Kamigawa: Neon Dynasty Set Review

Though Magic: The Gathering has gone to all sorts of worlds in its decades-long history. From the gothic horror of Innistrad and fairy tale realms of Eldraine, to the untamed wilds of Innistrad and the Egyptian tombs of Amonkhet, Magic has always been thoroughly centred in its magic and fantasy… until now.

With Kamigawa: Neon Dynasty, Wizards of the Coast is giving Magic its first every sci-fi set. A cyberpunk world that fuses advanced technology with Japanese folklore, Neon Dynasty is a futuristic look at one of Magic's most beloved planes. With new mechanics and incredible cards, this is a set like no other.

Kamigawa is a Japanese-inspired world, so of course Ninjas are going to play a big part of it. Ninjutsu is a popular mechanic returning that allows you to sneakily swap out an unblocked attacking creature with a Ninja in your hand. With really powerful Ninjas in the set like Nashi, Moon Sage's Scion and Thousand-Faced Shadow, you'll be able to make your opponents scared enough to block every little thing.

Another returning mechanic is channel. This is an immensely powerful ability that lets you pay a cost and discard the card from your hand. For instance, by paying one generic and one green and discarding the legendary land Boseiju, Who Endures, you can destroy an artifact, enchantment, or nonbasic land. It might sound tame, but remember that channel isn't casting a spell, it's more like cycling, so it's very, very difficult to counter!

Be it bikes and cars or full-on Gundam-style mechs, vehicles are also a massive part of Kamigawa: Neon Dynasty. These artifacts can be 'crewed' by tapping creatures you control, which turns the vehicle into an artifact creature ready to attack. Easily the most interesting vehicle in the set is Mechtitan Core, which can take it and five other artifacts and turn them into a 10/10 with flying, vigilance, trample, lifelink, and haste. To help prop up these absolutely wild vehicles, there are a lot of Pilot creatures too, which can make crewing a lot easier.

We've also got two brand new mechanics as well: Reconfigure and Modifications. Reconfigure applies to new artifact Equipment Creatures, which can be a creature one moment, and then reconfigure into becoming an equipment on another creature the next. Some of these are ridiculously powerful, like Lion Sash which lets you exile cards from graveyards to put +1/+1 counters on it, or Cloudsteel Kirin which simply stops you from losing the game.

Modifications, meanwhile, aren't really a mechanic. It's more of a label that applies to any permanent that has a counter, equipment, or aura on it. But don't gloss over Modified creatures, as there's loads in the set that makes them great. For instance, Kodama of thew West Tree lets you search your library for a basic land and put it onto the battlefield tapped whenever a modified creature deals combat damage. Voltron, +1/+1 counter and Enchantress decks are going to love Modified cards!

It's not just new mechanics coming in Neon Dynasty, we also have a lot of new Planeswalkers. Our heroes are Kaito Shizuki, a Planeswalker who phases out the end of his first turn on the battlefield, making this sneaky ninja all the harder to get rid of. We finally know who the mysterious Wanderer is, with The Wandering Emperor confirming she is the long-lost emperor of Kamigawa. To show off her speed and unpredictability, she is the first Planeswalker ever to have Flash, and you can activate her abilities on your opponent's turns.

But what about the villains of Neon Dynasty? Tezzeret, Betrayer of Flesh reduces the cost of abilities on artifacts by two generic, and can draw you a card whenever any artifact you control becomes tapped. Want that Sol Ring to draw you a card as well? Tezzeret can do it.

Though not a Planeswalker, we can't mention Neon Dynasty without arguably the star of the show: Jin-Gitaxias, Progress Tyrant. The Phyrexians are back, and this time we're catching up with the blue Praetor as he tries to create the first-ever Phyrexian Planeswalker. What nobody could see coming was that Jin-Gitaxias succeeded, giving us Tamiyo, Compleated Sage.

That's right, Tamiyo has also been corrupted into a horrific pawn of the Phyrexians, complete with Phyrexian mana in her casting cost. She's hardly going to be the only Planeswalker to become Completed, but it hurts to see nonetheless.

For the collectors, there's a lot to love about Neon Dynasty. Any pack could contain a traditional-styled Ukiyo-e full-art basic land, which are just gorgeous. There's also the three Showcase frames, with Ninjas and Samurai getting their own frames, and every other rare and mythic rare getting a 'Soft Glow' style with art by Japanese artists. Anime and manga fans are going to want to keep an eye on Neon Dynasty too, as a lot of the art is by well-known artists such as Fist of the North Star's Hara Tetsuo and Metal Gear Solid's Yoji Shinkawa.

Combining the folklore of Japan with the high-tech neon and chrome, with a lot of lore for long-term fans and alternate art styles to appeal to newcomers, Kamigawa: Neon Dynasty is a set you'll really want to be excited for.

Kamigawa: Neon Dynasty launches on February 18. You can preorder your singles, draft, set, collector's, and theme boosters, as well as the two Commander decks, through Magic Madhouse today!