One of my least favorite things in Magic is a stagnant metagame, like the current type II format. Ever since the release of Mirrodin, there has essentially been a three deck metagame: Goblins, Affinity, U/W. Now I know many of you are griping at that statement with things like,"You can't lump Affinity into one deck type it should count as three" etc. But really, Affinity is much like the Rock in Extended - there are a number of different routes you can take, but they all center around a core set of cards and concept.

Problems begin for me when I get bored, and this Standard format has had that effect on me. I've seen enough Goblin Piledrivers, Broodstars, and Akroma's Vengeances that at times I want to scream... that is until I decided to stop complaining and look for answers. Whenever a metagame is this defined, opportunities arise to topple the metagame and that's what I set out to do and I feel I've succeeded with a decent amount of success. My gem was a decklist from Maryland States one that has been greatly overlooked and vastly underestimated.

13 Forest
1 Plains
4 Windswept Heath
4 Wirewood Lodge
4 Wirewood Symbiote
4 Birchlore Rangers
4 Wirewood Herald
4 Wirewood Hivemaster
4 Bloodline Shaman
4 Wellwisher
4 Timberwatch Elf
4 Viridian Shaman
2 Steely Resolve
1 Glissa Sunseeker
1 Elf Replica
1 Elvish Lyrist
1 Caller of the Claw

Sideboard:
3 Worship
4 Troll Ascetic
2 Steely Resolve
2 Caller of the Claw
4 Fecundity

Now many of you have already disengaged from this article because, well,"It's Elves..." But for those of you still with me, let me walk you through a few match-ups. I'll start with the major deck in the metagame... Affinity.

Affinity = 80/20
Many of you will call me a liar to my face, but I swear upon over thirty matches against Affinity, I have lost three. Now players here have something to do with the results I'm sure, and it is a small sample of a little over seventy games, but the results I believe are inline with the weapons Elves has against Affinity.

Viridian Shaman is good. Shaman along with a Wirewood Symbiote is stupid. For those of you keeping score at home, that's one artifact down every turn. However, your artifact destruction doesn't end there, you also have four Elvish Tutors with which to fetch Glissa"Armageddon for you" Sunseeker. Glissa, like the Shaman, is good here, however Glissa along with a Lodge should get you thrown into prison for being a very dirty human being. Kinda like Michael Jackson.

It's only a matter of turns until all your opponents land's will be gone unless they find a Spellbomb fast, but here is where the match-up gets more intriguing. Affinity is much like U/G Madness in it's inability to deal with permanents. Pyrite Spellbomb and Aether Spellbomb, plus counterspells are the only outs Affinity has, and you have way too many permanents that will win the game if left untouched. Bloodline Shaman generates massive card advantage, Wellwisher cannot be raced, Timberwatch flat out ends the game, and Wirewood Hivemaster stops Myr Enforcers from ever dealing combat damage.

Typically the Affinity player is forced to nuke your Symbiotes, as they cannot be left on the board by any means and this leaves them vulnerable to any of the aforementioned elves. This match-up is just that good. Pray you see it all day long and you'll be waltzing into the top 8.

Sideboard: -2 Steely Resolve, -1 Elf Replica, -1 Elvish Lyrist; +1 Caller of the Claw, +3 Troll Ascetic

After board you have to be wary of Pyroclasm and that's the only major change you'll usually face. Troll is very good, as other than Pyroclasm they have no means to deal with him, and if you can regenerate him he's gonna be on the board all game long, reducing their threats effectively to Broodstars.

Goblins/Goblin Bidding = 60/40
This match-up is all about the sideboard. Game 1 you're gonna have a hard time winning, as their removal and Goblin Sharpshooter ruin your day, however if things go well you might have a chance... but probably not.

Sideboard: -4 Viridian Shaman, -1 Elvish Lyrist, -1 Glissa Sunseeker, -1 Caller of the Claw, -1 Elf Replica, -1 Wirewood Symbiote; +3 Worship, +4 Troll Ascetic, +2 Steely Resolve.

Ah, now things are so much better. Basically, you need to draw Worship and win, ether with a Troll or Resolve set to Elf. Goblins has no way around this and eventually you can generate a lethal force, with Timberwatch pumping Insects or Trolls, if Resolve is set to Elf.

Side Note On Steely Resolve
I hear people gripe about how Resolve makes so many cards dead in the deck, but this is just not true. Resolve merely buys you time as you prepare to setup, then you can destroy your own Resolve with Lyrist/Replica and win or just wait longer to kill.

U/W Control = 30/70
Well you consistently beat two-thirds of the Tier One metagame, you had to be expecting this. No matter how hard I've tried, I have been unable to solve this match-up. Board sweepers are bad times for elves, as you need to commit several cards to the board in order to apply any real pressure and Caller is just not good enough when they can Wrath and counter on the same turn, forcing you to leave at least six open every turn. You can steal a few wins with a busted draw or an unanswered Timberwatch, but generally you're in for a rough ride.

Sideboard: -2 Steely Resolve, -1 Glissa, -1 Elvish Lyrist, -1 Replica, - 4 Viridian Shaman, -1 Birchlore Rangers; +4 Troll Ascetic, +4 Fecundity, +2 Caller of the Claw

Now you have some weapons to fight back, as a resolved Fecundity is ridiculous because it triggers on token creatures as well, and your threats are so cheap that you can lay most of what you draw on the following turn while they are tapped out. The downside is that if they generate soldiers, they get to draw as well, but don't let this deter you from laying Fecundity - it is your primary route to victory. Troll is golden, as Wrath is the only board sweeper that actually gets rid of him, as he merely shrugs off both Oblivion Stone and Akroma's Vengeance, and having better access to Caller of the Claw helps out quite a bit as well.

That was just a brief touch on the major decks in the current field. I hope that elves will once again be able to keep their chins up, and receive the attention they deserve. Until then, may you always have three mana open when a Wrath effect comes your way.