Kor Aeronaut is one of those cards players keep asking about. Here is, in plain words, what its official text says, the rulings published by Wizards of the Coast, and the combos players actually run.
Official card text
Kicker(You may pay an additional
Complete guide
Kor Aeronaut is a versatile white creature that provides early-game air pressure while offering utility in later turns. By utilizing the Kicker mechanic, this Kor Soldier can grant wings to your ground-based forces, ensuring your most important threats bypass enemy blockers.
The Kicker Mechanic
Kor Aeronaut features an optional additional cost known as Kicker. When you cast this spell, you can choose to pay the standard mana cost of {W}{W} or the increased total of {3}{W}{W}. If you pay the extra {1}{W}, the spell is considered 'kicked,' which unlocks a powerful enter-the-battlefield triggered ability. Note that the mana value of the card remains 2 regardless of whether you paid the kicker cost.
Step-by-Step Resolution
When you cast Kor Aeronaut, you declare whether you are kicking it and pay the appropriate costs. Once it resolves and enters the battlefield, the game checks if the kicker cost was paid. If it was, the triggered ability goes on the stack and you must choose a target creature. Once that ability resolves, the chosen creature gains flying until the end of the current turn. If the creature was not kicked, it simply enters as a 2/2 flyer with no additional effect.
Common Pitfalls
A common mistake involves putting Kor Aeronaut directly onto the battlefield using effects like 'blink' or 'cheat into play' abilities. Kicker can only be paid when the spell is being cast; if the creature enters the battlefield without being cast from your hand or another zone, you cannot pay the kicker cost and the bonus ability will not trigger. Additionally, if a card enters the battlefield as a copy of a Kor Aeronaut that was already on the board, the copy is not considered kicked.
Strategic Timing
You should play Kor Aeronaut early without the kicker if you need to establish a board presence or block an opponent's small flyers. Save the kicker for turns where you have a high-power creature on the ground that is currently being blocked. By granting that creature flying, you can potentially end the game or force your opponent into unfavorable trades.
Interaction examples
Esper SentinelIf you have Esper Sentinel on the battlefield and cast Kor Aeronaut by paying {3}{W}{W}, the Kicker ability triggers upon entry. You target Esper Sentinel with the ability. Even though Esper Sentinel is an artifact creature, it gains flying until end of turn, allowing it to attack safely over ground blockers while its own tax ability remains active.
Ornithopter of ParadiseIf you cast a kicked Kor Aeronaut and the only other creature you control is Ornithopter of Paradise, you may target the Thopter. However, since Ornithopter of Paradise already has flying, the effect is redundant. This serves as a reminder that the ability can target any creature, even those that already possess the keyword.
Guide written with AI from the official text and rulings. Official English text prevails.
How it works : Kor Aeronaut
Original English text — Wizards of the Coast / Scryfall
- #1· Wizards of the Coast
If a spell's kicker cost was paid, the spell is "kicked."
No other card is named in this ruling.
- #2· Wizards of the Coast
The kicker ability doesn't let you pay a kicker cost more than once.
No other card is named in this ruling.
- #3· Wizards of the Coast
If you put a permanent with a kicker ability onto the battlefield without casting it, you can't kick it.
No other card is named in this ruling.
- #4· Wizards of the Coast
If you copy a kicked spell on the stack, the copy is also kicked. If the copied spell is a permanent spell, the token the copy of that spell becomes when it enters is also kicked.
No other card is named in this ruling.
- #5· Wizards of the Coast
If a card or token enters as a copy of a permanent, the new permanent isn't kicked, even if the original was.
No other card is named in this ruling.
- #6· Wizards of the Coast
To determine a spell's total cost, start with the mana cost (or an alternative cost if another card's effect allows you to pay one instead), add any cost increases (such as kicker), then apply any cost reductions. The spell's mana value remains unchanged, no matter what the total cost to cast it was.
No other card is named in this ruling.
Legal formats
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