Amonkhet is Here!
Amonkhet finally arrives in Magic: the Gathering – Puzzle Quest!
Featuring 155 new cards, this new expansion is filled with new card combinations and abilities to try out.
The set features three new card abilities: Embalm, Exert and Cycling. We are also introducing the concept of the Exile stack and Exiling cards to provide more strategic elements to the game.
Embalm
When a card has the Embalm keyword, it is always accompanied with a number (ie. Embalm 2). Embalm is only available on creatures.
When a creature with Embalm is destroyed, gems are activated (like activated abilities). The number of activated gems is equal to the number next to the Embalm keyword (Embalm 2 will activate 2 gems). When you match one of these activated gems, the creature with Embalm is Exiled then a token copy of the creature with Embalm is placed on the battlefield, with two modifications: it loses its Embalm ability and gains the Zombie subtype. There are multiple cards that synergize well with both Zombies and Tokens in the set, so this ability is very strong. It also essentially gives you two copies of these cards for the price of one.
Exert
The Exert keyword is always associated with a number (ie. Exert 3).
A creature with Exert will activate a gem that counts down by 1 at the start of each of your turns. When the gem’s countdown hits zero, it automatically activated. You can manually activate the gem by matching it at any moment, however.
When the gem activates, the ability listed next to the keyword executes. For example, “Exert 3: This creature gains Double Strike until the end of your turn” will give Double Strike to the creature until the end of your turn either when you match the gem or it will automatically trigger every 3 rounds.
Cycling
The Cycling keyword is also always associated with a number (ie. Cycling 2)
Cycling is a unique ability that only applies to cards in your hand. To use the ability, you must manually Exile the card with the keyword by dragging it to the trash icon. The ability will only trigger if you have the listed number’s worth of mana in your cards – if you do, that much mana is drained from your cards, from top to bottom in your hand, then the card is Exiled and you draw 1 card. The drained mana does not need to be from a single card – for example, if your top card has 1 mana and your 2nd card has 2 mana, 1 will be drained from your top and 2 from your 2nd.
Cycling is very useful as it lets you get rid of certain cards quickly to refresh your hand. There are also several cards that trigger off Cycling other cards, and certain cards with Cycling also have an additional effect when you Cycle them.
Exile
Some cards now have the ability to Exile other cards. When a card is Exiled, it is removed from the battlefield and put in a special stack that cannot be accessed. Exiled cards are not considered Destroyed and any effects from Destroyed cards will not trigger.
Exiling a card is a great way to bypass many immunities and to remove creatures from the battlefield without triggering their “When this creature is Destroyed” effects.
New Planeswalker: Gideon of the Trials
A new Planeswalker is introduced with the release of Amonkhet: Gideon of the Trials!
This version of Gideon is especially well-suited to the Amonkhet set. He has the following abilities:
- Ability 1: Oketra’s Initiates. Summons 1 (up to 4 at rank 4) 1/1 Initiate of Oketra tokens with Reach. This ability will not only help you defensively with tokens that have Reach, but will also greatly help in fulfilling Oketra’s goal of 3 creatures on the battlefield!
- Ability 2: Forged by Might. This ability lets you target one of your creatures, exile it, then give your other creatures Power and Toughness equal to the exiled creature’s Power and Toughness. This ability is incredibly strong and makes your creatures much stronger quickly! At ranks 2/3/4, the ability gives an extra +1/+1 (+3/+3 at rank 4) to your creatures, strengthening them further.
- Ability 3: Return from Exile. This ability is incredibly strong: at rank 1, it returns the last Exiled creature to your hand, but at ranks 2 and up it returns those creatures to the battlefield. At rank 4, it returns the last 3 Exiled creatures to the battlefield, making it a very strong ability. It also only costs 18, which is a very low cost for such a powerful ability. It’s especially strong with Embalm creatures, which Exile themselves – you can keep bringing them back after their tokens have entered the battlefield!
His mana gains are +5 White and +4 Green at level 60, giving him very high mana gains! The other colors are at +0, so concentrating on White and Green is a great idea.
As for his deck restrictions, he starts at 4 creatures, 3 spells and 3 supports at level 1 and ends with 5 in each at level 60, giving you a lot of leeway in how to build your decks.
New Event Rules
Starting with the release of Amonkhet, all the events in the game will now have new rules in effect that limit the card sets available to participate in the event.
PvP Events from Kaladesh, Aether Revolt and Amonkhet can now only use cards from Origins, Kaladesh, Aether Revolt and Amonkhet combined. This means that Fate is Rarely Fair, for example, can now only be played with cards from Origins as well as the Kaladesh and Amonkhet blocks.
Note that events from prior sets as well as current PvE events have no restrictions on card sets, and you can build decks using any card in your collection.
While we realize that this change can be somewhat controversial, we also believe it is crucial to the game’s health going forward, for several reasons:
1- Card Balancing Issues: Since there are some very powerful cards residing in certain sets, this precedent forces the team to constantly attempt to balance against those cards. Cards like Deploy the Gatewatch, Olivia, Mobilized for War, Mirrorpool, etc. are incredibly strong, and we want to be able to make more cards like these in the future. They are fun, and a great definition of a power card, which encourages you to build decks around them. At the same time though, they limit the game’s design space and cause balancing problems. There are cards we would have loved to print, but were unable to, due to their interactions with some of the more powerful cards available in the game. There are multiple ways to address this, and we chose the one that allowed us to leave these extremely powerful cards in the game (though in more limited game modes), rather than constantly rebalancing them. We know you all love playing with those cards, so we wanted to preserve that opportunity for players, but in controlled environments instead, rather than in the wild where it impacts everything else.
2- Game Accessibility: Limiting the new, current events to the current blocks also gives new players a much better place to start from, as they do not have to gather cards from old blocks to be competitive. This will let them get acquainted with the game much quicker. There is also a (natural) proliferation of mechanics in the game with every new set, and this makes the game more and more complicated to understand for new players (someone who was previously new to the game would have had to learn and understand every mechanic from Origins, Battle for Zendikar, Shadows over Innistrad and Kaladesh, which is quite daunting!). With this change, they have a lot less they need to learn from initially, and they’ll be able to climb up the ranks much faster.
3- Event Balancing: Coalition challenges in particular are getting more and more difficult to balance, due to the fact that the team has to assume certain cards are in the most powerful decks, and as such, they have to balance the encounters against specific card combinations that are incredibly strong. We want to ensure that the competition is fair for everyone, so restricting the Coalition Challenges will help balance the events, as well as give everyone a more equal footing to start from.
New Events
This release also brings new events!
Two new weekend events have been added:
- Trial of Zeal, a new PvE Coalition Challenge where you face off against the Gods of Amonkhet. Similar to previous Coalition Challenges, your Coalition will work together to defeat the Gods of Amonkhet by winning encounters and completing objectives. (This event is an exception to the PvE rule, and will follow PVP event deck restrictions.)
- Trial of Strength, a new PvP Coalition Challenge that is tied to the release of new Planeswalkers. One node is locked to a newly released Planeswalker and the other 2 are open!
A new weekday PvP event has also been added – the Trial of Ambition. This new PvP event is centered around the Amonkhet set, and has Amonkhet-based objectives. It also features a Coalition leaderboard with Coalition rewards, so make sure you participate to prove your Coalition is the strongest!
Event Descriptions
Here is the list of objectives/rewards for the events for the first month:
Trial of Strength: Runs for 72 hours.
Restricted Planeswalker: Gideon of the Trials
Top end rewards: Climb the leaderboards to win great prizes! The top five players in Platinum will win 300 Mana Jewels, 150 Mana Crystals and a Rare Amonkhet Card. In addition, each member in the top two coalitions will win 80 Mana Jewels, 120 Mana Crystals and a Rare Amonkhet Card. Check out the rewards in-game for full details!
Nodes:
- Gideon of the Trials node objectives
- Summon 3 or more creatures with Embalm
- Lose 2 or more creatures during a single fight
- Colorless node objectives
- Summon 3 or more Zombies
- Lose 5 or less creatures during a single fight
- Colorless node objectives
- Cycle 3 or more cards
- Cast 4 or more spells during a single fight
Trial of Ambition: Runs for 48 hours.
Restricted Colors: White, Black, Green, Blue
Top end rewards: Win an Amonkhet Booster and up to 55 Mana Crystals by collecting Event Ribbons. In addition, the most ambitious players can win 60 Mana Crystals, an extra Amonkhet Booster and an Amonkhet Rare Card on the leaderboard. Fight with your coalition for bonus rewards, including Mana Jewels!
In addition, each member in the top two coalitions will win 25 Mana Jewels, 1 Rare Amonkhet Card, and an Amonkhet Booster. Check out the rewards in-game for full details! *New Update*
Nodes:
- White node objectives
- Summon 3 or more creatures with Embalm
- Lose 4 or less creatures during a single fight
- Black node objectives
- Summon 3 or more Zombies
- Lose 4 or more creatures during a single fight
- Green node objectives
- Cycle 3 or more cards
- Cast 4 or less spells during a single fight
- Blue node objectives
- Cast 1 or less support during a single fight
- Summon 5 or more creatures during a single fight
Trial of Zeal: Runs until the boss is defeated.
Top end rewards: Members of the top coalitions can win 50 Mana Jewels, 120 Mana Crystals and an Amonkhet Rare.
(This event is an exception to the PvE rule, and will follow PVP event deck restrictions.)
Changes to Kaladesh/Aether Revolt PvP events:
Fate is Rarely Fair and Emergency Ordinances will now cycle every weekend on Monday and Tuesday. The events runs for 48 hours instead of 24. Each event also now has a 4th node.
Fate is Rarely Fair: Runs for 48 hours.
Restricted colors: White (new!), Blue, Green, Red
Updated Rewards: We’ve increased the number of Mana Crystals you can win in progression rewards. Win up to 55 Mana Crystals in Platinum.
Nodes:
- Red node objectives
- Summon 5 or more Vehicles
- Win the fight with 20 or less HP remaining
- Green node objectives
- Summon 5 or more Vehicles
- Lose 2 or less creatures during a single fight
- Blue node objectives
- Summon 5 or more Vehicles
- Cast 2 or less spells during a single fight
- White node objectives (new!)
- Summon 5 or more Vehicles
- Cast 1 or less support during a single fight
Emergency Ordinances: Runs for 48 hours.
Restricted colors: Red (new!), White, Black, Blue
Updated Rewards: We’ve increased the number of Mana Crystals you can win in progression rewards. Win up to 55 Mana Crystals in Platinum.
Nodes:
- White node objectives
- Energize 5 or more gems
- Cast 1 or less support during a single fight
- Black node objectives
- Energize 5 or more gems
- Lose 2 or less creatures during a single fight
- Blue node objectives
- Energize 5 or more gems
- Win in 5 rounds or less
- Red node objectives (new!)
- Energize 5 or more gems
- Cast 2 or less spells during a single fight
Tiebreakers in Events
We have also added a new rule when determining event winners: ties will now award the highest possible reward, as opposed to splitting players into a time-based ranking.
For example, starting now, if 4 players are tied for first place, all 4 of them will receive the first place prize. The 5th player will receive the fifth place prize.
This change was made due to the fact that the time-based ranking felt unfair to players in multiple timezones and those who were unable to finish earlier. There is no longer a time constraint when it comes to attaining the highest score first, so we hope that this will slightly reduce pressure and let players play at their own pace.
New Event Rotation/Modification
With this release, we are also upping the amount of events that run, as well as making slight modifications to the current events.
There are now always concurrent PvP and PvE events running at all times during the week.
Weekday PvP events now run for 2 days instead of 1, and have had their rewards adjusted accordingly.
Now there is also a PvE event running from Monday to Thursday – we are starting with retooled versions of Revolt against the Consulate and Fateful Showdown. Every Monday to Thursday, one of the two events will be available to play. The events have been reworked so they no longer are coalition challenges, but instead are in a similar vein to the Oath of the Gatewatch event.
Rewards have also been reallocated. The goal is to make PvP events more competitive and to contain the bulk of Mana Crystals and Mana Jewels, while weekly PvE events focus on Mana Runes and card packs. Our goal with this change is to ensure that newer players can focus on the PvE events to get Mana Runes and boosters, while our more competitive players focus on PvP, where the rewards are more substantial.
Changes to Turn Order/Action Sequencing
We have made several changes to how cards are played, as well as their sequencing. These changes are mostly under the hood, but there are many small adjustments that were made to improve the consistency and the predictability of cards and effects. Look for a detailed forum post once the patch releases for the details regarding this change.
Vault & Special Offers
Special Offers
We will offer a brand new selection of special offers, such as new Planeswalkers, exclusive cards and new offers for Mana Crystals. On day one of the Amonkhet release, be ready to welcome Gideon of the Trials in the very first Planeswalker bundle we’re releasing for you to master. Check in every week for new limited-time offers!
Cards Release
We plan to release two expansions of new Amonkhet cards into the Vault at a later date, so that the game remains fresh for both PVP and your collection. Stay tuned!
Changelog
System Improvements
– Updated Customer Support functionality to latest version
– The Planeswalker list, in the pre-fight screen, now links to the Vault.
Bug Fixes
Cards, Planeswalkers & Gameplay
- Multiple issues occur when filling a card’s mana cost while Insidious Will is on the gemboard.
- Multiple issues occur when a creature Transforms while mind controlled until the end of turn.
- The Startled Awake creature card fails to attack when summoned repeatedly while Strider Harness is on the battlefield.
- Crew cards erroneously gain mana when the crew card is returned from the graveyard to your hand.
- The creature deals damage equal to its unbuffed Power when a creature Transforms midway through a Double Strike.
- The creature deals damage equal to its unbuffed Power when Sword of the Animist breaks a Transform creature’s Activate gem.
- Noyan Dar, Roil Shaper erroneously gains +3/+3 when being placed on the field by a spell card.
- A buff fails to be included when a creature enters the battlefield and Melds with another creature that’s buffed while it’s Melded form is currently on the battlefield.
- The opponent erroneously takes damage when Thing in the Ice Returns creatures that deal damage to the hand.
- The Destroyed creature Returns to the battlefield before the end of the attack phase when a creature with First Strike Destroys a creature while Greenwarden of Murasa is on the battlefield.
- Crew cards erroneously gain mana when the crew card is drawn after a creature card is played.
- The effect fails to activate when a creature with a “When a creature dies” effect dies immediately after another creature dies.
- The opponent fails to discard one card when the opponent targets Reality Smasher with a spell.
- Lone Rider Transforms when a following creature attacks before the destroyed animation plays.
- Multiple issues occur when the opponent temporarily Mind Controls Separatist Voidmage.
- The opponent fails to gain 3 mana when the opponent gains control of Accursed Witch.
- Noosegraf Mob’s ability triggers when returned from the graveyard by a spell.
- The text is misleading when viewing the Hexproof Evergreen.
- Daring Sleuth fails to Transform when token support gems are destroyed.
- The creature fails to transform when Thing in the Ice is destroyed by a spell/creature ability.
- Multiple issues occur when Mirrorpool is triggered by cards that summon creatures.
- Lone Rider erroneously attacks when Lone Rider Transforms into It That Rides as One just before attacking.
- The Planeswalker fails to take damage when a creature buffed with Visions of Brutality and defender deals combat damage to an attacking creature.
- Avacyn the Purifier fails to receive damage when Archangel Avacyn Transforms just before attacking.
- The Oath of the Gatewatch cards fail to be added to the deck when selecting the Auto-Fill Deck button.
- The Defender Tutorial fails to display when a creature with the Defender Evergreen is attacked after bypassing the Origins Tutorial Level 2 Defender Tutorial.
- The Evergreen description boxes overlap each other instead of displaying separate when selecting multiple Evergreens on a single card during an Encounter.
- Multiple issues occur when interacting with the opponent’s hand during an Encounter.
UI, UX, Localization & Graphics
- Leaderboards are empty in the Coalitions menu
- Multiple buttons become unresponsive when tapping the Play button while “Claim Match” is displaying.
- A gray overlay blocks interaction with the screen when collecting rewards.
- The Maintenance Prompt fails to dismiss itself automatically when the Killswitch is deactivated
- The text displays in English when viewing the Single Potion Confirm Purchase prompt.
- The text displays in English when viewing the Potion Pack Confirm Purchase prompt.
- Completed themed decks do not appears when expanding the Completed section after purchasing a booster
- Multiple issues occur when the the 1st Custom Deck is filled with only wish list cards
- The maintenance prompt displays the placeholder “General_Maintenace_Message” when the Killswitch has been activated on 1.10.2 STAGE
- All PW ability are available during the last encounter of the tutorial.
- An infinite loading screen displays when tapping the Refresh button after tapping the Fight! button.
- The Planeswalker Selection Screen briefly displays when reopening the Planeswalker Selection Screen after tapping the Select button immediately after tapping a Planeswalker image.
- The currently selected Planeswalker changes when entering an Event without a node that matches the currently selected Planeswalker.
- Stretched BFZ Booster Pack artwork erroneously displays when viewing the Daily Extra Reward after claiming the Daily Reward then reinstalling the app.
- The text extends off screen when the player views the Event Rewards for multiple Planeswalker Arena Events.
- The XP bar erroneously fills up when tapping and dragging a card’s XP bar while in List view.
- The cards order changes when tapping the checkbox for a card while “Show all cards” is enabled in list view.
- The card remains small instead of going full screen when selecting a card in Multiple Areas.
- The smoke animation is cut-off on the outer corners instead of displaying over the entire card when viewing a Can’t Attack card type on the battlefield during an Encounter.
- Occasionally the card artwork displays with the artwork of a godfather created message when viewing card’s artwork with weak data connection during an Encounter.
- The “Select” button displays off center to the right instead of centered when viewing the “Move Card” pop up after playing multiple cards during an Encounter.
- The card’s icons overlap when viewing the Move Card screen in any Encounter.
- The “Good News!” message displays when replacing a Mythic card with a Common card.
- The Deck tab displays erroneously selected when tapping another tab while the screen is loading.
- Multiple issues occur when viewing the Planeswalker’s health numbers on the Planeswalker Info screen.
- The same pair of cards repeatedly display when rapidly tapping the Add to Deck button.
- The screen remains stationary when swiping in multiple areas.
- The list remains stationary when dragging the top of the Plane Selection list.
- The Apply button erroneously displays when editing the filter.
- The Planeswalker information tabs fail to display when tapping the Planeswalker image.
- The Filters screen closes when tapping between the category dividers.
- The button displays as black instead of green when viewing the Edit Deck button after the Quick Improvements Tutorial.
- The user receives the Reward after leaving the Results Screen when collecting Objective Rewards.
- The Planeswalker Information Tabs overlaps the Planeswalker portrait when tapping and holding the area under the tabs.
- The confirmation screen fails to display when tapping the Add to Deck button during the Quick Improvements Tutorial.
- The Edit Deck buttons erroneously display when selecting the Story or Ability tabs before the page loads.
- A Non-Mastered card filter fails to display when viewing the filter options.
- The button is unresponsive when tapping the Play button immediately after loading.
- The button changes to an Apply button when tapping a filter twice.
- Multiple UI elements are active when tapping UI elements after selecting a node.
- The list loads erroneously when viewing the Planeswalkers.
- The Main Menu becomes locked in place when tapping the Edit Deck button while the Main Menu is moving.
- The Good News! Best Cards screen erroneously displays when selecting the Quick Improvement button after saving a deck that has been auto cleared.
- The filters fail to clear when selecting the Clear Filter button on a closed Filters tab.
- The Objectives fail to display when viewing the Pause Menu during an Event Encounter.
- The previously displayed prompt briefly displays when navigating to a different location.
- The text references “turns” when viewing multiple lines of text.
- Card type icon VFX overlaps cards in full screen when choosing to target
- The text displays extending outside the designated box when viewing the Lvl text.
- Evergreen icons persist for a few seconds after a creature is destroyed
- The text is difficult to read when viewing Ajani Unyielding’s HP while he is injured.
- The Show All Cards text is unresponsive when tapping the text on the Show All Cards button.
- A gap in the gray overlay displays when viewing the top part of the screen during the What to know? tutorial step.
- The text for Non-Mastered Card fails to display when viewing the Filters section.
- The list of levels abruptly changes to a new position when tapping on the level nodes.
- The Planeswalker Tiles fail to display at the edge of the screen when viewing the Choose A Planeswalker screen.
- All selected cards flash instead of remaining grayed out when equipping cards.
- The text briefly displays as missing when changing damaged Planeswalkers.
- Multiple issues occur when leveling up a damaged Planeswalker.
- The artwork displays inconsistent when viewing the Currency artwork.
- Unavailable card artwork displays when viewing multiple Booster Packs.
- The Card Set Information screen fails to be dismissed when returning to the Boosters tab after switching to a different tab.
- Owned cards shift to the top of the list when tapping multiple buttons to edit a deck while the Show all Cards option is toggled on.
- The button displays transparent when viewing the Edit Deck button.
System & Connectivity
- Coalition events are not giving out rewards.
- Users sometime win or lose HP after a battle is completed.
- Users can stay stuck on claim match loading.
- Tied Users, in a Leaderboard, are randomly given gifts at the end of an Event