With Magic 2010 the talk of much of the gaming world, lets stop and take a walk down memory lane. With the release of information about the set, it is revealed that many old favorites did not make the cut. Many cards have been selected to be in MTG’s “Core Sets” and Beta through 10th edition. these cards represent a re-cap of popular cards throughout the time. Magic 2010 is a unique core set. Instead of making an “11th edition”, they have decided to make a set consisting of nearly 50% new cards along with many of the classic reprints. With Alpha falling further and further away in time, only these cards will continue their legacy of appearing in every Core Set, having made the cut for the eleventh straight time…

Air Elemental – Uncommon

Air Elemental is the only blue card to appear in all of the core sets up through M10. A classic card, it is still a powerful attacking creature, even by today’s standards! Air elemental has never changed creature types or rarities and has sported many different illustrations over time. Shown here is the most recent, 10th edition version.

Bog Wraith – Uncommon

One of the first cards announced for M10, Bog Wraith is a unique and powerful creature. The original creature to have “Swampwalk” in the game, this guy has remained powerful enough to make the cut into his 11th consecutive core set. Shown here is my favorite of many illustrations to appear on the card: the 9th edition version.

Drudge Skeletons – Uncommon

Another black creature to make the cut, Drudge Skeletons is truly a classic card. With its creature type still “Skeleton” it is a unique early game play that has been peskily regenerating since 1993. It made the jump from the common to the uncommon slot between  8th and 9th edition. Pictured here is the 5th Edition version.

Nightmare – Rare

The third black creature to make this list, Nightmare has been holding down a rare slot in each and every core set since the beginning of time. A powerful flier and a crowd favorite, this card has surprisingly only had 2 illustrations in its 11 core set existence! The picture was changed after 6th edition and remains the same. Shown here is the first nightmare to be printed in a Core Set: the Beta version.

Giant Growth – Common

Not only has Giant Growth appeared in more (or as many) core sets than any other card, it tops out the list of different versions all together! There are 21 English variations of this card as of M10 and most likely many more to come. A simple card with obvious use, Giant Growth is the only Instant to make all the Core Sets thus far. Shown here is the classic 6th Edition version.

Giant Spider – Common

Much like Air Elemental, Giant Spider is a large, useful card. Probably the least expected to make it into every core set, this card is still going strong after its announcementin M10! The first card with the “Reach” ability, this spider has spawned a generation of cards that are all similar. At 4 Mana though, Well see if this guy makes it past the next cut. Shown is the 7th edition version of the card.

Howling Mine – Rare

The second and only other rare card to crack the roster of every core set through M10, Howling mine has been providing excitement to the game since its early times. A dangerous cast in many situations, this card allows all players to draw more cards during their turn. Shown is the 4th edition version of the card.

Rod of Ruin – Uncommon

Rod of Ruin was a suprising choice to enter M10. It provides very expensive direct damage that can probably be used best in a draft setting. None the less it wraps up our list of cards that have appeared in Beta-M10. Shown is the Unique 9th edition version of the card.

Several other Honorable Mentions:

You’re probably wondering about your favorites, Birds of Paradise, Shivan Dragon, and Llanawar Elves…YES they have been selected to be in Magic 2010 because they are famous, powerful and classic cards. However they have NOT appeared in every core set! Birds of Paradise didn’t make the cut for 9th edit on. It returned to the Core Sets in 10th. Shivan Dragon did not appear in 6th edition for some reason, but has returned as the most classic dragon ever printed in all core sets following. Llanawar Elves surprisingly did not make the cut for 8th edition. It returned in 9th with new art and will most likely be one of the most sought after commons in M10.

As for Regeneration and Orcish Artillery…Both have appeared in every Core set through 10th. Unfortunately in M10, they had their names changed. Both card remain unaltered from their original Core Set Printings besides their name. Regeneration is known now simply as “Regenerate” and, since Orcs were phased out of the creature type pool around 1994, Orcish artillery has become “Goblin Artillery”. Both deserve some recognition though because their abilities have lived on to the 11th Core Set!

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