The Gaming Stadium hosted another Magic the Gathering: Arena 1K Standard tournament this last Sunday! As usual, we have provided a profile of our top eight contenders below.

Winner

Nathaniel Knox secured the victory after finishing 2-1 against every opponent in the playoffs. His favorite thing about this deck is the fact that every game is a really close game, and each victory is both satisfying and earned. He felt confident leading into the Top 8, and his confidence shows!

Mono-Blue Tempo

Creatures (20) 4 Siren Stormtamer 4 Spectral Sailor 2 Pteramander 4 Merfolk Trickster 2 Brineborn Cutthroat 4 Tempest Djinn Spells (20) 4 Curious Obsession 4 Dive Down 4 Opt 4 Spell Pierce 4 Lookout’s Dispersal Land (20) 20 Island

Sideboard (15) 4 Cerulean Drake 3 Entrancing Melody 4 Essence Capture 2 Negate 1 God-Eternal Kefnet 1 Chemister’s Insight

Finalist

Max “Flader” Gibson-Flader finished second with his 4-coluor “Risen Red” Elementalist deck. He chose to compete with this deck because it is fun and not well-known. His favourite part about this deck is the variety he has, which makes every round unique and interesting.

4-Colour Elementals

Creatures (27) 4 Thunderkin Awakener 4 Leafkin Druid 4 Cloudkin Seer 4 Risen Reef 3 Scampering Scorcher 4 Omnath, Locus of the Roil 2 Cavalier of Thorns 2 Yarok, the Desecrated Spells (8) 2 Chandra, Awakened Inferno 2 Lava Coil 4 Neoform Land (25) 1 Drowned Catacomb 1 Watery Gate 1 Blood Crypt 1 Dragonskull Summit 2 Rootbound Crag 2 Stomping Ground 2 Overgrown Tomb 2 Woodland Cemetery 4 Breeding Pool 2 Hinterland Harbor 1 Temple of Mystery 3 Steam Vents 2 Sulfur Falls 1 Temple of Epiphany

Sideboard (15) 2 Flame Sweep 1 Blood Sun 2 Fry 3 Negate 2 Veil of Summer 1 Entrancing Melody 1 Pulse of Murasa 2 Unmoored Ego 1 Lava Coil

Top 4

Joey “JoeyStorm” Tsoi made his second-time appearance with a mono-red deck, affectionately named “Red Deck Wins.” Joey brought out this deck in the last tournament and saw success with it. After adjusting a few cards in his deck, he returned with the sole purpose of showcasing mono-red’s dominance. Luckily for him, this new deck earned him a spot in the Top 4, versus his Top 8 finish last month.

Mono-Red Aggro

Creatures (22) 4 Fanatical Firebrand 4 Ghitu Lavarunner 4 Runaway Steam-Kin 4 Viashino Pyromancer 4 Goblin Chainwhirler 2 Rampaging Ferocidon Spells (18) 4 Experimental Frenzy 4 Shock 4 Lightning Strike 2 Wizard’s Lightning 4 Light Up the Stage Land (20) 20 Mountain

Sideboard (15) 4 Lava Coil 3 Fry 2 Tibalt, Rakish Instigator 1 Chandra, Fire Astisan 2 Alpine Moon 3 Dire Fleet Daredevil

Thanh “Azayaka” Nguyen also returned to the Stadium seeking retribution for his Grixis Control deck. He finished last month in the Top 8, and was able to secure a spot in the Top 4 this time around! The Grixis Control deck is something that suits his style, and has a lot of natural game making potentials.

Grixis Control

Creatures (3) 1 God-Eternal Kefnet 2 Nicol Bolas, the Ravager Spells (34) 2 Search for Azcanta 2 Narset, Pater of Veils 1 Chandra, Acolyte of Flame 4 Nicol Bolas, Dragon-God 2 Chandra, Awakened Inferno 2 Bedevil 2 Vraska’s Contempt 1 Legion’s End 4 Thought Erasure 4 Angrath’s Rampage 3 Cry of the Carnarium 1 Unmoored Ego 2 Ritual of Soot 1 Enter the God-Eternals 1 Discovery 2 Dispersal Land (24) 1 Island 1 Swamp 4 Drowned Catacomb 4 Watery Grave 4 Blood Crypt 4 Dragonskull Summit 4 Steam Vents 2 Sulfur Falls

Sideboard (15) 2 Aether Gust 1 Ashiok, Dream Render 4 Legion Warboss 1 Moment of Craving 2 Noxious Grasp 2 Thief of Sanity 2 Unmoored Ego 1 The Elderspell

Top 8

Nam “Rayden” Dang secured his spot in the Top 8 with his Esper Control deck. Esper Control is one of the strongest decks in the game, and he’s felt pretty good about his chances given he only practiced the deck for one day. His favorite thing about this deck is how safe it is to tap out with your Planeswalker.

Esper Control

Creatures (2) 2 Basilica Bell-Haunt Spells (32) 2 Search for Azcanta 3 Oath of Kaya 4 Narset, Parter of Veils 4 Teferi, Time Raveler 3 Teferi, Hero of Dominaria 2 Tyrant’s Scorn 2 Vraska’s Contempt 2 Legion’s End 1 The Elderspell 4 Thought Erasure 1 Unmoored Ego 2 Kaya’s Wrath 2 Command the Dreadhorde Land (26) 1 Plains 1 Swamp 4 Glacial Fortress 4 Hallowed Fountain 4 Drowned Catacomb 4 Watery Grave 4 Godless Shrine 3 Isolated Chapel 1 Temple of Silence

Sideboard (15) 1 Enter the God-Eternals 1 The Elderspell 2 Duress 2 Unmoored Ego 1 Kaya’s Wrath 1 Ashiok, Dream Render 2 Devout Decree 1 Despark 2 Noxious Grasp 1 Cry of the Carnarium 1 Liliana, Dreadhorde General

Drew Christensen made his TGS Top 8 debut with a Mono-red deck centered around burning. He’s played this deck for a long time and he feels confident about it’s ability to hold up in the current meta. Drew’s favorite aspect of the deck is how every single decision matters, and how each match is like a puzzle. This deck is for executing big IQ plays!

Mono-Red Aggro

Creatures (22) 4 Fanatical Firebrand 4 Ghitu Lavarunner 4 Scorch Spitter 4 Viashino Pyromancer 3 Goblin Chainwhirler 3 Rampaging Ferocidon Spells (20) 4 Shock 4 Lightning Strike 4 Wizard’s Lightning 4 Light Up the Stage 4 Skewer the Critics Land (18) 18 Mountain

Sideboard (15) 2 Act of Treason 4 Lava Coil 1 Rampaging Ferocidon 1 Chandra’s Pyrohelix 2 Fry 3 Risk Factor 1 Goblin Chainwhirler 1 Mountain

Sebastian “Mr. Sparkle” Denno returned to TGS with his B/W Vampires deck. He found success with it during the August tournament, and felt that the deck still stood as one of the strongest in the game. The card Sorin, Imperious Bloodlord, makes the deck the Goliath that it is in the current meta.

Vampires

Creatures (27) 4 Skymarcher Aspirant 4 Legion Lieutenant 4 Vicious Conquistador 4 Knight of the Ebon Legion 4 Adanto Vanguard 3 Sanctum Seeker 4 Champion of Dusk Spells (11) 4 Legion’s Landing 4 Sorin, Imperious Bloodlord 1 Legion’s End 1 Mortify 1 Cast Down Land (22) 7 Plains 7 Swamp 4 Godless Shrine 4 Isolated Chapel

Sideboard (15) 3 Duress 2 Despark 2 Noxious Grasp 2 Gideon Blackblade 2 Vona, Butcher of Magan 2 Legion’s End 2 Devout Decree

Jay “Hinagikufan” Ueda introduced the Blue-Green Gift (or the Blue-Green Flash as he calls it) to the tournament. In the 12 hours before the event, he picked up this deck and climed from Plat 3 to Diamond 1. He is impressed with the deck’s flexibility and versatility, and is happy with how many decisions are available at any given time.

Simic Flash

Creatures (21) 4 Spectral Sailor 4 Brineborn Cutthroat 4 Merfolk Trickster 4 Nightpack Ambusher 4 Frilled Mystic 1 Ripjaw Raptor Spells (17) 4 Opt 3 Unsummon 2 Syncopate 2 Essence Capture 4 Sinister Sabotage 2 Precognitive Perception Land (22) 8 Island 4 Forest 4 Breeding Pool 4 Hinterland Harbor 2 Temple

Sideboard (15) 2 Cerulean Drake 2 Essence Capture 2 Narset’s Reversal 4 Veil of Summer 3 Kraul Harpooner 2 Shifting Ceratops

Are you interested in any of these deck builds? Check out the VOD of the tournament here to see these decks in action!