CCC: Super Standard

Okay so normally when I make an article about a new format (Reliquary, Baroque, etc) I’m being completely serious in my endorsement. I try to introduce formats that I can see people going to a Magicfest and sitting down to play. Today however, that’s only sort of true. Today I have for your enjoyment a format created by accident that I think will be incredible fun. It’s called Super Standard and honestly, I’m really excited to play a few matches.

So first off, let me tell you how this format was accidentally invented. At my college a couple friends decided to let me teach them how to play Magic. It’s been great, they’ve gotten into it, we’ve done some Theros sealed. The point, though, is that one of them asked me about Standard and I explained it as “Using the most recent sets.” What came back to me was that they thought I met all recent sets. This meant that they thought that, alongside Eldraine, Commander 2019 was legal in Standard. Thus a new format was born.

You may now be asking, “Well okay but what sets would be legal right now?” A valid question so let’s get into that. Super Standard is a format that allows all recent sets -- defined as all products released in physical form during any standard season. So current legality would be the following: Theros Beyond Death, Magic Game Night 2019, Throne of Eldraine, Commander 2019, Core Set 2020, Modern Horizons, War of the Spark, Ravnica Allegiance, Ultimate Masters, Magic Game Night, and Guilds of Ravnica. The full list of available cards can be found here.

Super Standard is also a rotating format with what I’ve decided to call a Sandwich Rotation. So let’s look at these sets chronologically to explain what that is. Next time Standard is going to rotate is with the release of Zendikar Rising, this means that everything released before War of the Spark will rotate out of Standard, the same is true for Super Standard. For something to be legal in Super Standard there must be a Standard Legal set released before it, once that set rotates out of Super Standard, so does that set. Make sense? Cool, let’s get to the fun bits.

First, a Ban List must, of course, be made. Since there is little to no data on this format that was created last week, the ban list is going to start pretty small. All cards currently banned in Standard are also considered to be banned in Super Standard. The only current additions I’m adding are Sol Ring. Otherwise go nuts. This banned list will be expanded upon if people actually end up playing this format and things start to get broken and abused. If you see something that’s obviously a problem let me know in the comments below.

To round out this article, I’ll share with you guys two brews for the format to get your gears turning.

Mardu Calamity

Esper Control

I’m not really going to explain either deck here since I think the strategies of both are fairly clear. Overall, I think Super Standard is something kind of fun that you and a friend could throw together. I even encourage you guys to proxy these decks since some of the cards can be pretty expensive.

Anyway, that's all for this month, let me know if you have any sweet brews in the comments below. You can find me on twitter @East2Westmtg or email me at East2westmtg@gmail.com. As always this has been East2west with CCC, I'll see you guys on the battlefield.

MTG Cardsmith Expansion: Future Site

In Like A Lion...

In Like A Lion...

In Like A Lion, Out Like A Lamb

by Lorie Hill

March roars in like a lion. So fierce, The wind so cold, It seems to pierce.

The month rolls on And Spring draws near, And March goes out Like a lamb so dear.

Will You Roar or Will You Bleat?

March is synonymous with Lions and Lambs, thanks in large part to Lorie Hill's poem. Because of that, we're going to be on the lookout for your best Beast, Cat and Sheep inspired cards! Show us your creative creations for a chance to get a Feature!

Featured Cardsmiths

This month we found two more incredible Cardsmiths to feature... spookoops & CnBCustoms!

spookoops is the first of our two Featured Cardsmiths this month. spookoops is one of many Cardsmiths who hail from Japan, and this month we hope you'll take a peek at some of the fantastic cards this Cardsmith has crafted since joining us in 2018! We posted five below so you could check them out!

Although you can't look at his oldest card and tell, CnBCustoms has been cardsmithing for a very long time, even before myself and Tomigon! He has been quietly making cards for years and we wanted to say thanks by giving him one of this month's Featured Cardsmith spots! Here are five cards to give you a feel for some of the cards CnBCustoms has been crafting. Give them a look!

Each month we're excited to highlight a few Cardsmiths that have helped make MTGCardsmith the best interactive online Card Creator. We hope you'll take some time to check out their creations!

CCC: Villainy 101

A brutal warlord burns the countryside, leaving not even a single survivor to tell the tale of their destruction. A scheming advisor quietly laces a cup with poison, passing it off to a servant he's already paid off. A powerful judge of the high court sentences all before him to death, their pleas of rightful innocence fall on deaf ears. A grizzled outlander gathers the ancient and angry magic of the forest to topple the gleaming towers of a city, regardless of the lives existing within.

Take those images, and translate them into magic terms. In order, if I did my job right, you should see Red, Blue, White, and Green. Today I'd like to talk to you all about a really stupid bias that Magic seems to have about Black.

Throughout Magic history, black has always been the color of villains. Most Black aligned characters end up villains. For context, let's break it down by the numbers. Out of all legendary creatures and planeswalkers ever printed, here are the number of each that are villains. (Multicolor count for each color) (Characters with uncertain standing/stories not counted)

W - 24

U - 48

B - 93

R - 49

G - 30

Look at these numbers, it's not even close! Black has almost 100 villains among their printed legendary cards. Next, let's look at the Color Pie, specifically one supplied by Wizards themselves during the You Make the Card Event back in 2013.

This is genuinely a ridiculous wheel to me. Given, it is a little outdated, but I think this is still how most people see the colors. Black should not be the inherent "evil" color because let's face it, that's not what the cards represent functionally or flavorfully. Evil is subjective, Black doesn't do anything inherently evil, it just wants to win at any cost. This can be framed so many ways instead of as a villain! Imagine a roguish thief sacrificing themself to save their friends and to defeat the true villain. Winning at any cost, including the self. An inherently Black trait shown by cards that let you pay life!

And, just for gravy, villains would be way more interesting if they came in all colors. As I attempted to show at the start of the article, all the other colors have villainous traits within them.

White cares only about the good of the many, it sees the laws as absolute and unbending.

Blue is logical, it doesn't see emotions or personal conflicts as important.

Red is chaotic and destructive, the consequences of its actions don't matter as long as it's having fun

Green wants to reclaim society. Tearing down all facets of civilization without caring about casualties.

I implore you all, as people creating cards of our own, branch out with your antagonists. Black is fine to include, I'm not saying don't, but maybe think about how to make monocolor villains in the other colors. Or hey, maybe even try making a Black-aligned hero once in a while.

That's all for this month, let me know what you think about the color pie and it's characters in the comments below. You can find me on twitter @East2Westmtg or email me at East2westmtg@gmail.com. As always this has been East2west with CCC, I'll see you guys on the battlefield.

Rats! Rats! Rats! It's the Year of the Rat!

January 25th, 2020 marked the start of the Lunar New Year! This year's zodiac animal is the Rat, and as you may have guessed, it's also our Theme of the Month for February! This month we'd like to see you make some of your best Rat and Mouse cards. And as always, we will pick some of our favorites to showcase as MTGCardsmith Features!

Is that all?

Of course that's not all! Right now you can choose the newest Cardsmith Avatar, made by our own Faiths_Guide to help you celebrate the Year of the Rat!! That's right, this year you don't need to enter to get the Avatar. We loved it so much, we wanted to make sure everyone could enjoy it! Happy Year of the Rat everyone!

Featured Cardsmiths

This month we found two more incredible Cardsmiths to feature... AlexWright and KalamMekhar!

Our first Cardsmith for February, AlexWright has crafted nearly 500 cards and doled out more than twice that amount of favorites! We really like his cards because they're fun and full of unique ideas! Take a few minutes of your day to check out what this Featured Cardsmith has created!

He's a self proclaimed "Azorius to the Core" Cardsmith, but we think his other cards are pretty good too, and that's one reason why we wanted to showcase KalamMekhar as our second Featured Cardsmith for February! We only picked five cards to showcase here, but trust us when we say there is much more to see over on his page, so when you've fnished checking out our first Cardsmith of the month go check out more from KalamMekhar!

Each month we're excited to highlight a few Cardsmiths that have helped make MTGCardsmith the best interactive online Card Creator. We hope you'll take some time to check out their creations!