Away From Keyboard - Magic: The Gathering - Phyrexia: All Will Be One
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Away from Keyboard: Magic: The Gathering – Phyrexia: All Will Be One
The team at Wizards of the Coast have clearly been busy, with 2023's first new Magic: The Gathering releasing a few days ago. Phyrexia: All Will Be One launched on February 10th and sees several Planeswalkers join to face the forces of Elesh Norn who is set on conquering the multiverse.
As like most Magic: The Gathering card sets, Phyrexia: All Will Be One provides players with some new mechanics – some of which can help turn the tide in battle. In the case of this set, some of the mechanics work in conjunction with each other, with one requiring the other to be fruitful.
New mechanics
Toxic (and Poison Counters)
Whenever players are dealt damage by a creature with toxic, they will also get poison counters equal to the toxic number. So, if a player is dealt damage by a card indicating the Toxic 1 keyword, that player collects one Poison token.
Corrupted
This works in conjunction with the Toxic keyword and the poison counters. Cards with the Corrupted keyword will take effect once an opponent has three or more poison counters and the pre-requisite keyword has been satisfied.
For Mirrodin!
This keyword (or key-phrase in this case) is separate from the other two, but can be just as potent. On certain Artifact- Equipment cards, the keywords ‘For Mirrodin’ adds a creature token and the attaches the artifact to that creature (from what we’ve seen so far it will be a 2/2 red Rebel creature token), essentially giving the player a creature to wield the artifact immediately.
Oil counters
Some cards in the Phyrexia set enter the battlefield with counters. Each time players tap the card, the card loses a counter and then triggers an action for the card (such as Scry) or adds temporary strength to the permanent. Other cards will gain counters if other actions are triggered, and if a certain amount of counters are reached, will provide for a buff or action.
Returning mechanics
Proliferate
This combines with the Poison and Oil counters. When players use a card with Proliferate, it allows them to choose any number of players and/or permanents with a counter and add another counter of that type on the player or permanent.
Affinity for..
Reduces the mana cost of a spell depending on a certain condition. A card displaying Affinity for Equipment, would be reduced for each piece of Equipment a player controls.
The Cards
The full Phyrexia set contains 271 cards, and as usual, are a visual feast.
Planeswalkers
The Phyrexia: All Will Be One set has the most Planeswalkers I have seen in a single set, with 10 Planeswalkers from all different locations across the Magic: The Gathering realm
The Eternal Wanderer (white)
Jace, the Perfected Mind (blue)
Vraska, Betrayal’s Sting (black)
Koth, Fire of Resistance (Red)
Nissa, Ascended Animist (Green)
Kaito, Dancing Shadow (Blue and Black)
Kaya, Intangible Slayer (White and Black)
Lukka, Bound to Ruin (Red and Green)
Nahiri, the Unforgiving (Red and White)
Tyvar, Jubilant Brawler (Black and Green)
Variant cards
Black and White manga style art from popular artist Junji-Ito
There are also variants that contain the Phyrexian language. Players may need a decoder to read the cards though.
Lands
The Phyrexia: All Will Be One set includes several land types, with basic lands, dual coloured lands, lands with their own abilities, and Alternative lands that feature the Phyrexian language.
Pack types
● Commander Decks
● Jumpstart Boosters (20 cards of one colour - just grab two each and you’re ready to play)
● Set Boosters (12 cards)
● Collector Boosters (15 cards)
● Draft Boosters (15 cards)
As always, we at Hooked Gamers would like to thank the team at Wizards of the Coast for the invitation to the pre-release event.
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