There are lots of exciting tribal themes in Ixalan, but we haven't seen them payoff in a big way in competitive Standard just yet. With Rivals of Ixalan, there are plenty of players who are looking to change that. The key is finding a deck that can beat down the midrange decks while also keeping pace with the Red decks of the format. Sure, the tribes people are most excited about are Merfolk and Dinosaurs, but maybe Vampires is where you really want to be:
Black-White Vampires - Rivals of Ixalan Standard | DrPickleWhip, 5-0 Modern League
- Creatures (26)
- 1 Duskborne Skymarcher
- 2 Elenda, the Dusk Rose
- 3 Mavren Fein, Dusk Apostle
- 4 Adanto Vanguard
- 4 Dusk Legion Zealot
- 4 Legion Lieutenant
- 4 Metallic Mimic
- 4 Skymarcher Aspirant
- Instants (4)
- 4 Fatal Push
- Enchantments (7)
- 3 Radiant Destiny
- 4 Legion's Landing
- Lands (23)
- 5 Swamp
- 6 Plains
- 4 Concealed Courtyard
- 4 Shefet Dunes
- 4 Unclaimed Territory
- Sideboard (15)
- 3 Baffling End
- 2 Cast Out
- 2 Cleansing Ray
- 2 Dusk // Dawn
- 3 Everdawn Champion
- 3 Vampire's Zeal
There's a lot to like about tribal Vampires in this Standard format. Metallic Mimic serves as a backup lord, but Merfolk has access to that as well. The key difference between Vampires and Merfolk is that Vampires have more proactive cards that contribute to staying power, an additional Glorious Anthem in the form of Radiant Destiny, and Fatal Push to keep pace with other creature decks.
The key to Vampire's advantage is Legion's Landing. This card lets you get out of the gates early, gives you a buffer of life against other aggressive decks, and quickly turns into an attrition engine in grindy matchups. Similarly, you have access to both Elenda, the Dusk Rose and Mavren Fein, Dusk Apostle as cards that allow you to play more aggressively and also pull ahead on cards in control matchups or massively swing a race in aggressive matchups.
The strength of this deck is in its flexibility and resiliency. Your cards allow you to play aggressively while also providing the potential to play a more attrition-based game as necessary. If you're looking for an aggressive tribal deck that has the potential of going wide and a strong potential for racing, Vampires just might be what you're looking for.