Outlaws of Thunder Junction Lore & Story Summary

One Last Job | Illustration by Caroline Gariba

Outlaws of Thunder Junction is the final story in the Omenpath Arc. So far we’ve got Kellan going to different planes through the omenpaths opened across the multiverse in search for his father Oko, going through the Wilds of Eldraine, the Lost Caverns of Ixalan, and the Murders at Karlov Manor Magic sets. We finally arrive at Thunder Junction, where MTG’s worst outlaws and baddies are going to steal something legen – wait for it – dary.

We’ve read the stories and the lore and made a quick summary, so if you want to stay updated on MTG, we’ve got you covered. Here’s what Outlaws of Thunder Junction is about, in a quick 10-minute read, so let’s dive in!

What Is Outlaws of Thunder Junction About?

Oko, the Ringleader | Illustration by Magali Villeneuve

Outlaws of Thunder Junction's story is about bad guys/villains from different places of the MTG multiverse teaming up to rob a vault. It’s an Old West/heist story involving characters from different planes of MTG such as Oko, Tinybones, Vraska, Rakdos, Eriette, Gisa, and Geralf, among many others. Of course, mistrust plays a big role here because, well, the villains usually don’t work well with each other, so at some point, there’ll be some double-crossing and betrayal.

Outlaws of Thunder Junction Setting

Outlaws of Thunder Junction (OTJ) is an MTG set in the Omenpath Arc. Few planeswalkers still retain their planeswalker spark, but at the same time, regular characters can travel between planes via the Omenpaths – portals between planes. OTJ takes place right after the events of Murders at Karlov Manor and Lost Caverns of Ixalan, on a plane called Thunder Junction. Oko, who has kept his planeswalker spark, is recruiting a team of bad guys from many planes that happen to cross paths in Thunder Junction due to the Omenpaths. Another planeswalker, Ashiok, hired Oko to do the business. Oko only tells the crew that they’re going to steal a legendary vault, that what’s inside doesn’t concern anyone, and that they’ll be nicely rewarded.    

Main Characters

Oko, the Ringleader

Oko is the leader of the gang. He’s selfish and ruthless, and he considers everybody else expendable (including his own son). Mission first, consequences later.

Annie Flash, the Veteran

Annie Flash is a former freerider that joins Oko’s crew to oppose Akul. Although she doesn’t trust Oko or anyone else in his crew, she thinks that Akul is the bigger evil to be fought.

Kellan, the Kid

Kellan has been around for a while in MTG Lore. He’s Oko’s son and he’s been actively searching for his father, only to find out his father couldn’t care less for him. He goes to Thunder Junction because he was told Oko was here.

Ashiok

The planeswalker Ashiok is the contractor or the heist’s mastermind, if you will. We know they’re interested in the vault’s contents and that they’ll pay a hefty sum for its contents.

Vraska, the Silencer

The former planeswalker and Ravnican gorgon Vraska is here. She joins Oko’s crew as a trained assassin who has her own agenda.

Akul the Unrepentant

Akul is the villain of villains, and here he’s pure evil. You can’t reason or negotiate with Akul. He’s a strong/massive flying scorpion/dragon that spits fire and has a powerful venomous sting. Akul leads the Hellspurs and has a massive interest in opening the vault and getting its contents.

Ral Zarek

Ral Zarek, the Izzet guildmaster from Ravnica, is also interested in the Omenpaths and in the vault’s content. Initially, he arrives with Kellan, but Kellan goes to Oko’s side.

Other minor characters in Oko’s Crew

• Rakdos is the big guy, or the party’s muscle/tank.
• Eriette commands charming magic.
• Gisa and Geralf are the Innistrad necromancer brothers.
• Kaervek knows about elemental magic, particularly fire.
• Satoru Umezawa is there to pick locks.
• Malcolm is the scout – the eyes in the sky.
• Breeches is the saboteur.
• Tinybones is very flexible and can fit into small places.

The Plot

Chapter 1: An Offer of Revenge

At the beginning of the story, Akul and his Hellspurs are doing evil and bad things. They’re searching for something, and a character named Archie is killed alongside his buddies/guards. Akul gets what he wants (but it’s a fake). Annie Flash gets to the scene and finds out the destruction wrought by Akul – which she’s very familiar with, having suffered one of these attacks. She finds out that Akul’s gang isn’t looking for money, and she ends up getting some of the gold that was left behind.

Mounted on her faithful horse Fortune, she arrives at a town, Saddlebrush. There she meets Oko for the first time. Oko is a notorious shapeshifter, but Annie has a gift of seeing through illusions. So, Oko has no choice but to reveal his real shape. The fae shapeshifter finally tells Annie that he wants to steal something from Akul, and that joining him is her opportunity for revenge.

Kellan joins Ral Zarek in Thunder Junction. Ral’s been working together with the Sterling Company mercenaries. Kellan tells Ral that he’s not there for the company money, but because Ezrim told him on Ravnica that Oko, his father, is here. The Sterling Company tells Kellan that he’s to accompany Ral Zarek to Prosperity, one of the biggest and richest towns. Kellan is excited at the prospect of learning more about this place and about his fathers' whereabouts.

Chapter 2: The Jailbreak

Annie goes to Rustwood to find Oko, feeling a little threatened by his words. The meeting point is the Prosperity Saloon. Here we meet the main part of Oko’s crew: Tinybones, Malcolm, Breeches, Gisa and Geralf, Eriette, Rakdos, and Vraska. Annie decides to join the crew, and Ashiok explains the mission. They’re going to rob Maag Taranau, a legendary vault. Ashiok only cares about the vault’s contents, and they’ll reward Oko’s crew nicely. Ashiok also explains that Akul and the Hellspurs built an entire town around the vault hoping to control it, and that they call it Tarnation. Akul is searching for the key though, as well as Oko’s crew. Bertram Graywater, the founder of the Sterling Company, has the key they need, and for that, they’ll need to bust into a prison in Sterling Headquarters. That’s exactly what happens next.

Annie Flash and Eriette infiltrate the prison. Eriette charms the guards to get access to the prison keys. Meanwhile, Annie uses her ability to see through illusions and finds Satoru Umezawa and Kaervek locked inside jails. They’re both freed. Umezawa helps Oko and Tinybones hack into the vault and get the key. While they’re escaping, they meet Ral Zarek with Kellan and many guards. A little battle takes place, with Ral Zarek shocked to see Vraska again and being knocked down by Rakdos. Kellan finally meets Oko and explains that he’s his son. Oko adds Kellan to the crew, especially after seeing his son’s magic in action.

Chapter 3: A Train to Prosperity

Akul finds out about Oko’s doings and sends people after him. Meanwhile, Oko’s crew gathers to discuss the next steps. Kellan gets to know his father a little better, and there’s tension between Wilds of Eldraine characters – Ashiok, Eriette, and Kellan. Oko’s trying his best to unify these people to work together for the same cause. The crew then argues about the next course of action. They need to discover where the vault is (Tarnation), and what mysteries the key holds. Maybe they’ll find both the answers they need with a man named Nolan, who is currently on a train going to Prosperity. They’ll strike the train and get Nolan to work for them.

The plan goes like this. Umezawa, Oko, and Kellan are disguised inside the train, while Gisa, Geralf, and Breeches create a distraction. Breeches blows up the bridge, while Gisa raises corpses. Umezawa is shot while trying to open a door that gives access to where Nolan is. Oko and Kellan try to go over and walk on the train’s surface. They fight some guards including Nolan’s bodyguards and take Nolan and the injured Umezawa from the train. The major conflict here develops between Kellan and Oko’s values, seeing as Kellan wants to ensure that innocent people on the train are safe, while Oko couldn’t care less. Oko even abandons Kellan to his luck, because he’s more worried about the safety of the train and its civilians than the mission’s success. Kellan finally manages to slow the train enough with his vine magic to ensure that civilians can jump off the train safely, and only then he’s rescued by Annie and her faithful mount Fortune.

Chapter 4: Finding Tarnation

Geralf tends to Umezawa’s wounds. Kellan and Oko argue about Oko’s methods. Kellan’s very upset that many innocents were hurt and that he’s been left behind.

Meanwhile, Ashiok uses their magic to extract Nolan’s knowledge that he’s not willingly sharing with Oko’s gang. They discover that the artifact is just a key, but it’s one of six. Akul already has the other five, and that’s why he’s so actively searching for this one. Akul’s wearing the five keys in a medallion around his neck. Also, Ashiok finds a map to Tarnation, buried in Thief’s Folly. Geralf and Gisa retrieve this map since it’s buried in a cemetery.

Annie and Kellan chat about the job, trust issues, and Oko. Annie explains that she was once a part of the Freeriders and they robbed Akul and the Hellspurs. They managed to escape Akul’s relentless persecution, and her nephew was badly injured. Recognizing Akul as pure evil, she sides with Oko and puts all trust issues aside.

The map retrieved in Thief’s Folly gives them a clear direction to Tarnation. Oko sets a crew of four people to dress/disguise themselves as Hellspurs and try to get into Tarnation and to Akul: Annie, Kellan, Vraska, and himself.

Once they come in contact with the Hellspurs, Kellan’s good matters give their disguise away. A fight breaks out with Akul’s inner circle, and Oko’s gang loses badly. They’re captured and taken straight to Akul.

Akul finally gets the sixth piece of the key, and the 6 key pieces unite into one single key. Feeling guilty about the operation’s failure, in a desperate attempt, Kellan challenges Akul to a duel. Akul has no choice but to accept, else he’ll look weak and lose his reputation. Duel starts at midnight.

Chapter 5: High Moon

It’s time! Kellan against Akul. It’s a fight to the death. Annie told him to fly and leave. Run for his life. Oko couldn’t care less. Of course, Kellan is very upset about his father’s lack of care. The fight begins, and Kellan’s strategy is to tire Akul, the big and strong scorpion dragon.

Kellan tries to strike the dragon with a magical golden spear, but the dragon’s scales are too thick to penetrate. During the fight, at one point Kellan manages to concentrate his magic, which is strong enough to charm Akul. He then proceeds to strangle Akul with his vine magic. The magic is strong, but Akul manages to break it and fight back.

When Kellan is in a really bad spot and the fight is almost lost, mercenaries from the Sterling Company reach the scene led by Ral Zarek and start to shoot at Akul and the Hellspurs.

It turns out, it was all part of Oko’s plans to get captured, to bring the mercenaries there, and to create a big confusion. Now it’s time to get the medallion and rush to the vault while the Sterling mercenaries fight Akul’s Hellspurs.

Of course, Oko’s selfish plans make the rest of the crew suspect him even more – especially Vraska and Annie who were left in the dark. Kellan is captured by the Sterling Company, but accepts Ral Zarek’s proposal to change sides. Ral’s plan is to get the Vault’s contents and hide them on another plane.

Chapter 6: The Ballad of Thieves and Thunderslings

The crew – minus Kellan – finally arrives at the vault’s door. Annie detects some kind of trap that needs to be defused. Matching their unique skills, Satoru Umezawa orients Annie and Tinybones to defuse the locks. Annie sees the traps and Tinybones is small enough to pass through the trap and get to the other side.

“The grid has vanished,” Annie says. “I think it's safe to cross.” When they prepare to enter the vault, Akul shows up, after fighting the mercenaries, together with a crew of Hellspurs. Kaervek uses his magic to try to break the magic barrier while everyone else has a hell of a fight. Rakdos engages Akul in single combat while everyone else is supporting their champion or protecting Kaervek.

After the door finally opens, Oko and Vraska rush for the vault’s interior abandoning the rest of the crew (for the tenth time, probably). Accompanying them on opposite sides are Kellan and Ral Zarek. Vraska tells Ral that she needs what’s inside the vault to repair what she’s done. Meanwhile, Kellan manages to get the key from Oko’s grasp.

Ashiok arrives at the scene, and it’s Jace Beleren in disguise. Jace puts Annie to sleep and gets a little furry creature that’s inside the vault: Loot, the Key to Everything. That creature was what he was looking for all along. Vraska tries to petrify Oko, but he planeswalks away just before becoming a stone statue. Jace planeswalks away with Vraska and the creature.

Rakdos is satisfied because he defeated Akul, and the entire crew leaves the vault as soon as it starts to collapse. Akul isn’t fully defeated though, and he goes for Annie as one last attack. Kellan finally accepts and embraces his fae magic and manages to control Akul’s thoughts and actions – what he couldn’t do during the battle – and he releases Annie. He also makes Akul lock himself into the vault.

Oko returns to Wildcard Saloon. His shapeshift magic made him undo the petrifying process. It’s time to face failure with his gang of outlaws. Despite all that has happened, the group agrees to meet together one last time to get revenge on Jace and Vraska. Rakdos and Tinybones are satisfied because they had fun after all. Umezawa and Kaervek agree to work together but demand more payment. Gisa and Geralf are okay, too.

Story Spotlight Cards

One Last Job

The card depicts Annie Flash as she’s gearing herself. She accepts Oko’s proposal and joins the team.

Mystical Tether

Kellan uses his fae magic to try to break the train or at least speed it down so that it doesn’t fall through the hole that was blasted in the rails.

Seize the Secrets

Here we can see Ashiok extracting secrets from Nolan’s mind. Notably the location to the vault and what the key is.

Plan the Heist

This card depicts Oko gathering the crew together to heist the train. They need to extract Nolan from the Sterling Company’s train.

Betrayal at the Vault

This is the moment that the team cracks. Oko, Vraska, Kellan, Ral Zarek, and even Ashiok/Jace, each one has their own agenda. In the end, Vraska and Ashiok/Jace get the vault’s content for themselves without paying the crew.

Getaway Glamer

And here’s the final story moment. Kellan uses all his power to control Akul’s actions and make him stay inside the vault, even as it’s collapsing.

The Flavor Text

Here’s my favorite flavor texts from OTJ, and the ones that best capture the mood and the story being told:

Eriette’s Lullaby

“When Kellan questioned her, Eriette reminded him that she’d been asked only to put the guard to sleep—the request said nothing about waking up.”

This flavor text shows Kellan the true nature of criminals and selfless people. It’s about getting things done and you’ll not matter about consequences.

Corrupted Conviction

“Every moving carriage is an accident waiting to happen, and the Hellspurs hate waiting.”

This flavor text shows the nature of Akul and his Hellspurs. Chaotic Evil at its finest.

Vraska Joins Up

‘’Letting Oko believe he held all the cards provided the perfect cover for her own scheme to unfold.’’

Here we see the plotting taking place. For Vraska, it’s essential that Oko thinks that he has all the cards at all times. Overconfident people make more mistakes.

Betrayal at the Vault

“The vault cracked open, and the unlikely alliance met the likeliest of ends, as greed, rage, and self-interest won out over any shred of loyalty.”

And finally, here’s the inevitable betrayal. Bad guys work together to reach a purpose, but when they finally open the vault, it’s everyone for themselves.

Round Up

Seize the Secrets | Illustration by Miranda Meeks

And that’s it for Outlaws of Thunder Junction, folks. Another set, another piece of lore in the Omenpath arc. And now we’re left wondering about some details. Is Jace the next bad guy? Is he still a phyrexian? Does he like Vraska still or are they playing one another? And what are the mysterious creature’s powers? After all, it was locked in a very safe and mysterious vault? Is it an evil creature? Guess we’ll have to find out in the next set.

What do you think about this story? Let me know in the comments section below or over on the Draftsim Discord!

Thanks for reading, and stay safe!