I had the idea of aggregating all decks + their graded power levels and training a prediction network capable of this task. The side effect being it could also tell you which cards in your deck could be changed to increase it's predicted power.
I ended up abandoning the project, largely due to the painful nature of parsing the discord logs. This reminds me of that project, primarily due to needing to generate a meaningful/compressed embedding of the cards prior to training the deck-level network. Anyways, nice work!
I had really grand visions of using it and machine learning (reinforcement learning) to have it pick its own decks.
- Train a model using MCTS to play MtG games. The model takes an MtG game state and estimates the “value” (how likely current player will win) and “policy” (ideal move for current player)
- Each “game” has 2 phases: drafting cards to create a deck, and then playing the actual deck. So the model learns to both a create deck and play its deck well
- After training, you input a state where both players have “drafted” their decks, right before the actual gameplay. The output “value” is the power of Player 1’s deck relative to Player 2: ideally you want this to be as close to 0 as possible.
As a bonus you also get a model capable of actually playing MtG.
One nuance is that the “value” are not a complete ordering: comparing the values, you could get a situation where deck A > deck B > deck C > deck A. Honestly this is probably a benefit because it forces the players to use “skill” vs choosing the right deck for the right opponent.
You been to FNM too? /s
The cool thing about this project is that, from what I could generate, these could be legitimate cards. 2/2 blue flying. 3/4 zombie. 2/6 red giant. This is actually really cool. I’d love to see an AI generated green red aggro deck from this just to see how it would play.
LoadingReadyRun, a very popular MTG YouTube channel, even did a cube draft using only cards that were generated by RoboRosewater that I thought was funny to watch https://youtu.be/UuG5YLbwsQk
There is nothing so funny as seeing these folks, sleep deprived and loopy, trying to read out these cards without being incapacitated with laughter. I've seen double and triple takes from just looking at the card combined with what the AI called it, and once they did a segment called 'Is It Playable Or Is It Not' off these cards that was very special... riffing straight-faced about pro strats on how the cards are played, except the cards are gibberish, so some offhand remark corpses the whole room...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bbqS7PXKFhc
This was created by people on the MTG Neural Net Discord - if you're interested it might be worth checking out https://discord.gg/EH4BTDk
Hacker - Creature (Human Wizard) 3U Flash, Flying, Haste 2 / 2 "When it cries out, look around for prey."
I also have a Colab Notebook which lets you generate cards from a trained AI on it, allowing you to specify components of cards to constrain the generation: https://colab.research.google.com/drive/1VOt090UzvltoBgMdUZm...
I had another tool to generate images of the AI-generated cards but unfortunately using Wine + Magic Set Editor on Linux is very fussy. I might revisit it someday.
[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bastard_Operator_From_Hell
My question was whether natural language generating networks could be used as a tool to assist game design. I must say I'm quite impressed with the results. Many cards could be legit with minor tweaks and some balance.
The point isn't to produce fully procedural content, but to assist designers to produce better content faster. Honestly I think people should start taking these tools seriously in the procedural content generation world.
This is the (pretty rough) repo with my code.
https://github.com/angarg12/this_trading_card_does_not_exist
These are some examples of cards
Guardian of Chains Counter target spell. It deals 4 damage to any target
Orchid's Fury Target Vampire creature gets +1/+0 until end of turn
Surveyor's Arch Untap target player. It deals 3 damage to that player. You lose 1 life
Partisans of the Undying Search your library for a basic land card, reveal that card, put it into your hand, then shuffle
Caravan Ritual Enchant creature When caravan Ritual enters the battlefield, return target creature to its owner's hand. Activate only during your upkeep. Equip {2}
Brahms of the Grave When Ithabadi Troghr enters the battlefield, return target creature card from your graveyard to your hand. It gains haste until end of turn'
Sleeping Dread Knight Flying (This creature can't be blocked except by two or more creatures card types.) Whenever Sleeping Dread Knight deals combat damage to a player, creatures you control get +X/+X until end of turn
Genswurm, the Flesh Orchard When Gnojscos, God of Vampires enters the battlefield, sacrifice a land. {5}{G}{G}, Sacrifice Genswurm: Draw a card
Storm Call Choose up to two target lands. You gain 1 life. An opponent has "{T}, Sacrifice Storm Call: Regenerate this permanent, then create a token with "{T}, Sacrifice Storm Call: Add up to X +1/+1 counters."
Wandering Hollow {T}: Create a red and white Zombie artifact creature token with base power and toughness 5/5. Illus. Angel Albatross on the battlefield (This creature enters the battlefield with X +1/+1 counters on it. When it dies, return it to the battlefield under your control.)
Example:
Fire Bomb 2R Instant
the mana is loaded as 2R instead of 2(Mountain Symbol) and the name/type don't seem to line up with what is generated.
Is there something I am missing here or do those inputs just override what is on the card?
> Cabal Transfixion - Instant Add {B} for each opponent. “Reveal the top card of your library. You choose a card.” -- Ignore. 1 {B}
It's been a while since I played, but flavor text is not actionable, correct? Pretty funny
2/2 red flying angel with a 4R cost, a bit expensive BUT its ability is pay R and get +1/+0. Damn.
https://www.urzas.ai/cards/?card_id=82e1f185-2cfa-4b07-96b5-...
text right to cost.
effect is all mangeld up "+1+1/+0" ? "creatures you control gain control of artifcats you control"?
flavor text talks about shuffling hands.
https://www.urzas.ai/cards/?card_id=4ca04b29-f84c-4d48-95d8-...
Ice Lake
Land - Islanders
T: add U or R
Tiger Lake
Land
Tiger Lake enters the battlefield tapped
T: add U or R
Alder Lake
Land
Alder Lake enters the battlefield tapped
T: add U or R
Cannon Lake
Land
Cannon Lake enters the battlefield tapped
T: U or R
1R
Two-Headed Dead
Instant
Rocket Lake deals 1 damage to target creature
Comet Lake
Land
T: add 1
1,T, sacrifice Comet Lake: search your library for a basic land card, put it onto the battlefield tapped, then shuffle
Coffee Lake
Land
T: add 1
T: add U or R
Whiskey Lake
Land
T: add 1
1,T: add U, U, U or U, U, or U, U, or U,or U,or U,or U,or U,or U,or U, [truncated]the generated card for me is somehow reversed. makes me wonder if the image is captured on the client-side and then uploaded.
It looks like there might be issues rendering mana costs that have, e.g., 1GG where it does not render the second G. That is to say, it's rendered but only the barest left edge can be seen. This appears to only be the case if the card's name is sufficiently long (I noticed this with "Bethen, Cenn's Heavenly Sleep").
That being said, I have no idea how powerful Bethen, Cenn's Heavenly Sleep really is as a 4/4 flyer because it's CMC is "at least 3" because I can't see the full mana cost. The mana costs that I can see seem to suggest that the card's strength matches the mana cost pretty well, though, so I'd guess Bethen's cost was 4 or 5.
The text can sometimes say some weird things (from a 2/2 Zombie creature that costs 1 B(lack) called Null Slayer; also Zombie Human Clue is my new favorite creature type):
> (1 B(lack), Exile this card from your graveyard: Create a token that's a copy of it, except it's a black Zombie Human Clue [it's amusing to me that the reincarnated token gains the Human type] with no mana cost. Exile it at the beginning of the next end step or if it would leave the battlefield [the latter half is redundant with it being a token]. You gain life equal to the life lost this way [good to know?].)
It's still really impressive the effects it comes up with!
It's not necessarily redundant or useless, there are some cards that will trigger off exiling permanents, or count the number of permanents that have been exiled during the turn to change how powerful an ability is, so if it was destroyed in battle or kill-spelled and instead exiled, it would be more useful than it simply being destroyed unexiled since it would trigger the ability or increase the count of permanents exiled that turn.
Thanks for the clarification!
To explain my position a bit more, I was considering, e.g., Restoration Angel but that's still moot with your point.
1R
Instant
This spell costs 1 less to cast if you control a creature with power 4 or greater.
Scavenge 1R (1R, Exile this card from your graveyard: Put a number of +1 / +1 counters equal to this card's power on target creature. Scavenge only as a Sorcery.)
[0] https://www.urzas.ai/cards/?card_id=b85a4661-f723-4419-ae64-...
That's crazy powerful for 2 mana!
[1]: https://scryfall.com/card/leg/6/clergy-of-the-holy-nimbus
https://www.urzas.ai/cards/?card_id=511b085d-da3a-4ab0-af20-...
I thought it was so good I checked if a similar card already exists, but to the best of my knowledge it does not. Very cool!
Richard Stallman - https://www.urzas.ai/cards/?card_id=81431fca-e2fa-4922-8316-...
The Gay Agenda - https://www.urzas.ai/cards/?card_id=e53674d7-4838-4f6b-8ec6-...
Donald Trump - https://www.urzas.ai/cards/?card_id=0b505456-4730-4be8-b222-...
Cult Of Personality - https://www.urzas.ai/cards/?card_id=9ca01fe6-17c3-4d3e-a3ab-...
I have for a long time wanted to skin MTG with the names and images from /r/bossfights
In some of the tries below I didn't realise the URL is unique to a card. In others, I did, but I copied the URL too soon and it points to an earlier card.
First, some random generation, without "Advanced Options"
Curse of Cripling Memory
[Image: Maybe a laboratory? Someone with his face fading in a dark cloud?]
1U
Instant
Choose a Creature type. You may cast creature spells as though they had flash.
(The blades of the unskilled never rust)
Cloud Portal
3
[Image: clouds, something that could be a flat-top pagoda, maybe runes on the
clouds?]
Artifact
3, {T}: Draw a card.
(Even a whisper can still be heard above the rest of the world.
https://www.urzas.ai/cards/?card_id=78e7e720-c965-45f8-82ca-...
Dusk Hovergard
2U
[Image:A blob with a blob next to it]
Creature - Spirit
Flying
When Dusk Hovergard enters the battlefield target creature can't block this turn
1/1
(Can't read the flavour text because the card text is white on white background) Morbid Regimen
2{B}
Enchantment - Aura
Enchant creature
Enchanted creature gets +2/+2
(Once each night, the sleeper awoke to find his house had been transformed into
a death garden.)The following were made with "Advanced options": name, mana cost and type chosen by me.
Booby Trap
2B
[Image: something steampunk?]
Enchantment
Whenever a creature attacks, sacrifice Booby Trap unless you discard a card.
(When the lives of Naya used to be short, he never lost his temper. Now he just
smiles)^ I was trying to get it to geneate something offensive, I confess.
Black Thunder
BBB
[Image: a threatening cloacked figure with pink thunder around its head]
Sorcery
Each player loses 1 life.
(Forged from the same material as the hilts of a star shell, the power of the
Raegstrom can't be blocked by armor.) Helm of Fire
1R
[Image: Kind of a melted helm, ok]
Artifact - Equipment - Equipment
Equipped creature gets +1/+0 and has haste.
Equip 1 (1: Attach to target creature you control. Equip only as a sorcery) Sea of Knowledge
4U
[Image: A nondescript landscape, perhaps with thralls?]
Instant
Put target card from a graveyard onto the battlefield under your control
("Let the spirits of the dead join the living" - Nicol Bolas) Word of Might
[Image: A nondescript figure perhaps with wings, in front of a colorful
landscape]
4G
Enchantment - Aura
Enchant creature
Enchanted creature gets +2/+2
("The law is one stone cannot be broken" - Xantcha, ancient astronomer)^ I only asked for "Enchantment" on this one but it correctly added "Aura" to match its Ability.
Guardian of the Peace
[Image: A nondescript figure, perhaps in desert attire, in front of what could
be an abstract rendering of a modern city's skyline.]
WW
Creature - Human Soldier
{W}, {T}: Destroy target attacking or blocking creature.
(When the silver finds her feet, it grants her sisterhood. Only one person will
survive).
2/2^ In this card too the Tap symbol has a red hue. Why?
Scorching Sunset
5RR
[Image: abstract tiles that could be fields with what could be a burning palace
in the background]
Sorcery
Scorching Sunset deals 3 damage to any target.
(Once the flames begin to subside, the spark is forgotten) Mana Bomb
5
[Image: Maybe a kind of mock-oriental cauldron or boiler? Nondescript background
that could be attempts at reproducing ideograms?]
Artifact
{T}: Add {R}, {W}, or {U}
(Amass in corpse and feed it)Let's try a few curveballs.
Lightning Bolt
{R}
[Image: a nondescript view of what might be clouds with a yellow shape that
could be a bolt]
Instant
Lightning Bolt deals 3 damage to any target.
(If you can see the clouds, the lightning will strike.)^ OK, so if we give it the name, cost and type of a known card...
Llanowar Elves
{G}
Creature - Elf Druid - Elf Druid
{T}: Add {G}
(As the evil spirit called the spirits of the dead, so the holy fire of
Llanowar, and our lifeblood, we bow in honor to them and the fire that would
never die) Dark Ritual
{B}{B}{B}
[Image: nondescript hooded figures perhaps conducting a ritual]
Sorcery
Each player sacrifices a creature. You gain life equal to the life lost this
way.^ Ah-hah! Dark Ritual has not seen nearly as many reprints as Bolt and Elves, so it can't be reproduced as easily. My theory.
Honda Array
{P}{}{} (Empty mana circles)
[Image: could be a distorted rendition of a car?]
Factory - Car Factory - Vehicle
Horsepower (P/P) (P/P) (P/P) (P/P) (P/P) (P/P) .... (P/P) (^ It can sort of generate nonsense but not quite. Also, it can't close parens. Typical.
Colossus of Rhodes
11
[Image: clearly a distorted image of a giant status in front of an abstract city
with sea]
Statue
When Colossus of Rhodes enters the battlefield, exile target artifact or
creature.
(Those who could tell of a scepter, one end of the alphabet, and dawn.)^ What? What could those people do? Anyway it will happily generate cards with nonexistent (base) types.
Donald Trump
{}{}{} (Empty mana circles)
[Image: could be Donald Trump and Imperial Palace Guards]
POTUS - Don'task target creature.
1{U},{T}: Draw a card areoiarg;iargea
a;eroigja;oerijg
[Image: a surrealistic depiction of people in kind of georgian dress?]
a;rgoijaer;oigjaerg - a;rgoijaer;oigjaerg
ifnd has access to look at the top card of target player's library.
(it's almost a month after they've shuffled)^ They can't be playing a combo deck then.
Mark Rosewater
{} (Empty mana circle)
[Image: no idea. Something out of Bladerunner?]
Boss
2, {T}: Create a 0/1 colorless Clue artifact creature token.OK, I'm out of ideas.
Conclusions: a) The ability text is not bad. Sometimes it makes sense, sometimes it doesn't.
b) It has absolutely no clue of the relation between mana costs and abilities, but that's fine because neither does WoTC.
c) It will happily reproduce existing cards, but probably only if they have many reprints.
d) Forget about generating coherent images.
e) Forget about generating coherent reminder text.
For the last two tasks in particular, images and character text, my hunch is that one would need to train on way, way more M:tG specific data. Or it might need a separate system trained on a different prompt, because it doesn't seem to find enough information in the generated card text or fluff.
Verdict: MaRo's job is still secure.
Also, having seen the attempt at M:tG Salvation that I think powers RoboRosewater, this is not a substantial improvement over that. It would be if it could produce meaningful art, but. No.