‘Magic: The Gathering’ Time Spiral Remastered gives angels a new vintage look
Time travel technology sadly continues to elude us, forcing us to wearily trudge onward into our uncertain future of climate change and taxes. Fortunately, Wizards of the Coast is providing one small safe haven of nostalgia this month, allowing Magic: The Gathering players to revisit the past in Time Spiral Remastered.
Due for release Mar. 19, Time Spiral Remastered is the first Magic set to be remastered in its physical form, as opposed to digitally in Magic Online or Magic: The Gathering Arena. Consisting of a curated selection of cards from 2006’s Time Spiral block, Time Spiral Remastered reprints old fan favourites from the Time Spiral, Planar Chaos, and Future Sight sets to create this draft-focused release. It contains 289 cards, including 121 commons, 100 uncommons, 53 rares, and 15 mythic rares.
While of course anyone can check out Time Spiral Remastered’s cards, this ancillary set is really aimed at Magic veterans, collectors, and longtime fans who’ll get a kick out of seeing familiar cards resurfacing. It also brings back Timeshifted cards, reprinting a small subset of cards from Modern Magic in vintage frames for the first time. Each Time Spiral Remastered booster pack will contain one of the 121 Timeshifted cards, which bear a purple expansion symbol and come from outside the Time Spiral block.
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Today, Mashable can exclusively reveal three of the cards that will appear in Time Spiral Remastered’s lineup: Angel of Salvation, Ivory Giant, and a Timeshifted Restoration Angel.
Angel of Salvation
Originally released in 2007’s Future Sight expansion, Angel of Salvation is a Rare 5/5 White Angel with Flash, Convoke, and Flying. This heavy hitter is difficult to get onto the battlefield, since it’ll only climb out of bed for eight mana including two White. But, once in play, this Angel will fly right over your opponent’s defence and punch them in the face.
Angel of Salvation also protects against the next 5 damage that would have been dealt during the turn it is played, divided however you choose. So, for example, you could prevent 5 damage to one of your creatures, or 1 damage to five of your creatures. Considering Angel of Salvation has Flash, meaning it can be played at any time, it’s a pretty powerful surprise if you can pull it out.
Ivory Giant
This Common 3/4 White Giant first showed up in the Time Spiral set back in 2006, and is now back to stomp all over everyone again. A large chunky boy, Ivory Giant costs seven mana to cast including two White — unless you choose to Suspend him. This allows you to throw him into the future, paying just one White mana to cast him in five turns instead of seven mana to play him immediately.
Ivory Giant also has the added bonus of tapping all creatures that aren’t White when he enters the battlefield, stopping them from both attacking and defending. This can open up a massive opportunity for your White army to rush in and decimate your enemy’s life points.
Restoration Angel
Restoration Angel has been printed a few times in the past, with appearances stretching from 2012’s Avacyn Restored set to this year’s Kaldheim Commander decks. However, Time Spiral Remastered Timeshifts this 3/4 White Angel, bringing back Wesley Burt’s 2017 card art and placing it in an old school frame for collectors and enthusiasts.
Requiring four mana including one White to play, this 3/4 White Angel has both Flash and Flying, similarly to Angel of Salvation. However, it also allows you to temporarily exile a single non-Angel creature you control before returning it to the battlefield — a handy mechanism for clearing off any detrimental enchantments encumbering your warriors.
Magic: The Gathering’s Time Spiral Remastered set arrives March 19.
Topics Gaming
