Magic Story
Return to Dominaria: Episode 12
May 30 2018
Jaya Ballard is a native of Dominaria and a prominent part of both its past and its present. In her reckless youth, she sold her considerable pyromantic talents to the highest bidder as a task mage. After her spark ignited, as a Planeswalker, her influence has spread through the Multiverse across generations and her mastery of fire magic has inspired the practice of monks and mercenaries alike. During her adventures on Dominaria, Jaya—along with the Planeswalker Freyalise and the immortal wizard Jodah—played an instrumental role in ending the Ice Age. For fifteen centuries, Jaya wielded the same incredible power as other Planeswalkers of her era, but it was not to last. Following the Mending, Jaya is now “merely” human. Though rumors suggested that her wild and impetuous nature had caused her death, Jaya remains very much alive. Unlike the temporal adept Teferi and the artificial Planeswalker Karn, Jaya is aging normally, fully accepting that she is near the end of a long and productive life. The Planeswalker Chandra Nalaar trained at Keral Keep, a pyromantic monastery founded by Jaya herself on the plane of Regatha. Chandra has arrived on Dominaria with Jaya’s trademark goggles in-hand, hoping to learn from the ultimate master of pyromancy.
Jaya Ballard's story continues in "War of the Spark: Ravnica" -- the new novel from Greg Weisman available here