Magic: The Gathering Star Trek: Mechanics, Release Date and How to Pre-Order at Your Local Game Store

Wizards says the Star Trek set is up for preorder, and the set releases on November 13. If you plan to play it, the shop where you already play is the best place to start.

What are the mechanics in the Star Trek Magic set?

Wizards' First Look gives an early look at some of the set's mechanics. It names four.

• Assimilate takes control of a creature, or puts a creature card onto the battlefield under your control. It gets a +1/+1 counter and becomes a Borg artifact creature, and it loses its other creature types.
• Face a Dilemma triggers whenever a player chooses one or more modes for a spell or ability. It does not matter which mode they pick.
• Federation is an ability word. It groups abilities that care about the number of creature types among non-Borg creatures a player controls.
• Spacecraft and station come back from Edge of Eternities. Spacecraft start as artifacts and gain abilities as you add charge counters with station. You can even turn Spacecraft into creatures.

Face a Dilemma is the one we are watching. Any "choose one" spell you already play can feed it, so decks that like modal spells may get a reason to run more of them. That is a guess until we see the cards.

When are the previews, the prerelease and the release?

• October 20: the set debuts, with reveals on the official Magic YouTube channel and twitch.tv/magic.
• October 21 to 29: creators, retailers and outlets post their previews.
• October 30: the full card image gallery goes up.
• November 6 to 12: prerelease events.
• November 10: MTG Arena release.
• November 13: tabletop release.

Until the gallery is complete, Wizards updates it each weekday morning with the cards shown the day before.

What is in the boxes, and what do they cost?

These are Wizards' suggested retail prices. Your store sets its own, so expect some difference.

A Play Booster holds 14 Magic cards and a token, and one pack in 25 swaps a common for a stardates card. The seven signed cards, about 250 copies of each, can only be found in Collector Boosters.

The four Commander decks are Federation Fleet, Landing Party, Klingon Fury and We Are the Borg, each in a standard and a Collector's Edition version. Wizards removed the Beginner Box from its First Look, with an editor's note citing the product's cancellation.

How do I pre-order the Star Trek set at my local game store?

Wizards says you can preorder now from your local game store, TCGplayer, Amazon, and elsewhere Magic is sold. Your local shop can tell you about prerelease seats and may set a box aside under your name. Ask five things:

1. What can I reserve: boxes, bundles, Commander decks, prerelease packs?
2. Do you want a deposit?
3. When is the prerelease, and how do I get a seat?
4. How long will you hold my order after release?
5. How many do you expect to get, and when?

What this means for your counter

If you run a store, write down every ask: who, what and how many. A name on a list is a reserved copy, and a copy nobody wrote down goes to the next person at the counter. That is the idea behind Oskii: one live count, where a copy gets held the moment someone asks for it.

If you are the customer, be the name on the list. At Oskii we love our local game store. Go say hi, and tell them you want the captain's chair.