You can now play with, and collect, cards on MTG Arena from a set named Through the Omenpaths. Though it’s not the first digital-only set for the latest digital version of Magic: The Gathering, it is a very unusual set for another reason. Put simply, the Through the Omenpaths set is the digital version of the physical Universes Beyond: Marvel’s Spider-Man MTG set. In all but name. Oh, and card names. Art too! So why is that the case? Let’s take a closer look.
Why Through the Omenpaths and not Marvel’s Spider-Man for MTG Arena?
Though it hasn’t been explained in detail by Wizards of the Coast, it seems fairly obvious that their licensing deal with Marvel/Disney only covers them for printing a set physically, and not using the comic book characters and settings digitally. So the workaround, which seems pretty huge in fairness, has been to create a mechanically identical set to Marvel’s Spider-Man, only using the planes of Magic’s multiverse, instead of Marvel’s heroes, villains and the Marvel universe’s places and names.
In the image above, for example, you can see how Arachnomania adapts the Spider-Verse card. Functionally identical, the name and artwork has been changed to remove any reference to Marvel or Spider-Man, and the set symbol is (naturally) different too.
In the image at the head of this article, you can see two cards from Into the Omenpaths and the set’s symbol. The cards appeared as Ben Reilly and the Daily Bugle in Marvel’s Spider-Man, but become Borys, the Spider-Rider and Fearsome Ridge in Into the Omenpaths.
Want to take a look at more superhero content? Check out our guide on learning the basics of Marvel Champions, or our guide on how to play another comic book card game, Marvel Legendary.
