Mystic Lands, Card Crafting Evolved from AEG

Vale Map: Leap Frog Fen
4 months ago – Mon, Nov 17, 2025 at 01:36:22 PM

Hello Druids,

I'm back today with one of my favorite vales, Leap Frog Fen! We as a development team got to pitch some ideas for vale maps, and this was my pitch having just wrapped up development on Into the Machine. I wanted a little race featuring the leap frog aspect of that game and focusing on making the decision on what spaces to Enchant on vale cards even harder.

We're now getting into the last 3 vale maps, of which the commissioned art is still being made, so I can share sketches of what the background illustration will look like, but for the descriptions and examples I will show you the prototypes we were using (you get to see how the sausage is made!). Suffice it to say, all artwork and naming is not final, but development is pretty much done. We've been playing these maps for a couple years now.

Players on this vale map will be leaping frogs around the lily pads of a raised pond at the top-middle of the map! They count laps on another track at the top left of the map.

The rules for the map are:

Leap Frog Fen

Setup: Add a cube from your supply to one of the starting squares on the giant lily pad, and another to the lap counter track. In a 2 or 3 player game place permanent static cubes on the indicated spots from the unused player colors. The giant lily pad is just a starting space and not part of the lily pad loop. 

When you enchant a spot on a Vale card:
Leap your frog (move your cube) a number of lily pads equal to the number shown adjacent to the spot you enchanted. Frogs always leap over lily pads occupied by other frogs, only counting and landing on empty spaces.

Counting Laps:
Each time your frog lands on or passes the [pink lily pad], move your lap counter 1 space left and gain its reward. If you run off the lap counter, claim the highest place still available on the leaderboard. 

End of Game:
Move all cubes still on the lap counter track to the leader board in place order. In the case of ties, farthest 'round the lily pad wins. Claim VP equal to your spot.

In Leap Frog Fen, all of the vale spaces you can enchant have an icon next to them:

All of the vale card have their own best powers at the top, but if you want to leap your frog for more rewards and more endgame VP than other players, then the bottom spots will do that for you!

Here's an example of two moves. Let's say the red player enchanted a vale space that moves their frog 4 spaces:

On the blue player's turn, if they also enchant a vale that leaps them 4 lily pads, they will get to hop over the red player's frog!

Don't worry that blue got an extra space, because they'll return the favor on red's next move. If red really gets into the race and enchants a leap 5 vale space they'll not only sail past blue...

...they'll pass over the pink lily pad, getting to count 1 lap:

Red immediately gets to add 2 mana to their supply. Each step up the lap counter will grant the reward shown.

There are 2 special vales on the map that are just about leaping your frog and endgame VP:

If any player makes it to the end of the lap counter, they'll claim the top spot available on the leaderboard. Also, when the game ends, players will move from the lap counter track to the leaderboard with further players taking the top spots. Cubes do not leapfrog on the lap counter track, so player could be tied in laps. In that case, the player whose frog is farther along on the lily pad track breaks ties.

In this 4 player game, blue gains an additional 11 VP, red gets 5VP, yellow gets 3VP and green was left in 4th place, with no additional VP.

Next up, we'll get to explore a Tropical Forest! (Which was a little more icy and cold in out playtesting?)

-Kirk
AEG Development Team Member

Vale Map: Sand and Sails
4 months ago – Fri, Nov 14, 2025 at 01:29:28 PM

Hello Druids!

Sand and Sails is the next map we get to explore and enchant! The final name, and some details are subject to change as I just got the first draft of artwork for this about 20 minutes ago from the amazing Matt Paquette & Co.! 

Sand and Sails gets a little taste of icon collection and a bigger dose of player interaction as new icons have been added adjacent to certain spaces on the Vale cards. For example, when this level 2 Vale, Sunlight Valley, is discovered and flipped over you'll see that next to the bottom cube space is a Desert Sun icon:

Now when a player spends Spirit to enchant this vale, the decision on which space to place their cube isn't so obvious! If they have been collecting advances that add sun icons to their deck, they may want one of the top 2 spots to ensure they get the 7 end of game VP. If not, the first player here may want to collect Desert Suns!

But what does that do for you? I'm glad you asked!

These rules are on the Vale Map for quick reference. Desert Suns are all the rage in collectables in this region! The more you collect the more powers you gain. These do stack, so players who collect 5 or more will gain 1 Mana, gain 1 VP, get to play their on-deck card, and only wither when a 5th Sun is revealed, instead of 4. Fitting for the desert!

This map has special mini vales as well, like these 2 in the top left that allow 2 players to enchant here to gain some Desert Suns!

That covers the desert along the top of the map. Along the bottom is the coastline to the sea where there are Natural Harbors adjacent to Vale Spots. Meeting with other players in these Harbors will give you both an amazing prize:

Here's an example of some Vales with harbors:

The Natural Harbor in the Spiderwood aligns with the top two spaces. The first player to claim the top space next to the Harbor won't will gain the normal power of that Vale in getting 1 Mana when they want it, but nothing from the Harbor just yet.

As soon as another player claims the other harbor space, that player will have the 2 endgame VP as normal, but now both players at the same Harbor will each draw 1 random advance from the level 1 Advance deck! This is in addition to the two buys that the active player has, so they can sleeve any gained advances this turn in their Dusk phase. The other player will also have that extra advance to sleeve in their next Dusk phase if they like, or can hold it until a more opportune turn to sleeve.

The Natural Harbor in the Mother Oak aligns with the second and third space instead. This offers an interesting choice for players. The first player to enchant here could give up the 1 endgame VP of the first space to take the second space instead, hoping to pair up in the Harbor with another player later. 

The next player to enchant here also has a choice! They could take the first space that the first player left open, gaining access to 2 rain tokens, and forego meeting in the Harbor with the first player. But maybe they want the extra 1 VP and the random level 1 Advance card over the second rain token!

But let's get crazy!

The Amethyst Cliffs Bay is a giant harbor where 4 players can meet! The first player to enchant here could gain up to 3 random level 1 advance cards, if the other 3 players choose to also meet!

And finally...

...there is the Gathering Spires. It's a close trip from the starting circle, and a bargain cost at only 1 Spirit to enchant, but the trail has a cost. Players are going to need to have at least 3 VP already collected on their player board to spend as a payment to cross. Once there, you'll have a Desert Sun in your collection and a Natural Harbor to meet other players in!

While we're talking about gaining random Level 1 Advances, you could gain anything... 

...even an Advance that will gain you random Level 2 Advances!

Collect 3 more Yellow aspects on the card with your Aegisian Hummingbird and you'll be swimming in combos!

I hope you are enjoying these peaks into the Vale Maps. Next update, we're going to get a little froggy!

-Kirk
AEG Development Team Member

Vale Map: The Foggy Reach
4 months ago – Wed, Nov 12, 2025 at 08:49:48 AM

Hello Druids!

Every other day of the campaign I will feature one of the Vale Maps and how they make each game a different experience. I will also feature a few interesting cards here and there!

After your exploration of the Gateway Vale on Monday, adventurous Druids can venture into the Foggy Reach to explore specializing in Aspects while crafting their cards or going the distance to reach the Tranquil Glen. You could even go for both with enough Spirit!

The first thing you'll notice on Foggy Reach is that there are 7 Vales to enchant that are not Vale cards, they are printed on the map! If you travel from the circle to the left side of the map you can be the first to claim Vales that benefit in collecting specific aspects. These mini-Vales only have space for 1 cube, so it's first come, first served!

When you enchant this Vale you gain the ongoing effect that that all the cards in your land with at least 1 Yellow Aspect icon will provide 1 additional Mana. Aspects specialize in different things, and one of Yellow's specializations is in Mana, which is used to purchase Advances from the market.

Enchanting this Vale will make all your cards with Green aspect icons provide additional Spirit. This will come in handy if you want to reach the Tranquil Glen on the other end of the map before the end of the game!

This Vale grants additional VP to your cards with Red aspect icons on them!

And finally, the Blue aspect vale will make your cards that have 3 or more Blue icons produce 1 Rain token. You'll need to pack a card with with multiple Blue aspect icons, but Rain tokens are worth it. Once you get 1 card stacked you can repeat and try to stack additional cards as well!

Keep an eye out for Wild aspect icons, as they will help you with making sure you use these mini Vales to the fullest. The Fleeting Lepidoptera can activate the Blue aspect all by itself, or activate the Yellow, Green, and Red ones if you choose to make the 3 of its wilds those those 3 different colors for the turn:

To venture over to the Tranquil Glen, you will have to go through Discovery Bay first! It will give you 5 endgame VP if you are the first to enchant here, but it will give all the other players 1 immediate VP.

Blazing trails is a risky business, but being first has its advantages. One of the paths leading from the Bay takes you through the River Valley, the most direct route to the Tranquil Glen. The first Druid to place a cube on the River Valley will get 3 endgame VP and access to 2 Rain tokens that can be used at the most opportune times! 

And finally, the Tranquil Glen! Everyone who makes it to this Vale will get an additional Day Phase with 7 cards from the top of your deck after their last turn of the game.

You don't have to take this direct path, as random Level 1 and 2 Vale cards surround the River Valley with possibly more tempting powers along the road less traveled!

Get ready this Friday for some Sand and Shores action, where collaborating with your fellow druids to share some ports will benefit all involved!

-Kirk
AEG Development Team Member

Vale Maps, how do they work?
4 months ago – Mon, Nov 10, 2025 at 01:20:16 PM

Hello Druids!

One of the big questions about Mystic Lands is, how is this different than Mystic Vale? This version brings streamlined play, simultaneous tableau setup during the night phases, more forgiving withering when you bust, a smaller deck that lets you play your power cards more often, and rain token generation on Arid land cards that reward going wide with crafting. Add in the incredible new art integration—making this the most beautiful card-crafting game ever—and top it all off with the new Vale maps to explore!

The Gateway Vale map is the players' first introduction to the new mechanic of exploring and enchanting Vales. Everyone starts at the circle in the middle of the map and can follow several paths, enchanting the Vale cards as they go for victory points and special powers. The level 1 and 2 Vale card decks are shuffled every game and dealt to the maps for different opportunities every time you play.

Starting from the circle, players will have 3 paths to follow. One of those paths in the example above leads to Cathedral Valley which generates End Game Victory Points. The first player to spend 4 Spirit (the number in the upper right) to enchant this Vale can pick any spot on the left track. On the Cathedral Valley Vale, the best spot is obviously 4 endgame VP. Other Vales & Maps may make decisions like this less obvious, so stay tuned as we reveal them in upcoming updates!

A rule that applies to all Vales is that each subsequent player to enchant a Vale will pay less Spirit (a discount of 1 Spirit per cube placed by other players). For example, if 2 players have enchanted Cathedral Valley, the 3rd player will only need to pay 2 Spirit to place their cube.

Another path leads to the Spirit Cave. When a player places their cube on one of the top 3 spaces the icon adjacent to the End Game Victory Point award indicates that the Immediate effect of this Vale is also triggered, and they gain an immediate benefit of doubling the Mana they currently have collected for more Advancement buying power!

The 3rd path leads to the Giant's Causeway. The players who enchant the top 2 spots will place their cubes on the squares showing the endgame VP. The little arrow means that during the Night phase as they are moving cards from their deck to their Land, they can move the cube to the left covering the Rain icon to gain a Rain token. That token can be used to cover a Sun in their Land reducing the chances of withering!

Effects like that can only be used once per game, but there are powers on card advancements that will refresh vale spots, allowing you to do them again, like the Wildflower Hillside!

Let's say that the Yellow player chose to enchant the Spirit Cave during their Day phase:

They would gain the Mana from the immediate effect, and then reveal the next 2 Vales on the paths attached to the Spirit Cave by flipping the cards over. These Vales are now open to being enchanted by the Yellow player either this turn with their second cube (you can enchant up to 2 Vales per turn) or on later turns.

Other players will need to enchant the Spirit Cave themselves first to reach the Spirit Geyser or Starlight Willow. Players can only follow paths leading from the starting circle or from Vales they already have enchanted.

On Starlight Willow, the top 2 spaces can provide up to 2 Mana. You can move your cube left twice for 2 mana in one shot, or move it once this turn for 1 Mana now and once again later for a Mana in the future. Remember, some card Advance powers may refresh these spaces to be used again!

Spirit Geyser is our first look at a Level 2 Vale. They are more expensive to enchant, but have more powerful abilities to boot! The top spot will gain immediate VP (gold VP icon) equal to the total endgame VP (gray VP icons) shown on 1 of the cards currently shown in your land. Since you can choose when to activate this Vale power, you'll want to craft a card with a lot of endgame VP to target.

Now that we have the basics of how Vale maps and Vale cards work, my next updates will feature the other 5 maps included with the Oran Mór Edition of Mystic Lands. Come back on Wednesday and I'll show how the Foggy Reach map works and what new powers it brings to the game. 

Each Vale map opens up a whole way to make sure every game of Mystic Lands grants a unique experience!

-Kirk
AEG Development Team Member

We are funded
4 months ago – Mon, Nov 10, 2025 at 09:06:32 AM

Across the newborn world the Druids have paused to give thanks.

Because of your support Mystic Lands has achieved its funding goal and we’ll be able to create the amazing Oran Mór edition for our backers.

On behalf of everyone at AEG, and John D Clair, we want to thank you for helping us.

– the AEG Mystic Lands Team