Alchemy

Alchemy is a digital-only rotating format and play mode for Magic: The Gathering Arena that was introduced in December 2021 as a fast and ever-evolving experience. It intentionally diverges from the metagame of Standard and other formats to provide an alternative experience to play.
==Description==
Alchemy was built for digital-first players, who consume content more quickly but also want a metagame that stays fresh and evolves. As a digital-only format, Alchemy lets Wizards of the Coast add new cards after a set release, offer new mechanics that can only work in a digital game, and rebalance cards to keep the environment interesting.
Alchemy begins with all the cards in the Standard card pool and adds in new features:
*Rebalanced cards. 
*Cards with digital-only mechanics, as released in supplemental digital sets.
The format can be played in Best-of-One and Best-of-Three matches, both ranked and unranked, and is also featured in special events. Alchemy cards, recognizable by the holofoil A stamp, are also used in other digital-only formats like Historic and Historic Brawl.
===History===
Alchemy was inducted as a tournament format starting with the Neon Dynasty Championship in 2022.
In 2023, the first major divergence to Standard occurred when The Lord of the Rings: Tales of Middle-earth, a straight-to-Modern product, was made legal in Alchemy. The format further diverged upon the release of Wilds of Eldraine as Standard transitioned to a three-year rotation while Alchemy kept the two year rotation.
Starting with Magic: The Gathering Foundations, MTG Arena will be shifting away from Alchemy for new players towards Standard.
==Alchemy expansions==
Starting with Innistrad: Crimson Vow, each Premier set features an adjacent Alchemy set of around 30 cards that is available about a month after the main set releases. These cards all rotate out of Alchemy with the set they are based on, though after rotation, they will continue to be playable in Historic. Additionally, some summer supplemental sets will have an associated full designed-to-draft set. These sets may contain reprints outside of Standard.
Release 	Name 	Adjacent to
2021-12-09	Alchemy: Innistrad 	Innistrad: Midnight Hunt and Innistrad: Crimson Vow
2022-03-17	Alchemy: Kamigawa 	Kamigawa: Neon Dynasty
2022-06-02	Alchemy: New Capenna 	Streets of New Capenna
2022-07-07	Alchemy Horizons: Baldur's Gate	Commander Legends: Battle for Baldur's Gate
2022-10-06	Alchemy: Dominaria 	Dominaria United
2022-12-13	Alchemy: The Brothers' War 	The Brothers' War
2023-02-28	Alchemy: Phyrexia 	Phyrexia: All Will Be One
2023-10-10	Alchemy: Eldraine 	Wilds of Eldraine
2023-12-05	Alchemy: Ixalan 	The Lost Caverns of Ixalan
2024-03-05	Alchemy: Karlov Manor 	Murders at Karlov Manor
2024-05-07	Alchemy: Thunder Junction 	Outlaws of Thunder Junction
2024-08-30	Alchemy: Bloomburrow 	Bloomburrow
2024-10-15	Alchemy: Duskmourn 	Duskmourn: House of Horror
===Set legality===
Cards from the following sets are currently legal in Alchemy:
It is currently unknown how the schedule below is affected by the shift to a calendar year rotation. 
Sets 	Legal until
Arena Base Set 	Always legal
Wilds of Eldraine 	Summer 2025
Alchemy: Eldraine 	Summer 2025
The Lost Caverns of Ixalan 	Summer 2025
Alchemy: Ixalan 	Summer 2025
Murders at Karlov Manor 	Summer 2025
Alchemy: Karlov Manor 	Summer 2025
Outlaws of Thunder Junction 	Summer 2025
The Big Score 	Summer 2025
Alchemy: Thunder Junction 	Summer 2025
Bloomburrow 	Summer 2026
Alchemy: Bloomburrow 	Summer 2026
Duskmourn: House of Horror 	Summer 2026
Alchemy: Duskmourn 	Summer 2026
Magic: The Gathering Foundations	Summer 2026
Aetherdrift 	Summer 2026
Tarkir: Dragonstorm 	Summer 2026
 Not released yet.
===Banned list===
<c>Monstrous Rage </c> was banned on November 12, 2024 as part of several changes aimed at de-powering the aggro red deck based around <c>Cacophony Scamp</c>, <c>Heartfire Hero</c> and <c>Leyline of Resonance</c>. Wizards of the Coast recognized that the deck's speed and ability to end games as quickly as turn two was having a detrimental effect on the format.
====Previously banned cards====
*<c>Fable of the Mirror-Breaker</c> // <c>Reflection of Kiki-Jiki</c>
*<c>Grinning Ignus</c> is the only other card to have been banned in Alchemy. It was half of a two-card combo with the original Alchemy: New Capenna printing of <c>Racketeer Boss</c> that could generate an infinite storm count, an infinite number of cast and enters the battlefield triggers for creatures and an infinite number of enters the battlfield triggers for artifacts. Due to Grinning Ignus having a mana ability that returned it to its owners hand, the combo was extremely difficult to disrupt and subsequently warped the Alchemy format. Digital play design assessed rebalancing Grinning Ignus but found that any such rebalance would eliminate the combo in the same way as banning Grinning Ignus and thus banning was the correct option. Racketeer Boss was subsequently rebalanced itself to remove the repeateable treasure creation.
====Previously suspended cards====
*<c>Leyline of Resonance</c> was suspended from October 22 to November 12, 2024 while the Arena team worked on a rebalance for the card. It's ability to provide explosive starts allowed aggro decks to win the game on turn two before an opponent could interact. It was un-suspended as <c>A-Leyline of Resonance</c>.
==Flavor text==
Many Alchemy cards feature flavor text that is not visible on the cards themselves, but rather in a separate pop-up box. This text is not recorded on Scryfall.
==References==
Category:Rotating formats
Category:Release day maintenance