A list isn't available quite yet, but a number of mono-green decks featuring Nissa, Oran-Rief, etc top 8'ed the 5K in Nashville this weekend. Nissa is already pretty expensive, as are the Eldrazi Monuments the deck runs, but Oran-Rief, the Vastwood is a big opportunity. If the deck becomes popular, which almost every elf deck does, it should be worth more than the $1.50 it'll cost you most places online.

Hey everyone, this is your Editor speaking. I wanted to check in and make sure everyone knows that the infrequency of updates doesn't herald the end of days for QS - quite the opposite actually! I've been grinding away behind the scenes with some really awesome new projects lately to give the site more dimensions and between all these projects and writing two articles a week, I hadn't really had the time to drop in updates as frequently as I'd have liked.

To that end, and realizing that there are many loyal readers who demand more content, I've reached out to find a few passionate, talented people in the Magic community to contribute on a weekly basis. The first of these articles should appear after this weekend. I'm still looking for one or maybe two more passionate writers who understand the trading game. Please contact me by email with 2-3 concepts for a starting article if interested.

Like I said, there are some very cool things coming. I don't want to spoil most of 'em until they're ready to launch, but trust me when I say that I'm working hard on expanding the site every single day. Many of you know, if you follow along on Twitter, that I have expanded to MTGO as of late. I've already made a few speculative calls that I won't be publishing outside of Twitter (@kellyreid) but they seem like they're good calls. We'll start putting up MTGO picks in a few weeks once I learn the system a little better.

I just wanted to take an editorial moment to let my readers know that the site is strong as ever, and I'm aware that the dearth of recent updates has been kind of a drag. I'm very excited for some new writers to start here and hope you all welcome them and leave lots of great comments to let them know what they're doing right and wrong!

This is where some really ridiculous deals can happen. Many dealers and game stores have these unsorted boxes of older cards, and unless the store is focused on selling Magic singles, they will probably never sort through these boxes. Next time you go to a game store, take a half an hour beforehand to peruse online prices of some older sets. Some cards that look otherwise unremarkable can be worth well more than the dime, quarter or nickel you may have to pay for them. A few of note, with average prices....[Read the list at ManaNation.com!]

Interesting to note - Star City bumped up their price on Sphinx of Jwar Isle recently, to $4. Some other sites are starting to charge real money for Sphinx too. Most sites that had listed the rare under a dollar are already sold out, and eBay prices are starting to perk up too. Sphinx of Jwar Isle may not be the next Baneslayer, but it's better than a junk rare. Pick yours up before you have to actually trade something valuable for them.

This week’s topic is much more specific to the game of Magic – the logistics of managing a collection of Magic Cards can be overwhelming at times, and a poorly organized collection can cause loss, waste and missed opportunities. Ensuring that you have a system in place to manage every card for the duration of your possession will make it very easy to locate and trade your stock.

I use the word “stock” because no matter the size of your collection, you should be managing it like a business. If you’ve never worked at any kind of retail store, you probably have no idea how tight most stores manage their inventory. Your collection should be managed in much the same way. This doesn’t mean recording every transaction and keeping a running tally of every common in your possession, but it does mean that every card should have a place and that every card is IN its place. The system I’m about to suggest is not gospel, but it’s a good starting point for those who just keep their stuff in a big cardboard box. Having a system is more important than the system itself, so if you’ve got something that works, stick with it! Read the rest on ManaNation.com!

While it was hardly a surprise that Baneslayer Angel, Tarmogoyf, and Knight of the Reliquary were game-enders in this format, Ben Rubin showcased the power of all three in the deck he shipped to Kibler. It bore the name “Zoo,” but it was more of a mid-range aggro deck. The true marquee card of the deck, and the breakout of the tournament, has to be Grove of the Burnwillows. To parrot Randy Buehler’s comments during coverage and say that “no one had that tech” would be inaccurate. It seems that a lot of people had the technology, but almost no one figured out how to use it correctly.

To read more, go to The Starkington Post!

Well, the Dragonmaster did it. Brian Kibler is your Pro Tour Austin 2009 Champion! The combo of Punishing Fire and Grove of the Burnwillows let him push gigantic Tarmogoyfs and Knights of the Reliquary through opposing defenses to offset the lifegain provided by his land/combo enabler. It seems the magic community has taken note - Groves are selling out all over the Internet, so it is our sincere hope at Quiet Speculation that you bought them when they were recommended last night. Unfortunately, Knight of the Reliquary is already expensive at 8 dollars, but it is possible to see him go up a few more dollars on the back of Zoo's popularity alone. He could pass 10 just from this Pro Tour, and heavy use in Standard would inflate his price even more.

Brian Kibler's just top-8ed the Pro Tour with a Zoo deck featuring 4 copies of the Future Sight dual land. He used it to fuel Punishing Fire, which is an absolute weapon against opposing aggro and against blue-based decks. When asked how good the combo is, on a scale of 1-10, Brian responded by saying "11".

These are under 2 dollars right now, and it should go without saying that they'll double in price at the very least on the back of his PT T8 alone, not to mention what their price will be if he wins it all. ChannelFireball is already sold out, as are a few other sites, so move fast.

The general consensus on this card was "The Japanese will probably break it", and they seem to have done so. Nick Eisel, though not from the Land of the Rising Sun himself, tuned up their list and posted it on SCG Premium just this evening. Pyromancer's Ascension's effect is super-powerful, and the card's already moved from a dollar rare to 2.50. It's probably not too late to get on board, since SCG tends to be quick to adjust their prices. Go get your playset or three while they're cheap. Sure, the deck COULD turn out to be trash, but it has all the potential in the world. They're still so cheap that the risk is almost nil.

You may have noticed that the updates on the main site here at QS are a little less frequent than they have been. No, I'm lot losing steam or switching over to writing strategy - I'm just writing for two other sites at the same time! I can't post the full text of the articles here - that'd just be rude - but I can tell you that every Monday I do a Week in Review on The Starkington Post and that every Thursday, my weekly column on ManaNation goes up. The Starkington Post series is a sort of weekly roundup of all the financial goings-on in the game, while the ManaNation series is more geared towards the basic foundations of buying, selling and trading. I encourage everyone to go check out both sites - they're great resources run by wonderful people!

Apologies for the delay in updating the list, but here's where we are at right now. Rumor has it that a Boros Bushwhacker list took 2nd at the Philly 5k. While we haven't seen the list, it's safe to say that the deck is most likely Tier 1 with proper tuning. This is a rough list that tries to utilize the drawback of Skyfisher to generate upside. You can bounce Ranger, Hellspark, Teetering Peaks and Bushwhacker to generate an advantage as well as ensuring that you have a land to trip Steppe Lynx. Apparently the Philly list was running 4x Lynx and 4x Skyfisher - the number of Landfall guys in the deck has been a subject of debate for a while, and it's likely that Plated Geopede will not make the cut but Lynx will.

4 Goblin Guide
4 Ranger of Eos
4 Elite Vanguard
3 Goblin Bushwhacker
4 Kor Skyfisher
4 Hellspark Elemental
4 Steppe Lynx

3 Burst Lightning
4 Lightning Bolt
2 Path to Exile

4 Arid Mesa
4 Teetering Peaks
4 Marsh Flats
1 Scalding Tarn
4 Mountain
7 Plains

The mana base likely needs more tinkering, but 8-9 fetch lands should be sufficient to keep our TarmoKitty happy. If the deck wants more consistency, it can swap out the Flats and Tarn for appropriate basics. It's just nice to have the option to do 4 with the Lynx out of nowhere, and for very little downside. Kor Skyfisher is a superb replacement for Cerodon Yearling, which has felt too "fair" in the deck since the beginning.

SB options include Day of Judgment, the 2x Path, a 4th Burst Lightning, Harm's Way, etc. It's not really useful to build an SB until the metagame shapes up further. In general, the deck has such dominant matchups that shoring up the 1-2 bad matchups is what the side 15 will have to do.

If you decide to test this list or anything similar, leave a comment here or @kellyreid on Twitter. The deck is shaping up to be a top-tier contender in the new Standard format, and it's not especially expensive to build. It's slightly more skill-intensive than it appears, since some matchups require close analysis of role assignment. Remember, with the Skyfisher + Ranger engine, your late game might be better than most aggro decks. If this is the case, do not be afraid to play a control deck and just hold back one-drops for a massive alpha strike.

Here's a very interesting Letter to the Editor from reader Mike Hulsebus. It reminds us all that there's more to magic than making the most cutthroat, efficient decks and playing with mana bases worth more than some used cars. I post this not because it reflects my personal opinion, but with the intent of opening up some discussion on the matter. Please use the comments below to discuss your feelings on rare lands!

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I should be excited, but I’m not.

I recently bought a box of Zendikar cards: $85 bucks paid partially in store credit and partially in cash. I’m working my way though the packs slowly and so far, in about 8 packs, I’ve opened up two fetchlands. A quick search of the internet tells me that this small portion of my packs is worth a little under $40.

See, like you, I’ve been making a lot of decks in preparation for the new standard format. I’m trying to be realistic with what I can spend money on, and the last thing that I want to do is spend $80 per playset of lands in order to just get my deck off the ground..

Wizards, of course, doesn’t set prices on what singles go for, but they do set rarity. Let’s consider a few things.

When you make your deck, where do you start? I start by looking at individual cards and figuring out which cards I would like to exploit and which seem fun to play. So, for example, in Lorwyn, I decided I liked the card advantage of running Wort, Boggart Auntie and went from there. Half the fun of magic is thinking of what kind of decks you can build and what fun interactions you can create. There is nothing innovative about deciding to put a Marsh Flats in a black/white deck.

I would venture a guess that no one has gotten to the rare slot of their pack, saw a Misty Rainforest, and said “Ooh! This fixes my mana! What if I built a green/blue deck that took advantage of that?”

To say it more briefly, fetchlands are boring. Dual lands are boring. Mana fixing is boring.

What if mana fixing was all in the uncommon slot? Sure, there could still be rare lands like Oran-Reef the Vastwood or Mutavault that have additional effects, but what if the foundations of deck building were more readily available?

I think this would actually result in Wizards selling more packs rather than fewer. Sure, while one player may not buy that case hoping to get a fetchland set, if you engage players in each format, you’re going to have five players buying single boxes rather than one player buying five and the more players that we can have playing Magic, the better.

I’ve been looking a few different decks that I might want to consider running coming up, but am severely limited when it comes to ones that fit the “not-paying-$80-to-cast-spells” criteria. I would especially like to point out that it is a sad, sad day when even the mono-colored decks are running manabases that cost over $100.

There is nothing fun about paying $100 for that. Yes, it will always cost money to stay current in Magic, but I would rather pay $30 for a Baneslayer Angel than pay $20 so that I have the correct arrangement of mana to cast Baneslayer Angel.

Really, the main problem is that having the lands be expensive is that it pigeonholes players in to having only one set of lands and therefore playing only one sort of colors. I would love for players to be able to play whatever-colored deck he or she wanted regardless of what lands were in the. Let’s allow our players to have the fun of building new decks every week to try at their local FNM. Lets devote our rare slots to non-lands.

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Certainly not the average efficienct-hungry Spike perspective you often get on Magic internet sites! Talk about it in the comments below!

Since the Twitterverse has been begging for a list, here's the 75 for Boros Bushwhacker. I've been testing it with the help of Sam Stoddard, Paul Osborne and Greg Haenig (of MTG Salvation fame). A brief discussion will follow the List:

4 Goblin Guide
4 Elite Vanguard
1 Steppe Lynx
4 Ranger of Eos
4 Hellspark Elemental
4 Cerodon Yearling
4 Goblin Bushwhacker

4 Lightning Bolt
4 Burst Lightning
4 Harm's Way

4 Teetering Peaks
2 Marsh Flats
4 Scalding Tarn
4 Arid Mesa
5 Mountain
4 Plains

SB

4 Day of Judgment
4 Path to Exile
4 Volcanic Fallout
3 [This Space Intentionally Left Blank]

First off, it might be a 24-land deck. If it is, the 4th Bushwhacker gets cut for another Mountain. Otherwise, the maindeck choices are fairly tight. The SB is designed to make the White Weenie and Random Baneslayer matchups easier, as that's been the biggest challenge thus far. When a real metagame shapes up, the SB will tighten up accordingly.

The big question that got asked about this list is, "What, only ONE lynx and zero Geopedes?" Yes, in fact, they are as good as they seem but they introduce some serious variance into an otherwise clockwork deck. In its current form, the deck can almost always goldfish a turn 4 win. Between 10 Fetch Lands and 4 Rangers, the deck runs very consistently and is almost never out of threats. Hellspark Elemental replaced Plated Geopede in testing because, ironically, of its LACK of board presence. This deck wants to set up a board of 2-3 cheap creatures that NEED to eat mass removal, then punish the opponent for tapping out when they do so. Your post-Wrath alpha strike is either a salvo of +1/+0 haste'd one drops or a couple Hellsparks to the face, so in that regard, Hellspark is the better choice than Geopede. The Landfall guys were super-powerful when they were online, but they just weren't online enough to be consistent. One Lynx is in there so you can hold back a Fetch Land in the mid- or late-game, tutor him up alongside a Bushwhacker and have a 7-damage play even if your Ranger of Eos dies.

The other question that gets asked often is in regards to Goblin Guide's "drawback". There were multiple times where the info gleaned from his attack trigger was extremely valuable. It's very cool to know that they're about to draw a Wrath of God, and since it's not a "may" trigger nor can they manipulate the card in any way if it's not a land, the information will always be good. It can sometimes be dangerous to ship them free land, but in general the Guide is so punishing that it doesn't matter. In another deck, he might be less effective, but in Boros Bushwhacker he'll often do 8-10 damage. The threat density of the deck is ridiculously high and almost every threat has an immediate impact on the game.

The removal suite was specifically chosen to never be fully dead. Path to Exile is in the sideboard because it cannot go to the opponent's face. It is a necessity when facing Baneslayer decks, but the starting 60 is tuned to deliver 20 damage as fast as it can. Harm's Way has been an All-Star thus far, making combat a dangerous proposition for the opponent. Many a game has been won by Harm's Waying a blocker's damage back at its controller. Lightning Bolt has also been dominant, but that goes without saying. Burst Lightning, however, has been off the charts. It's disposable early, which means you can do things like kill 2/2 First Strikers and mana accelerators, but late-game it hits very, very hard. It can take out 2/2 First Strikers that have grown via Honor of the Pure, and it can simply take a large chunk out of an opposing life total. The 12 removal spells maindeck are only viable because they can give you ridiculous reach out of nowhere. It's not uncommon to see an opponent at 14 or less by the end of turn 2, nor is it unreasonable to see them well below 10 by the end of turn 3. The burn then shifts from removal to direct damage and ends the game before they've even had a chance to develop a board.

The deck is fast, efficient, and recovers from removal very well. It is not without flaws, and has a difficult matchup against white Soldier and Weenie decks, especially those curving out with Baneslayer Angel. The games are winnable but almost every facet of their deck is designed to beat yours (intentionally or not). Ranger of Eos is one of the most powerful things you can do in Standard, and its arguably better than Bloodbraid Elf due to its supporting cast. The deck can appear board-committed at times, but as long as you've got a Ranger in the grip, you won't get blown out by a Wrath. It does not mulligan especially well, as lowering the threat density of an opening hand takes some of the punch out of the deck. Thankfully, it also does not mulligan especially frequently, owing to the density of one-drops. It can win a game without hitting a 3rd land drop, so when testing it, do not mulligan unless you have zero action. If you've got two lands, a castable 1 and 2 drop, and some burn, you keep without question. The deck can win off 6 or even 5 cards, but it is often better to be land-light for a few turns than to go down a card, especially when you're playing first.

Overall Boros Bushwhacker can develop an enviable board position while other decks are still trying to fix their mana. The deck does more with it's first 3 turns than any other deck in the developing format, and it would not be a stretch to see this deck as Tier 1. If you're playing in the Star City Games 5K Standard Open in Philly this coming weekend and need a deck, try Boros Bushwhacker and let us know how it runs for you. It's not too hard to play, it's amazingly fast, consistent and powerful, and it's fairly enjoyable to boot. I'll answer any questions about the deck in the comments below, so ask away!