Reliquary Tower

Reliquary Tower was originally introduced in the 2008 set Eventide. Its design was a response to a long-standing mechanical limitation in Magic: The Gathering, where players were required to discard down to a hand size of seven at the end of their turn. By removing this restriction, the card created a powerful utility effect that has since become a staple for casual formats like Commander, where players frequently draw large numbers of cards.

For its appearance in Core Set 2019, artist Jesper Ejsing provided a new interpretation of the iconic landmark. Ejsing focused on the sense of scale and accumulated knowledge, depicting the tower as an impossibly tall, winding structure filled with scrolls and ancient artifacts. The piece was well-received by the player base for capturing the card's function—a repository of endless information—while maintaining the distinct aesthetic consistency required for the Core Set's design goals.