Phyrexia: Everything Will Become One Pre-Release: what it is and how it works

Phyrexia

Thanks to Wizards of the Coast , we were invited to the pre-release event of Phyrexia: Tutto Diverrà Uno , the new Magic: The Gathering expansion, held at the WPN Premium Excalibur Games store in Milan, for be able to test the new Magic: The Gathering set firsthand.

Phyrexia: Everything Will Become One Pre-Release: what it isa> and how it works

What is pre-release and how it works The output of the expansion

What is pre-release and how it works

Let's start from the basics, for those who have never approached such an event: a pre-release tournament it is a particular event where players challenge each other using a deck obtained from the opening of a limited amount of packets, d usually enclosed in a practical special box that Wizards has for years now started marketing on the occasion of these events (the Pre-Release Kit) and always takes place in conjunction with the release of a new expansion, giving players the opportunity to have the new cards before the official release date. The so-called Pre-Release Kit usually contains: 6 draft boosters, 1 foil-branded rare or mythic rare card from the year in which the event took place, 1 code card for MTG Arena, 1 deck box, and 1 life counter die Spindown.



The upside of a pre-release tournament is that everyone is basically on the same level, as each player will have to build a 40-card deck based on what found in the pre-release kit booster packs and create a strategy around them (and then add the necessary land cards usually provided by the store itself).



However, having reached the final stage with the best 8 players, the tournament formula changes, becoming a draft: this is a way of playing Magic that, to begin with, involves sitting at the table with the other players, each with three new packs of cards. Next, everyone opens a booster pack and chooses (“drafts”) a card from their booster pack. Then all players pass the rest of their cards to the player on their left. We continue in this way until we run out of cards and then we repeat the entire procedure with the second envelope, but passing the cards to the right. For the third, however, the cards are passed again to the left, until all the envelopes are opened and all the cards are chosen. Once this is done, each player will create a deck of 40 cards, then add the necessary lands.



The most coveted card in this pre-release event dedicated to Phyrexia: Everything Will Become One  was definitely Elesh Norn, Mother of Machines,  which one of the participants managed to draft, even if it was temporarily requisitioned by… Elesh Norn herself (in this case played by cosplayer Trity, with the costume commissioned directly by Wizards of the Coast from costume maker Jenny Desu).



On the occasion of the release of this new set Furthermore, graphics depicting the Phyrexians and their disturbing leader were set up at the Piola and Palestro Metro stops in Milan.

The release of the expansion

Phyrexia: Everything Will Become One  officially comes out today in printed format and on Magic Arena worldwide. The third installment in the four-part Phyrexian story arc, this new expansion will see players experience the beauty and horror of the Phyrexians, as Magic's oldest and most iconic villains continue their machinations to conquer the Multiverse, in 271 new cards.

“For thousands of years, the Phyrexians have sought to dominate other worlds, spreading their viral gift and turning every living thing into a biomechanical horror. Heroic Planeswalkers have always managed to stop these invasions…until now! The Phyrexian leader, Machine Mother Elesh Norn, has developed a way to infiltrate the entire Multiverse, which includes corrupting some of Magic's most iconic and heroic characters."

Both Jumpstart and Commander product lines are back in Phyrexia: Everything Will Become One, with two Commander decks (one with a Phyrexian theme and one dedicated to the situation after the heroic resistance against Phyrexia) and with 10 new themes introduced in Jumpstart envelopes.

To find out more, we invite you to take a look at our preview of Phyrexia: Everything Will Become One which you can find by clicking on this link.

If you missed the pre-release events, but still want to jump into the atmosphere of this new disturbing expansion of Magic: The Gathering, we suggest you buy the handy Bundle Box, containing 8 Set Boosters, 20 Basic Lands FOIL, 20 regular Basic Lands, 1 OVERSIZED 20-sided Spindown™ Die (D20), 1 FOIL promo Rare Card and 1 collection box. You can find it simply by clicking on this link.