Today, Wizards of the Coast unveiled theMagic: the GatheringSecret Lair series, a collection that was hinted at about a week ago on Twitter. It is a collection of seven, themed, alternate art boxes with “eye-popping designs and never-before-seen art styles.”
Wizards of the Coast has been putting a lot of effort into coming up with new and interestingMagic: the Gatheringcollectibles for fans to fall in love with. Between theMy Little PonyandMagiccrossover for charitylast month and theUnsanctionedcollection that is set for February 2020, just about everyone who lovesMagicis finding a collectible set that is themed for their tastes. Luckily for players across the spectrum of different formats, there seems to be something for everyone in the upcoming Secret Lair Series.
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This month has been big forMagicfans, between theaddition of the Pioneer formatand format-altering bans in Standard and Legacy. Wizards of the Coast announced that it is “kicking off Secret Lair” with “timeboxed-to-demand” themed boxes started December 2. For that week,Magicfans will be able to purchase one set a day for around $30-40 a set. Each themed box is designed to be “a love letter forMagicfans” but Wizards warns “if you miss one drop, it’s gone forever!” Also, this won’t be the last time Secret Lairs will be available; Wizards promises that “Secret Lair adds new flair and excitement to Magic that will continue getting weirder, and cooler, in 2020.”
On December 2nd, 2019 at 9AM PST until 9AM December 3rd,Magic: the Gatheringfans will be able to order all seven of the Secret Lair drops for the discounted price of $199.99. If players don’t want all of them, though, each of the individual drops will be available on their own day, as listed below.
The December 3rd drop, which begins 9AM PST, is theBitterblossom Dreams.It will contain one full, alternate art Bitterblossom and four themed faerie tokens to go along with it. For $29.99, players can have these five cards that “create an art panorama when set next to each other.”
On December 4th at 9AM PST,Eldraine Wonderlandwill become available. This collection will feature five alternate art basics. It follows the theme of “What if Eldraine had snow-covered lands?” These arts are beautiful foils with a cool theme by Seattle artist Alayna Danner. Hopefully thesebasic lands won’t be breakingMagicgames on PC. This Secret Lair will also be $29.99.
On sale December 5 at 9 AM PST isRestless in Peace.This set will also create a panorama when laid out next to each other. This set includes alternate art Bloodghast, Life From the Loam (one of thebest green cards for Commander), and Golgari Thug for all the dredge players out there who love unique art. The price for this box set is $29.99.
While these won’t be legal in Standard, these can be a great start for commander players who are looking forward to adding theTheros Beyond Death mechanicsto a new golgari dredge commander deck.
On December 6th at 9AM PST, players will be able to purchaseSeeing Visions,also for $29.99. This box set will have 4 foil Serum Visions, each with unique art and flavor text.
The December 7th release at 9AM PST will be all about the Goblins. This set, calledexplosion noises, will contain a Goblin Bushwhacker, Goblin Sharpshooter, Goblin King, Goblin Lackey, and Goblin Piledriver in an A-Team-Style panorama. These cartoony goblins are brought toMagicfans everywhere by the talented artist Mike Uziel. This set will be $29.99.
Kaleidoscope Killerswill be available December 8 at 9 AM PST, and will be $39.99. It will contain three alternate art, five-color cards, The Ur-Dragon, Sliver Overlord, and Reaper King in brilliant color. These three are everything players want from a five-color general in Commander; hopefully some of the cards from theupcomingCommander Legendspackswill have some great cards for these excellent commanders.
OMG KITTIES!is the final set, to be release on December 9th at 9 AM PST. For $39.99, cat lovers everywhere will get five alternate art foils of famousMtGkittens. There is one Arahbo, Roar of the World, one Leonin Warleader, one Mirri, Weatherlight Duelist, one Qasali Slingers, one Regal Caracal, and two unique Cat Tokens.
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These products will be English-only, but will ship almost anywhere around the world. While limited to 10 of any one set, anyone who orders will be guaranteed a box in that 24 hour period. Each box set will come with the promised cards along with aMagic Onlinecode for each card. While players obviously won’t be able to get them forArena’s Historic format, they can at least play themOnline.
After many fans have been upset by theNissa and Chandra retcon, the Secret Lair format seems like great news forMagic: the Gatheringlovers. While many of these amazing cards are either too good or too specific to be reprinted in a sealed set, a limited release like this will allow players to purchase them as individualized collections. Also, these cards will feature funky art and cool panoramics that wouldn’t be possible in regular sets. It’s a truly unique set of products that has a lot of potential to bring art and reprints that would not be possible in standard sets or masters boxes.
On the other hand, on top of the recentMy Little Ponycollectors additions and the cominghigher-than-average priced Mystery Boosters, it seems like a massive cash grab for Hasbro right at the beginning of the holiday shopping season. Players that are broke from traveling to MagicFest may not have the finances to access to these collector’s sets in the 24-hour window they will be available. Although the alternate arts and panoramas are really interesting, it’s difficult to feel good about spending $30-40 on some of these products when there is already so many collectibleMagiccards in the recent past and in the near future.
Source:Wizards of the Coast
