Post-Rotation Deck Building Guide - Standard MTG

Standard rotation is finally upon us, my friends. Come to the release of Bloomburrow (August 2nd tabletop and July 30th MTGA); we'll be losing the four oldest sets and a plethora of Standard staples from various meta decks. Today, I'll review which decks are losing cards, what you may consider replacing them with, and what the Standard meta may look like post-rotation. So, without further ado, let's get into the post-rotation MTG deck building/meta-analysis.

Post Rotation Meta-Analysis And Deck Building

First things first, let's take a look at which sets will be leaving Standard and what will remain afterward. The following sets  will rotate out when Bloomburrow:

• Innistrad: Midnight Hunt (MID)
• Innistrad: Crimson Vow (VOW)
• Kamigawa: Neon Dynasty (NEO)
• Streets of New Capenna (SNC)

That will leave us with the following sets:

• Dominaria United (DMU)
• The Brothers' War (BRO)
• Phyrexia: All Will Be One (ONE)
• March of the Machine (MOM)
• March of the Machine: The Aftermath (MAT)
• Wilds of Eldraine (WOE)
• The Lost Caverns of Ixalan (LCI)
• Murders at Karlov Manor (MKM)
• Outlaws of Thunder Junction (OTJ)
• Bloomburrow (BLB)

Atraxa Isn't Going Anywhere

Atraxa, Grand Unifier

The Atraxa deck loses a couple of key cards (like Topiary Stomper and the Tri-lands), but Atraxa is still the best thing to ramp into. You'll still have the means to ramp into or reanimate Atraxa early, blink it, and have one copy find another. However things shake out, any deck that can put out an early Atraxa will be a force to reckon with, and I don't think anything from Bloomburrow changes that.

Things like Aftermath Analyst and Freestrider Lookout could probably replace Topiary Stomper in the build, and we have Llanowar Elves coming in the Foundations Set soon. Plus, Overlord of the Hauntwoods from Duskmourn might bring domain back even without the Tri-lands. Until then, you have things like Glimpse the Core, Ancient Cornucopia, Collector’s Vault, and Invasion of Zendikar // Awakened Skyclave.

A reanimation strategy is possible, too, despite the deck losing Otherworldly Gaze. The deck could always go back to Cruelty of Gix or even use Invasion of Tolvanda. That said, the discard outlets aren’t great at the moment, but Chart a Course, Bitter Triumph, and Liliana of the Veil are all sticking around. So, when you finish building your otter tribal deck, don't forget that turn four Atraxa is still a thing you'll need to deal with.

Boros Convoke Loses A Playline

Standard loses Voldaren Epicure with rotation, and Bloomburrow isn't bringing a replacement. For those who don't know, the line I'm referring to is turn one Epicure, which makes a token. Turn two, you play a white-producing land plus a white creature. Then cast Gleeful Demolition, sacing the blood token, make three goblins, and convoke Knight-Errant of Eos. Without Epicure, this play line goes away.

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And with all of the Bloomburrow spoilers out, we know we aren't getting a one mana value red drop that makes an artifact. That said, the deck is decent even without this line, but Epicure leaving is something to be aware of.

Midrange Options

Midrange should be alive and well moving forward. A Dimir or Golgari build could work (Dimir is probably best), and Sultia is an option, but we're losing the tri-lands from New Capenna. So, that's something to note. Regardless of which secondary color you choose, you'll probably play some number of Cut Down, Go for the Throat, Sheoldred, the Apocalypse, and maybe even things like Deep-Cavern Bat.

If you dip into blue, you get counterspells and things like Faerie Mastermind and Subterranean Schooner to support the cards mentioned above. I could even see making a case for something like Ertai Resurrected and dipping into a slight tempo strategy.

In green, there are valuable creatures like Mosswood Dreadknight and Sentinel of the Nameless City as well as some premium removal like Assassin's Trophy and perhaps Tear Asunder. As I said, I think Dimir is probably the way to go, but you've got some options.

Control Loses A Lot But Lives

Control decks are getting hit pretty badly with rotation. However, despite losing The Wandering Emperor, March of Otherworldly Light, Memory Deluge, and Depopulate, control will still be viable. Cards like No Witnesses, Farsight Ritual, and Quick Study give Azorius decent replacement options.

Plus, things like Three Steps Ahead, No More Lies, and Sunfall are sticking around. There is the question of how to replace Hullbreaker Horror as a finisher, though. First up is, of course, Mirrex, which does a lot of work. Stoic Sphinx is an option to consider, as is going back to Jace, the Perfected Mind, with a Mill plan.

 Prowess Isn't Going Anywhere

Contrary to popular belief, Monastery Swiftspear is not leaving Standard. And where there is Monastery Swiftspear, there will be prowess. Slickshot Show-Off and Fugitive Codebreaker play very well with Swiftspear, too, and there are plenty of good spells to trigger them.

We lose Kumano Faces Kakkazan // Etching of Kumano but keep Shock, Dreadmaw's Ire, and Monstrous Rage], and gain [[Might of the Meek. You could even splash blue for something like Slick Sequence and probably be in pretty good shape.

Conclusion

There you have it, my friends. The meta will be reasonably healthy, with a mix of viable aggro, midrange, and control. Not to mention, when Bloomburrow drops, I imagine many people will play Otter Tribal and Squirrels, and that's fantastic. But let's not forget that things like Atraxa exist. What are you most excited to play from Bloomburrow?