Dominaria release notes posted
Spoilers, Rumors, and Speculation forum
Posted on March 9, 2018, 12:21 a.m. by pskinn01
Apparently there was a leak, so wizards put out the release notes for the set early - link to the notes on bottom of linked article
Please discuss
Interesting set, with lots of fun/interesting commander cards.
Since this was actually released by wizards, it is no longer considered a leak.
DemonDragonJ says... #2
Why is WotC removing the term "mana pool" from cards? That term has been part of the game since its beginning, so it seems to be an utterly pointless change, akin to creating a new colorless mana symbol several years ago. Also, "add 1 mana" is not a proper sentence, so it will leave players asking "add one mana to what?"
I am somewhat hesitant about legendary sorceries, but, if they have greater power to compensate for their restrictions, I shall like them; does this mean that it is safe to presume that there may be legendary instants at some point in the future?
I also am very pleased that the enemy-colored "checklands" are being reprinted so soon after the allied-colored ones were, as well as five of the ten filter lands. WotC must finally be realizing that expansive mana bases are bad for the game, and is making an effort to counter that trend.
March 10, 2018 1:50 a.m.
Removing extraneous words from cards is good.
More room for explaining mechanics, etc.
March 10, 2018 1:53 a.m.
Everyone always gets hyped before a new set.
Then they get to finally play it at prerelease, the shine wears off, and they decide not to foray back into Standard if they were thinking about that.
March 10, 2018 2:37 a.m.
@Argy: You don't understand. I get to use Goblin Warchief in Modern. That means:
IMA SMACK PEOPLE WITH GOBLINS ON A DISCOUNT WITH HASTE!!
Yummy, delicious Earwig Squads for . Goblin Piledrivers outta nowhere to smack people for 12 damage all for the price of . Siege-Gang Commanders for . It will be glorious.
SO GUESS WHAT? THAT'S RIGHT, NERDS! HYPE TRAIN
March 10, 2018 7:52 a.m.
DemonDragonJ says... #8
I am very displeased that there currently is no indication that Liliana will be in this set, considering that Dominaria is her home plane; hopefully, she shall appear in it, but has not yet been spoiled, or is in the next set, if that shall be on Dominaria.
March 11, 2018 9:53 p.m.
DemonDragonJ,
She'll be there. From this article:
Dominaria's story starts right after the events of Hour of Devastation. Gideon and Liliana have arrived on Dominaria following the Gatewatch's defeat at the hands of Nicol Bolas. Together, they begin a mission to kill Belzenlok, the final demon holding Liliana's contract.
March 11, 2018 10:04 p.m.
JANKYARD_DOG says... #10
DemonDragonJ, I've heard speak that Lily and Gids are supposed to tag team Belzenlok, her last demon on Dominaria... The Demon has been spoiled, as well as other walkers... so perhaps there are already too many walkers at the moment, and as you say will be in the next DOM set?
March 11, 2018 10:05 p.m. Edited.
Hi_diddly_ho_neighbor says... #11
I believe the WotC has said that the Gatewatch will be around in the story, but will not necessarily be getting cards anymore due to the backlash from the over saturation of Gatewatch planeswalkers. I suspect that Lily and Gids will be in the story, but won't get cards.
March 11, 2018 10:37 p.m.
I dig the look of Sagas. I kind of wish they looked even more like a book, with a spine and pages or something, but the little chapter marker is a fine compromise for having it be more readable. Hopefully there's a watermark for all of them, considering they're (almost) all based on previous sets.
I'm glad Wizards is finally embracing watermarks this hard :D I guess I should've expected it after Unstable
March 12, 2018 2:41 p.m.
I for one am glad that there won't be so many new planeswalkers. I'm so sick of hearing about the entire gatewatch that it has made me want to quit playing mtg, and I know I'm not the only one.
What's with leaving out the words "mana pool"? Like on Mox Amber, it just says add one mana, not add one mana to your mana pool. It seems really awkward to me.
March 12, 2018 3:35 p.m.
@snotice: I love that callback to Urza's Saga Dark Ritual!
March 12, 2018 4:05 p.m.
I am not particularly pleased with the look of the Sagas. Since you read left to right, your eye follows the text, and then is drawn to the picture at the side. The text itself feels cluttered, since the narrow margins drag-out fairly minor phrases over several lines.
Besides, it feels like the art is getting cut off and forced into a somewhat nonsensical, elongated shape.
It was made to clear up superfluous language from cards and give Wizards some extra room to play around with. We all know where "Add " ends up--the additional text was merely a waste of space.
Wizards also changed the awkward and clunky "his or her"/"he or she" to "their"/"they".
March 12, 2018 4:24 p.m. Edited.
I also love the look of the Sagas.
The text to the side makes it much easier to put lore Counters on it that your Opponent can also see, unlike the level counters for earlier cards.
Not that people will bother to use lore counters because why show up to play Magic with all the tools you need to make your board state very clear?
March 12, 2018 6:26 p.m.
Looking at Phyrexian Scriptures, I'm seeing interesting effects alongside Ferropede and Power Conduit. The "steadily-growing unblockable creatures" and "free board wipes on demand" kind of interesting.
Irrelevant aside--at least one of the Gatewatch should have died on Amonkhet. I won't rant here, but I have reasons for saying that...
March 12, 2018 7:04 p.m.
One of the spoiled cards is called "In Bolas' Clutches".
Does that mean Bolas is in this set? Or in the lore for this set?
March 13, 2018 4:18 a.m.
Sadly, no Bolas (at least as of now), only his nefarious schemes are present in this plane.
March 13, 2018 4:43 a.m.
AgentGreen says... #24
cdkime It's funny you mention that; since there are...fringe...elements...of the community who think that change is absolute garbage and will lead to the death of the game.
March 13, 2018 9:33 a.m.
Back in the old school days, there were plenty of important lore characters who were present with a set's lore, but never depicted (Yawgmoth, Urza), or were printed once, but referred to often (Gerrard Capashen). I'd love to see Magic return to this format.
I think the constant printing of Gatewatch Planeswalkers has made them a bit dull. We don't need a new Liliana card to know Liliana is on Dominaria--that's what flavour text and card names are for. I, personally, would hate to see Bolas get the Gatewatch treatment, and be reprinted in every plane he happens to show up in. Cards like "In Bolas' Clutches" are a wonderful way to depict an entity, without make the entity itself a permanent.
Back in 2013, Mark Rosewater published quite an amusing article on Magic's 20th Anniversary about the "Twenty Things That Were Going to Kill Magic." I'm sure the Dominaria Language Change will proudly be included in the 30th Anniversary list.
March 13, 2018 10:07 a.m.
I was wondering about In Bolas' Clutches too.
It's #4 of the Story Spotlight Cards (per the release notes), which implies Bolas (if he shows up at all) won't show up until the very end of the story arc. This bolsters AgentGreen's idea, because that would be a nice transition (story-wise) into this summer's Core set.
Here are the spotlight cards and some thoughts:
- Broken Bond (1G, Sorcery, Destroy target artifact or enchantment. You may put a land card from your hand onto the battlefield.) No idea what this one is about.
- Final Parting (no info yet). No idea what this one is about either.
- Settle the Score (2BB, Sorcery, Exile target creature. Put two loyalty counters on a planeswalker you control). This sounds like Lili, killing off Belzenlok
- In Bolas's Clutches (2UU, Legendary Enchantment, You control enchanted permanent). Maybe Bolas somehow getting control of Lili? Or maybe the Weatherlight?
March 13, 2018 10:14 a.m. Edited.
cdkime what "Dominaria Language Change" are you refering to, precisely?
March 13, 2018 10:37 a.m.
Two specific changes come to mind as "destroying the game" (big ol' sarcasm quotes around that one).
The removal of the words "Mana Pool" from "Add " seems to be causing some issues. I've seen several individuals on this website complain about this change.
The replacement of "he or she" with "they" seems to be causing a bit of a ruckus in less savoury portions of the internet (i.e. comments sections on news articles regarding the new set). So far, I've seen two arguments against this change:
The first is something along the lines of "SJW Bologna." This is a frankly silly argument that I do not deign to provide a more formal response.
The second involves the bastardization of the English language. Some Grammar Nazis take issue with "They" being used as a singular pronoun. I've seen the argument that, despite the modern trend is to use "they" as singular, English grammar dictates otherwise. This argument is also quite silly. The Oxford English Dictionary clearly lists "they" as an acceptable singular pronoun denoting undetermined, neutral gender. Further, this is hardly a modern trend--the OED lists numerous historical sources for the singular they, dating back to the early 1300s. That's right detractors, "[th]ei" as a singular pronoun predates modern English.
But 'tis the internet, and there will always be fringe groups making a fuss out of non-issues.
Edit: Sadness. TappedOut will not depict the letter thorn.
Þ þ
March 13, 2018 10:52 a.m. Edited.
Interesting that neither of those positions takes into account that women like me might be sick to death of being listed as secondary, on cards we play with on a daily basis.
I used to teach High School English, and have a BA Dip Ed, and an MA. I have spent a lot of time using, and analysing, English.
Words and language are not static. They change and morph over time, to better reflect the specifics of the society which employs them.
My preference would have been for cards to say s/he, but that would NEVER happen in such a male dominated environment as Magic.
I welcomed "they". It's not perfect, but it is commonly used, and clearly understood to encompass both female, and male.
It has always been interesting to me that, right from the start, Magic saw itself as a game for women, and men, by always using feminine, and masculine, pronouns on its cards.
Women play Magic. Not as much as males, but we ARE here.
It will be nice to finally be able to read a card, and not be relegated to an afterthought.
March 13, 2018 11:06 a.m.
Speculation about the story spotlight cards, based on name and effect:
Broken Bond represents Liliana's freedom from Belzenlok, with the assistance of someone who uses green mana. This person would likely be an elf, but I don't have any guesses to who it might be.
Final Parting is, maybe, Liliana killing or betraying Gideon? Or the other way around? I'm going to say it's a removal spell in either black or white.
I like clayperce's suggestions for the other two--Settle the Score sounds especially right.
March 13, 2018 11:12 a.m.
Hi_diddly_ho_neighbor says... #32
I love the template they used for the sagas. From my understanding, sagas were typically written/spoken in prose so the use of stanzas for each chapter shows that Wizards did their homework. I also like how the artwork helps one to visualize the story the saga is telling.
I do agree that the removal of the "to your mana pool" language seems a bit awkward. Shorter is not always better.
cdkime - I agree with you in part about the whole "should the important characters get a card every set debate". I remember back in the day being fairly disappointed that I could never play with Yawgmoth, Urza, Serra, or any of the bigger-than-life characters. That being said, many of the characters who did not receive cards were basically gods and any card representing them probably would be disappointing. Other characters that were more "normal" (for example, the Weatherlight crew) each received their own card. But the way WotC handled these characters made each set feel like I was reading a chapter from some grand story while I was also playing a fun card game.
I personally think all major story characters should get the Gerrard Capashen treatment. Give them one card (or maybe a few cards, but with a set or two in between printings) and then depict them in the artwork or flavor text of other cards. That way we are kept up to date of their role in the story, but we are not being bashed in the face with them.
March 13, 2018 12:18 p.m.
DemonDragonJ says... #33
I hope that, if Liliana succeeds in defeating Belzenlok, that victory comes at a great personal cost; after all, she did make a deal with a demon, and her not suffering in some way would be poor storytelling, in my mind.
March 13, 2018 1:02 p.m.
AgentGreen says... #34
She still has a debt to pay to Bolas for keeping her alive...maybe that's where "In Bolas's Clutches" come into play
March 13, 2018 1:30 p.m.
Hi_diddly_ho_neighbor says... #35
That is my guess AgentGreen.
Bolas seems like he would have foreseen that Liliana would go after the demons and set up some sort of trigger upon their elimination. Maybe he takes control of her? She is arguably one of the more powerful planeswalkers out there. Or maybe their collective deaths releases something?
March 13, 2018 2:29 p.m.
SkyknightXi says... #36
Even better, Bolas was the one who suggested that Liliana make the pact in the first place. Was it all a gambit to take control of her from the onset, and in the process remove some obstacles indirectly?
Personally, with the removal of the mana pool phrasing, I'd have changed "add" to "gain". Less clunky.
March 13, 2018 4:08 p.m.
DemonDragonJ says... #37
What about other cards that reference mana pools, such as Omnath, Locus of Mana or Power Sink? How will those cards be altered?
March 13, 2018 9:37 p.m.
They are not getting rid of the Mana Pool--you still will have a mana pool, and the mana you produce still will go there. As such, all these cards will still be fine as-is.
They are merely removing the words "to your mana pool" from mana sources. Everyone already knows mana goes to your mana pool, so the added four words provide no purpose, other than taking up precious room in the rules text.
March 13, 2018 9:43 p.m. Edited.
They got rid of "Tap to add to your mana pool" on basic lands, and somehow we all survived.
March 14, 2018 6 a.m.
Just barely though, Argy.
There are a bunch of us (dozens, at least!) still holding out, waaaaay back in the Mountains: "Sure you can have my mana pool. When you pry it from my cold, dead hands ..."
'Murca!
March 14, 2018 10:26 a.m. Edited.
DemonDragonJ says... #42
cdkime, this seems to be a change that is being made simply for the sake of change, and not for any valid reason, akin to the new borders that started with Magic 2015 or the new colorless mana symbol.
March 14, 2018 5:14 p.m.
User:DemonDragonJ
The change was to free up additional space on the card. Elimination of unnecessary information allows Wizards to create more extensive and complex mechanics in the future, since they have more text to work with.
The colorless mana symbol is far from unnecessary--it allows Wizards to cost cards a bit more efficiently. mana is much easier to obtain than , since any type of land can be used for the , while only certain options can be used for . This allows Wizards to create better cards with a converted mana cost of only 2.
This is no different than having a strictly better card be costed at , rather than . The flexibility generic mana provides is incredible.
March 14, 2018 5:35 p.m.
Wastes are also of great help to people who run colourless Commander decks.
They finally have access to basic lands.
The hologram on Rares from 2015 onwards is an excellent way to make it more difficult for crooks to pass off fakes as genuine.
There is usually a good reason why Wizards make changes, if you look closely enough.
March 15, 2018 1:52 a.m.
DemonDragonJ says... #45
Argy, I can understand the holographic stickers, but why was the black border on the bottom of the cards enlarged? It looks terrible like that, in my mind.
On a more positive subject, have I mentioned that I am very excited about the enemy-colored "checklands" being reprinted? I imagine that it is safe to presume that they shall have new artwork. With them closely following reprints of the filter lands and the allied-colored checklands, I hope that this means that WotC shall be consciously providing better mana bases in upcoming sets (and a further reprint of the shocklands would be very nice, as well).
March 15, 2018 9:37 p.m.
DemonDragonJ says... #46
In the release notes, there were a rather large number of black cards that dealt damage to players, instead of causing direct life loss, so I really hope that WotC is not abandoning life loss as a mechanic; what does everyone else say about that?
March 16, 2018 7 a.m.
If they were abandoning it, it would have been mentioned in the release notes. This is a major change of rules, so it would be mentioned.
Also, the hologram sticker is not really good protection for two major reasons:
1/ There are few expensive cards that actually use them. Of the cards legal in Standard that hold a sticker of 20+ after they have rotated out, there are just a few - Baby jace, Liliana, Khans fetches. These are the cards that are worth faking.
2/ The hologram sticker can be faked too - Tomoharu Saito recently posted on twitter (google for images) two bicycle lands from Amonkhet that I could not tell the difference between, besides some font differences. They both had the hologram sticker. This has taken less than an year.
March 16, 2018 7:38 a.m.
Of course the holograms can be faked.
ANYTHING can be faked.
However, if you educate yourself, a faked hologram is fairly easy to identify.
It also makes counterfeiters have to work a bit harder.
Note, I did say "make it more difficult", not impossible.
DemonDragonJ the black border on the bottom of cards had to be enlarged to emcompass the hologram, along with information about the card number, and artist.
March 16, 2018 9 a.m.
I second what Argy said. Yes, you can make a fake looking hologram that can fool the average user. But its a lot harder to create a fake that will pass the test for an expert--such as a tournament judge or game store owner. Think of it like a fake ID--it is easy enough to print out a fake that might fool an overworked bartender, but it isn't going to have the microwriting (i.e. printed text so small as to only be visible under a microscope) or other security devices a police officer will know to look for.
Ultimately, more security increases the chance a counterfeiter is going to mess up and leave a visible error.
As for your first point Boza, this is a tad nonsensical. Yes, the old reserved list cards are more expensive and do not have these protections. Just because Wizards did something in a worse way in the past does not mean they have to continue their errors moving forward. Global treasury departments still introduce new security methods in their bills, despite the fact old bills in circulation still can be counterfeited.
March 16, 2018 9:18 a.m.
I am not talking about old reserved list cards - these are, ironically enough, much more difficult to fake. They were printed in an imperfect manner with numerous quirks and that takes a lot more skill to reproduce. Additionally, because these cards are super expensive, people are much more careful about fakes.
I am talking about expensive Modern staples. Innistrad Snapcaster Mage, Liliana of the Veil, WWK Jace, the Mind Sculptor, 8th edition Ensnaring Bridge or mirrodin Chalice of the Void, future sight Goyfs - these are the juicy targets for counterfiting.
They have the benefit of being easy to counterfit, but suffer from less sscrutiny.
Also, I am all for new countermeasures, as long as they are effective ones. The TSA is a prime example of security theater - security added for no real benefit. I think holograms on MTG cards are a form of security theater.
shadow63 says... #1
Karn!!!
March 10, 2018 1:26 a.m.