With The One Ring banned and Energy nerfed, Modern is in an experimental phase. However, the data doesn't reflect this due to MTGO being the only data source.

The post December ’24 Metagame Update: A Sneak Peak first appeared on Quiet Speculation.

With Modern Horizons 3 near, the Modern metagame is holding its breath. Players are choosing to play established decks and coast to the metagame's finish.

The post May ’24 Metagame Update: Waiting for Horizons first appeared on Quiet Speculation.

Modern's metagame has fallen back on old favorites. With Modern Horizons 3 coming soon, players are holding their breath for the new shakeup. The data is clear.

The post April ’24 Metagame Update: Holding Pattern first appeared on Quiet Speculation.

Violent Outburst is banned, and the Modern metagame is adjusting. However, from the data it's clear that players have little idea which direction it's heading.

The post March ’24 Metagame Update: The Cascade Crash first appeared on Quiet Speculation.

I haven't had to do that many metagame updates for February, it being the month where bans tend to happen. That wasn't the case this month, though I suspect that the data will add fuel to the banning call fires. I understand, but I'd caution everyone to consider the context before jumping to conclusions. February's data is defined by the Regional Championships and that created a localized warp.

The post February ’24 Metagame Update: Championship Changes first appeared on Quiet Speculation.

There is a clear metagame warp in January's data. However, it appears to be driven less by actual metagame forces than Magic Online being Magic Online.

The post January ’24 Metagame Update: Convergent Consensus first appeared on Quiet Speculation.

Time to close the books on 2023. It's been quite a year. We saw two of the biggest sustained warps in Modern's history, banned and restricted policy reverted to an earlier form, and we had the first unban since 2019.

The post December ’23 Metagame Update: Holiday Hangover first appeared on Quiet Speculation.

With Fury and Up the Beanstalk banned, Modern is set to dramatically change. The data clearly shows how necessary the bans were, though the impact is uncertain.

The post November ’23 Metagame Update: A New World first appeared on Quiet Speculation.

Modern continues to be dominated to an extreme degree by Scam. There has been innovation in the lower tiers, but it appears that the status quo will persist.

The post October ’23 Metagame Update: It Got Worse first appeared on Quiet Speculation.

April's Modern metagame data is deceptive. The tale that the numbers suggest isn't the story that actually happened. David E has the explanation inside.

The post April ’23 Metagame Analysis: Not Neck and Neck first appeared on Quiet Speculation.

April's Modern Metagame Update shows the top decks settling in while innovation and change rock the lower tiers. And Murktide has a surprise for us, too!

The post April ’23 Metagame Update: Looking Familiar first appeared on Quiet Speculation.

The March Modern Metagame Update is ready. Modern is incredibly stable, and that is translating into highly polarized, and not ideal, data. David E. explains.

The post March ’23 Metagame Update: Overwhelming Outliers first appeared on Quiet Speculation.

The February Modern Metagame Update is here, and its data seems deeply at odds with the claims Wizards made about format win rates. What's the real story?

The post February ’23 Metagame Update: Closed Circle first appeared on Quiet Speculation.

The January Modern Metagame Update is here. In this month, the top decks remain stable while the lower tiers show more innovation and experimentation.

The post January ’23 Metagame Update: Before the Storm first appeared on Quiet Speculation.

New month, new Modern metagame update. While there have been shakeups within the Tiers, the last update of 2022 looks familiar... and that's alarming.

The post December ’22 Metagame Update: Concerning Continuity first appeared on Quiet Speculation.

The metagame has achieved general stability, but the paper and MTGO metagames are diverging... and Tier 1 is half the field! David E. has the data.

The post November ’22 Metagame Update: Divergent Continuity first appeared on Quiet Speculation.

David E. finally made an RCQ Top 8 after consistently underperforming. He discusses what it took to get there, his preparation, and some tricks of the trade.

The post Top 8 RCQ Finish: Modern Burn first appeared on Quiet Speculation.

David E. unpacks Modern's only month post-Lurrus and pre-Streets, hinting at the dominance of Murktide and Omnath while unveiling a sleeper Phyrexian hit.

The post A Split Decision: April ’22 Metagame Update first appeared on Quiet Speculation.

Time Spiral Remastered spoiler season is here and the Quiet Speculation team is hyped! Joe takes a look at the highlights from the set and talks about which Timeshifted cards he's most excited for.

The post Time Spiral Remastered: Highlights first appeared on Quiet Speculation.

Modern Horizons Flashback Drafts hit MTGO! Kyle reexamines the key cards Modern Horizons on MTGO, and a few sleeper hits with high upside.

The post Insider: Capitalizing on the Modern Horizons Flashback first appeared on Quiet Speculation.