Away From Keyboard – Magic: The Gathering - Murders at Karlov Manor
Feature
Magic The Gathering meets Cluedo
Who doesn't love a good whodunnit? Trying to solve the case before someone else does, or before the murder is revealed at the end of the book, movie or TV show. Indeed, one of my favourite whodunnit movies is Clue (starring Tim Curry, amongst others), based on the board game. And now Magic: The Gathering has their own take on the genre with the Murders at Karlov manor set.
We at Hooked Gamers, along with other media, were privileged to attend a pre-release event at the historical Old Melbourne Gaol to complete some detective work of our own, as we deduced the clues of the Murder at Karlov Manor. As well as that, we had the opportunity to test out the Murders at Karlov Manor set, marvelling at the gorgeous visuals and its new mechanics.
Set Mechanics
Disguise
Given that the set is about a murderer on the loose (like the game of Cluedo) it can pay to enable a disguise. This mechanic allows players to cast the creature spell at a reduced mana cost, but cast it face down as a 2/2 creature. And later on, players can then reveal the main creature for its original mana cost.
Cloak
Similarly to Disguise, if a player is instructed to Cloak a card, it must be placed onto the battlefield face down and act as a 2/2 creature.
Investigate
When players play a spell with Investigate, they will create a Clue token. The Clue token is an artifact which can then be sacrificed for two mana. Sacrificing the Clue token will then allow players to draw a card.
Suspect
If you suspect a creature, that creature picks up a new designation: suspected. A suspected creature has menace and can't block for as long as it remains suspected. Once suspected, a creature remains suspected until it leaves the battlefield, or another effect causes it to no longer be suspected.
Collect Evidence
Each time you're asked to collect evidence, exile any number of cards from your graveyard with total mana value of the indicated number or greater.
Cases
These act similarly to Sagas from previous Magic: The Gathering sets. Individual Cases each have three abilities. The top ability is always active. The middle ability, preceded by "to solve," sets out the conditions under which you can solve the Case. At the beginning of your end step, if the Case is unsolved and if you've met the condition described in the middle ability, the Case becomes solved. When the case is Solved, the middle ability cannot be triggered again, but players can then use the Solved ability of the Case.
The Cards
Planeswalkers
The first deck of 2024 comes with a bumper crop (well, in comparison to previous sets) of Planeswalkers, with the set including three to collect.
Kaya, Spirit's Justice (Multicolour)
Tezzeret, Betrayer of Flesh (Blue)
Elspeth, Sun's Champion (White)
Lands
Some standard style lands are interspersed with cards depicting the staggering ecumenopolis of Ravnica via colour-centred cityscapes, whilst others display rooms from the classic boardgame Clue (or Cluedo)
Product types
Play Boosters – A new pack type, which combines Set Boosters and Draft Boosters (14 cards)
Collector Boosters (15 cards)
Commander Decks (4 types)
● Deadly Disguise (Red, Green, White)
● Revenant Recon (Blue, Black)
● Deep Clue Sea (Green, White, Blue)
● Blame Game (Red, White)
Bundles
For more info on the set, visit the official Murders at Karlov Manor site. (https://magic.wizards.com/en/products/murders-at-karlov-manor) And, as always, follow us on Instagram for news updates, reviews, competitions and more.