Well, there are several reasons that you might want to buy cards from Classic, the 6th Edition of Magic: The Gathering. It is not likely, however, that you will be too excited by Classic.

You may want to purchase some of these cards if you have been playing at the Introductory level with one of the Portal editions and are ready to move up to Advanced level; if you regularly take part in tournament play and need the most up-to-date deck; if you habitually buy one of every Magic product; or if you are not yet ready for Expert-level play and don't already own any Advanced-level decks. If you can say, "Yes, that applies to me," then you could certainly justify purchasing a set of Classic cards.

Other reasons could be that you have not sworn to never again look upon that dreadful, punk-rock-looking "Lhanowar Elves" cards (which appears as a common in Classic); that 5th Edition doesn't seem just fine as a standard deck; that you don't care whether new decks contain at least some new art; that you think a Roman numeral "VI" is an exciting symbol for the new set; or that you are able to play at the Expert level with decks that do contain new art but would, for some reason, rather spend your money on something else.

That said, Classic does have some redeeming features. While the more than 350 cards and their art are all regurgitated from earlier editions, including the now out-of-print Alliances, Mirage, Visions, and Weatherlight expansions, this is not likely to matter to people who are new to the game or liked those sets. Also, text on the cards has been modified to bring it into line with the latest rules, which have been streamlined and simplied in several important ways (e.g., spell resolution is now much easier to understand). And for players who are moving up from Introductory to Advanced-level play, Classic cards are available in a very nice game set that includes a pair of 40-card preconstructed decks and an easy-to-use rulebook that two players can use to learn the more complex rules, and then use booster packs to turn into one or more standard, 60 card decks.

--Michael J. Varhola, Editor-in-Chief

Designed by Magic Lead Game Designer Bill Rose, Classic cards are available through most hobby, game, book, music, and toy stores in the 80-card games for $9.99, in 75-card tournament packs for $9.99, and in 15-card booster packs for $2.99. Tournament packs contain a quick-reference sheet for Magic fans who participate in tournament play.