With Kaladesh finally released, and week one of new Modern in the books, it’s time to finally transcend the realm of conjecture and speculation and step out into the world of the physical and tangible. Will Kaladesh “shake up” the Modern landscape we’ve become accustomed to over the past few months? Or will it fade […]
featured
I see players agonize a lot about what deck they’re supposed to be playing in Modern. I get asked questions pertaining to what’s good in Modern at the moment, though when it comes to the deck registration sheet, the biggest mistake you can make is not being familiar with the strategy you’re bringing to the […]
If you want to do well in Modern you have to master your deck. Everyone who ever gives advice about improving in Modern says exactly that. There’s no way around it—in the non-rotating formats you are much better off playing one deck every tournament. Higher deck diversity, power level, and complexity mean that raw play skill is insufficient […]
It’s that Friday again: the one where a new set becomes legal. The reception I’ve seen for Kaladesh has been surprisingly divisive, with some panning vehicles and others lauding the cycle of Inventions. For me, excitement surrounding a new set generally has to do with its constructed implications. My major takeaway from the Kaladesh spoilers was that for the […]
With Kaladesh set to come out tomorrow, we are on the eve of a possible shake-up in the Modern landscape. Still, the decklists keep coming, this time in the form of multiple World Cup Magic Qualifier events worldwide! These events are always high-level, as players fight valiantly for the chance to represent their home country […]
A common question I hear people ask is, “Will this card go up in price?” While it’s almost impossible to prove, there are many signs and data points you can use to determine if a card is trending up or down. Sometimes the card doesn’t see a lot of competitive play right now but it is […]
In my opinion, recent sets have done a great job of influencing the Modern format. The two-block model increases the need for flagship cards in individual sets, which lines up with the fact that more Standard-legal cards are making their way into Modern. Some recent additions to the format have been less welcome than others, though I […]
Here it is. The actual data from my investigation into Stoneforge Mystic. After well over 600 matches with my Abzan test decks, I can finally give a decidedly data-driven answer to whether or not Stoneforge deserves its place on the banlist and how it would impact Modern. I tried to be as clinical and scientific […]
Modern is a format with plenty of decks, and many of those decks have multiple names. This problem becomes apparent as we move down the tier list, and rampant at the very bottom. There are many ways to name a deck, and this article explores some of the possibilities. It also introduces a three-level archetype system […]
This week, I want to focus on SCG Orlando. While it’s true that Kaladesh will be out shortly, bringing with it a possible shift in Modern, discounting a whole high-level event’s worth of data due to the fact that the format might change soon sounds a little foolhardy to me. I plan on discussing Kaladesh spoilers […]
A sequence of unfortunate events and matchups quickly killed my ability to put together a good showing at SCG Orlando. I wouldn’t say it was all for naught, however. I got some valuable testing with unorthodox cards and had some of my inclinations validated by other top deck lists. Orlando was also another reminder that […]
I really enjoy Modern as a format. This wasn’t always true, though I think that the format is moving in an increasingly positive direction over time. What I don’t care for is the fact that I can’t express my interest in Modern without somebody feeling the need to remind me why they think it’s a bad […]
The banned list is one of the hot Modern topics whenever a new set is released. Everyone is speculating about what, if anything, will get the ax or be unleashed upon the world. Speculation this time is focused on Infect and/or Dredge taking a hit and Bloodbraid Elf coming off the list. I’m not here […]
