Radha, Coalition Warlord

Logic Behind Recent Reprints

New 21 Jul 2023 Asked by tiwaztyrsfist 36 Comments

I understand the need to fill certain slots in a set, to keep them balanced, but what is the logic/reasoning behind including reprints of cards that have been printed/reprinted very recently as part of a regular set/bonus sheet included with a regular set?
I.E. Radha, Coalition Warlord; Raff, Weatherlight Steward; and Rona, Sheoldred's Faithful all being from Dominaria United then getting reprinted on the Multiverse Legends sheet in MOM. Or Yargle, and Anafenza, who were just part of Multiverse Legends being reprinted in Commander Masters.


I know when you look at a set through the lens of a singular issue, in this case reprints, it seems so easy to make changes to maximize that goal. But the reality of making a Magic set is that there are a huge number of goals the designers need to meet. There are goals for every relevant format. There are structural goals. There are theme goals. There are as-fan goals. There are creative goals. And while you’re making this set, many other teams are making many other sets. There are a lot of balls in the air, and it’s not as easy as you might think to maximize every vector. Why does it happen? Because sometimes it’s the best choice given the options and concerns at the time.


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