Spoiler season for Magic: The Gathering‘s latest expansion is in full swing.
Ikoria: Lair of Behemoths is out next week – May 15th for paper formats due to delays caused by the COVID-19 pandemic – for digital CCGs Magic Online and MTG Arena and Wizards of the Coast is wasting no time in ramping up the card reveals. Set on the human and monster-inhabited world of the same name, Ikoria introduces a number of new keywords in the form of Mutate and Companion cards, as well as reintroducing a select few from previous sets, including the popular Cycling ability.
Today’s reveal, however, keeps things strictly evergreen, with only one of the three new cards showcased featuring any keyword at all. Cathartic Reunion, Capture Sphere and Forbidden Friendship promise to be powerful additions to red and blue decks and you can check them all out via the gallery below, courtesy of Magic hall of famer and former pro player, Brian Kibler.
All show potential as staple additions to their respective color, then, though Cathartic Reunion is arguably the runaway winner this time around.
Card draw has traditionally proven itself to be a powerful boon for aggressive decks in the past which aim to close out the game as quickly as possible in order to prevent being outvalued by control-oriented opponents. Cathartic Reunion’s cheap cost allows the discarding of otherwise useless cards for a fresh hand and potential game-ending draw. Capture Sphere, on the other hand, is a costly – but powerful – card that can be cast as an Instant Sorcery due to Flash. Blue decks already have a multitude of methods to control the board, however, so it remains to be seen whether this one will make the cut.
But what do you think? Let us know which, if any, of today’s reveals you’ll be hoping to pull when Magic: The Gathering‘s latest set launches in the usual place below!
