As January comes to a close, it’s time to start looking forward to the new Modern. Kaldheim hits shelves next Friday, and while its impact on Modern will be muted, there will be new brews and deck adjustments which will cause some turbulence. The only question is whether there will be a major change, either from a […]

It’s the end of June. Normally that wouldn’t feel weird to say, but this is a rather unusual year. Where has it gone, and simultaneously why does it feel like it never goes at all? Without paper events as a guide and work disrupted, time is losing meaning to me. Fortunately, I keep being reminded of […]

Another event-filled weekend, another data dump, another chance for Modern to adapt and contain the arisen menace. It may not be likely, but as someone locked into making the trip to GP Las Vegas, I feel the need to hope. Barring a sudden abandonment of Hogaak, Arisen Necropolis in Birmingham, I was also hoping against […]

This is an odd feeling for me. For all its flaws, the PPTQ system meant that grinders like me always had competitive level events to grind and keep our skills sharp. The MCQ system is functionally the same as the old PTQ system, which means very few events and very spread out. Since I’m a […]

It’s been an interesting week for Modern players. Not only has an entire supplemental product targeted at us been revealed, but there was also a Modern Grand Prix, with SCG Regionals and a three-GP  month coming up. It’s a good time to be invested in and covering Magic’s best format. Today, we’ll see how the spoiled […]

Testing with Ravnica Allegiance has been fruitful. For the most part, the cards that looked good enough for Modern have been. A few cards have even exceeded expectations. Most of the time in Modern, it’s correct to only play the very best card for the job. Raw card power makes up for a variety of […]

Happy New Year! Here’s to another year of Modern here on the Nexus. Hopefully you’ve enjoyed the holiday break as much as I have, but it’s time to get back to work and decipher the upcoming set release. Wizards decided to give us an early Christmas present with Ravinica Allegiance spoilers right before everyone disappeared for […]

The competitive drive always burns, no matter how many setbacks I suffer. After all, what’s the point in doing anything unless you strive to improve and grow? So, it’s once more into the breach for the last PPTQ. I failed to win a PPTQ this year, but that didn’t mean giving up on making the […]

Every player has their own biases and preferences when it comes to deck selection. There’s nothing wrong with playing to strengths, and it is important to remember that Magic is a game. You have more fun playing something you enjoy. However, this goes both ways, and you can dislike a deck for less-than-rational reasons. I have […]

And so, the season comes to a close. While I didn’t get there, I can’t say that this season was a complete bust. As a consummate grinder, the near misses just fuel the competitive fire and are a stark reminder to keep pushing myself. In the meantime, Guilds of Ravnica spoilers roll on. While there are […]

I definitely peaked too soon. There’s no possible way to follow up to last week’s Jurassic Park intro and not look pale in comparison. I can’t even go for the ironic method of pointing out this out, I’ve done that before. My remaining option is to just awkwardly forge ahead and feel relief that the qualification system […]

The article must always have an introduction, and it has to be fresh: the essence of column writing. The short version is you have to draw in the reader’s attention with something new, but that’s a big ask. You have this article series which has a repeating topic area but each article’s content never repeats […]

Another week, another failures to qualify. Yes, plural. Spoiler alert: I didn’t win either PPTQ last weekend. Fortunately, there are still plenty of chances ahead. And more opportunities to find novel introductions for this series. In lighter news, Spirits had a very good weekend. The fact that SCG Baltimore was won by UW Spirits while […]