Return to form in our Magic the Gathering Foundations review!
Foundations is set to be the new building blocks for new and returning players of Magic. If you’re curious about this new, long-form set, read on ahead and enjoy our Foundations review and watch our pack opening in the video below.
Magic the Gathering Foundations Review – The Core of the Set
This feels very familiar, doesn’t it? For the longest time, every year Wizards of the Coast would release a set between blocks and major story beats. These sets were called Core Sets and they ran from the very start of the game in 1993 all the way to Magic Origins in 2015. Core Sets were then discontinued until coming back in 2018 with Core Set 2019 and then discontinuing again in 2020 after Core Set 2021 (No those aren’t typos, that’s just how they named them. Core sets were meant to be sets, mostly comprised of reprints, that were supposed to be entry-level for new players. They didn’t contain any over-the-top mechanics and were meant to just get people used to the common or “evergreen” mechanics.
These sets contained some minor story elements in later sets but were mostly seen as game-focused beginner sets. They were tournament and Standard legal and rotated just like every other set when their time came. Foundations changes that. Foundations can still be seen as a Core Set, but be prepared to see the cards for a while as the cards in Foundations will be legal in Standard until 2029! The set has roughly 50/50 split on new cards and reprints and is supposed to represent “what Magic the Gathering is”.
Magic The Gathering Foundations Review – What’s in the Set?
For those wanting to collect all the cards in the set, get ready for a long list. While the base set has 292 cards in it, a fairly standard number, the set also includes 2 products perfect for beginners, the Beginner Box and the Starter Collection which has a combined 241 different cards between them, though I’ll go more into them later on. You can also find the usual assortment of extended art cards and alternative art borderless cards. As well as a return of Japan Showcase cards which seem like they’ll continue going forward.
One thing I wanted to draw attention to is the land cycle in the set. There are 20 different basic land artwork with 10 of those focusing on the “face characters” of the set. Each colour has a Planeswalker and a legendary creature to be the sort of face of their colour of the set. White has Ajani Goldmane and Giada, blue has Kaito Shizuki and Zimone Wola, black has Liliana Vess and Tinybones, red has Chandra Nalaar and Kellan, and green has Vivien Reid and Loot.
Magic the Gathering Foundations Review – Changes
This is where I would talk about all the new and returning mechanics but there’s nothing to really say on this one. So instead I’ll talk about some of the changes that have come with the cards for new players.
One change they made for new players is that they’ve added reminder text to some of the cards describing key and evergreen mechanics to make it easier for new players to learn.
Going forward, enchantment cards will now feature the “Nyx-frame” style that was used specifically for enchantment creatures.
Finally a rules change, before now when a player attacked with a creature and the opponent blocked with two or more, lethal damage was assigned to a chosen creature first before dealing damage to another, now the attacking player can assign damage divided however they choose against the defending creatures.
Magic the Gathering Foundations Review – Showcase Art
As this set isn’t focused on one particular plane, the types of unique artwork is lower than other sets. For starters, there’s no actual showcase art frame. Instead, you’ll find borderless art cards with special alt art of the characters
A new foiling style has been created for the set called Mana Foils which have the five mana symbols arranged in a random pattern and slightly raised on the card to give a 3D effect.
Finally Japan Showcase cards return again in the set with fractured foil versions being available to find for some lucky individuals.
Magic the Gathering Foundations Review – Beginner Box & Starter Collection
So unlike most sets that have come out recently, there are no commander decks for Foundations. Instead we have 2 brand new, robust learn to play products yet.
The Beginner Box
Let’s start off with the big boy. The Beginner Box itself is probably the single best way to show people the ropes unless you’re throwing them in the deep end. The box comes with 2 life counter spindowns, 2 how to play booklets, a reference booklet, 2 board playmats and 10 themed packs with a total of 200 cards. Think of these themed packs as Jumpstart packs where you can combine them with another pack to make a deck.
Starter Collection
Whereas the Beginner Box is good for teaching, the Starter Collection is good for bolstering your collection with plenty of staples. Coming in a beautiful foil storage box, you’ll be able to get your hands on 387 regular cards, 90 basic lands, 3 booster packs, a “how to build a deck” booklet and a click wheel life counter. An amazing product to bolster any collection.
It should be noted that all of the cards in the Beginner Box and the Starter Collection are standard legal! This is the single largest injection of cards into the format. Only 3 cards won’t be legal from the Starter Collection, Sol Ring, Arcane Signet and Command Tower.
Magic the Gathering Foundations Review – Conclusion
There you have it folks, another Magic review in the books. I know I’ve stated it a few times throughout the review but this is the best set to teach someone how to play. It covers all the fundamentals of the game without throwing complicated mechanics into the mix. On top of that, The Beginner Box has everything a new player will ever need to start building their decks, plus with the cards being standard legal for the next 5 years, they won’t have to worry about rotation for a while.
A review pack was kindly provided by Wizards of the Coast for our Magic the Gathering Foundations review. Be sure to check out our previous Magic the Gathering set reviews and join us on the Qualbert Discord to chat all things MTG!
