Brandon Sanderson’s Children of the Nameless — widely regarded as one of the best Magic: The Gathering stories ever published — is finally getting a physical release. But what was once a free online download is now a limited edition collector’s item priced at a whopping $250.
Originally released in 2018 for free on the official Magic website, the novella was a passion project for Sanderson, a lifelong fan of the trading card game who jumped at the chance to write in the Magic multiverse. “It was something I had been hoping for years I’d get a chance to do,” Sanderson said at the time in an official Wizards of the Coast blog post.
Now, years later, Subterranean Press is publishing a deluxe print edition, the first time the story has ever received a physical release limited to 1,500 numbered copies, each signed by Sanderson himself. Publishing it as an expensive collector’s item is a bold choice for something that was originally free, although a portion of the proceeds from the book’s sale will go to Child’s Play charity, founded in 2003 by Penny Arcade creators Mike Krahulik and Jerry Holkins. This print edition also features six full-color interior illustrations and cover art by Cynthia Sheppard, the artist behind iconic Magic cards like Archangel Elspeth and Exquisite Blood.
Sanderson has described the story as a kind of gift to Magic fans: “something for the game that has meant so much to me over the years.”
Set on the gothic horror plane of Innistrad, Children of the Nameless follows Tacenda, a young woman gifted with protective magic until the night it suddenly fails, leading to the destruction of her village. Driven by grief, she confronts a mysterious nobleman rumored to consort with demons, only to uncover a deeper and more unsettling truth. That nobleman is Davriel, a morally ambiguous Planeswalker who Sanderson created and introduced in this story. Together they unravel a dark mystery involving demonic activity.
At around 50,000 words, Children of the Nameless is fairly long for a “novella” and much longer than typical Magic stories published online. Shortly before its original release, Gizmodo published the first chapter online as an excerpt alongside an interview with Sanderson. While the story was originally released for free online, Wizards of the Coast has since removed it from its official story archive, making this new edition the most accessible way to read it through official channels.