Set Spotlight
The Hobbit
Bilbo's journey through Middle-earth. Adventure cards, Scene Boxes, and full spoilers updated daily. Releases August 14, 2026.
22
DAYS TO RELEASE
Set Code
hob
Cmdr Code
hoc
Release
August 14, 2026
Cards Spoiled
90
The Hobbit MTG release date: when does it come out?
The Hobbit releases on August 14, 2026. Prerelease events run August 7 to August 13, 2026.
Magic: The Gathering - The Hobbit releases on August 14, 2026 as a Universes Beyond set and the first Tolkien-universe expansion legal in Standard. It follows Bilbo Baggins from the Shire through Mirkwood to the Lonely Mountain, with Adventure as the primary returning mechanic. The official mechanics article adds three new ones: Storied, Recruit, and hone counters, plus the return of Amass, now building Goblin armies.
No traditional Commander preconstructed decks ship with this release. Instead, two Scene Boxes, Crack the Plates and Treasures of Smaug, each contain three Play Boosters and six mechanically unique borderless foil cards that join into a displayable panorama. Five themed Welcome Decks round out the lineup alongside Play Boosters, Collector Boosters, Bundles, and a Draft Night kit. A cooperative Battle of Five Armies Co-Op Kit arrives separately in 2027.
Scryfall now lists 18 legendary creatures in the main set plus three legendary artifacts (Sting, Bilbo's Sword, The Arkenstone, and My Precious). Smaug the Magnificent leads the mythics alongside Thorin, Mountain-king, Thranduil, the Elvenking (Sultai), Bard, King of Dale (Azorius), Gollum, Riddle Master, and Elrond, Moon-Reader, with Azog, Moria's Ruin and The Master of Lake-town the newest reveals. The HOC set adds Sauron, the Dark Lord (Grixis), Tom Bombadil (five-color), Smaug the Impenetrable (Rakdos), Gandalf, Party Guest (Jeskai), Aragorn and Arwen, Wed (Selesnya), and Thorin, King of Durin's Folk, plus reprints of The One Ring, Mox Amber, Rivendell, The Shire, and Orcish Bowmasters. Collector Boosters carry chase treatments including a gold Smaug of roughly 500 copies, Dwarvish language cards, and the Dragon Hoard Frame. Card spoilers on this page update daily from Scryfall as previews continue.
Set codes on Scryfall: HOB (main expansion, 80 cards spoiled so far) and HOC (The Hobbit Commander, 37 eternal-legal cards).
Card data sourced from Scryfall
Notable The Hobbit Cards
90 The Hobbit cards spoiled so far
The full card list, sorted newest-first. Updated daily from Scryfall.
The Hobbit FAQ
When does The Hobbit MTG release?
The Hobbit releases on August 14, 2026. Prerelease events run August 7-13, 2026 and MTGA/MTGO goes live August 11, 2026. The set codes are HOB for the main expansion and HOC for the eternal-legal Commander cards.
Does The Hobbit have Commander precons?
No. The Hobbit ships without traditional Commander precons. Two Scene Boxes, Crack the Plates and Treasures of Smaug, each include three Play Boosters and six mechanically unique eternal-legal borderless cards. Five themed Welcome Decks are also part of the product lineup. A Battle of Five Armies Co-Op Kit is planned for 2027.
What products come with The Hobbit?
Play Boosters ($6.99), Collector Boosters ($37.99), Bundles ($69.99), a Gift Bundle ($89.99, releasing September 4, 2026), a Draft Night kit ($119.99), two Scene Boxes (Crack the Plates and Treasures of Smaug, $41.99 each), and five themed Welcome Decks. The Battle of Five Armies Co-Op Kit follows in 2027.
What are the best The Hobbit cards for Commander?
Smaug the Magnificent (red mythic Dragon), Thorin, Mountain-king (red Dwarf Noble), Thranduil, the Elvenking (Sultai), Sauron, the Dark Lord (Grixis, from HOC), Tom Bombadil (five-color, from HOC), and Aragorn and Arwen, Wed (Selesnya, from HOC) are the standout legendaries. HOC also reprints The One Ring, Mox Amber, and Orcish Bowmasters.
What legendary creatures are in The Hobbit?
The main set (HOB) has 18 spoiled legendary creatures: The Queen of Dale (white), both Bilbos plus Elrond, Moon-Reader (blue), Gollum, Riddle Master, Azog, Moria's Ruin, and The Master of Lake-town (black), Gandalf, Goblins' Bane, Smaug the Magnificent, and Thorin, Mountain-king (red), Bard, King of Dale and Bard the Bowman (white-blue), Thorin Oakenshield and Bifur, Melodic Rider (white-red), Bolg of the North (black-red), The Chief Warg and Tom, Bert, and William (black-green), and Thranduil, the Elvenking (Sultai). The Commander set (HOC) adds Sauron, the Dark Lord (Grixis), Tom Bombadil (five-color), Smaug the Impenetrable (Rakdos), Gandalf, Party Guest (Jeskai), Aragorn and Arwen, Wed (Selesnya), Thorin, King of Durin's Folk, and Fíli and Kíli, Joyous, plus mono-color options like Bilbo, Fellow Conspirator and Ori, Plate Stacker.
What is the Adventure mechanic in The Hobbit?
Adventure returns from Throne of Eldraine as the set's primary mechanic. Each Adventure card has a spell half and a creature half -- cast the Adventure spell first, then cast the creature from exile later. In The Hobbit, Adventures represent multi-part narrative moments from the novel on a single card.
What new mechanics are in The Hobbit?
Three new mechanics debut: Storied (a permanent becomes an enduring story once you control it plus three artifacts, legendary permanents, or Sagas, unlocking a bonus ability), Recruit (draw a card, discard a card, and create a 1/1 Human Soldier if you discarded a nonland card), and hone counters (counters on Equipment that each grant +1/+0 to the equipped creature). Amass also returns, now building Goblin armies alongside the returning Adventure mechanic.
How many cards are in The Hobbit?
Preview season is underway and the card count is still growing. Scryfall currently lists 80 cards in the main HOB set and 37 in HOC, the eternal-legal companion set. The full Hobbit card list linked from this page updates daily from Scryfall.
Are The Hobbit cards Standard legal?
Yes. The Hobbit is the first Tolkien-universe Universes Beyond set legal in Standard. Cards in the main HOB expansion enter Standard on release day. Cards in the HOC eternal set are legal in Commander, Legacy, and Vintage but not Standard.
What is the Battle of Five Armies Co-Op Kit?
A cooperative multiplayer product announced alongside The Hobbit, arriving in 2027. It replaces the traditional Commander precon slot for this set. Details on format, card composition, and exact release date are not yet confirmed.
What special card treatments are in The Hobbit?
Collector Boosters feature several chase variants: a Gleaming Gold Smaug the Magnificent (roughly 500 copies worldwide), five mythic Dwarvish language cards (including Arcane Signet), ten Book Cover frame cards, 25 Dragon Hoard Frame cards, 40 Middle-earth Classic Artist mythics, six-card Scene panoramas (The Five Armies Clash and Fight with the Great Goblin), and full-art Middle-earth Journey basic lands with seasonal variants.
