Last week's reveal of Magic: The Gathering's Final Fantasy crossover had you wondering about superheroes? Fantastic news! We've got a sneak peek at six new cards from Magic's upcoming Spider-Man set, plus a look at all the accompanying products and packaging.
Browse the image gallery below to see all the Spider-Man cards from the Commander-focused Scene Box, booster packs, Welcome Decks, and more. Read on to learn more from Wizards of the Coast.
Marvel's Spider-Man x Magic: The Gathering - First Card and Packaging Reveal
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Arriving September 26th, Marvel's Spider-Man will be the second fully draftable, Standard-legal set in Magic's Universes Beyond line after Final Fantasy, and the third overall following 2023's Modern-legal Lord of the Rings set. While you won't find preconstructed Commander decks, the cards in the Scene Box (shown above) are *not* Standard-legal and are designed specifically for Commander play.
Following last year's Secret Lair featuring Wolverine, Captain America, and more, Spider-Man marks Magic's first full set inspired by Marvel comics. Wizards of the Coast Executive Producer, Max McCall, explains this choice: "Spider-Man needs a full set to do justice to the character and incorporate the many villains he's faced. A smaller product wouldn't have accommodated all the characters and moments we wanted to include. We could perhaps have included Gwen Stacy and Miles Morales in a non-Spider-Man set, but there wouldn't have been room for Aunt May."
McCall describes designing a Universes Beyond set as "flipping the worldbuilding on its head." Typical Magic sets need cards to establish location and setting while remaining fun to play. However, most people are already familiar with Spider-Man. "When we create a card representing 'great power, great responsibility,' we can add mechanical complexity because players understand the story. We don't need Universes Beyond cards to be 'simple'—we just need recognizable moments that fans will easily grasp."
Regarding the translation of these moments into a Magic set, Head Designer Mark Rosewater explains that Magic's color pie "is robust enough to showcase heroism and villainy across all five colors." He cites Spider-Man as an example, noting his alignment with white, blue, and green (though the Scene Box version uses only white and blue). "Spider-Man's obligation to help people aligns with the white color pie. His scientific background and inventions are very blue. Finally, his powers are animal-based, and his destiny within the Spider-Man universe is core green."
"We're not limiting ourselves to any one comic run or series."
Beyond the Scene Box, the set will include Play Boosters, Collector Boosters, Bundles, and Prerelease Packs (see the gallery above for details). While there are no preconstructed Commander decks, Welcome Decks will return—themed introductory decks typically offered free by game stores to help new players learn the game.
Following this year's Final Fantasy set, Wizards of the Coast recently announced an Avatar: The Last Airbender set. Two more in-universe sets will precede it: Tarkir: Dragonstorm and the space-themed Edge of Eternities.
Read the full, unedited interview with Wizards of the Coast's Max McCall and Mark Rosewater:
