Arcbound Ravager

Standard Reprint Request

May I request Arcbound Ravager reprinted into Standard?

You may request it. I’m skeptical play design would allow it.

Arcbound Ravager Card Printing Play Design Reprints Standard

Combo Design Trivia

Hey, Mark! Wednesday was my birthday, but I’m pretty sure my schedule keeps causing my ask to fall through the cracks. Can I get trivia on Hardened Scales, Arcbound Ravager, or your thoughts on the current state of +1/+1 counter based combos in eternal formats?

I believe the design for Arcbound Ravager cane about because I was trying to find an ability to combo with modular. Happy Birthday!

Arcbound Ravager Birthday Eternal Hardened Scales Modular

Arcbound Ravager Trivia

Hi Maro! Today is my birthday and i will love a Trivia about my favourite creature card, Arcbound Ravager!! Thank you for your work!!

Arcbound Ravager was designed as a way to make a cool rare creature with Modular. I wanted to both make a creature that could add counters to itself and help you move counters from one Modular creature to another creature.Happy Birthday!

Appreciation Arcbound Ravager Birthday Creatures Mark Rosewater Modular Rares

Urza's Hot Tub Limitation

Oh great un-rules guru! Can Urza's Hot Tub see a double-faced card's back-side name? If I discard Arcbound Ravager, could I go find Huntmaster of the Fells?

Unfortunately, it cannot.

Arcbound Ravager Discard Rules Un-sets Urza

Arcbound Ravager Trivia

It was my birthday yesterday and I've long waited for my chance to ask for trivia about my favorite creature; Arcbound Ravager!

Arcbound Ravager is considered by many to be the straw that broke the Affinity deck and caused all sorts of trouble in Standard (and other formats). Happy Birthday!

Affinity Arcbound Ravager Birthday Creatures Standard

Designing Iconic Cards

Did you design Arcbound Ravager, Myr Battlesphere, or Phyrexian Metamorph? A Maro signature on one or more of them would really make my Commander deck happy.

Arcbound Ravager yes, the other two no.

Arcbound Ravager Commander Mark Rosewater Myr Myr Battlesphere Phyrexian Phyrexian Metamorph

Mechanic vs. Card

So, you believe it was Arcbound Ravager that broke Affinity, and not the mechanic itself?

The affinity deck was more about the broken cards of the block than the mechanic itself.

Affinity Arcbound Ravager Mechanics

Arcbound Ravager Origins

I always wanted to know who designed Arcbound Ravager and all its glorious monstrosity, just to congratulate them and slap them in the face. So, who was it?

Arcbound Ravager as well as the modular mechanic were my babies.

Arcbound Ravager Mechanics Modular Monstrosity

Arcbound Ravager Design

If you were going to design arcbound ravager today, would it say "sacrifice another artifact" to be intuitive, effectively killing the potential for the feared ravager swing play (sacrifice the ravager to itself)?

Arcbound Ravager has modular which means it would be able to sacrifice itself as it’s sac effect wouldn’t fizzle. We use “sacrifice another creature” when the effect gained wouldn’t happen because the creature is sacrificed (for example, “CARDNAME gets +2/+2 until end of turn”).

Arcbound Ravager Artifacts Creatures Modular Sacrifice

Art vs Recognition

You are printing many cards in Modern Masters with a different art. I know it's part of the product to have new things, but I'm feeling that adding this set's Tooth and Nail or Arcbound Ravager won't help people recognize them easily.

It’s a balancing act. New art gets many players excited but we also want art being a tool players can use to recognize the cards. Note that we try not to do too many different pictures of the same card (except if it’s the kind of card we reprint a lot in expansions which means it keeps getting new art by the rule that new expansion cards always have new art.

Arcbound Ravager Art Balancing Act Card Printing Modern Modern Masters Reprints Rules Tooth and Nail

Broken Two-Drops Ignored

The people who keep asking for the cycle of broken two-drops to be completed keep forgetting about Goblin Piledriver. (Also, Arcbound Ravager.)

I’m not sure why any of the broken two-drop red creatures we’ve made never count.

Arcbound Ravager Creatures Cycles Goblin Goblin Piledriver Red

Mechanic Design Musings

Modular-Sunburst from Arcbound Ravager: interesting food for Melvin or a classic example of "we did it just because we could"?

Those aren’t exclusive of one another.

Arcbound Ravager Food Melvin / Mel Modular Sunburst

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

Card Signing

So if I were to somehow get my foil Arcbound Ravager to you, could you then sign it and send it back to me in the self addressed envelope I included with the card? It may have been a broken card, but it certainly captured my twelve year old heart.

Always happy to sign cards.

Arcbound Ravager Foils

Arcbound Ravager Origin

Did you happen to design Arcbound Ravager?

I did. It didn’t seem quite as broken in design. (It was.)

Arcbound Ravager

Mirrodin vs Phyrexians

Do you think Mirrodin would have lost to the Phyrexians if Arcbound Ravager, Disciple of the Vault, and artifact lands hadn't been banned? :P

We’ll never know. We’ll just never know.

Arcbound Ravager Artifacts Bannings Disciple of the Vault Format Legality Lands Mirrodin Phyrexian

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

Creature Cycle Completion

Why do people think the broken two-drop creature cycle isn't complete? It started in red with Goblin Piledriver, then went into colorless with Arcbound Ravager, then hit the other four colors as described. Sure, cycles aren't usually printed that way, but you guys know what you're doing.

Every time I bring up Goblin Piledriver, I get “That doesn’t count”. I’m not quite sure why. Only for a goblin deck is my best guess.

Arcbound Ravager Card Printing Colorless Colors Creatures Cycles Goblin Goblin Piledriver Red