Magic: The Gathering, for a few years now, has been carving out a very particular space within collectible card games. Collaborating with all kinds of franchises, it has become increasingly common to find cards from all sorts of franchises, characters, and even artists. This is something that has had both fans and detractors among Magic franchise players, but one thing is certain: it has opened the game to an audience that would not have even considered approaching it before.

Although it may be more evident thanks to collections like Avatar: The Last Airbender, The Lord of the Rings, or Final Fantasy, this is not something new. Even if it has happened and continues to happen on a smaller scale. Because at Wizards of the Coast, the parent company of the game, they realized long ago the possibilities of exploiting these collaborations with cards that were printed outside the natural rotation of the game. And for that, they created a direct sales system: Secret Lair:

The most original cards in the world

The premise of Secret Lair is simple: to create small thematic collections where anything goes in a way that would be impossible in the larger collections of the game. Sometimes featuring reprints of existing cards, sometimes being completely new cards, the charm of Secret Lair is that it is impossible to know what they will present on each occasion. Always a generous surprise.

Secret Lair was born in December 2019 with seven drops over seven consecutive days, from the 3rd to the 9th of that month. And in fact, these seven drops already give us a good idea of what to expect from Secret Lair in the future. Two of them, Bitterblossom Dreams and Eldraine Wonderlands, focused on the plane of Eldraine, offering iconic cards and lands with art from this beloved plane by Magic fans. Meanwhile, Seeing Visions and OMG KITTIES! had a clear theme: the former featured cards with scry 2 with new and spectacular art, and the latter, of course, were classic cat cards now especially chubby and adorable.

But if there were some drops that set the tone for Secret Lair, it was the remaining three. Restless In Peace, < explosions sounds > and Kaleidoscope Killers not only had a particular theme each, but also featured a unique artist. Restless In Peace were cards related to the graveyard illustrated by Dan Mumford, an illustrator for Dungeons & Dragons. < explosions sounds > were goblin cards illustrated by Mike Uziel, known for his dynamic style and action figure-like quality. And Kaleidoscope Killers were five-color cards illustrated by Justine Jones, already one of the most legendary figures in Magic: The Gathering.

This opened the door to what could be expected from Secret Lair. Specific themes, specific artists providing their own perspective on that theme, and a way to give a distinctive tone to the collections. Until Universe Beyond arrived.

Universe Beyond includes all the cards that do not belong to the Magic: The Gathering universe, but to any IP that does not belong to Hasbro. And it all started with Secret Lair. The first was The Walking Dead, in 2020, and it was the first time new cards with unique mechanics that did not belong to the Magic universe were introduced. This caused significant conflicts among Magic fans, but it ultimately became a success. Opening the door to what we know today: complete collections dedicated to other universes that are not Magic: The Gathering.

But also to Secret Lair collections that are dedicated to universes that are not from Magic. Among them, the collections of Hatsune Miku, SpongeBob, or currently available, the PlayStation collection featuring several iconic franchises from the Japanese video game manufacturer. Demonstrating that there is something for everyone here.

Because, and this is the key to Secret Lair, all its offers are temporary. The cards are limited and last until they run out. They are released on a specific date, are withdrawn once the next drop arrives, and you have to be alert so they don’t run out before other collectors or players get them if we want them. Collections as sought after as the Junji Ito or Yoji Shinkawa cards flew off the shelves in just minutes, and it is expected to happen again in the future when renowned artists lend their talents to illustrate cards for the game.

But that is the magic of Secret Lair. You don’t need the cards they sell to play Magic, but if you like the IPs from Universe Beyond that they release at any given time, or if you really like a specific artist, you are going to want to have a specific drop. And Wizards knows that. That’s why it’s important to know about Secret Lair. Because that’s where the magic happens.