Gavin Verhey used today’s episode of Good Morning Magic to break down the history of mill and its introduction as a keyword in Core Set 2021.
No story on milling can begin without bringing up Millstone from Antiquities. The now iconic card was even used in the first Pro Tour winning deck by Michael Loconto and has since become a fan favorite mechanic, even forcing players to find ways to counteract it.
As popularity for mill grew, more cards featuring it were created, including the Dimir using it as a main mechanic in Ravnica: City of Guilds. The question of when mill would become a keyword was always being asked, but R&D considered it for a while, weighing the pros and cons. While the word only meant something if you knew where it came from, it would save a lot of room on text boxes by simplifying it to a keyword.
After years of debate and attempting to find a better name for mill, the mechanic is finally here in Core Set 2021, debuting on Teferi’s Tutelage. Verhey mentions at the end of the video how Truth or Dare from the Mystery Booster set’s playtest cards teased the coming of mill just like Ruff, Underdog Champ did the same for changing Hounds to Dogs. He even hinted that more upcoming changes or additions to Magic could be found on other playtest cards from the set.