What's the deal with Outcast?

[Janosik]

When Outcast was introduced into MTGPQ, it’s explicit purpose was to mimic the paper MTG effect of Impulse Draw. Here’s Oktagon saying exactly that in December 2021:

Release Notes 5.3.0

Outcast
When this card is moved to anywhere other than the battlefield, exile it. At the end of this turn, if it’s not exiled, exile it.
The Outcast evergreen is Magic:PQ’s way to adapt a situation known as Impulse Drawn. It’s given to cards in the player’s hand, and if the player does not cast that card in the same turn it’s drawn, the card is then exiled at the end of the turn.

But Outcast currently does not work like Impulse Draw: In MTGPQ, if you put a permanent card with Outcast into play, it is exiled at end of turn.

There’s a bug thread about this issue which has been marked as [Investigating] for nearly a year now

Outcast Will Exile Cast Permanents - Is this WAD? [Investigating]

With the release of the ONE set, Oktagon appear to have forgotten that this issue is pending and have started using Outcast explicitly as a mechanic which removes permanents from play, as seen here on Red Sun’s Twilight:

It’s been my experience that players don’t like Oktagon’s new version of Impulse Draw that removes permanents from play, and would instead prefer WOTC’s original version of Impulse Draw which does not remove permanents from play.

I thought I’d start a poll to see what everyone here thinks. Please vote!

What’s the deal with Outcast?

• I prefer how Outcast currently works: exiling permanents from play
• I’d like Outcast to work as it was intended: not exiling permanents from play
• I have no opinion either way

[madwren]

I’d definitely prefer it to work as intended.

[QuiksilverHg]

At one point the developers said they wanted to make changes to make the cards in game play more like they did in real magic (paper game). The way outcast is now is the opposite of how it works in paper

[Nyarlathotep]

/tinfoil hat mode activated

Well since they never changed how it works and it is clearly not working as it should (based on the in-game card’s texts) maybe they think it is what they want the cards to do. So to say working as intended, but they never actually said so.
Could be a way to stop outcast from being abused in loopy setups, right?

/tinfoil hat mode deactivated

[Janosik]

Letting Red Draw Cards! | Magic: The Gathering Design | March of the Machine MTG

[Janosik]

Dear Webcore: please can you fix the Outcast mechanic?

[Sarah]

It’s incredibly frustrating when one of my cards-in-hand-creatures gets the outcast effect applied to it and vanishes the entire pre-existing stack it reinforced.

[TIMEWARP]

Currently Outcast works as worded, if that is how it’s intended by Oktagon in the past? Possibly.
Is it different from paper in not only execution but also intent and philosophy? Most definitely

[Stormcrow]

@Sarah

It’s incredibly frustrating when one of my cards-in-hand-creatures gets the outcast effect applied to it and vanishes the entire pre-existing stack it reinforced.

This is a big weakness of the Unearth mechanic as well.

[Machine]

@Sarah

It’s incredibly frustrating when one of my cards-in-hand-creatures gets the outcast effect applied to it and vanishes the entire pre-existing stack it reinforced.

I share that frustration. It makes the Outcast mechanic on PERMANENT cards virtually useless. Seeing your hard cast creatures or supports vanish after an Outcast copy has it reinforced… ugh. Terrible. Spells with Outcast, however, can be a strong addition to combo and /or spell decks.