5 Underrated Commanders That Were Printed in 2024

Jacob LacknerCommander

As we near the end of 2024, we can look back on the year and see that there were several powerful, popular Commanders printed during our most recent trip around the sun. For example, Voja, Jaws of the Conclave and The Wise Mothman are ranked 48th and 58th respectively on EDHRec, despite being printed so recently. While these Commanders certainly …

5 Underrated Commander Cards From Invasion

5 Underrated Commander Cards from Invasion

Jacob LacknerCommander

Invasion is one of the most important sets in Magic history. Released in 2000, it represents both a very important moment in the history of Magic design, and an equally important moment in Magic lore. In the story, Invasion and its Block (the subsequent sets Planeshift and Apocalypse) was the culmination of several years of Magic story. The Phyrexian invasion …

5 Underrated Commander Cards from Forgotten Realms

5 Underrated Cards From Adventures in the Forgotten Realm

Jacob LacknerCommander

As you probably know, it was recently announced that we’re going to be getting a whole lot of Universes Beyond sets in 2025, and they’re all going to be legal in Standard. These are sets that are based on an IP other than Magic: the Gathering. This got me thinking about our first Standard-legal Universes Beyond set – 2021’s Dungeons …

Is Foundations Actually a Good Set For New Players?

Is Foundations A Good Set For Beginners?

Jacob LacknerDesign

A few weeks ago I wrote about Foundations and the history of core sets more broadly. There, I discussed the fact that they are intended to be beginner products that help introduce new players to the Standard format, especially. This is often achieved by more simplified designs that help introduce players to the game’s basic mechanics and themes. For the …

5 Cool Jumpstart 2025 Commanders

Jacob LacknerCommander

Jumpstart 2025 is a supplement booster set that releases alongside Magic: the Gathering Foundations on November 15th. As with past Jumpstart products, you and your opponent simply buy two booster packs and shuffle them together to make 40-card decks. And then you’re ready to play. These boosters all have themes, so you end up with what feel like very synergistic …

5 Spookiest Commanders to Brew This Halloween

Jacob LacknerCommander

It’s Halloween week and that means it’s time for a Halloween-themed article. Magic has no shortage of super spooky Magic cards. There’s even a card that directly references the holiday itself, in the form of All Hallow’s Eve. While there aren’t any other cards that directly reference the holiday, there are tons of cards that have Halloween vibes. In this …

Magic: The Gathering Core Sets - A Retrospective

Magic: the Gathering Core Sets – A Retrospective

Jacob LacknerDesign, Products

Foundations releases on November 15th [EDITOR – Card Kingdom’s Presale is live now!]. With its release we’re getting the most recent iteration of a Magic: the Gathering core set and this one is nothing short of revolutionary. However, core sets have been around since (almost) the beginning, and they’ve undergone several major changes over the years. In this article, I’m …

5 Underrated Commander Cards From Alara Reborn

5 Underrated Commander Cards in Alara Reborn

Jacob LacknerCommander

Alara was designed as a multi-color matters block that was especially focused on the three-color shards. Alara Block is even where we get the shorthand names for each of the three color shards: Bant (Green-White-Blue), Grixis (Blue-Black-Red), Esper (White-Blue-Black), Jund (Black-Green-Red), and Naya (White-Red-Green). The third and final set in the block – Alara Reborn – takes this multi-color focus …