Hey, everyone!

Since Magic Origins is about to be released and I’m qualified for the Pro Tour in Vancouver, I took it upon myself to dive headfirst into the new Standard format. So far, it appears that there are quite a few cards that can potentially shake things up:

Whew, that’s a lot of possibilities!

It’s not all fun and games because we need to consider that summer is when Standard has the deepest card pool. Despite all of these cool interactions Magic Origins has provided, only a select few will probably see play in the current environment. That doesn’t mean they will never be played—e just need to wait until there’s a rotation or future cards unlock their true potential.

Spoiler season is a dangerous time to be reading Standard articles if you don’t take them with a grain of salt. You have probably read about countless Standard decks based around tribal synergies, Mono-Black Control, and Nykthos, Shrine to Nyx; the truth is that most of those decks won’t make it on the tournament scene. Standard decks are typically built around good cards instead of specific interactions.

Standard was already very diverse and had plenty of powerful options we can’t forget. Here’s an initial list of competitive Standard decks pre-Origins:

I’m sure I’m still leaving some out, but the point is that there are plenty of strong choices without Origins being legal. If a new deck can exist thanks to cards from Origins, it has to put up a fight against a good chunk of decks from that list.

The first thing we need to do is update the most popular deck: Abzan Control.

Abzan Control ? Dragons of Tarkir Standard | Kyle Boggemes

• Creatures (21)
• 3 Courser of Kruphix
• 4 Deathmist Raptor
• 4 Den Protector
• 4 Satyr Wayfinder
• 4 Siege Rhino
• 2 Tasigur, the Golden Fang

• Planeswalkers (3)
• 1 Ajani, Mentor of Heroes
• 2 Elspeth, Sun's Champion

• Spells (11)
• 2 Hero's Downfall
• 3 Abzan Charm
• 2 Languish
• 4 Thoughtseize

• Lands (25)
• 2 Plains
• 3 Forest
• 4 Llanowar Wastes
• 3 Temple of Silence
• 4 Sandsteppe Citadel
• 4 Temple of Malady
• 4 Windswept Heath
• 1 Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth

• Sideboard (15)
• 3 Drown in Sorrow
• 2 Self-Inflicted Wound
• 4 Ultimate Price
• 2 Duress
• 1 Ajani, Mentor of Heroes
• 1 Sorin, Solemn Visitor
• 2 Dramoka's Command

Buy This Deck

Languish is going to be the most influential card that comes from Magic Origins, and it will be a threat to the potential tribal synergies such as Goblins and Elves. It will also reduce the popularity of Abzan Aggro because Languish will make Abzan Control more popular, and that was not a favorable matchup to start. I have already liked having Languish since Abzan Control can have some slow starts.

I have excluded Nissa, Vastwood Seer from this list because there are only twenty-five lands, and I already have late-game 3-drops in Deathmist Raptor and Den Protector. Nissa is a very good card, but I don’t think she will end up in every green deck.

A card I think becomes better with the new format is Ajani, Mentor of Heroes. Giving your creatures +1+1 counters will be good in the face of an opposing Languish or to play around your own. It’s still a great card for midrange mirrors that make your Deathmist Raptors threatening, and Den Protector can become unblockable in a pinch.

If you play an Abzan deck in an upcoming event, it will be hard to go wrong. It’s very likely a couple versions of Abzan Control put up excellent results at the StarCityGames Open in Chicago that takes place next weekend.

Next up, I’m looking at updating Esper Dragons. Since Dragons of Tarkir has been legal, I have had a lot of success with this deck, and I don’t plan to stop now.

Here’s what I like to begin:

Esper Dragons ? Dragons of Tarkir Standard | Kyle Boggemes

• Creatures (6)
• 1 Dragonlord Silumgar
• 1 Silumgar, the Drifting Death
• 4 Dragonlord Ojutai

• Spells (26)
• 2 Bile Blight
• 2 Dissolve
• 3 Hero's Downfall
• 4 Dig Through Time
• 4 Foul-Tongue Invocation
• 4 Silumgar's Scorn
• 1 Duress
• 2 Languish
• 4 Thoughtseize

• Lands (28)
• 2 Swamp
• 4 Island
• 1 Caves of Koilos
• 1 Temple of Silence
• 3 Haven of the Spirit Dragon
• 4 Dismal Backwater
• 4 Polluted Delta
• 4 Temple of Deceit
• 4 Temple of Enlightenment
• 1 Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth

• Sideboard (15)
• 3 Drown in Sorrow
• 4 Ultimate Price
• 1 Duress
• 2 Silence the Believers
• 2 Tasigur, the Golden Fang
• 1 Dragonlord's Prerogative
• 2 Negate

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This deck looks like a control deck at first, but don’t be fooled. My main game plan is to play three spells that interact with the opponent followed by a Dragonlord Ojutai. The reason I prefer this deck to U/B Control is the ability to beat anyone with a single attack. Seriously, if you’ve never attacked with Ojutai, I highly recommend it.

I like playing Silumgar, the Drifting Death to combine with Languish to kill Siege Rhinos. Also, Dragonlord Silumgar can take some work to protect, so I don’t mind playing only a single copy. I do like playing six Dragons so I can fully make use of the four Silumgar's Scorn and Foul-Tongue Invocation.

The Dragons that require protection are going to be better, as I added a Duress to the main deck to complement the four Thoughtseizes. Since Languish can come down a turn earlier, I thought it would be all right to cut down to two Bile Blights, which is how I made room for the Duress. Since Abzan Control will be able to Languish when you tap out for Ojutai, I need to discard it from that opponent’s hand first. The same is true for Elspeth, Sun's Champion; I can’t ever tap out when Abzan can make 6 mana the next turn.

I have tried U/B as well. I began by relying heavily on Ashiok, Nightmare Weaver, but I was not a fan. I have never been impressed by Ashiok, so don’t be surprised when my control decks pass on them. After some games, I like this version:

U/B Control ? Dragons of Tarkir Standard | Kyle Boggemes

• Creatures (1)
• 1 Silumgar, the Drifting Death

• Planeswalkers (3)
• 1 Ugin, the Spirit Dragon
• 2 Liliana Vess

• Spells (29)
• 3 Clash of Wills
• 4 Bile Blight
• 4 Dig through Time
• 4 Dissolve
• 4 Hero's Downfall
• 2 Thoughtseize
• 3 Divination
• 3 Languish
• 2 Perilous Vault

• Lands (27)
• 5 Swamp
• 6 Island
• 1 Haven of the Spirit Dragon
• 2 Radiant Fountain
• 4 Dismal Backwater
• 4 Polluted Delta
• 4 Temple of Deceit
• 1 Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth

• Sideboard (15)
• 2 Tasigur, the Golden Fang
• 4 Ultimate Price
• 3 Drown in Sorrow
• 1 Negate
• 1 Disdainful Stroke
• 1 Thoughtseize
• 1 Duress
• 2 Silence the Believers

Buy This Deck

At the moment, I like U/B less than Esper Dragons because it lacks the I-win games that Dragonlord Ojutai can generate. This is not an issue in an established format, but Magic Origins being able to create so many new strategies will cause the metagame to be uncertain in the near future.

I like that Clash of Wills is an unconditional counter at 2 mana because I plan on casting a Divination on turn three. A typical U/B Control deck plays twenty-eight lands, but Divination helps me hit my land drops, so I can trim one.

This is yet another deck that can take advantage of Languish. I originally built around Ashiok because I could cast it on turn three and then wipe the board to save it from dying. That nut draw didn’t happen frequently enough to justify building my deck around that interaction. With that being said, Languish is still a hell of a card for a control mage; it means I want to play only two Perilous Vaults since I’m clogged with 4-drops.

Not all of my U/B Control decks play Thoughtseize, but I want more proactive answers when I tap out for Liliana and Divination. It also means I won’t be dead in the water Game 1 versus the mirror with Pearl Lake Ancient.

This is also another list in which I return to my roots by playing a Silumgar, the Drifting Death. It has the same synergies as it does in Esper Dragons, where I can improve the utility of Bile Blight and Languish. It can also return from my graveyard thanks to Liliana’s ultimate and Haven of the Spirit Dragon.

For now, I would avoid this deck, but you can tune it to beat the metagame after the Pro Tour.

Next up, I went off the beaten path with B/G Elves!

This deck doesn’t play either of my two favorite Standard cards (Siege Rhino and Dig Through Time), but Elves know the meaning of value.

B/G Elves ? Magic Origins Standard | Kyle Boggemes

• Creatures (34)
• 1 Reclamation Sage
• 2 Gilt-Leaf Winnower
• 4 Dwynen's Elite
• 4 Elvish Mystic
• 4 Elvish Visionary
• 4 Gnarlroot Trapper
• 4 Shaman of the Pack
• 4 Sylvan Messenger
• 3 Dwynen, Gilt-Leaf Daen
• 4 Nissa, Vastwood Seer

• Spells (4)
• 4 Chord of Calling

• Lands (22)
• 5 Swamp
• 7 Forest
• 1 Mana Confluence
• 4 Llanowar Wastes
• 4 Temple of Malady
• 1 Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth

Buy This Deck

I initially began with a couple copies of Collected Company, but they were quite unexciting. Even though there are twenty-five “hits,” eight of them are mana dorks; this isn’t as impactful as casting Dwynen, Gilt-Leaf Daen or Sylvan Messenger on turn four.

The card I found myself searching for with Chord of Calling the most often was Dwynen, Gilt-Leaf Daen. Without this legend in play, each individual Elf didn’t hit hard enough. There were also games in which I would Chord for a Nissa; I ended most games with seven lands in play, even with just twenty-two lands in the deck. It ensures you have an untapped land on the following turn for your mission-critical 4-drops like Sylvan Messenger and Dwynen.

My initial question was whether four Nissas was too many because she’s a legend, but that was not the case. Since you play anemic creatures like Elvish Visionary and Sylvan Messenger, Nissa is typically the biggest threat you deploy, and she will draw out removal.

Gilt-Leaf Winnower is interesting, and I thought the enters-the-battlefield trigger would be more relevant. I would suggest not being afraid to cast this creature as a 4/3 that must be double-blocked because you might be waiting a long time to get value off it. With that being said, I still think it’s a strong card in a racing situation and can kill Siege Rhino, Dragonlord Ojutai, and Courser of Kruphix.

In my initial testing, what I have learned is that the good decks are still good. New cards that have struck my fancy are Languish, Clash of Wills, and Nissa. Elves did some interesting things, but it wasn’t quite there. I will probably play Esper Dragons or Abzan Control at the SCG Open in Chicago this weekend. It’s hard to go wrong with Siege Rhino or Dig Through Time. Wish me luck!

Thanks for reading,

Kyle