Magic: The Gathering: Edge of Eternities Preorder Guide
Wizards of the Coast has got such a release cadence going with its long-running trading card game, Magic: The Gathering, that you’re only ever a few weeks away from a new set.
While at the time of writing, we’re eagerly anticipating the Final Fantasy set, anyone looking for a ‘Universes Within’ fix after the excellent Tarkir Dragonstorm won’t have to wait too long, although Edge of Eternities perhaps couldn’t be more different.
The upcoming set, which will debut on August 1, hasn’t had any card spoilers just yet, but that doesn’t mean we don’t know at least a little about what’s coming.
Here’s everything we know about Magic: The Gathering: Edge of Eternities so far.
What is MTG Edge of Eternities?
This year, Wizards of the Coast is leaning hard into Universes Beyond sets, with Final Fantasy the first of three sets this year which leans on established franchises outside of the company’s own characters and settings, followed up by Spider-Man and Avatar: The Last Airbender last in the year.
Whatever your thoughts on that, Edge of Eternities is the opposite, offering a new set with a more cosmic focus but still within Magic’s own universe (although it is sandwiched between Final Fantasy and Spider-Man).
We’ve seen little more than concept art, but we do know the new set will mark the beginning of the final story arc of the Metronome storyline, which began with Wilds of Eldraine (if you’re still following).
Play Boosters
Play Boosters have become the de facto way to open packs now, replacing Set Boosters and Draft Boosters.
These packs are draftable for sealed play, and contain 15 cards each (although the last one in the pack is usually an advert, art card, or token). Cards 1 to 6 are commons, while card 7 is a common card that can be a reprint.
Cards 8, 9 and 10 are uncommons, while card 11 offers your rare/mythic. Card 12 is a Land card, and can be foil or have full art, while card 13 is a “wildcard” that can be any card from the set.
Then you get a wildcard that’s a guaranteed foil for card 14, with the idea being that players have more of a chance to get chase cards from these packs. You can buy Play Boosters individually or pick up a booster box.
Collector Boosters
Collector Boosters are much pricier than their Play Booster counterparts, and offer 16 cards (although again, one is a token).
In these, you can find five rare or mythic rares, as well as four uncommons and five commons, as well as one land.
They’ll also come with a slicker frame design in many instances, with 12 – 13 of the cards included being foils.
Again, you can pick them up individually or as a box, but expect to pay a high price.
Commander Decks
Commander has become Magic’s most popular format, with the thrill of “last player standing” matches and 100-card decks playable right out of the box making for a great jumping-on point for new players.
The number of decks included in each set has varied wildly this year. For example, Aetherdrift offered two Commander options, while Tarkir: Dragonstorm had a whopping five, and Final Fantasy offers four.
Edge of Eternities is scaling back the volume, with two decks: World Shaper and Counter Intelligence.
The former comes in Black, Red, and Green colors (Jund), and the text on the box says players will “Sacrifice Lands” and “Grow Back Stronger”.
Counter Intelligence, on the other hand, is Blue, Red, and White (Jeskai) and says you can use its contents to “Boost Artifacts” and “Proliferate Counters”.
Bundles and Prerelease Packs
Finally, as is tradition now you’ll be able to pick up a Bundle and Prerelease Pack for the new set.
Bundles include a series of 9 Play Boosters, as well as one promo card with exclusive alternate art, as well as a full set of 10 Full-Art Lands in foil and non-foil, as well as a spindown dice and a card storage box. Prerelease works a little differently, with the idea being that the set is used at a prerelease event.
Players open the box, and use the six Play Boosters inside to build a deck comprising of 40 cards. Prerelease boxes are found at your local game store.
Lloyd Coombes is Gaming Editor @ Daily Star. He’s a big fan of Magic: The Gathering and other collectible card games, much to his wife’s dismay. He’s also a tech, gaming, and fitness freelancer seen at Polygon, Eurogamer, Macworld, TechRadar, Tom’s Guide, IGN, and more.
This article includes contributions from Hannah Hoolihan.
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