In a previous article, I spoke about a new Modern product coming for Magic: The Gathering. Mark Rosewater, the head designer for Magic, announced several days ago that the end of February would bring some big news for players who enjoy the Modern format. Today, we got an official date from Mark Rosewater’s Tumblr page where he answers questions posed to him by the community.
Posted on Feb. 23, the blog post explains that the new product will be announced five days away from the time of the post on Feb. 28.
The new Modern product is currently still a mystery to the community at large. The primary theory seems to be that this is probably a way for Wizards of the Coast to print cards specifically for the Modern format. Currently, the only way a card enters Modern is by being printed into Standard as well. This is an issue because it means that it can be hard for Wizards to print cards that address problems in Modern without messing up Standard.
Additionally, this would allow Wizards of the Coast to reprint some of the more powerful cards that see heavy Modern play but would break Standard these days. These cards tend to have a heavy price tag (looking at you, Noble Hierarch, Liliana of the Veil, Chalice of the Void). Being able to reprint these cards more frequently could, potentially, bring down those prices to make Modern more accessible for the influx of new players we’re seeing.
Whatever the case, this is surely a big deal for the Modern community. Mark Rosewater himself said in an earlier Twitter post that he expects Modern players to love it and that he would be floored if they didn’t.
Thank you all for reading while we all wait anxiously to see what the future of Modern holds.
