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Hello everyone. Change is coming. The release of Wilds of Eldraine is just over a week away. Prerelease events are happening this weekend. The Aftermath Era is almost over... But, if your local game store is holding a Standard event this weekend or you just want to play Standard with your friends, you might need a deck to play. I've got your back. These should be the final few decks I have for you that only feature cards through March of the Machine: The Aftermath. Let's get started.
Azorius Tokens
We'll start off by looking at a deck that focuses on creating tokens. Let's check it out.
Azorius Tokens | MAT Standard | SwayzeMTG, aetherhub.com user
- Creatures (7)
- 3 Mondrak, Glory Dominus
- 4 Resolute Reinforcements
- Planeswalkers (3)
- 3 The Wandering Emperor
- Instants (3)
- 3 Protect the Negotiators
- Sorceries (9)
- 2 Blue Sun's Twilight
- 3 Silver Scrutiny
- 4 Sunset Revelry
- Enchantments (7)
- 3 Rabble Rousing
- 4 Wedding Announcement // Wedding Festivity
This deck has a ton of ways to create creature tokens. In the early stages of the game, you can flash in Resolute Reinforcements, creating a 1/1 Soldier creature token in addition to the creature that is summoned. Sunset Revelry offers the chance to create a pair of 1/1 Human creature tokens as long as your opponent controls more creatures than you do. You can kick Protect the Negotiators to create a 1/1 Soldier creature token. Plus there are a pair of enchantments, Rabble Rousing and Wedding Announcement // Wedding Festivity, that will create even more creature tokens.
March of the Machine brought us the new Battle spell type, and this deck even includes a couple of Battles that will help you create even more creature tokens. Invasion of Segovia // Caetus, Sea Tyrant of Segovia creates two 1/1 Kraken creature tokens with trample. When it transforms into Caetus, Sea Tyrunt of Segovia, your noncreature spells will gain convoke and you'll be able to untap up to four creatures during your end step. Finally, there's Invasion of New Phyrexia, which you can use to create a variable number of 2/2 Knight creature tokens with vigilance.
Boros Lifegain Burn
Next, I have a deck I'm excited to build, because it contains two of my favorite things, burn damage and lifegain. Let's take a look at the deck.
Boros Lifegain Burn | MAT Standard | MtgMalone, aetherhub.com user
- Creatures (2)
- 2 Heliod, the Radiant Dawn // Heliod, the Warped Eclipse
- Planeswalkers (3)
- 3 Chandra, Hope's Beacon
- Instants (25)
- 3 Destroy Evil
- 3 Fateful Absence
- 3 Lightning Strike
- 4 Big Score
- 4 Play with Fire
- 4 Sacred Fire
- 4 Union of the Third Path
- Sorceries (3)
- 3 Depopulate
- Enchantments (3)
- 3 Arcane Bombardment
- Lands (24)
- 6 Plains
- 8 Mountain
- 2 Eiganjo, Seat of the Empire
- 4 Battlefield Forge
- 4 Sundown Pass
There are a lot of spells that deal direct damage in this deck. Both Play with Fire and Lightning Strike can deal two or three points of direct damage to any target. Initially you can direct this damage toward your opponent's creatures, keeping their threats at bay. Later on, blast your opponent directly with these spells, chipping away at their life total turn after turn.
This deck also includes a pair of spells that will help you regain some life points you might have lost. Union of the Third Path pulls double duty, allowing you to draw a card, and then gaining life equal to the number of cards in your hand. You also have Sacred Fire, which deals two damage to any target and gains you two points of life. Sacred Fire also has flashback, so you can cast it from your graveyard if you need the extra damage or life. It's usually best to keep it in your graveyard if you have the possibility of exiling it with Arcane Bombardment, though, so you can reap the benefits of casting it turn after turn.
Gruul Dinos
The final deck I have for you features a dinosaur that is both fast and powerful. Let's take a look at it.
Gruul Dinos | MAT Standard | powrdragn, aetherhub.com user
- Creatures (29)
- 2 Deeproot Wayfinder
- 3 Ancient Imperiosaur
- 3 Cankerbloom
- 3 Doomskar Warrior
- 3 Halana and Alena, Partners
- 3 Rabbit Battery
- 4 Gala Greeters
- 4 Reckless Stormseeker // Storm-Charged Slasher
- 4 Topiary Stomper
- Planeswalkers (2)
- 2 Nissa, Ascended Animist
- Sorceries (4)
- 4 Awaken the Woods
- Enchantments (2)
- 2 Tribute to the World Tree
To help with convoking Ancient Imperiosaur, this deck includes a playset of Awaken the Woods. This sorcery allows you to create a variable amount of 1/1 Forest Dryad land creature tokens. Even if you're not able to create enough Forest Dryad tokens to completely cover the convoke cost of Ancient Imperiosaur, they will help cast other creatures, like Halana and Alena, Partners, that can provide additional +1/+1 counters.
Once you're able to cast a large Ancient Imperiosaur, you'll want to be able to attack with it right away, before your opponent has the chance to play any removal against it. Helping with this are Rabbit Battery and Reckless Stormseeker // Storm-Charged Slasher. Both of these can provide a small power bonus in addition to haste. With that haste, you'll be able to attack before your opponent has the chance to eliminate Ancient Imperiosaur, hopefully winning the game on the spot.
Wrapping Up
While the Aftermath Era has been fun, it has also been long. I know I'm excited for new cards to come into the Standard card pool. But it does make me happy that I'm still able to find new and innovative decks after all this time. Be sure to come back next week when I start looking at decks featuring cards from Wilds of Eldraine.
What do you think of these decks? 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
