Field of the Dead is no more. Finally, we can move forward with playing actual games of Magic. Well, after these next couple of paragraphs, anyway.
Regardless of whether you feel Throne of Eldraine Standard benefits from a Field of the Dead ban (it does), it is hard to deny that the last few weeks of Magic discourse has been pretty grating. Ban discussion has been the undercurrent of every single conversation, and the competing interests at play make it impossible to find a resolution to a problematic card that benefits all stakeholders. This leads to anger, tension, and general unpleasantness.
As of this moment, there are people “quitting” Magic because they feel like their investment was invalidated. There are people upset because they don’t feel Wizards of the Coast went far enough and left behind a Standard format warped by powerful green planeswalkers. There are people who feel like they disappointed fans of the game by not delivering a compelling Standard environment.
It’s hard to question the folks who openly campaigned for Field of the Dead’s banning. After all, if something is wrong with the game and we don’t voice displeasure, how is WotC supposed to know its customers are unhappy?
I leaned into the ban talk, and released a video talking about my preemptive expectations for the announcement. I feel bad for my part in accelerating the conversation, but ignoring the decision to move up the Banned and Restricted announcement felt tantamount to burying my head in the sand and pretending the reality of the situation didn’t exist.
I point out all these perspectives to make clear that I understand exactly how the discourse got to where it is, and it’s hard to take anyone to task for their role in the situation. I’d even include WotC in this grant of clemency. The more I think about their job, the more I realize just how impossible it is. In an age where Hearthstone, League of Legends, World of Warcraft, and just about every other ultra-popular game can leverage small buffs and nerfs to tweak their game, Magic is forced to live with cards as printed. Asking a small team to get things perfect on their first shot, without the benefit of public input, is simply unrealistic.
But something must change going forward. I continue to become more interested in the idea of additions to the card pool, rather than subtractions. With some of the “feel-bads” taken out of format adjustment, WotC could take a more active role in shaping the game as they see fit. If adding Field of Ruin to the card pool was a potential solution to Bant Golos, the format adjustment discussion would still exist, but perhaps it would lack some of the vitriol. When each Banned and Restricted announcement feels like a fight for the very existence of the format, its easy to understand how passions are inflamed.
The ban genie is well and truly out of the bottle now. If Oko, Thief of Crowns dominates Mythic Championship VI, expect the ban discussion to begin anew. Hell, it might not have even stopped by the time we reach that event. For my sanity, I’m sitting it out this go-around. I’d encourage you to do the same, and I’d encourage the folks in charge of Magic to take some steps to make that decision easier for all of us.
Now, to the actual Magic.
Embercleave Wins the Title
Creatures (28)
- 2 Kraul Harpooner
- 4 Pelt Collector
- 4 Gruul Spellbreaker
- 3 Skarrgan Hellkite
- 4 Zhur-Taa Goblin
- 3 Paradise Druid
- 4 Questing Beast
- 4 Bonecrusher Giant
Lands (4)
Spells (28)
It would be disrespectful to start this discussion with anyone besides the reigning champion. Javier Dominguez played beautifully, benefitted from good tiebreakers on Day 1 and Day 2, and played Gruul Aggro. Two of these things are the reason he is a champion once more.
Gruul Aggro got obliterated in this tournament. The deck it was designed to target, Bant Golos, was by far the most-played archetype. And still, Gruul Aggro posted an underwhelming 41% win rate. Sometimes, through a combination of incredible skill and good fortune, things can break your way even with a suboptimal deck choice. Such was the case for Javier this past week. Although the sample size was small (eight matches), Gruul Aggro went winless against the three Oko, Thief of Crowns-based decks. Don’t play this deck.
If Embercleave is going to find success, it seems like it’s better off strapped to one of Throne of Eldraine’s Knights, which put up a passable performance against all flavors of Oko decks.
Creatures (28)
- 4 Rotting Regisaur
- 4 Knight of the Ebon Legion
- 4 Inspiring Veteran
- 4 Fervent Champion
- 4 Blacklance Paragon
- 4 Acclaimed Contender
- 4 Rimrock Knight
Lands (19)
Spells (13)
Sideboard
Oko Remains Broke-o
No card looked more dominant this weekend than Oko, Thief of Crowns. Get used to this. In every single format you play. The incredible consistency afforded by the combination of Once Upon a Time and the London mulligan means that Turn 2 Oko should be viewed as the rule, not the exception. More bad news – the only deck presently keeping Simic Food in check was Bant Golos. The additions of white and Disdainful Stroke were necessary evils in a field dominated by the dead. Freed from those shackles, I expect Simic Food to become even more consistent and streamlined. My take:
Creatures (22)
- 4 Hydroid Krasis
- 4 Paradise Druid
- 2 Arboreal Grazer
- 4 Gilded Goose
- 1 Questing Beast
- 4 Wicked Wolf
- 3 Brazen Borrower
Planeswalkers (10)
Lands (9)
With the Disdainful Strokes safely stashed in the sideboard, I’m able to pick up the Brazen Borrowers that many competitors at Mythic Championship V were forced to leave on the bench. I expect the Faerie Rogue to be critical against Esper Dance to gain tempo on their Doom Foretold turn, and as a fine, if temporary, foil to Embercleave. Vivien has proven its worth as the third planeswalker, and with this deck’s potential to slant aggressive, its creature-boosting abilities should be right at home. If I’m investing in maximizing early accelerants, I want to be sure to have the necessary planeswalkers to get paid off on that investment. Vivien is more situational than Oko or Nissa but can still shine in the right spots.
I anticipate Simic Food will function as the Level 0 deck of the format. That being the case, why not look to hard target it?
Going on an Adventure
The Edgewall Innkeeper deck I was high on headed into the Mythic Championship, Golgari Adventures, crashed and burned in somewhat spectacular fashion, thanks in no small part to an abysmal Simic Food matchup. My most recent build of the deck attempts to improve the matchup.
Creatures (27)
- 3 Paradise Druid
- 4 Foulmire Knight
- 2 Order of Midnight
- 4 Lovestruck Beast
- 4 Murderous Rider
- 4 Questing Beast
- 4 Edgewall Innkeeper
- 2 Oakhame Adversary
Planeswalkers (3)
Lands (14)
Spells (16)
Thanks to some top-notch technology from Gerry Thompson in the form of Epic Downfall and Oakhame Adversary, I’ve seen my Simic Food matchup improve quite a bit recently. However, improving from “abysmal” to “unacceptable” is not enough to have me sold. I think the metagame would have to move away from its present Simic focus for me to be comfortable playing a deck with such vulnerability to Wicked Wolf and Veil of Autumn. Thankfully, there’s another Edgewall Innkeeper deck that has a tremendous Simic Food matchup.
Creatures (29)
- 4 Venerated Loxodon
- 2 Flaxen Intruder
- 4 Lovestruck Beast
- 4 Faerie Guidemother
- 4 Questing Beast
- 4 Giant Killer
- 4 Edgewall Innkeeper
- 3 Shepherd of the Flock
Planeswalkers (1)
Lands (5)
Spells (25)
In my experience, Selesnya Adventures boasted a strong matchup against Simic Food and had a rough time almost everywhere else. If Esper Dance is poised for a resurgence, though, I could see Selesnya adding another good matchup to its spread, and then this deck starts to become pretty attractive.
Firing Up Some Inventions
With Field of the Dead now gone, room has opened at the polar end of the format. We need a new way to go big, and no end-game feels bigger than Fae of Wishes plus Fires of Invention.
Planeswalkers (16)
- 1 Liliana, Dreadhorde General
- 4 Teferi, Time Raveler
- 4 Nicol Bolas, Dragon-God
- 3 Narset, Parter of Veils
- 2 Sarkhan the Masterless
- 2 The Royal Scions
Lands (26)
Spells (18)
Creatures (6)
Planeswalkers (12)
Lands (22)
Spells (20)
Hunter Krot’s deck has been on my mind since Zac Allen excitedly described it to me as an Elderspell combo deck. It looks like an approach with real potential, and while Hunter’s list is rough, I wonder if now is the time to give it a second look. Meanwhile, Jeskai Fires just remains one of the cleanest versions of Fires of Inventions around. Your games without Fires are entirely acceptable, and Sarkhan the Masterless allows you the slam the door shut the moment you’ve established control. My biggest fear with both planeswalker-focused lists (and the Cavalier lists, which I think are just a bit worse overall) is that neither seems to hold up particularly well to the disruption backed aggression that Simic Food can create. All these cards are so vulnerable to Disdainful Stroke, and planeswalkers won’t be able to protect themselves from the eventual swarm of Elks and animated lands.
My solution?
Creatures (9)
Planeswalkers (2)
Lands (27)
Spells (22)
Using Gates Ablaze as our sweeper reclaims some important points against Disdainful Stroke, and much like Jeskai Fires, this deck is entirely functional in the absence of its namesake card. Guild Summit plus Fires of Invention loads you up with gas, and even lets you fire off your catch-up spell on the same turn you dump all your untapped Gates into Guild Summit. Once I realized I didn’t have to try to win the game and could just deck myself with Jace, everything came into focus. If, like me, you’re always looking for the next way to go over the top of battlefield-based quagmires, I think Gates might provide the solution.
Doom
Creatures (1)
Planeswalkers (4)
Lands (22)
Spells (33)
When I gave this deck its first moment in the sun on Day 1 of Throne of Eldraine Standard, I played it into an undefined field. When a host of Simic decks maximizing Oko and Wicked Wolf came to the party, I had no idea what to expect.
I farmed those decks all day. With zero copies of Noxious Grasp in my 75. For a brief period, Esper Dance took over the Arena ladder and seem poised to be the format’s villain. None of this came to fruition after my next week’s Fandom win allowed me to introduce Bant Golos to the format. Going long and relying on Doom Foretold to contain the battlefield made zero sense in a format shaped by Field of the Dead. With that limitation lifted, I’m anxious to give Esper Dance another run at things.
Don’t assume this format is already solved. The ripple effects of a Field of the Dead ban are vast, and there exist potential challengers to Oko’s throne. It’s on us the do the work, and it’s got to be done on the battlefield, not on Twitter.