Welcome, fellow wizards! Each week we will analyze the current state of the competitive environment in the world of Magic: The Gathering using data from relevant tournaments or events that have taken place during the last week.
Tiers
This will also serve to consequently update our tier list which we will separate into four tiers:
- Tier 1: The most dominant decks of the moment. This implies the percentage of victories, presence in the meta, and favorable games.
- Tier 2: These will be solid decks with a relevant presence in the meta. A good pilot will probably be able to play one of these archetypes and have a good result in a competitive event. They usually have at least one difficult match against the rest of the archetypes.
- Tier 3: In this tier, we find decks with little presence, but enough to be considered. In addition to their low popularity, they are decks that present two or more complicated matchups against the meta. This prevents them until the release of additional support or a meta shift from standing out. However, players who dedicate themselves to mastering these archetypes usually have the opportunity to obtain good results.
- Silent Performer: Lastly, at the end of the spectrum we find some decks that have little to almost non-presence in the current state of the meta. However, these archetypes may have won or reached the Top 4 in a relevant tournament. The sample size may be too small to represent their real strength.
- Budget: Decks that cost $50 or less and can still compete with an experienced pilot. At least one top in a relevant tournament is needed to be considered. This tier is only for decks that don't have the requirements for being in other tiers.
This meta-report will analyze the top 16 of the last eleven big tournaments from 30/08 to 08/09 2024.
Meta Overview
After the first weeks of Bloomborrow, it is clear who the deck to beat is. Gruul is all over the place and it's punching every other archetype taking more than double top spots than any other deck. Emberheart Challenger, and Manifold Mouse are the main reason Gruul is overperforming.
This archetype has been out there for a long time, but now it's not just another aggressive option for tackling your events; it's the BEST choice if you want to play Aggro.
Nevertheless, with 16 different archetypes having at least 1 Top 16 in these eleven tournaments, the metagame seems healthy, and many options for choosing depending on your playstyle, collection, or budget are viable.
Top 16 Archetypes
- Gruul Aggro: 34
- Dimir Aggro: 20
- Rakdos Aggro: 18
- Domain: 17
- Orzhov Aggro: 16
- Golgari Aggro: 11
- Convoke: 9
- Jeskai Control: 6
- Golgari Lands: 4
- Mono-White Control 4
- Boros Mice: 3
- UW Control: 3
- UW Mentor: 3
- Red Deck Wins: 3
- Boros Control: 2
- Dimir Control: 2
- Abzan Control: 1
- Azorius Artifacts: 1
- Caves: 1
- Dimir Midrange: 1
- Mono Black Aggro: 1
- Orzhov Control: 1
- Rakdos Cruelclaw: 1
- Sultai Emergence: 1
Tier List
| Tier | Archetype |
|---|---|
| Tier 1 | - Gruul Aggro - Dimir Aggro - Rakdos Aggro - Domain |
| Tier 2 | - Orzhov Aggro - Golgari Aggro - Convoke - Jeskai Control - Golgari Lands - Mono White Control - Boros Mice - UW Control - UW Mentor - Red Deck Wins |
| Tier 3 | - Dimir Control - Abzan Control - Dimir Midrange - Mono Black Aggro - Rakdos Control |
| Silent Performer | - Azorius Artifacts - Boros Control - Sultai Emergence |
| Budget | - Caves |
Tier 1
Gruul Aggro
As a Gruul wizard, I couldn't be happier seeing Gruul finally stand out as one of the best decks in this new Bloomborrow Standard metagame.
Certainly, Gruul didn't get 1st place in the eleven tournaments we used as data for this meta-report. However, two 2nd places and many top finishes prove this aggressive deck isn't just the most popular archetype but also a strong force you must consider for your next tournament.
We saw Gruul with Monastery Swiftspear, Questing Druid, and Slickshot Show-Off before. It was a good option, but thanks to Heartfire Hero, Emberheart Challenger, and Manifold Mouse, this color pair has the strength to be at the top.
Dimir Aggro
Dimir Aggro is an archetype that many could foresee as a top-performer deck after Standard's rotation. It's easy to see why; it doesn't play any of Bloomborrow's cards besides Mockingbird. This means that it conserved almost all of its arsenal of amazing creatures like Preacher of the Schism, Sheoldred, the Apocalypse, and Faerie Mastermind.
It would be hard to see this deck falling off Tier 1 soon. Even with the release of Duskmourn, this archetype can't get anywhere but better.
We can even think Dimir is the king of the format over Gruul. One 1st place, three 2nd places, and many tops over the last two weeks are a strong statement.
Rakdos Aggro
Lizards are the overperformer of Bloomborrow's tribes. Comparatively, Mice is also doing great in support of Gruul and as a full thematic deck like Boros. Nevertheless, Lizards has upsides that push them over any other Bloomborrow tribe as a whole deck in this format.
Flamecache Gecko makes me remember Burning-tree Emissary, and how it helps us build a board fast, and when you curve Hired Claw into Flamecache Gecko into another two-drop, the game can get out of control fast.
The main difference between other tribes is Lizards have the best support in previous Standard sets. Mice have Cheeky House-Mouse but Lizards have Laughing Jasper Flint from Outlaws of Thunder Junction. This legendary creature gives us enough gas to keep up the pressure, making the Lizards even stronger in attrition matches.
A 1st place and multiple top 4's makes me think this is just the beginning and we have to be prepared to face (or play) Lizards for a long time to come.
Domain
The survivor archetype of Standard's rotation. Not many thought Domain could survive losing Streets of New Capenna triomes. However, thanks to Fable Passage return, the deck manages to stay alive using this land in combination with Murders at Karlov Manor surveil lands.
The deck doesn't miss Topiary Stomper. We lose a creature, but thanks to Heaped Harvest we don't need double Green mana for searching a land on turn 3. Additionally, this artifact can search for another land when we sacrifice it. Because of it, even hard-casting Atraxa, Grand Unifier is not as hard as it seems.
With many aggressive decks as the most popular choices, Domain could have a great time in the next weeks. This could also make Selesnya or Bant Toxic reappear.
Tier 2
Orzhov Aggro
Orzhov is another archetype we foretold as a strong contender a few months ago. Kevin Anctil and Ulysse Gagnon Paradis were the two cowboys who opted for a Caustic Bronco for a 12-7 record during the OTJ Pro Tour.
Since then, many iterations of Orzhov have appeared. This is due to the high number of good cards in these two colors. Deep-Cavern Bat], [card]Preacher of Schism, Sheoldred, the Apocalypse, and Aclazotz, Deepest Betrayal are an amazing starting point for any Orzhov core.
Now, with the release of Bloomborrow, Zoraline, Cosmos Caller, and Beza, the Bounding Spring became staples in any White or Black-centric decks.
This archetype can be very aggressive when we need to play as the beatdown and hold its ground against slower decks thanks to the end of our curve and its amazing attrition capacity. This makes this deck formidable and a good choice when you expect a diverse metagame.
Golgari Aggro
As the phrase said, "A bad penny always turns up". With this I mean Golgari has always found a way to stay relevant since Wilds of Eldraine.
Similarly to Orzhov, this deck can play as the aggressor or like the midrange deck depending on the situation. It certainly has its ups and downs in terms of popularity. However, its resiliency makes Golgari come back to fight an unstable metagame.
We need to mention Inkeeper's Talent as a good reason for this archetype resurgence. The synergy it has with Sentinel of the Nameless City, Archfieend of the Dross, and Vraska, Betrayal's Sting is strong enough to win many games on its own.
Convoke
Many of us think and I include myself Convoke would have a hard time adapting to the latest Standard rotation. Losing Voldaren Epicure was a strong hit; however, it looks like playing quadruple Yotian Frontliner seems good enough to keep this archetype afloat.
I put Boros and Jeskai together for this meta-report. The differences are small and both are having similar results. Playing Spyglass Siren instead of Voldaren Epicure seems like the best choice, but adding a third color just for this could be a hard decision to make.
We have an amazing mana base in the current Standard state. Going to Jeskai is not hard at all in my opinion. It's up to you.
Jeskai Control
It's important to note how many Mono-White, UW, Boros, and Jeskai Control iterations are out there. Any of these four archetypes has its upsides and downsides over the rest. Nevertheless, the main upside for going Jeskai or Boros is clear; Lightning Helix.
This instant is strong enough to see play in many eternal formats. If that's the case, playing a Red and White deck without it seems odd.
Daisuke Nakamichi and Ryotaro Nakamura finished 1st and 3rd place in The Last Sun 2024 Qualifier in Japan playing a Boros Control list very similar to this Jeskai list from jakobpablo. The second main reason for going to Jeskai is the interaction between Ral, Crackling Wit, and Caretaker's Talent.
This combination is an amazing engine but it takes eight slots and playing many Planeswalkers in an aggressive meta is difficult sometimes. However, Jeskai has enough removal to check every early creature your opponents can throw at you.
Golgari Lands
Another Standard rotation survivor is Aftermath Analyst. Without Streets of New Capenna common lands, many Analyst combos seemed to end.
That wasn't the case. Thank you to Escape Tunnel, Fable Passage, and Pitiless Carnage putting a lot of Land cards in your graveyard is easy. Now, thanks to Iridescent Vinelasher we have a solid win condition to ping our opponents' life as if we were playing Valakut, the Molten Pinnacle
Heaped Harvest competes as one of the best Bloomborrow common cards for Standard play. Thanks to the large amount of mana we can produce, casting Outrageous Robbery or Cruelclaw's Heist and playing our opponents' big threats against them is easy.
Aoki Takuya ended in 1st place in the Hareruya Store Championship with this list, proving that the archetype can navigate through the high amount of Aggro decks and Control strategies and emerge victorious.
Mono White Control
As discussed above in the Jeskai Control section, White-centric Control decks are widely capable of facing the current state of the metagame.
The upside of playing Mono White over other iterations is Frontier Seeker + Fortune, Loyal Steed. Thanks to this combo we can have a great card selection while finding Plains at once.
With Fortune, Loyal Steed we can draw many cards thanks to Caretaker's Talent blinking Novice Inspector, and Beza, the Bounding Spring also generates tokens, making our Class enchantment shine in any circumstance.
It is certainly not the most popular iteration of Control; nevertheless, prophetoffire finished in 3rd place in MTGO Challenge 32 from 06/09, a 55-player tournament, making a strong statement of this iteration's solidity.
Boros Mice
If Red mice are a central part of Gruul Aggro's success, why not play those mice in the company of their White friends?
The reality is that Gruul only plays 3 Green cards in the mainboard. Changing those + Slickshot Show-Off for Cheeky House-Mouse, Flowerfoot Swordmaster, Valley Questcaller, Mabel, Heir to Cragflame, and Get Lost doesn't seem like something that will make Red mice fall from being competitive.
On the contrary; Get Lost is a hard removal Gruul lacks, Valley Questcaller gives us card selection + an anthem effect, just like Mabel, Heir to Cragflame that also creates Cragflame, a legendary equipment powerful enough to make any of our creatures a threat.
It's not a popular choice having many other Aggro decks on the top. However, if White and Red sideboard cards became the best answers to a metagame, Boros Mice could jump to Tier 1.
UW Control
Another flavor for our Control ice cream parlor. You may play No More Lies in Jeskai. However, the rhythm of Jeskai feels different from how we will play UW.
In a more traditional draw-go tempo, UW gives us space for playing not only the best counter in the format but Chrome Host Seedshark and Three Steps Ahead.
Haruki Usui ended in third place in the Hareruya Store Championship. However, playing Tishana's Tidebinder, and Teferi, Temporal Pilgrim as Kinghairy who finished in 8th place during MTGO Challenge 32 from 31/08 is also a great option.
UW Mentor
This archetype is in a curious spot. I think it is undervalued and is one of the strongest decks in the format. However, we need to make something clear. We know Unliscenced Harse is no longer Standard legal, but Rest in Peace and many other graveyard hate cards are.
With that out of the equation, we could check many of these top-tier deck sideboards, and almost none is playing those graveyard hate cards, even with Aftermath Analyst as part of the metagame.
Because of this, playing UW Mentor seems the right choice in some situations as a different approach to tackle the lack of sideboard against the strategy.
With many ways of putting Monastery Mentor in our graveyard on turn 2, reanimating it for one mana thanks to Helping Hand and making some tokens on turn three can put you in a winning position right away.
Red Deck Wins
Lastly, let's talk about Mono Red, a deck that could be one of the best Aggro decks if it were more popular. However, I understand why Gruul or even Boros could be more popular than this archetype.
The Standard mana base is awesome, and playing a second color is almost free and you have better sideboard options. Nevertheless, avoiding those pesky games where you have a bad draw and fall color-screw, is not a bad idea. Degan1 decklist is prove of it.
Finishing on 1st place in a 61-player tournament is not a small feat. Playing four Slickshot Show-Off is always strong; with many good targets for Might of the Meek, killing your opponents before their fourth turn is not that hard.
Tier 3
Dimir Control
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Dimir Midrange
Mono Black Aggro
Rakdos Control
Silent Performer
Azorius Artifacts
Boros Control
Sultai Emergence
Budget
Caves
End Step
The evolution of the new Standard foresees a bright future. With more than 20 viable decks, finding something that fits your game style, budget, or favorite cards is easier than in other closed Standard environments.
There are even more viable archetypes with good results after rotation but without any top appearances during the last two weekends like Orzhov Control. Let's see what happens this weekend. I will keep an eye on it and inform you, dear readers, if there are any relevant changes or spicy new lists during our next meta-report.
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