Getting to Know Magic: The Gathering's Standard Format

If you're looking for the quintessential Magic: The Gathering experience, look no further than Standard. Known as Magic's flagship format, Standard is one of the very best ways to play the game we all love.

But don't just take it from us. We sat down with the format itself to get the lowdown on who it is, how it works, and how you can play it. Reader, meet Standard. Standard, meet our kind reader.

Hi, Standard. Thanks for sitting down with us. Tell us a bit about yourself.

Hey, no problem. My name is Standard. I'm a 60-card main deck, 15-card sideboard Magic format. You can think of me as the format with the newest cards; I'm composed of the five to eight most recent Magic expansions. My cardpool expands (and sometimes contracts) whenever a new set comes out.

If you had to describe yourself in three words, what would those words be?

Deep, dynamic, and fun. Some formats pretty much stay the same from year to year. Like, for my cousin Modern, Tarmogoyf is always good. But in my case, my best cards are always changing. I can't be tamed, baby.

What cards are currently Standard legal?

I'll allow almost every card from the following sets: Kaladesh, Aether Revolt, Amonkhet, Hour of Devastation, Ixalan, and Rivals of Ixalan. When Dominaria drops in about a month, you can play Standard with those cards, too. Nothing's going to rotate out until later this year.

Notice how I said "almost every card"? That's because I have a ban list, which I brought with me. Let me see if I can find it…

Ah, here we go. If you're playing Standard, you can't have any copies of the following cards in your deck: Aetherworks Marvel, Attune with Aether, Felidar Guardian, Rampaging Ferocidon, Ramunap Ruins, Rogue Refiner, and Smuggler's Copter.

Why are those cards banned?

They kinda broke me. Everybody was playing them and there was no room for innovation, so Wizards of the Coast decided those cards weren't allowed anymore.

Do you miss them?

Nope. People complain about me way less now that they're gone.

Nice. Can you tell us a bit about your general philosophy? When people play Standard, what should they expect?

Listen, I appreciate the classics. Even though I change all the time, some things remain consistent no matter what. The general design philosophy behind me is that any macro archetype should be constructible at any time. Players will always have the tools to build an aggro deck, a control deck, a midrange deck, or a combo deck. The power threshold of each macro archetype will vary depending on the metagame, but the components will always be there.

You just mentioned something called the metagame. Can you expound on that a bit?

Sure. The metagame is basically what cards and strategies people are currently playing most. My cardpool is small enough that players can analyze what everyone else is playing, then come prepared to fight it.

The thing about the metagame is, every player has a different interpretation of it. There's a lot more hard data than there used to be, but at the end of the day, developing an idea of the metagame is basically theory. Your read of what's popular in Standard at any given time is going to vary from someone else's, generally speaking.

How does the Standard metagame affect which cards are good?

Let me put it this way: if you know everyone's playing rock, you should show up with paper. Definitely don't bring scissors.

For example, a lot of people are playing The Scarab God, Hazoret the Fervent, and Rekindling Phoenix in Standard right now. That's an accepted condition of my current metagame. So a card like Vraska's Contempt—which might not have looked that great at first blush—becomes hyper valuable thanks to its exile clause. Though Impale has the exact same mana cost, the metagame makes it much, much worse. Boom. Perfect example of the metagame changing cards' values.

Right now, the best cards in my format provide some form of card advantage. In other words, they draw you more cards, cast cards from your library, reanimate creatures, search your deck for another card, etc.

But hey, I'm all about switching gears. For example, during the Khans of Tarkir era, Siege Rhino was one of my defining cards. Though this big fella didn't add more cards to players' hands, it was played extensively because of its efficient casting cost, its strong stats, and its excellent enter-the-battlefield ability. Or during Shadows Over Innistrad, Hangarback Walker became a defining card because of its versatility.

Basically, the best Standard cards tend to shift with my metagame. Some cards will remain the best for their entire Standard careers, while others will rise and fall based on context.

What's popular right now?

Glad you asked. Right now, I'm feeling super healthy. I've got various shades of Mono Red Aggro, which usually feature difficult to address threats like Hazoret and Rekindling Phoenix. In terms of midrange decks, a number of blue-black lists have been performing quite well of late. These decks feature such classics as The Scarab God and Glint-Sleeve Siphoner, now combined with Champion of Wits and Gonti, Lord of Luxury. My control decks are on a bit of a downturn lately, but just a few months ago, Blue-White Approach of the Second Sun was a big deal.

Of all the classic macro archetypes, I'm generally least interested in combo decks. They're historically difficult to interact with and can make gameplay feel one-dimensional. Besides, other formats like my weird cousins Modern and Legacy have larger card pools and therefore more potential for combos. Also, I've got kind of a bad history with combos (just ask Saheeli Rai and Felidar Guardian).

You mentioned your health just now. What do you mean by that? You're not sick, are you?

Ha, no, I'm good. Put simply, I'm healthy when my metagame is fluid. If one strategy rises to the top and stays there, it's not good for me (or my players). That's because I'm designed to be more dynamic than other formats. Therefore, if one or two Standard decks defeat all challengers, changes must be made.

This next part is tough for me to admit, but here goes…

I was pretty lousy a few months ago. I wasn't very much fun because two archetypes, Ramunap Red and Temur Energy, became better than everything else. (To be fair, I'd argue that you can't blame the Monster for being ugly—you have to blame Dr. Frankenstein. Anyway.)

Since I was so un-fun, I lost four cards: Ramunap Ruins, Rampaging Ferocidon, Attune with Aether, and Rogue Refiner

The good news is, I'm feeling much healthier after those bannings. I've got way more viable deck options and my players seem to be having way more fun. Things are good!

We're glad to hear it. If someone wants to build a deck for your format, where should they start?

If you'd like to play at your local Friday Night Magic event, just make a deck you'll have fun with. Maybe there's a specific card you'd like to build around or a specific strategy you enjoy. Whatever it is, I'm open to all kinds of innovation. Pretty much anything is viable!

Also, if you can wait a little while, I'd definitely recommend trying one of the new Challenger Decks. I'm super hyped about these because they're made for me, Standard. Challenger Decks contain ready-made 60 card main decks and 15 card sideboards for just $29.99. What's more, these lists are based on popular existing Standard archetypes, so you can be sure you're getting a competitive deck.

The downside is that you'll have to wait until April 6 to buy your deck. And, fair warning, if you want to be truly competitive, you will need to supplement the Challenger list with a handful of additional cards. Though you'll certainly have a functional deck, it probably won't win you tournaments right out of the box.

In any case, Challenger Decks are a great value and I highly recommend them.

Where can players go to play some Standard?

Every Friday, game stores throughout the world host Friday Night Magic events (or FNMs for short). These events are almost always Standard tournaments. Just show up with your deck, sign up, and play!

FNM tournaments usually last from three to four rounds. If you play well, you might win special promo cards or store credit. Plus, you'll have fun and meet cool people. Check it out!

And if you're in the Clifton Park or East Greenbush area, try playing at Flipside Gaming. I hear they hold awesome events.

Kyle Massa is a writer and avid Magic player living in upstate New York with his fiancée and their two cats. When he's not writing, you'll find him down at the East Greenbush Flipside store jamming booster drafts. For more of Kyle's work, visit www.kyleamassa.com or follow him on Twitter @mindofkyleam.