The Thran (Magic, The Gathering) [ILLUSTRATED] (Mass Market Paperback)

by J. Robert King (Author) "The morning dawned hot on Megheddon Defile..." (more)
Key Phrases: quarantine cave, mana rig, healing corps, Null Sphere, Thran Temple, Caves of the Damned (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description
Before the Brothers' War. Before the five colors of magic.

Before history itself, the plane of Dominaira was ruled by the Thran. They built machines and artifacts, the likes of which have never since been seen. But amid this civilization, a shadow took root, one that would stretch its arms across space and time.

The hideous evil of Phyrexia was born.

Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 311 pages
• Publisher: Wizards of the Coast; illustrated edition edition (December 1, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0786916001
• ISBN-13: 978-0786916009
• Product Dimensions: 6.9 x 4.2 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.9 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars See all reviews (17 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #500,906 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

44 of 44 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Best Magic Book I Have Ever Read, February 8, 2000

By	Leng Ho Keat (Singapore) - See all my reviews

This was clearly the best Magic The Gathering book I have ever read.

We all know Yawgmoth was a demon and Phyrexia was a terrible place. However, it was a mystery why it was so. This book charts how Yawgmoth from a medical doctor slowly became a demon and how Phyrexia came into being. It also blended very well with earlier stories like the Brother's Wars. Mysteries in the earlier books were explained here. For example, who was Gix? Why were there nine planes in Phyrexia? How did the practice of meshing body parts to form new Phyrexians come about? What roles did the Meekstone and Mightstone play? What happened in the war between Thran and Phyrexians? This book clearly explained all the mysteries in the earlier books and made the whole Magic story more interesting and convincing.

I sort of lost interest after the second book in Artifact Cycles. I thought it was incoherent, rambling and raises more questions than it answers. Also, I guess I had expected Serra to be more powerful than it was depicted.

But King has made me interested in the story again. I will definely read his Artifact Cycle book 3 now.

11 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars History Lesson, December 9, 1999

By	Teloch - See all my reviews

For those of you who play the game Magic: the Gathering, or have read any of the books, or are just a fan of fantasy war...YOU MUST READ THIS BOOK! This is the prehistory of a very diverse world of fantasy. Its machines verses dwarven warriors, magic verses science. The results of this war will shape the multiverse for the next eight thousand years.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Superbly written, January 5, 2000

By	Nick Conley - See all my reviews

The one thing that impressed me most about this book was how well it was written, A definite MUST READ! for any magic fans. Tells the story of Yawgmoth and the start of Pherexia.

"It no longer matters to you what I am. What does it matter if I kill him or not, worry about weather or not I will first kill you."