Scars of Mirrodin is almost upon us... Well, not really.  But spoiler season will be starting soon, and before concrete information begins trickling out from the MTG community, we here at Gathering Magic would like to make a few predictions regarding the upcoming set. In this case, the predictions have been broken into three categories. First the ‘Well, Yeah. . .’ predictions that are basically locks. Second is the ‘Bold Predictions’ group, or guesses that take a little more faith to believe. The third section, ‘Hopes and Dreams’ pretty much explains itself.

Well, Yeah...

A New Elspeth - While not exactly an original announcement (WotC confirmed Elspeth was in Scars during ComicCon), this is still an exciting one.  For most of 2008 and 2009, Elspeth, Knight Errant was considered the best Planeswalker ever printed and she probably was at the time.  Of course simply saying a new Elspeth will be part of SoM isn't quite a prediction, however Gathering Magic has gone far beyond that.  Take a look to your right, at what could very well be the next great Planeswalker.

Karn, the Card, Won't Show - Sorry to dull some of the excitement surrounding Elspeth by baring this bad news - there is no chance of seeing Karn in Scars of Mirrodin (especially not as a Planeswalker).  Everyone's favorite Silver Golem will have to bide his time and let Elspeth, Koth, and Tezzeret bathe in the limelight.  Not to worry however, because (sorry to step on the toes of the Mirrodin Besieged Predictions article) Urza, I mean Karn, will likely be  the headliner of the next expansion.

Return of the Sunburst Mechanic - As the group title suggests, this isn't a stretch by any measure, and we aren't even the first site to predict this, but after viewing one of the ComicCon slides (below), it's hard not to jump to the same conclusion.  That shiny golem looks a lot like Etched Oracle, actually the two look identical.  Sunburst is also a good guess because it fits perfectly in an artifact block where colored mana matters so little, and it happens to mesh with (SoM Lead Designer) Mark Rosewater's decree that every MTG player should be shoving as many different colors into their decks as possible.

Bold Predictions

Artifacts Won't be as Numerous This Time Around - As a set, Mirrodin had 291 unique cards, and 142 of those were artifact card-types.  That means a cool 49% of the original Mirrodin expansion was made up of one card type, a serious faux paus by today's WotC development standards.  Wizards wants to keep as much design space open as possible within each set, and because artifact lands clearly don't work, they're already limited.  The official Gathering Magic prediction is that SoM will contain approximately 30% artifact cards.  Still a heaping helping.

A Brother to the Sword of Body and Mind - The archetypal equipments the Sword of B&M is designed from, Sword of Light and Shadow and Sword of Fire and Ice, were developed as a set.  And a deadly duo they were, as many still regard Fire and Ice as the best equipment ever.  That being the case our very first SoM preview card needs a twin of its own, and here is is: the Sword of Love and Hate.  It keeps the enemy color protection theme, and also continues the 'these swords are freakin awesome' theme.  When this prophesied sword comes to pass, enjoy beating face with a double Lightning Helix every turn.

The Return of Colored Artifacts - There is only one way to create a diverse MTG environment within a block made up of over 30% artifacts, and that is to grant them colors.  That way, the aforementioned design space is still open, and the flavor of a metallic world remains in tact.  Colored artifacts won't be limited to Blue, or even to Esper colors this time around.  It will be a rainbow artifact party with everyone invited, so get ready for more Executioners Capsule-esque permanents.

Hopes and Dreams

No Colored Artifacts - Wait, is this a direct contradiction of the last prediction?  Darn right it is!  Despite being active players for only a portion of Magic: the Gathering's run, we're pretty true to the MTG fundamentals.  One of the very first fundamentals, a pillar of Magic so to speak, is that artifacts don't have colors.  Artifacts were support cards that produced mana, pumped up creatures, or became creatures themselves.  Always at an inflated price, because artifacts were meant to help augment a color's weakness, not enhance a strength.  Also, at least one of the last two musings will ring true, making this a sand-bagging Dream in addition to its other Dream types.

A New Aggro Mechanic to Replace Cascade - This is a tall order because of Cascade's inherent power, and at least a little controversial (meaning Reinhart isn't exactly on board with this idea).  But allow an explanation before you dismiss it entirely.  With the ever-present exception of Red Deck Wins, the tournament scene is now divided into two main groups - Jund, and Control Decks That Use Massively Expensive Cards to Beat Jund.  Because it shoves Alara out of Standard, and with it Cascade, and Jund as a build, Scars of Mirrodin better bring some anti-control artillery.  Magic 2011's inclusion of Mana Leak only added to the tightening grip the Control archetype was developing on contemporary MTG.  Not every duelists wants each game to last twenty turns, specifically twenty turns of little action.

Not Nearly as Broken as the Original - Mirrodin did many things well, but power-balance was not one of them.  The banned cards from the block are a virtual laundry list, including Disciple of the Vault, Skullclamp, Cranial Plating, Aether Vial,  Trinisphere, a five land cycle, and a freaking set mechanic (Affinity).  This block was the most broken since the Urza block, otherwise known as the most broken block in MTG history.  Since the Mirrodin cycle, or perhaps more accurately since Kamigawa, WotC has done a masterful job of power leveling their cards; however, many of the issues of the original Mirrodin resulted from the theme itself: artifacts.  Here's hoping Wizards avoids the same pitfalls in Scars.

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Keep checking the Scars of Mirrodin spoiler page for news, rumors, and the latest releases. And the chance to call us liars of course.