The second official day of Magic: The Gathering M20 spoilers has introduced a group of deadly flyers like Artemis, All Seeing, Kykar Wind’s Fury, Chandra’s Spitfire, and Empyrean Eagle.
Core Set 2020 contains 280 new and reprintable cards for Standard and other various Magic: The Gathering formats. Showcasing Chandra as the face of the set, M20 isn’t full of fluff. Although the spoilers haven’t been as potent as MTG War of the Spark, which also released this year, they seem to reveal an overall well-balanced set so far.
Day two of M20 spoilers showcased angels, zombies, and elementals. But flyers like Artemis, All Seeing, Kykar Wind’s Fury, Chandra’s Spitfire, and Empyrean Eagle quietly hung out in the background.
Artemis, All-Seeing
Costing six mana (three blue), Artemis, All-Seeing is a four/five flying legendary Sphynx. Occupying another Rare slot in the M20 set, it has an interesting static ability attached to it.
“Whenever Artemis, All-Seeing deals damage to an opponent, you may reveal your hand,” the card reads. “If cards with at least six different converted mana costs are revealed this way, that player loses the game.”
While Artemis isn’t exactly a solid win-condition, it has a touch of funk to it when applied toward janky decks. Artemis, All-Seeing also has a mana ability costing three (one blue) that provides tempo through drawing two cards and discarding one.
Kykar, Wind’s Fury
Grabbing a Mythic Rare slot in MTG Core Set 2020, Kykar, Wind’s Fury is a legendary three/three flying bird wizard. With a casting cost of four mana (one white, one red, and one blue), it creates a one/one flying spirit token creature when a non-creature spell is cast.
The interesting part about Kykar, Wind’s Fury is that the tokens it creates can be sacrificed and turned into red mana. For Red-Aggro and Feather decks that typically cast one mana instants and sorceries, having extra red mana through a simple token sacrifice is a win.
Chandra’s Spitfire
Working in conjunction with the new M20 planeswalkers Chandra, Awakened Inferno and Novice Pyromancer, Chandra’s Spitfire is a three mana (one red) one/three flying elemental. But when an opponent takes damage, Chandra’s Spitfire becomes a four/three until the end of turn.
With the Standard format in Magic: The Gathering going through a rotation in the fall, cards like Chandra’s Spitfire will keep archetypes like Mono-Red Aggro at the top of the metagame charts. All the Chandra cards so far in MTG Core Set 2020 are dangerous threats that opponents shouldn’t ignore.
Empyrean Eagle
Costing three mana (one white and one blue) to cast, Empyrean Eagle is a two/three flying bird spirit. It’s already a good deal for three mana, but Empyrean Eagle also provides other creatures you control with flying a plus one/plus one to their stats.
Empyrean Eagle gives Azorius Mid-Range decks a slight boost, especially when combined with Kykar, Wind’s Fury. But with the power other archetypes have, it’s unlikely Azorius Mid-Range will be anything other than a tier-two deck.
Magic: The Gathering Core Set 2020 is set to be released on July 12, with a pre-release taking place on July 5 and 6. M20 will be available in MTG Arena and Magic Online on July 2.
