Building Blocks

Land Destruction is one of the most storied aspects of early Magic.  Players from that era will beguile you with stories of Sinkhole and Strip Mine, but we're here to talk about possibly the most iconic card with that text - Stone Rain.  Featuring one of the best origin stories for a name, Ponza took full advantage of Stone Rain and Pillage, then got access to almost the perfect card for the deck.

What does a non-aggressive mono red deck look like?  That's the topic of discussion this episode.  Both Jason and I aren't exactly masters of this archetype, so we called in a ringer to talk us through the different iterations of Big Red.  Thompson joins us to extol the virtues of large red creatures and efficient removal spells!

This week, we've got a fan favorite on tap.  It's pretty easy to see why - the combination of kinda dorky creatures and incidental life gain endears itself to players.  Soul Warden has been in existence since Exodus, so why did it take until 2010 for it to finally show up in a competitive event?  You can thank Magic 2011 for that.

This week's deck has a reputation.  Specifically, a bad one.  More specifically, one of the worst decks that has been played at a Pro Tour.  Looking at the decklist, that totally makes sense.  Putting playsets of both Mind Stone and Figure of Destiny in the main is almost an anti-combo.  Playing Windbrisk Heights and only nine creatures that cost less than three mana doesn't exactly scream synergy.

However, it fit a specific niche.  Reveillark is more than good enough to carry an entire archetype, and Ajani Vengeant never had a better home.  From the mind of Brian Kowal (and the Magic Cruise) comes Boat Brew!

This is by far the most recent topic we've ever covered.  Debuting only six years ago, Smuggler's Copter was immediately pegged as the best card in Kaladesh, and did not disappoint.  In the first tournament after release, it had tremendous representation at the top tables.  We're talking seven of the top eight, and thirteen of the top sixteen.  With that introduction, how long did it take for the premier vehicle to be taken off the road?

The keyword Epic from Saviors of Kamigawa has a bad reputation.  Once you cast a card that has the keyword on it, that's the only spell you can cast for the rest of the game.  With that restriction, the card you play has to win the game.  Four of the five cards definitely don't do that.  The other one, however, does.  It just needs a little help.

It's time for more questions!  The slate today includes the most nostalgic two card combination, card association with each guild, and some very large questions about the future of competitive Magic.

There's no denying the philosophy of Standard bannings has changed.  How else does the format go from no bans in ten years to more than fifteen in the last five?  So this week, we're talking about some cards in older Standard formats that could have been hit by the ban hammer if looked at through a 2022 lens.

Reference article: "What Should Have Been Banned in the History of Standard?" by Ari Lax

https://armlx.blogspot.com/2020/08/what-should-have-been-banned-in-history.html

We're going all the way back to 2000 this episode to discuss what could be the first true graveyard-centric combo deck.  Combining some enchantments that still of comparable power level in 2022 with the namesake sorcery, this archetype managed to compete with Tinker and Gaea's Cradle at the height of their powers.

We're not quite sure how it took this long to finally talk about this card, but here we are: Baneslayer Angel.  Quite possibly the most hyped preview card of all time, how did she fare once finally released?  Short answer, very well.