Set News

• Mark Rosewater announced that the annual State of Design article is shifting to the end of the year to align with Magic's new rotation schedule. Expect a massive two-parter, as Rosewater will have quite a few more sets to dissect this time around. Link
• Get your wallets ready: the Secret Lair Festival in a Box for MagicCon Amsterdam 2026 goes on sale next week. If you can't make it to the convention floor, this is your best shot at grabbing those exclusive drops and playmats. Link
• The dust is settling on the Marvel Super Heroes release, and Draftsim is asking the hard questions: is it the least balanced set of all time? Regardless of your stance, players are already brewing with the new cards, like updating classic favorites such as Rafiq of the Many to leverage the set's "attacking alone" synergies. Link1 | Link2
• Ever wonder why we have expansion symbols? Maro spilled the historical lore on how the scimitar from Arabian Nights was a last-minute addition by the production team to help identify cards for mechanics like City in a Bottle. Link

Commander Corner

• If you're looking to dominate cEDH pods, EDHREC just dropped a comprehensive guide to Tymna the Weaver. Having a premier card draw engine in the command zone remains a top-tier strategy for competitive play. Link
• Are you cutting Lightning Greaves from your decks? EDHREC makes a compelling case for why this historic auto-include is seeing less play, as format speeds up and players prioritize alternative protection pieces. Link
• Draftsim is cooking up some sweet rankings this week, breaking down the top Sultai commanders and the absolute best Clerics for the format. With modern design pushing legendary synergy to new heights, it's the perfect time to reconsider Sisay, Weatherlight Captain. Link1 | Link2
• Over on Reddit, players are hunting down elusive early foil pulls from the upcoming Marvel commander decks. Meanwhile, another player is bravely asking the community for help making cuts to a bloated Jodah the Unifier deck—which is definitely the hardest part of building five-color soup. Link1 | Link2

Competitive Scene

• It's an all-time Standard showdown over on MTGGoldfish! They're pitting UG Madness (2003) against Abzan Midrange (2014) to see which historic powerhouse advances in their Best Standard Deck Ever bracket. Will Wild Mongrel out-value Siege Rhino? Link
• Feeling salty? The MTGGoldfish podcast is breaking down the ultimate MTG "Feel Bad" tier list. They tackle the most miserable cards to play against and debate whether they are necessary evils for game balance or just downright awful design. Link

Limited & Draft

• Still trying to figure out the Marvel Super Heroes draft format? MTGGoldfish's Backseat Drafting series is here to teach Arena Boomers about the X-Mens. Seth and Richard crack packs and try to find the windmill slam picks in Marvel's latest Universes Beyond offering. Link
• Maro confirmed that retiring the block system was the right move for Limited environments. Drafting three packs of a single set has resulted in much tighter, balanced formats compared to the clunky days of drafting a small set as pack three. Link

Finance & Market

• MTGStocks tackles a terrifying hypothetical: what happens to the price of a Reserved List card if it actually gets banned? While RL cards usually represent an unshakeable financial floor, a competitive ban in formats like Legacy or Pauper could shift the market in unexpected ways. Link
• Looking to upgrade your decks without breaking the bank? EDHREC has a fresh guide to the best budget specs from Modern Horizons 3, while Draftsim ranked the 56 best artifacts for Commander. Whether you're grabbing new tech or hunting for staples like Sensei's Divining Top, they've got you covered. Link1 | Link2

Design & Lore

• Maro defended WotC's decision to constantly jump between planes, stating that data clearly shows players prefer exploring new locations rather than staying on one world for consecutive sets. He compared Magic's current storytelling structure to James Bond movies—though not everyone agrees 007 is a high watermark for continuous narrative. Link
• Have you ever wanted to play Magic by yourself? Maro shared a blast from the past called "Mana Maze Solitaire" and is actively looking for ideas from the community for new solo variants to shuffle up. Link
• When mapping Magic's psychographics to the color pie, Maro clarified that Spike is Black, Timmy is Green, and Johnny is Blue. However, for the aesthetic profiles, Vorthos is Red and Mel is White. Link