Note: This article was written in the week of the release, so this is mainly theorycrafting. Let's get brewing!

More importantly, written by Anthropic's Opus model :-)

Overall

• The Whisper Rises: We have a brand new subtype - Whisper! These mysterious characters appear across multiple colors, bringing unique synergies and a thematic connection to the mysterious forces beneath Archazia's Island. Gaston – Frightful Bully, Jasmine – Soothing Princess, and several others carry this new designation. What whispers have they heard, and what power do they bring?
• Boost Mechanic Expands: The Boost keyword (introduced in earlier sets) gets significant support with multiple cards across colors. Boost X allows you to pay X ink once per turn to put the top card of your deck facedown under that character. Cards like Gaston – Frightful Bully and Jasmine – Soothing Princess showcase powerful abilities that trigger when they have cards underneath them.
• Support Keyword Proliferates: Support continues to be a major theme, appearing on numerous cards including Baloo – Friend and Guardian and Daisy Duck – Paranormal Investigator. The mechanic allows characters to add their strength to another character when questing, creating interesting tactical decisions.
• Still No Locations: Following Archazia's Island, we have another set without any Location cards. The story remains focused on the island and its mysteries, with characters exploring the depths rather than new places.
• Shift Costs Get Creative: We see interesting new Shift costs, including Daisy Duck – Paranormal Investigator with Shift 4, making Floodborn strategies more accessible and varied.
• Balanced Lore Distribution: The set maintains a healthy distribution of lore values, with most cards in the 1-2 range, several 3-lore cards, and a few high-value targets. No cards with 5+ base lore value keeps the game pace measured.

Amber

• Bodyguard Synergies Deepen: Baloo – Friend and Guardian brings both Bodyguard and Support to a single card - a powerful combination that protects your board while advancing your lore race. At 6 cost with 3/8 stats and 2 lore, he's a wall that contributes to your win condition while enabling other characters. Combine him with previous bodyguard synergy cards for a defensive fortress.
• Support Strategies Emerge: Grandmother Willow – Eldery Advisor provides a crucial engine for Support decks. Her ACT OF KINDNESS ability grants damage immunity to characters chosen for Support until your next turn. This creates a powerful defensive loop - quest with Support characters, protect your key pieces, and maintain board presence. She synergizes perfectly with Baloo and other Support characters.
• Boost Aggression: Gaston – Frightful Bully introduces aggressive Boost gameplay. His TOP THAT! ability forces an opposing character to quest (and prevents them from challenging) when he quests with a card under him. At just 2 cost with Boost 2, he's an early disruptor that can mess with your opponent's tempo. As a Whisper, watch for potential tribal synergies in future sets.

Amber-Amethyst

• Musical Synergies: The Madrigal family theme from previous sets potentially gets new support with cards that care about songs and singers. The combination of Amber's support mechanics with Amethyst's control elements creates interesting deck-building opportunities.

Amethyst

• Whisper Control: Amethyst embraces the Whisper subtype with control-oriented effects. These mysterious characters bring new ways to manipulate the board state while advancing your game plan.
• Boost Value: Cards with Boost in Amethyst tend to have powerful triggered abilities, rewarding players for the investment of storing cards underneath their characters.

Amethyst-Ruby

• Damage Matters Continues: Building on the "damaged characters matter" theme from previous sets, new cards provide additional payoffs and enablers for strategies that care about damage counters.

Emerald

• Ward Protection: Goofy – Emerald Champion showcases Emerald's protective nature, granting Ward to all your other Emerald characters while providing retaliation effects when they're challenged.
• Balanced Aggression: Emerald continues its theme of forcing opponents into difficult decisions with cards that grant Reckless or manipulate challenge dynamics.

Ruby

• Challenge Rewards: Ruby doubles down on its aggressive nature with cards that reward successful challenges and combat-focused gameplay.
• Direct Damage Options: While removal through actions remains limited, Ruby maintains its identity with damage-dealing effects attached to characters and abilities.

Sapphire

• Paranormal Investigation: Daisy Duck – Paranormal Investigator brings a game-warping control element with STRANGE HAPPENINGS - while she's exerted, cards enter opponents' inkwells exerted. This means your opponent loses a full turn of ink availability! With Shift 4, Support, and solid 4/6 stats for 6 cost, she's a potential meta-defining card. The Enchanted rarity suggests Ravensburger knows her power level.
• Boost Healing Revolution: Jasmine – Soothing Princess combines Boost 2 with mass healing through UPLIFTING AURA - removing up to 3 damage from EACH of your characters when she quests with a card under her. At 4 cost with 2/5 stats, she's efficiently costed for a defensive engine. As a Whisper, she ties into the set's mysterious theme while providing practical board control. Pair her with high-willpower characters to create an nearly unkillable board state.

Steel

• Consistent Power: Steel maintains its reputation for straightforward, powerful effects with solid stats. Characters in Steel provide the backbone for many strategies without complex interactions.
• Support Backbone: Steel's high-willpower characters make excellent targets for Support abilities, creating durable threats that are difficult to remove through challenges.

Dual-Color Synergies

The set continues the dual-ink Glimmer design from Archazia's Island, with cards requiring both colors but providing effects that blend their identities:

• Amber-Sapphire: Puppy strategies may receive continued support, building on the recursion and go-wide themes established in previous sets.
• Emerald-Ruby: The damaged character archetype gets new tools to pressure opponents while maintaining board presence.
• Amethyst-Steel: Illusion strategies with Vanish mechanics create fragile but powerful board states that reward careful play.

Competitive Implications

• Boost Decks Emerge: With significant Boost support across multiple colors, expect to see dedicated Boost strategies. The mechanic provides virtual card advantage while enabling powerful triggered abilities. Gaston – Frightful Bully at 2 cost and Jasmine – Soothing Princess at 4 cost create a natural curve. The key question: is the tempo loss from paying for Boost worth the payoff? Early testing suggests yes.
• Support Aggro Revolution: The combination of Support and Grandmother Willow's damage prevention creates a new aggressive-defensive hybrid. Quest with Support characters, make them immune to damage, and maintain tempo. This strategy particularly shines in Amber-Sapphire, where high-willpower characters can both give and receive Support effectively.
• Whisper Tribal Potential: While we need more Whispers to evaluate fully, the subtype appears across multiple colors with Gaston – Frightful Bully in Amber and Jasmine – Soothing Princess in Sapphire. The flavor suggests these characters have heard mysterious voices - will future sets provide payoffs for Whisper tribal strategies?
• Inkwell Control Meta: Daisy Duck – Paranormal Investigator fundamentally changes game pacing. Forcing opponent's ink to enter exerted effectively time-walks them, creating windows for aggressive pushes or setting up defensive positions. Expect this card to see heavy play in Sapphire-based control shells.
• Emerald Protection Package: Goofy – Emerald Champion creates a protective bubble for Emerald strategies. His EVEN THE SCORE ability punishes challenges against your Emerald characters by banishing the attacker, while PROVIDE COVER grants Ward to all other Emerald characters. This two-pronged defense makes Emerald midrange strategies significantly more resilient.

Key Card Interactions

The Boost Engine:

• Turn 2: Gaston – Frightful Bully
• Turn 3: Boost Gaston, quest to control opposing character
• Turn 4: Jasmine – Soothing Princess
• Turn 5: Boost Jasmine, quest for mass healing

Support Chain:

• Play Grandmother Willow
• Quest with Baloo – Friend and Guardian, Support another character
• That character gains damage immunity and boosted strength
• Next turn, repeat with protected characters

Inkwell Lock:

• Shift Daisy Duck – Paranormal Investigator onto a cheap Daisy
• Quest with her (she has Support too!)
• Opponent's next ink enters exerted
• Combine with other ink denial for a soft lock

Limited Considerations

• Support Shines: In limited formats, Support becomes even more valuable as it allows smaller characters to contribute to the lore race while enabling favorable trades.
• Boost Value: The ability to store cards under characters provides virtual card advantage in longer limited games.
• Whispers Matter: Pay attention to Whisper synergies when drafting, as these may provide unexpected power in the right deck.

Looking Forward to Rotation

Whispers in the Well arrives at a crucial time - as the last set before rotation hits with Fabled. This positioning is significant:

• Core Format Preparation: With Into the Inklands rotating out soon, key pieces like the original Dalmatian puppies need replacements. The set seems light on puppies, suggesting that archetype may be sunsetting.
• New Mechanical Space: The Whisper subtype and expanded Boost support create new design space for Year 3. These mechanics feel like seeds being planted for future harvest.
• Power Level Considerations: Cards like Daisy Duck – Paranormal Investigator and Goofy – Emerald Champion suggest a slightly elevated power level, perhaps preparing for the post-rotation meta.

Budget Considerations

For players looking to enter the format:

• Commons/Uncommons: Strong commons and uncommons make the set accessible
• Boost Package: Many Boost cards are at lower rarities, making the archetype budget-friendly
• Support Core: Support strategies don't require many high-rarity cards to function

Final Thoughts

Whispers in the Well feels like a transitional set - one foot in the current Archazia's Island storyline, one foot stepping toward the future of Lorcana. The Whisper subtype adds flavor while potentially setting up future mechanical payoffs. The continued absence of Locations keeps the focus on character interactions and the mysteries of the island.

The set's mechanical themes - Boost, Support, and the new Whisper subtype - create interesting decision trees without overwhelming complexity. This maintains Lorcana's accessibility while adding strategic depth for competitive players.

Key cards to watch:

• Daisy Duck – Paranormal Investigator - Potential format warper
• Grandmother Willow – Eldery Advisor - Support deck enabler
• Goofy – Emerald Champion - Emerald's new protection package
• Jasmine – Soothing Princess - Healing engine extraordinaire

The meta seems poised for a shift toward more interactive gameplay, with Support strategies enabling aggressive decks to protect key pieces while control decks gain new tools to slow the game. The Boost mechanic adds a resource management layer that rewards patient players who can maximize their stored value.

As we approach rotation and Year 3, Whispers in the Well provides both conclusions and beginnings. What whispers are calling from the well? What power awaits those brave enough to listen? And most importantly - how will these mysterious forces shape the future of Lorcana?

Time to sleeve up and find out. See you at the tables, Illumineers!