Throughout the years, Wizards of the Coast has created and released all manner of innovation products. Archenemy, Battlebond, Conspiracy, Planechase, and Un-sets have all played with the standard MTG ruleset in a major way. For some, these products create some of the most memorable Draft and gameplay experiences. Despite this, they don’t exactly sell well.
Despite getting a few sequels over the years, continually poor sales have made future sets unlikely. Some of these innovation products have survived in new ways; however, others are seeminly just unsustainable. Future Un-sets, for instance, are effectively dead in the water following the poor and controversial performance of Unfinity.
To make matters worse, Universes Beyond has massively raised the bar for what a successful MTG release can be. Despite this, it seems that there’s still some hope for Magic’s classic innovation products. According to Head MTG Designer Mark Rosewater, draft matters cards are due for a return.
A Whimsical When
“Noilaedi: If or when: draft matters cards (from Conspiracy)
Mark Rosewater: My gut is when.”
Via: Blogatog
Given the overwhelmingly strong performance of Universes Beyond, this statement from Mark Rosewater is incredibly surprising. Since crossover products and sets have taken off, it felt like every innovation product would be an ‘if’ not a “when.” Hell, until a seventh set in 2026 was confirmed recently, even the future of Horizons and Masters sets was dubious.
For better or worse, Masters sets have just recently been confirmed as dead, further casting doubt on innovation products. Despite this, according to Rosewater, it’s seemingly inevitable that we’ll be getting more draft matters cards. While this is already exciting, Rosewater went on to reveal that these cards wouldn’t be in a premier set.
Responding to a follow-up question from Tumblr user artisanalcardgamery, Rosewater stated, “I’m skeptical we would include them in a premier set.” According to Rosewater, this is due to digital concerns, since all premier sets come to MTG Arena. Sadly, this means that any future set with draft matters elements won’t launch on Arena at all.
The good news here is that draft matters cards will presumably be getting their very own set in the future. In theory, these cards could be rolled into something like Modern Horizons 4, but that sounds like absolute chaos. Instead, it’s more likely that Mark Rosewater has subtly confirmed that a third Conspiracy MTG set is coming. That said, such a set has been declared an “if” in the past.
Somehow, Conspiracy Returned…
The fact that Conspiracy is seemingly coming back, at some point at least, is incredibly surprising. It has been nine years since the last Conspiracy set was released, but, as mentioned, things have only gotten tougher since then. Recently, the expectation has been that only the most profitable MTG sets would be put into production.
If Wizards is planning on making another Conspiracy set, this would massively buck the expected trend. Conspiracy sets, like most innovation products, typically don’t sell well, especially compared to Universes Beyond releases. While it’s too early to tell long-term plans, choosing to make sets like this shows a focus on fun, not value.
Through this lens, everything is put back on the table. Even if it doesn’t rake in $200,000,000 in one day, the sheer fun factor could make these products viable. Potentially, this means we might even get Un-sets back, or entirely new revolutionary products. That said, Wizards of the Coast is still a business at the end of the day.
With this in mind, the hypothetical third Conspiracy MTG set could be another experiment to test the waters. If this product generates enough hype, community goodwill, and enjoyment, further innovation products could be put into production. Alternatively, if it fails on all or some of these metrics, Wizards could learn that these products simply aren’t viable.
A Long Wait Ahead
Ultimately, while it definitely seems like a third Conspiracy set is coming, that is far from confirmed. As mentioned, draft matters cards don’t necessarily need to be in an exclusive set. There’s a non-zero chance that these new cards could just be part of an event that Wizards sets up for WPN stores.
Sadly, we’re just going to have to wait patiently for more information from Wizards of the Coast. Frustratingly, we may be waiting for quite some time. Not only is Mark Rosewater’s answer by no means definitive, but there’s only one spare slot on the calendar. This means that, even if a third Conspiracy set is the third supplemental set in line, it wouldn’t release until 2028.
For better or worse, this means we’re just going to have to sit tight and wait for more information. Potentially, this could be provided at an upcoming MagicCon event, but even then, there’s no guarantee. Given how fun a new Conspiracy set could be, we can only hope that one gets announced sooner rather than later.
Stick with us here at mtgrocks.com: the best site for Magic: The Gathering coverage!
