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Throne of Eldraine is the 82nd Magic: The Gathering expansion and the 9th set to be included on MTG Arena since open beta. It will be released worldwide on September 26, 2019.
The release of Throne of Eldraine and the 1.00.00 game update set will signify Magic: The Gathering Arena’s official release and the removal of the open beta tag, as well as the first Standard rotation since open beta and subsequent implementation of the new Historic and Brawl formats in MTG Arena.
Follow our set guide for a full card spoilers, key dates, general information, new mechanics, events, artworks, and more! This guide will be kept up to date once we receive any new information.
Set Details
- Set Code: ELD
- Development Codename: Archery
- Release Date: September 26, 2019, 8 AM PT (15:00 UTC)
- Set Size: 269 Cards + 31 Supplemental Product Cards + 98 Others + 20 Tokens
- 101 Commons
- 80 Uncommons
- 53 Rares
- 15 Mythic Rares
- 20 Basic Lands
- 1 Buy-a-Box Promo – Kenrith, the Returned King
- 10 Planeswalker Deck unique cards
- 20 Brawl Deck unique cards
- 98 Other variant cards (e.g. showcase cards, alternate art cards, card styles – to be confirmed)
- 20 Tokens
Event Dates
1.00.00 Game Update
We will be performing scheduled maintenance on September 26 at 8 a.m. PT (15:00 UTC) to deploy the 1.00.00 Throne of Eldraine game update. Maintenance is expected to last approximately two hours.
Magic: The Gathering Arena | Status Page
While no downtime is expected, this is a required update. Players must update the game before accessing any Throne of Eldraine content (opening booster packs, redeeming codes, etc.) Those who are logged in prior to the start of maintenance will be required to restart their client to download the patch.
The estimated time of the release of Throne of Eldraine is September 26 at 10 AM PT (17:00 UTC) after a brief maintenance, so make sure to keep an eye on the Status Page and Twitter for progress. Also a reminder that if you can, finish all your Daily Quests, Weekly Wins and even Daily Wins before maintenance starts as their progress will be reset after the patch is deployed.
MTG Arena Events
Make sure to check out our Event Calendar for a full list of current and upcoming events! We will be releasing our exclusive guides for the new Throne of Eldraine limited format, complete with a tier list to help boost your collection with the new set.
We will also be covering new Standard decks that will be emerging as soon as the set releases in preparation for the Play Any Deck and Win Every Card events – where you can win a copy of all the Standard cards (more details down below).
- Eldraine Courtside Brawl: September 4, 2019 @ 9:30 AM – September 9, 2019 @ 11:00 AM
- Throne of Eldraine Early Access Streamer Event: September 24, 2019 @ 8:00 AM – September 25, 2019 @ 6:00 AM
- Play Any Deck – Standard: September 26, 2019 @ 8:00 AM – October 1, 2019 @ 8:00 AM
- Sealed Throne of Eldraine: September 26, 2019 – October 21, 2019*
- Traditional Draft Throne of Eldraine: September 30, 2019 – until next set release*
- Throne of Eldraine Season 1: September 30, 2019 to October 31, 2019
- Win Every Card Challenge – Standard: October 5, 2019 @ 8:00 PM – October 7, 2019 @ 8:00 AM
- Ranked Draft Throne of Eldraine: October 11, 2019 – until next set release*
* Exact date and times to be confirmed.
Tabletop Dates
- Prerelease: September 27, 2019 – September 29, 2019
- Tabletop Release Date: October 4, 2019
Set Theme and Story
Throne of Eldraine is based on the new plane of Eldraine, with a fairy tale theme inspired by the romantic Arthurian legend of Camelot on one hand and Grimms’ Fairy Tales on the other. Besides Grimm, the set covers a range of European fairy tales that come from a variety of sources.
In the exciting new story of Magic‘s latest release, Throne of Eldraine, the young warrior-mage twins Rowan and Will Kenrith quest for their missing father, High King Kenrith. Venturing far from the safety of the Realm, their search takes them deep into the Wilds—a hostile land of faeries, monsters, and untamed magic. A chance encounter with the wily and inscrutable shapeshifter Oko seems somehow connected, but memory of the Fey trickster flits away with a wink. Beleaguered by unclear recollections and pursued relentlessly by Garruk, a cursed hunter stalking Planeswalkers across the Multiverse, can the royal scions unravel the mystery of their father’s disappearance and restore him to his rightful throne before his absence shatters the peace of their home?
Source: Throne of Eldraine: The Wildered Quest
The set is also accompanied by an ebook written by Kate Elliott called Throne of Eldraine: The Wildered Quest, and his will be the only way to go deeper than the cards and read the full Throne of Eldraine story. You can purchase the book from Penguin Random House starting September 4 or read the summary from MTG Wiki.
The Story Spotlight cards in the set depict the key points of the set’s story line.
Set Highlights and Changes
Official Release of MTG Arena
September 26, 2019 marks the day of Throne of Eldraine release and game update, but it also signifies the date that MTG Arena is no longer in the open beta phase and is officially released! To celebrate, Wizards are holding a special set of events that allows players to play win all the cards available in Standard, as well as a chance to win every card in Standard as well.
While we are working on decks and guides for these events, read more about the launch celebration in the MTG Arena State of the Game September 2019 article.
Standard Rotation
The Standard format rotation happens with the release of Throne of Eldraine. Ixalan, Rivals of Ixalan, Dominaria and Core Set 2019 will be rotated out of Standard effective September 26. The new Standard format will then consist of cards only from Guilds of Ravnica, Ravnica Allegiance, War of the Spark, Core Set 2020 and Throne of Eldraine. You can read more about Standard rotation here.
New Mechanics in Throne of Eldraine
The set introduces three brand new mechanics that fits well with the set’s fairy tale theme and its five realms – food, adventure, and adamant.
Food
Food is an artifact subtype, represented by Food Tokens or other artifacts that have the type “Food”. There are cards in the set that generates Food tokens as well as cards that make use of Food cards. Read more about Food in detail here.
Adventure
These are cards that allow you to either cast the creature or the Adventure portion of the card from your hand, which can be either instant or sorcery. If you cast it as an Adventure, it doesn’t go to the graveyard – the creature goes on an “adventure” into the exile zone, and later on you can cast it as a creature. Read more about Adventure in detail here.
Adamant
Cards with Adamant have additional or replacement effects if at least three of the same colored mana is used to cast the spell. Read more about Adamant in detail here.
Historic
With Standard rotation also comes a new format – Historic! This new non-rotating format in MTG Arena will use of cards from Ixalan onward. Initially, we will only be able to join the Play queue or direct challenge with our Historic decks, but we will be able to participate in monthly events and ranked ladder eventually. Wizards are also planning to inject Historic-specific cards into the format independent of Standard. You can read more about everything we know so far in our Historic article.
Brawl
Throne of Eldraine is the first set to support the Brawl format, and it will introduce Brawl specific cards for the first time. The set will come with four preconstructed decks in tabletop MTG, which includes 20 unique Brawl cards that we were able to play with in the Eldraine Courtside Brawl event a few weeks ago. Unfortunately, these decks do not come with codes for MTG Arena players to redeem in-game like the Planeswalker Decks, and we will only be able to craft them with Wildcards until further notice.
Brawl will be available for play in MTG Arena from October, which then players are able to participate in weekly events or direct challenges. You can read more about the format here.
Eldraine Mastery
Core Set Mastery is set to end on September 26, 2019 at 4 a.m. PT (11 a.m. UTC), and after that Eldraine Mastery will be available after the game update is deployed! If you have not already, make sure you have redeemed the available codes for Core Set Mastery before they expire:
- LevelUp: Rewards 2000 XP
- BroughtBack: Rewards 2000 XP
- FiveBonusLevels: Rewards 5000 XP – expired September 25 12:00 AM UTC
While the normal Eldraine Mastery is set to grant a Throne of Eldraine booster pack with every second level, purchasing the Eldraine Mastery Pass grants you Garruk, Primal Hunter avatar, the Fae Fox pet, and a Throne of Eldraine card sleeve and additional rewards all the way to level 92, and 110 for players who purchase the Mastery Pass.
In addition, with the start of the new Mastery and Throne of Eldraine game update, players’ Weekly Wins, Daily Wins and Daily Quests will be reset as well for maximum XP gain – so to maximize your gain, make sure you finish all your Daily Quests and Weekly Wins! There is also a brief window where the daily reset happens before server maintenance and it is possible to complete one more Daily Quest. More information about details and rewards are to follow on our Eldraine Mastery page.
Throne of Eldraine Cards
The whole set has now been spoiled, so be sure to check out our Throne of Eldraine card gallery. The set is full of interesting and powerful cards that is sure to make Standard a whole new experience!
Planeswalkers
Throne of Eldraine features the long awaited return of Garruk, as well as the new Planeswalker Oko and the first two Planeswalkers in one card – Will and Rowan! They all look like powerful cards to build around, and it will be interesting to see what they do to the metagame – especially the 3 mana planeswalkers.
Cycles
The legendary artifact cycle that provide powerful effects.
The Rare cycle of creatures that require 3 or more of the same colored mana, to replace the ones from Dominaria.
The rare land cycle of the set, which all have activated abilities. They will be a big player in Standard, as their inclusion in decks do not have much downside.
The uncommon knight cycle.
These lands have a small effect if your land base is dedicated to four or more of that Basic Land type.
Dubbed the “self-hate” cycle – as they do not have drawbacks or are better if their target is its own color.
Common creatures with the new mechanic Adamant that comes into play with a +1/+1 counter. It will be interesting to see if this mechanic will steer people towards a mono colored deck.
Planeswalker Decks
There are 10 Planeswalker deck cards not part of the main set. This is an introductory level product players obtain by purchasing the product and redeeming the code on MTG Arena or as part of the Eldraine Mastery Pass reward. Read more about them in our guide: Throne of Eldraine Planeswalker Decks
Brawl Decks
There are 20 Brawl deck cards not part of the main set. These cards are part of the four preconstructed Brawl decks on tabletop Magic, and can be obtained in MTG Arena via crafting with Wildcards. Read more about them in our guide: Throne of Eldraine Brawl Decks
Variant Cards
Throne of Eldraine has alternate versions of cards from the main set that are obtained by purchasing special types of booster packs in tabletop Magic. In MTG Arena, there has been no announcements on how these cards can be obtained. Presumably, we will obtain them through events similar to how we obtained Stained Glass Planeswaker Card Styles during War of the Spark Chronicles.
More information about details and rewards are to follow as we know more!
Throne of Eldraine Release Notes
Throne of Eldraine Release Notes include information concerning the release of a new Magic: The Gathering set, as well as a collection of clarifications and rulings involving that set’s cards. It’s intended to make playing with the new cards more fun by clearing up the common misconceptions and confusion inevitably caused by new mechanics and interactions. This is less relevant in MTG Arena where all the rules in the game are coded, but still interesting to read upon nonetheless.
For example, it is important to note Adventure cards aren’t instant or sorcery cards while they’re in your graveyard.
Limited (Draft and Sealed) Archetypes
Limited archetypes in Throne of Eldraine will be based on the multicolored cards in the set! For example, Blue/Red cards have cards that reward you for drawing more than one card each turn, whereas the Black/Green works well with Food Tokens. Make sure to follow our Throne of Eldraine limited guides below for a detailed explanation on this exciting new format.
Set Promotions
Free Code
Once the Throne of Eldraine game update is live, you can redeem the code PlayEldraine to receive three free Throne of Eldraine packs. Be sure to check out our MTG Arena Codes section for more free codes you can redeem for in-game items before they expire!
Renewal Rewards
Players who log on and create an account in MTG Arena before Throne of Eldraine goes live on September 26 are eligible for a lot of in-game rewards! Players will receive the following after the game update:
- 10 Rare or Mythic Rare Individual Card Rewards (ICRs) from Guilds of Ravnica, Ravnica Allegiance, Core Set 2020 and Throne of Eldraine
- First 25 levels of Eldraine Mastery will grant additional rewards
- Fblthp Avatar and Sleeves for open beta participation
- Cards not in collection from New Player Experience (NPE) decks for players who already completed the beginner’s tutorial before July 2
Please see our article on Renewal Rewards for a detailed description.
Throne of Eldraine Pre-order
Throne of Eldraine pre-order is available from September 4, 2019 with the release of the 0.18.00.00 patch. You can purchase this from the in-game Store or via the Wizards web shop here. The product may only be purchased once.Price of the pre-order is $49.99 USD or €49.99 Euro. Price does not include taxes unless required by law. The bundle contains:
- 50 Throne of Eldraine boosters packs
- 1 Garruk, Cursed Huntsman card
- Gingerbread exquisite card sleeve (available immediately on purchase)
- Garruk, Cursed Huntsman card style
Buy-a-Box Promo
Kenrith, the Returned King is Throne of Eldraine’s buy-a-box promo, and you will receive 1 copy of the card when you purchase the 45 pack bundle (9000 gems) or 2 copies for the 90 pack bundle (18000 gems). Please note that this card is not available from booster packs.
Throne of Eldraine Deluxe Collection
Throne of Eldraine Deluxe Collection is available from October 2, 2019 for purchase at the official Wizards web shop for $449.99 USD. It is a tabletop product that also contains a MTG Arena mega-code card, which grants:
- A digital Garruk exquisite sleeve
- One copy of each of the following cards, plus a card style for each:
- Garruk, Cursed Huntsman
- Charming Prince
- The Magic Mirror
- Witch’s Vengeance
- Bonecrusher Giant
- Questing Beast
Please click here for more information regarding this product.
TwitchCon Card Sleeve
If you’re attending TwitchCon between September 27–29, be sure to pick up the official TwitchCon swag bag to receive a special code card with MTG Arena codes for you and three friends! The code includes the exclusive card sleeve above. Click here for more information.
Throne of Eldraine Prerelease Code
Prerelease events for tabletop Magic: The Gathering will be held on the weekend between September 27 to September 29. Each prerelease pack will contain a MTG Arena code card, which players can redeem for 6 Throne of Eldraine booster packs (limit one per account).
During this time, you will see players give out spare codes to others on reddit and other communities, so keep an eye out for it! If we have any to giveaway we will let everybody know also.
Throne of Eldraine Art
The set also features a wide range beautiful art, directed by Cynthia Sheppard. Read her article Worldbuilding Eldraine to see how the top-down fairy tales design came about.
Golden Egg (ELD) Art by Lindsey Look 
Gilded Goose (ELD) Art by Lindsey Look 
Oko Art by Chris Rallis 
Oko Art by Chris Rallis 
The “Gingerbrute” 
Bonecrusher Giant (ELD) Art by Victor Adame Minguez 
Wildborn Preserver 
The Royal Scions 
Murderous Rider (Throne of Eldraine) Art by Jenn Ravenna 
