Summary
It has been done multiple times on Wizards of the Coast’s side to letMagic: The Gatheringreturn to a specific plane further down the line if that plane was particularly loved by players or successful overall. This is happening this year withMTG’s Tarkir: Dragonstorm, with the story following directly from the last Tarkir set, and next year WotC will release an expansion dedicated to returning to Lorwyn after over one decade. Not only is Tarkir: Dragonstorm a Magic IP set, but it may very well be a return to many players' favorite plane - it’s an honor, but also a challenge.
Between giving each of the iconic Tarkir clans more tools in terms of gameplay and making the set focused on both clans and Dragons equally, Tarkir: Dragonstorm makes a lot of promises. Fortunately, it seems to make good on them with a cohesive set that is filled to the brim with powerful and unique cards, sure to bolster any player’sMagic: The Gatheringcollection - especially if they purchase some Collector Booster Packs. Game Rant attended a preview of Tarkir: Dragonstorm via an online panel, including information regarding some exclusive cards coming with the set on July 19, 2025.
Why Magic: The Gathering’s Dragonstorm is The Perfect Return to Tarkir Clans and Dragons
On top of the set following the events of Dragons of Tarkir, Tarkir: Dragonstorm also features some cards that build on this with the new Draconic Frame and respective alternate art, such as The Maelstrom of the Spirit Dragon. On top of that, as much as the clans and their Khans are a big focus of the expansion, there are also two cycles of Basic Lands - Dragon’s Presence and Dragon’s Eye, with the former featuring the shadow of a dragon on the landscape and the latter featuring dragon eyes with mana symbols as their pupils.
The infamous Ugin was a big part of the story in Tarkir, and in Dragonstorm there is a card dedicated to the legendary dragon Planeswalker given the connection to the plane itself. In this case, Ugin, Eye of the Storms is both thematic for Dragonstorm and a powerful chase card. It’s a Mythic 7-cost Planeswalker that exiles one target permanent as long as its identity includes one or more colors, further exiling more of these permanents whenever a colorless spell is played. On top of that, its Planeswalker effects are all very strong and can make for some very excitingcombos inMTGdecks.
This card also comes in various versions - regular Mythic (and foil), Borderless Reversible (and foil), Ghostfire, and Halo Foil Ghostfire. There are only 10 cards with the Ghostfire treatment in the set, so nine other than Ugin.
There will bereprints inMagic: The Gathering’s Tarkir: Dragonstorm set, and they will be legal in Standard and other formats, such as Craterhoof Behemoth coming to Pioneer for the first time. In this particular case and some other cards, there is a new art treatment called Borderless Clan, which features a clan symbol in the background of the card, giving prominence to all five clans even on reprints not originally from Tarkir.
Magic: The Gathering’s New Cards and Mechanics for Tarkir: Dragonstorm Explained
The clans are a big highlight of the set, as they not only are one of the most iconic parts of the belovedMTGplane of Tarkir, but also a big part of its gameplay with their three-color identities. Each clan has a new mechanic tied to it, and they are as follows:
Tarkir: Dragonstorm will also have a cycle of Sagas, Enchantments dedicated to each of the clans that highlight the story between Dragons of Tarkir and Tarkir: Dragonstorm. At the same time, the set also includes Sieges, which are Enchantments that use two main colors in their mana costs and then allow players to choose additional effects based on a given clan that shares those two colors with another.
On top of that, there are even more mechanics in the set. Sets likeMagic: The Gathering’s Eldrainemay have inspired one of them here, as some Dragon Creatures also come with an Omen alternate cost and effect. When used as their Omen counterpart, players resolve the spell’s effect and then shuffle the card in their library, giving them another chance to play the corresponding Dragon further down the line.
Another mechanic in Tarkir: Dragonstorm is Behold, which can be used by choosingMTGDragonsplayers control or revealing one from their hand, creating a Treasure token. This is particularly perfect in the set due to the fixations some characters have with Dragons, and it also makes sense from a gameplay perspective because Dragons are typically expensive cards to play, so Treasure tokens can help alleviate that burden.
Tarkir: Dragonstorm also includes Mox Jasper, a powerful Artifact to have in many decks. This is the set’sHeadliner card forMagic: The Gathering, meaning 500 of them will be serialized and available in Collector Booster Packs of any Language, though the Headliner Mox Jasper will always be in English.
How Tarkir: Dragonstorm Approaches Limited, Commander, and More MTG Formats
Because Tarkir: Dragonstorm is all about three-colored cards, WotC added hybrid mana costs to some three-colored cards to make them playable in decks that are not necessarily about that one clan or make it so the problem of running three different colors doesn’t affect formats like Limited too much. WotC’s Adam Prosak states that there will be multiple common ways like hybrid mana costs to make three-color decks work even in drafts, fixing mana even more than the original Tarkir set.
Another huge part of Tarkir: Dragonstorms is that there will be fiveCommander decks inMTGfor this expansion, each themed around one of the clans. This is great for collectors and for allowing players to choose their preferred color combination, but it breaks away from the traditional two or four decks for a set. This theme also echoes in the prerelease bundles, as WotC is releasing five different one based on each of the clans, offering a custom experience.
Much like everymodernMTGset, Tarkir: Dragonstorm includes Special Guest cards, which in this case include fetchlands for all five enemy colors (White/Black, Blue/Red, Black/Green, Red/White, and Green/Blue). Although these are not legal in Standard forMagic: The Gathering, they are great reprints to have in the set - especially since they are also the only cards with a special foil treatment called Dragonscale.
