The new Magic: the Gathering set Secrets of Strixhaven is full of stories. From the upcoming Omens of Chaos book to the selection of online chapters in the Strixhaven story. Sometimes, though, the cards themselves can be used to tell tales, and two spells from this set come together to give us a look into the life of an incredibly stressed out frog.
Procrastinate is a sorcery that costs X and a single blue mana. It taps a creature down and then places X stun counters on them. This is a pretty flavorful execution of the concept of procrastination, as the target is left unable to act for several turns as they goof off and avoid their responsibilities for a while. (If you're looking to procrastinate , why not take a look at our list of the most expensive MTG cards?)
Stress Dream is an instant that deals 5 damage to a creature, and then allows its caster to look at the top two cards of their deck and place one on the bottom and the other into their hand. This card is less elegant as a design. I've had some stressful dreams, but none of them have ever physically hurt me with the same strength as a Shivan Dragon. What's important here isn't so much what the card does, but what's in its artwork.
The same character appears in both Procrastinate and Stress Dream. According to the flavor text, their name is Krelg, and after procrastinating and dozing off in their chair, they're tormented by nightmares as several of their paintings (which all appear to be portraits of frogs) come to life and scream at them.
Apparently, these cards were designed in an attempt to capture the stress of the student experience. In the Secrets of Strixhaven debut stream, Lauren Bond, the narrative lead for the set, discusses them.
She says, "I really love that we get these little relatable moments."
Do you see yourself in Krelg's struggle to keep up with their work, or do you think Wizards of the Coast is trying a little too hard to seem hip and relatable here? Let us know on the Wargamer Discord.
For more information on Secrets of Strixhaven, and the remaining sets of this year, check out our MTG release schedule.