Blue control spells always have a way of impeding an opponent’s progress. Most recently, a few more weapons were added to its arsenal, including Icy Blast and Crippling Chill. Not being able to untap during your turn puts a damper on your day – so what can we do about it?

Behold, Ivorytusk Fortress. True, your creatures will not untap during your next untap step should they be ferociously blasted but that doesn’t stop them from untapping during your opponent’s untap step. In many ways having them untap during your opponent’s turn is a handy trick. You will have fresh blockers that can activate abilities before or after blockers are declared. That’s some pretty decent intimidation. Granted, the creatures must have at least one +1/+1 counter on them in order to untap.

If you happen to be the player wielding the blue spells and your opponent has a board containing Ivorytusk and counter-laden creatures, your best bet is to cast your Chill or Blast after your untap step if possible. This will keep those pesky creatures down and out for as long as possible. Hope you enjoyed today’s rules tip! See you tomorrow!

Today’s Rules Tip written by Daniel Clarke