The vast majority of MTG cards printed into Standard stay in Standard. Some will see play in Commander too, especially in typal lists, but few cards achieve success in Magic’s eternal formats. Sometimes, however, a card or two defies this expectation and breaks out. The latest example of this occurrence is Dewdrop Cure, a new reanimation spell from Bloomburrow that’s now seeing play in multiple MTG formats.
Whether you’re playing Pioneer or Modern, you’ll likely cross paths with this unexpected powerhouse sooner rather than later.
Dewdrop Cure: A New Modern And Pioneer Staple?
Yes, you heard that right. Dewdrop Cure is seeing play in both Pioneer and Modern. That’s no mean feat for any card, but when you take a look at the way the current metas of each are constructed it makes a lot of sense.
Looking at Pioneer first, the card is largely seeing play in Amalia Combo decks. Both the Abzan and 4-Color variants. Since both of the deck’s core combo pieces, Amalia and Wildgrowth Walker cost two, Dewdrop Cure can bring them both back for just three mana. That’s a notable improvement over the rate on Return to the Ranks, which needs four mana. Five if you also want to rope in a lifegain creature to get the combo going immediately.
Of course, Dewdrop Cure doesn’t have Convoke and lets your opponent draw a card when getting all three creatures. That said, it’s a strong alternative to Return for the deck and one that will undoubtedly get a lot of testing.
Over in Modern, Dewdrop Cure has found itself a nice cozy spot in various Boros Energy builds. These decks run an incredibly low curve, and getting to recur an Ocelot Pride, Guide of Souls, and Amped Raptor all at once is a great way to win a game on the spot. This is definitely more of a Midrange pick than an Aggro one, so it’s unlikely that all Boros Energy variants will want Cure going forward. That said, it seems like a great call in specific metas, and as a way to generate grindy value while staying relatively low to the ground.
Stock In Standard
Perhaps it goes without saying, but cards good enough for eternal formats typically do alright in Standard, too. Dewdrop Cure has found a few homes in the format so far. A lot of which, unsurprisingly, are Aggro decks. Whether it’s standard Boros Aggro or the cuter, lesser-seen Boros Mice, turns out that getting three creatures for three mana is a pretty great deal.
The same logic applies to Convoke decks, specifically the Naya variant so far. Though I can’t imagine it’ll be long before the OG Boros Convoke starts running a copy or two as well. Combined with the likes of Resolute Reinforcements, Dewdrop Cure can easily provide you with all the bodies you need to Convoke out a Knight-Errant of Eos. That’s a serious power-play, particularly post-board wipe.
Outside of these reasonably established lists, Dewdrop Cure is also seeing play in some more offbeat creations. Azorius Soldiers, a deck that’s been brewing since The Brothers’ War, is trialing it at present, for example. The vast majority of the deck costs two or less, so again Cure is like an army in a box. The same is largely true for Selesnya Toxic. Cure is seeing four-of sideboard play in this low-tier meta player, presumably to help out against Control. In a long game, this can bring back multiple Venerated Rotpriests for an instant win alongside a combat trick.
Overall, Dewdrop Cure is an incredibly versatile card. It’s also very well-suited to the speedy state of modern Magic as a whole. We’re currently in a bit of an experimental phase with Bloomburrow, so it remains to be seen if people will stick with it.
Read More: Rabbits, Frogs, and Humans Unite to Rule Bloomburrow Standard
