Friendship is Card Games: Maud Pie · 1:49pm Mar 16th, 2014
Well, that was fun. Clearly the Pie family is one of the most magically powerful earth pony bloodlines in Equestria. Though it would've been nice to see some sign of the rest of Pinkie's family...
I couldn't help but snicker at Pinkie's preliminary presentation of Maud. The classic "all of your interests combined" hallmark of a bad OC. This season seems to have a metacommentary streak. Or maybe I'm just reading too deeply.
Pinkie's moment of peril was clearly caused by her hoof getting caught on a plot hook. Possibly the same one that snared Applejack in "Spike at Your Service." That's the problem with fourth-wall magic: a weakness to narrative devices. (cf. Pinkie getting beaned with the villain ball in "Filli Vanilli.") As for the rest of the Mane Six stuck there and gawking, don't tell me you've never been paralyzed by shock. (Also, cf. watching Daring Do fight Caballeron's henchstallions in "Daring Don't.")
Also, was anyone else thrown off by the Flintstones-style train station? I know it's rock farming country, but I wasn't expecting Neolithic-chic.
(And for anyone who may wondering, I do have plans for Maud in Sideboard of Harmony. For now, I will only say that Pinkie's memories of her are different than in canon.)
Now for cards:
Crowing Cockerel 1W
Creature — Bird
Whenever you cast a white spell, you may untap target creature.
Roosters live interesting lives in a plane where the sun is on manual override.
1/2
Dour Literalist 3W
Creature — Pony
Protection from enchantments
Enchantment spells cost 1 more to cast.
All the warmth, poetry, and metaphor comprehension of a rock.
2/3
Deflate UU
Instant
Creatures target player controls get -2/-0 until end of turn. Red creatures that player controls get an additional -2/-0 until end of turn.
Reaching the pinnacle of excitement just means you have further to fall.
Lithopoet 2U
Creature — Pony Spellshaper
3U, T, Discard a card: Target player puts the top X cards of his or her library into his or her graveyard, where X is the number of lands you control. Activate this ability only any time you could cast a sorcery.
"This next one is about rocks. They're all about rocks."
1/3
Roctor of Geology 2U
Creature — Pony Wizard
Landfall — Whenever a land enters the battlefield under your control, scry 2.
"She's a great conversationalist... as long as you want to talk about rocks."
—Princess Twilight Sparkle
2/2
Benefit of the Doubt 2UU
Enchantment
Creatures have "Whenever this creature becomes the target of a spell or ability for the first time in a turn, you may counter that spell or ability." (The creature's controller makes the choice.)
"Just because you've gotten off on the wrong hoof with somepony doesn't mean you can't ever be friends with her."
—Princess Twilight Sparkle
Misleading Publicity 3U
Enchantment
As a nontoken creature enters the battlefield under your control, you may have that creature become a copy of another creature on the battlefield until end of turn.
First impressions aren't everything.
Gift Exchange 4U
Sorcery
Exchange control of two target permanents that share a permanent type.
Flashback 5UU
What's being traded isn't nearly as important as who's trading it.
Pomicide 2B
Sorcery
Destroy target Forest or green creature.
Rocks fall. Every apple dies.
Cost of Overindulgence 3BB
Sorcery
Target player loses 1 life for each tapped permanent he or she controls.
"Pinkie Pie is pronking proof that there can be too much of a good thing."
—Ditzy Doo
Rock Toss 2R
Instant
Until end of turn, creatures you control gain "R, T: This creature deals damage equal to its power to target creature or player."
Let anyone who's willing throw the first stone.
Engineered Rockslide 3R
Sorcery
Engineered Rockslide deals damage to target player equal to the number of lands that player controls.
Anypony can pile rocks. It takes a rock farmer to balance them for an optimized avalanche.
Pulverizing Blow 4R
Sorcery
Exile target artifact or land.
Rock farmers are like tectonic plates: slow, methodical, and capable of devastating force when pressured.
Time for Action XR
Instant
Target creature gets +X/+0 and gains first strike until end of turn.
"She's my sister. Are you really that surprised?"
—Pinkie Pie, Bearer of Laughter
Sweetheart Spider 1G
Creature — Spider
Reach
2GG: Prevent all combat damage that would be dealt this turn. Activate this ability only if Sweetheart Spider is attacking or blocking.
Fluttershy leaves her mark on every creature she cares for.
1/2
Treasured Memories 1G
Enchantment
Whenever a card is put into your graveyard from anywhere, put a memory counter on Treasured Memories.
Remove two memory counters from Treasured Memories: Put target card in your graveyard on the bottom of your library.
Even the stoniest heart has a sentimental side.
Pet Rock 2
Artifact
As long as you control no nonartifact creatures, Pet Rock is a 2/2 Construct creature in addition to its other types.
"His name's Boulder. He's very ambitious."
—Maud Pie, roctor of geology
Unstable Chapeau X
Artifact — Equipment
Unstable Chapeau enters the battlefield with X charge counters on it.
At the beginning of your upkeep, remove a charge counter from Unstable Chapeau.
Equipped creature gets +1/+1 for each charge counter on Unstable Chapeau.
3: Put a charge counter on Unstable Chapeau.
Equip 3
Simple Tastes (gw)
Instant
Destroy target Aura or Equipment.
Rock farmers aren't known for their extravagance.
Ludicrous Speed UR
Instant
Target creature gains hexproof and haste until end of turn.
"That's nothing. You should see me go to plaid."
—Pinkie Pie, Bearer of Laughter
Lithophagy 2RG
Sorcery
Destroy target artifact or land. Put a +1/+1 counter on up to one target creature.
"It's crunchy."
—Maud Pie, roctor of geology
Rock Candy Mountain
Land — Mountain
(T: Add R to your mana pool.)
Rock Candy Mountain enters the battlefield tapped.
As Rock Candy Mountain enters the battlefield, choose a color.
T: Add one mana of the chosen color to your mana pool. Each opponent gains 1 life.
Cost of Overindulgence is one of those cards I love running just one or two of, because nobody ever expects to reduce you to 4 life and then die to a Sorcery they'd forgotten existed. With the right decklist, this would be a great finisher. Might not instakill outside of Commander but it could add some major teeth to some
"Drain Power during your upkeep. Turnabout tapping artifacts using the mana I took from you. Cryptic Command to counter that spell and tap all opposing creatures. Now suffer for all that overindulging I made you do."
Not the most likely of scenarios there, but it would still be enormously funny to pull off.
Was it just me or did Maud actually break out of her monotone a little when she said "sure" to being friends with Pinkie's friends?
1930602
It wasn't an accident.
Headcanon: Maud was a wandering orphan who slipped into Pinkie's first party to steal a cupcake for lunch... and ended up being spontaneously adopted by the whole pie family.
1930627
Interesting theory. It would explain why she doesn't quite line up with either of Pinkie's other sisters, colour-wise. It would also explain why she lacks the enthusiasm that I remember the Pie family having during that party in the silo.
...I accept your theory and adopt it for future reference.
Maud is scarily powerful, but then again she's the sister of either a Pnkie Pie or a Pinkie Pie who is also a planeswalker. Either way you are going to be the earth pony equivalent of an Archmage.
There's some interesting cards here. But on Lithopoet, I thought the wording was "Activate this ability only any time you could cast a sorcery."
1930602
You can try to do that in real life with Mycosynth Lattice and Burden of Greed.
1930627
And she ran away from a circus.
1930727
Yup. Maud appears to be the earth pony equivalent of Rainbow Dash or pre-ascension Twilight.
1930846
It is. That has been corrected. Thanks.
1933032
I've never mentioned how much I love Mycosynth Lattice, have I? It's one of the most beautifully ridiculous cards ever printed, for this reason and many, many more. But then again you probably know that better than I do, I suspect you play a lot more MtG.
What spell is Lithopoet shaping?
And Pet Rock can just become a 2/2 Construct artifact creature; there's a rule that when a permanent becomes an artifact creature, it automatically retains its previous types.
1933707
Lithopoet shapes Dreadwaters. A land-centric mill effect seemed perfect for Maud's poetry.
It's been irking me ever since the episode aired about how people keep saying the Mane Six just stood there and did nothing at all while Maud went to work. They did indeed begin to move to rescue Pinkie, at the same time Maud took off. They are clearly running to Pinkie's rescue. It's just that when they saw how incredibly fast Maud was moving, and then saw her barehoofedly pulverize a boulder to dust, is when they began to stand and gawk. By that time, it was clear that Pinkie was safe.
Not getting on you specifically, just kinda venting about it because it seems everyone has conveniently forgotten that the Mane Six did indeed automatically go into rescue mode for Pinkie, but were shocked that they were completely outclassed by somepony they totally didn't expect to do so.
They were shocked to a standstill, but not because of Pinkie being in mortal danger, but because a hidden badass just uncovered themselves and began doing incredibly awesome things.
Hmm. Misleading Publicity causes creatures that you control to enter the battlefield as a copy, right? So it should act like Clone for "When CARDNAME enters the battlefield" triggered abilities. I'm having visions of extremely adaptable Ally decks, and in fact have thought of a combo: Misleading Publicity + Agadeem Occultist + Fervor (or equivalent) will allow you to strip-mine your opponents' graveyards for creatures. (Tap an Occultist. If you have enough Allies, the target creature card gets put onto the battlefield under your control -- but first, Misleading Publicity triggers, and you turn the card into another Occultist. Repeat.) Include Halimar Excavator to ensure that you don't run out of Occultist targets (and to go for the mill kill), and/or Kazuul Warlord to make them all huge.
Warning: major topic drift ahead!
1933035 One of my favourite "fantasy combos" (which are fun to think about, but too cruel or too impractical to actually implement) is Mycosynth Lattice, Darksteel Forge, and (this is what moves it from "unsporting" to "too cruel") Fracturing Gust. Alternately, leave out the Forge to nuke even your things, and basically start the game over except for you (probably) having a much higher life total than your opponents. The second version can use the less-ridiculous Enchanted Evening in place of the Lattice.
1941563
Darksteel Forge, Mycosynth Lattice, and Leonin Abunas gives you an indestructible and hexproof board. Very effective in Commander (provided you keep a counterspell ready for Cyclonic Rift) and scares people enough that you can get away with a lot because "they're saving it for the Leonin Abunas".
Fracturing Gust is pretty nuts.
Misleading Publicity, Acidic Slime, and Awakening Zone. Actually, just Awakening Zone and Misleading Publicity offers dark and terrible power if good creatures are involved at any point.
1941632
Good point. Heck, with ETB effects, it turns Increasing Devotion into a kicked Rite of Replication. Do you think I should add a "nontoken" clause?
1941651
Probably a good idea, there are so many ways to be completely evil with it. That and Avenger of Zendikar goes infinite and makes children cry in the process.
1941926
Ugh. You're right. That's the reason why Scion of Vitu-Ghazi has to be cast from your hand. Otherwise token copies could populate themselves.
Thanks for the catch. Adjustment made.