Set Size - 327
Common - 108
Uncommon - 72
Rare - 74
Mythic - 22
Land Slot - 10
Special Slot - 23
Basic Land - 20
Set Status 2022.08.23 - [Set Design]
Post Update Log:
2022.08.23 – Initial Design Outlay established
(08/23/22 Note: This set is in very early design, As I'm working sequentially through the sets and have only begun playtesting on Rise of Nations, but I wanted to get it "in before" Brother's War is fully spoiled and reveal my Antiquities block in full to see how close Wizard's vision matched my own vision. Given its early nature, visual elementals have not been explored yet at this time.)
Etherium Dawn is the fourth and final set in a tetralogy of sets in the Antiquities timeline. The Brother's War is in full effect, and Terisiare suffers. I took the concept of the changing technology over the run of these sets and always knew that the final set was going to end with a Sci-Fi future world, albeit a dystopian world on the brink of annihilation. A good analogy would be the 1980's cold war. Two super powers positioned to destroy the other and all it takes is one of them to hit the button to end it all. Unfortunately for Terisiare, both people with fingers over the buttons are depraved enough to hit those buttons, and such begins the end of Terisiare.
Etherium Dawn takes shape around the concept of total war. What would that mean for a magic set, and how would a gameplay loop designed around differ from what we consider 'typical' magic. For this set I didn't want to lean on outside the game components, and instead bring the concept of 'total war' to game within the game's established rules. Where Rise of the Eldrazi first introduced 'battlecruiser' magic, Etherium Dawn is introducing dreadnaught fights to the game. Etherium Dawn is the endgame of the Brother's War, and it was important for it have the weight and feel of that level of combat.
The set is designed with a power level and mechanical eye intended for limited play in sealed/draft. Its comparison would be of a supplementary limited set direct to eternal formats.
Each set of the tetralogy represents a different era of technological advancement. The world of Etherium Dawn is the pinnacle of combat technology. While the Thran had a society with an overall level technology that has never been matched, the era that Mishra and Urza ushered in created killing machines and weapons on a scale that Terisiare has never witnessed before and (hopefully) will never witness again.
The world of Antiquities is a reimagining of the origin story leading up to the brother's war. The world of Etherium Dawn exists in the aftermath of the Phyrexian incursion. Gix is dead, and the phyrexians have been obliterated, but all is not lost for Yawgmoth. Though his ability to take over Dominiara has been stopped cold, he still has one last ace up his sleeve. Mishra had been completed during the incursion and released back on Dominaria. All the former nations of Terisiare have been obliterated in a sweep by Urza and Mishra to consolidate power. No longer a slave to the Quadir, Mishra has turned the tables on the Fallaji and turned them into the force that leads his war machines into battle, built on the backbones of the goblins and dwarves that he has captured.
Urza has taken over all of the lands that once belonged to Korlos, Argive and Yotia. There is little land left to fight over on the continent as both brothers have ostensibly mined the land for years stripping it of all natural resources. The last remaining holdout is Argoth, separated by a narrow sea, but with resources on the main continent running scarce both brothers have set their eyes on Argoth for conquest.
Set size metrics were chosen for simplified ratio of randomization. The set size will host an 8 player sealed pool or 12 player draft environment.
Packs include a set based common duel land in the land slot.
Basic lands are not included in the packs, but are used for the basic land kit. Mythics have aprx a 1:5 ratio of appearance.
Etherium Dawn features a new mechanical Bastion card that appears once per pack in a special slot.
A set pool consists of:
4x Common = 432 total pool size
2x Uncommon = 144 total pool size
1x Rare + 1x Mythic = 96 total pool size
5x Land slot common duel = 50 total pool size
Special slot Bastions: = 60 total pool size
6 cards @ 5x Common = 30 Total
5 cards @ 3x Uncommon = 18 Total
10 cards @ 1x Rare = 10 total
2 Cards @ 1x Mythic = 2 Total
10x each basic = 200 total pool size.
982 Total card pool size (including 200 basic lands)
Card File
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Set Teaser: Coming soon™
Visual Spoiler: Coming soon™
Card File: Coming soon™
The Tokens of Etherium Dawn: Coming soon™
The Places of Etherium Dawn
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–– The Nation of Steel ––
Urza has consolidated his power around the eastern coast in the lands that were formally Korlos, Argive and Yotia. The crimson viens of the Kher ridges are rich in iron ore and Urza has been hard at work in the years since the Phyrexian incursion building machinations from the resources available to him. The notion of the coalition is far behind him, and the nation of Steel and it's safety and security is solely within his purview and discretion. From the ashes of the Incursion, Urza witnessed something he had never expected, his brother Mishra, picking himself up, and starting his own nation to oppose Urza. There is only one goal remaining in Urza's mind, and he will stop at nothing until Mishra's empire is topped and he alone stands on Terisiare's pinnacle.
–– The Mishran Dynasty ––
Though completed by Yawgmoth, Mishra's true nature has not been revealed to anyone. As Yawgmoth's last remaining sleeper agent, he wiped all of their interactions from Mishra's mind, and set him back on Terisiare at the end of the incursion. With his entire world in flames at the end of the phyrexian Incursion, Mishra could feel the power vacuum that it left beyind and quickly usurped Malpiri's forces and launched an ambush on the Quadir's forces ending the reign of Zegon and taking over the entirety of Terisiare's interior. Conquest was Mishra's M.O. but he had only a single thought coursing through his mind: ending Urza. Though he has always resented Urza, Mishra couldn't understand why now he was so driven to achieve this goal, as though that act was the only way he could ever truly feel compleat. Mishra didn't care about his empire or the people around him. The only thing in his sight was Urza's head, and Mishra was ready to relieve his brother of that burden on his shoulders.
The Players of Terisiare
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–– The Major Accomplices ––
Ashnod – Ashnod has suffered enough betrayals by her allies, and turns her back on Mishra, phyrexia and Gix. In her final act, she steals the sylex from Mishra and hands it off to Tawnos. Mishra had no idea of the power he was wielding, and though Ashnod also had no idea of just what the sylex was capable of, she figured it was best off in Urza's hands, not Mishra's. Unfortunately for Dominaria, Ashnod's calculation understated just how potent the Sylex was, and how depraved both brothers had become.
Feldon Walliman – The third path has failed. The flames of war have engulfed every corner of Terisiare and Loran was dead. Despite being too frail to fight with his fists any longer, Feldon's rage would not be quelled, as he made his own tools of war. If the brother's would leave nothing but ashes in their drive for conquest, Feldon vowed to beat them to the punch.
Harbin – Urza's son was a teenager by the time the Brother's War had heated up. Thought the son of one of the most powerful figures in Terisiare, Urza paid him almost no heed. Harbin had been almost exclusively raised by his mother Kayla. Harbin had inherited Urza's mastery of technology and his mother's penchant for rebellion. Flying machines had turned into fierce tools of war, and there was no greater piliot in the Nation of Steel. Harbin lead many of the NoS sorties, much to his mother's chagrin and without Urza's knowledge. Maybe had Urza understood just what jeopardy his actions were putting his son into he would have reconsidered his stance on the war.
Kayla Bin-Kroog, Urza's wife and supreme lady of the Nation of Steel, Urza had relegated Kayla years ago, and though she holds title over his nation, the two of them are rarely in the same room together. Kayla had found meaning in her life by chronicling the events of Terisiare in detail. Where it not for Kayla, details of the events leading up to the Brother's War, and the aftermath afterwards would have been scarce. Thanks to her efforts, a clear picture of this destructive moment in Dominaria's history remains intact.
Mishra Erdeli – The man Mishra once was, is dead. Cold and calculating, somewhere inside of Mishra's phyrexian sleeper programing a ghost still haunts those commands. Fueled by rage, the flame of what Mishra was is not yet fully extinguished, and his every action usurps Yawgmoth's will as he fights to do the only thing that Mishra knows: to end his brother once and for all.
Multani – Argoth's avatar had tried to keep out of the humans and elves affairs, but the rise of such substantial threats to Argoth forced Multani's hand. The very life of the island was hanging by a thread, and without intervention Multani know there wouldn't be an Argoth left to fight for.
Tawnos Revella – Design having a son of his own, Urza brought up Tawnos to be one of his most trusted advisors, but Tawnos is disgusted by Urza's war, and wants nothing but to escape it all. Witnessing the untold destruction the war is having on Terisiare, Tawnos has formed an odd relationship with Mishra's own right hand, Ashnod. Trading prisoner positions as they are captured one after the other by opposing forces, Tawnos and Ashnod form a tenuous bond, wishing only for the Brother's War's end. Witnessing the full brunt of the war's destruction, Tawnos retreats within rather than rallying to stop the fighting. Hiding inside of his statsis apparatus, Tawnos is the only survivor of the Sylex blast.
Tyrus Venalli – Tyrus is Urza's strongest battle commander, leading legions of mobilized replicants into battle against the frenzy of Mishra's war machines and Fallaji Warriors.
Urza Erdeli – Urza never demonstrated empathy well, but if he every had any, it was gone now. Urza wielded a nation like it was an object. The people of Terisiare and their needs were of no concern to him now. He had the power to raze entire cities to the ground and the only thought that was ever running through his mind was ending his brother and finally being free of Mishra.
The mechanics of Etherium Dawn
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Energize
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Energize N (Put N charge counters on an Etherium you control. If you don't control an Etherium token, create one first.)
Etherium
Token Artifact
Etherium enters the battlefield tapped.
Discharge — , Sacrifice this artifact: Add for each charge counter on this permanent.
Energize is the namesake mechanic of Etherium Dawn. The forces of the Nation of Steel and The Mishran Dynasty have condensed the mana power of the land and turned it into energy to power their machines of war. Etherium Dawn features large creatures and spells that require sizable amounts of mana and Etherium provides the opportunity to capture and harness larges amount of mana to unload those spells on your opponents. The first time you Energize, you won't have access to that power until your next turn (or sooner if you can manipulate your artifacts), but as you build up your energy level your Etherium will be ready to go when it gets to the level you require.
Stratalus
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Stratalus is a new creature type that appears on several cycles of Artifact creatures. The Stratus are the pinnacle of mecha that Urza and Mishra have developed. These machines shadow cities and when they fight the world trembles. These are the dreadnaughts of the Brother's War and nothing can stand against their battle potential. The Stralaus scale in power with rarity with the commons serving as French vanilla creatures. The other aspect of the Stratus is that they feature a new keyword unique to their architecture. To ensure that Stratus live up to the purpose they have been designed to be impervious to all sabotage efforts and can only be toppled during combat.
Impervious (This creature's power and toughness can't change, and noncombat damage and effects that say "destroy" don't destroy it unless it's attacking or blocking.)
Cerulean Sentinel
Artifact Creature – Stratalus C
Impervious (This creature's power and toughness can't change, and noncombat damage and effects that say "destroy" don't destroy it unless it's attacking or blocking.)
7/7
Stratalus are doubled edged swords on the battlefield, they represent pure instruments of destruction and can't be altered because of that. Imperviousness protects Stratalus from destruction effects and negative power and toughness effects until they enter combat. Once engaged in combat either attacking or blocking all the passive status effects will go into effect, positive and negative, and the Stratalus is vulnerable, so attack and block carefully to maximize their effect.
Alt Fire / Ultimate
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Alt Fire X : [effect]. (As long as this creature is attacking, you may pay X any number of times.)
Ultimate X: [effect] (As long as this creature is attacking, you may pay X. Activate this ability only once each turn.)
To create sense of tiered combatants, Alt fire and Ultimate are abilities that attacking creatures can have. For the most part these are reserved to Stratalus at higher rarities but some non-Stratulus creatures do have Alt fire and Ultimate abilities. Creatures with these abilities represent higher tier battle agents that rise above the litany of soldiers.
Mobilize
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Mobilize (Create a 1/1 colorless Cyborg Soldier artifact creature token, then if an opponent controls more creatures than you, create another.)
It wouldn't be total war if there weren't foot soldiers vying for battlefield position. The Mobilize mechanic is designed to aid in filling up your board by mobilizing soldiers where they are needed. If an opponent has an empty board, a single soldier will come to your aid, but if outnumbered, mobilizing will bring in a second soldier to assist.
Bastion
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Colorless Common Bastion
Bastion C
When ~ enters the battlefield, scry 1.
(If a creature would attack you, it attacks a bastion you control instead. If a source would deal damage to a bastion, prevent all but 1 of that damage. Damage dealt to bastions removes that many structure counters.)
(2)
The warfare side of Etherium Dawn is large and expansive, but two things are needed to keep it in check. Afterall, the Brother's War takes time to develop and can only end in annihilation. Bastions are the balance to Etherium Dawn's combat. Functioning similar to planeswalkers, Bastions are permanents, and when they enter the battlefield, they enter with a number of structure counters on them equal to their starting structure. They won't prevent damage being directed at you directly, and instead are designed to guide the combat flow of the game at them. When you land a bastion on the battlefield, it serves as a true wall to protect you from attacking creatures. Any creature that would attack you or a planeswalker you control attacks a bastion you control instead (of the attacking player's choice). Any damage that would be dealt to a bastion by a source, whether combat damage or noncombat damage, is reduced to 1 (unless a spell stops damage prevention. Looking at you red burn spells). Once a bastion no longer has any structure counters remaining, it is put into its owner's graveyard with state based effects just like a planeswalker. Given their heavy protective nature, they are currently balanced to have low structure levels as very few spells can destroy them outright. Similar to the first appearance of planeswalkers, to get rid of bastions, you'll need a plan to take them out in combat.
Bastions represent the last vestige of strongholds the people of Terisiare have turned to save themselves from the rampage of the Urza and Mishra in their war.
Returning Keywords/New Deciduous
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Modified
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(Equipment, Auras you control, and counters are modifications.)
Modified makes a return in Etherium Dawn as creatures with the action word powered.
Empowered Farglider
Artifact Creature – Human Artificer C
Powered — As long as Empowered Farglider is modified, it has flying. (Equipment, Auras you control, and counters are modifications.)
2/1
Powered creatures represent creatures that have taken in the Etherium and utilize its power in battle.
Each of the colors in Etherium Dawn play with counters in a variety of ways to assist your creatures and debuff your opponents permanents.
Proliferate
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Proliferate (Choose any number of permanents and/or players, then give each another counter of each kind already there.)
With modification and counters being a subtheme to the set, it was natural fit to add proliferate in.
