The evolution continues. As we might have already noticed, Standard is currently changing to deal with dominating deck archetypes as in the time of Affinity where certain decks rose to defeat it. It might be of the same level as the current but the same concept of dealing with the deck is still adapted.

The previous domination of Junk Reanimator has been somewhat hosed by fast Naya Blitz decks and main decked hate like Ground Seal in a few of the midrange decks. Our deck feature for today follows that trend – hose various archetypes in today’s Standard.

Here is the list:

Lands
4 Temple Garden
4 Sunpetal Grove
3 Forest
2 Cavern of Souls
10 Plains

Creatures
4 Voice of Resurgence
4 Angel of Jubilation
3 Thalia, Guardian of Thraben
4 Champion of the Parish
4 Loxodon Smiter
4 Dryad Militant
2 Fiend Hunter
4 Mayor of Avabruck/Howlpack Alpha
2 Silverblade Paladin

Spells
1 Ajani, Caller of the Pride
1 Pacifism
2 Faith’s Shield
2 Rancor

The Hate

I’ll start by discussing each card that is somewhat anti a certain deck archetype. Let us start with the Angel of Jubilation. We all know the recent rise of Junk Aristocrats and the dominating Acts deck.

To hinder their shenanigans we need to stick this Angel to the board. Not to mention she can also boost your team with her pseudo Crusade ability.

Next up is Thalia. The Thraben guardian just wreaks havoc on midrange control decks. She delays Farseeks and verdicts, degrades the value of Think Twice on the early turns, and can even beatdown in the process.

Voice of Resurgence is just too good not to include in the list. It somehow devalues counterspells and Azorius charms and also gets a token with sweep or removals.

Loxodon Smiter is the best three drop in the deck, it is uncounterable and deals with discard effects.

Dryad Militant is specifically against Flashback cards of Junk Reanimator & American decks.

The Rest of the Crew

I’ve mostly chosen Humans as the main component of the deck because they always provide a fast clock (as reflected in Naya Blitz) while remaining cheap and easy to cast. Champion of the Parish leads the group, followed by the Mayor of Avabruck which serves as a threat itself once flipped into howlpack.

Other Human choices like Silverblade Paladin & Fiend Hunter serve various purposes to hasten victory. The spells also remained cheap but efficient, in the forms of Rancor, Faith’s Shield, and Pacifism. The lone Ajani probably looked like a random inclusion, but I just want variety in how situational cards work.

The Sideboard

The sideboard will typically reflect cards from today’s Selesnya builds, though only the cheaper ones because we lack Avacyn’s Pilgrim or mana Elves. I am considering cards like Selesnya Charm, additional Fiend Hunter, Rest in Peace, a fourth Thalia, and Unflinching Courage. Also, I think Garruk Relentless is another option for controlling decks. I can also utilize a copy of Grafdigger’s Cage for decks that uses Immortal Servitude.

I think that’s about for the deck. To conclude, the deck somehow reflects Hatebears in Modern but with a ‘standard’ taste. If you are the one that hates commonly popular Standard decks, then I might suggest this deck for you.

Until next time, continue to swing in and win.