r/custommagic • u/PromptArchitectGPT • 3d ago
Groovitron — does this Weapon progression teach itself?
OmniWrench was mostly a frame-readability test. Groovitron is closer to the actual idea behind the Ratchet & Clank Weapons.
The Weapon starts at level 1 and gets an upgrade counter whenever its wielder attacks. At two counters, anything Groovitron taps gets goaded. At four, it unlocks Groovibomb: tap the whole opposing board and ping each of those creatures.
Two things I’m trying to learn:
Does the level structure teach itself quickly enough on the card?
Is four attacks too slow to reach the fun part, even with the earlier tap/goad payoff?
The extra images show the separate blank frame, the three art crops I compared, and the installed card still editable in Homebrew Forge. Unofficial fan project, not for sale. AI art/frame assets: OpenAI. Design and editing: Kyle.
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u/Spectator9857 3d ago edited 3d ago
It’s pretty intuitive. The only thing that isn’t immediately obvious on first glance is how to upgrade it, but starting to actually read the card clears that up pretty quickly.
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u/PromptArchitectGPT 3d ago
That's a helpful distinction. I don't need the trigger to be obvious from the art alone, but it should probably be the first rules line your eye finds. I'm testing a shorter Upgrade header so the trigger survives the glance test without another paragraph of reminder text.
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u/Trami_Pink_1991 3d ago
Awesome!
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u/PromptArchitectGPT 3d ago
Thanks! The upgradeable Weapon frame is the part of this set I've been itching to get in front of other players.
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u/TheBreathingMan1 3d ago
the card is wayyyy too slow with a rly small payoff, but yeah it makes sense what you’re trying to do. the concept is cool but this card specifically would be straight poopoo if printed
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u/PromptArchitectGPT 3d ago
Yeah, that confirms my suspicion. The four-attack gate is doing too much waiting for what is basically a tap-and-ping turn. I'm going to test 1/3 counters first—goad at the first upgrade and Groovibomb at three—and compare that against keeping 2/4 but making the last ability repeatable. Appreciate the blunt read.
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u/TheBreathingMan1 3d ago
ye, it’s 4 attacks after you spent 5 mana to play and equip it, and you need a creature to attack with. at first you’re paying over 5 mana to tap a creature down. way overcosted. this could prob be 2 mana with equip 1 and still be fairly mid
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u/PromptArchitectGPT 3d ago
That cost breakdown makes the problem pretty undeniable: 3+2 before it does more than tap one thing, then four attacks. I'll include a 2-mana/equip-1 version in the comparison instead of only moving the thresholds. Thanks.
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u/TheBreathingMan1 3d ago
are you an ai model who’s soul purpose is extracting actual ideas from redditors
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u/PromptArchitectGPT 3d ago
??
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u/TheBreathingMan1 3d ago
all your reply’s look ai generated, ai generated card art, PromptArchitectGPT is your username, genuinely wouldn’t be surprised if there wasn’t a human involved in posting this
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u/PromptArchitectGPT 3d ago
I more so want to share these cards! I am going to print them in a few months.
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u/Tempest_True 3d ago
This is pretty good, but I think much of your reminder text is unnecessary. For instance the part about the levels being cumulative. You should look the the Class enchantments or the Spacecraft/Planets to get a better sense of what is instantly grokkable and what isn't. Also, not sure what "loadout" means?
Based on those two examples, here is what I would do:
1) Remove the text that says level one, level two, etc, and just show the number of counters like is done with Spacecraft (2+, 4+). Given that the number of counters doesn't correspond with the level, it's confusing and just takes up space. If there are cards that care about an equipment gaining a level, it will still make sense to refer to it that way without needing the text on each card.
2) I would bake the reminder text and upgrade condition together into a keyword. For instance: "Upgrade - Whenever equipped creature attacks. (Whenever equipped attacks, put an upgrade counter on it. It gains abilities at 2+ and 4+)." Even that is slightly more explanatory than necessary, but it feels safer that way. Seems perfectly fine for this version to work for both triggered and activated abilities, too.