Wilds of Eldraine

Concept of Aura Tokens

We’ve seen aura tokens in the past in small numbers, but I want to know: do you think aura tokens (probably a predefined one) would do well as a core mechanic to a set? This question is both in terms of potential design space and potential complexity issues of having lots of auras attached to permanents

You should check out Wilds of Eldraine from last year. : )

Auras Design Space Humor Mechanics Permanents Tokens Wilds of Eldraine

Appreciating the Otters in Magic

Please pass my thanks to whomever decided otters should be a thing in Magic.I've carried an otter plushie around with me to events through my entire Magic playing career, so almost 15 years. Ive had an otter along for the ride from pretty much every FNM to PTQs to traveling everywhere I could drive within 8 hours to play Legacy for several years or even trips to the other side of the US for large events a couple of times.I was screeching and immediately tried building an otter deck when Lutri and Theving Otter came out with Ikoria. I was literally babbling with joy at the otters in Wilds of Eldraine for MONTHS. To say I'm beside myself with excitement for Bloomburrow would almost be an understatement.My favorite thing to build or play in Magic are tribal-based decks. I built an angel one as my second ever deck (Shards of Alara/Zendikar standard) so I could teach my mom to play before she passed. I was known for a knight/Sword of _____ and _____ deck for years. I've even played Merfolk and Tribal Lightning Bolt (burn) decks a time or two. But I can now have my beloved otters as a theme for my deck.Literally the only way that it could be more perfect for me would have been if there was an Otter Knight named Rora for my little tournament companion.So thank you for making my love for Magic even stronger by adding otters.

I like making otter people happy. : )

Angels Appreciation Bloomburrow Companion Humor Kindred / Typal Knights Legacy Merfolk Otters Shards of Alara Standard Wilds of Eldraine Zendikar Lightning Bolt

Rats in Bloomburrow: Design Choices

Hey Mark! I'm one of the people really looking forward to learning more about Bloomburrow. I noticed that Rats are the Blue/Black archetype in Bloomburrow, even though I associate them a bit more with Black/Red, especially after Wilds of Eldraine last fall. Was making Rats be in Rakdos like they were in Eldraine ever considered? Or were they planned to be the Dimir archetype from the jump?

We talked about it, but liked them in blue/black better. We preferred not having Mouse (which was red/white) and Rat overlap in a color.

Black Bloomburrow Boros (R/W) Colors Dimir (U/B) Mouse Rakdos (B/R) Rat Rat Red White Wilds of Eldraine

Rationales for Rat Coloration

Why was rats in bloomburrow u/b? This makes it difficult to combine with the red support for rats in wilds of eldraine.

Wilds of Eldraine and Bloomburrow had different needs, so we overlapped Rats in black allowing you to play black/red Rats, blue/black Rats, or blue/black/red Rats.

Black Bloomburrow Dimir (U/B) Grixis (U/B/R) Rakdos (B/R) Rat Rat Red Wilds of Eldraine

Feedback on Food Monster Cards

Hi, Mark!How was the reception to the food monsters in WOE? (e.g., Mintstrosity, Sugarmaw)Do you think we might see those types of designs again in a return to Eldraine, even if not as a draft archetype?

Reception was pretty good. There’s a good chance, there would be more in a return to Eldraine.

Draft Formats Food Mintstrosity Wilds of Eldraine

Reuse of Roles in WOE

If Roles are used again, do you think they're most likely to be a) all roles from WOE, b) all new roles, or c) some of each?

Most likely new roles, but I could see us reusing some if they fit the world.

Wilds of Eldraine

LotR's Coverage in Article

"It will be in August, but I don’t know exactly when yet. I won’t be covering Bloomburrow in it regardless of it comes out before the article. (The article will cover Wilds of Eldraine through Modern Horizon III.)" Are you still covering Lord of the Rings? You said you'd cover it in your last SoD article, but LotR released before WoE.

Oops. Yes, I will be covering The Lord of the Rings.

Bloomburrow Modern Wilds of Eldraine

State of the Design Schedule

Will your annual State of the Design article be posted before Bloomburrow previews? It usually comes shortly before the rotation set, but that's earlier than usual this time.

It will be in August, but I don’t know exactly when yet. I won’t be covering Bloomburrow in it regardless of it comes out before the article. (The article will cover Wilds of Eldraine through Modern Horizon III.)

Bloomburrow Modern Spoilers Wilds of Eldraine

Phyrexian Invasion Impact

I would like to add my voice to the group that wanted more visible and lasting consequences of the Phyrexian Invasion. If the consequences aren't visible on the cards without digging for more than a couple of references (liike the Virtue enchantments in WOE) most players IME are just going to miss it. Most players around me don't seem to read the story but still seemed surprised at MOM'S lack of fallout into the next few sets. I think I'd have liked to see that impact clearly on like 20-30 cards to make it loud enough without being a focus of the set, but that's just a gut feeling. It just seems like wanting to do the apocalyptic invasion without giving its fallout similar focus is just destined to limit the perceived impact of doing that story in the first place.

It is on 20+ cards, but if you don’t have the context, it’s hard to see.I often use the word “lenticular” to describe a mechanical component, one where it has advanced strategy, but only to the players that have enough understanding of the game to see it. We also make many “lenticular” flavor cards. If you’re following the story, you can see the references, but if story isn’t your thing, then the story doesn’t get in your way. You can just enjoy the cards in a flavor vacuum.

Enchantments Flavor Invasion Lenticular Phyrexian Story / Lore Wilds of Eldraine

Story vs Card Disparity

I think the disconnect here really fluctuates if you've read the story or not. For WOE, there was a whole part of the story about Will reuniting the courts but the cards didn't really depict that. In LCI, the epilogue really thinks about the same pieces, but the cards again don't really depict it. MKM suffers from a similar problem. Seanan's story is incredible and really captures the new political tensions following the invasion, but the cards don't necessarily reflect that.

It’s there in the cards if you’re looking for it, but no, it’s not the focus. We’re trying to make compelling sets that excite people and make them want to buy them. We could show you endless cards of the courts having fallen or focus on what’s going on in the wilds. Our market research says more players want the latter.

Invasion Murders at Karlov Manor Story / Lore The Lost Caverns of Ixalan The Wilds Wilds of Eldraine

Seeding Theme Insights

When you're seeding, do you know what the theme will do? For example, red and white mice were released in Wilds of Eldraine, did you know when you guys put them in what the r/w mice theme in Bloomburrow would do/be focused on outside of the type?

The closer we get, the more we know.

Bloomburrow Boros (R/W) Mouse Red White Wilds of Eldraine

Future of Faeries

Hi Mark, any chance faeries will appear in upcoming sets? Or if you guys would consider them…? Avid fan but never got to see them at their height in modern as I’m still new to the format. WOE was amazing, but the pieces still don’t seem to exist to bring tribal back.

We’re going to keep making Faeries in appropriate sets. Faeries have a lot of fans.

Faerie Kindred / Typal Modern Wilds of Eldraine

Eldraine Courts Focus

Reading your Rabiah article and you mention going back to Eldraine may have the courts again as there's "more to explore". Hypothetically if that happened, would the courts maintain their monocolor focus?
Wilds of Eldraine was fun, but it went from being the one I was most excited for in several years down to "looks like a fun set" when I found out it would lose the monocolor focus.

If we return to the courts, I assume there would be some monocolor focus.

Monocolor Wilds of Eldraine

Kellan's Future Appearances

Hello, mark.（My native language is Japanese. I use machine translation. I may be using incorrect English.）
I've been buying MTG since "Wilds of Eldraine". I like Kellan. I liked how he got closer to the people he met on his journey and how he changed his clothes. I heard that Kellan's journey ends with "OUTLAWS OF THUNDER JUNCTION". Will we be able to meet Kellan again? I want to see more of him.
I'm not very sociable so I'm not good at card games. MTG is great because you can enjoy the beautiful pictures and story. I'm grateful to all the people involved. Thank you.

I think we’ll see Kellan again.

Appreciation English Japan Outlaws of Thunder Junction Story / Lore Wilds of Eldraine

Invasion's Subtle Effects

I agree with the previous asker talking about how the fallout of the invasion id practically invisible. Yeah there are effects. But by your own admission we wouldn't be able to see it on ixalan due to being underground. MKM is practically irrelevant to the phyrexian war and would have been nearly identical no matter what the overarching cause. Thunder junction can't ilucidate because it's a new plane and thus has only the vague cause but not the war. WOE had some minor effects visible effects

The cards of a set focus on the themes and mechanics of that set. Wilds of Eldraine was about fairy tales and enchantments. Destroyed Eldraine is not a key selling point. There are remnants of the effects of the war on the cards (the twins are fighting, many people are under the sleep spell, the courts are struggling, etc.), but it’s not the focus, so it’s subtle. The story spends a lot more time on it. That’s the place where we can focus on it more.

Enchantments Invasion Ixalan Mechanics Murders at Karlov Manor Phyrexian Question Marks Story / Lore Wilds of Eldraine

Epilogue Products Absence

Sorry if you answered this already but did WOE, MKM, or LCI have intended epilogue products?

No.

Murders at Karlov Manor The Lost Caverns of Ixalan Wilds of Eldraine

OTJ Bonus Sheet

I've always been skeptical of bonus sheets, as I much prefer playing the new cards in the limited environment and not having them be overshadowed by reprints. Prior to this, the bonus sheets have at least had themes and some of them (WOE, for me) were net positives on their limited environment. The OTJ bonus sheet just appears to be a collection of cards that are good. I had already not cared much for them, but I imagine this will be a big "jump the shark" moment for many regarding bonus sheets.

It’s a collection of crimes in a set that mechanically cares about them.

Bonus Sheets Card Printing Limited Outlaws of Thunder Junction Reprints Shark Wilds of Eldraine

Eldraine Timeline Query

Vorthos question: How much time has passed between Wilds of Eldraine and Outlaws? Kellan's gone from preteen to being as tall as Oko.

I believe a year.

Vorthos Wilds of Eldraine

Ashiok Identity Revealed

Was it Jace in Wilds of Eldraine disguising as Ashiok?

Here’s what Roy Graham, the Story Lead, has to say: “The Ashiok people saw in Wilds of Eldraine was the real Ashiok, except for the very last scene in which Eriette is broken out of jail.”

Story / Lore Wilds of Eldraine

Block System Value

I don't think is arguable that the block system is less popular in the short term for sets, but shouldn't Wotc consider that multi-set planes are an investment for future sets? Some of the most beloved planes would never have been created under this blockless paradigm, Ravnica chief among them. I feel like Team X should take a risk every 1-2 years with a multi-set new plane they think is a homerun to try and build a fanbase for it.

There’s a little argument that plays out on this blog. We do something. Some players don’t like it. I explain that it’s popular (players like it according to market research) and selling well. The response to that is well, maybe it’s good for the short term, but it’s harmful for the long term of the game. Okay, let’s walk through that. The first set in the new non-block era was Dominaria in 2018. That’s six years ago. 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, and 2023 were the six high-grossing years Magic has had in its thirty-year history. On top of that, the vast majority of the top-selling sets of all time come from that six-year window. On top of that, our player growth for the last six years has been record-breaking. During that time, we’ve introduced the following new worlds: Eldraine, Ikoria, Kaldheim, Arcavios (Strixhaven), and New Capenna. Eldraine was revisited in Wilds of Eldraine. Arcavios is being revisited in the set codenamed “Yachting”. We haven’t announced a set yet that revisits Ikoria or Kaldheim, but both were popular and I could clearly see going back to both of them. My guess is players would be happy to see both. New Capenna was the least successful of our new worlds, but even that has come up recently because some players wanted the murder mystery set there instead of Ravnica.I question your hypothesis that beloved planes can’t be created during the block-less design era. I agree that the dynamics are different, but I think players can fall in love with new worlds in a single set. Also, the fact that we only visited the world for a one set does enable us to return sooner than the block model as evidenced by Wilds of Eldraine.

Blogatog / Tumblr Dominaria Kaldheim Planes Wilds of Eldraine Wizards of the Coast