Dissension is the 60th Magic: The Gathering

Magic: The Gathering

Magic: The Gathering , also known as Magic, is the first collectible trading card game created by mathematics professor Richard Garfield and introduced in 1993 by Wizards of the Coast. Magic continues to thrive, with approximately twelve million players as of 2011...

 set, 38th expert level set, and the third and final set in the Ravnica Block, released on May 5, 2006.

Design

Ravnica was conceived following the success of Invasion

Invasion (Magic: The Gathering)

Invasion is the 21st expert level set, and the first set in the Invasion block of cards of Magic: The Gathering. The rest of the block is Planeshift and Apocalypse. It contains 350 cards.-Set History:...

. Invasion, released in 2000, emphasized interactions between the colors, and it was one of Magics most popular releases ever. Lead designer Mark Rosewater

Mark Rosewater

Mark Rosewater is a Magic: The Gathering card designer. He is currently Magics head designer.-Biography:Rosewater grew up in Pepper Pike, Ohio, where he attended the Orange High School. Rosewater has a Jewish background. Rosewater has described himself in his youth as a "social outcast", who did...

 wanted to expand on the multicolor theme in a new way. Therefore, the design of Ravnica block is based around ten two-color pairs, including cards in which those pairs of colors work in concert.

Guilds

Of the ten guilds that rule the city of Ravnica, three are the sole focus of this third set in the block. The previous expansions, Ravnica: City of Guilds

Ravnica: City of Guilds

This article is about the Magic: The Gathering set known as Ravnica: City of Guilds. For an article about the plane and the guilds mentioned below, see Ravnica ....

 and Guildpact

Guildpact

Guildpact is a Magic: The Gathering set, second in the Ravnica Block. Guildpact was released on February 3, 2006.-Design:Ravnica was conceived following the success of Invasion. Invasion, released in 2000, emphasized interactions between the colors, and it was one of Magics most popular releases...

, focused on seven of these guilds. Dissension brings it to a close by introducing the last three guilds. Each guild corresponds to a different two-color combination. The three guilds featured in Dissension are:

• The Azorius Senate (white/blue): The lawmakers of Ravnica, founded by Azor, hence the name Azorius Senate. The Senate is obsessed with keeping the status quo
  Status quo
  Statu quo, a commonly used form of the original Latin "statu quo" – literally "the state in which" – is a Latin term meaning the current or existing state of affairs. To maintain the status quo is to keep the things the way they presently are...
  
  , no matter the cost. Their current leader, , believes that the best way to serve the city is to make any sort of action illegal. For his hierarchical and bureaucratic guild, history, stability, and the rule of law
  Rule of law
  The rule of law, sometimes called supremacy of law, is a legal maxim that says that governmental decisions should be made by applying known principles or laws with minimal discretion in their application...
  
   are paramount. The Grand Arbiter consults a sphinx known as , who is the champion of the Azorius.
• The Cult of Rakdos (black/red): Named after its demon leader, . The Cult of Rakdos is completely self-absorbed, out only for a good time. However, their idea of a "good time" usually involves murder and mayhem – the more bloody and depraved, the better. The cult would love to rule Ravnica and turn it into one big slaughter-fest, but to them, it's the process of random death and destruction that is fulfilling, not the goal. Fortunately for the Rakdos, their interest in the dark art of death has made them into top-notch mercenaries and assassins, which the other guilds are more than happy to take advantage of. The guild's champion is . She is at the forefront of most of the guild's macabre sacrificial ceremonies.
• The Simic Combine (green/blue): The Simic's original role was to protect and preserve what was left of Ravnica's natural ecosystems. Despite their best efforts, they failed, and there is no place on Ravnica that is left to nature. Now, the Simic Combine spends their resources creating new - and often frightening - species of creatures that not only survive in the concrete jungles of Ravnica, but thrive. The guild is headed by the distant and cool elvish biomancer . The Simic champion is known as , the culmination of all of Vig's previous experiments. It is intended to be the ultimate life form and rapidly "adapts" to change.

Mechanics

• Split cards: Dissension features the return of the popular split card mechanic originally from Invasion
  Invasion (Magic: The Gathering)
  Invasion is the 21st expert level set, and the first set in the Invasion block of cards of Magic: The Gathering. The rest of the block is Planeshift and Apocalypse. It contains 350 cards.-Set History:...
  
   and Apocalypse
  Apocalypse (Magic: The Gathering)
  Apocalypse is the name of a Magic: The Gathering expansion set, released in June 2001. It is the third set of the Invasion Block.-Storyline:...
  
  . There are 10 gold split cards representing some combinations of the other guilds of Ravnica. The allied color guilds are represented in uncommon split cards, whereas the enemy color guilds are represented in rare split cards.
• Hellbent (black/red, Rakdos): Cards with the Hellbent ability word gain additional attributes when their controllers have no cards in their hand. It is very similar to the Odyssey block's threshold ability, but revolves around the hand instead.
• Graft (green/blue, Simic): Similar to Modular from the Mirrodin block, cards with the Graft ability come into play with +1/+1 counters in accordance with the number associated with their Graft ability. When another creature comes into play, a card with Graft may move one of its +1/+1 counters onto that creature.
• Forecast (white/blue, Azorius): Rather than play a card from his or her hand, a player may use its Forecast ability during his or her upkeep, and only once per turn. To use Forecast, the player pays a cost and reveals the card with Forecast in his/her hand. Forecast effects are often either a lesser version of the main spell or a support effect for the main spell. A card with similar mechanic, , was first seen in Unglued
  Unglued
  For the Stone Temple Pilots song, please see Unglued .Unglued is the name of a Magic: The Gathering expansion set, the first silver-bordered, non-tournament-legal Magic: The Gathering expansion set released. It came out in August 1998. Its symbol is a cracked egg...
  
  .

Ravnica block includes many mono-color cards which encourage people to play with multiple colors. Ravnica: City of Guilds featured cards which have activated abilities that use mana of different color from the cards' color. Guildpact introduced cards which are enhanced if another mana color is used to play the card. In Dissension, in addition to the first 'group' of abilities, another group of mono-color cards have abilities associated with two colors, but must be played with mana of a different color or else the card must be sacrificed. An example is . It is a white creature with a life gain effect (white's specialty), as well as unblockability (blue's specialty). However, if Azorius Herald is played without blue mana, it must be sacrificed just after it comes into play.

External links

• Wizards of the Coast's Magic main page
• MTG Salvation's Full Spoiler
• The Magic Lampoon's Full Visual Spoiler