Another year has passed for Magic: The Gathering players, and that means its time for a brand new Magic: The Gathering core set. The first previews for Core Set 2020 have been released and they focus on the powerful planeswalking pyromancer Chandra Nalaar.
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With War of the Spark, Magic: The Gathering introduced the idea of having planeswalkers cards of varying power levels at different rarity levels. It seems Wizards of the Coast plans to continue with that idea into Core Set 2020. The difference here is that the War of the Spark set included 36 unique planeswalkers cards. It looks like Core Set 2020 will have some of the Magic Origins spirit and use the varying rarities of planeswalker cards to show planeswalkers at different points in their history.
In the first previews, we see Chandra at three different levels of power. The uncommon Chandra, Novice Pyromancer represents Chandra when she first discovered her pyromantic abilities on the plane of Kaladesh. The rare Chandra, Acolyte of the Flame represents Chandra during her time training with the Regathan warriors. The mythic rare Chandra, Awakened Inferno represents Chandra having come into her full power.
According to the reveal article from io9, Chandra will be the main character in Core Set 2020‘s story. “Chandra is a master pyromancer, a headstrong pursuer of justice, and a loyal friend,” Magic: The Gathering art director Taylor Ingvarsson said in a statement. “Since she is the star of the Core Set 2020 card set, we wanted to do something special and create alternative representations of our favorite fire mage.”
It makes sense that Wizards would want to spotlight Chandra since she’ll be the main character of the Magic: The Gathering anime series being produced by Joe and Anthony Russo for Netflix. You can take a look at all three preview cards below.
What do you think of the new Chandra Nalaar cards from Core Set 2020? Let us know in the comments. Core Set 2020 arrives in July.