Weatherlight: Fiery Fury Review (Part 1 of 2)
In January of 2009, Mark Rosewater of Wizards R&D devoted his weekly column on the mothership to a feature called “Nuts & Bolts.” Ordinarily, Making Magic tends to discuss how different aspects of the game come about: how certain cards come into being, how themes and mechanics found their way into certain sets, colour pie considerations, and so on. But this time, Rosewater decided to delve a little deeper into the design process, and do a column on the actual methodology R&D uses to create Magic sets. It was a bit of a risk- the feature was about “card numbering” in the internal playtesting card mockups. Narrow and specialised, yes, but like most any other aspect of the game of Magic there is a segment of the player base that takes great interest in the actual process of development.
2005-07 Precon Championships: Turian Division (Part 1 of 2)
Like the other Divisions, the Turian is young and therefore hungry to leave its mark on the Preconstructed Championships world. In its short history already it has found glory in the 2008/09 season as Dead Ahead powered past Jace’s Duel Deck to claim the title. In all other seasons, however, the laurel of glory has been clutched by the Lauer Divsion, which itself went on to see Elspeth’s Duel Deck take it all in the 2010/11 season. The Turian might be forgiven, then, for feeling a bit like a younger brother, and understandably eager to get out from the Lauer’s shadow.
Weatherlight: Air Forces Review (Part 2 of 2)
It’s our opening match for Weatherlight as we’ve rounded the bend on Project Mirage Block. Joining me at the table today is Jimi, who is braving back spasms to make sure the decks get tested and shipped on-time. Assisting her endeavour is Gatecrasher, Weatherlight’s Green/Red beats deck, and here’s how the afternoon unfolded.
News: First Look at Avacyn Restored’s Precons
Today we were treated to a look at the upcoming Intro Packs and Event Decks for Avacyn Restored, thanks to our friends at MTGSalvation. Enjoy!
Weatherlight: Air Forces Review (Part 1 of 2)
In our last installment of Project Mirage Block, we looked at the story of Jamuraa that was spun around the framework of cards provided by the Menagerie set. It was a story of intrigue and betrayal in the wake of the mysterious disappearance of the planeswalker, Teferi, that set the continent at war. Kaervek is in his ascendancy, having swayed Jolrael to his cause and trapped Mangara in an Amber Prison. He is well on the path of achieving his ultimate ambition- mastery over all of Jamuraa.
2005-07 Precon Championships: Round 5 and the Leaderboard
Welcome back to the biggest ticket in preconstructed Magic, the Championships! We had an exciting second round of Tinsman Division action which left more than a few of our predictors holding ripped-up ticket stubs, but what’s a competition without the occasional upset? We’ve had some twists and turns on the ride thus far, and with plenty of action ahead nearly anything can happen. Congratulations are certainly due to Future Sight’s Fate Blaster, the divisional winner.
Visions: Savage Stompdown Review (Part 2 of 2)
It’s our last foray in Visions as we prepare to move on to the next set, and so far it’s been a bit of a mixed bag. Will Savage Stompdown emulate the excellence of Unnatural Forces, or will be staring at another misfit deck along the lines of Wild-Eyed Frenzy? To find out, Jimi grabbed Unnatural Forces and we set about to battle.
Visions: Savage Stompdown Review (Part 1 of 2)
It’s our final visit to Visions, which means that we’ll soon be taking our leave of the world of Menagerie. As we’ve covered before, both Mirage and Visions were initially concepted as a single set of cards from a faction of Magic’s original playtesting groups. As it was refined with an eye towards development and release, it then was broken down into two sets. It was at this time that Wizards established the “block structure” of one large set followed by two smaller ones, and we would soon find Weatherlight grafted on to complete the Mirage block.
2005-07 Precon Championships: Tinsman Division (Part 2 of 2)
Last week saw the introduction to the Tinsman Division, one of the competition’s most storied. It was from here that the winner of the very first competition came, when Eldrazi Arisen overcame tremendous odds by beating a Duel Deck, a Planechase Deck, and a Duels of the Planeswalkers deck before claiming victory from its setmate Invading Spawn in the final. In subsequent seasons it has seen success elude it, though it did claim Rosewater Conference honours in the 2010/2011 season as Doom Inevitable completed a similarly unlikely run before falling in the Finals to Elspeth.
Visions: Wild-Eyed Frenzy Review (Part 2 of 2)
Before we diverted to cover the most recent Duel Decks release, Venser vs Koth, we were looking at the Theme Decks of Mirage block. Unlike Mirage’s decks, Visions were entirely created in-house at Wizards, and we’ve enjoyed seeing how the expanded card pool has helped deliver higher grade of deck. The mono-Red Wild-Eyed Frenzy is an aggressive Red deck featuring a gaggle of Goblins, some fat beaters, and some burn. To see how well it delivers, I challenged Sam to a match. For her part, she’s piloting the Red/Green beats deck, Savage Stompdown.
Ertai's Lament 