FUR: Vision Design, Pt VI: Set Skeleton Redux

     Welcome back to TwsitedSpoon Studio! Last week in our series on FUR, the custom Magic set about the festival of beast folk, we outlined the cycles that would be in the set. This week, as promised, we will reveal the set skeleton in all its glory!

    But... not yet.

    First, let's talk about something important: the difference between a set skeleton and a card file. When you're making your own Magic set, it's tempting to start creating cards right off the bat. That path leads only to disaster. A card set is a delicate machine with a lot of moving parts; small changes, especially at low rarities, can throw off the entire balance. In order to make sure that every card is fulfilling a purpose, it's important to step back and look at the overall structure of the set.

    Thankfully, most of the hard work is done for you. Mark Rosewater, praise be his name, released an article containing the exact same set skeleton that is given to new designers at Wizards. You can find that article here, and a condensed spreadsheet version that I made here. This will make sure that your set has enough cards of the right types and mana costs at common and uncommon. You can tweak it based on the needs of your set, as well as add your own mechanics in following the guidelines in my fourth Vision Design article for FUR. I'll also be releasing a more general guide in the future with clear step-by-step instructions.

    So, with that in mind, think of the set skeleton as the blueprint. The actual set will probably deviate from it a little bit, but the important thing is that it gives you a structure. This approach also helps you make sure you have enough of things like evasion and removal for gameplay to run smoothly. When you're filling out the skeleton, don't think of these as card designs-- they're more like design specifications. If you have a slot for "creature, first strike, 3 mana," don't pencil in "2W, 2/2, when this creature enters the battlefield, blah blah blah." Instead, leave it loose. When you make the card file, you might take a couple stabs at it. There can be multiple cards assigned to a slot, and you'll be able to pick the one that works best in the context of the set. It's hard to push that urge to design away, but it's essential at this stage.

    The advantage of this is that you can see what you've already done. You don't want to create multiple cards that feel the same. That creates confusion for your players, and also just makes gameplay same-y. Instead, try to create variety-- if the same effect appears multiple times, try putting it at different costs or combining it with other mechanics to help distinguish them. In FUR, crafting is paired with flying, vigilance, haste, and deathtouch in the different colors. The mana values are varied, and where they overlap, the mechanics help to distinguish them.

    Anyway, that feels like enough preamble. Are you ready?

Behold! The Set Skeleton!

    So, that's a lot of numbers and text, but what does it mean? Well, for each color, there are lists of mechanics-- some pulled from the Nuts and Bolts 13 set skeleton, and some from the set-- showing how many of those cards need to be present. The cycles are highlighted to make it clear why those cards are where they are. Where there were holes, I used those slots to tie into the themes of each archetype. If you look closely, there are also some deviations from the NNB13 skeleton-- for example, white has no team pump spell. That effect was moved to a creature to make room for the tradition cantrip. You can move and combine slots where necessary to make room for other cards-- that's where a lot of modal effects and enters-the-battlefield effects come from in many sets. Remember, the set skeleton is just a guideline; a good artist knows where to paint outside the lines.

    That's all for this week. If you've ever made a set skeleton before, or if you want to try it out as an experiment, feel free to drop a Google Sheets link in the comments below and share it with us. Or, if you've designed custom cards, leave a link to wherever you have them uploaded!

 

     Next week we're going to take a break from design to make time for another worldbuilding push, create a map of the environment and generate some proper nouns. The week after that, we'll fill in the card file and mockup some individual cards to discuss. If you're enjoying the series so far, or if you have different views on Magic design, feel free to leave a comment here or DM me on Reddit at u/notKingCole. Until next time, check out the 2018 experimental album This One's for the Dancer and This One's for the Dancer's Bouquet by Moonface.

See you soon!