Jayemdae Tome

Vanity Cards Issue

Being an older player from way back, I remember little jokes being a major part of the game. Things like Jayemdae Tome, Maro, and Pheldagriff. What is wrong with “vanity” cards? I understand when a person made it themself, but what’s wrong with paying homage or tipping the hat to a specific person?

It was decided many years ago that it led to bad incentives, so we stopped the practice. I personally miss vanity cards.

Humor Jayemdae Tome Mark Rosewater Vanity Cards Vanity Cards

Staff Vanity Cards

Is Maro the only reference to Magic staff outside of silver border?

No, early Magic has a slew of vanity cards. A few off the top of my head: Mons’s Goblin Raiders (Mons Johnson)
Jayemdae Tome (J. Michael Davis)
Jalum Tome (Joel L. Mick)
Emmessi Tome (Michael S. Elliott)

Emmessi Tome Goblin Jalum Tome Jayemdae Tome Mark Rosewater Un-Magic / Silver Border / Acorn Un-sets Vanity Cards Vanity Cards

Card Draw Comparison

Okay, then what's the difference between Jayemdae Tome and a red creature with the same CMC and same cost (perhaps with R included) to draw a card?

One is in Red and the other isn’t.

Card Draw Creatures Jayemdae Tome Mana Value Red

Artifact Balance Role

Are artifacts like Jayemdae tome and spine of ish Sah okay because, even though they give mono-colored decks ways to cover weaknesses (red with card draw and any color with destruction of everything), they aren't efficient?

Yes.

Artifacts Card Draw Colors Jayemdae Tome Monocolor Red Spine of Ish Sah

Tome Names Origins

I read somewhere that Jayemdae Tome, Jalum Tome and Emmessi Tome were named for people. Gavin's blog revealed that the first was named for James Michael Davis, but for whom were the other two named?

Jalum Tome or J.L.M. Tome is named after Joel L. Mick who was both Head Designer/Developer (when it was one position) and Magic Brand Manager at different times. Emmissi Tome or M.S.E. Tome is named after Mike S. Elliott. Mike was a prolific designer that lead the design of more Magic sets than everyone who doesn’t have their own Blogatog.

Emmessi Tome Head Designer Jalum Tome Jayemdae Tome

Names Behind Cards

you recently said on twitter that Jayemdae Tome was named after someone (a high level employee of WotC, if I'm not wrong) and that one of the "mares" was named after someone's late wife. Is Emmessi Tome (M-S-C) named after someone else in particular? Are there any other cards named after real people?

Emmessi Tome (M.S.E. Tome) is named after Mike Scott Elliott, one of the most prolific Magic designers to ever grace the game. The only person to have led more design teams than Mike is me. Mike was on the Tempest design team, the set with Emmessi Tome. Jayemdae Tome (J.M.D. Tome) was named after J. Michael Davis, the partner with Richard Garfield that first came to pitch Roborally to Wizards of the Coast which led to Peter Adkison asking Richard for the game that ended up being Magic.

Emmessi Tome Employee Jayemdae Tome Partner Richard Garfield Tempest Wizards of the Coast

Vanity Cards Trends

The Jayemdae Tome was named for someone who's initials are JMD, Telim' Tor is an acronym for "Mr. Toilet" (which makes me laugh so very much). Any more recent names or characters that have funny little quirks in their names that you'd be willing to share? I realize you're the head designer and therefore not responsible for naming, but I figured you might have a story or two to share.

We refer to those cards as vanity cards as they are referencing someone behind the scenes. We stopped doing vanity cards many years ago. I personally like them and think they have value (I feel they help create a personal bond between creators and players), but it wasn’t my call. The thing we do now are Easter eggs like Creepy Doll (a reference to a Jonathan Coulton song) or Grave Bramble (a nod to Plants vs. Zombies). The rule on these cards is they cannot sacrifice quality for the reference so the player not in the know would have just a good opinion of the card as any other Magic card.

Behind the Scenes Creepy Doll Egg Grave Bramble Head Designer Humor Jayemdae Tome Plant Pop Culture Rules Sacrifice Story / Lore Vanity Cards Vanity Cards Zombie

Cards Named After People

Excluding cards created for Invitational winners, have any cards other than Maro and Richard Garfield, PhD been based on real people?

Yes. Jayemdae Tome was named after James Michael Davis, former VP of R&D (the card is pronounced “J.M.D. Tome”). Jalum Tome and it’s parody card from Unhinged Jalum Grifter is named after Joel L. Mick, former Magic Brand Manager (“J.L.M. Tome”). Joel, by the way, was the model for the figure in the card Jalum Grifter. Emessi Tome is named after Michael Scott Elliott, former Magic designer (“M.S.E. Tome”) Mons’s Goblin Raiders and its parody card from Unhinged Mons’s Goblin Waiters are both named after Mons Johnson, Magic R&D playtester and longtime friend of Richard Garfield. Those are all the cards I can think of named after current or former R&D members. I apologize if I’m forgetting any one.

Goblin Jalum Grifter Jalum Tome Jayemdae Tome Mark Rosewater Richard Garfield Unhinged