The MTG May 18 2026 banned and restricted announcement just dropped and it is a big one. Phlage, Titan of Fire's Fury and Lotus Field are banned in Modern. Violent Outburst and Umezawa's Jitte are both unbanned. Cori-Steel Cutter is banned in Pioneer. Undercity Informer is banned in Legacy. Bonder's Ornament is trial unbanned in Pauper with a verdict due August 10. Standard gets no changes. Here is every change explained in plain English.

Secret Lair x Garfield is three separate drops releasing June 15 as part of the Cats Are the Best Superdrop. As Intended puts classic Alpha-era Magic cards in Garfield comic strip art. Motivationally Challenged turns famous Garfield posters into Magic cards. Our Only Thought Is to Entertain You is the one where Garfield becomes an eleven-eleven Eldrazi. Here is every card revealed, what each drop costs, and whether it is worth buying.

Alchemy: Strixhaven is the next MTG Arena digital-only release, dropping May 19, 2026 with 30 new designed-for-digital cards set on Arcavios. The set introduces the new Covercast keyword and reuses Conjure, Intensity, Perpetually, Seek, and Spellbook, along with Opus and Prepare from Secrets of Strixhaven. We break down the release date, every spoiled card so far including Ursine Guide, Rebounding Phoenix, and Paradigm Shifter, how Covercast actually works, and which cards ar