So I've been working with a new rule set for magic and after much tweaking it's turned into a TCG style game. I'm happy with that but I lack the creative genius and brainpower to start making a balanced set of cards to play around with. I also would like input on how to revise and clarify my new rule set. So without further ado, I give you...
Wizards Did It!A TCG by S.K. Ren
Spells
Each spell has 3 primary attributes. The Draw, Speed and Focus
The Draw - The Draw is the flow of Arcane Power (AP) inherent in the spell. Spells will either add or remove AP from you. You cannot cast spells you do not have enough AP for.
Upkeep - Upkeep usually accompanies persistent effects such as powerful enchantments or summons. It drains AP each turn until you can no longer support the effect at which point it dissipates.
Speed – The Speed of the card is used to determine combat initiative as well as how various cards can counter each other.
Focus - The Focus of a spell is a keyword that dictates what enchantments and artifacts affect the spells performance. The focus will either be an element or a school of magic. While there are no hybrid foci, it is possible to change the focus of a spell with another spell.
There are 3 categories of spells. There are your standard Sorcery cards, High Sorcery cards and Ritual Cards.
• Sorcery cards make up the majority of card types from basic fireballs to summoning imps. They tend to have a higher Draw than Casting cost.
• High Sorcery cards require a setup to be used; usually by casting different focused cards in order. They tend to have very low Draws and high Casts
• Rituals have a much larger and more specific requirement. Once cast, rather than being thrown into the Well (Discard Pile), they are removed from play. Rituals tend to have very powerful effects which can greatly influence if not outright end a battle. Rituals have no Draw value and have a wide range of Cast values, with higher Casts being more powerful.
A Spell can have an assortment of effects divided into two categories: Cast and Enchantment.
Cast – This effect only comes into play when a card is first cast. If a spell is kept in play due to an enchantment effect, this effect does not reactivate on subsequent turns.
Enchantment - Not all spells have an Enchantment effect but those that do provide small bonuses to the battlefield. Some are persistent and require upkeep.
Artifacts
Artifacts - Unlike spells, artifacts remain in play until destroyed or discarded. They can have a Draw and/or a Cast as well. Artifacts also have enchantments which will offer various boosts to your own spells, penalties to your opponents or simply provide a passive Draw/Cast effect.
There are currently two types of Artifacts: Seals and Crests. Each represents magical enchantments on a variety of equipment.
• Seals tend to have a higher Cast than Draw. Seals will typically have enchantments which reduce or shield yourself from harm or hinder your opponents casting ability.
• Crests have a higher Draw than Cast. Their effects typically range from boosting your offensive spells to sabotaging your opponents’.
You can only have one seal and crest active at one time.
Corruption
Corruption is a result of large amounts of AP. At the end of each turn, the player takes 1 point of damage per 20 AP stored up to 100 (5 damage).
Special Abilities
Various Spells and Artifacts have special abilities, denoted by keywords. Among them are:
Rebound - After casting the spell roll 1d6. On a 1, the spell returns to the players hand instead of going to the Well. On a 6, the player suffers damage equal to the cards draw value.
Counter (Focus) – When used to block or is blocked by a (Focus) spell, it automatically nullifies the spell and inflicts an additional effect.
Shield (X) – Blocks X amount of damage
Deck Composition
Card Restrictions - There are only 3 classes of cards that are restricted: Artifacts, High Sorcery and Rituals. Artifacts may only have one copy each in any given deck. Rituals on the other hand are limited to 1 Ritual in the entire deck. High Sorcery is limited to one for every thirty cards in a deck.
Deck Size - A deck can be of any size as once the deck runs out it is simply reshuffled. However some cards instead of being put into the Well are instead removed from play such as Rituals and destroyed Artifacts.
Game Play
Play consists of rounds where players attempt to reduce each others' life, starting at 50, to 0.
Play Phases - Each round consists of several phases. From start to finish there is the Draw Phase, Action Phase, and Upkeep Phase.
• The Draw Phase is where any passive Draws are added to your AP pool and you draw one additional card form your deck. By default, you may have up to 10 cards in your hand at a time. If at any time your hand reaches 0, you may draw 5 cards in the next Draw Phase instead of 1.
• • The Action Phase is where you select what cards you wish to play that round. You may cast as many as you have AP to support.
• The Upkeep Phase takes into account all the enchantments you have active. If you are supporting multiple enchantments but are lacking the AP to support them all, you can choose which ones to support and which to let go. The Priority for upkeep is Artifacts > Spells. Artifact upkeep is mandatory; however you do not have to remove the artifact if you cannot support it. Your AP will simply be set to zero, this unfortunately results in you not being able to support spells.*
Combat – Once both players have selected their cards for the round, combat begins. [[]]. Combat exchanges work in stacks; after the first player chooses his card, the second may choose to counter it or standby. If s/he chooses to standby, the stack is resolved. If only one player played in the last round, the second player begins the next. Otherwise the player who played the fastest card of the last two cards played begins the next round. Stacks are resolved from the top down, mitigating or nullifying the spells below until it’s completely resolved.
Spells that deal damage can be used to attack or block your opponent’s spells. Once the first exchange is over, players reveal their next card if available and repeat till combat is concluded.
Blocking – Spells with an attack value or with the counter ability can be used to block other attack spells. You can only block a spell with an equal or faster speed (0 being fastest and 10 being slowest). You can also only block with a spell with a spell of the same or opposing focus including spells with the appropriate counter ability.
When blocking with another attack spell, subtract their attack powers from each other and the one with damage remaining inflicts it on the opposing player.
*Requires better wording
Edit: Well I've reduced the more complex parts of the rules. Still needs some tweaking so give me your thoughts.
I hope that's everything. Please, give me your thoughts.