Wheel of Fortune

Wheel of Fortune was released in 1993 as part of the Limited Edition Alpha set, the inaugural printing for the Magic: The Gathering trading card game created by Richard Garfield and published by Wizards of the Coast. As a rare card within this base set, it was designed to reflect the game's high-fantasy themes, drawing mechanical inspiration from the card game Mille Bornes. The artwork was commissioned from Daniel Gelon, who utilized a distinctively painterly, saturated aesthetic that defined the visual language of the game's earliest iteration.

The card was conceived as a powerful engine for card advantage, allowing players to discard their hands and draw seven new cards, a design choice that fundamentally shifted the pace of competitive play. While its raw power made it a staple in various formats, the game was still in its infancy, and the card's reception by the small initial player base was one of intrigue and strategic experimentation. Its status has since evolved from a novel early-set inclusion to a significant piece of gaming history, highly sought after by collectors for its scarcity and its iconic role in the game's mechanical foundations.