Magician

Alert

MagicianBorderless2

Resource

Control

Info

Type

Power of Prestidigitation

Abducts Pods, Bedazzles Opponents

As a leader, after arrival, use this power to force your opponent to prime two encounter pods instead of one. Before priming your driver, abduct one of the two pods and add it to your cache. Your opponent’s remaining pod is their driver this encounter.

If your opponent cannot play two encounter pods, that alien must relay their remaining cache to you. The encounter continues without your power resolving.

Legacy: During approach, each alien primes two pods (if possible). Each leader chooses one of the two primed pods to be their opponent’s driver. The other is rebounded.

Bursting with charisma and a desire to show off, the Magicians treat the world as their stage. Even in the midst of combat, they’re ready and willing to put on their act, though some have wondered whether it’s all a cunning facade to make off with their enemies’ weapons.

Leader: Arrival

Mandatory

Wild Flare

As a leader, after arrival, you may discharge this pod to force your opponent to choose three encounter pods from their hand and prime them. Choose one of these pods to be their driver this encounter and rebound the other two. If your opponent does not have three encounter pods, they must draft pods until they do.

Leader: Arrival

Super Flare

When using your power, before abducting one of the two pods, you may discharge this flare to broadcast one of the two pods.

Leader: Arrival

Modifications

  • Minor change regarding the effect that happens if the opponent only has one encounter pod. The original requires them to reveal their cache before priming it, except for that last encounter pod. I set it so they prime first, removing the need to restrict which pods get shown. It should be the same, since the pod has to be primed regardless.
  • Modified the wild flare to make the target draft pods until they have 3 encounter pods instead of receiving a resupply. Since aliens can only receive resupplies while in their home system, I wanted to make sure it can be used against invaders as well while following my rules.
  • Original Magician cannot be in the same match as Oracle, as the timing of the two powers make them incompatible. My version has a hardcoded fix that allows the two to work by having a unique interaction with one another. Check Oracle’s bio for an explanation.
  • Magician’s legacy forces each alien to pick two pods, with only one becoming the driver. With this legacy in play, aliens will want a strong cache with many different pods, as ending up with two different pod types can make encounters highly luck-based. Aliens that can prime bonus pods like Deuce and Cavalry can avoid most of the downside of this legacy, and combat powers in general can also deal with it more easily.

Tips

  • When priming pods against Magician, anything you prime has a 50/50 chance of ending up in Magician’s hands, as opposed to being used against them. This makes it incredibly risky to play strong pods like 30 or 40 against Magician.
  • Depending on the nature of your opponent, looking at the abducted pod may provide insight as to the nature of the opponent’s driver. If they played an 08, perhaps their driver is another 08 or a similar attack pod. It gives Magician the slightest hint of Oracle in its power.
  • Magician’s opponents can play wildly different pods in order to throw off Magician’s sensibilities, such as with an N and attack pod. They can also play two Ns in the hopes of goading Magician into negotiating. Since Magician takes the N, there is a guarantee they will be able to negotiate.
  • Since Magician gains a pod each encounter as a leader, it generally will never run out of encounter pods. It can be difficult for Magician to get a resupply without intentionally paying compensation. On the other hand, compensation can devastate Magician, greatly limiting its choice to 2 or 3 pods. In such a case, Magician may need to go bounty hunting to get some more options.
  • Magician doesn’t have to play the pod they abduct, but there’s also nothing stopping them from doing so. Turn your opponent’s weapon against themselves.
  • Poison pods are perhaps the most valuable to play against Magician, as it can be valuable whether Magician grabs it or not. Magician will be on-guard against poison due to the poison damage, so if poison isn’t what they grab, they may anticipate it and play low or N.

Development Notes

  • Magician’s theming is another Oracle-type, where its effect simulates what is “actually” happening. Magician is doing stage performance, treating their opponent like a volunteer from the audience before engaging them with their alien fleet. It’s got a strong Looney Tunes vibe to it, so the alien rabbit design feels highly appropriate to me (aside from the obvious reason).
  • I enjoy the notable disconnect between Sorcerer and Magician, especially in terms of lore. Sorcerer is an ancient race of wizards capable of the lost art form of real magic, while Magician is just a stage performer. The way their powers interact also makes a fitting rivalry, as Sorcerer swaps after Magician does its trick, meaning it gets to know what Magician took before deciding if it wants to swap. It can counter the stage magic with real magic. However, Magician can get an inclination as to whether Sorcerer will swap or not based on the pod it took. It gives both an opportunity to one-up each other during Magician’s magic show. Who will be the magician and who the assistant?
  • Did you catch the pod Magician’s hiding behind its ear? And that they have two hats? Is their big hat floating or resting on the foot?
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