Web of Life and Destiny | Illustration by Allen Panakal
One of the long-term effects of the Phyrexian Invasion of the Multiverse are the Omenpaths. These planar portals taught regular intelligent beings, at least the non-planeswalker ones, that other planes exist.
Some characters, like Saheeli Rai and Niv-Mizzet, are actually intrigued by the potential of connecting multiple planes together, which improves technology, knowledge diffusion, commerce, and other stuff. Others, like Jace and Vraska, are more concerned about the safety of the Multiverse’s beings, about what happens when Tarkir’s dragons invade a peaceful plane like Bloomburrow, or about how Valgavoth might spread its evil influence.
We’re taking a look at this interesting piece of MTG lore, as Omenpaths have become key to MTG’s story and worldbuilding.
What Are Omenpaths in MTG?
Open the Way | Illustration by Livia Prima
Omenpaths are portals between MTG planes, and regular MTG characters can traverse them. Before Omenpaths, only planeswalkers could go from one plane to another by planeswalking.
All sorts of Omenpaths connect the different planes in MTG’s multiverse. They look like your typical fantasy/sci-fi portals, though they can have different appearances, like interlocking triangles, a blue circle, or a white rift.
Omenpaths became a regular feature of MTG’s lore through the Omenpath Arc and the Metronome Arc.
The History of Omenpaths in MTG?
Realmbreaker, the Invasion Tree | Illustration by Kekai Kotaki
Omenpaths are portals that connect different planes in MTG’s multiverse. At first, only The World Tree on Kaldheim could create them, but then the Phyrexians got a little creative and made Realmbreaker, the Invasion Tree, to mimic and empower this unique effect. Here’s a very quick summary of Omenpaths in MTG’s lore, set by set.
March of the Machine
The most prominent feature of March of the Machine, Omenpaths were opened to connect New Phyrexia to all known planes in MTG lore and to back up the Phyrexian Invasion. One of the consequences of this invasion is that many beings from the multiverse, some hostile, discovered that there are other planes, which raises some security issues. Legendary characters in MTG and desparked planeswakers can use these Omenpaths to travel between planes.
Wilds of Eldraine
After defeating the witch Eriette, Kellan used an Omenpath to go to Ixalan looking for clues, searching for his father, Oko. Jace, disguised as Ashiok, frees Eriette so she can be useful to him on Thunder Junction, which they also reach via Omenpaths.
The Lost Caverns of Ixalan
LCI saw Quintorius from Arcavios, Saheeli from Avishkar, and Kellan from Eldraine act as explorers. These key characters explored Ixalan’s underworld or “core”.
Murders at Karlov Manor
Kellan goes from Ixalan to Ravnica via an Omenpath and helps to investigate the mystery of Zegana’s murder. Niv-Mizzet becomes really interested in the potential of Omenpaths because he seeks to turn Ravnica into the “center of the multiverse” via “The Omenpath Project”. An Omenpath opens from Ravnica to Duskmourn.
Outlaws of Thunder Junction
Thunder Junction was uninhabited before the opening of the Omenpaths, and it connects many different planes as a hub. It’s like the Wild, Wild West being “discovered”, in a sense. Many MTG characters and villains from different planes, like Ixalan, Ravnica, and Innistrad, went there via Omenpaths, and Jace recruits a team of villains to rob a vault. Inside this vault is Loot, a magical being that can track and find Omenpaths, a skill that will be very useful in the next sets.
Are Omenpaths Permanent?
Marshals' Pathcruiser | Illustration by Javier Charro
The Avishkari developed a system to classify Omenpaths. There are mainly three kinds of known Omenpaths.
Some of them are Evergreen. These are stable, stay in the same place, and connect two different planes in the same locations. These are safer to travel through because you know you can return safely.
Then there are Deciduous Omenpaths. These open and close at the same locations, but on regular cycles. You can use these for interplanar travel, too, as long as you know the cycles and the intervals between them.
Last are Instanced Omenpaths. These are irregular, and they’re being studied.
The current MTG story saw Ajani Goldmane and Strixhaven students go from Arcavios to Lorwyn and back again, so there’s no indication of Omenpaths fading or going away. In fact, it’s expected that Reality Fracture’s story will tell us the role that Omenpaths will play going forward, and whether they can even disappear for good, remain wide open, or something entirely different. What we know is that Jace and Vraska have a plan to close all Omenpaths, while Nicol Bolas might use them to escape the Meditation Realm.
What Is the “Omenpath Arc” in MTG?
The Omenpath Arc began right after the events of March of the Machine and the defeated Phyrexian Invasion of the multiverse. It comprises the following sets:
Each of these sets has a Kellan card, three of them with an adventure design. The plot uses Kellan’s search for Oko, his father, as a backdrop to show that some of MTG’s main characters (non-planeswalkers) can now travel between planes, as well as the desparked planeswalkers.
Omenpath Depictions on MTG Cards
Many MTG cards depict Omenpaths, especially in the March of the Machine set, where Phyrexians opened a bunch of them to invade all the known planes in MTG.
March of the Machine
Breach the Multiverse shows the moment when Omenpaths were forcibly opened to multiple planes so that the invasion could begin. Many of the cards in MOM show known legendary creatures from a given plane fighting the Phyrexian Invasion as they come through the Omenpaths, like Kogla and Yidaro, Heliod, the Radiant Dawn, or Zurgo and Ojutai. Of course, battle cards show these planes being invaded as well, like Invasion of Amonkhet, Invasion of Ravnica, or Invasion of Alara.
Aetherdrift
Aetherdrift is another set in which Omenpaths are prominently depicted: It shows a race that begins on Avishkar, passes through Amonkhet, and finally lands on Muraganda. The Finish Line bundle promo printing of Amonkhet Raceway is a clean depiction of an omenpath.
The cycle of Verges in Aetherdrift shows the character Loot traversing the Omenpaths.
Others
Extraordinary Journey depicts Kellan leaving Eldraine and going to Ixalan. The art in the Chaos Warp reprint from Bloomburrow Commander shows a raccoon being transported to Kamigawa through an Omenpath. Get Out shows Kaito using an Omenpath to rescue people from Valgavoth.
Omenpaths in Card Names
Omenpath Journey is a card that depicts Jace, Vraska, and Loot. Loot is a special creature that knows the locations of Omenpaths. Jace and Vraska need that ability because Vraska is currently desparked.
Open the Omenpaths shows the moment when The World Tree opened Omenpaths on Kaldheim connecting 10 different realms.
What Is Through the Omenpaths?
Through the Omenpaths is one of MTG’s most egregious mistakes. When WotC designed Marvel’s Spider-Man, they got the rights to use Spider-Man related art on the physical cards, but they couldn’t on MTG Arena due to legal IP rights in digital card games. WotC and Marvel/Disney presumably didn’t reach an agreement there, likely due to Marvel Snap.
The solution was to change the set into “Through the Omenpaths” on MTG Arena and Magic Online. Every card was given new MTG-specific art, and any names directly linked to the Spider-Man IP were changed as well. Superior Spider-Man became Kavaero, Mind-Bitten, while Rhino, Barreling Brute became Xecau, Predation's Shadow, and so on. The thing is, half the appeal from Marvel’s Spider-Man was lost in this process; the set was also kind of bad, especially Limited, but that’s another matter entirely.
Wrap Up
Point the Way | Illustration by Izzy
Well, that’s about it for Omenpaths and their implications in MTG lore. Since 2023, these have been at the forefront of MTG sets’ stories, allowing game designers to mix and match legends in all sorts of scenarios. And despite all the Universes Beyond stuff in the mix, I’m anxious to see what Reality Fracture will bring.
What do you think of the continued use of Omenpaths, guys? Did they improve MTG lore overall, or is it just a gimmick you’d rather see gone? Let me know in the comments section below, or leave us a message on our own Draftsim Discord.
Thanks for having me, until next time.
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