Sunday, January 10, 2021

Concepts and Legends (James Wyatt)


Concepts and Legends is another Magic: the Gathering book showcasing the art of the game. But here, the focus is more on conceptual art used to build out the world of a given set. (There is some finished art, but not much.) At a high level, the book covers:
  • Planes (the worlds of Magic, like Dominaria, Ravnica, and Innistrad)
  • Races (the sapient creatures, like catfolk, merfolk, vampires, goblins, and elves)
  • Creatures (all other creatures, like angels, sphinxes, demons, dragons, and hydras)
  • Characters (focusing on planeswalkers)
Unlike the last Magic book I covered (see this post), this book is much larger, improving the presentation. The writing is surprisingly good, too. This work highlights the story behind Magic as well, serving as a useful introduction and a reminder that this is more than just a game- it is an immersive world with a story arc that has spanned 25 years. Finally, it displays just how much work goes into world building for the game, producing tons of concept art to help make a given set consistent in appearance across hundreds of artists. Overall, I was impressed. (It comes with some nice art prints, too.) As with other offerings, though, I wish it had been longer.

Rating: A-

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