Standard is warped by Izzet Cauldron right now. If you queue, you see it. If you watch events, you see it. Players are hunting for clean, splashable tools that punish the deck’s constant looting and graveyard setup. One card from MTG Foundations is finally doing real work: Tinybones, Bauble Burglar. It is narrow on paper, but in practice it hits Cauldron where it hurts. It shuts off value lines, steals resources, and quietly flips the mirror. That’s the kind of “sleeper” I can get behind.
Why Izzet Cauldron needs an answer
Izzet Cauldron is the most played and most successful deck in Standard by a mile. It won Arena Championship 9 and has posted absurd metagame shares since rotation. The engine is simple. Fill the graveyard while drawing through the deck, then leverage Agatha’s Soul Cauldron and cheap threats to snowball. Lists commonly feature Steamcore Scholar, Winternight Stories, and Fear of Missing Out to churn cards and fuel both the yard and the board. If you can’t disrupt that loop, you fall behind. Fast.
Meet the card: Tinybones, Bauble Burglar
Tinybones costs 1B for a 1/3. Whenever an opponent discards a card, Tinybones exiles it with a stash counter. During your turn, you may play those exiled cards and spend mana as though it were any type. It also has a 3B, tap ability that makes each opponent discard a card. Functionally, it’s a one-card plan that turns your opponent’s loot and rummage into your value while doubling as graveyard hate. That last part is huge against Cauldron.
Proof it’s real: the 5-0 list with four copies
This isn’t just “cute tech.” A Grixis Cauldron list went 5-0 in a Magic Online Standard League with four Tinybones in the sideboard, clearly built to prey on the mirror and other discard-heavy shells. The text export shows the full package, including Abrade, Duress, Disdainful Stroke, and the Tinybones set as the big pivot after board. If your plan is to loot for value, Tinybones punishes every click.
How Tinybones attacks Izzet Cauldron
1) It taxes every rummage.
When Izzet cycles Winternight Stories, triggers Steamcore Scholar, or spins Fear of Missing Out, those discards don’t sit in the graveyard anymore. They get exiled, which denies Agatha’s Soul Cauldron fuel and hands you playables. You even get to play lands they pitch. That turns their core plan into a liability.
2) It is proactive hate.
You don’t need to wait for Cauldron to resolve. The moment they discard, Tinybones triggers and moves the card out of range. If they already have Cauldron in play, they can respond to the trigger by exiling their own discard. Without Cauldron, they must choose each loot carefully or risk handing you a spell. That’s the window you want to exploit.
3) It flips mirror incentives.
In the mirror, anything they discard is almost always good for you. Your spells line up, your mana casts their stuff, and your curve is built to use cheap interaction plus card flow. That’s why the 5-0 list maxed on copies. It’s not a splash for style. It’s a plan.
The counters and how to play around them
Abrade kills Tinybones on sight. Many Izzet lists run some number, often two. If they spend Abrade on Tinybones, your Cauldron is safer. Trade that one-for-one and push your own engine. Torch the Tower can answer Tinybones too, though some lists have trimmed it for mirror cards like Into the Flood Maw. If you cast an opponent’s permanent, remember Into the Flood Maw can bounce it back to its owner’s hand, not yours. Sequence accordingly and avoid overcommitting borrowed threats.
Graveyard timing also matters. If Cauldron is already on the table, they can exile their discard in response to Tinybones. If it isn’t, their rummage becomes a liability. That’s the window you want to exploit.
Sideboarding and game plan tips
On the play against Izzet Cauldron mirrors or near-mirrors, bring in all four Tinybones. You want it early so every turn cycle taxes their engine. Follow up with hand disruption like Duress to force through Tinybones or protect it. Disdainful Stroke is the clean catch-all for big swings. If you expect Abrade, plan your curve to threaten another must-answer permanent the turn after Tinybones dies.
On the draw, you still want Tinybones, but be realistic. If your opponent is all-in on tempo, don’t take a hand that only “does Tinybones things” on turn four. Keep removal for Marauding Mako starts and don’t be shy about trading early just to reach your Tinybones turn intact.
The mana tax of splashing black
Most Izzet shells splashing black lean on Watery Grave and Starting Town. That costs life. Against Mono-Red, it hurts. The upside is high in mirrors, but you pay for it when the red deck runs you over. If your local field is heavy Izzet, splash away. If it’s red-heavy, think twice or move Tinybones to a different shell.
Mono-Red is still a check on Cauldron
If your only goal is to dunk on Cauldron and you don’t want to splash black, Mono-Red Aggro is still the blunt instrument of choice. It has posted strong records into Cauldron in recent high-level play, and it demands precise answers early. Tinybones doesn’t fix that matchup by itself, so respect the red half of the room.
Tinybones beyond the mirror
Mono-Black Skeletons has been quietly putting up results, largely off Corpses of the Lost. Tinybones slots there as a disruptive two-drop that also gets pumped by the Skeleton anthem. It pairs well with Duress and other discard for extra value, but note that Intimidation Tactics exiles a card from hand and does not make them discard, so it doesn’t trigger Tinybones. In Dimir Midrange, Tinybones offers a budget-friendly mirror breaker that also keeps the Cauldron graveyard lean when paired with Strategic Betrayal.
When not to bring it in
Against pure creature decks that don’t rummage, Tinybones is slow. If they aren’t discarding, you’re playing a 1/3 for two that asks for time you probably don’t have. Leave it in the board versus linear aggro unless you know they board into discard or looters.
Bottom line
Tinybones, Bauble Burglar is the sort of card that looks narrow until the best deck in the format lines up perfectly against it. Izzet Cauldron turns on Tinybones just by playing Magic. That’s why a winning list maxed out on copies and why this rare is showing up more each day. If your meta is full of Cauldron mirrors or shells that rummage for value, this is the cleanest splash you can make from MTG Foundations. You don’t have to win the card advantage war when your opponent hands you their cards for free.
Meta description
MTG Foundations sleeper Tinybones, Bauble Burglar beats Izzet Cauldron. Learn the sideboard plan, matchups, risks, and the shells that use it best.
