Wizards of the Coast is weaving another unique and exciting plane for Magic: The Gathering. Kaldheim, the game's latest set, is getting very close to release. This new loction is deeply rooted in all things Norse, one of pop culture's favorite types of mythology but so far one untouched by this iconic trading card game until now. Kaldheim is divided into ten distinct realms, and at the center of them all is the World Tree, a clear nod to Norse myth's Yggdrasil. Magic: The Gathering is never scared of turning immensely powerful people or places into cards, and The World Tree is no exception.
However, a lot of fans have noticed something that seems wrong about the World Tree's card. For some reason, it's not a legendary land—it's just a normal one. It seems painfully obvious that the World Tree belongs in the legendary classification, since it's certainly the only one of its kind in-lore, and it's literally part of Kaldheim's legends. As a result, many lore-minded players have been driven up the walls by this apparent inconsistency. Since the card's reveal, some of the set's designers have come forward and explained their reasons for keeping the World Tree from legendary status. Even so, the card should have gotten the tag.
The World Tree Debate
There's a lot of lore reasons that the World Tree should be legendary. Naturally, it's the only of its kind, but that's only the start. It's role in Kaldheim's lore is huge: this tree's sap is distilled into the substance that gives the gods—former mortals—their longevity and powers. All life in Kaldheim stems from the World Tree, and the Ten Realms that make up the plane orbit around the tree. The tree's importance to the story can't be understated either. The Sword of the Realms, which the set's narrative revolves around, is forged from the tree's sap as well. On top of that, its elaborate mechanics and interaction with the God creature type make it clear that it should be legendary along with Kaldheim's gods.
While there is a strong case that the land should be legendary, Magic: the Gathering's developer has its own specific reason for not making the land legendary. It seems as if the company feels that, overall, legendary lands don't play well, since they can "mana screw" players, as they can only have one copy of a legendary card on the battlefield under their control. That means drawing a second copy of a legendary land is useless after one has been played. Magic fans might notice that many of its recent sets have been devoid of legendary lands even if there were locations befitting it, so it looks like the company will avoid making even well-deserving cards like the World Tree legendary.
Magic's Loopholes
It's worth noting that the developer has found a lot of loopholes that let important locations be legendary over the years. As one example, in War of the Spark, Bolas's Citadel was an artifact instead of a land, and thus it could have the legendary tag. Another alternative was shown by Ixalan and Rivals of Ixalan, which had cycles of enchantments that would transform into legendary lands under certain conditions. Unfortunately, Kaldheim doesn't have transforming cards as a mechanic, and apparently The World Tree's design didn't allow for it to become an artifact.
The World Tree might ultimately be stronger if it's not legendary. That means one can play multiple copies that all work toward their shared passive ability, while also keeping extra uses of the land's activated ability in store. In terms of lore, though, it can't be denied that The World Tree's status as a regular land is confusing and a little disappointing. Legendary lands are just as important to the game's lore as legendary creatures, as they indicate the most important places on planes old and new, giving significance and life to all kinds of planes. Ideally, from here on out, Magic will lean more on legendary land loopholes that Kaldheim didn't have room for.
Magic: The Gathering - Kaldheim releases February 2, 2021. Other Magic: The Gathering sets are available now at game shops or digitally on Magic Arena.