An intriguing heroine comes to Hibernum’s Magic the Gathering – Puzzle Quest this week and just in time for PAX West! On the 30th, this striking stranger, Saheeli Rai pronounced (Sah-hee-lee Ry), will join the game along with several add-ons, like new team-based Coalition Rankings. We caught up Samuel Bernier, Hibernum’s Senior Game Designer, to get some exclusive details about this character, and everything else coming with the update.

Pay attention, now. While Rai might be tougher to earn in the game, we’d like to make it easier for our readers to get some cash to throw around in Puzzle Quest. So, look close throughout this interview for details. You might get the chance to win some in-game currency.

A new Planeswalker enters the fray with this update. Just who is this mysterious woman, Saheeli Rai, and which exact skills and powers are in her abilities set?

Saheeli Rai is one of the new Planeswalker from the incoming MTG card set Kaladesh. She will be exclusively available in Magic: The Gathering – Puzzle Quest before the card set is released. Her abilities focus on creating Thopters, boosting Creature Constructs, and insuring you’re never low on Supports on the battlefield. She also offers a brand new color combination, letting player craft decks that they could never craft before.

Players are competing for Rai. What challenges must they complete to play as her? Will she only be available for certain brackets?

The event is called “Saheeli Rai’s Challenge.” It is a PVP event with four shards of mana. The players can play as the brand new Planeswalker, Saheeli Rai on the central node, and choose their best Planeswalkers for the other three.

The top-ranked players will be awarded Saheeli Rai at the end of the event. Players that have achieved Gold and Platinum Color Mastery Tiers will have great odds to receive Saheeli Rai-but all players will have a chance to win the new Planeswalker. Competition is sure to be fierce with smaller Leaderboards of only 500 players.

One of the four new PVP nodes will allow players access to Rai. What kind of edge does she offer players?

For the duration of the event, Saheeli’s Rai will be at her full power (Level 60) with a pre-built deck of powerful cards.

This update’s also adding Coalition Rankings. When players are allied like this, will it affect how they receive rewards and participate in events like “Saheeli Rai’s Challenge?”

Yes, players have been signing up for Coalitions since our last update and now for the first time players will be able to fight alongside their fellow Coalition-mates during the events. New and old events will now have bonus Coalition rewards based on the participating Coalitions final ranking on the leaderboards.

PAX West is coming to Seattle quite soon. What should Magic fans look for when they attend the con?

Players can find us at the “Magic at PAX West” event inside the Paramount Theatre. We will have members of the team in attendance providing hands-on demos of the game to display the new gameplay features and answer any questions. In addition, anyone that comes by our booth will get a free Magic: Puzzle Quest Life Counter and an in-game reward. As PAX West falls in line with our Saheeli Rai’s Challenge, it’s going to be great to be in midst of players and fans, and see where they stand in the event.

Not everybody can make PAX, sadly. However, some readers might walk away from this interview with some “coin” in pocket. If you were a player with some newly-acquired in-game currency, how might you spend it?

After you focus on having your favorite Planeswalkers, I would definitely consider focusing on the Shadows Over Innistrad Big Boxes, which comes with a guaranteed Rare Card or better. This set contains so many interesting new cards and really expands upon the Planeswalkers deck customization possibilities.

Thanks, Samuel. So, there you have it everybody. How’s your first impression of Saheeli Rai? What would you personally do with some in-game currency? Sound off in the talkback.

Image Credits: Wizards of the Coast