With the Standard RCQ season about to fire, it’s about time we started to take a look at the spiciest decks in the format! Wizards of the Coast has made it very apparent that there will be a significant push for Standard play in 2024, and Kirkwood Bros Gaming is here to get a head start!
While Standard has been shown little love in recent years, sometimes becoming utterly unplayable in paper, it is beginning to see a reemergence. With time between rotation lengthening and the support from Arena, many Magic players are discovering that Standard is actually a fun format to play.
I might be one of the few, but I love Standard at the moment. The tier one Standard decks are fun and complicated, and even the tier two and three decks see lots of play. With the ability to play Standard on Arena, I have been able to prepare for this upcoming RCQ season more than any other season before, and I have high hopes.
One of the things I love most about the Standard format at this moment is how open the format is. Yes, there are the tier-one “meta” decks, but I see new decks pop up all the time that get me really excited. One of the decks that recently took the format by storm was Esper Tempo.
MONASTERY MENTOR IS PLAYABLE AGAIN! I REPEAT: MONASTERY MENTOR IS PLAYABLE AGAIN! For all of you who played during the Khans of Tarkir era, this is joyous news, as Mentor is an incredibly fun card to play with. Sadly, Mentor has seen diminishing play in all formats due to it having no immediate effect on the boardstate and having low stats.
However, with the introduction of Lost Caverns of Ixalan, this wonderful card is seeing some limelight once again! LCI has provided us with the white version of Unearth, Helping Hand, which is well positioned in the current meta.
With the high amount of removal floating around Standard, your Monastery Mentor will likely be Cut Down, face Locthwain’s Scorn, or your opponent will Go for its Throat. Esper Tempo has the very thing that has proven vital in this format: resiliency.
Being able to bring back all your essential creatures from the graveyard for only one mana is incredible, and it usually allows you to cast another spell afterward, giving you immediate value from your Mentors. Haughty Djinn has also been a powerhouse in this deck, supplying you with a massive flyer that can quickly end the game in a couple of turns in the late game while giving you a discount on all your spells.
Mentor is well positioned against all of the midrange decks utilizing black mana, such as Esper, Rakdos, Golgari, and Dimir, which comprise most of the format. You must be careful against aggressive decks like mono-red burn and Azorius soldiers since the deck can be quickly overrun if you spend your first couple of turns drawing cards.
It also has an iffy matchup against Domain Ramp since all of Domain’s removal spells exile, meaning your reanimation won’t be as effective, and it runs Cavern of Souls, so there is no countering your opponent’s Atraxas. My advice: counter your opponent’s Invasion of Zendikar and win before turn seven.
Overall, I love this deck. Monastery Mentor has been an unplayable Magic card for a very long time, and I’m happy to see it once again on the battlefield. Haughty Djinn used to see a little play in Mono-Blue decks, but it never was quite powerful enough, so I’m also happy to see that card see some popularity.
Esper Tempo is a clean and powerful deck with a simple game plan, and it is also super cheap to buy in paper (~$100). If you love tempo gameplay and are looking for an affordable option for the upcoming RCQ season, I would seriously try this one out.
The decklist below got second out of 78 players in the Standard Challenge on December 30th, going 9-1, and I couldn’t be more excited about it. This list is definitely on my radar for this RCQ season, and only time will tell if it ends up being my deck of choice!
You can also find the decklist here.
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