Grizzly Bears

Grizzly Bears were printed as part of the Revised Edition of Magic: The Gathering, released in 1994. This set served as the third core edition of the game, designed to replace the earlier Limited Edition prints to accommodate a rapidly growing player base. Mechanically, the card was intended as a foundational creature, establishing the baseline utility for a two-mana creature with two power and two toughness, a metric that became known in the community as the 'Bear test.'

The card’s art was illustrated by Dan Frazier, whose work on early Magic sets helped define the game's high-fantasy aesthetic. Frazier’s design for the Grizzly Bears features a straightforward, literal depiction of the animal, reflecting the game's early focus on accessible, recognizable creature types. While the card is mechanically simple, its role as a template for small aggressive creatures has kept it a staple of the game's history and a touchstone for discussions regarding power creep in later sets.