Hello everyone. Last week marked the beginning of preview season for Core Set 2021. It also marked the latest banning announcement for Standard. So, for those of you that love building new decks, the next few weeks will be a glorious time for you. For those of you that simply want to play, I've got you covered. This week, we'll look at a few decks that you can use now that Fires of Invention and Agent of Treachery are gone. Let's get started.

Boros Feather

We'll get started this week with a deck featuring Feather, the Redeemed. Let's take a look at the deck.

Boros Feather | IKO Standard | PAT0PRESIDENTE, 5-0 MTGO League

• Creatures (16)
• 4 Dreadhorde Arcanist
• 4 Feather, the Redeemed
• 4 Hushbringer
• 4 Tenth District Legionnaire

• Planeswalkers (1)
• 1 Chandra, Acolyte of Flame

• Instants (19)
• 1 Disenchant
• 4 Fight as One
• 4 Light of Hope
• 2 Justice Strike
• 4 Defiant Strike
• 4 Gods Willing

• Sorceries (2)
• 2 Go for Blood

• Lands (22)
• 5 Mountain
• 9 Plains
• 4 Sacred Foundry
• 4 Temple of Triumph

• Sideboard (15)
• 3 Robber of the Rich
• 2 Disenchant
• 2 Redcap Melee
• 3 Fry
• 2 Deafening Clarion
• 3 Soul-Guide Lantern

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Go for Blood allows one of your creatures to fight a creature an opponent controls. While the majority of creatures in this deck have a relatively low power, Tenth District Legionnaire is the perfect target for this spell. This Human Soldier gets a +1/+1 counter each time you target it with a spell. With Feather, the Redeemed on the battlefield, you'll begin picking off an opponent's threats turn after turn, starting with the smaller ones and quickly ramping up to the larger threats.

Fight as One is the next new card that you can get a lot of mileage out of when Feather is in play. Once again, Tenth District Legionnaire is a great target for the mode of this spell that targets a Human creature you control, since it's the only Human in this deck. While it's great as an offensive spell, Fight as One is a great spell to hold as a means of countering targeted removal, as well. Once your opponent sees Feather, the Redeemed on the battlefield, your plan will become obvious, and they'll likely try to destroy Feather at all costs. Fight as One gives indestructibility to the targeted creatures until the end of turn, foiling your opponent's attempt at removal.

The final new card from Ikoria is Light of Hope. While it has three modes, only the last mode targets a creature. However, just because the other two modes don't target your creature doesn't mean you shouldn't use them. There might be times when you'll need to destroy an opponent's enchantment, or when four life means the difference between staying alive and certain defeat. In the event that you cast Light of Hope for one of these modes, you'll still be able to return it to your hand at the end of the turn with Feather if you have Dreadhorde Arcanist in play. Once you've cast Light of Hope for one of the first two modes, attack with Dreadhorde Arcanist. That will allow you to cast Light of Hope again, using the third mode. With Feather in play, you'll get that card back in your hand at the end of the turn.

Selesnya Auras

The next deck I have for you features a few ways to create an unstoppable force. Let's take a look at it.

Selesnya Auras | IKO Standard | TAKUYAAA, 5-0 MTGO League

• Creatures (14)
• 1 Stonecoil Serpent
• 2 Hushbringer
• 3 Healer's Hawk
• 4 Alseid of Life's Bounty
• 4 Gingerbrute

• Instants (5)
• 1 Gods Willing
• 4 Karametra's Blessing

• Enchantments (20)
• 4 All That Glitters
• 4 Glaring Aegis
• 4 Season of Growth
• 4 Sentinel's Eyes
• 4 Solid Footing

• Lands (21)
• 9 Plains
• 2 Blossoming Sands
• 2 Castle Ardenvale
• 4 Temple Garden
• 4 Temple of Plenty

• Sideboard (15)
• 1 Giant Killer
• 1 Hushbringer
• 1 Lurrus of the Dream-Den
• 1 Stonecoil Serpent
• 3 Light of Hope
• 4 Devout Decree
• 1 Warbriar Blessing
• 3 Soul-Guide Lantern

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Getting those extra cards makes it easier to create a powerful, evasive threat. There are a few options of creatures for you to build up into this threat, depending on the creatures your opponent has in play. The first route you can take is by building up a creature with flying. Both Healer's Hawk and Hushbringer are perfect flying threats that also have lifelink. Alternatively, you can build up Gingerbrute. By paying 1 mana when you attack, you make Gingerbrute unable to be blocked by creatures without haste. Your final option is to build up Stonecoil Serpent. This Artifact Snake has protection from multicolored, so unless you're up against a deck that has a lot of mono-colored creatures, you'll likely be able to punch through for a lot of damage, once properly buffed. Stonecoil Serpent also has trample, allowing you potentially damage your opponent in the face of chump blockers.

The enchantments you'll use to power up your creature offer for some cool interactions. Sentinel's Eyes gives the enchanted creature +1/+1 and vigilance. This pairs nicely with Solid Footing, which also gives a +1/+1 bonus. Dealing damage equal to toughness becomes important if you're enchanting Hushbringer, or if the enchanted creature is also enchanted with Glaring Aegis.

Temur Reclamation

The final deck I have for you this week features Wilderness Reclamation as a means of dealing lots of damage. Let's take a look at the deck.

Temur Reclamation | IKO Standard | REYMON, 5-0 MTGO League

• Creatures (8)
• 1 Bonecrusher Giant
• 3 Uro, Titan of Nature's Wrath
• 4 Nightpack Ambusher

• Instants (19)
• 1 Thassa's Intervention
• 3 Mystical Dispute
• 3 Scorching Dragonfire
• 4 Expansion // Explosion
• 4 Growth Spiral
• 4 Opt

• Enchantments (6)
• 2 Shark Typhoon
• 4 Wilderness Reclamation

• Lands (27)
• 1 Mountain
• 2 Forest
• 2 Island
• 1 Blast Zone
• 2 Castle Vantress
• 4 Ketria Triome
• 3 Stomping Ground
• 4 Breeding Pool
• 4 Fabled Passage
• 4 Steam Vents

• Sideboard (15)
• 1 Uro, Titan of Nature's Wrath
• 2 Spectral Sailor
• 1 Mystical Dispute
• 3 Aether Gust
• 3 Flame Sweep
• 3 Negate
• 2 Shark Typhoon

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While you're waiting to win the game with Explosion, you'll still be able to utilize the mana from Wilderness Reclamation by casting any of the numerous instants in this deck. There are ways to counter your opponent's spells (Mystical Dispute), destroy your opponent's creatures (Scorching Dragonfire), or draw additional cards (Opt). Because of these instants, getting a copy of Nightpack Ambusher into play can also acts as a victory condition for you. You'll be able to use your mana on your turn putting charge counters on Blast Zone and using Castle Vantress as a means of finding the cards you'll need. Since neither of these is casting a spell, Nightpack Ambusher will be able to create a 2/2 Wolf token and Wilderness Reclamation will untap your lands, allowing you to use them again on your opponent's turn.

One other way you can win with this deck is through Shark Typhoon. By putting this enchantment into play, you'll be able to build up a small army of flying Sharks that you can use to attack your opponent with. This will allow you to get their life total to a reasonable level so that it's easier to finish them off. Or, you can also choose to cycle Shark Typhoon, which will allow you to create a larger flying Shark token, if you're in need of a beefier creature. Either option offers you the chance to win the game via evasive creatures.

Wrapping Up

Over the next week, we'll be able to begin to see the ramifications that the recent ban has had. Will any major shake-ups happen in Standard because of the bans or will the decks be similar to pre-banning times? Only time will tell.

What do you think of these decks? Do you have any suggestions for improvements? Let me know by leaving a comment below or email me directly at mikelikesmtg@gmail.com. Also, feel free to share this article with your friends anywhere on social media. And be sure to join me here again next week as I continue my search for innovative decks in Standard. I'll see you then!

-Mike Likes