Grinning Totem

Marquee Card Designs

While neat, I understand why the concept of "marquee” cards wouldn't be good to force. Did any ever get made though, and if so what was the last one?

I made a few. Grinning Totem and Mindslaver (originally created for Tempest) are the two that saw print.

Card Printing Grinning Totem Mindslaver Tempest

Marquee Cards Examples

What are some examples of marquee cards?

Jester’s Cap (Ice Age) and Grinning Totem (Mirage). Mindslaver was supposed to be the Marquee card of Tempest. It was what Volrath’s Helm was supposed to do.

Grinning Totem Ice Age Mindslaver Mirage Tempest Volrath

Marquee Cards Explanation

I'm not really familiar with the idea of "marquee cards". What were the marquee cards in previous sets?

It’s an old idea that went away years ago. The idea was that every set needed a marquee card which was an artifact that did something completely new which anyone could put into any deck. Examples from when we did them: Ice Age - Jeter’s Cap Mirage - Grinning Totem Helm of Volrath was going to be Tempest’s marquee card and it was what would later be Mindslaver. For various reasons it couldn’t be done in Tempest and I tried it again years later in Mirrodin where I got it through. This story comes from my very first “Drive to Work” podcast.

Artifacts Drive to Work Grinning Totem Ice Age Mindslaver Mirage Mirrodin Story / Lore Tempest Volrath

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