What block or cycle is Nemesis part of?

Nemesis is the second set in the Masquerade Cycle, between Mercadian Masques and Prophecy. The three sets share a timeframe but are only loosely connected by narrative — they aren't a tight trilogy the way some earlier cycles were.

What plane is Nemesis set on?

Nemesis is set primarily on Rath, an artificial plane created by Phyrexia as a staging ground for an invasion of Dominaria. Some events also connect to Dominaria itself.

Is there a Nemesis novel?

Yes — the companion novel *Nemesis* was written by Paul B. Thompson and published in February 2000 alongside the set. It was originally titled *Dark Fortress* before being renamed to match the set. It's the second book in the Masquerade Cycle.

What characters appear in the Nemesis storyline?

The Nemesis story features a large cast including Crovax, Belbe, Ertai, Greven il-Vec, Lin Sivvi, Eladamri, Volrath, Urza, and Yawgmoth, among others. It centres on a struggle for control of Rath as Phyrexia's invasion of Dominaria approaches.

Is Nemesis legal in Modern or Standard?

No — Nemesis cards are not legal in Standard, Pioneer, or Modern. They are legal in Legacy and Vintage. Check Scryfall or the official Wizards site for the legality of specific cards, especially in Pauper.

Nemesis (NEM): Set Guide for Magic: The Gathering

Q: When was Nemesis released?

Nemesis was released in February 2000. It carries the set code NEM and contains 143 cards.

What is Nemesis?

Nemesis is a Magic: The Gathering expansion set released in February 2000. It carries the set code NEM and contains 143 cards. Nemesis is the second set in the Masquerade Cycle, following Mercadian Masques (MMQ) and preceding Prophecy (PCY).

The Masquerade Cycle is sometimes a point of mild confusion for lore fans - and honestly, understandably so. The three sets in the cycle (Mercadian Masques, Nemesis, and Prophecy) are connected primarily by their shared timeframe rather than a tightly woven narrative thread running through all three. They're companions on a timeline more than chapters in a single story.

Nemesis takes place across two planes: the artificial plane of Rath and the world of Dominaria. The set's story centres on a power struggle within Rath as Phyrexia's long-anticipated invasion of Dominaria inches ever closer.

Lore and setting

The world of Rath - and what's at stake

Rath is no ordinary plane. It's a constructed, artificial world created by Phyrexia, engineered specifically as a staging ground for an eventual invasion of Dominaria. By the time Nemesis opens, that invasion is nearly at hand.

The set's story revolves around the struggle for dominance on Rath itself - a web of scheming, betrayal, and shifting loyalties among figures you'll recognise if you followed the Weatherlight Saga. Crovax, Belbe, Ertai, Greven il-Vec, Eladamri, Lin Sivvi, Volrath, and the Oracle en-Vec are all central to the drama. Urza Planeswalker looms over events, as does the dark presence of Yawgmoth himself - the Phyrexian dark lord whose invasion plans are finally nearing fruition.

Lore aside: The companion novel Nemesis, written by Paul B. Thompson and published in February 2000 alongside the set, carries the subtitle Witness the creation of his nemesis - hinting at the forces gathering to oppose Yawgmoth's empire. The novel was originally titled Dark Fortress and was initially conceived as Part III of the Weatherlight Cycle before Wizards of the Coast restructured things into the Masquerade Cycle.

That restructuring is worth knowing about if you're trying to follow the story in reading order. While the three Masquerade Cycle novels share a timeframe, they don't form a tight trilogy the way the earlier Weatherlight novels did. You can read the Nemesis novel as a largely self-contained story of Rath's endgame - even if you haven't read all of Mercadian Masques.

Key figures in the Nemesis story

The cast here is substantial. A few names to orient yourself:

Crovax - once a tortured hero of the Weatherlight crew, now a Phyrexian-corrupted predator at the heart of Rath's power
Belbe - Phyrexia's appointed emissary to Rath, tasked with choosing the plane's new overlord
Ertai - the arrogant young wizard from the Weatherlight, now deeply compromised by his time on Rath
Lin Sivvi - a Vec rebel leader, one of the few genuinely heroic figures fighting for Rath's people
Eladamri - an elven leader bound to the resistance against Phyrexian control
Greven il-Vec - the brutal commander of the Predator, Volrath's warship
Volrath - the former overlord of Rath, whose grip on power is slipping

This is dense, rich lore - the kind of story that rewards players who've followed the Weatherlight Saga from its beginning. If you're new to it, Nemesis sits roughly in the middle of a years-long narrative arc that culminates in the Invasion block.

Set legacy

Nemesis occupies an interesting place in Magic history. It arrived during a creative high-water mark for the game's storytelling - the Weatherlight Saga was one of the most ambitious ongoing narratives Magic has ever told, and Nemesis represents one of its darker, more morally complex chapters.

As the middle set of the Masquerade Cycle, Nemesis also reflects a period in Magic's design when sets were smaller and more tightly focused than the large expansions we see today. At 143 cards, it's a compact set - but that constraint tends to sharpen Limited formats rather than dilute them.

The Masquerade Cycle as a whole is sometimes overshadowed by the Invasion block that followed it, which delivered the payoff to years of Phyrexian buildup. But Nemesis in particular - with its themes of corruption, power, and the slow approach of catastrophe - does important narrative and mechanical work in setting up that payoff. If you want to understand why the Invasion felt so momentous to players at the time, Nemesis is part of the answer.

Format check: NEM cards are not legal in Standard, Pioneer, or Modern. They are legal in Legacy, Vintage, and theoretically Pauper (for commons with a Pauper-legal printing), though check current legality on the official Wizards site or Scryfall for specific cards.