Inside you there are two wolves, and statistically they each have an 11.9% chance of coming from MTG’s The Hobbit expansion. That’s right, over the course of Magic: the Gathering’s 33 year long history, 101 wolves have been printed. 12 of these lupine trading cards are brand new additions released in The Hobbit, or one of the supplemental products brought out alongside it.
Why are so many wolves roaming Middle-Earth now when there were barely any included in the previous Lord of the Rings expansion? Well, Wargs, a Tolkienian species of evil wolves, were one of the five belligerents that fought in the Battle of Five Armies. This climactic clash occurred towards the end of The Hobbit book, and throughout the third Peter Jackson film.
Out of all the MTG sets in the game’s history, The Hobbit is the first to make Wolf typal its own supported theme, without sharing the focus with werewolves. The green and black archetype featured in The Hobbit drafts is based on wolves and utilizes the ferocious mechanic. Players are encouraged to gather together a pack that can buff each other up, and provide beneficial effects while you control a creature with power four or greater.
Wolves have also gotten a new typal commander in the form of Chief of the Wilds. This silver coated 4/4 gains two +1/+1 counters whenever you play another wolf, and it causes the triggered abilities of your wolves and battles to activate an additional time. At the moment, Chief of the Wilds is only available as a borderless card inside Collector Boosters. During 2027, though, the Battle of the Five Armies Co-op Kit will drop, and make this warg warlord more widely available.
Are you looking to rustle up some wolves, or have other cards from The Hobbit caught your eye? Let us know in the Wargamer Discord.
Source: Wargamer
