Elusive Tormentor / Insidious Mist



Here we have the first glimpse of an unseen characteristic of Stromkirk vampires: the ability to turn into mist.

Also, both scenes seem to have been inspired by Bram Stoker’s Dracula (1992). The first one seems to reproduce the moment the count enters Lucy’s bedroom while Arthur Holmwood is asleep besides her, while the second alludes to the moment Dracula turns into a green mist to invade Mina’s bedroom.

Thing in the Ice / Awoken Horror

Well, a possible The Thing reference and a drop-2 0/4 “wall” that becomes a 7/8 that sweeps the board? Well, on the right deck this is insane, especially if we consider other bombs like Geralf’s Masterpiece (another horror).

Are we witnessing a sub-theme for horrors here? We heard about how the masterpiece may be regarded as an improvement to Skaab Ruinator. By the same logic, this may be understood as a faster Ludevic Test Subject.

Having a quote from Runo, the Stromkirk’s progenitor, also makes many of us hope he’s in the set as a legendary creature, with an important role in the story (see that “Aligned Lith Network” in Nephalia).

Also, ice counters being removed to release something big is not something entirely unseen, right?

Hinterland Logger / Timber Shredder

Who needs axes? Not this lady, I assure you!

This seems like a more aggressive version of Gatstaf Shepherd (with a different evasive keyword now that intimidate is being avoided by R&D).

Reaper of Flight Moonsilver

Reaper of Flight Moonsilver. Ok, reaper is not among the whitest name around, and there wasn’t such a flight. We had Flight of Alabaster, Flight of Goldblade and Flight of Herons, so this is a new flight, and Moonsilver is the name of Avacyn’s spear, so this might be her own flight.

Then there’re her ability. And then we melt by vorthosian overdose. This is a white angel that becomes a Fallen Angel when the delirium threshold is obtained. We got to see it’s corruption under our noses!

This also reminds me of Wayward Angel, a Serra Angel that becomes Lord of the Pit depending on your graveyard (and costs 6, while the angel costs 5 and the demon costs 7).

Markov Dreadknight

Markov Dreadknight 3BB

Creature - Vampire Knight ®

Flying

2B, Discard a card: Put two +1/+1 counters on Markov Dreadknight.

3/3

This card isn’t the most impressive at first sight, but if we consider the his repeatable ability give him counters and not a temporary buff, this knight may turn out to be a limited bomb.

It is hard to read the flavour text, but it probably says the destruction of Markov Manor made its survivors more dangerous.

Flameblade Angel

Flameblade Angel 4RR

Creature - Angel ®

Flying

Whenever a source an opponent controls deals damage to you or a permanent you control, you may have Flameblade Angel deal 1 damage to that source’s controller.

4/4

We saw a transforming angel whose back is red, a delirium angel that becomes identical to a classic a black angel and now we have a straightforward nonwhite angel.

Soul Swallower

Your creature isn’t too gothic for Innistrad? Put some fog and ghosts in the art and move on!

Warped Landscape

We already gathered hints that linked Nahiri to liths, now it’s confirmed.

This land is a weaker version of Terramorphic Expanse/Evolving Wilds and will only be used in limited to activate delirium.

Farbog Revenant

Skulk is interesting and may end the search for a new combat-oriented UB keyword.

Ravenous Bloodseeker

This cards brings two hints. Something may be affecting the vampires with a uncontrollable bloodlust and this may be caused by the liths (at least the red glow in this one suggests a connection to red mana and red creatures).

Just the Wind

We didn’t see much of the set yet, and promising madness enablers are all over the place already. With cheap costs for small effects, cards like this could make madness-based decks a reality, especially if we got more powerful effects in higher rarities.

What caught my attention, however, was the card’s name and those weird eyes. What was that!?

Magnifying Glass

Shadows over Innistrad gives us the opportunity to witness the beginning of what may be Emrakul’s biology warping even before the titan is physically pulled/anchored to the plane.

We also got a link between the Inquisition and Saint Raban, mentioned in Ray of Revelation.

Thraben Inspector

White cards found a way to overcome one of its main weaknesses (the lack of card-drawing outlets) with investigate. However, we still have to see how viable and fast those additional draws can be.

Also, its harder and harder to deny Emrakul is influencing Innistrad, even if she’s still in the blind eternities with no physical manifestation in the plane besides the initial biologic warps and these incipient brood-like spawnings.

Clue Token

Hey there, Clue Token! Let’s check it’s symbol and flavor text:

“Their chanting grows louder as the tide rises.” - Tamiyo’s journal



What if this is the symbol of the cult that is using the liths in Nephalia? Full Moon, waves and tentacles? Could this be EMN’s icon?

Checklist cards

As some people theorized, there is more than one checklist card in SOI (probably one for commons and uncommons and one for rares and mythics), and this one includes a colorless card.

Buy-a-Box promo

With alternate art by Anna Steinbauer, this premium promo is this set’s Buy-a-Box promo.

Intro Packs

White - Alternate art premium rare: Drogskol Cavalry

Blue - Alternate art premium rare: Nephalia Moondrakes

Black - Alternate art premium rare: Markov DreadKnight

Red - Alternate art premium rare: Fireblade Angel

Green - Alternate art premium rare: Soul Swallower



Packaging

Prerelease packaging

Wider than the deck boxes we got in BFZ and EMN’s prereleases, this packaging is designed as Tamiyo’s journal.

Booster pack arts

So we got an unknown vampire, Arlinn, Avacyn, Sorin and Jace.

Let’s take a look at the new ones.

We already saw a berserker Falkenrath vampire (the new 2-drop “black Delver”) and apparently we’ll have other frenzied bloodsuckers as well. It has been confirmed that he has madness. In his neck, however, there is something that may be meaningless, but we know some Skirsgad cultists used yokes to defy death, so it could be more than just a detail.

Also, we got a new Sorin Markov art depicting him handling the Parasite Blade in a combat. We’ll probably get three planeswalkers in SOI: the Ux’s spot was probably taken by a blue Jace, the Gx’s was probably taken by a green and red Arlinn and the Wx’s spot may have been taken by a white and black Sorin. In EMN, we may have a black Liliana and a red and white Nahiri.

Booster Box, Deck Builder’s Toolkit and Fat Pack

You may also want to check my Table of Contents

