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Time Spiral (Magic: The Gathering)

Time Spiral
common expansion symbol
Released October 6, 2006
Size 301 cards (121 commons, 80 uncommons, 80 rares, 20 basic lands)+ 121 timeshifted
Keywords Buyback, Echo, Flanking, Flash, Flashback, Kicker, Madness, Morph, Shadow, Split Second, Storm, Suspend, Threshold
Mechanics Timeshifted cards, Slivers, Thallids, Kavu, Nightmares, Spellshapers, Rebels
Designers Brian Tinsman (lead), Aaron Forsythe, Devin Low, Mark Rosewater
Developers Brian Schneider (lead), Michael Donais, Aaron Forsythe, Devin Low, Matt Place
Development code Snap
Expansion code TSP
First set in the Time Spiral block
Time Spiral Planar Chaos Future Sight
Coldsnap Planar Chaos
Ravnica Block Lorwyn Block
Planar Chaos
common expansion symbol
tilted hourglass, merging planes, stylized letters "PC", or Möbius strip
Released February 2, 2007
Size 165 cards (60 common, 55 uncommon, 50 rare)
Keywords Echo, Flanking, Flash, Kicker, Madness, Morph, Shadow, Split Second, Suspend, Vanishing
Mechanics Spellshapers, Rebels, Split Cards
Designers Bill Rose (lead), Matt Place, Mark Rosewater, Paul Sottosanti
Developers Devin Low, Zvi Mowshowitz, Brian Schneider, Henry Stern, Mike Turian
Development code Crackle
Expansion code PLC
Second set in the Time Spiral block
Time Spiral Planar Chaos Future Sight
Time Spiral Future Sight
Ravnica Block Lorwyn Block
Future Sight
common expansion symbol
An eye gazing through a rift portal
Released May 4, 2007
Size 180 (60 rares, 60 uncommons, 60 commons)
Keywords Poisonous, Delve, Suspend, Vanishing, Transfigure, Gravestorm
Mechanics Scry
Designers Mark Rosewater (lead), Matt Cavotta, Devin Low, Mark Gottlieb, Ryan Miller, Zvi Mowshowitz
Developers Mike Turian (lead), Matt Cavotta, Matt Place, Brian Schneider
Development code Pop
Expansion code FUT
Third set in the Time Spiral block
Time Spiral Planar Chaos Future Sight
Planar Chaos 10th Edition
Ravnica Block Lorwyn Block

Time Spiral is a Magic: The Gathering expert-level block consisting of the expansion sets Time Spiral (October 6, 2006).,Planar Chaos (February 2, 2007) and Future Sight (May 4, 2007). It is set on the plane of Dominaria, the first (and as of yet only) time that that plane has been visited since 8th Edition

The theme of the block was time. Time Spiral focused on the past, and is laden with references to previous Magic: the Gathering sets. The references are reflected in the card design, which incorporates special rules from older sets, and in the "Timeshifted" cards, which are cards reprinted from older sets using the older card design (abandoned three years previous with the 2003 release of Core Set 8th Edition.) Planar Chaos focused on the present, referencing previous Magic: The Gathering cards, but changing them in some way, such as changing their color or shifting their permanent type. Future Sight focused on the future, both in that it includes cards from settings not yet explored in previous sets as well as including game mechanics that did not exist until it came out.

Time Spiral is typical among the first sets of a Magic: the Gathering block in that the cards are sold in four different forms. Four different theme decks, 60 card decks with themed, fixed composition were released, each featuring a different aspect of the set. The cards were sold in randomized packs, both as the typical 15-card booster packs and in larger 75-card tournament packs.

In his preview articles, Mark Rosewater described Time Spiral as an expansion focused on the past, with its successors, Planar Chaos and Future Sight, to be centered around the present and future respectively. This design was achieved through keywords and mechanics that interact with time, as well as cards based on those in previous sets, to promote a sense of nostalgia. Time Spiral was codenamed "Snap" during development.

The size of the set had been in dispute prior to release, as Wizards issued two different sizes for the set, 301 and 422. Retailers were initially told that the set would include 422 cards; Wizards of the Coast sent a retraction email explaining that the set would in fact be 301 cards in size. The set size was then confirmed to be 301 cards, with 121 commons, 80 uncommons, 80 rares and 20 basic lands. The confusion came about because Time Spiral was released with a 'sub-set', 121 timeshifted cards in addition to the 301-card basic set. After the set officially went public, Rosewater said that Wizards of the Coast had released the apparently conflicting figures by accident, but ended up just as happy to have done so after seeing the speculation they fueled.


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