You can currently grab the Play Booster Box for what I think might be its lowest ever price, nabbing you 36 packs for a fraction of what they'd normally cost. Because that offer includes 504 MTG Bloomburrow cards overall, it kicks all kinds of butt in the 'bang for buck' department. To be precise, it's currently $143.99 at Amazon instead of $170. As for the UK, it's £137.99 at Zavvi rather than £195.

With any luck, this is a sign of what's to come for this month's Prime Day board game deals. MTG traditionally enjoys hefty savings during the sale, so it's well worth keeping an eye out for any more (on MTG Bloomburrow or previous sets) as July ticks onward. 

Should you buy the MTG Bloomburrow Play Booster Box?

It goes without saying that your mileage with this enormous Play Booster Box will vary. If you're all in on MTG Bloomburrow and want to make/upgrade your own decks, it's a no-brainer. Similarly, competitive players who take the best card games to tournaments need look no further. Because you receive more than 500 cards with this bundle, it's the most cost-effective way of grabbing cards en-masse... or getting multiples of existing cards, if you're building a Standard deck.

However, anyone that would prefer a pre-built deck or isn't sure how to construct an optimal deck in the first place should steer clear. While the value here remains undeniable, folks in that boat would be better served by picking up one of the pre-constructed Commander decks or the set bundle/individual boosters so they can test the water. 

As for Bloomburrow in general, it really comes down to whether you want A) cutesy animals going on adventure, B) Redwall/Mouseguard-esque stories, C) a new world to lose yourself in. I tick all of the boxes above, so am 100% in on MTG's new set. Nevertheless, I'm not going to pick up this deal myself. I tend to play Commander in person or MTG Arena online, so will be looking out for offers on the precons instead as this month's Prime Day gaming deals get underway. If you only occasional dip a toe into Magic: The Gathering, I'd suggest doing something similar.

For other discounts, why not check out our roundup of weekly board game deals? You can also find some games-related gifts via our guide to the upcoming Prime Day Lego deals.

Playmats are used by players across all of the best card games, but are they really even necessary? When I have newer decks that are left languishing in cardboard boxes, why would I drop $50 on what is, at its core, a glorified mouse mat? Well, it turns out that all it took to change my mind was a trip to MagicCon Amsterdam and a glimpse at MTG artist Daria Aksenova’s adorably chaotic World of Trash collection. Like some kind of garbage-diving siren, Daria’s opossum playmat called me back to the Artist Alley again and again until I finally gave in.  

Did buyer’s remorse set in as soon as the high of the con passed? No, actually. Not only is my new playmat really high quality and incredibly stinkin’ cute, it’s made each game of Magic I’ve had since feel a little more special and pretty much entirely eliminated any confusion my opponent might have around my (messy) board set-up. I’m officially a playmat convert, and judging by the influx of early Prime Day MTG deals, the next addition to my collection could be just around the corner. 

We’re not due to see the majority of this year’s Prime Day board game deals until next week but you can already get up to 50% off playmats at Amazon. No matter what your preferred aesthetic is or what part of the color pie you’re trying to coordinate with, there are plenty of options to choose from. Even beyond the land of Prime, there are some great savings to be found at other retailers like Etsy and Walmart.

Looking to get ahead on other savings this July? Don't miss our guide to the upcoming Prime Day board game deals, or these Prime Day 3D printer deals. If you fancy moving your games from the tabletop to your handheld, swing by our Prime Day Steam Deck deals page.

While the Starter Set feels limited in its scope – frustratingly so at times – what is here has enough promise for those Final Fantasy XIV fans looking to take a leap into the best tabletop RPGs for the first time, mostly thanks to its highly faithful take on the world of Eorzea and some unique ideas around its MMO-inspired combat that makes it far more than just another D&D clone.

Final Fantasy XIV TTRPG Starter Set features & design

• Features basic rules & three adventures
• Focuses on accessibility
• Expensive for what you're getting

This is a Starter Set in the very extreme sense of the term, presenting two short rules booklets – one for players and another for the Game Master running their adventures, including three introductory scenarios – and four pre-generated character sheets based on FFXIV’s Warrior, Black Mage, White Mage and Dragoon jobs. Also in the box are some nice custom dice (color-coded for each class type of Healer, DPS and Tank), some paper maps, and cardboard tokens to represent attack zones, NPCs, and enemies. At $60 / £51 from the Square Enix store, it’s overpriced for a typical RPG box set, despite the good level of component quality, but par for the course for merchandise from the Final Fantasy publisher.

Those books make clear who this set is for, with almost the first half of the Player Book opening with a series of tutorials that run through examples of gameplay using a combination of comic strips and chat boxes. The rules and presentation here are aimed at Final Fantasy XIV players who’ve never played another tabletop RPG before, not seasoned D&D or Pathfinder vets looking for a fantasy alternative. While the rulebooks as a whole lack some clarity in spots that RPG rules-checkers may find frustrating, on the whole they do an efficient job of easing players into the very basics of how to play.

That’s helped by the RPG’s core gameplay, which uses a light set of rules focused around rolls of a 20-sided die, modified by a simple set of character traits such as Speed, Vitality and Dexterity. Don’t mistake it for another D&D-based d20 system, though; there’s a lightness of dice math and overall crunch here that makes this a much more breezy and beginner-friendly experience to both learn and play, for better and worse.

Final Fantasy XIV TTRPG Starter Set gameplay

• Combat is dynamic & doesn't drag
• Features locations & characters from A Realm Reborn
• Lacks personalization and progression

That light-touch approach is especially true of combat, the highlight of the system. Taking inspiration directly from FFXIV’s MMO battles, combat revolves around strategic use of your skills to form strings of rotations. Players can perform one primary and one secondary action on their turn, as well as moving – or sacrificing movement to gain an extra secondary action – with the chance to combo certain moves into others for free. They can also use instant abilities on other characters’ turns – allied or enemy – to respond with helpful protection spells or to stun a foe lining up a damaging attack, a dynamic way of keeping all players involved in the fight at all times.

Jobs work as you would expect from the MMO, as Tanks draw enemies’ attention with Enmity before DPS whittle down their health and Healers provide support; a downside being that the set’s encounters are all explicitly designed for a ‘light party’ of four players, with the less-than-ideal option to create NPC companions such as chocobos in place of missing humans. In another video game-y touch, bigger battles have dedicated rules for separate phases, transforming bosses into new forms while the players see their limited abilities reset. Powerful limit breaks, meanwhile, become available when the GM decides. And if you die, the rules’ recommendation is to simply restart the fight, rather than permadeath.

In a notable change from rolling to hit in D&D, attacks always hit, but dice rolls against an opponent’s normal or magical defense are used to see whether a ‘direct hit’ lands with additional damage and/or effects, such as stunning an enemy or gaining a buff. It’s a smart, satisfying rule that both feels faithful to the constant trickle of auto-attack damage in the MMO and overcomes the frustration of swinging and missing turn after turn in other tabletop RPGs. The guaranteed damage also means that combat doesn’t drag on, despite being a combat-focused game; in my group’s first session, we completed three combat encounters against multiple enemies in under three hours without the GM having to fiddle health values behind the scenes or fights ending before everyone got a hit in.

As someone with hundreds of hours in FFXIV, who has also roleplayed for over a decade, I’ve rarely enjoyed purely mechanical combat in tabletop RPGs. While FFXIV is highly mechanical – there’s little room for narrative ‘theater of the mind’ improvisation in characters’ skills – its familiarity from the MMO, speed and ease of resolution, helped by details like rolling once to resolve attacks against groups, the players determining their own turn order rather than rolling initiative, and criticals simply doubling the number of damage dice you roll, meant I finally enjoyed shuffling characters around on a grid map. This enjoyment only grew once enemies in later encounters started deploying advanced area-of-effect attacks (including the terror of a stack marker) more frequently, requiring the players to stay on their feet and use their skills carefully to avoid getting caught in a target – just like in the MMO. While the first scenario is a bit slow and simple, especially given there’s only three adventures in total in the set, the later fights begin to shake up the party’s tactics in a way that promises lots of potential for challenging and complex encounters in the complete rules. 

Those scenarios tie directly into the main scenario quest of FFXIV, featuring familiar faces, places, and even plot beats from A Realm Reborn. Non-FFXIV players may end up a bit lost in the references to specific factions, locations, and people, even with some added details in the book, meaning that it really is best enjoyed with a group of seasoned XIV fans able to appreciate its faithfulness to the game. That familiarity will also help overcome some of the shortfalls of the barebones rules themselves, which allow players to freely choose a species for their pre-made character (with no rules or modifiers attached) but fail to include a list of Eorzean inhabitants anywhere, for instance.

With character customization being such a core part of XIV, it’s also a shame not to see any kind of specific gear effects or deeper leveling options outlined in the Starter Set. You simply enter scenarios as a readymade character at one of three different levels – 30, 40, or 50 – with a set list of skills and no element of armor or weapon modifiers at all. It makes perfect sense in terms of the MMO’s full hotbars and level-matching to duties, but it does mean as a tabletop RPG it currently misses some of the player personalization and progression that lends itself to fully immersive roleplaying.

Should you buy the Final Fantasy XIV TTRPG Starter Set?

Final Fantasy XIV has become somewhat legendary and meme-ified for its generous free trial, which offers dozens of hours of gameplay across A Realm Reborn and expansions Heavensward and Stormblood. Its tabletop adaptation feels comparatively stingy, at least in this Starter Set. When its original gameplay ideas come together, this is a hugely enjoyable and satisfying adaptation of MMO gameplay that feels highly faithful and fun in its own right, serving as an approachable adaptation that fans can hop into comfortably. The speed and strategy of combat shines bright, the jobs and quests feel true to their on-screen counterparts, and the rules are easy enough to pick up in a single session while still having enough for players to feel involved. 

If anything, I just wish there was a bit more of it here – more scenarios, more character options (promisingly, the game’s creators have since released a Bard job as free DLC), more freedom to take the game beyond its limited, inflexible debut. Perhaps we’ve been spoiled by the video game and that’s asking a bit much of a Starter Set. Regardless, what’s here is enough to have whetted my appetite for the full rulebook – in that respect, perhaps this tease of what’s to come does exactly what it needs to.

Buy it if...

Don't buy it if...

How we tested the Final Fantasy XIV TTRPG Starter Set

Our reviewer served as Game Master for a full group of players including a mixture of Final Fantasy XIV fans and tabletop RPG regulars. They played the included scenario from the starter set.

For more, check in with our guide on how we test board games and tabletop RPGs or the GamesRadar+ review policy.

Looking for other recommendations? Don't miss the best board games, or these must-have board games for adults.

Honestly, it's a bit of a surprise – Games Workshop rarely reduces anything in price. That's where third-party retailers come in. These stores have a habit of slashing prices on Age of Sigmar products (not to mention everything else Warhammer), and Skaventide is no exception. If you're based in the US, you can find it for $225.99 at Miniature Market instead of $265. Meanwhile UK readers are able to dive in for £127.99 at Magic Madhouse rather than £160.

Seeing as the box set has only just gone on pre-order, that kind of saving is well worth paying attention to. Particularly because it's such a good entry-point to the game – after all, Warhammer Age of Sigmar used to scare me, but Skaventide changed all that. 

UK deal

Should you buy Skaventide?

Whether you should grab the new Age of Sigmar edition's launch set will depend on a couple of factors, but my gut instinct is "hell yeah." If you're tempted to try AoS for the first time, or are hankering after either a Stormcast Eternals / Skaven army, it's a no-brainer. You're getting the full core rules here, a rulebook for the new, quicker Spearhead mode (my personal favorite), and two full Spearhead armies for both factions... along with bonus models for good measure. That's a comprehensive intro to Warhammer's fantasy skirmish game. Plus, I'd put money on the inevitable starter sets not including the full core rules, the Spearhead book, or those extra minis. If it's anything like 10th edition for Warhammer 40K, the biggest starter set will just have two Spearheads and massively trimmed down rulebooks.

I'd only suggest waiting if you're willing to chance a bigger price cut or aren't tremendously interested in either faction (if you just want one of them, I'd actually suggest splitting the box with a pal who's hunting down the army). I'd hesitate if you weren't committed yet and would rather get the cheaper starter sets when they come out later, too. But otherwise, I'd say this is your best route into - or update to an existing collection of - AoS. And at those prices, you can't go far wrong. 

For more offers on the best board games, be sure to keep an eye out for the upcoming Prime Day board game deals - we'll be bringing them to you as they happen!

So, what could Duskmourn offer that previous horror-themed sets didn’t? It turns out that the answer lies in one small but important distinction. Duskmourn isn't just a horror set, it’s a set about horror movies – one that entirely wears its cinematic influences on its sleeve. From its VHS-tape-styled set packaging to its crystal-clear references to classic flicks like Ghostbusters, Saw, and The Shining, Duskmourn takes a committedly meta approach to its scares. You can already imagine this slightly tongue-in-cheek, referential concept sending chills down the spine of Magic purists – but I for one think it’s genius. 

Many of the points of inspiration for the set are fairly self-evident, but they were brought into sharper focus when I sat down to discuss the set with Senior Art Director, Ovidio Cartagena. As he puts it, “We were very inspired by horror media from the last 30 or 40 years. Those who will remember back in the eighties, movies had a lot of practical effects: we wanted to kind of replicate that feel. [...] I watched a lot of American cinema but I watched lots of other things: B-movies, whatever strange films I could find. I got a Shudder account and watched horror months for months on end”

Despite Cartagena’s nostalgia and admiration for classic horror cinema, he does recognize that there have been a number of welcome shifts in audience palettes. True to the “Magic is for everyone” credo, he and his team made a careful effort to deliver scares without actively disturbing or alienating players. Achieving this goal required them to exorcize some of the particularly unsavory demons of the horror genre: “There were certain forms of body horror that I wanted to avoid. There are many negative tropes in 80s horror that I wanted to avoid as well. The team was very cognizant of that. We had consultants on both horror and its tropes so we could do the best version, filled with all the things we love about classic horror.”

That said, one area where Duskmourn is eager to dive into tropey fun is with its band of survivors. Rather than creating a random rag-tag band of tubular teens with questionable perms, Cartagena and his team set to work deciding which existing MTG characters would fit within classic slasher film archetypes: “Who is the burnout? Who is the jock? Who is the nerd who comes up with some machine to help everyone? From there, we matched them to several characters. Some came very late into the process, and some came quite fast. You know, Zimone came like this [snaps fingers] Of course, she is our genius. Tyvar took a few meetings, a few heated discussions but finally, we're like, you know what, we need him as the jock.”

Of course, Duskmourn isn’t entering uncharted waters with its nostalgia-leaden, glitchy horror aesthetic. Retro and faux-retro media have become fertile ground for scares as of late and are something that have especially captured the imagination of independent online creators in the past decade. I saved myself the indignity of querying Cartagena about his takes on the Backrooms and Five Nights at Freddy’s, but I did ask him if he was aware of the current Analog Horror trend and where it fit into his team’s creative process.

In some ways, it seems as though Analog Horror (and modern audiences' relationships to it) forms the thematic backbone of Duskmourn as a set. The obsolescence of things like cassette tapes and CRT televisions only intensifies the feeling of being lost in time deep within the unending maze of Duskmourn’s mansion. In Cartagena’s words, “We're definitely responding to the audience's excitement for Analog Horror. That feeling of being disconnected, being not in sync with the world. Like you are using, for some reason, a TV that is completely obsolete that nobody ever would use anymore. [The anachronisms] are thematic and very resonant with modern tastes.”

Blockbusters and creepypastas aside, some deeper cuts from Cartagena’s filmic mood board for Duskmourn include a number of picks from the Italian horror subgenre of Giallo. However, the place of Giallo cinema in Duskmourn’s development offers more than a hipster, cooler-than-thou reference. Cartagena describes how he was particularly interested in emulating the genre’s high-contrast cinematography, owing to how well it lends itself to being printed at a small scale. 

As he puts it, “when the art is going to scale down to the size of a card, there's a very serious risk of losing shapes, having it print too dark, or just having it look drab and boring.” For example, Giallo’s visual influence is especially clear in cards like Screaming Nemesis. By using a combination of vibrant, highly saturated light and inky black shadow, its art creates a bold, surreal look that’s just as impactful on a 2.5 x 3.5-inch piece of cardboard as it would be on the silver screen.

Or at least I’m hoping it will be. If you too are keen to see more MTG Duskmourn: House of Horror, be sure to keep an eye out for when previews start August 31. If you’re already sold on this spooky set, why not pre-order your precon deck or boosters now? They’ll arrive just in time for October (which sounds like a perfect excuse for an MTG Halloween party to me). 

Looking to keep up with other upcoming Magic releases? Why not swap out monsters for mice and check out everything we know about Bloomburrow. Or, if you're looking to expand beyond MTG, give another one of the best card games a try.

Every edition of Warhammer Age of Sigmar has featured a new ruleset, although the underlying core gameplay typically remains unchanged. Players battle for control of set objectives on the battlefield while also maneuvering other units to complete Battle Tactics (basically, the game’s equivalent to side quests) to score bonus points. Unless specified by a Battle Tactic, players don’t actually score Victory Points for killing an opponent’s models, so the game is a bit more nuanced than simply pushing miniatures into each other and chucking handfuls of dice to see the results of a fight. 

When talking about any “new edition” of a Warhammer game, it’s important to note that there will always be crossover with the older edition. Most of the models still remain relevant, as does the core attack mechanic (players rolling pools of dice to determine the results of dice) and the need to measure specific distances a unit can travel on a turn. However, every new edition tends to take a different approach on the fiddly bits, things like how to place a unit and when certain effects are activated. 

Reorganizing the War Between Order and Chaos (and Destruction and Death)

In the case of Age of Sigmar’s 4th edition, game designers reorganized the rules into a modular system, with different game modes using different combinations of rule modules. Every game mode uses the Core Rules, but other modes use more complicated combinations of rules. There’s a sort of future-proofing here for game designers, so they can introduce new game modes in the future without needing to print a full rulebook – players simply need to add whatever rules module they need to the Core Rules. More importantly, the modular ruleset means that players won’t need to learn as many rules to understand how to play the entry-level Spearhead mode, which in turn makes onboarding new players a bit easier.

Continuing with the reorganization theme, perhaps the biggest change to Warhammer Age of Sigmar is that almost every action, from moving to fighting to casting spells, is reclassified as an Ability. While it may seem like a subtle change, the game’s Ability system provides a more consistent framework on when Abilities can be activated and what a player has to do to trigger an ability. 

As a part of this overhaul, players also have a bit more freedom on what order they complete certain actions. If a player has multiple units with abilities that trigger during a certain phase, they can complete those abilities in whatever order they’d like. Functionally, the game’s new Ability system makes it easier than ever for players to know when to activate their unit’s abilities instead of trying to remember a more complicated ruleset or how certain subsystems interact with each other.

Another key change in Warhammer: Age of Sigmar is an overhaul and simplification of how players determine who has control of an objective. Previously, the game determined that a player controlled an objective if they had the most models within 6 inches of that objective, with certain kinds of models counting as “multiple” models based on their type. Now, every unit has a Control score that is added with other units within range of an objective and the army with the highest Control score is in control of that objective. Additionally, a unit typically needs to be within attack range of an objective to potentially be in control of it, effectively forcing units to get closer to objectives. To put it mildly, control scores make scoring points a lot simpler and speeds up the end-of-round scoring system significantly. 

(Battle)shocking Rebalances and Removals

One thing Warhammer: Age of Sigmar has done away with is its battleshock subsystem. The game previously forced units that lost models to make a bravery test at the end of each round, with players potentially losing units if they failed the test. That entire system is gone now, although some units have abilities that weaken (or strengthen) their Control score if they lose units. Battleshock felt like a weird holdover from more traditional wargaming and didn’t make sense in a world full of undead skeletons and reincarnated, lightning-infused warriors. Removing battleshock not only takes away a system that usually threw salt into the wound of a wounded unit, it also got rid of another gameplay phase to help streamline gameplay.

While the battleshock system is gone, an addition to the game is the “underdog,” a designation to the player who is currently losing in a match. Depending on what ruleset you’re using, the underdog gains different benefits ranging from an extra Command Point to choosing how a “twist card” impacts a round of Spearhead. The underdog system helps re-balance the game, letting the losing player have a fighting chance.

In terms of the advanced rules, both magic and terrain have received overhauls. Terrain now has a health value and can be attacked by enemy units, which means that players can take out pieces of terrain that provide helpful buffs to units. This could stymie some armies dependent on terrain for their strategy, but players still can’t throw units into terrain to destroy it as they can with Marvel: Crisis Protocol, another game where units interact and destroy the terrain.

Meanwhile, all of the various magic subsystems have been combined into one ruleset. Perhaps the biggest change with magic is that the game includes a number of Manifestations (spells that previously comprised Endless Spells and Invocations in past editions) that have statblocks and count as enemy units. 

One other significant change is how armies are built. Players now organize their army into regiments, with a player’s army consisting of up to five regiments. Beyond these regiments, players can pad out their army using auxiliary units, but the player who has the least amount of auxiliary units also gets a bonus, which incentivizes players to stick with smaller and more focused armies. This new system also eliminates the Allies system, which allowed players to bring over units from other armies as part of army construction.

There are numerous other smaller changes in Warhammer: Age of Sigmar, all of which are aimed at making the game more streamlined and easier to play. The key to understand is that while veteran players will need to re-learn the cadence of gameplay, they should transition rather quickly. Almost everything that was cut or changed largely makes sense, and there’s no change that really hamstrings a particular army or eliminates a preferred style of play. Plus, the game is easier to learn than ever, which should help build the game’s playerbase and hopefully get more players addicted to an already fun gameplay experience. 

For recommendations on what to play next, be sure to check out our guide to the best card games or the best tabletop RPGs.

From Alara to Zendikar, we've seen plenty of interesting wildlife across the planes of Magic: The Gathering, but none embrace their wild side quite as much as MTG Bloomburrow.

One of MTG's best card game rivals, Pokemon TCG, has long been cashing in on the appeal of having cute critters fight for your entertainment. So, it's about time we saw a set where 'creature' really means creature. Even planeswalkers like Jace Beleren will have to undergo a furry transformation to make an appearance in Bloomburrow.

I think we've spent long enough just "aww"-ing at the promo art. Let's start burrowing through all the important details about MTG Bloomburrow like the set's release date, product range, story, mechanics, and more. Once you've set your heart on adding these fuzzy little guys to your collection, we're also here to help you find the best MTG Bloomburrow deals too.

What is MTG Bloomburrow?

MTG Bloomburrow is the 101st Magic: The Gathering set released in the game’s 30-year history and yet it's also the first time ever we’ve visited the plane of Bloomburrow. Following in the cowboy boot footsteps of Outlaws of Thunder Junction, this new plane deviates from a traditional fantasy setting –  the world of Bloomburrow is one entirely inhabited by anthropomorphic creatures known as Animalfolk. 

MTG Bloomburrow release date

Moving on from our first look at Bloomburrow, the accompanying Magic Story releases July 2, giving a greater insight into the set’s story and characters. A week later, on July 9, debuts and card previews begin. These continue until July 19.

With all that hype sufficiently built, Bloomburrow finally releases August 2. Bloomburrow will not only be making an appearance on your tabletop but will also be available on MTG Arena – four days early on July 30. We’re even set to see the addition of a super cute Bloomburrow Pet that’ll watch over your battlefield (and silently judge your every misplay).

Here are the key dates to keep track of:
Magic Story releases: July 2
Debut and previews begin: July 9
Card image gallery and previews complete: July 19
MTG Arena release: July 30
Tabletop release: August 2

MTG Bloomburrow products

As a standard set, MTG Bloomburrow will consist of play boosters and collector boosters that can be bought as single packs, booster boxes, bundles, and pre-release packs. Bloomburrow’s product range also includes a two-deck Starter Kit directly geared towards those who are new to Magic: The Gathering or just want a low-cost point of entry to Bloomburrow. 

MTG Bloomburrow story

MTG Bloomburrow is set in Valley, an area of the plane where itty bitty Animalfolk live and work in peace. That is until this serenity is threatened by the emergence of huge elemental predators who begin to sow darkness across Valley. From the avian power of Maha to the grizzly strength of Lumra, these Calamity Beasts are a fearsome opponent for the tiny inhabitants of Valley, yet they are prepared to fight to protect their home.

One of these heroes is the set’s protagonist, Mabel. This mother mouse wields a magical sword called the Cragflame, which also appears in a token equipment card of the same name. There’s also an outsider of Bloomburrow who will assist them in their fight: Ral Zarek of the Izzet League. He’ll appear very differently in this set however – through the process of planeswalking to Bloomburrow, Ral was transformed into an Otter.

It’s worth noting that Bloomburrow is also the first set of the new Dragonstorm arc. Although, until we see this arc progress further, it’ll be difficult to know about Bloomburrow ties into this larger story.

MTG Bloomburrow mechanics

The game systems at play in MTG Bloomburrow include as of yet unexplained Offspring mechanic, typal buffing, artifacts, and land matters. That’s all we know so far but this list is certain to know as we learn more about the set and gain access to new cards.

Though MTG Bloomburrow as a whole also has a typal focus, with each two-color pairing having a Animalfolk variant associated with it. 

MTG Bloomburrow spoilers

As part of Booster Fun, we’re set to receive some gorgeous seasonal variants of full art land cards, raised foil anime cards, illustrative ‘Field Note’ art treatments, and a storybook-inspired Woodland Showcase. Among these very special cards are contributions from prolific Pokemon artist, Mitsuhiro Arita and David Petersen, the creator of Mouse Guard. Another Showcase treatment featured in Bloomburrow’s boosters is Imagine: Courageous Critters, which will be of particular interest to long-time MTG fans given it transforms Planeswalkers like Jace Beleren into Animalfolk. 

MTG Bloomburrow Deals

Earlier this month, the top 300 finalists of this year's Pokemon TCG Illustration Contest were revealed. The results have been a long time coming – entries were submitted between October 12 last year and the end of January this year – and you can imagine the wait for the artists competing has felt even longer. The prizes are huge – alongside cash prizes for the top spot as well as a select number of runners-up, the grand prize winner and those who submit the best standard card and 'EX' card illustrations will have their entries turned into real-life promo cards. 

However, while the top 300 was full of impressive submissions, it seems not all of them should have been accepted in the first place. A statement posted on the official Pokemon TCG Twitter account reads: "We are aware that select entrants from the top 300 finalists of the Pokemon TCG Illustration Contest 2024 have violated the official contest rules. As a result, entrants in violation of the rules have been disqualified from the contest. 

"Furthermore, additional artists participating in the contest will soon be selected among the top 300 finalists."

It's not been confirmed which rules have been broken by the entrants in question. However, when the top 300 were revealed, many fans alleged that some of the submissions appeared to be AI-generated. This was met with severe backlash since it seemed that some may have used programs to generate their work rather than create it from scratch like the rest of the entrants. On this, however, it's worth pointing out that the rules don't seem to directly make any specific mention of artificial intelligence. The main rules were that contestants could only submit artwork that's never been published or submitted to other contests, they could only enter three illustrations, and whatever they submitted couldn't include any inappropriate content or violate any rights such as copyright, privacy, or intellectual property rights. 

If it was determined that AI was used for any of the artwork submitted, there's an argument to be made that it could be considered to potentially be in violation of copyright since AI programs learn from examples of other artists' work. That aside, there's an extra point in the rules that states sponsors have the right to disqualify entries "not consistent with the spirit or theme of the Contest." Regardless, it's not been officially confirmed that this is the case or if it's the reason certain entrants have been removed from the Contest, so it might be a different issue entirely.

In addition, the statement doesn't outline which submissions have been disqualified or state how many have been pulled. It adds, "We're committed to upholding the integrity of the Pokemon TCG Illustration Contest and appreciate fans' continued support as we celebrate the artistic abilities of the talented Pokemon community."

Be sure to check out our ranking of the best Pokemon games to find your next RPG adventure. If you're looking for something new to play, on the other hand, don't miss our guide to the best card games.

Skaventide reminds me of that.

I'm no stranger to wargaming, and have been dabbling in all things Games Workshop since I was around seven years old. Coming back after a lengthy break threw me for a loop, though; the old-school Warhammer Fantasy of my youth was six feet under, replaced with Age of Sigmar. Learning this new system and digging into a vast, alien world with years of lore to digest gave me the cold sweats, so I put it into a 'maybe later' pile at the back of my mind. However, going hands-on with the Skaventide boxset early makes me regret not diving in sooner. While this introduction to the game may seem intimidating, it's anything but once you get your hands dirty. Like so many of the best board games, you've just got to screw up your courage and dive in.

The gnarly and the grim

'Straightforward' is Skaventide in a word, with a bow on top. For anyone new to wargaming, this enormous box – crammed as it is with multi-part sprues and weighty tomes that are probably as heavy as my newborn – is likely to be alarming. Yet it's actually quite approachable. That's Age of Sigmar's new fourth edition all over, and this box (which launches the revamp) epitomizes the idea. 

For starters, those models aren't nearly so formidable as they appear. Despite being cut up into many pieces, they slot together easily thanks to being push-fit. No glue is needed here; all you'll use are pliers and a miniature sanding file for smoothing rough edges, if you have one. (Though some Green Stuff putty for filling a couple of gaps will come in handy.) The models I've built so far are expressive and dynamic in spite of this apparent simplicity, getting across what makes the factions tick purely through poses and clothing.

The two sides that have been chosen here are equally evocative. At one end we have the Stormcast Eternals, holy warriors that have been reincarnated by the god-king Sigmar to fight battles mortals can't. At the other, Skaven – mutant ratman who want to see the world burn – skitter into combat. Yet these Stormcast are far more nuanced than the (literally) good as gold knights we've seen before. This particular group includes members of the Ruination chamber, a band of soldiers who've been revived so many times that their souls have been chipped away into nothingness. Plus, the army used for most art and photography here is the dour Hallowed Knights – a group of grim zealots that I'd argue are much more compelling than their squeaky-clean compatriots. 

Similarly, the Skaven have enjoyed a long overdue revamp that renders them as even more gnarly than before. In contrast to previous versions, these ones are quite unnerving; they still have touches of goofiness to them (they are unapologetic cowards, after all), but the faction is much more rabid on the whole. Take the Clawlord general, for example – its monstrous mount is disgusting. As someone who's always fancied collecting a Skaven army because of how unsettling and simultaneously ridiculous they are, that's exactly what I wanted from this update.

Stripped down skirmishing

Much like the models, Skaventide's rulebooks are much easier to penetrate than I'd been expecting. The hefty Core Book (which weighs in at an impressive 274 pages) actually spends most of its runtime getting you up to speed on the Age of Sigmar world, its factions, and everything that's happened in the broad-strokes narrative so far. The actual rules don't appear until the final quarter, and it's a similar story with the book that covers the game's new Spearhead mode – Fire and Jade.

Speaking of, this is the thing that excites me most about 4th Edition. Spearhead is a stripped-down take on Age of Sigmar that should only run for an hour or so, uses smaller armies, and plays on a smaller board overall. As someone who recently had a baby so is chronically short on time, this is exactly what I need. I'd struggle to dedicate an entire afternoon to sprawling sessions of the full Age of Sigmar, so bitesize snapshots are right up my street. 

From initial inspection, it delivers. It strips back the more advanced mechanics for something simpler, so newcomers can be shown the ropes with a speed that surprised me. Indeed, the rules only make up 27 pages… and a decent chunk of that is given over to examples and a terms glossary. It's Age of Sigmar, distilled to the core of what makes it appealing. There's flavor here, but many of the layers have been peeled back.

I've yet to hit the table for a match, but I feel as if I could run it without many issues after an hour spent poring over the rules. It's why I'd actually be happy to recommend Skaventide to greenhorns instead of telling them to wait for the inevitable starter sets, unlike the Warhammer 40K 10th Edition equivalent, Leviathan (which offered incredible value for money, but had us wondering who it was for). It's a comprehensive intro to the hobby that armed me with everything I need for two-player games other than dice, and it leaves over extra models to use in your army for full, 'classic' Age of Sigmar games should you choose to dive deeper. 

That's because the box contains two Spearhead armies (premade forces you use out of the box, no army lists needed) along with bonus miniatures for larger matches. Leviathan also did this, and I suspect the not-yet-confirmed-but-definitely-coming starter sets will follow 40K's example by just giving you the Spearheads. As such, Skaventide is pretty great value for money. 

Is it odd that dice aren't included? Absolutely. But because Age of Sigmar uses standard D6s, those aren't a struggle to come by.  

Anyway, those are just my initial impressions. I'll have more on Skaventide and Age of Sigmar 4th Edition as a whole in the coming weeks, so watch this space. In the meantime, you'll be able to pre-order your own copy of Skaventide from June 29, 2024.

For some recommendations on what to play before then, check out these must-have board games for adults or the best tabletop RPGs. 

We’ve had plenty of hot tabletop releases and some of these are ready to have their first big discount – Prime Day should provide the perfect opportunity for just that. Outside of Black Friday, Prime Day is one of the best opportunities to nab great deals on some of the best board games. So, you can expect to see price reductions on everything from silly party games to complex strategy titles.

While we at GamesRadar+ will be on hand tallying up all of the best Prime Day board game deals when the time comes, I do have a couple of early suggestions for tabletop RPG books, TCGs, and board games to keep in your sights as Prime Day approaches. Ready, set, add to cart!

Looking to continue your Prime Day prep? Check out our guide to the best Prime Day lego deals, or these great Prime Day 3D printer deals. If you fancy picking up something to explore virtual realms with, swing by Prime Day Steam Deck deals for big handheld savings.