It’s time to open lots of MTG packs – as we check out the best MTG Booster Boxes!
As we covered in our upcoming MTG sets article, there’s an awful lot of exciting releases coming – or already available – this year.
Magic: The Gathering (MTG) has, in recent years, seen a spike in popularity thanks to clever crossovers, a focus on different formats of play (hello, Commander!) and lots of nostalgic returns to familiar planes (as in, planes of the multiverse), some first popularised as far back as the game’s origins in 1993.
Booster packs are, of course, what most people pick up in order to widen their collection of cards. Picking up booster packs of cards is an addictive and compelling part of the game – the thrill of unwrapping a fresh pack and discovering the cards within never seems to dissipate.
It’s an expensive habit to have though – and, despite the initial outlay, in most cases it’s way more cost effective to just pick up an entire box of boosters!
There’s an awful lot of great boosters either available right now or to pre-order and ensure you don’t miss out on what are likely to be very popular sets.
Which are the best though?
Let’s find out, as we check out the best MTG Booster Boxes!
1. Magic: The Gathering – The Lord of the Rings: Tales of Middle-Earth Set Booster Box
Is it any surprise to see this particular Booster Box at the very top of our best MTG Booster Boxes list?
Wizards of the Coast, the publishers of MTG, have recently done a great job of bringing familiar franchises to the long-running fantasy TCG.
Some may not have been an immediately obvious fit – the grimdark sci-fi universe of Warhammer 40k or the giant robot/vehicle action of Transformers, for example – but each of these crossover sets has proven to be hugely popular and highly sought after.
The fact that Lord of the Rings is coming to MTG feels like something that’s long overdue.
The fantasy milieu of Tolkien’s rich universe is a very snug fit for Magic: The Gathering, with lots of fantastical creatures to summon and plenty of characters, settings and spells that’ll feel perfectly at home in the collectible card game (CCG).
Despite not launching until the 23rd of June 2023, the set is already looking absolutely beautiful, with phenomenal artwork adorning the boosters, the boxes and the few cards that have been revealed so far.
Our choice of Booster Box – from the numerous options on offer – is the Set Booster Box, which provides the most ‘traditional’ experience when it comes to opening booster packs.
Thirty packs are included in each Booster Box – and each pack contains a total of 12 MTG cards.
Excitingly, each pack will contain at least one card of rarity Rare or higher, but can contain up to four cards at this level of rarity!
With 360 cards in each box, that’s a lot of opportunity to snag yourself some very exciting cards – as well as build numerous, Middle-Earth themed decks!
2. Magic: The Gathering – Commander Masters Set Booster Box
MTG Masters sets are usually where you’ll find reprints of powerful and fan favourite cards that have often been unavailable – and therefore, usually prohibitively expensive on the secondary market – for some time.
Commander Masters is the first Masters set that focuses on the Commander game format, however – and, along with some fantastic reprints, it’ll also feature classic cards with new artwork, as well as a few entirely new cards too!
The artwork that’s been revealed so far has been nothing short of jaw-dropping – and the brilliantly lurid colour scheme of the booster packs and boxes is also pretty eye-catching too!
This is most definitely going to be a must have set when it becomes available in August 2023; this Set Booster Box contains 24 packs of 15 cards each.
Excitingly, there’s a 25% chance of finding a card from ‘The List’ in one of these booster packs. ‘The List’ is a selection of very special cards from across the history of MTG – which is of course very fitting, given that 2023 marks the game’s 30th anniversary!
3. Magic: The Gathering – March of the Machine Set Booster Box
With the Borg-esque legions of Phyrexia running roughshod over the Multiverse in MTG’s current storyline, March of the Machine will be bringing the saga to a close with epic battles, some against ex-heroes that will have already fallen by the time this final chapter begins.
The events of March of the Machine will, reportedly, change the Multiverse forever.
The entire Multiverse will be making their last stand in an attempt to stop the Machine Legion (previously the New Phyrexians) from taking over other planes.
This is a set that players who’ve been following Magic’s latest storyline won’t want to miss, with it featuring heroes, villains and settings from across MTG’s rich Multiverse – perhaps even for the last time!
Each box features 30 booster packs, each of which will have 12 cards – including a guaranteed foil and art card in each pack!
Additionally – and something that’s very exciting indeed – at least one Multiverse Legend card is also guaranteed in every single pack too.
So if you get yourself a Booster Box, that’s 30 Multiverse Legend cards you’ll have to hand!
4. Magic: The Gathering – Phyrexia: All Will Be One Set Booster Box
The most recently released MTG set, Phyrexia: All Will Be One is a set that’s fascinated us ever since we laid our hands on it.
Its blend of fantasy, cosmic horror and body horror is difficult to resist – you could say that resistance is futile – and the fall of several major characters, as they succumb to the hordes of biomechanical New Phyrexians, happens in this very set.
We’ve also chosen Phyrexia: All Will Be One designs in both our Magic: The Gathering Play Mats and MTG Deck Boxes lists too!
So of course, this great set is definitely one we’d recommend picking up a Booster Box for.
Especially as, in each pack, there’s at least one Showcase Ichor card – plus, there’s at least one Phyrexianized (yep, that’s now a thing!) Land or full art, panoramic Land card in every booster too.
With the unique land and other specialised card types, this is an excellent choice for a Booster Box – and you’ll be keeping up to date with what is promised to be one of MTG’s most devastating storylines too!
5. Magic: The Gathering – Dominaria Remastered Draft Booster Box
The very first official storyline for MTG was set in the Plane of Dominaria – and it’s to this setting that we return for Dominaria Remastered.
Full of classic cards making welcome returns, Dominaria Remastered gathers together reprints from a frankly astonishing 27 different sets of MTG!
We’ve chosen the Draft Booster Box here, as playing Magic in Draft format with these classic cards is great fun – and that’s exactly what these Draft Boosters are built for.
It’s great value too, with the box containing 540 cards – that’s 36 packs of 15 cards each.
There’s retro frame cards (including retro frame land) in every pack too, giving this set a brilliantly nostalgic feel.
You might even find reprints of cards we took a look at on our rare Magic: The Gathering cards list!
It’s just what the doctor ordered after the devastating events of Phyrexia: All Will Be One!
6. Magic: The Gathering – Kamigawa: Neon Dynasty Set Booster Box
MTG goes cyberpunk in this set from 2022.
Kamigawa originally featured in a set way back in 2004, but at the time it was a setting inspired by Feudal Japan – featuring ninjas, samurai and even creatures based on the region’s folklore.
Yet Kamigawa: Neon Dynasty takes us back to that Plane after the fast forward button has been hit – and we’re thrust a millennium ahead of the original setting, where things have definitely advanced technologically.
That gives Kamigawa: Neon Dynasty a uniquely sci-fi flavour, with its own unique land (found in 45% of booster packs) and even cards from the aforementioned ‘The List’ in a quarter of all packs.
This Booster Box contains thirty packs of 12 cards each – and it’s a great choice for MTG fans looking for a set with an incredibly unique aestheric and feel.
7. Magic: The Gathering – The Brothers’ War Set Booster Box
Based on a storyline that originally played out – at least in part – in 1994 expansion Antiquities, The Brothers’ War is another set in our best MTG Booster Boxes list that trades heavily on nostalgia, bringing a new spin on a classic MTG tale.
Naturally, you’ll find retro frame cards within this set – and this is another Booster Box that contains a card from The List in 25% of packs.
Interestingly, double-sided Transformers cards can also be found within 10% of the booster packs included in this Booster Box.
With the general mech and mechanic theme of The Brothers’ War and these Transformers cards also added into the mix, it’s a great set for fans of giant robots!
8. Magic: The Gathering – Dungeons & Dragons: Adventures in The Forgotten Realms Set Booster Box
With Wizards of the Coast being in charge of both Magic: The Gathering and iconic tabletop RPG Dungeons & Dragons, the only question we have is: why did it take so long to combine the two?
It’s an absolute no brainer, of course, with the Forgotten Realms – along with its inhabitants, settings, magic items and monsters – fitting neatly into MTG.
The set even showcases classic 70s style art on some cards, as well as Adventure Module lands that give the set the feel of a nostalgic, old school quest!
That’s helped by new keywords and mechanics that allow you to actually explore famous, iconic dungeons from D&D’s rich history – and even create Treasure tokens too.
There’s a lot to like here for fans of both Magic: The Gathering and Dungeons and Dragons – and this Booster Box is a great way to experience as much of the set as possible!
9. Magic: The Gathering – Unfinity Draft Booster Box
Right near the bottom of the best MTG Booster Boxes list, we have this kooky set that takes players on a journey through the Multiverse’s ultimate amusement park!
This is a knowingly silly, campy retro sci-fi set that has its tongue firmly wedged in its cheek.
In every booster pack, you’ll find a sticker sheet – which can be used to customise and ‘improve’ cards, likely to the horror of the majority of most serious Magic: The Gathering fans and collectors – and Space-themed Land cards. Somewhat surprisingly, this is MTG’s first set with an intergalactic theme!
Though the self-referential, self-aware humour isn’t to everyone’s taste, this is the first of MTG’s ‘Un’ sets to feature cards tha are actually legal to play in the Commander, Legacy and Vintage formats.
This oddball set is definitely an acquired taste, but the fact that it’s so unique earns it a spot in our best MTG Booster Boxes list!
10. Magic: The Gathering – Jumpstart 2022 Booster Box
Admittedly, this won’t be a set that long term or even more casual players who are already familiar with Magic: The Gathering are likely to be interested in.
However, this Booster Box is an absolutely perfect starting point for new players.
The idea with Jumpstart boosters is that you can grab two packs, open them, shuffle them and then you’re ready to play.
You won’t get yourself a tournament-ready deck this way, of course.
Yet it’s the most accessible way of getting started without spending time on building your own deck – or even resorting to a starter deck that may have strategies which aren’t particularly apparent or friendly to new players.
Despite being at the bottom of this list, if you’re a new player just starting out on your MTG journey, it’s difficult to recommend a better way of kicking off your new obsession than with this Booster Box!
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