Standard is Magic’s flagship rotating format. It uses the most recent sets (typically 5-8 expansions spanning roughly 2-3 years), keeping the metagame fresh and the entry cost manageable. When a new Magic year begins, the oldest sets rotate out — forcing the meta to reinvent itself every year.
Why Play Standard?
- Always Fresh: Annual rotation keeps strategies from getting stale.
- Accessible: Smaller card pool means fewer cards to learn and collect.
- Competitive: Standard has major tournament support (Pro Tour, Arena Ranked).
- Community: Friday Night Magic at local game stores runs Standard regularly.
Standard Deck Lists
Browse our Standard deck collection — each with a full card breakdown, mana curve analysis, and video walkthrough:
- $20 Mono-Blue Towns — Budget-friendly tempo deck
- Eerie Auras — Enchantment-based aggro
- Aetherdrift Goblin — Tribal aggro
- Mardu — Three-color midrange
- Angels — Tribal powerhouse
- Merfolk — Tribal tempo
- Rakdos Phoenix — Graveyard-based aggro
Building for Standard
Standard decks are 60 cards minimum with up to 4 copies of any card (except basic lands). The key to Standard deckbuilding is understanding the current metagame — what decks are popular, what answers exist, and where the gaps are. A tight mana curve, efficient removal, and strong finishers separate good Standard decks from great ones.
New to deckbuilding? Start with our Complete Deckbuilding Guide or check the Deck Checklist before your next build.