At the inception of Modern, Mono-Blue Faeries was a thing. That deck was a real force in the early metagame, leaning heavily on Spellstutter Sprite and Vedalken Shackles to crush decks like Splinter Twin and Storm. The deck evolved to splash White for Restoration Angel to rebuy Spellstutter Sprites, and when Bitterblossom was unbanned, many people expected Faeries to make a triumphant comeback.

Unfortunately, nothing ever really materialized. Abrupt Decay is a brutal card for Faeries to fight against, after all. But perhaps the unbanning of Ancestral Vision is what it takes for the deck to make its big comeback; dazai certainly seems to think so. Let’s take a look at this new take on the Faeries archetype:

Blue-Black Faeries ? Modern | dazai, 5-0 Modern League

• Creatures (12)
• 4 Mistbind Clique
• 4 Spellstutter Sprite
• 4 Vendilion Clique

• Planeswalkers (4)
• 4 Liliana of the Veil

• Spells (20)
• 2 Spell Snare
• 3 Cryptic Command
• 3 Disfigure
• 4 Ancestral Vision
• 4 Bitterblossom
• 4 Mana Leak

• Lands (24)
• 3 Island
• 1 Swamp
• 1 River of Tears
• 1 Watery Grave
• 2 Creeping Tar Pit
• 4 Darkslick Shores
• 4 Mutavault
• 4 Polluted Delta
• 4 Secluded Glen

• Sideboard (15)
• 1 Ashiok, Nightmare Weaver
• 1 Disfigure
• 2 Ratchet Bomb
• 2 Smother
• 3 Flaying Tendrils
• 3 Leyline of the Void
• 3 Thoughtseize

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The core of this deck doesn’t change, but the supporting cast is always in rotation. Here we see the full set of Vendilion Cliques and Mistbind Cliques, as well as zero copies of Scion of Oona. That means that dazai is conceding that his creatures are going to get hit by Lightning Bolt, Path to Exiles, and Abrupt Decay. Instead of fighting to maintain a board presence, dazai has taken a more controlling role, relying on Ancestral Vision and creature-lands to help close the game out. Notice that there aren’t even any copies of Snapcaster Mage in this deck.

Looking at the spells, we see three copies of Cryptic Command and zero copies of Thoughtseize and Inquisition of Kozilek. This is at least consistent with the idea of not playing Snapcaster Mage, since you’re not trying to tear your opponent’s hand apart. This is a deck that knows that it wants to suspend an Ancestral Vision on turn one and then ride that advantage by hitting land drops and casting flash threats, not trading discard spells and value creatures.

Another interesting choice is the inclusion of the full three copies of Liliana of the Veil. This is a sorcery speed threat, which seems incongruent with the rest of the Faeries strategy. The difference is that this is also an Ancestral Vision control deck. Liliana of the Veil allows you to consistently exchange resources with your opponent, which becomes favorable when your Ancestral Vision resolves. It’s also incredible to curve Bitterblossom into Liliana of the veil, since you can apply consistent pressure to both your opponent’s life total and their resources.

This may not look exactly like the Faeries we’ve known before, but the deck has certainly gained a lot of new and exciting tools in recent months. The best part is that this style of deck can be tweaked depending on what the anticipated metagame looks like. Combo heavy fields are going to demand discard spells and Snapcaster Mages. Creature heavy fields may warrant Vedalken Shackles and Damnation. If Jeskai with Nahiri is the best deck, perhaps you want Scion of Oona. The possibilities are endless, and I can’t wait to see if this is the solution to the Faeries puzzle.