The pre-release of the new expansion of Magic: The Gathering: Theros Beyond Death will take place from 17 to 19. We can't wait!
Here we are: this weekend we will finally have the opportunity to play Theros Beyond Death, the new expansion of Magic with a "Greek-mythological" theme. As usual, the pre-release will start on Friday afternoon, and will continue until Sunday night. Three days to challenge and savor the return to Theros and the elements introduced by the Wizard for this new release. Yes, but essentially which ones? Let's see them together.
The return to Theros
We learned to like it in 2003, and now it's back in this new expansion. The plane of Theros is a fascinating universe inspired by Greek mythology, ruled by a large pantheon of gods. Between minotaurs, giants and gigantic krakens, the mortals of the plane struggle to survive, living with heroes and gods. City-states stand as a bulwark of civilization with their majestic walls, and guard the boundless knowledge of progress and magic. This is where we find Elspeth and Ashiok, two of the planeswalkers introduced in the first version of Theros:
Elspeth was dead.
But his story had not yet come to an end. In the darkness of Theros, another Planeswalker lurked: the nightmare mage Ashiok. This mind manipulator lived in fear, convinced that his power was capable of smoothing out any difference. So while Elspeth was supposed to rest in peace in Ilysia, a realm of Hades reserved for fallen heroes, she was instead plagued by recurring nightmares from her past. Of Daxos, her beloved in life, whom she had been forced to kill. Of Eliod, who annihilated her with the spear that the warrior had wielded in her name. And of his childhood, plagued by the abject horrors of Phyrexia.
Together with them, in Theros Beyond Death some of the gods and demigods met in previous expansions return, joined by new, fascinating characters.
New mechanics for Magic: Theros Beyond Death
Escape
The barrier that once separated Hades from the World of the Living has loosened and some of the past beings now try to cross it. Escape is the new mechanic that Magic introduces for Theros Beyond Death; creatures in graveyards can be re-cast at the cost of Escape, paying mana and exiling a variable number of cards from the graveyard. Casting with Escape follows the normal rules for casting spells, the action enters the stack and can be countered. A card cast from the graveyard with Escape, once exhausted or dead, returns to the graveyard and can be re-cast from there in the same way.
Known mechanics | Magic: Theros Beyond Death
Devotion
In Theros Beyond Death, the concept of Devotion returns to one color, which is the number of mana symbols of that color among permanents a player controls.. The demigods use devotion as a measure of their strength or their constitution, while for the gods it is again a condition for being considered creatures.
Constellation
The pantheon of deities of Theros resides on Nyx, the star kingdom. Here, the spells are linked to each other, and it is the Constellation ability that tells us these bonds. Whenever a spell enters the battlefield under your control, the Constellation ability triggers; the bonuses it gives are always different, and are indicated on each card.
Sagas
The last, interesting return to Theros Beyond Death is that of the Sagas, already seen and appreciated on Dominaria. As defined by the Wizard, "Sagas are spells that tell epic stories, one chapter at a time". Each saga consists of at least three chapters, each with an associated skill. Each turn one of these abilities triggers, until the chapters end and the saga is discarded.
Pre-Release Magic: Theros Beyond Death
And now we just have to wait for Friday to try this new, fascinating expansion. We can't wait to get into the pits to breathe the mythological climate that Theros: Beyond Death brings with it. And you? Will you attend the Pre-Release or will you wait for the official release next week?
If you haven't booked yet and are curious, you will find all the information on the Wizard website.
