We've got a super cool guest for our episode this week! Principal game designer on the new Teamfight Tactics season, Shawn Elizabeth Main!! Not only that, Shawn was the lead on Conspiracy, so you know we're getting some multiplayer Magic talk in too. These Design Crossover eps are all about learning a new game and then riding that wave of inspirati…

Unpacking is where we go through a pack one card at a time and learn what we can just from that pack. No archetype lists, no explanation of mechanics, just what's on the cards. It's a great way to both see what the packs can tell us, but also brainstorm things that COULD be in a set but aren't. (also shh... we told Bradley he was recording an ep ab…

We've got Bass back on the pod to tell us EVERYTHING about the short-lived Transformers TCG! This game burned short but burned bright. You start with your whole team in play, and each card has value both as a spell but also during the super cool "flip" phase of combat! Like all Crossover eps, we also sprinkle in plenty of ideas of how to cross thos…

Who needs to cast spells when you can sit back and let your creatures do the casting? Just the easy life for us! Fortunately our listeners didn't take it easy and instead submitted a baker's dozen creatures-that-cast spells cards for us to review. Join Beacon of Creation's Discord: https://discord.gg/t88Vpwh Show Notes: https://beaconofcreation.com…

We're back with a new crossover episode! Peter explains everything Tim needs to know about Wingspan, then they ride the wave of inspiration into a variety of mechanics for Magic! You don't need to know anything about Wingspan to listen (Tim didn't!) Join Beacon of Creation's Discord: https://discord.gg/t88Vpwh Show Notes: https://beaconofcreation.c…

Spurred by the idea of simultaneous combat, Peter and Tim delve into all the phases and steps of a turn! After honing our understanding of each one, we also break out into some free form ideas. Deleting the draw step? A "start turn" phase to match "end turn"? Multiplayer alternating main phase actions? Lots more discussed. Join Beacon of Creation's…

Juliet and Esper witness the carefully-designed majesty of magister sphinxes on the white-blue-black Esper shard, from its played-everywhere cards to possibly the worst card in all of Magic: The Gathering. Join Beacon of Creation's Discord: https://discord.gg/t88Vpwh Show Notes: https://beaconofcreation.com…

Moxtober is our yearly event where we design cards based on a daily, one-word prompt. What would you design for "Alpha" or "Trial"? Our community designed a ton of cards. This year, we're putting the spotlight on all our new submitters (plus a who came back!). Moxtober is for everyone and this episode is a celebration of that! New members in this e…

You all went quiet on us... but then came back! In the Going Ghost challenge, we asked for cards that blink out but take some time to come back. Plenty of spooky ghosts and funny flavor to be found in this ep! Join Beacon of Creation's Discord: https://discord.gg/t88Vpwh Show Notes: https://beaconofcreation.com…

Juliet and Mdub dig up the bones of Magic's Skeletons—from the ever-imitated Drudge Skeletons, to Skeletons that are Swamps, to modern Demilichs, not forgetting a number of cards that are clearly Skeletons in all but name. Along the way, we regenerate the design space for Skeletons of the future! Join Beacon of Creation's Discord: https://discord.g…

We're back again with a deep dive on the uncommon gold cards of the newest set! We're honing our instincts on the design of these types of cards, and talk about how to apply it to our own designs. Join Beacon of Creation's Discord: https://discord.gg/t88Vpwh Show Notes: https://beaconofcreation.com

You've got questions, we've got an episode! We've got a whopping twenty-five questions packed into this episode, so you better press play! Theme music by Dee Culp "Misty Bog" by Eric Maytas soundimage.org Join Beacon of Creation's Discord: https://discord.gg/t88Vpwh Show Notes: https://beaconofcreation.com…

We're putting on our finest outfits and securing our monocles as we review the "To the Nines" challenge review. You all submitted equipment, but you weren't allowed to use the Equip ability! We've got scarabs, fish, crowns and collars this week and it's all going to be fun! More Juliet content at https://www.twitch.tv/moonshotnetwork Join Beacon of…

Kayiu and Juliet tackle what makes designing for an IP swing or miss, covering Portal: Three Kingdoms and Chikyu: Ruined Future. Along the way, we break down some bad card design habits, some -1/-1 counter mechanics, Dynasty Warriors, a general acclaim for decayed, and a quick introduction to what makes Moxtober great! Juliet & Riley's Three Kingdo…

Our last pod about Design League 3 is here! We've got both league champ Prov and runner-up Brad here to talk about their process, the planes, and their ideas for the future! Be sure to catch our previous two league pods for some helpful context on this one. Recommendations Brad's twitch: https://www.twitch.tv/bradleyrose Prov recommends: watching s…

Two-thirds of the Squares that Cube podcast join the pod this week to break down YOUR submissions to our Octopus-Overloaded challenge, Eight Legs a Week! Will our six arms be enough?? Squares that Cube feed: https://www.buzzsprout.com/2298320 StC Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0rM876ypRLwnF7rodNaUAZ StC's Pacific NW drafters Discord: https:…

Our league finalists had to invent a whole standard deck, along with making up ideas for a variety of standard sets to go in it! This week is Provocative's entry, and you'll hear all about some new tokens, Rakdos planeswalkers, and why the sun is bad! Join our Discord: https://discord.gg/t88Vpwh Show Notes: https://beaconofcreation.com…

Our league finalists had to invent a whole standard deck, along with making up ideas for a variety of standard sets to go in it! This week is Bradley Rose's entry, and you'll learn about it along with us. Super exciting! Join our Discord: https://discord.gg/t88Vpwh Show Notes: https://beaconofcreation.com…

Calming beach views, cooking for your friends, and all the Magic you could want! Tim and guest Shobi make the case for taking out a whole weekend with friends for playing Magic. Too much? Or not enough? They also go through all the cool drafts they did over the course of three days of Magic. Shobi's show in Portland: https://www.funhouselounge.com/…

Bloomburrow's rules change to "enters" has us hungry for more! Can we shorten "once a turn", "flicker", "end of turn", and more? Join our tour of rules text minutiae. Join our Discord: https://discord.gg/t88Vpwh Show Notes: https://beaconofcreation.com

Bloomburrow is here! We've had a look at the archetypes, and it's time for us to break down the design of each of them. For that, we have our four categories: Excitement: Is this a cool new strategy? Do these two cards inspire us? Accuracy: Do we believe decks will actually be able to play this strategy? Synergy: Does this make unused cards great? …

This month's challenge is all about making a mana fixing card! Even better if we can get some heist flavor in there. From jewels to rads to chains we've got a pile of cards to dive into! Join our Discord: https://discord.gg/t88Vpwh Show Notes: https://beaconofcreation.com Music by Dee Culp

We're making good on June's "Halfway There" and designing cards to go with our favorite submissions from that challenge! Finding the right balance of flavor, deckbuilding, and explosive commander fun is a big challenge! Join our Discord: https://discord.gg/t88Vpwh Show Notes: https://beaconofcreation.com Music by Dee Culp…

Tim liked what he saw in Bloomburrow previews ordered up a frog burger with a side of flies and Juliet serves up the A-B-Cs of F-R-O-Gs! We talk a little Bloomburrow, dive deep on the history of frogs in Magic, then explore some design ideas for frogs in the future. Juliet's July/December Christmas pod: https://moonshotpods.com/ill-be-pod-for-castm…

Our competition, the Design League, just finished its first half. Come listen to the great cards designed for this competition. Along the way you'll also get the POV of both a competitor and a judge for the league. Join our Discord: https://discord.gg/t88Vpwh Show Notes: https://beaconofcreation.comAf Beacon of Creation