Summary
- Lorcana’s new dual-Ink cards emphasize color strengths, not new playstyles.
- Ink Geyser in Lorcana resembles a controversial MTG mechanic: mass land destruction.
- Ink Geyser may disrupt gameplay and lead to niche deck archetypes in Lorcana.
The reveal season for Lorcana began around 24 hours ago, and there have already been a plethora of new cards from the Archazia’s Island set showcased ahead of the official release date. Lorcana‘s new Perdita and Puppy cards for Amber/Sapphire decks were revealed today, and they are further proof that the game’s new dual-Ink cards are aimed at the strengths of the various color combinations rather than creating whole new playstyles. This is a smart move, as the roster of cards is not big enough to reinvent the wheel for each Ink color combination, but one of them got a mechanic that eerily resembles a controversial one from Magic: The Gathering.
Lorcana has still a long way to go, with 2025 being the second full year of releases for the TCG, and Archazia’s Island being the very first set of the year. In comparison, Magic: The Gathering has been around for well over 30 years now, and with many new sets coming out each year, it only makes sense that it is the first TCG to introduce some specific mechanics. In the case of Archazia’s Island, Lorcana is adding a card called Ink Geyser, which is very reminiscent of the problematic “mass land destruction” mechanic in MTG.
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Disney Lorcana is Adding a Controversial MTG Mechanic
Ink Geyser is a dual-Ink card in Lorcana, with its colors being Emerald and Sapphire. It costs 3 Ink and it is uninkable, but it has a powerful effect that exerts all cards in all players’ Inkwells, and then returns cards at random to their owner’s hand for each Ink one has beyond three. It’s too soon to say if this card will indeed be powerful in the game, but its effect is very reminiscent of mass land destruction, and that’s not necessarily a good thing.
Mass land destruction is often frowned upon in MTG‘s Commander format, for example, as it dials back each player’s progress in the game by multiple turns, and slows the game down a lot. The same holds true for Ink Geyser, which still activates for the owner, meaning that it’s not a detrimental effect that only affects opponents. There are ways to play around this, but Emerald/Sapphire is usually the epitome of ramp decks, meaning it could backfire as a strategy.
Why Ink Geyser May Be a Problematic Card in Lorcana
Lorcana doesn’t have a Commander equivalent from MTG just yet, but it does allow more than two people to play a match, meaning Ink Geyser and similar cards will be more frustrating the more players are at the table. Even in competitive, an effect that removes all Ink but three from all Inkwells can be annoying to deal with or build around, especially since the Ink is returned to a player’s hand, and Emerald/Sapphire is already one of the best discard decks around. At the same time, luckily, one cannot use Ink Geyser and follow up with cards like Bend To My Will to make the opponent discard their whole hand.
Still, it can be an issue in the long run if more cards with similar effects are introduced, as they will inevitably form a niche deck archetype that can disrupt any game plan besides that of aggro decks. Time will tell if Lorcana‘s Archazia’s Island set will add more of these cards and whether Ink Geyser and similar effects will indeed see play in non-casual games, but considering how controversial mass land destruction is in Magic: The Gathering even in casual matches, this could be a ticking time bomb.
Disney Lorcana
- Franchise
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Disney
- Original Release Date
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August 18, 2023
- Publisher
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Ravensburger
- Player Count
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2+
- Age Recommendation
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8+
- Length per Game
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30-45 Minutes