5 Best-Performing Off-Meta Brews from CFB Clash

CFB Clash Qualifier 1 that took place on Sunday didn’t really shake up the established status quo, as Omnath variants have amounted to 40 per cent or so of the meta. Still, the tournament showcased a bunch of interesting new decks that have the power to consistently beat the Omnath menace. In this article, we will feature several of those decks – some of them are known, some are less so – but either way, each and every one presents a really fresh approach to solving the current meta.

Rakdos Midrange by Adam Ramsay

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Well, today is probably the last day when I can get away with calling the Rakdos Midrange archetype ‘off-meta’. After its success during this week both in tournaments and on the Mythic ladder, the deck really has brought a spotlight upon itself in the week leading to the 2020 Season Grand Finals.

Kroxa, Titan of Death’s Hunger and Magmatic Channeler are the key pieces here as they advance the midrange gameplan of this build very efficiently. Both present an aggressive clock on the opponent, simultaneously putting you ahead on cards. Mire Triton is one of the best enablers for this deck to provide self-milling, and Tymaret Calls the Dead saga steps in to help a turn later.

In this particular decklist by Adam Ramsay, there are a plethora of answers for Omnath decks specifically. The bane creature of current Standard could eat a removal such as Heartless Act, Lotus Cobra can be dealt with Spikefield Hazard, and Lucky Clover finds an answer in Shredded Sails.

Grixis Control by Noriyuki Mori

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This one is essentially a variation on the above-discussed Rakdos Midrange idea – Kroxa, Channeler, and Triton are still here, doing their jobs as usual. But where it gets interesting is when we get to cast Sea Gate Stormcaller into any of our ‘2 cost or less’ spells – Agonizing Remorse, Bloodchief’s Thirst, Shock, Village Rites, or even Opt – the value is sweet!

The blue splash also lets Noriyuki main-deck Mystical Disputes – which any Omnath deck really hates to see. And don’t skip on that Lurrus as a companion – getting to rebuy those Sea Gate Stormcallers to copy even more spells sounds like a definition of fun.

Dimir Mill by Stephen Dykman

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Omnath Ramp is infamous for its ability to draw into almost an entirety of its deck by turn 5 or 6. But what if we flip it and further help them empty their library even before they get to set up their wincon? This is the idea why Dimir Mill might be the right fit for the current meta, where aggro matchups became few and far between and there’s little punish for playing Ruin Crab.

In addition to the crustacean, Dykman’s build runs full playsets of Maddening Cacophony and Teferi’s Tutelage to speed up the milling plan. In this shell, Drown in the Loch is the premium almost-original counterspell, while Into the Story with Frantic Inventory keep your own cards constantly flowing. This is the kind of a mill deck that can produce almost unwinnable scenarios for your opponent, especially if he takes a lot of time to ramp up.

Esper Doom by Javier Núñez

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Ever since the release of Throne of Eldraine, the dream of a top-tier Esper Stax deck in Standard lingers in the magic community. There were several iterations during the evolution of this idea this year, and it certainly had its time to shine in spring during the Players Tour Finals.

This is the first weekend of October 2020, but Javier Núñez still takes the build to its origins in a way – almost a year back in time when Dance of the Manse was the go-to wincon of the Esper Doom Foretold strategy. However, that’s probably the only nostalgia piece in the deck overall, as it relies a lot on the much newer game pieces. Four anti-Omnath Confounding Conundrums is something Esper Doom can easily afford and synergize with, while Yorion and Omens put in a ton of work here as well.

Mono-White Aggro by slatorade

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The same 75 that earned a second place in Saturday’s Red Bull tournament, also performed decently in the CFB Clash on the next day. As it turns out, Mono-White Aggro received a lot of help from Zendikar Rising – namely Luminarch Aspirant, Legion Angel, Skyclave Apparition, and, of course, Maul of the Skyclaves.

This new archetype reminds us little of the white weenies + Venerated Loxodon of the previous Standard, however. The new build steps much more into midrange territory and outside of board-swarm strategies. It uses efficient hard-to-kill creatures (Seasoned Hallowblade), two-for-one creatures (Skyclave Apparition), but also tries to leverage cheap removal like Glass Casket and Kabira Takedown.