Guilds of Ravnica brings with it a new standard and new toys. So, let's take a peak at what fun we could be having over the next few months.
I’m back. It's been a while but a new Standard means new toys, and I love me some new toys. But first an apology, I haven't written for the past few weeks because I moved and life is hard. But now I'm back now and we can have some fun. Without further ado let's get into the shenanigans we can expect to play with.
Storm
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That’s right. Sure, we may be losing Aetherflux Reservoir, but that isn’t going to stop me. Thousand-Year Storm is just too tempting.
Now this deck definitely won't reach the storm count of its Modern cousin, and for one main reason: we simply don’t have the mana generation. What we do have, however, is Goblin Electromancer to help cheapen things and Runaway Steam-Kin to help get those final couple of spells in.
What the deck lacks in mana it makes up for in win conditions. Murmuring Mystic is Standard's answer to Young Pyromancer, making soft storming a viable strategy. We also have Erratic Cyclops to hit someone in the face for a lot... Like a lot, a lot. Electrostatic Field can slow down quick starts and get in a few small pings here and there. Finally, if you feel like it, Enigma Drake and Crackling Drake are both viable options, also allowing for a secondary beatdown strategy to be viable.
There are a lot of options here, and there must be a list in there somewhere.
Etrata, The Silencer
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Etrata, the Silencer is a four mana 3/5 that needs to survive a turn in order to do anything. Sounds like the perfect card for us to have fun with.
The biggest problem with Etrata is getting her on the board consistently. But we have options, we can self mill until it's just her in the deck. Or we could simply tutor her up when we want to go for it. Or we always have the option to just wait. We can always play a ton of removal plus a wall of big creatures and sit it out. But no matter how you build it, Etrata seems like a viable card to have some fun with at your LGS.
Just Won’t Die Lifegain
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Sanguine Sacrament is a fun card for you and for literally no one else. With it we can just straight up not get milled out, Teferi Style.
Now all we have to do is gain enough life to not die. Ajani’s Welcome will give us some incremental advantage and extra cards every turn, provided we have Dawn of Hope on the field. Between Resplendent Angel, Regal Bloodlord, and Lyra Dawnbringer we have a very good secondary game plan. Add in some sweepers and we have a nice little fort to hide in whilst our opponent wears themselves out. Plus, once again, we will have loads of fun and our opponent literally none. There is a significant amount of lifegain support floating around, and with the upcoming return of the Orzhov Syndicate we can expect to see more soon.
Divine Tokens
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So sure, we don’t have Anointed Procession anymore, but we do now have the ability to make Angels with Divine Visitation.
This card is a five drop that doesn’t affect the board in any way the turn it enters. That might sound underwhelming, but it turns out making two 4/4’s for two mana is quite good. Add in an anthem or two and you’re off to the races. And with the return of Convoke, big creatures aren't off the menu even without the angels. And if we visit Magical Christmas Land for a moment, we could even cast Siege-Gang Commander or March of the Multitudes with a visitation on board, which is insane.
Omnispell of Power
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Well this is a fun combo. It may not win us the game immediately, but it's still pretty darn good.
Omnispell Adept allows us to cast Apex of Power for free… from our hand. That would give us a ridiculous amount of mana with which to have some fun. Add in a couple of ways to return Apex of Power and you’re set up to have the time of your life. Throw in a few counterspells and a splash of removal and you have one hell of a fun brew.
That’ll do us for this week, and trust me we’ve barely had a sniff at what you can do with this set. I look forward to seeing you guys soon and be sure to give me a message on Facebook if you have any questions or queries.
