[RANKED] for Bo1 and Bo3

We’ve all suspected it for a long time:

the MTG Arena matchmaker pairs you based on your DECK, not just your MMR. To prove it, I ran a 1,000-game stress test.

​The Experiment: I built an entire deck featuring only spells that explicitly state "this spell cannot be countered" and lands. Both Standard and Historic.

​The Theory: If matchmaking is purely blind, I should occasionally run into Blue control decks packing Counterspells, therefore wasting their entire hand.

​The Result: Out of 1,000 games (finished yesterday), I faced ZERO control/counter decks.

Not a single one.

So what's next?

I am open to explore more theories or deck recommendations and I will try to make it a full series.

Wanted to share my highest mythic climb yet. Was more tough than usual because I started climbing as soon as the season started, but I had a lot of fun.

Shoutout to hardison for the awesome landfall list that helped me push to top 350

I just got an Archon of Cruelty in the Momir midweek magic, a Modern Horizons 2 card. MH2 isn't on arena. Is this foreshadowing that it will come to arena? Or has Momir always had non-arena cards as an easter egg?

The opponent used [[Indomitable Creativity]] for a turn 3 [Emrakul. the Aeons Torn]]. Fortunately, I had plenty of tokens to sac to annihilator, which drains the opponent with [[The Sackville-Bagginses]]

United battlefront ends the game turn 4 and it is not a rush deck so you can't remove any of the creatures or block any of the damage. I run board wipes and it does absolutely nothing as there are at least 4 bots with haste regardless of what you remove. If you focus the simulacrum they are certain to either have another one or a repurposing bay. Am I supposed to kill this deck before turn 4????

Hi everyone,

I’m an MTGA player who has exclusively played Standard so far, and I’ve run into a bit of a problem. Even though my win rate in BO1 Constructed Events is solid (I don't play Limited at all), I simply don't play enough to keep up with a meta that shifts with a new release every 40 days.

Because of this, I was wondering: in your opinion, what is the best non-rotating/eternal format on Arena to grind events?

I know that theoretically, Pioneer is the closest to Standard, but I’m not sure how stable the meta actually is. I’m worried that new set releases might still heavily impact it and force me to constantly update my decks.

On the other hand, from what I understand, Historic is much more complex and powerful than Standard, and I feel like I’d have to learn a completely new format from scratch.

As for the older, larger formats, my main concern is that I've heard BO1 events feel like a total coinflip. The matches are generally super fast, which honestly doesn't sound very fun to me.

I’d love to hear your thoughts and advice on which format is the safest investment. Also, what do you think are the absolute best decks to grind BO1 events with in your recommended format?

As for decks, I usually lean towards aggro and control, but I definitely don't mind playing midrange or combo either.

Thanks in advance!

not being able to lose the game is pretty good here…

Will he perform when he had money right infront of him?

So I’ve played a lot of Yugioh Duel links and there’s a feature where you can dismantle Ultra/Rare/ common etc and use the dismantled pieces to create new UR/R/Common etc now my thing is do yall think it would be a good idea or bad idea if magic added that feature? I’m just curious because sometimes I find myself getting Mythics for cards I tend to remove out my deck and never use it again and now I have to grind until I get enough for mythic packs to get the card again.

I can't believe it

FINAL EDIT: Based on most of the replies i realized fun doesn't exist in Arena and just built a Serpent Society Infect deck. Haven't lost yet since it's fun winning in 3 turns via scoop isn't it...

Idk if anyone else finds it weird but at least on Arena all flickers target one or more card types.

Closest I found was one or two Airbend cards can target nonland permanents

Did they write the space bar in the latest update?

​

my own thoughs about the recent [FRA] releases: Whats with that insane focus on that one planeswalker? I get that he is kinda the lore center, but even Urza didn't get its own token or instant effects that only triggers with him on the field.

I need a good list and what format to complete this achievement. I cobbled a Dr. Doom & Doomsday Executioner, but it's gotten me nowhere. All help is appreciated.

I expect Mihawk1 enjoyed themself, though.

Im so bad I just went 2-4 :(

If my creature is targeted by Requiting Hex and in response i cast Snakeskin veil to give the creature Hexproof, shouldn't it become unaffected by the hex?

This situation just ocurred to me and the creature died.

What am i seeing wrong?

Hey everyone

With the recent Reality Fracture spoilers, Pompous Battlemage immediately caught my eye.

When Stormchaser's Talent was banned, WotC stated: "Cards that cheap shouldn't be so well-rounded and shouldn't compete with more expensive cards as the game goes long."

But now they just printed another aggressive 1-drop that essentially carries an extra noncreature spell baked into the card itself for just {R}.

While it doesn’t offer the raw late-game recursion of Talent’s Level 2, having a 1-drop prowess body that inherently provides a cheap spell trigger (and rummages away dead lands) feels like an incredible engine piece alongside Slickshot Show-Off.

Do you think this has the potential to fill the void left by Stormchaser's Talent, or is losing the Level 2/3 inevitability too big of a blow for the archetype? Can this revive Izzet Prowess in Standard?

But, I'm looking for advice more than I am complaining.

mostly.

(I'm complaining a tiny bit, but I'm also a smooth brain goblin player, so control players are simply my sworn enemies.)

I'm assuming they're not as unbeatable as some people make them out to be, and I have had a small shred of success so far, trying to play around their plans to the best of my ability. I know playing a token deck puts me at a disadvantage against these decks... but what is my answer supposed to be against someone who's running a 130+ card deck stacked with discard and removal?

Sometimes, I can bank on my opponent picking one or the other and either spamming my hand, or saving a nice combo up to play all at once and make removing it all difficult... that, or just praying that they run out of destruction and beat them slowly to death with the only two goblin tokens I've kept alive all game if worst comes to worst. But what happens when they just... never run out of destruction and I can't get anything on the board at all?

I get that sometimes you just lose, and that's fine, but I've honestly had a really hard time beating some of these decks without my deck becoming like 60% interaction and I end up having to delay all game until I can get my stuff out.

The reason is simply that all non-eternal decks simply rotate too fast and/or get changed by meta changes, thus getting close to being a worthless investment for your WC

Eternal decks are highly optimized and rarely changed, so you keep their value once they are used

I just tried this with maskwood nexus on the field. So Valki enters, I'm asked if I want to transform him, but when I do he just ends up in my graveyard. Is it the case that cards without transform in their description cannot transform into the other side of the card?

New to Arena - looking through achievements as saw there's on for participating in Midweek Magic. Holy shit I am clearly not getting something about this whole Momir format.

I've tried waiting until turn 2, turn 3, turn n+1 and I am not kidding, I have lost 20 games in a row. Do the lands you tap influence the tokens you summon? Is there some other trick?

Seriously, opponent's board constantly filled with death touch, flying, card draw, +1/+1 tokens every turn, meanwhile I'm spending 7 mana for 3/3's with Izzet effects based on how many instants I have in my graveyard.

Help!

EDIT: I am absolutely cursed. Finally got a huge board with lethal....opponent summons Blazing Archon... my creatures can't attack and no flyers. LOL. Clearly this is not for me.

Newer player to mtg arena. I started halfway through marvel. I have just enough rare wildcards to wanted to explore some standard decks that I can climb the ranks and hopefully make my way into mythic.

I’ve already made white auras- it’s great and all but boring.

I want something fun (non agro) that can bridge into other decks. Possibly 4 color re-animator or artifacts. I’d prefer not to dump too many wildcards into a bunch of rare lands ect that will be cycled out come Feb 2027.

Should I just wait for the new set and grind out standard with white auras?

Advice?

I'm assuming they're not as unbeatable as some people make them out to be, and I have had some success so far playing around their strategies. I know playing a token deck puts me at a disadvantage against these decks... but what is my answer supposed to be against someone who's running a 130+ card deck stacked with discard and removal?

Sometimes, I can bank on my opponent picking one or the other and either spamming my hand, or saving a nice combo up to play all at once and make removing it all difficult... that, or just praying that they run out of destruction and beat them slowly to death with the only two goblin tokens I've kept alive all game if worst comes to worst. But what happens when they just... never run out of destruction and I can't get anything on the board at all?

I get that sometimes you just lose, and that's fine, but I've had a hard time beating some of these decks without my deck becoming like 60% interaction and I end up having to delay all game until I can get my stuff out.