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| Released | January 25, 2019 | ||
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| Expansion code | RNA | ||
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Ravnica Allegiance is the 80th Magic: The Gathering expansion; while it is not part of a block, this set is functionally the second part of a Ravnica focused storyline set on the plane of Ravnica. [1] [2] [3] It was released on January 25, 2019. [4] [5]
The Guilds of Ravnica and Ravnica Allegiance sets each focus on five out of the ten Ravnica guilds and the shared storyline creates the foundation for the story in the War of the Spark set. On this story design, Mark Rosewater highlighted that they wanted the Bolas Arc to "end with a big dramatic event" which required getting players to care that this event was occurring on Ravnica. [2] Rosewater wrote that "once we knew that the year was two normal guild sets followed by an event set, the Creative team was able to start working on the fine details of the story. The first two sets would take place mostly while the events of Ixalan and Dominaria were going on, which meant the Gatewatch would be busy elsewhere. These two sets were going to be about Nicol Bolas trying to slowly influence the world of Ravnica and warp it to his needs. We would focus on the guilds as they internally fought between the forces pulling them toward or away from Bolas's influence. [...] The Creative team then split the guilds in half. Five would fall under Bolas's influence, and five would not. [...] The five guilds that fell to Bolas would each have a planeswalker, beholden to Bolas, who would lead the guild". [2]
This set focuses on the following Ravnica guilds: [3]
Each guild receives a unique mechanic in this set: [12]
In an interview, Rosewater said "one of the coolest things about designing guild mechanics is that you get to make something specifically for the player that enjoys the kind of deck that guild plays. For example, Orzhov is about grinding out incremental advantage as it slowly 'bleeds' the opponent out and Afterlife is a good mechanic to help do that as the creatures die and become tiny flying Spirits that continue to plink away at your opponent. Rakdos, in contrast, plays a more aggressive game where it spits out hordes of creatures. Its mechanic, Spectacle, helps you play additional creatures, but requires you staying aggressive". [14]
Guildmasters' Guide to Ravnica (2018) was the first Magic: The Gathering campaign setting adapted for Dungeons & Dragons and was released on November 20, 2018. [15] [16] The campaign book and the three related Ravnica card sets [17] carried "the classic collectible card game into its 26th year". [16] Gavin Sheehan, for Bleeding Cool , wrote "overall, Guildmasters' Guide to Ravnica is a fine addition to 5E, but I also recognize this isn't going to be for everyone. [...] DM's and players alike should recognize that there are people who love Dungeons & Dragons to death but have zero interest in Magic: The Gathering. I would recommend this book for people who have played MTG and understand a little bit of what's going on, or players who want to learn more about this world and want to incorporate more of it. It's not impossible to get people with no interest involved, but do prepare yourself for a steeper climb up the hill if you do". [18]
Chris Carter, for Destructoid , highlighted that "Allegiance has some pretty wild cards and completes the Shockland mana base for every deck combination. [...] Everything in this set (and the previous set, Guilds of Ravnica) will remain standard in Arena and in the paper format throughout the fourth quarter of 2020. The current sets of Ixalan, Rivals of Ixalan, Dominaria and Core 2019 are cycling out later this year. [...] If you haven’t played a sealed game of Magic before, you might want to give it a shot. The gist is that gaming stores around the country will run limited events where players are given six booster packs and are tasked with creating a deck. You can swap out whatever cards you want between rounds but your job is win as many games as possible. [...] As always there is the option to crack open booster packs (or boxes of 36 packs) and try your luck when cards go on sale. Some people dig the thrill of cracking. Alternatively, you can also buy singles and build the decks you want". [19]
Cameron Kunzelman, for Paste, commented that this set "is the best impulses of Magic humming along on all cylinders. [...] From my experience playing a few drafts and a couple sealed tournaments on Magic Arena, this makes for one of the better Limited formats simply because there’s a bit of time for players to think. Your decisions matter, the decks don’t build themselves, and you really have to consider your attacks, blocks and use of supporting spells. [...] If you’ve been out of the Magic game for a while, Ravnica Allegience [sic] is a great place to jump back in simply because it demonstrates some of the core strengths of Magic design. [...] As for how this set will impact the broader experience of Magic, including Standard and Modern formats, I cannot say. [...] If I have a choice between a set having an interesting Limited environment and cards that make for a crunchy, highly competitive Constructed format, I’m going to go for the former. All in all, Ravnica Allegience [sic] establishes the core expectations for Magic sets for the next couple years. It isn’t raising the bar; it’s creating the new bar". [20]
Princess Weekes, for The Mary Sue , highlighted her favorite cards from the set with her top three being Mirror March, Captive Audience and Rhythm of the Wild. [21] Weekes included the caveat: "I am very much a newbie and a casual player who mostly enjoys Commander and Modern, so I’m not coming in here as some master authority. There are lots of awesome Magic YouTube channels that have broken down the best cards in the set through years of experience as players. For me, as a baby Magic user who enjoys playing and just wants to have a good time with creatures who do cool things and crafting themed decks, here are the eight cards that really spoke to me as I was enjoying the set". [21]
Magic: The Gathering is a tabletop and digital collectible card game created by Richard Garfield. Released in 1993 by Wizards of the Coast, Magic was the first trading card game and had approximately fifty million players as of February 2023. Over twenty billion Magic cards were produced in the period from 2008 to 2016, during which time it grew in popularity. As of the 2022 fiscal year, Magic generates over $1 billion in revenue annually.
The Multiverse is the shared fictional universe depicted on Magic: The Gathering cards, novels, comics, and other supplemental products. Though Magic is a strategy game, an intricate storyline underlies the cards released in each expansion. On the cards, elements of this multiverse are shown in the card art and through quotations and descriptions on the bottom of most cards. Novels and anthologies published by HarperPrism and Wizards of the Coast (WOTC), and the comic books published by Armada Comics expand upon the settings and characters hinted at on the cards. WOTC also publishes a weekly story in the Magic Fiction column, previously known as Official Magic Fiction and Uncharted Realms.
James Wyatt is a game designer and a former United Methodist minister. He works for Wizards of the Coast, where he has designed supplements and adventures for the Dungeons & Dragons (D&D) roleplaying game. He is the author of sci-fi and fantasy novels, including Forgotten Realms books, and the 4th edition Dungeon Master's Guide.
Ravnica is a Magic: The Gathering block that consists of three expert-level expansion sets: Ravnica: City of Guilds, Guildpact, and Dissension. Following in the tradition of other Magic blocks, Ravnica takes place in a plane of the multiverse that was previously unexplored in the game's backstory. The world of Ravnica is an ecumenopolis, a vast city that covers the entire surface of its planet, and is home to a diverse assortment of sentient races. Much power in Ravnica is held by the ten "guilds", political factions that each represent a combination of two of Magic's five colors. The mythology of Ravnica is loosely derived from Slavic folklore, and the character names reflect this. This plane was revisited in the Return to Ravnica block, and the Guilds of Ravnica,Ravnica Allegiance, War of the Spark, and Murders at Karlov Manor sets.
Return to Ravnica is a Magic: The Gathering block, consisting of Return to Ravnica, Gatecrash, and Dragon's Maze. It is the second block set on the plane of Ravnica, after the Ravnica block, and again focuses on the multicolor cards and ten guilds of Ravnica. Return to Ravnica focuses on five guilds: the Izzet League, Cult of Rakdos, Golgari Swarm, Azorius Senate, and Selesnya Conclave. Gatecrash focuses on the other five guilds: the Boros Legion, House Dimir, The Orzhov Syndicate, The Gruul Clans, and The Simic Combine. All ten guilds appear in Dragon's Maze.
The Alara block is a Magic: The Gathering expert-level expansion block, consisting of the expansion sets Shards of Alara, Conflux and Alara Reborn. The Alara block focuses on multicolored cards, in particular cards with three or more colors.
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Ixalan is a Magic: The Gathering expansion block consisting of the sets Ixalan and Rivals of Ixalan. The first set of the block was released on September 29, 2017 and Rivals of Ixalan was released on January 19, 2018.
Guildmasters' Guide to Ravnica is a sourcebook that details the Ravnica campaign setting for the 5th edition of the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game published in November 2018. The world of Ravnica was originally created for the Magic: The Gathering collectible card game and first appeared in the card set Ravnica: City of Guilds, which was released in 2005. It is a high-magic world with a loose Slavic flavor, and features a single city which spans the entire planet that is controlled by ten competing guilds of different ideologies.
Mythic Odysseys of Theros is a sourcebook that details the Theros campaign setting for the 5th edition of the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game published in June 2020. The plane was originally created for the Magic: The Gathering collectible card game and first appeared in the card set Theros, which was released in September 2013. It is inspired by Greek mythology and has a powerful pantheon of Gods that are present and active in both the world and the lives of the player characters.
Theros Beyond Death is a Magic: The Gathering expansion set. It is not part of a block. It was released on January 24, 2020. The set's development codename is "Baseball", and its expansion code is THB.
Strixhaven: A Curriculum of Chaos is a sourcebook, published in December 2021, that details the Strixhaven campaign setting for the 5th edition of the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game. The plane of Arcavios and its magical university Strixhaven were originally created for the Magic: The Gathering collectible card game and first appeared in the card set Strixhaven: School of Mages, which was released in April of the same year. The book is centered on the most powerful magic university in the multiverse and focuses on the lives of the player characters who attend its various colleges.
Strixhaven: School of Mages is a Magic: The Gathering expansion set. It is not part of a block. The set was released in April 2021.
Kaldheim is the 86th Magic: The Gathering expansion and is not part of a block. It is set on the plane of the same name. It was released on February 5, 2021. It also became available in MTG Arena on January 28, 2021.
Guilds of Ravnica is the 79th Magic: The Gathering expansion; while it is not part of a block, this set is functionally the first part of a Ravnica focused storyline set on the plane of Ravnica. It was released on October 5, 2018.
Zendikar Rising is the 85th Magic: The Gathering expansion and is not part of a block. It is set on the plane of Zendikar. It was released on September 25, 2020. The sets development codename is "Diving", and its expansion code is ZNR.
War of the Spark is the 81st Magic: The Gathering expansion; while it is not part of a block, this set is functionally the third part of a Ravnica-focused storyline set on the plane of Ravnica. It was released on May 3, 2019. It also became available in MTG Arena on April 25, 2019.
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