It's always exciting to see what new and returning Magic: The Gathering mechanics are going to show up with each new set, and this is especially true with The Hobbit. This is because the creature pool is fairly narrow in the Universes Beyond set, consisting mostly of Dwarves, Elves, Halflings, Humans, Wizards, and Dragons.

Still, these options offer plenty of potential for exciting mechanical effects, and there's one new addition in particular that I can see being very popular in both Standard and Commander. So let's not waste any time and get straight into all the confirmed mechanics in The Hobbit.

New Mechanics

Storied

Storied is a new mechanic that triggers whenever you control three or more artifacts, legendaries, and/or sagas. If you hit this threshold even once while a Storied creature is on the board, you gain an "enduring story" for the rest of the game.

What each Storied creature actually does varies, but if I take Bifur, Melodic Rider as an example, once the Storied threshold has been met, you gain an enduring story that allows you to trigger the activated abilities of dwarves and additional time.

Recruit

Recruit is a less villainous Connive, as it lets you draw then discard a card, but if you discard a nonland card, you create a 1/1 Human soldier creature token.

This mechanic has only been seen on The Queen of Dale so far, but could appear on more cards in the set, but is likely to be limited to Humans based on the token it creates.

Returning Mechanics

Adventure

If a creature contains an Adventure ability, you may cast the spell by paying the noted cost. This lets you exile the creature and still play it during a later turn.

If you cast the creature without casting the Adventure spell, that spell is lost. You must cast the Adventure first to get the most value out of the card.

Ward

Ward is a now iconic mechanic added back in Strixhaven: School of Mages. It applies a cost to target an opponent's creature with a spell.

In most cases, the Ward cost is mana, but in some cases it can be paying life, discarding cards, or even taking poison counters.

Kicker

If a card comes with a Kicker cost, it allows you to pay for it in addition to its usual cost, but triggers additional abilities.

Kicker features on The Eagles Are Coming! and costs four mana (2W, 2C), if paid, the spell lets you choose any number of creatures you own rather than targeting only one.

Landfall

A well-known mechanic that's been heavily featured in sets like Final Fantasy, Landfall is a mechanic that triggers a card's ability when a land you control hits the battlefield.

It's a very powerful mechanic when paired with fetch lands like Fabled Passage and Terramorphic Expanse which see at least two lands hit the battlefield in a turn. The same can be said for its synergy with Icetill Explorer, which lets you play land cards from your graveyard and play an additional land each turn.

Ferocious

Ferocious is a lesser known mechanic that triggers when you attack with a creature that has four power or greater.

In The Hobbit, an example of this is on The Chief Warg, which has you draw a card and lose one life when Fericous is triggered.