The latest previews forMagic: The Gathering’s upcomingEdge of Eternitiesset showed off the five new mechanics being introduced. These new mechanics aren’t just well-themed for the new science-fantasy setting ofEdge of Eternities, but they also seem to have some pretty strong potential. It will be interesting to see which, if any, proves popular enough to appear in future sets. There is also still a lot of the set left to see, and I’m excited to see more ways that these new mechanics will be utilized.
As a Standard set, whenEdge of Eternitiesis released in early August,these new mechanics will become legal in everyMagic: The Gatheringformat. So, whether you play Commander or a more competitive format like Standard or Modern, you will likely need to know how these cards work. You’ll probably want to try out at least a few cards featuring these mechanics yourself, as I have a feeling that at least one of them is going to be pretty popular.
5Power Up Your Spacecraft With Station
Cards With Station Can Gain New Abilities Over Time
Station is a new mechanic that appears on several card types inEdge of Eternities. These cards will haveone or more extra abilities that can be brought online by adding charge counters to them. you’re able to use a card’s Station ability to tap a creature you control and add a number of charge counters equal to that creature’s power to the card with Station. Because it is the Station ability tapping these creatures, and not the creatures tapping themselves, you can still use the Station ability on creatures that have summoning sickness.
Using the Station ability is similar to crewing a vehicle, but there are a few major differences. For one, you don’t need to add enough counters to bring a Station card online all at once. Instead, you can add counters over time to add up to its threshold and unlock its abilities.So long as enough charge counters remain on a station, it stays online. Charge counters can also be increased with effects like Proliferate that add extra counters. Station can also only be done as a sorcery, so you can’t wait until an opponent’s turn to tap your creatures.
The new Spacecraft cards are one of the more common types of cards with Station, based on the previews we’ve seen so far. These are artifacts, some of which can become artifact creatures once they have enough charge counters on them. Thanks to some recent rule changes, certain Legendary Spacecraft can also serve as your commander.
It’s important to note that not all Spacecraft become creatures, only ones with a power and toughness box on them. This also means that there aresome Spacecraft that are not legal commanders. Any Spacecraft card without a power and toughness box, Legendary or otherwise, are not allowed to be your commander. This is partially why thenew Commander rulesare worded the way they are.
4Planets Are A Powerful New Land Type
Planets Are Lands With Station Abilities
Although most of the cards we’ve seen with Station are artifacts, there is a powerful new type of land that also utilizes the mechanic. Planets - at least the ones we’ve seen so far - are lands that enter tapped, and can tap for a certain type of mana just like any other type of land. However,they also have powerful abilities that can be brought online by using their Station ability.
One of the planets previewed, Uthros, Titanic Godcore, shows the type of powerful effects Wizards of the Coast is willing to put on Planet cards. Its ability to tap for blue mana equal to the number of artifacts you control hasthe same effect as Tolarian Academy, a card that is banned or restricted in all formats. Susur Secundi, Void Altar, another Planet previewed, is a powerful draw engine, and a solid sacrifice outlet for decks that want to destroy their own creatures.
If recent leaks are to be believed, another powerful land will be getting a Planet alternative. As reported byDraftsim, Evendo, Waking Haven, is another Planet with a Station ability whose effect mirrors that of Gaea’s Cradle.Gaea’s Cradle is a powerful land onMagic’s Reserved List that typically sells for nearly $1000.
Although both Tolarian Academy and Gaea’s Cradle have had their abilities reprinted on cards before - Vault of Catlacan and Itlimoc, Cradle of the Sun respectively - these started as enchantments which needed certain requirements to turn into these powerful lands. Enchantments are easier to remove inMagic: The Gathering, soUthros, Titanic Godcore is less likely to be destroyed while waiting to come onlinethan Storm the Vault is while waiting to transform into Vault of Catlacan. Although maybe not good enough to fully replace the originals, these will be nice alternatives for a format like Commander.
3Warp Is A Combination Of Two Powerful Magic Mechanics
Warp Combines Adventure And Evoke To Create A Powerful New Ability
The new Warp mechanic is a bit simpler to understand than Station, but I would also argue it has far more potential.Warp allows you to play a card from your hand for a cheaper cost, but you will be forced to exile it at the beginning of the next end step. Similar to the Evoke ability, this allows you to play a card for less mana and benefit from any of its abilities triggered by entering or leaving the battlefield. However, Warp has two key advantages.
First, Warp cards aren’t immediately sacrificed like Evoke cards; instead, they stay out for the entire turn. This gives you a chance to use the cards in a variety of ways like attacking if they have haste, or stationing a Spacecraft or Planet. Second,once Warp cards are exiled, they can be cast permanently for their full cost on a future turn, similar to the Adventure mechanic. Using them for a temporary benefit therefore has no real downside, since they aren’t lost forever. If anything, they’re safer in exile because you can’t be forced to discard them.
A great example of how powerful Warp can be is seen on Anticausal Vestige, the newEldrazi card fromEdge of Eternities.You can cast it for its Warp cost, which gives you a powerful creature. You can then use it to put seven charge counters on one of your Station cards. At the end of your turn it will leave the battlefield, drawing you a card and allowing you to play a replacement card for free. Alternatively, you could drop it for four mana, use a Fling effect on it to do seven damage, and still get its ability.
2Void Is A New Ability Word For A Common Magic Occurrence
Void Is Activated Whenever A Nonland Permanent Leaves The Battlefield On Your Turn
Void is what’s known inMagic: The Gatheringas an ability word. Ability words cover a wide range of different abilities that are all triggered by the same event, like how Landfall abilities are activated by a land entering the battlefield.Void abilities are triggered at the beginning of your end step if a nonland permanent leaves the battlefieldthat turn or a spell has been warped.
Void is a pretty easy ability word to activate, as it will go off when any players' nonland permanent leaves the battlefield on your turn, which could be as simple as using a treasure token to cast a spell. Although adding the stipulation about warping a spell may seem redundant, since Warp will make a card leave the battlefield anyway, this does ensure that Void still goes off if the Warp ability is somehow stifled.
1Lander Tokens Are A New Style Of Artifact Token Dedicated To Ramping
Lander Tokens Can Be Sacrificed To Find Lands
Lander tokens are a new style of artifact token that are created by some cards inEdge of Eternities.These tokens can be sacrificed for two mana, allowing you to search your library for a basic land, then put it onto the battlefield tapped. These can be used as a good form of ramp, and can help with color fixing in multicolor decks. Additionally, you can hoard them, and then activate multiple in a turn to get several Landfall triggers, which can be very powerful when combined with the right cards.
As of now, we’ve mostly seen previews for red and green cards that create Lander tokens. If they stay mostly in those colors, there likely won’t be a big shakeup in terms of mana ramp. However, if all five colors, or colorless cards, are able to create Lander tokens, these cards could quickly become Commander staples for colors like blue that don’t have as many options for finding lands. Keep your eye out for futureMagic: The Gatheringpreviews to see if Lander tokens end up breaking the Color Pie to become the next Solemn Simulacrum.
