Wizards of the Coast has officially revealed that the second Magic: The Gatheringand Hatsune Miku collaboration in the MTG Secret Lair × Hatsune Miku: Digital Sensation drop. the small set will only be available for a limited time but packs a real punch.
The MTG Secret Lair × Hatsune Miku: Digital Sensation is comprised of six new cards you can add to your decks and collections. They all feature the digital pop sensation in beautifully hand-crafted art that encapsulates her personality and music alongside mechanics on cards that you'll find useful enough to use in a range of deck types. Of course, getting these just because they're pretty is just fine and is what I'll probably be doing.
Every card in the MTG Secret Lair × Hatsune Miku: Digital Sensation drop
Below, I've listed every card in the MTG Secret Lair × Hatsune Miku: Digital Sensation drop. With each one, I've included the mechanics of the cards so you have an idea of what they do, even if all you're buying them for is to be sleeved and stored or just to ensure you have this gorgeous artwork in your possession.
Thespian's Stage
Image via Wizards of the Coast
Thespian's Stage is a colorless land card that allows you to use one colorless Mana. Tapping the card allows it to become a copy of another land card, except it will retain its ability. It's not going to be hugely powerful, but it might make an impact.
Sol Ring
Image via Wizards of the Coast
Look, we all know what Sol ring is and does. This card has the prettiest art of any variation by far, though. This artifact card will add two colorless mana, effectively boosting you to turn three. Its usefulness varies depending on who you speak to.
Song of Creation
Image via Wizards of the Coast
Song of Creation is my favorite card in this set, based purely on artwork. It lets you play an additional land on each of your turns. Whenever you cast a spell, you'll draw two cards, but you'll need to discard your hand at the beginning of your end step. You've got to play carefully with this card. Use it, then dump it as soon as you don't need it.
Miku, Child of Song
Image via Wizards of the Coast
This card is a pretty powerful 6/6 legendary creature, but it takes a lot of mana to play. It has Trample, and when it dies, you destroy all nonland permanents. As a bonus, those nonland permanents can't be regenerated, just to add extra insult to injury.
Chord of Calling
Image via Wizards of the Coast
Chord of Calling has Convoke and allows you to search your library for a creature card with mana value X or less, with X being the card's power. When you get that card, put it into the battlefield and then shuffle. A great way to quickly grab a key card for our strategy.
Diabolic Tutor
Image via Wizards of the Coast
Finally, we have Diabolic Tutor. This card lets you search your library for a card, put that card into your hand, and then shuffle. It's potentially incredibly powerful, depending on your strategy. I can think of more than a few uses for it, and most of them blend with Sol Ring.
Wizards of the Coast has revealed the next Hatsune Miku crossover with Magic: The Gathering. It's yet another Secret Lair drop comprised of six collectible cards that look stunning and will be well worth adding to your decks if you're quick enough to get a copy of the set.
This latest set is called the MTG Secret Lair × Hatsune Miku: Digital Sensation drop. It's the second collaborative drop between the incredibly popular card game and global digital superstar Hatsune Miku. It'll be available as part of the Secret Lair Summer Superdrop 2024, which you can pre-order from June 24, 2024, at 9 AM PT until July 14, 2024, at 11:59 PM PT. You'll have to be quick, though, because I suspect this particular set is going to sell out quickly.
MTG Secret Lair × Hatsune Miku: Digital Sensation is all you need for a magical summer of TCG
Image via Wizards of the Coast
The MTG Secret Lair × Hatsune Miku: Digital Sensation has six new cards for you to add to your collection. As you'd expect, each one is themed around the digital superstar Hatsune Miku. I've outlined every card in the set below so you know what to expect. My favorite is the one shown in the image above, Miku, Child of Song.
1x Diabolic Tutor
1x Chord of Calling
1x Child of Alara as “Miku, Child of Song”
1x Song of Creation
1x Sol Ring
1x Thespian’s Stage
If, like me, you haven't purchased a Secret Lair Superdrop for a while, you should know that Wizards of the Coast changed the system a little while ago. Superdrops and Secret Lair sets, in general, are now no longer printed to demand once a campaign finishes. Instead, there's a limited number of everything on offer, so you might miss out if you don't get your order in right away.
This MTG Secret Lair × Hatsune Miku: Digital Sensation will almost certainly be a popular one that sells out faster than most. I tend to sit on Secret Lair drops for a while before I decide what I'm getting, but you won't have that luxury with this one.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b6VhAvtekeU
Hatsune Miku has a huge following and live shows that must be seen to be believed. As a collector and art-lover, I adore these cards, but they've also opened me up to a library of music that I didn't know I needed in my life and I love them all the more for that.
The Pokemon Company has revealed Pokemon TCG: Scarlet & Violet - Shrouded Fable, the next set in the beloved TCG. This set will add a selection of new cards in August 2024, some of which were first seen in The Hidden Treasures of Area Zero DLCs.
Pokemon TCG: Scarlet & Violet - Shrouded Fable is set to add a bunch of new cards for competitive players to add to their decks and experiment with, as well as some incredibly desirable collectibles. Perhaps most exciting of all, it's going to add a new foil variant to shiny cards that are going to make foil pulls from packs even more exciting. All Pokemon TCG fans should be keeping an eye on this one because it's going to really change the game when it drops.
When is the release date for Pokemon TCG: Scarlet & Violet - Shrouded Fable?
Image via The Pokemon Company
The release date for the Pokemon TCG: Scarlet & Violet - Shrouded Fable is August 2, 2024. This is when retailers will be able to sell products from the set, though there could be prerelease events leading up to that date that will allow fans to get their hands on cards early, depending on what their local game stores offer.
The only exception to this is the Pokemon TCG: Scarlet & Violet - Shrouded Fable Booster Bundle, which will go on sale on September 6, 2024.
What is the Pokemon TCG: Scarlet & Violet - Shrouded Fable set?
Image via The Pokemon Company
The Pokemon TCG: Scarlet & Violet - Shrouded Fable set will introduce brand new aspects to the TCG, including Pecharunt. This Pokemon was originally discovered in The Hidden Treasures of Area Zero DLCs for Pokemon Scarlet and Violet, and it's coming to the TCG as a Darkness-Type.
Players will be able to use Pecharunt ex to let them switch in another Darkness-Type Pokemon that's currently benched with its Subjugating Chains ability. It can also be paired with the Pokemon you'll recognize from when you first encountered it, Okidogi ex, Munkidori ex, and Fezandipiti ex for various combos.
What I think might be the most exciting part of this set is the fact that it adds another unique foil pattern. These will still be Parallel Foils, but they'll feature a new foil style surrounding the artwork of the card. You can check if you get one of these using the expansion code in the bottom left-hand corner of the card. It should show an illustrated white box with black text if it's one of these new variants from the Pokemon TCG: Scarlet & Violet - Shrouded Fable set.
Where to buy the Pokemon TCG: Scarlet & Violet - Shrouded Fable set
Image via The Pokemon Company
Your local game store is the best place to purchase any products from the Pokemon TCG: Scarlet & Violet - Shrouded Fable set. These stores help keep the game alive and offer exclusive opportunities to collectors. However, they're not available to everyone, especially if you live out in the sticks like me. So, for those of you who need an online retailer, these are the best ones to use.
The Pokemon Center Online (US & UK): The Pokemon Center Online is the most reliable retailer of Pokemon TCG products. It's also a great place to check in for exclusive products that you might not be able to get elsewhere. I've seen particularly good deals on there from time to time, but they sell out fast.
Chaos Cards (US & UK): I've used Chaos Cards before for TCG products, and they've always delivered my goods on time. This is a good retailer to choose from when it comes to pre-orders because you can collect points to get discounts on future purchases.
Magic Madhouse (US & UK): Magic Madhouse is a great retailer from which to get TCG products, provided you pre-order them early. If you don't, you'll be paying a premium. However, everything I've ever ordered has always arrived on time and intact, which is the most important thing.
Learning the rules of how to play Magic: The Gathering is all you need to do in order to have fun at most tables. But at some point in your journey as a Planeswalker, you may run into an opponent whose deck always has the upper hand against yours. This boils down to the balancing system within MTG, which, like many competitive games, is roughly based on a “Rock, Paper, Scissors” system. The concept is easy to follow, but it isn't as simple as it sounds.
In Magic: The Gathering, there are numerous deck archetypes that represent our rock, paper, and scissors. At the core of MTG (and other card and video games), there are three primary archetypes: Aggro, Control, and Combo. This guide will go over these three archetypes and the Keyword Abilities that contribute to their success. By the end, you’ll be able to identify the archetype of any given deck, along with its strengths and weaknesses.
Image by Destructoid
The three core deck archetypes in Magic: The Gathering (MTG)
Aggro (Aggressive) deck archetypes in MTG
Starting with one of the easiest-to-understand archetypes, Aggro decks are everything that you think of when you hear “aggressive.” The strategy is to be in your opponent’s face, hitting hard and fast. To do this, Aggro decks primarily contain cards of the Red mana color due to its cheap creatures and Burn spells (such as Lightning Bolt) which are capable of dealing raw damage to any target.
Some abilities that thrive in Aggro decks are Haste, Prowess, and Trample. These abilities allow creatures to dish out damage quickly and efficiently. Remember, the goal of an Aggro deck is to be fast and overwhelm your opponents before they have a chance to establish themselves. You’ll be looking to swing (attack) with all of your creatures in every combat phase, if possible.
Although most Aggro decks in MTG use Red cards, that isn’t to say that other colors can’t be used to build aggressive decks. One of the weaknesses of Red cards is the lack of removal and denial options. Pairing Red with colors that cover its shortcomings, such as Black or Blue, will make for a slightly less aggressive but more well-rounded deck. The popular Gruul Aggro combination uses Red cards to establish an early board advantage and then uses enchants and +1/+1 counters from Green cards to form a powerful mid-game roster.
If you can’t defeat your opponent quickly enough, your army of small creatures won’t be able to stand up against the fearsome monstrosities built by Ramp decks or the various gimmicks that Combo decks employ.
Combo deck archetypes in MTG
Combo decks are the paper to Aggro decks’ rock, but that metaphor doesn’t paint the whole picture. Your strategy becomes a matter of putting together the pieces of a puzzle. Reliably drawing those pieces and defending your work in progress are the keys to being a successful Combo player. This is why Combo archetypes in MTG perform so well against Aggro strategies; There isn’t a fear of a Counterspell or Exile card awaiting your grand finale.
Each Combo deck has an overall win condition, with most having a few lesser combos included. While there isn’t a particular color that is overrepresented in Combo decks, there are many boxes that need to be checked to succeed.
Helpful spells and abilities for Combo decks in MTG include:
Tutor cards allow you to search your library for specific card types.
Spells or permanents with Hexproof, Indestructible, or Ward, which effectively increases the cost to target a permanent with spells or abilities.
Triggers or abilities such as “enter the battlefield (ETB)” or “Whenever you…” provide a focus for the deck to be built around.
An example of a win condition for a Combo deck would be Revel in Riches. By utilizing the Pirates tribe and their various means of Treasure generation or cards such as Brass’s Bounty, victory is easily attainable.
Image via Wizards of the CoastImage via Wizards of the CoastImage via Wizards of the Coast
With an ideal starting hand, Combo decks easily spiral out of control and become a dominant force at the table– or simply win the game. But as we mentioned at the beginning of this guide, this concept is only simple on paper. While Combo strategies excel against Aggro decks, they fall victim to the disruption that Control archetypes specialize in. A simple Counterspell or various forms of removal could put a stop to a Combo deck before it has the chance to get the ball rolling.
Control deck archetypes in MTG
With a Control deck, you’re disrupting the opponents’ strategy in every way that you can. This is done with Counterspells, forms of removal such as Destroy or Exile cards, or advanced strategies such as Mill or Discard. It’s because of these tools that Combo decks fear going up against Control decks.
Colors that are synonymous with Control decks are Blue, White, and Black. Each of these colors provides the means to put a stop to any deck strategy out there– so long as you have the cards in hand and mana to spare.
Helpful spells and abilities for Control decks in MTG include:
Scry and Surveil cards along with sources of card Draw in order to keep a healthy amount of solutions in your hand to address any issues that arise.
Removal cards range from soft-removal options such as Bounce (return target permanent to its owner’s hand) to hard-removal in the form of Destroy or Exile cards.
Abilities that effectively increase the number of spells at your disposal. These would be Flashback or Magecraft spells or any card that allows you to “return Instant or Sorcery cards from your graveyard.”
But while Control decks seem to have all of the solutions for dealing with other deck archetypes, they struggle to close out games on their own. Control decks are notorious for running very few creatures, which greatly limits their offensive capabilities and makes defending those creatures a necessary task for victory. Many Control players resort to unconventional win conditions such as Laboratory Maniac or the various Jace Planeswalkers and their card drawing and milling mechanics.
Control decks can easily dismantle the strategies of Combo decks but struggle to keep up with the output of creatures and spells cast by Aggro players. Players of Control decks will frequently lose mana advantage to Aggro players due to the cost differences between the two. Eventually, Control players will run out of answers to Aggro players’ numerous questions, and defeat becomes inevitable.
Other deck archetypes in Magic: The Gathering (MTG)
Aggro, Combo, and Control archetypes are the foundation of many decks within MTG. There are a vast number of strategies that build off of one or a combination of multiple archetypes to create a unique playstyle. Archetypes such as Tempo or Midrange fuse the strategies of Aggro and Control decks but deploy them at opposing stages of the game.
Wizards of the Coast continues to expand the number of archetypes that exist in the game by introducing new abilities with every set. But at its core, Magic: The Gathering will forever be one of the most captivating games of Rock, Paper, Scissors ever.
While it might seem unimportant at first, the card sizes and dimensions for Magic: The Gathering cards are actually critical to competitive play and fairness within the community. They not only help to avoid cheating, but they also prevent you from getting scammed.
MTG cards are designed to be a specific size and weight to help protect fans who buy and sell them but also ensure the competitive scene stays free of any cheating. Markedly different cards can have a serious impact on a game, making it difficult to tell what the card does or if the text has even been altered to give a player an advantage through a completely fake rule. If you're buying, selling, or playing with MTG cards, it's worth checking if they're the right size and shape to avoid a humiliating loss.
What are the official MTG card sizes and dimensions for competitive play?
Image via Scryfall
According to Wizards of the Coast, the official MTG card sizes and dimensions for competitive play are 2.5 inches (6.3 cm) by 3.5 inches (8.8 cm). While foil cards are slightly thicker, most cards are 0.012 inches (0.305 mm) in thickness and weigh between 1.7 and 1.8 grams.
However, there are a few exceptions to these sizes and dimensions. For example, printing errors can create cards that are slightly larger and heavier. The 1997 MTGVanguard set's Vanguard cards are all 3 inches (7.6 cm) by 5 inches (12.7 cm), meaning they're all larger but are technically tournament-legal. These get set aside at the start of a game, so they're more of a gimmick and don't impact the rest of the game that much.
When it comes to these exceptions, they generally need to be revealed to both the judges and the opponent before a game even starts. If both players agree that a card isn't fake and can be used for a specific purpose, then, most of the time, it can be.
Obviously, this isn't always the case, but when it comes to proxies and cards of that type, the general rule of thumb is that as long as you're upfront about them with your opponent and agree to work with them in your game, they're fine.
Why do MTG cards have to be a specific size and weight?
Image via Wizards of the Coast
The reason MTG cards must conform to specific dimensions, size, and weight is because it's considered marking if they don't. Card marking is illegal in competitive play because it gives you an unfair advantage over your opponent.
You could compare this to drawing a black line on the back of a powerful card or one you know you need for your planned strategy. If you've got a hand that allows you to get your card, if you know that it's potentially only five cards deep in your deck, that's unfair on your opponent who doesn't know where their cards are in their deck.
Furthermore, a weighted card, or one that's slightly bigger than the rest, could make it easier to pick out in cases where your opponent gives you a set of face-down cards to pick from. There are several strategies where bigger cards can be of help in a game, which is why all cards must stick to the outlined sizing.
Another advantage of this strict rule on card sizes is that it makes it harder for anyone to create fake cards and sell them for a profit. This could become a real problem, especially with cards like the One of One Ring from the Tales of Middle-Earth set. If cards didn't have a set weight, even for foil versions, then it would be far too easy to fake rare cards for a profit.
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