The Hits and Misses of Draft in 2022

The Hits and Misses of Draft in 2022

Tom AndersonLimited

Magic has been enjoying something of a golden age for Limited set design: a near-unbroken string of good-to-great formats, arguably stretching back to 2018’s Dominaria. And while players could still feel this run of form through most of 2022, they also saw evidence that an inevitable regression is coming. To sort out which sets belong in each category, I’ve created …

Jumpstart 2022 Bottom-up Commander

Jumpstart 2022: Bottom-Up Commander Design

Tom AndersonCommander

I don’t always have the energy to keep up with the flow of new spoilers from day to day, but I definitely made an exception for Jumpstart 2022. Not only do I look forward to the normal Jumpstart 2022 experience, but this sort of product represents a unique, creative opportunity for the team at Wizards of the Coast regarding Commander …

Urza's Iron Alliance Commander Precon Upgrade Guide

Urza’s Iron Alliance Commander Precon Upgrade Guide

Tom AndersonCommander

Commander is a more powerful, established format these days, and the average deck is simply much stronger than it was in the early years of Commander precons. While that may have pushed designers in the past to keep pace, The Brothers’ War features the perfect, powerful character from Magic’s 30-year history to lean on: Urza. And while Urza’s Iron Alliance …

The Brothers' War Draft Guide

The Brothers’ War: Draft Guide

Tom AndersonLimited, Strategy

With The Brothers’ War returning to a traditional, simultaneous Arena and physical release schedule, Draft lovers get to spend a little more time with the full spoiler before jumping into the trenches.  That’s just as well, since this set is very unique in many fundamental aspects. Wizards has leaned into the epic, world-spanning scale of their story. Every color is …

Jumpstart Restarted

Jumpstart 2022: Jumpstart Restarted

Tom AndersonProducts, Standard

During last week’s WeeklyMTG video, Wizards of the Coast Communications Director Blake Rasmussen confirmed Jumpstart 2022 will be out on Dec. 2 after being announced waaay back in August 2021. We’ll finally get a deserving sequel to Magic’s best new idea since Commander precons. A FRESH START Jumpstart 2022 signals a return to the strongest points of the original concept. …

Fringe Format: 7-point highlander

Fringe Format: 7-Point Highlander

Tom AndersonCommander, Legacy

Despite the online grumbling, Eternal Magic is a lot of fun! With the widest pool of cards legal to play, you can sleeve up the idealized version of your favorite strategy from the game’s entire 30-year history and take on the world. Of course, while sitting down to play doesn’t always work out quite as advertised, the 7-Point Highlander format …

Magic's Biggest Boogeymen

Magic’s 13 Biggest Boogeymen

Tom AndersonCommander, Legacy, Modern, Standard

As a game with plenty of dark, fantasy roots, Magic has overlapped plenty with Halloween. Just look at how often we return to Innistrad, or Innistrad: Double Feature’s attempt to evoke that classic monster movie vibe. But despite our familiarity with ghouls and ghosts, demons and devils, vampires and Vorstclaws, Magic still holds certain horrors which can frighten the sleeves …