Ever since it was first teased in the set’s story, MTG players have been rabid for Edge of Eternities’ Sliver card. This hype only increased when Mark Rosewater confirmed its existence, and the card itself didn’t disappoint. It hasn’t even been released yet, and Thrumming Hivepool has already caused multiple price spikes in anticipation.
As if this sole Sliver wasn’t enough, Wizards of the Coast has just revealed another is on the way. Better than just being an artifact, we’re getting a brand-new legendary Sliver. While this is all incredibly exciting, this new card won’t be launching in the main set. Instead, it’ll be a part of the upcoming Alchemy: Edge of Eternities release.
Six New Legends Coming Soon
In a new article, titled “The Legends of Edge of Eternities,” Wizards went over the main set’s legends, as usual. While this is fairly typical, in this article, Wizards also gave a brief blurb about each of the legends in Alchemy: Edge of Eternities. In total, we’re getting six new legends when this set releases in roughly four weeks.
Sadly, the cards for these new legends haven’t been revealed just yet, but we have seen their art and a little blurb about them. While Wizards did this for Tarkir: Dragonstorm, we have to say they knocked it out of the park this time. The art for this Alchemy release is fittingly stellar, with many MTG players applauding it across social media.
Beyond just having good art, the new legends that Wizards shows off are seriously exciting. While this is great news for MTG Arena players and Alchemy fans, paper players might be missing out here.
Sliver Weftwinder
Out of the six new legends coming in Alchemy: Edge of Eternities, Sliver Weftwinder is definitely the most exciting. That said, it’s somewhat wasted on MTG Arena. At the moment, MTG Arena players only have two slivers to choose between when building a themed deck. The First Sliver is the natural choice when doing this, as Sliver Hivelord is somewhat meh in comparison.
In theory, Sliver Weftwinder could add a new competitive legend to this roster; however, we have no idea if it’ll be powerful. For now, we don’t even know if this card will be WUBRG like the other Sliver Legends. Given past precedent, however, we can only assume that Sliver Weftwinder would continue this established tradition.
Online, many MTG players suspect Sliver Weftwinder may lean into Edge of Eternities’ Warp mechanic. Potentially giving each Sliver you control a Warp ability, this would certainly be flavorful. While interesting, however, this paper playable ability could be incredibly frustrating for paper players.
To make matters worse, Slivers aren’t super competitive on MTG Arena. On Arena, there are only 24 Sliver cards to utilize, although Edge of Eternities will add two more. Meanwhile, paper players have access to 115 slivers, which makes them incredibly powerful and competitive. Depending on its ability, Sliver Weftwinder could be much better on paper, rather than Arena.
Notably, it’s worth remembering that Sliver Weftwinder wasn’t stolen from the main Edge of Eternities set. Alchemy cards aren’t picked up from the cutting room floor, but instead designed in-house by the MTG Arena team. Without Alchemy, Sliver Weftwinder wouldn’t exist, so paper players aren’t missing out on anything, even if it would be nice to have this card too.
Prototype X-8
Personally, Prototype X-8 is easily the next most exciting legend in Alchemy: Edge of Eternities that has been teased. Sadly, we don’t know much about this “Mechan” creature so far, but it just looks awesome. Even Wizards of the Coast states, “Little is known about this amalgam of organic and synthetic matter,” in their article.
While Prototype X-8 remains a mystery, the fact that this legend exists is still incredibly exciting, as it highlights the vastness of space. Edge of Eternities is evidently just a snippet of what the entire edge of eternity has to offer. While the main set does a good job already, Prototype X-8 makes me really hope that we’re getting another set in this setting eventually.
In terms of abilities, stats, and even color, Prototype X-8 is a total mystery. Given its nature as a fusion of organic and synthetic matter, we can maybe guess it’s colorless, but that’s entirely a guess. Ultimately, we’ll just have to wait and see what the spoiler season for Alchemy: Edge of Eternities brings.
Axavar
Out of the remaining teased legendaries from Alchemy: Edge of Eternities, Axavar definitely deserves a mention. While Thendar and Vv’viza both look neat, Edge of Eternities is already getting Kavu and Illvoi legendaries. Axavar, meanwhile, is the only Drix legendary that we’ll be getting in the entirety of Edge of Eternities.
Once again, even before we know anything about their abilities, color identity, or stats, the existence of Axavar may frustrate paper players. Personally, it’s much more interesting that these cards exist at all, especially since Wizards has reprinted Alchemy cards on paper. Who knows, maybe Mystery Booster 3 could bring both Axavar and Sliver Weftwinder into paper, if their abilities allow it.
A Lot More to See
Ultimately, we’ve only seen six legends from Alchemy: Edge of Eternities so far, which just scratches the surface. In total, this set should contain 30 new cards, although it’s unclear if the Check Land reprints factor into that. In any case, there should be a lot to look forward to once Alchemy: Edge of Eternities is released.
Right now, the official release date for this set has not been confirmed. Typically, however, Alchemy sets release two and a bit weeks after the main set launches. Should this trend continue, Alchemy: Edge of Eternities should release on August 19th. Before this, we usually get one week of spoilers; however, Alchemy spoiler seasons aren’t as rigid as main sets tend to be.
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