Explore the Universe Beyond Magic the Gathering

Magic the Gathering has always been about epic fantasy. The world building, intricate lore and strategic gameplay have been the biggest draw to people playing the game. Recent years however has seen the addition of Universes Beyond, where players can experience Magic the Gathering through other characters and worlds from outside the initial universe. Universes Beyond has visited the high fantasy of Middle Earth and the dark futures of Warhammer 40,000. Not only are these crossovers proving to be highly collectable, they are changing the way players experience Magic.

Traditionally, Universes Beyond was a supplementary set to standard Magic releases, but this is evolving- as we can see with the New Final Fantasy release. Each release is a love letter to the beloved fandoms and feature some rather incredible artwork, as you would expect with Magic the Gathering. The new Universes Beyond sets have proven themselves to be highly successful in getting new players into Magic. Fans of Lord of the Rings, Doctor Who, and Fallout may not have considered playing Magic the Gathering until the Universes Beyond releases.

As we eagerly await the release of Marvel’s Spiderman into the Universes Beyond, we thought now would be as good a time as any to have a look at why these crossovers are so popular with players!

Lets have a look at some of the most popular sets from Universes Beyond:

Warhammer 40,000

In 2022, Warhammer 40,000 collided with Magic the Gathering to release a selection of Commander decks. Magic the Gathering fully welcomed players to the Imperium with this immersive set- the Warhammer collaboration featured a whopping 168 new cards across all the releases. The exciting cards contained all new art with powerful new mechanics. Each deck proves to be powerful and fun to play. The foiled collectors editions were designed to inspire fear and jealousy. The deep lore and world building that makes up the Warhammer 40,000 universe is demonstrated throughout the commander decks and was a great addition to the realms of Magic the Gathering.

Tales of Middle Earth

Our most anticipated Universe Beyond set was probably The Lord of the Rings: Tales of Middle Earth set from 2023. It proved to be a great success with the hunt for the One Ring card drawing in players from all over the world. This release really boosted the Magic the Gathering player base, with the standard booster packs released, alongside Commander decks, Collector Boosters, Scene Boxes, Jumpstart Boosters, and Starter Kits.

The set was fully formed and blended the beloved world building of Tolkien with the traditional mechanics of Magic. Tales of Middle Earth contained new and returning mechanics throughout the set, designed to appeal to new and returning players. The cards featured Tolkien's legendary creatures and powerful artifacts. Each deck featured 20 all new cards with stunning Lord of the Rings themed art. The breathtaking artwork helped the release to blend the realms of Middle Earth seamlessly into the worlds of Magic the Gathering allowing players to journey with familiar characters during the events of the Third Age. (Check out our post on all things Middle Earth if you are looking for more Lord of the Rings related fun and games.)

Doctor Who

Reverse the polarity of the neutron flow! 2023 saw the Magic the Gathering and Doctor Who timelines assimilate- the charismatic Timelord of many faces joined Universes Beyond just in time to celebrate his 60th birthday.

Magic the Gathering players could jump into the TARDIS and play alongside their favourite Doctor or Companion, with even a few of the long running series iconic villains making an appearance. Each deck contains at least 50 new Doctor Who theme art and mechanics cards. Magic the Gathering – Doctor Who featured four ready to play commander decks as well as collector boosters to help build the ultimate deck for Whovians. The Commander Decks added another layer of interdimensional fun by including the fan favourite ‘plane chase’ cards.

Fallout

The vaults are open… Fallout – Out of the Vault, released in 2024, featured Mutants, Cryptids, and Raiders from the Wastelands of Fallout, going as far back as 1997. Much like the Doctor Who collaboration, Out of the Vault featured four Commander decks as well as Collector Boosters. The preconstructed decks means newcomers can jump straight into the game. The mechanics reflected the video games themes of scavenging, radiation and survival. The Fallout Commander decks have a dystopian feel familiar to players of the videogame and the amazing artwork really reflects that feel. Each Commander deck has between 37-41 new cards and introduces a new ‘junk’ token.

Final Fantasy

The latest Universes Beyond release is a pretty special release as it is the first crossover to be considered standard legal, making it the 105th Magic the Gathering expansion. Final Fantasy draws inspiration from all 16 Final Fantasy games and features popular characters such as Cloud, Sephiroth and Terra. The attention to detail in the card art and mechanics beautifully captures the essence of the franchise, offering a truly unique and engaging experience for both dedicated Final Fantasy fans and longtime Magic players. The set was made up of 309 cards and manages to cover as much of the Final Fantasy legacy as it can. For this release, we were truly spoilt! Not only did we have the four commander decks that came with the other Universes Beyond sets, but there was a pretty neat looking starter set as well as booster packs and a bundle pack!

Welcome to the Secret Lair

Street Fighter and The Walking Dead were part of the Secret Lair drops all the way back in 2020. These were limited editions that featured fan favourite characters from both franchises. The cards had unique artwork that went on to become highly collectible for fans both of the game and the game/series. The Secret Lair cards were retroactively added to the Universes Beyond range. Another Secret Lair addition featured popular Fortnite characters, with artwork as bright as the multiplayer game. Each release features between 4-8 cards and they tend to be available in either foiled or non foiled editions. 2025 has seen Spongebob Squarepants and Deadpool become part of Magic the Gatherings Secret Lair releases.

What Lies Beyond?

We cannot wait to see our friendly neighbourhood Spiderman swing into Magic the Gathering in September this year (2025) Marvels Spiderman is the first time that a Universes Beyond release will go straight to standard and to feature the new ‘pick two Draft’ format. The set looks to be friendly, amazing, spectacular- just like our favourite Spidey himself. Interestingly it will be Magic the Gatherings first full set to be released within the Marvel universe. The Spiderman release will mark Magic the Gathering unifying the Universes Beyond releases within the standard play format. The release looks set to include:

• Sensational Spiderman,
• Doc Ock; Evil Inventor,
• Green Goblin; Nemesis,
• Venom; Deadly Devourer,
• Grasping Tentacles,
• Pumpkin Bombs.

Avatar The Last Airbender is set to join Universes Beyond later in November as well; players will be able to channel the memories of past Avatars and explore a world of untold wonders. Hopefully the Magic the Gathering Mana will be able to live more harmoniously then the nations in Avatar! As with Spiderman, the Avatar Last Airbender set will be considered as a fully fledged standard legal set. We cannot wait to see the artwork!

A New Chapter

We think the Universes Beyond releases are a fantastic addition to the world of Magic: The Gathering. We love how these sets not only bring beloved franchises to life with incredible detail and a genuine love for the source material, but also how they've expanded the original community. The exciting and dynamic releases discussed above show Magic's ongoing commitment to creating high quality and engaging content to their well established game. With new sets like Final Fantasy entering the Standard format, these releases are more than just crossovers—they're fully integrated, interactive experiences that help to keep the game fresh and exciting. Whether you're in it for the competitive play or the joy of collecting, there's no denying the incredible value these sets bring to the table.

Do you have a favourite "Universes Beyond" collaboration? (Personally, we cannot wait to see Aang make his Magic the Gathering debut!) Or maybe an idea they should look at for upcoming releases? Let us know over on our socials!