> This episode was filmed prior to Pro Tour Secrets of Strixhaven <

The most important test of a Magic player's career happened this weekend! But prior to the Pro Tour, we sat down to discuss the PT in broad strokes: what we expected to see, what we hoped to see, and what we thought might be coming next for the Standard metagame.

This weekend has been a showing that the Standard metagame is currently stable. The decks that we expected to see have a large representation (Izzet Prowess, Landfall, Izzet Spellementals, Izzet Lessons) did have that same representation, and those same decks that we expected to do well, did perform as expected.

So...what did we think before the event started? Sit down with us today and chat!

| Music from HitsLab via ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Pixabay⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.

| Raise the Standard is proudly sponsored by MTGBazaar! From premiere competitive events to MTG singles for your new brew, the Bazaar is the place to go for all your Magic needs. A huge thank you to Pat and the Bazaar crew for supporting the show!

| This episode of Raise the Standard was recorded at Hen House Rehearsal Studios. Raise the Standard and its hosts would like to acknowledge the traditional owners of the land we operate on. We acknowledge the Wurundjeri Woi-wurrung peoples as the Traditional Owners of the land. We pay our respects to their elders past and present, and acknowledge that sovereignty was never ceded.

Folks, let's be honest with each other. The "Year of Izzet" has persisted a lot longer than any of us really expected. A majority of the current Standard banlist as of April 2026 is comprised of red and/or blue cards, yet Izzet has remained a dominant colour pair throughout these ban cycles. So...why is that?

Between access to perfect mana, a suite of interactive spells and card refinement options, and good creatures to boot, Izzet as a colour pair and format-defining archetype maintains an iron grip on the Standard metagame. Though it has fallen out of favour at times or fallen victim to other strong decks in the meta like Landfall and Reanimator, Izzet always manages to make it out on top in the end.

Today we're talking about what enables Izzet decks to remain in Tier 1, how the deck is resilient to bannings, and why Stormchaser's Talent is the secret backbone of the archetype.

| Music from HitsLab via ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Pixabay⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.

| Raise the Standard is proudly sponsored by MTGBazaar! From premiere competitive events to MTG singles for your new brew, the Bazaar is the place to go for all your Magic needs. A huge thank you to Pat and the Bazaar crew for supporting the show!

| This episode of Raise the Standard was recorded at Hen House Rehearsal Studios. Raise the Standard and its hosts would like to acknowledge the traditional owners of the land we operate on. We acknowledge the Wurundjeri Woi-wurrung peoples as the Traditional Owners of the land. We pay our respects to their elders past and present, and acknowledge that sovereignty was never ceded.

We've seen the increased power level amongst Standard sets steadily growing over the last few months, but there's something that feels decidedly pushed about Strixhaven.

From creatures with iconic Magic spells stapled on them to recursive spell effects that will dominate a game, Strixhaven is powerful in a way that feels different to other current Standard-legal sets. So let's talk about the power of Secrets of Strixhaven, the potential effect it will have on the metagame, and how Standard has shifted towards a level that eclipses original Modern by miles.

| Music from HitsLab via ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Pixabay⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.

| Raise the Standard is proudly sponsored by MTGBazaar! From premiere competitive events to MTG singles for your new brew, the Bazaar is the place to go for all your Magic needs. A huge thank you to Pat and the Bazaar crew for supporting the show!

| This episode of Raise the Standard was recorded at Hen House Rehearsal Studios. Raise the Standard and its hosts would like to acknowledge the traditional owners of the land we operate on. We acknowledge the Wurundjeri Woi-wurrung peoples as the Traditional Owners of the land. We pay our respects to their elders past and present, and acknowledge that sovereignty was never ceded.

Gather your scrolls, ink your quills, and make sure you have your lecture schedule handy--we're heading back to Strixhaven!

As is tradition, we have gathered a handful of some of the cards we think are going to be standouts in the Standard format. From lands to sorceries, we've got a little bit of everything today! Rest assured, we did our research and took some notes, like all good students do!

Which cards are you most excited for? What new archetypes might develop from this new set? Let's chat!

| Music from HitsLab via ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Pixabay⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.

| Raise the Standard is proudly sponsored by MTGBazaar! From premiere competitive events to MTG singles for your new brew, the Bazaar is the place to go for all your Magic needs. A huge thank you to Pat and the Bazaar crew for supporting the show!

| This episode of Raise the Standard was recorded at Hen House Rehearsal Studios. Raise the Standard and its hosts would like to acknowledge the traditional owners of the land we operate on. We acknowledge the Wurundjeri Woi-wurrung peoples as the Traditional Owners of the land. We pay our respects to their elders past and present, and acknowledge that sovereignty was never ceded.

We would be remiss not to bring back our most-mentioned player, Ben Tudman, for another conversation on the Standard format, its quirks, how it's changed, and what comes next for players and the metagame alike.

So join us for another episode with Ben Tudman, recorded shortly after his appearance at Pro Tour Lorwyn Eclipsed. Listeners beware--there is a moment during this recording where the camera stopped recording...but the microphones didn't! Enjoy a brief intermission wherein we wait for the camera to cool down and ramble for a bit before realising we're still live.

A huge thank you, as always, is owed to Ben for joining us for another episode and lending us his thoughts and opinions. Ben will be on his way to Amsterdam for the next pro tour, and you can bet we'll be roping him in for another series once he's returned!

| Music from HitsLab via ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Pixabay⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.

| Raise the Standard is proudly sponsored by MTGBazaar! From premiere competitive events to MTG singles for your new brew, the Bazaar is the place to go for all your Magic needs. A huge thank you to Pat and the Bazaar crew for supporting the show!

| This episode of Raise the Standard was recorded at Hen House Rehearsal Studios. Raise the Standard and its hosts would like to acknowledge the traditional owners of the land we operate on. We acknowledge the Wurundjeri Woi-wurrung peoples as the Traditional Owners of the land. We pay our respects to their elders past and present, and acknowledge that sovereignty was never ceded.

Back on the pod today is none other than Sam Loy! In Sam's last episode, we touched on the ten-year pause he put on competitive Magic and today we're going to dive into that break, how competitive Magic has changed in that time, and how players grow and adapt in ever-changing metagames.

A huge thank you to Sam for coming back for another episode and for sharing his wisdom with us! This was such a fun back-and-forth and we're so excited to see Sam off on this new leg of his competitive journey.

If you're looking to play more competitive Magic, head on over to ⁠mtgbazaarevents.com⁠ and have a look at this year's upcoming tournaments! From Highlander Worlds next month to the $100K Standard event in July, there is a huge range of premiere events to choose from!

| Music from HitsLab via ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Pixabay⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.

| Raise the Standard is proudly sponsored by MTGBazaar! From premiere competitive events to MTG singles for your new brew, the Bazaar is the place to go for all your Magic needs. A huge thank you to Pat and the Bazaar crew for supporting the show!

| This episode of Raise the Standard was recorded at Hen House Rehearsal Studios. Raise the Standard and its hosts would like to acknowledge the traditional owners of the land we operate on. We acknowledge the Wurundjeri Woi-wurrung peoples as the Traditional Owners of the land. We pay our respects to their elders past and present, and acknowledge that sovereignty was never ceded.

We just can't get enough of our amazing competitive players--and today, we've got return friend of the show Michael Billinghurst back for another episode!

If you are playing in the competitive Melbourne scene--especially if you're playing Highlander--then you know Billinghurst's name. From the committee to judging, Billinghurst is a pinnacle of the Vic crowd, and we're thrilled to have him for another episode. Today we're talking about the progression of skill in competitive Magic, how to avoid burnout, and why grinders are more prone to feeling like they're not improving even when they're at the top of their game.

| Music from HitsLab via ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Pixabay⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.

| Raise the Standard is proudly sponsored by MTGBazaar! From premiere competitive events to MTG singles for your new brew, the Bazaar is the place to go for all your Magic needs. A huge thank you to Pat and the Bazaar crew for supporting the show!

| This episode of Raise the Standard was recorded at Hen House Rehearsal Studios. Raise the Standard and its hosts would like to acknowledge the traditional owners of the land we operate on. We acknowledge the Wurundjeri Woi-wurrung peoples as the Traditional Owners of the land. We pay our respects to their elders past and present, and acknowledge that sovereignty was never ceded.

We're on the ProTour grind! Joining us today is the eponymous leader of Team Sam Loy--it's Sam Loy!

Today we're chatting about Sam's pro tour experience, being on the feature match table, and predicting the Standard metagame when the field is wide open. A huge thank you to Sam for joining us for today's episode.

And we're so incredibly excited to announce that Raise the Standard is now sponsored by MTGBazaar! Pat and the Bazaar crew are a pillar of the Magic community and of the competitive Magic scene here in Aus, and we are so lucky to be a part of this amazing group.

You can find this year's upcoming events online at MTGBazaarevents.com.au and the next event coming is Highlander Worlds, from April 24-26 at Coburg Town Hall!

| Music from HitsLab via ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Pixabay⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.

| This episode of Raise the Standard was recorded at Hen House Rehearsal Studios. Raise the Standard and its hosts would like to acknowledge the traditional owners of the land we operate on. We acknowledge the Wurundjeri Woi-wurrung peoples as the Traditional Owners of the land. We pay our respects to their elders past and present, and acknowledge that sovereignty was never ceded.

Ben Tudman...Ben Tudman...Ben Tudman...! He's back! Friend of the show, the player whose name we invoke more than anyone else, and ProTour regular, Ben Tudman joins us again on the podcast to discuss his experience at ProTour Lorwyn Eclipsed!

Ben had an incredible showing at PT Lorwyn Eclipsed and is re-queued for the next two PTs--so today we're discussing what the event was like, the deck he played, and what the future of his pro play looks like. A huge thank you to Ben for coming back to join us in the studio and to impart even more of his wisdom upon us!

| Music from HitsLab via ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Pixabay⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.

| This episode of Raise the Standard was recorded at Hen House Rehearsal Studios. Raise the Standard and its hosts would like to acknowledge the traditional owners of the land we operate on. We acknowledge the Wurundjeri Woi-wurrung peoples as the Traditional Owners of the land. We pay our respects to their elders past and present, and acknowledge that sovereignty was never ceded.

Today we've got a very special episode brought to you from the Raise archives: one of our very first screentests! Journey with us through the time vortex back to August 2025, when we first sat down in the studio to test our transition to video.

Laugh with us as we read through Ashiok's MTG wiki page, discuss its involvement (or lackthereof) in War of the Spark, and shudder to think of the number of teeth it has.

| Music from HitsLab via ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Pixabay⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.

| This episode of Raise the Standard was recorded at Hen House Rehearsal Studios. Raise the Standard and its hosts would like to acknowledge the traditional owners of the land we operate on. We acknowledge the Wurundjeri Woi-wurrung peoples as the Traditional Owners of the land. We pay our respects to their elders past and present, and acknowledge that sovereignty was never ceded.