Best Cards in Modern – Blue [2022]

The Top 5 Blue Magic Cards in Modern

Authors: Andrea Piemonti, Sebastian Rosenauer, Ricardo Silva, Sven Stolz, Zen Takahashi

Editor: Thomas Preyer

Jump to Part 2 – Places 3 to 1

Last year I was approached by Sebastian, one of our magazine writers, about the idea of making a collaborative series – where a couple of authors would rate and review the best cards in Modern.

A couple of weeks later and here we are. Looking at one of the game’s most powerful colors: Blue.

This is how it works

We asked our authors to send us their personal top 10 blue cards of the Modern format. No multicolor cards. We will do those another time. Then we created an aggregated list, based on their top 10, to come with a unified Top 5 list of cards. We sent them the top 5 and asked for their comment.

  • Do they think this is a good top 5?
  • Are these the worthiest cards?
  • Were there any snubs?
  • Is the number one spot deserved?
  • What impact do those cards have on the format?

These and many other questions will be answered in this article. One more note before we dive into the dark depths of Modern. We will start this off with two honorable mentions and the places five and four, and we will follow this up next week with the top 3. Along with the top spots, we will also share the initial top 10 lists of our authors.

We really hope you enjoy this, have fun reading, and don’t be shy and discuss this in the comments. We would love to hear from you.

Honorable Mention #1 – Jace The Mindsculptor

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Andrea Piemonti

The Mind Sculptor was my 10th most powerful card in Modern. Even if I think this 4-mana sorcery speed spell isn’t great, I can’t let it go, and I feel it should be at least mentioned here.

Jace is usually not great in Modern – is often too slow, too expensive and very fragile. Not only does it die to bolt if you brainstorm, but now it’s a target of unholy heat as well.

But, Jace is still the best way to switch from an even position to a game winning one, and it’s very difficult to win the game when your opponent has brainstormed a bunch of times.

Another good thing to say about Jace is, that it can play around hate really well. After I won a match playing UR Murktide versus UW Control, against an opposing Rest in Peace and Chalice of the Void on 1, just ticking up Jace a ton, I’m sold this card should be at least played in the sideboard of many decks.

Sven Stolz

One of the stronger planeswalkers in history of Magic, the Gathering, Jace still holds its grounds well in the format.

Jace is a viable sideboard card for a lot of blue midrange and tempo shells while being a main staple in control decks.

The fact that the board can become rather full in Modern, Jace can often be out raced before he even hits the board which is the main reason Jace doesn‘t see more play. Jace is on 8 in my personal rankings but I can also see it a little better than that when evaluating it as one of the go to sideboard options in blue mirorrs.

Zen Takahashi

I will be the first to admit that I was in the camp that believed unbanning Jace, the Mind Sculptor would be a mistake. I didn’t buy the argument of Lightning Bolt and Bloodbraid Elf keeping the card in check, as I played with Jace a lot in Standard and in Legacy, where both of those cards were legal yet the planeswalker ran rampant.

However, in retrospect, I turned out to be wrong. While the card sees play as a two or three-off in control decks, that’s about the extent to which it sees play. I think what makes the card fine for Modern is that the creatures are powerful enough to keep it in check, while it lacks Swords to Plowshares that Legacy has to let you protect Jace.

One application of Jace I’ve actually loved seeing in Modern is its presence in sideboards as a threat to bring in against control decks or other fair decks.

I’ve personally been playing two copies in my sideboard of Blue-Red Murktide and have been loving it, as your opponent generally brings in more removal spells to combat your creatures in post-board games, and a planeswalker like Jace is the perfect foil to that plan.

Honorable Mention #2 – Snapcaster Mage

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Andrea Piemonti

I think Snapcaster is good, providing a solid two for one and a decent body for its mana cost. But sadly nowadays, with UW playing Kaheera and UR playing Delve spells it is not really the right time to pack a playset of good ol’ Snaps.

It might be fine as a one of in some decks, like Grixis Control, but it’s another card that makes the deck vulnerable against graveyard hate.

Maybe with some changes in the format, or with Kaheera being unnecessary, it could shine again. This may be a good moment to pick those up again!

Sven Stolz

I remember a couple years back when Snapcaster Mage was by far the best blue card and main game plan for many decks. With the printings of more efficient cards like Ragavan, Nimble Pilferer, Dragon’s Rage Channeler and Murktide Regent, the blue human wizard lost quite a lof of power and relevance in the format.

While Tempo decks don’t really rely on Snapcaster anymore, control decks also had to make room for new MH2 cards in their shells which led to an overall decline of Snapcaster Mage.

I actually put Snapcaster Mage on 5 and think the card is a little underplayed especially in combination with newer cards like Counterspell, DRC, Unholy Heat and also Lurrus of the Dream-Den.

Zen Takahashi

Snapcaster Mage is a sweet card, and such an iconic Invitational card. Snapcaster Mage has been a roleplayer in Modern ever since it was first printed, and has been a crucial card in some of the most recognizable Modern decks throughout history, whether it be the RUG Vial deck Shota Yasooka took to the World Championships in 2012, or the Jeskai Control deck Shaun McLaren took down Pro Tour Born of the Gods with in 2014.

While Snapcaster Mage still sees some play in Modern, it’s clearly not the haymaker it used to be.

I simply think this is just due to creatures becoming much more powerful in recent times – it’s difficult to justify playing multiple copies of Snapcaster Mage when you could instead be playing Ragavan, Nimble Pilferer or Murktide Regent.

In many ways, it has faced the same fate as Dark Confidant and Tarmogoyf, as its position in the format has been pushed out from a format defining staple to a solid playable that you’ll see pop up here and there.


Fifth Place – Dress Down

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Andrea Piemonti

This flash enchantment didn’t really met the enthusiasm of the players when it was first spoiled. After some months of testing though, it quickly become a frequently played mainstay in the format, and I already have in a lot of maindecks/sideboard of my decks.

Being a flash threat is important because you can hold up mana, usually representing countermagic.

But not being a counter makes it better against some decks and in some situations, like against a Cavern of Souls/Allosaurus Shepherd deck. The fact that replaces itself at instant speed means you can cycle it when it’s not needed, for just two mana.

It can be used not only in a defensive way, clearing annoying ETBs or powerful abilities, but also in an offensive way, making Death’s Shadow 13/13 or Kroxa, Titan of Death’s Hunger a two mana 6/6. Doing it in your opponents end step makes it active in your turn, so you can still operate, even with a little mana available.

Sebastian Rosenauer

Our first card from Modern Horizons 2 that got into the Top 5. I have placed it at the fifth place myself, although in hindsight I think this might be slightly too high.

It is an interesting card with a unique effect, and it is actually very powerful right now, given the presence of the Elemental Incarnations or cards like Archon of Cruelty or Urza’s Saga Tokens.

In lists like Grixis Death’s Shadow, it can even assume creative offensive roles by buffing up Death’s Shadow or removing Kroxa’s sacrifice trigger.

In addition to taking away all the abilities of your opponent’s creature’s, it also replaces itself upon entering the battlefield, and it is this clause which makes it very attractive in the value-oriented Modern environment.

By rendering harmless the come into play effects of Grief or Stoneforge Mystic, Dress Down often feels like generating virtual card advantage.

I have, however, some reservations about it being among the five best blue modern cards, despite having ranked it so myself. After all, its best home is probably a blue control deck’s sideboard and while it may be among the strongest sideboard cards to date, it still has to face the competition of cards like Mystical Dispute and Hurkyl’s Recall, which are equally devastating depending on the matchup.

But maybe I am underestimating the implications of taking away every ability that creatures might have.

Ricardo Silva

Dress Down features in this list mostly due to the context of the Modern metagame, as the card by itself is not very impressive.

In Modern though, it interacts beneficially against Urza’s Saga and against every creature with ETB effects which includes the newly printed Elementals out of Modern Horizons 2.

It even has some cute interactions with Death’s Shadow and Lurrus, since you are able to loop the card by casting it every end step with Lurrus, and flashing Dress Down in after attacking with Death’s Shadow can give you lethal out of nowhere. Death’s Shadow is currently the only deck playing Dress Down in the starting 60, but with so many beneficial interactions in the format, some other decks have already started playing the card in the sideboard as well, and I expect the card to continue seeing play.

Sven Stolz

Dress Down in Modern has a more narrow function compared to the rest of the rankings and was harder to evaluate where it should be.

The main focus of Dress Down is to interact as a counterpart to Urza’s Saga and creatures with ETB effect so you will mainly see it as a dedicated sideboard slot.

The fact that it replaces itself and doesn’t put you down on resources makes it also playable in the main deck with creatures like Death’s Shadow or Kroxa, Titan of Death’s Hunger.

I think the current relevance of mentioned interactions makes Dress Down very important so it deserves to be in the top 5, with the possibilty of even climbing up or falling down the ladder once the meta changes.

Zen Takahashi

The first card on the top five list is the recently printed enchantment from Modern Horizons 2. While I personally wouldn’t say this is one of the top five blue cards in Modern, it has been a solid addition to Grixis Shadow as it can “combo” with Death’s Shadow to create a 13/13 creature for a turn irrespective of your life total, as well as being a solid addition to sideboards of many blue decks in the format.

The flexibility of Dress Down is what makes the card good – it can be cast at any point of the game, and at worst, it just cantrips.

You can also try to create synergies within your own deck, whether it be with Death’s Shadow as mentioned above, or my personal favourite in Legacy of casting it at your opponent’s end step and then cast an Uro, Titan of Nature’s Wrath – a three-mana 6/6 creature!

I also recently had a cool game in Legacy where my opponent had a Sanctum of Prelate on one and a Thalia, Guardian of Thraben in play, while I had a Dress Down and Swords to Plowshares in hand with five lands in play including a fetchland.

On my turn, I cracked the fetchland for a Mystic Sanctuary to put another Swords to Plowshares from my graveyard onto the top of my library, then cast the Dress Down to draw into it and Swords to Plowshares both of my opponent’s creatures.


Fourth Place – Archmage’s Charm

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Andrea Piemonti

In modern, one of the most important things to evaluate instants or sorceries is their versatility. You can think about Lightning bolt, that can be used as a removal or a burn spell, depending on the situation. The Charm does 3 things, and they’re all pretty good.

Being able to hold up interaction or draw 2 cards is a great concept. Being able to occasionally steal an Aether Vial for tempo, a Dragon’s Rage Channeler, a hammered Memnite or a Kaldra Compleat germ token is cool, and happens more often than one would think.

The prohibitive UUU cost makes it a tool only playable in two colored blue based decks, but its power will make it a forever staple for those. Of course, until power creep gives us something better.

Sebastian Rosenauer

Archmage’s Charm. This card just has it all. I am a little bit surprised that it comes in at only fourth place on our aggregate list, as for me this is the best blue card in Modern right now.

Since the release of Modern Horizons 1, the powerful instant spell has taken some time to gain traction and establish itself as the premier control card that it is now. For just three mana it draws two cards, counters any spell or lets you gain control of target nonland permanent with mana cost one or less.

While the two first modes speak for themselves and would already constitute a strong magic card, the last mode is more format dependent and as it stands, it is a very effective ability in the current Modern metagame.

It steals early drops such as Ragavan or Esper Sentinel, takes away a worrisome Relic of Progenitus or Colossus Hammer and even gains control of an opposing Urza’s Saga Token.

There are just many great options for the third mode of Archmage’s Charm in the fast and permanent-heavy Modern gameplay right now.

The choice of what the best cards in a format are is obviously always somewhat subjective, and it will come down to what a given player likes to play. For me, this card is just fun. It covers all the needs of the Modern control player, while being a really interesting card to play that leads to though decisions as to how to use it correctly.

But this ability to react to the situation as required by having multiple powerful modes is something that I always liked a lot, give me all the Charms and Commands!

I have therefore placed it at number one on my list and over a card like Counterspell because of its versatility and over Force of Negation because it does not 2:1 oneself.

Ricardo Silva

Archmage’s Charm‘s restrictive mana cost is the only thing which prevents it from being played in more decks, since the card is extremely versatile, and every mode is useful and regularly used in Modern.

Two of its modes are two for ones and the “steal” ability has multiple relevant targets in Modern, so I would recommend playing this card in most decks which are able to pay for its restrictive mana cost.

Sven Stolz

Archmage’s Charm has to be the swiss army knife in the format right now. With all it’s 3 different modes the card has always an impact on the game.

Especially since the printings of Ragavan, Nimble Pilferer and Dragon’s Rage Channeler, the steal a casting cost 1 nonland-permanent mode has become very important and overall buffed the playability of the card.

Triple blue is hard to cast but opens up a powerful tool once a shell can afford to play it. It takes spot 3 in my personal ranking.

Zen Takahashi

Archmage’s Charm is my absolute favourite counterspell in Modern. In fact, it is probably one of my favourite cards printed in the past few years.

I am generally a fan of Charm and Command cycles, as I think they allow for interesting gameplay, since you can change their function in the context of a given game as opposed to it being rigid in what it always does.

What I really like about Archmage’s Charm is that it mitigates the biggest problem with counter magic – the issue of holding one up only for your opponent to not cast a spell, and you’ve wasted a turn.

Now, you can instead draw two cards at the end step if your opponent doesn’t want to interact, and typically drawing cards is what blue decks with counter magic wants to be doing anyway.

What I also like is that this gameplay pattern is fascinating from the opposing player’s perspective too. They know that, unlike traditional counter magic, they’ll be able to recoup the cost of holding mana up by drawing two cards instead.

So then you have to think about whether you want to commit to the board to force them out of developing their hand, or whether you think the card you want to deploy is too important for you to jam right into counter magic.

The third ability of stealing permanents is also very applicable in a format with many cheap permanents – whether it be stealing a Ragavan, Nimble Pilferer or an Esper Sentinel carrying a Colossus Hammer.

Again, this poses interesting gameplay from both sides, as the player with the Charm has to think whether holding it to try to steal a one-mana permanent in the future is worth it, while the opposing player has to make decisions to play around it e.g. dash’ing or not dash’ing in a Ragavan, Nimble Pilferer.


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Third Place – Force of Negation

Andrea Piemonti

This powerful card is the first one you’ll find on my personal top ten list. Free spells, due mostly to the advent of Modern Horizons 2 elementals, are in a very high position at the moment, and trading two for one isn’t usually a big problem, if you’re taking advantage in the board.

Even if Force of Negation isn’t heavily played at the moment, I feel this card will be omnipresent in the future of Modern forever, because every time a spell based deck will be popular, you will have access to the perfect tool to fight them.

Force of Negation isn’t only played in control decks: it’s a staple for Living End and Rhinos, two “unfair” strategies that otherwise won’t be any good.

This card is the reason why the format is balanced: as I said before, combo decks like Creativity and Belcher play various disruption spells (for one mana Veil of Summer, for zero mana Pact of Negation and Teferi, Time Raveler) so Force of Negation is the best answer to back up another counter, due to its “unfair” cost.

Sebastian Rosenauer

I placed this card lower on my list than other authors, mainly because I think the current metagame is not defined by non-creature spells that absolutely need to be countered (on your opponent’s turn).

I could be wrong about this placement, and seeing that other, much more experienced players have FoN higher on their list made me think that I probably understated its merits.

Another reason why I do not value it that highly is maybe the fact that I do not own the card in paper and thus have little experience playing with it. Instead, I have placed Mystical Dispute very high on my list.

A choice that I have come to question after seeing the aggregate Top 5, in which it does not even come up. For me, the downside of losing a card seemed just very detrimental in the current value oriented metagame, but I might be very wrong with this evaluation.

Force of Negation is clearly an incredibly powerful magic card. Being able to counter opposing threats for no mana allows you to develop your gameplan without having to keep mana open every turn.

Just like Force of Will, this allows for an extremely flexible play pattern that can generate a lot of pressure while still having an ace up the sleeve. It is sometimes said that “free” counterspells are like the police of a format, keeping other decks in check and preventing absurd combo strategies from taking over. This might be the case with Force of Negation in Modern. Who knows, maybe Glimpse of Tomorrow or Reanimator decks would quickly define the metagame if it was not around.

Ricardo Silva

The free counterspell of Modern is not nearly as good as Force of Will, but a free Negate is still good enough to be regularly played in Modern since there are enough must-answer cards in the format.

Some decks like Temur Rhinos play Force of Negation in the maindeck, but most opt to play it in the Sideboard and bring it in when it shines.

There are only a handful of good combo decks left in the format after the Simian Spirit Guide ban, which is where a free Negate is usually at its strongest.

Depending on the context of the format and the resurgence of good combo decks in the future, I can see Force of Negation being played in more maindecks in the future.

Sven Stolz

Although I see Force of Negation as a general powerful card in Modern, I don’t think the card deserves to be that high up on the list.

Modern is unlike Legacy and Vintage not full of absurd combo decks which overall negates the necessity for playing Force of Negation.

Also, since the overall power level of Modern is dramatically lower compared to Legacy and Vintage, the 2 for 1 for countering a medium-power non creature spell is often not worth it.

Zen Takahashi

Similar to what I will talk about with the next card on the list, much of that applies for Force of Negation as well, though the three-mana spell is definitely more focused towards handling degenerate combo decks than the second place finisher is.

I am personally a big fan of the Forces-cycle from Modern Horizons, and no doubt Force of Negation is the best of the five.

While at this point it’s pretty clear how good Force of Negation is, one underappreciated aspect of the card is its casting cost. Compared to Force of Will, costing only three-mana makes it much easier to hard-cast.

In fact, I think with Force of Negation I hard-cast it about a third of the time, compared to Force of Will, which I hard-cast probably less than 10% of the time. This cheaper mana cost allows for interesting decision-making around whether you want to efficiently use your mana at the cost of another card, or be more card advantage conscious by holding up three mana instead.


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Second Place – Counterspell

Andrea Piemonti

This powerful instant, part of the game and namesake of blue permission spells, has finally arrived in the Modern format.

Personally, I don’t think this card should be in this list: even if this sort of permission is great versus some decks, I feel the most played ones usually don’t care, or trade positively with two mana counters.

Lurrus fuels a lot of decks full of cheap cards: I don’t really want to use counterspell on a Memnite, Thoughtseize or even Lightning Bolt.

According to what I wrote, at the moment Counterspell is being played only in blue-red Murktide, among the tier ones of the format. UR, due to Ragavan, can support a good counter even if it trades badly regarding mana and tempo. Control decks aren’t good anymore, and I wonder if Chalice of the Void is a “better Counterspell” than the original.

Recently I’ve played a ton of blue-based decks, and basic Counterspells in general aren’t very good I fear. Cards like Veil of Summer, Spell Pierce or Flusterstorm make your counterspells useless, and also Teferi, Time Raveler is still a popular card.

Sebastian Rosenauer

Another card that entered Modern with Modern Horizons 2 is the iconic Counterspell.

Before it’s release, people were debating whether it would replace Mana Leak in all lists, or whether the double-blue mana cost was simply too much of a liability.

Well, it turns out it did replace Mana Leak entirely, except maybe in four color strategies and decks which gains some special advantage by playing Remand or Drown in the Loch instead.

The card is a powerhouse. The ability of being able to stop anything your opponent is doing for just two mana cannot be overstated.

Counterspell is great early on and never a dead draw in the late game, unlike it’s “predecessor” Mana Leak.

The double-blue mana cost is well manageable with Modern’s luxurious manabases, especially if you play cards like Archmage’s Charm anyway. It is, however, not an easy card to play correctly, as everyone who has watched control master Guillaume Wafo-Tapa before, will know.

Deciding what and when to counter your opponent’s spell is a difficult decision that requires solid knowledge of the format as well as of your opponent’s deck and yours. In the hands of an experienced player though, a well-timed Counterspell can end the game on the spot.

I have this card on third place in my own list, as I believe it is just topped by Murktide Regent and another blue card that we will encounter later down the line.

Ricardo Silva

Since it’s inception in Modern, Counterspell has mostly made every other two mana counter obsolete and is seeing play in multiple top decks of the format.

Power level wise the card fits in just right in Modern, as there are a lot of threats which go under the card, and cards like Veil of Summer and Cavern of Souls give slower creature/combo decks enough counterplay against it. Due to the amount of play it is currently seeing, Counterspell is rightfully among the top 3 best blue card in Modern.

Sven Stolz

Counterspell is, except for Mental Misstep, the best interaction spell the format has seen.

Counterspell is an incredible potent card which functions as an all star premium answer on the stack and made blue as an early interaction color extremely viable.

Due to the nature of Modern being more board than stack oriented, it lost the first place only to […].

Zen Takahashi

One of the most iconic cards to have ever been printed in Magic, the whole category of cards like it are named after it.

While having your crucial spell be countered is always frustrating, I personally believe that the reprinting of Counterspell has been one of the best decisions Wizards has made for Modern.

Historically, the main problem in Modern has been the lack of universal answers to keep broken decks in check. While the format did have Thoughtseize, beyond that, it lacked cards like Force of Will or Wasteland, which have historically helped keep degenerate combo decks in check without having to play very narrow answers that only hit one or two decks.

This meant that best deck in Modern was almost always some sort of unfair deck, with a rotating cast of which was the best based on what hate-cards people were playing in the given week.

The printing of Counterspell, alongside other powerful cards like Force of Negation and Archmage’s Charm, have helped significantly in keeping these combo decks in check, while encouraging more fair gameplay.


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First Place – Murktide Regent

Andrea Piemonti

This card was originally in my top 10 list, but not so high. Murktide has proven to be one of the best threats in 2021/22 Modern, due to his size (often between 7/7 and 8/8), its cheap cost and its elusive flying ability.

All those qualities make it tough to deal with, because the format lacks flyers or efficient removal spell to fight this dragon.

Still, this card is not perfect:

  • It’s difficult to build a deck that can make Murktide shine entirely, apart from UR Murk: cheap spells, counterspells and removals are usually a mix only playable in Izzet decks.
  • Murktide is also a graveyard-dependant threat – this means that Relics of Progenitus, Rest in Peace and other graveyard hate, that are typically decent against blue-based decks, can stop this dragon from being a good threat – or to be castable at all.

Sebastian Rosenauer

Murktide Regent is the namesake card of a current top-tier Modern deck and single-handedly transformed the Izzet archetype into a powerful aggro-control competitor.

I placed the blue dragon second on my personal list because I think it is an incredibly strong threat in the current metagame that is able to dodge most common removal spells such as Lightning Bolt and Prismatic Ending.

In a deck packed with many cantrips and countermagic, the Regent comes down as quickly as turn three and is extremely difficult to interact with, making them the perfect build around in a format with such a deep card pool as Modern.

Let’s be clear. The Delve mechanic is busted.

While Murktide does not have the format-warping impact that Hogaak had, I still think it is reminiscent of the Arisen Necropolis as it is just incredibly efficient to let your cards in the graveyard pay for your spells.

The additional line of text on Murktide Regent just makes them unnecessarily big sometimes, as additional instants and sorceries that get exiled, give him more and more +1/+1 counters.

All in all, the dragon is just a very pushed card that exemplifies how Modern is played in 2022: Use your graveyard, kill or deny your opponent’s stuff and then put down a big beast to finish them off.

I am not surprised finding it at the top of our list, as it is the very best that Blue has to offer in terms of game winning threats. For me, this dragon is just slightly outclassed by Counterspell in our ranking.

Ricardo Silva

Murktide Regent is the best blue threat in modern and gives the color a way to close out games quickly, something it was lacking before.

Murktide is one of the reasons why Fatal Push is seeing less play than in the past, and a big reason for UR Murktide’s tier 1 status in the format.

Since the card is currently only being played in just one modern deck, I personally had it in the third spot behind the best blue reactive spells in the format, Counterspell and Force of Negation, but I can see the number one spot going to the best and most efficient threat the color has to offer.

Sven Stolz

Our favorite 8/8 flyer for 2 mana with even more growing potential is for sure the strongest blue card in Modern.

Unless you’re on Lurrus of the Dream-Den, there are not many reason to not play Murktide Regent in your blue shell.

It dominates the board, it can kill in just 2 swings and dodges 90% of the removal spells. It forces decks to have a good answer or plan against it, and reinvented the tempo archetype in 2021 entirely.

Zen Takahashi

The dragon from Modern Horizons 2 has made a significant impact since its printing in mid-2021.

While the card has not seen much play outside the aptly named Blue-Red Murktide deck, the archetype has been one of the best decks in Modern since Modern Horizons 2 and continues to be so, and it is all thanks to this card.

It is a big price to pay to give up on Lurrus of the Dream-Den, which is arguably the best card in Modern, yet this big flyer justifies that price all on its own.

In modern Magic, it’s rare for a creature to be playable for simply being “huge for its cost”. Gone are the days when Savannah Lions or Serra Angel were the best creatures – most good creatures nowadays have a wall of text and create interactive gameplay beyond just its baseline stats.

Think Ragavan, Nimble Pilferer or Edgewall Innkeeper. However, Murktide Regent is in many ways a homage to creatures from back in the day, as the dragon simply is just a very big creature.

It is just so efficiently costed (often a two mana 7/7 or 8/8 flyer with the potential to grow even bigger with multiple copies), that those stats are simply good enough on their own. While the card can be frustrating to play against, especially when you don’t have a removal spell for it, I am still a fan of the card as it breaks the mould of yet another Ragavan, Nimble Pilferer/Lurrus of the Dream-Den deck.


Personal Top 10 Blue Cards of Each Author

Andrea Piemonti

  1. Force of Negation
  2. Thassa’s Oracle
  3. Pact of Negation
  4. Dress Down
  5. Consider
  6. Tasha’s Hideous Laughter
  7. Murktide Regent
  8. Archmage’s Charm
  9. Subtlety
  10. Jace, the Mind Sculptor

Sebastian Rosenauer

  1. Archmage’s Charm
  2. Murktide Regent
  3. Counterspell
  4. Mystical Dispute
  5. Dress Down
  6. Force of Negation
  7. Aether Gust
  8. Snapcaster Mage
  9. Archive Trap
  10. Jace, The Mind Sculptor

Ricardo Silva

  1. Counterspell
  2. Force of Negation
  3. Murktide Regent
  4. Archmage’s Charm
  5. Thought Monitor
  6. Dress Down
  7. Brazen Borrower
  8. Spreading Seas
  9. Jace, the Mind Sculptor
  10. Memory Deluge

Sven Stolz

  1. Murktide Regent
  2. Counterspell
  3. Archmage’s Charm
  4. Consider
  5. Snapcaster Mage
  6. Dress Down
  7. Force of Negation
  8. Jace, the Mind Sculptor
  9. Mystical Dispute
  10. Shark Typhoon

Zen Takahashi

  1. Force of Negation
  2. Murktide Regent
  3. Thought Monitor
  4. Thoughtcast
  5. Counterspell
  6. Urza, Lord High Artificer
  7. Snapcaster Mage
  8. Pact of Negation
  9. Dress Down
  10. Spreading Seas

All Articles from the Series

  • Grist-the-Hunger-Tide-Art

Best Cards in Modern – Multicolor [2022]

October 6th, 2022|Constructed, Highlights|

We asked our seasoned team of authors a tough question: What do they think are the best ten multicolored cards in Magic the Gathering's Modern format. We then went a step further and created a Top 5. Learn what they think about the very best cards of one of the game's most popular formats.

  • Otawara, Soaring City Art

Best Cards in Modern – Lands [2022]

October 4th, 2022|Constructed, Highlights|

We asked our seasoned team of authors a tough question: What do they think are the best ten lands in Magic the Gathering's Modern format. We then went a step further and created a Top 5. Learn what they think about the very best cards of one of the game's most popular formats.

  • Pithing Needle Art

Best Cards in Modern – Artifacts [2022]

September 27th, 2022|Constructed, Highlights|

We asked our seasoned team of authors a tough question: What do they think are the best ten artifacts in Magic the Gathering's Modern format. We then went a step further and created a Top 5. Learn what they think about the very best cards of one of the game's most popular formats.

Best Cards in Modern – White [2022]

August 5th, 2022|Constructed, Highlights|

We asked our seasoned team of authors a tough question: What do they think are the best ten white cards in Magic the Gathering's Modern format. We then went a step further and created a Top 5. Learn what they think about the very best cards of one of the game's most popular formats.

Best Cards in Modern – Green [2022]

May 27th, 2022|Constructed, Highlights|

We asked our seasoned team of authors a tough question: What do they think are the best ten green cards in Magic the Gathering's Modern format. We then went a step further and created a Top 5. Learn what they think about the very best cards of one of the game's most popular formats.

Best Cards in Modern – Red [2022]

April 20th, 2022|Constructed|

We asked our seasoned team of authors a tough question: What do they think are the best ten red cards in Magic the Gathering's Modern format. We then went a step further and created a Top 5. Learn what they think about the very best cards of one of the game's most popular formats.

Best Cards in Modern – Black [2022]

February 28th, 2022|Constructed|

We asked our seasoned team of authors a tough question: What do they think are the best ten black cards in Magic the Gathering's Modern format. We then went a step further and created a top 5. Learn what they think about the very best cards of one of the game's most popular formats.

Best Cards in Modern – Blue [2022]

February 4th, 2022|Constructed|

We asked our seasoned team of authors a tough question: What do they think are the best ten blue cards in Magic the Gathering's Modern format. We then went a step further and created a top 5. Learn what they think about the very best cards of one of the game's most popular formats.