Standard Tectonics

Standard is about to undergo a pretty radical shake-up: the ten companion cards are getting a major adjustment to how they function, and two more cards are being added to the format’s banned list: Fires of Invention, and Agent of Treachery.

Rather than talk about ‘everything wrong’ with current Magic design and the play patterns that lead us to having such heavy-handed Wizards of the Coast intervention, I’m going to focus on one of my favorite cards available right now, and try to convince you why it’s one of the best designed ones you’ll find in booster packs today.

I’m talking about Tectonic Giant.

That’s right, he’s a bulk rare from Theros Beyond Death, and he’s been hiding right under our noses this whole time.

Tectonic Giant is effectively a baby Inferno Titan, with an optional mode to draw you cards. He gives you these awesome abilities on a reasonably costed body, too!

Consider: Tectonic Giant does not have an ability that triggers when he enters the battlefield (because that would be a spell stapled onto a creature, which players seem to complain about. A lot.)

Instead, he triggers when he attacks. Hooray, combat! One of the key components of good Magic! And, when he attacks, he gives you choices. Hooray, meaningful options! Another key component of good Magic!

His body is “only” a 3/4 but that is deceptive, because he can deal six points worth of damage by attacking, should you pick the “aggressive” path.

Or, he can draw you the better of two cards, which again is a lot stronger than it looks on paper because you have until the end of your NEXT turn to make use of it.

And, and! Either of these abilities trigger when your opponent tries to hit him with their own spell, which means even if they want to kill it, you can squeeze out some damage or find a replacement among your next two cards.

If standard were just a little different, this guy would be an all-star, but since he’s been buried by companions and Winota and Gods and a ton of other cards, you can scoop him up for under a buck in paper! (He still costs you a full wildcard on Arena though…)

Anyway, I’ve been experimenting with a red and green deck that tries to use Tectonic Giant fast and often.

Here’s the list so far:

2 Klothys, God of Destiny
4 Paradise Druid
3 Gruul Spellbreaker
4 Humble Naturalist
4 Questing Beast
2 Ravager Wurm
2 Stomping Ground
4 Bonecrusher Giant
4 Tectonic Giant
1 Pulse of Murasa
4 Fire Prophecy
4 Lava Coil
2 Temple of Abandon
4 Fabled Passage
8 Mountain
8 Forest

It’s not very budget friendly, I admit, but you can swap out a lot of pieces and keep the core of the deck intact.

Your Paradise Druid and Humble Naturalist starters let you ‘skip’ turn three and deploy Questing Beast or our MVP Tectonic Giant ahead of schedule. From there you press the attack, and use Giant to give you some extra options along the way.

Early in the game you’ll be looking for your removal spells like Lava Coil and Fire Prophecy so you can keep the ground clear and allow your Giant to continue attacking, but as your opponent’s life total starts to dip, it’s ok to switch to the damage option and close things out.

Ravager Wurm is another under-appreciated creature that can provide a dizzying array of options: blow up an opponent’s Castle Locthwain? Fight their Hydroid Krasis? Get in a hasty attack against a planeswalker just before they use their ultimate? Take the +1/+1 counter and hold the line?

It’s a flexible deck that hits hard and gives you plenty of decisions to make along the way, and it’s one I’m going to keep refining as the shifting tectonic plates of standard start to settle into something that isn’t dominated by Fires of Invention and Agent of Treachery.

Put it together yourself and take it for a spin, then let me know how you do in the comments!

—Ryan