Did you see our reveal of Magic: The Gathering's Final Fantasy crossover last week and find yourself thinking, "Video games are great, but what about superheroes?" If so, you're in for a treat. Today, we're unveiling an exclusive first look at six new cards from Magic's upcoming Spider-Man set, along with details about the accompanying products and packaging.
Click through the image gallery below to explore all the Spider-Man cards from the Commander-focused Scene Box, booster packs, Welcome Decks, and more. Read on to discover more about this exciting set from Wizards of the Coast.
Marvel's Spider-Man x Magic: The Gathering - First Card and Packaging Reveal
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Scheduled to launch on September 26, Marvel's Spider-Man will be the second fully draftable, Standard-legal set in Magic's Universes Beyond line, following Final Fantasy, and the third overall after 2023's Modern-legal Lord of the Rings set. Unlike what you might expect, this set won't include preconstructed Commander decks. Instead, the cards in the Scene Box shown above won't be Standard-legal and are designed with Commander in mind.
While a Secret Lair featuring Wolverine, Captain America, and more marked Magic's initial foray into the Marvel universe last year, the Spider-Man set represents the first full set inspired by the comics. According to Wizards of the Coast Executive Producer Max McCall, a smaller product wouldn't do justice to the character and the vast array of villains he has encountered over the years.
"Spider-Man needs a full set to truly capture the essence of the character," McCall explains. "Including characters from the Spider-Man canon in a wider set would mean leaving many beloved characters on the cutting room floor. We might have found room for Gwen Stacy and Miles Morales in a non-Spider-Man-specific set, but there wouldn't have been space for Aunt May."
McCall also highlights that designing for a Universes Beyond set "flips the worldbuilding on its head." Unlike typical Magic sets, which need to establish a new setting and be fun to play, Universes Beyond sets can leverage existing familiarity with characters like Spider-Man. "When we create a card that embodies the idea of great power and great responsibility, we can add more mechanical complexity because players already understand the narrative. We don't have to simplify Universes Beyond cards; we just need to focus on moments that resonate with fans."
Head Designer Mark Rosewater explains that Magic's color pie allows for the portrayal of heroism and villainy across all five colors. He notes that Spider-Man aligns with white, blue, and green, with the Scene Box version featuring the first two colors. "Spider-Man's obligation to use his power to help people is central to his place in the white color pie. His origin as a product of science, and his aptitude for invention, like his web-slingers, is very blue. And his powers being animal-based, with a destiny tied to spiders and the Spider-Man universe, is core green."
In addition to the Scene Box, the set will include Play Boosters, Collector Boosters, Bundles, and Prerelease Packs, all of which can be seen in the gallery above. While preconstructed Commander decks are absent, the set marks the return of Welcome Decks—these are themed introductory decks often distributed by game stores to help new players learn the game in a low-pressure environment.
Alongside this year's Final Fantasy set, Wizards of the Coast recently announced a set themed around Avatar: The Last Airbender. Before that, two more in-universe sets will be released: Tarkir: Dragonsorm and the space-themed Edge of Eternities.
*Read on for the full, unedited interview with Wizards of the Coast's Max McCall and Mark Rosewater:*
