Our metagame is set!
Through a week of Magic Online testing and SCG Columbus, we now know who
our enemies are. Depending on which corner of the internet you ask, the
deck to beat going into Week 2 is going to vary wildly, but I’m about to
lay down the law.
10. Izzet “Stuff”
Creatures (8)
Lands (23)
Spells (29)
There are many takes of this deck flying around and they have two things in
common: Crackling Drake and a bunch of things that say instant or sorcery
on them.
Goblin Electromancer seems weak, even if it lives. A Sarkhan, Fireblood /
Niv-Mizzet, Parun package looks stronger to me, plus it gives Izzet a bit
of a lategame punch. With some decks, you can tune them week-to-week or
dust it off for a specific week where it’s well-positioned, but Izzet
doesn’t have that capability. It’s always going to be fine, and while the
details might change, it won’t drastically shift matchups.
9. G/X Aggro
Creatures (31)
- 4 Llanowar Elves
- 4 Merfolk Branchwalker
- 4 Jadelight Ranger
- 4 Steel Leaf Champion
- 3 Vine Mare
- 4 Thorn Lieutenant
- 4 Nullhide Ferox
- 4 Pelt Collector
Lands (9)
Spells (20)
Splash white for Conclave Tribunal and some creatures? Splash black for
Assassin’s Trophy? Splash nothing and be a pile of giant animals and hope
everything works out?
What started as the litmus test for the format was quickly surpassed by a
metagame that could easily handle Steel Leaf Champion when not backed up by
Blossoming Defense and Heart of Kiran. Having access to cards like Lava
Coil certainly helped, but ultimately Mono-Green Aggro’s one-dimensional
nature got the better of it.
It’s still on the list of “decks that are capable of doing powerful
things,” but I can’t foresee it being a player for much longer. Pelt
Collector is one of the strongest cards in Standard, but we might have to
wait a little longer before we see its true power.
8. Mono-Blue Aggro
Creatures (20)
Spells (40)
Sideboard
Despite losing virtually nothing in rotation and the metagame losing a
significant portion of red decks, Mono-Blue Aggro hasn’t been talked about
much. Granted, it didn’t gain much of anything from Guilds of Ravnica either, but that hasn’t mattered much in the
past. Realistically, the lack of shiny new toys probably kept people from
talking about it more. Week 1 is about playing with new cards, right?
If Standard continues on its midrange trajectory, Mono-Blue Aggro could be
a sleeper pick in the coming weeks. Not only do you gain percentage points
from your opponents not necessarily knowing how to play against you, but no
one is specifically targeting you either.
I happen to like Spell Pierce in this Standard format quite a bit, but I
understand the necessity for additional filtering through Opt and Nightveil
Sprite. The details matter, and I’m guessing the extra consistency helped
Kat. After all, the best card in the deck is Curious Obsession, and it
isn’t particularly close.
7. Esper Control
Creatures (1)
Planeswalkers (4)
Lands (27)
Spells (28)
Awesum Rosum
shows up with a control deck I have major issues with and happens to beat a
bunch of people? Well, I’m shocked. Only Wafo-Tapa could register a deck
with this many four-drops and get away with it.
I’ve found cards like Cast Down and Disdainful Stroke to be mediocre
maindeck cards, and I can’t imagine playing a deck with twelve checklands
with only thirteen ways for them to enter the battlefield untapped.
Evolving Wilds is something I would heavily recommend, at least in small
numbers. There’s also some diminishing returns on Ritual of Soot compared
to having a mix of Rituals and Golden Demises, but that’s probably minor.
Vona and Profane Procession are also largely mediocre. Chromium is also a
ham sandwich.
Honestly, I’m not sure what you’re getting from Esper that you can’t get
from Azorius (or Jeskai). Three copies of Vraska’s Contempt make it seem
like planeswalkers weren’t a large concern anyway.
6. Boros Angels
Creatures (22)
- 4 Adanto Vanguard
- 4 Knight of Grace
- 4 Lyra Dawnbringer
- 3 Shalai, Voice of Plenty
- 4 Resplendent Angel
- 3 Aurelia, Exemplar of Justice
Planeswalkers (1)
Lands (8)
Spells (30)
This isn’t the place you expected Boros to end up, is it? Well, Deafening
Clarion is incredibly important in this format and not many decks are
capable of utilizing it. Boros capitalized on the equity gap and became a
midrange deck to exploit that fact.
Sadly, for Resplendent Angel fans, it probably won’t last long. Jeskai
Control seems like a much better fit for Deafening Clarion, and Boros’
threats don’t line up well against all the removal in the format. This deck
also has issues with a lack of two-drops, so it’s not something I’d
advocate for in its current state.
Still, it won the Standard Classic, people like Angels, and it will
continue to get played.
5. Grixis Midrange
Creatures (13)
- 1 Ravenous Chupacabra
- 3 Nicol Bolas, the Ravager
- 3 Doom Whisperer
- 2 Lazav, the Multifarious
- 4 Thief of Sanity
Lands (26)
Spells (21)
Ramen.dec is here!
Originally designed by VTCLA, this leaner version of Grixis Midrange is
better suited to tackling this aggressive metagame. Cards like The Eldest
Reborn and Dream Eater are a little too slow at the moment, no matter what
Andrew Jessup tells you. Nicol Bolas, the Ravager is still good against
everyone though!
Thief of Sanity is the big question mark, and I’m leaning toward no at the
moment. Some decks, like Selesnya Tokens, are notoriously light on removal,
plus taxing a control deck’s removal spells is a good idea. However, a
three mana 2/2 isn’t blowing anyone away, especially because of how slow it
can be to take over a game. Assuming we don’t want to maindeck Thief of
Sanity, I don’t even necessarily want to sideboard it because of how strong
Arguel’s Blood Fast is.
4. Jeskai Control
Planeswalkers (5)
Lands (17)
Spells (38)
Expansion is one of the best reasons to play Jeskai compared to any other
control deck, so I’m surprised to see only one copy here. Regardless,
Deafening Clarion is the real reason. Even though it doesn’t clean up
everything, it’s still the best sweeper right now. Your spot removal, like
Justice Strike and Ixalan’s Binding, can clean up the bigger stuff.
I’m more partial to the Izzet lists that splash some white cards rather
than Azorius splashing red (or going full Jeskai with little regard to
casting cost), but it’s not that much of a deal breaker either way. A pile
of removal and four copies of Teferi, Hero of Dominaria is going to beat up
on a lot of people, and Jeskai has infinite room for innovation.
3. Golgari Midrange
Creatures (21)
- 4 Llanowar Elves
- 4 Merfolk Branchwalker
- 4 Jadelight Ranger
- 3 Ravenous Chupacabra
- 1 District Guide
- 3 Golgari Findbroker
- 2 Plaguecrafter
Planeswalkers (7)
Lands (16)
Spells (16)
I didn’t think I’d see the day when Golgari opts to play zero
Vraska’s Contempts in the 75, but it’s a genius move.
Vraska, Relic Seeker is one of the biggest midrange trumps in history, and
likely the best one available in Standard at the moment. Assassin’s Trophy,
despite having a real downside, is one of the few answers to Experimental
Frenzy. Plaguecrafter looks weak in this deck due to the lack of sacrifice
fodder, and the same could be said for lil Vraska, but apparently, they’re
good enough on their own.
Golgari Findbroker is finding its place as a Golgari staple, with or
without access to Dead Weight maindeck. Zero copies of Find in the 75 is
odd, but when you’re leaning on Vraskas for your card advantage, maybe it’s
not necessary.
I worry that this version of Golgari is weak to Rekindling Phoenix and part
of the reason is due to a lack of closing speed. Doom Whisperer covers
Phoenix both ways but is otherwise a strict win condition when this deck is
all about value.
2. Mono-Red Aggro
Creatures (22)
Spells (38)
Max is smart and streamlined his list without falling prey to the hype on
certain cards, like Experimental Frenzy or Risk Factor. Instead, he chose
to play a modest two copies of each, with more in the sideboard. His simple
take is a solid one and wouldn’t be a bad place to start.
One thing I will note about this format is how weak it looks to Rekindling
Phoenix in general though. These Golgari decks might have to rethink their
anti-Vraska’s Contempt stance, but time will tell.
1. Selesnya Tokens
Creatures (14)
- 2 Shalai, Voice of Plenty
- 4 Emmara, Soul of the Accord
- 2 District Guide
- 4 Venerated Loxodon
- 2 Trostani Discordant
Lands (9)
Spells (37)
My picks for top decks in Standard hasn’t changed much, even through a
weekend of major tournaments. Shoopman’s list isn’t wildly different than
the one I proposed last week, but it’s enough to make me question my own
choices.
Venerated Loxodon was already strong, but Saproling Migration might be
enough to put it over the top, even with “only” sixteen green sources of
mana. I was focused on one-drops to make Venerated Loxodon stronger, but
Migration makes more sense. Similarly, Saproling Migration powers up March
of the Multitudes to the point where playing four copies becomes
reasonable.
Also, District Guide. <3
So, my dear readers, using whatever metrics you deem appropriate …