Previews for Born of the Gods are rolling in, and already we're seeing some sweet cards for Standard. One card that I think is massively underrated at the moment is Flame-Wreathed Phoenix. As a mythic rare, its current preorder price on CoolStuffInc of only $9 suggests players don't anticipate it seeing much play in Standard. I think that's incorrect.

Although there might not be an existing deck that wants it, the current Standard format is based mostly on just one set, and Born of the Gods is sure to shake things up a bit. Although the Phoenix may fight with Stormbreath Dragon for space in some decks, the fact that it costs 1 fewer mana makes it a prime target for something more aggressive. Here's the deck I built to try it out.

"R/G Aggro"

• Creatures (33)
• 2 Scavenging Ooze
• 3 Firefist Striker
• 4 Boon Satyr
• 4 Burning-Tree Emissary
• 4 Experiment One
• 4 Fanatic of Xenagos
• 4 Flame-Wreathed Phoenix
• 4 Ghor-Clan Rampager
• 4 Reverent Hunter

• Spells (4)
• 4 Lightning Strike

• Lands (23)
• 10 Forest
• 9 Mountain
• 4 Gruul Guildgate

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The Threats

Experiment One is a turn-one threat that can grow much larger over the course of the game. The creatures here are a bit larger than those in most aggro decks, so the Ooze will often grow to 4/4 if it stays alive long enough, and it can even go beyond that with some help from Flame-Wreathed Phoenix and Reverent Hunter.

Burning-Tree Emissary is a card that's proved to be among the best 2-drops in Standard over the past year. Giving aggressive decks the ability to put down two creatures on the second turn is a big deal, and as long as there are red or green aggro decks around, this card will continue to be a player.

Firefist Striker's ability to Panic one of your opponent's creatures each turn is a huge boon to an aggressive deck. With some decks relying on one large creature to stem the tide, such as a Desecration Demon or a Blood Baron of Vizkopa, the ability to completely negate that creature's blocking ability can seal the deal on a game that would otherwise have been a struggle.

Scavenging Ooze doesn't have the graveyard decks to hate out that it once did, but people are still playing creatures, and as long as those creatures occasionally die, the Ooze is a solid 2-drop that can grow larger by gorging itself on fallen friends and foes alike. It's also important that both the Ooze and Firefist Striker can be cast with the mana from Burning-Tree Emissary.

Fanatic of Xenagos is reminiscent of Boggart Ram-Gang, a creature that was a staple of aggro decks in its time. Your opponent is left with a difficult choice: Give your 4/4 haste in order to reduce it to 3/3 for the rest of the game or save yourself one attack and be left with a larger creature. Either option leaves you with a great threat for 3 mana.

Reverent Hunter may seem odd given that this isn't a devotion-based deck, but thanks to Burning-Tree Emissary and a plethora of other green creatures, it will usually be quite large for its cost. It can easily be a 5/5 on turn three, and it can consistently be that or larger when cast later in the game, giving you another massive threat in addition to the Phoenix.

Flame-Wreathed Phoenix seems like an excellent threat to top out the curve of an aggressive red deck. Your opponent is forced to make it a 5/5 and put himself at risk of dying in just a turn or two or leave it a 3/3 with the knowledge that he won't be able to kill it later. Since your opponent makes the choice, it does still die to a removal spell if he has one in hand, but a flying Imperiosaur is solid nonetheless.

Ghor-Clan Rampager is more of a spell than a creature, but the fact that it can be cast as a trampling 4/4 makes it all the better, especially against removal-heavy decks. When playing against decks with creatures, the Rampager makes combat a nightmare for your opponent. A seemingly safe block can turn into not only a dead creature, but a heap of damage on top of that.

Although the new burn spell Searing Blood is tempting, the 2 red mana required is somewhat off-putting when working from this budget mana base. In addition, the ability to kill Nightveil Specter will probably remain important after Born of the Gods enters Standard, and Lightning Strike has the 1 extra damage to make that happen.

Playtesting

B/W Midrange – Game 1

I lost the roll and kept a hand of two Forests, Fanatic of Xenagos, Reverent Hunter, Ghor-Clan Rampager, and Lightning Strike. My opponent started off by paying 2 life for a Godless Shrine and another 2 for Thoughtseize, taking my Fanatic of Xenagos. I drew a Mountain, played it, and passed the turn.

My opponent played Temple of Silence and passed back. I drew Gruul Guildgate, played it, and ended my turn. My opponent cast Pack Rat and passed. I drew Burning-Tree Emissary and cast it, and I then cast Reverent Hunter, making it a 4/4 I ended my turn.

My opponent played another land and passed. I drew another Burning-Tree Emissary and attacked with both creatures. My opponent killed Reverent Hunter with Ultimate Price and took 2 damage. I cast the second Emissary, using the mana to cast Lightning Strike, killing Pack Rat. I ended my turn.

My opponent cast Desecration Demon and passed the turn. I drew a Mountain and attacked with both creatures. My opponent blocked one, and I used Ghor-Clan Rampager's ability to trade with the Demon. My opponent took 2, and I passed the turn.

My opponent cast Underworld Connections and passed. I drew Reverent Hunter and cast it as a 4/4. I attacked for 2, and my opponent took the damage. I passed the turn, and he used Underworld Connections during my end step.

My opponent played a Mutavault, cast Pack Rat, and ended his turn. I drew another land and attacked with both creatures. My opponent discarded a card to make a Pack Rat, and he then blocked each creature with one. He activated Mutavault to make the Rats 3/3. My Burning-Tree Emissary bit the dust, as did one of his Rats. I ended my turn.

My opponent played a Temple to scry, activated Underworld Connections, and passed the turn. I drew Firefist Striker and attacked for 4. My opponent took the damage, dropping to 3. I cast the Striker and ended my turn.

My opponent cast Blood Baron of Vizkopa and passed the turn. I drew Reverent Hunter, cast it as a 3/3, and ended my turn.

My opponent passed back with no play. I drew Burning-Tree Emissary and moved to combat. My opponent cast Last Breath, exiling Firefist Striker. I cast the Emissary and passed the turn.

My opponent played a land and passed. I drew Experiment Once, cast it, and ended my turn. He cast Desecration Demon before passing the turn. I drew Flame-Wreathed Phoenix and cast it. My opponent paid the tribute, making it a 5/5. I ended my turn, and my opponent activated Underworld Connections during my end step.

My opponent played Mutavault and attacked with Blood Baron of Vizkopa. I blocked with the Phoenix, and he gained 4 life before passing the turn. I drew a land and moved to combat, sacrificing Burning-Tree Emissary to tap the Demon. I attacked with everything, and my opponent threw three Mutavaults in front of my three ground creatures, killing all three lands and Experiment One. He dropped to 1 life from the Phoenix, and I passed the turn.

He drew his card and conceded.

Game 2

I kept a hand of Gruul Guildgate, Forest, Scavenging Ooze, two Boon Satyr, and two Fanatic of Xenagos. My opponent played a Swamp and cast Thoughtseize. He took the Ooze and passed the turn. I drew a third Fanatic, played the Guildgate, and passed.

He played a land and passed back. I drew a Forest, played it, and ended my turn.

My opponent played a land and cast Devour Flesh, killing the Fanatic. He ended his turn. I drew Lightning Strike and cast a second Fanatic. He chose not to pay the tribute, and I hit him for 3 before ending my turn.

My opponent passed back with no play, and I drew a Mountain. I cast Flame-Wreathed Phoenix, and my opponent chose to give it the two +1/+1 counters. I attacked with Fanatic of Xenagos, and my opponent created a Pack Rat copy and blocked with both. The Fanatic killed one, and the second died after combat due to the 1 damage marked on it. I passed the turn.

My opponent paid 2 life for a Godless Shrine and cast Desecration Demon. He ended his turn. I cast Boon Satyr for its bestow cost, enchanting the Phoenix. I sacrificed my Fanatic to tap the Demon and attacked for 9 damage, dropping my opponent to 4. I passed the turn.

My opponent cast Nightveil Specter and passed the turn. I drew a land and cast Fanatic of Xenagos. I sacrificed it to tap the Demon, killed the Specter with Lightning Strike, and attacked for the win with my 9/7 Phoenix.

Wrap-Up

After testing this deck, I'm even more confidant that Flame-Wreathed Phoenix is going to be a player in the new Standard. It gives you an incredible amount of value for your mana and doesn't have the crippling drawbacks of Desecration Demon. It can easily take over a game in the air and put your opponent on a very fast clock. I'm no finance expert, but I'd suggest picking the card up now before everyone else figures out that this mythic rare is worth more than its current price tag.