There are two indisputably true about Modern right now: the format desperately needs help to solve the Scam/Up the Beanstalk problem and that very soon, The Lost Caverns of Ixalan will become playable. Naturally I’m hoping the second truth addresses the first.  While I don’t think there is much in the way of revolutionizing Modern from LCI, I do believe ... Read More...

The Lost Caverns of Ixalan is almost here, and today we are going to dive into how some of the more interesting cards to come out of preview season so far will play in the Pioneer format. Cavern of Souls One of the earliest previewed cards from The Lost Caverns of Ixalan, this reprint made players of blue/white control around ... Read More...

Even in an epic fantasy card game like Magic: the Gathering, populated by giants, dragons, angels, titans, krakens and demons, labeling something a “god” creates an extra layer of expectation. A god card has to feel powerful, and in a unique way that sets them apart from other high-impact creatures. Some games might elevate them above the mere mortals by ... Read More...

Other than mighty dinosaurs and mythical treasures, the big theme in The Lost Caverns of Ixalan is exploration and discovery — the different factions of pirates, vampires, merfolk and native Oltcec all racing to reach the mysterious Core. This journey to the center of the Earth is represented in-game not just by the explore keyword action, but the signature, transforming ... Read More...

All right, this is tricky. Ready? Convert is exactly the same as Transform. Exactly, in every way. This is purely a cosmetic change for trademark reasons. On all packaging and written material, Hasbro (who owns both Transformers and Magic) calls the act of a Transformer changing its form “converting” so as not to confuse the act with the brand name. ... Read More...

While Commander’s grassroots origins make it different from many other Magic formats, it still has a ban list like the rest of them. However, since Commander is not a format with tons of tournament data to back up banning certain cards, some players are unsure why certain offenders end up on the list. Today, I’m going to take a look ... Read More...

Commander is an ever evolving metagame, with new cards being added all the time. What’s changed in the past year or two? Which keywords are doing the heavy lifting? Commander Advisory Group member Kristen shares her thoughts on how things are shaping up.  It’s been nearly three years since I last wrote about Casual Commander’s Most Underrated Abilities. The format ... Read More...