Duskmourn: House of Horror/Trivia

Duskmourn: House of Horror

 

Commander decks

 

Card comparisons

 

Trivia

 

Art Series

 

Welcome decks

 

MaRo's Duskmourn Teaser

Mark Rosewater gave his traditional teaser with the following hints.

First up, here are some things you can expect:

• A component of the set with a frame using technology first designed for an Un-set — Room enchantments are split cards (originally a mechanic designed for Unglued 2: The Obligatory Sequel) and utilize the illustration as a physical divider for the mechanical function of the card (similar to the metal bar running vertically through the art of Host creatures in Unstable).
• A tweak on an ability word that first appeared in the third set of a block — Eerie (a variation of Constellation, which first appeared in the third set of Theros block — Journey into Nyx)
• Counters used in the set: +1/+1, -1/-1, finality, flying, lifelink, lore, loyalty, nest, possession, rev, stun, and time
• The first ability word to reference “second main phase” — Survival
• A 10/1 creature for — The Mindskinner
• A variant on a mechanic that itself was a variant of another mechanic — Manifest Dread (a variation of Manifest, which itself was a twist on Morph)
• A modal three mana white mass removal spell — Split Up
• A character returns as a legendary creature that first appeared in flavor text in Alpha — Norin (Norin, Swift Survivalist)
• A new ability word that cares about a card type and a (new) keyword action — Eerie (triggers when you unlock a Room)
• Creature tokens: 1/1 white Toy, 1/1 white Glimmer, 2/1 white Insect, 3/1 white Spirit, 4/4 white Beast, blue token copy, X/X blue Spirit, 2/2 black Horror, 6/6 black Demon, 1/1 red Gremlin, 1/1 red Balloon, 2/2 green Spider, 1/1 black and green Insect, and 0/0 green and blue Fractal — See Tokens and markers

Here are snippets of rules text you’ll see:

• “unlock a locked door” — Ghostly Keybearer
• “Search your library for a Demon card,” — Demonic Counsel
• “where X is the number of creatures you control with power 2 or less.” — Arabella, Abandoned Doll
• “Exile any number of target instant, sorcery, and/or Tamiyo planeswalker cards from your graveyard.” — The Tale of Tamiyo
• “The same is true for creature spells you control and creature cards you own that aren’t on the battlefield.” — Leyline of Transformation
• “You have no maximum hand size and don’t lose the game for having 0 or less life.” — Marina Vendrell's Grimoire
• “Whenever you cast an instant or sorcery spell that targets only a single creature you control, copy that spell.” — Leyline of Resonance
• “Shards you control become copies of it until the beginning of the next end step.” — Niko, Light of Hope
• “of creatures you control that don’t have the same name as this creature.” — Marvin, Murderous Mimic
• “(2, 3, 5, 7, 11, 13, 17, 19, 23, 29, and 31 are prime numbers.)” — Zimone, All-Questioning

Here are some creature type lines from the set:

• Creature – Human Doctor — Cult Healer
• Creature – Kor Survivor — Savior of the Small
• Creature – Goat — Possessed Goat
• Creature – Shark — Daggermaw Megalodon
• Creature – Eye — Creeping Peeper, Abhorrent Oculus
• Creature – Fish Insect — Piranha Fly
• Artifact Creature – Monkey Toy — Clockwork Percussionist
• Creature – Human Clown Berserker — Razorkin Hordecaller
• Legendary Creature – Elder Demon — Valgavoth, Terror Eater
• Legendary Creature – Rat Ninja Wizard — Nashi, Searcher in the Dark

Finally, here are some names in the set:

• Acrobatic Cheerleader — Human Survivor
• Don’t Make a Sound — Instant
• Exorcise — Sorcery
• Friendly Ghost — Spirit
• Jump Scare — Instant
• Let’s Play a Game — Sorcery
• Meathook Massacre II — Legendary Enchantment
• Orphans of the Wheat — Human
• Split Up — Sorcery
• Unsettling Twins — Human

Gavin's Duskmourn commander teaser

Gavin Verhey released a teaser with the following hints about the new cards in the Commander decks. Cards from the Jump Scare! deck were not hinted at, as that deck had been previewed before the release of Gavin's teaser.

1. There is a legend that grants all of your enchantments a specific keyword — The Master of Keys (escape)
2. There is a card with miracle that mirrors a seven-mana sorcery — Redress Fate (Brilliant Restoration)
3. There is a card with an ability that begins, "You may cast spells from the top of your library by..." — Into the Pit
4. There is a card that makes you choose between the modes "Believe" or "Doubt" — Phenomenon Investigators
5. There is a black creature with miracle — Metamorphosis Fanatic
6. There is a card that has an ability which begins, "Whenever you cast a spell, if the amount of mana spent to cast it was less than its mana value..." — Ancient Cellarspawn
7. There is a card called Sadistic Shell Game that begins, "Starting with the next opponent in turn order..." — Sorcery
8. There is a new kindred card that has changeling — Formless Genesis
9. There is a card named "Séance Board" — Séance Board
10. There is a card that begins with, "All creatures get -X/-X until end of turn, where X is..." — Deluge of Doom
11. There is a new Room that has a similar effect to a popular hybrid enchantment — Secret Arcade // Dusty Parlor (Enchanted Evening)
12. There is a card with the ability, "Each spell you cast that's a Demon, Horror or Nightmare costs less to cast." — Ancient Cellarspawn
13. There is a card that combines two Alpha enchantments together — Barbflare Gremlin (Mana Flare, Manabarbs)

Guess the art of some reprints:

• 
  Ponder
• 
  Terminus
• 
  Night's Whisper
• 
  Grapple with the Past

Cultural references

Duskmourn: House of Horror references many horror tropes and classic horror movies. The following is a list of cards within the set that reference specific works within the genre.

Card(s)	Reference	Notes
Altanak, the Thrice-Called Say Its Name	Beetlejuice (1988) Candyman (1992)	Popular urban legend invocation of repeating the name of a spirit multiple times, applicable to Bloody Mary, Beetlejuice, or Candyman.
Anthropede	The Human Centipede (2009)	The card's name references The Human Centipede, though the creature itself resembles a massive insect with unsettling human-like features.
Arabella, Abandoned Doll Ragged Playmate	Annabelle (2014)	A haunted doll who is a recurring antagonist in the The Conjuring Universe which is based off of the stories of Warrens as well as it's real life counterpart.
Balustrade Wurm	Search and Rescue Woods (2015)	The card's artwork possibly references the "Search and Rescue Woods" series of posts on r/NoSleep, which describe mysterious stairs found in the middle of the woods.
Break Down the Door Unsettling Twins	The Shining (1980)	A movie about a writer, Jack Torrance, who travels to a haunted hotel with his family, who he tries to kill when the spirits of the hotel drive him mad. The former card references the famous scene where Jack smashes a bathroom door with an axe, while the latter references his recurring hallucination of ghostly twins.
Chainsaw Meathook Massacre II	The Texas Chain Saw Massacre (1974)	A movie about a group of friends who fall victim to a family of cannibals while on their way to visit an old homestead.
Clockwork Percussionist	The Devil's Gift (1984)	The film's plot is similar to that of the Stephen King short story "The Monkey", featuring a Cymbal-Banging Monkey as the antagonist.
Come Back Wrong	The Evil Dead (1981) Pet Sematary (1989) Buffy the Vampire Slayer (1997-2003)	Dead people returning as possessed empty husks are a common Horror trope. The term itself likely originates from a 2001 episode of the television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer titled "Smashed".
Cursed Recording	Ringu (1998)	A movie about a cursed videotape that dooms whoever watches it to die in seven days.
Daggermaw Megalodon	Jaws (1975) Megalodon (2004)	Movies about terrifying sharks.
Dashing Bloodsucker	Blade (1998)	A movie about the titular character, a half-vampire who hunts creatures of the night. The card's art resembles Wesley Snipes' appearance in the film.
Disturbing Mirth	Hellraiser (1987)	A movie about concerns a mystical puzzle box that summons the Cenobites, a group of extra-dimensional, sadomasochistic beings. The depicted character is reminiscent of Pinhead, their leader.
Doomsday Excruciator	They Live (1988)	The borderless card variation illustrated by Jarel Threat mirrors the film poster of They Live. The film follows a drifter who discovers through special sunglasses that the ruling class are aliens concealing their appearance and manipulating people to consume, breed, and conform to the status quo via subliminal messages in mass media.
Etched Cornfield	Signs (2002)	A former priest named discovers that a series of crop circles in his cornfield is a result of extraterrestrial life.
Exorcise	The Exorcist (1973)	A movie that follows the demonic possession of a young girl and her mother's attempt to rescue her through an exorcism by two Catholic priests.
Fear of Abduction	Communion (1989)	A story of a family that experiences an extraterrestrial phenomenon while on vacation at a remote home in the wilderness during which the father is abducted by aliens.
Formless Genesis Shapeshifter	Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1956)	A movie about alien creatures that grow from pods and mimic humans to supplant them entirely.
Found Footage	The Blair Witch Project (1999)	A movie about three student filmmakers who hike into the Black Hills near Burkittsville, Maryland, to film a documentary about a local myth known as the Blair Witch. It popularized the found footage technique, in which a movie is presented as having been recorded by the characters in the story.
Ghost Vacuum Paranormal Analyst	Ghostbusters (1984)	A movie about three eccentric parapsychologists who start a ghost-catching business in New York City. They catch ghosts with ghost traps.
Giggling Skitterspike	Toy Story (1995)	Specifically references Babyface, the leader of the Mutant Toys.
Haunted Screen Trapped in the Screen	Poltergeist (1982)	A film in which a young child inexplicably converses with the family's television set while it displays post-broadcast static, inducing a Poltergeist invasion.
Irreverent Gremlin Midnight Mayhem Gremlin Tamer	Gremlins (1984)	A movie that draws on legends of folkloric mischievous creatures that cause malfunctions. In the film, the normally-kind creatures known as Mogwai transform into destructive Gremlins when fed past midnight.
The Jolly Balloon Man	It (1990) The Hanging Balloons (1998)	It is a 1990 psychological horror drama adapted from Stephen King's 1986 novel of the same name. The story revolves around a predatory monster that can transform itself into its prey's worst fears to devour them. It mostly takes the humanoid form of Pennywise, a demonic clown. The card's mechanics reference the floating red balloons that Pennywise uses. The Hanging Balloons is a short manga by Junji Ito, about killer balloons shaped like human heads. The balloons in the Jolly Balloon Man's primary artwork resemble those in the comic.
Killer's Mask	Friday the 13th (1980)	Masked psycho killers are a standard in horror movies. This one is reminiscent of the one worn by Jason Voorhees.
Lakeside Shack	The Cabin in the Woods (2012)	The plot follows a group of college students who retreat to a remote cabin in the woods where they fall victim to a variety of monsters while technicians manipulate events from an underground facility.
Let's Play a Game Saw The Lord of Pain Trial of Agony	Saw (2004)	A film revolving around the Jigsaw killer, who tests his victims' will to live by putting them through deadly "games" where they must inflict great physical pain upon themselves to survive. "I want to play a game" is one of Jigsaw's most iconic quotes.
Marvin, Murderous Mimic	Child's Play (1988)	A movie following a widowed mother who gives a doll to her son, unaware that the doll, Chucky, is possessed by the soul of a serial killer.
The Master of Keys	Escape Room (2019)	A movie about a deadly escape room. The card grants enchantments (including Rooms) the escape keyword.
Murder	Psycho (1960)	A movie about a murder that takes place at a motel. The card's art references the famous shower scene.
Omnivorous Flytrap	Little Shop of Horrors (1986)	A musical film that centers on a floral shop worker who discovers a sentient carnivorous plant that feeds on human blood.
Orphans of the Wheat	Children of the Corn (1984)	A film telling the story of a malevolent entity called "He Who Walks Behind the Rows" enticing the town's children to ritually murder all the town's adults to ensure a successful corn harvest.
Persistent Constrictor	Anaconda (1997)	A movie focusing on a documentary film crew in the Amazon rainforest that is led by a snake hunter who is hunting down a giant, legendary green anaconda.
Peculiar Lighthouse	The Lighthouse (2019)	A movie about two lighthouse keepers who are driven mad by their surroundings.
Phenomenon Investigators	The X-Files (1993)	A television show about two FBI agents who investigate paranormal occurrences. One is a conspiracy theorist who attributes everything to the supernatural, and the other is a skeptic who tries to find rational explanations, which is reflected in the two modes.
Piranha Fly	Piranha II (1982)	A movie about genetically modified piranhas with the ability to fly. Most notable as the directorial debut of James Cameron.
Possessed Goat	The Witch (2015)	A movie about a Puritan family tormented by demonic forces, which are revealed to dwell inside their goat, Black Phillip.
The Rollercrusher Ride	Final Destination 3 (2006)	A movie about high schoolers who are hunted by Death after surviving a roller-coaster accident in which they had been fated to die.
Sporogenic Infection	Matango (1963) The Last of Us (2021)	A movie about a group of castaways on an island who are unwittingly altered by a local species of mutagenic mushrooms. A similar fungal infection is also featured in the TV series based on a video game franchise.
Threats Around Every Corner	Thirteen Ghosts (2001)	This film features the use of spectral glasses that allow the wearer to see the supernatural realm to avoid the ghosts.
Turn Inside Out	The Thing (1982)	A film about the eponymous "Thing", an extraterrestrial life-form that assimilates, then imitates, other organisms. The card's art is similar to a scene where a victim's chest transforms into a large mouth.
Unable to Scream	I Have No Mouth, and I Must Scream (1967)	A story where a sentient supercomputer eradicates humanity except for five individuals, who have been rendered virtually immortal and unable to die by suicide.
Ursine Monstrosity	Annihilation (2018)	A movie about scientists investigating a zone where living things mutate uncontrollably. They are attacked several times by a horrific mutant bear.
Vicious Clown Grab the Prize	Killer Klowns from Outer Space (1988) Clownhouse (1989)	Movies featuring sinister, murderous clowns, a trope also found in numerous other horror films.
Waltz of Rage	Carrie (1976)	A film where the title character awakens her tremendously destructive telekinetic powers after a cruel prank at her high school prom. While the figures in the card art art Glitch Ghosts, they can be seen reenacting a scene reminiscent of the film's climax, with a single figure in a red dress surrounded by hovering prone bodies.

Common horror tropes

• Duskmourn is the Haunted House.
• Razorkin (e.g. Unstoppable Slasher) are inspired by the main antagonists of slasher films, seemingly unkillable and/or undead murderers like Freddy Krueger, Jason Voorhees or Leatherface.
• The rescue party features several character archetypes common to Horror movies.
  • Niko Aris is The Leader.
  • Tyvar Kell fills the role of Lovable Jock.
  • Zimone Wola is the Stereotypical Nerd.
  • Kaito Shizuki is the Grizzled Veteran.
  • The Wanderer is the Final Girl.
  • Winter is the Psycho Goth.
• Valgavoth resembles "the Darkness" in the movie House on Haunted Hill (1999).
• The origin of Marina Vendrell as a malcontented goth girl is inspired by characters like Lydia Deetz from Beetlejuice.
• Toys at large are a send-up of possessed dolls such as Chucky from Child's Play.
• Wickerfolk are likely a reference to The Wicker Man, especially the Swarmweaver, a wickerfolk hosting a swarm of man-eating bees.
• Jump Scare is a cinematic technique used often enough to be considered cliched but can nonetheless be effective.

Miscellaneous

• Betrayal at House on the Hill, a board game published by Avalon Hill in 2004, was one of the inspirations for the set.
  • At PAX West, attendees were given a handout that was a haunt card for Betrayal at House on the Hill with a Duskmourn theme.
• Doomsday Excruciator is a callback to Doomsday.
• The only text on Manifest Dread is to Manifest Dread, making it the first card whose name matches its rules text.
• Meathook Massacre II is, of course, a callback to the first Meathook Massacre. It spoofs the numbered sequels of many horror movies. It also costs exactly twice as much mana as the original.
  • In the same vein, Unwanted Remake is stab at superfluous reboots.
• Despite the name, Valgavoth's Lair is not a Lair.
• The Tale of Tamiyo is the first legendary saga.
• One of the books that the Creeping Peeper is sitting on reads Elesh Norn in the Phyrexian language.
• Jump Scare is the first card since Soul Sculptor to add the enchantment type to arbitrary creature targets and is nearly trinket text, given eerie is an entry effect and delirium doesn't look at the battlefield.
• Haunted Screen can produce all five colors, but it costs life to produce , or : this is because black and white static is "free" but RGB colored television would cost more.
• Fear of Abduction depicts a grey alien.
• The art of Vanish from Sight mirrors the art of Planar Disruption, both depicting Kaito and The Wanderer. Each card also shares the same primary color as the planeswalker depicted falling victim to its effect.