Wizards of the Coast is changing the way Magic: The Gathering booster packs work next year, and some extremely lucky players could end up opening a pack packed almost entirely with rare and mythic rare cards! The new God Packs will arrive alongside Nauctis: The Sunken Realm, the first Magic Multiverse set of 2027. They will be incredibly difficult to find, but if you somehow pull one, you are in for one hell of a pack opening. Wizards has also announced several other changes to Booster Packs and Collector Boosters, including more chances to find premium cards and the removal of some foil commons and uncommons.
God Packs are coming!
The biggest announcement is easily the introduction of God Packs. Starting with Nauctis: The Sunken Realm, one in every 1,000 Booster Packs will be a God Pack. These will contain 14 rare or mythic rare cards, alongside a special celebration card.
The contents will be:
-
1 God Pack celebration card
-
10 non-foil rare and/or mythic rare cards
-
2 non-foil Booster Fun rare and/or mythic rare cards
-
2 traditional foil Booster Fun rare and/or mythic rare cards
So, yes, there is a chance you could crack open a completely normal-looking booster and suddenly find yourself staring at a ridiculous pile of rares. The Collector Booster version is even more stacked. One in every 300 Collector Boosters will contain a God Pack featuring a foil land, three foil regular-frame rares or mythic rares, three non-foil Booster Fun rares or mythic rares, and five foil Booster Fun rares or mythic rares. That is the sort of pack opening that makes you check whether you've accidentally bought the entire box.
Starting with Nauctis
God Packs will make their debut with Nauctis: The Sunken Realm, which launches in February 2027. The set takes Magic beneath the waves, introducing a brand-new setting filled with underwater locations and aquatic creatures. Merfolk, seals, homarids and humans will all feature in the new world. More importantly for collectors, God Packs aren't being treated as a one-off gimmick. Wizards says they will continue appearing in every Magic Multiverse set going forward. Universes Beyond sets are expected to receive the same treatment from 2028, meaning God Packs could become a regular part of Magic's booster experience.
More fancy cards!
God Packs aren't the only reason boosters are getting a shake-up. Japan Showcase cards, which have previously been exclusive to Collector Boosters, will now have a chance to appear in regular Booster Packs. These cards feature alternate artwork and give regular pack openers another premium treatment to chase. Wizards is also increasing the chances of finding foil rare and mythic rare cards in Booster Packs. There's another small change too. What were previously called Play Boosters will simply become Booster Packs from Nauctis onwards. The product itself isn't being completely reinvented by the name change, so this is more of a tidy-up than a major shake-up.
But there's a catch!
Not every booster change is going to make collectors happy. From 2027, regular Booster Packs will no longer contain foil common or uncommon cards. Foils will also no longer be guaranteed in every pack. If you do pull a foil from a regular Booster Pack, it will be a rare or mythic rare. Collector Boosters are changing too. Two foil commons and one foil uncommon are being removed, and those three cards won't be replaced. This means Collector Boosters will contain three fewer cards overall. Wizards says the changes are intended to make pack openings more exciting, with less space being taken up by lower-rarity foil cards and more focus being placed on premium pulls. The company has also confirmed that these changes aren't being accompanied by a price increase.
Chase the God Pack!
The introduction of God Packs should certainly make opening Magic boosters a little more exciting. The odds are brutal, though. A one-in-1,000 chance means most players will never see one, let alone open one. Collector Boosters improve those odds to one in 300, but that's still hardly something you can rely on when you're ripping open packs. That's arguably the whole point. God Packs are designed to be the ultimate surprise rather than something players can reasonably expect to find. And if someone pulls one during a live stream, expect the reaction to be slightly louder than the usual "nice, I got a foil."
For now, Nauctis: The Sunken Realm is where the experiment begins. With more rare cards, additional premium treatments and God Packs hiding among regular boosters, Magic's 2027 packs are certainly going to give collectors plenty to chase!
