New Card Type in Adventure's in the Forgotten Realms (Dungeon)

[Krishnath]

So, yeah, new card type is getting introduced, but it doesn't go in your deck.



Edit: More here, with a few new cards:

https://magic.wizards.com/en/articles/a ... 2021-06-24

Edit 2, Electric Boogaloo: Looks like they made the dragonborn actual dragons in the set. Nice way to fill out the lower CC's in a dragon tribal deck.

[Mookie]

Dungeons are... very interesting. Depending on which one you choose, there are different payoffs. Lost Mine of Phandelver is the most generic, providing a minor benefit each time you venture. Tomb of Annihilation seems the most aggressive, pressuring each players' life total and resources. It's also potentially the fastest to complete, which is relevant if there are some strong payoffs for completing dungeons. Dungeon of the Mad Mage seems skewed towards control decks - it's the longest, and the first few rooms are pretty weak, but the later ones look quite potent.

...and since the biggest payoffs are for completing dungeons, you're incentivized to run more venture cards to make it through them faster.

Nadaar, Selfless Paladin is mildly interesting - potential card advantage on a white legend, and a ton of flexibility from dungeon-delving. Also just support for the mechanic in the command zone. We'll see how much support for the mechanic there is elsewhere.

I'm going to decline to evaluate Ellywick Tumblestrum. Planeswalkers are already hard to evaluate, and doing so in conjunction with dungeon stuff gives me a headache.

[Krishnath]

I recognize the Tomb of Annihilation (most famous dungeon in D&D, and.... located in Greyhawk not Forgotten Realms, lol.), and Dungeon of the Mad Mage (also known as Undermountain, the massive dungeon complex located below Waterdeep, and built by the actually immortal insane wizard Halaster Blackcloak, who may or may not be a planeswalker. Seriously, read his entry in the D&D wiki, that certainly sounds like someone who sparked). But I do not recognize the Lost Mine of Phandelver, I want to say its from Temple of Elemental Evil, but I think that's probably wrong.

Still, a lot of nice D&D references so far.

[Ulka]

I recognize the Tomb of Annihilation (most famous dungeon in D&D, and.... located in Greyhawk not Forgotten Realms, lol.), and Dungeon of the Mad Mage (also known as Undermountain, the massive dungeon complex located below Waterdeep, and built by the actually immortal insane wizard Halaster Blackcloak, who may or may not be a planeswalker. Seriously, read his entry in the D&D wiki, that certainly sounds like someone who sparked). But I do not recognize the Lost Mine of Phandelver, I want to say its from Temple of Elemental Evil, but I think that's probably wrong.

Still, a lot of nice D&D references so far.

Tomb of Annihilation is actually found in Faerun on the Continent of chult. Tomb of Horrors is the classic tomb found in Greyhawk. My big issue is while these cards are cool they spoil the dungeons of two fifty dollar books. I am currently running Tomb of Annihilations and I just had the ending and mystery of what is happening spoiled. Plus two of the best traps in the dungeon were spoiled and it just feels like a disservice from wizards to have done this from a D&D point but the cards them selves seem fun but at what cost.

[Krishnath]

Tomb of Annihilation is actually found in Faerun on the Continent of chult. Tomb of Horrors is the classic tomb found in Greyhawk. My big issue is while these cards are cool they spoil the dungeons of two fifty dollar books. I am currently running Tomb of Annihilations and I just had the ending and mystery of what is happening spoiled. Plus two of the best traps in the dungeon were spoiled and it just feels like a disservice from wizards to have done this from a D&D point but the cards them selves seem fun but at what cost.

I always get those two mixed up. >.<

I still find it funny that Vecna is in it, as said lich god is from Greyhawk originally. That said, him being an undead god now does mean he is capable of getting followers in other realms. I mean, that is how Tiamat and Bahamut ended up there after all. I am not 100% certain if he is currently in the Forgotten Realms in 5E or not, but I do know he wasn't in 3rd. However, I do know that one of the gods introduced in 4th edition generic campaign is present in the Forgotten Realms now: The Raven Queen, she took over as the new god of death after the previous one retired if I recall correctly.

[Ulka]

Vecna's hand and eye are canon artifacts in the faerun so yea vecna is still here doing he's evil deeds

[Krishnath]

Vecna's hand and eye are canon artifacts in the faerun so yea vecna is still here doing he's evil deeds

They tend to show up all over. Heck, he was a major player in the end of 2nd edition when Orcus became a god named Tenebrous for a little bit, and it got resolved in Planescape (end result? Orcus got his throne back from an ursurper, the lich Vecna became a god.) He's still from Greyhawk, and a contemporary of Tasha/Iggliw, Mordenkainen, Kaz, etc.

But his hand and eye, being artifacts, are so iconic to D&D there was literally no surprise that they've shown up in the Forgotten Realms.

[folding_music]

I really love this :3 I feel like it's a new era whenever the game brings in a new thing to keep track of, like Ice Age brings in the snow type, Weatherlight goes hard enough on "from the grave" that the game changes (and Odyssey and Amonkhet go *waaaay* too far with it, said with love), Invasion brings in the concept of domain (and Fifth Dawn cements the concept of spending different types of mana which you only rarely saw before, ie Drain Life and Derelor, or like that two-drop out of Apocalypse that had proto-sunburst, whatever its name was), Mirrodin brings EQ, Theros adds Gods (and enchantment creatures which struck me, then and now, as boring,) Lorwyn adds tribal and planeswalkers (and War of the Spark updates them so they're not boring anymore), Innistrad brings transformy cards and ZNR makes them easy, Dominaria adds Sagas... some blocks they just name an old thing ie: Ravnica and Shards give names to various colour combinations, or they make you pay attention to something that was already part of the game, ie, creature types or enchantments, and that doesn't feel like a new era to me as much as when they cement a new thing, or a new card type. and it's been a really long time since the last new card type (Contraption? giggle), so I'm gonna give these cards a shot.

some blocks are defined by being buyer bait, ie Zendikar, Kaladesh and Amonkhet - the chance of opening something spectacularly unlikely kinda overshadowed the slight improvements they brought, and Landfall just hits me as the least interesting mechanic ever penned. Amonkhet's a fave anyway but the special super rare cards do bug me.

so many things like Planes, Conspiracies, Vanguard cards and Schemes never get adopted, just vanish in the end. I know that Dungeon will too but I'll be the one trying to wedge them into various casual variants years from now!

edit: not that I didn't appreciate Lessons =P I like the spirit of wishes but wishes existed since Arabian Nights

[Krishnath]

I like the spirit of wishes but wishes existed since Arabian Nights

No they did not, at least not in MTG. They did not appear until Judgment (not counting Three Wishes but since that doesn't bring things in from outside the game, It's not really what is referred to in MTG terms as a wish.)

[folding_music]

^ referring to Ring of Ma'rûf, the earliest wish function I can think of!

[Krishnath]

^ referring to Ring of Ma'rûf, the earliest wish function I can think of!

Ah, I see. Nobody really things of that artifact as a "wish". So I didn't even consider it.