Rosewater Scale: Difference between revisions

From MTG Wiki
Jump to navigation Jump to search
VisualWikitext
>Jerodast
(→‎Scales: some context for scale significance)
>Passionlip
 
(5 intermediate revisions by 3 users not shown)
Line 1: Line 1:
'''Rosewater Scales''' are rankings by [[Mark Rosewater]] of the likelihood that something will be reprinted in future sets, such as mechanics or planes. Things are ranked from 1 (very likely) to 10 (very unlikely) and are always named after the item that defines the 10th rating.
'''Rosewater Scales''' are rankings by designer [[Mark Rosewater]] of the likelihood that something will be reprinted in future [[set]]s, such as mechanics or planes. Things are ranked from 1 (very likely) to 10 (very unlikely) and are always named after the item that defines the 10th rating.


Though the scales are published by Mark Rosewater, it is only a reflection of his opinion and generalities about the topic. It does not account for any actual future plans, or the opinions of other [[R&D]] members.<ref>{{EzTumblr|https://markrosewater.tumblr.com/post/183847204053/hey-maro-you-said-storm-scale-is-just-your|title=You said storm scale is just your opinion and for entertaintment purpose.|March 31, 2019}}</ref>
Though the scales are published by Mark Rosewater, it is only a reflection of his opinion and generalities about the topic. It does not account for any actual future plans, or the opinions of other [[R&D]] members.<ref>{{EzTumblr|https://markrosewater.tumblr.com/post/183847204053/hey-maro-you-said-storm-scale-is-just-your|title=You said storm scale is just your opinion and for entertaintment purpose.|March 31, 2019}}</ref>
Line 5: Line 5:
== Scales ==
== Scales ==
The scales are listed here in order of creation.
The scales are listed here in order of creation.
*[[Storm Scale]] {{-}} Likelihood that a [[mechanic]] will return in a [[Standard]]-legal set. Named for [[Storm]], "the most broken mechanic ever created".<ref>{{EzTumblr|https://markrosewater.tumblr.com/post/32332443511/i-think-you-should-bring-back-storm-its-been-6|title=I think you should bring back storm|September 26, 2012}}</ref> Most well known scale, whose popularity inspired the others.
*'''[[Storm Scale]]''' {{-}} Likelihood that a [[mechanic]] will return in a [[Standard]]-legal set. Named for [[Storm]], "the most broken mechanic ever created".<ref>{{EzTumblr|https://markrosewater.tumblr.com/post/32332443511/i-think-you-should-bring-back-storm-its-been-6|title=I think you should bring back storm|September 26, 2012}}</ref> Most well known scale, whose popularity inspired the others.
*[[Rabiah Scale]] {{-}} Likelihood that a [[plane]] will be re-visited again in a Standard-legal set. Named for [[Rabiah]], the setting of the very first ''Magic'' expansion when the creative rules were not fully defined, and unfortunately based on a property not owned by Wizards of the Coast.<ref>{{EzTumblr|http://markrosewater.tumblr.com/post/153695283448/what-would-be-a-10-on-the-hypothetical-plane/|title=What /would/ be a 10 on the hypothetical plane equivalent of the Storm Scale? Ulgrotha? Rabiah?|November 26, 2016}}</ref><ref>{{EzTumblr|http://markrosewater.tumblr.com/post/153695449493/so-the-plane-storm-scale-would-be-the-rabiah|title=So, the plane storm scale would be the Rabiah Scale, right?|November 26, 2016}}</ref> Like the Storm Scale, it has been the subject of articles by Rosewater on the [[Wizards of the Coast]] official website, whereas the subsequent ones have not.<ref>{{DailyRef|making-magic/rabiah-scale-part-1-2018-11-12|The Rabiah Scale, Part 1|Mark Rosewater|November 12, 2018}}</ref>
*'''[[Rabiah Scale]]''' {{-}} Likelihood that a [[plane]] will be re-visited again in a Standard-legal set. Named for [[Rabiah]], the setting of the very first ''Magic'' expansion when the creative rules were not fully defined, and unfortunately based on a property not owned by Wizards of the Coast.<ref>{{EzTumblr|http://markrosewater.tumblr.com/post/153695283448/what-would-be-a-10-on-the-hypothetical-plane/|title=What /would/ be a 10 on the hypothetical plane equivalent of the Storm Scale? Ulgrotha? Rabiah?|November 26, 2016}}</ref><ref>{{EzTumblr|http://markrosewater.tumblr.com/post/153695449493/so-the-plane-storm-scale-would-be-the-rabiah|title=So, the plane storm scale would be the Rabiah Scale, right?|November 26, 2016}}</ref> Like the Storm Scale, it has been the subject of articles by Rosewater on the [[Wizards of the Coast]] official website, whereas the subsequent ones have not.<ref>{{DailyRef|making-magic/rabiah-scale-part-1-2018-11-12|The Rabiah Scale, Part 1|Mark Rosewater|November 12, 2018}}</ref>
*[[Venser Scale]] {{-}} Likelihood that a [[Planeswalker type]] will return in a Standard-legal set. Named for [[Venser]], who is explicitly dead in the storyline.
*'''[[Venser Scale]]''' {{-}} Likelihood that a [[Planeswalker type]] will return in a Standard-legal set. Named for [[Venser]], who is explicitly dead and planeswalker spark-less in the storyline.
*[[Beeble Scale]] {{-}} Likelihood that a [[creature type]] will return in a Standard-legal set. Named for [[Beeble]]s, a comedic creature type which is now restricted to [[supplemental set]]s like [[un-set]]s.<ref>{{EzTumblr|https://markrosewater.tumblr.com/post/96564454168/are-there-any-creature-types-considered-dead-so-to|title=Are there any creature types considered "dead", so to speak?|September 3, 2014}}</ref>
*'''[[Beeble Scale]]''' {{-}} Likelihood that a [[creature type]] will return in a Standard-legal set. Named for [[Beeble]]s, a comedic creature type which is now restricted to [[supplemental set]]s like [[Acorn card]]s.<ref>{{EzTumblr|https://markrosewater.tumblr.com/post/96564454168/are-there-any-creature-types-considered-dead-so-to|title=Are there any creature types considered "dead", so to speak?|September 3, 2014}}</ref>
*[[Gotcha Scale]] {{-}} Likelihood that a mechanic will return in a [[Silver-bordered]] set. Named for [[Gotcha]], which does the opposite of what [[Un-set]]s should do by making the game less fun and social to play.<ref>{{EzTumblr|https://markrosewater.tumblr.com/post/162222761068/why-do-you-consider-gotcha-a-mistake|title=Why do you consider "gotcha" a mistake?|June 24, 2017}}</ref>
*'''[[Gotcha Scale]]''' {{-}} Likelihood that a mechanic will return in an [[Acorn card|Acorn]] set. Named for [[Gotcha]], which does the opposite of what [[Un-set]]s should do by making the game less fun and social to play.<ref>{{EzTumblr|https://markrosewater.tumblr.com/post/162222761068/why-do-you-consider-gotcha-a-mistake|title=Why do you consider "gotcha" a mistake?|June 24, 2017}}</ref>


Rosewater has said that the scales other than Storm and Rabiah are "sillier scales",<ref>{{EzTumblr|https://markrosewater.tumblr.com/post/178718620433/ive-seen-so-many-questions-asked-about-scales|title=I've seen so many questions asked about scales|October 4, 2018}}</ref> but has also called the first four listed above the "major ones", and that "there are a bunch of minor ones."<ref>{{EzTumblr|https://markrosewater.tumblr.com/post/182327737983/what-are-all-the-scales-we-have-storm-vesner|title=What are all the scales we have? Storm, vesner, rabiah, beeble. Are there any others?|January 26, 2019}}</ref><ref>{{EzTumblr|https://markrosewater.tumblr.com/post/629517814609362944/rabiah-storm-beeble-are-there-any-other-scales|title=Rabiah, Storm, Beeble. Are there any other scales?|September 17, 2020}}</ref>
Rosewater has said that the scales other than Storm and Rabiah are "sillier scales",<ref>{{EzTumblr|https://markrosewater.tumblr.com/post/178718620433/ive-seen-so-many-questions-asked-about-scales|title=I've seen so many questions asked about scales|October 4, 2018}}</ref> but has also called the first four listed above the "major ones", and that "there are a bunch of minor ones."<ref>{{EzTumblr|https://markrosewater.tumblr.com/post/182327737983/what-are-all-the-scales-we-have-storm-vesner|title=What are all the scales we have? Storm, vesner, rabiah, beeble. Are there any others?|January 26, 2019}}</ref><ref>{{EzTumblr|https://markrosewater.tumblr.com/post/629517814609362944/rabiah-storm-beeble-are-there-any-other-scales|title=Rabiah, Storm, Beeble. Are there any other scales?|September 17, 2020}}</ref>
Line 16: Line 16:


== Descriptive rankings ==
== Descriptive rankings ==
In 2016, Mark Rosewater began writing articles about the [[Storm Scale]] on [[magicthegathering.com]]. Starting with the first such article, he offered a brief explanation of the odds represented by each numeric point on the Scale.<ref name="KhansArticle">{{DailyRef|making-magic/storm-scale-khans-tarkir-block-2016-02-29|Storm Scale: Khans of Tarkir Block|[[Mark Rosewater]]|2016-02-29}}</ref><ref name="RavnicaArticle">{{DailyRef|making-magic/storm-scale-ravnica-and-return-ravnica-2016-05-02|Storm Scale: Ravnica and Return to Ravnica|[[Mark Rosewater]]|2016-05-02}}</ref><ref name="ZendikarArticle">{{DailyRef|making-magic/storm-scale-zendikar-and-battle-zendikar-2016-11-21|Storm Scale: Zendikar and Battle for Zendikar|[[Mark Rosewater]]|2016-11-21}}</ref><ref name="InnistradArticle">{{DailyRef|making-magic/storm-scale-innistrad-and-shadows-over-innistrad-2017-03-27|Storm Scale: ''Innistrad'' and ''Shadows over Innistrad''|[[Mark Rosewater]]|2017-03-27}}</ref><ref name="MirrodinArticle">{{DailyRef|making-magic/storm-scale-mirrodin-and-scars-mirrodin-blocks-2018-06-11|Storm Scale: Mirrodin and Scars of Mirrodin Blocks|[[Mark Rosewater]]|2018-06-11}}</ref><ref name="KalaKhetArticle">{{DailyRef|making-magic/storm-scale-kaladesh-and-amonkhet-2019-03-25|Storm Scale: Kaladesh and Amonkhet|[[Mark Rosewater]]|2019-03-25}}</ref> Some of the non-Storm scales have slightly different meanings to the ratings due to the different natures of the features being rated, but the overall gist is the same.<ref>{{EzTumblr|https://markrosewater.tumblr.com/post/179163056108/whats-the-definition-for-a-1-on-the-venser-scale|title="What's the definition for a 1 on the Venser scale?"|October 17, 2018}}</ref>
In 2016, Mark Rosewater began writing articles about the [[Storm Scale]] on [[magicthegathering.com]]. Starting with the first such article, he offered a brief explanation of the odds represented by each numeric point on the Scale.<ref name="KhansArticle">{{DailyRef|making-magic/storm-scale-khans-tarkir-block-2016-02-29|Storm Scale: Khans of Tarkir Block|[[Mark Rosewater]]|2016-02-29}}</ref><ref name="RavnicaArticle">{{DailyRef|making-magic/storm-scale-ravnica-and-return-ravnica-2016-05-02|Storm Scale: Ravnica and Return to Ravnica|[[Mark Rosewater]]|2016-05-02}}</ref><ref name="ZendikarArticle">{{DailyRef|making-magic/storm-scale-zendikar-and-battle-zendikar-2016-11-21|Storm Scale: Zendikar and Battle for Zendikar|[[Mark Rosewater]]|2016-11-21}}</ref><ref name="InnistradArticle">{{DailyRef|making-magic/storm-scale-innistrad-and-shadows-over-innistrad-2017-03-27|Storm Scale: ''Innistrad'' and ''Shadows over Innistrad''|[[Mark Rosewater]]|2017-03-27}}</ref><ref name="MirrodinArticle">{{DailyRef|making-magic/storm-scale-mirrodin-and-scars-mirrodin-blocks-2018-06-11|Storm Scale: Mirrodin and Scars of Mirrodin Blocks|[[Mark Rosewater]]|2018-06-11}}</ref><ref name="KalaKhetArticle">{{DailyRef|making-magic/storm-scale-kaladesh-and-amonkhet-2019-03-25|Storm Scale: Kaladesh and Amonkhet|[[Mark Rosewater]]|2019-03-25}}</ref> Some of the non-Storm scales have slightly different meanings to the ratings due to the different natures of the features being rated, but the overall gist is the same.<ref>{{EzTumblr|https://markrosewater.tumblr.com/post/179163056108/whats-the-definition-for-a-1-on-the-venser-scale|title="What's the definition for a 1 on the Venser scale?"|October 17, 2018}}</ref><ref>{{EzTumblr|https://markrosewater.tumblr.com/post/629444658798460929/there-are-so-many-different-scales-rabiat-beeble|title=There are so many different scales|September 16, 2020}}</ref>
# Will definitely see again, most likely in the next set
# Will definitely see again, most likely in the next set
# Will definitely see again, but not necessarily right away
# Will definitely see again, but not necessarily right away

Latest revision as of 20:02, 20 April 2023

Rosewater Scales are rankings by designer Mark Rosewater of the likelihood that something will be reprinted in future sets, such as mechanics or planes. Things are ranked from 1 (very likely) to 10 (very unlikely) and are always named after the item that defines the 10th rating.

Though the scales are published by Mark Rosewater, it is only a reflection of his opinion and generalities about the topic. It does not account for any actual future plans, or the opinions of other R&D members.[1]

Scales

The scales are listed here in order of creation.

  • Storm Scale — Likelihood that a mechanic will return in a Standard-legal set. Named for Storm, "the most broken mechanic ever created".[2] Most well known scale, whose popularity inspired the others.
  • Rabiah Scale — Likelihood that a plane will be re-visited again in a Standard-legal set. Named for Rabiah, the setting of the very first Magic expansion when the creative rules were not fully defined, and unfortunately based on a property not owned by Wizards of the Coast.[3][4] Like the Storm Scale, it has been the subject of articles by Rosewater on the Wizards of the Coast official website, whereas the subsequent ones have not.[5]
  • Venser Scale — Likelihood that a Planeswalker type will return in a Standard-legal set. Named for Venser, who is explicitly dead and planeswalker spark-less in the storyline.
  • Beeble Scale — Likelihood that a creature type will return in a Standard-legal set. Named for Beebles, a comedic creature type which is now restricted to supplemental sets like Acorn cards.[6]
  • Gotcha Scale — Likelihood that a mechanic will return in an Acorn set. Named for Gotcha, which does the opposite of what Un-sets should do by making the game less fun and social to play.[7]

Rosewater has said that the scales other than Storm and Rabiah are "sillier scales",[8] but has also called the first four listed above the "major ones", and that "there are a bunch of minor ones."[9][10]

Rosewater's fans are also known to joke about other scales, for example ranking food on the Banana Scale due to Rosewater's strong distaste for bananas.[11][12]

Descriptive rankings

In 2016, Mark Rosewater began writing articles about the Storm Scale on magicthegathering.com. Starting with the first such article, he offered a brief explanation of the odds represented by each numeric point on the Scale.[13][14][15][16][17][18] Some of the non-Storm scales have slightly different meanings to the ratings due to the different natures of the features being rated, but the overall gist is the same.[19][20]

  1. Will definitely see again, most likely in the next set
  2. Will definitely see again, but not necessarily right away
  3. Will most likely do again, probably many times
  4. Will most likely do again, but they have issues that make them less of a guarantee
  5. We need to find the right place to bring it back, but I'm optimistic
  6. We need to find the right place to bring it back, but I'm a little less optimistic
  7. It's unlikely to return, but possible if the right environment comes along
  8. It's unlikely to return, but possible if the stars align
  9. I never say never, but this would require a minor miracle
  10. I never say never, but this would require a major miracle

References

  1. ↑ Mark Rosewater (March 31, 2019). "You said storm scale is just your opinion and for entertaintment purpose.". Blogatog. Tumblr.
  2. ↑ Mark Rosewater (September 26, 2012). "I think you should bring back storm". Blogatog. Tumblr.
  3. ↑ Mark Rosewater (November 26, 2016). "What /would/ be a 10 on the hypothetical plane equivalent of the Storm Scale? Ulgrotha? Rabiah?". Blogatog. Tumblr.
  4. ↑ Mark Rosewater (November 26, 2016). "So, the plane storm scale would be the Rabiah Scale, right?". Blogatog. Tumblr.
  5. ↑ Mark Rosewater (November 12, 2018). "The Rabiah Scale, Part 1". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast.
  6. ↑ Mark Rosewater (September 3, 2014). "Are there any creature types considered "dead", so to speak?". Blogatog. Tumblr.
  7. ↑ Mark Rosewater (June 24, 2017). "Why do you consider "gotcha" a mistake?". Blogatog. Tumblr.
  8. ↑ Mark Rosewater (October 4, 2018). "I've seen so many questions asked about scales". Blogatog. Tumblr.
  9. ↑ Mark Rosewater (January 26, 2019). "What are all the scales we have? Storm, vesner, rabiah, beeble. Are there any others?". Blogatog. Tumblr.
  10. ↑ Mark Rosewater (September 17, 2020). "Rabiah, Storm, Beeble. Are there any other scales?". Blogatog. Tumblr.
  11. ↑ Mark Rosewater (March 15, 2019). "Where is Churrasco on the Banana Scale?". Blogatog. Tumblr.
  12. ↑ Mark Rosewater (June 9, 2016). "Are you actually down on bananas?". Blogatog. Tumblr.
  13. ↑ Mark Rosewater (2016-02-29). "Storm Scale: Khans of Tarkir Block". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast.
  14. ↑ Mark Rosewater (2016-05-02). "Storm Scale: Ravnica and Return to Ravnica". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast.
  15. ↑ Mark Rosewater (2016-11-21). "Storm Scale: Zendikar and Battle for Zendikar". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast.
  16. ↑ Mark Rosewater (2017-03-27). "Storm Scale: Innistrad and Shadows over Innistrad". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast.
  17. ↑ Mark Rosewater (2018-06-11). "Storm Scale: Mirrodin and Scars of Mirrodin Blocks". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast.
  18. ↑ Mark Rosewater (2019-03-25). "Storm Scale: Kaladesh and Amonkhet". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast.
  19. ↑ Mark Rosewater (October 17, 2018). ""What's the definition for a 1 on the Venser scale?"". Blogatog. Tumblr.
  20. ↑ Mark Rosewater (September 16, 2020). "There are so many different scales". Blogatog. Tumblr.
Retrieved from "https://mtg.wiki/index.php?title=Rosewater_Scale&oldid=337494"