TagStandard

From Right Field – You Have Snoo on Your Shirt

Chris Romeo is a nice fella. So nice, in fact, that today sees him create a couple of extreme budget Standard decks that can kick it in the real world! At the request of a fan, Chris runs us through some solid yet cheap deck options, sharing five decks in total. And if this wasn’t enough, he tries to break The New Cheese Stands Alone, a.k.a. Barren Glory! Does he succeed? Read on to find out!

Deep Analysis — Walking Anthems Through The Gauntlet

For the past few weeks, Richard Feldman has been attempting to break Standard. Last week he brought us the exciting Walking Anthems deck. This week, he puts it through its paces against a variety of the format’s top contenders. The verdict? He’s definitely onto something. If you’re looking for a powerful deck that’s a little off the beaten track, and is undefeated in competitive play, then this is the article for you!

The Combat Phase — The Power of Three

Jamie brings us a funky-looking Black/Green deck for Standard that looks to cast one of a multitude of ridiculous three-mana options on turn 2. Hypnotic Specter, Ohran Viper… all the heavy-hitters are here, smashing their disruption into the faces of control players time and again. As usual, Jamie chronicles the games, and his life in Spain, with aplomb and élan. Plus, a story about burn that doesn’t mention a Red spell…

Magical Hack — Hack To The Future, Part II

With the Future Sight Prerelease Weekend beginning tomorrow, Sean McKeown jumps on the Future Sight bandwagon to bring us his impressions of the set… from the future. He shares a couple of mono-colored decklists that harness the power of the Red spells, and talks us through the surprising Top 8 results from Pro Tour: Yokohama.

From Right Field – Born Again Again! The Ritual of Rebirth Precon-Decon, Part 2 (of 2)

When you last left me – you cold, heartless, fickle person, you — I was working on smooshing together two copies of the Ritual of Rebirth precon deck into something that might win you a few matches at your local Saturday Standard tourney. Today, I continue that journey… and what a journey it was!

Deep Analysis — Walking Anthems

Last week, Richard set out on a mighty quest… a journey of self-discovery that would hopefully lead to him breaking Standard with a deck of his own design! He brought us Red Gold, a greedy deckbuilder’s dream. Today, he runs the deck through a tough set of matches against a tournament favorite. And to cap it all, he brings us a fresh new deck.

The Combat Phase – Bringing A Ham Leg To Paris

Now how’s that for an intriguing title! Jamie regales us with his usual mixture of flavor, tech, and good times. Today’s installment of The Combat Phase sees our hero journey to Paris, share an intimate clinch with a man on a scooter, play a myriad of matches on Magic Online, and actually cast Remand. Will these wonders ever cease?

You Lika the Juice? – Mr. Hand, Venser, and Player Rewards Cards

I’d like to start things off by touching on last week’s official Future Sight previews, namely the latest ridiculous Blue wizard Venser, Shaper Savant. The online response seemed mixed, with a majority of people seeming to fall somewhere between “meh” and “ugh.” All I have to say is…

What are you, people? On dope?

Flores Friday – Boros Update, Ghost Whatever Update, Zoo Update

Today’s Flores Friday sees Mike take three of the more popular decks in the current Standard environment and update them for the ever-evolving metagame. Boros, Orzhov, and the ultra-efficient Zoo all receive the Flores treatment, each with one eye on practicality and the other on the prize. If you were one of those players trying to port Raphael Levy’s Gaea’s Might Get There deck from Extended to Standard, then this is the article for you!

Tact or Friction — Drought Project

I looked at the cards I have in my MTGO collection and realized that my simple goal of acquiring four of each common of a set for a bargain price — usually 3-4 tickets — was a good policy, but actually not very doable in real life. Real life players do not necessarily have draft tables to chase, don’t have bots that will spit out cards at a 32/1 rate. These are the players who buy a few boosters, crack them, and gleefully build a collection in the exact opposite way in which you eat a gobstopper.

The Online Outlook #7 — Raising the Standard

After last week’s foray into Time Spiral Block Constructed, it’s time for me to wend my weary way back to the Standard streets. As usual, Magic Online has been awash with Premier Events, and I’ve trawled the Top 8 replays in order to bring you what’s winning and what’s losing. As we’ve nine Top 8s to work through today, I won’t waste your time with any more pointless introduction.

From Right Field – Born Again and Saved! The Ritual of Rebirth Precon-Decon

Chris takes two copies of the Ritual of Rebirth preconstructed deck, and smashes them together in an attempt to fuse a competitive casual deck from the resultant debris. However, this time he’s up against it. Where oh where is the precious removal? Can a deck survive on creatures alone? Or did Chris cave and supply some creature-kill of his very own? Read on to find out!

Deep Analysis — Digging For Red Gold

During Constructed tournament downtimes, such as the current Two-Headed Giant Limited PTQ season, Richard has traditionally retreated to the seclusion of Magic Online for his sixty-card fix. This time, however, he has a mission — to become a better Deck Designer. While he is pleased with his ability to tweak decks, building them from the ground up is currently beyond him. Join him on his journey toward rectifying this deficiency in his game, and see if he can create a deck that breaks Standard wide open!

The Combat Phase — Wakefield, Deck Designer

Jamie is in a contemplative mood this week. In the midst of this, he brings us a plethora of Standard and Extended decks for our perusal. Yes, there are Green cards here… but they are not alone. In his ongoing quest to place himself prominently on the Magical Map, his decks offer promise for anyone looking to try something a little different…

Practice Makes Perfect! A Grand Prix: Kyoto Report *Top 8*

Grand Prix: Kyoto saw a number of new and exciting decks hit the Planar Chaos Standard metagame. One particular deck that raised a few eyebrows was the innovative U/G Urzatron deck packed with morphs and card drawing, created by Constructed specialist Naoki Shimizu. He made the Top 8 that day, after topping the swiss… and here’s his report on the both deck and the tournament!