Magic: The Gathering fans who try to stay updated about the game’s upcoming sets (it’s not been easy, recently!) know that Marvel’s Spider-Man, the upcoming Universes Beyond set that will release on Sept. 26, will be smaller than regular sets, with a pool of 231 base cards, not including the special reprints and art styles, some of which you can see in our preview. (For comparison, the previous set, Edge of Eternities, included 276 base cards.) Some fans have complained that Marvel’s Spider-Man will also have no dedicated Commander decks, and MTG head designer Mark Rosewater addressed that issue in the recent presentation event that took place at Wizards of the Coast’s headquarters.
Rosewater revealed that, originally, the plan was for the collaboration between Magic and Marvel Comics to start with one or more smaller sets, which would then lead to a big one. However, while working on Marvel’s Spider-Man, they realized that the set “wanted to be bigger than that”. It took energy and time to get to that, so Commander decks were apparently left out. You can see Rosewater’s full answer in the video below, courtesy of Stephen Machuga of welcometuwubrg.
Rosewater’s response basically confirms what MTG fans already suspected after the reveal of The Soul Stone card from Marvel’s Spider-Man: There is a big crossover set coming, and it’s likely going to be an Avengers-themed one. After all, you can’t say “Marvel crossover” without saying Earth’s Mightiest Heroes. In Marvel lore, the Infinity Stones are powerful cosmic artifacts, each granting mastery over one aspect of reality. Once assembled to form the Infinity Gauntlet, they grant the owner powers that eclipse the gods. The most famous holder of the Gauntlet is Thanos, and if the Mad Titan is around, the Avengers can’t be far, ready to stop his latest nihilistic plot.
There is another, less positive element that emerges from Rosewater’s answer, however. As some fans pointed out in the comments, MTG is cranking out way too many sets in too short a time. July’s Edge of Eternities was a cool return to form for MTG lore, with a rich and original new setting, but we didn’t even have time to appreciate it before two Universes Beyond sets were announced, Marvel’s Spider-Man and Avatar, releasing in September and November respectively. Three sets in four months is a lot, not just for fans who are bombarded with spoilers and new products, but for designers too. Not having the time to make Spider-Man Commander decks is huge, considering how marketable the IP is, and that Commander is MTG‘s golden goose.
Add to that the controversy stemming from Universes Beyond sets being legal in Standard, and you’ll realize that a deluge of Marvel-themed sets leading to a big Infinity War-style crossover could cause some issues. Even ignoring that segment of the fanbase that’s not happy about UB sets, if the rhythm of release has an impact on the work of the design team, this could end up upsetting even the loyal Commander players. However, I have to admit that, as a big fan of the original Infinity Gauntlet storyline, I’m excited to see how that will be translated into Magic: The Gathering.