The January 18 banlist announcement is now a month and a day away. If you play Modern, there’s an excellent chance the inquisitors of the Modern community will scrutinize at least one of your decks. Probably all of them. Since December 1Ā alone, I’ve seen serious ban discussion aimed at Burn, URx Twin, BGx Midrange, Affinity, […]
banlist
Star Wars comes out this week. It’s been hard to think of anything else. If you’re coming for more deep insights then you should probably close the browser now. I was planning on another deep analysis piece like the last two weeks but, well…I couldn’t focus because Star Wars comes out this week. I couldn’t […]
It’s the most wonderful time of the year! The holiday season? Nope. Oath of the Gatewatch spoiler hype and rage? Try again, but you’re getting warmer on the “hype” and “rage” business. With 2015 wrapping up and January 2016 right around the corner, ’tis the season of endless debate, discussion, and delirium about arguably the […]
Recently, the public has been reminded that Modern exists. This has naturally reignited discussionĀ about bannings. GP Pittsburgh featured a lot of fair, powerful decks battling for fame and glory. This was generally fun, exciting, and interesting. GP Pittsburgh also featured Amulet Bloom. This was controversial, upsetting, and bordering on taboo. Parents were covering their childrenās […]
Praise be to Wizards! The 9/28 B&R Announcement went live this morning, yet again demonstrating Wizards is a competent and conservative manager for our beloved format. As in the July 2015 announcement, this is easily one of the best “No Changes” updates we could have asked for. Hopefully Wizards keeps these updates coming because I […]
I don’t remember the last time a “no changes” banlist announcement was met with so much contention and disagreement. Although some players have expressed satisfaction and relief at Wizards’ decision last week, others have done the opposite, questioning Wizards’ understandingĀ of Modern, challenging the banning of some cards and not others, and overall doubting Wizards’ ability […]
An hour ago, Wizards released their 7/13 Banned and Restricted Announcement to an eagerly awaiting Modern community. I’d been refreshing pages for about two hours by that point, so I hope you join me in taking our collective hats off to Wizards as we applaud them for the Announcement’s decision: no changes. I’m not just […]
The most frustrating part about the Modern banlist isn’t always the bans themselves. In fact, I haven’t really disagreed with a ban since Seething Song/Bloodbraid Elf bitĀ the dust back in January 2013. For me, theĀ most frustrating part can beĀ lack of player understanding about Wizards’ banning criteria, and Wizards’ lack of transparency in how they discuss […]
Editor’s Note: This article was originally published on April 1, 2015. As in, this April 1.Ā Modern is broken. I’m a statistician, so you can trust me when I say the numbers prove how screwed the format is. Did you see the attendance at Starcitygames’ Modern event this weekend in Richmond? 178 players?? What, did […]
Wizards came, Wizards saw, and Wizards left the format untouched. The March 23 B&R Announcement is in, with no changes made to Modern. No bans, no unbans, and now almost four months until we start the whole circus over again. All things considered, this was exactly what I expected. Modern Nexus predictions are batting 100% […]
It’s that most wonderful time of the year again: Modern banlist updates. There is no topic in Modern, and arguably no topic in Magic (with one strong contender…), that is so controversial and polarizing as the Modern banlist. Ever since Wizards laid out its vision in two inaugural articles, Modern has been defined by its […]
