Favorite Lenticular Designs?
So for those unfamiliar with the term I recommend the article where Mark Rosewater first explains it. In brief though it could be summed up as cards that seem simple to a new player but complex to an experienced one. Another way I like to think of it is this; does a card have small edges that an experienced player can gain while still being strong if used in a straightforward manner by the new player.
To start the conversation off here are three examples that I really like:
[[Snap]]
My introduction to Magic was with the Mind vs Might dual deck and this seemingly innocuous spell is probably what got me hooked. Bounce spells are already great lenticular designs imo; clearing a blocker, blanking removal, resetting counters or auras. When combined with a cost reducer or a bounce land though snap can be turned into a ritual while acting as interaction. Even without those it can also occasionally fix your mana by letting you effectively tap a land twice in the same turn which is always neat.
[[Fanatical Firebrand]]
A very straightforward aggro threat for lower powered cubes. Everything about this card tells you to turn it sideways which is great for the new player. For the experienced player though it can be really useful for making blocks difficult even after a two toughness creature hits the battlefield. On top of that it's also a one time sac/death trigger that can help kickstart some aristocrats decks. Finally, my favorite two edge cases are giving this little guy deathtouch to kill almost anything or using it to block a lifelinker and sacing it to deny the life gain.
[[Desperate Measures]]
A relatively recent one, with three lines of rules text it has a lot of play to it. At one mana interaction it can kill your opponents one toughness thing or can act as a village rites effect for you if you have the one toughness creature. Similar to Fanatical Firebrand it can also finish off a damaged creature or be used to sac your own thing that barely survived combat. You can also fire it off in response to a kill spell to still get the draw two effect or use it to trade up while drawing cards. Basically you can get the draw two mode out of it more often than you might think!
Anyway, that was a lot of words but that's what I think makes lenticular designs so interesting. It provides you a lot to think about with relatively simple cards.