Reanimator – bringing back huge creatures from the graveyard with relatively cheap spells – is one of the oldest and most recognizable strategies in Magic. The mechanic draws inspiration directly from the fantasy stories which inspired the game’s creators, where wizards reanimate the fallen as shambling undead or reincarnate them to full glorious power. As you’d expect, both black and …
Q: How do you upset a Magic player in just three words? A: “Counter target spell.” Yes, counterspells have always been the most polarizing aspect of Magic. For whatever reason, getting your spell snuffed out on the stack is simply more galling than getting hit by removal on the battlefield. Perhaps it’s the power dynamic created by untapped Islands, the …
Welcome back to Combo Crash Course, our semi-regular exploration of Magic’s greatest combo decks. In the first few installments of this series, we’ve shown off a variety of different approaches to combo, and today we’re adding another one: what I call a “non-deterministic” combo game plan. We say a player has “a deterministic kill” when their deck has passed the …
There’s always something festive and celebratory in the air this time of year – and in the world of Magic, what we’re currently celebrating is Kamigawa. With each new spoiler or info drop, Wizards of the Coast continues to show us what their futuristic, cyberpunk take on the plane will look like, establishing its new identity through some awesome concept …
There’s nothing quite like a good “Return To” set to get the imagination fired, is there? It might not be in the official title, but Kamigawa: Neon Dynasty definitely has all the extra hype potential of returning to an established setting. In fact, as I explained a few months ago, this is the #1 plane I’ve been most personally excited …
Editor’s Note, 2/18/22: Kamigawa: Neon Dynasty is now available at Card Kingdom. Magic has taken its first bold steps into the cyberpunk genre, as Wizards of the Coast debuted a wealth of information on the upcoming Kamigawa: Neon Dynasty set. Mark Rosewater and Grace Fong used yesterday’s hour-long Weekly Magic stream to show off key artwork and explain how Kamigawa …
The title of this series may be Combo Crash Course, but not all famous card combinations lead to the gameplay we would expect out of a “combo deck”. Combo decks are typically defined by their focus on building toward one explosive turn, often winning on the spot once their combo conditions are reached. That’s certainly the case for Splinter Twin …
Premier-level competitive Magic returned this weekend for the first Set Championship of the new season, featuring a mix of Standard and Historic. 252 invited players from the MPL, Rivals League and various qualifiers battled it out for glory and a spot in the 2022 World Championship event, with Yuuki Ichikawa emerging triumphant after Sunday’s grueling Top 8. As can be …
As of this Sunday, the Innistrad Set Championship is officially in the books: the first premier event in the new seasonal schedule leading towards the 2022 Magic World Championship. But even for players more interested in their MTG Arena daily quests than World Championship qualifier points, this weekend was among the most important tournaments of the year. Nowhere else will …
Wizards of the Coast has surprised players this week with the announcement of a new Arena-exclusive format, Alchemy. After trialing digital-only cards with Jumpstart: Historic Horizons, WotC is setting up Alchemy to be “digital Standard” – using the same rotating card pool, but with digital-exclusive cards and regular balance patches. And we’ll be able to try it very soon, with …
