Final Fantasy Preview Season Kicks Off Tomorrow

24 hours until the #MTGxFINALFANTASY Debut Showcase from #PAXEast!

Be in your seats, whether that's in the Main Stage audience, at your desk, or on your couch - you won't want to miss it!

mtg.social/FFShowcase

twitch.tv/magic

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— Magic: The Gathering (@magic.wizards.com) May 9, 2025 at 12:00 PM

Preview season for Magic: the Gathering - Final Fantasy officially kicks off tomorrow at PAX East. The event will feature two hours showcasing cards from the incredibly hyped release, starting at 12PM EST/9AM PST. Many cards are expected to be shown off, with several teasers featuring numerous prominent Final Fantasy characters appearing on the PAX East show floor, including the likes of Kefka, Sephiroth, Cloud, Squall, Lightning, and more.

Leading up to the event, several cards showed up to showcase a bunch of cards from the Commander decks as well as a few in the main set. These include the rest of the backup commanders - such as Tifa, Martial Artist and Yuna, Grand Summoner - as well as a few other legends from the main set. For those of you who are Final Fantasy fans like myself, this is going to be a truly joyous set, and these early previews are sure to be a delight for players everywhere.

Be sure to check out the stream when it kicks off either on Twitch or on YouTube and be sure to check out the information compiled afterwards on DailyMTG.com.

Arena Brings Multiple Changes, Including Pioneer

Following the release of Pioneer Masters last year, it felt like a bit of a head scratcher to many that the format was still listed as Explorer on MTG Arena. This week, the Arena team revealed that Pioneer is finally coming to the client officially, replacing the currently existing Explorer format in turn. To showcase this, the team will also be releasing a handful of minor Pioneer cards, as well as hosting a Pioneer Showcase Event starting on May 10th.

Additionally, the Arena team announced changes would be coming to how you obtain cards and how you play with cards that have multiple printings. Now you no longer need full playsets of prints to use four of a specific card version if you have four versions of the card total. You can even use card styles on any printing of a card, not just the one specific version as it used to be. Additionally, cards with multiple printings will now require you to only use wildcards of the lowest printed rarity, making cards easier than ever to obtain.

You can find the full details on the Pioneer announcement here. Additionally, you can read the complete in-depth rundown of the reprint and card style improvements here.

Early MagicCon Atlanta Details Revealed

MagicCon Atlanta featuring Edge of Eternities is a ways away yet, not occurring until late September. However, Wizards put out an initial article running down certain things attendees can expect. This includes badge packages, promos, and a sneak peek at some merchandise. Additionally, applications have opened up for creators, community panels, press, and cosplayers - among others - for this event. If you're one of those looking to shoot your shot, take a chance and apply! You never know what may come of it.

Check out this article to find out all the details released thus far for the event.

Decklist of the Week

Jeskai Control | TDM Standard | Casey Miller, 1st Place Regional Championship Minneapolis

• Creatures (10)
• 2 Marang River Regent
• 4 Beza, the Bounding Spring
• 4 Shiko, Paragon of the Way

• Instants (12)
• 1 Parting Gust
• 2 Dispelling Exhale
• 2 Three Steps Ahead
• 3 Get Lost
• 4 Lightning Helix

• Sorceries (6)
• 1 Day of Judgment
• 1 Split Up
• 4 Stock Up

• Enchantments (6)
• 2 Roiling Dragonstorm
• 4 Temporary Lockdown

• Lands (26)
• 1 Island
• 3 Plains
• 1 Cori Mountain Monastery
• 1 Mistrise Village
• 2 Riverpyre Verge
• 3 Elegant Parlor
• 3 Thundering Falls
• 4 Floodfarm Verge
• 4 Meticulous Archive
• 4 Sunbillow Verge

• Sideboard (15)
• 1 Authority of the Consuls
• 1 Exorcise
• 1 Pyroclasm
• 1 Zurgo and Ojutai
• 2 Lithomantic Barrage
• 2 Negate
• 2 Obstinate Baloth
• 2 Tishana's Tidebinder
• 3 Kutzil's Flanker

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Last weekend saw the first US Regional Championship take place with Casey Miller taking it down off the back of Jeskai Control. While Shiko buying back Lightning Helix to win the event was the talk of the town, the mega-popular Izzet Prowess list continued to prove back-breaking - making up nearly half of the top 32 that qualified for the Pro Tour. Jeskai Control proved a powerful tool to fight back these Prowess decks, raising the popularity of the archetype as players prepare for the RC at Hartford, CT next weekend.

Congratulations Casey on the victory!

Paige Smith

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