Disney Lorcana‘s second year is drawing to a close in two weeks with the official release of Reign of Jafar, and this new set shows that the game is on a solid foundation.
It isn’t easy to break into the trading card game scene for more than a flash in the pan, but Ravensburger’s take on the many worlds of Disney intellectual property has certainly made a name for itself. A wealth of original art and some unconventional reinterpretations of beloved icons helped get Lorcana’s foot in the door with players, but the solid playable experience has kept them around, inviting more and more “Illumineers” to the table.
There’s a lot riding on set #8, as the end of the second year’s sets and the last act before a big reset in the next set, Fabled. So, with prereleases starting next weekend, we’re breaking down the things that have us most excited for the arrival of Reign of Jafar—and the reasons why it might go down in history as a pivotal moment for Disney Lorcana’s legend.
So Much At Stake
Much like Ursula’s Return before it, Reign of Jafar is the culmination of several sets worth of gradual storytelling, building to another epic showdown.
In the grand scheme of Lorcana’s story, Reign of Jafar picks up from Archazia’s Island—and not only with its dual-ink cards. Jafar has taken over the island with the power of the Hexwell Crown, the same artifact that Ursula used to run wild a few sets back, which was thought to be destroyed. The Illumineers and their glimmers must try to survive and overthrow the new “Sultan of Lorcana”’s dastardly ambitions, and put an end to the crown’s threat for good.
The threat posed by this villainous glimmer of Jafar permeates much of the set’s other cards, appearing in the artwork for many characters outside the Aladdin universe (like those from Bambi, the Disney IP making its debut in this set). As the name implies, Aladdin is at the forefront of the set, but the rest of the set draws from a well-balanced array of Disney properties—perhaps one of the better samplings to-date.
Jafar himself gets more powerful illusions to complement his abilities from recent sets, while two new 101 Dalmatians cards should round out the “puppy” archetype that has been taking shape since Into The Inklands (as well as a reprint of Dalmatian Puppy—Tail Wagger that will keep it relevant in organized play when set rotation takes effect with the release of Fabled this summer). There’s still more Stitch than I’d necessarily like to see, but overall the set’s theme of adventure and a desperate plot against a villain shines through.
New Starter Decks
Not all premade decks for TCGs are created equal, but Disney Lorcana’s offerings have been reliably great almost from the very beginning. Reign of Jafar doesn’t drop the ball, fortunately.
The first, an Amber and Amethyst deck, focuses on Song cards and glimmers with Singer, and particularly with the Madrigal family of Encanto. If you can get both foil highlight cards, Bruno Madrigal—Singing Seer and Tiana—Natural Talent into play at the same time, Songs can both debuff your enemies’ characters while enabling you to keep your hand full of options. The deck only comes with three different Song options, but with a little customization you can fully take advantage of the musical engine it offers.
The other starter deck, in Ruby and Steel, specializes in challenges. Mulan—Charging Ahead has a great ability called Long Range, which allows her to challenge ready characters, while Burst of Speed makes exception to the rule who can target Evasive characters. Play her with Mushu—Your Worst Nightmare already on the board, and she’ll enter with Rush, Evasive, and Reckless, ready to make a big splash. Stitch—Alien Troublemaker can help draw this combo up, drawing a card when he banishes another character, and the new action Forest Duel from Bambi is a powerful tool for this deck.
Both decks are fantastic starting points for new and old players alike. What’s more, they barely even touch on the set’s main theme of the fight against Jafar, which really shows the depth of Reign of Jafar.
Enchanted Selections
One of the biggest draws of any TCG is its highest rarity cards, and Reign of Jafar continues Disney Lorcana‘s high standard of beautiful Enchanted-rarity cards.
These cards, comparable to “secret rares” in Pokémon TCG, demonstrate the biggest and best things of their set—important themes, characters, cards, and story beats. Characters from newly-incorporated IPs, like Wreck-It Ralph in Shimmering Skies, are usually highlighted, or particularly important glimmers like Ursula or Jafar in their respective sets. All of the Enchanted cards have a special “Inkwash” foiling treatment that enhances the sense of magic exuded by the artwork.
Reign of Jafar‘s Enchanted roster might just be one of the best to date. Newcomer Bambi gets a serene scene, while Lady—Decisive Dog’s variant art tells the story of her mechanics while also capturing the character’s essence, and naturally Jafar gets his moment of full evil glory. The Song cards might just be the biggest draw, though, with Into the Unknown, Fantastical And Magical, and It Means No Worries beautifully encapsulating the essence of their source material. Not to mention, the magical effects on those Encanto and Frozen 2 songs is surely spectacular in person.
Though Enchanted cards may be a little too hard to come by (estimated by some to be in roughly 1 of 100 packs), they will soon be offset by two whole new rarities—Epic, which will be more common than Enchanted, and Iconic, which will be the new rarest level. In this way, Reign of Jafar is almost the end of an era for Disney Lorcana, and the pack opening experience will be different from here on out, so this cohort of Enchanted cards feels just a little bit more special for it.
Illusioneer’s Quest
As the culmination of a story arc and a year’s worth of sets, Reign of Jafar continues in the footsteps of Ursula’s Return by offering a new Illumineer’s Quest experience, Palace Heist.
This standalone boxed experience comes with two premade decks as well as a special “scenario” deck representing the villainous Jafar glimmer at the heart of the story. Players face off against Jafar with a special set of variant rules—he draws a certain number of cards each turn, which automatically resolve—and attempt to take back the Reforged Crown card/token. The game is a race to gain enough lore and take back the crown before Jafar reaches 40 lore himself.
Like the last Illumineer’s Quest, Deep Trouble, the beauty of this box set is that it’s a replayable challenge. It can be customized for 1-4 players, with different difficulty levels depending on the challenge card used. Players aren’t beholden to the two included decks either; they can bring any proper deck of their choosing, and tackling the highest difficulties all but requires them to build something specifically for the challenge. Though the title suggests a full-blown heist, it’s more akin to a prolonged showdown like the one from Aladdin‘s climax, only instead of Al trying to steal the lamp, it’s Illumineers trying to snatch the crown.
Even more exciting, this year’s quest is even better designed Palace Heist is packaged like a proper board game, drawing upon Ravensburger’s wider expertise, instead of the more temporary packaging from Deep Trouble. It shows that Disney Lorcana‘s team is listening to feedback and actively improving the game wherever possible.
Shining, Shimmering Future
At a point in its lifespan where many other card games are at a “make it or break it” point, Reign of Jafar seems like proof that Disney Lorcana has what it takes to remain a staple of the TCG industry—above and beyond this new release.
With some internal shuffles and a slate of future plans, it seems the team behind the game is rejuvenated and more ready than ever to expand the game’s horizons. Establishing an official “Standard” format for organized play is an investment in the game’s social future, as is the Ravensburger Play Hub system.
I’d still love to see the game develop its story in more meaningful directions, especially given the full storytelling power of Disney behind it, but it does seem like this is something we could see happen soon. For instance, Reign of Jafar uses the art cards found in each booster pack for an interesting purpose, scattering a story across 20 different bonus card designs. Other Disney “multiverse” mash-ups like Mirrorverse have squandered their potential by not branching into full-fledged stories, so hopefully this is a sign of bigger things to come.
But for now, Reign of Jafar closes out Disney Lorcana‘s second year with a bang. Hopefully the game will continue to grow and adapt as it has over the last four sets—and with additions like Darkwing Duck already promised, its potential is promising.
