Magic: The Gathering
Wizards of the Coast's flagship TCG. Commander, Standard, Modern, Pioneer, Pauper, and Limited coverage — deck guides, card evaluations, set reviews, and format primers.
June 2026
18 posts
Best Artifacts in Magic: The Gathering, Ranked
The One Ring draws you out of any hole and Skullclamp turns one mana into an engine. Here are the best non-mana-rock artifacts in Magic, ranked by what they actually do, with current format legality on every card.
MTG Sideboarding Guide: How to Win Games 2 and 3
Most players build a 75-card deck and only ever think about 60 of them. The 15-card sideboard is where matches are actually won — here is how to build one and how to side correctly in games 2 and 3.
Magic: The Gathering Legacy Format Guide: Where to Start
Legacy is the format where almost every card ever printed is legal and a single land can cost more than a console. Here is what Legacy actually is, the archetypes that define it, and how a new player gets in without selling a kidney.
MTG Keyword Abilities Explained: From Flying to Ward
Magic packs whole rules into single words. Flying, trample, deathtouch, ward — each keyword is shorthand for a specific effect, and knowing them is the difference between reading a card and understanding it. Here is every common keyword, grouped and explained.
How the Stack and Priority Work in Magic: The Gathering
The stack is the single rules concept that decides whether you actually understand Magic or just play the cards. Here is how it resolves, when you get priority, how to respond to a spell, and the timing rulings that trip up every new player.
MTG Mana Base Guide: How to Build Your Lands
The fastest way to lose a game of Magic is a mana base you eyeballed. Too few lands and you stumble; the wrong colors and your hand bricks. Here is how to count lands, count pips, and pick the right duals, fetches, and shocks for the deck you actually have.
Best Enchantments in Magic: The Gathering, Ranked
Enchantments are the cards opponents forget to kill — quiet permanents that bury you in value one turn at a time. Here are the best enchantments in Magic, ranked, with the color, cost, and legality on each one verified.
How Combat Works in Magic: The Gathering, Explained
Combat is where most Magic games are won, and it is also where most new players misplay. Here is the combat phase broken down step by step — attackers, blockers, damage, and the keywords like first strike, trample, and deathtouch that bend the rules.
Best Equipment in Magic: The Gathering, Ranked
Skullclamp turns one mana into a card-draw engine and Umezawa’s Jitte can win a game by itself. Here are the best Equipment cards in Magic, ranked for Commander, with what each one actually does and where it shines.
The MTG Color Pie, Explained: What Each Color Does
Every card in Magic belongs to a color, and each color has a personality, a set of strengths, and things it flat-out can't do. Here's what White, Blue, Black, Red, and Green each stand for, why the color pie exists, and how to pick yours.
Best Board Wipes in Magic: The Gathering, Ranked
A board wipe is the reset button you press when the table got out of hand and it's your fault for not pressing it sooner. Here are the best mass removal spells in MTG, ranked, with the format context and the trap of running too few.
Magic: The Gathering Modern Format Guide: Where to Start
Modern is the deepest 60-card format Magic has, and it is the one where your old cards never rotate out. Here is what Modern actually is, the archetypes that define it, and how a new player gets in without lighting a paycheck on fire.
Magic: The Gathering Pioneer Format Guide: Where to Start
Pioneer is the format for people who want a deep, non-rotating card pool without the Modern Horizons arms race. Here is what Pioneer actually is, the archetypes that define it, and how a newcomer gets in without overpaying.
Best Card Draw Spells in Commander, Ranked
In a 40-life format, the deck that draws the most cards usually wins — it is that simple. Here is the best repeatable and burst card draw in Commander, ranked, with the color and downside that decides whether it belongs in your deck.
Best Ramp Spells in Commander, Ranked
Green doesn't get to be the best color in Commander by accident — it gets there by playing turn-three spells on turn two. Here is the ramp worth running, ranked, with the difference between a ramp spell, a rock, and a dork made clear.
Best Commanders for Beginners, Ranked
The fastest way to bounce off Commander is to pick a five-color combo deck as your first build and lose fourteen games in a row. Here are the legends that teach the format, ranked, with the mana base you'll actually be able to cast.
Magic: The Gathering Pauper Format Guide: Where to Start
Pauper is real Magic for the price of a pizza — every card is a common, and the games are still cutthroat. Here is what Pauper actually is, the pillars of the meta, and how a newcomer gets in for almost nothing.
Best Tutors in Commander, Ranked
A tutor turns your 100-card singleton deck into a deck that draws the right card on cue. Here are the best tutors in Commander, ranked by power and flexibility — and the difference between a tutor that wins games and one that just digs.
May 2026
19 posts
How to Draft: An MTG Limited Guide for Beginners
Your first draft goes badly because you pick the coolest card instead of the best card, and you stay open into three colors when you should have committed by pick five. Here is the fundamentals course that fixes both.
Best Counterspells in Magic: The Gathering, Ranked
The best counterspell is the one that's still in your hand when the opponent tries to win. Here are the strongest counters across Commander, Legacy, and Modern — ranked, with the format context that decides which one belongs in your deck.
Best Mana Rocks in Commander (2026) — The Ramp Artifacts Every EDH Deck Wants
Sol Ring is in your opening hand or it isn't, and the game usually goes the way that coin flips. Here are the mana rocks worth running, ranked by what they actually do for your deck.
Best Planeswalkers in Magic: The Gathering (2026) — A Cross-Format Tier List
Planeswalkers promised to be the most powerful card type ever printed. Most of them flopped. The handful that didn't bend entire formats around themselves. Here's the tier list.
MTG Mulligan Guide (2026) — How the London Mulligan Works and When to Take It
More games are lost to bad keeps than to bad draws. The mulligan is the most important decision you make all game, and most players punt it. Here's how to stop.
Best Removal Spells in MTG (2026) — Every Color Ranked
Removal is the most underbuilt category in casual Commander decks, and it is the cheapest way to win a game. Here are the best removal spells in every color, plus board wipes and budget picks.
MTG Deck Archetypes Explained — Aggro, Midrange, Control & Combo
Every Magic deck ever built is a variation on four ideas. Here is what aggro, midrange, control, and combo actually do, when each one wins, and how to find the archetype that matches the way you like to play.
How to Build a Commander Deck — The 10/10/10 Template
Most bad Commander decks fail on category balance, not card choice. Here is the 10/10/10 skeleton that fixes ramp, draw, removal, and lands in one move.
Best Lands in MTG Commander (2026) — Fixing, Utility, and How Many to Run
A Commander deck's mana base loses or wins more games than its spells do. Most new players run 33 lands and wonder why they keep getting screwed. Here are the staples, the budget swaps, and the right land count for every archetype.
MTG Commander Format Guide — How to Start Playing EDH (2026)
Commander is the most-played MTG format on the planet and the easiest one for new players to start in. The rules look intimidating on paper. They are not. Here is the full beginner guide.
Best Budget Commander Decks Under $100 (2026) — 7 Lists That Actually Win
A $100 Commander deck beats a half-built premium deck most nights. The premium cost lives in the mana base, not the wincons. Here are seven $100-or-under builds that actually win games.
Best White Cards in Magic: The Gathering (2026) — Commander Staples & Format Standouts
White spent a decade as the punching bag of Commander color rankings. Esper Sentinel, Smothering Tithe, and Farewell ended that argument. Here are the white cards worth building around in 2026.
Best Blue Cards in Magic: The Gathering (2026) — Counterspells, Card Draw & Control Staples
Blue's deal is simple. The best counterspell is the one you don't have to cast, and the best card-draw engine is the one your opponents help fuel. Here are the blue cards that still set the bar in 2026.
Best Black Cards in Magic: The Gathering (2026) — Tutors, Removal & Commander Staples
Black's whole identity is paying a cost to break a rule. Demonic Tutor finds anything. Necropotence draws everything. Here are the staples that have defined the color for 20+ years.
Best Red Cards in Magic: The Gathering (2026) — Burn, Wheels & Commander Staples
Red has the best one-mana spell in MTG history, the best draw-7 in MTG history, and one of the best banned cards in MTG history. Building red in 2026 is mostly about which of those traditions you are leaning into.
Best Green Cards in Magic: The Gathering (2026) — Ramp, Big Creatures & Commander Staples
Green is the only color that can plop a 16/16 trampler on turn 5 in Commander without doing anything clever. Here are the staples that make it happen.
Standard After the May 2026 Ban Wave — What to Brew Now That Cori-Steel Is Gone
Ten cards banned in a single swing. Izzet Prowess is dead, Mono-Red is gutted, and Azorius Omniscience lost its engine. Here is what is actually playable now.
How Nathan Steuer Won Pro Tour Strixhaven With Selesnya Landfall
Nathan Steuer brought Selesnya Landfall to a Pro Tour where 49% of the field was Izzet. Then he won the mirror in the finals. Here is how the deck actually works and how to build it now that the bans hit.
Secrets of Strixhaven Tier List — 20 Cards That Actually Matter
Secrets of Strixhaven shipped 270 cards. Most will never see Standard play. Here are the 20 that actually matter, the hype mythics that flopped, and what the May 18 bans changed.