Magic: The Gathering Aetherdrift Preview — New Mechanics Capture Racing Theme Perfectly

Planeswalkers, start your engines! Wizards of the Coast is gearing up for its first new set release of the year with the racing-centric Aetherdrift—releasing on February 14—which is currently up for preorder on Amazon, Best Buy, and at your local game store!

Recently, Wizards held a preview showcasing a variety of new cards that highlight Aetherdrift’s mechanics and the racing teams participating in this planar-spanning event. Aetherdrift is the first new set release after Wizards’ major announcement late last year, indicating that new sets would be split between MTG originals and Universes Beyond releases. This new set takes Wizards of the Coast’s legendary card game into uncharted territory—the world of professional racing.

As with any new Magic set, players will have new tools and mechanics to explore and build decks around. In Aetherdrift, these come in the form of “Speed” and “Exhaust.” First to the starting line is “Speed,” a new resource that players can accumulate when they play a card with “Start your engines!” which sets your speed value at 1.

Players can then increase their speed value once on their turn when they deal damage (combat or non-combat) to an opponent up to a maximum speed of 4. By reaching max speed, these cards will gain additional effects, but perhaps the most intriguing aspect of Speed is that, according to Wizards, once you gain it, it won’t decrease and you can’t lose it. While it takes at least three turns to reach max speed, getting a card with “Start your engines!” onto the battlefield as early as possible will be crucial. Additionally, while no specific cards were revealed, Wizards mentioned that some cards gain effects at different speed levels, not just max speed.

A good example is the new card Far Fortune, End Boss, which deals one damage to each opponent whenever you attack. However, if you are at max speed, it gains an additional ability: “If a source you control would deal damage to an opponent or a permanent an opponent controls, it deals that much damage plus 1 instead.” Since Aetherdrift features many artifact vehicles, Mendicant Core, Guidelight might inspire some deck ideas. Its max speed ability reads: “Whenever you cast an artifact spell, you may pay {1} (colorless). If you do, copy it (the copy becomes a token).” I can already think of a few artifact decks that could benefit from a card like that.

Next up is “Exhaust,” which is more straightforward but arguably more powerful. These one-time-use mana abilities compensate for their limited use with incredible versatility and game-changing effects. One of the previewed cards, Redshift, Rocketeer Chief, has the Exhaust ability: “{R}{G} and {10}: Put any number of permanent cards from your hand onto the battlefield.” Its default ability allows you to tap it to add X mana of any single color, where X is equal to its power. Considering that green is known for boosting creature power, you could easily empty your hand onto the battlefield with little trouble.

The real trick to maximizing the Exhaust mechanic will be in blink- or copy-heavy decks, allowing players to reuse these phenomenal abilities more than once. For example, recasting your commander with Exhaust or bouncing a card back to your hand will let you activate the ability again. Equipping an Exhaust creature with Helm of the Host, which creates copies with fresh uses of their abilities, could also lead to some truly devastating plays. However you approach it, I foresee plenty of headaches dealing with Exhaust in competitive games.

Aetherdrift sets itself apart from other original Magic sets with its unique art style and theme. Love it or hate it, the team has done a commendable job of making the set—and its mechanics—feel cohesive. I’m eagerly anticipating the full list of spoilers so we can get a better idea of just how versatile and widespread the new Speed and Exhaust mechanics will be.

Many decks will benefit from these abilities, but as with any new mechanic, it remains to be seen how much they will be incorporated into future releases. Sets like Bloomburrow, Duskmorne, and now Aetherdrift have redefined what an “original Magic plane” can be. While the racing aesthetic may seem odd or out of place to some players, for others, the bombastic visuals and vehicle-heavy theme might be exactly what draws them in. Aetherdrift releases on February 14—because nothing says romance like a new MTG set.

Scott White is a freelance contributor to IGN, assisting with tabletop games and guide coverage. Follow him on X/Twitter or Bluesky.