Friendship is Card Games: Hearts and Hooves Day · 4:24pm Feb 22nd, 2015
Huh, only a week behind Valentine’s Day. Neat.
In any case, this could be seen as one of the show’s earlier major responses to the fandom (as opposed to the incidental responses, like Where’s Derpy?) As 4chan memorably put it, this episode can be boiled down to “Shippers destroy lives.” Princess Cadence could not be reached for comment on that proposition.
Huh. The emblem of the Ponyville flag, the two ponies rampant with a heart in the center, can be seen on the school’s sign just after the theme song. Odds are the sign actually provided the design for the flag, but still, continuity.
Everyone’s noted the love triangle we see just after that. Also notable is Alula giving Diamond Tiara a not-Valentine. Now, this could just be a case of giving them to everyone else in the class—I remember using a list to make sure I didn’t miss anyone—but given the drama in the back row, it might not be. Especially interesting is that Silver Spoon seems happy about it. Does she ship this, or is she just happy that Tiara actually has other friends?
Cheerilee is just fantastic this episode. “Yes, girls, please, ask more questions about my single status.”
Twist stabs Cheerilee, who doesn’t seem to mind at all. Adhesive heart, high pain threshold, or just grinning and bearing it so the filly doesn’t feel bad?
Sweetie sings and doesn’t get her cutie mark. This really ties into my headcanon regarding the self-awareness needed for cutiesynthesis, but I’ll save that for a different blog. Also, hi, Button Mash. Hi, inexplicable arcade cabinet. (Probably magical; after all, who’d put conventional electronics out in an open-air market, even with weather control?)
Mr. Waddle makes it clear that there's some manner of religion in Equestria, but I'm not stabbing that particular hornets’ nest.
You’d be splashy too if you had paradoxes to resolve. Or if you needed to dissuade three fillies from dosing you with amotoxins.
I’m still not sure if Hugh Jelly is getting a paraphilia past the radar. And frankly, I don’t want to know.
If you need an explanation for why Sylvan Gazebo becomes a creature, see here. I’m sorry; I heard the word “gazebo” and my mind immediately went there.
Huh. You’d think Twilight would be better at reading without running into ponies. Years of practice and all.
The Crusaders. A love potion recipe. Most ponies would think this would be a dangerous combination. Twilight Sparkle just sees young minds eager to learn. Bless her heart. 
“Serve to two ponies who aren’t in the know.” Wow. The recipe pretty much says, “Drug the unsuspecting.” Surely nothing can go wrong.
That sweet talk still borders on unbearable.
Hmm. The book clearly shows an alicorn princess. Now, this could be an example of a previous alicorn, or it could be a distortion caused by linguistic ambiguity; after all, to the modern pony mind, “princess” equals “alicorn,” while “prince” doesn’t. No males, after all. Like Hearth’s Warming, this may be a victim of Discord’s devastation, a fable that was treated as reality… though the fact that the love poison recipe works undercuts that. It could also be a bit of Cadence foreshadowing, though that raises further questions.
Most notable is that only a pegasus can provide the potion's ingredients. Could this have been an act of intertribal sabotage?
Cheerilee may have an intellectual career, but she’s still an earth pony. Doors don’t stand a chance.
“I’m runnin’ out of ways to make diamonds sound bad!” Well, you could talk about the price manipulation caused by artificial scarcity, the conditions of the mines, the armies they keep funded...
Oh, right, Equestria. Just call them pieces of coal that have gotten their acts together. Or point out that you could get Rarity to hunt down a big specimen for cheap.
There is something beautiful in Big Macintosh bouncing like Pinkie Pie.
Ah, the Team Rocket approach to problem solving: When in doubt, dig a pit trap.
“Nopony can force two ponies to be together.” Unless she’s the physical incarnation of love. And, of course, Twilight was able to force an entire town to be together with a doll…
Let’s just make that “nopony should force two ponies to be together.”
One of the big challenges of making cards out of pony episodes is that there isn’t a lot to work with in terms of creatures. Fortunately, this episode gave us a montage of notable stallions. Given all the talk of connections and pairings and such, soulbond seemed like an appropriate mechanical focus:
Lonely Soul W
Creature — Pony Citizen
Lonely Soul gets -1/-1 unless it’s paired with a creature with soulbond.
Hearts and Hooves Day isn’t enjoyable for everypony.
2/2
Matchmake W
Instant
Choose target creature with soulbond and another target creature with the same controller. Unpair those creatures, then pair them with one another. (They remain paired for as long as that player controls both of them.)
Draw a card.
Master of Sequins 2W
Creature — Pony Citizen
Soulbond (You may pair this creature with another unpaired creature when either enters the battlefield. They remain paired for as long as you control both of them.)
As long as Master of Sequins is paired with another creature, each of those creatures has “Whenever this creature attacks, tap target creature defending player controls.”
2/2
Wizened Eulogist 2W
Creature — Pony Cleric
Soulbond
As long as Wizened Eulogist is paired with another creature, each of those creatures has “W, T: Exile target creature card from a graveyard. You gain life equal to that card’s toughness.”
1/3
Mattress Pit Trap 3W
Instant — Trap
If an opponent had a creature with haste enter the battlefield under his or her control this turn, you may pay W rather than pay Mattress Pit Trap’s mana cost.
Remove all attacking creatures without flying from combat.
Snooty Socialite 3W
Creature — Pony Citizen
Soulbond
As Snooty Socialite enters the battlefield, choose a color.
As long as Snooty Socialite is paired with another creature, both creatures have protection from the chosen color.
2/2
True Pairing 3WW
Legendary Enchantment — Aura
Enchant paired creature
Enchanted creature and the creature it’s paired with get +3/+3 and have indestructible.
”When you know with all your heart that two ponies belong together, it is a truly beautiful thing. Just make sure they agree.”
—Cadence, Princess of Serenity
Industrious Jeweler 1UU
Creature — Pony Artificer
Whenever an artifact enters the battlefield under your control, untap Industrious Jeweler.
T: Add 2 to your mana pool. Spend this mana only to cast artifact spells or to activate abilities of artifacts.
In a land as full of gemstones as Equestria, efficiency and speed become valued traits in jewelers.
1/1
Sudsy Stallion 2U
Creature — Pony Citizen
Soulbond
As long as Sudsy Stallion is paired with another creature, each of those creatures has “Whenever this creature becomes the target of a spell or ability for the first time in a turn, counter that spell or ability.”
2/3
Love Poison 2UU
Enchantment
When Love Poison enters the battlefield, tap two target creatures. Those creatures don't untap during their controllers' untap steps for as long as Love Poison is on the battlefield.
At the beginning of each end step, if either of the creatures tapped with Love Poison is untapped or isn't on the battlefield, sacrifice Love Poison.
Crippling Contagion BB
Enchantment — Aura
Enchant creature
Enchanted creature gets -2/-2. If it’s paired with a creature, that creature also gets -2/-2.
Being close to those you love isn’t always a good thing.
Sickeningly Sweet 2B
Enchantment
Whenever an opponent gains life, that player discards a card.
”You’re my shmoopy-doopy sweetie-weetie pony pie.”
“You’re my shmoopy-doopy sweetie-weetie pony pie.”
Slapstickler 2B
Creature — Pony Rogue
Soulbond
As long as Slapstickler is paired with another creature, both creatures have lifelink.
1/3
Trash Hauler 3B
Creature — Pony Citizen
Soulbond
As long as Trash Hauler is paired with another creature, each of those creatures has “Whenever a creature blocks this creature, the blocking creature gets -1/-1 until end of turn.”
2/3
Underhoof Sneak R
Creature — Pony Rogue
Soulbond
As long as Underhoof Sneak is paired with another creature, neither creature can be blocked by creatures with flying.
1/1
Arcade Colt 1R
Creature — Pony Child Gamer
Soulbond
As long as Arcade Colt is paired with another creature, each of those creatures has “2R: This creature gets +X/+0 until end of turn, where X is the number of artifacts you control.”
1/1
Amateur Alchemists 1R
Creature — Pony Wizard
Whenever a player draws a card, Amateur Alchemists deals 1 damage to that player.
"Okay, this one probably won't melt through the flask."
2/1
Impassioned Cry 1R
Instant
Target creature gets +1/+0 and gains trample until end of turn.
Storm (When you cast this spell, copy it for each spell cast before it this turn. You may choose new targets for the copies.)
Flashback 2RR (You may cast this spell from your graveyard for its flashback cost. Then exile it.)
Loving Couple 1RR
Creature — Pony Pegasus
Flying
Loving Couple can’t be paired with another creature.
Why look for what you’ve already found?
2/2
Visions of Anarchy 3R
Sorcery
Target player discards all the cards in his or her hand, then draws that many cards.
Chaotic 1R (You may cast this spell for its chaotic cost. If you do, choose its targets at random.)
There's a reason the Crusaders don't usually think about the consequences of their actions.
Too Shiny G
Instant
Destroy target artifact or enchantment with converted mana cost 4 or greater.
Simple tastes for simple ponies.
Inexorable Gait 1GG
Instant
Until end of turn, target creature gets +2/+2 for each creature blocking it and gains trample.
Earth ponies are both unstoppable objects and immovable forces.
“The Perfect Stallion” 2G
Enchantment — Song
At the beginning of your upkeep, put a verse counter on “The Perfect Stallion”.
2G, Sacrifice “The Perfect Stallion” and a creature: Search your library for a creature card with converted mana cost equal to or less than the converted mana cost of the sacrificed creature plus the number of verse counters on “The Perfect Stallion”, put that card onto the battlefield, then shuffle your library.
Overstepper 2GG
Creature — Pony Citizen
Soulbond
As long as Overstepper is paired with another creature, neither creature can be blocked except by creatures with flying.
3/2
Puddle Jumper 3G
Creature — Pony Scout
Soulbond
As long as Puddle Jumper is paired with another creature, both creatures have islandwalk and swampwalk.
3/2
Peculiar Preservationist 4G
Creature — Pony Citizen
Soulbond
As long as Peculiar Preservationist is paired with another creature, each of those creatures gets +1/+1 for each land card in your graveyard.
3/3
Show of Appreciation X1G
Sorcery
Put X +1/+1 counters on target creature.
Nothing says “thank you” like a lot of glitter.
Sylvan Gazebo 4
Artifact
Landfall — Whenever a land enters the battlefield under your control, you may have Sylvan Gazebo become a 3/3 Construct artifact creature until end of turn.
1G: Sylvan Gazebo becomes a 3/3 Construct artifact creature until end of turn.
As long as Sylvan Gazebo is a creature, it has trample and can't be blocked by more than one creature.
Color Drain GUU
Instant
Counter target spell. At the beginning of your next precombat main phase, for each of that spell’s colors, add one mana of that color to your mana pool.
Rainbows are stabilized in the weather factory, but a new influx of pegasus magic can change that.
I noticed a discrepancy when I was watching this last week: the story says that the prince was in love and made the potion for the princess, but the recipe says specifically that both parties "aren't in the know". Poetic license spellwriting... or huge historical coverup?
1 Overstepper + 1 Underhoof Sneak = 2 Unblockable Creatures...
On a semi-related note, Hasbro and Wizards would make a Mint or two if they did this kind of thing.
2820719
Get a unicorn kingdom torched by a dragon, shake your heads in sympathy, and say what shame it was that they didn't have some competent troops around for when the magic failed. In come the other tribes, practically begging for pegasus protection. Who says intricate plots are limited to unicorns?
2820890
Hooray for synergy! And since Wizards is a Hasbro affiliate, I always have a faint hope that they'll do something with one another. At the very least, there's Loyal Pegasus.
2821028
I also never noticed before that the book depicts an actual alicorn princess. I wonder if anyone ever wrote a story about her: I wasn't here back then (I don't know if fimfiction even existed back then).
I now imagine that was actually a young Celestia in one of the formative experiences of her youth, which helped make her into the controlled, vaguely unearthly monarch she is now.
Wait....you creatures a Gazebo creature, and you don't have some variation of "you must fight the Gazebo alone?"
Huh.
2820890
2821028 A couple of years ago, when April 1st was on a Monday, and when they normally announced new fall sets on a Monday in spring, I e-mailed Mark Rosewater, suggesting they make an April 1 announcement that the new set was named "Equestria".
Oh my god yes. I haven't seen this ep in forever and Valentine's Day still put me in mind of two unremarkable lines that become fantastic entirely through delivery: "That's an apple tree" (authors, if we could actually feel this tone from your use of the word "deadpan" as a verb, no one would complain about the use of "deadpan" as a verb) and "Well, Big Mac, this has been... strange," which seems like an apt summary of life in Ponyville.
(Also, for such a great pony, Cheerilee really deserves a properly spelled tag, no?)
The cast is good at following through on lines that could be hackneyed, probably because they're used to voicing characters with names like "Rainbow Dash", but also perhaps because they know the target audience is usually hearing these "hackneyed" lines for the first time. See also Nightmare Moon saying "You're kidding. You're kidding, right?", which is just different enough from the way that stock joke normally goes to be a really inventive take on it. I'd go so far as to say that redeeming clichés by following through on them honestly is one of the show's strengths.
I think that's a subset/symptom of a larger strength. Somewhere recently -- can't find where, sorry -- I was reading the idea that the show's appeal derives from the way it engages with its target audience honestly. The analogy was that GI Joe tried to sell kids toys, and Captain Planet tried to get them to recycle, but neither actually cared if they got a good cartoon out of the deal -- kids'll watch anything, who cares? Whereas Friendship is Magic tries to tell a story and entertain, in spite of its role as toy commercial. I'm very fortunate to be among the early generations that could expect this as the general rule for television cartoons, but I do think FiM sticks out in this regard. A picture paints a thousand words, here; this is a photo Jayson Thiessen tweeted after "A Friend In Deed" aired, showing how he did the felt animation in his home, on his off-hours. That's pretty damn cool.
2821102
I don't have a source for this either, but I quite like the headcanon that the alicorn princess pictured is who we now know as Chrysalis, and the effects of the love potion ultimately lead to the existence of changelings.
I want Industrious Jeweler for my Eggs deck. That's such a fun deck to play.
Ahh, Citizen, got to love those token only creature types. Oh wait... .
I like the interaction of Loving Couple with Soulbond. I kinda want to see more "can't get X keyword" sort of things. Loses and can't gain trample or the like.
Underhoof Sneak plus Overstepper, then you just load both of them up with enchantment, say with True Pairing... .
I never played any set that was using the Soulbound mechanic, so most of the soulbound-relatd cards don't really speak to me. Lonely soul seems funny, though, and True Pairing seems awesome (and impractical--if either creature dies or bounces that thing'll go too).
Wizened Eulogist--I don't remember the priest being one of the bachelors under consideration. He was kinda busy.
Mattress Pit Trap--I'd rather just run proper fog (or the closest equivalent I can get in white) in pretty much any circumstance.
Industrious Jeweler--Uhh, isn't that a little too powerful? 2 recurring mana for one card that costs 3 mana is a bit much, restricted use or not, and on many turns that'll be four mana (more than the creature cost!). It's not like it's hard to find cheap artifacts with useful abilities that cost mana. And I'm entirely ignoring the "play 3-5 cheap spells in one turn" angle, since at least that route has its downsides.
Crippling Contagion--That looks like a really cool card, at least if it shows up in a set where soulbound creatures are a big deal.
Sickeningly Sweet--Remember all those combos we were talking about with that poison-on-lifegain card a few blogs ago? Well, repeat all of that.
Amateur Alchemists--Funny and very red. Now you just gotta find some cards that let the opponent draw cards as a side effect. (I definitely remember one Izzet card that said "target player draws 2 cards then takes damage for each card they've drawn this turn", I just can't remember the name).
Visions of Anarchy--For example, stick this in the same deck as the alchemists.
Inexorable Gait--Taunting Elf just turned nasty! Also pretty flavorful.
The Perfect Stallion--Hmm, this is actually one of the more interesting songs because it has two "modes". You can play it early on, wait a while and use it to fetch a big creature; or if you draw it late in the game you can just use it as a 6 mana "recycle a creature" spell. Or a combination of both. Still, you pay for versatility with card disadvantage.
Sylvan Gazebo--All hail the mighty dread Gazebo! Also a good card, but more importantly: Killer Gazebo!
Color Drain--Oh my yes. The last thing your opponent is gonna want to hear is that not only did he not get his big spell off, he just helped you ramp up to your even bigger spell.
*looks at jewler* *puts in myre deck* Oh SH-
2821623
Didn't Skywriter do something like that in his Cadance stories? I think the princess had two children while under the effects of the love potion, one was Cadance and the other was Chrysalis. I am apparently too lazy this morning to just look it up.
2822996
Hmm, probably. I get tripped up on Skywriter-Cadance's family tree because I want so badly for "Indiscretions" to be CoC-canon, but I'm not sure if that works with The First Time You See Her. Skywriter being the source of that Chrysalis origin sounds familiar, but my recollection on the rest is so vague that I can't be sure. Perhaps we should start a genealogy project in the forum?
2821340
I have since rectified this. The Gazebo now can't be blocked by more than one creature.
2821623
Agreed on all counts. Of course, that overall quality makes those times when the show is made to behave more toyetically all the worse.
2821869
With Townsfolk obsoleted, I needed something to fit the "race/class" model for the average pony. Besides, Citizen doesn't exactly have the sheer bulk of Saproling. Making a Saproling card (other than changelings,) that's almost blasphemous.
2822554
Mr. Waddle, like all of the soulbond creatures, was one of the stallions the Crusaders rejected. In his case, "too old."
Traps are hard to design. Especially nonlethal Traps.
Fragility is my main excuse for the Jeweler. It dies to everything. Also, compare Grand Architect. (Yes, that one's a rare. Depending on the artifact content of the set, so would the Jeweler.)
2822764
Throw in Vedalken Archmage if you really want to be disgusting.
2822996
2823158
I suspect the original source for that headcanon was Tara Jenkin's Chrysalis Tumblr. The original source was wiped, but has been preserved on Derpibooru. See here and here.
Nah. That's a portable version, a hoofheld, practically. An arcade cabinet is much much bigger in Equestria. They're not as advanced as us, eh?
Button's and his friends prolly met in the centre of town for a nice multiplayer game of Super Kicky Fighter (and Wolf Puncher 2 afterwards). They had prolly run off at the moment.
Each "hoofheld" comes with a pull cart for ease of travel.
An alternative, simpler explanation for why there's arcade cabinets sitting outside: there's a vidya game convention, they're not permanent fixtures, and the weather forecast was good.
*turns to look over in the general direction of where Bronystories has set up shop*
Yeah... Bronystories has done the only depiction of Hugh Jelly on Fimfiction that I've read, in the last chapter of Lyra and Bon Bon's Odd Jobs 2. And now I've said too much.
It's... hilarious? Well, at least I found it funny as hell. It's Bronystories messed up. What else could you expect?
2822554 The Izzet spell you mentioned is Cerebral Vortex, one half of my most favourite damage-dealing combo. (It's not hugely potent, but it's hilarious: on your target's turn, after their draw step, cast Cerebral Vortex on them. This automatically lets you cast Runeflare Trap (which deals damage to target player equal to the number of cards in their hand) for a single red mana.)
2823461 My friend's myre deck has two already.
2823649
I'm well familiar with Fimfiction's resident sex statistician and his take on Hugh Jelly. And the Aristocrats. Another version of Hugh I've seen and enjoyed was basically a Howard Stern analogue, only with more preserves. Can't remember where I saw it, though...
2823461 They printed that? Was the whole design team high at the time? Even if it wasn't crawling with infinite mana combos, by itself that's sickeningly powerful.
Anyways, for the mattress pit trap, the logical way of making it stronger (instead of just a crippled fog) would be to stop the creatures untapping next turn, since it IS a pit trap.
Also, are you telling me that they considered setting their teacher up with Button Mash? Because I don't remember that happening.
2823649
Actually, pegasus magic would generally have a huge effect on outdoor events. If anything, I'm surprised we haven't seen more effects of that, although I guess it being perpetual summer and everypony being outside at open-air markets all the time account for more of that effect than surprising stuff like outdoor arcade cabinets.
2825463
"This one's too young..."
2826091
Hmm... maybe I should've put "weather forecast" in quotations. I meant to imply that any organizers would've informed the weather patrol of their outdoor convention's schedule so it literally wouldn't rain on their parade. It prolly would involve some internal company bureaucracy, with negotiations and service fees and all that jazz...
2824018
Know of any more decent fics involving Hugh Jelly, clop or otherwise lol? I'm not kidding when I say Odd Jobs 2 is the only instance I've read of him.
And now I'm reminded of Howie Tern, a griffin and Howard Stern analog, also from Odd Jobs (I think the first one?).
I guess while we're on the subject of Stern, I'll randomly bring up his foot tickling fetish, because asides from him being controversial and being rather a prick, that's the biggest thing I'll remember Stern for
And Carmen Elektra. Her, too 
2826985
Oh, yeah, that's how I took it. "Weather schedule" would probably be more idiomatic Equestrian English (if you assume that's a thing). Remember how the storm in "Look Before You Sleep" was make-up rainfall because the Weather Department missed a day? I gotta wonder if you can sue the Weather Department for storm damage, since in that case it's apparently a consequence of negligence -- and of course the farmers would definitely sue if the rain was insufficient. Then again, the fact that the whole plot is predicated on AJ and Rara being involuntarily partnered up for Compulsory Community Work Crew Of Proletarian Excellence makes this a bad episode to argue that Equestria is a litigious society.
hey FoME hey FoME Yamgoth and I are longboating a blogpost of yours again are you getting the notifications FoME we're giving you lots of notifications huh FoME
2829012
Going by the transcript, it doesn't seem that Rarity understood what the CCWCPE was supposed to be doing. It's possible that she volunteered for a job without fully grasping the implications. Given the rousing argument that follows, this is not one of Rarity's greatest moments of either practical thinking or emotional maturity.
And yes, I'm getting the notifications.
The fl8vor text on Amateur Alchemists isn't italicized and on "The Perfect Stallion", your li8r8ry should cont8n creature cards, not creatures.
~Vriska Serket
I just won't let your blogposts die, will I?
2826985
Eyes Without a Face pastiche "Peanut Butter Without Jelly" features an unnamed jelly fetishist as the antagonist. It's a narrow but effective parody, so if you haven't read Eyes, save it for your cooldown (I'd call it a unicorn chaser, but the scenes with unicorns in Eyes are just as fucked as the rest of them).
Why doesn't Sylvan Gazebo just have trample and ‘can't be blocked by more than one creature’? It works fine on Vehicles.
2821604 Nice!
2821028 I'm surprised there isn't an edit of that card with RD on Derpibooru.
4341277
Same reason why some other cards aren't Vehicles; the technology didn't exist when I made the cards, so I had to use what was available. In this case, that meant the Time Spiral Totems. I made some adjustments so it could still have trample if animated by something like March of the Machines.
Remember, the most recent set as of this blog was Fate Reforged. I have to work with what exists at the time.