Welcome all to the Getting Ready for Throne of Eldraine series. Today I’ll be continuing a 7-part series on what current Standard cards from the four non-rotating sets will see more or less play. These sets include Guild of Ravnica, Ravnica Allegiance, War of the Spark, and Core Set 2020.
If you missed my talk on post-rotation White cards you can find that right here.
I’ll be dividing some key cards from each color into three categories:
- Moving on Up
- Staying Level
- On the Decline
Today I’m going to be talking about Blue cards. Let’s see how they stack up once Throne of Eldraine comes into Standard in October.
On the Decline
Benthic Biomancer – With so many Merfolk being rotated out of Standard, it will be hard for this Merfolk to find a place in the new Standard format.
Cerulean Drake – With most of Mono Red being rotated out, there probably won’t be a strong Mono-Red deck for a couple of sets. You are probably safe to leave these out of your sideboard.
Mass Manipulation – With the loss of Llanowar Elves and Nexus of Fate there could be a downtick in the number of Simic Ramp decks in the format. This put Mass Manipulation without a home.
Pteramander- With the loss of a Mono-Blue tempo deck and Izzet Drakes needing some help because of some important spells from the deck being rotated out, this 1-drop could see a decline in play time.
Staying Level
Brineborn Cutthroat – All of the major players from the Simic Flash deck aren’t rotating out, so this could continue to see play in that deck or perhaps even some Control decks as a finisher as well.
Chemister’s Insight – It’s still a strong card advantage spell when you have the right deck built for it. I think this draw spell will be in and out of Standard.
Fblthp, the Lost – This cantrip creature has seen some play in some combo decks. Even with Dominaria rotating out, and the historic mechanic leaving Standard, it might seem bad. But I think it should still be able to find its home in a few decks.
Narset, Parter of Veils – I think that this planeswalker is still going to find a place in a lot of shutdown decks in the new format. There will always be cards that allow you to draw cards and this will make sure that doesn’t happen.
Sinister Sabotage- Still one of the best mono-coloured counterspells in the format. It's cancel with an upside! Therefore, thanks to its nice extra ability, I'm sure it will still come in handy post rotation.
Moving on Up
Agent of Treachery – With less Aggro decks in the format, I see ramp and control decks taking over the Standard format. This is one of the strongest cards to play in the late game. The ability to steal any permanent you want forever is incredibly powerful.
Cavalier of Gales – This is a strong 5/5 Flying creature for only 5 mana that provides card advantage and is very hard to permanently get off the battlefield. I expect to see more play in the new Standard format.
Dream Eater – This is another strong flying creature that is just waiting to find its place in the right deck. It’s a spell that just provides too much value to be overlooked.
Finale of Revelation – It just might be the right time to have this in a control deck. Being able to play it as an instant with Teferi, Time Reveler allows you to refill your hand and gain control of the game.
God-Eternal Kefnet – This amazing 4/5 Flying creature has seen some play in some Dimir decks, but I believe that it can start to see play in more decks in the format. Watch out for this hard to deal with threat.
Jace, Wielder of Mysteries – This could be the replacement in the format for the bigger Teferi, Hero of Dominaria. It allows you to get consistent card advantage and allows you to use your graveyard as a resource as well.
Precognitive Precognition – I’ve always been a fan of this card, and with what could be a slower format, this 5-mana draw spell will allow you to have better card selection and a great card advantage.
What Blue card do you think will see some increased play in Standard. Thanks again for reading the Getting Ready for Throne of Eldraine series. Join me next time as I investigate which Black cards will start to see some play!
