Throughout recent years, it’s safe to say there has been a lot going on in the wide world of MTG. With a set launching practically every month, and spoilers being drip fed on social media, it seems like there’s virtually no respite. Thanks to this, it’s no wonder that some MTG players have been struggling to keep up with everything. Somewhat surprisingly, however, despite the overwhelming tide of releases, many MTG players can’t resist the allure of the future.
Typically being shrouded in mystery prior to major announcement livestreams such as Wizards Presents, MTG’s future is a nebulous thing. Obscured behind codenames and teasing hints, it’s no wonder that MTG players want to know more about what’s in store. This often leads to MTG players questioning Wizards of the Coast across social media. Bombarding them with questions probing for information about returning mechanics, planes, and characters, players always want to know more.
Multiversal Prospects
When it comes to knowing more about the future, Blogatog is practically an MTG player’s one-stop shop for information. Ran by MTG’s Lead Designer, Mark Rosewater, this Q&A blog is chockablock with teasers, trivia, and information galore. This Tumblr blog has even been responsible for increased tribal support in a recent premier MTG Set!
Alongside fielding requests from players about cards or mechanics they’d want to see, Blogatog receives countless questions from players curious about what planes are in store. This has been all the more true around the release of March of the Machine. As a true multiversal war, every single one of MTG’s planes has been invaded by the Phyrexians. While the Phyrexians did lose this fight, the multiverse was nevertheless changed forever as a result.
Thanks to the consequences of this war, there’s now plenty of reason to revisit every single plane in the multiverse. In theory, March of the Machine: The Aftermath should be a whirlwind tour of the multiversal consequences, however, some players want more. Subsequently, throughout numerous questions on Blogatog, players have been asking for true return trips to practically every plan. Pleading to revisit Tarkir, Lorwyn, Ravnica, Alarna, and even Zhalfir, MTG players want to go all over.
Sadly, considering only four premier sets get released in one year, revisiting every existing MTG plane would take literal decades. Subsequently, the hope for an all-out multiversal tour is almost certainly going to end in disappointment. That doesn’t mean, however, that the desires of MTG players are being neglected completely. In fact, recently, it seems the opposite is true thanks to Mark Rosewater’s newfound love of polls.
Where To Next
Utilizing this Tumblr feature, Rosewater has been effectively canvassing their MTG-loving audience about what they want to see in the future. Previously this has used to decide that MTG should visit a wild-west-inspired plane sometime in the near future. Now, following the official launch of March of the Machine, it seems the power is back in players’ hands again.
Since it’s practically impossible to revisit every single plane that has been affected during the Phyrexian Invasion, Rosewater is letting players pick just one. To do that, Rosewater recently set up an initial poll, laying out 16 different planes for players to pick between. Taking the choices from March of the Machine’s Battle cards, this poll is just the first of many, as the results will be whittled down over time.
If you want to vote in either of the ongoing polls yourself, you can do so right here!
After two or three more polls, this will leave one plane as the undisputable victor that players want to see most. Considering the scale of these polls, it seems likely this victor will become a real MTG set in the future. That is the hope, at least, as there’s no definite confirmation from Rosewater that this will be happening. As, while it might appease some players online, it’s nevertheless a major aspect of a set for fans to decide.
In any case, the current fan favorite in the polls is Fiora. Last visited in 2016 for Conspiracy: Take the Crown, this Renaissance-era plane is filled with plots and subterfuge. Currently, at the time of writing, Fiora commands a strong 37.4% of the vote, however, this is only in one poll. In the other poll, votes are a lot more split, with Vryn and Xerex neck and neck.
Decisions Decisions
While Rosewater’s poll is far from over, with several hours still remaining, there are already a few firm frontrunners. Holding a strong lead in both of the polls, it seems incredibly likely these options will progress to the next round. Subsequently, in case you want to have an informed vote, here’s a very brief rundown of what we know about each plane.
Fiora
As we mentioned above, Fiora is the setting for both the Conspiracy sets. Styled after an Italian Renaissance city, this plane is home to many a conspiratorial plot. Should players pick a return to Fiora, it’s unclear if it would facilitate a new Conspiracy set. If it should instead return as a premier set, it’s unclear if or how the Draft, voting, and Monarch mechanics would return.
Gobakhan
The home of Planeswalker Teyo Verada, Gobakhan is a desert plane with two suns and two sandstorms. Descriptively known as The Eastern Cloud and The Western Cloud these sandstorms create an incredibly hostile environment. Thankfully, Order of the Shield Mage protects this plane’s citizens from these treacherous storms. Alongside having plenty of human inhabitants, Gobakhan is also home to sand devils, minotaurs, djinni, dwarves, and goblins.
Kylem
Featured in the Battlebond set, the entire plane of Kylem is centered around the Valor’s Reach arena. While this could lead to plenty of gladiatorial combat as the focus of a premier set, for better or worse, Kylem doesn’t have much going for it. As Mark Rosewater admitted themselves “Kylem was designed specifically for Battlebond. It’s not a very fleshed-out world, making its use anywhere but Battlebond 2 tricky.” Subsequently, even if this option is picked, it is unclear if a premier set on Kylem is possible.
Belenon
Like many of the other planes on this list, not much is known about Belenon. In fact, prior to its appearance in March of the Machine, the plane has previously only appeared in Planecahse 2012. What we do know about the plane, however, is that its inhabitants are either animal humanoids or humans. This means the plane has plenty of Loxodon, Rhox, and Aven. Additionally, from the Invasion of Belenon card, it appears this plane would have a Knights matter theme.
Vryn
Despite being the home plane of one of MTG’s most iconic Planeswalkers, Jace Beleren, not a lot is known about Vryn. The landscape is littered with mage-rings, which were used to fend off the Phyrexians, however, beyond that detail, the plane’s history is a mystery. Being basically unexplored in Magic’s lore, Vryn is essentially an almost blank magical canvas for Wizards to utilize.
Xerex
Prior to March of the Machine’s Invasion of Xerex, this plane was a complete mystery. Thankfully, this has now changed somewhat thanks to the “Choose Your Battles, Part 3” article from Mark Rosewater. Here, Rosewater detailed how Xerex “is an odd plane with physics that bend reality.” These reality-bending physics are actually what led to the Phyrexian invasion failing since the Phyrexians simply couldn’t comprehend what was going on. Should Xerex win this player vote, it’s safe to say any set that happens there would be weird.
Segovia
First seen all the way back in Legends, Segovia was initially a big inside joke. After all, despite being a leviathan, Segovian Leviathan was rather piddly. From this, initial joke, the plane of Segovia would evolve into a fully-fledged location, albeit one that exists at a 1:100 scale. Typically, when visiting this plane, Planeswalkers will be automatically shrunk down to size. In The Invasion of Segovia however, that clearly didn’t happen thanks to Realmbreaker’s shenanigans.
Shandalar
Initially the setting for the 25-year-old Magic: the Gathering video game, Shandalar certainly has a long history in MTG. Beyond being connected to that fantastic video game, however, Shandalar has also been the setting for many core set cards. Providing a baseline fantasy location, Shandalar had plenty of elves, goblins, dragons, angels, and more! Despite having been seen extensively throughout core sets and the beloved video game, the plane has rarely been in the spotlight. Should it win the vote, however, MTG players might be able to change that in the future.
The Waiting Game
With thousands of votes having already been cast, it’s safe to say that many MTG players are deeply excited about these ongoing polls. Unfortunately, however, as we mentioned before, there’s no guarantee these polls actually mean anything. As, while Rosewater will definitely have a good pitch to make this set a reality, there’s no guarantee Wizards will accept it and put it into production.
Even if this player-picked set does make it into production, we won’t be seeing it for a long time. Currently, from vision design to the set being printed, Wizards takes roughly two-and-a-half years to create a set. Thanks to this long lead time, players won’t know if they had their say until 2025 or even 2026! By this time, it’s entirely possible that the plane that was once picked has fallen out of favor. Whether or not that happens, however, remains to be seen. Ultimately, we’ll just have to wait and see!
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