Mono Blue Tempo is Still a Good Deck Choice in the Current ONE Standard

Mono Blue Tempo is a popular deck archetype in Magic: The Gathering Phyrexia: All will be One Standard format. It is a tempo-based deck that aims to disrupt the opponent’s game plan while gradually building a board presence. It is also popular based on the card prices as the deck is mostly composed of basic Islands and Common cards.

Here is a sample decklist for Mono Blue Tempo. This list was taken from Champions Cup Final Cycle 2 @ BIG MAGIC and had finished in the Top 4 of the tournament.

Maindeck
22 LANDS
22 Island
 
9 CREATURES
4 Delver of Secrets
4 Haughty Djinn
1 Tolarian Terror
 
29 INSTANTS and SORC.
1 Blue Sun’s Twilight
4 Consider
4 Fading Hope
4 Flow of Knowledge
3 Impulse
3 Make Disappear
2 March of Swirling Mist
3 Negate
2 Scatter Ray
3 Thirst for Discovery
 
Sideboard
1 Blue Sun’s Twilight
1 Consuming Tide
1 Essence Scatter
2 Invoke the Winds
1 Pithing Needle
1 Shore Up
2 Spell Pierce
1 Tolarian Terror
1 Unlicensed Hearse
4 Witness Protection

The core of the deck is the cheap and evasive creatures, which can deal significant damage quickly if left unchecked. Delver of Secrets is a great early drop and clock and can be easily protected by your “hexproof” spells and counterspells. Haughty Djinn is another good follow-up for a three-drop, which can grow in power as the game progresses with your Instant and sorcery spells added to your graveyard.

The deck also runs a suite of counterspells in the form of Make Disappear, Essence Scatter, and Negate, which can protect your creatures from removal spells and disrupt your opponent’s game plan. Fading Hope is another great tempo spell that can return an opponent’s creature to their hand, slowing down their board development and getting you a free Scry to smoothen your draws.

Finally, the deck includes a playset of Flow of Knowledge, which is an excellent card draw spell that basically replenishes your hand in the late game with each card drawn equal to as many Islands on your board.

Mono Blue Tempo is a fun and challenging deck to play, requiring careful timing and planning to outmaneuver your opponent.