Core Set 2021 (M21) is about to launch for Magic players around the globe, and with each new card comes new strategies and play styles. Blue in M21 is stacked with card draw and evasion, along with more than a few tricks of the trade to dish out along the way.
Let’s take a peek at the set’s strongest Blue commons and uncommons for Limited players.
Capture Sphere
Delicious removal never gets old. Capture Sphere is a frequent reprint and for good reason: It’s iconic Blue removal that is well-suited in most Limited formats. It’s also a great way to stop your opponent’s best creature in its tracks, so pick away!
Rain of Revelation
Sift just got a major upgrade. Card draw is always better at instant speed—especially for Blue decks that want to hold up counterspells. Just wait until your opponent is done with their turn to fire this spell off and refill your hand.
Mistral Singer
Mistral Singer is going to see a lot of play. It slots directly into both the UW Flyers deck and the UR Prowess deck but can also hold its own alone. In multiples this creature can quickly get out of control, especially with spells that can trigger Prowess a couple times a turn.
Enthralling Hold
Cards that let you steal an opponent’s creatures are typically either rare or extremely limited, and this is neither. Sure, you gotta get it tapped somehow, but this is an amazing way to run away with the game. Enthralling Hold may be the best non-rare Blue card in the whole set. Just make sure you don’t die the turn after you cast it.
Rousing Read
Rousing Read is an interesting combination of Divination and Arcane Flight. For the same cost as Divination, you get a free Arcane Flight but have to discard a card. Discarding after drawing is often not much of a downside (often you’ll draw a land), but this gets even better when you consider UB’s Reanimator theme. Just throw your best creature into the graveyard and bring it back to the battlefield later.
Shipwreck Dowser
There’s little not to like on Shipwreck Dowser. It can easily become a bigger creature with Prowess, and it sets itself up for just that by bringing back a spell from the graveyard. This will be a solid Blue play for any deck and a likely top pick if you have a powerful spell to pair with it like Rain of Revelation.
Teferi’s Tutelage
This uncommon is not immediately powerful but serves as a decent enough alternate win condition that it doesn’t need to be. Blue has a truckload of card draw in M21 so decking your opponent with Tutelage is definitely a possibility. Just make sure to play so defense on the road to victory.
Tide Skimmer
A flyer that draws cards when you have more flyers! This card is nice and a decent body for the format. Don’t forget that as an extra bonus, Tide Skimmer itself doesn’t attack to get the draw trigger, so set this up on turns two and three to get a major payoff turn four.
Tolarian Kraken
Tolarian Kraken may not be the biggest six-drop in the format, but it doesn’t need to be. Blue decks will be drawing tons of cards, and paying a single mana to tap down your opponent’s best creature is a sure way to clear the path for victory.
