Brainstorm

Much like yesterday's card was an attempt to make a fairer version of Strip Mine, Brainstorm started out as a "fixed" Ancestral Recall. Which also ended up being restricted in Vintage. They finally seem to have learned their lesson and let Ponder (also restricted in Vintage) rotate from Standard, though a lot of people will still have nightmares whenever they see anything with just one blue mana symbol in the top right corner.

Although there's an idea that Brainstorm is only really good if you have some way of shuffling your deck at will so that it doesn't clog your hand, I have a slightly different view: there's a certain advantage to be gained from knowing exactly what your next two turns will be. If you think of it less as a pure card-drawing spell and more as a souped-up version of the scry keyword, you'll get good things done.

Constructed: 4/5
Casual: 3/5
Limited: 3/5
Multiplayer: 4/5

Today's card of the day is Brainstorm which is a one mana Blue instant that has you draw three cards then put two cards from your hand on top of your deck. This is one of the top Blue cards printed in the years following the infamous power nine and is a very frequent sight in decks able to use it. The effect allowing you to gain the most useful of three cards, or exchange three for the two least useful in hand, for just a single mana is excellent in nearly any scenario. This can be supported by draws card triggers and anything that shuffles the deck, plus it even works as a defensive response to hand destruction which is quite situational. Overall a card that can be placed in just about any deck with a reliable supply of Blue mana and is even stronger with a little support.

In a Limited format this is an incredibly useful tool for improving your options, particularly with the smaller deck size making the percentage of the deck involved higher. An automatic inclusion when running Blue in Sealed and should be an early pick in Booster after more direct bombs.

Constructed: 5.0
Casual: 5.0
Limited: 5.0
Multiplayer: 5.0

Brainstorm

At it's most basic level, Brainstorm only gains you one card for one mana, so what's so special about it? For one, you get to look at three new cards. Then, you choose two cards from your hand that you won't be needing this turn, and put them back on the top of your library. That's a decent effect at an instant speed.

Where it gets really good is when you combo it with other things. I'm only going to scratch the surface, but here are a few:

- Any of the miracle cards. You can put them on top of your library at the end of the opponent's turn and miracle them on your draw step.

- Your opponent plays Thoughtsieze (or any other discard where they get to choose the card you discard). In response, you Brainstorm to hide your best two cards on top of your library so they won't be lost.

- After playing Brainstorm, put two useless cards on top of your library and use a shuffle effect to mix them back in and likely get a better draw.

I'm sure my fellow reviewers will give examples of the many other ways to use this card to its full potential, but suffice it to say that it's worth playing in almost any blue deck where it's legal.

Constructed: 4.5
Casual: 4.5
Limited: 4.5
Multiplayer: 4.5