Strixhaven Draw Spell Follows in Banlist Regular’s Footsteps

Last updated on April 9, 2026

Expressive Iteration | Illustration by Anastasia Ovchinnikova

With every set that gets released, there are usually a handful of new cards that jump out as future staples. And every set, there are also cards that we get wrong; they look like staples, they look exciting, but they ultimately fall flat. It's difficult to make predictions about individual cards because cards do not exist in a vacuum. They exist in an ecosystem full of other competing cards and the variables are always changing. That being said, there are a few things that can inspire more confidence in a card, usually if it's similar to an existing effect that we know is good and doesn't ask too much to get there. So in that mindset, if there was one card to pick from among the spoilers we've seen for Secrets of Strixhaven so far to be a multi-format staple, it would have to be Flow State.

In Good Company

Stock Up | Illustration by Izzy

When looking for staples, we're looking for proof that this effect already works first and foremost. Luckily for us, the cards that this compares to the best are Expressive Iteration and Stock Up. To give you an idea of the power level of these cards, they are both currently in the Arena Powered Cube, putting up numbers with and against some of the most powerful cards in all of Magic history such as Black Lotus and Time Walk.

Now in comparison, these cards are obviously not as good as Time Walk or Black Lotus, most cards in the cube aren't even close to that level, but they are good enough to be viable in an environment where those cards exist, which is a testament to their viability. If you want further proof that this type of card is good, Expressive Iteration is banned in Legacy, and sees play in every format where it isn't banned, and while Stock Up isn't banned anywhere, you could certainly find a Standard player to tell you that it should be, and it sees its fair share of play across multiple formats as well.

All of this is to say that this kind of effect at this kind of cost is a good deal and is highly competitive. Flow State is doing exactly what these cards are doing. It's looking at multiple cards, and letting you choose two. It's card advantage, it's card selection, it's cheap, it's good, and it doesn't ask much of you.

Read the Fine Print

Practical Research | Illustration by Ekaterina Burmak

Well, there is one thing you have to do to make this card work. Flow State will always let you get at least one card from the top three, which is better than nothing, but it's functionally a sorcery speed version of Anticipate in that case, which is not a card that's really viable in any format these days. You want to be getting two cards at least eight or nine times out of ten when you cast this to make it worth it, but to do that you have to fulfill the requirement, which is to have an instant card and a sorcery card in your graveyard. I'll say it again because it's important. Instant card AND a sorcery card. NOT OR. This is everything for this card. Flow State lives or dies based on how easy it is to fulfill this requirement. If it's feasible, this card is the next big thing.

Go with the Flow

Daring Waverider | Illustration by Wisnu Tan

This introduces some interesting deck building considerations similarly to how you might build a deck with delirium in mind, making sure to have enough things of the right types to get into your graveyard so you can cast your Unholy Heat or Traverse the Ulvenwald for full value, although this seems to be a lot easier than delirium, as you only need two card types, and instants and sorceries put themselves into the graveyard. Theoretically, you could just cast Consider or Thought Scour on turn one to mill a sorcery into your graveyard and play Flow State for full value on turn two. Otherwise, you likely have to wait until at least turn three to cast it, but waiting until turn three is still fine for this type of card. You can't cast Stock Up until turn three, and players often wait until turn three to cast Expressive Iteration so you can exile a land and play it that turn. 

A Diamond in the Rough

Glint | Illustration by Igor Kieryluk

Ultimately, this is all speculative until we actually get our hands on this card, but everything about Flow State looks very promising. If you open any copies of it at prerelease, it would be wise to separate it from your bulk and save it for later, because uncommon powerhouses like these tend to fetch a few dollars. We've seen it before with cards like Into the Flood Maw, Sheltered by Ghosts, and of course Stock Up, and it's easy to gloss over cards that don't have a rare or mythic set stamp on them, but this card is the real deal, and I think that with time everyone will come to fear the might of Flow State.