Thursday, November 27th – Five-Color Control players across the world have pondered this question since Shards of Alara hit the shelves: does Cruel Ultimatum belong in Five-Color Control? In the red corner, arguing that Cruel Ultimatum is necessary, we have Chapin. In the blue corner, arguing that the card is overhyped, we have Thompson. Who’s right? Richard investigates…
Wednesday, November 26th – The StarCityGames.com $5000 Standard Open is fast approaching. If you’re looking for something off the beaten path, then Kyle may have the deck for you. He’s updated his popular Elemental build, powering out Horde of Notions on turn 3 for some truly sick starts. Intrigued? Then read on!
Wednesday, November 26th – Last week, Gerry Thompson told us exactly where we’d been going wrong in our thinking about the modern Faeries archetype in Standard. After many calls for his decklists and sideboard strategies in the forums, Gerry steps to the plate and delivers. If you’re looking for a Fae list for the upcoming StarCityGames.com $5000 Standard Open, look no further!
Tuesday, November 25th – The Intro Packs are great introductions to the themes and cards of Shards of Alara, but… you can’t do anything with the contents of one, short of figure out how to improve it before you can play it. It’s not even sixty cards front to back! Dave explores the Grixis and Jund Intro Packs, and suggests improvements to bring them up to the full sixty.
Tuesday, November 25th – At Thermopylae, 300 Spartans stood their ground against 200,000 invading Persians. At California States, 4 Judges stood their ground against nearly 300 invading players. It was 273 to be exact, and it blew most estimates by a hundred…
Tuesday, November 25th – Aggressive options in Standard currently involve Kithkin or Demigods, with little in between. Today, Benjamin Peebles-Mundy, fresh from a surprising Constructed performance with a selection of frankly substandard draft cards, takes a look at a possible Standard Zoo strategy. Could Wild Nacatl beatdown be the missing link in the current metagame? Will it make a mark on the StarCityGames.com $5000 Standard Open? Click here to find out!
Monday, November 24th – The StarCityGames.com $5000 Standard Open approaches, and today’s Innovations sees Patrick Chapin share a couple of fringe strategy ideas for your consideration. He also rounds up his Top 10 articles from this past year…
Friday, November 21st – With results beginning to trickle in, a solid idea of what happened at States is beginning to form our impressions of what we can expect at Worlds in a few weeks. While there is little enough on the PTQ-level front for Standard, there are events like the upcoming StarCityGames.com $5000 Standard Open in Philadelphia at the start of December, and there’s always Friday Night Magic.
Friday, November 21st – Zac Hill makes a temporary move to Premium for this intensely detailed examination of his preparation for Pro Tour: Berlin. Using every email sent between himself, Marijn Lybaert, Frank Karsten, and the rest of his testing team, he recreates the exact conditions they found when preparing for the tournament. Incredible stuff, and not for the faint of heart…
Thursday, November 20th – Now is the time to try something off the beaten path in Standard. Except for those of you within striking distance of the StarCityGames.com $5000 Standard Open in Philadelphia, the rest of us who might want to shuffle up a Standard deck to play will be going down to the local store for Friday Night Magic.
Thursday, November 20th – With the StarCityGames.com $5000 Standard Open fast approaching, Adrian Sullivan investigates the role of the Midrange deck in the current Standard metagame. He deconstructs Brian Kowal’s successful Red/White Midrange Aggro deck, and looks into ways in which we can combat the all-conquering Faerie menace.
Wednesday, November 19th – The StarCityGames.com $5000 Standard Open is approaching fast, and we all need a head-start on the Standard metagame. The current format has been shaped by States, and today’s Down And Dirty sees Kyle investigate some of the stronger and more interesting archetypes on offer…
Wednesday, November 19th – Grand Prix: Atlanta finalist Gerry Thompson lays down the law in today’s One Step Ahead… he tears through a selection of the more successful States decklists and strategies, offering sage advice and expert tips with an acerbic “take it or leave it†wit. With the StarCityGames.com $5000 Standard Open on the horizon, let Gerry guide the way!
Tuesday, November 18th – Dave used up every penny of his Author Rare Budget Account in last week’s article, so this week, he’s presenting decks without any rares at all – and all with potential to actually do well at your local Friday Night Magic.
Tuesday, November 18th – The StarCityGames.com $5000 Standard Open comes to Philadelphia in a few weeks. In preparation, Benjamin Peebles-Mundy looks at a pair of the more unsung strategies blossoming from the recent State Championship tournaments: Bloom Tender Aggro and Planeswalker Control/Combo. If you’re looking for a deck with the element of surprise, look no further!
