Magic: The Conquering
August 30th, 2010
Hello, and welcome to Dark Designs. This week, I’m going to try my hand once again at doing some design work for Magic: the Gathering. Well, okay, I’m lying. There’s no design work going into this article. Instead, I’m going to put up a Magic format which Necromancers of the Northwest put together for Wizards’ Summer of Multiplayer. If you’re not a Magic: the Gathering fan this article probably won’t do much for you, but if you are, I strongly recommend you give this format a try, because it was the most fun playtesting something I’ve had in quite a while. So, without further ado…
Magic: the Conquering
(or Conquistador Magic)
Introduction
In Magic: the Conquering, players take on the role of planeswalkers or powerful sorcerers, but unlike other forms of magic, they have little interest in travelling the blind eternities. Rather, planeswalkers in Magic: the Conquering vie for control of a continent ripe for the plucking: plundering resources and dominating the natives, all the while locked in a deadly race to see who among them will come out on top in this brave new world.
Materials
In order to play a game of Magic: the Conquering, you’ll need a natives deck (explained below), a treasures deck (explained below), a 40-card deck for each player (with special restrictions, see below), a large stack of lands, and some way of keeping track of gold. Coins, poker chips, or bottlecaps work well for this, and help remind people to pay their gold costs, which can sometimes be easy to forget. Alternatively, players can use dice or pen-and-paper to keep track of their gold. This makes it easier to see at a glance how much gold a character has at any time. Either way, players will need to be able to keep track of their gold.
The Natives Deck
The natives deck should consist of between 40-80 creature cards, of all colors. These creatures should run the gamut from one-drops to much more expensive creatures, with the majority of the creatures having a converted mana cost between 3 and 5. At least ¼ of the creatures included should either be fliers or be able to block fliers, as otherwise fliers become very powerful in this format. Additionally, if your group is likely to have many creatures with shadow, a number of the natives should either have shadow or be able to block creatures with shadow.
Although the natives serve primarily as guardians for the treasures (see below), meaning they will be controlled by the NPC (see below) and unable to attack or use activated abilities, they can also be hired as mercenaries (also below), so don’t assume that such abilities or other offensive features will be a waste.
A sample list of natives is included in Appendix 1: Sample Natives
The Treasures Deck
This deck should consist of 20-40 non-creature artifacts and non-aura enchantments, the actual number equal to roughly ½ of the number of cards in the natives deck. The enchantments can be of any color, and the converted mana cost of the treasures should range from one-drops up to higher amounts, with most treasures possessing a converted mana cost between 2 and 6. Be sure to pick treasures which feel exciting to have, but which will not overly unbalance the game. Also avoid treasures which affect the entire board equally, as it should make a difference which player controls the treasure.
A sample list of treasures is included in Appendix 2: Sample Treasures
Players’ Decks
Each player should have a deck of 40 or more non-land cards. Other than the prohibition of lands, and the format’s banned list (see below), a player may build his deck as he chooses. Though Magic: the Conquering is not designed with formats like Elder Dragon Highlander or Pauper in mind, such formats could probably be merged with Magic: the Conquering with relative ease.
Lands
The land deck should contain at least 10 times as many lands as there are players (ie. 40 for 4 players, etc), and ideally more than that. The lands need not all be basic lands (in fact, none of them need to be) but all colors should be represented roughly equally.
Using Gold
Gold is a new resource for Magic: the Conquering, which has a variety of uses in this format. Players generate gold from the empires that they create, and can gain more gold by exploiting the natural resources of the territory being conquered in the game, or by selling off the valuable treasures they acquire during the game. Gold can be used to hire mercenaries, or converted into raw mana or card draws. Additionally, players can barter with each other using gold or other resources.
A player’s total gold is referred to as his or her “treasury.” Gold is not a permanent, and is more akin to life, but cannot be targeted by either spells which target permanents or spells which cause loss of life.
Earning Gold
Each player begins the game with 10 gold. At the beginning of each exploration stage (see below), each player puts X gold in his or her treasury, where X is the number of non-land, non-token permanents he or she controls, excluding hired mercenaries (this does not refer to the creature type, see below).
Additionally, in a game of Magic: the Conquering, all lands gain “Tap, put an exploitation counter on this permanent: add 1 gold to your treasury. Play this ability as a sorcery.” and “When this permanent has 5 or more pillage counters on it, sacrifice it.”
Players can also sell any treasures they gain control of (see below) to gain extra gold. In addition to their other abilities, all treasures have “Tap, exile this permanent: add X gold to your treasury, where X is ½ this permanent’s converted mana cost, rounded down. Play this ability as a sorcery.”
Finally, whenever a creature would deal combat damage to a player, its controller may choose to have it deal no combat damage and instead “steal” an amount of gold equal to the damage it would have dealt. “Stolen” gold is removed from the defending player’s treasury and added to the treasury of the controller of the attacking creature.
Spending Gold
Players may spend 10 gold to draw a card. This ability is played as a sorcery.
Players may spend 4 gold to add 1 mana of any color to their mana pool. This ability is played as a mana source.
Each round, players bid gold to determine who will go first and who will get first pick of lands (see below).
Finally, gold is used to hire mercenaries (see below).
Unless gold is specifically changing hands between players (such as when players barter amongst each other or when a player steals gold from another player) the gold that a player “pays” is simply lost, and is not given to other players.
Barter
Gold can also be used to facilitate trade between different players. In Magic: the Conquering, players may “buy” and “sell” non-creature permanents with each other, bartering with gold, or with promises of favors. Creatures cannot be traded in this way, nor can cards in a players’ hand, library, or graveyard, though players can barter in exchange for spells to be cast in a certain way. The only time permanents can be exchanged in this fashion is during the Auction Phase of the Exploration Stage (see below), but agreements about such exchanges (and the exchange of services and gold) can occur at any time.
Example: Timmy offers to pay five gold to Spike in exchange for not countering his Spirit of the Night. Next turn, Johnny trades his Plains for Vorthos’ Island, playing a Master Transmuter. Spike, knowing the danger that the transmuter presents, offers to pay Timmy five gold to cast Terror on Johnny’s Master Transmuter, but he cannot barter for the Terror card itself.
Getting Started
All decks (the native deck, the land deck, the treasures deck, and each player’s deck) should be shuffled, and each player should draw five cards, taking any mulligans as normal. Each player is given 10 gold, and then the Exploration Stage begins.
Example: Vorthos, Melvin, Timmy, Johnny, and Spike are all playing Magic: the Conquering. After all of the decks are shuffled, each draws a hand of five cards, receives 10 gold, and then moves on to the Exploration Stage.
The Exploration Stage
The biggest difference between Magic: the Conquering and Magic: the Gathering is the exploration stage, during which each of the various player-empires expands outwards, gaining access to new lands, meeting new natives, and possibly discovering priceless treasures.
Income Phase
The Exploration Stage begins with the Income Phase, during which each player gains a number of gold equal to the number of non-land, non-token permanents he or she controls, excluding mercenaries, as explained above under Earning Gold.
Example: Each player begins play with 10 gold in his or her treasury. Several turns later, Timmy has seven lands, a Baneslayer Angel, two goblin tokens, and a Raging Goblin. The Baneslayer Angel is a mercenary, and doesn’t count towards his income. Neither do the lands or the goblin tokens, so Timmy’s income is only 1 gold that turn.
Landgrab Phase
After the Income Phase is the Landgrab Phase. X cards are revealed from the top of the land deck, where X is the number of players in the game. Once each player has had a chance to see all of the lands, players begin bidding for the right to have first pick of lands. Whoever gets first pick of lands also gets to take his or her turn first (at least until the next Exploration Stage). Once a winner has been determined, he or she takes the land of his or her choice, which comes into play under his or her control immediately. If a land has any “comes into play” effects, including coming into play tapped or requiring that a land be sacrificed when it comes into play, they are still triggered. Then each other player, going around the table clockwise, takes a land of his or her choice in the same manner. Once all the lands have been claimed, the Landgrab Phase is over.
As long as each player controls at least 3 lands, the Landgrab Phase operates somewhat differently: at the beginning of the Landgrab Phase, roll a die. The exact type of die depends on the number of players currently in the game, as listed below:
| Players | Die Type |
| 3 | d4 |
| 4-5 | d6 |
| 6-7 | d8 |
| 8-10 | d12 |
| 11+ | d20 |
If the result of the die roll is equal to or less than the number of players currently in the game, then the Landgrab Phase operates as normal, except that the number of lands revealed is equal to the number on the die, rather than the number of players (meaning that some players may not get a land).
If the result of the die roll is greater than the number of players currently in the game, then no lands are revealed this turn. Players still bid to determine who will go first for this round.
Example: On the first turn, five lands are revealed, one for each player. Spike bids 7 gold for first pick, and no one is willing to pay more than that, so Spike gets first pick, choosing a Swamp. Johnny, the player to his left, goes next, picking an Island. This continues around the table until each player has a single land.
Several turns later, each player has three or more lands. At the beginning of the phase, Melvin rolls a d6, getting a 4. Four lands are revealed from the top of the lands deck. Spike bids 9 gold for first pick, and no one is willing to pay more than that, so he goes first, choosing a Mountain. Johnny goes next, choosing an Island. Timmy, the player to Johnny’s left, goes third, picking a Forest. Vorthos is next, taking the final land, a Plains. Melvin, the fifth player clockwise from Spike, does not take a land this turn.
Discovery Phase
After the Landgrab Phase is the Discovery Phase. At the beginning of the Discovery Phase, roll two d6: one for natives and one for treasures. For games with larger numbers of players, more dice should be rolled, up to 1 die roll per four players (so a game with 8 players could have two rolls for natives and two rolls for treasures, and a game with 12 players could have three rolls for natives and three rolls for treasures, etc).
If the natives roll is a 4 or less, reveal a card from the top of the Natives deck and put it into play under the control of the NPC (see The NPC, below).
If the treasure roll is a 2 or less, reveal a card from the top of the Treasures deck and put it into play under the control of the NPC (see The NPC, below).
Example: Melvin rolls two dice, one for the natives and one for the treasures. If there were eight players he would roll more dice, but with only five players, only a single die is rolled for each. The natives die comes up a 3, which is a success, so Melvin reveals the top card of the natives deck, a Cudgel Troll, and puts it into play under the control of the NPC. The treasures die comes up a 4, which is a failure, so Melvin doesn’t reveal a treasure this turn.
Auction Phase
During the last phase of the Exploration Stage, the Auction Phase, players can hire mercenaries from among the creatures controlled by the NPC. Beginning with the player who won the bidding during the Landgrab Phase, each player may declare his or her intention to hire a specific mercenary. Other players can respond to this as normal. If another player wishes to hire the mercenary, he or she can offer a higher price, in gold. Bidding continues until a winner is decided, and that player pays the appropriate amount of gold. The winning bidder then gains control of the mercenary (see below). This process is repeated until no players want to hire a mercenary.
The auction phase is also the only time during which players can exchange control of permanents via barter (see Barter, above).
Example: Timmy declares that he wants to hire the Cudgel Troll, grabbing the 4 gold required to do so. Spike also wants the troll, however, and puts up 5 gold of his own. Timmy is determined, though, and increases his bid to 6. Spike may want the troll, but he doesn’t want it that bad, so he backs off. Timmy gains control of the Cudgel Troll as a mercenary. There are no more mercenaries available for hire, so the phase ends.
Gameplay
After the Exploration Stage is over, each player takes his or her turn, just like in Magic: the Gathering, except that the first player is always the player who won the bidding during the Landgrab Phase (meaning that which player plays first will change from round to round). Once each player has taken his or her turn (and any extra turns which were accrued due to spells or effects), the Exploration Stage begins anew. Note that unlike in normal Magic, the player who takes the first turn still draws a card.
The NPC
In Magic: the Conquering, there are times when permanents are in play without being controlled by any players. These are the natives and the treasures, revealed during the discovery phase. As far as the game rules are concerned, these permanents are controlled and owned by the NPC, a non-player entity. Most of the time this doesn’t matter, but when players begin interacting with the NPC’s permanents (targeting them with spells or attacking the NPC to steal treasures, see below) it can become important. Generally speaking, all you need to remember is that all of the natives who aren’t currently hired as mercenaries, and all of the treasures that aren’t controlled by anyone else, are controlled and owned by the NPC.
Activated Abilities
The NPC never uses the activated abilities of its permanents, even ones with “0” as their cost. The NPC does use the triggered abilities of its permanents, however, and always does so, even if the ability says “may,” and even if it would be detrimental to the NPC to do so. Constant abilities (such as Honor of the Pure) are also active while the permanent is under the control of the NPC.
Life
The NPC has no life score. Players can attack the NPC as though it were a player, though if a spell or effect would cause the NPC to gain or lose life, instead it doesn’t. The NPC cannot lose or win the game for any reason, and players do not need to kill the NPC to win the game for being the last player standing (as the NPC is not a player). If a spell or effect cares about the life total of each player (such as Repay in Kind), the NPC is not counted.
Graveyard
The NPC has two separate graveyards: one for the treasures deck and one for the natives deck. When a card would be put into the NPC’s graveyard, if it is a treasure, it goes in the treasure graveyard. Otherwise, it goes in the natives graveyard. If a spell or effect refers to the NPC’s graveyard, that spell or effect’s controller chooses which graveyard is referred to.
Hand
The NPC does not have a hand. If the NPC would draw a card, instead it doesn’t. Any spell or effect which would return a permanent to the NPC’s hand instead puts that permanent on top of the treasure deck (if the permanent is a treasure) or the natives deck (if it isn’t).
Library
The NPC does not have a library, and neither the natives deck nor the treasures deck is a library. If a spell or effect would search the NPC’s library, remove cards from the NPC’s library, reveal cards from the NPC’s library, exile the NPC’s library, or shuffle the NPC’s library, instead it doesn’t. If a spell or effect would put a permanent on top of the NPC’s library, it instead puts it on top of the treasures deck (if the permanent is a treasure) or the natives deck (if it isn’t).
Turns
The NPC does not take turns, meaning it has neither an upkeep nor an end step (though effects which trigger on each player’s upkeep or “the next” end step would still trigger on other players’ turns). If a spell or effect would cause the NPC to take an additional turn, instead it doesn’t.
Complicated Situations
If a situation arises in which the NPC is forced to make a decision (such as a player casting Diabolic Edict on the NPC) a vote is held to elect a steward for the NPC for this in particular instance. If a tie or other deadlock is reached, a steward is instead decided randomly, using a die or similar. The steward makes all of the NPC’s decisions for that in particular incident, and does not need to act in the best interest of the NPC. Each time a new incident arises which requires the NPC to make a decision, a new steward is determined (once a player has been removed from the game, that player can become the permanent steward for the NPC, if he or she so chooses).
In the case of a combat situation, while the steward is allowed to decide how the NPCs creatures block, he or she cannot choose to have them not block. Each creature the NPC controls blocks each turn if able.
Example: Vorthos casts Diabolic Edict on the NPC player, who has a Stormfront Pegasus, a Leatherback Baloth, and a Marble Chalice. In order to determine who will get to decide which creature the NPC sacrifices, the players hold a vote. Vorthos wants to make the decision himself, hoping to kill off the pegasus and allow his Kelinore Bats to attack unblocked, allowing him to steal the Marble Chalice for himself. Johnny, who has his own designs on the chalice and doesn’t want Vorthos to get it, also wants to make the decision. Melvin, Timmy, and Spike are largely unconcerned, but leaning towards Johnny over Vorthos. Once Vorthos offers some hefty bribes to Spike and Timmy, however, they change their vote, letting Vorthos make the decision. He has the NPC sacrifice the pegasus, snatching the chalice for later.
Later, Timmy attacks the NPC, who has a Giant Spider and a Serra Angel as defenders, with a Raging Goblin and a Darksteel Colossus. Timmy is hoping that both creatures will block his Darksteel Colossus, while his goblin sneaks past them to get at the NPC’s treasure, an Obelisk of Esper. Johnny is elected as the steward, however, and he has the spider block the goblin and the angel block the colossus, preventing Timmy from getting the treasure and getting rid of the pesky angel in the process.
Treasures
“Treasure” is a new supertype used only in Magic: the Conquering. Any card or permanent which was in the treasures deck at the beginning of the game gains the “treasure” supertype, and has it through the entirety of the game. Leaving and returning to play does not remove the “treasure” supertype, though any spell or effect which can remove or change a supertype can remove or change the “treasure” supertype. The “treasure” supertype has no effect on the card, except when determining which NPC deck or graveyard the card goes into (see above), and that only treasures can be exchanged for gold. Note that if a player has a card with the same name as a card which has the treasure supertype (for example if both the treasures deck and a player’s deck has a copy of Wurm’s Tooth) only the card which began the game in the treasures deck has the “treasure” supertype.
Acquiring Treasures
In order to acquire treasures, a player must attack the NPC. If, at the end of any combat step, at least one creature would have dealt combat damage to the NPC this turn, that creature’s controller may gain a single treasure that the NPC controls. If the NPC has no treasures in play, the player gets nothing. If the NPC has more than one treasure in play, which treasure the player gets is determined randomly.
When a player steals a treasure in this way, the treasure leaves play and returns to play under the control of the player who stole it, triggering any “comes into play” effects.
Example: Spike attacks the NPC with a Boros Swiftblade and a Glory Seeker. The NPC has no creatures, so the attackers sail through unchallenged. Even though two creatures would have dealt combat damage, and the Boros Swiftblade would have dealt it twice, Spike only gets a single treasure, a Riptide Laboratory.
Treasures and Player Death
Treasures have special rules which apply when their controller loses or is otherwise removed from the game. If a treasure’s controller loses the game due to loss of life, and that life loss was caused by combat damage, or if the treasure’s controller loses the game due to a special rule which requires being dealt combat damage (for example Phage the Untouchable’s ability), then the player who controls the source of the combat damage immediately gains control of all treasures which the defending player controlled at the time they lost the game.
Example: Timmy attacks Vorthos with Phage the Untouchable, casting Infiltrate to make her unblockable. Vorthos is unable to do anything about the attack, and so he loses the game as a result of Phage’s ability. Timmy immediately gains control of Vorthos’ only treasure: a Sword of Fire and Ice.
Later, Timmy attacks Melvin with a Baneslayer Angel who has equipped the Sword of Fire and Ice. The Baneslayer Angel reduces Melvin to 2 life, and Timmy uses the sword’s triggered ability to deal 2 damage to Melvin. Melvin loses the game, but because he wasn’t killed with combat damage, his treasures revert to their previous owner, the NPC (see Ownership and Player Death, below).
Mercenaries
“Mercenary” is a new supertype used only in Magic: the Conquering. Any creature which is hired during the Auction Phase of the Exploration Stage gains the mercenary supertype as soon as it is controlled by the hiring player. The mercenary supertype has the special rules that each turn, during his or her upkeep, a mercenary’s controller must pay ½ the mercenary’s converted mana cost (rounded up) in gold. If the mercenary has additional upkeep costs, these still apply. If a player chooses not to pay a mercenary, that creature leaves play and immediately returns to play under the control of the NPC, losing the mercenary supertype. If a mercenary is destroyed, it is put in the NPC’s graveyard, rather than the graveyard of its controller, and it loses the mercenary supertype and is no longer controlled by that player. In general, if a mercenary leaves play for any reason, it loses the mercenary supertype, meaning that if a mercenary leaves and is returned to play under its owner’s control, it will lose the mercenary supertype.
Hiring Mercenaries
Players can hire mercenaries during the Auction Phase of the Exploration Stage by choosing a creature controlled by the NPC and paying an amount of gold equal to the creature’s mana cost.
Example: Spike hires a Kitchen Finks as a mercenary, paying 3 gold initially. It doesn’t leave play or return to play, however, so its “comes into play” ability is not triggered. At the beginning of each of his upkeeps, Spike pays 2 gold to maintain control of the Kitchen Finks. Later, his Kitchen Finks is thrown in front of Timmy’s Craw Wurm attacker. It dies, and is placed into the NPC’s graveyard. It loses the mercenary supertype and is no longer controlled by Spike. At the end of the turn its persist ability triggers, and it returns to play under the NPC’s control, triggering its “comes into play” ability.
Later, Timmy hires a Lord of the Pit as a mercenary, paying 7 gold initially, and 4 gold on each of his upkeeps, in addition to the Lord of the Pit’s normal upkeep of sacrificing a creature. Once Timmy declares that he is attacking with the Lord of the Pit however, Johnny casts Boomerang, returning the Lord of the Pit to Timmy’s hand. Once Timmy replays the Lord of the Pit it is no longer a mercenary, and he won’t have to pay its gold upkeep, but he will have to pay its normal upkeep of sacrificing a creature.
Still later, Melvin hires a Shivan Dragon as a mercenary, paying 6 gold initially and 3 gold each upkeep. After two turns, Melvin decides he no longer needs the dragon, and stops paying its upkeep. The Shivan Dragon immediately leaves play, loses the mercenary supertype, and returns to play under the control of the NPC.
Ownership
In Magic: the Conquering, for the purposes of the rules, any time a player gains or loses control of a permanent due to stealing a treasure from the NPC, hiring a mercenary, bartering with other players, or bidding on a land, the player gaining control of the permanent is not only considered the permanent’s controller, but also its owner.
Other spells or effects which cause players to gain control of permanents (such as Act of Treason, Mind Control, etc) do not change the permanent’s owner. Only things which change controllers due to the special rules for Magic: the Conquering cause change in ownership.
This change in ownership is not permanent, and at the end of the game each player should get back all the cards he or she actually owns. This rule exists only to address interactions with cards such as Brand.
Ownership and Player Death
Permanents which have exchanged ownership during the course of the game revert to their last previous owner when their current owner leaves the game. The exception to this rule is permanents with the “treasure” supertype, which sometimes become owned by the player who killed their current owner (see treasures and player death, above).
Banned List
The following cards are banned in Magic: the Conquering, in addition to the normal banned list for your format/playstyle.
- Goblin Charbelcher
- Mind Funeral
- Rally the Horde
- Treasure Hunt
Restricted List
The following cards are restricted in Magic: the Conquering, in addition to the normal restricted list for your format/playstyle.
- Chaos Harlequin
- Coalition Victory
- Goblin Guide
- Hellcarver Demon
Appendix 1: Sample Natives
The following is a recommended list for an interesting natives deck. The cards have been drawn from the pool of cards which will be Extended-legal with the release of Scars of Mirrodin, but without the cards in Magic 2011 or Scars of Mirrodin, which we do not have access to. The list is singleton, for wider variety, but natives decks do not have to be singleton.
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Appendix 2: Sample Treasures
The following is a recommended list for an interesting treasures deck. The cards have been drawn from the pool of cards which will be Extended-legal with the release of Scars of Mirrodin, but without the cards in Magic 2011 or Scars of Mirrodin, which we do not have access to. The list is singleton, for wider variety, but treasures decks do not have to be singleton.
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And there you have it. Hopefully you're as excited about going out and playing some Magic: the Conquering as I am. Now that I've gotten a chance to see M11, I really wish we'd had it around when we were writing up those appendices, because there's some great treasures (and mercenaries) in there. In any event, be sure to stop in next time, when I promise I won't just talk about Magic: the Gathering all day. Until then, may your treasuries be full to bursting.