Yesterday, players got their first unofficial look at some of the cards that will be included in Magic: The Gathering's next set, Theros: Beyond Death. These MTG Theros: Beyond Death spoilers revealed several interesting things about the set, including the fact that it will have a focus on Enchantments, and it will feature a new mechanic called Escape. Now, even more Theros: Beyond Death cards have leaked, and they confirm that two MTG mechanics will be returning with the set.
The first mechanic that is now confirmed for Magic: The Gathering's Theros: Beyond Death set is Constellation, which makes a great deal of sense considering the set's aforementioned emphasis on Enchantments. For the uninitiated, permanents that have the Constellation keyword create an effect whenever an Enchantment enters the battlefield on the side of the permanent's controller, and the mechanic was first introduced in 2014's Journey into Nyx set.
The second mechanic that is set to come back with Magic: The Gathering's Theros: Beyond Death is Devotion, which can be seen referenced on cards like Nylea's Huntmaster, a green common that temporarily gives a creature +X/+0 when it enters the battlefield, where X is equal to the player's Devotion to green. Devotion made its first appearance in the original Theros set, and a player's Devotion to a color is determined by counting the colored pips on the permanents that they control.
Furthermore, it is worth noting that there are cards included in the Theros: Beyond Death spoilers with abilities that are functionally identical to other old Magic: The Gathering mechanics, though they do not appear to be keywords in this forthcoming set. For example, Ilysian Caryatid can tap for an additional mana if its owner controls a creature with power 4 or greater, which is exactly how the Ferocious mechanic functions, and yesterday's leaks revealed a card, Hero of the Nyxborn, that functionally has the Heroic mechanic.
With the release of MTG's Theros: Beyond Death still quite a ways off, it may be a while before anymore spoilers from the set are revealed. However, the cards that have leaked over the past several days have already given players quite a bit to sift through, and they have certainly laid a solid foundation for what players can expect from the set that will follow the recently-released Throne of Eldraine.
The Magic: The Gathering Throne of Eldraine expansion set is available now.