Shadowmoor
From MTG Salvation Wiki
- For other uses, see Shadowmoor (disambiguation).
| ||
|---|---|---|
| Symbol | 
| |
| Design Team | Mark Rosewater (lead) Sean Fletcher Mark Gottlieb Devin Low Ken Troop | |
| Development Team | Aaron Forsythe (lead) Devin Low Alexis Janson Matt Place Jake Theis Steve Warner Doug Beyer | |
| Release Date | May 2, 2008 | |
| Mechanics | Hybrid mana, Untapping, -1/-1 counters | |
| Keywords/ Ability words | Conspire, Persist, Wither | |
| Size | 301 (121 Common 80 Uncommon 80 Rare 20 Land) | |
| Expansion Code | SHM | |
| Development Codename | Jelly | |
| Sets in Shadowmoor block | ||
| Shadowmoor | Eventide | |
| Magic: The Gathering Chronology | ||
| Morningtide | Shadowmoor | Eventide |
Shadowmoor is the forty-sixth Magic expansion and was released May 2, 2008, as the first set in the Shadowmoor block. Prerelease events were held April 19-20, 2008. Release events were held May 2-4, 2008.
Contents |
[edit] Set details
Shadowmoor takes hybrid, introduced in Ravnica to the next level by introducing "Monocolored Hybrid" cards.
[edit] Promotion cards
The promotional pre-release card for Shadowmoor is Demigod of Revenge[1] with alternate art, a card that emphasizes hybrid mana. The promotional release card for Shadowmoor is Vexing Shusher.[2]
[edit] Mechanics
Shadowmoor introduced the following mechanics:
- Conspire — As you play this spell, you may tap two untapped creatures you control that share a color with it. When you do, copy it.
- Persist — When this creature is put into the graveyard from play, if it had no -1/-1 counters on it, return it to play under its owner's control with a -1/-1 counter on it.
- Untap — A new untap symbol
with a cost allowing a permanent to be untapped to produce some effect as listed on the card. Primarily in white and blue.
- Wither — This deals damage to creatures in the form of -1/-1 counters. Primarily in red, black and green.
There are 17 scarecrows in Shadowmoor, 10 of which are part of 2 cycles and 1 is a scarecrow "lord".
[edit] Marketing cards
Like Morningtide boosters before them, boosters of Shadowmoor come with a bonus sixteenth card that is either a "rules card" or a creature token from Shadowmoor. One face of the Shadowmoor bonus card has one of six different rules tips or is one of twelve different creature tokens. The other face has one of six advertisements for organized play programs, Gleemax, fat packs and Eventide.
[edit] Tips & Tricks
The tips & tricks cards are "
is the Untap Symbol", "+1/+1 and -1/-1 counters", "
and 
Are Hybrid Mana Symbols", "Conspire", "Persist" and "Wither".
[edit] Tokens
The Shadowmoor tokens are:
- "1/1 Kithkin Soldier" produced by Repel Intruders
- "1/1 Spirit with flying" produced by Spectral Procession
- "1/1 Rat" produced by Plague of Vermin
- "1/1 Elemental" produced by Elemental Mastery
- "1/1 Elf Warrior" produced by Flourishing Defenses and Presence of Gond
- "1/2 Spider with reach" produced by Gloomwidow's Feast
- "2/2 Wolf" produced by Howl of the Night Pack
- "1/1 Faerie Rogue with flying" produced by Oona, Queen of the Fae
- "5/5 Elemental" produced by Din of the Fireherd
- "4/4 Giant Warrior with haste" produced by Giantbaiting
- "1/1 Goblin Warrior" produced by Wort, the Raidmother
- "1/1 Elf Warrior (green and white)" produced by Mercy Killing and Rhys the Redeemed
[edit] Cycles
Shadowmoor has 19 cycles:
- Allied-color hybrid-ability creatures: Each of these common monocolored creatures has an activated ability with a hybrid mana cost — Rune-Cervin Rider, Parapet Watchers, Loch Korrigan, Blistering Dieflyn, and Foxfire Oak.
- Basic land count spells: Each of these uncommon spells gains more power the more basic lands of the appropriate type you control — Armored Ascension, Flow of Ideas, Corrupt, Jaws of Stone, and Howl of the Night Pack.
- Cohorts: Each of these common creatures gains +1/+1 as long as you control another creature of its color — Ballynock Cohort, Briarberry Cohort, Ashenmoor Cohort, Mudbrawler Cohort, and Crabapple Cohort.
- Color-aligned scarecrows: Each of these common Scarecrow artifact creatures is matched with an allied pair of colors, gaining an ability if you control a creature of a specific color — Watchwing Scarecrow, Wingrattle Scarecrow, Rattleblaze Scarecrow, Blazethorn Scarecrow, and Thornwatch Scarecrow.
- Colored permanent count creatures: Each of these uncommon creatures costs
C and has P/T each equal to the number of permanents of their color you control — Kithkin Rabble, Faerie Swarm, Crowd of Cinders, Horde of Boggarts, and Drove of Elves.
- Duos: Each of these common hybrid creatures has one race and two classes each, and gains a bonus until the end of turn whenever you play a spell of one of its colors — Thistledown Duo, Gravelgill Duo, Emberstrike Duo, Tattermunge Duo, and Safehold Duo.
- Hate-enhanced spells: Each of these common spells has a greater effect against enemy colors — Inquisitor's Snare, Consign to Dream, Gloomlance, Ember Gale, and Gloomwidow's Feast.
- Hideaway creatures: Each of these rare creatures is the awakened form of one of the hideaway lands from Lorwyn, and has an ability that mirrors its land form — Windbrisk Raptor, Isleback Spawn, Hollowborn Barghest, Knollspine Dragon, and Mossbridge Troll.
- Hybrid conspire spells: Each of these common spells has conspire and has art depicting members of races introduced in Lorwyn — Æthertow, Memory Sluice, Traitor's Roar, Giantbaiting, Barkshell Blessing.
- Initiates: Each of these common 1/1 creatures allows you to pay
whenever a spell of its color is cast to gain an effect — Apothecary Initiate, Drowner Initiate, Smolder Initiate, Intimidator Initiate, and Nurturer Initiate.
- Mentors: Each of these uncommon creatures grants an ability to all creatures you control of their color — Resplendent Mentor, Deepchannel Mentor, Corrosive Mentor, Bloodmark Mentor, Roughshod Mentor.
- Monocolor conspire sorceries: Each of these common sorceries has conspire and has art depicting members of races new to Shadowmoor or Eventide — Mine Excavation, Ghastly Discovery, Disturbing Plot, Burn Trail, and Gleeful Sabotage.
- Monocolor hybrids: Each of these uncommon spells has a mana cost of {
/C}{/C}{/C}. The reminder text on these cards reads "{2/C} can be paid with any two mana or with C. This card's converted mana cost is 6." — Spectral Procession, Advice from the Fae, Beseech the Queen, Flame Javelin, and Tower Above.
- Rare persist creatures: Each of these rare creatures with persist has a powerful comes-into-play ability — Twilight Shepherd, River Kelpie, Puppeteer Clique, Furystoke Giant, and Woodfall Primus.
- Reflections: Each of these rare enchantments doubles a common event, and each is illustrated by the sister/brother team of Terese Nielsen and Ron Spencer — Boon Reflection (life gained), Thought Reflection (cards drawn), Wound Reflection (damage dealt), Rage Reflection (attacks), and Mana Reflection (mana).
- Unblockable hybrid creatures: Each of these common 3/3 creatures has a casting cost of HH, where H is an allied-color hybrid mana. They can't be blocked by creatures of their colors' shared enemy color — Barrenton Cragtreads, Wanderbrine Rootcutters, Sootwalkers, Mudbrawler Raiders, and Raven's Run Dragoon.
- Utility lands: Each of these uncommon lands has a basic land type, comes into play tapped, and can be tapped for one mana of its respective color in addition to another ability that can only be played if you control two or more permanents of the proper color — Mistveil Plains, Moonring Island, Leechridden Swamp, Madblind Mountain, and Sapseep Forest.
- Wisps: Each of these common cantrips changes a creature's color until the end of turn — Niveous Wisps, Cerulean Wisps, Aphotic Wisps, Crimson Wisps, and Viridescent Wisps.
- Witches: Each of these uncommon hybrid creatures as an ability that requires CD to play, where C and D are its colors — Mistmeadow Witch, Inkfathom Witch, Spiteflame Witch, Tattermunge Witch, and Seedcradle Witch.
Some cards are part of the seven Shadowmoor block mega cycles.
[edit] Reflections
Several cards from Shadowmoor were designed to reflect cards printed in Lorwyn and Morningtide, playing up the set's theme as a dark reflection of the world of Lorwyn:
Mechanical Reflections:
- Boggart Arsonists is a reflection of Boggart Loggers.
- Torture is a reflection of Daily Regimen.
- Hollowsage is a reflection of Fallowsage.
- Incremental Blight is a reflection of Incremental Growth.
- Kithkin Shielddare is a reflection of Kithkin Daggerdare.
- Kinscaer Harpoonist is a reflection of Kinsbaile Balloonist. Magicthegathering.com's Wallpaper of the Week featured a wallpaper of the two artworks together on May 30, 2008.[3]
Flavor Reflections:
- Mistmeadow Skulk is a reflection of Goldmeadow Dodger.
- Rhys the Redeemed is a reflection of Rhys the Exiled.
- Sygg, River Cutthroat is a reflection of Sygg, River Guide.
- Wort, the Raidmother is a reflection of Wort, Boggart Auntie.
- Graven Cairns is a reflection of Ancient Amphitheater.
- Fire-Lit Thicket is a reflection of Auntie's Hovel.
- Sunken Ruins is a reflection of both Wanderwine Hub and Rustic Clachan.
- Wooded Bastion is a reflection of Gilt-Leaf Palace.
[edit] Reprinted cards
The following cards have been reprinted from previous sets and included in Shadowmoor:
- Corrupt — was last seen in 7th Edition.
- Flow of Ideas — was last seen in Ravnica: City of Guilds.
- Graven Cairns — was last seen in Future Sight as a futureshifted card. It was included in Shadowmoor as part of a 5 card "hybrid land" cycle.
- Last Breath — was last seen in Mercadian Masques.
- Mistmeadow Skulk — was last seen in Future Sight as a futureshifted card.
- Reflecting Pool — was last seen in Tempest.
- Torture — was last seen in 5th Edition. It is one of the few cards from Magic's past that uses -1/-1 counters, one of Shadowmoor's themes.
[edit] Notable cards
- Firespout — A hybrid sorcery with a casting cost of
. This casting cost is cheaper then a 3 point Earthquake or Hurricane. If 
is spent to cast Firesprout then it deals 3 damage to each non-flying creature, if 
is spent to cast Firesprout then it deals 3 damage to each flying creature. Also, if is spent in the casting cost it deals 3 damage to all creatures - a very good bargain.
- Safewright Quest — A land tutor with a casting cost of
. It is also the first land tutor that can search for either a Forest or Plains specifically.
- Savor the Moment — This is the cheapest casting cost "take an extra turn" spell since Alpha's Time Walk, at just
but has the drawback of skipping the untap step of that turn.
- Smash to Smithereens — An improved version of the card Shatter, Smash to Smithereens also deals 3 damage to the artifact's controller.
- Strip Bare — At just
, this instant destroys all auras and equipment attached to a target creature.
[edit] Misprints
- Reflecting Pool — the white mana symbol was inserted into the text box of the premium version of the card, carried over from the premium Mistveil Plains.[4]
[edit] Theme decks
Shadowmoor is the first expansion set with 5 ally-colored theme decks. The preconstructed theme decks are:
| Theme deck name | |||||
| White | Blue | Black | Red | Green | |
| Army of Entropy | ■ | ■ | |||
| Aura Mastery | □ | ■ | |||
| Mortal Coil | ■ | ■ | |||
| Overkill | ■ | ■ | |||
| Turnabout | □ | ■ | |||
[edit] External links
- Official Shadowmoor Information Product Page — Magic: The Gathering
- "Announcing Shadowmoor", by "Magic Arcana", MTG.com, Thursday, October 4, 2007.
- Shadowmoor Minisite
- Shadowmoor Preview Booster Pack
[edit] References
- ↑ "Shadowmoor Prerelease Card", by "Magic Arcana", MTG.com, Monday, April 14, 2008.
- ↑ "Shadowmoor Launch Party Promo", by "Magic Arcana", MTG.com, Monday, April 28, 2008.
- ↑ "Wallpaper of the Week: Kinsbaile Balloonist/Kinscaer Harpoonist", by "Magic Arcana", MTG.com, Friday, May 30, 2008.
- ↑ "Ask Wizards", MTG.com, April 25, 2008
