Exalted

Exalted in Premiere Set

When will we see Exalted in Premiere set again? I love the mechanic

I can’t say when, but we like the mechanic.

Exalted Mechanics

About Thunder Junction Mercenaries

Did you contemplate at some point giving the Thunder Junction Mercenaries... Exalted? I mean the name of the ability is wrong for the flavor, but mechanically it's driving at a similar thing to the tap ability you ended up giving them.

The first version we tried for Mercenary tokens is what we printed.

Exalted Flavor Mercenaries Tap / Untap Tokens Mercenaries

Bant Design Team

On this, my most birthiest of days, I invoke the holy right of trivia! Specifically, about Bant (the mini-plane, not WUG).

The Bant mini-design team was led by Brian Tinsman and included Ken Nagle and myself. When Brian first pitched exalted, I was very skeptical. I said it seemed like too small a hoop to jump through. We playteested and it played great, so I went to Brian and said, “I was wrong. Exalted is great.” I think Bant was the first team to settle on its keyword.Happy Birthday!

Bant Bant (W/U/G) Birthday Exalted Ken Nagle Keywords

Bant Trivia Fact

Invoking the ancient right of birthday trivia, can I ask for a fact about Bant? (The place or the colour combination)

The Bant mini team was led by Brian Tinsman and included Ken Nagle and myself. When Brian first pitched exalted, I didn’t like it as it felt like too small a hoop. We playtested it, and after that first playtest, I told Brian I was wrong. Exalted was a great mechanic. Happy Birthday!

Bant Bant (W/U/G) Birthday Colors Exalted Ken Nagle Mechanics Playtesting

Banning Specific Combos

I know it's not your area of expertise, but when there's a broken combo using two otherwise not-at-all-broken cards, do you know why they can't just ban the combo instead of banning one (or both) of the cards? e.g. Instead of banning Faceless Haven, banning playing Faceless Haven and Book of Exalted Deeds from being in the same deck as each other

It’s not something that’s easy to monitor. If an opponent plays a banned card, you know to call a judge. But if a combo was banned, you don’t know.

Bannings Exalted Faceless Haven Format Legality Format Legality

Amass Mechanic's Flexibility

So is Amass solidly a Grixis mechanic now, or could it be colorshifted like exalted going into black?

The mechanic minus flavor (and the black coloring) fits in all the colors mechanically.

Amass Black Colors Exalted Flavor Grixis Grixis (U/B/R) Mechanics

Unrules Clarification

Unrules Question: For Trigger Happy, in the additional rules it uses Exalted as an example as a keyworded trigger but without the attack trigger it isn’t very clear what is getting the +1/+1 because it doesn’t target. How do you grok a trigger like this and others? I think it’s a really cool spell but I think it’s odd to use something so unclear as an example

Doesn’t exalted only trigger if there’s only one target?

Exalted Rules Trigger Happy Un-sets

Exalted Mechanic Trivia

Wondering if I could get some birthday trivia on my favorite mechanic, exalted. It's the first mechanic I built a deck around and I recently tore it up to make 2 commander decks.

I had a bad first reaction to exalted when Brian Tinsman first pitched it in our Bant mini-team for Shards of Alara. I thought it was too narrow of a hoop. But after the first playtest, I apologized to Brian. I said, “I was wrong. This mechanic is great.”The important lesson. Always playtest your ideas. Theorycrafting (what we call trying to think through an idea by just talking about it) only gets you so far.Happy Birthday!

Bant Bant (W/U/G) Birthday Commander Decks Exalted Mechanics Playtesting Shards of Alara

Alara Appreciation

Hello, this is just an Alara appreciation reminder: A world with one of the coolest and very iconic mechanics (Cascade, Unearth, Exalted, Devour), very clear destinction between the shards (though now there might be some exciting mixing of mana), very magical, very well written story. As someone who loves to explore a world, the story of the inhabitants and dive deep in the fantasy, Alara is one of THE most enjoyable planes.

A return to Alara is a possibility.

Appreciation Cascade Devour Exalted Mana Mechanics Planes Story / Lore Three Color Unearth Unearth

Morph Mechanic Dynamics

Do you think one of the difficulties in Morph is if there are not enough pushed cards then everyone just knowing what the card is really undermining the Morph part of the card like Exalted Angel in original Onslaught or Den Protector in Tarkir Block?

That is one of the challenges.

Angel Den Protector Exalted Exalted Angel Mechanics Morph Onslaught

Requests for Solo Mechanics

I really like mechanics like Exalted, the attacks-alone stuff from Neon Dynasty, and cards like Homicidal Seclusion/Deadly Wanderings/Blood Mist. Please make more stuff in that vein, including more noncreature permanents with Exalted/incidental abilities in this vein. Maybe a mana rock with Exalted?

I expect us to make more stuff in this vein.

Blood Blood Mist Deadly Wanderings Exalted Homicidal Seclusion Mana Mechanics Non-creatures Permanents

Ability Counters Expansion

Hi Mark - With the advent of ability counters (eg. a "vigilance counter") does that now mean that any creature ability could be given by a counter of that name, eg. an exalted counter. Secondly, do you see the roster of 'novel rules' counters like Shield counter (ie. where the ability it gives is not written on the card, except in reminder text, nor is it a reference to a creature ability) expanding in the future?

What’s possible and what’s probable are very different things.

Creatures Exalted Vigilance Vigilance

Exalted Mechanic Future

Where does Exalted fall on the storm scale?

It’s a 4. I expect to see it again.

Exalted Mechanics Storm Scale

Samurai Critique in NEO

I understand that people like a lot of things, but I'm shocked to read that people disliked the samurai in NEO. They were my favorite archetype by far, very flavorful for my understanding of samurai, and I found their implementation (providing a diversity of effects to the single attacker) a lot more interesting than Exalted.

I am curious how high the expectations were. Would Design have had to found a way to make Bushido or Exalted work better in modern-day Standard to satisfy those disappointed with NEO's samurai?

I think the criticism was more that they didn’t work well with the previous Samurai more so than they didn’t work together in limited.

Bushido Exalted Flavor Kamigawa: Neon Dynasty Limited Samurais Standard

Unexpected Successful Game Features

Hi, Mark!! Besides exalted, can you give us more examples of mechanics (or other features in general) that did better than you initially supposed? Does it happen frequently? Thanks!

My gut is pretty good, but my first impression is occasionally off. The most recent success that I was initially skeptical of was shield counters.

Exalted Mechanics

Understanding Exalted Triggers

Hey Mark.Why does Exalted trigger for any creature attacking alone on the battlefield, rather than only for the creature with the ability? I don’t understand

It’s designed to stack which couldn’t happen if it only worked just for that creature.

Attacking Creatures Exalted Triggered Abilities

Designer's Perception and Final Output

You often talk about how so many great successes only came after you had to fight ahrd inside the design process. I dont hear much about things turning out great that you werent really a fan of at first. Is that bc you are easily enthusiastic or do the things you dont like never see print? (love to get some exemples)

There are things, like exalted, that I had a negative first impression of, but grow to like it once I play it. If I truly thought something was bad for a set, I worked hard to find replacements that fulfill the same functions without the negative baggage.

Card Printing Exalted Fight / Bite

Possibility of Exalted Counters

Which is more likely lands with keyword counters, or Exalted Counters?

Neither is likely, but if I had to pick one, I guess exalted counters.

Exalted Keywords Lands

Absence of Exalted Ability

I’m fairly certain it’s yes but I will ask anywayI notice a bunch of “attack alone” stuff and no exalted ability in sight. is it due to the the benefits not being +1/+1 on all of them?

Exalted is just +1/+1.

Exalted

Exalted Counters Mechanics

Silly rules question that I'm sure will never see play for this exact reason: Would multiple "Exalted Counters" give a creature multiple instances of exalted? Or are creature counters just an on/off switch for whether or not a creature has an ability?

It depends if the ability stacks, which exalted does.

Creatures Exalted Mechanics Rules