Now that Battle for Zendikar is rapidly approaching and new information will soon come to us, it is time to make a thread about it.

The information we currently have:

Here's the dedicated page for Battle for Zendikar on Wizard's site. It also collects the Uncharted Realms, for easy reference. It does miss the URs leading up to Battle for Zendikar. These are Gideon realizing he'll need help, Jace being recruited and Chandra not being recruited.

Here is all the art we've already seen and here are the cards currently spoiled.

Mechanically, we have Allies, Landfall and Awaken for the Zendikari and Devoid and Ingest for the Eldrazi.

Coming up this weekend is PAX. Important for this thread is the Battle for Zendikar Worldbuilding panel, but for us Vorthosi the Voice for Vorthos and the Building the Best Worlds in Gaming will also be of interest. If I'm not mistaken, they'll be streaming all of it to twitch and they'll be uploaded to youtube later.

I'll try to keep this thread updated to the best of my ability.

Yay, someone else made this thread and volunteered to curate it before I did!

Cool, thx for gathering all those links, Yxoque.

You know, I might as well start with a random speculation: I bet they'll reprint Ghostfire with the Devoid keyword and that silly frame in one of the sets. Mayyybe there will be other non-creature spells with Devoid, too. I just think Ghostfire will probably be important again in some form, both Ugin and Chandra are going to be involved, and it was mentioned in Tarkir block, so between that and Devoid, it's kinda in the air.

I think Devoid non-creature spells is a given. Maybe they'll keep that for the second set, though. Going by Dominator Drone they're already spending a lot of complexity points (and keep in mind that colorless spells with colors in their mana cost is very hard to grasp for a lot of players).

Non-creatures Allies, now that's something I'd like to see :-)

I don't plan on posting every card spoiler in this thread, but a new Sphinx has been spoiled during the World Championship and I like Sphinxes. It also takes a step back from the "let's make the creatures look like photographs" trend, so "hooray."

Agreed, I think Devoid spells are more likely for the second set. I kind of question the necessicity of Devoid existing as a keyword, and I really think the new frame looks stupid, but the concept as a whole has potential and fits the Eldrazi pretty well. Non-creature Allies are probably just wishful thinking, though. They said they wouldn't use the Tribal card type anymore, and I don't think there are other ways to pull that of. It's a shame in the case of Allies, though, Ally equipment really oozes flavour. Also, wow, that Sphinx is cool.

http://www.gatheringmagic.com/news-0828 ... is-coming/

What if the Eldrazi are just misunderstood?

It would be irrelevant. Other being barely seem to exist to them. Do you concern yourself with the complex interactions of ants?

Ants are cool and killing them is not.

OF INTEREST; THINGS SPOILED TODAY

Drana is still alive.

Jace and Ugin meet. Jace is not impressed.

Omnath is back and hella pissed.

Ob Nixilis is a playable character and listed as a Planeswalker in the first expansion of the board game.

Ugin was even less impressed. He thought Jace would taste like blueberries.

Because he ate him for mouthing off. (that's the joke)

I really don't like this for all sorts of reasons.

Why not?

Omnath was originally the sapient warden of the crypt of agadeem, the self sustaining brain of the place that was venerated and feared. Now it's a random ragey elemental that imitates baloth while losing everything that made Omnath unique and popular in the first place.

The color change is sort of equally galling to me because it further perpetuates the RED ANGRY stereotype. It also equates something inhuman to a baseline that is... Disappointing really. I want elementals to react differently than something mundane.

And the art is just ghastly compared to the balance of the original.

Big vampires! With amazing flavour text! And more Drana! OMG this is everything I ever wanted from this block!
*clears throat* It's... It's not bad actually, yeah.
I still hope they'll give us the other two Bloodchiefs as legends instead of printing new versions of the two we've already seen.

Wait, I don't remember what the Crypt of Agadeem even WAS, let alone remembering Omnath was the protector of it.

I am tickled that Jace was so cheeky with Ugin.

Anywho, HairlessThoctar was at the Vorthos panel at PAX. Maybe he can share some interesting stuff from the Q&A? And is there a recording anywhere of the relevant panel? Or any of the MTG PAX stuff?

I don't like Ingest as an Eldrazi keyword. Sterilize or Denature both sound better.

Sterilize isn't what the eldrazi do. They eat. Ingest.

I would have liked Consume as the mechanic name more, but I'm fine with Ingest.

All PAX panels were streamed over on Twitch and will be put on youtube later. I'll try to post the relevant videos as soon I become aware of them.

Here's the Voice for Vorthos Panel. Haven't been able to watch it yet due to having a housewarming party at my place.