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It might not be one of the major tentpole releases of Magic: The Gathering’s calendar, but Double Masters 2022 is certainly one of the most interesting sets to come out of this year. If 2020’s original set is anything to go by, we can expect lots of high-value cards and staples in numerous formats to make diving in to this luxury set worthwhile.
We don’t know exactly which cards are coming in Double Masters 2022 yet, (though we do have some requests) which is where the preview season comes in. Kicking off this week, all the secrets and surprises of this reprint set will be revealed. Here is everything you need to know about Double Masters 2022’s preview season, including when it starts, and how they’re arranged behind-the-scenes.
What Is A Magic: The Gathering Preview Season?
Preview seasons are how Magic: The Gathering unveils a new set ahead of its release. Instead of dropping every card all at once, Wizards of the Coast instead drip-feeds the reveal over approximately a week.
Each season starts with a debut stream. For larger sets, this is usually a highly-scripted, themed event, such as the ones we saw for Streets of New Capenna or Kamigawa: Neon Dynasty. However, for smaller ones like Double Masters 2022 and Commander Legends: Battle For Baldur’s Gate, it tends to be a more low-key affair tying in with the Weekly MTG streams hosted by Magic’s senior communications manager Blake Rasmussen.
The debut is the first time we see a substantial number of cards from a set, and it kicks off the week of individual card reveals. Community members, stores, and various official MTG channels all take turns showing off one or two cards from the set to keep interest in the set going for as long as possible.
Usually, preview seasons end with the reveal of the set’s Commander decks. However, Double Masters 2022 won’t have any Commander precon decks, and therefore will just end with the full card gallery reveal instead.
When Does Double Masters 2022’s Preview Season Start And Finish?
As mentioned, preview seasons begin with a debut stream. For Double Masters 2022, this stream is being held on Thursday, June 16 2022, at 16:00 GMT. This stream will be approximately one hour long, and reveal the key mechanics returning in the set, as well as reintroduce us to the art styles used in it.
Like Battle For Baldur’s Gate’s debut, we can expect Double Masters 2022’s to have interviews with those who designed the set, giving us a look into its draft environment and why certain cards were chosen.
After the debut stream, the individual card previews begin. From June 16 to June 23, everyone from community members, content creators, stores, and various official international MTG social media channels will unveil their cards. There are some big names here, such as PleasantKenobi, Arin Hanson, Joseph ‘Blackneto’ Johnson, MTGGoldfish, and the PlayEDH Discord. Even TheGamer has its own preview, on Friday, June 17.
The preview season finishes on Friday, June 24, when the official card gallery is updated to include the final few commons and leftover cards that had yet to be revealed.
Where To Find Double Masters 2022 Spoilers
Trekking through each and every creator to find their preview card can be an arduous task. Fortunately, there are a few ways to follow the reveals as they happen.
Like with Commander Legends: Battle For Baldur’s Gate, TheGamer will be doing daily roundups of the highlights of the preview day.
Alternatively, you can follow MTGGoldfish, who finds every preview card and even translates those not previewed in English. Scryfall is also one of the quickest ways to find previews as they are revealed – simply search “set:2x2” to find all the cards coming in the set.
Finally, there is the official Magic site. The card gallery on there updates every day to include the cards revealed the day before – it isn’t the fastest method, but it is the easiest for those not actively following the preview season.
How Are Preview Seasons Arranged?
Getting dozens of content creators together to reveal cards can be a big undertaking, and there are a lot of incorrect assumptions out there about how previews work.
Approximately a week before the reveals begin, Wizards of the Coast – or its local PR companies – contact creators to offer them a preview. Once an NDA (non-disclosure agreement) has been signed, the creator is supplied with image files of the card or cards in question. Creators aren’t sent physical copies of the cards they preview, merely digital scans of them. They are also not paid for the preview.
From there, the creator has complete control over how they reveal their card. Some tweet, some do elaborate videos, others write articles or do streams. The one rule for it is that the creator is not allowed to obfuscate the card in any way – for instance, they can’t put their Youtube channel’s logo over the art or card text.
What Is The Next Preview Season?
After Double Masters 2022, we have a small gap in the schedule as there are almost two months between it and the next set, Dominaria United.
However, this is Magic: The Gathering, and so gaps between products is always filled with yet more products. Therefore, the next preview season is likely to be for the Warhammer 40,000 Universes Beyond Commander decks. How this preview season will work, as it is a collection of decks rather than an actual set, remains to be seen.
Previews for Warhammer 40,000 begin on July 26, ahead of its release on August 12.