Are you prepared for Magic's newest set?

Posted On 3:12 PM // Leave a Comment

Newsletter
Thursday, January 11th

Five names we didn't know much about two weeks ago are very much on our radar now. And while these five legendary creatures vary wildly in creature type, power/toughness, and casting cost, they all do have one thing in common - you can open them this weekend at your Rivals of Ixalan prerelease!

There's really no better time of the year than prerelease weekend. We as Magic players get to sleeve up cards we've been thinking about using for weeks in a casual environment full of fun. But what are the best cards in Rivals of Ixalan? Todd Stevens thinks he's got this set all figured out for Standard with his Top 20 list. Ben Friedman thinks that Blood Sun might be the best rare in the entire set. As for Benjamin Nikolich? Don't think for a second he hasn't thought about how Magic's newest set is going to influence his metagame-defining build of Jeskai Control.

It's a time for celebration! This weekend, have fun cracking packs and creating stacks at your Rivals of Ixalan prerelease. Just remember to dial back the competitive juices for a few days so those newer to our game can see exactly why we love it as much as we do.

— Cedric Phillips, Content Coordinator

January 20-21
Team Constructed

January 27-28
Team Constructed

February 17-18
Modern

The Top 20 Cards In Rivals Of Ixalan
By Todd Stevens  

We're starting our list off with a bang! Kumena, Tyrant of Orazca is one of the chase mythics of the set, so why is it so far down my list at No. 20? Being a multi-colored creature that cares deeply about tribal synergies means it can really only go in one deck and it doesn't have room to grow from there. Add in that it's legendary and toward the top end of said deck and I don't see Kumena, Tyrant of Orazca as a four-of even in U/G Merfolk.

What it does bring to the table is three abilities, the first of which makes it unblockable, not too exciting. The second ability can draw cards at the same rate we experienced from Cryptbreaker in Standard not long ago, and this the is the ability that will make or break Kumena as it needs to be very good for multiple Kumenas to see play in U/G Merfolk. Finally, you can use five Merfolk to put a +1/+1 counter on each Merfolk you control, or basically insurance you can break any battlefield stall. I do like U/G Merfolk's chances on becoming a breakout deck after Rivals of Ixalan releases, but Kumena, Tyrant of Orazca isn't the reason why and I expect it to be a small role player in the strategy with little chance for overlap into other strategies.

Columbus Open Weekend Winners

Benjamin Nikolich
Modern Open

Richie Thompson
Legacy Classic

Casey Welch
Modern Classic

Sunday, Blood Sun Day
By Ben Friedman  

With Blood Moon, there was often a two- or three-turn window before the enchantment came down, where a savvy player could preemptively fetch up a few basic lands to mitigate the damage of the enchantment. A manabase of ten fetchlands, four dual lands, and six basics was therefore, more than enough for old Miracles decks to navigate around Blood Moon effects; and even the four-color "good stuff" decks could play around Blood Moon to some extent with the two basics they often afforded. Though Blood Sun doesn't ruin dual lands, it makes fetchlands look like a joke and hates on the Brainstorm + fetch engine that makes Legacy decks so smooth and consistent.

Now, even on turns 3, 4, or 5, Blood Sun can come down and mess with the fair deck's ability to cast their spells and maximize their card selection engine. It's time for a new stressor on Legacy manabases, and in this regard, Blood Sun and Blood Moon will pin many multicolor blue decks between a rock and a hard place. And, in all fairness, fetchlands needed a predator in the Magic ecosystem. They are simply too good in concert with a number of other prevalent cards. Not only do they excel at fixing mana with dual lands, but they fuel Deathrite Shaman and delve spells in Legacy and Modern, and they combine with Brainstorm to make an unstoppable card selection engine. A card like Blood Sun is the perfect stressor to create a drawback to these powerful lands.

The Search Is Over: The New Jeskai Control Guide
By Benjamin Nikolich  

Jeskai Control has existed since the inception of Modern in one form or another, even taking down a Modern Pro Tour in the hands of StarCityGames's own, Shaun McLaren. The popularity of this archetype has fluctuated over the years, and recently the Jeskai Geist builds have been popular and have established themselves as a tier one archetype. However, my deck diverges from Jeskai Geist in major ways.

While many of the core cards in both decks are the same, the way they play out is extremely different. While the Geist builds seek to leverage an early tempo advantage through Geist of Saint Traft and Spell Queller, then finish the opponent off with a flurry of burn spells, the Jeskai Control deck I play takes a different approach. By utilizing a large number of cheap and efficient interaction spells early in the game alongside powerful card advantage spells like Snapcaster Mage, Cryptic Command, and Search for Azcanta to dominate the late game.