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Kamigawa: Neon Dynasty

Facts
Placement
Plane
Kamigawa
Other
Symbol description
Rising sun behind a mountain
Design
Mark Rosewater (lead) ; Ari Nieh ; Emily Teng ; Chris Mooney ; Daniel Holt ; Dave Humpherys ; David McDarby ; Ethan Fleischer ; Mark Gottlieb
Development
Dave Humpherys (lead) ; Jadine Klomparens ; Daniel Holt ; Ari Nieh ; Andrew Brown ; Yoni Skolnik ; Reggie Valk ; Lukas Litzsinger ; Ben Hayes ; Koichiro Maki
Themes and mechanics
Legendary creatures, Ninjas and Samurai .
Keywords/​ability words
Channel , Ninjutsu , Reconfigure , Compleated , Transform
Midnight Hunt
Midnight Hunt Crimson Vow Kamigawa: Neon Dynasty

Kamigawa: Neon Dynasty is the ninety-first Magic expansion. It was released on February 18, 2022.

Set details

The setting of Neon Dynasty is described as Magic: The Gathering's first science fiction plane. Several Japanese artists were engaged to produce card illustrations, among them famous manga artists like Tetsuo Hara. The central conflict of the set is the conflict between modernity and tradition - a metafictional reference to how R&D struggled to develop a sequel to one of the worst received blocks of Magic, separating it from the previous setting while making it recognizably the same plane. Half of the set features the newly mechanized world of modern Kamigawa, while the other half depicts the more traditional Kamigawa as seen in the earlier block.

Kamigawa: Neon Dynasty contains 302 regular cards (117 commons, 88 uncommons, 59 rares, 18 mythic rares, 20 basic lands) and includes randomly inserted premium versions of all cards. Draft boosters include a guaranteed double-faced card in common or uncommon, with the rare or mythic DFC distributed as normal. The regular cards include 10 "Ukiyo-e" basic lands. Each type has two different pieces of "block-stamped" art. Alternate card frames have another card number than the original version. Borderless planeswalkers are numbered #303-306. The two cards with Phyrexian frame and language are #307-308. "Samurai frames" are #309-330, "Ninja frame" showcase cards are numbered #331-353, and "Soft Glow" showcase cards are #354-405. Borderless Legendary Dragons and lands are #406-416. Twelve mythic and rare cards with alternate frames received versions with the foil-etched treatment. These are numbered #417-428 and are exclusively found in Collector Boosters. The "Neon Ink" cards are #429-432, and extended artwork cards are numbered #433-505. The Bundle promo is #506 and the Buy-a-Box card is #507. The dark frame treatment cards from the Universal promo pack are numbered #508-512. The "Concept Praetor" art of Jin-Gitaxias, released with Phyrexia: All Will Be One, is #513.

The "Ninja frame" and "Samurai frame" showcase cards are all Ninjas and Samurai respectively. The 'soft glow" showcase cards are used for alternate versions of all other rare and mythic cards. The "Neon Ink" card treatment only appears on four different versions of Hidetsugu, Devouring Chaos. There are about half as many green ink cards as blue ink cards, and about a quarter that many red ink cards as green ink cards. The yellow ink cards are a promo for WPN Premium shops.

History

Public domain name registries connected to this set were filed by NetworkSolutions in October, 2020. A further registration with the gg domain was filed by Wizards itself in May 2021. The set was already hinted at in a public Magic survey from November 19, 2019 that featured multiple pieces of Planeswalker art with descriptions referencing a future Kamigawa.

Rules change

Previously, a vehicle that had become a creature was able to be tapped for its own crew ability. This rarely came up, and it doesn't make a lot of sense for a vehicle to crew itself, so the rules are changed slightly to prevent that. You must now tap other creatures to crew a vehicle.

Storyline

Neon Dynasty is set in the current era on Kamigawa, more than 1200 years after conclusion of the original Kamigawa block in 3326 AR. The plane's feudal past has met futuristic modernity, with ninjas and samurai now carrying a cyberpunk aesthetic.

The Emperor of Kamigawa has been missing for ten years. While the Imperials have to deal with Futurists and Uprisers, the planeswalkers Tamiyo and Kaito Shizuki are confronted by an interplanar danger.

The cards that represent the Story Spotlights in Neon Dynasty are:

A Kamigawa: Neon Dynasty manga was also released.

MagicStory

Marketing

Neon Dynasty is sold in regular 16-card Draft Boosters (one card being a marketing card), Theme Boosters, Collector Boosters, Set Boosters, the Neon Dynasty Bundle, and two Commander decks. The Draft Boosters feature artwork depicting Kaito Shizuki. The Set Boosters feature art depicting the Wanderer, and the Collector Boosters feature artwork depicting a nezumi rider. The Theme Boosters feature art from Thousand-Faced Shadow (5 color Ninjas), Imperial Subduer ({W}), Prosperous Thief ({U}), Mukotai Ambusher ({B}), Dragonspark Reactor ({R}) and Kappa Tech-Wrecker ({G}). With the release of Neon Dynasty, 75 cards were rotated into The List, many of which were thematically or mechanically linked to the set. These can be found in the Set Boosters.

Beadle & Grimms Silver and Platinum Editions

For this set, Wizards of the Coast partnered with Beadle & Grimms, a gaming company that previously had offered official, expanded editions of Dungeons & Dragons modules and other games. They are known to create in-flavor maps, handouts, artifacts, bonus encounters, and other accessories.

Their Kamigawa Silver Edition for $ 199.00 included a demon-themed Lightning Blue deck box, 100 Gold Dragon sleeves, a Kamigawa Art card folio, an art-inspired life counter, a LED playmat, a Kamigawa metal counter set, a demon mask necklace, an exclusive game log, a Kamigawa world map and an in-world Guide to Kamigawa.

The Kamigawa Platinum Edition for $ 449.00 additionally included an exclusive Neon Dynasty-themed backpack, a sword-adorned card vault, a kami-themed Neon Pink deck box, 100 Black Dragon sleeves, a Kamigawa wall art poster, 5 lithographic art prints and a sidekick plush.

These sets of merchandise notably don't include Magic playing cards.

Reveal teaser

The Kamigawa: Neon Dynasty Official Teaser featured a scrambled image of the Kaito Shizuki planeswalker card.

AR experience

In January 2022, players can step into the streets of Kamigawa with a special web-based augmented reality experience exclusive to WPN stores. Scanning a QR code in stores with their mobile device, players can view and interact with a street market as long as they're in the store. During the event, players can also access exclusive animated preview cards among other unique encounters within the environment.

Events

Promotional cards

Tokens and emblems

Kamigawa: Neon Dynasty has 19 tokens and emblems:

  1. {C} 1/1 Pilot creature with "This creature crews Vehicles as though its power were 2 greater.", for Born to Drive, Prodigy’s Prototype, and Reckoner Bankbuster.
  2. {C} 1/1 Spirit creature, for Akki Ember-Keeper, Architect of Restoration, Go-Shintai of Shared Purpose, Searchlight Companion, Sokenzan, Crucible of Defiance, and Teachings of the Kirin.
  3. {W} 2/2 Samurai creature with vigilance, for Banishing Slash, Eiganjo Uprising, Experimental Synthesizer, Imperial Oath, Naomi, Pillar of Order, and The Wandering Emperor.
  4. {U} 1/1 Ninja creature with "This creature can't be blocked.", for Kaito Shizuki.
  5. {B} 1/1 Rat Rogue creature, for Tribute to Horobi.
  6. {R} 3/1 Construct artifact creature with haste, for Sokenzan Smelter.
  7. {R} 5/5 Dragon Spirit creature with flying, for Goro-Goro, Disciple of Ryusei.
  8. {R} 2/2 Goblin Shaman creature with "When this creature attacks, create a Treasure token.", for Fable of the Mirror-Breaker.
  9. {R} 2/2 Spirit creature with menace, for Gift of Wrath.
  10. {G} 1/1 Human Monk creature with "{T}, Add {G}", for Careful Cultivation and Jugan Defends the Temple
  11. {G} 4/5 Spirit creature, for Invoke the Ancients.
  12. {G} */* Spirit creature, for Kura, the Boundless Sky.
  13. {B/G} Keimi, a 3/3 legendary Frog creature with "Whenever you cast an enchantment spell, each opponent loses 1 life and you gain 1 life.", for Tatsunari, Toad Rider.
  14. {M} Mechtitan, a 10/10 legendary Construct artifact creature with flying, vigilance, trample, lifelink, and haste that's all colors, for Mechtitan Core.
  15. {C} 1/1 Construct artifact creature for Oni-Cult Anvil.
  16. {C} Tamiyo's Notebook, a legendary artifact with “Spells you cast cost {2} less to cast” and “{T}: Draw a card.”, for Tamiyo, Compleated Sage.
  17. {C} Treasure artifact, for Atsushi, the Blazing Sky, Fable of the Mirror-Breaker, Prosperous Thief, Reckoner Bankbuster, and Undercity Scrounger.
  18. Emblem for Kaito Shizuki.
  19. Emblem for Tezzeret, Betrayer of Flesh.

Additionally, Kamigawa: Neon Dynasty Set Boosters include the following token with the Kamigawa: Neon Dynasty Commander expansion symbol and collector number:

A new note was added in the original article to clarify this token is missing in some batches of English Set Boosters and not available in portuguese.

Themes and mechanics

The designers have taken some design elements from the first block and meshed them with science fiction elements.

Ninjutsu is a returning mechanic from Betrayers of Kamigawa. It allows a player to put a Ninja creature card from their hand into play tapped and attacking by paying a cost while returning another attacking, unblocked creature they control to its owner's hand.

Another returning mechanic is Channel, which was first seen in Saviors of Kamigawa. Channel cards have an activated ability that lets you discard them to get a temporary effect. This time around it is limited to enchantments, artifacts, and lands; rather than Spirit creatures.

Enchantment creatures, which were last seen in Theros Beyond Death, are also returning. They appear in combination with other popular mechanics, such as Sagas, Double-faced cards and Transform. In these cases, the front side (closed fan symbol) is a saga, while the back side (opened fan symbol) is an enchantment creature.

Modified is a batching term that collectively refers to creatures that are equipped, enchanted, or have counters on them.

Reconfigure is a new mechanic that allows artifact creatures that are equipment to attach themselves to other creatures.

Compleated is a new keyword that describes Phyrexian planeswalkers. It appears on Tamiyo, Compleated Sage along with Phyrexian hybrid mana ({G/U/P}).

Bushido is not a featured keyword. Jukai Trainee features the mechanic written out as an allusion.

Card types

Artifacts and enchantments fulfill a similar mechanical role in the set but are flavorfully contrary to one another. The modern side of Kamigawa uses various types of artifacts. The traditional side uses various types of enchantments. The modern side has artifact creatures and Equipment. The traditional side has enchantment creatures and Auras. Each side is weighed toward certain colors:

Modernity < blue < red < black > white > green > Tradition.

Black in particular features cards that benefit from the player controlling both an artifact and enchantment, which was previously a threshold ability called "Balance" within Vision Design.

Legendary creatures are a theme, like in the original block. Ninjas and Samurai are also heavily featured in this set.

Vehicles are featured as constructs that the Kami can inhabit for a more physical form. Those with Vehicle synergy are denoted as Mechs.

Limited archetypes

Kamigawa: Neon Dynasty features the following limited archetypes:

Cycles

Kamigawa: Neon Dynasty has seven cycles.

Double cycles

Vertical cycle

Pairs

Kamigawa: Neon Dynasty has eight mirrored pairs.

Reprinted cards

Functional reprints

Notable cards

Banned and Restricted cards

As one of the Standard cycle sets that were given an extra year in the Standard rotation, several iconic cards were determined to be overbearing and would overshadow the incoming season. All these were banned on 29th May 2023 as an attempt to weaken the prolific Rakdos Midrange deck.

  • Fable of the Mirror-Breaker had one of the highest impacts of any card, even showing up in Legacy via Ancient Tomb. Ostensibly fair as "only two 2/2s", the Treasure trigger gives acceleration and mana fixing, the second chapter fights mana problems in cards, and the Reflection wins games if unanswered, leading to a much harder card to answer than the power and toughness suggest.
  • Reckoner Bankbuster followed the trend of colorless card advantage such as Mazemind Tome, Sunset Pyramid and Treasure Map. However, the Bankbuster's utility was being a 4/4 Vehicle with Crew 3, with its own way to Crew built in. This gave it a role in small-resource games that the others were weak to and put it to Smuggler's Copter levels of ubiquity.
  • Invoke Despair was one of the four-pip Invoke cycle, which theoretically gave power at the cost of a stringent manabase. Its ability to answer build-around permanents, a payoff that generates resources for all types of games, and being a Sorcery with few answers, meant that the odds were that it was more practical to play than beat. The fact that it missed Artifacts was often covered by Abrade and Brotherhood's End. Coupled with the expanded mana base over three years, it would likely not lose any position and was removed for diversity's sake.

Misprints

Preconstructed decks

Kamigawa: Neon Dynasty features two Commander decks that are released as a regular part of a set's product line.

Soundtrack

Kamigawa: Neon Dynasty Official Soundtrack was a soundtrack album released on February 18, 2022, alongside the set. It features 15 tracks written and performed by various artists. Its first track, "Light it Up," was released as a single, and five others - "One With Phyrexia," "Tasukete," "Mechanical," "The Spark Inside," and "Dearest Friend" - were released as an EP.

Track Listing

Gallery