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This weekend there was both a Standard GP in Quebec and a Standard MOCS final. If two players were to use the Top 8 of either event as a representation of the format at large, they would come to wildly different conclusions. One Top 8 was flush with Jeskai and featured 24 Jaces. The other was full of Rock decks, and didn't include a single copy of Jace.
This is the winning list from the MOCS:
Abzan
Creatures
4 Anafenza, the Foremost
2 Den Protector
4 Hangarback Walker
4 Siege Rhino
4 Warden of the First Tree
2 Wingmate Roc
Spells
4 Gideon, Ally of Zendikar
2 Silkwrap
4 Abzan Charm
3 Dromoka's Command
1 Murderous Cut
Lands
2 Canopy Vista
4 Flooded Strand
2 Forest
2 Llanowar Wastes
2 Plains
4 Shambling Vent
1 Smoldering Marsh
1 Sunken Hollow
4 Windswept Heath
4 Wooded Foothills
Sideboard
1 Den Protector
1 Wingmate Roc
1 Silkwrap
3 Duress
1 Sorin, Solemn Visitor
2 Surge of Righteousness
2 Tragic Arrogance
2 Transgress the Mind
2 Ultimate Price
Dark Jeskai
Creatures
4 Jace, Vryn's Prodigy
2 Soulfire Grand Master
1 Dragonmaster Outcast
4 Mantis Rider
3 Tasigur, the Golden Fang
Spells
2 Dig Through Time
4 Crackling Doom
3 Fiery Impulse
2 Dispel
3 Ojutai's Command
2 Wild Slash
2 Kolaghan's Command
1 Utter End
Lands
4 Mystic Monastery
1 Nomad Outpost
4 Flooded Strand
4 Polluted Delta
4 Bloodstained Mire
2 Prairie Stream
1 Sunken Hollow
1 Smoldering Marsh
1 Plains
1 Island
2 Mountain
1 Swamp
Sideboard
1 Dragonmaster Outcast
2 Arashin Cleric
2 Duress
1 Felidar Cub
2 Exert Influence
2 Roast
1 Virulent Plague
1 Painful Truths
2 Radiant Flames
1 Negate
The Magic Online metagame is often considered to be slightly ahead of the paper metagame, though interestingly the winning MOCS list is very close to the winning Pro Tour deck. There were two Jace decks in the Top 16 of the MOCS, and five more rounding out the Top 32. There were around twice as many Abzan decks in the Top 32, so it's possible that we're looking at a numbers game more than anything.
While these tournament results beg the question whether Siege Rhino or Mantis Rider are the top dog in Standard, I'm still hopeful that we will continue to see sweet brews like the deck that Jake Mondello used to Top 8 in Quebec.
Eldrazi Ramp
Creatures
4 Jaddi Offshoot
4 Hangarback Walker
2 Dragonlord Atarka
3 Ulamog, the Ceaseless Hunger
Spells
4 Sylvan Scrying
4 Map the Wastes
3 Nissa's Pilgrimage
4 Explosive Vegetation
3 Hedron Archive
4 Ugin, the Spirit Dragon
Lands
14 Forest
1 Mountain
4 Sanctum of Ugin
4 Shrine of the Forsaken Gods
1 Blighted Woodland
1 Haven of the Spirit Dragon
Sideboard
1 Ulamog, the Ceaseless Hunger
4 Seismic Rupture
3 Rending Volley
1 Ruin Processor
2 Whisperwood Elemental
2 Nissa, Vastwood Seer
2 Winds of Qal Sisma
