The Future

On Friday, at about 2pm EST, StarCityGames made some incredible announcements. The new Grand
Prix style structure to Opens are, in a word, amazing. As I was on the way to SCG Richmond with Andy Boswell, we discussed how preparation for these new
events will change. You know you’re in the perfect kind of competitive company when the first thing that comes up in response to all these changes is
strategy and preparation-related subjects.

One of the first things I noticed about the new structure is the shift toward the Standard format. This makes things much easier for my preparation
process. Instead of concurrently focusing on two different formats, potentially cutting time on one of them while also balancing things outside of Magic, I
can invest a large amount of time on the format for that main event, then spend extra time before the event (and any time I may have if I get knocked out
on day one) preparing for either Legacy or Modern. This makes things so much more flexible and streamlined for the Magic player that also has a busy
weekday schedule. The other major boon to the new system are byes. The Players’ Championship leaderboard matters more than ever, and if it didn’t feel like
every match of Magic mattered before for us, it absolutely feels like it now. Those IQs are even more important. The Invitational is that much more
crucial. We’re going to scratch and claw for each and every single point we can get. It’s a super tough grind, and that’s awesome to both participate and
watch.

Speaking of the Invitational, the change to the structure and the removal of byes completely changes things as well. Paying out to top 64, as well as
upping the point count, gives more players incentive to stick around for that Saturday. The increase in points distributed is huge, and it’ll be more
important than ever to go to as many Invitationals as possible. It’s also great for the player that are just getting into the Open Series circuit, the
player that gets their first invite and makes a deep run.

Many have expressed the lack of Legacy Opens, when in fact, there are more Legacy events than before. With three Open weekends, along with a Premier IQ
every Sunday, Legacy players aren’t short of action on the weekend. For those that are saying they should have more Legacy Opens, there’s only one solution
to that:

Show up.

If you really want more Legacy Opens, then show up to the ones that are being hosted. Back up that claim, and make the ones we do have massive. If you love
Legacy so much, then prove it. You did it at the Grand Prix, and you can do it at these Opens. Plain and simple. Standard is the most popular format by a
country mile, so get used to it. Legacy is an awesome format, and the amount of players claiming the death knell is outrageous. There’s a pretty good
chance that they know exactly what they’re doing, and I have complete trust that the Open Series circuit is going to get even better.

Another boon is the ability to choose if you want to play Legacy or Modern if you don’t make day two. Before, we basically had little reason to play in the
Premier IQs because the Legacy Open is just better. Since they’re both Premier IQs, one can play in the format they prefer, and not feel like they’re
losing anything by doing so (unless one doesn’t worry about such things). I personally feel much more comfortable playing Modern than Legacy, so I’ll be
more inclined to play the Modern Premier IQs.

With a two-day system, one’s approach is drastically changed. Do you focus more on the “all-in” mentality, building to either spike the tournament or 0-3,
or do you build more for consistency, trying to make day two as often as possible? It depends on a lot of things. In my case, I’d prefer to make a
consistent top 64 or 32 and keep the points flowing. The format also matters as well. If Legacy or Modern isn’t your thing, then jamming a high risk, high
reward deck may be more favorable for you.

But enough about the future, let’s talk about this weekend.

I ran the gauntlet in Richmond, playing against Chris VanMeter in round one, Brian Braun-Duin in round four, Danny Jessup in round five, and a slew of U/W
Heroic, Mardu, and Abzan.

My weapon of choice was not Savage Knuckleblade this time, but Fated Conflagration:

R/G Monsters

Anthony Lowry

Test deck on 11-24-2014

Standard

Creatures (26)

Planeswalkers (4)

Lands (23)

Spells (7)

Sideboard

Brad Nelson mentioned in his article last week that a big problem with Monsters
was its lack of ways to kill things efficiently. Fated Conflagration is the way to go. Yes, you do have to make concessions, like locking into a large
number of Courser of Kruphix and playing multiple Mana Confluence, but the payoff is so high you’re going to gain a huge advantage when you hit the big
threat.

What I really want you to take away from this decklist in general is to not be afraid of change. I spent a long time debating on if Temur was the right
call, and I ultimately opted against it. We’re at the point in Standard where you can’t afford to fight with your own deck, so things like mana issues,
clunky draws, and being too reactive are going to get you killed. There are very few slingshot effects in the format, so if you fall behind from your own
deck’s behavior, then you’ll get pounced on. Stability is the key right now, and Temur doesn’t have that. It never did. When you’re specializing in an
archetype, don’t fall into the trap of playing the same thing every tournament. I almost never play the same deck in a different tournament, because I want
to be ahead of what everyone else is doing. If you specialize in Monsters decks, then be willing to jam R/G one week, Temur another week, and Green
Devotion the next, for example. If you’re an attrition-based midrange player, then go with Abzan one week, and Mardu another week. Keep your range as open
as possible, and don’t be stubborn.

SCG Atlanta is this week, and if the top 8 of the Open in Richmond is any indicator, then it’s going to be an interesting couple of weeks. The format has
so many powerful decks, and it’s important to know where each version of your archetype is strong so you can better position yourself in a given
tournament. No two events are ever the same, so why do the same thing?

Here’s what I’d play next week:

G/R Devotion

Anthony Lowry

Test deck on 11-24-2014

Standard

Creatures (28)

Planeswalkers (4)

Lands (23)

Spells (5)

Sideboard

If Monsters continues to do well, then I want to be even more explosive, and this is how I want to do it. I prefer red over black because of said
explosiveness, and maindeck Hornet Nest is a great way to keep the ground in check. Hopefully we can do well with this for the IQs coming up, or Atlanta if
I decide to go.

What do you think of the Standard format right now? How do you think the new Open Series structure will change your preparation? Will Standard change more
often or less?