Kjeldoran Home Guard: Cards that tell a story.

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Alliances is one of the strangest expansions to look at, from both a design standpoint and a flavor standpoint. While the idea of cards telling a small story within them aren't anything new (cards I can think that do it well from Alpha include Lich and Cyclopean Tomb, with many others including City in a Bottle, The Fallen, Hazezon Tamar..). Story telling is an important aspect to any fantasy game, and if Magic was good at one thing, it was vague story telling. 

However, as if suffering from growing pains, Alliances attempted with many cards, to tell stories to help establish the setting not just in the art and flavor text, but in the cards themselves. Cards like Varchild's War Riders, Rogue Skycaptain, Veteran's Voice, Wandering Mage, and Stromgald Spy just from what comes to mind. They often have strange, somewhat complicated effects, which look out of place, even at the time.

Here we have one of my favorite examples of a card that 'tells a story'. Kjeldoran Home Guard. In this, we get a rather strong and healthy guard (at a 6 toughness). As the war goes on though, people start deserting, and before you know it, the guard is either dead, or is completely desolved. 

Now the deserters are 0/1, (since they assume-ably left their arms behind) , but can still fall into harms way (block), or be inspired (say with crusade) to fight on anyway, just as an individual until.

This card shows the idea that Kjeldoran's days are numbered, as their forces leave and weaken to the changing world that is coming with the thaw. As we know, they eventually merge with the Balduvians, through a marriage between Kjeld, and Lovisa Coldeyes, merging both kingdoms and creating a new society called New Argive. However, this card shows one of many stories on how it got there, and what it took to do so. 

The art is amazing, again, with Andi Rusu. The flag and cloud behind the guard almost makes the painting looks like a coat, and the marks on the side certainly help for that also. 

I wish I could rate this, but without a proper format (no format includes Alliances) it would be impossible to do. Instead, I wanted to talk about a piece of card design, and how mechanics and story can fit side by side.