The Magic: The Gathering fall Standard rotation is bringing a significant adjustment to mana bases with four sets of dual lands leaving the format.
The game’s upcoming set Dominaria United will usher in rotation with Zendikar Rising, Kaldheim, and Adventures in the Forgotten Realms being phased out. Standard will start with Innistrad: Midnight Hunt.
Dominaria United will help compensate for the loss of staple lands like Pathways by reprinting six two-color pain lands at Rare. Initially printed in Ice Age and Apocalypse, these lands tap for two different colors for one damage or tap for a colorless without having to take damage.
Six cards from the 10-card cycle are in Dominaria United. It’s unclear if the rest of the cycle will appear in Brothers War or a future set.
Here are the six pain lands being reprinted in Dominaria United:
- Adarkar Wastes
- Caves of Koilos
- Karplusan Forest
- Shivan Reef
- Sulfurous Springs
- Yavimaya Coast
Three allied color lands and three enemy color lands are a part of the Dominaria United cycle. These lands will comfortably fit into Standard and immediately be one of the best two-color options for lands.
Pain lands entering untapped is what makes these lands preferable in some strategies to the slow lands from Midnight Hunt or gain lands from Kamigawa: Neon Dynasty. These will become the only multicolor lands that unconditionally enter untapped in the format.
These lands will also benefit Historic Death’s Shadow decks that are constantly looking for fast ways to lose life. Pain lands will be a consistent, hard-to-remove option that could further empower these decks in Magic Arena’s eternal format.
Dominaria United releases digitally on Sept. 1 followed by a worldwide tabletop release on Sept. 9.
