If you've looked carefully at the new cards for the Aphelios Champion Expansion, you might have noticed a pattern with the new spells: in Aphelios' previously-revealed Champion spell Gifts From Beyond, there's exactly 1 new spell per region and each is tied to one of that region's most prevalent keywords. For example, Bilgewater's Powder Pandemonium grants enemies Vulnerable, Shadow Isles' Gluttony needs to target an ally with Last Breath, Ionia's Flurry of Fists grants a unit Quick Attack, and so on.
The exception to this pattern is Starbone, which grants Celestials +1|+1 if you Behold The Messenger. While both Celestials and Behold are related to Targon, Celestials are a card type and Behold is a mechanic. Live Design Lead and Design Lead for Aphelios Steve "RubinZoo" Rubin shared the reason why along with a touching story behind this card today.
Quote From RubinZoo Starbone doesn't quite fit into the Keyword Spell Cycle.
While Targon Spellshield was proving tricky during dev, fellow designer Dave Smith's dog Ricky passed away.
So we broke our own cycle, with Celestials as a substitute, as a testament to Ricky and other passed doggos.
Our deepest condolences to Dave Smith, and our thanks to Steve Rubin for sharing this sentimental backstory. We will now think fondly of Ricky and all the other passed-on companions chasing their own starbones in The Great Beyond every time we see this card.
Comments
Sad, but heartwarming story ☹️
Aw. Now I'm going to think of my dog every time I see Starbone.