Homelands
Template:Expansion Nonblock Homelands, released in 1995, is the seventh Magic expansion. It was the second expansion of Ice Age block until July 2006, when it was replaced by Coldsnap in this role. The mechanics found throughout the Ice Age block, such as Snow-Covered lands and cumulative upkeep, were absent from Homelands, making it a poor fit in its former block. It was sold as 8-card booster packs, each bearing the same image.
Design & Development
Homelands was developed, as many of the earlier sets were, without much comunication between designers of various sets. It was devloped from a flavor-first design philosophy, which, along with its separate story line, resulted in its stark difference from the Ice Age and Alliances expansions. This flavor-first design also led to oddities in mechanics. For example, many mechanics were found in colors that normally do not recieve them, such as flying in green or vigilance and trample in black, although this philosophy was not as developed in 1995 as it is today. Mark Rosewater wrote that "Homelands was a poorly designed set"[1]. The low power level and narrow applications of many cards in the expansion account for this fact, and it is generally regarded as the worst Magic expansion printed.
Notable Cards
Serrated Arrows saw tournament play not only as a result of the high prevalence of cards like Order of the Ebon Hand in Standard at the time, but also because of a short-lived rule in Standard tournaments then requiring constructed decks to include at least five cards from each legal set.
Merchant Scroll, reprinted in Eighth Edition, is a blue tutor card that remains a passable card in many formats.
Ihsan's Shade is among the iconic and flavorful legendary creatures of the set. Others include Autumn Willow, Eron the Relentless, and the casual favorite Baron Sengir.