Phyrexian

The phyrexian language ( Phyrexian : pyrsVUDz, IPA: [pyrxɬɒʔɣ] ) is a conlang made for  Magic: The Gathering  , one of the very few given Wizards of the Coast deliberately avoiding designing languages. It is used by Phyrexia, a biomechanical undead civilization.

Design History
Allusions to phyrexians having a distinct language occur early in  Magic ' s history. For instance Xantcha, a main character in the 1998 novel  Planeswalker , has a number that is a phyrexian numeral. The language would occasionally get further hints, but it was only developed in full in the  Scars of Mirrodin  block (2010-2011) and only exposed in  Phyrexia: All Will Be One  (2023).

Translation
Sometime after the release of the original Phyrexian language judge promo for Elesh Norn, Grand Cenobite, high-resolution art for Dominaria's Phyrexian Scriptures was shared by its artist, an early example of Phyrexian script which renewed interest in translation. The text in that artwork has been determined to be the flavor text of in Phyrexian. That translation effort also yielded a proposed syntax tree for the language, and a partial association of consonant sounds with Phyrexian characters.

Transliteration
An official Wizards of the Coast survey in mid-2021 asking players' thoughts on Phyrexian versions of cards featured a transliterated version of Wurmcoil Engine, which provides insight into the transliteration of Phyrexian letters to English.

Consonants

 * Sliced consonants ( f, H , % , and _ ): These are like [p], [t], [k], and [q] but aspirated, and the aspiration sounds like a dagger being rubbed against a sharpener.
 * Clanked consonants ( T, B , and I ): These consonants are made like their plosive counterparts ([t], [k], and [q]) but followed with a sharp metal clank.
 * P is also a clanked consonant like [p], but is accompanied by a metallic snap sound like [[Wikipedia:Snap_fastener shirt snaps].
 * D is a glottal stop and is considered a consonant in Phyrexian. This can either be a metallic or an unaspirated plosive sound. When metallic, it is accompanied by the sound of a disharmonious bell. It is considered more refined to use the metallic version of this consonant.
 * g is like the sh sound in sure except this sound is made by rubbing two pieces of metal together similar to a blade being drawn from a metal sheath or the sound of scissors.

Writing System
The Phyrexian script was designed to be written with one hand of three clawed fingers, a feature common in older Phyrexians. Each glyph features a vertical stemline called the voice line, to be written with the middle digit; an intersecting glyph known as the primary radical, written with the left digit; and occasionally diacritics known as secondary radicals, written with the right digit. Words can be compounded with the character, , with the resulting lexeme considered a single word.

Phyrexian is a highly systematized script, with the primary and secondary radicals being associated with the manner of articulation and place of articulation respectively. The vowel glyphs are similarly associated with their articulation, rather than being arbitrary. Each vowel is composed of three lines on one side of the staff, one line longer than the other two, sometimes with a "hook" on the long line. The height of the long line indicates a closeness to openness, the side of the staff indicates front or back vowels, and the presence of a hook indicates roundedness.

Although knowledge of the letters, numbers, and language are passed through glistening oil, the language has changed over time as well. This change is most notable among red-aligned Phyrexians, who remove any systems of speech they find contrived. Originally, the star-shaped secondary radicals seen in glyphs such as s were written by Old Phyrexians by turning their hands, creating a spiral shape described as similar to the @ symbol. Newer Phyrexians with more fingers can more easily create the star shape by expanding their fingers.

Numerals
Although most Phyrexian text simply substitutes Arabic numerals in a Phyrexian font, one in fifteen Prerelease Packs for Phyrexia: All Will Be One featured special Phyrexianized spindown dice with Phyrexian numerals. The numerals appear to use a base-16 system and zero-based numbering.

Grammar
Tense and mood markers are compounded with the words the modify, and generally precede them, although they can follow the modified word in some dialects considered slang.

Phyrexians don't use personal pronouns. When referring to a group in the plural, where in English we'd use the pronoun "we," Phyrexians instead use a generic noun that describes the group they are referring to. The same is done if a singular pronoun is needed in a sentence for clarity.

Phyrexian uses a fourth person point of view, used "when you have run out of [points] of view for everyone else in the situation." It is implemented for a subject removed from the discussion, separate from a third person point of view.

Relational Infixes
All Phyrexian words contain a vowel in their second-to-last letter, indicated by a hyphen in the lexicon. This letter changes based on the subject and object of the given sentence. In some cases, notably all second-person cases, the vowel is prefixed by a "u-", and undergoes vowel harmony.

Infixes are also used when indicating a possessive, for example the English case "your" would be considered second-person-to-second-person.

Trivia

 * When a Phyrexian is compleated, they sometimes require augmentation to allow them to speak some of the "metallic" phonemes used in the language.
 * There is no word in Phyrexian for "happiness."
 * Phyrexian is a genderless language.
 * Elesh Norn's favorite mood marker is the jussive.
 * Jin-Gitaxias prefers to use complex, compounded words.
 * Urabrask speaks with an accent and is known to use slang,
 * Sheoldred prefers to use a sentence ending hook different from the standard . that was more commonly used in old Phyrexia.
 * Less dexterous than the other praetors, Vorinclex writes star-shaped secondary radicals as spirals, similar to old Phyrexians.
 * Mary Kathryn Amiotte-Beaulieu is the Head Phyrexian Linguist for Wizards of the Coast and has spoken the language in multiple videos.
 * Amiotte-Beaulieu, along with Bella Guo, provided all Phyrexian translations for the set Phyrexia: All Will Be One, as well as MagicCon Philadelphia.
 * The Phyrexian language was inspired by roughly twelve other languages.
 * Latin declension was the primary source of the system of infixes.
 * Phyrexian grammar can be used to subtly subvert cultural norms, notably by reordering lists of names to indicate disrespect. This is most commonly done by red-aligned Phyrexians.
 * Phyrexian lacks the verb "to be."