Midrange?
Standard forum
Posted on Feb. 12, 2015, 8:08 p.m. by cjk191997
So at the beginning of ktk it seemed like midrange was domination the format. With the exception of azban the majority of the creature decks are much more aggro than they have been in the rtr-ths block. I'm just wondering does anyone have opinions on if the midrange decks will come back. I have this fear that the "midrange" decks that are out now (mostly more aggro take on formerly midrange decks) will just dominate the meta and not allow for midrange to come back i was just wondering if anyone has opinions on the midrange coming back
what do you consider midrange tho because the midtrange decks arent really midrange often times even G/R isnt midrange anymore its more like 2-3 drops PutridLeech
February 12, 2015 8:13 p.m.
GlistenerAgent says... #4
Midrange decks are those that look to grind out the opponent, but play a great deal more creatures/ win conditions than control decks. They aren't looking to win incredibly fast, just play better cards and drag the game the point where those cards overwhelm you. It gets kind of hazy with midrange-aggro and such existing, but that's the gist of the game plan.
February 12, 2015 8:24 p.m.
omnipotato says... #5
It's difficult for a 3-color deck to be aggro. I'd say an aggro deck (in Standard) is one that consistently goldfishes on turn 4-5. I think very few of the Abzan decks currently can do that. Maybe a few of the Jeskai/Mardu ones. But there's still a lot of midrange decks in Constellation and Whip strategies.
The metagame always shifts between control, aggro, and midrange because they're like rock, paper, and scissors. If aggro is popular right now, midrange will make a strong comeback shortly.
February 12, 2015 8:35 p.m.
I'm sorry it wasn't clear I'm saying that the majority of decks besides azban lean to aggro rather than midrange even if MTG top 8 calls them that lots of them are more aggro than midrange
February 12, 2015 8:39 p.m.
GlistenerAgent says... #7
MTGTop8 is notorious for awful names for archetypes. Use mtggoldfish instead.
February 12, 2015 8:42 p.m.
To be fair, half of the "aggro" decks aren't aggro either. Abzan aggro still has siege rhino's and wingmate rocs. R/W Aggro (not heroic) has chandra and stormbreath dragon. It's more a "lets lower the curve of this midange deck" than "i'm going to play aggro in these colors".
February 12, 2015 9:20 p.m.
@kyuuri117 I like to call those... aggressive midrange decks. They're a little faster than the pure midrange counterpart, but not as fast as RDW on a perfect draw. Right now I feel like these "aggressive midrange" decks are the way to go. The removal is slow enough that if you can apply just a little bit of pressure a turn earlier than your opponent it becomes tough for them to catch up as your creatures are typically just as powerful as theirs (i.e. abzan aggro vs. MR both running the rhino) and casting multiple spells is tougher for the pure midrange decks to do than it used to be now that they typically need 6 or more mana in order to do so. This means they can't out attrition you and play their threats at the same time. It's one or the other. Either they answer your threat or play their own, they can't do both too often.
As far as concerning the post. I don't think this means midrange is gone and all we have is aggro. I just think we have a different incarnation of the midrange archetype than we had last standard, or even the standard before that. There's still a distinct difference between the pure aggro decks and these "aggressive midrange" decks.
February 12, 2015 10:16 p.m.
Viral_Assassin says... #10
I almost only play some form of Midrange. I can't get enough of the 5+ cards lol. I was also a huge fan of Jund Monsters back in th day. But also ran a custom Mardu deck.
February 12, 2015 10:17 p.m.
Yea, basically you add Rashasa Deathdealer and Fleecemane Lion and take out Elspeth and Sorin. I think these hybrid decks are pretty good, honestly, and if you were going to play Abzan Midrange, it would be better to run this than the regular midrange.
February 12, 2015 10:29 p.m.
Viral_Assassin says... #12
That's why Jund Monsters worked so well. It had lower curve Midrange creatures and got them out even quicker.
February 13, 2015 8:16 a.m.
ChrisHansonBiomancin says... #13
As someone else mentioned above, there's often a rock-paper-scissors relationship between aggro, midrange, and control that causes the format to fluctuate. At my LGS, aggro has been the name of the game recently, probably because there were so many grindy 3-color decks shortly after rotation (BUG / Dega / American control, etc.). People will then play more midrange to counteract that, and once that happens we'll be back to a control-dominant environment before we know it. It's the nature of the game.
February 13, 2015 7:10 p.m.
itstheshayne says... #14
Wow, I learned quite a bit from this thread. Thanks guys!
Dylan says... #2
I would say that midrange is still very dominant in the format because it beats all the red aggro decks and the other aggro decks in the format
February 12, 2015 8:12 p.m.