Wizards of the Coast is calling 2027 the Year of the Gathering, and the company used MagicCon: Atlanta to show just how much it has planned for the next chapter of Magic: The Gathering.
During the convention’s preview panel, Wizards delivered the full debut of Nauctis: The Sunken Realm, confirmed that the set will begin a new multi year storyline, celebrated a major charitable milestone with Extra Life and revealed that more Magic novels and comics are in development. The company is also expanding MagicCon to four events around the world in 2027, giving players in North America, Japan and Europe opportunities to gather for competitive play, reveals and community events.
MagicCon: Atlanta runs November 13 through November 15 at the Georgia World Congress Center, bringing thousands of players together for the Pro Tour, ticketed and on demand play, artist signings, cosplay, panels and appearances from personalities across the Magic community.
Nauctis: The Sunken Realm Takes Magic Underwater
The centerpiece of the Atlanta announcements is Nauctis: The Sunken Realm, the first Magic set on the 2027 calendar and a full journey into an underwater plane.
Nauctis is home to merfolk, seals, homarids and other aquatic creatures, along with powerful deities that rule over its currents. Two kingdoms are locked in conflict while an unlikely group of heroes faces the possibility that their entire world could be swallowed by the seas.
The setting gives Wizards an opportunity to explore a very different corner of the Magic Multiverse, with civilizations, creatures and dangers existing far below the surface rather than around the traditional landscapes associated with many previous planes.
More importantly for fans who follow Magic’s ongoing lore, Nauctis begins a new story arc that Wizards plans to develop across multiple years. The first set therefore represents more than a standalone excursion beneath the waves. It establishes characters, conflicts and larger mysteries that can continue influencing the Multiverse after players leave Nauctis itself.
Fans looking to go deeper into the new world can also explore Wizards of the Coast’s official first look at Nauctis: The Sunken Realm.
Watch the MagicCon: Atlanta Preview Panel
Nauctis: The Sunken Realm releases February 5, 2027.
Magic Players Help Push Extra Life Fundraising Beyond $10 Million
One of the biggest announcements from MagicCon had nothing to do with a new card set.
Wizards of the Coast announced that its work with Extra Life and Children’s Miracle Network has raised more than $10 million for Seattle Children’s, reaching the milestone through support from the Magic community.
Secret Lair purchases, donations, fundraising streams and other community efforts have contributed to the total, with the money supporting children’s hospitals through critical care, research, equipment, family assistance and other services.
The partnership continues with Rise of the Polygons | Extra Life 2026, which is being offered early at MagicCon: Atlanta. Wizards says 100 percent of purchases from the drop will go to Extra Life, giving players another opportunity to turn their involvement with the game into support for children and families.
Watch Wizards of the Coast celebrate raising $10 million for Seattle Children’s
The milestone adds another meaning to the idea of the Year of the Gathering. Wizards is expanding the game through new worlds and events, but the company is also highlighting what can happen when the community surrounding Magic gathers behind something beyond the game itself.
More Magic Novels and Comics Are Coming
The future of Magic: The Gathering is also extending further beyond the cards.
Wizards confirmed during its Atlanta announcements that additional novels and comics are coming, continuing the company’s push to tell stories through publishing alongside tabletop and digital releases. Specific titles, creative teams and release dates were not included in the announcement, leaving more details to be revealed later.
The timing is particularly interesting with Nauctis beginning a new multi year storyline. Card sets can establish the major events, characters and locations of that narrative, while books and comics give Wizards significantly more room to explore the people and worlds surrounding those events.
Magic has spent more than three decades building a Multiverse filled with characters and interconnected worlds, and the latest publishing plans suggest Wizards intends to keep expanding the ways fans can experience that mythology.
MagicCon Expands Around the World in 2027
The Year of the Gathering will also be considerably more international.
Wizards of the Coast confirmed four MagicCon events for 2027, spreading the convention calendar across the United States, Japan and Europe.
- MagicCon: Detroit – February 26 through February 28, 2027
- MagicCon: Tokyo – May 14 through May 16, 2027
- MagicCon: Las Vegas – August 27 through August 29, 2027
- MagicCon: Amsterdam – December 3 through December 5, 2027
The expansion gives international players more opportunities to participate in the type of large community event currently taking place in Atlanta. MagicCon combines major competitive events with casual play, product announcements, panels, artist signings, cosplay and direct interaction with the creators and personalities surrounding the game.
Those four events also give Wizards major stages throughout the year for whatever additional announcements are still being held back for 2027.
The Year of the Gathering Is Taking Shape
Nauctis: The Sunken Realm may be the biggest immediate reveal from MagicCon: Atlanta, but Wizards is clearly using the Year of the Gathering to describe something much larger than a new release calendar.
A new underwater plane begins a story designed to unfold for years. Novels and comics will continue expanding Magic outside the cards. MagicCon is growing into four global events, while the community has helped Wizards and Extra Life cross $10 million raised for Seattle Children’s.
Taken together, the Atlanta announcements show a franchise looking to expand both its fictional universe and the community built around it.
The first major stop will be beneath the waves when Nauctis: The Sunken Realm launches February 5, 2027. From there, the Year of the Gathering is only getting started.
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