Fixed.

Eager Imitator
Creature - Shapeshifter
You may have ~ enter the battlefield as a copy of any creature on the battlefield, except it gains "You may exert this creature as it attacks. When you do, create a token that's a copy of this creature." (An exerted creature won't untap during your next untap step.)
"I have surpassed mere imitation. You should be flattered."
0/0


Refracting Golem
Artifact creature
Sunburst, sunburst - (This enters the battlefield with two +1/+1 counters on it for each color of mana spent to cast it.)
Trample
Spend only mana from basic lands to cast ~.
0/0
-I've had this pairing of abilities in the back of my brain for a long time. I am only now free.


Scatter Brains
Sorcery
Target player discards two cards. For each card fewer than two discarded this way, that player sacrifices a creature.

-I'm a little worried that "For each card that player was unable to discard this way" will be interpreted as "for each card still in their hand". The only alternative I have on hand is "sacrifices creatures equal to the difference" which might be a bit much for the yung'uns.
- Sometimes this is a worse Mental Agony. Sometimes its a Barter in Blood that fails as removal. But unlike those, this hardly ever whiffs. i suppose it's midway in power between them.
-I feel like 3 discards is the number this effect wants. Not much discard goes above two cards, but that's partly because higher numbers just end up being discard 1 or 2. This rules tech could help make discard 3+ viable. Is that a bad idea? Three Tragedies is pretty weak, but I think stapling this effect onto it might be on the verge of too goodness. I don't want to put triple discard at under 5 for obvious reasons.

Eager Imitator is fun, but shouldn't exert and it gets oppressive. After the first successful exerted attack, you will be able to create a new copy every turn and multiple on several turns.


This is a best case scenario, of course. Removal and defending creatures easily thwart the absurdity. Change of mind: I actually quite like this.

Don't have much to say about Refracting Golem. I like the pairing of abilities.

Not a huge fan of the templating on Scatter Brains, but I like the card name. It would likely be "For each card fewer than two discarded this way, that player sacrifices a creature."

I don't think that eager imitator's own imitators have the exert ability. - Or wait, I guess they do.
I'll change the text on Scatter Brains.

I liked this one. Judge may have had a point about it not being red though.

Judge here: I think it's an acceptable bleed, but looting in red shouldn't happen very often. It's more of the rummaging color. Also, you aren't gaining a card when you use this ability like you would with Tormenting Voice or Cathartic Reunion - which does, like you said, feel more red or even black.

Am I still counting installments? If so this is 48. If not, then it still is.

Cannibalism
Enchantment
Whenever a creature you control dies, you may put a +1/+1 counter onto another creature you control that shares a creature type with it.

Brief Forays
Sorcery
Create a tapped Plains land, Island land, Swamp land and Mountain land token, they have "when this land is tapped for mana, sacrifice it".
-An all mountains version could also work in red.
-Does this wording make them all etb tapped? I'm really hoping I've found a shortcut there.

Eager Conflagration
Creature - Elemental Berserker
Haste
Unveil - When Argent Instigators attacks for the first time, put a spark counter on it. Create a 2/2 Elemental creature token with haste and "Unveil - When this creature attacks for the first time, put a spark counter on it. Create a 3/3 Elemental creature token with haste"
1/1

Knife In The Branches
Creature - Dryad Assassin
~ enters the battlefield in swampform.
Swampform (, : This creature becomes a Swamp land. You may pay any time you could cast a sorcery to end this effect.)
Whenever a creature attacks you or a planeswalker you control, you may have ~ exit swampform.

Knife In The Branches
Creature - Dryad Assassin
When ~ enters the battlefield it becomes a Swamp land. (It is no longer a creature)
Whenever a creature attacks you or a planeswalker you control, ~ becomes a creature until end of turn. (It is no longer a land)
3/3

Browsing some old card files and I found these:

Hobwor Zatch
Planeswalker - Hobowr
You get an emblem with “Once per turn if you would flip a coin, you may choose the outcome of that coin flip instead”.
Choose target creature or player and flip two coins. For each heads, Hobwor Zatch deals one damage to that creature or player. For each tails, put a loyalty counter on Hobwor Zatch.
Flip three coins For each flip you win, target opponent sacrifices a permanent. For each flip you lose, sacrifice a permanent.

Lifecharge
Target noncreature artifact becomes a creature with power and toughness each equal to its converted mana cost until end of turn. It gets +X/+X until end of turn. (It retains its abilities and its other types.)
“Oh the black eye? A doorknob hit me.” - Hobwor Zatch

It's sad really, once I designed Hobwor I had nowhere to go but down.

No, wait, that's a lie.

Garfield, The First walker
Planeswalker - Garfield
Increase or decrease target number by one.
Target permanent becomes another permanent with the same mana cost until end of turn.
You get an emblem with “You may cast spells from your library”.


God, I'm awesome.

Some random cards from notes I had on my phone.

Star-Crossed
Enchantment
When ~ enters the battlefield, choose two creatures.
Those creatures have protection from each other.

Might be simpler as an aura.


Wonderwall
Creature - Illusion Wall
Defender
At the end of each combat, destroy each creature that ~ blocked this turn. For each creature destroyed this way, that creature's controller reveals cards from the top of his or her library until he or she reveals a creature card. The player puts that card onto the battlefield, then shuffles all other cards revealed this way into his or her library.
0/3

Call To Battle
Instant
Create a 1/1 white Monk creature token with Prowess.
Rebound (If you cast this spell from your hand, exile it as it resolves. At the beginning of your next upkeep, you may cast this card from exile without paying its mana cost.)

i like call to battle and how it pumps your first monk hehe

I'm worried that to not overshadow Raise the alarm Call to battle needs to be a sorcery or cost . Raise the alarm is already quite playable, and as is, Call to battle is easier to cast and arguably more powerful. I think the card gains a lot from being an instant, so altering the cost is probably the best option.

Call To Battle
Sorcery
Create a 1/1 white Monk creature token with Prowess.
Rebound (If you cast this spell from your hand, exile it as it resolves. At the beginning of your next upkeep, you may cast this card from exile without paying its mana cost.)

Call To Battle
Instant
Create a 1/1 white Monk creature token with Prowess.
Rebound (If you cast this spell from your hand, exile it as it resolves. At the beginning of your next upkeep, you may cast this card from exile without paying its mana cost.)

Ooze Lords
As of yey, WOTC has never designed an ooze lord. I consider this an oversight and will seek to correct it.
Oozes by nature are hard to make into legends, so an ooze commander would be hard to do. Still, I must do it.

Original Lifeform
Legendary creature - Ooze
Trample
~'s power and toughness are both equal to the total converted mana costs of each player's creature with the highest converted mana cost.
*/*
All others are imitations.

The First Creation? First Common Ancestor? Universal Ancestor?
the combined total of the highest converted mana cost among creatures each player controls. ?
Life began as ooze. The veritable primordial soup. Primordial soup in the flesh.


Reconstitutional Pudding
Creature - Ooze
Remove five +1/+1 counters from among permanents you control: Populate. (Create a token that's a copy of a creature token you control.)
Sacrifice a nontoken creature: Proliferate. (You choose any number of permanents and/or players with counters on them, then give each another counter of a kind already there.)
2/2

Deatheater Ooze
Creature - Ooze
Sacrifice a creature: Gain 1 life. Put a +1/+1 counter on ~.
Whenever a nontoken Ooze you control dies, create a token that's a copy of that creature.
2/2

Edit- typos and forgotten stats

Overflowing Vitality
Sorcery
Creatures you control get +2/+2 and gain trample until end of turn.
Until end of turn, if a creature you control would deal combat damage to a player, add that much to your mana pool instead. Until end of turn, this mana doesn't empty from your mana pool as steps and phases end.

Rearguard
Indestructible, defender
~ can't block alone.
1/1
Keep to your posts men! Hold position!

I'm not entirely happy with the flavour of Rearguard in that last post. Let's fix that.

Eternal Guardian
Creature - Spirit Soldier
Indestructible, defender
~ can't block alone.
1/1
Such was their love for the holy man, Ahrai's guards whisked him away from danger at the battle of Kazal. If they were so eager to protect, he declared, they would atone by doing so ever more.

Sworn Protector
Creature - Human Warrior
Indestructible, defender
~ can't block alone.
1/1
Nothing on this earth, nor nothing beyond it will keep me from your side. - Ahrundi wedding oath

And while we're at it, let's do a few new cards too.

Noble Steed
Creature - Horse
T: Target Soldier or Warrior becomes a knight, gets +2/+2 and gains first strike until end of turn.
2/2
A prerequisite for knighthood.

Ghost Lathe
Artifact
At the beginning of your end step, put a Soul counter on ~ for each enchantment you control. Then, if you control no enchantments, sacrifice ~ and create a 1/1 white Spirit creature token for each Soul counter on ~.
-I'm tempted to put this at . Maybe if they didn't have flying.

Computational Loop
At the beginning of your end step, put a charge counter on ~ for each artifact you control. Then, if you control no artifacts, sacrifice ~ and gain life equal to the number of charge counters on ~.
-I'm tempted to make these transform back and forth into each other.

Mind Body And Spirit
Enchantment
At the beginning of your end step, gain 1 life if you cast an instant or sorcery spell this turn, then do the same for creature and enchantment spells.
Then, if you gained 3 or more life this way, draw two cards.
-Would it be more interesting mechanically if it just wanted you to cast X types of spells? It would get a reflavour of course, and unless the cmc went way up, wouldn't gain you life.

I anticipate weakness in the forums. These times will be buoyed by the force of my assaults. I shall not relent 'less my backstock runs low or victory is achieved. Mark me- I will carry these months.

Pyre Birth
Sorcery (C)
Return two cards from your graveyard to your hand, then discard cards at random until you only have two cards in your hand.
Fire cultivated from the vital spark does not burn its victims to death, but back from it.


Bottle The Lightning
Instant
As an additional cost to cast ~, exile an instant or sorcery spell from your graveyard.
Copy target spell you control that shares a name with the card exiled this way.



Storm-Harnesser
Creature - Goblin Wizard
Sacrifice ~: Copy target instant or sorcery spell that shares a name with a card in your graveyard. You may choose new targets for the copy.
Have you never wanted to do anything that was dangerous? Where should we be if no one tried to find out what lies beyond? Have your never wanted to look beyond the clouds and the stars, ...? But if you talk like that, people call you crazy. - Frankenstein, 1931
2/1

Child Of Sod
Creature - Elemental
Domain - ~ enters the battlefield with a +1/+1 counter on it for each basic land type among lands you control
0/0

Why hasn't this been done? There are only 9 creatures with Domain, and none of them is the obvious one.
Edit - I missed Matca Rioters

Soldier Of Sod
Creature - Elemental Soldier
Domain - ~ enters the battlefield with a +1/+1 counter on it for each basic land type among lands you control.
~'s power and toughness are both equal to the number of basic land types among lands you control
*/*

...I liked the naming scheme.
I refuse to justify the soldier type outside of green. It needs no justification.


Angel Of Sod
Creature - Elemental Angel
Flying
Domain - Other creatures you control get +1/+1 for each basic land type among lands you control.
4/4

... a lot.
I cannot justify using the angel type in green. It knew no justification.

I had a lot of fun with this.

Despite the... tumultuousness of recent weeks, I haven't entirely given up on my dreams of CotW glory. I still have a week to sneak in a winner before the next pro tour submissions become eligible. And with CotY taking up the other half of the board, I may lack for competitors.


Goblin Punch
Goblin Punch deals 1 damage to target creature or player. Until end of turn, whenever a creature dies, you may cast Goblin Punch from your graveyard.
Squarely shoulder height from the goblin's point of view.

It's Goblin Sharpshooter's ability given the name of my favourite blog. The flavour text was a low blow.


Hex Mistress
Creature - Human Wizard
, : Target creature gains hexproof until end of turn.
: Creatures with hexproof get -1/-1 until end of turn.
2/1

Prismatic Spray
Instant
Prismatic Spray deals damage to target creature or player equal to the greatest number of colors among spells cast this turn.

I worry that this could push 5 color cards out of a format single-handedly.

I've been doing some ponderings on what a WWI-themed set would look like and here are some of the results.

Early Enlister
Creature - Human Soldier
~ enters the battlefield tapped.
When ~ enters the battlefield, Enlist (If you control no Conscripts, create a 1/1 white Conscript creature token.).
1/1

Enlist is meant to provide players with tokens that they have no incentive to keep alive. We're charging into the breach boys!
Etb tapped is more of a black thing, but I worry that 2/2 is too good for if only half of it enters the battlefield tapped.


Into The Breach
Instant
Enlist (If you control no Conscripts, create a 1/1 white Conscript creature token.)
Creatures you control get +1/+1 until end of turn.

Outlive
Instant
Target player sacrifices a creature.
Enlist (If you control no Conscripts, create a 1/1 white Conscript creature token.)
"So long as a single of our soldiers stands where no others remain, the empire carries the day." - General Holzander, the Ilchin Dictum

Goblin Cannoneer
Creature - Goblin Artificer
When ~ enters the battlefield, create two 1/1 red Goblin creature tokens.
: ~ deals three damage to target Goblin and each creature blocking or blocked by it.
3/3
Like with most things, goblins are bad at war.

The big design goal of a WWI set would be to create an environment with built up boards where players win by accumulating more presence than their opponent or hiding behind their board and attritioning the opponent to death. In the former case, it should build up to big plays.
Battalion and Crew seem like good bets for returning mechanics. Allies could play into the theme on more than one level. -1/-1 counters might be worthwhile. Parley's got a shot. Exert and exalted seem plausible.

2 big questions I'd appreciate answers to:

1. Is Enlist a good mechanic?
2. Are there better names than "Enlist" and "Recruits"?
   "Conscript" had narrow flavour. "Enlist" has open flavour , but doesn't reinforce the 1-of, flavour. I don't like that "recruit" could be a verb or noun- keyword or creature type. I don't want to use the Soldier type here. "Reinforce" is sadly taken. Would "Levy" work? "Rookies", "Trainees"?

Anyway, here are cards:


Enlistment Agent
~ enters the battlefield tapped.
When ~ enters the battlefield, enlist (If you control no Recruits, create a 1/1 white Recruit creature token.).
1/1


Civic Pride
Enchantment
When Civic Pride enters the battlefield, Enlist (If you control no Recruits, create a 1/1 white Recruit creature token.)
Conscripts you control and get +1/+1.

Since you (basically) can't have more than 1 Recruit at a time, you can get aggressive with the tribal bonuses.

Rush For Glory
Recruits you control have haste and get +2/+0.
At the beginning of your end step, sacrifice each Recruit you control.
"Go at 'em boys. You'll come home heroes!"


Take Up The Cause
Enchantment
At the beginning of each end step, if two or more creatures you control died, enlist (If you control no Recruits, create a 1/1 white Recruit creature token.).
Take up our quarrel with the foe:
To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high. - In Flanders Fields, John McCrae


Jingoist Marm
Whenever a creature enters the battlefield under your control, you may pay , if you do, enlist (If you control no Recruits, create a 1/1 white Recruit creature token.)
"And you staying home while your brothers go off to fight for ye. Youth in these days. Tut, tut."
1/1