We are just days away from the release of Jumpstart 2022, the sequel to the beginner-friendly "shuffle-up and play" set that Magic: The Gathering players fell in love with when the first Jumpstart was released during the pandemic. We’ve seen a few previews of Jumpstart 2022 already, including two theme packs and the confirmation that each 20-card booster will contain at least one "anime-inspired" card. We also knew that fan-favorite Rhystic Study would also be reprinted featuring all-new art, and today, Wizards of the Coast has revealed that art.
The new Rhystic Study has art from Tatiana Kirgetova and features Zimone Wola and Rootha Squallheart attempting to perform some sort of spell that might be getting slightly away from them. We haven't seen these two since they were introduced in the Strixhaven: School of Mages expansion last year.
The new art comes after Wizards of the Coast cut ties with Rhystic Study's original artist, Terese Nielsen, who fell down the alt-right rabbit hole and never came back. When Nielsen's history of following white nationalists, liking conspiracy theories, and sharing racist views on social media became too great to ignore, Wizards publicly distanced themselves from Nielsen and confirmed that none of her art would be reprinted following Zendikar Rising.
Rhystic Study is definitely one of the chase cards coming in Jumpstart 2022. Although the set is primarily designed for quick one-on-one duels with 40-card decks, Rhystic Study is a staple of almost every Blue Commander deck out there, easily gaining the caster free cards or ruining their opponent's tempo.
Jumpstart 2022 launches December 2 and we already know at least two of the new themes coming. The new snow-themed 20-card booster will feature Isu the Abominable, a brand-new card that will make snow lands a staple of decks once again. Meanwhile, the new speed-themed booster will bring back Kiki-Jiki, Mirror Breaker from the original Kamigawa expansion. There's nothing more fun than throwing big-bodied beasties turn after turn thanks to Kiki-Jiki, and combining these themes into a Jumpstart deck sounds like a grand old time.