The new “Battle” Card type might occupy a similar creative space as ‘plane’ or ‘enchant world’ did, but as a permanent it will offer a mini game of sorts between players that rewards an advantage to the winner(s).
in context of the next set:
Battle for Zendikar (land focused)
Battle for Shandalar (dice/coin-flip/something mercurial)
Battle for Tarkir (dragon and/or enemy, three coloured theme)
Battle for Ravnica (bicolour, or simply multicoloured then)
Battle for Eldraine (…struggling here but you get the picture)
There may even be hints at future settings just as we saw in ‘future sight’.
I suspect we’ll thereafter see ‘battles’ with less ‘generic’ titles; and/or of less cosmological proportion and/or consequence in the sets that follow after MoM.
I mean, they did mention Jin-Gitaxias upgrading the oil all the time, and New Phyrexia (especially its spheres) is positively saturated with the stuff by now. I can believe that it simply has evolved by quite a bit on Phyrexia, indicated by Melira still being immune, but having greater difficulty healing people (which was absolutely still possible with Jace and Nahiri, but not considered because it would take too long). It also seems to me (though it was never truly stated) that it is more infectious on New Phyrexia than elsewhere.
I did expect a darkest hour in this set (it was never likely that the Sylex plan would succeed outright, with the Phyrexians still being able to invade in March of the Machine) so I feel this was just how it should be. And I wouldn't even say that either Jace or the others were idiots when it came to detonating the Sylex. They were too late (can't stop phase one after all) to stop Realmbreaker from opening Omenpaths to the other planes. They already were aware that detonating the Sylex might or might not have disastrous consequences for Mirrodin, but were fine with that. But the open pathways change things considerably, and we know that the Sylex can have strong effects on space-time and the blind eternities (the original one created the shard after all in which Dominaria stayed for a long time). So there definitely is a considerable risk for the connected planes and maybe even beyond, the interaction of realmbreaker and the Sylex being very unpredictable. Jace was still of the opinion that the risk is worth it to destroy such a virulent enemy, while Kaya, Kaito and Elspeth weren't and feared that this might make things even worse. And I think both are right to a degree in this scenario.
The pacing, as nearly always since they started to compress it into 5 articles per set, is awful, and leaves many interesting worldbuilding and character interactions in the dust. I hope there are at least a few more side stories, otherwise the compleation of Nissa, the rebellion of Urabrask, the life of Mirrans in New Phyrexia are all very much just side notes, and I feel like this is definitely a story that could have used some space to better explain where our characters came from, why Phyrexia is as infectious now as it is or give more closure to some of these character's stories and decisions. Unfortunately and for some reason, 5 chapters will have to do. I really actually like most of the plot points and the worldbuilding, but they are pretty much all given not enough room to breathe.
As far as explanations go this is sufficient for the oil’s difference. But I’d expect Kamigawa and Kaldheim to then have similar issues as Dominaria- having to fight off and/or contain local Phyrexian colonies despite the preators’ absences.
War of the Spark had little to do with Infinity War - Endgame.
The main trait of IW-E is the whole getting out of the lowest low spiel. WotS was just your standard "epic battle with stakes". WotS was closer to these mass-superhero battles than IW-E. Even the announcement artwork of MoM with Chandra and the legendaries evokes the fight at the end where all the different factions of the universe are summoned to battle Thanos' forces. It's really the MtG take on IW-E.
Agreed. We thought War of the Spark to be the Magic's IW/E, but in retrospect, that was just the Avengers battling Loki during the Battle of New York. This is the real McCoy.
I don’t know if an idealized. PW version of myself would’ve survived (uncompleated) before the final showdown that we were left with.
But assuming I did- I’d sooner side with Jace here than Kaya or Kaito. Better to risk the Multiverse’s utter obliteration than a fate-worse-than-death on a likely eternal, and cosmological scale.
Assuming MOM’s gonna feature multiple Planeswalkers across rarities I think I’ve figured out an apt name for Kiora:
Kiora, Zendikar’s last guardian
warning: speculation based on story spoilers leaked so far.
Alternatively they could treat the natives of worlds as competent fighters and guardians of their own. If the rumors are true that MOM will end with the worlds somewhat connected to allow non-planeswalkers to travel between worlds then this would be an excellent time to bring formerly plane-bound characters a bit more to the foreground.
Possible. My hunch is that the halo + sylex will give phyrexians agency and end its virulence- at least to some extent. New Phyrexia will then become a multiversal ‘UN’ and our Phyrexianized Planeswalkers will act as the jailers/diplomats that maintain order on New Mirrodin , the bridge between worlds.
This would allow planebound legends and factions to interact and trade with one another- or threaten each other if planebound/Planeswalker peacekeepers and agents don’t keep things under control. The struggle between legendaries within Commander would be made canon essentially.
As far as the story so far is concerned:
It’s clear to me now that WoTC is taking its IP nods from Marvel comics/MCU-meaning they would rather have a weak, nebulous story that can inspire but not ‘restrict’ future crossovers and platforms (like the upcoming Netflix series) which is likely more marketable than less ‘wooly’ franchises with a stricter canon.
What’s more: Teferi and/or Elspeth (somehow in conjunction with halo + sylex + realmbreaker) will also (accidentally) discover/weaken the barriers between the Universes Within and Beyond- Making Magic: the Gathering the ultimate crossover franchise.
I hope I’m wrong. Maybe the Netflix version of this particular arc will be more substantial. I think the writing was much better than Dominaria United, but I’m pretty sure these short stories are just the brushstrokes from which Hasbro hopes to build a more accessible franchise.
Also- yes I agree with some here that the oil is very problematic in terms of storytelling. Why is Phyrexia so virulent now as opposed to in the past? Dominaria should long ago have been completed by now if its properties were anything like it’s depicted in New Phyrexia.
WoTC is likely fully aware of the problem. But it’s a card game and they’d probably say I’m thinking too deeply about its story and narrative.
Maybe I am, which means I gotta be more detached.
<shrug>
Your one of the gatekeepers for universe beyond aren’t you.
I’m OrzhovPlaneswalker. I’ve been active in this forum for years. You know me, and I like to think that I’ve built enough of a reputation in my conduct that people might give myself some benefit of the doubt.
IMO- I t’s no more gatekeeping than not wanting your mashed potatoes too close with your garden salad, or not wanting to see Mario in your Resident Evil sequel.
Either way, I don’t know that I qualify, as I’ve yet to stop or refuse a game because of the matter. I just rarely play anymore in events or settings where I think the cards show up.
While it sucks, I accept that it’s all self-imposed. I don’t hate the players who enjoy the Universes Beyond cards, but I also don’t feel obligated to agree that the policy is healthy for the game overall- particularly its story.
~
Nowadays I largely only play with a few close friends or newbies wanting to learn mtg but without any cards themselves.
Given Disney's history, instead of giving Magic access to their IP its far more likely that Disney would have bought Hasbro/WotC and then had a Disney set made.
This sadly makes me want to both laugh and cry.
Disney’s getting so stale, which is sad because I actually appreciate it finally showing some spine against all the anti-lgbtq+ haters out there
It reminds me of something a media & communications prof once explained to a class- how in our current system, a targeted population of consumers (or their digital spaces at least) are sold as products to interested corporations, rather than a corporation’s products to interested consumers.
Players and mtg fans more broadly are going to have to get used to the idea that yes, Megatron is not only in their game but also- canonically, there’s no reason Teferi couldn’t ever meet him because the MtG multiverse now connects to ALL the multiverses and universes.
This makes everything potentially canonical and possible- all at once. It’s a clever and daring ploy really, but I’m not actually sure MtG players are going to react positively to it.
~
It’s one thing to endure through an entire set/standard environment with creative themes/mechanics that- while uninteresting to you are still made with Magic’s IP and creative in mind.
But would you or I have the same kind of patience for a standard environment where one (or more) sets are routinely based around another franchise entirely?
~
Maybe “The Witcher” IP-owners have done some market research, where 20% of non-exposed MtG fans become interested in “The Witcher” franchise after some exposure.
Maybe they & Hasbro can strike out a deal to get a set in that’s all about the Witcher.
~
Sure, some Vorthos fans might protest, but that’s who the new ‘mtg-show-that-nobody-has-any-updates-on is for, or is being catered towards.
“Y’see that product, this product ‘is for you’ vorthos.”
Teferi landed in a Dungeons & Dragons realm. That’s my theory.
Realm-breaker and/or the solution to Realmbreaker is going to connect not only the multiverse, but also the magic the gathering multiverse and ‘whatever-the-D&D-equivalent-is’.
That’s the reason for their catchphrase:
Universes Beyond, and Universes Within.
They are trying to create an in-universe and canonical reason for not only popular planes/planebound characters to interact with one another, but also characters from D&D, ?Un-multiverse (silver-bordered) and- (on an extremely rare-basis) other franchises that might not even be owned by hasbro/WotC.
That way- corporate gets what it wants, without players turning their noses up saying “that’s not a Magic card” or committing ‘gatekeeping’ as they call it.
The story-team has been given a mandate to make it so that- canonically, Jace, Teferi & Vraska can meet up with Ellywick Tumblestrum from the Forgotten Realms and- hypothetically, characters and things from other IP as well.
in game at least.
This is all just my speculation. Hasbro has financial incentives to *expose their customers into other kinds of products.
Hasbro and their partners also have an incentive to team up together, and sell/expose one-another’s fan bases to their respective franchises. The Witcher fans to MTG, MTG fans to The Witcher.
We should soon expect mainline sets to not always connect to MtG’s ‘story’, as Hasbro/other companies will either pay or be paid to expose one another’s audiences to each other’s respective IP.
A Smash Bros. Brawl mega-multiverse if you will where really anything could happen.
Yeah it could be like the thanos snap, killing all Phyrexians or something like that.
It could also be used to retcon or explain why events of War of the Spark didn’t happen the way they’re portrayed in the books. Maybe some butterfly effect of time travel- though that would be counter to how we’ve seen time travel work on Tarkir, with serious changes only affecting the plane in question.
If that’s the case they could also use the plot device to explain a new timeline (Netflix series) or why the current timeline is a little bit changed.
I don’t think think the Non-Phyrexization of the settings afterwards means there **won’t** be a cosmic in-lore retcon, but rather it instead suggests that New Phyrexia likely loses or isn’t 100% successful.
The Caverns of Ixalan set however mention the loss of the ‘Sun’ artefact as still being canonical so that is the biggest point against my theory unless some plot points remain the same.
Some other ‘big’ options besides/in addition to a cosmic retcon:
- all/some planes permanently connected via a multiverse tree (allows disparate legendaries to interact like in ‘commander’)
- all/some universes perma connected by a multiverse tree (think ‘Universes Beyond’) yes. I hate this.
- the Spark being changed (allows corporate to meddle with PW powers or roster)
-ordering of the multiverse changed (unpopular planes fading/dying, popular planes more central < Shandalar destroyed, Dominaria’s placement shifts, Ravnica becomes center of the multiverse>)
- maybe it will be the end of the current storyline and the epilogue will be meant to explain what happened to our favourite characters with future sets set in the far future as a soft reboot.
- colour pie or card type/mechanical changes
- Connect canonically the D&D universe and MtG multiverse on account of some deep cosmological screw up (I hope not)
My main point is that if a major change to the multiverse is being hinted at as a plot point- you can ‘bet your butt’ that the reasoning behind the move will be a corporate one, though not necessarily good nor bad as that’s subjective and we don’t have a lot of info yet.
Evidence from the past? The Mending was a way to make godlike planeswalkers grokable and bring the story online with contemporary tastes.
Someone check to see if there’s been any shift or news about Hasbro grand IP plans though, as that might give us a better picture of what could possibly be realigned.
Remember when Fox owned the film rights to the X-Men, while Marvel owned the comic book rights?
- Marvel: No More Mutants/introd of Inhumans/less emphasis on mutants in the Comics
Then Disney eventually acquired both.
Magic isn’t just a story or a card game. It’s a franchise, and we can’t understand how the game and story evolves without taking larger interests into account.
Maybe this is all just in my head, but we Vorthi are often Wizards’ greatest fans and most inconvenient critics. When the company tried to change Chandra’s sexuality in War of the Spark for marketing purposes, the community (vorthi in particular) let the company know that it was an unacceptable change.
Not all change is bad, but we need to be similarly prepared to interrogate the larger interests at play behind any large changes in the future to both the game & story.
My theory is that some past story elements will remain the same, but that the future Netflix series will be deemed ‘canon’ or ‘concurrent’ alongside/over the canon we know & love already. This will aide Hasbro’s possible larger franchise-building goal of keeping both streams consistent, and encouraging consumers to follow both.
So I saw post by Pleasant Kenobi and it unfortunately makes a lot of sense with some caveats:
“My theory. The Phyrexians are going to win. Completion is MTG's "the Snap" and it will eventually be undone via time travel hijinks. This time travel will cause a new mending where old characters lose their spark - allowing for a refresh and reset for the staple of walkers.”
What if this is just a shrewd use of a known trope called the ‘Cosmic Retcon’? Where the story’s canonical reality is changed to better adhere to what/where the IP’s owner would like to take the story- but can’t because of current cannon?
We know MtG is getting a new Netflix series that doesn’t follow the cannon. We also know that there’s something different about ‘The Aftermath’, both as a set and as story that has unusual ramifications for standard and the Story’s internal ‘multiverse’.
While it could just be the reintroduction of a small set that’s draftible with a main set, I just have this weird feeling that the set might be meant to provide some closure to fans before totally resetting some narrational elements of what we thought we knew.
Inconvenient plotlines or details that the company would rather change or ignore.
I might be wrong but given how convoluted & deep Magic’s past has been, and unpopular some more recent works like the War of the Spark Novels were- I’m suspicious if this isn’t just some means to hand wave stuff the company doesn’t like.
This could be good or bad. I assume that if a cosmic retcon is made, that the changes will be to ensure a more marketable IP. But there are always losers & winners with such potential changes, and sometimes an attempt to make a piece of IP more marketable, or appealing to certain audiences comes at a cost of equity (queer-erasure & Chandra in War of the Spark books); oddity (loss of unpopular characters & settings) and history (destruction of a known body of canon).
What do y’all suspect is the reason behind all these cryptic tidbits of info?
It makes sense. This guy thinks so:
https://youtu.be/3dzEfR5pLPE
edit: I forgot about skirmish
in context of the next set:
Battle for Zendikar (land focused)
Battle for Shandalar (dice/coin-flip/something mercurial)
Battle for Tarkir (dragon and/or enemy, three coloured theme)
Battle for Ravnica (bicolour, or simply multicoloured then)
Battle for Eldraine (…struggling here but you get the picture)
There may even be hints at future settings just as we saw in ‘future sight’.
I suspect we’ll thereafter see ‘battles’ with less ‘generic’ titles; and/or of less cosmological proportion and/or consequence in the sets that follow after MoM.
But here’s another one:
the new “Battle” Card type might occupy a similar creative space as ‘plane’ or ‘enchant world’ and reflect a mini game of sorts between players.
edit:
Oh yeah, and RIP to some obscure planes that WoTC had no (desired) purpose for!
Hope Davriel didn’t have a favourite blend of tea that required their un-compleation…
As far as explanations go this is sufficient for the oil’s difference. But I’d expect Kamigawa and Kaldheim to then have similar issues as Dominaria- having to fight off and/or contain local Phyrexian colonies despite the preators’ absences.
Also concur. The above logic makes sense to me.
But assuming I did- I’d sooner side with Jace here than Kaya or Kaito. Better to risk the Multiverse’s utter obliteration than a fate-worse-than-death on a likely eternal, and cosmological scale.
Possible. My hunch is that the halo + sylex will give phyrexians agency and end its virulence- at least to some extent. New Phyrexia will then become a multiversal ‘UN’ and our Phyrexianized Planeswalkers will act as the jailers/diplomats that maintain order on New Mirrodin , the bridge between worlds.
This would allow planebound legends and factions to interact and trade with one another- or threaten each other if planebound/Planeswalker peacekeepers and agents don’t keep things under control. The struggle between legendaries within Commander would be made canon essentially.
As far as the story so far is concerned:
What’s more: Teferi and/or Elspeth (somehow in conjunction with halo + sylex + realmbreaker) will also (accidentally) discover/weaken the barriers between the Universes Within and Beyond- Making Magic: the Gathering the ultimate crossover franchise.
I hope I’m wrong. Maybe the Netflix version of this particular arc will be more substantial. I think the writing was much better than Dominaria United, but I’m pretty sure these short stories are just the brushstrokes from which Hasbro hopes to build a more accessible franchise.
Also- yes I agree with some here that the oil is very problematic in terms of storytelling. Why is Phyrexia so virulent now as opposed to in the past? Dominaria should long ago have been completed by now if its properties were anything like it’s depicted in New Phyrexia.
WoTC is likely fully aware of the problem. But it’s a card game and they’d probably say I’m thinking too deeply about its story and narrative.
Maybe I am, which means I gotta be more detached.
<shrug>
warning: speculation based on story spoilers leaked so far.
I’m OrzhovPlaneswalker. I’ve been active in this forum for years. You know me, and I like to think that I’ve built enough of a reputation in my conduct that people might give myself some benefit of the doubt.
IMO- I t’s no more gatekeeping than not wanting your mashed potatoes too close with your garden salad, or not wanting to see Mario in your Resident Evil sequel.
Either way, I don’t know that I qualify, as I’ve yet to stop or refuse a game because of the matter. I just rarely play anymore in events or settings where I think the cards show up.
While it sucks, I accept that it’s all self-imposed. I don’t hate the players who enjoy the Universes Beyond cards, but I also don’t feel obligated to agree that the policy is healthy for the game overall- particularly its story.
~
Nowadays I largely only play with a few close friends or newbies wanting to learn mtg but without any cards themselves.
*spoiler*
I actually believe Teferi is lost somewhere within The Great Wheel now.
This sadly makes me want to both laugh and cry.
Disney’s getting so stale, which is sad because I actually appreciate it finally showing some spine against all the anti-lgbtq+ haters out there
Players and mtg fans more broadly are going to have to get used to the idea that yes, Megatron is not only in their game but also- canonically, there’s no reason Teferi couldn’t ever meet him because the MtG multiverse now connects to ALL the multiverses and universes.
This makes everything potentially canonical and possible- all at once. It’s a clever and daring ploy really, but I’m not actually sure MtG players are going to react positively to it.
~
It’s one thing to endure through an entire set/standard environment with creative themes/mechanics that- while uninteresting to you are still made with Magic’s IP and creative in mind.
But would you or I have the same kind of patience for a standard environment where one (or more) sets are routinely based around another franchise entirely?
~
Maybe “The Witcher” IP-owners have done some market research, where 20% of non-exposed MtG fans become interested in “The Witcher” franchise after some exposure.
Maybe they & Hasbro can strike out a deal to get a set in that’s all about the Witcher.
~
Sure, some Vorthos fans might protest, but that’s who the new ‘mtg-show-that-nobody-has-any-updates-on is for, or is being catered towards.
“Y’see that product, this product ‘is for you’ vorthos.”
- Mark Rosewater, probably.
(joking, but only sorta)
Realm-breaker and/or the solution to Realmbreaker is going to connect not only the multiverse, but also the magic the gathering multiverse and ‘whatever-the-D&D-equivalent-is’.
That’s the reason for their catchphrase:
Universes Beyond, and Universes Within.
They are trying to create an in-universe and canonical reason for not only popular planes/planebound characters to interact with one another, but also characters from D&D, ?Un-multiverse (silver-bordered) and- (on an extremely rare-basis) other franchises that might not even be owned by hasbro/WotC.
That way- corporate gets what it wants, without players turning their noses up saying “that’s not a Magic card” or committing ‘gatekeeping’ as they call it.
The story-team has been given a mandate to make it so that- canonically, Jace, Teferi & Vraska can meet up with Ellywick Tumblestrum from the Forgotten Realms and- hypothetically, characters and things from other IP as well.
in game at least.
This is all just my speculation. Hasbro has financial incentives to *expose their customers into other kinds of products.
Hasbro and their partners also have an incentive to team up together, and sell/expose one-another’s fan bases to their respective franchises. The Witcher fans to MTG, MTG fans to The Witcher.
We should soon expect mainline sets to not always connect to MtG’s ‘story’, as Hasbro/other companies will either pay or be paid to expose one another’s audiences to each other’s respective IP.
A Smash Bros. Brawl mega-multiverse if you will where really anything could happen.
It could also be used to retcon or explain why events of War of the Spark didn’t happen the way they’re portrayed in the books. Maybe some butterfly effect of time travel- though that would be counter to how we’ve seen time travel work on Tarkir, with serious changes only affecting the plane in question.
If that’s the case they could also use the plot device to explain a new timeline (Netflix series) or why the current timeline is a little bit changed.
I don’t think think the Non-Phyrexization of the settings afterwards means there **won’t** be a cosmic in-lore retcon, but rather it instead suggests that New Phyrexia likely loses or isn’t 100% successful.
The Caverns of Ixalan set however mention the loss of the ‘Sun’ artefact as still being canonical so that is the biggest point against my theory unless some plot points remain the same.
Some other ‘big’ options besides/in addition to a cosmic retcon:
- all/some planes permanently connected via a multiverse tree (allows disparate legendaries to interact like in ‘commander’)
- all/some universes perma connected by a multiverse tree (think ‘Universes Beyond’) yes. I hate this.
- the Spark being changed (allows corporate to meddle with PW powers or roster)
-ordering of the multiverse changed (unpopular planes fading/dying, popular planes more central < Shandalar destroyed, Dominaria’s placement shifts, Ravnica becomes center of the multiverse>)
- maybe it will be the end of the current storyline and the epilogue will be meant to explain what happened to our favourite characters with future sets set in the far future as a soft reboot.
- colour pie or card type/mechanical changes
- Connect canonically the D&D universe and MtG multiverse on account of some deep cosmological screw up (I hope not)
My main point is that if a major change to the multiverse is being hinted at as a plot point- you can ‘bet your butt’ that the reasoning behind the move will be a corporate one, though not necessarily good nor bad as that’s subjective and we don’t have a lot of info yet.
Evidence from the past? The Mending was a way to make godlike planeswalkers grokable and bring the story online with contemporary tastes.
Someone check to see if there’s been any shift or news about Hasbro grand IP plans though, as that might give us a better picture of what could possibly be realigned.
Remember when Fox owned the film rights to the X-Men, while Marvel owned the comic book rights?
- Marvel: No More Mutants/introd of Inhumans/less emphasis on mutants in the Comics
Then Disney eventually acquired both.
Magic isn’t just a story or a card game. It’s a franchise, and we can’t understand how the game and story evolves without taking larger interests into account.
Maybe this is all just in my head, but we Vorthi are often Wizards’ greatest fans and most inconvenient critics. When the company tried to change Chandra’s sexuality in War of the Spark for marketing purposes, the community (vorthi in particular) let the company know that it was an unacceptable change.
Not all change is bad, but we need to be similarly prepared to interrogate the larger interests at play behind any large changes in the future to both the game & story.
My theory is that some past story elements will remain the same, but that the future Netflix series will be deemed ‘canon’ or ‘concurrent’ alongside/over the canon we know & love already. This will aide Hasbro’s possible larger franchise-building goal of keeping both streams consistent, and encouraging consumers to follow both.
“My theory. The Phyrexians are going to win. Completion is MTG's "the Snap" and it will eventually be undone via time travel hijinks. This time travel will cause a new mending where old characters lose their spark - allowing for a refresh and reset for the staple of walkers.”
https://twitter.com/PleasantKenobi/status/1560954136941793282?s=20&t=qWnM6YczOxUSprRKdgTxDg
What if this is just a shrewd use of a known trope called the ‘Cosmic Retcon’? Where the story’s canonical reality is changed to better adhere to what/where the IP’s owner would like to take the story- but can’t because of current cannon?
https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/CosmicRetcon
We know MtG is getting a new Netflix series that doesn’t follow the cannon. We also know that there’s something different about ‘The Aftermath’, both as a set and as story that has unusual ramifications for standard and the Story’s internal ‘multiverse’.
https://twitter.com/Jason_IT_NBer/status/1561061900703748098?s=20&t=aieBkPG8qUNYJnqx9vU2dg
While it could just be the reintroduction of a small set that’s draftible with a main set, I just have this weird feeling that the set might be meant to provide some closure to fans before totally resetting some narrational elements of what we thought we knew.
Inconvenient plotlines or details that the company would rather change or ignore.
I might be wrong but given how convoluted & deep Magic’s past has been, and unpopular some more recent works like the War of the Spark Novels were- I’m suspicious if this isn’t just some means to hand wave stuff the company doesn’t like.
This could be good or bad. I assume that if a cosmic retcon is made, that the changes will be to ensure a more marketable IP. But there are always losers & winners with such potential changes, and sometimes an attempt to make a piece of IP more marketable, or appealing to certain audiences comes at a cost of equity (queer-erasure & Chandra in War of the Spark books); oddity (loss of unpopular characters & settings) and history (destruction of a known body of canon).
What do y’all suspect is the reason behind all these cryptic tidbits of info?