You don't fight with honor! - No; he did.
Posted Jul 21, 2016, 3:44 PM UTC
124
If you want the -X/-X to happen before the fight does, you have to word it as a replacement effect. Otherwise they fight and then the creature gets -X/-X.
Also, since the number of +1/+1 counters on the enchanted creature could change form the initial value of X (for various reasons), I would recommend rewording it to:
If enchanted creature would fight another creature, that creature gets -1/-1 for each +1/+1 counter on enchanted creature and then fights enchanted creature instead.
2
Solid advice, thank you!
2
I don't feel like I get the flavor right from this card because theoretically I could pay enough mana and just make my creature huge. Then the "dirty fighting" doesn't matter because my creature is gigantic and could defeat other creatures anyways.
You could re-do it like this:
In that case we lose the buff, which is kind of unusual for black anyways, and still weaken people he's fighting. Now a weak creature can take down a strong one, as opposed to before where a weak creature got stronger and then beat whoever.
Or another option
I'm sure there is better wording for this but basically you weaken and then fight them. Seems pretty dirty.
You might also consider splashing red because there aren't many black cards that fight.
All good points, but you don't really have all of the information surrounding this card. So, for context:
This card is part of a cycle of XXC spells. The idea behind them is to have them be fair, good, or even rather weak at low casting costs, scaling to bonkers at high casting costs.
It is also part of a multiplayer draft set I am building (similar to Conspiracy) that has a "fights matter" subtheme in Jund colors. I would normally just make it "blocks or becomes blocked" if it weren't for that subtheme.
Keeping those two points in mind, the title of it is less important, and is open to change, but what I am trying to establish is that any time this particular character gets in a scuffle (blocking, attacking, or fighting) he quickly gains the upper hand. Black doesn't get access to first strike very often, and lifelink isn't quite right, so my thinking was that a scaling power swing would illustrate it reasonably well.
I figure, in a multiplayer draft setting, most people aren't going to get this off for much more than 4B, which will only get them +2/+2. Now, granted, he can kill a 2/2 just by declaring a blocker, or fighting it, but that was kind of my point: I wan't these Dirty Tactics to act as indirect removal. (This card represents on of the most effective killers in the series)
My other thoughts were to give the opposing creature -X/-X equal to the enchanted creature's power, because that gives a player a reason to cast it for just B (no +1/+1 counters, but you still get some -X/-X) but that seems a little unbalanced when you can sink some mana into it, and also feels less in line with the cycle.
I haven't splashed red into it because there should be enough Fight in the set without this card needing to instigate a fight (the character usually fights in self defense, or defense of his employer) and because it doesn't fit the cycle.
Previously, the black card in this cycle was different, but I am experimenting with changing the card types in the cycle.
Thanks for your feedback! I hope you have time to comment on this further!