Hello, and welcome back to Metagame Mentor, your weekly guide to the top decks and latest Constructed developments on the path to the Pro Tour. Standard recently received an exciting infusion of new cards with Magic: The Gathering® | Marvel Super Heroes, and today's article takes a close look at the set's standout additions for Standard. After providing a snapshot of the Standard metagame, I'll highlight the most-played new cards and explore the decks they've come to call home.

The Standard Metagame with Magic: The Gathering | Marvel Super Heroes

Standard, the rotating 60-card format that currently allows expansion sets from Wilds of Eldraine forward, is one of Magic's premier competitive formats. My recent format primer from May offers an introduction to most of the top archetypes. The June 29 banned and restricted announcement from earlier this week brought no changes to Standard.

To capture a snapshot of the metagame, I analyzed over 261 successful tournament decks from events held after the release of Magic: The Gathering | Marvel Super Heroes. My primary source was 224 Magic Online decklists, including the first six Magic Online Challenges after the set's digital release and the Standard RC Super Qualifier, which drew in 176 players. I also included 37 top-performing decklists from various Standard Regional Championship Qualifiers at SCG CON Las Vegas this past weekend.

To show which decks were dominating the top tables, I assigned points to each deck based on its rectified number of net wins, calculated as the number of match wins minus losses, with negative values adjusted to zero. By combining these points across all events, each archetype's share of the total rectified net wins blends popularity and performance into a single, comprehensive metric: the winner's metagame share.

In this table, each archetype name hyperlinks to a top-performing decklist that closely reflects its aggregate build. The "Other" category collects decks with less than one percent metagame share, including Mardu Discard, Gruul Ferocious, Sultai Control, Azorius Momo, and more.

Selesnya Offense and Jeskai Lessons both gained significant ground. These were the breakout decks from Magic Spotlight: Secrets and the last six Regional Championships, as covered in this article, and they have continued to build on that momentum. Meanwhile, Izzet Prowess has relinquished the crown, and it actually was overtaken by Izzet Spellementals. All in all, the Standard metagame has continued to evolve week after week.

The Most-Played Cards from Magic: The Gathering | Marvel Super Heroes

Magic: The Gathering | Marvel Super Heroes introduced several potent tools to Standard. Below is an overview of the 20 new-to-Standard cards that have seen the most play across the decklists I reviewed.

Unlike some sets that immediately redefined Standard, Magic: The Gathering | Marvel Super Heroes has largely strengthened existing archetypes without creating entirely new ones. Its biggest winners are efficient role-players instead of flashy build-arounds or format-defining mythic rares.

While the impact of Magic: The Gathering | Marvel Super Heroes has been modest so far, several exciting cards are already making their mark. To better understand how these new cards are affecting the Standard metagame, let's explore the archetypes that have incorporated them most successfully.

Namor the Sub-Mariner in Izzet Spellementals

2 Boomerang Basics 1 Bounce Off 2 Burst Lightning 4 Eddymurk Crab 3 Flow State 1 Hearth Elemental 1 Impractical Joke 8 Island 4 Namor the Sub-Mariner 4 Opt 1 Prismari Charm 4 Riverpyre Verge 2 Roaring Furnace // Steaming Sauna 4 Sleight of Hand 2 Spell Pierce 1 Spell Snare 4 Spirebluff Canal 1 Starting Town 4 Steam Vents 1 Stormcarved Coast 2 Sunderflock 1 Traumatic Critique 1 Vibrant Outburst 2 Winternight Stories 1 Annul 1 Ashling, Rekindled 1 Disdainful Stroke 2 Flashfreeze 1 Ghost Vacuum 1 Ral, Crackling Wit 1 Soul-Guide Lantern 1 Spell Pierce 1 Stock Up 2 Stormchaser's Talent 1 Sunderflock 1 Sunspine Lynx 1 The Legend of Kuruk

Namor the Sub-Mariner

By the raw numbers, Namor the Sub-Mariner was the most-played new card for Standard. Namor appeared in 8% of Standard decks, primarily Izzet Prowess and Izzet Spellementals. There, he turns a steady stream of blue card-draw spells into an ever-growing army of Merfolk. Namor is a formidable threat for any deck with four copies of Opt and Sleight of Hand, capable of winning games all on his own. As a notable example, Linden_43 won a Standard Challenge on Magic Online with four copies of Namor the Sub-Mariner in their main deck.

With the incorporation of Namor in nearly half of the Izzet decks, the differences between Prowess and Spellementals have become increasingly slim. Generally, Izzet Prowess includes Stormchaser's Talent, Boomerang Basics, and Slickshot Show-Off, whereas Izzet Spellementals relies on Sunderflock, Hearth Elemental, Prismari Charm, and Traumatic Critique. But since Namor is not an Elemental, this particular build trimmed copies of Sunderflock, adding Stormchaser's Talent and Boomerang Basics. Although this reduces the deck's raw synergy potential, it offers the strategic flexibility to tune your threats after sideboarding for the matchup at hand.

Jennifer Walters in Selesnya Offense

3 Abandoned Air Temple 4 Badgermole Cub 4 Brightglass Gearhulk 1 Bushwhack 6 Forest 4 Hushwood Verge 1 Jennifer Walters 1 Keen-Eyed Curator 4 Leatherhead, Swamp Stalker 3 Spider Manifestation 4 Llanowar Elves 1 Meltstrider's Resolve 2 Multiversal Passage 2 Ouroboroid 4 Pawpatch Recruit 2 Plains 4 Practiced Offense 2 Seam Rip 1 Starting Town 3 Surrak, Elusive Hunter 4 Temple Garden 1 Axebane Ferox 2 Elspeth, Storm Slayer 2 Erode 1 Meltstrider's Resolve 2 Rest in Peace 2 Restoration Magic 4 Sheltered by Ghosts 1 Soul-Guide Lantern

Jennifer Walters

By the total number of decks featuring the card, Jennifer Walters was the most common new inclusion from Magic: The Gathering | Marvel Super Heroes. In total, 17% of the field included at least one copy in their main deck or sideboard. The legendary creature was typically seen as a one-of in the main deck of Selesnya Offense. PedraStone won multiple events with the list shown above, which uses Leyline Weaver instead of Gene Pollinator. A small number of Selesnya Landfall decks successfully adopted Jennifer Walters as well, but she truly shines in Selesnya Offense.

Selesnya Offense is the new hotness in Standard. It's an aggressive strategy that uses Practiced Offense to transform a wide board of creatures into a devastating attack. Granting double strike is especially potent when targeting Leatherhead, Swamp Stalker, turning her into a massive creature with hexproof, trample, and double strike. This potent combination of abilities makes opposing removal spells and blockers largely irrelevant, and a single attack can be enough to end the game on the spot.

In this deck, Jennifer Walters has an ability reminiscent of Voice of Victory, preventing opposing removal spells or countermagic from disrupting your Practiced Offense. Additionally, she can transform into a towering 6/6 with reach and trample. The Sensational She-Hulk dominates the battlefield through sheer stats alone, and she even punishes opponents from dealing damage to your creatures.

Avengers Disassembled in Izzet Prowess

4 Boomerang Basics 1 Bounce Off 4 Burst Lightning 3 Eddymurk Crab 4 Flow State 7 Island 2 Multiversal Passage 2 Namor the Sub-Mariner 4 Opt 4 Riverpyre Verge 1 Roaring Furnace // Steaming Sauna 1 Secret Identity 4 Sleight of Hand 4 Slickshot Show-Off 2 Spell Pierce 4 Spirebluff Canal 4 Steam Vents 4 Stormchaser's Talent 1 Vibrant Outburst 1 Annul 3 Avengers Disassembled 1 Broadside Barrage 1 Flashfreeze 1 Get Out 1 Ghost Vacuum 1 Namor the Sub-Mariner 1 Ral, Crackling Wit 2 Sear 1 Soul-Guide Lantern 1 Spell Pierce 1 Sunspine Lynx

Avengers Disassembled

Avengers Disassembled is primarily a sideboard card, but it's a popular one for decks like Izzet Prowess or Jeskai Lessons. It functions mainly as a sweeper, much like Slagstorm, against decks trying to go wide. But the ability to also downgrade a utility land like Abandoned Air Temple or Ba Sing Se at no additional cost sets it apart from Slagstorm. Arianne included three copies in the sideboard of their Izzet Prowess list that finished in 3rd place at a Standard Challenge.

Theoretically, you could even sideboard in Avengers Disassembled against Four-Color Control, hoping to punish opponents for running only a single basic land. That plan is unreliable if you have just a few copies of the land-destruction effect, but it could become a legitimate strategy when backed up by several copies of Price of Freedom in your sideboard. This new sorcery offers a solid set of effects. That kind of versatility is always welcome in deck building.

Hidden Lair and M.O.D.O.K. in Dimir Excruciator

3 Bitter Triumph 1 Cavern of Souls 2 Day of Black Sun 1 Deadly Cover-Up 4 Deceit 3 Doomsday Excruciator 4 Duress 2 Emeritus of Ideation 4 Gloomlake Verge 2 Hidden Lair 4 Superior Spider-Man 1 M.O.D.O.K. 4 Requiting Hex 4 Restless Reef 3 Stock Up 1 Strategic Betrayal 10 Swamp 1 Undercity Sewers 4 Watery Grave 2 Winternight Stories 1 Deadly Cover-Up 1 Emeritus of Ideation 3 Flashfreeze 1 Ghost Vacuum 1 Island 3 Oildeep Gearhulk 2 Qarsi Revenant 2 Shoot the Sheriff 1 Strategic Betrayal

Hidden Lair
M.O.D.O.K.

Magic: The Gathering | Marvel Super Heroes introduced a cycle of five new dual lands that can tap for two colors of mana if the land entered this turn or if you control a basic land. Hidden Lair has become the most-played member of the cycle, with Dimir Excruciator serving as its typical home. In this 2nd-place list from VitorCarvalho01, it's supported by ten basic Swamps, turning the land into a reliable dual over 80% of the time without the usual drawbacks of entering tapped or costing life. The entire cycle of lands is an excellent addition to two-color decks that mostly operate at sorcery speed and have a solid number of basic lands.

M.O.D.O.K. also appeared in various Dimir Excruciator decks, always as a one-of. The legendary creature has low power and toughness on its own but sports an impressive suite of abilities, making it an ideal creature to bring back with Superior Spider-Man as a 4/4 flying lifelinker. It also picks off opposing Llanowar Elves or 1/1 Otter tokens, and conniving provides impactful card selection.

Castle Doom and Iron Man Armor in Jeskai Artifacts

2 Castle Doom 2 Cryogen Relic 2 Day of Judgment 3 Dusk Rose Reliquary 1 Elegant Parlor 1 Floodfarm Verge 2 Iron Man Armor 1 Island 2 Legion Extruder 1 Meticulous Archive 1 Mountain 3 Multiversal Passage 2 Perilous Snare 3 Pinnacle Starcage 4 Repurposing Bay 2 Riverpyre Verge 1 Sacred Foundry 4 Simulacrum Synthesizer 1 Soul-Guide Lantern 4 Starting Town 3 Steam Vents 1 Sunbillow Verge 2 The Enigma Jewel 1 The Fire Crystal 1 The Mind Stone 2 Thundering Falls 4 United Battlefront 3 Weapons Manufacturing 1 White Auracite 1 Astelli Reclaimer 2 Day of Judgment 2 Disdainful Stroke 2 High Noon 1 Negate 2 Rest in Peace 3 Seam Rip 2 Torpor Orb

Castle Doom
Iron Man Armor

Jeskai Artifacts was already one of Standard's most synergy-driven decks, and Magic: The Gathering | Marvel Super Heroes handed it exactly the kind of card it was looking for. Castle Doom has quickly become a staple of the archetype because it fills multiple important roles at once. In this 28-artifact build by Taldoitalo, which reached the Top 8 of a Standard Challenge, it fixes the mana for all your artifact spells across all three colors. Better still, Castle Doom also turns the Munitions tokens created by Weapons Manufacturing into value. You can sacrifice a token, deal 2 damage to a target, and create a 3/3 Doombot token.

This list, like many Jeskai and Azorius Artifacts decks, also features Iron Man Armor. Although neither deck has any creature cards, these decks feature plenty of token producers, so you'll usually have a creature to attach it to. As a three-mana artifact, Iron Man Armor triggers Simulacrum Synthesizer and survives Pinnacle Starcage. Moreover, with mana from The Enigma Jewel, you can immediately turn it into an enormous flying Construct, ready to turn a board of artifacts into a devastating attack.

Shang-Chi, Master of Kung Fu in Selesnya Rhythm

4 Badgermole Cub 4 Botanical Sanctum 4 Breeding Pool 1 Craterhoof Behemoth 6 Forest 1 Formidable Speaker 4 Gene Pollinator 1 Kang the Conqueror 1 Keen-Eyed Curator 1 Leatherhead, Swamp Stalker 4 Spider Manifestation 4 Llanowar Elves 1 Marang River Regent 4 Multiversal Passage 4 Nature's Rhythm 4 Ouroboroid 4 Quantum Riddler 4 Shang-Chi, Master of Kung Fu 4 Willowrush Verge 4 Detect Intrusion 2 Keen-Eyed Curator 3 Leatherhead, Swamp Stalker 4 Negate

Shang-Chi, Master of Kung Fu
Kang the Conqueror

Selesnya Rhythm is built around one simple idea: generate as much mana as possible, as quickly as possible. Xfile's 9th-place finish at the 176-player Standard RC Super Qualifier showcased an innovative take on that plan, featuring four copies of Shang-Chi, Master of Kung Fu. Within this shell, the new legend lets Llanowar Elves, Gene Pollinator, and Spider Manifestation tap for mana immediately. These mana creatures are further supercharged by Badgermole Cub, which also adds an unrestricted green mana whenever you tap Shang-Chi for mana, even if you don't have any activated abilities to spend Shang-Chi's mana on. Together, these interactions let you flood the battlefield at an astonishing pace.

When you do have a creature with an activated ability, Shang-Chi gets even better. His two mana can fuel the abilities of Keen-Eyed Curator or Kang the Conqueror. That power-up cost of eight mana may look daunting, but between Shang-Chi and a battlefield full of mana creatures, it's surprisingly easy to get there, take an extra turn, and swing for lethal.

Rapid Rescue in Gruul Delirium

1 Mistrise Village 2 Braided Net 1 Erode 4 Simulacrum Synthesizer 4 Perilous Snare 1 Fomori Vault 4 Hallowed Fountain 4 Floodfarm Verge 1 Adagia, Windswept Bastion 4 Island 4 Repurposing Bay 4 Cryogen Relic 1 Clay-Fired Bricks 1 The Fire Crystal 2 The Mind Stone 2 Meticulous Archive 3 Gleaming Bastion 1 White Auracite 4 Plains 3 Spring-Loaded Sawblades 4 United Battlefront 2 Iron Man Armor 3 Pinnacle Starcage 2 Torpor Orb 2 Jennifer Walters 1 Astelli Reclaimer 2 Authority of the Consuls 2 Rest in Peace 1 Day of Judgment 1 Pinnacle Starcage 4 Voice of Victory

Rapid Rescue
Training Compound

The final new card I'd like to highlight is Rapid Rescue, which fits perfectly as an enabler for Gruul Delirium. Seed of Hope filled that role previously, but it rotated out of Standard with March of the Machine, leaving the deck without an efficient one-mana self-mill effect to enable delirium.

In this deck with 20 instants and sorceries, there is admittedly a real risk of missing. Roughly 10% of the time, Rapid Rescue won't be able to return anything. That risk is not negligible, and I might be inclined to shave an instant or two in favor of a few more creatures to improve its consistency. Nevertheless, OafMcNamara finished in 17th place in the Standard RC Super Qualifier with this list, and Gruul Delirium might just be back on the menu.

What's Next for Standard?

With newcomers like Selesnya Offense challenging the dominance of Izzet decks and various Magic: The Gathering | Marvel Super Heroes cards making a splash across established archetypes, Standard continues to evolve. As players keep experimenting with the set's newest additions, the metagame is sure to shift further in the weeks ahead.

Although the current Regional Championship Qualifier round and the upcoming Pro Tour focus on Modern, there is still plenty of high-level Standard competition on the horizon. Most notably, from August 15 through November 29, a new round of Standard RCQs will give players an opportunity to put their skills to the test. Whether you're assembling the perfect team or simply looking to become the hero of your local game store, it's a great time to dive into Standard.