How to beat Mono-Blue Faeries in Pauper
Over the last 90 days of recorded Pauper matches, the decks with the best results against Mono-Blue Faeries are Elves (78% over 9 matches), Grixis Affinity (58% over 12 matches) and Gruul Ponza (67% over 6 matches). Elves's 78% sits in a 95% range of 45%–94%, which is the range a 9-match sample actually supports. The decks with the best records against it most often carry Faerie Macabre, Vitu-Ghazi Inspector and Scattershot Archer in the sideboard — those are their sideboards in general, not cards chosen for this matchup.
Best records against Mono-Blue Faeries
Matches played in the last 90 days, from events that publish round-by-round pairings. Ranked by the bottom of each 95% range, not by the headline percentage, so a small sample cannot outrank a large one.
| Deck | Win rate vs Mono-Blue Faeries | Record | Matches | Sample | 95% range |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Elves | 77.8% | 7-2 | 9 | Medium sample | 45%–94% |
| Grixis Affinity | 58.3% | 7-5 | 12 | Medium sample | 32%–81% |
| Gruul Ponza | 66.7% | 4-2 | 6 | Low sample | 30%–90% |
| Spy Combo | 60.0% | 3-2 | 5 | Low sample | 23%–88% |
- High sample · 20+ matches
- Medium sample · 8–19 matches
- Low sample · 5–7 matches
22 further pairings (40 matches) fall below the 5-match floor and are not given a percentage. 2 pairings against archetypes that have left the Pauper metagame are excluded. Full history, retired archetypes included, is on Mono-Blue Faeries's archetype page and in the Pauper matchup matrix.
What the decks that beat Mono-Blue Faeries bring
Sideboard cards run by Elves, Grixis Affinity, Gruul Ponza, Spy Combo. This is not a sideboard guide for this matchup. We record who beat whom, not what either player boarded, so these are whole-sideboard frequencies across every matchup those decks play — a hint about the kind of card that punishes Mono-Blue Faeries, not a list to bring in.
| Card | Decks running it | Average copies | Which decks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Faerie Macabre | 2 of 4 | 2.0 | Elves, Spy Combo |
| Vitu-Ghazi Inspector | 2 of 4 | 1.2 | Elves, Spy Combo |
| Scattershot Archer | 2 of 4 | 0.9 | Elves, Spy Combo |
| Monstrous Emergence | 1 of 4 | 3.0 | Elves |
| Pyroblast | 1 of 4 | 2.7 | Grixis Affinity |
| Hydroblast | 1 of 4 | 2.7 | Grixis Affinity |
| Weather the Storm | 1 of 4 | 2.6 | Gruul Ponza |
| Deglamer | 1 of 4 | 2.3 | Gruul Ponza |
| Breath Weapon | 1 of 4 | 2.0 | Gruul Ponza |
| Relic of Progenitus | 1 of 4 | 1.8 | Gruul Ponza |
| Blue Elemental Blast | 1 of 4 | 1.8 | Grixis Affinity |
| Spinewoods Paladin | 1 of 4 | 1.7 | Elves |
Average copies is expected copies per deck — average copies played multiplied by the share of that archetype's lists running the card — so a 4-of in half the lists reads as 2.0.
Decks Mono-Blue Faeries beats
The other end of the same table. If you are choosing a deck to attack Mono-Blue Faeries with, the record argues against these.
| Deck | Win rate vs Mono-Blue Faeries | Record | Matches | Sample | 95% range |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ephemerate Tron | 16.7% | 1-5 | 6 | Low sample | 3%–56% |
| Mono Red Madness | 43.5% | 10-13 | 23 | High sample | 26%–63% |
| Mono Red Rally | 33.3% | 3-6 | 9 | Medium sample | 12%–65% |
| Familiars | 37.5% | 3-5 | 8 | Medium sample | 14%–69% |
| Tron | 33.3% | 2-4 | 6 | Low sample | 10%–70% |
- High sample · 20+ matches
- Medium sample · 8–19 matches
- Low sample · 5–7 matches
Questions
What beats Mono-Blue Faeries in Pauper?
Across the last 90 days, Elves (78% over 9 matches), Grixis Affinity (58% over 12 matches) and Gruul Ponza (67% over 6 matches) hold the best recorded results against Mono-Blue Faeries. Records come from events that publish round-by-round pairings, and both decks in a match have to be identified for it to count, so these are the pairings we can see rather than every match played.
What should I bring in against Mono-Blue Faeries?
We do not have sideboard choices tied to individual matches, so this is not a sideboard guide. What the data supports is narrower: the 4 decks with the best records against Mono-Blue Faeries — Elves, Grixis Affinity, Gruul Ponza and Spy Combo — most commonly run Faerie Macabre, Vitu-Ghazi Inspector, Scattershot Archer, Monstrous Emergence and Pyroblast in their sideboards. Those are whole-sideboard frequencies across every matchup those decks play.
What does Mono-Blue Faeries beat?
Mono-Blue Faeries's best recorded matchups over the same window are Ephemerate Tron (83% across 6 matches), Mono Red Madness (57% across 23 matches) and Mono Red Rally (67% across 9 matches). If you are picking a deck to attack Mono-Blue Faeries with, these are the ones the record argues against.
How reliable are these Pauper matchup numbers?
Not very, and the page says so per row rather than in aggregate. Every pairing shows its match count, its sample band and a 95% range; the strongest band we award is 20+ matches, which is still roughly a ±20-point range around the figure shown. Pairings under 5 matches are counted but never given a percentage — there are 22 of those for Mono-Blue Faeries right now. Rankings use the bottom of each range rather than the headline percentage, so a small sample cannot outrank a large one it has not earned.
What period does this cover?
Matches played in the last 90 days, filtered on when each match was actually played. Archetypes that have dropped out of the Pauper metagame are excluded from the ranking, which removes 2 pairings here — their historical records are still on Mono-Blue Faeries's own archetype page and in the format matchup matrix.
What each number on this site measures, and where it is least reliable, is set out on the methodology page.