[CON] 1 Artwork + flavor info

[Yurei]

I just received some pre order solicitation in an email from one of my distributors including a new art from Conflux plus a little set info, most of which we probably have already except maybe for the little description of the set storyline.

KEY SELLING POINTS:
* Conflux is the second set in the Shards of Alara block.
* In Conflux, it is revealed that a sinister force is conspiring to reunite Alara. As this process begins, planes of reality begin to overlap, creating chaos on all five Shards of Alara.
* Conflux expands on the mechanics introduced in Shards of Alara, and injects even more powerful gold cards into the block.
SET SIZE AND PRODUCT OFFERINGS:
* 145 black-bordered cards (10 Mythic Rare, 35 rare, 40 uncommon, 60 common)
* Conflux will be sold in Booster Packs, Intro Packs, & Fat Packs (Fat Packs contain 8 booster packs).
* Intro packs are a new SKU introduced with Shards of Alara. Each Intro Pack contains a ready-to-play 41-card deck, 1 Booster pack, a strategy insert, and a Magic the Gathering rules insert for new players. Each deck comes with two rare cards, one of which is a premium foil rare card that is visible through the front of the box. There are 5 different Intro Packs in Conflux, packed 5 per box.

Feature Products:

Magic the Gathering

The next release from Magic the Gathering is 2/6/09

You will receive 1 Exclusive Ultra Pro Deck Box with a preorder for each box of Conflux Boosters

This image will be used on our deck box

[Pichoro]

Awesome. Thanks for sharing.

Hmm. Wonder if this puts the idea of enemy wedge multicolor in Conflux to rest?

[BurningPaladin]

Sigh looks like this is gonna be the beat up on bant block...the bant city is in flames in the back ground.

Why must all white characters be the stereotypical Don Quixote.

And if they are smart they are "rebels".

[mtg is cool]

they look like spirits rhino's
at least there not normal

[Edghyatt]

Wow... black in Bant... at least it looks like that to me (a pretty evil Rhino), and it also looks like it's only one rhino but with evil super-speed. Mwahaha... looks interesting.

[Sacramento Tzar]

Originally Posted by BurningPaladin

Sigh looks like this is gonna be the beat up on bant block...the bant city is in flames in the back ground.

Why must all white characters be the stereotypical Don Quixote.

And if they are smart they are "rebels".

Now now, the description said that all 5 shards where disrupted. That of course is what should be expected when they are introduced to magics they have no experience with. I doubt Esper is going to be looking that great in this expansion either. Grixis could sure use the Vis that green/white give it, but I doubt they want anything else that comes with those two and no doubt the Vithicans who are still alive will be emboldened and rebel even more. Jund may be a hellish place to live, but white and blue messing up their predatory chains and helping those humans hunt dragons isn't going to be pretty and death magic + artifact magic + Naya isn't going to be pretty either.

I personally find it interesting how the center Rhino is solid looking but the other two are spirits. Perhaps they are supporting him in some way (a rather white theme).

[Singer of White Line]

5 Intro Packs again? Good, good.

So, which name fits that artwork?

[Yurei]

If I had to guess I'd say this was some sort of enchantment, sorcery or instant. It looks like the rhino in the center has some sort of funky spell going on to him to cause the two "ghostly" versions of him, sort of like how ajani's ghostly version of himself is seen in soul's grace being cast on a pride mate.

[FirstType]

Man, those rhinos look hardcore, like they're getting ready to beat the **** out of someone.

Originally Posted by Yurei

* In Conflux, it is revealed that a sinister force is conspiring to reunite Alara.

Read this as: In Conflux, it is revealed that Nicol Bolas is conspiring to reunite Alara?

[silvercut]

That art combined with the physical description of the shards at the end of Ajani: Faces of a Planeswalker, this week's Savor the Flavor article, makes me think they are approaching the Alara Shards similar to the Many Worlds interpretation of quantum mechanics:

In Shards of Alara, Alara is one plane diverged down five alternate possible realities. In Conflux, those five parallel planes are now resolving back down to one plane. In Alara Reborn, this cataclysmic process will be finished and Alara will be reaching a new planar equilibrium.

[abisal]

Could be:
Rhox Bodyguard [CON]
Rhox Meditant [CON]
Knight of the Reliquary [CON]

Any other idea?

[Spiritmonger_Fan]

I'd imagine that it's probably Mirror-Sigil Sergeant.

[VAPORgun]

Truly awesome artwork, though if it were some super fast Rhox, then given the picture reprsents a single time, that means some amount of tachyons are needed to resolve the images as we see them, creating a causality paradox... Regardless i love the art, and the idea of the worlds recolliding. Why a sinister force though? Why wouldn't some outside observer want to reconnect these planes anyways? Nicol-bolas seems like a likely candidate for this position. I like the idea of spirits aiding it as well. Neat find!

[Skander]

Originally Posted by Spiritmonger_Fan

I'd imagine that it's probably Mirror-Sigil Sergeant.

I'd have to say you're probably right. Hopefully the mechanics will reflect this in some way. A few possibilities:

Whenever a creature you control attacks alone it gains Shroud until end of turn.


Whenever a creature you control attacks alone it becomes unblcokable until end of turn.


Whenever a creature you control attacks alone put a token into play tapped and attacking that is a copy of that creature. At end of turn, remove it from the game

[ZasZ234]

Originally Posted by Pichoro

Hmm. Wonder if this puts the idea of enemy wedge multicolor in Conflux to rest?

Why should it?

greetings
Z