Not directly maybe, but she was partially responsible for getting some of the sleepwalkers and Will's people killed. As she said, Eriette was not a strategist, and might have been quickly overwhelmed (possibly with minimal losses on both sides), if it wasn't for Rowan sowing chaos first.
So is Oko from Lorwyn? Is that a "land where fae ruled supreme" or someplace entirely new and unseen? I think the latter, given how different he seems from the Lorwyn faeries and all that.
I really like the story ending for Kellen and that trip through the omenpath (or whatever we are calling the realmbreaker portals between planes) but dislike how they handled Rowan and the rest. With many more chapters they could have appropriately told this story of her turning to misguided evil like this, but there was practically no visible development on this point.
So is Oko from Lorwyn? Is that a "land where fae ruled supreme" or someplace entirely new and unseen? I think the latter, given how different he seems from the Lorwyn faeries and all that.
Oko is from a plane ruled by Fey who believe in a unified society, one where the ruling class has decided that for the betterment of all, the natural mischievousness of the Fey has to be suppressed. To the ruling class, they had created a perfect society—but for Oko, who was born with incredibly powerful shapeshifting abilities, this culture went against everything he was and contradicted his deepest, truest self. Styling himself as a speaker of truth, Oko felt he held a mirror to the hypocrisy of his world. The ruling class did not quite see it this way. They subjected him to magical procedures intended to suppress his powers but only succeed in igniting his spark.
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“There are no weak Jews. I am descended from those who wrestle angels and kill giants. We were chosen by God. You were chosen by a pathetic little man who can't seem to grow a full mustache"
"You can tell how dumb someone is by how they use Mary Sue"
Maybe I'm just looking at old Eldraine with rose-colored glasses, but looking at all the cards that are being spoiled and their art, Eldraine seems a bit more un-set-esque this time around. The courts not being in the focus as much, and "lore space" on cards instead mostly being given to the same handful of very recognizable faerie tales, makes the world feel even more like one big reference/in-joke than its own thing. For some of the faerie tales, it's weird when you think about how there already were references to them in the original set (Curious Pair, Trail of Crumbs, Queen of Ice, etc) and now there are new references, just much more "pushed" and over the top. It almost seems like the two Eldraines aren't connected, or that the new Eldraine is a "soft reboot."
Also, the faerie tales they chose don't really seem to serve any purpose other than being a recognizable thing that people can latch onto (and a base for the ten draft archetypes). Lore-wise, they seem to all just exist parallel to each other instead of painting a picture of the Wilds of Eldraine or Eldraine after the Phyrexian invasion.
Ultimately I think this kind of worldbuilding is kind of unsustainable. Sure, there are a lot of faerie tales, but only a few of them are popular enough that you can build a set on them. I'm honestly not sure if we're ever going to see another return to Eldraine, simply because the material they're drawing from seems to be running thin already.
Not directly maybe, but she was partially responsible for getting some of the sleepwalkers and Will's people killed. As she said, Eriette was not a strategist, and might have been quickly overwhelmed (possibly with minimal losses on both sides), if it wasn't for Rowan sowing chaos first.
you’re not wrong. Do we know how many were killed? I think this is where mtg’s lore gets kinda shallow, because even if you’re right- I could still see them try to pretend like nothing’s happened in the future
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Wizards. listen. The Vorthos community will await the consequences of the Eldrazi Titans' deaths/sealing. We will keep the watch.
“The wind whispers, ‘come home,’ but I cannot.”
— Teferi
Maybe I'm just looking at old Eldraine with rose-colored glasses, but looking at all the cards that are being spoiled and their art, Eldraine seems a bit more un-set-esque this time around. The courts not being in the focus as much, and "lore space" on cards instead mostly being given to the same handful of very recognizable faerie tales, makes the world feel even more like one big reference/in-joke than its own thing. For some of the faerie tales, it's weird when you think about how there already were references to them in the original set (Curious Pair, Trail of Crumbs, Queen of Ice, etc) and now there are new references, just much more "pushed" and over the top. It almost seems like the two Eldraines aren't connected, or that the new Eldraine is a "soft reboot."
Also, the faerie tales they chose don't really seem to serve any purpose other than being a recognizable thing that people can latch onto (and a base for the ten draft archetypes). Lore-wise, they seem to all just exist parallel to each other instead of painting a picture of the Wilds of Eldraine or Eldraine after the Phyrexian invasion.
Ultimately I think this kind of worldbuilding is kind of unsustainable. Sure, there are a lot of faerie tales, but only a few of them are popular enough that you can build a set on them. I'm honestly not sure if we're ever going to see another return to Eldraine, simply because the material they're drawing from seems to be running thin already.
I agree. It seems a lil overtop. Too much Icing, not enough cake.
Should we return to Eldraine a third time around I expect the courts and King Arthur/Medieval England themes to be more of a focus. They’re gonna exhaust their creative resources for the world otherwise.
Is it just me or have the nonhuman sentient species been less present this return trip? Dwarves in particular.
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Wizards. listen. The Vorthos community will await the consequences of the Eldrazi Titans' deaths/sealing. We will keep the watch.
“The wind whispers, ‘come home,’ but I cannot.”
— Teferi
Maybe I'm just looking at old Eldraine with rose-colored glasses, but looking at all the cards that are being spoiled and their art, Eldraine seems a bit more un-set-esque this time around. The courts not being in the focus as much, and "lore space" on cards instead mostly being given to the same handful of very recognizable faerie tales, makes the world feel even more like one big reference/in-joke than its own thing. For some of the faerie tales, it's weird when you think about how there already were references to them in the original set (Curious Pair, Trail of Crumbs, Queen of Ice, etc) and now there are new references, just much more "pushed" and over the top. It almost seems like the two Eldraines aren't connected, or that the new Eldraine is a "soft reboot."
Also, the faerie tales they chose don't really seem to serve any purpose other than being a recognizable thing that people can latch onto (and a base for the ten draft archetypes). Lore-wise, they seem to all just exist parallel to each other instead of painting a picture of the Wilds of Eldraine or Eldraine after the Phyrexian invasion.
Ultimately I think this kind of worldbuilding is kind of unsustainable. Sure, there are a lot of faerie tales, but only a few of them are popular enough that you can build a set on them. I'm honestly not sure if we're ever going to see another return to Eldraine, simply because the material they're drawing from seems to be running thin already.
I agree. It seems a lil overtop. Too much Icing, not enough cake.
Should we return to Eldraine a third time around I expect the courts and King Arthur/Medieval England themes to be more of a focus. They’re gonna exhaust their creative resources for the world otherwise.
Is it just me or have the nonhuman sentient species been less present this return trip? Dwarves in particular.
I actually agree with Wizards that Eldraine's creative resource pool isn't that close to being exhausted yet, even after this set, and even if they skip Arthurian legend entirely after already being caught digging as deep as the Questing Beast in the first set...
...as long as they expand to generic folk tales instead of fairy tales.
Already I can see hints of generic folk tales being drawn from instead of fairy tales proper - another poster claimed that several European folk tales have tales of Lord Skitter's Butcher-like tool-wielding but non-talking rats, my personal observation of Peter the Wolf Knight's similarity to an inversion of the folk tale wolf that helps the good guys and is revealed to be an enchanted knight or prince along with his name possibly being a "Peter and the Wolf" reference...
Generic folk tales are similar enough to fairy tales for scholars to make the connection and treat them similarly, and I'm fairly sure references to folk tales like "Lazy Jack", "East of the Sun and West of the Moon", "The Black Bull of Norroway", "Snow White and Rose Red", and "The Boots of Buffalo Leather" remain resonant even if people don't know these folk tales deeply.
Generic folk tales are similar enough to fairy tales for scholars to make the connection and treat them similarly, and I'm fairly sure references to folk tales like "Lazy Jack", "East of the Sun and West of the Moon", "The Black Bull of Norroway", "Snow White and Rose Red", and "The Boots of Buffalo Leather" remain resonant even if people don't know these folk tales deeply.
See? I know exactly none of these folk tales. Maybe I would recognize them if I looked them up or had them told to me, but as someone who didn't grow up in an English-speaking country, these titles mean nothing to me. Granted, that wouldn't bother me as long as WotC did their thing well and used them as inspiration/jumping-off points for building their own stuff. But (especially for Eldraine this time around) WotC doesn't seem interested in building their own world. They just want to take stories that literally everyone knows, throw them all together and go "you recognize this, right? Now buy the product." And if you're just aiming for that ("resonance" as Maro calls it) - especially considering that MtG is a global brand - then I'd say The Snow Queen or The Sorcerer's Apprentice is as deep as you can go.
Yeah, maybe I'm being overdramatic and I'm sure it will all work out fine for WotC('s shareholders) in the end. But I still find it a bit disappointing that they're going for the grab bag of popular stories and tropes (the second time already for some of them) and show little willingness to build something that could give planes like Eldraine more staying power even after all the popular references have been done. It kind of worked for Innistrad, but even there the over-reliance on superficial stuff left the most recent return feeling a bit lacking.
Generic folk tales are similar enough to fairy tales for scholars to make the connection and treat them similarly, and I'm fairly sure references to folk tales like "Lazy Jack", "East of the Sun and West of the Moon", "The Black Bull of Norroway", "Snow White and Rose Red", and "The Boots of Buffalo Leather" remain resonant even if people don't know these folk tales deeply.
See? I know exactly none of these folk tales. Maybe I would recognize them if I looked them up or had them told to me, but as someone who didn't grow up in an English-speaking country, these titles mean nothing to me. Granted, that wouldn't bother me as long as WotC did their thing well and used them as inspiration/jumping-off points for building their own stuff. But (especially for Eldraine this time around) WotC doesn't seem interested in building their own world. They just want to take stories that literally everyone knows, throw them all together and go "you recognize this, right? Now buy the product." And if you're just aiming for that ("resonance" as Maro calls it) - especially considering that MtG is a global brand - then I'd say The Snow Queen or The Sorcerer's Apprentice is as deep as you can go.
Yeah, maybe I'm being overdramatic and I'm sure it will all work out fine for WotC('s shareholders) in the end. But I still find it a bit disappointing that they're going for the grab bag of popular stories and tropes (the second time already for some of them) and show little willingness to build something that could give planes like Eldraine more staying power even after all the popular references have been done. It kind of worked for Innistrad, but even there the over-reliance on superficial stuff left the most recent return feeling a bit lacking.
It took them a while to eventually reveal them, but Wizards's takes on "Sleeping Beauty" and "Cinderella" seem very divergent so far:
"Sleeping Beauty" take involves the sleeping, Cursed Slumber-hit, yet sleep-fighting High Fae princess Obyra (the implied daughter of High Lord Talion?) - an inversion of the usual black-aligned fae screwing over the princess
"Cinderella" take involves a knight-imitating party crasher named Ash (name is an oblique reference to the Cinder in Cinderella); is seemingly popular with the crowd and promptly has to disappear at midnight; Wizards previewed the prince's card today and he channels dragons and doesn't seem interested in Ash, unlike the usual Prince Charming
Heck, so far, we have only the evil queen as the "Snow White" representative - not even a Snow White!
As long as they stick to those versions in future Eldraine visits, I'm happy (although the part where we have Snow Queen Take 2 in this set gives me deceptively little confidence). Making Obyra a High Fae member and therefore weaving her into more MTG-unique(-enough) lore helps.
In the meantime, I have no clue where in Europe has the folk tales of the man-eating rats with butcher knives and Wizards still was daring enough to put them in this set.
~~~~~~~~~~~
Personally, the biggest head screw in Wilds of Eldraine's story (IMO) is that the Cursed Slumber didn't look like it got broken or weakened at all, yet Will still decided to reward Ruby and Kellan like it did get broken. No evidence that anyone woke up because Ashiok's grip faltered. No sign of the slumbering/waking knights running out of ruined Castle Ardenvale as fast as they can. Not a sign. Wizards better release a card involving the Cursed Slumber being broken or Will looks like he completely jumped the gun here.
For some of the faerie tales, it's weird when you think about how there already were references to them in the original set (Curious Pair, Trail of Crumbs, Queen of Ice, etc) and now there are new references, just much more "pushed" and over the top. It almost seems like the two Eldraines aren't connected, or that the new Eldraine is a "soft reboot."
They have said since last time that peoples lives and events on Eldraine mimic the events and beats of fairy tales over and over. Witches will often use sweets to lure in children to eat, peasant girls will often be sent to balls by a mysterious and magical benefactor to try and find true love before midnight and royal and nobel blooded scions will find themselves cursed and/or locked away in some tower by a dragon/witch/ect. It's not that uncommon in fairy tale adaptions and I've seen similar ideas from the book versions of the Witcher and Ella Enchanted, the Fables comic books and the tv show Once Upon a Time.
Also, the faerie tales they chose don't really seem to serve any purpose other than being a recognizable thing that people can latch onto (and a base for the ten draft archetypes).
I think this isa great idea for a design point. When looking at cards I know the Snow Queen themed cards are for the WU tap deck ect so its easy to see what cards are meant to be drafted together as they are recognizable.
Granted, that wouldn't bother me as long as WotC did their thing well and used them as inspiration/jumping-off points for building their own stuff. But (especially for Eldraine this time around) WotC doesn't seem interested in building their own world. They just want to take stories that literally everyone knows, throw them all together and go "you recognize this, right? Now buy the product."
A lot of the fairy tales where used in Kellans journey in the main story that where imo was this. His story was a mash up of Sleep Beatuy/Snow White, Little Red Riding Hood, Hansel and Gretel, Jack and the Beanstalk and The Snow Queen that mixed magic owns lore into it and both played straight and subverted many fairy tales tropes in them. They likely could have woven more more of the fairy tales but we are where limited to just five stories with him sharing pov stuff with Rowan*.
As someone who reads a lot of fairy tale adaptions I'll also say the mini-stories in the rest of the draft archetypes also are about as different as you find in other adaptions. I don't think I remember a version of Cinderella where her prince is a dragon also in disguise and that they fight goblins who invade the party and most often the pied piper is coded as a child predator where as this he seems to be working together with Eldraines version of the Rat King from the nutcracker.
*Also Will and Rowans half was very much a retelling of Arthur and Morgan La Fey.
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“There are no weak Jews. I am descended from those who wrestle angels and kill giants. We were chosen by God. You were chosen by a pathetic little man who can't seem to grow a full mustache"
"You can tell how dumb someone is by how they use Mary Sue"
In the meantime, I have no clue where in Europe has the folk tales of the man-eating rats with butcher knives and Wizards still was daring enough to put them in this set.
I don't think it's based on a real folk tale. It's an extrapolation from the Pied Piper reference - in the original story you have a lot of rats, and in the MtG version those rats (or at least some of them) are also sentient. I actually like this "taking a reference and going from there" approach, but the sudden appearance of all this beastfolk (also Werefoxes, Fauns etc.) kind of comes out of nowhere. It doesn't feel like they were always there and just had the focus adjusted on them, but like they suddenly plopped into existence because WotC needed to fill the slots that they couldn't fill with knights and other inhabitants of the realm. I know that this seems like I'm splitting hairs (and I know that I'm part of a tiny minority here), but since the game itself has become mostly irrelevant to me, this kind of creative consistency stuff is what I'm most interested in.
Personally, the biggest head screw in Wilds of Eldraine's story (IMO) is that the Cursed Slumber didn't look like it got broken or weakened at all, yet Will still decided to reward Ruby and Kellan like it did get broken.
Right now I still haven't read the actual story and am evaluating the creative of the set purely through what I'm seeing on cards, and from this perspective it doesn't seem like the Wicked Slumber is that big of a deal. One of the coolest cards spoiled so far has been Court of Ardenvale imo, because it shows some of the Phyrexian invasion aftermath. But otherwise, Eldraine seems very well pul-together for a world that was just assaulted by Phyrexians, and the sleeping curse things looks like it's a minor issue at worst. I definitely have to read the story before my final verdict, but I think they could've done a better job at showing the effects of the invasion and the Wicked Slumber.
They have said since last time that peoples lives and events on Eldraine mimic the events and beats of fairy tales over and over. Witches will often use sweets to lure in children to eat, peasant girls will often be sent to balls by a mysterious and magical benefactor to try and find true love before midnight and royal and nobel blooded scions will find themselves cursed and/or locked away in some tower by a dragon/witch/ect.
I think it's precisely this "these things happen all the time" aspect that gives me the Un-Set vibes. When the worldbuilding feels like it's telling you "What do you mean, the Hansel and Gretel? There have been dozens of them!", it does end up feeling like a joke.
I think this isa great idea for a design point. When looking at cards I know the Snow Queen themed cards are for the WU tap deck ect so its easy to see what cards are meant to be drafted together as they are recognizable.
From a gameplay design standpoints it's clever, I agree. But from a pure creative standpoint, I'm on the fence. I know that Magic is a game first and that all the fluff is of secondary importance, but if that's the lens you're viewing things through, it feels a bit lacking imo.
Love this set's Commune with Nature. It's a lovely twist on the fairy tale being friends with animals, only instead of Snow White is a cannibalistic Green villain
Trailer is awesome I'd rather see 2D (anime or not) animation of magic trailers vs the 3D ones we get. I just feel like the characters feel more natural in that medium.
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“There are no weak Jews. I am descended from those who wrestle angels and kill giants. We were chosen by God. You were chosen by a pathetic little man who can't seem to grow a full mustache"
"You can tell how dumb someone is by how they use Mary Sue"
From Maro article today, due to the high request and disappointment that we didn't get side stories and legends article, Maro gave us a little info while highlighting the cards that are in the draft archtype.
Talion – The leader of the High Fae. Talion is curious, supremely powerful, and otherworldly. They regard themselves as the protector of Eldraine.
Obyra – Talion's daughter and the greatest duelist in Eldraine. She's currently trapped under the effects of the Wicked Slumber, but her finely tuned sword-fighting instincts can't be suppressed—Obyra roams Eldraine, seeking other duelists even while asleep.
Story
The High Fae, led by Talion, are a rowdy bunch that enjoy causing mischief. They all returned from a jaunt to the edge of the plane to find the Phyrexians invading. Striking a deal with the three witch sisters, Agatha, Hylda, and Eriette, a massive sleeping spell, known as the Wicked Slumber, spread throughout Eldraine and turned the tides of the invasion.
After the Phyrexians were defeated, the Wicked Slumber remained and grew in power. It attracted creatures that feed upon dreams and nightmares. Eventually, it took hold in Tuinvale, where the High Fae have taken up residence. Obyra, Talion's daughter, has fallen asleep and is causing havoc as she sleep-duels her way across the plane.
Talion calls on Kellan, a boy from the Boundary Lands, to go retrieve the three gifts they gave to the witch sisters (the soul cauldron, the winter crown, and the tempting apple) to break the spell. Meanwhile, Obyra's attendants, Beauty, Song, and Blessing, try to keep her out of trouble with whatever means necessary.
Little Red Riding HoodRG
Legends
Ruby – A tough, street-smart young woman who would do anything for her family. She is cunning and resourceful.
Agatha – One of the three witch sisters. Her kind and motherly appearance disguises her bestial nature.
The Wolf – Ruby's brother and a fearsome warrior. He is enthralled by Agatha and forced to fight his sister.
Story
The witch Agatha was gifted a magical cauldron by Talion for her role in creating the Wicked Slumber. The cauldron has the power to boil down living creatures into their magical essence. She sets up nearby Edgewall, hoping to trick some poor fools into becoming her next meal.
Meanwhile, Ruby's brother has suddenly gone missing. Unbeknownst to Ruby, her brother was taken and ensorcelled by Agatha to be her muscle. Ruby meets Kellan in the streets of Edgewall, who was sent there to retrieve the cauldron and other artifacts for Talion. She agrees to help him find the local witch, hoping that it might lead her to her brother.
After plenty of dangerous encounters in the forests of the Boundary Lands, Ruby and Kellan reach Agatha's hut. After a fierce battle, Kellan pushes Agatha into her own cauldron, boiling her alive. Finished with his first quest, Kellan journeys onward with Ruby.
Jack and the BeanstalkGU
Legends
Troyan – A vedalken from Ravnica who journeyed here through the Omenpaths.
Beluna Grandsquall – A giantess noble and the leader of the Stormkeld giants. Also coincidentally a kleptomaniac.
Ruby and Kellan – This duo from our main story journey up the beanstalk to find the mirror of Vantress, hoping to ask where the ice witch Hylda is located.
Story
Ruby and Kellan seek the three gifts that Talion gave to the witch sisters to break the Wicked Slumber. They enlist the help of Troyan, a strange explorer from a distant land, to lead them to the fabled magic mirror Indrelon, the treasure of Castle Vantress, which has been stolen. They journey up the beanstalk and arrive in the Stormkeld, home to the storm giants. They sneak past many dangers, finding themselves in the parlor of the storm giants—on Beluna's birthday.
Beluna is slow to trust them. After all, outsiders might be here to steal her many precious treasures (never mind that she stole them all first). At the insistence of Yorvo, former ruler of Garenbrig, Beluna lets them into her vault to consult the mirror. They discover that the witch queen has built a fortress over Loch Larent and head there immediately.
The Snow QueenWU
Legends
Hylda – One of the three witch sisters. She is as aloof and cold as the blizzards she commands.
Sharae – Leader of the merfolk of Loch Larent, who Hylda trapped under the surface of the lake when she formed her icy castle.
Story
As a gift for helping create the Wicked Slumber, Hylda receives a crown of wintery power from Talion capable of conjuring blizzards, snow, and ice.She creates a kingdom of ice in the farthest reaches of Dunbarrow, above Loch Larent. Her ice powers cause problems for the residents of the land and freeze over the local lake, trapping the merfolk in and beneath the ice.
ellan and Ruby, who are seeking out the gifts that Talion bestowed, come to Hylda's frozen kingdom searching for the icy crown. He battles with the ice elemental guardians. At a critical moment, he discovers his ability to manifest weapons made from ethereal light.
Forming a glowing blade, he strikes an elemental down. Kellan collapses before he can reach Hylda. Ruby carries him nearly to the castle gates. In a moment of kindness, Hylda kisses Kellan's forehead. With her blessing, Kellan and Ruby are protected from the cold.
Snow WhiteWB
Legends
Neva – A young noble who was sealed in a glass casket when the Wicked Slumber took her.
Eriette – One of the three witch sisters. She is vain and controlling.
Story
As the Wicked Slumber sweeps over the land, Neva succumbs to the spell and is placed in a glass casket to protect her while the wizards of Vantress study the slumber's effects. Meanwhile, the witch sister Eriette uses the charmed apple that Talion gifted her to maintain the curse of the Wicked Slumber long after the invasion was repelled.
Neva is stalked in the dream realm by nightmares, some resembling Phyrexians that hunted her in the real world. Eriette meanwhile takes over the ruins of Castle Ardenvale and ensorcells any knights that come to defeat her, using her magic to manipulate those under the Wicked Slumber's curse like puppets.
Neva is only able to fend off the nightmares due to the influence of a mysterious spectral visitor who saves her life. Eriette convinces Rowan to join her as an apprentice. When Kellan and Ruby show up at Castle Ardenvale to get the tempting apple, it's Rowan they face.
One witch would be a tough enough opponent—but the pair must also face down the Planeswalker Ashiok. With some help from Will Kenrith, the unlikely heroes manage to save the day. Kellan learns that his real father may be hiding not just somewhere in the far reaches of Eldraine, but on another plane entirely—and sets off to find him.
The Piped Piper of HamelinBR
Legends
Totentanz – A struggling artist trying to make ends meet. His desperation leads him to evil. He's creepy and vindictive.
Lord Skitter – A demonic rat who lives beneath Edgewall. He is cruel and cunning.
Story
Totentanz was a struggling musician who could barely make ends meet. While staying out on the streets of Edgewall, he fell into the sewers beneath and was led by the rats to Lord Skitter. Lord Skitter granted Totentanz powers, specifically the ability to enthrall listeners in a way that his music never could. In exchange, Totentanz must lure victims into the sewer so that Skitter and his brood can feast on them. Totentanz leads droves of hapless Edgewall citizens into the undercity with his music. Lord Skitter and his brood grow in power, and eventually rats swarm the city.
At first, the people of Edgewall are outwitted by Lord Skitter. The townsfolk do the best they can to deal with the rats, but eventually, they band together, steal Totentanz's pipe, and storm the sewers, twisting its wicked magic back onto Lord Skitter and Totentanz, causing them to be devoured by their own rat horde. Without a leader, the rats of Edgewall return to their ordinary ways, though no one knows if Lord Skitter is truly gone for good.
Beauty and the BeastGW
Legends
Lady Armont – An Ardenvale knight captain renown for her kindness and beauty. She cannot ignore injustice.
Yenna – The leader of the werefox elves. She is distrustful and proud.
Story
Lady Armont, looking for a way to heal the realm after the Phyrexian invasion, journeys deep into the wilds with her band of loyal knights. In the forest, by sheer coincidence, she stumbles upon Redtooth Keep where the ancient bloodline of elves live. The elves are cursed to transform into werefoxes at night.
Lady Armont commits herself to solving this mystery and breaking the curse. Some of her knights, concerned with their own survival, battle against the werefoxes despite Armont's wishes. Yanna, leader of the werefoxes, warms up to Armont's kindness and tells her of the enchanted rose that will break the spell. It is guarded by an archon in a glade nearby. Armont and Yanna venture to the glade in search of the rose.
The Sorcerer's ApprenticeUR
Legends
Johann – A foolish apprentice who unleashes havoc after his master leaves the tower.
Gadwick – Johann's master, unseen in the story, but a character with a card in Throne of Eldraine. He is powerful and mysterious.
Story
After Gadwick leaves Caervelin on mysterious wizard business, Johann tries to maintain the complex mechanisms that rule the wizard's domain. He fails and winds up unleashing a massive number of elementals throughout the tower. Even worse, the fire and water elementals begin quarrelling! Johann tries many things, including bottling the elements, researching how to defeat them, and even animating the furniture to fight back. All his methods fail. He is forced to flee the tower out a window as it explodes in a spectacular battle between water and fire.
Hansel and GretelBG
Legends
Greta – A vicious witch hunter who lost her brother to the horrors of Sweettooth Village.
Story
When she was young, Greta and her brother were lured to Sweettooth Village. There, they uncovered a slew of vicious creatures made out of sweets. The encounter was horrible. Greta escaped, but her brother unfortunately did not. Now, she's back for revenge.
Greta storms the village with axe in hand and smooshes candy monsters left and right, looking to take out the witch behind the whole operation.Back for Seconds. While fighting, she discovers a young boy stuck in the village. She rescues him, escaping with her new charge and able to save someone who was trapped like she once was.
CinderellaRW
Legends
Ash – An Embereth refugee who lives at the Delverhaugh. Her adoptive parents are blacksmiths. Goddric – A handsome, elegant man who is really a dragon in disguise.
Story
Ash has always wanted to attend the Grand Ball at the Delverhaugh, but most humans aren't allowed. She crafts a plan: she'll disguise herself in armor and sneak in to have a grand time. The mice help her acquire the armor. As she arrives at the party, she is greeted by the handsome Goddric, who asks her to dance. Suddenly, redcaps and ogres attack! The dwarves, and others, rush to fight back with everything from skewers to pies! In a valiant display of heroism, she defends Goddric from a redcap attack. Prompting Goddric to reveal his power and expel the unwanted guests with a flourish of draconic magic! At midnight, Ash must leave but accidentally forgets her helmet, which clatters to the floor in her haste. Perhaps the handsome stranger will use it to track her down …
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“There are no weak Jews. I am descended from those who wrestle angels and kill giants. We were chosen by God. You were chosen by a pathetic little man who can't seem to grow a full mustache"
"You can tell how dumb someone is by how they use Mary Sue"
Perhaps it's a bad sign that the Wizards-published article suddenly deteriorates spelling- and grammar-wise at the "Beauty and the Beast" section (note "renown for her kindness" and Yenna's name being misspelled as Yanna once).
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Not directly maybe, but she was partially responsible for getting some of the sleepwalkers and Will's people killed. As she said, Eriette was not a strategist, and might have been quickly overwhelmed (possibly with minimal losses on both sides), if it wasn't for Rowan sowing chaos first.
I really like the story ending for Kellen and that trip through the omenpath (or whatever we are calling the realmbreaker portals between planes) but dislike how they handled Rowan and the rest. With many more chapters they could have appropriately told this story of her turning to misguided evil like this, but there was practically no visible development on this point.
New and unseen, we got a little look at it when he was introduced;
https://www.forbes.com/sites/laurenorsini/2019/08/28/exclusive-meet-oko-the-magic-the-gathering-multiverses-newest-planeswalker/?sh=68f6b271b1ae
"You can tell how dumb someone is by how they use Mary Sue"
Also, the faerie tales they chose don't really seem to serve any purpose other than being a recognizable thing that people can latch onto (and a base for the ten draft archetypes). Lore-wise, they seem to all just exist parallel to each other instead of painting a picture of the Wilds of Eldraine or Eldraine after the Phyrexian invasion.
Ultimately I think this kind of worldbuilding is kind of unsustainable. Sure, there are a lot of faerie tales, but only a few of them are popular enough that you can build a set on them. I'm honestly not sure if we're ever going to see another return to Eldraine, simply because the material they're drawing from seems to be running thin already.
you’re not wrong. Do we know how many were killed? I think this is where mtg’s lore gets kinda shallow, because even if you’re right- I could still see them try to pretend like nothing’s happened in the future
The Vorthos community will await the consequences of the Eldrazi Titans' deaths/sealing. We will keep the watch.
“The wind whispers, ‘come home,’ but I cannot.”
— Teferi
I agree. It seems a lil overtop. Too much Icing, not enough cake.
Should we return to Eldraine a third time around I expect the courts and King Arthur/Medieval England themes to be more of a focus. They’re gonna exhaust their creative resources for the world otherwise.
Is it just me or have the nonhuman sentient species been less present this return trip? Dwarves in particular.
The Vorthos community will await the consequences of the Eldrazi Titans' deaths/sealing. We will keep the watch.
“The wind whispers, ‘come home,’ but I cannot.”
— Teferi
I actually agree with Wizards that Eldraine's creative resource pool isn't that close to being exhausted yet, even after this set, and even if they skip Arthurian legend entirely after already being caught digging as deep as the Questing Beast in the first set...
...as long as they expand to generic folk tales instead of fairy tales.
Already I can see hints of generic folk tales being drawn from instead of fairy tales proper - another poster claimed that several European folk tales have tales of Lord Skitter's Butcher-like tool-wielding but non-talking rats, my personal observation of Peter the Wolf Knight's similarity to an inversion of the folk tale wolf that helps the good guys and is revealed to be an enchanted knight or prince along with his name possibly being a "Peter and the Wolf" reference...
Generic folk tales are similar enough to fairy tales for scholars to make the connection and treat them similarly, and I'm fairly sure references to folk tales like "Lazy Jack", "East of the Sun and West of the Moon", "The Black Bull of Norroway", "Snow White and Rose Red", and "The Boots of Buffalo Leather" remain resonant even if people don't know these folk tales deeply.
Yeah, maybe I'm being overdramatic and I'm sure it will all work out fine for WotC('s shareholders) in the end. But I still find it a bit disappointing that they're going for the grab bag of popular stories and tropes (the second time already for some of them) and show little willingness to build something that could give planes like Eldraine more staying power even after all the popular references have been done. It kind of worked for Innistrad, but even there the over-reliance on superficial stuff left the most recent return feeling a bit lacking.
It took them a while to eventually reveal them, but Wizards's takes on "Sleeping Beauty" and "Cinderella" seem very divergent so far:
Heck, so far, we have only the evil queen as the "Snow White" representative - not even a Snow White!
As long as they stick to those versions in future Eldraine visits, I'm happy (although the part where we have Snow Queen Take 2 in this set gives me deceptively little confidence). Making Obyra a High Fae member and therefore weaving her into more MTG-unique(-enough) lore helps.
In the meantime, I have no clue where in Europe has the folk tales of the man-eating rats with butcher knives and Wizards still was daring enough to put them in this set.
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Personally, the biggest head screw in Wilds of Eldraine's story (IMO) is that the Cursed Slumber didn't look like it got broken or weakened at all, yet Will still decided to reward Ruby and Kellan like it did get broken. No evidence that anyone woke up because Ashiok's grip faltered. No sign of the slumbering/waking knights running out of ruined Castle Ardenvale as fast as they can. Not a sign. Wizards better release a card involving the Cursed Slumber being broken or Will looks like he completely jumped the gun here.
They have said since last time that peoples lives and events on Eldraine mimic the events and beats of fairy tales over and over. Witches will often use sweets to lure in children to eat, peasant girls will often be sent to balls by a mysterious and magical benefactor to try and find true love before midnight and royal and nobel blooded scions will find themselves cursed and/or locked away in some tower by a dragon/witch/ect. It's not that uncommon in fairy tale adaptions and I've seen similar ideas from the book versions of the Witcher and Ella Enchanted, the Fables comic books and the tv show Once Upon a Time.
I think this isa great idea for a design point. When looking at cards I know the Snow Queen themed cards are for the WU tap deck ect so its easy to see what cards are meant to be drafted together as they are recognizable.
A lot of the fairy tales where used in Kellans journey in the main story that where imo was this. His story was a mash up of Sleep Beatuy/Snow White, Little Red Riding Hood, Hansel and Gretel, Jack and the Beanstalk and The Snow Queen that mixed magic owns lore into it and both played straight and subverted many fairy tales tropes in them. They likely could have woven more more of the fairy tales but we are where limited to just five stories with him sharing pov stuff with Rowan*.
As someone who reads a lot of fairy tale adaptions I'll also say the mini-stories in the rest of the draft archetypes also are about as different as you find in other adaptions. I don't think I remember a version of Cinderella where her prince is a dragon also in disguise and that they fight goblins who invade the party and most often the pied piper is coded as a child predator where as this he seems to be working together with Eldraines version of the Rat King from the nutcracker.
*Also Will and Rowans half was very much a retelling of Arthur and Morgan La Fey.
"You can tell how dumb someone is by how they use Mary Sue"
I don't think it's based on a real folk tale. It's an extrapolation from the Pied Piper reference - in the original story you have a lot of rats, and in the MtG version those rats (or at least some of them) are also sentient. I actually like this "taking a reference and going from there" approach, but the sudden appearance of all this beastfolk (also Werefoxes, Fauns etc.) kind of comes out of nowhere. It doesn't feel like they were always there and just had the focus adjusted on them, but like they suddenly plopped into existence because WotC needed to fill the slots that they couldn't fill with knights and other inhabitants of the realm. I know that this seems like I'm splitting hairs (and I know that I'm part of a tiny minority here), but since the game itself has become mostly irrelevant to me, this kind of creative consistency stuff is what I'm most interested in.
Right now I still haven't read the actual story and am evaluating the creative of the set purely through what I'm seeing on cards, and from this perspective it doesn't seem like the Wicked Slumber is that big of a deal. One of the coolest cards spoiled so far has been Court of Ardenvale imo, because it shows some of the Phyrexian invasion aftermath. But otherwise, Eldraine seems very well pul-together for a world that was just assaulted by Phyrexians, and the sleeping curse things looks like it's a minor issue at worst. I definitely have to read the story before my final verdict, but I think they could've done a better job at showing the effects of the invasion and the Wicked Slumber.
I think it's precisely this "these things happen all the time" aspect that gives me the Un-Set vibes. When the worldbuilding feels like it's telling you "What do you mean, the Hansel and Gretel? There have been dozens of them!", it does end up feeling like a joke.
From a gameplay design standpoints it's clever, I agree. But from a pure creative standpoint, I'm on the fence. I know that Magic is a game first and that all the fluff is of secondary importance, but if that's the lens you're viewing things through, it feels a bit lacking imo.
Trailer is awesome I'd rather see 2D (anime or not) animation of magic trailers vs the 3D ones we get. I just feel like the characters feel more natural in that medium.
"You can tell how dumb someone is by how they use Mary Sue"
I have copy and pasted the info, please click on the article to see the cards and to show the higher ups at Wizards we wants story info, they look at web clicks;
https://magic.wizards.com/en/news/making-magic/ten-stories-tall
Sleeping Beauty UB
Legends
Story
Little Red Riding Hood RG
Legends
Story
Jack and the Beanstalk GU
Legends
Story
The Snow Queen WU
Legends
Story
Snow White WB
Legends
Story
The Piped Piper of Hamelin BR
Legends
Story
Beauty and the Beast GW
Legends
Story
The Sorcerer's Apprentice UR
Legends
Story
Hansel and Gretel BG
Legends
Story
Cinderella RW
Legends
Story
"You can tell how dumb someone is by how they use Mary Sue"