By: Jaren White
Who am I?
Before I skip over this part, my name is Jaren; I am 30. I have been playing magic since I was 22, but I didn’t start playing competitively until 23. I have had multiple qualifier finishes, GPT finishes, and things of that nature. If you want to chat with me or have any questions find me on Twitter @jaywmtg.
Be better human beings to one another!
Pickups for Rotation: Part 1
As we head for another rotation, year after year we go through our collections trying to figure out what we are missing and what we already have. This year’s rotation feels special due to the numerous bannings and egregious cards that have been printed within the past two years. We finally have a light at the end of the tunnel, though, and that should hopefully lead to better pastures in Standard.
With that being said here are my current top cards to pick up for standard rotation.
Coming in from Core Set 21, Teferi has already left his mark on Standard play. Whether it’s the static ability to activate on an opponent’s turn; upticking to loot twice per turn cycle; or pitching cards and sculpting your hand to the current needs of your game, Teferi is a dream for control and mid-range players alike.
Downticking to phase out an opposing threat from your opponent’s side of the field while attempting to find an answer for it is also very advantageous as well. If you have yet to pick up your playset I recommend doing so soon. Whenever paper Magic resumes I expect this to be a highly sought after card.
To be honest there isn’t much to say about this card, but I feel that I have to speak on it a bit. Uro has literally changed the way we play magic as we know it. It is a Growth Spiral on a stick for lack of better explanation. In terms of picking up this card, if you have the money I recommend grabbing a playset. Uro is very likely to see play in Standard until rotates or gets banned. Even then, Uro has shown up in other formats as well so it’s not a bad investment, but if you don’t have the money to spare that is completely understandable.
Yes, I know eight mana is alot for a planeswalker, but do you know why Ugin is great? Ugin can make all of your problems go away. Kinda like when Thanos snapped his fingers. Also, with it being colorless it can fit into any deck that is looking to play the long game very easily. I wouldn’t say the card is cheap by any means, but it is definitely easily attainable.
When I first saw this card I said to myself wow six mana is a lot, I don’t think this card will see much play. Now that this Cryptic Command-esque card has seen play in Standard shells such as UW control and Temur Reclamation, I am definitely sold on it. It allows you to catch your opponent off-guard and possibly blow them out at the same time. Picking 2+ modes puts you ahead, and seriously helps turn the corner to victory.
If you are a control player there is no doubt in my mind you should be looking to pick up this card and I am sure it will be a potential player for its tenure in Standard.
This is another card that has changed the way we play constructed magic. We can’t just go blindly attack our opponent without them possibly cycling typhoon, drawing a card, and creating a giant flying shark. Also, the card has created a way to greatly pressure Planeswalkers if we want to get them off the board. It is also good to know that if you just so happen to straight up cast this card and untap with it you are probably winning that game.
Now, about acquiring this card. When Ikoria first hit the market this card was $3 at the start, and now it is basically $10. With that being said I still do recommend picking up this card for the foreseeable future.
Vigilance, deathtouch, and haste is a lot to go on one card. Especially with this card invalidating blocking strategies for hyper-aggressive decks and pressuring walkers as well. I could not miss having a chance to talk about this card for a bit. This card is currently selling for $15, so it isn’t expensive but it isn’t cheap either.
I’ve always enjoyed this card especially when it saw play in Jeskai fires for a bit. Elspeth pushes for white aggro strategies and can be a finisher in control strategies as well. This card is extremely cheap for a Planeswalker at mythic rarity right now and I 100% think anyone that is thinking about buying this card should snatch up a set quickly. You never know when it will spike in price from breaking through in a new Standard deck post-rotation.
This three-mana Planeswalker is very unique in its colors. Looting and giving a nice pump plus first strike and trample seems amazing actually. There is already a shell out there that The Royal Scions fits in with Sprite Dragon, Rielle, the Everwise and Stormwing Entity. Maybe the shell just needs a bit of a push. Anyway, the card is between $3-4, and it’s definitely one of the cards I picked up since it was so cheap.
This card in particular is great premium removal for three mana. Get rid of a problem on the board and you get a creature out of it with lifelink once you cast it from its adventure. For being just under $2 just go ahead spend about $8 on the playset and pick it up. It will definitely help in the long run.
When I first started playing magic, I was always told to buy my lands first since they were the most expensive thing to get at the time. Now with the way magic is that isn’t necessarily the case but, I still buy my lands first out of habit. When I first saw the Triome series, I said to myself the alternate arts are beautiful, I want them, and these lands will definitely see play.
For the time being, Triomes are pretty darn cheap and I recommend snagging sets for yourself. All ten Scrylands are back in Standard again. When they were first in Standard all of them saw play and I don’t see that changing any time soon. They are dirt cheap, and there is no reason not to have a playset of each. (You can find most of these for $0.35/ea. on CardKingdom right now!)
In terms of Fabled Passage, this is the second reprint in under a year which is very interesting. This also means that there are a lot of copies out in the wild and they are around $6 a piece. This land can see play in any deck. So just go ahead and click that checkout button on these as well.
Part 2???
Yes, I understand there is alot cover with this particular subject. So, closer to Zendikar Rising I will produce another article covering more cards to pick up. I will also have a better idea of what I should be talking about since we will have some type of spoilers by then.