I know it's an oversimplification. I know. I know! People played a bunch of different Mono-Red variants. I lost to a Soldiers variant almost every day with almost every deck I ever tried (when will I just sleeve up my own Pious Apprentices?), even on good Event runs. Even amongst the Invoke Despair decks, there were multiple variants - not just Grixis, but a surprisingly coherent and surprisingly, relatively, card advantageous Mono-Black. Some maniacs even tried to level the Cityscape itself.

But all that said?

I felt like The Brothers' War Standard was really, really mostly a dance between two macro archetypes. Invoke Despair in its many incarnations; headlined by Sheoldred, the Apocalypse and sometimes Bladecoil Serpent... Squaring off against Lay Down Arms and the increasingly card advantageous machinery built around it. It was like...

"Wow, this is a really great removal card."

"I'm totally ready to [assemble ] // [play nearly all Plains] to run it."

"Oh look, Standard has a ton of great creatures and / or 187 card drawing that is coincidentally a creature in my [able to make ] // [essentially mono-Plains] mana base. Let's roll!"

Kinda, you know?

So, in a move that should surprise no one, two of the standout strategies that seem to be rearing from early Phyrexia: All Will Be One Standard seem to be variants on the previous Standard's all-important duo.

The Black one is super inventive. Let's look at it first:

Rakdos Atraxa | ONE Standard | Mizl1zzie, 2nd Place MTGO Standard Challenge 2/19/2023

• Creatures (11)
• 3 Sheoldred, the Apocalypse
• 4 Atraxa, Grand Unifier
• 4 Bloodtithe Harvester

• Planeswalkers (1)
• 1 Liliana of the Veil

• Instants (7)
• 2 Abrade
• 2 Go for the Throat
• 3 Big Score

• Sorceries (5)
• 1 Invoke Despair
• 1 Sheoldred's Edict
• 1 Soul Transfer
• 2 Edgar's Awakening

• Enchantments (8)
• 4 Fable of the Mirror-Breaker // Reflection of Kiki-Jiki
• 4 The Cruelty of Gix

• Artifacts (2)
• 2 Reckoner Bankbuster

• Lands (26)
• 1 Mountain
• 6 Swamp
• 1 Sokenzan, Crucible of Defiance
• 1 Takenuma, Abandoned Mire
• 2 Ziatora's Proving Ground
• 3 Xander's Lounge
• 4 Blackcleave Cliffs
• 4 Haunted Ridge
• 4 Sulfurous Springs

• Sideboard (15)
• 3 Duress
• 1 Soul Transfer
• 2 Unlicensed Hearse
• 4 Cut Down
• 2 Jaya, Fiery Negotiator
• 1 Gix's Command
• 2 Brotherhood's End

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In some ways, this Challenge Finals deck by Mizl1zzie is the Black twist on last week's reanimator showcase, albeit a less all-in.

However, it has 80% of the DNA of the previous format's big Black style of efficient card advantage decks. It can get out early with Bloodtithe Harvester on turn two, and like both Rakdos and Grixis variants past, follow up with cross-format All-Star Fable of the Mirror-Breaker // Reflection of Kiki-Jiki on turn three.

If you want to play a completely fair game, Mizl1zzie can do that for you with this deck. Sheoldred certainly doesn't seem fair from the other side of the table, but that's as good a creature to play on turn four as you can get in this format... And for now at least, the deck can still tap all its lands on turn five for Invoke Despair.

... At least once, that is.

You see, while Mizl1zzie's deck can play as relatively traditional Rakdos... It can also go completely sideways into reanimator-ville!

You know that Fable of the Mirror-Breaker you are itching to play on turn three? Its favorite card to discard has got to be Atraxa, Grand Unifier, right? This deck doesn't have The Restoration of Eiganjo // Architect of Restoration like we saw in last week's style, but Blood tokens do a pretty good job of discarding Atraxa. As does this favorite:

Liliana's [+1] is probably her most frequently-used ability. Generally, it's disruptive in function, but can be exploited going either way. A deck with a lot of cheap removal or self-dsicard (e.g. Big Score) can go down to no cards in hand, and create an asymmetry. Or a deck with Reckoner Bankbuster (or, say, something that will immediately draw seven) can create an asymmetry the other way. Essentially stripping an opponent's ability to hold Counterspells, or if you're ahead... You're likely to stay ahead.

In this deck Liliana has an additional function; which is simply to discard Atraxa for one of Standard's key 5-drops:

The Cruelty of Gix was already medium-popular in some Black builds. Sometimes it was the fifth Invoke Despair. Sometimes it was the "fourth" Invoke Despair, just nabbing what was literally the third Invoke Despair but getting a little extra value along the way. In this deck it can play the progressive card advantage game (up to and including finding the one Invoke Despair)... But what it's really about is Chapter Three. This is a reanimation spell for Atraxa, Grand Unifier; plain and simple.

I do like the addition of The Cruelty of Gix runner-up Edgar's Awakening in this deck. Like the more impressive four-of version, Edgar's Awakening can put Atraxa directly in play from the graveyard - draw seven on the way and all - but it has a little extra text in a deck with all those Blood tokens, Fables, Big Scores, and masochistic Planeswalkers.

For you get a little re-buy. Not Plan A - not when you can be busting out the biggest threat in the format for five mana - but a tidy way to recycle early Bloodtithe Harvesters or win a "fair game" attrition fight when trading cards.

I like this version quite a bit. It's less all-in than the Boros variant... Meaning there are fewer crazy nine drops you're never likely to play straight up. And it can play such a passable traditional game the opponent might never know you had a combo Plan A! Really the only weirdo card (other than Atraxa herself) is Big Score; and Big Score really isn't that bad.

Personally, my most played archetype since The Brothers' War debuted was Mono-White Control. I played everything from the early versions with surprise Cathars mixing up combat and turning on Bankbusters, to both Santuary Warden and Steel Sentinel sixes topping up the high end.

I loved how Mono-White could defend itself early with Lay Down Arms but hang with the most card advantageous decks - even Azorius Control variants! - through its sheer density of 187 effects and re-buys. Nearly everything was a good doggie, a Farmhand, or a permanent that generated extra material turn after turn. At first I thought my favorite archetype was going to be phased out in favor of Axtraxa Reanimator variants (today's being just one)...

And then I saw this:

Mono-White | ONE Standard | _Batutinha_, 5-0 MTGO Standard League 2/16/2023

• Creatures (17)
• 2 Elesh Norn, Mother of Machines
• 2 Sanctuary Warden
• 3 Loran of the Third Path
• 3 Serra Paragon
• 3 Spirited Companion
• 4 Ambitious Farmhand // Seasoned Cathar

• Planeswalkers (5)
• 2 Elspeth Resplendent
• 3 The Eternal Wanderer

• Instants (1)
• 1 Fateful Absence

• Sorceries (3)
• 3 Lay Down Arms

• Enchantments (8)
• 1 The Restoration of Eiganjo // Architect of Restoration
• 3 Ossification
• 4 Wedding Announcement

• Artifacts (3)
• 3 Reckoner Bankbuster

• Lands (23)
• 16 Plains
• 1 Eiganjo, Seat of the Empire
• 2 Mirrex
• 4 Roadside Reliquary

• Sideboard (15)
• 2 Fateful Absence
• 1 Sunset Revelry
• 2 Farewell
• 2 Depopulate
• 1 Sanctuary Warden
• 1 Destroy Evil
• 3 Temporary Lockdown
• 3 Phyrexian Vindicator

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In a sense _Batutinha_'s build is a de-evolution from what we saw over The Brothers' War. By the end I swore by Steel Seraph. It just beat Black decks like clockwork, especially in concert with Serra Paragon. Was there a good enough reason to go back to Sanctuary Warden as White's big six?

It turns out that an even bigger five might give us a definitive answer on that.

If you haven't played the new Elesh Norn yet... She's quite a trip. Vigilance too, huh? This card is pushed.

I'm playing even more Spirited Companions in my version than _Batutinha_ did in this 5-0 deck. Not only do I want to max out on two-mana cantrips to hit my land drops, but all the 187 effects become ridiculous in the late game. You can consistently be drawing three or more cards per turn with this deck, thanks to Elesh Norn's ability to double triggers. Spirited Companion has another important function, though.

Adding Ossification to Lay Down Arms gives the Mono-White archetype some important additional defensive deck speed for the Soldiers matchup. In the late game, double exile is obviously unbelievable. It's best against creature tokens but don't look an exiled Sheoldred in the mouth, thanks.

The problem is that Ossification is an enchantment, which can sometimes put you on the wrong side of an Invoke Despair. Spirited Companion helps you out a little bit there, which is why I suggest playing four.

Anyway, the best 5-drop in Standard is everything in every matchup. It's big enough to kill a Haughty Djinn, and often walk away. It doubles draw. It doubles exile. It makes Sanctuary Warden faster and less annoying. You know when you have a Sanctuary Warden with one Shield counter and you have to block? Like the opponent was never going to kill the Warden but you have to give up the counter? You don't have to give up the counter any more because Mama Norn already drew an extra card and made a 1/1 Citizen for you.

Offensively, self-synergistically, Elesh Norn, Mother of Machines is a ferocious addition to Mono-White's arsenal. But that's not even why she's good.

Elesh Norn turns off Brutal Cathar // Moonrage Brute. Take that, stupid Soldiers! She turns off opposing copies of Loran of the Third Path. Most importantly she levels the arms race at the top of the format. Previously Mono-White Control was safely the second most powerful realistic strategy in Standard. I had it as slightly above Grixis, but it's fair to say they were competitive with one another but both woefully behind Cityscape Leveler and Titan of Industry decks.

Today, you have not only folks ramping into those seven and 8 mana 187 creatures, but also a more realistic path to Portal to Phyrexia and the conversation-dominating Atraxa, Grand Unifier. No one is going to pick answers over threats every time, but the fact that you have an answer that can be about as fast as these uber-threats that also enhances your own game plan? It at least makes games competitive; plsu rewards White's consistency in the long run.

I think Elesh Norn is a platinum hit, and Mono-White Control is currently at the top of my list for the upcoming RC as a result.

LOVE

MIKE