Everything You Need to Know About My Little Pony in Magic

Princess Twilight Sparkle | Illustration by Jennifer L. Meyer

Back before Universes Beyond became a common concept in Magic, there were still a few crossover products in MTG. Some of these early crossovers were meant to cross-promote Magic and other toy lines owned by Wizards’ parent company, Hasbro. One of these crossovers was with the popular animated series My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic.

My Little Pony had quite a cultural moment after Friendship Is Magic found surprising success outside of its target demographic. The Magic crossover Ponies: The Galloping was like a capstone for the end of the series, which aired its last episode just 10 days before the product’s release.

While there are only three My Little Pony cards available in Magic, they do a good job of capturing the spirit of the characters they represent. The cards are great collectibles for fans of the show, which likely explains their steep price increase since release despite none of the cards being playable in competitive Magic formats.

Curious about what exactly each card does, how they stack up, and where you could get your hands on them? Time to brush up on everything My Little Pony in Magic!

What Are the My Little Pony MTG Cards?

Rarity | Illustration by Andrea Radeck

Ponies: The Galloping featured three Magic cards, each depicting a different character from My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic. The set was sold directly through Hasbro’s site. It was meant as both a celebration for the end of the animated series and a way to raise money for the Extra Life charity fundraiser. It was the second-ever crossover between Magic and an outside IP, with Transformers being the first.

A lot of the My Little Pony cards sit safely within the display case they came with since the cards aren’t legal in any format, and because of the limited nature of their release. But some players use them in casual formats like Commander or in playgroups that don’t mind playing with any kind of cards.

How Many MLP Cards Are There?

There are currently only three My Little Pony Magic cards: Princess Twilight Sparkle, Rarity, and Nightmare Moon / Princess Luna. Magic has since printed new Transformers cards in Secret Lair and The Brothers’ War, so it’s possible that Hasbro might want new pony cards in the future.

Where to Buy the My Little Pony Cards

TCGPlayer

There are a few listings for Ponies: The Galloping box sets available on TCGPlayer. You can also buy the individual pony cards on the site for around $50 to $65 each if there’s only one or two that you want instead of the full bundle.

TCGPlayer has great customer service and makes it easy to get a refund if you’re unsatisfied with the product that’s delivered to you. Some sellers on the site are also local game stores, so you can help support small businesses while you shop singles. This makes it one of the best options for buying cards directly from individual sellers.

CardKingdom

CardKingdom is one of the most popular sites for buying single Magic cards, and they also have a few sealed Ponies: The Galloping boxes. CardKingdom is typically a little more expensive than some TCGPlayer sellers, but the added cost can be worth it because you know you’re getting high-quality cards that are being shipped properly.

CardKingdom also has each individual pony card in the same price range as TCGPlayer.

Mercari

Mercari is an increasingly popular place to buy and sell Magic cards and other collectibles. While the number of listings for Ponies: The Galloping on Mercari fluctuates, you can sometimes find a good deal.

It’s important to remember that Mercari, like eBay, is made up largely of individuals selling items secondhand. While the cards have sold at a decent discount of $115 on the site, it’s a bit harder to ensure the cards are shipped quickly and in good condition when compared to other sites.

Local Game Stores

While there’s no guarantee your local store has a copy of Ponies: The Galloping, it’s worth a shot! I picked up my personal copy at a store near me for a little more than TCGPlayer’s market price.

Though there may be some added cost, it’s nice to get to see the cards in person before you purchase them. It’s also good to support the stores you play at financially! I’ve seen a few stores with copies of the set, and your best bet is larger stores that buy cards from customers and also hold onto a lot of Magic products.

Best My Little Pony Cards Ranked

#3. Nightmare Moon / Princess Luna

All the My Little Pony cards are a flavor win, and Nightmare Moon is no exception. It takes six mana to transform into Princess Luna the same way it took the six Elements of Harmony wielded by Twilight Sparkle, Rarity, Applejack, Fluttershy, Pinkie Pie, and Rainbow Dash to do so in the show. Just as the Mane 6 became friends with Princess Luna after she transformed into her old self, so does any player that helps transform Nightmare Moon in Magic.

From a gameplay standpoint, Nightmare Moon is a little underwhelming. Though it’s a powerful flier if you’re playing at night, that’s basically all it is since it loses its high power and toughness when it transforms.

Princess Luna could potentially be helpful if it weren’t for the restrictions put on pulling cards from outside the game. It’s one thing to convince other players to let you use a silver-bordered card in a game of Commander, but quite another for them to allow you to break the format’s rules about not being able to search up cards from outside the game.

#2. Rarity

Rarity’s Magic card fits her personality from the show well. Its cost reduction for rare and mythic rare cards is in keeping with Rarity’s affinity for rare and valuable gems. From a meta standpoint, rare cards are also slightly more fabulous than non-rare cards thanks to the shiny foil on the bottom.

Rarity’s activated ability cares about the colors of ponies and their outfits, which fits with her profession as a fashion designer. Though protective magic isn’t something Rarity is really known for in Friendship Is Magic, she creates protective gem-like barriers in the spinoff show Equestria Girls. Rarity can be a helpful addition to a lot of Commander decks, and you can usually get a lot of mileage out of its cost reduction.

If you own any My Little Pony toys then Rarity’s protection ability is very helpful as well. A Rainbow Dash toy will get you protection from any color except black if you’re looking for a good pony toy to pick up. And if your playgroup accepts a Magic card as a toy, you can just use your Nightmare Moon card for protection from black, helping you cover all your bases.

#1. Princess Twilight Sparkle

Magic’s version of Princess Twilight Sparkle captures Twilight’s tendency for helping other ponies through its anthem ability. As the Princess of Friendship it also makes sense that Twilight’s activated ability would help everyone (or everypony) win the game. This also makes it the ultimate group hug commander because no other deck allows every player in the pod to be considered the winner.

There’s one issue with Princess Twilight Sparkle, and that’s the fact that Applejack, Fluttershy, Pinkie Pie, and Rainbow Dash never got their own Magic cards. That means you’ll have to find another way to activate its ability for a collective win.

You can make up for the missing cards with the Un-card _____. Activating its ability, you can change its name to make up for the ponies you can’t control because they don’t exist.

Are the MLP MTG Cards Legal?

Unfortunately no, none of the My Little Pony cards are legal in any format. That said, you can likely convince players to let you use them in casual Commander games.

I have a group hug Princess Twilight Sparkle deck, and I’ve never had anyone say no to playing with it after I explain the goal is for everyone to win the game. It’s also likely your playgroup will be okay with you including them in the 99 of your deck since none of the individual cards are too overpowered.

Wrap Up

Nightmare Moon | Illustration by John Thacker

Fans of both My Little Pony and Magic will likely love the crossover cards. The flavor on each does a great job representing the ponies, and they do a great job of translating the look of the ponies to fit in with Magic’s aesthetic.

While the collection feels incomplete, especially with the rest of Mane 6 being mentioned but not printed, there’s always hope that Wizard and Hasbro will team up to finish the set. Maybe Magic fans will get a Secret Lair or something to go along with it with 2023 being the 40th anniversary of My Little Pony.

What decks would you put the My Little Pony cards into? Would you like to see more pony cards in future Universes Beyond products? What other Magic crossovers are you excited about? Let me know in the comments below or on Draftsim’s Twitter.

Thank you for reading, and I look forward to seeing you all in the next one!