During a recent State of the Game blog post, Wizards of the Coast announced a much-requested addition to MTG Arena: Explorer Anthology 1. Like the Historic Anthology sets before it, Explorer Anthology 1 will provide a handful of cards to revitalize and strengthen Explorer’s metagame. The first Explorer Anthology set will also help to bridge the gap between Explorer and its paper counterpart, Pioneer.
Explorer Anthology 1 Release Dates
In a recent blog post, it was revealed that Explorer Anthology 1 will be launching a lot sooner than expected! Wizards of the Coast has confirmed that Explorer Anthology 1 will officially launch on the 28th of July 2022. The Anthology set will only be available until the 5th of October, so make sure you don’t miss out.
Historic Anthology 6 has also been announced to launch at the same time. Despite this joint release, don’t forget that these are separate products that will have to be purchased individually.
Explorer Anthology 1 Price
Following the trend set by past Anthology sets, Explorer Anthology 1 will cost 4,000 gems or 25,000 gold. For reference, the cost of 4,000 gems is roughly equivalent to $25. The set, which is sold as a bundle, contains four copies of the 20 cards included in the Anthology.
After the 5th of October 2022, the bundle will no longer be for sale. Cards from Explorer Anthology 1 will still be able to be crafted using Wildcards, even after the sale ends.
Explorer Anthology 1 Mechanics
As an Anthology set that can contain any card that’s legal in Pioneer, Explorer Anthology 1 may include many mechanics. So far, spoilers have revealed that Heroic, is a returning mechanic for the Anthology set.
If you’ve not heard of it before, Heroic is a triggered ability found on creatures that activates whenever the creature is a target of a controlling player’s spell. Favored Hoplite‘s Heroic ability, for instance, gives it a +1/+1 counter and prevents damage that would be done to it this turn.
Alongside Heroic, it’s highly requested that Wizards of the Coast introduce cards with Delve into MTG Arena. First introduced in Future Sight and later Khans of Tarkir, Delve is featured on cards such as Treasure Cruise and Temporal Trespass. The Delve mechanic allows players to exile cards from their graveyard while casting a spell in order to pay for its generic mana.
Explorer Anthology 1 Leaks & Spoilers
Releasing on the 28th of July 2022, Explorer Anthology 1 is scheduled to have a rapid spoiler season. To that end, spoiler season for the set has already begun! So far, Wizards of the Coast has announced three cards from Explorer Anthology 1, Supreme Verdict, Favored Hoplite, and Kalitas, Traitor of Ghet.
More cards are expected to be spoiled by MTG Arena’s social media channels over this and the next week. The full card list for the Anthology set will be revealed on Wednesday, July 27th.
Wizards have stated that Explorer Anthology 1 will contain “20 Explorer-legal cards, from iconic powerhouses to offbeat favorites”.
While we have seen some of the official spoilers already, here are some more cards that we’re hoping to see in Explorer Anthology 1.
- Nykthos, Shrine to Nyx
- Elvish Mystic
- Monastery Swiftspear
- Treasure Cruise
- Hidden Strings
- Spell Queller
- Mausoleum Wanderer
- Bring to Light
- Dreadbore
- Temporal Trespass
- Dig Through Time
- Thing in the Ice
- Mana Confluence
- Reflector Mage
Once more spoilers for Explorer Anthology 1 get officially announced, we’ll make sure to update this article to keep you informed!
Read More: Magic: the Gathering 2022 Release Calendar
