Angels and demons
May 28th 2008 01:49
Characters, creatures, and other elements of flavor that have or can be interpreted as having a connection to real-world religion have a long and complicated (and often troubled) history with Magic: the Gathering. In the ancient era, the makers were much more willing to use such elements. Angels were a common creature type in early sets, and their image was made to be reminiscent of classical depictions of angels in Renaissance art.
Of course, the characters depicted were mostly female, whereas Christian angels are all male (at least their names are; angels, whether in religion or in the game, have no gender in the human sense). This fact influenced the later development of the angel “look” in Magic, and they gradually became more distant from the Christian understanding of the concept. Modern Magic’s angels are warrior beings of light and energy created in an idealized female form.
Just as light casts the shadow of its own darkness, Magic’s angels needed an opposite, a nemesis, a foil to their purity and brightness. In the early years, that foil was the demon creature type. It worked in flavor, at least; it would have worked a lot better in gameplay if the designers had known how to make a playable demon.
Demons in Magic were (and are) much more similar to the popular fantasy trope than they are to the Judeo-Christian understanding of the term: large, vaguely-humanoid monsters with black skin, horns, fangs, and claws. Many have wings and can fly. They are much more likely to eat the hero’s head than to possess his body and make him vomit green stuff. In spite of this, some Christians seized on their existence as proof that the game was aligned with dark forces and was encouraging young people towards the camp of Satan by having them pretend to cast spells and summon demons. As such, between 1997 and 2002 demons were replaced with the similar creature type “Horror.”
It couldn’t entirely fill the void, though. In a confluence between the Magic world’s concept and the religious concept, demons have historically been characters of very high intelligence and spellcasting aptitude. The horror creature type has many physical similarities with Magic’s demons, but the creatures depicted usually have only animal-level intelligence. They work fine as the thing that comes through when you cast a Gate spell to cause mindless havoc on your ex-girlfriend’s home village, but not as evil masterminds or commanders of enemy extraplanars. In 2002, Wizards of the Coast began printing creatures with the demon type again, citing increased public acceptance of the game as the official reason (ie. it was okay for them to start pushing boundaries again). I was skeptical of that point – fundamentalists, in my experience, never forget a slight – but either way, demons were back.
Next post: We’ll continue in this vein by exploring whatever possessed them to print a card named “Jihad” in Arabian Nights.
Of course, the characters depicted were mostly female, whereas Christian angels are all male (at least their names are; angels, whether in religion or in the game, have no gender in the human sense). This fact influenced the later development of the angel “look” in Magic, and they gradually became more distant from the Christian understanding of the concept. Modern Magic’s angels are warrior beings of light and energy created in an idealized female form.
Just as light casts the shadow of its own darkness, Magic’s angels needed an opposite, a nemesis, a foil to their purity and brightness. In the early years, that foil was the demon creature type. It worked in flavor, at least; it would have worked a lot better in gameplay if the designers had known how to make a playable demon.
What's the difference between these guys and the L.A. Clippers? The Clippers have won a game
Demons in Magic were (and are) much more similar to the popular fantasy trope than they are to the Judeo-Christian understanding of the term: large, vaguely-humanoid monsters with black skin, horns, fangs, and claws. Many have wings and can fly. They are much more likely to eat the hero’s head than to possess his body and make him vomit green stuff. In spite of this, some Christians seized on their existence as proof that the game was aligned with dark forces and was encouraging young people towards the camp of Satan by having them pretend to cast spells and summon demons. As such, between 1997 and 2002 demons were replaced with the similar creature type “Horror.”
It couldn’t entirely fill the void, though. In a confluence between the Magic world’s concept and the religious concept, demons have historically been characters of very high intelligence and spellcasting aptitude. The horror creature type has many physical similarities with Magic’s demons, but the creatures depicted usually have only animal-level intelligence. They work fine as the thing that comes through when you cast a Gate spell to cause mindless havoc on your ex-girlfriend’s home village, but not as evil masterminds or commanders of enemy extraplanars. In 2002, Wizards of the Coast began printing creatures with the demon type again, citing increased public acceptance of the game as the official reason (ie. it was okay for them to start pushing boundaries again). I was skeptical of that point – fundamentalists, in my experience, never forget a slight – but either way, demons were back.
Next post: We’ll continue in this vein by exploring whatever possessed them to print a card named “Jihad” in Arabian Nights.
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