Alliances

Alliances is the eighth Magic expansion and was released in 1996 as the second set in the Ice Age block. This set contains no new keywords, but it introduces the popular Alternate Casting Cost mechanic, popularly referred to as "Pitch cards", that allowed you to discard cards of specific colors (sometimes with an additional life payment) to play spells instead of paying mana. The most notable of these cards was Force of Will, and the mechanic has reappeared in the Masques block, the Betrayers of Kamigawa expansion and the Coldsnap expansion. Only Alliances and the Chronicles) set were sold in packs of 12 cards. It was also the last expansion to feature regular multiple artworks on cards, a practice that was discontinued to ease identification of cards by their artwork. This was particularly important, as Magic was beginning to see print in languages other than English.

Notable Cards

• Force of Will has been an important and potent card in every format it is legal in because it can counter any spell even if its caster has no lands untapped.

Cycles

Alliances has five cycles:

• Two-color multicolor cycle: Energy Arc, Lim-Dul's Vault, Lim-Dul's Paladin, Surge of Strength, and Nature's Blessing are each uncommon cards with CD as part of its mana cost, where C and D are allied colors.

• Three-color multicolor cycle: Wandering Mage, Lord of Tresserhorn, Misfortune, Winter's Night, and Phelddagrif are each rare cards with CDE as part of its mana cost, where C and E are the allied colors of D.

• Two enemy color hoser cycle: Royal Decree, Tidal Control, Dystopia, Omen of Fire, and Nature's Wrath are each rare cards that have a negative effect on both enemy colors of the card's color. This cycle was the first to attempt to hose both enemy colors at once and inspired the creation of a similar cycle in the Mercadian Masques expansion.

• Replacement land cycle: Kjeldoran Outpost, Soldevi Excavations, Lake of the Dead, Balduvian Trading Post, and Heart of Yavimaya are each rare lands with "If [this] would come into play, sacrifice a (untapped) [basic land type] instead. If you do, put [this] into play. If you don't, put it into its owner's graveyard. T: add (1)C to your mana pool." and an activated ability. Words in parenthesis appear together on some of these cards. C is the same color of mana that the sacrificed basic land produced.

• Pitch-card cycle: Scars of the Veteran, Force of Will, Contagion, Pyrokinesis, and Bounty of the Hunt are each uncommon instants with "You may (pay 1 life and) remove a [same color] card in your hand from the game rather than pay [this card]'s mana cost." Words in parenthesis appear on Force of Will and Contagion in an attempt to balance them. This cycle inspired the creation of other Pitch-card cycles in the Mercadian Masques, Betrayers of Kamigawa, and Coldsnap expansions.

Points of Interest

• Omen of Fire is the only member of the Two enemy color hoser cycle to be an instant and to have a non-symmetrical effect on its enemy colors (the other cards of the cycle are enchantments and have a symmetrical effect on their enemy colors).

• Winter's Night is the only World Enchantment in Alliances.

Outside Links

• Official product page