Oh, that's easy. Must be Domain (which won the Pro Tour), and Azorius. MichaelJ is always talking about how he won a $2k with Azorius (anyway, afterward it came in second at the Pro Tour). Temur Lands, Slogurk, Boros.

Easy Peasy!

Not so quick, actually. Not a one of those is actually, currently, one of the five most popular decks in Standard!

Care to find out what they are?

1. Mono-Red Aggro

Mono-Red Aggro | OTJ Standard | deleon91, 3rd Place MTGO Standard Challenge 5/26/24

• Creatures (21)
• 1 Goddric, Cloaked Reveler
• 2 Charming Scoundrel
• 2 Feldon, Ronom Excavator
• 4 Bloodthirsty Adversary
• 4 Monastery Swiftspear
• 4 Phoenix Chick
• 4 Squee, Dubious Monarch

• Instants (9)
• 2 Play with Fire
• 3 Lightning Strike
• 4 Witchstalker Frenzy

• Sorceries (3)
• 3 Obliterating Bolt

• Enchantments (4)
• 4 Kumano Faces Kakkazan

• Lands (23)
• 19 Mountain
• 1 Sokenzan, Crucible of Defiance
• 3 Mishra's Foundry

• Sideboard (15)
• 3 End the Festivities
• 2 Furnace Punisher
• 3 Lithomantic Barrage
• 4 Soul-Guide Lantern
• 3 Urabrask's Forge

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The more things change, the more they stay the same, am I right?

Mono-Red has waned, but is now waxing; in part because its greatest predator decks (e.g. my beloved Azorius) are no longer among the most popular decks in the format.

Previously Urabrask's Forge was one of the main-deck features that made Mono-Red so dangerous... But here we see it as a mere three-of out of the Red Deck's sideboard. Part of this is less Control in the format, and part of it - if you look at the spread of opposition - is just the need to block occasionally.

Mono-Red can take a lot of forms, including morphing into a Planeswalker-centered Control deck after sideboarding; right now it's a collection of offensive and generally hasty creatures - including all four copies of Squee, Dubious Monarch - with good removal.

You might expect four copies of Play wIth Fire and Lightning Strike (which go to the face), but deleon91 preferred in this case to lean into the four and five damage creature removal of Obliterating Bolt and Witchstalker Frenzy, rather than fast and flexible face-burn.

My favorite feature of this more recent Red Deck is Furnace Punisher in the sideboard; yet another "good" creature with a particular edge and specialty. Like, in this case, being kind of hard to block.

2. Orzhov Mid-Range

Mono-Red might look a little different; might be a lot more popular; but has kind of always been a known quantity. Not so the most surprising deck we'll look at today... Which wasn't really even in the metagame at the point of the Regional Championships.

Orzhov Midrange | OTJ Standard | Arianne, 2nd Place MTGO Standard Challenge 6/15/24

• Creatures (10)
• 1 Aclazotz, Deepest Betrayal // Temple of the Dead
• 2 Tenacious Underdog
• 3 Graveyard Trespasser // Graveyard Glutton
• 4 Caustic Bronco

• Planeswalkers (7)
• 1 Sorin the Mirthless
• 2 Liliana of the Veil
• 4 The Wandering Emperor

• Instants (7)
• 3 Cut Down
• 4 Go for the Throat

• Sorceries (4)
• 4 Duress

• Enchantments (6)
• 2 Virtue of Loyalty
• 4 Wedding Announcement // Wedding Festivity

• Lands (26)
• 1 Plains
• 4 Swamp
• 1 Eiganjo, Seat of the Empire
• 1 Takenuma, Abandoned Mire
• 2 Mirrex
• 2 Restless Fortress
• 3 Shadowy Backstreet
• 4 Shattered Sanctum
• 4 Caves of Koilos
• 4 Concealed Courtyard

• Sideboard (15)
• 1 Cut Down
• 1 Depopulate
• 1 Get Lost
• 1 Gix's Command
• 2 Hostile Investigator
• 2 Knockout Blow
• 1 Legions to Ashes
• 2 Liliana of the Veil
• 1 Loran of the Third Path
• 2 Temporary Lockdown
• 1 Tocasia's Welcome

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A descendent of "Orzhov Bronco," sure; this deck is Orzhov and plays Caustic Bronco... But trades in the cool combo kill for just a bunch of solid, somewhat unexciting, but thematically reinforcing cards. Philosophically this deck is a Black removal deck with just enough White mana for the best White card in Standard:

The mana in the format is pretty great, so you can apparently just put together all the best removal and life gain to counterbalance Caustic Bronco's un-saddled down side risk. This gets Bronco through and keeps you alive. And races.

I once said Graveyard Trespasser // Graveyard Glutton was the best three mana card in Standard; and that was when Fable of the Mirror-Breaker // Reflection of Kiki-Jiki was still legal! It's hard to kill and great at gaining life.

Joining The Wandering Emperor at the four is Sorin the Mirthless. Sorin's [-2] is a tight little lifelink machine.

And speaking of lifelink machines...

I'm kind of wondering where Sheoldred is, but this deck already has a lot of action at the four.

It's sideboard is much, much, more of the same:

I can't wait to try this deck out myself. It is reminiscent of both of the next two decks, but the twofold foci on removal and life gain (and I guess truly great threats) gives it a unique character.

3. Dimir Mid-Range

Dimir Midrange | FORMAT | digdude13, 7th Place MTGO Standard Challenge 5/26/24

• Creatures (20)
• 1 Aclazotz, Deepest Betrayal // Temple of the Dead
• 1 Ertai Resurrected
• 2 Hostile Investigator
• 2 Tishana's Tidebinder
• 3 Caustic Bronco
• 3 Sheoldred, the Apocalypse
• 4 Faerie Mastermind
• 4 Preacher of the Schism

• Planeswalkers (2)
• 2 Liliana of the Veil

• Instants (10)
• 1 Long Goodbye
• 2 Phantom Interference
• 3 Cut Down
• 4 Go for the Throat

• Sorceries (2)
• 2 Duress

• Lands (26)
• 3 Island
• 3 Swamp
• 1 Otawara, Soaring City
• 1 Takenuma, Abandoned Mire
• 3 Darkslick Shores
• 3 Mirrex
• 4 Restless Reef
• 4 Shipwreck Marsh
• 4 Underground River

• Sideboard (15)
• 1 Aclazotz, Deepest Betrayal // Temple of the Dead
• 1 Blot Out
• 1 Cut Down
• 1 Disdainful Stroke
• 1 Duress
• 1 Gix's Command
• 2 Invasion of Amonkhet // Lazotep Convert
• 3 Path of Peril
• 1 Tishana's Tidebinder
• 3 Unlicensed Hearse

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If you find yourself wondering where the Control went, you might want to check out the third most popular deck in Standard... A strategy that weaves together main-deck Caustic Bronco, the relentless Hostile Investigator, and THREE - count 'em three - copies of Mirrex in the starting sixty.

Dimir Mid-Range in the current incarnation is a top-to-bottom Control killer. Seemingly all its creatures murder Control. Who can you let in? Preacher of the Schism? Faerie Mastermind? Both of these create card advantage asymmetry and are upgrades over cards you might be used to... Like the kinda sorta card advantageous Spyglass Siren.

Just enough Duress and Counterspell action to get down Liliana of the Veil. But you know what's best about it? What's missing!

Many Dimir decks past played a bunch of 1/1 flying creatures with a little oomph. In addition to cutting Spyglass Siren, this deck has not a Deep-Cavern Bat in sight!

Finally, despite having a ton of creatures, this deck can be difficult for Domain to interact with. The average Domain deck can't argue with a Restless Reef very effectively; so it's possible you beat them with just a few land activations. "Go ahead and try to draw ten," you'll say: "I dare you."

4. Esper Mid-Range

Imagine you had a format with a lot of known quantities... But those known quantities shifted such that once popular Control decks slipped by double digits; and combo or Ramp decks (some of which are both combo and Ramp) have become even less popular. How would you approach that Standard? What might you do?

How about bringing the medium-est deck in the format?

The deck that isn't the best at anything... But does a little of everything? Can take on most comers, regardless of where they are in the pecking order... How about Esper Mid-Range?

Esper Midrange | OTJ Standard | TheRatZoo, 4th Place MTGO Standard Challenge 5/26/24

• Creatures (21)
• 1 Aclazotz, Deepest Betrayal // Temple of the Dead
• 1 Aurelia's Vindicator
• 1 Lord Skitter, Sewer King
• 1 Tishana's Tidebinder
• 2 Dennick, Pious Apprentice // Dennick, Pious Apparition
• 3 Preacher of the Schism
• 4 Deep-Cavern Bat
• 4 Faerie Mastermind
• 4 Raffine, Scheming Seer

• Planeswalkers (1)
• 1 The Wandering Emperor

• Instants (10)
• 3 Cut Down
• 3 No More Lies
• 4 Go for the Throat

• Enchantments (2)
• 2 Virtue of Loyalty

• Lands (26)
• 1 Island
• 1 Plains
• 1 Eiganjo, Seat of the Empire
• 1 Otawara, Soaring City
• 1 Seachrome Coast
• 1 Takenuma, Abandoned Mire
• 2 Caves of Koilos
• 2 Raffine's Tower
• 2 Underground River
• 3 Concealed Courtyard
• 3 Shattered Sanctum
• 4 Darkslick Shores
• 4 Restless Anchorage

• Sideboard (15)
• 1 Cut Down
• 2 Destroy Evil
• 2 Disdainful Stroke
• 1 Duress
• 1 Gix's Command
• 1 Long Goodbye
• 1 Negate
• 2 Pest Control
• 2 Rest in Peace
• 1 The Wandering Emperor
• 1 Tishana's Tidebinder

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Like Mono-Red, Esper can be built a number of different ways. Some decks pair Duelist of the Mind with Raffine, Scheming Seer (or trios up with Sheoldred, the Apocalypse). This deck is a little less fancy; though it does play Aurelia's Vindicator.

If you want to have enough Counterspell action to stop a sweeper? This deck has not-quite-four copies of No More Lies. Need some life gain? Dennick, Pious Apprentice // Dennick, Pious Apparition is good enough to be a sideboard card! How about the graveyard? Lord Skitter, Sewer King can fight it - with value - while still attacking and blocking.

You might be asking yourself why to go Esper rather than Orzhov or Dimir. Orzhov is the better life gain deck and Dimir is the better Control killer. Esper can technically play any card in either deck (except, arguably, Dimir's many Mirrexes). So why thread the needle with the more difficult mana base than two decks (both more popular than this one)?

The real answer has to just be Raffine, Scheming Seer; a card that neither Orzhov nor Dimir can quite cast. This oldest school of the trio still plays Deep-Cavern Bat (rather than Caustic Bronco)... But that can be helpful given Raffine's ability to add +1/+1 counters to something.

5. Gruul Aggro

Gruul Aggro | OTJ Standard | solace, 1st Place MTGO Standard Challenge 5/26/24

• Creatures (17)
• 1 Cemetery Gatekeeper
• 4 Fugitive Codebreaker
• 4 Monastery Swiftspear
• 4 Questing Druid
• 4 Slickshot Show-Off

• Instants (15)
• 1 Giant Growth
• 3 Lightning Strike
• 3 Snakeskin Veil
• 4 Monstrous Rage
• 4 Play with Fire

• Sorceries (4)
• 4 Ancestral Anger

• Enchantments (5)
• 1 Audacity
• 4 Kumano Faces Kakkazan // Etching of Kumano

• Lands (19)
• 7 Mountain
• 1 Boseiju, Who Endures
• 1 Sokenzan, Crucible of Defiance
• 2 Thran Portal
• 4 Copperline Gorge
• 4 Karplusan Forest

• Sideboard (15)
• 2 Cemetery Gatekeeper
• 3 End the Festivities
• 1 Lithomantic Barrage
• 3 Pick Your Poison
• 3 Urabrask's Forge
• 3 Witchstalker Frenzy

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Rounding out the Top 5 most popular decks in Standard is another newbie. Gruul Aggro is reminiscent of some styles of Mono-Red, but has the liberty to play an absolute ton of Green-producing lands, just because they're available. To that point, I kind of love that this deck only plays 19 lands.

The Gruul strategy doesn't play a lot of Green cards, but one of the ones that it does play is Questing Druid. Questing Druid's better half, Seek the Beast, is a card you could cast for just Red mana. It, of course, is in some ways, an upgrade to cards like Wrenn's Resolve. You can cheat on lands thanks to a super cheap instant Divination-type... But you get Questing Druid down the line for free.

The "actual" Green cards here are all - pardon the term - game changers. Giant Growth is kind of silly with Slickshot Show-Off, don't you think? Monastery Swiftspear?

One of the biggest problems with Mono-Red is that if it went all-in on a prowess creature or Show-Off... well sometimes it would get paid but other times it would be blown out by single removal. Snakeskin Veil changes that AND can buff the attacking baddie at the same time. I think that this card is singly the one that justifies green-red as an archetype in a Standard where Mono-Red starts off as the most popular deck.

The sideboard in general is full of cards like WItchstalker Frenzy and Urabrask's Forge - you know, typical Red cards - but Pick Your Poison is, again, something unique and special. It's flexible, sure; but who cares? The kinds of cards that other decks have to maul red decks just straight up die to Pick Your Poison.

5 toughness on a first striking Boon-Bringer Valkyrie? Go ahead and sacrifice it.

Hexproof on Ezrim, Agency Chief? Ditto! Sacrifice it!

The green in Gruul makes for an excellent deck.

I hope this helps to keep you up to speed. Try not to get caught; either by a well-placed No More Lies or a Snakeskin Veil. But at least you'll know they're coming.

LOVE

MIKE