New Features

EVENTS!

Events are a new way to play the game. Here's how they work: once you reach level 4, you can enter an event by paying the entry fee and selecting a deck. Each event has a maximum number of wins you can earn. The more you win, the greater the prizes! But watch out—lose too many games and your run will end. Don't worry though, as you can re-enter an event as many times as you want!

Many events have special rules or restrictions to spice things up, and all of them offer fabulous prizes. Some standard events will be run over the course of the week, but a new special event will premiere each weekend. Are you up for the challenge?

You can see what events are currently available in the mode select menu (the button labeled "Standard" to the left of the "Battle" button). See you in the Arena!

TEAM CHALLENGES!

Every 3 days, a set of 3 team challenges will be given to all players on a team. These challenges are difficult and require team members to work together to complete, as challenge progress is tracked across the team.

• Note: If you join a team during the middle of a 3-day challenge session, you will not earn the rewards for that session. Your participation will still count toward your teammates' progress, though, and you'll get the next set of 3 challenges.

Game System Changes

Testing Seasonal Ladder Reset

• As we continue to evaluate the trophy formula and figure out the cadence of our seasons, we have reset most players by one league:
• Players in the Silver League and up have been moved back to the start of the previous league.
• Players in the Bronze League have been reset to the start of Bronze.
• Play league Spellslingers are unaffected.

Quality of Life Improvements

Challenges

In addition to adding Team Challenges, we have made some other improvements to the challenge system.

• The challenge tab now only badges when you have completed challenges that you have not collected.
• We made the "Win X games with Y Planeswalker" challenge easier: it is now "Complete X games with Y Planeswalker." The reward is still a booster pack.
• Added a new challenge: "Play 3 Event Games."

Deck Showcase

• Vin continues to look for the strongest competitors in the arena. He has removed underperforming decks from the suggested decks in the showcase and added in new ones that were performing well in higher leagues.

Card and Gameplay Changes

The community and the data have spoken (though we did have to use our universal translators to figure out what all the "beeps" and "boops" the data was making meant), and Chandra has definitely been on a hot streak. Red aggressive decks have continued to overperform over the last few patches in the highest leagues. We are pulling back on their power a bit a more, as well as improving some tools that might help in fending them off.

Chandra

• Torch! - 5 damage > 4 damage

Chandra still had a bit more direct damage than we'd like, and there's no more straightforward way to reduce that than to take away a damage from every game she plays.

• Fire Elemental - 3/2 > 3/1

The upside of getting to attack with Fire Elemental is quite high, so we're reducing its survivability to help open up the cards that can trade with or remove it before it gets to make its way to the red zone.

General

• Ragerunner - 3/2 > 3/1

Ragerunner is getting the same treatment as Fire Elemental. They both have effects that can be more difficult to interact with and contributing to some games that feel over before they started, so we're making both a little easier to interact with.

• Watchful Giant - 6 mana 6/8, Block: Heal 1 > 5 mana 4/7, Block: Heal 2

Watchful Giant wasn't good enough at the job it had. With these adjustments, the hope is that it can serve as a more viable option as a way to stabilize against aggressive strategies.

• Runeshell Crab - 2/3 > 3/3

Gone are the days where we're worrying about mirroring this with Pouncing Lemur. This is exactly the kind of card that's capable of halting a lot of aggressive starts. By giving it more power, the hope is that it stays relevant against other decks long enough to see more inclusion in decks.

• Fatal Infection - "Choose an enemy creature. At the start of your next turn, destroy that creature" > "Doom an enemy creature."

Doom is a new keyword being added to the game that means "Destroyed at the start of your opponent's turn." I think we can all agree that this increases the "cool" points this gives to any cards that use the keyword. And who doesn't want more points in their games? Other than new and cooler words, these cards will work the same as they previously did.

Bug Fixes

General

• Fixed an issue where the end turn red warning could appear underneath the end turn button on some devices.
• Players can no longer craft signature cards for Planeswalkers that they do not own.
• Fixed an error that could appear if one player conceded during the mulligan.
• Crafting cards will now correctly remove the warning symbol and make a deck valid when done in the deck builder.
• Fixed a bug that would sometimes cause the decks tab in the collection to appear blank.
• Fixed an issue that was causing the splash card picker and card count to be missing in the deck builder on mobile.
• Creatures with Can't Attack or Can't Block in their text will now show up correctly when searched for in the deck filter.

Planeswalkers

• Fixed cases where Gideon's Pawn could be the target of non combat damage like Clumsy Torchbearer's Finale while he was Leading the Charge.
• Creatures returned to play by Liliana will now correctly display the +1/+1 floating text reminder.
• Flameshot will no longer deal an additional damage to killed relentless creatures.
• Flameshot will no longer incorrectly display as 4 damage in non-English languages.
• Fixed a visual issue where a returned Cut Down would have its art clip though the card back.

Gameplay

• Blood Queen Drana given trample will no longer trigger her ability if she died in the combat.
• Fixed a crash that took place when Giant Growth was triggered on a creature killed by Opening Salvo.
• Fixed an issue that was causing Gluttonous Goo and Shadow Operative's extra effect yellow glow to show up at inappropriate times.
• Alhammarret's ability will no longer trigger without dealing damage to the opponent.
• Fixed a case where zero power Counterfeiter would trigger if other creatures damaged the opponent.
• Eminent Archangel's dynamic healing amount should now report correctly when inspected in hand.
• Aether Figment will no longer change its mana cost if your opponent performs a draft action.
• Fixed a softlock that could occur when Two-Hit Wonder was blocked and killed.
• Channeler of Might's yellow bonus effect glow will now trigger properly with hand-buffs increasing power to 5.
• Fixed an issue that would prevent the finale text from appearing on friendly zombies affected by Caller of the Cursed.
• Untested Rookie will no longer appear to be damaged for a moment when protected by Shields Up.
• Updated the animation timing on Dragon Hatching so it no longer appears to damage the opponent before it animates.
• Fixed a bug that caused Thwak! to be improperly misdirected by Under My Watch.