Tutoring

Upcoming Card Tutor Observation

Re: upcoming card tutor:Renowned Weaponsmith from FRF tutors up Vial of Dragonfire from DTK.

Ooh, I forgot that one. Good catch.

Dragons of Tarkir Fate Reforged Tutoring Renowned Weaponsmith Vial of Dragonfire

Potential Future Set Tutoring

RE: Previous set TutorHas Wizards ever planned to do a card that would tutor a card in an upcoming set (not yet released)?

We’ve done numerous cards that reference unprinted (at the time) cards in rules text. None that tutor come to mind. Here’s the closest I could think of: (no Eldrazi card had been printed yet)

Blogatog / Tumblr Eldrazis Rules Tutoring

Probability of Tutor-Like Commander

Hello Marcos. What is the chance that there is a Commander who serves as a tutor to search for a specific card from a previous set?

I’ll say low.

Commander Search Tutoring

Keyword 'Draw' Consistency

Re: Keyword 'Draw': "We increase confusion for what?"We'd gain some consistency. As the previous person noted, it'd put drawing cards in line with things such as scry, survail, and mill. It also would be adjacent to the changes from "enters the battlefield" to "enters." In the same way that the battlefield is the only thing that can be entered, cards are the only thing you can draw.I personally don't feel either way is inherently better, I just see the merit the previous post was getting at.

But we simply don’t template everything that involves a number like that. We don’t say Lifegain 3 and Discard 2 and Tutor 1.

Card Draw Discard Enter The Battlefield Keywords Lifegain Mill Scry Templating Tutoring

Detailing Land to Spell Conversions

if/when: we have spells that are land on the back, how about the other way around? lands that are spells on the back?

Putting lands on the front introduces play design concerns as it let’s you use land tutoring to get spells. It would force us to greatly lessen the power of the card to balance it.

If/When Lands Play Design Spells Tutoring Tutoring

Tutoring for Activated Abilities

Can the rules handle a card that tutors for a card with an activated ability?

My best guess is it can.

Rules Tutoring Tutoring

MDFC Design Logic

Why is one side is a MDFC arbitrarily considered the “Front”? unlike with transform cards that doesn’t seem necessary. But I may just be missing something.

The rules have to have a designated front and back. It has to specifically be something in each zone. For example, if it’s in your library, and it’s a creature on front and a land on back, you can’t tutor for the land, but you can tutor for the creature.

Creatures Lands Modal Dual Faced Cards Rules The Library Transform Cards Tutoring

Booster Mechanic Colors

Hey Mark! As a big fan of Booster Tutor and Summon the Pack (they're fantastic cube cards that I love watching people get to play with) do you think that in a potential future Un set we could get cards in other colors that let you get cards from Magic packs? Or is that a mechanic that's only in color pie for Black Un cards?

We’ve did a booster tutor in red in Unfinity (with Opening Ceremony). All colors can have access if done in an appropriately in-color way.

Black Blogatog / Tumblr Booster Tutor Boosters Color Pie Colors Draft Formats Mechanics Opening Ceremony Red Summon the Pack Tutoring Un-Magic / Silver Border / Acorn Un-sets

Traps Mechanic Potential

With Archive and Mindbreak Trap showing up on the Thunder Junction bonus sheet, have Traps as a mechanic moved down the Storm Scale recently? Do you imagine we'll ever see trap specific support, like tutors and recursion, or is that too much for cards that are supposed to be more silver bullety?

I think we might see a set with Traps again, and that set could have Trap support. I’m a little dubious of Trap tutoring though, as the element of surprise is key.

Bonus Sheets Mechanics Mindbreak Trap Storm Scale Tutoring

Birthday Sliver Trivia

Hey Mark, it’s my birthday! Can I please get a birthday trivia factoid on either Sliver Overlord or Sliver Gravemother!!?

Sliver Queen had been pretty popular. Legions brought back Slivers, so we thought it would be cool to do another five-color legendary Sliver in Scourge. We picked two abilities we thought would be useful. The tutor ability so you could go get the Sliver you needed in the moment, and the steal ability to help in Sliver on Sliver matches.Happy Birthday!

Birthday Legions Scourge Sliver Sliver Gravemother Sliver Overlord Sliver Queen Tutoring

Tutors in Standard

Are you adding more tutors into standard than you used to? There were 2 in OTJ and I found that to be odd. Although three year standard does make it weird… at Bloomburrow there will be at least 9 tutors in black that can get any card

We’ve lessened making mechanics that tutor, but we still make individual tutors.

Black Bloomburrow Mechanics Outlaws of Thunder Junction Standard Tutoring

Shift From Tutor Mechanics

Enjoyed your podcast running through past mercenary cards. One thing that stood out to me is that the mercenary "recruitment" mechanic of searching for a lower cmc creature and putting it on field doesn't feel like something you'd do today. Is there a general move against searching effects? I guess the closest now would be "look at the top X cards of your library...." style effects

We’ve shifted away from tutor mechanics as they make games play out too similarly. You’re correct, we’re more likely to do “look at top cards of your library” as it both has more variance and encourages having more cards of the theme in your deck.

Creatures Drive to Work Mana Value Mechanics Mercenary The Library Tutoring

Design Question Podcast

Would you ever do a podcast specifically on the Black Green Serra Angel question and what you think it communicates about design ability that is worthwhile? I’m a teacher and tutor, I think a lot about question design, and I feel like it has driven so much discussion there might be a cool 30 minutes on the question and the principles behind it.

I can add it to the list. The big question is is there a 30 minute talk about it?

Angel Black Drive to Work Green Serra Serra Angel Tutoring

Limited Format Satisfaction

Hey Mark, as a limited main I wanted to say that I'm a huge fan of the kinds of cards that we've been getting lately that let us play with all time high power-level effects brought down to a fair level for limited. MKM had a fair Control Magic. OTJ has several, including references to Demonic Tutor, Ray of Command, and Snapcaster, all at uncommon. It's exciting to get to play with classic effects in a way that doesn't disrupt the balance. I'm the most eager to draft I've been since MOM!

It’s an area we’ve been enjoying exploring recently.

Control Magic Demonic Tutor Draft Formats Limited Murders at Karlov Manor Outlaws of Thunder Junction Ray of Command Tutoring Uncommons

Lively Dirge's Bend

Is Lively Dirge at all a bend? I know that black gets both of those effects but it’s basically a restricted tutor creature to battlefield

It’s a bend.

Bend / Break Black Creatures Lively Dirge Tutoring

Color-specific Tutors

What creature types can each color tutor for?

Ones primary in their color (mostly).

Colors Creatures Primary Tutoring

Color Pie Intuition

Intuition is a blue card, and I feel like it’s a safe guess to say that intuition would be in pie for black. But what about green? Green is allowed to do some self mill stuff, so it feels like it would be a bend? Or would it have to only get creatures to be fair game for green?

The way we’re interacting with impulse effects (look at top N cards of a library, take <blah> and then put the rest in the bottom of the library in random order) colorpiewise is treating them like we would tutoring effects. Green can tutor for lands and/or creatures, so it can impulse for them. This is mostly due to us trying to lessen shuffling effects.

Bend / Break Black Blue Color Pie Creatures Green Intuition Lands Mill The Library Tutoring

Black Intuition Mechanic

Intuition would be in pie for black right?

Yes, in the sense that we’re trying to use top of library instead of tutoring more.

Black Intuition Mechanics The Library Tutoring

Mechanic Addition Wish

Hello Mark, I'd like to invoke ancient rite of birthday trivia ;) Imagine you could add one mechanic from Acorn to Premiere - no question asked by Play/Set Design. What would you add and why?

Booster tutor. It’s one of my favorite Un effects.

Birthday Booster Tutor Boosters Humor Mechanics Set Design Tutoring Un-Magic / Silver Border / Acorn Un-sets

Red's Tutoring Ability

Every color gets to tutor except red. Please allow red tutor for sorceries or artifacts

Red has numerous tutors.

Artifacts Colors Red Sorceries Tutoring