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Top 10 best Standard Cards from Wilds of Eldraine by Mogged
It’s Time
Hello everyone, it’s time for my top 10 list of cards from Wilds of Eldraine that will impact Standard.
Prologue
Evaluating cards from this set will be done in the context of Standard, so we already have a few parameters to adjust to. We know the format has a lot of sets right now, we know black is really good and white is close, and we also know the top threats and the best answers. Therefore, I will be trying to predict how good the cards are and make some brave guesses. For example, green has been really bad up until now, but this set has some interesting green cards. So either green sees the light of day, which I think is the case this time, or the push from this set isn't enough to revive it.
In a nutshell, these are the defining Standard cards we already have , and everything from this set has to be compared to them.
Honorable mentions
Elusive Otter
One mana prowess creatures have historically been great. One-drop creatures are also irreplaceable. This might pair well with Monastery Swiftspear to spawn a standard prowess deck, especially since we also have Consider and Sleight of Hand.
The only issue is that I can't find a way to make the green part work. Simic is the worst color combination in the format, and the standard mana bases won't allow a fast Temur deck to exist.
Embereth veteran
The one-drop mono-red with upside, when I started playing MTG, I had Firedrinker Satyr in my deck. So, this card just seems crazy to me. We know a deck already needs this. Even though this card is going to see play for sure, its impact is relatively low, and it works as a minor upgrade to what we already have.
Restless spire
This is very cheap to activate and powerful, I just don’t know if a slow blue red deck has legs in current Standard, this seems like it’s good in a prowess deck, but a prowess deck needs untapped turn 1 mana, so it’s really confusing to find a home for this, but if there was one this manland is the best one out of the cycle, probably what ends up happening is the best magic online grinder at the moment and blue red enthusiast “o_danielakos” ends up building a UR standard deck again and proves me wrong.
The Top Ten
10) The Irencrag
This is essentially a rock, and its second ability probably doesn't matter too much. The legend keyword prevents you from ever playing this as 4 copies. However, the effect is much needed in today's Standard, since there is a significant reward to be gained by playing expensive cards earlier. Colorless mana probably means it should be inserted in a deck that cares about reaching the late game but has very easy color requirements. Ramping strategies are rare in Standard nowadays, but when they do occur, they might involve another ramp card that costs 4 mana , which can find you the missing colors to play your favorite 7 drop from standard, going from 2 to 4 to 7 mana by turn 4.
The upside of this card compared to a creature dork is that it is safe from removal and right now there’s a lot of black removal to avoid.
9) Blossoming Tortoise
Another new Ramp card which could see play with The Irencrag.
We had Soul of Windgrace, which is similar but more robust. However, I think this turtle is superior because it enables itself by milling and has less stringent color requirements. If you're planning to ramp, you should have a 4-drop that reliably gets you that extra land. This turtle also necessitates removal, otherwise the manlands become larger threats. If your ramp piece aids your strategy and can also win the game on its own, then it's probably a good deal.
However there is a question to be asked here since you need to be very dedicated to Green to run this, how good is Green this time? and what color(s) can provide the much needed interaction to be paired with?
8) Decadent Dragon
This is the kind of midrange card that just gives too much card advantage, as well as some flexibility in casting timing with its adventure side, this timing is important for Red Black decks to switch gears versus open mana and provide mana sinks, in a very weird way this card reminds me of Bankbuster, it has instant speed card advantage at first and by the end of it you get a 4/4 and maybe treasures.
The downside of this card is that the adventure part doesn't provide the usual clause of "you can use any mana to cast these cards". Therefore, you have to work for it, either by playing some cards that create treasures or some triomes. The dragon may not always be able to help you cast the exiled cards. This is because, as we know, 4-drop cards in Standard have a life expectancy of less than two turns after hitting the board. However, I believe that the adventure side of the card is really good, and the creature side is just good enough to necessitate removal.
7) Goddric, Cloaked Reveler
This card is probably ready to go already and doesn't need any hypothetical scenarios. It just fits so well in the Monored deck we have and pairs with the best 1-drop in Standard.
Mono-red decks have utilized 3 mana 3 power hasters for a long time. However, even with less relevant abilities, this will often be a 4/4 flier. Yes, even on turn 3, it can enter as a dragon with haste if you cast Kumano on turn 1. Because your deck has so many cheap spells, it's easy to transform this into a dragon again later in the game. The fire-breathing ability notes that all dragons get pumped, which leads me to believe that it pairs well with Shivan Devastator and Invasion of Tarkir.
6) Restless Cottage
This card provides an incentive to play green. The stats are pretty good. We know Hive is still a great card in Pioneer, and this card offers even more utility. Tapped Manlands are usually better in slow decks because they come into play tapped, meaning you don't usually have a curve with one-drops. They utilize flood, because decks with tapped lands on turn one usually have 25+ lands. This card checks so many boxes for what a supposed green-black slow deck could be missing.
a) It exiles problematic recursive cards like tenacious underdog that will make your black removal worse and allow a midrange deck outgrind you.
b) Gains you life through food tokens, something that’s only useful if you are in the control role of a matchup.
c) High enough power to deal with planeswalkers because slow decks usually lack creature boards big enough to take down planeswalkers with attacks in time.
There’s one issue with this card: is Green good enough?
5) Restless Fortress
Much like the cottage, this fits into slow decks and has some lifedrain utility. In my opinion, this is worse than the cottage as a standalone card. However, the Orzhov colors are a better fit for such an effect. We already know that Esper control in Standard is doing really well and Orzhov midrange is now a thing. Both of these decks need this, so there's already a spot for this card in Standard.
4) Mosswood Dreadknight
Whenever I build midrange decks, I try to check some boxes. Having a good 2-drop is very high on that list. Two-drops have always been meta-defining in Standard. It's why we saw Fable paired with Black so often in the previous Standard, rather than with other colors. It wasn't because of Sheoldred, but because Bloodtithe Harvester was the best 2-drop with Fable.
Mosswood Dreadknight is a solid clock but it's also good against removal because it replaces itself with a new card. Two-drop cards that can trade up with a removal are a big deal in Standard. This can also act as a 4 mana 3/2 trample, lose a life, draw a card, which I think is completely fine. There are two satisfying ways of filling your curve to make other parts of your deck shine.
Again, with so many good green cards in this set, is Green going to see any play? This card is great on its own and would be higher on the list in other standard years, but it's in a very weak color that is missing interaction and perhaps a rewarding 4-drop.
3) Redcap gutter dweller
I think this card is good in the context of this Standard. Your 4 drop needs to be able to win the game on its own, but it will probably die. Therefore, it's better if it leaves something behind. Redcap Gutter Dweller seems like it's the top curve of a somewhat mid-range/aggressive deck and will provide good exiles on the upkeep if you have built with enough cheap spells. This might bring red-black back to life as I think it's better than other 4 drops versus removal. It can turn your exiles into card advantage if your deck is only consisting of threats, proactive interaction, or lands. I think this is better than Sheoldred when your curve is lower and aiming for shorter games.
2) Lord Skitter, sewer King
This card reminds me of the Goblin Rabblemaster. Though it's slower to deal damage, it's also bigger and has a utility effect that can replace the Graveyard Trespasser.
Admittedly, it's worse against removal, but it can take over the game if it goes unanswered. It pairs really well with your removal to clear the way for the rats to attack, which is what black is doing nowadays anyway. I believe this card is already good enough to see play in all the black midrange decks we are seeing in standard right now and it may even spawn new ones. Go for the Throat and Wedding Announcement probably highlight this card's strengths the most in the same deck. It can also enable some of the new bargain cards, should they become a thing.
1) Virtue of Persistence
This card might come as a surprise for #1, but I am really sold on it. When you try to judge adventure cards, the cheaper side is what matters the most. I think Locthwain Scorn is good enough to play as a removal. It is a sorcery, which is a downside, but it can answer every creature at 1 and 2 mana, and maybe some 3 cmc ones as well. Assuming your deck is capable of casting the 7 mana side of this card, then the 2 life the first mode provides should also be relevant.
This probably isn't the type of card to play 4 copies of, but the removal side is good enough as a main deckable card. The reanimating side is narrow enough to be game-winning in some mid-range mirror situations. Even if your deck doesn't play something as big as Atraxa, just getting Sheoldred back from either player's graveyard probably buys you enough time for Virtue of Persistence to snowball. This is a mana sink you got for free and I would probably include this card in all the black decks that exist right now.
Final words
I think we somehow ended up with black getting the best cards again. Green is looking really good in this set, but it remains to be seen if it can break through to Standard. I think this set doesn't have the most powerful card in Standard but it goes very deep. I started with a list of 30 cards and there were a lot of cards that were considered as 'maybes' before narrowing it down. I am sure there will be something I missed, like a fairy card or a bunny or a manland.
Even some commons look good. They might prove to be really good and surprise us.