Understanding Izzet Prowess in Standard: Card choices, Strategy, Tips and Tricks

Izzet Prowess is a premiere strategy in Standard now post Strixhaven, so it's imperative that you know what it does, whether to play it yourself or contend against it.

We shall take a look at individual cards to see what their purpose is and how it affects the strategy at large. At the end, you'll find a tips-and-tricks section, which is a great jump start if you haven't played with the deck yet!

Let us stat off with a sample decklist.

The whole deck revolves around casting a flurry of spells over the course of the game. Cards in this deck benefit from various aspects of it - from spells being on the stack, how many are in the graveyard, or types of them there. However, keep in mind that it's a spell-slinging strategy through and through.

Threats

First, we will address the threats, so we know how we're killing the opponent.

Our first threat is Eddymurk Crab. This creature does not care about spells on the stack, so it's a bit anti-thetical to the prowess vibe. However, it loves when the spells have been cast already, as it looks at the number of them in the graveyard. If you can get to 5 instants and/or sorceries, it will cost as little as two blue mana. What do you get once you jump through the graveyard-filling hoops? You get a 5/5 flash threat that is a way to interact with the opposing board. Tapping down two creatures can defensive, when you don't want to get hit for a ton of damage, or offensive to tap opposing blockers and smash in. Its sheer stats also allow it to survive a bulk of burn spells in the format and outmuscle other creatures in combat.

Stormchaser's Talent is one blue mana to make a Prowess Otter. While it might not sound exciting, it actually generates our most explosive draws. If you consider that most of the time you want to play spells anyways, this 1/1 quickly becomes a 3/3 or a 4/4. Crucially, playing another Talent itself triggers prowess. It's also key to mention that it works very synergistically with Boomerang Basics - you bounce Talent back, draw a card, replay Talent. You are up on cards, get another Otter, and trigger Prowess a couple of times while doing it. It'd be solid already, but there are two other Levels which do come up. Level 2 is an insane mid-late game angle where you can pick up any spell - removal, counterspell, or...Boomerang Basics! You pick it up, use on Talent, replay. If you have a lot of mana, you can keep doing it, looping Talents and Boomerangs, ensuring an insane end game situation. Last but not least, the last level is your way to pump out Otters with every spell. While a certainly powerful effect, you always have to ask yoruself if it's better to sink 6 mana into it compared to alternative plays. That said, this one-drop Class does so much it's unbelievable.

Slickshot Show-Off hits fast and hard. Thanks to its evasion, it flies over opposing blockers. With just a couple of spells, it can attack for 5,7,9 damage, easily! Admittedly, the buff only affects its power, so you best not let the opponent block! The plot mechanic allows you to insulate it from removal, for instance on turn two, and unplot it when you feel confident you want to go for it. It's a great card to have access to as the opponent has to frequently ask themselves whether they won't just lose to it if they tap out.

And this rounds up our threat suit.

Card Draw

Now, let's look at the spells we cast to fuel our threats.

Let's start with the already mentioned Boomerang Basics. Its main use is to bounce back and recast Talent, which is particularly backbreaking in the early game. You can imagine a curve of:

• Turn 1 - Talent
• Turn 2 - Basics the Talent, replay it
• Turn 3 - play 3 spells, attack

And if any of those turn three spells are more copies of Boomerang or Talent, opponent is in real trouble.

Boomerang does have other uses. You can bounce any other permanent to your hand as well, for instance Crab to re-use it. You can also bounce an opposing permanent, albeit eschewing the 'draw a card' part. Sometimes though, you are absolutely flush with cards and you'd much rather use it as interaction, regardless of how it affects card economy. Overall, it's a highly synergistic and versatile that's both helping our proactive plan and giving interative options.

Opt and Sleight of Hand are our cantrips. They provide card selection and replace themselves - which is exactly what you want in a spell-slinging deck to keep chaining spells; your spell draws you another spell which draws you another spell. Combined with the fact that they are as cheap as it gets, you get to have very spell-heavy turns churning through your deck.

This new Strixhaven addition brought a nice power level spike to the Izzet colours in Standard. Baseline, it's a sorcery speed Anticipate - look at 3, take 1. However, if your graveyard has an Instant and a Sorcery (like conveniently Opt and Sleight), you get to take 2 out of the 3. Two mana to draw two cards sounds very busted - and indeed it is. In this otherwise super lean deck, paying two mana isn't particularly good, especially if you draw another Flow State with the first one. While excellent for card economy, you might not have the throughput to actually unload them all - that's why some lists play 2-3 Flow States. Still, it's yet another very powerful spell in our repertoire and a super clean source of card advantage where you may have found Stock Up previously.

Interaction

We're also a highly interactive deck! This allows us to stop the opponent, but also protect our own plan.

We play a suite of removal and counterspells that's further pronounced with our sideboard. We can morph into a deck that basically plays like a control deck.

Burst Lightning is a way to pick off smaller creatures with the added option to go face in those aggressive Slickshot Otter games.

Prismari Charm, new Strixhaven card, is multi-purpose. It can act as another card selection effect, a 2-for-1 removal against smaller creatures (like opposing two Otters), or just a straight up bounce of anything.

Get Out and Spell Pierce are our counters which complement each other in what they catch. While Get Out is more costly, it has the added benefit of that second mode which can reset Talents, buyback Crab, or save your Slickshot from removal.

Tips and Tricks

Now, let's take a look at a couple key interactions to know before you play your first game!

• Be mindful of land sequencing. You don't want to play Riverpyre Verge with turn one Talent. Play out your Spirebluff Canals first.
• Even if Spell Pierce doesn't counter a spell, because the opponent has two mana, you can play it to tap the opponent out.
• You can counter your own spells just to put more spells on the stack and trigger prowess more.
• Gaining a level on your Class is a normal activated ability. It uses the stack and can be responded to.
• The opponent can respond to Flow State on the stack and exile your instant/sorcery to disrupt the second effect of the card.
• Once you put Eddymurk Crab on the stack, if the opponent exiles your graveyard, you won't have to pay more, as you've already announced the Crab to be cast.
• The opponent can respond to Prowess triggers, but so can you. You can try to grow your Otters with sorcery speed spells and if the opponent wants to deal them damage, you can grow them further in response with instants.

Conclusion

This is Izzet Prowess! Now, you're ready to jump into the ladder on Arena and grind Mythic!