 |
|
|
|
| Portal Second Age
is an ideal gateway into the worlds of Magic: The Gathering.
Newcomers who have been thinking about trying what has become the world's
most popular trading card game will find it fast-paced and accessible, and
veteran players are likely to appreciate many of the beautiful new cards
the set contains. Each player in Portal Second Age represents a wizard battling for control of the mythical island of Caliman, where an age of peace has come to an end; action takes place using illustrated decks of cards, rather than on a board. Wizards play lands (forests, swamps, mountains, plains, and islands) and then draw power from them to summon creatures and cast spells in an attempt to eliminate their opponents by reducing them from 20 to 0 points before they themselves are finished off. The two-person Portal Second Age set, a Starter Level Magic set, comes with a pair of 30- card pre-constructed decks (60 cards total); one "booster pack" with 15 additional cards; a play guide to a sample game; a rulebook; and two playmats that demonstrate the proper disposition of cards in play. Play is fast at about 20 minutes per game (about half as long as games with larger, more complex Magic decks). As with all other Magic sets, Portal Second Age decks can be expanded with booster packs and are fully compatible with cards from Advanced and Expert Level decks (such as Exodus cards). Portal Second Age booster packs contain a random assortment of 15 cards, two of which are lands (this may interest veteran players, as booster packs from most other Magic sets do not contain lands). For players who want to go to the next level, SKIRMISHER! recommends the Fifth Edition rules. Beginners to Magic will find no better way to quickly and enjoyably introduce themselves to the game. While in the regular game rules and terminology can be a bit intimidating to newcomers, they have been made clear and easy to understand in this edition (e.g., the term "discard pile" is used instead of "graveyard"). In fact, the rules are not even needed to play the first game, as turn-by-turn instructions are provided for it in the play guide. Once players have tried the sample game they do not really have to read the rules, just refer to them as needed. More experienced players may like the Portal Second Age cards too, as many of them are beautifully rendered and are worthy of collecting or adding to existing decks. The lands are especially nice, and markedly different from those in other Magic sets in that they depict not just wilderness, but also signs of physical culture. Farms and gleaming citadels sit upon the Plains; crumbling masonry and palaces sink into the mire of Swamps; mysterious doorways disappear into Mountains; balloons fly over and ships ply the waters between Islands; and treehouses and bridges cling to the trees of Forests. Other cards depict new monsters and spells that any players are likely to appreciate (e.g., the race of Nightstalkers, which appears on many of the Black (Swamp) monster and spell cards). Portal Second Age is an all-around good bet for beginners and experienced Magic players alike. It rates a solid 6 on a 6-point scale. For information about other Wizards of the Coast games, go to http://www.wizards.com. |
|
