As a die-hard Wizard player, Iyslander was and is my primary hero. Across several iterations, she’s the deck that I’ve devoted the majority of my time and focus toward mastering. When Uprising was announced and her specialization was spoiled, I was hooked. I knew I had to main this hero - and since then, I’ve been in love with her play style and her flavor.
I played Iyslander in the previous Nationals season in the form of a janky Sigil of Permafrost full Arcane version, finding moderate success. After a brief stint on Michael Hamilton's Bullander build, I developed the Weathervane build I’m identified with. While I recognize the power and economy of Wounded Bull and E-Strike, it’s just not a playstyle that really resonated with me the way that 'shutting my opponent out of the game with as much disruption and taxation as I can' does.
All this to say, I’ve stuck by Iyslander’s frosty side since the beginning. In Everfest, she barely cracked the ice; then Uprising saw her become the most dominant and powerful deck in the meta. And then the Outsiders showed up to the party, boosting Assassins, Ninjas, and (most notably) Rangers to the front of the line. With Lexi and Azalea firmly in the driver's seat, Dromai and Oldhim (both difficult matches for very different reasons) claimed left and right flank, forming a meta-shaping trio of Ranger, Illusionist, and Guardian.
So what does all this mean for our Ice Queen?
Dromai flexes her prowess with big annoying dragons that are quite difficult for Wizards to deal with. Lexi sports her machine gun onslaught of disruptive effects - most notably, Inertia - that all spell bad news for Wizards. Because of the Rangers, arsenal hate is at an all time high. As it stands, things are looking pretty bleak.
But all is not lost for Iyslander. The card pool for an Elemental Wizard is deep, with tools for any situation, if you only know where to look. So let’s dive in to some of her biggest obstacles and try to find some ways to traverse this new expanse.
One of the things that makes Iyslander so powerful is her ability to play cards from the arsenal at instant speed, disrupting our opponent with frostbites. The Inertia affliction proactively counters that by preventing us from keeping an arsenal. Essentially, it just about blanks our hero ability. Read the Ripples is a Wizard's way to sneak around Inertia. Ripples lets us peek at the top cards of our deck and draw one for our arsenal at the end of our turn - after the Inertia aura triggers. As the player controlling the end-of-turn triggers, we can layer them in any order we see fit. Like Ponder, Read the Ripples allows you to draw a card during your end step, so you can put said card in arsenal. Not only do we get an arsenal, but we even get somewhat of a say in what it is thanks to the opt. The blue pitch version is the most efficient I’ve found.
Rangers manage consistency in large part due to the rate at which they see cards from their decks. Death Dealer and Three of a Kind are essential tools to Azalea and Lexi, respectively. Being able to pay through disruption by drawing more resources and see their most powerful cards more frequently means they can set up or draw into massive turns even as we coat them in layers of frostbite. Further, the Ponder tokens granted from Premeditate and the Codexes mean they always keep their arsenal stocked up and ready.
Channel the Bleak Expanse says no to that, prohibiting both players from drawing or revealing cards. That means Death Dealer and Ponder are rendered completely useless. It prevents Azalea from tutoring arrows with Nock the Deathwhistle. Lexi might find herself completely unable to fuse that Chilling Icevein if you shove an instant speed CBE in her face. CBE also affects Katsu’s hero ability from activating and allowing him to search out powerful combos; and Mask of Momentum doesn’t trigger a draw.
Channel the Bleak Expanse can be played at instant speed to stifle major play lines while enabling Moon and fitting the cost curve of one blue pitch. In this meta, it might finally be time to break out this rarely-seen Channel. Just keep in mind that the effects are symmetrical, so you won’t be able to fuse or draw cards during an action phase as well - but this can be a small price to pay in order to cut their efficiency in half while Channel is active.
Lexi’s power emanates from her arsenal. Wouldn’t it be great if we had a way of preventing her from firing that arrow? Wouldn’t freezing that arrow in her arsenal for a turn prevent her from shooting that Infecting Shot at us? Well thank goodness we have access to Icebind then! If we hit her with an Ice-fused Icebind and it does any damage, freezing her arsenal for a turn is exactly what happens. Pretty neat huh? I’ve been playing both blue and red versions. It’s seldom, if ever, that Rangers wear more than Arcane Barrier 1, as their equipment is so valuable that they can’t afford the space. Red Icebind is all but guaranteed to hit, while blue Icebind can be played at instant speed and, if timed right, can shut down their turn.
Encase is a card I’ve been shouting about for a long time, and is one of the backbone spells in my Weathervane deck. A fused Encase that does any damage to your opponent will freeze their hero ability and all their equipment for a turn. Sometimes this is a minor inconvenience, but other times it can be backbreaking. Uzuri can’t use her hero ability and swap in that Shake Down she’s so keen on hitting us with. Lexi can’t flip over the Ice or Lightning card in her arsenal, which may even keep her from using New Horizon. Azalea can’t swap in an arrow off the top of her deck and dominate it with her hero power. Snapdragon Scalers are gonna have to wait until next turn to snap off and extend the combat chain. Tunic counters can't be removed. Dromai can’t activate Flamescale Furnace or Mage Master Boots. Encase can be a wonderful tool for disrupting our opponents who have threatening equipment or activated hero abilities - just remember passive or triggered abilities aren't effected!
Once the bane of redline aggressive decks like Fai and Briar, Sigil of Permafrost has the ability to stop a wide turn in its tracks, in addition to blocking dangerous breakpoints. It’s fallen out of favor lately, mostly because it's difficult to fit it into our cost curve; but it remains just as disruptive as it once was, and in the right build and circumstances might be just what we need in such an aggressive, go-wide meta. If it’s fused and used to cover up a threatening attack, the next source of arcane damage you present to your opponent creates as many frostbites as damage they take. Following up a Sigil of Permafrost with Waning Moon or a blue Emeritus Scolding is sure to put an end to any shenanigans your opponent planned on doing. Either they cover up the damage and lose valuable resources that way, or end up with a few Frostbites and their turn is over anyway.
This card is my bread and butter. For one resource and a fused spell, Isenhowl Weathervane does what Sigil of Permafrost does but proactively. Tack a red Weathervane on the front of an Icebind or an Encase and you’ll create 4 frostbites for your opponent- almost certainly enough to stop them in their tracks!
I’ve been playing a deck focused around Isenhowl Weathervane and Frost Hex for a long time now, and while it can be a complete build-around, even splashing one or two in a deck that’s more focused on arcane rather than attacks might be just the thing you need to shut down an aggressive deck for a turn or two.
Oldhim is still a force to be reckoned with. Part of what makes Oldhim king is his Crown. Lucky for us, we have a way of knocking that crown right off him: Exposed to the Elements, as long as it’s Ice fused, can destroy equipment with 0 block. We can also Expose our opponents' Arcane Barrier and other problematic pieces of gear. The fact that it doesn’t block in a meta that practically requires all of our cards have some kind of block might be can issue, so keep that in mind; but destroying your opponents' equipment is a special kind of satisfying. Exposed isn’t for every matchup, but having access to an equipment-destroying tool is always nice to keep in the back pocket.
This one might be more niche and cute than truly revolutionary, but if you’re tired of being foiled by Oasis Respite or being punished by Rain Razors, maybe Aetherize is what you’re looking for. Aetherize is quite literally a blue pitch counterspell for other instants. Oasis Respite? Nope. Rain Razors? Next time, buddy. Sand Cover? I don’t think so. Art of War? Art of NO. Aetherize is an instant itself, so arsenal-ing it won’t turn on your weapon and the card doesn’t have a block value; but a well timed Aetherize can save you a ton of life and aggravation. It’s also a blue pitch, so if you don’t need it just pitch it to the bottom for later.
Scour is one of my personal favorite toolbox cards and when it’s useful, it’s damn good. Back when Viserai ran amuck and was creating a million runechants, Scour was a great way to turn those runechants against him and deal him damage (and I’ve heard rumblings that with Iyslander taking a back seat lately, the troublesome runeblade has been rearing his ugly head again).
Scour isn’t just good against Runechants, as it can break any Aura your opponent controls. Ponder is an aura. Seismic Surge tokens are auras, too. This card is a bit niche, but it’s nice to know we have the option. Blue, 3 block utility cards are at the very least useful in that sense, but added abilities mean they inevitably will someday find a home. Dusk Till Dawn brings Illusionists and Runeblades back into the fold in Classic Constructed, and both of those classes are synonymous with using Auras to do their dirty work. Scour can be our response.
One card outside of the Ice Wizard pool that deserves mention is This Round's On Me. TROM saw its height in popularity during the reign of Fai for its ability to save you 5-6 life across an onslaught of attacks. An instant speed TROM can render a pair of Kodachi useless, bring breakpoints down to single-card blocks, and do a pretty great Hypothermia impression. TROM can also shut down a Bolt'n' Shot by taking the annoying arrow back down to its base power, and just like magic, remove its ability to gain go again. Turn over. It’ll even draw you a card in the process.
With RTN Season ramping up, localized metas are anybody’s guess. But if the recent competitive season and Pro Tour 3 have shown us anything, it’s that Iyslander’s dominance has been firmly usurped by the new triangle of Rangers, Guardians, and Illusionists. Only time will tell if Iyslander can regain her crown and showcase her true staying power, but it’s undeniable that there’s more than a handful of challenges and obstacles that we need to overcome. Hopefully I’ve given you some food for thought and shed some light on the tools every resourceful Wizard should have access to.
