If you are new to Magic: The Gathering, you will have seen a few different kinds of sets. There are the main sets that are telling an overarching story with a bunch of cards that are fun to play. Then there are Universes Beyond sets, which are sets that aren’t part of the story but introduce cards that aren’t legal in some constructed formats but are fun side pieces that use external IP’s. Then there were core sets, which my own experience constructed of one throwback draft. Now the newest version of a core set has been released called Foundations, which is designed to bring new players in!
What’s the deal with Foundations?
So Foundations is a set that doesn’t progress the Magic story at all. Instead, it is a set filled with reprints and brand new cards. There are two major factors in this set. The first is that it will be standard legal for five years, as opposed to the three years most other sets are. The other is that it is a little bit more diverse in cards, less about specific themed strategies like Bloomburrow and Duskmourne. These were fun aspects of those sets, but they are a lot for a new player to grapple with.
So Foundations has been designed as the foundation for constructed sets for the next few years, and it’s an approachable place to start the game. Having done a few sealed events and a draft, it’s a fun set to play.
Play Boosters, Collector Boosters, Jumpstart Boosters, and the Bundle
Most people will be familiar with the packs you can buy. But if you are new, there are three main packs. The first is a play booster, which is designed for playing… These come with 14 cards, and the idea is that you use them for drafting or sealed-type events. Or buying and cracking them; I hate how much I love cracking packs.
Collector Boosters are packs of 15 cards. They come with a lot more rares and mythics, as well as heaps of foils, much higher chances of alternate art cards or some exclusive art versions. The Japanese showcase arts, like in Duskmourn, are gorgeous. I have yet to pull one, but I have seen a couple pulled, and they are stunning. These are only for people who like shiny things, as they are a lot more expensive. The problem is, I like shiny things.
Then there is Jumpstart. Jumpstart is what got me into Magic. Here you grab two boosters that are themed, shuffle them together, and you have a 40-card deck ready to play. This is especially awesome at Jumpstart events, but buying a bunch of packs can give you a fun chill way to jam a learning game at home. I love Jumpstart, so I am happy to see it return.
So yeah, those are the boosters.
The Bundle is what it says on the tin. It’s a great storage box, with a bunch of the gorgeous full-art lands, a bunch more lands, nine Play Boosters, and an alternative art Phyrexian Arena promo card. I get bundles with every set as I love them, and this one is no exception. If you want to crack some packs, this is a great way to do it.
Starter Collection
The Starter Collection may well be one of the best things I have seen Wizards make to date. This collection is a way for anyone to start building towards a constructed format. If you are new to Magic, constructed formats are where you build a deck ahead of time and take it somewhere to compete against other constructed decks. This might be Standard, where it’s 60 cards released in the last three years (with some exceptions), or Commander, where you build a deck of 100 unique (except for basic lands) cards.
Building one of these decks from scratch can be intimidating, and the Starter Collection is fantastic jumping off point. There are 387 cards in here, plus 90 basic lands, plus three Play boosters. You could absolutely build yourself a standard or commander deck from what is in here. Now they may not be the most competitive, but the bones are definitely here to build your competitive deck. Want to build some green ramp? Well, you have your four Llanowar elves here. Want to go aggro? You have plenty of damage instants. The mix of base cards will help you find your strategy to start building into your competitive deck.
The cards are all Standard legal, which is awesome, except for three cards. It includes the Commander staples: Sol Ring, Command Tower, and Arcane Signet. This makes the box perfect to start your Standard, and/or commander deck.
Some of the cards in here aren’t available in Play Boosters, but they are all reprints. This means if you find a strategy you want and need three more from your playset, the old cards should be easy enough to find. Best of all, they don’t hook you up with normal versions of the cards. There are some foils, some full-arts cards, and even a textless version of Gigantosaurus. This makes the cards in the box feel a little more special, and if someone is starting with this collection, it helps you get hooked on collecting awesome alternative arts.
The collection comes in a similar deck box to the Bundles, which is always a plus as I use these for card storage A LOT. On top of this, it has a life clicker, which is a cool little double-digit dial. You can use it for a life total (way better than a spin-down die) or counting things like prowess triggers or heaps of bunny tokens. This is the first time I have gotten one of these, and I LOVE it. This box also comes with some simple card dividers made of cardboard. This is so simple, but my god, I wish every bundle came with them! You can use them to separate decks, colours, whatever. I want more, please Wizards; slot them in the bundles, pleeeease. There is also a handy booklet to guide you through some tactics to help you build your decks.
This Starter Collection is a FANTASTIC box. As someone who already owns far too many MTG cards, this is perfect for my collection, and I would have loved to pick up a year ago when I was starting to get into constructed formats.
Beginner Box
The Beginner Box is exactly what it says on the box. The perfect way to learn to play Magic: The Gathering. In the box, you have two learn-to-play decks, eight jumpstart decks, a couple of spin-down dice, two playmats, and some guides.
One of the guides goes through the basics of rules, and the other two are designed to walk two players through using their starter decks. One of the decks is based on cats, and the other is based on vampires. The guides walk you through your first five turns, so it’s important you don’t shuffle the decks, walking you through the turn and what it means on the cards. Then, when the game is almost over, it leaves you to finish out your games. It’s incredibly well thought out.
The game mats are made from board game cardboard. So you unfold them and play. The box also has a thinner box to store each of the decks separately (and actually has space for them to be sleeved) with some dividers. So when you are done with the first game, you can sleeve and store all the included jumpstart packs and can put them away like a board game. In fact, this is the best board game version of Magic, including their board games.
The only issue I have is that the Jumpstart packs aren’t actual Jumpstart packs. They are predetermined packs that use Foundations cards rather than Jumpstart cards. I am in two minds here; I would have loved some random Jumpstart packs, and the box would have been better for me if that’s what they did. Having said that, the decks themselves are great, and if the board game experience doesn’t gel with you, then you can jam them into a standard deck. It also eliminates the risk of cracking duplicate packs.
On the whole, I wish so badly that I had this when I first learned to play Magic: The Gathering. It’s well thought out and fun as hell to play. Seriously, how have Wizards been getting this so right?
Should you play Magic: The Gathering Foundations?
Yes.
Yes, yes, yes.
This set is fun to draft, fun to play, and brings a whole lot of awesome into constructed formats. The art, reprints, and new cards are great, and Wizards of the Coast has absolutely smashed the Beginner Box and Starter Collections out of the park. Holy crap, I love Foundations!
Foundations is an excellent core set, with every supplementary product being a slam dunk.
A show case of the games history, bringing new life to Standard, fantastically fun to play, and a great place for new players to start.
