As the upcoming Magic: the Gathering Standard format rotation is happening, I am taking a look at a few Standard deck archetypes that have somewhat contributed well to our card pool winnings. The deck that I will highlight in today’s blog post is Esper Raffine archetype.

Remembering back then when I first played the deck after Streets of New Capenna was released, I right away saw the potential and power level in the deck gameplay by getting card and board advantage with the Connive mechanic.

With the one-year extension of the Standard format, the deck archetype continued to be at the Tier 1 level performance. It even got our Iloilo Pro Player Mark Tubola to qualify in the LCQ of the recent Regional Championships held in Metro Manila.

As sort of a tribute to the Esper Raffine deck, I am sharing a few MTG Arena videos below of the deck’s gameplay posted on my YouTube channel.

There have been continuous gameplay sessions under the Standard Ranked B03 category of our current Top Tier decks in our Magic: the Gathering Arena account. The purpose is not only for the daily quests but also to grind gold for future card component purchases. 

One of these Standard decks in highlight is the Esper Raffine archetype. This has been consistent in the versatility of its performance right after the major tournament Pro Tour Outlaws of Thunder Junction, and deck adjustments are very well supported with the new cards from the newest set released. We have referenced some decklists on some of the major tournament results posted for MTG Online events. 

So far the deck matchups on MTG Arena were top-finisher decks from the Pro Tour as well as some variance of popular archetypes in the format. Do check out the gameplay videos posted on my YouTube channel below.