Shimmering Skies Review: The Perfect Celebration for Lorcana’s First year
When Shimmering Skies first got announced, I felt like it lacked a really powerful theme the way previous sets had. Sets like Rise of the Floodborn and Into the Inklands had high level themes easy enough to grasp without straining. Shimmering Skies felt relatively vague in comparison. It’s a…party?
Somewhat ironically, though, Shimmering Skies’s theming is actually on point – just like the Illumineers who defeated Ursula in Lorcana’s game universe, we have similarly moved on from that turning point in Lorcana’s history and moved onto something better. Celebrations are certainly in order, and after opening my first Shimmering Skies products, I’m certainly getting in the partying spirit.
Shimmering Skies will likely go down as one of the best Lorcana sets of this period. The cards and strategies that it introduces appear meta-saving. Highly aggressive decks now stand a chance of actually doing their part to shape the meta, whereas Ink combos that were virtually unplayable in Ursula’s Return’s rigid format seem quite good now.
Shimmering Skies – the cards themselves
However good the meta is, that’s not the only thing that’s going to impact how you feel about a new set. How do the products themselves hold up?
Well, in that department, Shimmering Skies also hits it out of the park. I opened the Illumineer’s Trove to see what was inside, and was very happy with my pulls. You can see them below.
It’s hard to see in this picture, but in the one below you can see better just how gorgeous the Legendary cards are. Whereas past Legendaries looked just the same as regular cards, now they get an extra glossy finish to them. This serves to highlight the gorgeous artwork even in none-foil cards.
In this image, for example, look at how the added texturing really makes Anna pop from her background. This adds depth to the artwork and enhances the incredible details the artist has put into the card.
It may not sound like a lot, but this extra attention to detail adds a ton of visual value to the card, and makes it feel more complete as a collector’s item. I hope they keep this trend up in future sets. However, if they don’t, at least we can hold onto our Legendaries from this set for the memory.
The Shimmering Skies Trove does not disappoint
The cards are what make this set very special, but the Trove (which you can purchase on TCGPlayer) holds up to expectations. It has the same matte finish as previous Troves (barring The First Chapter), and comes inside an outer box as opposed to a plastic seal.
The only thing I didn’t like as much about this Trove when compared to the last one was the dice, however. Ursula’s Return Troves had radiant, multi-colored dice that matched the theming of the set.
These dice (pictured below) have a shimmering effect that also matches the set. However, you have to sort of look to see it and at first glance they sort of just look like white dice.
Meanwhile, Ravensburger made the astute decision to return to dividers that are labeled by Ink type rather than rarity. That’s better as I know I don’t separate my cards by rarity – especially not Enchanted an Legendaries. Those go straight into a much safer storage situation than a cardboard box.
Is Shimmering Skies worth it?
Shimmering Skies is one of the best sets that’s come out in Lorcana, and a fitful celebration for Lorcana’s first full year in production. One billion cards later, Lorcana does not appear to be going anywhere, and I am totally here for it.
