Friendship is Card Games: Sweet and Elite · 6:04pm Dec 28th, 2014
This episode highlights the strange disconnect between the Mane Six's deeds and the recognition they get for them. I have enough to say about this matter that it could be its own blog, and I had a lot more to say about the episode beyond that. If anyone’s interested in my thoughts on the process, feel free to tell me in a comment. Moving on:
That seems like an incredibly unsafe way of getting a window-washer into position.
One of Rarity’s bags as a horseshoe-using version of the Chanel logo. Of course, this episode was written before Coco Pommel was even a gleam in Dave Polsky’s eye, but it’s interesting to think about how she might be related to it.
I’ve already used Attention Horse, but Fleur de Lis is the one who inspired it, and there is no other card that will do for her. Also, holy crap, she got a line. I thought she just posed at ponies to communicate with them, like some kind of idiosyncratic body language.
A Salvador Dali analogue exists in Equestria. This please me to no end. Dali was the greatest man to ever be mind-controlled by his mustache.
Ditzy’s in the Canterlot elite. I suspect she’s having fun with illusions; everypony in a certain socioeconomic niche sees a breathtaking dress. Everypony else sees her Nightmare Night costume. I know it’s something I would do if I had illusion magic.
Oh, hi, Blueblood. You’ve certainly changed your tune. I have to wonder if an aunt or two explained who exactly he spurned at the Gala.
“Jane Doe” being a term in Equestria makes me suspect that deer very rarely give their names to ponies.
Getting distracted by fun and exciting things when one has an ambitious project to work on. Gee, I certainly can’t relate to that at all.
Both the gramophone and the ballroom’s soundproofing are truly incredible. And likely magical in both cases.
I find the garden party’s lack of Beauty Brass… disturbing.
HA! There’s another Gala coming up, and Rarity’s writing a letter to Celestia. All of Season 1 takes place before “Return of Harmony,” in order to supply the friendship letters. Ergo, no matter how achronically the rest of the show is arranged, continuity demands that a year has passed between “The Best Night Ever” and now.
Sorry, but that “Seasons 1 through 3 took place over the course of one year” interpretation really bugs me.
That wink. Fancy Pants may not have recognized Rarity, but he definitely recognized Twilight Sparkle, Celestia’s personal student.
I had enough room in my social calender to throw these together:
Attention Horse 1W
Creature — Unicorn
When choosing targets as part of casting a spell or activating an ability, players choose Attention Horse if able.
In Canterlot, being ignored is considered a fate worse than death.
2/3
Calico of Conscience 1W
Creature — Cat
Players can’t sacrifice creatures. (Spells and abilities can’t cause players to sacrifice creatures. Players can’t sacrifice creatures to pay costs.)
When even your cat thinks you’re doing the wrong thing, you should rethink your choices.
1/1
Social Networker 1U
Creature — Unicorn
Each player’s maximum hand size is increased by the number of creatures that player controls.
”It’s not what you know, it’s who you know. Of course, both do tend to feed into one another.”
1/3
Spurn 1U
Instant
Counter target spell with converted mana cost 3 or less.
”Really? That’s it? Why did you even bother?”
—Trixie Lulamoon, traveling performer
Trusted Opinion 1U
Enchantment
Whenever players finish voting, each other player who voted for the same choice as you may draw a card.
Popular ponies can do no wrong in Canterlot.
Aesthetic Decision 3U
Sorcery
Will of the council — Starting with you, each player votes for a color. Return each permanent of a color with the most votes or tied for the most votes to its owner’s hand.
”Sometime you just need a little less.”
—Rarity, Bearer of Generosity
Canterlot Snobs 2B
Creature — Unicorn
Protection from converted mana cost 2 or less
Canterlot ponies easily mistake price for quality and excess for elegance.
2/2
Unsightly Flailing 3BB
Enchantment — Aura
Enchant creature
Whenever enchanted creature attacks, defending player discards a card.
Twilight Sparkle still hasn’t realized that her old classmates were being sarcastic about her dancing skills.
Wonderbolt Derby 2RRR
Instant
Attacking creatures get +X/+0 until end of turn, where X is the number of attacking creatures.
The more pegasi in the race, the harder each one pushes for first.
Uncouth Hayseed 1G
Creature — Pony
At the beginning of each player’s upkeep, that player sacrifices an Aura.
His very presence is enough to ruin any air of sophistication.
2/1
Web of Lies 1G
Enchantment
Creatures you control can block attacking blue and/or black creatures as though the attacking creatures had no abilities.
All the cleverness in the world can’t help you if you can’t keep your story straight.
Garden Party 2G
Sorcery
Will of the council — Starting with you, each player votes for a number between 1 and 6 inclusive. Each player searches his or her library for X land cards, reveals them, and puts them into his or her hand, where X is the lowest number with the most votes or tied for the most votes. Then each player shuffles his or her library.
Simple Dress 0
Artifact — Equipment
Equipped creature gets +1/+1.
Equip 2
”It’s easy to forget that not all ponies share my personal tastes.”
—Rarity, Bearer of Generosity
Noble’s Monocle 1
Artifact — Equipment
Whenever equipped creature becomes blocked by a creature, you may draw a card.
Whenever equipped creature becomes the target of a spell or ability, you may unattach Noble’s Monocle. If you do, draw a card.
Equip 1
Party Cannon 4
Artifact
2: Choose target permanent with a counter on it. Put a counter of a kind already there on that permanent. Sacrifice Party Cannon.
"Never leave home without it."
—Pinkie Pie, Bearer of Laughter
Sky Yacht 6
Artifact Creature — Construct
Flying
(wb): Sky Yacht gains lifelink until end of turn.
The well-to-do of coastal cities enjoy pleasure cruises. The ponies of mountain-rooted Canterlot have their own version of the activity.
3/3
Burdened Bellhop WU
Creature — Unicorn
Burdened Bellhop doesn’t untap during your untap step unless you pay 2 for each Equipment attached to it.
Burdened Bellhop gets +2/+2 for each Equipment attached to it.
”Will there be anything else?”
2/2
Charity Auction RWU
Sorcery
Each player may bid life for control of target creature. You start the bidding with a bid of 0. In turn order, each player may top the high bid. The bidding ends if the high bid stands. The high bidder gains control of that creature and each other player gains life equal to the high bid.
"Becoming Popular" 2GU
Enchantment — Song
At the beginning of your upkeep, put a verse counter on "Becoming Popular".
(gu), Sacrifice "Becoming Popular": Until end of turn, target creature gains the abilities of each of up to X other target creatures, where X is the number of verse counters on "Becoming Popular".
Fancy Pants 3WU
Legendary Creature — Unicorn Advisor
Whenever another player would vote, you vote for that player unless he or she pays 3.
The herd mentality of Canterlot is never more apparent than when Fancy Pants expresses an opinion.
3/3
Pros 2WU//Cons 2UB
Sorcery//Sorcery
Pros: Creatures you control get +1/+1 and gain hexproof and vigilance until end of turn.
Cons: Creatures can’t be blocked this turn.
Fuse (You may cast one or both halves of this card from your hand.)
The people who just have that as their personal headcanon or whatever are fine; it's the ones who insist that it must be actual canon, and 'Princess Twilight Sparkle' proves it, that rustle my jimmies.
Also, Noble's Monocle is wonderful.
I totally want to see you write a side story where Ditzy trolls the hell out of the Canterlot elite by wearing a dress made of paper bags and stuff, then uses illusions to make the elite think she's wearing some exquisite gown, all the while the ponies of lower socio-economic statuses are seeing the elite compliment her paper bags and laughing at their expense.
A man after my mind! It's a really annoying fandom brainbug, especially since until the start of S4, I don't believe anyone believed it.
*Goes back and rewatches episode to see what it says* Huh, how about that.
In reality, of course, there is no coherent timeline for the show at all, and any interpretation will have to ignore some bits of evidence going against it. Curse of multiple writers and no real focus on continuity
I don't really have a dog in this fight. Annoyingly, this is something I have to keep reminding myself, ever since one time I asked A Semi-Prominent User how he explained the evidence going the other way, and he basically just said I was an idiot for bringing it up at all :P stupid brain, let it go already.
I think the number range on "Garden Party" is a bit large. A range of 1 to 3 inclusive sounds better. Or even 2 to 4 inclusive, upping the minimum a bit. I know it gives everyone the lands but you don't want to give people too many options on one card. And giving every player six options is way too much.
I love the 'pop off from surprise' flavor in "Noble’s Monocle". Nice touch there.
On another matter there was one episode, don't think it was "May The Best Pet Win", where we saw deer in line with other 'pets'. Something about the pets needed to be adopted. I take this to mean that deer are non-sapient.
It also conveniently gives griffons something to get meat from without having to kill something intelligence, since we've already seen cows talk and all.
Definitely agree that the Canterlot elite should know the Bearers better, and thank them every day for protecting them from all the forces that would have destroyed the world. (My thoughts on the subject were included in Selfishness and Generosity.)
Attention Horse should be a Creature — Unicorn Flagbearer
Is it intentional that the sacrifice of Party Cannon is part of the effect rather than the activation cost? Because putting a bunch of copies of the effect on the stack seems like a great abuse of the card, if you've got the mana for it.
Noble's Monocle is so great if you have two
I think the correct response to Charity Auction is to somehow flash in Erebos and bid an absurd number, like pi x 10^83
2684047 It is indeed deliberate! It's a modified Goblin Cannon, y'see.
2684166
In response to your comment, I wanted to find a GIF of a man with two monocles, and putting in one causes the other to pop out. You would think this would be trivial in our age of memes.
The Internet has failed me.
Wait, so you mean Opalescence can nope Eldrazi?
Rarity's cat can stop "All is Dust"?
Too OP plz nerf
I want to know!
It's nice to see something so basic among all of this crazy voting nonsense.
2683698
It's definitely on the to-do list. No comment on how long that list is.
2683743
To paraphrase Pinkie Pie, sometimes, it's just really fun to think too much!
2683872
Custodi Squire, a common, can offer even more choices than Garden Party. Heck, Garden Party originally allowed for any number greater than zero. I realized how ridiculous that could get, especially when combined with Fancy Pants.
2683894
Some people may need huge banners to draw attention, but Fleur just needs to be herself.
2684366
Sadly, not every conceivable humorous situation has been rendered in gif form. We can tell this is the case because the Internet has not yet achieved sapience, nor has it begun worshiping cats.
2684535
Well, if some random elf can pull it off, I see no reason why Opal can't. Plus, the mental image of her batting at Emrakul's tentacles is all kinds of fantastic.
2684774
Well, one of the major themes of the episode was the importance of others' opinions. Will of the council seemed perfect for that. But then there's Twilight's dress, simple, practical, and utterly disassociated from such games. Flavor isn't just for getting monocles to pop off.
2685441
And then the giant eldritch abomination goes "nuuuu, knock it off! Please, stop that! I just want to eat the universe, come on! ...stupid cat" and then goes back home grumbling, all seventeen shoulders slumped.
Nobles Monocle becomes very very silly when combined with one of the old Kor cards. Infinitely repeatable card draw for one mana a card. Though this honestly says more about the silliness of an abiltiy that lets you declare a target as many times as you want than it does your card.
Still, adding a cantrip effect to any sorcery speed effect that targets on your side of the board for a measly one mana seems really good.
Wonderbolt Derby and Pros have ‘creature’ where they should have ‘creatures’.
Also, should Sky Yacht and Moving Wagon (Feeling Pinkie Keen) perhaps be vehicles? (The only other artifact creature so far that's a vehicle flavorwise is Animated Snowplow, and that should always be a creature.)