Third Place
Prunecruiser / Flashfang Squadron
(Designed by MagmaDragon3)

The Maestro: This flying ḿ̵̬a̷̖͂c̷̜̿h̸͓̒i̷̩͐n̶̙͋e̸̫̽ and its team are as clean as a limousine! Complexity does not equal quality, and this smooth squad and their schooner show that simplicity is simply superb. A 3/1 for crewing is clever, as vehicles devour high power, and the pruner itself is perfectly positioned not to be too powerful, but potent in a matching matchup. With art that aligns and flavor that intrigues, this cool squad cruises into third place.

CM Staff: This first pair of cards really showcases how strong worldbuilding and simplicity can carry designs very far. The combination of art and flavor text really helps you imagine the story that these cards are telling you, of humanity exploring vast and unknown worlds utilizing advanced technology; a perfect stage for a vehicle-focuses challenge!

Mechanically, you can tell that there is a lot of attention to the details. Using tap over attack triggers lets you crew while still proccing Flashfang's ability, and you can tell that Prunecruiser's numbers are there to pair very purposefully, coming out one turn later with haste and a crew cost that matches the creature's power. Although these cards may not blow your socks off with splash or novelty, they make a strong showing in this month's top three!

Second Place
Infernal Express / Painstalker
(Designed by Snes)

The Maestro: All aboard! This grave-y train will bring the pain, if you let me explain. A black vehicle saccing is anything but lacking, brilliantly on-brand but powerfully not out-of-hand. Its demonic driver deigns that death is your next stop as well, punishing defenders straight to hell. Together, these infernal engines choo choo their way into second place. 

CM Staff: Move over Polar Express, your crazy cousin is here like a bat out of hell. The flavor here comes through very strong, and the cards offer some pretty interesting effects to boot, with the loco-motive taking the main spotlight in our eyes (how many train puns can we fit in here, anyways?). Although the Infernal Express doesn't have any evasion and its crew cost is a little high, it positions itself as an interesting sac outlet, grinding out some pretty impressive advantage over time! The power requirement asks you for some deck building that's a bit different than your normal aristocrat token spam, but that's all part of the fun.

Painstalker is a simpler design but quite coherent, combining a block-punishing effect with menace being an obvious synergy piece between abilities. It sure does live up to its name!

First Place
Niklas' Sleigh / Niklas, Generous Champion
(Designed by OHMYGOD)

The Maestro: Ho Ho Ho! A holiday sleigh to suit the season, but that’s not the only reason for its success. Niklas suggests a super sweet synergy deck of gifts and grifts, tricks and treats, and his Sleigh brings the heat with two triggers per turn. These designs delight the designer and deckbuilder within me, and truly are a christmas come early. Niklas’s Sleigh and the m̸̨̐â̷̫n̸͕͛ who mans it slay their way to first place. 

CM Staff: Okay, we promise a Santa Claus card got first place in the December issue by complete coincidence. The creature card definitely speaks for itself, offering an incredibly interesting buildaround strategy that could make a wonderful commander. Effects that cause multiple players to draw cards or make tokens start to feel a lot less symmetrical once you get a little bit of extra benefit from them; just imagine how big this gets with a simple Howling Mine!

The vehicle pairs very nicely with the creature, of course, acting as a simple but effective draw/treasure reward for yourself at its base, but turning into a powerful damage engine if Niklas is on the field. Congrats to OHMYGOD for making the top of the nice list this month!