Gavin Verhey explains the biggest difficulties of adapting Universes Beyond into Magic: The Gathering — from avoiding five-color soup, to ‘Figuring out what Green means’
Gavin Verhey, Principal Magic Designer at Wizards of the Coast, discussed the challenges of adapting external intellectual properties into Magic: The Gathering during an interview at Gamescom. He highlighted the specific design difficulties of the Universes Beyond program, such as avoiding generic card designs and defining color identities for non-native settings. The conversation focused on how the recent The Hobbit set successfully reintegrated Middle-earth mechanics while maintaining the distinct feel of a classic Magic plane.
- ▪Gavin Verhey explained that adapting Universes Beyond content requires careful design to prevent 'five-color soup' and to clearly define what each color represents in the new setting.
- ▪The Hobbit set is noted for feeling like a return to a classic Magic world rather than a typical Universes Beyond expansion, similar to previous sets like Ravnica or Lorwyn.
- ▪Designers introduced a new mechanic called Amass Goblins in The Hobbit, which serves as a variation of the Amass Orcs mechanic from the earlier Lord of the Rings set.
- ▪Verhey emphasized the importance of not making the game feel like it only rewards players who already know the source material, ensuring accessibility for new Magic players.
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| Publication time | Sun, 20 Sep 2026 11:30:00 +0000 |
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Gaming Gavin Verhey explains the biggest difficulties of adapting Universes Beyond into Magic: The Gathering — from avoiding five-color soup, to ‘Figuring out what Green means’ Features By Hamish Hector Published 20 September 2026 'That’s what many Universes Beyond can live or die on’ When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Here’s how it works. (Image credit: Wizards of the Coast / MEE) Copy link Facebook X Whatsapp Reddit Pinterest Flipboard Threads Email Share this article 0 Join the conversation Follow us Add us as a preferred source on Google Newsletter Subscribe to our newsletter For the past couple of weeks we’ve been seeing how Reality Fracture will conclude the multiverse-tearing Omenpath saga of Magic: The Gathering’s story.
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