Welcome back, Loreseekers! Today we're going to be taking a look at the Flavor Gems of the new set, Lorwyn Eclipsed! The original Lorwyn was a pretty foundational set for me, coming back to the game around Future Sight, and set me on my path to being a goblin fiend for the next twenty years. Let's dive in!

Flavor Gems

Bark of Doran by Jorge Jacinto

The Bark of Doran is an obvious reference to Doran, the Siege Tower, at least his Lorwyn side. We do see Doran, Besieged by Time, but that's his Shadowmoor side. This equipment is really fun and flavorful, giving any creature the original Doran's ability, with a nice bonus.

Evershrike's Gift is of course a reference to Evershrike, an elemental spirit from Eventide (and oddly, the only elemental spirit in the two blocks). Evershrike cared about auras, and this card does too! As to what the Evershrike was... who knows! Given the vaguely draconic and intertwined look, it's possible it as a precursor to the new gods of Lorwyn and Shadowmoor, Eirdu, Carrier of Dawn and Isilu, Carrier of Twilight.

While there's a lot of classic, traditional artists features in Lorwyn Eclipsed, I wanted to pause for a second and note that Kinsbaile Aspirant and Sygg's Command are both by Margaret Organ-Kean. Organ-Kean illustrated two dozen Magic cards from Antiquities to Mirage, and brings back her signature watercolor skills for the first time in 20 years.

Riverguard's Reflexes features something you'll notice on a few cards, the incorporation of large aquatic invertebrate parts (like a giant crab's leg) being repurposed into weaponry. I hate to think where this came from, though.

Noggle the Mind is a pun on Boggle the Mind. It also has some interesting lore implications if a noggle is something you can become, like a curse. One wonders if maybe a lot of the Shadowmoor-exclusive creature types are a result of something like that. We also got an actual noggles in the set, like Noggle Robber

Unexpected Assistance by Gustavo Pelissari

Unexpected Assistance has a tiny little cameo by what might be a Bloomburrow frogfolk. It's difficult to see, but when looking at the full art, you can see a clothed frog with a sword and shield in the bottom right corner. I love this small nod to the now-interconnected multiverse, and hope to continue seeing cameos like this. I've seen speculation that Foraging Wickermaw is actually a Duskmourn scarecrow, but the 'door' in the background looks more like a rock to me. If we get higher resolution art, I'd be happy to revisit it! I always love a good theory.

Dawnhand Dissident and Dawnhand Eulogist are both nods to Fracturing Gust, which established the dawnhands as Shadowmoor elves that test relics before bringing them back to safeholds.

Twilight Diviner is one of several 'eclipsed' creatures in this set. An 'eclisped' creature is one inside an eclipsed realm that has both sets of identity overlapping, to disastrous results. You can tell because of the aurora effect on her horns, glowing eyes, and what appears to be a second set of horns. Creatures like Eclipsed Elf or the rest of that cycle appear elsewhere in the set.

Boldwyr Aggressor is obviously a nod to the classic Lorwyn's Boldwyr Intimidator (as is Curious Colossus, for that matter), but it also confirms that Boldwry is a giant clan, not a location.

Flamekin Gildweaver might be the best deep cut of the set. You see, currency on Lorwyn isn't gold coins, but gold thread. Now we finally get the origin of this golden thread: Goldenglow Moth silk! It's a small but neat detail that I love to see in worldbuilding.

Lavaleaper is an elemental jackalope, which for those of you unfamiliar is an antlered rabbit that's part of North American folklore. Spry and Mighty is an obvious pun on high and mighty, and there's no better place for those kinds of puns than Lorwyn. Meek Attack is obviously a pun for Sneak Attack

Tend the Sprigs by Iris Compiet

Tend the Sprigs gives us the cutest baby treefolk of all time. The only sapling we've seen before is Sapling of Colfenor, so getting a true little treefolk is just, the cutest thing ever. I love it.

Vinebred Brawler is another great Lorwyn deep cut. Originally from Elvish Branchbender, Vinebred were people who had become intertwined with these magical vines. It was used by the elves to control 'lesser' people (including giants!) in an almost zombie-like way, and later revealed that it was the secret way some older or weaker elves were augmenting their strength. Post-Invasion, it's now an accepted part of the culture.

Deepway Navigator is a creature in an eclipsed zone, but with what appears to be magical wards preventing their transformation. In the original Lorwyn, it was a merrow relic (the Crescent of Morningtide) that was the first object to allow people to be unaffected by the aurora, and carried by Brigid, Hero of Kinsbaile.

Chronicle of Victory may be one of my favorite lore cards in the set. While it's not a saga, it does the same work of chronicling how Lorwyn-Shadowmoor dealt with the Phyrexian Invasion. The spectre of the invasion has loomed over many plans for years now, and it's nice to see the acknowledgement here that it still matters. Note that the 'tentacle' thing is one of Realmbreaker, the Invasion Tree's branches, I've seen speculation on what it could be, and that's all it is.

References

I'm quickly comping up on my word count so I wanted to talk a moment and talk about some cards that are direct references to cards from the original Lorwyn and Shadowmoor blocks.

• Bitterbloom Bearer is a reference to Bitterblossom, but easier to remove.
• Dream Seizer is a reference to Thoughtseize, down to the referential art.
• Boggart Mischief is a nod to Boggart Shenanigans, but color shifted.
• Mornsong Aria is a reference to Maralen of the Mornsong, Maralen's first card.
• Hexing Squelcher is a nod to Vexing Shusher, but again color shifted (and improved).

Lorwyn-Shadowmoor Pairs

The last fun thing I wanted to note here was the paired cards. You might have noticed throughout the set that there's certain pairs of cards that seem to be related. They're by the same artist, and one card depicts a Lorwyn version while another appears to depict a Shadowmoor version of the same character. Here's all the definite pairs I could find:

• Moonlit Lamenter/Sun-dappled Celebrant - Crescent of Morningtide
• Shore Lurker/Tributary Vaulter
• Silvergill Peddler/Gravelgill Scoundrel
• Boldwyr Aggressor/Brambleback Brute
• Champion of the Clachan/Gallant Fowlknight
• Creakwood Safewright/Lys Alana Dignitary
• Disruptor of Currents/Adept Watershaper
• Wanderwine Distracter/Wanderbrine Preacher
• Mudbutton Cursetosser/Warren Torchmaster
• Vinebred Brawler/Dawnhand Eulogist

And then there are a few by the same artist but that don't have quite the same obvious pairing between them. I want to note this just in case they're meant to be in the same category.

• Pestered Wellguard/Meanders Guide
• Silvergill Mentor/Wanderbrine Trapper
• Moonglove Extractor/Safewright Cavalry
• Goldmeadow Nomad/Reluctant Dounguard
• Adept Watershaper/Disruptor of Currents
• Heirloom Auntie/Wretched Wretch

Art Direction Updates

Most returns feature updates in art direction, and Lorwyn Eclipsed is no exception. I want to note a handful of neat details or changes that I noticed.

Changelings: While there was a little bit of this in the original Lorwyn, the new Changelings have a better defined head and face shape, to make them read better as the same species even when they're a non-humanoid creature.

Kithkin: Kithkin have less of the "Hey Arnold!" wide faces, and are more proportional with the rest of their bodies. They also have consistent representation of the thoughtweft in the form of glowing diamonds over the forehead. Previously this had barely been depicted at all.

Merrow: Shadowmoor merrow now also have esca to represent their time spent in the dark meanders. While the wide variety of merfolk inspirations still exist, individual Lorwyn and Shadowmoor merfolk don't change as much visually, like there was in Sygg, River Guide and Sygg, River Cutthroat.

Boggarts: The goblins of Lorwyn-Shadowmoor are as diverse as ever, if not more so. If anything, the more traditional-looking goblins from original Lorwyn have been de-emphasized in favor of the weirdos, emphasizing horns, porcine and even canine features in these little off-brand muppets.

And that's it for this time! I am a man born in the 1980s, so I'm something of a Ninja Turtle expert, and plan for me to return to talk turtles next month!