MTG: At “First Light on the Fifth Day” – LotR Holiday Releases!
Make a triumphant return to Middle-earth with these awesome holiday products, available everywhere this Friday!
Halloween has come and gone, and as the spooky season fades back into the mists from whence it came, the Winter holidays are on the way. In an effort to give us some treats a little early, Wizards of the Coast is releasing a series of awesome new entries in the Tales of Middle-earth Universes Beyond set.
Expanding on the beautiful pieces already released, the new products aim to add some flair to your games of Magic, and they’ll definitely do just that. I got the chance to open a few of the products, and they’re absolutely stunning! You’ll definitely want to pick at least a few of them up.
Jumpstart Vol. 2
Catapulting off the original series of Middle-earth Jumpstart Boosters, Vol. 2 brings us five new archetypes, each corresponding to one of the five colors. For blue, for example, we have Cunning, focused on drawing cards and casting instant or sorcery spells. Glamdring, Gandalf’s elven blade, plays perfectly into the theme, buffing your creature for each spell in your graveyard and letting you recast them for free later.
Jumpstart boosters are a wonderful start to the game, as the name suggests. You just need to buy a pair and shuffle them together to make a viable 40-card deck, complete with lands. For more info about how Jumpstart works, check out our explainer article here.
Special Edition Collector Booster
Another take on a popular favorite, Friday will see the release of the Special Edition Collector Boosters for Middle-earth. These boosters feature the unique “scroll” treatment visible on the Uruk-Hai Berserker and Meneldor above, as well as original art by the Hildebrandt brothers. The Hildebrandt brothers did fantasy art for several prominent properties in the 70s and 80s, including the original UK poster for Star Wars.
Sadly, Tim Hildbrandt passed away in 2006. His art lives on through his work and his brother Greg. I am especially fond of how the scroll treatment looks on the saga cards. It really gives them the feeling of an old story. If you want to add some of these beautiful pieces to your deck, make sure to grab a box of these incredible boosters.
Holiday Scene Bundles
By far the most exciting release for the holidays, the four Scene Bundles are a must-have for any serious collector. The boxes not only contain three Boosters to add to your collection but also six unique cards. These cards combine to make the image on the front of each box, and they are incredible deck adds as well.
Don’t worry, though; you also get art versions of each card and a gorgeous display stand. That way, you can show off the amazing cards and still use them to take down your opponent. The “Flight of the Witch-King” box is my personal favorite, showing off the moment when the Battle of Pelennor changed for the worse. Don’t miss out on these.
You can order these boxes wherever cards are sold, or pick them up from your favorite LGS starting Friday the 3rd!
