Magic has many scales determining what the likelihood of certain things will happen again.
The Beeble Scale deals with creatures. The Storm Scale measures mechanics. The Rabiah Scale? Planes. And each scale has the added detail of being named after the thing so unlikely to happen again they needed a whole scale to show just how unlikely it can ever happen again. So if you are looking for a beeble creature with storm in the next Rabiah expansion, it may take awhile.
However, there is one curious exception to the list, partially out of humor and partially because something worse really did come along. And that's the Venser scale. The Venser Scale has a curious 11 levels of likelihood, compared to all the others where it goes one through ten. And for the first ten in the Venser Scale, it's pretty standard:
- Level 1: Will definitely see again, possibly every few years
- Level 2: Will definitely see again, but not necessarily right away
- Level 3: Will most likely do again, probably many times
- Level 4: Will most likely do again, but they have issues that make them less of a guarantee
- Level 5: We need to find the right place to bring it back, but I'm optimistic
- Level 6: We need to find the right place to bring it back, but I'm a little less optimistic
- Level 7: It's unlikely to return, but possible if the right environment comes along
- Level 8: It's unlikely to return, but possible if the stars align
- Level 9: I never say never, but this would require a minor miracle
- Level 10: I never say never, but this would require a major miracle
So planeswalkers like Chandra, Jace, Ajani, and Liliana? Pretty good odds they'll be seen again in a year or two. But then there are planeswalkers like B.O.B. or Leshrac who proved unpopular, too out there, or too dead to make a return. Venser himself is a ten because he is (A) dead and (B) desparked. The less-likely planeswalker characters themselves can come back, a la Tezzeret in Edge of Eternities or even Venser himself in Phyrexia: All Will Be One. But they will either be significantly different or no longer planeswalkers.
But at least they come back. Why? Because there is an official/unofficial Level 11 to all this: And according to Mark Rosewater, the only explanation is "He knows what he did."
And it stems from this Question and answer:
Is there anyone who is an 11 on the Venser Scale?
"Englebert. He knows what he did."
There is no further explanation as to who he is, but because Maro said it...it is sorta canon now. And Magic being Magic, and Englebert card is now a distinct possibility, especially in a future un-series. But for now, the Venser Scale is currently the only scale with 11 levels rather than 10.
