How MTG Streets of New Capenna prerelease works

Wizards of the Coast is changing up the Streets of New Capenna prerelease, launching the event prior to the Magic: The Gathering Arena release while showcasing five crime families and the three colors that represent each family. 

Scheduled to begin at WPN game stores on April 22, with most local game stores offering several events, the Streets of New Capenna (SNC) prerelease will launch prior to the digital and global releases of the upcoming Standard-legal set. And unlike previous MTG prerelease events, each of the prerelease kits will showcase one of the five crime families from the city of New Capenna. 

New and returning Magic players should call ahead to their local game store to see if reservations are needed for the SNC prerelease events that start on April 22. Upon arriving at the event, players will receive one of five New Capenna prerelease boxes that highlight one of five crime boss families and the three-color shard for that family.   

Related: How 3-color Draft works in MTG Streets of New Capenna Limited

Here are the contents in each MTG Streets of New Capenna prerelease pack, according to WPN. 

• Five New Capenna Draft booster packs
• One SNC Family booster prerelease pack
• One foil-stamped card from SNC with a rarity of Rare or higher
• One deck box
• One spindown life counter

The format for the MTG Streets of New Capenna prerelease events is Limited Sealed. Within the set are mana fixers, fetch lands, and dual-colored tap lands to help players run three-color builds. The SNC family booster pack will contain cards that support each family’s three-color theme. Players can choose to stick with three colors, build a two-color deck instead, or go all-in with a five-color build. 

Each of the five crime families within SNC has a three-color representation and its own mechanic. 

• Maestros: Grixis colors in Blue, Black, and Red. The Maestros mechanic is Casualty, copying Instant and Sorcery spells upon sacrificing a creature.
• Brokers: Bant colors in Green, White, and Blue. The Brokers mechanic is Shield Counters, providing protection in a build that can use those counters aggressively against opponents.
• Obscura: Esper colors in White, Blue, and Black. The Obscura mechanic is Connive, providing card advantage and +1/+1 counters.
• Riveteers: Jund colors in Black, Red, and Green. The Riveteers mechanic is Blitz, giving creatures Haste at an alternative casting cost in builds that play aggressively while also synergizing with sacrifice themes in other archetypes.
• Cabaretti: Naya colors in Red, Green, and White. The Cabaretti mechanic is Alliance, providing various effects when creatures enter the battlefield, supporting creature-heavy builds with go-wide synergies. 

There are also five dual-color New Capenna Limited archetypes that can support two allied three-colored factions.

• Red/Black (RB): Sacrifice
• Blue/Black (UB): Five or more mana values of cards in the graveyard
• White/Blue (WU): Counters and creatures with Flying
• White/Green (WG): Citizen type and go-wide creature tokens
• Red/Green (RG): Treasure tokens and creatures with Reach

The New Capenna Limited format contains a number of cross synergies between the archetypes. Cards with the Blitz mechanic found in the Riveteers faction synergize really well with the Casualty mechanic in Maestros. And both the Obscura and Maestro’s factions synergize with a sub-mechanic that rewards players for having five or more mana values in their graveyard.

Players in a New Capenna prerelease (Sealed) format can take advantage of these synergies by running more than three colors in a build. The SNC set is packed with various ways to fix your mana, from Rare Tri-lands to a cycle of five mana-fixing creatures.

• Tri-lands: Rare lands that synergize with each of the five factions and have Cycling.
• Fetch lands: Uncommon lands that immediately sacrifice themselves to fetch a basic land that synergizes with one of the five factions while gaining you one life.
• Dual-lands: Common lands that come in tapped, representing two colors, and can get sacrificed upon paying a mana cost to draw a card.
• Treasure: Treasure tokens are everywhere if you know where to look.
• Mana-fixing creatures: A cycle of five Common creatures that have the option to exile for two mana of any color, providing a target land with three additional colors it can tap for. The creature can be cast at any time, but the land returns to its normal mana color. 

Related: Best multicolor MTG New Capenna Limited Draft Common and Uncommon cards

Sealed builds have a minimum of 40 cards in a deck, with around 17 lands. Players may consider running 18 lands at the SNC prerelease events if running three or more colors in a build. A match is played in a best-of-three format, allowing players to change cards in between games. Rewards for participating at an MTG New Capenna prerelease event will include SNC booster and promo packs.

Best Uncommon and Common New Capenna Limited cards

• Best multicolor
• Best White
• Best Blue
• Best Black
• Best Red
• Best Green
• Best colorless
• Best Mythic Rare and Rare

Update April 22 8pm CT: The article was updated prior to the launch of New Capenna prerelease events.