By now, most Modern players have seen the Chinese Dominaria spoiler leak going around. If not, head on over to the Mothership, where Wizards themselves confirmed the leak and graciously posted translations of the cards. While unsolicited spoilers can ruin the season for some, for players experiencing a brewing lull, they can serve as a much-needed […]

Yesterday, Eli Shiffrin spoiled Blood Sun, a new card from Rivals of Ixalan. Modernites were quick to give the internet a piece of their mind, with thoughts ranging from the expectant “Wizards squandered an opportunity to nerf Tron” to the meme-level “I don’t want to be THAT guy, but this card will probably need a […]

With a new set comes new speculation, new brews, and new bold declarations. Archetypes are revived, archetypes are doomed, new decks exist, the new decks are terrible—we’ve heard it all before. I try not to speculate and only talk about cards once I’ve actually played with them. This means I’m pretty late to the party […]

We’re back! Today, we’re looking at the rest of the spoiled cards for Ixalan, to see what could make an impact in Modern. Like I discussed last week, I’m choosing to approach these spoilers from the mindset of the best-case scenario, imagining what would have to happen to make them see play. As is often […]

The spoilers keep rolling in. Mike looks over the latest Ixalan cards to be revealed to see how they stack up for Standard play and as spec targets.

As much as I enjoy talking about the fringe aspects of Magic—perspective, identity, opportunity—I can’t ignore a new set on the horizon. Ixalan is here, bringing along Pirates, Dinosaurs, treasure, and things that turn into land. I don’t know what’s happening, which means I’ve been out of the loop for too long. That being said, […]

Two months ago, a foil rare sheet from Ixalan was illegitimately posted online. Most of us glanced over the fuzzy pictures and then returned to the hi-res Hour of Devastation spoilers. But then Hour came out, and the fuzzy pictures beckoned from the abyss. Fortunately, Wizards didn’t make the more patient among us wait too […]

With the official Ixalan spoilers starting to roll in, Mike considers several cards for Standard playability and potential value.

Today, I’m trying something different. Hour of Devastation released last Friday, but I haven’t had time to look at any spoilers, or read any discussion about new cards. As a result, we have an incredible opportunity to talk about the new set both before and after seeing every card surrounded by its context, in the […]

Mike’s back to break down more of the Hour of Devastation spoilers for your reading pleasure!

Note: This article was supposed to go up yesterday. Our server troubles prevented that. I really liked the opening I wrote. Pretend it’s still July 4th for me, please. Happy Fireworks Day, America! As you celebrate America’s birthday through the medium of smoldering craters as Ben Franklin intended, remember: safety first. The Founding Fathers spent […]

GP Las Vegas has come and gone, but excitement surrounding Modern still pulses through the community. Vegas saw some very interesting decks make the Top 8, and not only are Hour of Devastation spoilers providing plenty to discuss, but Ixalan’s contraversial rare sheet leak has given format aficionados an unprecedented amount of new information to […]

Idle speculation accomplishes nothing. Speculation is just untested opinion, and is therefore invalid. With that in mind, I’ve decided to test my opinions about Gideon of the Trials and find out if my initial impressions actually hold weight. I don’t have enough data to make any definitive conclusion, but my testing should shine some light on Gideon’s […]