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Main » Articles » Sullivan Library: Finding the New 5-0s

Sullivan Library: Finding the New 5-0s

Adrian Sullivan
Posted on October 4, 2018
 Reddit

I haven't gone 5-0 with any of my Standard decks. Yet.

Looking at the 26 published 5-0 lists from earlier this week, I was struck by the basic themes:

While a glance at the 26 archetypes published is not wholly definitive, it is notable. As of this writing, there are 174 trophies that have been won in the competitive league, and anyone who has spent any time parsing Wizards of the Coast's published data knows that the 5-0 lists that they publish are a non-representative sampling, because they actively publish lists with the purpose of showcasing diversity as opposed to representing the metagame. As it stands, what we can know is that a lot of duplicates are hidden in here, especially for those decks with straightforward builds.

Here is the rough count on archetypes that were showcased:

  • bg (/x) Midrange ("The Rock"): 6

  • Red Aggro: 3

  • Boros Midrange: 3

  • wg Midrange: 3

  • Boros Aggro: 2

  • uw(/x) Control: 2

  • Green Aggro(/x) ("Stompy"): 2

Singleton decks included Goblins, Blue Curiosity, Grixis Midrange, Dimir Midrange, and White Weenie.

Of these singletons, the Blue Curiosity deck piloted by gazmon48 to a 5-0 sticks out; I haven't been through a single format ever that included the potential to build a deck like this and not given it a go.

For the history-inclined, this archetype has a storied history. Mike Donais is the progenitor of the original deck, which he called "George"; piloted by two-time Canadian National Champion Gary Krakower, it took down Grand Prix Austin in 1998. My, how time flies!

George | Tempest Block Constructed | Gary Krakower, 1st Grand Prix Austin 1998

This deck was an absolute monster when it emerged in Tempest Block Constructed, a format dominated by midrange decks and a few control decks. This historically precedent makes me feel like the moment could be rife for Curiosity (or Curious Obsession, as the case may be).

Here is gazmon48's 5-0 list:

Curious George | Guilds of Ravnica Standard | gazmon48, 5-0 Competitive Standard League 10-1-2018

There are several things I love about this deck. One of the first is its decision to just say, "Oh, well" to Goblin Chainwhirler. The older versions of the deck didn't run Mist-Cloaked Herald because of the alternative, Slither Blade. While vulnerable to the card, having a Curious Obsession going to work as soon as possible is very important, so, perhaps a necessary evil.

There are a few cards I'm not wildly excited about. Spell Pierce has been, in my experience, mostly bad in the main deck, though I like it against the much slower true control decks with sufficient targets. On the other hand, Dive Down has been largely incredible. In a similar vein, I've been very happy with Opt, and found Chart a Course deeply underwhelming.

Here is my version; I haven't piloted this through a league, but I've played it in person and played my older version in many, many leagues from the previous Standard, to some success.

Curious George | Guilds of Ravnica Standard | Adrian Sullivan

I'm very happy with the main deck. Storm Fleet Aerialist has been in and out of the list (typically replacing some other creature) and I think it might have a home, but I haven't fully worked out where. The singleton Mystic Archaeologist has been excellent, and I'm much happier with it than I was with Chart a Course, which never made me happy. Similarly, I'm happy with 4 Opt, which feel like a stronger Chart a Course, and also helps alleviate the mana issues that sometimes happen and can kill a deck like this.

I'm still not 100% sure about Diamond Mare in the board. If I were to cut it, I'd immediately fit in another Sleep, and after that the sky is the limit. More Entrancing Melody would be something I'd consider, as would another counterspell or two.

The big surprise for many in the sideboard has been Deep Freeze.

Right now, the Blue decks have a little Phoenix problem. Specifically, Rekindling Phoenix is a damned nightmare. Deep Freeze card has been an excellent solution to that problem, as well as just being a great way to shut down any number of powerful creatures.

Another standout for me is the excellent Boros Aggro deck put forth by anast1997; here is their list:

Boros Aggro | Guilds of Ravnica Standard | anast1997, 5-0 Competitive Standard League 10-1-2018

Frankly, as far as main decks go, I don't know if there is anything here I'd want to change. The deck has an excellent curve, great longevity, and reach. The roughest thing about the list is mana, and at that point you're looking at cards like Boros Guildgate, which are pretty hard to feel justified about.

The sideboard also looks beautiful. Whether it was anast1997 or a friend of theirs, this is about exactly what I'd want to do if I were playing an aggressive deck that had some staying power.

There are a lot of options going on in Standard right now. I'm sure we'll see them all settle out soon, but for now, in these early days of Standard, we're still finding the decks that will be the 5-0s of the format in the future.

- Adrian Sullivan

Follow me on Twitter! @AdrianLSullivan

TAGS articles, standard, metagame, constructed, analysis, decklist, adrian sullivan, sullivan library, 10042018

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