Over the years, Magic: The Gathering has had a real on/off relationship when it comes to its story. Each new set used to be accompanied by a full-on novel, but those flickered out over time. Secrets of Strixhaven is reviving the idea next year with Omens of Chaos, in a move that many players are excited about.
Unfortunately for those players, it seems the wait for this new book may be a little longer than anticipated. Yesterday, the new MTG Strixhaven novel was hit with a delay, pushing it back two months from February to April 2026. While this is definitely a bummer, the reasoning behind it is, surprisingly enough, incredibly encouraging for the future of MTG story content.
A Surprising Delay For The MTG Strixhaven Novel
According to the novel’s author, Seanan McGuire, the delay is due to demand for the novel being much higher than Wizards anticipated.
“I mean we have succeeded beyond ANYONE’S expectations in the pre-order department, and suddenly we’re attracting a lot more institutional attention–and hence support. People, upon realizing this book was GOING to succeed, now WANT it to succeed.”
Seanan McGuire, via Bluesky
Considering Wizards stopped releasing MTG novels due to a lack of popularity, this is a surprising development. It appears that demand for Magic novels has increased in their absence, if the pre-order figures on this one are so elevated.
Of course, this could be down to other factors as well. Seanan McGuire is a big name in the Young Adult space, so that alone is a unique draw. On top of that, Omens of Chaos will also include an exclusive Command Tower promo card. This adds an extra financial incentive, as we see with the Destroy All Humans manga series.
Whatever the reason, this new novel exceeding expectations is great news. Mark Rosewater has noted that Omens of Chaos succeeding could inspire more novels in the future. With the book already smashing expectations at the pre-order stage, this is very much looking like a possibility. While Magic’s digital story has been raking in rave reviews lately, I still think this is a hugely positive development. Magic novels are a big part of the game’s history, the preservation of which is more important than ever in the age of Universes Beyond.
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