EDHREC Style Guide and Submission Guidelines

Last updated on November 5, 2023 by Eliza Hunton

The following style guide is a resource for writers and prospective writers of EDHREC.com and to help answer questions that may arise during the writing process. If anything is not addressed below, use your best judgment or check in with our editors! 

A Note on Using this Guide

The goal of every article should be to convey something of value to the reader: entertainment, humor, information, advice, encouragement, the opportunity to comment on a hot-button issue, etc. EDHREC is a statistics-based website, so our articles are here to provide context to the numbers on the main site. Whenever you have the opportunity to reference specific stats on EDHREC, you're encouraged to take it.

Please note: the fact that your articles will be edited doesn't mean you can be sloppy. Editing time should be spent polishing your paper to professional quality, not correcting simple errors.

We recommend composing your piece within WordPress itself. Copy-pasting from other programs can mess with formatting. If you do copy-paste from another program into WordPress, be sure to use the clipboard icon to paste it as plain text.


Submission Deadlines

Articles should be submitted at least one week in advance. This not only helps with our editor’s schedule, but also gives us time to rearrange in case someone misses a day, to make sure we still have content to publish every day.

On a related note, if you are going to miss a day, let our editor know as soon as you can.

But also, don’t miss a day.


Conduct

We expect the following behavior from all our writers on the Discord server and in all communication with the editorial team and other writers.

  • EDHREC is an inclusive platform. We expect all writers to be respectful of others’ identities in the Discord channel and within your articles.
  • We will not tolerate discrimination or bigotry within articles or in any communication with the editorial team or other writers.
  • Writers are welcome to express concerns and ask questions about updates and changes to EDHREC, but this must always be done in a respectful and considerate way.
  • If you do not abide to the above, we may no longer be able to work with you. This is irrespective of the quality of your content.

Quick Basics

Our #1 piece of advice: use the Preview button on the top right. It's the best button in the world. This will show you how your article looks, and helps you catch errors and formatting issues. We can tell when you don't use it! It makes your job so much easier if you routinely use Preview to check your work.

Articles should generally aim to be 1,500-2,000 words. 4,000 words is roughly the length of a chapter in a novel, and that's asking a lot from your readers (and your editors). Long articles can be fine, but there should be a very good justification for it. Remember that we’re competing for the time they have set aside for reading articles.

Be sure to use headings and card images to break up the sections of your article. A big wall of text does not look inviting to read. We reserve the right to break things up and add our own headers & card images if you don't!

Here's a quick breakdown on the beginning of an article:

Article titles should be formatted as "Series Title - Article Name"

The main opening section title of your article should be in Header 1. Any other section titles in the article should use Header 2. (Should you have any sub-sections within those, use Header 3.) Section titles should be capitalized appropriately; it's a title, not a sentence.

Featured Images are set by the author. Use the Featured Image tool in the bottom-right-hand corner of WordPress.

  • We generally prefer images that have been sensibly cropped and appropriately sized to feel like a proper banner image. A featured image that is too small looks odd on the page. A featured image that is too tall looks very weird. A blurry image looks uninteresting. You can often re-crop or resize a picture just by messing with it a little in MS Paint, and some authors like to use Photoshop to make more enticing images, too!
  • Please avoid adding text to your header image or any images in your article, unless agreed with editors. Text on images can be hard to read and we want to make sure the website is accessible.

Authors should also tag the card and artist of the featured image. We like highlighting & crediting the creators of the beautiful art in this game.

  • Use Header 6 and right-side-alignment, and format it in the following way: (Card Name | Art by Artist Name)
  • The card name should be tagged (more info on images below) and the artist name should be hyperlinked to the artist's website. In the rare occurrence the artist does not have a website, link instead to a collection of their work, or to a Scryfall/Gatherer search for cards illustrated by that artist.
  • This card tag & artist credit goes above the Header 1 opener, so that in the final product, it appears directly beneath the Featured Image.

Card Tags

When you reference card names, please tag them. The code is simple: [e l]Card Name[/e l] (without the spaces, though; when done correctly, WordPress automatically links the card).

Make sure the card’s name is spelled properly and has the correct punctuation, capitalization, and spacing. 

  • Ex: [e l]Stoneforge Mystic[/e l] instead of [e l]stone forge mystic[/e l].
  • Be careful, some cards like Cathars' Crusade have tricky apostrophe placements.
  • If you see a Chaos Orb instead of the card you want, take a close look at the spelling of the card.

Split cards: To tag split cards, use the format [e l]Name // Name[/e l]. WordPress doesn't let us tag an individual half of a card.

  • Correct: [e l]Fire // Ice[/e l]
  • Incorrect: [e l]Fire//Ice[/e l]
  • Incorrect: [e l]Fire[/e l]

Double-faced cards: These are fickle! Unfortunately, WordPress only likes to see the first name of the card. Tag double-faced cards as just their front half, not as both halves, and not as the back half.

  • Correct: [e l]Bala Ged Recovery[/e l]
  • Incorrect: [e l]Bala Ged Recovery // Bala Ged Sanctuary[/e l]
  • Incorrect: [e l]Bala Ged Sanctuary[/e l]
  • If this changes, we'll let you know! This is just how WordPress works with these cards right now.

Specific Printings/Specific Art: Sometimes you'll want to refer to a specific printing of a card. To pull a particular card, use the format card name|set code|collector number.

  • Regular card pull [e l]Giant Growth[/e l] which will appear as Giant Growth
  • Specific card pull [e l]Giant Growth|ME4|156 [/e l] which will appear as Giant Growth

NOTE: Card images are automatically pulled & updated from Scryfall. If a set has recently-spoiled cards, they may or may not be updated in the EDHREC database the same day.

Alternate Names: These are actually really cool! If you want to tag a card image without directly saying that card's name, you can! For example, you can say just Sram instead of the full Sram, Senior Edificer, or you can obliquely reference a well-known Phyrexian without naming it directly.

  • Using the Phyrexian example, the code for this is [e l value=Phyrexian]Elesh Norn, Grand Cenobite[/e l].
  • Again, remove the spaces between the E and the L. Keep the space before the word "value". Inside the brackets, it should read "el value=word"
  • The thing you want to say goes inside the EL tag, so don't accidentally go [e l value=Elesh Norn, Grand Cenobite]Phyrexian[/e l]
  • If you want multiple words or a full phrase to link to a single card - for example, saying Phyrexian Lady Gaga - then be sure to use quotation marks around the phrase: [e l value="Phyrexian Lady Gaga"]Elesh Norn, Grand Cenobite[/e l].

Card Images

Card images are very simple. The link for this is [e c]Card Name[/e c]. (Again, the spaces are used to prevent WordPress from making an automatic image when the link is done correctly.) "EC" stands for edhrec_card

You can put up to three images next to each other. This would be done as follows:

[e c]
Llanowar Elves
Elvish Mystic
Fyndhorn Elves
[/e c]

When done correctly, without the spaces, it looks like this:

  • You can do this for 1-3 cards, but no more than 3.
  • Don't put the "ec" links around each individual card, or they'll appear in a column rather than a row.
  • Don't center-justify the text, it will space them out on its own.
  • If you see a Chaos Orb instead of the card you want, take a close look at the spelling of the card.

You're free to add in your own images! For example, some authors will use memes to punctuate a point, or separate sections with different art images. You can also add in your own card images, if there's a specific version of a card you wish to feature. Scryfall is usually a good source for card images. Use the Add Media button to include a card image, then center and resize it appropriately.

Please avoid adding text to your header image or any images in your article, unless agreed with editors. Text on images can be hard to read and we want to make sure the website is accessible.

Tables and Graphs

All tables must be created in WordPress, not added as an image. You can create a table by selecting “Insert” and then “Table.” Make sure to bold the headings in your table. A screengrab of a table would not necessarily be readable on all devices, and this also would mean less consistent formatting across all our articles.

A screen grab of the how to add a table on WordPress.

You are encouraged to use screengrabs of EDHREC features too, such as pie charts or graphs. However please consider accessibility when using graphs. What would be the main takeaway of the graph you’ve pictured if someone couldn’t see or interpret it? Make sure to explain this in the body of your article. Use graphs to illustrate a point if needed, don’t make a graph the main point.


Text Formatting: Capitalization, Italics, & More

When in doubt, look at a card. Our guidelines tend to follow a lot of the same rules as the text that appears on cards.

Here is a quick example of what to expect: "I like to play Limited and Commander. My commander is a legendary Elf Knight from Adventures in the Forgotten Realms that uses artifacts and enchantments, especially Auras and Equipment, for a Voltron strategy. I like playing blue-black, but in this case, I went with Bant."

Capitalization

The following items should be capitalized:

  1. All words in card names, except for articles (a, an, the), conjunctions (and, but, or, for, nor), and prepositions of less than five letters (as, by, for, from, in, etc.).
    • Card subtypes are capitalized; Auras, Equipment, Sagas, Zombies, Birds, Dragons.
  1. Magic formats
    • e.g., Standard, Legacy, Limited, Constructed
    • Important: We play Commander, but Atraxa is your commander.
  1. All proper nouns, including but not limited to:
    • Magic: the Gathering and any shorthand reference to the game of Magic (not “magic” or “mtg”).
    • Names of characters, people, places, etc.
    • Guilds/factions, e.g., Simic, Esper, Akroan, etc.
    • Names of businesses and websites (e.g. Twitter, Star City Games, etc.)
    • Colloquial non-mechanic words for deck types, such as Voltron.
    • Important: It’s EDHREC, not edhrec, EDHRec, or Edhrec.

The following items should not be capitalized:

  1. Card types
    • e.g., instant, sorcery, planeswalker, creature, land, artifact, enchantment
    • Important: Subtypes are different than card types. Auras, Equipment, Sagas, Curses, those are all capitalized. Creature types are also capitalized.
    • e.g., "My Spider typal deck doesn't run a lot of enchantments or artifacts, but I do have some Equipment."
  1. Colors
    • e.g., red mana, blue card, green mage
  1. Commander vs commander
    • Commander (capital C) is the format. The cards that helm your deck are commanders (lower-case c). “My commander is Atraxa.” "Do you want to play Commander?" “Which of these commanders would you build?” “Bastion Protector gives commander creatures indestructible.”

Italics

  1. We play Magic, also known as Magic: the Gathering, also known as MtG.
  2. Set names.
    • "This card is from Saviors of Kamigawa. I really like the plane of Kamigawa."
  3. The title of an article series.
    • "Hello and welcome to Underdog's Corner."
  4. Keywords and mechanics do not need to be italicized if they are not italicized on the card. However, all ability words must be italicized. These are flavor abilities which are printed in italics on Magic cards.

“Edgar Markov is a legendary creature with first strike, haste and Eminence.”


Content

Language Use

  • Use hyphens appropriately: 
    • Use hyphens when talking about colors - non-black, non-green. If you're using the word “monocolored” this is written as all one word. 
    • Do not use hyphens for describing a card type when this is used on a card - for example, noncreature spells, or nonland permanents.
    • When describing a deck type using the “matters” framework, use hyphens - “Artifacts-matter deck," “Creature-type-matters deck."
  • When referencing “one versus one” formats, write this as 1v1. 
  • Write “type line” as two separate words, not “typeline.” This references the line on the Magic card directly below the illustration, such as “Legendary creature - Elf."
  • When referring to set names, use the full name first. For example, write “The Lord of the Rings: Tales from Middle-earth." You can then choose to shorten this when referencing the set again later in your article, such as “The Lord of the Rings set.” If you'd like to use the set code throughout your article, put this in brackets first next to the full name of the set: "Throne of Eldraine (ELD)."
  • Be conscious of using the correct grammar for referring to a plural of a particular creature type. For example, "Samurai" not "Samurais." If you're not sure what the correct plural is, check how this creature type is referred to on the Wizards of the Coast website.

International Spellings and Idioms

Please use American English spellings in your articles. Most of our readership is American, and while it will be in ignorance, most will see foreign spellings as wrong. Furthermore, our editor does not have the training to edit in anything other than American English.

However, please feel free to use terms and idioms unique to your location! Play up the international aspect of the game—it's one of the coolest things about it.

Numbers and Numerals

As a general rule, numbers under 10 should be spelled out (one, two, three, four, etc.), and numbers 10 and over should use numerals (10, 25, 117, 1000).

Exceptions:

  • Sentences should not start with numerals. Either spell out the number or rephrase the sentence. (Incorrect: 20 people showed up for the IQ. Correct: Twenty people showed up for the IQ or The IQ had 20 people show up.)
  • Numbers of cards in decklists should always use numerals, e.g., 3 Squire.
  • When citing monetary prices, using numerals is okay (e.g., $27, $113.56, etc.). Also use the dollar sign.
  • When you're citing a tournament record, numerals are okay. (e.g., I'm 6-0 so far.)
  • When using multiple numbers in different contexts, sometimes it can be more clear to use a mix of numerals and written-out numbers. As always, be consistent! (e.g., My opponent had three cards in hand and was at 4 life, I had six and was at 9.)
  • “She attacked me with three 4/4s,” not “three 4/4’s.”

Financial Data

We understand card prices might fluctuate between you writing your article and your article going live. We also want to bear in mind someone might be reading your article months from now. When referencing any financial data, please add the following disclaimer to the bottom of your article:

Please note: card prices listed in this article are accurate at the time of writing, but prices can vary over time and between locations.

Polls

Unfortunately, you can’t generate a poll without administrative access. State clearly in your article that you would like the editor to add a poll and what you would like the answer options to be. We’ll get it added prior to publication.

Profanity

Keep it PG-13.

Pronouns

Don't just default to 'he' when referring to hypothetical players. Use a healthy mix. A lot of different types of people play this game.

Pronouns for Psychographics: Don’t forget, it’s not just Timmy, Johnny, and Spike. Use Timmy and/or Tammy, Johnny and/or Jenny. Spike is already neutral.

Pronouns to use when referring to cards: Cards should be referred to as "it" in most instances (e.g., "My opponent cast Snapcaster Mage, but I bolted it before blocked").

  • Exception: Legendary creatures and planeswalkers (e.g., "Venser, Shaper Savant is really good, I like him a lot).
  • Know your character genders. For example, Mizzix and Vial Smasher are female. Aetherborn (like Gonti and Yahenni) are “they.”

Links to External Content

Reference other articles whenever you can! This is very helpful for the website and helps our older articles continue to get views.

Where you can, please also reference our associated sites, such as:

  • Commander's Herald 
  • Commander Spellbook - This is a great resource for finding hidden combos in your decklist or giving people the opportunity to read more about combos with the cards you're referencing.
  • MTGStocks - This is helpful to link to if you're focusing on budget or the cost of cards in your article.

Commander Spellbook Combos

You can feature combos in your article using an embed tool from Commander Spellbook. Please use this feature if you are talking about a combo in your deck. This is what it will look like:

csb logo

To do this, go to a combo on Commander Spellbook and click "Embed." You will see a pop up of text with the option to copy to clipboard.

Image of Commander Spellbook combo options. Pop-up for the embed on Commander Spellbook.

Copy this to clipboard, and then go to the "Text" view of your article on WordPress, which you can access in the top right of your draft. Paste this text where you'd like the image of the combo to be.

Text option on WordPress.

It's important you don't copy this into the "Visual" view, as it won't display properly. It will be embedded into your article correctly if it looks like this in the visual view of your drafts:

That's all you need to do!

Links to Other Articles and Space Cow Media Content

We want to support each other’s content, as well as provide readers an easy reading experience, so add links in your articles when you reference other works! Use the hyperlink button in WordPress. Never assume a reader knows the other material you're referencing, such as a past article, a YouTube video, or even another content creator. 

For example, if you mention another author, make their name a hyperlink to their author page, which has their collected work. If you mention another article, including and especially one of your own past articles, make a link for it. If you mention the EDHRECast, might as well make it a link to the podcast’s page or YouTube channel. It makes things easy for readers to follow along.

Read More

At the very bottom of your article, please add a "Read more" section. This doesn't have to be very long at all, it's just a way for you to let readers know what you think they'd enjoy next. This can also be very helpful for more views on older content. You can select an article(s) from earlier in your series. It would also be great for you to pick someone else's article on a similar theme, or talking about the same color pairing, for example. This should look like the following:


Read more:

  • Title of another article[hyperlinked]
  • Title of another article[hyperlinked]

Accessibility 

It’s important to make sure that your article is easy to read. 

  • Use simpler language wherever possible. If a word you want to use has a shorter, more casually used synonym, choose that word instead. 
  • Use short sentences. A helpful practice might be to check your sentences where you’ve used one or more commas. You can also check sentences where you’ve used words such as “and,” “however,” or “although”. Would the sentence mean the same thing if you made two sentences instead? If so, split the long sentence in half.
  • If you aren’t sure how to make your article easier to read, use the Hemingway app. This is a free website where you can paste text into the app. The website will then tell you whether your sentences are hard to read. If you’re using the app, aim to have no sentences highlighted in red, which means very hard to read.
  • Define links you are using. Do not say “click here.” This can make it difficult for someone using a screenreader to know where the link will take them. For example, say “EDHREC is helpful for deckbuilding” rather than “click here to learn more about deckbuilding.” 
  • Make sure your links are not too long. Do not make an entire link a sentence. 

Alt Text on Images

Most images used within articles should have alt text. Alt text (alternative text) is there to describe what an image is for someone using a screenreader. It is read aloud to users by screen reader software, and it is indexed by search engines. Alt text only needs to be a sentence. Alt text should describe the appearance and/or the function of the image in the article. Alt text doesn't always need to be used on purely decorative images, but it can be helpful to do this to ensure your article is as accessible as possible.

When adding cards using the [e l]card[/ e]] function or the [e c]card[ /ec], you do not need to add alt text.

When adding a picture of a graph, add alt text to let the reader know what the graph displays, such as "A pie chart showing the most popular Equipment commanders, showing Ser Gwyn, Hero of Ashvale as the most popular."

As an example, alt text for the below image may read as: "Rowan, a planeswalker, is standing in a forest wearing a red cloak and silver armour. She is casting fire in one hand and holds a sword in the other."

You can add alt text quickly and easily when adding your image. This is one of the options when you are uploading an image:

A screenshot showing how to add alt text.

Making Content Accessible for New Readers

It’s also important to keep in mind that some of your readers might be new to Magic: The Gathering. Making your article more accessible is also helpful for casual players who don’t have extensive knowledge of the game.

  • When using guilds to describe colors, such as Golgari or Boros, explain the color pairing when you first use the word. For example, you could say “Izzet (blue, red) decks are often great at drawing cards.” You can then just use the guild name for the rest of the article. 
  • Where appropriate, briefly define mechanics you are discussing if it is the first time you are referencing that mechanic. This might be particularly important when describing non-evergreen mechanics. This only needs to be a sentence. This is with the exception of when you are discussing cards which explain the mechanic within the text on the card.
  • When using slang terms from the Magic: The Gathering community, consider whether your statement would still make sense if someone didn’t know what that term meant. This includes words like pubstomping, fatties, chaff and bomb. For example, everyone would likely understand what ‘digging for an answer’ meant in context, even if they haven’t heard that phrase before. However, a phrase like ‘fatties’ might not make sense without a bit of extra context. 

Decklist Formatting

All decklists submitted should be divided into sections:

  1. Creatures
  2. Instants
  3. Sorceries
  4. Artifacts
  5. Enchantments
  6. Planeswalkers
  7. Lands
  8. Sideboard, if necessary
  • Important: Organize the sections logically, with the most important category first (usually, this means the creatures). Lands should always be the last section.
  • Important: Use the Preview button to make sure your decklist isn't super lopsided. Rearrange the sections within the decklist if necessary, so that the two columns are relatively even with each other.
  • You are also at liberty to separate decklists by card function (e.g. “Draw Spells” / “Finishers” / “Ramp” / “Combo Enablers” and so on). If you choose this method, however, make sure the sections are specific and distinct, and keep it to less than 10 sections; too many labels can be distracting and confusing.

Use the following outline when including a decklist in your article (again, all spaces in the middle of words should be removed for tags to work):

[deck ti tle=Deck Name Here]

[Com mander]
[/Comma nder]

[Cr eatures]
[/Crea tures]

[Ins tants]
[/Inst ants]

[Sorc eries]
[/Sorce ries]

[Art ifacts]
[/Artifa cts]

[Ench antments]
[/Enchantm ents]

[Plan eswalkers]
[/Planesw alkers]

[Lan ds]
[/L ands]

[/dec k]

 

Put the cards in between the two labels for each section. List the number and name of each card together on one line, starting with an asterisk (*), the numeral, and the card name. List only one card name per line. Don’t pluralize the card name, even if more than one copy is in the deck.

TIME-SAVING TIP: Our friends at Archidekt have an easy-to-use export feature that automatically formats decklists in a WordPress-friendly way! All you have to do is copy and paste! We highly recommend it. You will have to rearrange the sections to put them in the order you like most, and to put Lands last. Watch for any card formatting issues that may differentiate Archidekt and EDHREC; the labels for double-faced cards, for example, may be different across both websites.

Important: After you've added the deck, copy the list, paste it directly beneath the list, and use the tags [edhr ec_deck] [/edh rec_deck] INSTEAD OF the "deck title" and "/deck" tags. You can also shorthand this to [e d] [/e d]. (Again, without spaces.)

  • This adds links beneath the decklist to our sponsors, CardKingdom and TCGplayer, if readers are interested in buying the decklist you've showcased.
  • Use this in addition to the traditional decklist tags, not instead of the traditional decklist tags

Here's an example decklist:

[deck tit le=Small Deck]

[Comm ander]

*1 Meren of Clan Nel Toth

[/Comma nder]

[Crea tures]

*1 Leafcrown Dryad

*23 Relentless Rats

[/Creatu res]

[In stants]

*1 Beast Within

[/Insta nts]

[La nds]

*4 Swamp

*3 Forest

[/Land s]

[/d eck]

[edhre c_deck]

[Co mmander]

*1 Meren of Clan Nel Toth

[/Com mander]

[Crea tures]

*1 Leafcrown Dryad

*23 Relentless Rats

[/Creat ures]

[Inst ants]

*1 Beast Within

[/Insta nts]

[La nds]

*4 Swamp

*3 Forest

[/L ands]

[/edh rec_deck]

And here's how it looks when the spaces are removed:

Buy this decklist from Card Kingdom
Buy this decklist from TCGplayer

Pro tip: Don’t include apostrophes in your deck titles. It doesn’t work, for some reason. “Radha’s Journey” will show up as “Radha’s Journey” and that’s no fun for anyone.

Pro tip: The rules for split cards and double-faced cards also apply to decklists! Split cards need both names, double-faced cards only need the name on the front half.




Set Review Guidance

Organization

Generally, we break reviews down the following way for the main set:

  • White review
  • Blue review
  • Black review
  • Red review
  • Green review
  • Colorless & lands review
  • Gold/Multicolor review

We will usually publish reviews which incorporate both the main set and cards from ancillary products, like Commander pre-cons. In instances where there's lots of new cards in a Commander product, we'll also publish reviews of cards in ancillary products separately. If we do this, this formula will be decided based on the best split of cards within the product. For example, this may be split as:

  • Commander cards - Legendary creatures
  • Commander cards - Nonlegendary creatures
  • Commander cards - Artifacts and enchantments 
  • Commander cards - Lands 
  • Commander cards - Instants and sorceries

Occasionally, depending on the set, we may make more changes to the set review formula. For example, Ravnica sets always have an abundance of multicolored cards, too many for a single article. We may elect to split a review by rarity, or by guild/wedge/shard, or something else entirely. This depends on the set.

We will always confirm when the full set is spoiled, what cards you should be reviewing. Please also feel welcome to ask if you're not sure.

These are not always published in the above order, if authors have not finished them on time. Set review weeks can be a bit of a scramble, so finish them ASAP. Even better, message your editor on Discord once your article is in the "pending" queue in WordPress to speed up turnaround times and get your article published on its scheduled date.

Set reviews are usually published instead of the week’s regular articles.

Important:

All writers will be asked for their availability and whether they would like to do a set review ahead of the set review season. The editorial team will then assign each set review to a writer. These articles will have a much shorter turnaround than regular articles due to the nature of set review season, so we expect that you will plan time to ensure that your article can be submitted to us at least 48 hours (2 days) before your article is due to be published. If there will be any problems in submitting your article to us within this timeframe, please notify the editorial team ahead of time. Please also consider your availability before signing up for a set review.


Formatting

The editorial team will usually set up a template for you to use. This will appear under your author name in the Drafts section of WordPress.

Set reviews should be organized in the following way:

Titles

Set Name Set Review - Color (e.g. Return to Ravnica Set Review - Blue)

NOT: EDHREC Ravnica Blue Review; EDHREC Ravnica Review - Blue

Use a Featured Image that shows the art of one of the cards in your review, and aim for a particularly exciting piece of art.

Organization: Organize cards by rarity, then alphabetically. This can be flexible; for example, you can open with the legendary creatures in the set, then move to mythics.

Generally, you should organize your reviews in the following way: 

Header/Title

Opening paragraph

-Card Name (header 2)

-Card image

-Paragraph(s) about the card

-Card Name (header 2)

-Card image

-Paragraph(s) about the card
-Card Name (header 2)

-Card image

-Paragraph(s) about the card

Closing Paragraph


Writing guidance

Set reviews should aim to be comprehensive. "This is an interesting card. I'm sure it will see play in some EDH decks" is vague and unacceptable. Be specific, direct, and helpful. 

Pick only the relevant cards, between 15 - 20 cards for your article. There are dozens of cards for each color in every new set, and they’re not all going to be gems.

We generally expect to see reviews of:

  • All mythic and rare cards in your color(s)
  • Your personal picks of uncommons and commons

Please do not write a review of a card if you have nothing to say about the card, just don’t include that card in the article. If this would involve not including a mythic or rare card in your review, please check this with a member of the editorial team before leaving this out of your article. The editorial team may then make the decision to ask that you do include the card.

Aim to write approximately 100 words per card at minimum, but please feel free to write more if you have more to say.

Remember we are primarily reviewing these cards in the context of whether they would be good cards in EDH. Consider the following when reviewing a card. It is not necessary to follow this as a formula or answer all of these questions, these are just prompts to help you analyze a card:

  • If you’re reviewing a legendary creature, would this be a fun or powerful commander? Why or why not?
  • Is there a particular deck type this card would suit?
  • Do you think this card will become ubiquitous in decks of that color or using a particular strategy? Why or why not?
  • Is there a particular commander you can think of who would benefit from this card?
  • Would this card potentially replace or provide a good alternative to a currently popular or expensive staple?
  • What are your personal feelings about the card, regardless of how objectively powerful it may be? Do you love it? Do you hate it? Would you run it in a deck? Why?

Don't hype up every card you review. Reviews are exciting, but be honest when cards are bad, because sometimes cards are pretty bad! Make sure to give a reason for why you think a card is bad - don’t expect the audience to automatically feel the same way you do.

Please use Scryfall to ensure that you are reviewing the correct cards for what you have been assigned. You can use “Set:” followed by the set code and “c:” followed by the color to find the right cards. You can use “-c:m” to not include multicolor cards. For example, if you wanted to see all the mono-white cards in Throne of Eldraine, you would type in “set:eld c:white -c:m”.

Please be aware that ancillary products, such as the Commander pre-cons, will have a different set code. Cards from these sets will usually be reviewed alongside cards in the main set, but will sometimes be reviewed separately.

If you have any doubts about which cards you are supposed to be reviewing, please contact a member of the editorial team as soon as possible.

DO: Include images of every card you discuss. Readers need to see the stuff you’re talking about.

DO: Continue to use card tags as normal. EDHREC updates new Scryfall images before the articles are officially published.

DON’T Include a decklist. The turnaround time on review articles is important, so we don't want to take too much time arranging the perfect 99.

DON’T talk about every single card. No one wants to read about the new set’s Healing Salve.

Extras

Some authors have given some extra flair to their reviews. You’re welcome to do this, but it is not required.

Special Formatting

The formatting detailed above is simple, but effective. Sometimes, though, authors can give some extra structure to a review that makes it more engaging.

This red review, for example, discusses cards in different sections.

Separately, this gold review organizes the normal cards and the commanders differently, but it’s extremely effective.

We do want to keep the set reviews fairly uniform, as readers will often read several reviews in a row, and a different style for each article can really throw them off. If, however, you have a review format you’d like to try, you can absolutely try it, but it should be for a good reason, like the above gold review. If you’re going to change the formatting, it should be so darn good that we’ll want to change our traditional template.

If you have any questions, contact either the Content Manager or the Editor:

jason@spacecowmedia.com

eliza@spacecowmedia.com