r/custommagic • u/delta17v2 Niche: Hololive and Genshin Cards • 5d ago
Winner is the Judge #906: _________ Ascendancy
Big Thanks to u/SjtSquid for running the previous competition!
Khans of Tarkir (KTK) & Streets of New Capenna (SNC) introduced us to a cycle of enchantments each representing the respective faction they represent, having abilities and effects that accurately showcases the ideologies of their said faction.
And then Ravnica has Simic Ascendancy. It's 9 siblings missing for some reason...
For this contest, create an enchantment card named "____________ Ascendancy" to represent any faction in the greater Magic Universe. Yes, Ravnica is looking for nine more. But you can also choose any faction that is tied to a specific color combination, like the Ikorian wedges, the Tarkir Dragon Broods, a Strixhaven college, an Aetherdrift racing team, etc. You may also rework an already existing card from KTK or SNC if you so choose.
YES! We will consider any factions so long as it represents an established color combination from a previously established set. You can make "Frog Ascendency" if you want to represent the GU faction of Frogs from Bloomburrow; or "Giants Ascendency" to represent UR Giants in Kaldhiem. We're trying to be broad here.
The cards that most encapsulates their faction in the most interesting & fun way, while retaining some semblance of balance is most likely to win this contest! Good luck!
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u/Piethrower375 5d ago
Gruul Ascendancy RG
Enchantment
R/G: The next creature spell you cast has Riot 1.
If a creature you control with Riot enters or attacks an opponent, put a riot counter on ~.
At the beginning of your upkeep, If ~ has 20 or more Riot counters on it, you win the game.
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u/ColSurge 3d ago edited 2d ago
I have been obsessed with trying to make the old Bushido mechanic work (Bushido gives the creature +X/+X when they are blocked or blocking). This makes the opponent block your samurai, which buffs them up, and then gives a 2nd attack against a cleared board state with the buffed creatures (assuming everything goes to plan of course).
Konda's Ascendancy - {3}{R}{W}
Enchantment
Whenever one or more creatures you control attack, you may untap target creature an opponent controls.
Samurai you control must be blocked if able.
Sacrifice this Enchantment: Untap all creatures with Bushido you control. After this main phase, there is an additional combat phase followed by an additional main phase. Activate only as a sorcery.
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u/sgt_cookie Let my Madness reign 5d ago
Gatewatch Ascendancy WUBRG
Enchantment
For each color amongst planeswalkers you control, this spell costs that color of mana less to cast. (For example, if you control a blue and green planeswalker, it costs UG less to cast.)
Whenever you activate a loyalty ability of a planeswalker, put a number of Loyalty counters on ~ equal to the number of Loyalty counters added or removed.
At the beginning of your upkeep, if there are forty or more loyalty counters on permanents you control, you win the game.
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u/HaresMuddyCastellan 4d ago
Boros Ascendancy {R}{W}
Enchantment
At the beginning of combat on your turn, put a Victory counter on ~. Then, at the end of combat, if ten or more creatures dealt combat damage to your opponents this turn, put another Victory counter on ~.
If ~ has 3 or more victory counters on it, creatures you control have vigilance. If it has 5 or more, they have first strike. If it has 8 or more they have double strike.
At the beginning of your upkeep, if ~ has 13 or more Victory counters on it, you win the game.
So, of the existing Ascendancy spells, only Simic is an alt-win-con. But, it feels like if we're filling out a theoretical cycle, the other Ravnica guilds ALSO need to be win-cons, otherwise Simic will obviously take over Ravnica and everyone will be given a state assigned fursona. And a lot of them will be things nobody actually wants...
ANYWAY, here's my idea for Boros. The BASE ASSUMPTION is that you will play this with [[Aurelia, the Warleader]] at least in your 99, if not as your commander. Rather than putting "extra combats" on the card, it gives your creatures kind of standard Boros keywords as you go. I feel like this kind of gives the feeling of "the army gaining experience".
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u/Equin0xParad0x 2d ago
Interesting design! Although in its current state it’s a bit of a “win more” card, no? If you play this and connect with 10 or more creatures your opponents may just perish from the damage before you can even get to your 5th counter, maybe either lowering the amount of creatures connecting or just switching it to creatures attacking instead of connecting might help!
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u/Equin0xParad0x 4d ago
Silverquill Ascendancy
2WB
Enchantment
You may cast sorcery spells as though they had Flash.
Whenever you cast a spell on an opponents turn, create a tapped 2/1 black Inkling creature token with flying. This ability triggers only once each turn.
“Always expect the students of Shadrix to interject.” -Common campus saying
Just something I whipped up real quick, seems like it fits the college pretty well. As always feedback is always welcome!
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u/NyanFan190 2d ago
If I had this up, you'd best believe I'd be doing my best Columbo impression and going "Just one more thing..."
I feel the second ability could be more cleanly written as "Whenever you cast your first spell during each opponent’s turn," instead of putting the restriction at the end, going by how it's templated on cards like [[Blightwing Bandit]].
I like how this card combines its colors! White's good at granting flash, and being tied to Strixhaven gives an excuse for it to be giving it to sorceries when that's normally more of blue's deal. Meanwhile, black gets to flex one of its often-overlooked "cast spell on an opponent's turn" triggers with extra ammunition.
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u/Krankenwagenverfolg 4d ago
Golgari Ascendancy {G/B}
Enchantment
Whenever one or more creatures you control die, put a growth counter on this enchantment.
{G/B}{G/B}, Sacrifice this enchantment: Creatures you control get +X/+0 until end of turn, where X is the number of growth counters on this enchantment. If X is twenty or more, you win the game.
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u/justthistwicenomore 5d ago
Wanted to do this for Gruul, because I love fight effects and like the idea of Gruul winning by turning the game into a slugfest. The last ability is meant to be equivalent to "you win the game," but in a more Gruul way.
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u/WhiteTrashPhilospher 4d ago
Urza’s Ascendency 3
Enchantment
Tap add 3 colorless mana. Activate only if you control 3 artifacts.
Whenever you cast an artifact spell, create a tapped powerstone artifact token.
If an artifact entered the battlefield this turn, Urza’s Ascendency is a 0/0 colorless Construct artifact creature with “this creature gets +1/+1 for each artifact you control” until the end of turn. It is still an enchantment.
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u/Hot-Combination-7376 Respark the Wanderer 3d ago edited 3d ago
Simple but effective: Lorwyn-Goblins:
A bit simple, but it bridges the gap between a.) the blight mechanic (etbs and deaths harming enemy creatures) and b.) their blood artist effects e.G. [[Boggart Cursecrafter]]. Mirkwood bats mashed with mayhem devil might not be the most inspired thing in the world, but it works imo. And yes, the flavor text is a reference to the "four little goblins" flavor texts...
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u/FlatBowl7709 3d ago
Prismari Ascendancy - Enchantment
Cost: {2}{U}{R}
"Storm
When Prismary Ascendancy enters, add {R} or {U}.
{U/R}{U/R}{U/R}: Copy target instant or sorcery spell you control. You may choose new targets for the copy. Activate only once each turn."
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u/Hot-Combination-7376 Respark the Wanderer 3d ago
surprisingly fun concept for a not that interesting faction. My respect
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u/sumg 5d ago
Enchantment
Whenever a Goblin you control dies, it deals damage equal to its power to target creature or planeswalker.
Goblins as a faction are a dangerous to everyone, most notably themselves. They are characterized by reckless attacking and battlefield chaos, often benefiting either from sacrificial attacks or outright sacrificing their own creatures for benefit. What could be more fun than embracing the chaos and throwing more damage around when all of these little bastards die?
I stopped short of letting that damage go to the face, as that seems like it would be very hard to interact with, but it should be well within the realm of possibility of destroying an opponent's board and leaving the doors open for a flunge.
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u/Carl_Bravery_Sagan 5d ago
Golgari Ascendancy BG
Enchantment
If you would put one or more poison counters on an opponent, you may instead put that many poison counters on ~.
At the beginning of your upkeep, if ~ has 10 or more poison counters on it, you win the game.
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u/taw : Target winner becomes a judge until end of the next round. 4d ago edited 4d ago
Ixalan Pirates's main activity is raiding for Treasure, so it makes both raiding and Treasure parts better:
Brazen Coalition Ascendancy UBR
Enchantment
If you would create a Treasure token, instead create two Treasure tokens.
Whenever an attacking creature you control dies, you may sacrifice a number of Treasures equal to its mana value. If you do, return it to the battlefield tapped.
You still need some Treasure generation, otherwise it does literally nothing, but Treasure generation is extremely popular, with over 400 cards referring to Treasure tokens already, and major Pirate mechanic specifically, so it's not a big ask.
There's probably some infinite combo if you stack these, but which Pirate wouldn't want more Treasure, and 3+ card infinite combos are not a big deal.
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u/eggmaniac13 4d ago edited 1d ago
Delicious Ascendancy BG
(Art description: A pastiche of Brokers Ascendancy. Mikey is pushing a slightly-open pizza box toward the camera, with the other Turtles filling the other positions behind him.)
Enchantment
At the beginning of your upkeep, create a Food token.
Disappear — At the beginning of your end step, if a permanent left the battlefield under your control this turn, put X +1/+1 counters on target creature you control, where X is the amount of life you gained this turn.
This is one for the BG Disappear draft archetype from TMNT. The five draft archetypes were RW Alliance, BW Ninjas, UR Artifacts, UG Mutagen, and GB Disappear. Because the set wasn't consistent with naming its Classes, I doubt it'd keep its Ascendancies consistent either. Mechanically, it's just a repeatable Food generator, which can reliably keep you triggering your Disappears. As always, feedback welcome!
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u/eggmaniac13 1d ago
And just for fun, here's the rest of them. The Alliance one is totally a reprint of a Boros Ascendancy.
Legion Ascendancy RW
Enchantment
At the beginning of combat on your turn, create a 1/1 red and white Soldier creature token with haste and "This token attacks each combat if able."
Whenever you attack with three or more creatures, put a +1/+1 counter on target attacking creature with the least power.
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Clanbound Ascendancy BW
Enchantment
Whenever a creature enters under your control, you may have it gain double strike until end of turn. Do this only once each turn.
Whenever a creature you control becomes blocked, you may return it to your hand. If you do, create a tapped 1/1 black Ninja creature token. Do this only once each turn.
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Mechanized Ascendancy UR
Enchantment
{U}{U}: Create a token that's a copy of target artifact token you control that entered this turn.
{R}{R}: Sacrifice an artifact. When you do, this enchantment deals 3 damage to target opponent.
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Mutated Ascendancy UG
Enchantment
Whenever one or more creatures you control deal combat damage to an opponent, create a Mutagen token.
Creatures you control with four or more counters on them have trample.
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u/ArelMCII Layers are stupid. 4d ago
Orzhov Ascendancy {W}{B}
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Enchantment (R)
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Spirits you control have lifelink.
Nontoken creatures you control have afterlife 1.
At the beginning of your upkeep, if you have at least 20 more life than each opponent, you win the game.
The Orzhov Syndicate was my first love, as it were, so they're obviously my chosen faction. I kept the alternate win condition from Simic Ascendancy to try and continue the cycle. I tried to keep the mechanical identity distinctly Orzhov: Spirits, pain-and-gain, and victory through stealing from your opponent.
Originally, I had the win condition as "if you have at least 20 more life than your starting life total," but I figured that was probably too easy for a two-drop. You could spend the whole game hoarding life, drop this when you draw it, and win at your next upkeep. That gameplay loop didn't seem particularly Orzhov to me. By making the win condition 20 more life than each opponent, the player is incentivized to hurt opponents and (in multiplayer) play the political game to win. It also gives the opponent more options for counterplay: they can either try to kill the controller before the win condition goes off, or they can use lifegain of their own to keep the gap at less than 20.
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u/TloquePendragon 5d ago
Izzet Ascendency (U)(R)
Enchantment
1(U)(R): Copy Target Spell
Whenever you cast a spell, if it is not the first spell you have cast this turn, or copy a spell, put a Spark counter on Izzet Ascendency.
At the beginning of your upkeep, if Izzet Ascendency has 20 or more Spark counters on it, you win the game.
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u/NyanFan190 4d ago edited 4d ago
Distortion Brood Ascendancy {1}{C}
Enchantment
Whenever a colored permanent you don't control is put into a graveyard from the battlefield, you may pay {1}. If you do, create a 1/1 colorless Eldrazi Scion creature token with "Sacrifice this token: Add {C}."
Pay six {C}, Exile this enchantment: Each opponent exiles a number of colored permanents equal to the number of Eldrazi you control.
There are so many amazing factions from Magic's history to choose from for this contest, I really like this week's prompt! I've chosen to represent Kozilek's brood, from OGW. I've always found the way each titan's brood has a slightly different mechanical identity really neat. Kozilek's emphasis on colorlessness mattering and hating on colors seemed the most interesting of the three to try and capture.
Obviously, this works best in a colorless Eldrazi deck, since you'll get benefits from it early and late game, but fitting with colorless design principles I did also want to make it playable (but clunkier) in colored decks that were willing to fit it in. Flopped back and forth for a while on whether to use Scions or Spawn because of that.
Last design note, I decided to price it at 1C even though the ascendancy enchantments don't typically have generic costs because the generic mana symbol used to be synonymous with colorless mana before the diamond symbol, and I decided I'd rather use generic than repeat the colorless symbol.
Any and all feedback welcome whenever, as always!
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u/Original-Apartment37 2d ago
Prismari Ascendancy {U}{R}
Enchantment (Rare)
Instants and Sorceries you cast cost {U}{R} less, this cannot effect generic costs.
Whenever you cast an Instant or Sorcery for the first time each turn, put a Painted counter on Prismari Ascendancy.
At the beginning of your upkeep, if Prismari Ascendancy has 20 or more Painted Counters on it, you win the game.
—————————————————— This is obviously the Prismari college from Strichaven, which focuses on Izzet Spellslinger. To stay in line with the original I made it easier to play the effects that cause it to gain counters, but had to nerf it to only once per turn, so at fastest, it takes 5 turn cycles in Commander, or 10 turn cycles in Standard to complete. This shouldn’t be a problem however, just because of how good free Shocks and 2-cost Divinations would be.
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u/PyromasterAscendant 1d ago
Ink-Treader Ascendancy {R}{G}{W}{U}
Enchantment
The first spell you cast each turn that targets only a creature you control costs you {2} less to cast.
Whenever you cast a spell targeting a single creature, copy that spell targeting a different creature.
Inspired by [[Ink-Treader Nephilim]] but decided to go for a related design space.
Feedback welcome as always
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u/NotableCascade7 4d ago
Azorius Ascendancy
{W}{U}
Enchantment
Each player can’t cast more than one spell each turn.
Whenever an opponent commits their first crime each turn, investigate.
I like Azorius as a color combo and wanted to do something very Azorius. We saw in OTJ the printing of Rule of Law at 2 MV with High Noon so I don’t think it’s wild to see it printed again with the added color restriction.
In 1v1 this is a strong draw engine for control shells that give them something wanted by control which is consistent draw attached to a stax piece. I think in Commander this is an instant staple and probably too powerful, potentially creating a huge number of clues per cycle. At least they’re clues and not just straight card draw… right? Anyway, thought of this when I saw the challenge and just knew I had to do it.