The Ink Table Podcast Episode 21: "Winter Festivities"
Fun in the Snow
Atop a frozen hill stands a man made of snow. The chilling arctic air and harsh icy cold, have crafted his uncomfortable home of solidarity and isolation. He is stuck here, frozen, slowly awaiting the first rays of Spring…
But at the base of this hill, a different story is unfolding. Folks have begun gathering under the Winter lights that adorn their town. And as they gather in the streets, there is a powerful sense of Community, Respect, and Hope. Together, the warm smiles act as a cavalcade of torches, their magical flame burning through the snow and ice.
Welcome to The Ink Table, where the team is busily bringing in the new year with multiple Winter Festivities and tons of Disney Lorcana fun.
Home Sweet Home
January 2026 was an extremely busy time for The Ink Table team. Each member set off on their own Disney/Disney Lorcana themed adventures. From January 9-11th, Preston attended the 2nd North American DLC of Disney Lorcana’s second competitive season in Richmond, Virginia. John got to enjoy a break from the cold, as he embarked on his first Disney cruise. And Dylan was fortunate to attend the 2026 EPCOT International Festival of the Arts, where special Disney Lorcana events were taking place. This episode is the first time that the entire team has come together since these trips, and the first time they have shared their thoughts on these experiences. Listen to the podcast episode to hear these thoughts; and check out the content bellow to get a peek into what the gang got into.
Winterspell Reveals
Picks From the Crew
Below you can find a few cards from this set that the team wanted to highlight for various reasons. The first is Mulan - Resourceful Recruit. This Mulan glimmer has the potential to be a new meta staple and is definitely a card you could build an entire deck around. Her ability, Rigorous Training, allows her to gain lore equal to her strength (up to a maximum of 6) when she quests. As written, her strength is only 1. But pieced into an Amber/Emerald or Emerald/Sapphire deck using cards with the Support keyword, she could easily reach the limit to quest for that maximum of 6 lore. This card could also be slotted into Emerald/Ruby action focused decks to produce similar results.
Let’s Get Dangerous is an inkable 4-cost Steel song based on, Darkwing Duck, a new franchise being introduced in Winterspell. This is simply a fun card that acts as a big gamble, with the payoff of playing a character for free…but so can your opponent. Hince the danger. While this card may not see much play, the Enchanted version does an excellent job showcasing the franchise it is based on. In truth, although not a character card, this is the piece of art we would recommend to Collectors and Darkwing fans who have patiently awaited his arrival.
Stegmutt - Clumsy Dinosaur is a beefy character at 7 Strength and 7 Willpower. This is another character from the Darkwing Duck franchise. There are two things of interest we would like to point out with this card. The first is his ability, Wake of Destruction. Stegmutt is a costly character, typically needing 8 ink to play him. But his ability allows the glimmer to be played for less based on how many items you have in your discard. This type of cost reduction ability is one we have seen before, but it hasn’t been seen since set 5, Shimmering Skies. The second thing to point out on this card is his classifications. While the Storyborn and Ally tags are fairly common, this is the first character with the Dinosaur tag. Just as we’ve saw the Ghost tag added to a singular character in Whispers in the Well, just to be expanded on in Winterspell, the same thing seems to be happening here. Stegmutt seems to be stomping the path forward for character like Rex from Toy Story, the characters from The Good Dinosaur, and even Tiny from Meet the Robinsons.
The final card we want to spotlight is Heihei - Persistent Presence. Originally released in Rise of the Floodborn, this card is a reprint making its way back with alternative art. The biggest thing to point out here is what could be considered an errata to his ability, He’s Back! This ability is gives the same effect that many other cards gain. When this character is banished in a challenge, it returns to your hand. The new version of this card expands the wording of this ability and clarifies that when the card is returned to your hand, it does so from your discard. In truth, this has always been the case. But sometimes gameplay speed sees players skipping steps that don’t seem necessary. The character is banished, goes to your discard, then returns to your hand. This clarification is meant to remind players of that middle step, as there are many new cards that gain benefits from cards leaving a player’s discard. One particular instance of this is a new Floodborn Anna that gains Shift 0 when a card leaves your discard. Therefore, Heihei could be used as a pawn to shift this Anna for free.
Cards that Look Different
Some cards being introduced in Winterspell may look different when it comes to their art and mechanics. Don’t freak out if you pull a foil card missing a piece of its border! Special cards with connected art will be returning within those foil slots. Some locations will be gaining abilities we have never seen before. One gains the Boost ability only previously found on Whisper Glimmers, and another even finds a way to gain the Evasive keyword. And you will be able to find 1 card in each ink color with the new Underdog ability. This new ability allows characters to be played for 1 less if it is your first turn and you are playing on the draw. In a way this ability has the potential to eliminate the advantages typically associated with playing first, which has been one of the game’s biggest complaints from its inception. Check out the podcast clip below to learn even more about these cards and mechanics.
Winterspell Promos
New Iconics
Disney Lorcana’s highest rarity, Iconic, gains two more cards to the club in Winterspell. Both glimmers gaining the Iconic treatment this time happen to be Princesses. The first is Pocahontas - Peacekeeper, which celebrates the Pocahontas franchise appearing in the Realm of Lorcana for the first time. The second card is Moana - Curious Explorer. This beautiful card marks the first time that Moana has received a rarity higher than Rare, as even the standard version of this card is Legendary. Below you can find a podcast clip where the team shares their thoughts on these valuable cards.
Wilds Unknown
First Look at Pixar Characters
It was previously announced that Disney Lorcana’s 12th set, Wilds Unknown, will see the introduction of Pixar characters making their way to the realm of Lorcana. As far as we previously knew, this only included characters from the Toy Story franchise (as seen in the key art above). But it seems Ravensburger will be pushing a quick introduction of Pixar franchises as both The Incredibles and Brave will also be introduced in this Q2 set, on May 8th.
2-Player Starter Set
One good way to get your hands on some of these new Pixar cards is through the 2-Player Starter Set that will MSRP at $29.99. Interestingly, starting in Winterspell, Ravensburger will move on from selling Single Player Decks. This approach is a decision made based on the recorded purchasing habits of Illumineers to this point. This is believed to be a family-focused product, as the majority of households purchasing Disney Lorcana product has more than one person playing the game. This also creates a “gateway” product that can be sold each set, thus ensuring that there is always an open pipeline for new players.
Prerelease Packs
When Wilds Unknown releases on May 8, 2026, prerelease events at your local game store will look a little different. We previously discussed the details of these new Prerelease Packs in our previous episode (“Making Spirits Bright”) and will likely discuss it again in the future once the Promo Cards and Postcards included have finally been revealed. We bring this product up again now, because it adds to the Pixar discussion. Previously some of the art on the included Booster Packs was hidden. We now know that our prediction, that this would be art of a brand-new franchise, has been proven correct. But we would have never guessed that this would be our first look at the Pixar princess Merida from Brave.
Attack of the Vine
The rollout of Pixar franchises does not look to be slowing down anytime soon. Disney Lorcana’s 13th set, Attack of the Vine!, will continue the overarching story that sees the struggle against a wild and magically growing vine. It will also see the introduction, as seen in the key art, of at least 2 new Pixar franchises, Monsters Inc. and Up. These franchises along with a prior announcement that Turning Red will also appear in this set, makes 3 overall.
Q4 Set
The last piece of news we have is a sneak peek at an unnamed Q4 set. There is no name or date for this set yet. But we do get a look at some characters from Coco that will be making an appearance.