MTG Standard tournaments preview possible Worlds meta—and it isn’t boring

Multiple existing and new Magic: The Gathering decks are expected to make up the Standard meta at the upcoming World Championship this weekend at MagicCon Las Vegas. 

The release of Wilds of Eldraine began impacting the Standard meta immediately despite no rotation of cards taking place this year as the format is extended to include three years’ worth of MTG sets. Standard at major tournaments often gets a bad rap as the meta is clumped around one or two top-performing decks. Some of the same decks that were showcased at the March of the Machine Pro Tour, like Five-color Ramp and Reanimation with Atraxa or Soldiers in Blue and White, will likely show up at MTG’s 2022-2023 Worlds. 

But the Magic: The Gathering World Championship meta might surprise fans as more WOE cards are working their way into existing and new Standard meta decks. 

Best Standard meta decks to expect at MTG Worlds in Vegas

Here are the best-performing Standard meta decks at tournaments heading into the MTG World Championship, according to MTGmelee.  

Golgari Midrange Standard deck, WOE

The first and most popular new build that showed out at tournaments right after launch was Golgari Midrange. Mosswood Dreadnight is the star of the early game as a solid two-drop that also provides the build much-needed card draw to run successfully. Blossoming Tortoise is a new WOE card that synergizes with another new card called Virtue of Persistence//Graveyard Glutton. And Lord Skitter, Sewer King is able to thwart any reanimation strategies that involve Atraxa, Grand Unifier and Etali, Primal Conqueror//Etali, Primal Sickness. 

One of the most recent Golgari Midrange Standard decks was piloted by Isamu Itou at the Japan Open this past weekend, finishing second with an 8-1-0 record from a total player pool of 578. The build also finished second at The Pizza Box Open on Sept. 17 with a 6-1-0 record, piloted by Zachary Okorn.

Esper Midrange Standard Deck, WOE

Esper Midrange is still dominating the Standard meta but with a few new additions to the main deck lineup. Piloted by Peppe at the Japan Open, the Esper Midrange build went undefeated, winning the tournament. 

Many of the cards in the Esper Midrange deck are the same, like The Wandering Emperor and Sheoldred, the Apocalypse. Peppe included two copies of Lord Skitter, Sewer King to disrupt reanimation decks in conjunction with Dennick Pious Apprentice. And Peppe added three copies of Virtue of Loyalty//Ardenvale Fealty, one of the best WOE Enchantments in the Virtue cycle. 

Mono-Red Aggro Standard deck, WOE

Mono-Red Aggro powered into the meta scene following the release of WOE, with two builds finishing in the top eight at the Japan Open and one version of it finishing eighth at The Pizza Box Open. 

Piloted by Yuu Nonn, the Mono-Red Aggro Standard deck finished third at the Japan Open with an 8-1-0 record. A majority of the build hasn’t changed but WOE did add significant cards to the main deck that improved its overall performance.

Charming Scoundrel is a solid two-drop with Haste that has modal options upon entering the battlefield. And Goddric, Cloaked Reveler, a three-drop in Red, has Haste and the new WOE mechanic Celebration that can create a 4/4 Flying dragon token with an activated ability that pumps the power of all dragons. 

Fans and players can watch the best-of-three Standard format meta unfold at the MTG World Championship in Vegas from Sept. 22 to 24.