The Puns of Eldraine

Wilds of Eldraine is the latest Magic release, and it returns to the popular plane introduced in 2019: Eldraine, the land of fairy tales and Arthurian lore (or their Magic equivalents, anyway). The first Eldraine set, Throne of Eldraine, had powerful cards but maintained a whimsical tone; this latest release has followed suit. One thing I enjoy the most about it? Puns.

From Oxford, puns are "a joke exploiting the different possible meanings of a word or the fact that there are words which sound alike but have different meanings." I remember seeing them for the first time in the original Eldraine set:

These three cards show both kinds of puns:

- Belle of the Brawl and Mad Ratter are the second type, where they play on "Belle of the Ball" and "Mad Hatter," respectively.

- Giant Opportunity is the first type, where that is an expression meaning "a great circumstance that one could leverage for success," but here conveys the meaning "create a literal giant creature."

Wilds of Eldraine ups the ante; below are the cards with puns that I observed:

In most cases, which type of pun each is should be obvious, and I leave it to the reader. But I will mention one: Hearth Elemental puns on an older Magic card, Earth Elemental:

This type of pun applies to what Magic players call "callback" cards, which I discuss here. If you know the game well, you will pick up on (and hopefully appreciate) it. Otherwise, it will mean nothing to you.

Wordplay is fun and, I believe, important. Language is beautiful and powerful, and I appreciate that Magic leverages puns here. Magic cards can also be a way to teach vocabulary . . . but more on that another time.

Farewell, Commander

Inspiring Commander card art

I hadn't intended to do another farewell post this month, but a tragic event made me pivot: Shedon Menery passed away. He was well-known in Magic circles, but even if you don't know the name, you'll recognize his contribution to the Magic community: he came up with the Commander format, which some consider the most popular format in the game. RIP, Shedon.

As I briefly mention on my formats page, Commander's singleton rule (decks can contain only 1 copy of any unique card, except for basic lands) transformed the game. It didn't diminish the original Magic format/experience—it gave the game a fun new area to explore, using the entire Magic card base (vs. the rotating sets of Standard) and keeping things casual. One of the things I love about this game is just how flexible it is; Menery's creation was seminal in proving that.

I also enjoy how Commander came to be. Its original name was "Elder Dragon Highlander," or EDH, and it began as a grassroots effort in local game stores. This was not a Wizards employee pitching an idea to the company; it was players exploring the game's possibilities and developing something that became so popular the company recognized it and made it official (in 2011). In the ensuing years, Wizards has released preconstructed Commander decks, sets geared towards Commander drafts, and other products centered around this format. Impressive.

A final note: even the Commander format has spawned an 'internal' variant. The original Commander format is designed to be casual: players can strive to build synergistic decks, but there is a greater focus on social interaction and enjoying the odd or unexpected situations that come with playing singleton across a huge card pool. It is a chance to play those 'janky' cards that wouldn't see play in competitive environments. Competitive EDH (cEDH) is a spinoff. It has all the same rules, but the goal is to win as quickly as possible. To make a powerhouse deck that can win in just a few turns. TCGPlayer and TheGamer have good introductions to that concept; the former points out that it "is regular Commander with a different social contract," while the latter states that "the decks are built to be as powerful as they can be." I'll look more at those concepts—social contracts and power levels—another time. For today, we mourn Mr. Menery's passing but celebrate his contributions.

Farewell, . . . nothing?!

Aquatic Alchemist card art

Each year that I have maintained this blog, September is dedicated to the four sets rotating out of Standard. I look at the cards I liked, the ones I didn't, and the sets as a whole. (Here is my first post on the subject, and another which explains the Standard format and set rotation.) So, first up this month is: 

nothing.

That's right, no sets are rotating out of Standard this year. Wizards announced in May that they were changing Standard rotation to every three years. Why? They explain in the article; I present the highlights below.

- tabletop Standard is key to local game stores

- this format (again, on tabletop—in person vs. online) hasn't kept pace with other Magic formats

- shifting to a 3-year rotation cycle does the following (italics is quoted from the article):

• This will give current Standard cards more longevity. 
• It will allow mechanics and archetypes to be more effectively built on over time. As we moved away from the block model, we gained a lot of flexibility, but we also lost some ability to build on mechanics and themes within a set. With a longer window, we can find more opportunities to build up or revitalize archetypes. 
• It also gives us stronger tools to create an environment where decks are more "color(s) and mechanic" (like Green-White Toxic or Blue-White Soldiers) and less midrange. 

In the end, "we believe this will give Standard more stability, more vitality, and strengthen it for local game stores." Time will tell if this is the case.

I have no strong feelings one way or the other about this change. On the one hand, I get it. Based on release dates, some sets enjoyed only 15 months in Standard, which seemed too short (and unfair compared to the sets that were in for all 24). On the other hand, a card pool of such large size (and duration) might overwhelm players and/or dissuade new ones from jumping in. 

One comment intrigues me: Wizards wants "more 'color(s) and mechanic' (like Green-White Toxic or Blue-White Soldiers) and less midrange." From my decks page, midrange is a deck type that uses efficient spells. It can potentially take on both aggro, control, and combo decks. I am guessing that Wizards is saying "we want decks with a theme, not just a collection of efficient cards that can win games without synergy." I'd love to learn more about that.

Whatever you think about this change, it will be fun to enjoy the cards for longer.