• Member Since 26th Sep, 2011
  • offline last seen 38 minutes ago

FanOfMostEverything


Forget not that I am a derp.

More Blog Posts1330

  • Sunday
    Friendship is Card Games: Mane Event

    So, as I have come to understand, the main G5 IDW line has been replaced by/subsumed into a series of mini-series and one-shots that feels like the equivalent of a network trying to kill a show by bouncing it around the schedule. Hopefully I’m being paranoid there.

    Read More

    8 comments · 159 views
  • 1 week
    Rumor Gathering

    While diminished from its peak, the Writeoff is still very much an ongoing concern. Regrettably, while I actually had an idea for the most recent prompt, my Saturdays are packed to the gills and thus I didn't have time to compose it before the submission deadline. As such, I have employed Dueling

    Read More

    2 comments · 140 views
  • 1 week
    Friendship is Card Games: Wondercolts Forever: The Diary of Celestia and Luna

    The next entry on the schedule was issues #21 and 22 of the G5 mainline, but those have failed to manifest, making me wonder if that line’s actually been ended in favor of the various mini-series currently in progress. And among them, I only have one released issue unaccounted for. As such, it’s time to turn to the next pony novel… which does not contain ponies.

    Read More

    6 comments · 168 views
  • 2 weeks
    Incident of Examination

    There's a Crystal Prep-themed Sunset shipping contest on at the moment, and one castoff idea I had got me wondering about Sunset attending CPA... and running against a logical issue. At least I got

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    0 comments · 194 views
  • 2 weeks
    Friendship is Card Games: Tell Your Tale, Season 2, Part 2

    Looks like that Leap Day hypothesis carried some weight. The long-form episodes should be interesting in their own right, but we’re not looking at one this week. Let’s see what there is to see.

    Read More

    5 comments · 184 views
Oct
23rd
2016

Friendship is Card Games: To Where and Back Again · 12:32pm Oct 23rd, 2016

In a tree in a town there lived a unicorn. Not a nasty, dirty, rotten tree, filled with the ends of worms and an oozy smell, nor yet a dry, bare, empty tree with nothing in it to sit down on or to eat: it was a palace-tree, and that means comfort.

Of course, as with Bilbo Baggins, Starlight sitting around and eating elevenses wouldn’t make for a very compelling two-parter. Time to send her off on an adventure.

Just a reminder that this is a quasi-live reaction, so some of the following comments may be invalidated by later events in the story.

Nice to see that Twilight still thinks of herself as a librarian as well as a statesmare.

Twilight, it’s sweet to say that Starlight’s responsible for the pony she’s become, but given what we’ve seen of that pony, it’s not quite the compliment you think it is. Also kind of an indictment on taking a laissez faire approach to teaching a borderline sociopath.

Well, this finale’s certainly looking up. And off to the side. :derpytongue2:

Okay, this confirms that the end montage of “The Cutie Re-Mark” was much further along in time than we first thought. Actually, was Season 6 confirmed when they made that episode? The zoom-out on the population of Ponyville definitely feels like the capstone of a series finale. No wonder Starlight has felt disjointed this season; they’ve had to backtrack from concluding her character arc prematurely.
Also, “Sunset Festival.” Somehow I doubt Shimmerism has spread to Equestria.

Okay, the singers in the theme song definitely sound higher pitched than normal. Not sure if that’s an aberration in the show or that’s just how the British theme song works.

… Huh. I’d expected Our Town to expand a little beyond the dozen-house equals sign. And I still don’t see how they’re feeding themselves. That said, I do like how they’ve torn down Starlight’s house. Though I don’t expect she will.

Wow. Wow. Even after deposing Starlight, they’re still putting up banners reminiscent of Communist propaganda. Though, to be fair, if she was able to sway them, they were already receptive to a message of universal equality.

Wow. Dickest of moves. If you don’t want someone to show up, don’t send an invitation. You’re not socially obligated to invite the mare who indoctrinated you into a soul mutilation cult.

Wait… Starlight has apologized? They just don’t even care about continuity anymore, do they? Well, I do. And judging by how I still do, apparently no force on Earth can stop me. (Besides, the montage could still take place between “Every Little Thing She Does” and this episode. One apology isn’t going to remove all of the anxiety that comes from returning to the scene of your crimes against equinity, and thinking that dominating your friends’ wills is a good idea is definitely going to shoot your confidence in the foot.)
Also, at this point, I find myself wondering if this is actually a fantasy sequence.

Yup. Definitely a fantasy sequence. And a nice callback to Party Favor’s “I didn’t listen” face.

Ah. Or a dream, which would explain the banner. Luna interacting with Starlight should be fascinating.
… Yeah, pretty much what I expected for so short a time. And given her own awkwardness, I can see what Luna sees in Starlight. Honestly, those two could make for an intriguing episode by themselves.

I’m with Dash. Starlight was awful. And she’s definitely quite different. Not sure how much better she is, but there’s a definite measurable uptick. Most of the time.

Poor Twilight. She hasn’t had much screentime this season; at this point, she just wants to be involved.

How did they track down Trixie, anyway? It’s not like she has a permanent address. I suppose she and Starlight write to each other frequently enough that Starlight knew her schedule.

All things considered, Twilight’s taking this a lot better than she did in “No Second Prances.”

Starlight founded that village; it’s not really a place of origin for her. That said, I like how Trixie appreciates more dramatic answers regardless of how they reflect the respondent’s emotional state.

Wow. They’re still putting up the propaganda banner. That’s fantastic :rainbowlaugh: Also… Hmm. Not sure how I feel about the Ourtowners being that happy to see Starlight, but we’ve seen that ponies are vastly more forgiving than humans.
Also also, the Sunset Festival lasts a whole week? Dang. Praise unto She of the Solar Taijitu.

Again, ponies Starlight was able to sway to her cause aren’t going to be ones inclined to take charge. It wasn’t all equalist propaganda; some of it is what got them in the village in the first place.
Also, I’m pretty sure Double Diamond was pulling the old rictus grin there. Old habits die hard.

I quite like how Trixie’s performer reflexes have her deliver the full patter before fleeing.

I can actually empathize with Starlight here. I’ve had my share of fleeing from past shame. And I didn’t even have a fast-talking friend with smoke bombs to cover my retreat.

“I feel like that’s almost good advice.” I’m not sure if that’s the first time Starlight’s gotten a genuine laugh out of me, but it’s still really darn funny.

Pinkie Pie. Can’t remember. A name. I’d probably be reacting very differently to this if I hadn’t been spoiled.

Impostor Pinkie’s pronking sound effect is slightly off. That’s brilliant.

:moustache: “Nopony gets in to see the princess! Not nopony, not no how!”

Ah, the throne room appears to be directly accessible from the entrance hall. That would explain how Starlight got there in “The Cutie Re-Mark” without getting lost.

Sigh. You know, I knew this was coming—thanks a lot, Dr. Wolf—but I really hope they justify the offscreen defeat of apparently everyone beyond just asking us to take their word for it.

Huh. I assume Starlight got the full story about the invasion back during the Thorax incident.

That peanut butter cracker reference is probably the closest we’re even getting to the show acknowledging that Equestria Girls happened.

Ooh, changeling biotech. Neat.

Again, how were Celestia and Luna replaced? If they don’t explain this, I will be most displeased. Also, who’s operating the sun and moon?
That said, plentiful data on changelings. Thorax is definitely not an aberration in terms of having a will of his own.

Aww, I was hoping the camouflage spell was one of Trixie’s.

Poor Trixie. An Ursa she can at least attempt to handle. A nationwide coup is a bit much.

:facehoof: We’re never getting an explanation for how the changelings overcame literally every alicorn, are we?

Heh. I’m always a sucker for metareference. Also, Discord making a comment on how evolved he is? Very Q. I like it.

Hmm. Not sure how to feel about Discord looking to Starlight. I suppose he’s worried about collateral damage. As for not ending up in the same room as Fluttershy… Well, no one said chaos was precise, though it does still smack of narrative contrivance. Seriously, by all rights, Discord should be a “We win” button on his own.

… Ah. I see they’re covering their hind ends there. Now if only they’d let Thorax get a word in edgewise.

Huh. Interesting. D&D artifact-tier magical items would make sense. This actually makes things interesting and explains why no one’s tried to exterminate the changelings beyond not knowing where they live. Using fragments of the same material in the capture process might also explain how they nabbed all of those high-profile targets… though it still doesn’t address who’s handling the sun and moon. Maybe Discord took care of it since no one else was.

You have a stage act, a drone, and the literal antithesis of forward thinking. This is all on you, Glimmy.

“A millennia.” Given that this is Discord, I suspect he’s doing it specifically to bother me. Also, a thousand years ago, he was a statue. I suppose he’s rounding down.
Also, it seems Discord needs magic to fly, but there was evidence of that back during “Twilight’s Kingdom.”

Oooh. I quite like the mandible helmets.

Oh my God, that’s awesome! A literally living, constantly mutating structure! Tendrils, extrusions, and valves, oh my!

Look on the bright side, Trixie; at least you’re not scruffy-looking.
… Huh. I may end up shipping Dixie by the end of this.

Discord has yet to learn that dramatics without magic to back them up is not a winning combination. To be fair, this is probably the second time he’s ever been disempowered ever.

Unless those smoke bombs open wormholes, I have no idea how Trixie’s doing this. It’s awesome, but I have no idea how she’s doing it.
Oh. Right. Thorax. Kind of obvious in hindsight. :derpytongue2:

Ooh, beetle-wing gates. Seriously, loving the aesthetic.

It’s Discord, Trixie. That worked because it was ridiculous.

Oh no. We all see where this is going… or Discord will be genre savvy. And probably get taken out anyway. :applejackunsure:
Oh! Or he gets Fluttermobbed. Didn’t see that coming.

So… why is Trixie sacrificing herself here? Only one of the intruders falling for the trick will be just as suspicious as none of them falling for it.
Oh. Um… I guess that works. Dang, when I said she was sacrificing herself, that wasn’t what I meant.

Many bonus points for Chrysalis’s entrance. Exquisitely creepy. The nice thing about being a shapeshifter is that your joints do whatever you tell them to.

Oh! That was a clever ploy. I keep falling for it too.

… Please tell me they’re not going to redeem Chrysalis. I’ll take a drone uprising against Queen Villain Ball any day of the week, but please don’t make her into a sympathetic character.

Huh. A lot of people were worried about Starlight ascending to alicornhood. I don’t think anyone expected Thorax’s metamorphosis.

I love Celestia’s expression. That’s not just wooziness. That is clearly a face that says, “Damn it, not again.”

Shapeshifting counts, Starlight. If you’d tried this with no magic at all, you’d be in a cocoon right now.

Oh good. I am more than okay with this turn of events. Though Chryssy’s going to have to work pretty darn hard to top omnicide.

Uh, anyone want to zap her? Steadily moving target; just lead your shots. Discord, you are cleared to turn her into literal cheese. Anyone? Anyone at all?

Huh. This took a week? It would be a long trek on hoof from Our Town back to Ponyville, so that makes sense.

As I predicted, I am seriously considering Dixie as a ship. They have such great chemistry together.

In all, this was fun once it got going, but it needed a lot of contrivances to get it going. I came out of it entertained, but the amount of effort that had to go into making the scenario even remotely feasible leads to more than a few issues. Most pressingly, why hadn’t the changelings done this before? Not the transformation; even Thorax hesitated to completely let go of the love that had been such a precious resource for so much of his life. I mean the mass kidnapping. Or has Chrysalis been recovering and marshaling her power for this one decisive strike? That would explain things, but it would be nice if the show had made that clear. The same goes for a lot of questions I raised over the course of watching it.

Basically, this story was a flawed but fun fanfic, though I do like how it draws on just about every episode Starlight was in this season, aside from “Spice Up Your Life.” Plus, it actually parallels the Season 5 premiere nicely: When the Bearers are indisposed, it’s up to an unlikely group of four, two of whom are unicorns, to save the day against a homogenizing tyrant.

Also, fun fact: This is the first season finale to have absolutely no songs whatsoever.

And so, now that our brave little unicorn has trekked to the Mazey Mountain and stolen the treasure of a villainous creature as greedy as any dragon, let’s take a look at what I can make from her adventure.

Fluttermob 2WW
Instant
Prevent all combat damage that would be to you this turn. You gain life equal to the damage prevented this way.
”Now that’s just not fair.”
—Discord

Redeemed Lovebug 3W
Creature — Insect Pony
Flying, lifelink
Only by abandoning their desire for love could the changelings be free of their eternal hunger for it.
2/3

Love Flare 4W
Sorcery
Exile target nonland permanent. That permanent’s controller gains life equal to that permanent’s converted mana cost.
One way to destroy a magic-absorbing stone is to feed it more energy than it could ever hope to contain.

Sunset Celebration 4W
Enchantment
At the beginning of your end step, you gain 1 life for each tapped creature you control.
Commemorating those whose labor brings the light of civilization.

Hypercontortion U
Enchantment — Aura
Enchant creature
Enchanted creature has skulk. (It can't be blocked by creatures with greater power.)
1: Enchanted creature gets -1/-0 until end of turn or the end of the next declare blockers step, whichever comes first.

Puff of Smoke U
Instant
Strive — Puff of Smoke costs 1 more to cast for each target beyond the first.
Return any number of target creatures you control to their owners’ hands.
Trixie always knows how to perk up a poor performance.

Cunning Illusionist 2U
Creature — Unicorn Wizard
Prowess (Whenever you cast a noncreature spell, this creature gets +1/+1 until end of turn.)
Whenever you cast a noncreature spell, Cunning Illusionist gains hexproof until end of turn.
Now you see her, now she’s won.
2/1

Send to the Archives 2U
Sorcery
Put Send to the Archives and any number of cards from your hand on the bottom of your library. Draw a card for each card put on the bottom of your library this way.
”This castle is amazing, but even it doesn’t have infinite shelf space.”
—Princess Twilight Sparkle

Doppleganger Defense 4U
Instant
Create a token that’s a copy of target creature you control. Change the target of up to one target spell with a single target that targets that creature to the token.
Pinning blame on a specific changeling is usually an exercise in frustration.

Ponyville Infiltrators 5U
Creature — Shapeshifter Advisor
At the beginning of each opponent’s upkeep, look at the top card of that player’s library. You may put that card on the bottom of that library.
The changelings could imitate the Bearers’ forms, but not their wisdom. Not that they ever intended to.
3/4

Great and Powerful Promise 0
(B) Sorcery
Search your library for a card and put it into your hand. Then shuffle your library.
At the beginning of your next upkeep, pay 2BB. If you don’t you lose the game.
Trixie never breaks her word, so she almost never gives it in the first place.

Barricade Elytra 1B
Creature — Wall
Defender
Whenever Barricade Elytra blocks, attacking player loses 1 life and you gain 1 life.
Even the changelings’ fortifications hunger.
0/4

Communication Scarabs 1B
Creature — Insect
When Communication Scarabs dies, you draw a card and lose 1 life.
Watching changeling biotechnology in action is equal parts fascinating and revolting.
1/1

Dream Collapse 2BB
Sorcery
Destroy target tapped creature. Its controller discards a card.
Luna’s incapacitation had much bigger consequences than Chrysalis ever realized.

Unseen Conquest 2BB
Enchantment
At the beginning of each opponent’s upkeep, if that player controls three or more creatures than you do, sacrifice Unseen Conquest. If you do, creatures that player controls get -3/-3 until end of turn.
”How she did it doesn’t matter. Saving everypony does.”
—Starlight Glimmer

Deep Regrets 3B
Sorcery
Choose a card type. Target opponent loses 1 life for each card of the chosen type in his or her graveyard.
A pony can survive much deeper emotional wounds than she can physical ones, but that doesn’t make the scars any more pleasant.

Psychic Snare 5B
Sorcery
Target player discards three cards and loses 3 life.
The changelings’ own mental capabilities made them uniquely suited to capture Princess Luna.

Backhoofed Compliment 1R
Sorcery
Put a +1/+1 counter on target creature. Backhoofed Compliment deals 3 damage to that creature.
Hoofcraft — If you control three or more Ponies, Pegasi, and/or Unicorns, you may put another +1/+1 counter on that creature.

Discord, Forced to Improvise 1RR
Planeswalker — Discord
+1: Up to one target creature attacks during its controller’s next combat if able.
0: Exile the top card of your library. You may play that card. If you don’t, you may have Discord, Forced to Improvise deal 1 damage to himself and repeat this process.
-5: Target opponent gets an emblem with “Creatures you control can’t block.”
3

Strange Encounter 3R
Sorcery
Create a token that’s a copy of target creature. That token has haste and “At the beginning of the end step, exile this permanent.”
Chaotic 1R (You may cast this spell for its chaotic cost. If you do, choose its targets at random.)

Insincere Invitation 2
Artifact
When Insincere Invitation enters the battlefield, draw a card.
1, T, Sacrifice Insincere Invitation: Target creature attacks or blocks this turn if able.
”See what happens when you don’t RSVP?”
—Pinkie Pie, Bearer of Laughter

Wizard’s Nightcap 2
Artifact — Equipment
You may choose not to untap equipped creature during your untap step.
At the beginning of your draw step, if equipped creature is tapped, draw an additional card.
Equip 2

Performer’s Caravan 4
Artifact — Vehicle
Whenever you cast an instant or sorcery spell, you may have Performer’s Caravan become an artifact creature until end of turn.
Crew 3 (Tap any number of creatures you control with power 3 or greater: This Vehicle becomes an artifact creature until end of turn.)
5/4

Throne of Chrysalis 7
Legendary Artifact
Noncreature spells your opponents cast cost 3 more to cast.
Activated abilities your opponents activate cost 3 more to activate unless they’re mana abilities.
Whenever an opponent casts a noncreature spell or activates an ability that isn’t a mana ability, you gain 3 life.

Rule by Fear WB
Enchantment
(wb), Sacrifice a creature: Creatures you control get +1/+1 until end of turn.
”What is one drone compared to the good of the hive?”
—Queen Chrysalis

Thorax, the Unhungering GWU
Legendary Creature — Shapeshifter
Flying, hexproof, lifelink
GWU: Transform Thorax, the Unhungering. Each opponent may have his or her life total become equal to your life total. Activate this ability only if your life total is greater than or equal to your starting life total.
2/2
Thorax, Symbiote King
(GWU) Legendary Creature — Insect
Alicorn (This creature is also a Pony Pegasus Unicorn.)
Flying, hexproof, lifelink
Whenever another creature enters the battlefield under your control, you may put a pupa counter on that creature. If you do, it becomes an Insect Pony with base power and toughness 3/3 and gains flying and lifelink.
6/6

Incoming Mail 1UR
Sorcery
Choose target creature or player, then draw a card and reveal it. Incoming Mail deals damage to that creature or player equal to the revealed card’s converted mana cost.
”It was marked urgent.”
—Ditzy Doo

Mutating Maze 2RW
Instant
Cast Mutating Maze only before attackers are declared.
You choose which creatures attack this turn and who those creatures attack.
You choose which creatures block this turn and how those creatures block.
Awaken 3—5RW

Hive Guards 3UB
Creature — Shapeshifter Solider
B: Hive Guards gets +1/+1 until end of turn.
Whenever Hive Guards blocks or becomes blocked by a creature, you may have Hive Guards become a copy of that creature until end of turn. If you do, until end of turn, it gains “B: This creature gets +1/+1 until end of turn.”
2/2

Draconequus Cavalry 4RW
Creature — Chimera Knight
Flying, first strike, vigilance
Whenever Draconequus Cavalry blocks or becomes blocked, you may switch its power and toughness until end of turn.
Humor him at your own peril.
1/5

Changeling Citadel
Land
T: Add C to your mana pool.
X: Choose a number between 0 and X. Until end of turn, Changeling Citadel becomes a Shapeshifter creature with power equal to the chosen number and toughness equal to X minus that number. It’s still a land.

Comments ( 34 )

Okay, the singers in the theme song definitely sound higher pitched than normal. Not sure if that’s an aberration in the show or that’s just how the British theme song works.

Framerate change due to different fundamental framerates of European and US television.

Well, I loved it.

I don't really see any problem with having the s5 ending montage take place before all of s6. It was just a series of introductions and acceptance events, in the light of the euphoria of recent forgiveness and music magic, which could then easily have been followed by a return to normalcy and the anxieties that come with having to learn to actually change your ways.

I think in general people see characters learn the same lesson over and over, and deem them to be plot holes and breaches of character growth, when perhaps it should instead be seen as a theme of the show, that character growth is a challenging process that takes continuing effort :applejackunsure:

But anyway, this was a great finale to a great season :twilightsmile:

Okay, this confirms that the end montage of “The Cutie Re-Mark” was much further along in time than we first thought. Actually, was Season 6 confirmed when they made that episode? The zoom-out on the population of Ponyville definitely feels like the capstone of a series finale. No wonder Starlight has felt disjointed this season; they’ve had to backtrack from concluding her character arc prematurely.

That would explain a lot. Though unfortunately for me, that means the writers probably have their minds made up about keeping her as a Ponyville regular.

Also, who’s operating the sun and moon?

Yeah, that is a huge hole in Queen Crysalis's plan that I forgot to mention in my review. Maybe Queen Crysalis could have moved the sun and moon herself if she had turned into Princess Celestia, but it's unclear.

Aww, I was hoping the camouflage spell was one of Trixie’s.

If you look closely, Starlight's cloak lifts before Trixie's does, so I got the impression that they were both using it (though it's at least not exclusive to Trixie).

A lot of people were worried about Starlight ascending to alicornhood.

That actually never occurred to me. Wouldn't she need a Friendship Castle throne before that happens, Celestia forbid?

Huh. This took a week? It would be a long trek on hoof from Our Town back to Ponyville, so that makes sense.

Wow, I didn't even catch that. I hope the Mane 6's families and loved ones noticed something was wrong with them in all that time.

And yeah, there were a lot of plot points that had to be glossed over in order to make it fit in a 45-minute time slot. It's understandable, but some of it comes across as lazy or fanfiction-y. The only part that really bothers me is the rushed mass reformation.

Wow. They’re still putting up the propaganda banner. That’s fantastic :rainbowlaugh: Also… Hmm. Not sure how I feel about the Ourtowners being that happy to see Starlight, but we’ve seen that ponies are vastly more forgiving than humans.

i2.kym-cdn.com/photos/images/original/000/819/264/408.png
I mean, also, none of them actually, you know, died. People tend to be less forgiving when that happens.

Yes, there were some plot holes, and the deus ex machina ending, but those were both there the first time the changelings showed up too. I had fun with it.

I think that this blending of mtg elements provides for an interesting way to view Starlight.

Its long been said that color identity doesn't determine whether a character is good or evil, rather the tools or traits that they possess.

Black mana aligned characters have proven to be pivitol agents of change, sometimes even when they intend such consequences.

WotC have used the Kamigawa block as a staple reminder, but there are so many other ways to explain it. In the Shadows over Innistrad block, Lilliana's selfish traits of self survival gave her the gumption to led her hoard of undead to pick a fight with Emrakul, and even when she was beginning to lose control, her greed turned out to be quite the powerful force.

Even you have made black mana aligned characters on the side of good in your own stories, take Luna. She is the embodiment of the expansion theory and end of energy, but that doesn't stop her from loving and caring. They are her tools.

And now to everyone's everyone's favorite scapemare. The lingering question of just how sociopathic she is seems to override her other traits. She has done some messed up excrement in the past because of how powerful she is, but I am glad that there was another trait that could be brought to light. Her stance as a leader and her hesitation to take up that position as party leader.

This is very much a W\B concept, both colors have strong, athorative leaders. We've seen how it was a moral failing for Starlight before and have been (thankfully) reminded of it time and again, but that ability flared itself in this episode. Starlight's own hesitation to become the leader stems from her past transgressions and I believe it indicates remorse, something so many people are willing to ignore when they call her sociopathic.

And even after all this, we are still left with a character that has room to grow. Well, at least I surmise.

Glad you enjoyed the finale.

Only by abandoning their desire for love could the changelings be free of their eternal hunger for it.

Kinda Buddhist, don't you think?

Pinning blame on a specific changeling is usually an exercise in frustration.

This notion amuses me greatly.

I really like the way Ponyville Infiltrators works. Fateseal 1 every one of my opponents' turns? Don't mind if I do! Though fateseal always struck me as a BU mechanic...

Thorax, the Unhungering would make for an interesting commander. I'd include things like Rhox Faithmender, and a lot of lifelink, pseudo-lifelink, and token generators.

And Mutating Maze just looks like a recipe for hilarious commander shenanigans. That's one way to nearly wipe a board. XD

0_0
Hive Guards is seriously good, what with how many creatures have power equal to their toughness.

Draconequus Cavalry looked like a terrible card, until I realized it had first strike. Derp!

I'm not sure whether it's stupid or exceptionally fitting that Changeling Citadel could be destroyed by an opponent using Mindslaver and making you pay all your mana and making its toughness zero.

Also, I kinda really want to see someone competent write some Dixie. Maybe someone named Georg, or FoME?

Shouldn't Ponyville Infiltrators just have Fateseal 1? I think the only difference between the card's ability and fateseal occurs in a multiplayer game.

Conspiracy theory: THE SUN AND THE MOON ARE INDEPENDENTLY MOVING BODIES!

Great and Powerful Promise 0

(B) Sorcery

Search your library for a card and put it into your hand.

At the beginning of your next upkeep, pay 2BB. If you don’t you lose the game.

Trixie never breaks her word, so she almost never gives it in the first place.

It really annoys me that Pacts were before I actually got into Magic, they're one of my favorite mechanics simply for the novelty of how they're implied to work in-universe.

4267613 Are they actually reformed? None of them said anything to that effect, they just didn't do anything while Chrysalis flew off or the prisoners escaped, so maybe they're just in shock. It was the ponies that said they were good now and that Thorax was their leader.

I wouldn't make Thorax leader of a lemonade stand, personally. :facehoof:

4267818 It was strongly implied that all the Changelings in that hive are reformed. Thorax gave a little nod after Starlight said, "...And they're all kinda good now." Though the writers may backtrack next season and show the Changelings gradually learning about friendship, similar to what they did with Starlight.

4267766

Uh...Uh...Maybe it's become so routine for them that they control the Sun and Moon when they sleep! Yeah....That's all I got.

4267604
Good to know. Thanks.

4267608
Definitely a valid point about some lessons needing repeated applications before they sink in. Still, it feels weird to have Starlight nervous about baking a cake when she synthesized one in "No Second Prances." :applejackunsure:

But that's another matter. The finale was definitely fun, just built on an iffy foundation.

4267613

If you look closely, Starlight's cloak lifts before Trixie's does, so I got the impression that they were both using it (though it's at least not exclusive to Trixie).

Huh. I hope that is the case. I'll have to look again to be sure.

As for the quick reformation, I know I'd side with the ruler who helped me overcome my eternal hunger.

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I've never seen Starlight as especially black. She's always struck me as white-blue. Yes, Our Town did seem like a scale model of the Orzhov Syndicate's "give them faith and bleed them dry" strategy, but she sincerely believed what she preached. Starlight's always been about using her knowledge to establish control. When left to her own devices, she's basically a Mirrorweaver. When others strike against her, she lashes out in kind, reacting and taking time until she can formulate the perfect plan, then denies all options but failure. When benign, she suborns herself to a higher, wiser authority and when given the choice, restricts her activities only to what she's totally comfortable with. When push comes to shove, she expects order in the ranks and thinks through her available options as best she can, using her friends and her cunning to their utmost.

So yeah, not seeing the black. Still, good points for the most part.

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The perennial problem with fateseal is that there's no clean way to restrict whose fate is getting sealed at any given time. As such, it doesn't quite fit the intent of the card.

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Kinda Buddhist, don't you think?

Indeed, though I tend to see quite a few Eastern themes in pony.

Though fateseal always struck me as a BU mechanic...

The only two cards with fateseal spelled out are blue. There are four other cards with similar effects, all of which are also blue: Coral Fighters, Precognition, Ransack, and this one obscure one you may not have heard of.

Also, I kinda really want to see someone competent write some Dixie. Maybe someone named Georg, or FoME?

I make no promises. Though now I am getting ideas. Discord casting annoying spells on Trixie that are just within her capabilities to dispel. Then they start getting more and more complex, gradually training her to the level of arcane competence he expects from somepony worthy of being his significant other...
Well, we'll see.

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I hold by Discord doing it on the basis of "If someone doesn't, ponies will suspect I'm up to something. Also, Fluttershy will be sad."

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If you weren't aware of it, you may also be interested in the proto-Pact, Rocket-Powered Turbo Slug.

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I think this only helps shape the point that other colors exhibit villainous traits. I'd like to say Starlight was, for the most part, a Uw\b character. A very potent leader with lots of raw magic.

But the points we've both put forward only help to show the overlap of White and Black.

Villain mode, she used order to establish her own nefarious goals. Reformed mode, she had difficulties not using ruthless tacics to establish order.
This latest Starlight seems to have struck a balance. She needed a firm hold over the party to hold them together to accomplish the goal of saving everyone. We're just lucky she didn't use mind control.

Makes you wonder who's the problem color in that scheme.

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If you weren't aware of it, you may also be interested in the proto-Pact, Rocket-Powered Turbo Slug.

I'm aware of the card, though only through copious amounts of time spent clinking various links on a wiki. Though, really, most of the cards in the 'Un-' sets rarely rise above a brief chuckle in terms of my interest in them. I'm one of the few people I know who's arguably more interested in the lore of Magic than I am the actual game (mostly because I can almost never actually play the game with anyone), so while the joke sets are somewhat interesting for how absurd they are, I rarely ever look up information about them.

4267952 Or Chrysalis is draining their power and doing it? I was going to say she might be letting them do it even while kept prisoner but that wouldn't work because of the throne.

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Or maybe there's so much love for the Princesses that the changelings that took their place have become powerful enough to do it on their own...Oh yeah! I forgot about them! Chrysalis may not be on her own after all!

I had to look up what "elevenses" was and I got "a short break for light refreshments, usually with tea or coffee, taken about eleven o'clock in the morning.". It doesn't make sens to eat a break, you have have one, sure, but not really eat it... .

"shipping Dixie" got a laugh out of me.
I'm not really one for the whole "ship names" thing but this was funny.

"Discord, you are cleared to turn her into literal cheese" got yet another laugh from me.
Also, just because the stone isn't in throne form anymore doesn't mean it stops blocking magic. Though Cadænce did use her magic to take Flurry Heart from a changing (was just going to watch clips, wound up watching the entire last half of the second ep). Maybe it's not all at once and they can't use concussive beams yet.
Also, to be fair, the pones aren't really the type to shoot a fleeing foe in the back. Discord has an excuse because he doesn't want to be "mean" in front of Fluttershy and the various changelings might be a bit reluctant to attack their former queen, even if she wasn't the best she did manage to keep them alive this long.
I do like how the stag horns slash stag beetle mandibles glow as well his 'normal' horn when Thorax was preparing to cast something when she first broke out of the rubble.

Why did Thorax not talk after his change? I bet he just knows his voice changed as well and the show couldn't get Morgan Freeman to do the voice so it was best he didn't talk at all.
He is one very sexy bug-moose now, he needs an equally sexy voice to go with his new look.

And wow, I'm shipping Trixie-Discord now as well after that little bit near the end there. Though it was obvious he's got a thing for Fluttershy and with her blush I think she might reciprocate. Clearly the only sane answer is a three-person-group-relationship. Shy wasn't at Trix's show before so there no history there.

Onto the cards

Hypercontortion works really well, a bit too well. You might want to make the activation cost U instead of 1 to make a tad less powerful in multicolor decks but work almost the same in mono-Blue.

I really like the flavor text on Cunning Illusionist.

I'm not sure if Send to the Archives should really count itself in this. It's not really a draw spell so much as it is a filter spell, and we've seen a number of filter spells that Sum Zero (Scry somenumber into draw 1 etc) but we've also seen a lot of are Neg One or even a gain, it's all a matter of cost and timing (Instant vs Sorcery, the latter gets to be more powerful) so it's a bit of a tough call here,
Adding to this is that it feels kinda awkward for the spell to put itself from the stack onto the bottom of the library and then continue to have an effect. Maybe change the rules text to the following:

Put any number of cards from your hand on the bottom of your library in any order and then draw a card for each card put on the bottom of your library this way plus one.
If Send to the Archives was cast from your hand put it on the bottom of your library instead of into your graveyard.

The "plus one" keeps it Sum Zero, which I think it fair for a Sorcery.

More not-really-fateseal fateseal on Ponyville Infiltrators.
I like fateseal, I wish they'd actually use it. Since I don't consider Future Sight to be actually using the stuff in it, only the "look ahead" it was intended to be of mechanics and cards they might use one day.

You missed a prime opportunity to call Great and Powerful Promise "A Great and Powerful Pact" instead.
"Pact" is a synonym of "Promise" after all.

Huh, Dream Collapse made me think of something. If she was powerless because of the magic sapping stone throne how was Luna able to dream-walk into Sunset's second dream to ask for help? Is dream-walking not active magic? Does the stone throne only go after active non-changeling magic? So many questions, so few answers.

I really like Backhoofed Compliment. It's sad that the +1/+1 counter doesn't feel very Red to me but the card as a whole does so I can excuse the slight awkwardness of the counter.
Though I went and looked and Red does do a lot of +1/+1 counters, it's just normally though some other effect, such as the "Sith ability" or Bloodthirst and the like.
I just don't think "Red" when I think +1/+1 counters, though the counters are kinda just generic and used for any color they are most associated with Green in my mind.

The "next combat" line on Discord, Forced to Improvise is bugging me. I know 'goad' cards say "each combat" but Gideon has "next turn" and all of the various other "force you to attack" are Instant speed "this turn". Though it looks like they might be trying to move towards using "each combat" instead, based on some of the newer cards that have been printed.
I prefer the "(this/next) turn" over "(this/next) combat" though.

Speaking of the word "next" Strange Encounter should say "beginning of the next end step" .

I want to put a Wizard’s Nightcap on any of the twenty-two creatures that already have the "You may choose not to untap" rules text on them. Probably Rubinia.

I would like Performer’s Caravan better if it said "become a creature in addition to it's other types until end of turn" instead, that way it doesn't overwrite any other types you might have given it for other reasons. Because as it stands now it would drop off any other creature types you may be wanting to make use of and that limits combo potential.

You get all sorts of names for eldritch beings but "Unhungering" is not one you'd expect. But when you think about it it could be just as horrifying as "The one who Hungers" or "the Hungering". Because, really, if it doesn't hunger ever that's super odd and makes you think about what might drive it, because after all, "hunger" doesn't have to be for just food... .
The card is alright, I like how Symbiote King interacts with all of the various creature token production Green can do.

I was going to comment on the timing for Mutating Maze but it's just an updated Master Warcraft where you can point the creatures to other players and can maybe awaken a land so the timing on it is correct. Thought it was missing an "only during combat" rider.

The order of wording on the second half of the copy ability on Hive Guards if weird to me. I think it should be "If you do it gains "B: This creature gets +1/+1 until end of turn." until end of turn." The double "until end of turn" is also awkward but that way feels more like how other rules text is written.
Also, did you mean for it to lose its shapeshifing? Because there is the chance it could block or be blocked by something else that same turn. If not then the second ability would be "If you do Hive Guards gains this ability and “B: This creature gets +1/+1 until end of turn.” until end of turn".

i really like the flexibility of Changeling Citadel. I want to put a Darksteel Garrison on it. (And I want to see more Fortify cards darn it!)

Another great set of cards, and it didn't take me almost a full week to get to them this time!

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I think in general people see characters learn the same lesson over and over, and deem them to be plot holes and breaches of character growth, when perhaps it should instead be seen as a theme of the show, that character growth is a challenging process that takes continuing effort :applejackunsure:

That's a really insightful way to think about the show.

Cool cards as always, and as always, I have wording nitpicks!

Hypercontortion U

Enchantment — Aura

Enchant creature

Enchanted creature has skulk. (It can't be blocked by creatures with greater power.)

1: Enchanted creature gets -1/-0 until end of turn or the end of the next declare blockers step, whichever comes first.

You don't need the whichever comes first bit, as we have evidence of multiple triggers on the same line; see the Frost Titan, et al.

I second vladspellbinder's wording suggestion on Send to the Archives.

Maybe it matters in your older cards, but does Alicorn matter at all, or is it just because having all those types in the typeline would be too wordy?

I like how the land is also a Shapeshifter (and I've been playing Magic long enough that I recognized it without looking it up!).

Great cards yet again!

One thing I found interesting and worth noting is that the throne's antimagic zone began precisely where the normal terrain stopped and the wasteland abruptly began. Obviously it affects the geomancy in the soil as well as standard active magics.

I was significantly less happy with it, myself. There were neat ideas on display, but the writing was so lazy and contrived that I was left constantly questioning the logic. I guess it also doesn't help that I don't like either Starlight or Thorax. And personally, I think the new changeling designs are hideous. From Twilicorn, through Equestria Girls, and all the way to Rainbow Power and the crystal castle, I never made a big deal about intrusive marketing or gaudy designs in this franchise, but the fairy changelings are past the limits of my tolerance.

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Vlad, you're getting a response all to yourself. Thanks as always for combing through everything. :twilightsmile:

You missed the overarching Lord of the Rings reference; elevenses is one of the many meals in a hobbit's day, including breakfast, second breakfast, afternoon tea, dinner, and supper. And yes, those last two are distinct from one another.

Dixieshy? Congratulations, Vlad, you have an OT3. :raritywink:

Hypercontortion: I wouldn't call it overpowered. Not when Aqueous Form blows it out of the water.

Send to the Archives: Serene Remembrance says "Hi." And Time Stop keeps going even after it exiles itself. A rare example, yes, but one with precedent.

Great and Powerful Promise: I wanted to preserve Trixie's great and powerful wording.

Discord, Forced to Improvise: I try to stick to current templating conventions... with a few exceptions. You'll see if I ever make something with haunt.

Strange Encounter: You'd be right if the trigger were established by the spell rather than being an ability of the permanent. See Heat Shimmer.

Performer's Caravan: Unless you can make the Caravan a tribal, the point is moot. It won't have creature types until it becomes a creature, and should you give it any before casting another spell, you can choose to not make it a creature again. Plus, again, going by convention. See Fleetwheel Cruiser.

Hive Guards: Yeah, the doubled "until end of turn" weirded me out too much. Also, since all blocks are declared simultaneously, all of the triggers will go on the stack before the Guards lose the ability, letting you pick which adversary they'll copy by the time you get around to combat damage.

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Multiple trigger conditions are very different from multiple potential expiration times. Without that "whichever comes first," when the effect ends is left ambiguous.

Also, alicorn does exist solely because type lines are too short to capture the pan-tribal aspect of equine royalty. Ironically, it's a lot like changeling.

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Indeed. "Non-changeling magic" is a very wide net. By destroying the throne, one can hope that the Badlands will become less bad in time.

Or everypony there breathed in magic-neutralizing dust and is going to die a horrible, excruciating death, but let's hope that doesn't happen.

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Eh, if there are decent ideas in an episode, it's hard for me to come down on it. Indeed, it's hard for me to come down on most anything, hence the username. Still, I definitely understand where you're coming from.

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So many interlocking pieces, it's hard to keep track of them all.
I'm decent enough at under standing rules interactions. I've been asked to take the Judge Test (we have a lack of offical Judges in my area and it makes it hard to run events other than a pre-Release) but I'm not really confident enough in myself to do so because it's always a balancing act when it comes to how the cards work.
It also doesn't help that Wizards keeps moving the goal posts by using slightly different wording sometimes, which is fine, they are looking for better easier to understand wording. Doesn't make it any easier on the longer term players who know the older wording better than the newer.

I accept all comments on the cards but for one: Hive Guards
For Hive Guards my main concern was when you have multiple combat phases in one turn, not multiple blocks slash blockers in a single combat. That is what I meant by the "Because there is the chance it could block or be blocked by something else that same turn." comment. I guess I could have explicitly called out extra combat phases as the reasoning before the statement the first time, my apologies.
As it stands now in any combat after the first within which it blocks or is blocked it won't be able to shapeshift into the new blocker slash blocked, which doesn't fit well wit the concept of the card.

4269797 I might be mistaken, but I believe that the declare blockers step occurs even if there isn't a declare attackers step, just that it is ignored because nothing happens during it.

If I'm wrong, I think adding a clause of "At the beginning of the next end step, this effect ends." would do what you want.

One of the main things I took from this two-parter was the realization that things in season six are going to be REALLY different if/when I get there. The microphone does prove, though, that even if non-changeling magic doesn't work in their territory (pre-Lovebug Shift), technology does.

And I was completely unspoiled for the episode, but I knew it was changeling as soon as Pinkie went "Hi... you..."

I mean, seriously, I thought changelings were supposed to be good at disguises. Maybe they should take lessons from the Zygons.

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Disguises, yes. Staying in character is a Bluff check, and given how badly Chrysalis impersonated Cadence, changelings are surprisingly bad at lying convincingly. At least, they are when the audience is meant to suspect something. Maybe Starlight just put a lot of points into Sense Motive after the yellow one dismantled Our Town.

And even if you probably won't be getting to Season 6 any time soon, you can use the available information in the story.

Front face: Yay, I have a new Bant Commander!
Transformed face: Yay, I finally have a worthwhile combo with Essence of the Wild!

As I predicted, I am seriously considering Dixie as a ship. They have such great chemistry together.

Discord explicitly offered Trixie assistance with her magic act, right there, in the episode. I can't believe nopony's done a fic about this yet. :rainbowderp:

Or hay, not even the inevitable shipfic hads even happened yet. They both like teasing Twilight Sparkle, therefor they're the perfect match. :derpytongue2:

As I predicted, I am seriously considering Dixie as a ship. They have such great chemistry together.

Discord explicitly offered Trixie assistance with her magic act, right there, in the episode. I can't believe nopony's done a fic about this yet. :rainbowderp:

Or hay, not even the inevitable shipfic hads even happened yet. They both like teasing Twilight Sparkle, therefor they're the perfect match. :derpytongue2:

Nice cards for a fun episode. Also, for a moment I thought "Your creatures can't block" was Discord's flavor text. I was amused.

Incoming Mail should be "Reveal the top card of your library." Then the stuff that happens, then "Draw a card."

Mutating Maze should say "whom they attack," not "who they attack".

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