With the release of Magic: The Gathering’s latest set Tarkir: Dragonstorm, us folks here at Gatherers’ Tavern introduced our first lineup of DOMARU boxes inspired by the vibrant colours and varied scale patterns of Tarkir’s spirit dragons. We’d like to highlight some of the inspirations and guiding principles behind these DOMARU boxes and the many ways they can be used in your life – regardless of whether you play Magic.
Historical Inspiration
Armor (Dō-maru), ca. 1550. Iron, leather, lacquer, silk, and gilt copper. New York, The Metropolitan Museum of Art. https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/22505.
The name DOMARU comes from the Japanese word Dō-maru (胴丸), meaning “body wrapped”. It refers to a type of chest armour worn by the samurai class in feudal Japan. Initially worn by lesser samurai and retainers in the 11th century, with time it became more widely adopted by higher-ranking samurai due to their increased need to fight on foot. Compared to the heavy and boxy Ō-yoroi armour made for horseback fighting, Dō-maru were lighter, close-fitting and easy to move around in.
Much like dragon scales, plates of Dō-maru were made of small scales of leather or metal, laced together with cord and lacquered. Even with their functional uses of material, Dō-maru are beautiful composite pieces of art, decorated with braided silk cords, woven silk, gilding, metal and leatherwork to tell a story of its wearer. This multilayered purpose of strength, flexibility and elegance is what guides the design of our DOMARU boxes.
Strength
When it comes to storing items as precious as one’s deck, they need the best protection they can get from the elements and from being tossed around in one’s bag. It would be terrible if all that money you spent on fancy cardboard went to waste as your storage box got squashed by something heavy, or if it just fell open like a crumbling dam, your cards spilling out into a sea of paper on the floor. Your cards might be fine if they’re sleeved, but you’re still going to have to embarrassingly pick them all up.
The DOMARU box solves all this. Its sturdy construction is as tough as dragonhide, with powerful magnets for a secure and reliable closure. Your cards are guaranteed to stay snug and safe even as your DOMARU goes through the wringer. The exterior is also slightly water-resistant, so it could withstand a few droplets of rain when closed. Just don’t try and toss it into a lake. We all have our limits.
Flexibility
Each DOMARU box comes with two modular leather dividers with alternating tabs. These are especially useful for organising your items efficiently. For MtG players, you could easily separate your deck, sideboards, tokens and dice. For other cards, like Original Character Trading Cards, you could store your OC cards on one side and your traded cards on the other. You could even keep different types of card sleeves organised by size and design.
What’s more, the DOMARU is the first box designed to accommodate 100+ triple-sleeved cards. So for those players who deal with the extra thickness of sealable inner sleeves, or those who triple sleeve for shuffling or protective reasons, this is a much-needed storage box that won’t warp your cards as you stuff them in.
While DOMARU boxes may have been intended to store playing cards, their uses can extend far beyond that. The protective box and modular dividers make it an ideal container for other small items. Maybe you’re playing in a dragon-themed TTRPG campaign or have a dragonborn character. The Tarkir: Dragonstorm DOMARU boxes would be a perfect match for your character’s dice, spell cards and minis. Or maybe you want to manifest your inner dragon and hoard your jewelled accessories in there. Washi tapes, ink bottles, tea, trinkets and keychains – the box is quite literally the limit on what you can store in there.
Elegance
“Have nothing in your houses that you do not know to be useful, or believe to be beautiful.”
– The Beauty of Life, William Morris, 1880
Beauty is often seen as an unnecessary luxury, something shallow and deceptive. Why get a fancy storage box for your cards if a cheap cardboard box works just fine? A beautiful box will not make you a better TCG player. But what many do not realise is that design and material quality can have immense influence on how we feel about the world around us.
Compare storing your cards in a basic cardboard box versus a DOMARU box. The cardboard box is going to stick out like a sore thumb in your home. Over time, its appearance and material will degrade with use, gaining creases and yellowed spots. As for the DOMARU box, it is an art piece in and of itself, acting as functional decor for your space that reminds you of fantastic worlds. Its quality material feels nice to the touch and stays firm and unyielding in your grasp.
In a world that is so visual and tactile, investing in items that look and feel good can provide emotional value to one’s daily life. If the things that you see and interact with on a daily basis are beautiful and well-crafted, you are more likely to enjoy using them. Wouldn’t it be nice if your everyday objects could provide some joy with each use? If they could tell a story about you and your interests without saying a word? This is our vision for DOMARU’s designs, subtly referencing media while still exuding elegance.
Much like how Dō-maru armour goes beyond pure functionality to project an image of its owner, our DOMARU boxes inspired by Tarkir’s spirit dragons proudly display each one’s colours and scales. The textured leather gives a heightened tactile dimension to these scales. Fellow Magic fans would recognise the symbols of each clan and the planeswalker icon stamped atop each box’s lid. As for our limited-edition Ugin DOMARU box, an icon of Ugin’s horned face and the Tarkir: Dragonstorm expansion symbol can be seen instead.
Still, regardless of familiarity with Magic, anyone can appreciate the intricate dragon scale patterns adorning these boxes. This is what makes DOMARU such a great gift for anyone looking to store cards or small items safely. Fill a box with a starter deck for a new player, chocolates for Valentines, snacks and tea packets for your office bestie – the list goes on. They can enjoy a beautifully packaged gift, and the box can be reused for their own purposes afterwards.
As Gatherers' Tavern continues to expand our DOMARU line, we aim to make designs that will suit everyone’s unique tastes and bring a little joy to your lives, whether it be at the gaming table or in your home.
If you’d like to get one of our Tarkir: Dragonstorm themed DOMARU boxes, you can find them here in our store. Follow our socials @GatherersTavern or join our mailing list to stay up to date with our new DOMARU designs as they are released. We hope you enjoy the elegance and craftsmanship of these boxes as they valiantly protect your goods.
Zahra Aliyah, Gatherers' Tavern