Saturday, January 5, 2013

Daily Card Redesign #5: Deathgazer

Today's killed-late-in-development card is... *clicks Random Card button in Gatherer* ...Deathgazer!


Finally, I get to replace a card that is a rarity other than common! Oh, how I'm relishing this opportunity. Its name must be between Dark Ritual and Deepwood Ghoul, alphabetically.

So, this card depicts a lizard-looking thing that kills creatures that even so much as gets into a fight with it. Kinda like a ...Greater Basilisk!


But the intention of Deathgazer was pretty much to be just like a Basilisk. But a baby one. I mean, its name is Deathgazer! Except, a smaller Basilisk. Like a Lesser Basilisk? 

But all Basilisks are green! I don't think it'd be so bad if there were a black Basilisk. 

I'd love to see a Lesser Basilisk, since there isn't already one, yet. But if I do this, it wouldn't actually be designing a new card - just a flavor change! So I won't do this.

Since I want to design a new card that isn't the same "basically deathtouch-ing" creature, and because Basilisks have a tendency to kill people instantly, I can't make this guy a Basilisk, who wouldn't be gazing people to death, as Basilisks do. It's gotta be a Lizard still.

I then looked up what Lizards do - and they have a tendency to grow bigger or regenerate and such. Sometimes they'll be deadly, like a Toxic Iguanar. Very lizard-y things.

I looked up all the black cards in Mercadian Masques and noted each of their effects. Man, there are a heck of a lot of discard effects. I found that there are already four cards that regenerate, and five cards that bring creatures back from the graveyard (to hand/batttlefield/etc). Too many for me to add yet another one of!

I found, though, a couple applicable effects that aren't on so many cards in Mercadian Masques: fear and life drain/loss. There's already an uncommon creature with fear, though.

Since there are so many discard effects, and there's room to do some life loss... how about the Megrim / Liliana's Caress effect but with a creature body? That hasn't been done before!

And thus, Decaymind Gorger (I'm not satisfied with this name, but it'll do.) is born! And in Mercadian Masques format (notice the old wording of "discards a card from his or her hand" rather than the modern wording of "discards a card").

I like how his big lips hint at the fact that this guy likes to chew. Thus, he gorges. And I have no idea why my Magic Set Editor program displays power/toughness in that font for the old frame.

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