

This month’s theme were cards that either buffed or de-buffed creatures. We had a huge amount submissions this contest and the release of Faeria 0.9 in the middle of it certainly left us with plenty to do! We appreciate the patience bringing you the results, but we hope it was worth the wait.

Here are some notes from our judges:

This contest saw some similar themes that were taken into vastly different directions. There was a running trend of versatile event cards that allowed the player to choose which mode they preferred. Many designers took to creating symetrical cards to help balance their designs, while cast aside this precaution and made some pretty (potentially busted) cards. The winning cards needed to spice up the concept of buffing creatures. Our judging panel asked our selves often during this discussion “And then what?” implying that after the buff happens, how does the next couple turns take place? Is the buff card forgotten about, or does it’s affect linger on? Our favorite cards really brought all of this together and packaged it in a card that seemed to just work. The lore felt right, the look felt right, and looking at the card made you want to play with it. As a quick aside, I personally want to encourage designers to submit cards that are make us excited about Faeria card design. While many of the cards submitted were reasonably balanced and without any major flaw, they lacked the special something that made the card memorable.

So without further hesitation, here are the cards. This time, we saved the winning cards for last, as to not spoil the results and let people read through the cards at their leisure.

By pureFruit

This seems a little too weak of a buff card, but the lake portion of the card that grants protection is passable. Also, could the random generation of protection proc on the same creature? It seems redundant to give your protection creatures extra life.We really enjoyed how this card doesn’t cost 1 lake but gives you an added bonus if you have one.

By Nalital

This card is very powerful in a deceptive way. The symmetrical effect seems like a downside, but in reality, the decks that would play this would play very few creatures and likely be some form of combo deck that is looking to protect itself. Great name and flavor to the card.

By Maihem

This card is very powerful for only 3 Faeria and that alone makes me nervous. Its effect is also very confusing and I’m not sure that players would enjoy a creature that seemingly never leaves the board until you kill it with an event

By Frymn810

I like this card for it’s simplicity and effectiveness. It effectively reads gain 6-8 life in most late game race scenarios, but the added versatility of using it offensively (to protect you own creatures going face) is noted. We would have preferred if the art and name capture the feeling of a single creature being unable to act a little better, however. Sand Storm feels like a “Deal 1 damage to everyone” type of card.

By Frymn810

This card is a really interesting approach to Green removal. It’s very flavorful, as it literally turns whatever creature you want into an immovable tree (that can still attack!). This potentially creates some locked board states by surrounding your god orb with non-forests (which isn’t hard to do) but other than that, a solid de-buff.

By L3murCatta

This is a cool approach to buff cards in Red and very thematic. Creatures literally have to stand a line and “Form a rank” before they can go off and charge forward with their buff. I’d probably change this to +2/+1 to be a little less oppressive and fit Red’s creature identity better.

By Gerobig

This is a well-designed buff card and would certainly find a home in aggressive blue decks. Nothing much to say here, other than it always being a little dangerous to give Jump to creatures, as it makes it very hard for an opponent to play around or mount a reasonable defense against OTK combos.

By Sylvain Tual

Plague with Possessed Ursus is a fun little combo (even noted by the cards creator). Our only issue with this card is Plague being part of blue’s identity and not yellow’s. Other than that, very interesting card with multiple uses, both defensive and offensive. The biggest issue comes from how slow Production is and how easy it is to avoid its effect. Why not just run normal removal instead of this card?

By Sylvain Tual

The non-legendary clause is a safe step to ensuring it’s balance, but doesn’t this somewhat doom the card? For a 7 Faeria card that takes a while to ramp up in value (and needs a suitable target already in play) I’d like the opportunity to start some crazy combos with legendary creatures.Very flavorful, however. The art and name are top notch. Very flavorful, however. The art and name are top notch.

By Sylvain Tual

This is a powerful buff card that will essentially win you the game if placed on a massive creature. We are ok with this power level on a card that requires such colored land investment. However, it feels like Transcendance would be a card that somehow draws cards or otherwise gains value through enlightenment / knowledge. This buff essentially turns your creature into a raid boss, which is cool but doesn’t feel very Transcendent to us.

By Sylvain Tual

Wow. Very unique card that breaks the rules in a way we’ve never thought of. This one of those things that is only possible with a card game like Faeria and is a fun card that, while completely flipping the game on it’s head (and probably a nightmare to code) is deserves a mention due to it’s out of the box thinking. However, this is likely way too powerful and could create some very not fun board states.

By RHF

This is an interesting card but potentially very underwhelming. Your saying I have to sacrifice my own creature just because I changed my mind on the type of land I need? And on top of that, the land I can change it to is the color of the creature I sacrificed? Considering I am playing Green and Yellow to play this card, it would make sense that my creatures are also this color. So sacrificing creatures to turn lands into different colors seems like a trap.

By Causalidad

Hearthstone is leaking into Faeria! All jokes aside, this is a pretty decent tech card, but requires buff cards to already be popular for it to be played. It would be hard to get value from this card, as most of the time players buff their creatures before they are about to attack, meaning it has already traded favorably by the time you remove the buff.

By Misterme

This is a clever card that seems very in line with yellows indentity with cheating creatures into places they shouldn’t be. Forgotten Hero can be a very powerful Tempo Swing in a race situation, and has the added benefit of replacing it self with a creature that is gathering Faeria and would rather be fighting instead. Can’t say I’m crazy about the art on this card however. This needs art that is daring and agile to really make it snap.

By H2pGaming

Can’t go wrong with this type of card. It’s a cheap tempo tool that allows you to trade favorably with a creature. Its versatility fits well with blue and green and, true to its name, helps you trade equally on the board.

By Gidjez

We notice that a lot of designers are drawn to the “root” theme of buffing a creature, and it’s interesting to see the different spins on it. In this case, we have the rooted creature gaining a sizeable buff, at the cost of losing its movement. Taunt is a powerful keyword and the ability to give any creature Taunt is especially valuable in Green. What makes this card interesting is that you can also place it on enemy creatures purely for it’s “Root” effect.

By Reath

It’s always difficult to design a playable card that’s main reason to play is wrapped up in it’s Combat trigger. Creature combat is something that usually happens because of a necessity or favorable trade due to a creature’s stats. This means, in the case of Tiki Sneak, what happens when the creature you need to “silence” is a favored match up against a 2/5 creature? Don’t most creatures you want to “silence” beat a 2/5 creature in combat in the first place? Combat mechanics are usually best when they are extra bonuses or freebies that reward creature combat, not mechanics that demand it.

By Reath

This is an interesting take on Safeguard, and for the added cost of colored land you can deal two damage to a creature. I think the versatility of this card makes it much more playable than Safeguard, and I can see both modes being used during different parts of the game. As it goes with most cheap events, versatility makes this card playable.

By Corentin Taul

I’m not sure this qualifies as a buff card or a debuff card, so I’m afraid it isn’t up qualified for this competition. That being said, it is actually pretty hard to swap a creature and gain back the 6 Faeria you have spent to swap.

By Corentin Taul

Conflagration is an interesting card and I see what the creator intended with this card– it makes whatever creature it’s cast on a living bomb! However, this cost 8 Faeria and a hefty amount of Red Lands. All so you can deal 1 damage to a creature on it’s next turn.This card is simply too slow and too easy to play around!

By Yallus

Yallus has an explanation for the new mechanic he introduces called rotate:Rotate is a new effect category, functioning as a Production with two alternating outcomes. The first turn Tide Spirit is played, it does nothing. It is a 1/4 body until the next turn startOnce the player’s next turn rolls around, Tide Spirit gains Protection, and gives +1/+1 to anything it’s adjacent to. Including stuff that moves into range, or stuff Tide Spirit itself moves into range of. After your opponent finishes their turn, the effect reverses, instead REMOVING 1/1, and possibly killing things that had one health. Both of these effects work on every creature in range, not just ones belonging to the player who used Tide Spirit. It’s clear now, why this card is called Tide Spirit, as it’s ability comes and goes like the tide. It’s a very interesting mechanic, albeit a little convoluted. We like the dual nature of it’s offensive and defensive capabilities and it fits with the theme of the contest very well. Rotate is an interesting mechanic, though for it to exist we think it’s effect needs to be more global and not attached to a creature (and the space around said creature). It just becomes too much for players to keep track of.

By lbrande

We like the idea of rewarding creatures of the same name, but I think there was a missed opportunity to really create a card that enables a new type of archetype.The way the card reads now, you can put it in almost any green deck and find some value. It doesn’t really reward any deck building decisions, as green wants to play as many efficient creatures as it can. If it wants 1 creature, it probably wants 2 more of the same.Though it’s a very compelling design space that we would love to see explored more. What if this buffed all 1/1 cards with the same name? Or perhaps buffed all non-green cards of the same name and was more efficiently costed?

By lbrande

A neutral event that does different things for different colors. Very cool.However, why do Forest and Mountains get hosed, while Lakes and Deserts get much more powerful effects? I think this card becomes most exciting when all options are truly equal, meaning that the cards power level changes from match up to match up.In this state, this is a Blue card that enables the “turn my fat creatures into attackers” deck.

By Crone

A flavorful card that will almost always be used for its 3 damage component. How many times do you want to heal a 4 life creature for 8? The wording, art, and name all work well together, though, so you can’t call this a poorly designed card.When it works, you feel really clever, but for the most part, it’s a removal spell.

By Vitriol

This is a clever way to recreate an old card game staple. Some games call it “Duel”, some games call it “Fight” but this designer took a different route in visualizing two creatures locked in combat. Rather than have it end all at once, the battle goes on via the production mechanic. This creates some very tense moments, where both players have equal stake to see their creature come out on top. I mean, even the art is of two dogs fighting. Kinda grim actually.But all of that aside, this card is balanced by it’s X mechanic. The only way X can get out of control high is if the battle lasted for a long time, which is an acceptable reward.

By cometpuncher

This card is very unique, but it seems a little clunky. Once Shaytan Gorgon attacks something, that creature becomes 0/6 with taunt yes? So how is Shaytan Gorgon ever supposed to leave the creature it attacked? It has taunt and attacking it just turns it into a 0/6 statue with taunt again!

By Wilczym

Beating your opponent down with an army of buffed up Farm Boys is a pretty legendary Faeria moment. So much so, that we will excuse how exceedingly difficult it is to pull off and how counter intuitive it feels to ever create Prairies when you have a card in your deck that requires 12 colored lands (3 of each) to really be worh the 10 Faeria. So, excusing all of that– this card is awesome. I for one accept the present of Farm Boys the elements have offered.

By Arunmason

Sandshroud is a cool sounding mechanic, but oh boy, does it have potential to be imbalanced and not fun to play against.Yellow aggro is already difficult for new and veteran players to play against. What happens when those same creatures destroying your God orb are now unable to be attacked? The Keyword needs to be changed to also have Sandshrouded creatures be unable to attack. That at least creates a bit of balance while still keeping the value of “hiding in the desert”

Honorable Mentions

By Arananthi

A note from the creator of this card:



Personally, I’m a big fan of emergent complexity — simple, easy-to-grasp cards that produce complex and challenging decisions — and that’s what I tried to do with Drakkarim Godhand. What do you think? We think you nailed it. This card is easy to grasp at first, but adds many layers of complexity.This card is purely offensive– you never want to place it near your own god. That means the only way for this card to become online is by clogging up crucial attack angles with a structure. Why would a yellow deck ever want to do this? Likely because buffing your entire squad while de-buffing the enemies is powerful enough to warrant the awkward positioning. Our only complaint about this card is its name and art. The “flavor” of a cursed or false idol somehow corrupting the god it’s near is compelling, but this isn’t immediately apparent when looking at the card at first glance.

By cometpuncher

As it turns out, Survival of the Fittest is a popular phrase to describe creatures dying. This card, however, is using the phrase in a more Darwinian light. This card is really flavorful and offers a nice way to rid the board of pesky Faeria gathering creatures while also providing an interesting deck building challenge with the prospect of your dorks surviving while your opponents die off. Random creature generation is fun, and this card is sure to see value once it’s played. This card is slightly off theme and it’s core design seems less about buffs and more about dealing two damage to all creatures, so it only gets an honorable mention.

By Foxclear

Drain the weak does exactly what it’s title says it does, so this card automatically gets tons of design points. It is a good idea to make this card say ALL creatures, as the symmetry allows for some counter play and interesting deck building possibilities. The card creature mentions combos with Plague Bearer and that is what makes this card interesting. At first glance it seems straight forward, but gives players a lot of different ways to gain value from it.

By Dr. Kralle

This card is hilarious. All fun aside, it’s also pretty powerful. I like the ability to give a creature Haste, but also reduce it to only 1/1 in stats. It helps combat the inherent imbalance potential of Haste creatures, while also allowing it to combo well with Last Words or creatures that benefit from combat. I think Red would play this card often as a way to remove a powerful creature and gather Faeria while doing it.

The Winning Cards

Our winning cards captured our hearts with their flavorful design and interesting game states they created. Your cards should always strive to make Faeria a more fun game, and we believe that these three cards achieve that:

1st Place: Nerissa, Witch of the Sea created by Merlinux

created by Merlinux 2nd Place: Tiki Vampire created by Luu90

created by Luu90 3rd Place: Horath the Unwashed created by Blakmilk

By Merlinux

This is an entertaining card that creates an interesting moment for both players once it is played. Where do we even start? So ALL creatures gain Aquatic– cool, we are playing on Nerissa’s home turf now and this type of affect is fitting of a Legendary 10 Faeria creature. This is essentially a buff to all creatures. But is it? All of your opponents creatures now have exactly 1 turn to get to a lake or ocean tile, or else they are destroyed at the end of the turn. How fitting for a Sea Witch! A blessing that’s ultimately a curse. Just seeing all of your opponents creatures scramble to a water source is cool to see. And just when you thought this might be imbalanced, we get to the Last Words ability. If you have been saving removal for Nerissa, destroying it gives your now aquatic creatures all of the opportunities they need to find a safe lake. Very flavorful card that manages to somehow buff and de-buff creatures at the same time. Making a card cast 10 Faeria is a difficult task, because it has to DO something impactful while still remaining balanced. Nerissa manages to do that.

By Luu90

This card is pretty fantastic (and the art is hilariously cool). The flavorful merging of Green and Yellow is a nice touch, but the best part of this card is you understand exactly what it does the first time you read it. It’s a Tiki card so it buffs things. It’s a Vampire card so it drains stats.It’s effect is balanced for its cost yet seems powerful enough to include in any sacrifice deck.This card encourages players to build around it and gives yellow a competitive staple that offers alternative routes than simply going face. Well designed card.

By Blakmilk

Wow. We can already imagine the visual effect that comes attached to this card– a still purple mist hovering around the title, ready to consume anyone who enters.This card is a fantastic defensive tool for any deck and we love the strategic depth it brings. Is this card too strong though? -4/-2 is a very considerable debuff, and placing Stinging Mist’s near your god Orb seems nigh impenetrable for some decks. This is especially tough because the creature will likely survive the mist, but still block the title and deal measly damage or none at all! Yes, this card is powerful but not imbalanced. It’s so close though. It’s very hard to call but we love it anyway.

Congratulations to all of our winners! Prizes will be e-mailed shortly. Be on the look out for our next contest designers and, as always, thank you for all of your submission!