Another deck tech from Pro Tour Ixalan that has gained a lot of followers online was the Blue White Cycling deck. It was piloted by Boussaud Eliott and finished in an outstanding 8-2 record. The MTG decklist after the cut.

Here below is the decklist that my friend Ramon is planning to play for the big Magic: the Gathering event in Cebu this month.

24 LANDS
3 Drowned Catacomb
2 Fetid Pools
4 Glacial Fortress
3 Irrigated Farmland
3 Island
8 Plains
1 Shefet Dunes

25 INSTANTS and SORC.
4 Censor
2 Countervailing Winds
1 Djeru’s Renunciation
3 Farm / Market
1 Forsake the Worldly
3 Fumigate
4 Hieroglyphic Illumination
4 Renewed Faith
3 Settle the Wreckage

12 OTHER SPELLS
2 Abandoned Sarcophagus
4 Cast Out
4 Drake Haven
2 Search for Azcanta

SIDEBOARD
4 Authority of the Consuls
1 Duress
1 Fumigate
2 Ixalan’s Binding
1 Negate
4 Sunscourge Champion
2 The Scarab God

I had piloted Monsters before during the Theros days in Magic: the Gathering Standard with Polukranus and Stormbreath Dragon as the deck’s main superstars. It is a good thing that they are still using the term again, this time with the recent addition of Amonkhet in Standard.

Here is the deck feature of the day and probably the latest version of RG Monsters, featuring Bristling Hydra and Glorybringer.

Maindeck
22 LANDS
4 Aether Hub
6 Forest
4 Game Trail
4 Mountain
4 Sheltered Thicket

24 CREATURES
3 Bristling Hydra
4 Glorybringer
4 Greenbelt Rampager
4 Lambholt Pacifist
3 Prowling Serpopard
3 Rhonas the Indomitable
3 Voltaic Brawler

10 INSTANTS and SORC.
4 Attune with Aether
2 Blossoming Defense
4 Harnessed Lightning

5 OTHER SPELLS
2 Chandra, Torch of Defiance
3 Heart of Kiran

SIDEBOARD
1 Arlinn Kord
1 Bristling Hydra
1 Chandra, Torch of Defiance
1 Lathnu Hellion
3 Magma Spray
1 Manglehorn
2 Nissa, Vital Force
1 Release the Gremlins
1 Rhonas the Indomitable
2 Sweltering Suns
1 Voltaic Brawler

Source

There has been a barrage of Standard deck techs from my good friend Rey, given that Aether Revolt is already been months in the format. One of his creations is a build that gains an advantage by using the cards Decoction Module, Panharmonicon, and creatures that generate energy counters. One of which, Whirling Virtuoso can be set up to generate infinite Thopter tokens.

Here is the first version that he is currently testing.

Deck name: Thopter Overload!!!
Creator: Rey Victor Garin

Creatures (10)
4 Whirling Virtuoso (1RU)
3 Maveric Thopterist (3RU)
3 Shielded Aether Thief (1U)

Artifacts (17)
3 Pacification Array (1)
4 Decoction Module (2)
4 Prophetic Prism (2)
4 Glassblower’s Puzzleknot (2)
1 Panharmonicon (4)
1 Gontis Aether Heart (6)

Instants/Sorceries (9)
3 Whir of invention (XUUU)
3 Reverse Engineer (3UU)
3 Metallic Rebuke (2U)

24 Lands
4 Aether hub
11 Islands
6 Mountains
2 Inventors Fair
1 Sequestered Stash

Blue White Flash edged the competition and other deck archetype as it grabbed the trophy and championship in last weekend’s GP Warsaw in Poland. The deck was piloted by Gabrielius Kaklauskus which he dominated the Top 8 filled with Black Green Delirium and a lone Rakdos Aggro played by Andreas Ganz.

Here below is GP Warsaw’s winning decklist:

Maindeck
6 Island
10 Plains
4 Port Town
4 Prairie Stream
1 Westvale Abbey

4 Archangel Avacyn
4 Reflector Mage
4 Selfless Spirit
4 Spell Queller
2 Thalia, Heretic Cathar
4 Thraben Inspector

1 Declaration in Stone
4 Gideon, Ally of Zendikar
4 Smuggler’s Copter
4 Stasis Snare

Sideboard
1 Bruna, the Fading Light
1 Declaration in Stone
1 Fragmentize
3 Gisela, the Broken Blade
2 Immolating Glare
1 Jace, Unraveler of Secrets
1 Linvala, the Preserver
1 Negate
4 Spell Shrivel

For today’s Standard deck tech was from the recent StarcityGames open last weekend in Atlanta. Remember last time we mentioned Saito’s Blue Red Flyers deck? This version preferred White over Red to open access to powerful White based cards in the current format in the form of Declaration in Stone and Reflector Mage. The deck was played by Hugo Terra and finished 6th place in the tournament.

Here is the decklist:

Maindeck:
2 Bygone Bishop
4 Dimensional Infiltrator
4 Rattlechains
4 Reflector Mage
3 Stratus Dancer

4 Declaration in Stone
2 Invocation of Saint Traft
3 Clash of Wills
2 Essence Flux
4 Spell Shrivel

4 Gideon, Ally of Zendikar

6 Island
6 Plains
3 Evolving Wilds
4 Port Town
4 Prairie Stream
1 Westvale Abbey

Sideboard:
4 Silkwrap
2 Stasis Snare
1 Dispel
2 Hallowed Moonlight
1 Invasive Surgery
3 Negate
2 Secure the Wastes

Oath of the Gatewatch Gameday will be on this coming weekend and I am thinking about a deck that can be built based on our current card pool for the set. So far we have two Standard Tier 1 that are ready to play but then Gameday events are where most of the team members will be playing. I need to think of other deck builds that is competitive and will maximize the use of the cards available. My current deck option is Red White Midrange.

I have posted a decklist before as a Standard suggestion but I think I needed a second version. Hence, the list below.

Creatures
2 Eldrazi Displacer
4 Knight of the White Orchid
3 Linvala, the Preserver
2 Pia and Kiran Nalaar
2 Wingmate Roc

Spells
1 Devour in Flames
2 Mastery of the Unseen
4 Stasis Snare
2 Roast
1 Valorous Stance
4 Chandra, Flamecaller
1 Planar Outburst
3 Silkwrap
2 Secure the Wastes
1 Gideon, Ally of Zendikar
1 Immolating Glare

Lands
3 Windswept Heath
1 Wooded Foothills
3 Wind-Scarred Crag
6 Plains
4 Mountain
4 Needle Spires
4 Battlefield Forge

This build focus more on a longer game approach as I used a playset of Chandra, Flamecaller while controlling the board with spot enchantments and Planar Outburst. She can generate threats on her own, wipe the board if needed and draw you cards. In dire situations, Linvala, the Preserver can you from lethal attacks or burn spells with her 5 lifegain and 3/3 Angel token.

The deck can also go with the straightforward curve with Knight of the White Orchid, displacer, Pia Kiran and Wingmate Roc so you would not worry of stalled hand with just Silkwraps and Stasis Snare with no target. Speaking of the Eldrazi Displacer, it is not that of a solid three-drop as compared to the likes of Anafenza but its late game blink effect can be very beneficial as the rest of your creatures has enter-the-battlefield effects. I actually based this strategy from Craig Wescoe’s writeup of a White blinker Standard deck.

I will be testing this build this week just before Friday if given time for deck construction and playtest with Team M14. For now I needed your opinions, comments and suggestions for the deck’s improvement. Just hit them on the comment box below.

That is a wrap for Red White Midrange and until the next post.

Today’s featured Oath of the Gatewatch Standard deck was from the recent StarcityGames Standard Open which was held in Columbus last weekend. The deck is a Blue Green White or Bant version of Collected Company and was piloted by Andy Ferguson. He finished in 2nd place from the said event.

The decklist below:

Maindeck
4 Bounding Krasis
4 Deathmist Raptor
4 Den Protector
4 Jace, Vryn’s Prodigy
4 Reflector Mage
4 Sylvan Advocate
1 Warden of the First Tree

4 Collected Company
4 Dromoka’s Command
2 Ojutai’s Command

2 Canopy Vista
4 Flooded Strand
2 Forest
1 Island
4 Lumbering Falls
3 Plains
2 Prairie Stream
4 Windswept Heath
1 Wooded Foothills
2 Yavimaya Coast

Sideboard
4 Arashin Cleric
3 Disdainful Stroke
3 Dispel
2 Frost Walker
1 Harbinger of the Tides
1 Silkwrap
1 Valorous Stance

I had my experience facing a three-color Retreat Control deck at one of my previous FNM tournaments. It was a hard matchup if you aren’t fast enough to kill them before they setup the enchantments. So far, Abzan is the best combination of this archetype. Here is a recent version played by Nikolas Carpenter:

Maindeck
3 Blighted Woodland
2 Canopy Vista
5 Forest
2 Plains
3 Shambling Vent
2 Smoldering Marsh
3 Swamp
4 Windswept Heath
4 Wooded Foothills

2 Elvish Visionary
1 Nissa, Vastwood Seer
3 Oblivion Sower

4 Abzan Charm
1 Nissa’s Renewal
3 Painful Truths
1 Planar Outburst
1 Ultimate Price
1 Utter End

1 Quarantine Field
4 Retreat to Emeria
4 Retreat to Hagra
4 Retreat to Kazandu
2 Stasis Snare

Sideboard
2 Gaea’s Revenge
2 Murderous Cut
4 Siege Rhino
2 Stasis Snare
2 Surge of Righteousness
3 Transgress the Mind

Today’s featured Standard Battle for Zendikar deck is slightly altered take on Rakdos Aggro that I previously posted on this blog. The player Christopher Juliano decided to splash a third color, Blue, in order to gain access to the late game gas Treasure Cruise. In case the initial creature assault gets answered, he can then draw into cards like Kolaghan, the Storm’s Fury to finish the game.

Here is the decklist:

Maindeck
4 Bloodstained Mire
8 Mountain
3 Polluted Delta
2 Smoldering Marsh
2 Sunken Hollow
1 Swamp
4 Wooded Foothills

4 Abbot of Keral Keep
3 Forerunner of Slaughter
1 Goblin Heelcutter
2 Kolaghan, the Storm’s Fury
4 Monastery Swiftspear
4 Thunderbreak Regent
3 Zurgo Bellstriker

4 Draconic Roar
3 Exquisite Firecraft
2 Kolaghan’s Command
1 Murderous Cut
2 Treasure Cruise
3 Wild Slash

Sideboard
2 Dispel
3 Duress
1 Foul-Tongue Invocation
1 Ob Nixilis Reignited
1 Outpost Siege
2 Scab-Clan Berserker
4 Self-Inflicted Wound
1 Treasure Cruise

Source

The recent look of the enchantment deck post-Theros block can be found on my previous blog post and with that, let us discuss its potential sideboard build as based on the current Standard metagame. Below is the current sideboard list:

3 Archangel of Tithes
3 Arashin Cleric
1 Hallowed Moonlight
2 Planar Outburst
2 Surge of Righteousness
2 Wingmate Roc
2 Valorous Stance

Vs Abzan Aggro

Dromoka’s command can be a problem here and recently they have removed Hangarback Walker in their lineup. We can have the in-and-outs as the following:

-1 Silkwrap, -1 Citadel Siege, -3 Sigil of the Empty Throne
+2 Planar Outburst, +2 Wingmate Roc, +1 Valorous Stance

Sigil is kind of slow in this matchup and will be replaced by the Roc as we try out aggro them while outburst is for cases where they overcommit on the board. We still have our walker’s tokens and retreat that are not that affected by the sweep spell.

Vs Jeskai Black

They can Negate and Utter End some of our enchantments and can kill off most of our creatures. Mastery and Sigil is your main weapon here for the steady flow of threats. Emeria Shepherd can be useful at times and just cast it when they are below Ojutai’s Command mana. They might board in additional Duress and Negates so we can switch to the creature plan.

-2 Planar Outburst, -2 Citadel Siege, -1 Silkwrap
+3 Archangel of Tithes, +2 Wingmate Roc

Vs Atarka Red

The boarding plan here is pretty much simple as we just cut all of our expensive enchantments and replace them with clerics, Archangels and Surge of Righteousness.

-3 Citadel Siege, -3 Sigil of the Empty Throne, -1 Planar Outburst, -1 Quarantine Field
+3 Archangel of Tithes, +3 Arashin Cleric, +2 Surge of Righteousness

To be continued…

Here is a deck tech and feature from Grand Prix Paris last weekend. The deck is an aggro archetype that abuses the value of the card Collected Company. It was piloted by Yohan Dudognon and he got a perfect 9-0 record on Day One. The decklist after the cut.

Maindeck
4 Frontier Bivouac
4 Mystic Monastery
4 Windswept Heath
2 Forest
2 Plains
2 Yavimaya Coast
3 Mana Confluence
2 Temple of Triumph
1 Temple of Epiphany

4 Fleecemane Lion
3 Seeker of the Way
3 Rattleclaw Mystic
4 Goblin Rabblemaster
4 Savage Knuckleblade
4 Mantis Rider

4 Collected Company
2 Dromoka’s Command
2 Valorous Stance
3 Stoke the Flames
2 Ojutai’s Command
1 Elspeth, Sun’s Champion

Sideboard
1 Dromoka’s Command
1 Ojutai’s Command
3 Disdainful Stroke
2 Negate
1 Treasure Cruise
3 Arashin Cleric
4 Hornet Nest

*article source.

I have been wanting to play Orzhov (B/W) Constellations in Standard since the release of Journey into Nyx and last Saturday I found a list that fits my planned and preferred deck. The deck was posted on Craig Wescoe’s article at the Magic TCG Player website and did a decent 9-3 record at Grand Prix Miami.

Here is the decklist, created by Pro player Seth Manfield:

Maindeck
Creatures [19]
3 Ajani’s Pridemate
2 Athreos, God of Passage
3 Brimaz, King of Oreskos
3 Doomwake Giant
4 Seeker of the Way
4 Underworld Coinsmith

Spells [17]
2 Sorin, Solemn Visitor
2 Banishing Light
3 Citadel Siege
4 Hero’s Downfall
2 Lightform
3 Mastery of the Unseen
1 Thoughtseize

Lands [24]
4 Caves of Koilos
8 Plains
4 Scoured Barrens
3 Swamp
4 Temple of Silence
1 Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth

Sideboard
4 Bloodsoaked Champion
2 End Hostilities
2 Erase
2 Glare of Heresy
1 Mastery of the Unseen
2 Read the Bones
2 Thoughtseize

I just did a few edits on the board like replacing the champions into Nyx-Fleece Ram for the expected aggro-heavy metagame at the local gamestore. I finished 1-2 due to several issues of mana flooding and screw despite the 24 lands which looks like the ideal count for this type of deck. Anyhow, I still enjoyed playing this list and hoping it can have upgraded components from Dragons of Tarkir. We shall see what we can come up with.

Until next post.