The armies of Sauron are fast approaching -- in Magic: The Gathering, that is. MTG's latest set, Lord of the Rings: Tales of Middle Earth, releases soon, and some players will get to play with the cards early, Here's how to get in on this at an in-store pre-release event.

Lord of the Rings: Tales of Middle Earth is the latest set that's a part of MTG's new Universes Beyond initiative, taking existing properties like Warhammer and Transformers and merging them with Magic gameplay. Tales of Middle Earth puts a new spin on classic characters like Frodo, Bilbo and Gandalf and introduces new flavorful mechanics related to The One Ring, for example.

MTG Lord of the Rings: Tales of Middle Earth Pre-Release Dates

Per the official Magic website, there are some important dates relating to Tales of Middle Earth that players should keep in mind. Namely that the first chance players will get to play with the new cards will be at pre-release events from June 16 to June 22.

For most Magic sets, game stores are encouraged to hold pre-release events before the set is officially available for purchase. These events have players construct decks out of six booster packs, then play in a tournament-style event with other players. These are fun, casual events that are perfect introductions to the set.

Players can use WOTC's event lookup tool to find a pre-release event near them.

For players on MTG Arena, WOTC also has some special bundles available in the leadup to the set's release on that platform: Be sure to check them out.

This article was originally published on dbltap as MTG Lord of the Rings: Tales of Middle Earth Pre-Release Dates.