Thursday’s weekly MTG livestream was a big one if you’re into Dungeons and Dragons as much as Magic: The Gathering. This month’s announcement day was packed full of reveals for the upcoming Commander Legends Dungeons and Dragons set, Battle for Baldur’s Gate. According to an official MTG post, Commander Legends: Battle for Baldur’s Gate is “a fun-first set packed with legendary creatures, epic additions to your favourite Commander decks, and the return of Commander Draft”.
The announcement livestream (which you can catch up on below) gave our first look at the cards, products, and packaging to expect when Battle for Baldur’s Gate releases worldwide on June 10. According to the announcement, the set will be available in draft, set, and collect boosters – or as a bundle and prerelease pack.
Four ready-made DnD Commander decks will also be available on launch day: Party Time (white-black); Mind Flayarrrs (blue-black); Draconic Dissent (blue-red); and Exit from Exile (red-green). Each 100-card deck will reportedly feature ten brand new cards, “plus a Collection Booster Sample Pack, like with Streets of New Capenna Commander”.
MTG Arena players won’t be left out, either – a draft version of the Commander Legend’s companion product Alchemy Horizons: Baldur’s Gate drops July 7. The MTG press release claims this set will include “hundreds of new cards to MTG Arena”. In Thursday’s livestream, Wizards of the Coast employee Blake Rasmussen says some cards from the Commander Legends set will be included in the Alchemy Horizons set, and there will be versions “rebalanced for a 1v1 environment”.
The first previews we see in the livestream are the rare lands – Bountiful Promenade, Luxury Suite, Morphic Pool, Sea of Clouds, Spire Garden, and Reflecting Pool – all of which you’ll be very familiar with if you were a Battlebond fan. Next up are some brand new cards, starting with 6/6 black creature horror Elder Brain. If you want less mind-flaying in your buy-a-box promo, there’s also Wand of Wonder, an Artifact that reintroduces dice-roll mechanics.
As Rasmussen says, “it wouldn’t be a Dungeons and Dragons set without dragons”. The stream reveals Ancient Brass Dragon, a 5/5 elder dragon, as well as the available art variants. It also wouldn’t be a trip to Baldur’s Gate without meeting up with Minsc and Boo – luckily, they’re here too, as Legendary Planeswalkers with some super cute art to boot.
We learn from the stream that MTG spells are also getting the rulebook frame style – starting with classics Fireball and Lightning Bolt.
That’s all we seem to be getting preview-wise for now, but Wizards of the Coast has also revealed a roadmap for the release of Battle for Baldur’s Gate. Previews begin May 16, with a complete card image gallery coming May 23. May 24-25 will mean Commander previews, and the Commander gallery is fully viewable from May 26.
Finally, prelease events begin June 3, with the worldwide release and launch parties kicking off from June 10. According to the MTG post, more details about these events are coming soon.
For more MTG news, check out the Magic: The Gathering 2022 release schedule. You might also like this guide to the best MTG planeswalkers.