Wizards of the Coast

Exclusive Sneak Peek: New Magic The Gathering Innistrad Card Revealed

Posted 9/13/11 1:47 pm ET by Matt Morgan in Hobby Gaming, Magic: The Gathering, Wizards of the Coast

The release of Magic: The Gathering's latest set, Innistrad, is quickly approaching on September 30th, and this one is all about returns. The release marks a thematic return, with gothic horror making its way into Magic for the first time since 1995's Homelands. It also marks a major return to the design team, with original Magic designer Richard Garfield joining the ranks after a 15 year absence.

New mechanics embrace the horror theme, the most noteworthy being the 'transform' ability that uses double-sided cards. Often representing the day/night representations of vampire and werewolf creatures, all transforming cards have a set list of conditions or costs that must be met in order to flip a card to its powerful alternate side. Several of these double-sided cards are featured on Wizards of the Coast's Innistrad mechanics blog.

For a sneak preview of the dark creatures awaiting you in Innistrad, check out the Falkenrath Noble, shown here are MTV Geek for the first time:

If you just can't wait until September 30th for the full set release, check your local hobby gaming store for pre-release events running throughout the weekend starting September 24th.

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Tags Innistrad, Magic: The Gathering, Wizards of the Coast

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Review: Conquest of Nerath Takes Dungeons and Dragons to a New Realm

Posted 9/9/11 11:44 am ET by Matt Morgan in Hobby Gaming, Reviews, Wizards of the Coast

Nentire Vale may be a familiar setting for Dungeons & Dragons fans, but the Conquest of Nerath board game takes D&D into an entirely new realm of play: epic war gaming. That's not to say it is a game lacking D&D flavor, though. Instead of the gritty strategic gameplay of a Risk or Axis & Allies war game, Nerath spices the formula up with game-changing spells and dungeon-delving side quests. But do these additions create something uniquely great or a game with an identity crisis? Read on for the full review:

Just the Facts:

Players: 2-4
Playing Time: 120 minutes
Age: 12 to adult
Publisher: Wizards of the Coast
MSRP: $79.99
Release: June 21, 2011

The Gameplay:

The gameplay in Conquest of Nerath builds upon a very familiar base of war games that have come before it. Players command large armies of miniatures in an attempt to conquer the most territories while expanding their forces and engaging in large battles along the way. On a typical turn, players will move their units, resolve combat, purchase new troops, and receive an income based on the number of territories they currently hold. Read more...

Tags Conquest of Nerath, Dungeons & Dragons, Nentir Vale, Review, War gaming, Wizards of the Coast

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Images of Gen Con: Giant Monster Statues From Wizards Of The Coast

Posted 8/5/11 6:00 pm ET by MTV Geek in Gen Con, Hobby Gaming, Wizards of the Coast

By George Holochwost

After the vendors room at GenCon closed yesterday at 6pm, I decided to go on walkabout and check out some of the sights here that punctuate the convention space. Despite the brilliance of some of the costumes and the strangeness of a few of the events, I decided to find the various giant sculptures of Wizards of the Coast characters about which I had heard so many rumors. Although I am very familiar with these properties from years and years of playing Dungeons and Dragons, I was taken aback by the detail and sheer size of some of these creations.

GenCon: Dungeons And Dragons Announces Return to Neverwinter Campaign Setting

Posted 8/2/11 5:52 pm ET by Matt Morgan in Gen Con, Hobby Gaming, Wizards of the Coast

The Realms are back: Dungeons & Dragons will be returning to the legendary Forgotten Realms city of Neverwinter this Summer. To mark the occasion, Wizards of the Coast has a whole slew of new Neverwinter-themed products, led by the he core RPG release, the D&D Neverwinter Campaign Setting.

Players can get their first taste of the newly revised campaign setting during the Neverwinter Game Day on August 6th at their local game stores. The event will serve as a character creation session, after which players will get their toes wet with a prelude adventure to the upcoming D&D Encounters season. Kicking off on August 10th, D&D Encounters Lost Crown of Neverwinter will also feature a brand new set of Neverwinter-themed Fortune Cards.

Exclusive: Card Preview for Magic: The Gathering 2012 Core Set

Posted 6/30/11 11:15 am ET by Matt Morgan in Hobby Gaming, Wizards of the Coast

As the July 15th release of the new Magic: The Gathering core set comes closer, fans are getting a closer peek at what is to be included in the set. Some of the new card abilities include new keyword "hexproof" and new term "dies" that will both shake up play. Respectively, these mean that some creatures will be immune to opponent's spells and abilities (but not its owner's), and that new card effects will trigger upon the death of creatures.

More information on the new mechanics introduced in Magic 2012 can be found on the official Wizards of the Coast blog, but in the meantime, enjoy this first look at a new card from the set: Sorin's Vengeance. This rare black sorcery card shows new planeswalker Sorin Markov delivering a fatal wound, with great artwork depicting the fight from a unique perspective. The card's play is expensive in mana cost, but deals an incredible amount of game-changing damage.

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Tags Magic 2012, Magic: The Gathering, Wizards of the Coast

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You've Heard of Free Comic Book Day, But What About Free RPG Day?

Posted 6/13/11 11:49 am ET by Matt Morgan in Hobby Gaming, Mayfair Games, Wizards of the Coast

This Saturday, June 18th, is the day, so mark your calendars. The goal of Free RPG Day is to inspire gamers to branch out and try something new, or for first-timers to dip their toes into the water. Along those lines, the majority of products being given away are quickstart modules that can be used to get a feel for a new system. Keep this in mind when you head to your local shop this weekend, and check out the offerings from those smaller companies you've never heard of.

There are even a few neat accessories included in the giveaways, such as different types of dice and a dice tower, as well as an alternate rules sheet for a board game, The Settlers of Catan. Here's the full list of products you can expect to find, courtesy of the official Free RPG Day website: Read more...

Tags Dragon Age, Dungeons & Dragons, Free RPG Day, Green Ronin, Paizo, Pathfinder, RPG, Wizards of the Coast

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Hobby Gaming Sales Continue to Rise in 2011

Posted 6/1/11 10:21 am ET by Matt Morgan in Hobby Gaming, Wizards of the Coast

The latest hobby game retailer survey from industry monitor ICv2.com is in, and the results show that games have continued their steady growth from 2010. Games exhibited strong sales in the first quarter of 2011 with a few notable highlights.

The most biggest change to these rankings is that the board and card game chart from previous quarters has been split into two separate top 10 lists in order to show proper depth of the market and to acknowledge the growing popularity of deck-building card games as an important sub-genre of hobby gaming.

Top Card Games:

1. Dominion / Rio Grande Games
2. Munchkin / Steve Jackson Games
3. Thunderstone / Alderac Entertainment Group
4. Ascension / Gary Games
5. Killer Bunnies / Playroom Entertainment
6. Bang! / daVinci Games
7. Dixit / Asmodee Editions
8. Resident Evil / Bandai America
9. Seven Wonders / Asmodee Editions
10. Guillotine / Wizards of the Coast

These sales rankings prove that the buzz surrounding Ascension: Chronicle of the Godslayer (which we reviewed last week) as the strongest contender to Dominion and Thunderstone is justified. It is also worth noting that of the top 7, Ascension is the only game that does not have the weight of a multiple-expansion franchise behind it. That will all change this month when the first expansion, Rise of the Fallen, hits store shelves. Read more...

Tags Dungeons & Dragons, Hobby Gaming, Pathfinder, sales data, Warmachine

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Dungeons And Dragons Branches Out With New Strategy Board Game

Posted 5/31/11 11:38 am ET by Matt Morgan in Hobby Gaming, Wizards of the Coast

Following the release of their successful dungeon-crawling D&D Adventure System board games, Castle Ravenloft and Wrath of Ashardalon, Wizards of the Coast is switching gears to provide a strategy gaming experience with a Dungeons & Dragons setting. Conquest of Nerath will allow 2-4 players to command the armies of Nerath, Karkoth, the Iron Circle, and Vailin in a game that resembles Risk more than role playing. D&D has finally met up with war gaming, and in the mix for each army are foot soldiers, siege engines, wizards, monsters, dragons, and more.

This game is definitely not skimping on the pieces. 252 plastic miniatures represent more elves, goblins, and undead than you could shake a stick at, which is always a welcome sight for RPG fans looking to re-purpose D&D board game components for use in their own custom campaigns. There's a healthy deck of cards and pile of dice, so all the other bases are covered. Also of note are dungeon tokens, which are used to mark spaces that can be further explored. It will be interesting to see how a few quick dungeon delves are worked into a larger war game.

Conquest of Nerath will be available on June 21st, and will retail for $79.99. We'll be posting our full review of the game here at MTV Geek in late June.

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Tags Conquest of Nerath, Dungeons & Dragons, Wizards of the Coast

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Wizards of the Coast Announces Plans for Magic 2012

Posted 5/26/11 10:28 am ET by Matt Morgan in Hobby Gaming, Wizards of the Coast

Plans for this year's update to the Magic: The Gathering core set have been firmed up with a July 15th release date. As is done every two years, the base cards of Magic have been revised. Old cards are retired, and new additions set the stage for gameplay techniques and strategies to be introduced through expansion blocks over the coming months. To see a preview of the mechanics both new and old that Magic 2012 will focus on, head over to the Wizards of the Coast website for a deeper look. The new set is being marketed with the tagline "gather your allies" which may be a nod to the new "Archenemy" game mode that pits one player versus a co-operative team.

The release also happens to coincide with that of the new Duel of the Planeswalkers 2012 game, launching on Xbox LIVE Arcade, Playstation Network, and PC via Steam. While Wizards has done an admirable job bringing Magic play to the internet, Duels of the Planeswalkers 2012 looks to be a huge step forward. Read more...

Tags Magic 2012, Magic: The Gathering, Wizards of the Coast

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Game Preview: Unboxing the Dungeons and Dragons Shadowfell Campaign

Posted 5/4/11 1:49 pm ET by Matt Morgan in Hobby Gaming, Wizards of the Coast

Get ready, Dungeons & Dragons players, for the release of a new campaign setting: The Shadowfell: Gloomwrought and Beyond. Arriving in store May 17th for $39.95, the boxed campaign will include a 128-page booklet presenting the fully-detailed city of Gloomwrought, a 32-page encounter booklet, die-cut monster and villain tokens, a foldout battle map, and one 30-card Despair Deck.

The release of Shadowfell is timed to coincide with the next season of D&D Encounters, Dark Legacy of Evard, beginning May 11^th. The key word in that Encounters campaign's name is "dark," as the games will focus on the deadly secrets of shadow magic, with what promisses to be a cast of edgier characters. From the Shadowfell box, DMs will be encouraged to use the despair deck in these Encounters sessions to add new twists and turns. A more detailed preview of the storyline for Dark Legacy of Evard is available on the D&D Encounters website.

We received an early copy of the Shadowfell campaign box here at MTV Geek, so here are a few photos of what is in store for players: