MTG’s killer queen is back in Outlaws of Thunder Junction

Marchesa, Dealer of Death is a brand-new form for one of Magic: The Gathering’s shadiest and most beloved characters, debuting in Outlaws of Thunder Junction.

A literal cutthroat ruler from the plane of Fiora, Marchesa gained her throne through careful, deadly dealing. This decadent aristocratic assassin has long been a fan-favorite MTG character, and she is returning in the Outlaws of Thunder Junction set as Marchesa, Dealer of Death.

Marchesa, Dealer of Death allows Thunder Junction’s new Crime mechanic to shine. Whenever the player controlling Marchesa commits a Crime in-game, they may pay one generic mana to draw a card and then send a card from their hand to the grave.

WotC

Marchesa, Dealer of Death not only ensures that Crime pays in MTG, but she sets up future instances of Crime by stocking the grave with useful options to be revived later.

Outlaws of Thunder Junction is a huge crossover set for Magic: The Gathering, showing the real potential of the game’s new Omenpaths. With the Omenpaths connecting various planes of existence, villains from all throughout Magic’s history have congregated on this one plane.

While many villain reveals for the set have been met with praise and excitement, some players struggled to justify why Marchesa would be on Thunder Junction instead of Fiora, especially in the aftermath of the Phyrexian invasion.

Over on Reddit, one commenter reacted to Marchesa’s surprising Thunder Junction reveal, with many other fans being equally shocked:

“What is she doing off of Fiora???”

While Marchesa’s temporary absence from her home plane may seem surprising to some, others have argued that an excursion onto the multiverse could be just what the character needs after the stresses of the war against Phyrexia:

“She’s on vacation to stab some people (long may she reign).”

“She just saved her plane from a war, let her have her little vacation.”

In the era of Omenpaths, we’re likely to see many more famous MTG figures like Marchesa making surprise appearances in future sets. Though there is always dread accompanying the idea of MTG’s worldbuilding getting watered down to accommodate cameos, if upcoming crossovers are as fun and flavorful as Thunder Junction’s, there’s little reason to complain.