{IMAGE_2}Wizards of the Coast has revealed plans to alter the way Universes Beyond sets will fit into Magic:  The Gathering play formats starting with the new year alongside changes to the Standard Rotation structure moving forward.

Following the announcement of the release schedule for Magic at the recent MagicCon in Las Vegas (see “‘Magic: The Gathering’ in 2025”), including three new Universes Beyond sets, VP of Magic Design Aaron Forsythe released a statement that revealed some changes to the way these sets will fit into the various supported formats.  According to the statement, starting next year, any new Universes Beyond sets released will be considered legal for use in all Constructed formats.  This means that they will be treated in the same manner as normal Magic releases.

Forsythe stated that the intent behind the change was to make it easier for new Magic players who are entering the hobby through Universes Beyond to participate in Constructed events while simultaneously addressing concerns about new sets being limited to Modern formats.

Quoting the statement: “We know that Universes Beyond has brought many new players into the game by bringing their favorite stories and characters to life in our game.  While the Commander format does a good job of providing a soft landing spot for those who enjoy social play (albeit couched in a massive card pool), any players with an itch to try 60-card Constructed Magic with their new cards would have to go right to Modern—with over 20 years of card sets—or Legacy, which is even bigger. Standard and, to a slightly lesser degree, Pioneer are much friendlier formats to decks built from mostly a single set, and the new player is both more likely to see other players playing cards of “their” set and to see other cards and mechanics that could augment their strategy.

The statement stressed that the changes will apply only to new sets released starting next year, and that the status of existing sets including The Lord of the Rings: Tales of Middle-earth and Assassin’s Creed are not changed, and that special format products like Commander decks will not be considered part of the main set so they will only be legal in the formats they were intended for.

In addition, a new approach to the Standard Rotation will be implemented starting in 2027.  The time period for Standard Rotation will be linked to the release of the first new set during each calendar year instead of the current model based on large autumn releases.  Under this new model, with the first release of 2027, all 2025, 2026, and 2027 sets will be considered Standard.  As a side effect of this change, there will be no rotation during 2026, and the Bloomburrow and Duskmourn: House of Horror sets will be included in Standard for a shorter time.

Other plans for Magic were revealed during the company’s quarterly conference call last week (see “Hasbro CEO reveals ‘Magic’ Plans, Secret Lair Volumes,‘D&D’ DTC Percentage, More”).  New Secret Lair releases inspired by Marvel comics have also been announced (see “Wizards of the Coast Announces ‘Magic: The Gathering’ ‘Secret Lair x Marvel’ Superdrop”).