While Magic: The Gathering fans are preparing for Commander Legends‘ impending arrival, Wizards of the Coast can’t help but look further ahead towards what’s on the horizon.
It’s a proactive stance, and one definitely worth taking, too, as the next 12 months are already shaping up to be more important than the last. While there are undoubtedly a whole host of secrets waiting to be uncovered in the new year, players of the CCG at least know, thanks to prior reveals, that the core release roadmap will involve three major Standard expansions, one focused on the Modern format and, finally, two remastered versions of previous sets for MTG Arena. Following a short(ish) Christmas break throughout December, events will pick up again starting in January with the first previews for Kaldheim.
Inspired by viking and Norse mythology, the titular plane has, until now, remained unexplored and been only briefly mentioned in wider Magic lore, and while little is currently known about the new mechanics being introduced, Wizards has confirmed that Modal Double-Faced Lands, or MDFLs, for short, will return once again, after their introduction in Zendikar Rising.
You’ll be able to find those in Kaldheim packs starting on January 29th at pre-release events, with a full launch pencilled in for February 5th. The complete schedule is as follows:
- Season: February 5–April 22 (11 weeks)
- Scheduling Open: October 26
- Distributor Selection Deadline: November 13
- Promo Pack Allocations Set: November 13
- Kits Delivered (North America and Latin America): December 17
- Promo Packs: January 22–28
- Bring-a-Friend Promos Delivered: January 22–28
- Prerelease: January 29–February 4
- Release: February 5
- Launch Party: February 6–February 7
- Friday Night Magic: February 5–April 9
- Commander Nights: February 8–April 15
Strixhaven: School of Mages and a return to the Lovecraft-inspired realm of Innistrad fill the summer and autumn/winter slots for Standard in 2021, though it’ll be awhile yet before we learn anything concrete about those. As for Commander Legends, you can head through here for all the latest previews of Magic: The Gathering‘s final product launch of 2020.