MTG Coming to Faerûn

[GuestEleven]

As you may or may not know, next year Magic the Gathering is releasing a block titled Adventures in the Forgotten Realms. Previously in 5e MTG content wasn't a complete stranger, a whole book dedicated to Ravnica and some smaller pieces on Innastrad and other worlds. D&D has always been subject to hosting other fantasy worlds, I've seen D&D adapted to everything from Harry Potter to Middle Earth or even Star Wars. But MTG canonically hosting Faerûn has some serious implications to be considered so I was wondering if any of you had an interesting hot take. If you're confident MTG hosting Faerûn would have little impact on the setting I'd like you to consider the implications of planeswalkers, especially some native to Faerûn.

[Warder]

Faerûn may become canon to MtG, but I think the odds of MtG becoming canon to Faerûn are much worse. Maybe easter-egg-canon - a magic item or reference in a future product - but it's not going to open the floodgates to all of MtG to enter into the Forgotten Realms.

[Unoriginal]

The biggest implication is that there is a non-zero chance of Jace encountering Tiamat and such gettig his butt kicked, and I think we can all agree that it's worth it.

[GuestEleven]

Faerûn may become canon to MtG, but I think the odds of MtG becoming canon to Faerûn are much worse. Maybe easter-egg-canon - a magic item or reference in a future product - but it's not going to open the floodgates to all of MtG to enter into the Forgotten Realms.

As interesting as it could be I hope you're right. I haven't been able to find their stance on canonizing the content. It could be a self-contained homage to D&D, but since both IPs are owned by the same company I wouldn't say a merge is beyond possibility. I think it will really come down to whether or not they lean into building an actual story around the setting as they typically do.

[KorvinStarmast]

The biggest implication is that there is a non-zero chance of Jace encountering Tiamat and such gettig his butt kicked, and I think we can all agree that it's worth it. I am not even sure I know who Jace is, since my last reference to a character called Jace was in League of Legends. That said, I completely approve of your post. :smallbiggrin:

[GuestEleven]

The biggest implication is that there is a non-zero chance of Jace encountering Tiamat and such gettig his butt kicked, and I think we can all agree that it's worth it.

Bravo, I almost choked at the hilarity. But would the writers actually allow Jace to get what he has coming to him?

[JackPhoenix]

The biggest implication is that there is a non-zero chance of Jace encountering Tiamat and such gettig his butt kicked, and I think we can all agree that it's worth it.

Eh, you know he's going to brainwash her after losing for a while to add tension. Then he'll propably go drink some coffee with the local Mary Sue Elminster or some other local annoyance.

[Unoriginal]

I'm hoping for an Ishi Snaggletooth card.

[Naanomi]

Well, MtG did ‘kill off’ their most iconic villain recently; so time to reveal Asmodeus and/or Tharzidun were actually behind it all right?

[Unoriginal]

Well, MtG did ‘kill off’ their most iconic villain recently; so time to reveal Asmodeus and/or Tharzidun were actually behind it all right?

They would have done that if it was a crossover with 4e (where both of those guys were massively overhyped for some reasons I'll never get), but not with 5e.

[Avonar]

The biggest implication is that there is a non-zero chance of Jace encountering Tiamat and such gettig his butt kicked, and I think we can all agree that it's worth it.

There are an awful lot of people who could kick Jace's butt and I approve of all of them.

Also Liliana running into Asmodeus would be an interesting meeting.

[GuestEleven]

Also Liliana running into Asmodeus would be an interesting meeting.

What if Liliana found the eye and hand of Vecna? :o

[Unoriginal]

What if Liliana found the eye and hand of Vecna? :o

Well Arkhan the Cruel is the one who has the hand, currently.

[MinotaurWarrior]

There's just no way they'll actually be going there canonically. MTG is worth actual money and did a major rebrand specifically to get rid of all non-planeswalker characters with interplanar travel.

At the same time, they've done an increasing number of non-canonical IP crossovers, infamously with TWD but more successfully with Godzilla. And the core set (which this replaces) never advances the story. Sometimes it is used to do "flashbacks" and otherwise contribute to canon, but it's never part of the ongoing story so it's not going to be a big sacrifice to just make it all non-canonical.

[Millstone85]

Well, MtG did ‘kill off’ their most iconic villain recently; so time to reveal Asmodeus and/or Tharzidun were actually behind it all right?
They would have done that if it was a crossover with 4e (where both of those guys were massively overhyped for some reasons I'll never get), but not with 5e.It might have been a consequence of the simplified cosmology and pantheon. When you are 2 of only 9 evil deities, you are bound to receive plenty of spotlight.

[GuestEleven]

At the same time, they've done an increasing number of non-canonical IP crossovers, infamously with TWD but more successfully with Godzilla.

That's the thing though. Godzilla, TWD, MLP and all of the others are IPs from different companies and franchises, not to mention how nonsensical it would be for them to actually exist alongside the MTG universe. On the other hand MTG and D&D are both owned by Hasbro and Faerûn or even just the entirety of the D&D multiverse would fit neatly into the MTG multiverse as typical fantasy settings. Again not saying that this is extremely likely to happen, just that it isn't a stretch to imagine.

[Naanomi]

They’ve already more or less verified that they consider the Magic worlds to be crystal spheres in their own ‘cluster’; that would include Aber-Toril


There's just no way they'll actually be going there canonically. MTG is worth actual money and did a major rebrand specifically to get rid of all non-planeswalker characters with interplanar travel.
Not all of them, we have the new Weatherlight, the planar bridge from Kaladesh, the Myojin and Eldrazi still planehopping...

[MoiMagnus]

There's just no way they'll actually be going there canonically. MTG is worth actual money and did a major rebrand specifically to get rid of all non-planeswalker characters with interplanar travel.

That's why I won't be surprised if there is a major retcon that makes MTG the bigger universe, with all the D&D universe inside a single MtG plane, or maybe even one MtG plane by standard D&D setting.
(with the D&D gods unaware of the bigger multiverse, D&D interplanar travel only occurring within the D&D plane and not allowing to go outside of it, etc)

[Unoriginal]

That's why I won't be surprised if there is a major retcon that makes MTG the bigger universe, with all the D&D universe inside a single MtG plane, or maybe even one MtG plane by standard D&D setting.
(with the D&D gods unaware of the bigger multiverse, D&D interplanar travel only occurring within the D&D plane and not allowing to go outside of it, etc)

They've already said that MTG "planes" aren't D&D planes, they're Crystal Spheres existing in the Material Plane and are just harder to reach than the typical Crystal Sphere, like Eberron is.

[Millstone85]

They've already said that MTG "planes" aren't D&D planes, they're Crystal Spheres existing in the Material Plane and are just harder to reach than the typical Crystal Sphere, like Eberron is.The idea of Eberron being a hard-to-reach crystal sphere has kinda been shot down by RftLW, which instead describes it as a secondary material plane hidden within the Deep Ethereal.

[GuestEleven]

They've already said that MTG "planes" aren't D&D planes, they're Crystal Spheres existing in the Material Plane and are just harder to reach than the typical Crystal Sphere, like Eberron is.

I think by plane he means the universe?

[Naanomi]

The idea of Eberron being a hard-to-reach crystal sphere has kinda been shot down by RftLW, which instead describes it as a secondary material plane hidden within the Deep Ethereal.
The 'alternate cosmology' idea existed in 3.5e as well, though I don't think they are treating Eberron very consistently as such in 5e; though the existence of 'hard to reach' Prime worlds is still evident in Athas (with it's own mini-cosmology in the Astral around it, separating it from most of the Prime and larger Planes)

I think the MtG Planes (if not an alternate cosmology ala 3.X Eberron) are a cluster of Crystal Spheres (akin to the 'Greater Arcane Flow' that most DnD settings exist in) that are surrounded by unique Planar phenomenon 'the Blind Eternities' (either in one or more of the transitive planes, the phlogiston, or both) that make 'normal' methods of planar travel challenging

[loki_ragnarock]

I'm reasonably certain that they'll be adopting whatever narrative makes the most money.

Since I'm not especially fond of the idea of mixing these two IP, I hope it's a flop.

But not too much of a flop or the company will go under, or so much of a flop that they reevaluate the existence of one IP or the other, or flops in such a way as it encourages leadership to double down on the idea because it was so close to not flopping, etc.

I want it to flop *just so*. Pretty narrow window, really. Better to just invest in mana now, while on the ground floor.

[noob]

I do not see the problem of mixing mtg with dnd if it is done in a kitchen sink setting such as the FR one which already contains everything (including "call of chtulu earth" and other nonsense like that).
If it was mixed with ebberon or greyhawk however I would dislike the cross over.

[Naanomi]

If it was mixed with ebberon or greyhawk however I would dislike the cross over.
Greyhawk is pretty explicit connected to Forgotten Realms; a connection to one is an (indirect) connection to the other. Same with Ebberon, just even more remotely

[noob]

Greyhawk is pretty explicit connected to Forgotten Realms; a connection to one is an (indirect) connection to the other. Same with Ebberon, just even more remotely

The connection are described within which setting?
Because if the connections are described within the kitchen sink setting itself (Forgotten realms) it does not means that those connections are canon in the other settings.

I am pretty sure that in call of chtulu setting the forgotten realms being reachable is not cannon.

[Naanomi]

The connection are described within which setting?
Both (along with Krynn) are part of the Radiant Triangle, an easy to travel Spelljammer path. Spelljamming is confirmed in several setting pieces, including Greyhawk novels. Wizards from both planes have visited eachother canonically, use spells bearing eachother's names (Bigby's spells are Bigby's spells in all planes, not just in Greyspace). Vecna has run all around the cosmology causing all sorts of problems on multiple worlds. Sigil has known portals to both worlds that are clearly established. Gods from both worlds have interacted in the Outer Planes before.

The idea that the canon DnD settings are all canonically interconnected is pretty well established via multiple venues since... 2e, if not before. This is also true for Athas and Ebberon (though the nature of Ebberon's connection has varied a bit between writers, even within the same edition... I like the model where it is a crystal sphere surrounded by demispheres that filter contact between the other Planes, like the Grey does for Athas; but it can exist as a pocked world in the Deep Ethereal or an Alternate Cosmology beyond the reaches of the Deep Astral/Deep Shadow)

[Unoriginal]

Mordenkainen says he has visited Ebberon, in his Tome of Foes.

[Naanomi]

Mordenkainen says he has visited Ebberon, in his Tome of Foes.
Tasha’s entry on Artificers says a gnome from Ebberon runs a shop in Sigil as well

[Millstone85]

Tasha’s entry on Artificers says a gnome from Ebberon runs a shop in Sigil as wellAh yes, the gnome artificer Vi, who you may remember as the "elf" everyone was puzzled to see on https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/51jYCkFCLHL.jpg
I never watched or read Acquisitions Incorporated but that's apparently where the character was created.

[Naanomi]

The idea of Eberron being a hard-to-reach crystal sphere has kinda been shot down by RftLW, which instead describes it as a secondary material plane hidden within the Deep Ethereal.
Note that the TCoE Spell 'Dream of the Blue Veil' clearly lists Eberron as a Prime World

[Millstone85]

Note that the TCoE Spell 'Dream of the Blue Veil' clearly lists Eberron as a Prime WorldI don't have TCoE yet but, seriously?! Okay, so the writers really can't make up their minds, even within a single edition.

[Naanomi]

I don't have TCoE yet but, seriously?! Okay, so the writers really can't make up their minds, even within a single edition.
I would put Eberron in a 'it is a Prime World but very weird and exceedingly difficult to access' category similar to Athas myself, but 'it is a Prime-like Demiplane' similar to The Demi-Plane of Dread (Ravenloft setting) is probably functionally identical for most purposes; 'it is an alternative cosmology' is harder to defend though in 5e (or 4e) the way it was in 3.5e