Winterspell Preview: All Six Underdogs Revealed Plus Scaling Boost

Designer Lukas Litzsinger showcases Winterspell's two headline mechanics. The Underdog keyword gives second-player advantages with discounted characters across all six ink types, while the Boost mechanic evolves from binary toggling to scaling effects that grow with stacked cards.

Lead game designer Lukas Litzsinger has unveiled two key mechanisms coming to Disney Lorcana TCG's Winterspell set: the brand-new Underdog keyword and an evolved version of Boost that scales with the number of cards stacked beneath your characters.

Introducing Underdogs

The design team set out to keep the competitive meta feeling fresh each set. One area they identified was the inherent advantage of going first — a natural feature of many card games that can sometimes feel tilted. Underdog is Winterspell's answer: each Underdog character costs 2 ink and gets a 1-ink discount on your very first turn, but only if you're not the starting player.

Importantly, the discount only applies on turn one to avoid burdening players with tracking who went first throughout the entire game. Every ink type gets its own Underdog, ensuring every color has access to this second-player advantage.

The full Underdog lineup spans all six ink types: Christopher Robin – Joining the Fun, Liquidator – Iced Over, Splatter Phoenix – Rejected Artist, Judy Hopps – Snowball Patrol, Angel – Siren Singer, and White Rabbit. Each brings unique stats and abilities alongside the shared Underdog discount.

Scaling Boost

The Boost mechanic from Whispers in the Well also gets an upgrade. While previous Boost characters had abilities that simply toggled on or off based on having a card underneath, Winterspell raises the stakes with effects that scale based on how many cards are stacked beneath a character.

Genie – Magical Researcher gains additional lore for each card stacked under him, turning Boost into a snowballing lore engine. Bambi – Ethereal Fawn takes a different approach, with an activated ability that grows more powerful based on the number of Boost cards accumulated.

These scaling Boost cards add a compelling resource-management dimension — do you invest in stacking cards for a bigger payoff, or spread your resources across multiple threats? Look for even more scaling Boost cards throughout the Winterspell set.