TagStandard

Tribal Thriftiness #52 – Shards Has A Lot of Dollar Rares

Read Dave Meeson every week... at StarCityGames.com!
Tuesday, December 23rd – While doing the research for last week’s article, Dave was stunned (stunned!) by the number of Shards rares that were just lingering around in the dollar bin. This week, he picks up a couple to run with.

Feature Article – White Weenie in the Post-Worlds Standard Metagame

Read Feature Articles every week... at StarCityGames.com!
Friday, December 19th – Marijn Lybaert rocked into Day 3 of Worlds in sixth place. An Extended record of 3-2-1 or above would have pushed him into Top 8 play, but it was not to be. Today, he brings us his White Weenie Standard deck, with which he posted a 5-1 record. He also shares a few tips on triple Shards of Alara draft…

Magical Hack – One Day At Worlds

Read Sean McKeown every week... at StarCityGames.com!
Tuesday, December 16th – As I’m writing this, we’ve seen one day of play at Worlds, perhaps the most interesting day for those who like to follow Standard for Friday Night Magic and other local tournaments. We certainly expect the third day of play, focusing on Extended, to have a metagame-shaping impact… either it’ll prove that Elves are at an acceptable power level in the current Extended metagame, or Wizards will break some Elf kneecaps until they do.

One Step Ahead – White/Black Tokens in Standard

Read Gerry Thompson every week... at StarCityGames.com!
Tuesday, December 16th – Newly-promoted Level 6 mage Gerry Thompson stepped away from Five-Color Control for Worlds in order to bust heads with the popular White/Black Token Standard deck. He came away from Day 1 with a solid 5-1 record. Today, he takes us through the deck he played, the build he’d run today, and the sideboarding plans he’d implement for the major players in the field…

Innovations – Another Anatomy of a Control Deck

Read Patrick Chapin every week... at StarCityGames.com!
Tuesday, December 16th – After a sterling start and a 5-1 Standard performance, the wheels fell off Patrick’s Worlds wagon when the field took up the forty-card decks. Today, Patrick brings us the deck he played to 5-1, a Cruel Control build developed by himself, Manuel Bucher, Guillaume Wafo-Tapa, and the Ruels…

Down And Dirty – Decks From The StarCityGames.com $5000 Standard Open

Read Kyle Sanchez every week... at StarCityGames.com!
Wednesday, December 10th – With The StarCityGames.com $5000 Standard Open now in the books, Kyle Sanchez looks at some of the more interesting decks in the Top 16. In his usual acerbic style, he looks at the strengths and weaknesses of the successful builds with an eye on the upcoming Worlds tournament this weekend!

Tribal Thriftiness #50 – Intro Packs and Upgrades 2

Read Dave Meeson every week... at StarCityGames.com!
Wednesday, December 10th – Two weeks ago, we looked at the Grixis and Jund Intro Packs and attempted to bring them up to scale to be playable in today’s Standard – or, at the very least, got them up to 60 cards (using only commons) while still maintaining the goal and plan of the deck and the associated Shard. Today, let’s go through the other three.

Peebles Primers – Combo Elves in Standard

Read Benjamin Peebles-Mundy every week... at StarCityGames.com!
Tuesday, December 9th – For his final edition of Peebles Primers, Benjamin Peebles-Mundy brings us the development of his weapon of choice for the recent StarCityGames.com $5000 Standard Open. While he didn’t quite set the venue alight, he still believes it’s a fine choice in the current metagame. Thanks for all the great articles, BPM!

Magical Hack – Static Versus Dynamic

Read Sean McKeown every Friday... at StarCityGames.com!
Friday, December 5th – As we come into the StarCityGames.com $5000 Weekend in Philadelphia, and the World Championships the following week, we are looking at two Constructed formats of relevance and the powerful question of whether these formats are static or dynamic.

The Magic Show #125 – Back to Basics

Watch Evan Erwin every week... on StarCityGames.com!
Friday, December 5th – Hello everybody, and welcome to another edition of the Magic Show. This week we’re going to talk about Magic and nothing but Magic. No special guests, no frills, nothing but my silly jokes, antics, and opinions on this cardboard crack we call our hobby. Let’s go!

Sullivan Library – Revisiting Elves for Standard

Read Adrian Sullivan every week... at StarCityGames.com!
Friday, December 5th – Tomorrow’s StarCityGames.com $5000 Standard Open promises to set the bar for the Standard metagame come Worlds. While most of the more powerful archetypes, such as Faeries or Five-Color Control, have been well covered, it seems that a lot of eyes have overlooked the reliable old Green/Black Elves. Adrian Sullivan investigates…

One Step Ahead – Combo and Non-Combo Elves in Standard

The StarCityGames.com $5,000 Standard open Comes to Philadelphia!
Wednesday, December 3rd – Combo Elves was by far the standout attraction at the recent Extended Pro Tour in Berlin. While the Standard counterparts are not as powerful as their wise old Extended cousins, they still pack a mean punch. Today, Gerry looks at the archetype and compares it to the regular Green/Black Elf strategy that has traditionally done so well. He also fires off the next volley in the “Cruel Ultimatum or No” battle between himself and Patrick Chapin…

Deconstructing Constructed – Non-Standard Approaches In Standard

The StarCityGames.com $5,000 Standard open Comes to Philadelphia!
Tuesday, December 2nd – If you’re going to the StarCityGames.com $5000 Standard Open in Philly this upcoming weekend and want to play a well-tested, powerful, and proven machine, go ahead and play Faeries. If you want to take a shot at the metagame from a crazy angle that, unfortunately, hasn’t been fully tested yet… you’ve come to the right place!

Feature Article – The Mental Game, Plus A Deck For Standard

The StarCityGames.com $5,000 Standard open Comes to Philadelphia!
Tuesday, December 2nd – It’s no secret that Magic is much more than a mere mathematical game. While a basis in the logic and science behind the game is of paramount importance, the very best players have intangible mental skills that catapult them to success. Manuel Bucher takes a look at some of the fundamental aspects of the mental game, and presents an intriguing rogue deck for the upcoming StarCityGames.com $5000 Standard Open…

Sullivan Library – Standard and Extended Fireside Chat

The StarCityGames.com $5,000 Standard open Comes to Philadelphia!
Friday, November 28th – With Worlds on the horizon, plus the upcoming StarCityGames.com $5K Standard Open, all eyes turn to Standard and Extended. Each format has a particular powerhouse that threatens to overshadow the field… today, Adrian Sullivan discusses what it takes to bring these giants down.