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The opening week of September kicked off the new Ranked season. Players have started yet another ladder climb to reach the Top 1200 Mythic spot that would allow them to participate in the October 2020 Zendikar Rising Qualifier Weekend. In this article, we have rounded up the most prominent new decks, as well as fresh and interesting takes on the existing archetypes, both for Standard and Historic formats. Feel free to check out the recap of the lists that we have been highlighting in August:
- Top Mythic Standard and Historic Decks – August 2020 Season – Week 4
- Top Mythic Standard and Historic Decks – August 2020 Season – Week 3
- Top Mythic Standard and Historic Decks – August 2020 Season – Week 2
- Top Mythic Standard and Historic Decks – August 2020 Season – Week 1
MTG Arena Standard Mythic Decks of the Week
It is mostly the spoiler season of Zendikar Rising that is consuming the minds of Standard players these days since the new expansion brings with it the yearly rotation and complete overhaul of the meta. The set arrives to Magic Arena next week, on September 17th. And given that the next big tournament for Magic – Mythic Invitational – is played in Historic format, there’s really not much incentive to try and revolutionize the Standard meta. Hence, it was another slow week for Arena’s flagship format.
Among the highlights of the past week is the Rakdos Sacrifice build that the streamer Ashlizzlle (Shieldmaiden) took to No.1 Mythic. Being the expert of the archetype, she was able to pick up and rebuild the deck after the ban of the so-crucial Cauldron Familiar. It is now Archfiend’s Vessel, Kroxa, Titan of Death’s Hunger and Fiend Artisan that take the lead, enabled by the support cast of Mire Triton, Priest of Forgotten Gods and Call of the Death-Dweller.
Mono Black Aggro was kind of tossed away to the sides by many players, when it’s main prey – a greedy Temur Reclamation deck – was banned out of Standard. Dafore returns the archetype to the spotlight – wielding Rotting Regisaur/Demonic Embrace combo, he was another player to achieve the top Mythic placement last week.
Ganp reached the No.59 spot with his Sultai Control build that features Doom Whisperer in place of your usual run-of-the-mill Hydroid Krasis. The black Demon was just-so out of range of playability during his Standard era, and it is his last waltz before rotating out into – most sadly – the complete oblivion.
MTG Arena Historic Mythic Decks of the Week
Now, Historic is where the most brain power was residing this past week – both pro players and ladder regulars attempting their best to break the meta going into the Mythic Invitational. Sultai Control, Collected Company decks and Goblins look like the current frontrunners of the format, but there’s still much space to allow for innovation.
Some ideas are the ones reborn from the ashes. Kenji Tsumura piloting his Izzet Phoenix build to a high ladder finish is one example of that. Arclight Phoenix was a strong enough card to even see a decent amount of Modern play at one point. The power level is definitely there – it just needs efficient support. Lightning Axe arrived in Jumpstart to synergize with the deck’s gameplan neatly, and Strategic Planning was another enabler Phoenix got access to with Amonkhet Remastered.
Other ideas are white-fresh. BladeRunner took his Mono White Solemnity/Nine Lives combo to No.8 Mythic. What is essentially a prison deck, this archetype looks to stop opponent from winning, constantly preventing face damage with Nine Lives that never gets any counters due to Solemnity. The win-con here is the one-of Approach of the Second Sun – but most often it’s opponent’s own misery and despair that close out the game instead.
Mono Green Stompy starts to rise in popularity as its unrivaled tempo and board pressure are not every other top-tier deck can easily deal with. Llanowar Elves into Steel Leaf Champion evokes Dominaria nostalgia, while Lovestruck Beast/Yorvo, Lord of Garenbrig add even more consistency to those crazy starts. Check out two Mono Green builds below – one by Rumti (No.1 Mythic), and another by Jason Fleurant (No.19).
This column is our weekly roundup of Standard and Historic decks players are using to climb the ranked ladder on MTG Arena! Our goal is to curate and post a variety of deck archetypes and interesting card choices at the end of each week to help you keep up to date with the latest trends in the metagame. If you have any decks you want featured, please use the deck submission form, tweet us at @mtgazone, or give us a shout on our Discord.
