March of the Machine: Feedback from MaRo and Gavin's Teasers!

In several sets, Mark Rosewater presents us with some hints of what's to come on his blog. For MOM, he gave us around 10 tips, some text of card effects and some creature types.

As this list takes place very close to the official spoilers start, it ends up being rushed to comment, leaving it to the player groups to speculate.

In this release, we had more previews, as Gavin Verhey released more 14 tips about the Commander set too.

Were you able to link each tip to its respective card? Here, in addition to talking about the cards, we'll also tell you a little bit of history and interesting facts about them!

A double-faced token (one that transforms)

We were introduced to the new Incubate mechanic and with it the change in the rule where certain tokens can flip, which wasn't possible until this new set came out. The token references the Phyrexians who are invading the planes and being incubated in generators that transform fragile flesh into perfection.

A card that costs XUUU

It's actually :

A variant of a mechanic returns to a premier set for the first time since it originally appeared

This was perhaps the most difficult tip, even after the cards were revealed. Due to the amount of current mechanics in the game, it is easy to confuse them. However, to help, we only had one new ability in this set: Backup, so it would be to find an ability that does something similar.

Checking similar abilities, I first thought that Backup would be a variant of Bolster, originating from the Tarkir block and printed only in this main block. An example is Sandcrafter Mage that you put counters on another creature when it enters the battlefield, something that Backup does too, but Backup goes further and shares the ability with the other one besides the counter.

Therefore, I am 99% sure that the original mechanic for this variant is Soulbond featured only in Avacyn Restored, example: Diregraf Escort. Soulbond shares the creature's ability while both are on the battlefield.

As a downgrade from sharing abilities only until the end of the turn, I imagine they added counters to compensate. Or maybe Backup would be the union of Soulbond + Bolster, the question remains.

Redditor JFCaleb points out that "variant of a mechanic" not meant as a new mechanic that modify an already existent one, but a sub-variant (like Protection from Red), and that variant returns in this set. [...] The variant in question is Basic Landcycling (variant of Cycling Timberland Ancient) that was originally in Scourge, returned in Alara Reborn and returned back in MOM.

A legendary creature returns, not seen since Homelands

Homelands was a small set, with only 121 cards released in 1995. Its story takes place in Ulgrotha, a plane destroyed and shaken after a terrible war. The Ulgtothians fight each other to survive, while the Sengir vampire family tries to seize control in the most vampiric way: through manipulation and deceit.

Although the story related to the set is small, it is quite rich, like all the old stories in the game, but we have an important fact: the planeswalker Serra marries another planeswalker named Feroz. Both try to rebuild the plane, but Feroz dies in a laboratory accident and Serra, heartbroken, abandons the plane (it is worth mentioning that she had a hint of manipulation by Baron Sengir).

Since Homelands only has 14 legends and the story often references the Sengir family, you'd expect one of the members for this tip. And since we had reprints of some of the cards, we can remove some, like the famous Baron Sengir which has already been reprinted as Sengir, the Dark Baron.

The second option I found would be Ihsan's Shade for this character's history - would he be a great general to defend the plane from Phyrexian attack? But unfortunately, there were also some reprints of him in other sets.

That leaves three options for the family: Irini Sengir, Veldrane of Sengir and the matriarch Grandmother Sengir. If I were to choose, it would be Grandma, since the other two aren't truly from the family: Irini is an adopted daughter, half dwarf turned into a vampire by the Baron, and Veldrane is a bit complicated.

Grandma was the chosen character, and I must admit that I liked the choice:

A creature capable of dealing eleven poison counters

Practically, a prank, it almost went unnoticed. However, it is interesting to see how the tips manage to be quite comprehensive. I saw in several places and groups betting that it would be something like toxic 11, or that it would put 11 poison counters, or who knows even a reprint of Blightsteel Colossus?

None of that, the new card at the height of the Colossus is Etali!

Some planes appear in card names that have never appeared before

Here we are going to disregard the 36 cards of the new battle type, since these refer to the planes where the battles took place, so removing them, we are left with two cards that never had the name of the plane for the cards, did you notice?

Yes, we never had any card with “New Capenna” in its name, and to represent it, nothing better than a Seraph!

Yes, Xerex is the name of a plane!

Released in the 2012 Planechase set, we have almost no information about it, except that it is a place inhabited by angels and humans, with several underground passages that are very reminiscent of the interior of the mines of the dwarven mines in Lord of the Rings.

From the only image we have, it also looks like it has a gravity bending effect, something very connected to geometry, mathematics - and notice, its name is a palindrome, backwards it reads the same word.

Wrenn returns with a new partner

This was revealed to us during the story. After joining a front that decided to attack Phyrexia, Wrenn connects to Realmbreaker and takes control of it, to reach Zhalfir and swap its place in the Multiverse with New Phyrexia.

However, this event was so powerful that she ended up dying, consumed by all the energy of the process. But for those who are fans, like me, rest assured: Teferi planted a seedling of hers in Zhalfir!

Two draft archetypes that have a creature type component

I thought this tip was a little strange at first, but after watching Gavin's video (below) talking about the set's 10 archetypes, it was pretty easy.

The two archetypes are the Phyrexians as he already mentioned, and Knights.

The tenth __&__ Sword

The tenth and final sword that was missing to have the complete cycle, was the one in Blue and Black colors:

Strange creatures

We have some Phyrexians and opponents of Phyrexia's perfection, I highlighted the most uncommon ones.

- Creature - Phyrexian Bear Rhino: Copper Host Crusher

- Creature - Phyrexian Jackal: Gitaxian Spellstalker

- Creature - Phyrexian Weird: Compleated Conjurer

- Creature - Moonfolk Ninja: Saiba Cryptomancer

- Creature - Aetherborn Vampire: Consuming Aetherborn

- Creature - Rabbit Mushroom: Placid Rottentail

- Creature - Raccoon Warrior: Scrappy Bruiser

- Creature - Goblin Spellshaper: Kyren Flamewright

- Creature - Wolverine Dinosaur: War-Trained Slasher

- Legendary Creature - Elder Giant Dog: Kroxa and Kunoros

- Legendary Creature - Turtle Dinosaur Monkey: Kogla and Yidaro

- Legendary Creature – Homunculus Cyclops Borborygmos and Fblthp

This last one is worth a note: I saw everyone betting and hoping to be the famous Battlebond duo Okaun, Eye of Chaos + Zndrsplt, Eye of Wisdom which would also be a Homunculus Cyclops card, but, we had that unusual Ravnica duo showing up to defend the plane!

After MaRo, it was Gavin Verhey's turn to bring tips on the Commander set.

There is a red card with enchant planeswalker.

Not just one red card, but a cycle of the 5 card colors that enchant planeswalkers in this Commander set. Elspeth, Liliana, Rowan, Teferi and Vivien lend their talents and abilities:

There is a card that calls back to a specific group of cards from New Phyrexia

I thought he was referring to the living weapon keyword, present in a group of cards from New Phyrexia and although it was born in Mirrodin Besieged, it was in New Phyrexia that it had its rise with the iconic Batterskull and is present with Bitterthorn, Nissa's Animus.

But, in fact, I believe he was referring to another group, the Splicers, an elite Phyrexian group, composed of master craftsmen who have great domain and synergize very well with their Golems, a cycle of them were released in New Phyrexia: Master Splicer, Blade Splicer, Sensor Splicer, and now with the new one:

There's a card that starts, "Whenever you cast a Phyrexian creature or artifact creature spell..."

There is a card with the same ability three times!

There is a cycle of cards that all have the ability words "Will of the Planeswalkers"

The cycle brings Nissa, Chandra, Kaya, Tezzeret and Kasmina representatives of each color.

There is a card with a sentence that begins, "As many times as you choose..."

For me, the best flavor text from the set comes from this card: “It was just another day in Innistrad”. The card literally spells that out, a calamity with spells erupting while demons feast on the chaos.

There is a card with the Parley mechanic!

The Parley was present in 6 previously Ccommander and Conspiracy cards, and now in:

There is a card that cares about Merfolk.

Not just with Merfolk, but a Merfolk knight to bolster the Esper colors of the new commander, shown below:

There is a plane that references an iconic creature from Alpha.

This tip led us to several possibilities (as well as almost every other tip) in our writers team. Let's start at the beginning, which creatures are iconic from Alpha and beyond, which ones may have their planes referenced if they haven't yet:

Alternative D: Serra Angel, but there is the Sanctum of Serra.

Alternative C: Shivan Dragon, we also already have Shiv.

Alternative B: Birds of Paradise where we are not sure which plane it is/arose from, however, one of our writers (Romeu) remembered that the only non-core set in which it came out was Ravnica, but we already had Ravnica represented (Agyrem, Grand Ossuary, Izzet Steam Maze, Kilnspire District, Orzhova, Prahv, Selesnya Loft Gardens, Undercity Reaches).

Alternative A: Lord of the Pit. Perhaps because I liked this part of the story, it was my first choice and as we already had Asmoranomardicadaistinaculdacar being well mentioned in a Wizards' article.

In the lore, Asmor got trapped and created The Underworld Cookbook for this Lord of the abyss, and had to keep making crazy recipes to satisfy their master... The lord in this case would come from the Pit.

With that, the first alternative was right: now we have a plane card to illustrate our imagination:

Good news for people who keep asking me about re Kithkin: There's a new rare kithkin in these decks!

There is an Angel Ally!

There is an M11 Phyrexianized Titan in the set.

In M11, we had the format-defining Titans cycle: Sun Titan, Frost Titan, Grave Titan, Primeval Titan and Inferno Titan.

The chosen one was the black Titan, which in its normal version puts up two tokens when it enters the battlefield and when it attacks. Its new phyrexianized version makes it clear why Phyrexia failed to conquer the Multiverse: the new version is no better, for the same cost, has the same deathtouch ability and both are 6/6.

There's a new card with eminence! Yes, you read that right.

One of the tips that stirred the community the most, and at the same time worried other players. Even WoTC understands when they get it wrong, and here they mentioned it, perhaps in an ironic tone in the tip.

But the surprise was positive and this time the card must have been much more thought out because compared to the previous cards with the eminence ability, it is so fair that it seems just a small upgrade. Well-balanced, color-matched, and brings a different approach to the knight tribe.

There is FINALLY something that creates a 1/1 butterfly creature token with flying, only previously found in Magic online, in paper. #FreeTheButterfly

The card to which the tip refers is a plane card that has full reference to the Giant Caterpillar, since it must have come from Gargantikar, a plane where everything is of colossal size, opposite of Segovia, both referred to in this text flavor from Segovian Angel: "When Worzel summoned Segovian angels to fight Thomil's Gargantikari mosquitoes, the ensuing battle was one of the least destructive in the Multiverse.":

That's all for today, I hope you enjoyed these references to the game! If you thought something was missing or want to contribute, leave it in the comments and if you think we can discuss a plane, story, character or curiosity.

Thank you for reading!