Strixhaven: School of Mages

Strixhaven: School of Mages, often shortened as Strixhaven, is the 87th Magic expansion. It is set at the Strixhaven school on the plane of Arcavios. It was released on April 23, 2021.

Set details
Strixhaven: School of Mages is a bottom-up enemy color faction set based on “instants and spells matter”. Creatively, the design of this set is Magic’s take on the magical school genre. Each one of the featured colleges represents one of Magic’s enemy color combinations, with their own character and mechanics. Cards associated with the different colleges feature separate watermarked insignias. This set contains 275 regular cards and includes randomly inserted premium versions of all cards. The basic lands are numbered outside the main set and therefore don't appear in the draft boosters.

Alternate card frames have another card number than the original version. Borderless planeswalkers are numbered #276-279, borderless elder dragons are #280-284, and extended artwork cards are numbered #285-365. Basic lands are #366-375. The Buy-a-Box card is #376 and the Bundle promo is #377. The FNM-treatment cards from the Universal promo pack are numbered #378-382. There are no showcase cards in this set, as the Mystical Archive fills that position.

This set introduces the term mana value as a wording change for converted mana cost. Also, "shuffle your library" is shortened to shuffle, and "activate this ability only any time you could cast a sorcery" is shortened to "activate only as a sorcery."

Storyline
Strixhaven is the most elite University in the Multiverse. It features five colleges founded by the elder dragon whose name each college bears: Silverquill, Prismari , Witherbloom , Lorehold , and Quandrix. The five colleges battle it out with their own takes on magic. Several planeswalkers, each with their own motivations, have sought out Arcavios and Strixhaven as their refuge. They are confronted by the Oriq.

The cards that represent the Story Spotlights in Strixhaven are: • Crackle with Power

• Culmination of Studies

• Defend the Campus

• Draconic Intervention

• Explosive Welcome

• Extus, Oriq Overlord // Awaken the Blood Avatar

• Letter of Acceptance

• Mage Hunters' Onslaught

• Mascot Interception</c>

• Mentor's Guidance</c>

• Plumb the Forbidden</c>

• Practical Research</c>

• Professor's Warning</c>

• Rise of Extus</c>

• Tempted by the Oriq</c>

Marketing
Strixhaven: School of Mages is sold in regular 16-card Draft Boosters (one card being a marketing card). A Mystical Archive card appears as a bonus card in each Draft Booster. These Mystical Archive cards don't replace another card of the same rarity in a pack. So you can get multiple rare cards in a draft booster.

In addition, the product line includes five bi-colored Theme Boosters, Collector Boosters (including three Mystical Archive cards, one certified Japanese version), Set Boosters (with a Mystical Archive card and a Lesson card), the Strixhaven: School of Mages bundle and five Commander decks.

The packaging of Strixhaven: School of Mages features key art of Will and Rowan Kenrith. The Draft Boosters feature artwork of Killian Lu, Rootha Squallheart, Dina, Quintorius Kand and Zimone Wola. The Theme Boosters feature art from Clever Lumimancer</c>, Spectacle Mage</c> , Professor of Zoomancy</c> , Lorehold Apprentice</c> , and Quandrix Apprentice</c>. The Collector Boosters feature art of the Mystical Archive and the Set Boosters feature original art of the battle between the Strixhaven residents and the Oriq.

With the release of Strixhaven, 55 cards were rotated into The List, many of which were thematically or mechanically linked to the set. In 5% of the Set Boosters, the marketing card is replaced by a minigame card.

Mystical Archive
Mystical Archive is a separate set of cards associated with Strixhaven: School of Mages. It is similar to the Masterpiece Series but the cards appear more frequently in the boosters of the main set. In Mystical Archive, Wizards of the Coasts has reprinted 63 of the most famous instants and sorceries of all time in specially designed showcase frames and at all rarities. Strixhaven Draft and Set Boosters contain one Mystical Archive card, and Collector Boosters have at least three. These will only be legal in formats that they are already legal in. They are not part of the Standard environment. However, the cards may be used in Limited events.

Events

 * Magic Online and MTG Arena release: April 15, 2021
 * Tabletop Prerelease: April 16–April 22, 2021
 * Each prerelease pack contains one College Booster.
 * Launch party: April 23–April 25, 2021
 * Friday Night Magic: April 23–July 2, 2021
 * Commander Nights: April 23–July 8, 2021

Promotional cards

 * Prerelease: a stamped card that can be any rare or mythic rare related to the college of choice.
 * Other events: cards from the Strixhaven: School of Mages universal promo pack.
 * The seasonal dark-frame promos are:, , , and.
 * Buy-a-Box: foil alternate, extended art
 * Bundle promo: foil alternate art

Tokens and emblems
The sixteenth card in the boosters is a token creature card or an emblem, with advertisements on the back side. It can also be a helper card with a standard card back. There are a total of nine tokens and emblems:
 * 1) 3/6 Avatar creature with haste and "Whenever this creature attacks, it deals 3 damage to each opponent," for Awaken the Blood Avatar</c>.
 * 2) 4/4 Elemental creature, for Elemental Expressionist</c>, Elemental Masterpiece</c>, Elemental Summoning</c>, <c>Magma Opus</c>, <c>Mascot Exhibition</c>, <c>Multiple Choice</c>, <c>Resculpt</c>, and <c>Will, Scholar of Frost</c>.
 * 3) 0/0 Fractal creature, for <c>Emergent Sequence</c>, <c>Fractal Summoning</c>, <c>Kasmina, Enigma Sage</c>, <c>Kianne, Dean of Substance</c>, <c>Leyline Invocation</c>, <c>Manifestation Sage</c>, <c>Biomathematician</c>, <c>Body of Research</c>, and <c>Serpentine Curve</c>.
 * 4) 2/1 Inkling creature with flying, for <c>Blot Out the Sky</c>, <c>Dramatic Finale</c>, <c>Inkling Summoning</c>, <c>Mascot Exhibition</c>, <c>Shadrix Silverquill</c>, and <c>Umbral Juke</c>.
 * 5) 1/1 Pest creature with "When this creature dies, you gain 1 life," for <c>Beledros Witherbloom</c>, <c>Callous Bloodmage</c>, <c>Containment Breach</c>, <c>Hunt for Specimens</c>, <c>Pest Summoning</c>, <c>Pestilent Cauldron</c>, <c>Professor of Zoomancy</c>, <c>Sedgemoor Witch</c>, <c>Tend the Pests</c>, and <c>Valentin, Dean of the Vein</c>.
 * 6) 3/2 Spirit creature, for <c>Illuminate History</c>, <c>Illustrious Historian</c>, <c>Lorehold Command</c>, <c>Lorehold Excavation</c>, <c>Make Your Mark</c>, <c>Mascot Exhibition</c>, <c>Quintorius, Field Historian</c>, <c>Reduce to Memory</c>, and <c>Spirit Summoning</c>.
 * 7) Treasure artifact, for <c>Creative Outburst</c>, <c>Culmination of Studies</c>, <c>Elemental Masterpiece</c>, <c>Galazeth Prismari</c>, <c>Ingenious Mastery</c>, <c>Magma Opus</c>, <c>Prismari Command</c>, <c>Storm-Kiln Artist</c>, and <c>Sudden Breakthrough</c>.
 * 8) Emblem for <c>Lukka, Wayward Bonder</c>.
 * 9) Emblem for <c>Rowan, Scholar of Sparks</c>.

The College Boosters of the prerelease packs contain the following s double-sided tokens:
 * Silverquill
 * 2/1 Inkling creature with flying — 1/1 Pest creature with  "When this creature dies, you gain 1 life"
 * 2/1 Inkling creature with flying — 3/2 Spirit creature
 * Prismari
 * 4/4 Elemental creature — 3/2 Spirit creature
 * 4/4 Elemental creature — Treasure
 * Witherbloom
 * 1/1 Pest creature with "When this creature dies, you gain 1 life" —  2/1 Inkling creature with flying
 * 1/1 Pest creature with "When this creature dies, you gain 1 life" —  0/0 Fractal creature
 * Lorehold
 * 3/2 Spirit creature — 4/4 Elemental creature
 * 3/2 Spirit creature — 2/1 Inkling creature with flying
 * Quandrix
 * 0/0 Fractal creature — 1/1 Pest creature with  "When this creature dies, you gain 1 life"
 * 0/0 Fractal creature — 4/4 Elemental creature

Themes and mechanics
In lieu of the abandoned block model, R&D has found a new way to tie together the three non-core premier sets in a single Magic "year" (aka the fall, winter, and spring sets—using northern hemisphere seasons): they share a common mechanic. For Zendikar Rising, Kaldheim and Strixhaven that is modal double-faced cards. Unlike the other two sets, there is no hard rule as to the nature of the MDFCs. This is the first time sorceries and instants were printed on the back face of a DFC.

Strixhaven is the first set centered on an "instants and spells matters" theme. It is designed around five enemy color pairs, which despite the many years of Magic has not been done before as a large expansion - Apocalypse, the other enemy color set, was drafted as a counterpart at the tail end of Invasion block, and likewise with Eventide and the Shadowmoor block. Unlike the Ravnican guilds, the Strixhaven colleges aren’t built around the similarities of the two colors, but rather around their conflict.

A new mechanic is Magecraft, an ability word that causes an effect whenever you cast or copy an instant or sorcery spell. Another new mechanic is Learn (You may reveal a Lesson card you own from outside the game and put it into your hand, or discard a card to draw a card.). Both of these tie into the higher "spells matter" gameplay, which was previously limited to blue and red.

Ward is a new evergreen keyword. Whenever a permanent with ward becomes the target of a spell or ability an opponent controls, counter it unless that player pays an additional cost.

Strixhaven also has a creature token theme in the form of mascots for the colleges.

Card types
Food tokens return. They are made by Chef Gyome. The Set introduces the Inkling and Fractal creature types and the Lesson spell type. Pests appear for the first time outside of Mirrodin.

Compared to Kaldheim and Zendikar Rising, there are fewer Rogues and Warriors for the Party. Instead, the three other major spellcaster classes (Shaman, Druid, Warlock) return, joining the Party's Wizard and Cleric.

Draft Archetypes
The draft archetypes are designed to be significantly different from those on Ravnica, due to the strong association with color pairs from the Guilds and their playstyle.


 * +1/+1 Counters (<c>Spiteful Squad</c>)
 * Big-spell casting (<c>Spectacle Mage</c>)
 * Life gain (<c>Blood Researcher</c>)
 * Leaves-graveyard triggers (<c>Stonebound Mentor</c>)
 * Eight-lands ramp (<c>Eureka Moment</c>)

Cycles
Strixhaven: School of Mages has twenty-three cycles.

Reprinted cards
Besides one futureshifted card, there are no reprints in the base set. R&D decided to use the Mystic Archive for reprints.


 * <c>Grinning Ignus</c>, first printed in Future Sight, last seen in Time Spiral Remastered (Common to Uncommon).

Functional reprints

 * <c>Archway Commons</c> is a functional reprint of <c>Rupture Spire</c> and <c>Transguild Promenade</c>.
 * <c>Leech Fanatic</c> is a functional reprint of <c>Blood Burglar</c>, except for creature types.
 * <c>Soothsayer Adept</c> is a functional reprint of <c>Erratic Visionary</c>, except for creature types.
 * <c>Spined Karok</c> is a functional reprint of <c>Colossodon Yearling</c>, except for creature types.
 * <c>Springmane Cervin</c> is a functional reprint of <c>Sylvan Brushstrider</c>, except for creature types.
 * <c>Twinscroll Shaman</c> is a functional reprint of <c>Raging Redcap</c>, except for creature types.

Preconstructed decks
At the same date five Commander decks are released, which are flavorfully connected to the main set. This is Commander 2021 aligning with Strixhaven: School of Mages.

Notable cards

 * The art of came under investigation, after the artist was accused of plagiarism.
 * <c>Elite Spellbinder</c> depicts 2019 World Championship winner Paulo Vitor Damo da Rosa, the second Player Spotlight printed.
 * <c>The Biblioplex</c> is a "fixed" version of <c>Library of Alexandria</c> with an appropriate power level for non-eternal formats.
 * <c>Body of Research</c> is a mechanically condensed version of <c>Animate Library</c>.
 * <c>Dragon's Approach</c> is the first "relentless" non-creature card.
 * <c>Strixhaven Stadium</c> is an alternate-win card.
 * <c>Wandering Archaic</c> continues a trend of colorless non-artifact, non-Eldrazi creatures, last seen in Ikoria: Lair of Behemoths.
 * There is also a "cycle" of five colorless sorceries, flavored as first year lessons (<c>Environmental Sciences</c>, <c>Expanded Anatomy</c>, <c>Introduction to Annihilation</c>, <c>Introduction to Prophecy</c> and <c>Mascot Exhibition</c>). Colorless instants and sorceries were last seen in Battle for Zendikar block, devoid or otherwise.

Misprints

 * <c>Zaffai, Thunder Conductor</c> is referred to as Zaffai, Thunder Collector in its text box.