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Tempo in Blue: Elevating Control with Take Possession
Blue has long been the architect of tempo in Magic: The Gathering, weaving a delicate balance of card draw, countermagic, and timely disruption to tilt the game in your favor. When a card arrives that can steal a marquee permanent right from under an opponent’s nose, the tempo calculus gets a shiny, sparkly upgrade 🧙♂️. Take Possession is that kind of tempo needle—costly to cast, but devastatingly efficient at shaping the board state for years to come. In Modern Masters’ blue arc, this aura-turned-control trick becomes a signature move: cast, resolve, and suddenly you’re in command of the most valuable piece on the battlefield 🔥💎.
At its heart, Take Possession is a classic blue control tool with a twist. The card’s mana cost of five mana plus two blue mana (5UU) demands a patient, planful approach. It’s not a flash-in-the-pan play to surprise an opponent; it’s a deliberate setup that pays off with a long-term board advantage. The enchantment’s split second ability adds a layer of precision rarely found in tempo engines: while the spell is on the stack, players can’t cast spells or activate abilities that aren’t mana abilities. That means you get the crucial moment to secure the target before the chaos of the multiverse intrudes. When it resolves, you enchant a permanent and assume control of it. It’s not merely stealing; it’s re-writing the battlefield’s storyline for the rest of the game ⚔️🎨.
Card Fundamentals: What this blue aura actually does
- Card name: Take Possession
- Set/rarity: Modern Masters (mma), Uncommon
- Mana cost: {5}{U}{U} (7 total)
- Type: Enchantment — Aura
- Effect: Split second; Enchant permanent; You control enchanted permanent.
- Color identity: Blue
The “split second” clause is a reminder of how timing can be the most important resource in a match. While this spell is on the stack, your opponent can’t cast non-mana spells or activate non-mana abilities. It’s a built-in window to land a tempo-changing blow without an immediate, flashy counterspell defense throwing a wrench into your plan. Once resolved, you’ve gained long-term control of the enchanted permanent, which could be the opponent’s biggest creature, a key artifact, or a game-winning late threat. That power to shift the center of gravity of the battlefield is where tempo magic truly shines 🧭.
Strategic Applications: How to weave Take Possession into a blue control shell
Tempo is the art of making your opponent feel like every move costs them more than it costs you. Take Possession fits this philosophy by turning a single, high-value permanent into a sustained advantage. Here are a few practical angles to maximize its impact:
- Snag a critical blocker or offense engine: Seize a powerful creature or a troublesome permanent your opponent relies on. Gaining control of that piece buys you time to draw into more answers or pivot to a win condition you can protect with counters and draw power.
- Disrupt their mana and planning: Target a mana rock or powerful utility permanent early, delaying their acceleration and forcing suboptimal lines while you settle into your own plan.
- Pair with blue’s disruption suite: Follow up with counterspells, bounce effects, or discard outlets to shred their hand and keep the stolen permanent safely in your control.
- Endurance vs. threats: The stolen permanent will not stick in your opponent’s field forever by itself—but with blue tools like card draw and removal, you can keep your position intact while the game tilts in your favor.
In practice, the play sequence often looks like: you stabilize with early blockers or removal, your mana is humming, you cast Take Possession targeting a high-impact permanent, and you ride the tempo swing as your opponent struggles to answer while their own threat remains under your control. It’s a classic “pull-a-threat, lock-it-down” maneuver that keeps your opponent on the back foot while you assemble a longer game plan 🧙♂️.
Deckcraft: Building a blue tempo shell around Take Possession
To maximize Take Possession, consider a blueprint that emphasizes card advantage, permission, and resilient threats:
- Core disruption suite: Counterspells and bounce effects keep the plan safe while you price out your opponent’s options. Think along the lines of classic blue control staples—draw steps that smooth your curve and ensure you’ll hit the big mana threshold to cast Take Possession on time 🔥.
- Pressure and reach: A mix of efficient cheap threats and stalling locations lets you keep the board dynamic even when you’re waiting for the perfect moment to steal a target.
- Card advantage engines: Draw spells help you refill after tempo swings, ensuring you don’t fall behind if the stolen permanent gets answered later in the game.
- Risk management: The aura’s effect is powerful, but losing control of the stolen permanent can reset your plan. Build in recursions, chump blockers, and alternate win conditions to stay resilient.
From a lore and flavor perspective, Take Possession embodies blue’s fascination with minds and control—the artful manipulation of unseen forces that steer a battlefield with surgical precision. It’s a spell that invites patience, but rewards precise timing and resource orchestration. Blue decks that lean into tempo can be among the most elegant experiences in MTG, combining nostalgia for older formats with the crisp efficiency of modern card design 🧙♂️💎.
Art, Myth, and Market: a collector’s glance
Michael Phillippi’s artwork on Take Possession captures a moment of dramatic pivot—the kind of image that makes players nod and say, “Yes, I’ve felt that twist in a match before.” While the price tag on this MMA reprint remains approachable (roughly a few quarters to a couple of dollars for non-foil and a bit more for foil), it remains a valuable toolbox card for budget-minded control players and a nostalgic pickup for long-time fans. As with many blue control staples, the card’s value isn’t just in resale; it’s the ongoing utility across a wide spectrum of formats where tempo reigns supreme 🧙♂️🎲.
“Tempo is the game where every decision costs a little less than your opponent fears,” a veteran blue pilot once said. Take Possession embodies that principle—sticking a permanent and bending the flow of a game with a single, carefully timed spell.
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