Everything You Need to Know About the Secrets of Strixhaven Prerelease

Conciliator's Duelist | Illustration by Andrew Mar

Back to Strixhaven we go!

I’ve always found the flavor of Strixhaven a bit too derivative, since it’s so clearly based on a certain other wizarding school property while it acts like it’s not, but at the very least the school of Strixhaven and the surrounding world of Arcavios feel like a distinct part of Magic’s multiverse. They pulled off the “instants/sorceries” set very well, and the 2021 set feels mechanically distinct from any other set they’ve made.

Now we head back to an apparently more secretive version of the school, post Phyrexian Invasion, and revisit all our old classmates, professors, and Mage Tower rivals, which for those who don’t know, is the sport played at Strixhaven that’s absolutely, 100% not based on a similar stadium-style sport from another mega-popular wizarding school IP.

Let’s catch up on what to expect from the Secrets of Strixhaven Prerelease.

What Is the Secrets of Strixhaven Prerelease?

Flashback | Illustration by Flavio Greco Paglia

Well, it’s a secret, I can’t possibly tell you that. Unless, you promise not to tell anyone… Alright, I’ll tell you.

The Secrets of Strixhaven prerelease is a weekend-long event where you can play with the new cards from the set a week before the official release. It’s the first opportunity people have to open the latest cards and play with them.

These events tend to be super casual and inviting for players of all experience levels, and they’re some of the best ways to engage with a new set release.

What Format Is Prerelease?

Prereleases are typically Sealed events, so you’ll play with the cards you open from a fresh set of Play boosters. You don’t have to bring any of your own cards with you to play. This is what we call “Limited” play, where everyone’s on an even playing field, and you can’t simply buy your way into having the best deck.

A typical 3-round Sealed event usually takes between 3-5 hours, depending on how quickly your store starts everything up and how fast or slow the games go. You’ll usually get about 50 minutes to an hour for deckbuilding, and 50 minutes per round. Most stores cut off at three rounds, but I’ve been to some 4- or even 5-round events. It’s good to ask what the tournament structure will be before you register.

Some stores offer Two-Headed Giant events during dedicated timeslots for the weekend, which is one of the most fun ways to play Magic, period. If you and a buddy, significant other, or semi-decent offspring want to do your best Tymna+Kraum impression and partner up for the prerelease weekend, I can’t recommend joining Two-Headed Giant Sealed events more.

What Comes in a Prerelease Kit?

A Secrets of Strixhaven Prerelease Kit contains the following:

• 5 SOS Play boosters
• 1 College-themed booster with cards from the colors associated with each college: Quandrix (), Prismari (), Lorehold (), Silverquill (), or Witherbloom ()
• 1 Promo rare or mythic rare from the set (not stamped, so essentially just an extra rare)
• 1 of 5 different spindown d20 life counters
• 1 Box/Container to carry your cards. These often come with punchouts that you can use as various counters in the set.

Note that unlike a lot of recent sets, one Mystical Archive bonus sheet card comes in every SOS Play booster, so you’re guaranteed to get some of the coolest alternate-frame treatments in the set.

And in case you’re wondering, don’t worry about bringing your own basic lands unless you want to! The local game store you play at should have plenty of basics for everyone to borrow (just remember to give them back!).

When Is Secrets of Strixhaven Prerelease Weekend?

Secrets of Strixhaven prerelease is technically scheduled from Friday, April 17 through Thursday, April 23, though most game stores will hold events from Friday-Sunday (April 17-19). If you’re fishing around for a place to sign up, definitely aim for Friday, Saturday, or Sunday.

Where Can You Attend the Prerelease?

Most local game stores will hold Magic prerelease events. If you’re already familiar with a hobby shop or game store in your area that sells Magic: The Gathering product, try to get in contact with them and ask about their prerelease events. Many LGSs have their events listed on an online calendar, as well.

If you’re searching for a place to play, you can check out the Wizards Store & Event Locator. Here you can specify the distance you’re willing to travel and use the filters to narrow down searches specifically to “Magic Prerelease”. This may not pull up enough results if the stores in your area haven’t posted prerelease events yet, but you can always web search “Magic: The Gathering stores near me” to get a sense of what’s around your area, and call the stores to ask about their weekend prerelease events.

Word to the wise: Try to preregister for your events if you can, especially if your game store’s anticipates a huge turnout. And make sure you’ve got the MTG Companion App downloaded and ready to go; it’ll save everyone a bit of time when joining the event.

Who Goes to Prereleases?

Prerelease is the universal constant of MTG: It’s an event that’s perfect for everyone across all skill levels. These are meant to be casual events, and you’ll meet everyone from the newbie Magic player attending their first event to the 15-year Magic grinder who’s never missed a prerelease event.

In other words, prerelease is for everyone, more so than any other Magic event. It’s also a great time to just get a group of friends together and play the new set, whether you’re playing Two-Headed Giant or trying to get queued up against your buddies in a 1v1 event.

Also, if you’re a fan of the original Strixhaven: School of Mages set, or you’re just much more into in-universe sets than Universe Beyond properties, now’s your time to show WotC how much you care about these original IP sets!

Is Going to Prerelease Worth It?

There are two ways to answer this question. The first is from an experiential perspective, in which case yes, prereleases tend to be loads of fun and a great way to jumpstart your collection of the new set. If you’re there to have a good time and get hyped about new Magic cards, prerelease is a slam-dunk.

Financials are a different question. This is not a Universes Beyond set, so there’s no markup on the cost of entry, which means you can expect to participate in an SOS prerelease for around $30-35. The six Play boosters you’ll receive are worth roughly $33 based on MSRP, so you’re already getting your money’s worth with the packs alone. Plus, you get all the extras like the spindown, the additional promo rare, and the chance to play in a tournament where you could win even more packs.

Assuming you value the experience of actually playing in the event, the SOS prerelease is definitely worth it. If you’re literally only interested in cracking packs and have no interest in playing three or four rounds of Sealed, there are better alternatives.

SOS Sealed Simulator

The Draftsim Sealed Simulator will be up to date with Secrets of Strixhaven as soon as the full spoiler drops on April 9-10. You can practice drafting or opening Sealed pools a week before the prerelease, completely for free.

Time For Back to School Shopping

Borrowed Knowledge | Illustration by Inkognit

If you’re heading back to Strixhaven for another semester, you’ll want to look sharp, and nothing says “I’m ready to tackle Introduction to Annihilation” like knowing what to expect from your upcoming prerelease event.

There will be lessons to learn (kind of), magic to craft (sans actual magecraft), and this is one set where you’ll definitely want to come prepared.

Are you attending the SOS prerelease? What are you hoping to open? Let us know in the comments down below or in the Draftsim Discord, and stay tuned for a Secrets of Strixhaven prerelease guide on our YouTube channel, The Daily Upkeep.

Thanks for making Draftsim your #1 stop for all things Magic!

Note: this post contains affiliate links. If you use these links to make a purchase, you'll help Draftsim continue to provide awesome free articles and apps.