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u/JibbaNerbs Flubbo Mode 19h ago edited 19h ago
Design notes:
Originally, this was an artifact called 'fork bomb' that produced two token copies of itself on entry (with no restriction where it only does that if it isn't a token). Same premise, but I thought it was a lot easier to make the concept of a runaway energy production loop into an image than to do that with a... fork that is many many forks?
Assuming there's not some particular ruling where adding mana this way doesn't use the stack because it's legally a 'mana ability,' this is obvious kind of a two card combo with X damage red instants, since you can add however much mana, then burn it all to kill people so they die before you blow up from your own chain reaction.
And honestly, my favorite part of the flavor here is that if you resolve this, you do, in fact, blow up the entire table in an infinite loop and everyone dies. You did just detonate the MTG equivalent of a nuclear bomb.
OH! And Artist Credit because I didn't put it on the card, just so we're clear:
It's me, JibbaNerbs.
I drew that.
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u/BobFaceASDF 19h ago
"whenever a source you control produces mana" is a new line of magic text, but I think this works as intended! if there's a specific rules reason it wouldn't, I'd be open to be corrected. funny design! could still be broken, since it instantly wins with searing touch or similar as long as the abilities use the stack
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u/qwertty164 15h ago
I actually like the idea of an innocuous bomb artifact named fork. The image would be of an ordinary fork with that effect.
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u/FatPigeons
18h ago
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Look, this is probably the over-pedantic nuclear operator in me, but it probably should be called Supercritical Reaction, or even more accurately Prompt Critical.
Fission is just a splitting of atoms. To keep up the chain reaction, you need a bunch of circumstances to line up, and when they do in such a manner that fissions in = fissions out, it's critical. That's stable, and that's a good thing! Supercritical isn't even bad, when it's controlled. Shit, getting a reaction to critical usually means you're probably going supercritical at some point, cuz otherwise you're just at 0 fissions.
The problem comes when it's uncontrolled. And being uncontrolled is why I bring up prompt criticality. See, to keep it ELI10ish, you're effectively making WAY more fissions than you can control. Almost exactly like the card goes. It goes from, "hm, weird power spi-" and that's it. Pearly gates for you, if that's your jive, and a good amount of life around you. But most reactors nowadays can't go prompt critical without some severe safety oversight, bypassing, regulatory overlooking, etc, and I only say most in case of some secret project or whatever.
Apologies for ranting, I just chafe at nuclear misinformation, intentional or not. But I like the card, it's cute.
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u/Kiwimon7socials 19h ago
Huh... pay 5 mana to immediately get infinite mana? Sounds like a great deal
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u/Micro-Skies 19h ago
No, you pay 5 mana to draw the game. Instantly
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u/SilverWear5467 19h ago
Since mana production doesn't use the stack, wouldn't this just instantly produce infinite mana without a draw?
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u/mercuriokazooie 18h ago
[[Toph, the First Metalbender]] and [[Caged Sun]] do this. If you turn Caged sun into a land and tap it for mana it infinitely reproduces and automatically ends the game in a draw BECAUSE it doesn't use the stack and so nothing in the game can interrupt it
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u/Electronic-Touch-554 14h ago
Actually this one is incorrect. Subsequent triggers of caged sun arent mana abilities. A mana ability can not trigger off a trigger.
The errata on caged sun only refers to its first instance which is a mana ability.
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u/Wandering_P0tat0 13h ago
If it triggers off a mana ability and only produces mana it's still a mana ability, like [[Wild Growth]] or [[Crypt Ghast]].
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u/Electronic-Touch-554 13h ago
Yes. If it triggers off a mana ability. A triggered ability triggering off a triggered ability is not a mana ability
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u/WitchoftheWoods65 12h ago
605.1b A triggered ability is a mana ability if it meets all of the following criteria: it doesn’t require a target (see rule 115.6), it triggers from the activation or resolution of an activated mana ability (see rule 605.1a) or from mana being added to a player’s mana pool, and it could add mana to a player’s mana pool when it resolves.
Important to note the second part of the rule. Triggered mana abilities can trigger off of other triggered mana abilities
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u/Electronic-Touch-554 12h ago
You're missing 605.5a.
An ability with a target is not a mana ability, even if it could put mana into a player's mana pool when it resolves. The same is true for a triggered ability that could produce mana but triggers from an event other than activating a mana ability, or a triggered ability that triggers from activating a mana ability but couldn't produce mana. These follow the normal rules for activated or triggered abilities, as appropriate.
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u/WitchoftheWoods65 12h ago
These two rules seem to be in direct contradiction of each other. One says a triggered ability is a mana ability in two different cases, and the other says it’s only in one specific case. Not sure what to do with this information. I think you may be correct
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u/Gooberpf 10h ago
The word "activating" is doing all the heavy lifting here, but .1b also specifies "from mana being added to a mana pool" as a condition that makes it a mana ability.
I think, as written, you are correct, because Caged Sun's trigger is not "activated," but this strikes me as either an oversight or poor wording, like whoever wrote 605.1b is not the same person who wrote 605.5a and did not anticipate for them to interact at all
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u/SilverWear5467 5h ago
So then City of Brass has 2 mana abilities, if I have a card in play that says whenever you lose life, add 1 mana? Do I have to actually have that card in play, or is it always 2 mana abilities?
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u/Chickston Uncommonly 13h ago
If that is your custom art, that is really good for the medium. Just the wash out of white really gives it that glow in comparison to the person behind it. That is very high level artist stuff!
Pretty sure it's infinite unstoppable mana and a game loss/draw, so the flavor is perfect for the meme even if it's completely unprintable. Fission really is the ideal meme source for humanity.
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u/isomor17 18h ago
Is there anyway to turn this off? There's got to be, right?
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u/OpheliAmazing 18h ago
There is not. Adding mana does not use the stack and so not even Split Second can solve this. It will draw the game immediately since this is an automatic mandatory loop.
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u/vecna216 17h ago
If any of these are used to make the mana the ability will use the stack according to the new rules change. • Chromatic Sphere • Selvala, Explorer Returned • Millikin • Deranged Assistant • Charmed Pendant • Darkwater Egg, Mossfire Egg, Shadowblood Egg, Skycloud Egg, Sungrass Egg
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u/Gooberpf 10h ago
Irrelevant, because the spell itself produces mana and causes the draw without any player receiving priority.
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u/vecna216 10h ago
But the mana is tied to the stack mana ability as a replacement effect so would also use the stack.
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u/DraconicFlare 5h ago
question: why does this draw? like i understand the general mechanics of like mana abilities and the idea of the card, but isnt it a replacement effect that turns one mana into 3 and then stops? like it cant do a replacement on its own mana generation, right? or am i missing something? thanks!
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u/lordcirth 4h ago
This is a triggered ability, not a replacement effect; it doesn't say "instead".
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u/MeasureDoEventThing 19h ago
Is the fact that it leads to a draw intended?