Gathering Magic has been at this spoiler business for well over a year, and we have grown by leaps and bounds in that time.  One sign of this success has been the procurement of our very own Magic 2011 preview card from WotC.  Not only is it exclusive, but it’s a pretty awesome card.  Just how awesome is it you may be wondering?  Let’s break it down, piece by piece before we reveal the full card in all its glory.

The history of red creatures that have 6 power and 6 toughness is extensive.   Crimson Hellkite, Dragon Tyrant, Imperial Hellkite, and Scourge of Kher Ridges are only a fraction of that history.  Of course there is a theme at work – big red creatures = dragons with unusually difficult casting costs.  Powerful to be sure, but rarely worth the trouble.  There needs to be more here than just a 6/6.

Flavor-wise, do abilities get more red than this?  Of course not.  Firebreathing has been staple of dragons in MTG since, well, forever.  When a core set is revealed, you expect the figure-head red creature to have this ability and WotC did not disappoint here.  However, it is that second ability, activated when this guy comes into play, and any number of times again, that piques interest.

Two things of note here.  First, this thing ain’t no dragon, it’s a giant.  Which squares with basic fantasy flavor, but not as much with MTG because big, nasty red creatures tend to be dragons!  Second, the Mythic rarity tells us this card is as good as we thought it was after adding the 6/6 stats, with those epic abilities.  It also tells us that Bogardan Hellkite’s reign as a core card is through.

Six is some sort of a jinxed number in Magic. From Serra Angel all the way to Siege-Gang Commander five has been the golden number for creature casting costs.  Only a card that fits perfectly color and build-wise (Sphinx of Jwar Isle for example) will make a competitive decklist at six mana.  Well, the Inferno Titan tip-toes past five straight on to six, leaving one question in the wake – is this fellow playable in Constructed?

On second thought, forget about Constructed and let’s concentrate on where the Inferno Titan really shines – Limited.  Drop this bomb on your opponent, and that about wraps up the game.  Not only do you get a Shivan Dragon-level beater, it removes those pesky blockers (or evasive attackers) every turn until it is dealt with, or you win.  Inferno Titan is the best thing a creature can be in MTG, a threat that must be answered.  There may be a question regarding why this card is any better than the Lorwyn elemental Hostility.  The answer is simple: IT is perfectly self-contained.

Like his brother the Sun Titan, IT is clearly part of a five-color Mythic cycle for M11. Gathering Magic, for our part, is very curious about what the other three Titans will have to offer, and what 3-related abilities they will have.