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Mirage
Coming after Ice Age, the first delineated “big” set with an expansion, Mirage is the first proper block that has one big set and two following using the same storyline, which will be the common thing after. Mirage has more effort in design, illustration and card quality overall, and for the first time not only the rares are going to be considered good cards. Mirage is the first set where a card had to be banned for taking over control of the tournament scene: Cadaverous Bloom. The five mana green black enchantment lets you discard a card for getting two mana of one of the two colours. Joined with the sheer power of necropotence and other stuff, like in the same set Infernal Contract, that draws four in exchange of half of your life points, generating more mana than the cards in hand is degenerate, especially when it leads to a massive Drain Life.
However, it is the same set as the currently famous Lion's Eye Diamond, a small black lotus that takes away your hand or other good cards like Cursed Totem, an all creature's ability blocker, Early Harvest, an instant that untaps all your lands, Hammer of Bogardan, a recurring burn spell and Frenetic Efreet, a 2/1 blue red flier that with a coin flip would escape all the removals, which sounds a bit powerless now, but at that time saw plenty of play.
Another way that Mirage differs from Ice Age are the power uncommons. On the top of the list, there are Enlightened Tutor and Mystic Tutor, two one mana instant that puts one artifact, enchantment, instant or sorcery card on the top of your deck respectively. Less impactful but still considerably strong is Crystal Veins, a two mana land when sacrificed and Stupor, a smaller hymn to tourach with three mana.
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