Metagame Mentor: Discussing Pioneer with Bloomburrow (2024)

Welcome back to Metagame Mentor, your weekly guide to the top decks and latest Constructed developments on the path to the Pro Tour. The next round of Regional Championships (RCs) will start in about one and a half months with Pioneer as its Constructed format. Pioneer recently received an influx of cards from Bloomburrow, and in this article we'll be taking a look at the most important additions to the metagame from this latest set.

Pioneer is a nonrotating format including all Standard-legal sets from Return to Ravnica onward, with the most notable cards on the ban list being the allied fetch lands. With over 10,000 cards to choose from, Pioneer features a variety of powerful strategies.

To grasp the latest state of the format, I analyzed 512 decklists from Pioneer Challenges held on Magic Online in August. To obtain a metric that combines popularity and performance, I awarded points to each deck equal to its rectified number of net wins (i.e., its number of match wins minus losses if positive and zero otherwise). Each archetype's share of total rectified net wins can be interpreted as its share of the winner's metagame. In the following table, each archetype name links to a well-performing, representative decklist.

The "Other" category included Boros Convoke, Gruul Thud, Jund Citadel, Gruul Prowess, Quintorius Combo, Simic Festival, Orzhov Vampires, Rakdos Tree, Golgari Food, Jund Thud, Mono-Black Midrange, and more.

Rakdos Vampires is the dominant deck in Pioneer. Its share of the winner's metagame, as indicated by the arrows in the table, even grew compared to my July snapshot. Now at an incredible 38.2% of the winner's metagame, the most recent versions generally use Reckoner Bankbuster in the main deck, favoring card advantage it provides in the mirror match. However, decklists are still similar to the one that Seth Manfield used to win Pro Tour Murders at Karlov Manor earlier this year.

Amalia Combo and Izzet Phoenix round out the "Big Three" of Pioneer, as has been the case since the release of Outlaws of Thunder Junction. Nevertheless, there have been some metagame shifts. Over the past few months, decks like Waste Not, Gruul Prowess, and Niv to Light have faltered, and Mono-Green Devotion recently had a major drop-off as well. Meanwhile, plot-focused builds of Atarka Red running Aloe Alchemist and Cunning Coyote have been on the rise, attacking the format from a different angle. Most importantly, Bloomburrow is having an impact as well.

Bloomburrow introduced several powerful cards for archetypes both old and new. The following table reveals the 25 most-played new-to-Pioneer cards across the Magic Online decklists I analyzed.

Fabled Passage also saw a good amount of play, but it's a reprint that was already available in Pioneer before. To zoom in on novel additions that have had the biggest impact on the Pioneer format, let's take a closer look at the most important new cards and the spiciest new decklists.

Several players found success by adding Cruelclaw's Heist to Rakdos Vampires, typically replacing Dusk Legion Zealot or Duress. For example, Arianne finished fourth in a Pioneer Challenge with the list shown above. At worst, it's a two-mana Thoughtseize that doesn't cost any life. At best, you can gift your opponent a card, grab their Sorin, Imperious Bloodlord, and use it on the next turn to put your own Vein Ripper onto the battlefield.

With this high floor and ceiling, especially in the mirror match, Cruelclaw's Heist is the most-played new-to-Pioneer card from Bloomburrow across the Magic Online decklists I analyzed. Nearly one in five Rakdos Vampires players included at least one copy in their main deck or sideboard, and this number might very well increase in the weeks to come.

Beza, the Bounding Spring is the second most-played card from Bloomburrow. It's mainly found in the sideboard of Azorius Control, where it excels against aggro decks. In those matchups, Beza will typically gain 4 life, create two Fish tokens, and put a 4/5 roadblock onto the battlefield. That's a great deal for four mana.

Additionally, several Enigmatic Fires and Niv to Light decks had included it as a tutor target in their main deck. Yet the most exciting home for Beza is the incredible brew that Tulio Jaudy used to win a recent Pioneer Challenge, shown above. Honestly, it's deck that left me more surprised than a rabbitfolk encountering a massive Calamity Beast.

Jaudy's control deck mainly revolves around another new Bloomburrow card: Caretaker's Talent. The enchantment rewards you with extra cards when Beza, the Bounding Spring creates Fish tokens, and the third level eventually upgrades them into sizable 3/3 creatures. The list incorporates a lot of different token creators, some of which come from Bloomburrow as well. Carrot Cake and Fountainport will keep the token engine humming, potentially triggering Caretaker's Talent on the opponent's turn. This deck not only won a major tournament but also looks like an absolute blast to play. I hope that it will become a major player in Pioneer going forward.

Heartfire Hero is the third most-played card from Bloomburrow. It may start off small, but it doesn't stay that size. Target it with Cunning Coyote or Aloe Achemist and you get a free +1/+1 counter. Target it with Monstrous Rage or Audacity, and its base stats increase to 3/3. This isn't hard to accomplish, so it'll reliably provide a lot of power for a single mana.

So far, many Atarka Red players have been exploring Heartfire Hero as an upgrade over Cacophony Scamp, and they've been finding success with it. For example, Manalacaio won a Magic Online Challenge with the list above. With the right draw, these new Heartfire Hero aggro decks can easily present lethal damage by turn three.

Meanwhile, Magic Online player Hamuda used Heartfire Hero not as an upgrade over Cacophony Scamp, but as a complement to it. In their Gruul Thud or Jund Thud decks, the redundancy enables reliable access to a one-drop that, upon death, deals damage equal to its power. You can then boost the creature's power with various pump effects, attack for 10, and sacrifice it to Thud or Burn Together to win the game.

Amalia Combo is one of the top-tier decks in Pioneer, but it sometimes struggles against removal-focused decks that disrupt the combo. To counteract this, Dewdrop Cure from Bloomburrow is a strong addition. Several Amalia Combo players have already found success with the card; for example, Caleb_Yetman took the list above to a third-place finish at a Magic Online Challenge.

If you have Wildgrowth Walker, Amalia Benavides Aguirre, and Prosperous Innkeeper in your graveyard, then you can return all of them for just three mana and set up the game-winning loop. Previously, many lists would use a several copies of Return to the Ranks or Lively Dirge to beat the removal strategies, but Dewdrop Cure costs less mana, is capable of returning a full three-card combo, and might prove to be superior to the existing options.

The Waste Not strategy wants to empty the opponent's hand, so any card that synergizes with that discard plan is a worthwhile addition. Accordingly, many Waste Not players have added Bandit's Talent from Bloomburrow, and it seems to be pulling its weight. For example, RiuuK1 finished 15th at a Magic Online Challenge with the list shown above.

All three levels of this new Class are useful. The first level will trigger Waste Not for value. The second level provides a win condition once the opponent is out of resources. The third level amounts to a one-sided Howling Mine All you need to do is get the opponent down to one or zero cards in hand, but that shouldn't be too difficult when half of the deck is already trying to accomplish that.

Coiling Rebirth unlocked a completely new take on Rakdos Vampires. This list, which Thief_Of_Crowns took to a fourth-place finish at a Magic Online Challenge, can still slam Vein Ripper onto the battlefield with Sorin, Imperious Bloodlord, but it can also discard the six-drop to a Blood token, Fable of the Mirror-Breaker, or Bitter Reunion. Then, on turn five, you gift a card with Coiling Rebirth, and suddenly you control two copies of Vein Ripper. One of the two might be a mere 1/1, but its drain trigger still applies, providing enormous life swings whenever a creature dies.

Two copies of Vein Ripper is hard to beat, but double Massacre Wurm should not be underestimated either. If the opponent controls five creatures that are all 4/4 or smaller, then Coiling Rebirth targeting Massacre Wurm is lethal. Even against smaller boards, it will regularly provide a game-winning advantage.

To make room for this Coiling Rebirth package, you're missing out on some removal and interactive spells, as well as becoming more vulnerable to graveyard hate compared to the stock Rakdos Vampires. Nevertheless, the raw power is impressive.

Rona Combo wants to go infinite by combining Rona, Herald of Invasion; Mox Amber; and Retraction Helix. This three-card combo may be powerful, but assembling all the pieces can be difficult. For consistency, card selection is essential. The only problem is that, due to the squeeze between Oath of Nissa; Lukka, Coppercoat Outcast; and Tyvar, Jubilant Brawler, this card selection should come in the form of a two-mana creature. Fallaji Archaeologist was perfect for this, and Bloomburrow has now accompanied it with an even better version.

Thundertrap Trainer digs four cards deep, brings a copy of itself in longer games, and satisfies all the deck's restrictions. It's a perfect fit for the strategy. Although it's unclear if that's enough to revive Rona Combo, OafMcNamara piloted this list to a 26th place at a Pioneer Challenge, indicating that there is at least some competitive potential.

This amazing list, which Laa11 took to a sixth-place finish at a recent Magic Online Challenge, features a lot of cards from Bloomburrow, all of which are great hits with Storm the Festival. If you put Kitnap from your library onto the battlefield, then you can choose to attach it to an opposing Vein Ripper and gain control of it. You won't even have to pay the ward tax because you didn't cast Kitnap and never actually targeted Vein Ripper. Dreamdew Entrancer is another nice hit, either locking down opposing creatures or drawing extra cards.

But the most important new card is Fecund Greenshell. All creatures in the deck have greater toughness than power, triggering Fecund Greenshell whenever they enter. Many of the deck's creatures already put additional lands onto the battlefield, with Bloomburrow's Clifftop Lookout neing a great example. So, it will be easy to reach ten or more lands, at which point all your creatures get an enormous anthem. Fecund Greenshell, with a mana value of 5, is the perfect top-end for a Storm the Festival deck, and this list makes great use of it.

Golgari Food, my final deck highlight, is the sweetest of them all. The standout new card from Bloomburrow is Ygra, Eater of All, which goes infinite with two copies of Cauldron Familiar. As these Cats are now Food, you can sacrifice one Cat to the other, looping them for infinite life drain. As long as your opponent doesn't control a copy of Vein Ripper, this should win the game on the spot. Utilizing this awesome combo, Killah_SUV finished 32nd in a Magic Online Challenge earlier this month. This sort of deck couldn't exist without Bloomburrow, and it is exciting to see such innovation.

Ygra, Eater of All is not the only Bloomburrow card in the list. Thornvault Forager can ramp into a turn-three Ygra, Eater of All or search for Vinereap Mentor, providing both mana acceleration and card advantage. Scavenger's Talent is arguably even more important. Its first level lets Cauldron Familiar chump block with ease, even without Witch's Oven. Its second level can find the second Cauldron Familiar. The third level can return Ygra, Eater of All from the graveyard. Given enough time, Scavenger's Talent can single-handedly assemble the full combo, which is quite impressive.

We might very well see more Pioneer innovation at the upcoming Regional Championships, scheduled between September 28 and December 1. These Regional Championships are part of the 2024–25 premier play season, and they feed into the first Pro Tour of 2025.

For the 2023–24 premier play season, there is still one tournament to come, and it's the most important one of the entire season: Magic World Championship 30. As we count down the weeks leading up to that event at MagicCon: Las Vegas in late October, each week I'm taking a look at a great deck from a past Magic World Championship.

At the 2014 World Championship, 24 competitors came to Nice, France, to compete across Standard, Draft, and Modern. As the tournament started for reigning World Champion Shahar Shenhar, it seemed like nothing could top his victory in 2013. Yet he took it down once more, showing that the last time wasn't a fluke. By proving his mastery of the game again, he became not only the first player to win two World Championship titles, but he also did so in consecutive years.

The deck used to win the 2014 Magic World Championship was Sidisi Whip, a midrange strategy that used Satyr Wayfinder to stock the graveyard, maximizing Sidisi, Brood Tyrant and Whip of Erebos. Repeated use of Whip of Erebos would gain life and swarm the battlefield with Hornet Queen tokens, overwhelming the opponent.

In Standard at the time, decks playing black and green dominated the metagame. Courser of Kruphix and Sylvan Caryatid provided green decks with mana ramp, card advantage, and high-toughness blockers. Black provided efficient interaction in the form of Thoughtseize and Hero's Downfall. Branching out from that black-green core, there were many different decks and styles. The most popular approach was to splash white for Siege Rhino. Others focused on Constellation synergies with Eidolon of Blossoms. And players like Shenhar opted to play a longer game out of the graveyard—a strategy that ultimately proved to be the best in this metagame. The general lesson, which may also be relevant for today's Pioneer format, is that you can beat midrange mirrors by going over the top with card advantage, by sacrificing speed, and by incorporating a more powerful late-game engine.

The main thing that made Sidisi Whip decks so strong was the advantage that Whip of Erebos gave them turn after turn, with Hornet Queen as the most terrifying reanimation target of them all. Her tokens could either hold off an entire army, or provide an instant airforce to go on the offensive. Indeed, in the deciding game of the 2014 World Championship, Patrick Chapin and Shahar Shenhar were neck and neck with dwindling life totals. Chapin resolved Siege Rhino, a mighty threat by any measure, but the only thing better than one threat is five threats. Shenhar brought down the Queen and her retinue, and their winged assistance carried him to victory.

With his back-to-back victory, Shahar Shenhar became the first and only player to claim the title twice. At the upcoming 30th edition of the Magic World Championship, there are five players on the invitation list who could become a repeat champion: Kai Budde, Seth Manfield, Javier Dominguez, Yuta Takahashi, and Jean-Emmanuel Depraz. Reigning champion Jean-Emmanuel Depraz could even go back to back, just like Shahar Shenhar. In a few months, on October 25, we'll get the record books ready!