Standard: Updating the Decks that Survive Rotation

Edge of Eternities is here. Although we're already in full swing with previews and spoilers for Marvel's Spider-Man, the current set is Magic: The Gathering's space opera set, which brings a long-awaited Standard rotation, a dozen new features to the format, and a new metagame.

However, simply building a new deck isn't always easy. Whether on Magic Arena or tabletop games, it's natural for players to initially choose to adapt their existing decks with new cards or look for options that rely largely on existing pieces.

In this article, we evaluate what changes can be made to the main Standard archetypes that survive the rotation, considering replacements and challenges they may face with the absence of some core pieces.

Izzet Cauldron

The biggest loss from Izzet Cauldron was Voldaren Thrillseeker as a payoff that offered a near-instant win condition if exiled alongside Vivi Ornitier, and there are two cards we can use to take advantage of Vivi's extra mana with creatures and +1/+1 counters: Draconautics Engineer allows you to create 4/4 dragon tokens, and when we have enough power on the board, we can use the first ability to give creatures Haste and attack for lethal damage.

Another option involves Gingerbrute's ability to be unblocked by creatures without Haste. While this can be a problem on the mirror—the opponent can always activate Engineer to grant Haste to all creatures—its low activation cost can turn your board into an efficient combo-kill.

The mana base loses Shivan Reef, and it will likely be a while before we have Steam Vents, so we're looking to offset this loss with Starting Town to maintain consistency.

Izzet Prowess

Izzet Prowess also needs Starting Town, but it doesn't lose many cards with the rotation: the entire creature and spell structure remains, and even the Edge of Eternities cards for it generally feel like they belong in the Sideboard (Annul) or seem more geared toward Control decks (Consult the Star Charts).

Boros Burn

Monastery Swiftspear is one of the biggest losses for red Aggro, especially now that Heartfire Hero is banned, and the most effective replacement we currently have for Boros Burn is Ghitu Lavarunner, which doesn't offer as aggressive a clock in the early turns but consistently turns into a 2/2 for in this list.

In addition to Boltwave and Burst Lightning, the new set complements the one-mana spell package with Plasma Bolt, which, despite losing the intant-speed bonus to Shock, turns into Chain Lightning if the opponent interacts with one of our creatures during our turn, offering another spell with the potential to deal three damage for one mana.

Gruul Aggro

No card from Edge of Eternities seemed to stand out enough to be an automatic inclusion for Gruul Aggro, except for Stomping Ground, which, along with Starting Town, replaces the dual land package lost with the rotation.

I can imagine some lists looking for cards like Frenzied Baloth, possibly in place of Questing Druid, but the requirement and lack of interaction with the rest of the list make it a questionable maindeck option at the moment.

Mono Green Landfall

Counters are one of the central themes of green in Edge of Eternities; however, Mono-Green Landfall seems so consistent in its current shell that it doesn't seem like there are any cards it needs with the new set to remain viable, at least for the maindeck.

Terrasymbiosis and Meltstrider's Resolve are two tools I consider important for the sideboard, and we can definitely try Frenzied Baloth in the list instead of another creature—perhaps Sazh's Chocobo—but if you already have this deck, at least in Best of One, it already presents itself as good enough for the new season.

Naya Yuna

Naya Yuna loses very little from rotation and gains Seam Rip as a one-mana interaction that better integrates with the archetype's game plan, but at the expense of losing instant-speed interactions with Torch the Tower if we use both in the same slot.

In our list, we're betting on the potential of Get Lost to deal with bigger threats and Seam Rip to resolve the early game, in addition to Stomping Ground increasing the Verges' consistency. We can also include Devastating Onslaught as a one-of-a-kind in the maindeck for explosive interactions with Overlords and/or Summon: Knights of Round, but this card seems like a win-more tool if used in the maindeck than a necessity.

Mono White Tokens

Seam Rip also replaces Lay Down Arms in Mono White Caretaker, whose core shell remains largely in Standard, making it a potentially reliable competitor in the first weeks of the new Metagame.

Two other cards worth trying out in this archetype are Exalted Sunborn and Adagia, Windswept Bastion. Sunborn has essentially the same ability as Elspeth, Storm Slayer of doubling the number of tokens created while acting as a pseudo-Baneslayer Angel, while Adagia can copy Caretaker's Talent or Overlord of the Hauntwoods, and we can easily put enough charge counters on it due to the amount of tokens we create.

Pinnacle Starcage certainly deserves some slots in the Sideboard, and depending on how the format plays out in the coming weeks, cards like Beyond the Quiet could replace Day of Judgment as sweepers.

Azorius Control

The most important addition to the new set for blue decks was Consult the Star Charts, whose ability primarily benefits archetypes like Azorius Control, which can dig deeper with the card as the game goes on and works as a good variant of Memory Deluge.

The sweeper package now includes the aforementioned Beyond the Quiet and Pinnacle Starcage, whose triggers don't exile Seam Rip, unlike what happens in Pioneer with Temporary Lockdown and Portable Hole. In addition, Unravel offers an effective answer to alternative costs like Impending, Warp, Ride's End, and the like, making the card function as two Cryptic Command modes for one less mana.

Lands will be Azorius Control's most difficult challenge: without Adarkar Wastes and Seachrome Coast, the deck will likely slow down even more, at least until the release of Spider-Man, which features Multiversal Passage as a pseudo-Shock Land given the lack of Hallowed Fountain.

Orzhov Slasher

Of all the black-based Midrange combinations currently available, Orzhov probably benefits the most from Edge of Eternities. It gains Godless Shrine to replace Caves of Koilos, Seam Rip for Cut Down — while other colors need to adapt with Stab, Tragic Trajectory or run dragons for Caustic Exhale — and it also gains access to Pinnacle Starcage if necessary.

An Orzhov Midrange is viable, but the combo of Unstoppable Slasher and Bloodletter of Aclazotz seems like the most unfair way for a fair archetype to win games right now, and it also received another tool for the combo with Alpharael, Stonechosen, and the high black mana requirement for Bloodletter makes it much easier to include Archenemy's Charm as an interaction and recursion at the same time.

Dimir Midrange

Dimir Midrange became the best deck in Standard after the bans and loses many tools in terms of interaction and mana base with the rotation. It gains Watery Grave and can also adopt Starting Town to accommodate the changes, but it will need to reconsider all types of removal and counterspells as the Metagame unfolds.

This archetype is essentially an Enduring Curiosity list with flying creatures to generate tons of card advantage while interacting with the opponent, and we try to capitalize on this effect by adding Elegy Acolyte as another enabler that also works with our removal to put more bodies on the board.

Since we expect our opponent to respond to our creatures before they deal damage, and we still have Kaito, Bane of Nightmares's Ninjutsu and Spyglass Siren's tokens, we're betting on Tragic Trajectory as our one-mana spot removal, but we can replace it with Stab if instant-speed interaction matters more than occasionally dealing with anything for one mana.

That's all for today!

If you have any questions, feel free to leave a comment!

Thanks for reading!