Ghostly Wings MTG Card


Card setsReleased in 2 setsSee all
Mana cost
Converted mana cost2
RarityCommon
TypeEnchantment — Aura
Abilities Enchant

Key Takeaways

  1. Boosts creatures with flying and allows reuse of ETB effects, adding depth to blue strategies.
  2. Demands card discard for activation, possibly hindering your play if hand resources are low.
  3. Though mana-intensive, its unique value could justify inclusion in specific blue-focused decks.

Text of card

Enchanted creature gets +1/+1 and has flying. Discard a card from your hand: Return enchanted creature to its owner's hand.


Card Pros

Card Advantage: Playing Ghostly Wings can provide indirect card advantage by enabling the return of your creature to your hand, thus saving it from removal or unfavorable blocks. This bounce effect can strategically re-use enter-the-battlefield triggers for more value.

Resource Acceleration: Although Ghostly Wings doesn’t produce mana or tokens, the card offers a kind of tempo acceleration. By discarding a card, you can untap the enchanted creature, potentially allowing for surprises during the combat phase or additional blockers when needed.

Instant Speed: The ability of Ghostly Wings to return the enchanted creature to its owner’s hand can be activated at instant speed. This flexibility allows you to adapt to the battlefield dynamically, whether you’re dodging a removal spell or evading a creature with lethal damage.


Card Cons

Discard Requirement: Ghostly Wings demands the player to discard a card to activate its key feature. In situations where players are pressed for cards in hand, this can prove to be a detrimental step, potentially causing a setback by losing a crucial card or disrupting the player’s strategic flow.

Specific Mana Cost: This enchantment requires both blue mana and generic mana to cast. This dual necessity can make it less accessible or desirable for decks that aren’t focused around blue mana or for players operating a multicolored deck not predominantly blue.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: The total cost to fully utilize Ghostly Wings, considering both its casting and activation requirements, can be seen as costly compared to other enchantments or spells in the game that confer similar benefits. Savvy players may opt for alternatives that provide efficient utility without the added burden of repeated costs.


Reasons to Include Ghostly Wings in Your Collection

Versatility: Ghostly Wings adds dynamic options for blue decks, as it not only serves as an aura that grants flying but also a discard outlet. This makes it a flexible card that can be a fit in various strategies, from boosting creatures’ abilities to enabling reanimation or madness tactics.

Combo Potential: This card’s ability to return the enchanted creature to its owner’s hand can be paired with enter-the-battlefield effects, or utilized to save your creatures from removal. It’s a great combo piece for decks looking to exploit such synergies for an advantage.

Meta-Relevance: In environments where air superiority and bounce effects are crucial, Ghostly Wings can significantly impact the game. It’s especially potent in formats where evasion is key, helping to maintain board presence and provide offensive or defensive options depending on the flow of the game.


How to Beat

Ghostly Wings presents a unique layer to strategies within Magic the Gathering, primarily used to grant creatures flying and then returned to a player’s hand through its discard mechanic. Overcoming this card requires strategic planning and timing. It’s useful to note that while the card provides evasion in the form of flying, one of its weaknesses lies in the necessity for a discard to activate this feature.

Removal spells that don’t target, such as board wipes, can circumvent the protective bubble that Ghostly Wings seems to offer. This is where cards like Wrath of God or Supreme Verdict shine, as they clear the board irrespective of creatures’ abilities or enhancements. Other players might rely on cards with the reach ability or those that can block flying creatures as a form of counterplay, ensuring that the battlefield remains controlled.

Beyond specific card choices, the strategic aspect involves patience and thoughtfully determining when your opponent is most vulnerable, perhaps waiting for them to invest in equipping Ghostly Wings and subsequently exploiting the timing to disrupt their plans. In essence, defeating Ghostly Wings entails a mix of proper card selection and psychological warfare to gain an upper hand.


Cards like Ghostly Wings

Ghostly Wings is an intriguing enchantment in Magic: The Gathering, bringing both utility and flexibility to the table. It resembles cards like Unsummon or Vapor Snag in its ability to return creatures to the owner’s hand. However, Ghostly Wings has a distinguishing feature: it attaches to a creature and requires discarding a card to activate the returning effect. Unsummon and Vapor Snag, conversely, are direct and mana-efficient, though they don’t offer the ongoing potential for reuse that Ghostly Wings does.

Comparably, Flight of Fancy presents another twist in the enchant creature space. While also providing an aerial edge with flying, Flight of Fancy offers immediate card draw when it enters the battlefield. Contrary to these traits, Ghostly Wings enables ongoing strategic flexibility, allowing players to dodge removal or reuse enter-the-battlefield triggers at the cost of card advantage.

For players evaluating their deck’s needs, Ghostly Wings stands out with its recurring use case and the aerial advantage it confers to a creature. Although it may not be as straightforward as single-use spells for creature bounce, its enchantment nature allows for unique strategic depth in game play.

Unsummon - MTG Card versions
Vapor Snag - MTG Card versions
Flight of Fancy - MTG Card versions
Unsummon - Limited Edition Alpha (LEA)
Vapor Snag - New Phyrexia (NPH)
Flight of Fancy - Salvat 2005 (PSAL)

Cards similar to Ghostly Wings by color, type and mana cost

Copy Artifact - MTG Card versions
Invisibility - MTG Card versions
Power Leak - MTG Card versions
Phantasmal Terrain - MTG Card versions
Creature Bond - MTG Card versions
Stasis - MTG Card versions
Lifetap - MTG Card versions
Power Artifact - MTG Card versions
Psychic Venom - MTG Card versions
Venarian Gold - MTG Card versions
Soar - MTG Card versions
Flooded Shoreline - MTG Card versions
Dance of Many - MTG Card versions
Teferi's Veil - MTG Card versions
Legacy's Allure - MTG Card versions
Chill - MTG Card versions
Buoyancy - MTG Card versions
Mana Maze - MTG Card versions
Psionic Gift - MTG Card versions
Immobilizing Ink - MTG Card versions
Copy Artifact - 30th Anniversary Edition (30A)
Invisibility - 30th Anniversary Edition (30A)
Power Leak - Summer Magic / Edgar (SUM)
Phantasmal Terrain - Invasion (INV)
Creature Bond - Fourth Edition (4ED)
Stasis - 30th Anniversary Edition (30A)
Lifetap - Intl. Collectors' Edition (CEI)
Power Artifact - Antiquities (ATQ)
Psychic Venom - Fourth Edition Foreign Black Border (4BB)
Venarian Gold - Legends (LEG)
Soar - Mirage (MIR)
Flooded Shoreline - Visions (VIS)
Dance of Many - Masters Edition III (ME3)
Teferi's Veil - Weatherlight (WTH)
Legacy's Allure - Tempest (TMP)
Chill - Tempest (TMP)
Buoyancy - Mercadian Masques (MMQ)
Mana Maze - World Championship Decks 2001 (WC01)
Psionic Gift - Odyssey (ODY)
Immobilizing Ink - Odyssey (ODY)

Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Ghostly Wings MTG card by a specific set like Torment and Shadows over Innistrad, there are several reliable options to consider. One of the primary sources is your local game store, where you can often find booster packs, individual cards, and preconstructed decks from current and some past sets. They often offer the added benefit of a community where you can trade with other players.

For a broader inventory, particularly of older sets, online marketplaces like TCGPlayer, Card Kingdom and Card Market offer extensive selections and allow you to search for cards from specific sets. Larger e-commerce platforms like eBay and Amazon also have listings from various sellers, which can be a good place to look for sealed product and rare finds.

Additionally, Magic’s official site often has a store locator and retailer lists for finding Wizards of the Coast licensed products. Remember to check for authenticity and the condition of the cards when purchasing, especially from individual sellers on larger marketplaces.

Below is a list of some store websites where you can buy the Ghostly Wings and other MTG cards:

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Printings

The Ghostly Wings Magic the Gathering card was released in 2 different sets between 2002-02-04 and 2016-04-08. Illustrated by 2 different artists.

#ReleaseNameCodeSymbolNumberFrameLayoutBorderArtist
12002-02-04TormentTOR 381997normalblackDavid Martin
22016-04-08Shadows over InnistradSOI 662015normalblackJosu Hernaiz

Legalities

Magic the Gathering formats where Ghostly Wings has restrictions

FormatLegality
CommanderLegal
LegacyLegal
PaupercommanderLegal
ModernLegal
OathbreakerLegal
PauperLegal
PremodernLegal
VintageLegal
DuelLegal
PredhLegal
PioneerLegal
PennyLegal

Rules and information

The reference guide for Magic: The Gathering Ghostly Wings card rulings provides official rulings, any errata issued, as well as a record of all the functional modifications that have occurred.

DateText
2016-04-08 After the last ability of Ghostly Wings resolves, it will be an Aura on the battlefield that isn’t attached to a creature and will immediately be put into its owner’s graveyard.
2016-04-08 If Ghostly Wings leaves the battlefield before its activated ability resolves, the creature that was enchanted immediately before Ghostly Wings left is the one that will be returned to its owner’s hand, if it’s still on the battlefield.
2016-04-08 You can activate the last ability multiple times to discard multiple cards. Only the first ability to resolve will have any effect.
2016-04-08 You control Ghostly Wings even while it enchants an opponent’s creature. Only you can activate the last ability of Ghostly Wings.

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