyard?

Practical applications are important when examining whether something is a bend or a break. For example, blue can get cards into the graveyard. That’s not a weakness of blue. Tutoring to do so isn’t normal, so that’s a bend.

Bend / Break Blue Gifts Ungiven The Graveyard Tutoring Tutoring

Punisher Effects & Colors

What is the value of tying punisher effects to specific colors? Would you consider Gifts Ungiven to be a pseudo punishing effect?

Giving the opponent a choice isn’t the same as a punisher spell.

Colors Gifts Ungiven

Favorite Cards Designed

Hey Mark, it's my birthday and this is my first time asking for trivia. Would you mind telling me your favorite legendary creature and favorite instant cards that you had a hand in designing? Thanks!

That answer can change. Today my favorite legendary creature I designed is Saffi Eriksdotter and my favorite Instant I designed is Gifts Ungiven. Happy Birthday!

Birthday Creatures Gifts Ungiven Instants Saffi Eriksdotter Your Hand

Standard's Power Questions

Is Gifts Ungiven too strong for Standard?

I’m going to call an end to “Is _______ too strong for Standard?” questions. It’s not my area of expertise and it only seems to rile people up.

_____ Gifts Ungiven Power Level Rile Standard

Tweaking Card Designs

"I’ve tweaked and rereleased designs many, many times." Mind pointing out any examples?

I made Intuition (in Tempest) but it was templated to let you choose the same card even though that wasn’t my intention (and I lost the fight to change it) so I remade it, tweaked, with Gifts Ungiven.

Fight / Bite Gifts Ungiven Tempest

Planeswalker Selection Logic

I think the bigger issue is: How does a planeswalker choose two cards for your Gifts Ungiven? Maybe if you made a Floral Spuzzem planeswalker...

A good point.

Floral Spuzzem Gifts Ungiven Planeswalkers

Impulse Naming Issue

Would you be OK with Impulse if it were named differently? Blue has cards that do similar things (like Gifts Ungiven, for instance) already, so is it just the name of the card that bugs you?

I’m solely talking about the name. The effect is very blue.

Blue Gifts Ungiven

Errata Considerations

How likely is it for Wizards to errata a card so it is played as originally intended, if players are now using it to do something outside of its original scope? For example, using Gifts Ungiven to just put 2 cards in the graveyard.

We have put errata on cards to get them to play how everyone assumes they play when some quirk keeps them from playing as originally intended. It is a slippery slope though so we have to be very careful.

Errata Gifts Ungiven The Graveyard

Appreciation for Non-Actions

Since you get hate for things you don't do let me thank you for something you didn't do to even it out. Thank you for putting foil Vendilian Clique, gifts ungiven, path to exile, and kitchen finks all in the same modern masters pack for me.

You’re welcome. : )

Appreciation Appreciation Foils Gifts Ungiven Kitchen Finks Modern Modern Masters Path to Exile The Exile Zone

Spiky Cards Query

I've been trying to come up with the Top 5 Spikiest Cards. The only ones I know for sure are Gifts Ungiven, and probably Cabal Therapy. Do you agree? Could you finish the list?

Fact or Fiction’s probably in the top 5. I’m not sure what the others are.

Cabal Therapy Fact or Fiction Gifts Ungiven

Red Selflessness

While I know"selflessness" isn't typically considered to be part of reds color pie, couldn't throwing yourself into the path of danger to save someone else be an emotional response? Could this become a part of reds portion of the color pie? Also, could fact or fiction/gifts ungiven style cards fall in as punisher type cards, since making the wrong choice can be very very detrimental.

Red is willing to sacrifice itself to save someone it loves. I’m not sure how you want to represent that mechanically. Fact or Fiction is about making careful, thought out choices. Not really red.

Color Pie Colors Fact or Fiction Gifts Ungiven Red Sacrifice

Pile-Splitting Cards Odds

What are the odds of more pile-splitting cards a la Gifts Ungiven or Fact or Fiction?

54:1 (in favor).

Fact or Fiction Gifts Ungiven

Banned Cards List

Wich cards that you have designed had been banned?

Banned & restricted cards that I had a hand in designing: Ancient Den
Arcbound Ravager
Bitterblossom
Chrome Mox
Cloudpost
Darksteel Citadel
Dread Return
Earthcraft
Frantic Search
Gifts Ungiven
Golgari Grave-Troll
Great Furnace
Gush
Lion’s Eye Diamond
Lotus Petal
Memory Jar
Rishadan Port
Seat of the Synod
Skullclamp
Survival of the Fittest
Thirst for Knowledge
Time Spiral
Tinker
Tree of Tales
Valakut, the Molten Pinnacle
Vault of Whispers
Voltaic Key
Yawgmoth’s Bargain
Yawgmoth’s Will

Ancient Den Arcbound Ravager Bannings Bargain Bitterblossom Chrome Mox Cloudpost Darksteel Darksteel Citadel Dread Return Earthcraft Eye Format Legality Frantic Search Gifts Ungiven Golgari (B/G) Golgari Grave-Troll Great Furnace Lotus Petal Memory Jar Rishadan Port Search Seat of the Synod Skullclamp Survival of the Fittest Thirst for Knowledge Time Spiral Tree of Tales Troll Valakut, the Molten Pinnacle Vault of Whispers Voltaic Key Your Hand

Ban/Restrict Record

"I currently hold the record for the designer who has the most banned/restricted cards" Got a quick list of what those cards are?

The following are banned or restricted cards that I had a hand in the design: (note in numerous cases multiple people designed the cards in question; also I may have missed one or two) Ancestral Vision Ancient Den Arcbound Ravager Bitterblossom Chrome Mox Cloudpost Darksteel Citadel Dread Return Earthcraft Frantic Search Gifts Ungiven Golgari Grave-Troll Great Furnace Gush Hypergenesis Lion’s Eye Diamond Lotus Petal Memory jar Seat of the Synod Skullclamp Squandered Resources Survival of the Fittest Thirst for Knowledge Time Spiral Tinker Tree of Tales Valakut, the Molten Pinnacle Vault of Whispers Voltaic Key Windfall Yawgmoth’s Bargain Yawgmoth’s Will

Ancestral Vision Ancient Den Arcbound Ravager Bannings Bargain Bitterblossom Chrome Mox Cloudpost Darksteel Darksteel Citadel Dread Return Earthcraft Eye Format Legality Frantic Search Gifts Ungiven Golgari (B/G) Golgari Grave-Troll Great Furnace Hypergenesis Lotus Petal Memory Jar Search Seat of the Synod Skullclamp Squandered Resources Survival of the Fittest Thirst for Knowledge Time Spiral Tree of Tales Troll Valakut, the Molten Pinnacle Vault of Whispers Voltaic Key Windfall Your Hand