Format Rules
The core rules and card pool of Universes Contained.
Universes Contained is a 60-card constructed format similar to Pioneer (both in terms of the general power level and the card pool). It has its own card pool, an extensive banlist, and its own rules—the most distinct of which is, essentially, “no franchise mixing.” The format is also balanced for best-of-one play (though often played best-of-three).
Rules
All cards in a deck must be from the same universe or franchise (e.g., Lord of the Rings, Warhammer 40,000, Final Fantasy). For purposes of this rule, the classic Magic Multiverse (i.e., all non-Universes Beyond cards) is considered a single franchise.
The format has its own card pool and banlist.
Players can have a 10-card sideboard for “outside the game” effects.
Other than the above rules, the same rules for Standard-legal games apply.
Card Pool
- Every non-banned, non-Universes Beyond card ever printed into a Standard-legal set from Tenth Edition onward.
- Every non-banned, non-Universes Beyond card printed into the Jumpstart sets (Jumpstart, Jumpstart 2022, and Foundations Jumpstart).
- Every non-banned, non-Universes Beyond single-sided land card with exactly 2 colors in its color identity, regardless of print date.
Card Variants & Treatments
Once a card is legal in a Universes Contained deck, any version of that card is generally legal. Yes, this does mean you could use a Warhammer 40,000 printing of a card in a “regular” deck, for instance (though it is discouraged). However, for competitive games, it is required that the printed rules text of your card be clearly legible, so some of the more “over the top” Secret Lair versions cards are not allowed in a tournament setting. Whether a particular printing of a card is acceptable would ultimately be a judge call, but by way of example, the following card versions (all of cards otherwise legal in Universes Contained) would not be permitted:
