Uro, Uro, Uro—that’s all many Modern players are likely to hear these days, in a certain echo of the Oko, Oko, Oko from around this time last year. But there’s plenty more happening under the surface, Modern’s saving grace being a wave of innovation triggered by Scourge of the Skyclaves. The Scourge of Midrange In […]
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Continuing on with article types that have been vanishingly rare this year, it’s time to look at the lessons from a specific tournament. I haven’t done this since February because there just haven’t been any Modern tournaments. Wizards has neglected every other format in order to push Arena. Which means that other competitive formats have been neglected. […]
Alright, now. Everybody exhale. Last week is over. We can all try to grind our way through the rest of the year. We’ve been through enough already. Now it’s time for some lighter fare, especially the kind that used to be my bread and butter. Then, the lockdown rendered then impossible. I am of course […]
Shortly after the card became legal, I ran a piece on Scourge of the Skyclaves that illustrated the many homes it was sure to find (and had already tried out) in Modern. Of those, Rakdos Prowess has risen head-and-shoulders above the rest of the competition, that build now rebranded as Scourge Shadow. Still, as a […]
Happy Election Day, America! May your vote be counted and the voting process as stress-free as mine. Living in a state that’s been all mail-in ballots for years has considerable advantages in a pandemic year. And if not, take heart. At minimum, you won’t be bombarded by annoying, omnipresent, and pleading political advertising for at […]
As October comes to a close, it’s time for me to wrap up my look into the new decks from Zendikar Rising. Admittedly, it’s mostly been a case of deck evolution rather than outright new decks. Even Belcher had a direct predecessor. And that’s a good thing. Modern’s been churning non-stop for over a year. […]
Zendikar Rising has had a notable effect on Modern, but it’s been mostly positive. Whether it’s making Death and Taxes finally viable or shaking up the Prowess decks, the new additions seem to be providing the right incentives without being oppressive. However, one card is drawing ire, mostly by association rather than anything it’s actually […]
Halfway through the month, October seems to be following in September’s footsteps, giving us new decks from the new cards and interesting takes on existing archetypes. Today, we’ll look at developments in ramp, midrange, fish, and combo. Let’s get to it! Come Om, Come All Omnath, Locus of Creation is more than just a Standard […]
I love it when a deck finally comes together. When all the faith is finally rewarded and the years of suffering and disappointment finally pay off. Mostly because it typically happens to decks that move from mediocre to barely viable. Think of Belcher, Ad Nauseam, the good stuff piles, or Ponza; decks that have been […]
October is upon us, which means that it’s time to do another metagame update. Modern continues to chug along in this paperless world. And better for me, Wizards seems to have finally gotten its act together and is regularly reporting results. Ever since I started caring about MTGO, I’ve had to deal with really inconsistent […]
The second half of September 2020 brought us swaths of new decks, as Zendikar Rising did more than its fair share in shaking up the Modern metagame. Today, we’ll explore new combo options and view the myriad directions ramp strategies are starting to take. Kombo Krazy We’ll start with Belcher, a deck that recently received […]
Time waits for no man, as they say, and Magic is the same for all players. Good advice will always be good advice, but relevance is relative. By the same token, Magic players need advice that is relevant to formats as they actually exist. And that must be re-evaluated periodically. The second Beginner’s Guide article […]
A house is not a home, they say, and what is Modern if not a format that houses some of the baddest cards banned from Standard? Well, it’s also got Standard newcomers, be they banned or not. And one among them has had its heart set on turning our beloved format into its own sweet […]
