For the past two weeks I’ve been in Rome, experiencing the city and all its wonders through a roughly six-week study abroad program for architecture. Among many things, my studies have dealt significantly in history, be it the bloody history of Rome’s oft-changing seat of Caesar or the general majestic forces at work in Rome’s […]

Modern is often referred to as a “wide open” format, where deck choice is based more on preference than the “correct metagame choice.” This mentality can at times lead to poor decisions based around pet cards, favorite strategies, or simply stubbornness. It can overwhelm any player looking to prepare for tournaments without a preset idea of […]

So, you want to play Modern? I’ve been hearing a lot of that lately. Standard players have been flocking into the format since the start of Eldrazi Winter. A good number also flocked out when that anomaly was corrected, but quite a few have stuck around and by my observations seem a bit lost. Modern […]

My friend Chaz has a saying about Modern: “The best games I’ve ever played were in Modern; and the worst games I’ve ever played were in Modern.” It makes sense. One the one hand we’re witnessing what is most likely the single-most diverse Magic format of all time, where every possible archetype and play style […]

Look, I get it. Sideboarding isn’t sexy. Even if I throw numbers at you, like the fact that close to 66% of the games you play involve a post-sideboard 75, you’ll still work to perfect that starting 60, then find 15 cards to “fill in” a sideboard and call it a day. I’m guilty of […]

Modern is full of great creatures. A Goyf by any other name is still a Goyf. And yet, no other Modern creature commands as notoriously high a price tag. As of right now, MTGGoldfish’s data lists Tarmogoyf as Modern’s number-one most-played creature. The first time I read Tarmogoyf myself, after a multiple-year Magic hiatus in 2009, I didn’t […]

This week, I feel like branching out. Metagame analysis and decklist discussion is fun and all, but sometimes a change of pace is in order. In Magic, and also just life in general, whenever things get a little too routine, drastic steps are often required. Some individuals get tattoos. Others purchase motorcycles. A few brave […]

A lot happened since Monday morning. At 9:39 AM, Wizards released its April 4 banlist update. About five seconds after 9:39 AM, the Modern community went nuts. While some have criticized aspects of the update, the overwhelming majority of players responded on the scale of cautious optimism to frenzied ecstasy. Surprising no one who lived […]

Two weeks ago, a Christ Kallas article from The Meadery showed up in my newsfeed. “The Complete(ly Serious) Guide to Pre, Post, and Mid Game Social Interactions” lampoons awkward interactions between players by blowing negative stereotypes out of proportion. The article had me laughing out loud, and not because its jokes are funny – they aren’t – but because the “exaggerated” depictions […]

Playing on the Pro Tour, and doing well, was an incredible experience for me. I went 10-6 at PT Battle for Zendikar, a good enough finish to cash. I’ve been thinking a lot about the lessons I learned during my preparation for and play during the PT, and today I’m going to do something different and […]

Last week, we began our discussion on the Theory of Context by examining the principles of interaction that drive individual card playability. From there, we examined the Context of Modern by grouping and analyzing archetypes on a broad level, focusing particularly on the pressures each macro-archetype places on the format as a whole. This week, […]

For those that have been reading my column for the past few months, you might have heard mention of “context” a few times. I’ve become thoroughly convinced that context is the single most important factor that goes into determining everything we see, from decklists to sideboards to tournament winning lists to archetype tier changes and […]