Heading into #GPDC this weekend, Standard looks to be a wide-open format, one of the best in a long time for Standard. It’s easy to look ahead to the Ixalan previews that are starting to come out, but for now we have one more large Grand Prix to play before then. So what should you play for #GPDC?
Well, toda,y I’m going to have the teacher in me inspect each deck and give it a letter grade, with better grades meaning better chances of doing well at #GPDC. Although I haven’t played a large Standard tournament since the first week of Hour of Devastation, I’ve been keeping a close eye on what has been happening with the format since then and have played quite a bit of Standard on Magic Online recently. So let’s go over each major Standard deck and then give it a grade for how well-positioned I think it is heading into #GPDC.
Creatures (24)
- 4 Longtusk Cub
- 4 Bristling Hydra
- 4 Whirler Virtuoso
- 4 Servant of the Conduit
- 4 Rogue Refiner
- 3 Glorybringer
- 1 Rhonas the Indomitable
Lands (15)
Spells (21)
Temur Energy will be the deck to beat this weekend. Many people will try to do that by going over the top of Temur Energy with control and ramp decks and will think they have a good Temur Energy matchup. However, Temur Energy has the ability to transform into a Delver-like deck with cheap threats backed up by counterspells, giving it a fair chance of winning even these supposed “bad” matchups. I think the realistic way to beat Temur Energy, if there is one, is to go under it, especially in Game 1. That’s a tough challenge, though, round after round.
Temur Energy Final Grade: A+
Creatures (22)
- 4 Bomat Courier
- 3 Kari Zev, Skyship Raider
- 3 Hazoret the Fervent
- 4 Ahn-Crop Crasher
- 4 Soul-Scar Mage
- 4 Earthshaker Khenra
Planeswalkers (2)
Lands (10)
Spells (26)
The best way to go under Temur Energy in Game 1 is with Ramunap Red, and this is probably the best weekend since the Pro Tour to be packing Mountains. With the expected uptick in control and ramp decks, a Ramunap Red pilot has the ability to face a bevy of good matchups throughout the day. Hopefully your Temur Energy opponents are more focused on beating the mirror by playing cards like The Scarab God and you’ll take them by surprise.
Ramunap Red Final Grade: A
Creatures (21)
- 4 Relentless Dead
- 4 Diregraf Colossus
- 4 Cryptbreaker
- 1 Metallic Mimic
- 4 Lord of the Accursed
- 4 Dread Wanderer
Lands (25)
Spells (14)
The rise of Temur Energy is a big blow to the stock of Mono-Black Zombies, and I can’t imagine it’s a very good choice for this weekend. Ramunap Red may be a good matchup, but I don’t believe it’s a good as some people think, especially with only two Kalitas, Traitor of Ghet in the sideboard. The control matchup is winnable, but slogging through a field full of Temur Energy isn’t a place I’d want to be as a Mono-Black Zombies pilot this weekend.
Mono-Black Zombies Final Grade: B
Creatures (25)
- 2 Kalitas, Traitor of Ghet
- 4 Relentless Dead
- 4 Diregraf Colossus
- 4 Cryptbreaker
- 4 Dread Wanderer
- 3 The Scarab God
- 4 Ammit Eternal
Lands (25)
Spells (10)
Now, if you want to start splashing blue, I’m more on board. The Scarab God is a wonderful threat against Temur Energy, with the 5/5 body being just large enough to pass the Glorybringer test. Also, Ammit Eternal is the better individual threat against Abrade than Lord of the Accursed is, and I could see this deck being able to compete in the Temur Energy heavy metagame. Plus, if there are a lot of ramp and control decks at the Grand Prix that are trying to go over the top of Temur Energy, then having access to counterspells in the sideboard of your aggressive deck is the perfect way to fight back.
I’d really like one Torment of Hailfire in this sideboard for the matchups that go long. I’ve seen that card win games that were otherwise completely unwinnable with anything else in the format.
B/U Zombies Final Grade: B+
Creatures (20)
- 3 Catacomb Sifter
- 4 Sylvan Advocate
- 3 Verdurous Gearhulk
- 4 Winding Constrictor
- 2 Rishkar, Peema Renegade
- 4 Walking Ballista
Planeswalkers (4)
Lands (24)
Spells (12)
G/B Aggro is in a very similar place as Mono-Black Zombies as far as the metagame as a whole is concerned. The good news is that you don’t have any truly terrible matchups and you can win any game. The bad news is you don’t have any truly good matchups and you can lose any game. Play skill and deck knowledge are critical with G/B Aggro, and it’s hard to justify playing this over Temur Energy these days, as the printing of Abrade was a large blow to the deck.
G/B Aggro Final Grade: B-
Creatures (7)
Lands (26)
Spells (27)
Creatures (7)
Lands (26)
Spells (27)
- 1 Negate
- 3 Essence Scatter
- 4 Grasp of Darkness
- 1 Murder
- 4 Glimmer of Genius
- 2 Disallow
- 4 Fatal Push
- 4 Censor
- 4 Supreme Will
Sideboard
Control decks of various flavors are emerging as a way to fight Temur Energy, but again, I really don’t think this is the way to go. If you curve out perfectly and your answers match their threats, then it’s an easy win, but most of the time you are just a little too far behind and can’t stabilize and turn the corner quickly enough. Torrential Gearhulk simply isn’t the win condition it used to be and is vulnerable to both Abrade and Harnessed Lightning. Grixis Control is the most popular version of control, usually only splashing black for The Scarab God or Nicol Bolas, God-Pharaoh. U/B Control really suffers from not having access to any kind of sweeper effect for when it falls behind. Neither of these decks has a realistic prayer of beating Ramunap Red, and I can’t imagine either being a good choice to try to win #GPDC.
Grixis Control Final Grade: C-
U/B Control Final Grade: F
Creatures (2)
Planeswalkers (4)
Lands (26)
Spells (28)
The new control deck on the block is Jeskai Approach, which uses Approach of the Second Sun as an alternate win condition to Torrential Gearhulk. I was skeptical at first with Approach of the Second Sun when the U/W version started showing up, but I’m onboard.
The problem with this deck is twofold. First, there are simply too many high-mana-cost cards here and I don’t like the inclusion of Jace, Unraveler of Secrets or even Torrential Gearhulk in the maindeck to turn on the opponents’ removal. Second, I would really like to see more sweepers or ways to catch up when behind. Only two Hour of Devastation as ways to get a Bristling Hydra off the battlefield isn’t enough. Although I really like Nahiri, the Harbinger, I’m not sold the red spells do enough that playing this is better than playing U/W Approach with a solid manabase. I also don’t see how this deck can beat Ramunap Red very often, not a spot I want to be this weekend.
Jeskai Approach Final Grade: B-
Lands (25)
Spells (35)
The last control deck, and the one that I think is the best of the bunch. This is the only control deck that I think has the chance to beat Ramunap Red consistently with a playset each of Blessed Alliance, Renewed Faith, and Fumigate in the maindeck, as well as Authority of the Consuls in the sideboard. Also, the main win condition gains life! U/W Approach can deal with problematic permanents such as Bristling Hydra, Hazoret the Fervent, and even God-Pharaoh’s Gift easier than most decks, and you also get to play a straight forward, consistent manabase. If there’s a deck in the format that can go over the top of Temur Energy, this is it, but you still are extremely weak to Lost Legacy and Invasive Surgery from other decks’ sideboards.
U/W Approach Final Grade: B+
Creatures (23)
- 4 Bygone Bishop
- 4 Thraben Inspector
- 3 Hanweir Militia Captain
- 4 Spell Queller
- 4 Selfless Spirit
- 4 Cloudblazer
Lands (25)
Spells (12)
Another way to go if you want to play W/U but you like creatures is W/U Monument. Many people wrote the deck off after the printing of Abrade, but I like its position heading into the weekend. When you have your namesake card, Oketra’s Monument, on the battlefield, there really isn’t a better deck in the format. I’d like to see a Solemnity or two in the sideboard as a way to fight Temur Energy, as I’ve been incredibly impressed with that cards power level against the leading deck of the format. The other matchup to really focus on is Ramunap Red, but there is the ability with the white cards in the format to win that matchup.
W/U Monument Final Grade: B+
Creatures (18)
- 1 Archangel Avacyn
- 4 Thraben Inspector
- 2 Pia Nalaar
- 4 Scrapheap Scrounger
- 4 Toolcraft Exemplar
- 2 Walking Ballista
- 1 Glorybringer
Planeswalkers (4)
Lands (24)
Spells (14)
Even if you may want it to, Mardu Vehicles just won’t go away. This is the most important archetype in the format for knowing your deck inside and out because of the sheer number of different cards you can play or angles you can attack an opponent. This makes Mardu Vehicles, in my opinion, the most difficult deck in Standard to play with or play against, and will reward the best players with it accordingly.
Mardu Vehicles Final Grade: B
Creatures (25)
- 4 Thraben Inspector
- 2 Cataclysmic Gearhulk
- 3 Angel of Invention
- 4 Glint-Nest Crane
- 4 Minister of Inquiries
- 4 Walking Ballista
- 4 Champion of Wits
Lands (25)
Spells (10)
Creatures (27)
- 4 Insolent Neonate
- 1 Mausoleum Wanderer
- 4 Angel of Invention
- 3 Glint-Nest Crane
- 4 Minister of Inquiries
- 3 Trophy Mage
- 4 Walking Ballista
- 4 Champion of Wits
Lands (23)
Spells (10)
Although it didn’t have a Top 8 appearance, God-Pharaoh’s Gift decks littered the Top 32 of Grand Prix Denver a couple of weekends ago. The most popular version was Jeskai, and I expect it to be one of the most-played decks this weekend as it is just a little under the radar. Although the entire gameplan of the deck is to get a single seven-mana artifact onto the battlefield, it’s actually a more difficult deck to play against than people realize, and it’s a good choice to leverage play skill. With that being said, the deck can fold to some severe hate cards if your opponents are ready for you, and as with most every other dec,k beating both Ramunap Red and Temur Energy can be troublesome. U/W looks to be a downgrade over playing Jeskai at this point.
Jeskai God-Pharaoh’s Gift Final Grade: B+
U/W God-Pharaoh’s Gift Final Grade: B-
Creatures (7)
Planeswalkers (1)
Lands (27)
Spells (25)
Creatures (7)
Planeswalkers (2)
Lands (26)
Spells (25)
- 3 Kozilek's Return
- 4 Weirding Wood
- 2 Fumigate
- 1 Spring
- 4 Gift of Paradise
- 4 Abrade
- 4 Hour of Promise
- 3 Hour of Devastation
Sideboard
I think Ramp decks will be somewhat popular at the Grand Prix, but I don’t think any of them will do well. The decks are too inconsistent to compete with Temur Energy throughout a long tournament and way too slow for Ramunap Red. Although G/R Ramp is the most popular version, playing Gift of Paradise and Weirding Wood can allow the deck to stretch into all five colors. Regal Caracal is a great card against Ramunap Red, but casting it on turn 4 without doing much before that still won’t be enough to win the matchup.
G/R Ramp Final Grade: C-
Five-Color Ramp Final Grade: C
Creatures (24)
- 2 Tireless Tracker
- 4 Longtusk Cub
- 4 Voltaic Brawler
- 4 Bristling Hydra
- 4 Servant of the Conduit
- 2 Greenbelt Rampager
- 2 Glorybringer
- 2 Rhonas the Indomitable
Lands (22)
Spells (14)
Before Hour of Devastation came out, the last time Temur Energy was on top of the metagame, one of the best ways to fight it was to go underneath it with G/R Aggro. Looks like we are back to there again, with Blossoming Defense leading the way once more. Hashep Oasis is the only card in this deck from Hour of Devastation, but it can help give the deck some extra reach. If the Ramunap Red matchup is favorable, or even winnable a decent amount of the time, I like this deck as a way to beat Temur Energy as well as the larger decks in the format. Curving out round after round with this kind of deck isn’t the easiest thing, however.
G/R Aggro Final Grade: A-
Creatures (21)
- 1 Kalitas, Traitor of Ghet
- 4 Thraben Inspector
- 4 Lone Rider
- 4 Glory-Bound Initiate
- 4 Crested Sunmare
- 4 Sunscourge Champion
Planeswalkers (4)
Lands (18)
Spells (17)
- 7 Plains
- 1 Declaration in Stone
- 1 Anguished Unmaking
- 2 Authority of the Consuls
- 4 Fatal Push
- 2 Aethersphere Harvester
Sideboard
I’ve been playing this deck through some leagues recently and I’ve been surprised at its power level. First of all, it has a wonderful Ramunap Red matchup, which is a great place to be heading into the weekend. Crested Sunmare’s stock couldn’t be higher, with most removal spells being damage-based or Fatal Push and Grasp of Darkness, and having two Crested Sunmares on the battlefield is almost impossible for any deck to beat.
Solemnity out of the sideboard is much better against Temur Energy than I initially thought it would be, and I have won games against Temur Energy that I had no business being in after missing many land drops only because of Solemnity. Anguished Unmaking answers any threat with hardly a drawback; I wouldn’t mind seeing some more of that card in the maindeck. Control and Ramp matchups are going to be tough, but if you want to beat the aggressive decks of the format, this is a good choice.
W/B Sunmare Final Grade: B+
Creatures (12)
- 2 Kalitas, Traitor of Ghet
- 2 Goblin Dark-Dwellers
- 1 Gonti, Lord of Luxury
- 1 Noxious Gearhulk
- 4 Gifted Aetherborn
- 1 Glorybringer
- 1 The Scorpion God
Planeswalkers (7)
Lands (26)
Spells (15)
I’m finishing up with the deck I know the least about but am very intrigued by, B/R Control. There’s a lot going on with this list, but both black and red have access to powerful midrange threats and efficient answers, so I can see the appeal. I would be worried about having minimal deck manipulation and drawing the wrong part of the deck against the wrong opponent, but this deck seems to have the tools to match up against anything. Consistency is going to be a big challenge with a mana curve this high.
B/R Control Final Grade: C
What a wonderful, wide-open Standard, and this wasn’t even every deck in the format. We definitely have Temur Energy as the heavy-favorite this weekend, with Ramunap Red close behind it. I kind of like the odds of the rest of the decks, and could see a deck that has a good matchup against the top two taking it down. No matter what, this is going to be one fun Grand Prix and I hope to see you all there!