Magic: The Gathering storylines

Although Magic: The Gathering is essentially a strategy game that uses decks of cards, an intricate storyline underlies the cards released in each expansion. This storyline is shown in the game in the card art and through quotations and descriptions on the bottom of most cards (called flavor text). Novels and anthologies published by HarperPrism and Wizards of the Coast (WOTC), and the comic books published by Armada Comics complete the storylines hinted at through the cards. WOTC also publishes a weekly story in the Magic Fiction column, previously known as Official Magic Fiction and Uncharted Realms.

Storyline breakdown

The majority of Magic's story is set on the plane of Dominaria, and can be broken down into several distinct time periods each detailed in certain sets. Dominia was the general name of the set of infinite planes that make up the Multiverse where the stories of the Magic: The Gathering occur. According to an "Ask Wizards" article from 2007, the term 'Dominia' is no longer being used to define the Magic: The Gathering Multiverse.^[1] Each plane is a universe. However, many gameplayers confuse the term 'plane' to a planet when, in fact, it is the entire universe where that certain planet is located. This is because the name of the universe/plane is similar to the name of the main/primary planet.

• The Thran: The Thran were a race of master artificers who were destroyed by Yawgmoth and his Phyrexians (converted Thran following him) during the Thran-Phyrexian War about 5,000 years before the Brothers. They are only hinted at in the game, but J. Robert King's novel The Thran explores their culture in some depth.

• The Brothers' War: War between Urza and Mishra, two brothers who were trained by the archaeologist and artificer Tocasia in creating magical devices based on ancient Thran technology. As their powers grew, so did their enmity, eventually erupting in an all-out war utilizing powerful constructs. Marshalling vast armies aided by their impressive machines (some of the old Thran Empire, some newly made) the brothers staged a series of battles. The war devastated the land of Terisiare on the plane of Dominaria and culminated in a world-devastating climax on the island of Argoth. This caused the Dark, the climate changes which led to the Fall of the Sarpadian Empires and finally to the Ice Age. This story is the basis for the Antiquities expansion and later the Urza's Saga Block.

• The Dark: The devastation wrought by the Brothers led to the fall of many civilizations and the beginning of a Dark Age in Dominaria. The destruction of Argoth caused a nuclear winter that would later lead to the Dominarian Ice Age. This story is portrayed in the Fallen Empires and The Dark expansions. In this age Terisiare's survivors were bitterly opposed to magic. Tiny, insular villages dotted a wasted, goblin-infested landscape. Fanatical priests controlled a few powerful city-states. Preachers and witch-hunters hunted the countryside for the few remaining wizards. Despite this oppression, it is during this era that mortal wizards first discover the five-color nature of magic. This story is fully explained in the novel The Gathering Dark by Jeff Grubb. The following Ice Age is detailed in Eternal Ice and The Shattered Alliance, also by Jeff Grubb.

• Fallen Empires The harsh climatic changes that followed the destruction of Argoth caused the southern continent, Sarpadia, to struggle for survival. The elves and humans of Sarpadia begin breeding primitive but adaptable subspecies: saprolings and thrulls, respectively. These creatures soon turn on their creators and terrorize the people of Sarpadia, while the Merfolk suffered an invasion of crustacean-like homarids, which benefitted from the cooling oceans. Barraged by invading orcs, goblins, homarids, thrulls, and even fungus, the civilizations of Sarpadia are destroyed, and the continent falls into darkness.

• The Ice Age: The climate-altering effects of the devastation continued leading to a global ice age. New empires rose and fought in the cold. Eventually this cooling climate was reversed and life returned to normal. This story is portrayed in the Ice Age, Alliances, and Coldsnap expansions, and in the novels Eternal Ice and Shattered Alliance by Jeff Grubb. Jeff Grubb also wrote a short story "continuing" the story for Coldsnap, which is located in the Player's Guide insert you can find in a Coldsnap Fat Pack.

• The Homelands This short interlude depicts the decimated plane of Ulgrotha, in which many civilizations struggle for power against Baron Sengir, a powerful vampire who has manipulated a number of other characters into serving his ends. The planeswalkers Serra and Feroz turn the balance in favor of the light, but are killed in battle against a crazed alien planeswalker. The story has no concrete ending.

• The Phyrexian Invasion: After millennia of peace, the machine-like Phyrexians, who originate on a hellish mechanical world, invade the world of Dominaria led by the former Thran Yawgmoth from the pocket universe of Rath. The Phyrexian invasion divides in many sub-stories.
  • The Urza Saga: Following the destruction of Argoth, Urza becomes a planeswalker and foresees the invasion of Dominaria. Urza's travels lead the war to the peaceful universe of Serra's realm which is destroyed by Phyrexian armies; survivors of the plane flee to Dominaria and Ulgrotha. In preparation for the invasion, Urza creates the Tolarian academy, a research and development laboratory-school in which he and other mighty wizards train mages for the upcoming invasion and experiment on weaponry development, time-travel and genetic manipulation in hopes of creating a defensive army. The time experiments lead to a temporal collapse and the academy becomes laced with time fractures, which are both dangerous and useful to the inhabitants. Urza himself develops a fearful Legacy Weapon and Karn, a self-aware golem which, combined, can defeat any foe. This story arc is linked to The Thran, Antiquities, The Dark, Ice Age and Homelands and is depicted in the books The Brothers War, Planeswalker and Time Streams.
  • The Legacy: This follows the travels of many brave adventurers from all across Dominaria who, aboard Urza's vessel "The Weatherlight", seek to collect the different artifacts left by Urza and necessary to assemble the Legacy Weapon. Opposed to them, many Phyrexian allies or lords will try to stop them from their quest. This story arc is the longest in the Magic continuity, and its characters are depicted in the Weatherlight, Tempest, Stronghold, Exodus, Mercadian Masques, and Nemesis card sets; later, the story continues and concludes in the Invasion arc.
  • Prophecy: Parallel to the "Legacy" history, and following the Mirage and Urza's Saga histories, in Dominaria the warrior kingdom of Keld ensues war all across Jamuraa. Many wizards from the Tolarian academy aid the federation of Jamuraa and succeed in stopping the Keldons' warmongering.
  • The Invasion: The dreaded Phyrexians finally come to Dominaria across many "planar portals" and Urza, who has been spending thousands of years planning a defense against the Invasion, implements his plans. The Weatherlight leads the Dominarian forces, but the widespread chaos, and the uncompromising nature of Urza's tactics, threaten to destroy the plane. The arrival of Yawgmoth himself leads to the Apocalypse, but he is finally defeated by the fully assembled Legacy Weapon. The Invasion itself occurs in the Invasion block, but is linked to all previous story arcs. From this point on, the publishers switch to a series of self-contained plotlines with occasional links to older stories, rather than sweeping epics spanning years of card releases.

• Odyssey: One hundred years after the devastation of the Invasion, Dominaria is still in the process of rebuilding. This part of the story takes place in Otaria, a devastated continent that was, surprisingly, the place least affected by the Invasion. It centers on Kamahl, a barbarian, and his quest to get the Mirari, a magical orb of seemingly endless power.

• Onslaught: Having acquired the Mirari with devastating effects, Kamahl renounces it and tries to be rid of it, but the events he triggered have gone far beyond his control. The story shifts to a battle between Akroma, an angel, and Phage, Kamahl's corrupted sister, who kills with a touch. As zealous armies gather behind each of them, Kamahl needs to end their escalating conflict before Otaria itself is decimated. To this end, he recovers the slumbering Mirari and allies himself with three ancient gods who have been waiting for these events to happen again. This story is linked to Mirrodin, and sets the scene for the first major storyline not set on Dominaria.

• Mirrodin: The story of Mirrodin takes place on a new, metal world, created by the planeswalker Karn and populated by races stolen from other worlds. Glissa, an elf, and her allies strive to assemble the mythical Kaldra, so that they can defeat the crazed Memnarch, who lives inside the hollow world. All the while, we learn about the history of Mirrodin, and its loose, but nonetheless present, connection to previous storylines based on Dominaria. The Mirrodin story is the first of the new year-long, three-set story arcs, having started in 2003 with the release of Moons of Mirrodin and continuing with 2004's The Darksteel Eye and The Fifth Dawn.

• The Kami War: The plane of Kamigawa is naturally divided in two: the kakuriyo Kami world (spirit world) and the utsushiyo material world; both working and operating harmoniously until the Kami began to attack the material world twenty years before the story opens. The books follow the lone samurai Toshiro Umezawa and the princess Michiko as they try to bring peace to Kamigawa. As well as giving the game an unusual, strong Oriental feel, this storyline is interesting in that the designers deliberately tried to give the story a strong influence over the game itself. Instead of relying on the traditional "color wheel" conflict (the game of Magic: the Gathering is based on a five-point circle of allied and enemy color affiliations), the color of any given card may often be less important than whether it has a Kami or Material theme.

• Ravnica: Ravnica is a plane covered almost entirely in cityscape. The city's ten "guilds", political organizations each based on a different two-color mana pairing, warred for a long period of time. After the conflict, a magical document, the Guildpact, was created to ensure that the plane remained at peace and that the guilds would constrain themselves to their social roles. The main storyline begins 9,999 years later, as anticipation of the decimillennial anniversary builds. The once-noble guilds have corrupted and decayed over time, and a great political gridlock is all that keeps Ravnica stable. A series of protagonists - most notably Agrus Kos, a law enforcement officer from the Boros League, and Teysa Karlov, a lawmage from the Orzhov Syndicate, uncover the plots of the various guildmasters, as well as the ambitions of the "secret guild", House Dimir. The flavor of the cards again exerted considerable influence over the mechanics of the game, encouraging players to build decks devoted to a particular guild.

• Time Spiral: The Time Spiral block returns to a post-apocalyptic Dominaria. Teferi, a planeswalker, abandoned Urza during the Phyrexian Invasion by "phasing" (temporarily removing from reality) two landmasses known as Shiv and Zhalfir out. He returns to Dominaria to find it in a state of ruin. In addition to having been almost totally devastated by the Apocalypse, mysterious "time rifts" have opened in the skies across the plane, making planeswalking and spellcasting more difficult. Teferi wants to ensure that Zhalfir and Shiv return to Dominaria safely - however, the time rifts, and the considerably deteriorated state of the plane itself, mean that the two continents no longer "fit." Should Zhalfir and Shiv land, Dominaria and the entire Multiverse would be destroyed. The Time Spiral block was billed as Magic's nostalgia block, and would revisit themes and characters from every storyline up to the end of the Otaria arc. As the Invasion did before, the Time Spiral story is linked to any other story arc before it, harkening back to many earlier settings and characters, even those outside of Dominaria. It was during this block that The Mending occurred, greatly reducing the powers of all planeswalkers.

• Lorwyn: Whereas most blocks consist of three sets, it was decided to turn the 2007/08 block into two mini blocks of two sets each. The focus of the first is the plane of Lorwyn, an idyllic, perpetually sunlit world populated by a wide variety of civilized species. These tribes are generally peaceful but keen to keep to themselves. The story centers around an elf outcast named Rhys who has triggered a series of events foreseen by his mentor, Colfenor, and a flamekin pilgrim named Ashling who believes her path and Rhys's are the same. The coming Aurora, an annual event when the plane darkens and lights appear in the sky, is the key to whatever it is that Rhys needs to do.

• Shadowmoor: Rather than passing harmlessly as it normally does, the Aurora instead transforms Lorwyn into an eerie reflection of itself. The idyllic, sunlit world is replaced by the shadows and omnipresent malice of Shadowmoor. Landscapes, races and even individuals become twisted alternatives with no indication that their Lorwyn selves ever existed. Ashling, now known as the Extinguisher, has a central role in this shift, and it falls to Rhys (an elvish hero in this place) and Maralen, a mysterious elf and one of the very few unchanged by the transformation, to discover why.

• Alara: The plane of Alara was shattered long ago by an unknown force; it is now split unequally into five unique shards, each having no knowledge of the others. Each shard was denied two of the five colors of magic by the event (the inhabitants of each shard have had no recollection of the missing two colors of mana for centuries), and have evolved around their remaining three: The militant, feudal, sun-dappled plane of Bant; the scientific, order-obsessed, windy and cloud covered plane of Esper; the desperate, lifeless, blackened plane of Grixis; the violent, harsh, volcanic plane of Jund; and the green, lush, stampeding plane of Naya. Many species die off, evolve, or border extinction in each shard due to insufficient mana sustenance (Zombies can't survive without black mana, angels can't survive without white mana, etc.), and others thrived. The force that shattered the plane is unknown, but believed to be the five-headed hydra Progenitus (for unknown reasons) who disappears at the shattering of the plane and reappears in the expansion "Alara - Conflux" when the shards are reunited.

• Conflux: As the Shards of Alara draw closer together, the millennia-long machinations of a hidden evil come closer to bearing a dire harvest. Nicol Bolas, once one of the most powerful planeswalkers, has been manipulating the civilizations of Alara for his own reasons. As the shards violently collide with each other after centuries apart, war erupts on all sides, and in the chaos, Bolas seeks to harness the power of the Maelstrom, the chaotic center of the plane where all five colors come together in a magical storm of unimaginable energies and power. The planeswalker Elspeth Tirel and the valiant knight Rafiq start to catch wind of an insidious plot and begin investigating.

• Zendikar: A new plane is introduced: Zendikar, a world with powerful, uncontrollable mana and many dangerous features, including the Roil. Planeswalkers are drawn to Zendikar because of its powerful mana. Many of Zendikar's residents must fight against the land itself as mountains become alive and forests move. It is revealed that thousands of years ago three planeswalkers locked powerful, unstoppable beings known as the Eldrazi in a complex prison on Zendikar, causing the plane's complex problems. When three more planeswalkers enter the prison, the Eldrazi are released and start destroying Zendikar as they cannot escape from the plane.

• Scars of Mirrodin: As the storyline returns to the metallic plane of Mirrodin, it is found divided. A corrupted Karn has returned and brought with him the rot of Phyrexia. As the world faces off, Mirran versus Phyrexian, the idyllic plane is brought to a new form. This set also marked a deviation from the five color wheel, instead pushing players to align their decks to the Mirran or Phyrexian side of the conflict; to reenforce this, they created a web site devoted to the war where the player can switch between sides. In February 2011, it was announced that Phyrexia had won, and the set New Phyrexia played out as a war amongst five Praetors of Phyrexia, battling each other for dominance.

• Innistrad: A new plane is introduced: Innistrad, set in a gothic-themed world, where vampires, werewolves, and demons run rampant. Before the events of the block, the human population of Innistrad was constantly beset by supernatural creatures. In response, the planeswalker Sorin created the arch-angel Avacyn to protect the humans. Avacyn set out to eradicate all of Innistrad's demons, leading to an epic battle against the elder demon, Griselbrand. During the battle, Griselbrand was able to trick Avacyn into locking both beings in the magical prison know as the Helvault. With Avacyn gone, the angel's protection disappeared and soon creatures of darkness were free to prey on mankind once more. When Sorin finds out about this he goes straight to Innistrad (presumably from Zendikar) to see what can be done. While he is searching for Avacyn, Liliana Vess is there searching for Griselbrand so she can slay him and release herself from their bargain for Liliana's soul. Liliana discovers the Hellvault and releases Griselbrand and Avacyn. Liliana slays Griselbrand, and Avacyn's restored powers guard humanity from the zombies, werewolves, and dangers of Innistrad.

• Return to Ravnica: Returning to the megalopolis of Ravnica, the guilds have been in a state of constant warfare ever since the events of Dissension, when the Guildpact was dissolved. The Izzet League's guild leader Niv-Mizzet discovers a maze passing through the Tenth District of the city. He sets his entire guild on figuring out the point of this "Implicit Maze". It is learned later in the story that the being who traverses the maze will become the Ruler of Ravnica. Niv-Mizzet makes an announcement all over the city of Ravnica, asking all guilds to send a champion to run the maze. The planeswalker Jace Beleren solves the mystery of the maze and lauds himself the Living Guildpact, settling disputes for the ten guilds.

• Theros: On a new plane, Theros, based on the heroes, myths, and monsters of Ancient Greece, Elspeth arrives and is declared the Champion of the sun god, Heliod. The planeswalker Xenagos becomes the God of Revels, angering the established pantheon of the other Gods. Heliod gives Elspeth the Godsend, a sword with which to slay Xenagos. Ajani Goldmane, another planeswalker, helps Elspeth to kill Xenagos. Meanwhile, the planeswalker Kiora is searching the seas of Theros for something that will help to defeat the Eldrazi that will inevitably eventually destroy the Multiverse. The merfolk begin to worship Kiora, mistaking her for Thassa, the God of the Sea. At this point all of the Gods of Theros are very angry at the planeswalkers. After Elspeth kills Xenagos, Heliod takes the Godsend and kills Elspeth with it, sending Elspeth to the underworld of Theros. Ajani is angered and stays on Theros looking for a way to get even with the Gods.

• Khans of Tarkir: A new plane (Tarkir) is the setting of this block. Tarkir is the homeworld of Sarkhan Vol, a planeswalker known for an obsession with dragons, and the five warring clans, each aligned towards 3 colours. The Mardu (RWB), The Abzan (WBG), The Jeskai (URW), The Sultai (BGU) and the Temur (GUR). All dragons have gone extinct on Tarkir, hunted to extinction by the 5 clans many years ago, but Sarkhan returns to find the source of the voice within his mind. The Planeswalker Sorin also comes to Tarkir where he discovers that Ugin, one of the Planeswalkers that helped to seal the Eldrazi on Zendikar, has died many years ago. Sorin leaves Tarkir saddened by this loss. With the help of the Jeskai leader Narset, Sarkhan makes his way to the resting place of Ugin and travels back in time through the Nexus (the remains of Ugin form this Nexus) but not before he sees Narset killed by Zurgo Helmsmasher, Khan of the Mardu.

• Fate Reforged: Sarkhan travels through the Nexus 1000 years into the past and discovers the world of Tarkir before the fall of the Dragons. He discovers that the Dragons are formed within great tempests and that these tempests are powered by Ugin himself. He arrives in time to see Ugin confront his nemesis Nicol Bolas, Sarkhan's old master (although at this point in time Nicol Bolas had not met Sarkhan yet). Sarkhan sees Nicol Bolas kill Ugin and leave Tarkir, leaving Sarkhan distraught that he could not save the great Dragon. Using the power of the Hedron he had recovered from Zendikar, Sarkhan encases Ugin within a cocoon of Hedrons and seals him away to save his life. This act changes the future history of Tarkir, as with Ugin still alive the Dragon Tempests would never end, preventing the humans from hunting the Dragons into extinction. Due to his actions changing his own past, Sarkhan is pulled from the past Tarkir and back into the present.

• Dragons of Tarkir: Sarkhan returns to the present day Tarkir to find the Dragons have survived and now live together with the humans. Although the 5 clans still clash among each other, they are now led by the powerful Dragon Lords instead of the human Khans of Sarkhan's own past. He sees many people he knew from his own timeline, however none of them remember him and all have changed as Sarkhan's actions have influenced this new Tarkir. Sarkhan travels again to the resting place of Ugin and discovers the revived Elder Dragon is gone. He cannot sense Ugin's power in his plane but takes refuge in the fact that Ugin is safe. Sarkhan then goes to find Narset where he discovers his old friend has now left the confines of the Dragons Clans and has learnt the secret history of Tarkir, including the history of Sarkhan himself. We also learn that Narset's spark has ignited and she has become a Planeswalker. We leave the pair on Tarkir, neither of them intending to leave for a long time, with too much to see and learn upon the reinvigorated plane of Tarkir.

Additional plots

There are numerous other smaller plots and subplots that take place in Dominaria and on the many planes of the multiverse of Dominia as well as events after the invasion of Dominaria by the Phyrexians.

• The sets from Weatherlight up to Apocalypse follow the epic story arc of the crew of the airship Weatherlight, their trek across several planes, and their ultimate role in defending Dominaria from the Phyrexian invasion.
• The sets from Odyssey to Scourge, set in the era of upheaval after the Invasion, involve the Dominarian continent of Otaria and the struggle between various factions for the powerful artifact known as the Mirari.
• The sets from Mirrodin to Fifth Dawn are set in the world of Mirrodin, where artificial and natural life are inseparably entwined.
• Several Magic: The Gathering video games have their own storylines and worlds.
• Starting with The Mending during Time Spiral, many of the stories revolve around the newly created, de-powered Planeswalkers. These characters recur in multiple sets, and may receive reprints or entirely new cards in new sets.

Settings of Dominaria

Dominia is the general name for the multiverse, which, in the books, refers to all of the infinite planes. Dominaria, 'the Song of Dominaria', is the central plane of the multiverse.

Book titles

Harper Prism

Wizards of the Coast

Comics Titles

Armada (Acclaim Comics):

Dark Horse:

References

1. ↑ Dommermuth, Brady. "Ask Wizards - February, 2007". Daily MTG. Wizards of the Coast. Retrieved 18 August 2013. 

External links

• Wizards of the Coast's Magic Expansion Story Summaries
• Phyrexia.com Storyline Central - information about major characters, places, and artifacts.
• The Legends of Magic (Warning: information from this site is pre-revisionist and occasionally inaccurate)
• The Wizards of the Coast Message Board -- Storyline Info Booth
• MTGSalvation Wiki MTGSalvation Wiki with much storyline information