Collecting Magic

Collecting Magic used to be easy (expensive, but easy). When a new set came out, you could buy booster packs, a starter deck, or single cards (which came from booster packs that people opened). There were no foil or alternate versions of cards. That was then.

Today, there are four different kinds of booster packs. Yes, four. For the latest set, Kaldheim, here are the options (card rarities in parentheses- M=mythic, R=rare, U=uncommon, C=common):

• Draft booster  ($4 per pack)
• 15 cards (1 R/M, 3 U, 11 C)
• Set booster ($6 per pack)
• 12 cards (1 R/M, 7 U/C, 4 others of varying rarities)
• May contain cards not available in draft boosters
• Theme booster ($8 per pack)
• 35 cards (1 or 2 R/M, 34 or 33 U/C)
• May contain cards not available in draft boosters
• Collector booster ($25 per pack)
• 15 cards (5 R/M, 4 U, 6 others of varying rarities)
• May contain cards not available in draft, set, or theme boosters

This is now. My word. Wizards now needs to release a product overview to explain everything. And new to Kaldheim, there are twenty cards (5 R, 15 U) found only in set or theme boosters (the 5 R may also show up in collector boosters).

This makes collecting confusing, difficult, and expensive- depending on what you seek. Let's use Kaldheim as an example. The 'normal' set is 285 cards, but there are 120 additional cards that are largely variants (with different artwork or card frame design). Here is the card breakdown, with card ranges in each:

• Normal cards: 1-285
• Borderless cards: 286-298
• Showcase cards: 299-333
• Extended Art cards: 334-373
• Set booster cards: 374-393
• Basic land cards: 394-398
• Buy-a-box promo card: 399
• Other promo cards: 400-405

You can see all these cards in the Kaldheim list on scryfall. These cards are available in the following types of boosters:

Most of the cards beyond 285 are alternate versions- they look cool. That's fine- chase them if you like, but you can ignore them without missing out on playing the normal versions. What irritates me are the 20 'set booster' cards available only in set or theme boosters (the rares can be found in collector boosters, too). "Money grab" comes to mind. And disappointment . . . I really wanted to get some of the angel cards in the draft booster box I opened yesterday, only to discover afterwards that the cards I sought are available only in set or theme booster packs. Sheesh.

I don't fault Wizards for wanting to make money- companies need to profit. But flooding the market with all these options runs a risk of overwhelming players and driving them away.