March of the Machine/Trivia

March of the Machine

 

Commander decks

 

Card comparisons

 

Trivia

 

Jumpstart

 

Welcome booster

 

Multiverse Legends

 

Art Series

 

Maro's March of the Machine Teaser

Mark Rosewater gave his traditional teaser for March of the Machine with the following hints.

First up, here are some things you can expect:

• Numerous cards that mechanically care about Phyrexians: Norn's Inquisitor, The Argent Etchings, The Great Synthesis, Glissa, Herald of Predation, Phyrexian Awakening, Sculpted Perfection; Grafted Butcher; Gift of Compleation
• A double-faced token (one that transforms): An Incubator artifact token that transforms into a 0/0 Phyrexian artifact creature.
• A card that costs XUUUU: Transcendent Message
• A variant of a mechanic returns to a premier set for the second time since it originally appeared: Basic landcycling, first appearing in Scourge, then returning in Alara Reborn.
• A legendary creature returns not seen since Homelands: Grandmother Ravi Sengir (transformed from Invasion of Ulgrotha)
• A creature capable of dealing eleven poison counters: Etali, Primal Sickness (once transformed)
• Some planes show up in card names that have never done so before: Amonkhet, Azgol, Belenon, Eldraine, Ergamon, Fiora, Ikoria, Kaldheim, Karsus, Lorwyn, Moag, Tolvada, Ulgrotha, Xerex
• Wrenn returns with a new partner: Wrenn and Realmbreaker
• Two draft archetypes that have a creature types matter component: Phyrexians, Knights
• The tenth ___ and ___ sword: Sword of Once and Future

Here are snippets of rules text, you’ll see:

• "You may cast spells with flash or flying from the top of your library." — Errant and Giada
• "An Aura, God or Demigod card" — Invasion of Theros
• "where X is the excess damage dealt this way." — Nahiri's Warcrafting
• "This spell can't be copied." — See Double
• "Activate only if you've cast two or more spells this turn." — Xerex Strobe-Knight
• "Each player can't cast more than one non-Phyrexian spell each turn." — Phyrexian Censor
• "X twice, where X is the number of lands you control." — Glistening Dawn
• "Whenever a permanent transforms or a permanent enters the battlefield under your control transformed," — Corruption of Towashi
• "If the opponent protects it, remove a defense counter from it." — Portent Tracker
• "At the beginning of your upkeep, if you haven't been dealt combat damage since your last turn, you draw a card and you lose 1 life." — Marchesa, Resolute Monarch

Finally, here are some Phyrexians in the set:

• Creature — Phyrexian Bear Rhino — Copper Host Crusher
• Creature — Phyrexian Devil — Glistening Goremonger (transformed from Pyretic Prankster)
• Creature — Phyrexian Dog Warrior — Burnished Dunestomper
• Creature — Phyrexian Jackal — Gitaxian Spellstalker (transformed from Khenra Spellspear)
• Creature — Phyrexian Samurai — Grafted Butcher, Alabaster Host Intercessor
• Creature — Phyrexian Shade — Ichor Shade
• Creature — Phyrexian Shark — Chrome Host Seedshark
• Creature — Phyrexian Treefolk — Malady Invoker (transformed from Herbology Instructor)
• Creature — Phyrexian Viashino — Thrashing Frontliner
• Creature — Phyrexian Weird — Compleated Conjurer (transformed from Captive Weird)

And some creature type lines of denizens fighting them:

• Creature — Moonfolk Ninja — Rooftop Saboteurs (transformed from Invasion of Kamigawa)
• Creature — Aetherborn Vampire — Consuming Aetherborn
• Creature — Fungus Rabbit — Placid Rottentail
• Creature — Dwarf Pilot — Hangar Scrounger, Golden-Scale Aeronaut
• Creature — Raccoon Warrior — Scrappy Bruiser
• Creature — Goblin Spellshaper — Kyren Flamewright (transformed from Invasion of Mercadia)
• Creature — Wolverine Dinosaur — War-Trained Slasher
• Legendary Creature — Elder Giant Dog — Kroxa and Kunoros
• Legendary Creature — Ape Dinosaur Turtle — Kogla and Yidaro
• Legendary Creature — Cyclops Homunculus — Borborygmos and Fblthp

Gavin's March of the Machine Teaser

Gavin Verhey gave a teaser with the following hints about the new cards in the Commander decks:

1. There is a red card with enchant planeswalker — Rowan's Talent
2. There is a card that calls back to a specific group of cards from New Phyrexia — Darksteel Splicer (Splicers)
3. There is a card that begins "whenever you cast a Phyrexian or artifact creature spell..." — Brimaz, Blight of Oreskos
4. There is a card with the same ability three times! — Conclave Sledge-Captain (Backup)
5. There is a cycle of cards that all have the ability word "Will of the Planeswalkers" — Path of the Ghosthunter (), Path of the Enigma (), Path of the Schemer (), Path of the Pyromancer (), Path of the Animist ()
6. There is a card with a sentence that begins, "As many times as you choose..." — Dance with Calamity
7. There is a card with the Parley mechanic! — Cutthroat Negotiator
8. There is a card that cares about Merfolk! — Vodalian Wave-Knight
9. There is a plane that references an iconic creature from Alpha — The Pit (Lord of the Pit)
10. There is a new Kithkin in these decks! — Mistmeadow Vanisher
11. There is an Angel Ally! — Kasla, the Broken Halo
12. There is a Phyrexianized M11 Titan in the set— Blight Titan
13. There is a new card with Eminence! — Sidar Jabari of Zhalfir
14. There is FINALLY something that creates a 1/1 Butterfly creature token with flying (#FreeTheButterfly) — Megaflora Jungle

Callbacks

Legendary callbacks

• The "Rare compleated Generals" cycle all have callbacks to Phyrexians of the past, some with stronger links than others.
  • Ayara, Furnace Queen is closest to Geth, Lord of the Vault and Geth, Thane of Contracts.
  • Heliod, the Warped Eclipse has art, Power/Toughness and abilities similar to Consecrated Sphinx.
  • Etali, Primal Sickness's Power/Toughness and abilities are a callback to Blightsteel Colossus. Etali's front ability is also strongly reminiscent of Etali, Primal Storm.
  • Polukranos, Engine of Ruin's name and triggered ability are callbacks to Wurmcoil Engine.
  • Rona, Tolarian Obliterator is a callback to the Phyrexian monster cycle, a 5/5 with a beneficial effect upon taking damage.
• Most legends on the Legendary team-ups have only one printing to draw from, so mechanically are similar to them. For those with multiple iterations:
  • Borborygmos and Fblthp discards lands like Borborygmos Enraged, and can also make itself Totally Lost (or perhaps Super-Duper Lost).
  • Drana and Linvala takes from Linvala, Keeper of Silence but its ability-stealing effect is from an unknown source.
  • Hidetsugu and Kairi templates with the red ability of Hidetsugu, Devouring Chaos.
  • Surrak and Goreclaw takes the Formidable haste-granting from Surrak, the Hunt Caller and the trample from Surrak Dragonclaw.
  • Thalia and The Gitrog Monster gives it Thalia, Heretic Cathar's two abilities.
  • Yargle and Multani has the highest power of any eternal creature card. Its stats are exactly twice those of Yargle, Glutton of Urborg.
  • Zurgo and Ojutai has temporary hexproof and a saboteur ability like Dragonlord Ojutai, and Zurgo Bellstriker gives a form of Dash.

Siege callbacks

• Invasion of Alara generally refers to Cascade, while Awaken the Maelstrom takes cues from all of the five shard Ultimatums, most notably Clarion Ultimatum's quasi-copying and Violent Ultimatum's destruction effect.
• Invasion of Arcavios can fetch Lessons.
• Invasion of Innistrad continues the Innistradi 13 theme.
• Invasion of Lorwyn uses the clause from Eyeblight's Ending.
• Invasion of Tarkir reveals Dragons like the Draconic Roar cycle.
• Caetus, Sea Tyrant of Segovia is just as large as the Segovian Leviathan.
• Ephara, Ever-Sheltering uses a Homeric Epithet as the Gods in Theros Beyond Death and is a God that requires a condition to become a creature, though it only needs one fulfilment.
• Kyren Flamewright has the only new Spellshaper printed for a decade and invokes the legacy of Squee.
• Grandmother Ravi Sengir uses the updated version of the Sengir Vampire trigger, like that on Sengir, the Dark Baron.
• Guildpact Paragon has a small version of Niv-Mizzet Reborn's entry trigger.
• Lazotep Convert's ability is similar to Eternalize.
• Marchesa, Resolute Monarch's second ability counters dethrone, and her third ability is reminiscent, fittingly, of the monarch.
• Primordial Plasm removes abilities as Muraganda Petroglyphs desires.
• Serra Faithkeeper is a callback to Serra Angel.

Others

• Botanical Brawler's art is a callback to Stony Strength.
• Etched Familiar trades the card drawn for one more power and two damage from Filigree Familiar. The seller takes no responsibility for modified goods.
• Fertilid's Favor gives a creature Fertilid's size and a player one activation of its ability.
• Knight-Errant of Eos, with one creature convoking, is a creature that looks for two 1-mana creatures, like the Ranger of Eos.
• Sunfall is a callback to Phyrexian Rebirth and Starfall.
• Rampaging Raptor brings to mind Questing Beast.
• Seraph of New Phyrexia has a trigger reminiscent of Fallen Angel.
• Glissa, Herald of Predation continues to combine First Strike and Deathtouch.
• Chrome Host Seedshark creates variable sized tokens like Shark Typhoon.
• Phyrexian Archivist is exactly Cogwork Archivist plus the Phyrexian type, in the same location.
• Ephara's Dispersal shares similarities in art and mechanics to Stern Dismissal.

Other trivia

• Thalia and The Gitrog Monster calls out a joke popular amongst LoadingReadyRun fans that the arm in The Gitrog Monster's mouth in the art was Thalia's, of which most of the humor is from insisting despite all evidence to the contrary.
• Saiba Cryptomancer boasts their "level-seven proxy", close to a meme from the early 2010s.
• Ghalta and Mavren previews the Booster Fun treatment for cards in The Lost Caverns of Ixalan.
• Herald of Hoofbeats is the only creature card with horsemanship not from Portal Three Kingdoms.
• A design for the card that became Wicked Slumber was requested by the Wilds of Eldraine Vision Design team to help set up backstory for the Wicked Slumber.
• March of the Machine is the first set since New Phyrexia to have no rare or mythic rares lands.
• With two guaranteed DFC slots with shifting rarities plus a Multiverse Legends slot, it rivals Strixhaven: School of Mages in printing complexity. Additionally, mathematical breakdowns of the rarity distribution in March of the Machine suggest that it was a pilot program for the distribution model used by Play Booster, which launched six months later.