Tales of Middle Earth - Set Booster #1 (Magic: The Gathering)

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Some wiki info:

This is a cross-over product based on the The Lord of the Rings, the epic high fantasy novel by J.R.R. Tolkien. It was created in close cooperation with Middle-earth Enterprises, the firm which owns the rights. Hasbro, the mother company of Wizards of the Coast, has earlier published a board game based on the same franchise. The cards in this set feature the triangular holofoil stamp of non-canon cards.

Like all Universes Beyond products, the set is not legal in Standard. In the eyes of R&D, Modern (and historic) legality provides the greatest opportunity for most people to experience this IP while still holding Standard (and Pioneer) as its own space. While the set isn't focused on Modern as a Modern Horizons set might be, R&D wanted to allow as many players to play with these cards and enjoy them. The set was also be released on Magic Online and Magic Arena, where became legal in Alchemy and Historic.

The Lord of the Rings: Tales of Middle-earth contains 281 regular cards (101 commons, 80 uncommons, 60 rares, 20 mythic rares, 20 basic lands), and includes randomly inserted premium versions of all cards. The regular cards include a cycle of full-art basic lands that feature art from different sections of Middle-earth’s iconic map (#272-281). Alternate card frames have a different card number than the original version. The Jumpstart rares are #282-286 and the Starter Kit-exclusives are #287-298. Promos for the Pro Tour, the Store Championship and the Regional Championship are #299-301. Cards numbered #302-331 have the Showcase Ring treatment, while #332-339 are Nazgûl variants, #340-345 are borderless lands and #346-397 are extended art variants. The Buy-a-Box card is #398 and #399-451 are the scene cards. The Scroll-treatment cards of the Holiday Release are #411-490 for the Commander cards and #452-712 for the main set cards, while the cards with the new Holiday Release foil treatment are #731-757-787-1046.

The set features multiple representations of iconic characters to capture the depths of the story and changes. The circular shape of this set’s showcase ring treatment is meant to express what happens “inside” the Ring, symbolizing “the power that the quest for the One Ring can have in the different characters’ internal struggles.” For this treatment, the design team 30 legendary characters whose actions and motivations were influenced by the power of the Ring.

As a nod to the nine Nazgûl found in The Lord of the Rings, R&D commissioned nine unique pieces of art for the single card named Nazgûl in the main set. The card itself is Relentless, it lets you play up to nine copies of itself.

Arwen, Elrond, Eomer, Eowyn, Faramir, Frodo, Gimli, Gollum, Legolas, Merry, Pippin, Saruman, and Sam each have two legendary creatures in the set. Aragorn, Gandalf, and Sauron have three. Many characters, including some who only have one card in the main set, have additional versions in other products, like the Commander decks.

The title names the story's main antagonist, the Dark Lord Sauron, who had in an earlier age created the One Ring to rule the other Rings of Power as the ultimate weapon in his campaign to conquer and rule all of Middle-earth. From homely beginnings in the Shire, a hobbit land reminiscent of the English countryside, the story ranges across Middle-earth, following the quest mainly through the eyes of the hobbits Frodo, Sam, Merry and Pippin.

Found exclusively in Collector Boosters, players may find Sol Rings with art modeled after Elven, Dwarven, and Human rings from the novels, and text written in Tengwar script. These Ring cards can be found in both traditional foil and non-foil. The traditional foil versions of these specialized Sol Rings are serialized — there are 300 Elven Sol Rings, 700 Dwarven Sol Rings, and 900 Human Sol Rings. The non-foil versions are not serialized. There are 3,000, 7,000 and 9,000 respectively.

The serialized version of The One Ring, which is a variant of The One Ring Mythic Rare card from the main set, features a raised gold foil treatment applied to the frame, art, and text written in the Black Speech of Sauron using Tengwar letterforms. The serialization denotes that this card is 001/001 — the only one of its kind available in the world. The One Ring (Serialized 001 of 001) could only be found in a single English-language Collector Booster. It was revealed to be found in Canada on June 30, 2023. On August 2, 2023, Post Malone purchased the card from the finder for $2,000,000.

[Bobqwt]

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