The best Standard MTG deck in Outlaws of Thunder Junction meta (Bo1 and Bo3)

With the Outlaws of Thunder Junction Pro Tour starting for MTG, there’s never been a better time to look at the two best decks in the game. When it comes to the decks in question, though, I looked at a few factors. I considered which deck is seeing the most play in the Pro Tour for the Best of 3 (Bo3) deck. Then, I looked at which deck should be the most dominant in single-match, Magic: The Gathering Arena gameplay for Best of 3 (Bo3).

Admittedly, the Bo1 deck was much harder to pick, because I feel very strongly about both Mono-White Humans and Red Deck Wins (Mono-Red Prowess). Slickshot Showoff is one of the strongest cards in the set and will be featured in some powerful decks going forward. I can see it being used in more than Standard, that’s for sure. But let’s dive into what will be the real game winners.

Note: This article is subjective and solely based on the author's opinion.

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The best Standard MTG decks in Outlaws of Thunder Junction’s meta

1) Bo1: Red Deck Wins (Red Prowess)

One of the best decks in Outlaws of Thunder Junction is MTG's Mono-Red Prowess (Image via Wizards of the Coast)

I’ve always been a really big fan of Prowess decks, and seeing one of the best Standard MTG decks in Outlaws of Thunder Junction utilize it made me happy in a way that’s hard to describe. Especially when it beats out Mono-White Humans. The new Plot mechanic goes incredibly hard in this deck, mostly thanks to Slickshot Show-Off.

For those not familiar, Prowess is a mechanic that grants a creature a temporary +1/+1 until the end of the turn, anytime you cast a noncreature spell. You combine that with a stack of low-cost, high-value Red instants and a few amazing enchantments, including the Plottable Demonic Ruckus, and you smash through people’s life totals in no time.

All the creatures in this deck bring something interesting to combat. You’ve got Slickshot Show-Off, which can be Plotted in. Then you cast a bunch of instants and sorcereries, and plot in Demonic Ruckus on him, to wrap up a game. You’ve also got Monastery Swiftspear and Fugitive Codebreaker for Prowess. This MTG Outlaws of Thunder Junction deck is a menace, pure and simple - and it’s one of the best..

Decklist

• 4 Monastery Swiftspear
• 4 Slickshot Show-Off
• 4 Fugitive Codebreaker
• 4 Goddric, Cloaked Reveler
• 2 Shock
• 4 Play with Fire
• 4 Monstrous Rage
• 4 Lightning Strike
• 4 Ancestral Anger
• 4 Kumano Faces Kakkazan
• 4 Demonic Ruckus
• 17 Mountain
• 1 Sokenzan, Crucible of Defiance

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2) Bo3: Esper Midrange

The most popular (and one of the best) decks for Outlaws of Thunder Junction's pro scene is Esper Midrange (Image via Wizards of the Coast)

There’s a reason Esper Midrange is 31.4% of the Standard decks entered into the MTG Pro Tour for Outlaws of Thunder Junction - it’s clearly one of the best options. At the time of writing, the pro decks have not officially been revealed, but other versions of the deck are out there.

What really enhances this deck, for my money, is Duelist of the Mind. It brings an incredible collaboration to some of this deck’s best cards. For example, Lord Skitter, Sewer King creates a 1/1 black Rat during your turn. Doing this means you can exile a card from an opponent’s graveyard. That triggers the Crime mechanic, letting you draw and discard for Duelist of the Mind. This is easily one of the best Crime payoffs in the game.

Here's the meta breakdown of the decks used in MTG's Outlaws of Thunder Junction Pro Tour (Image via Wizards of the Coast)

Given that Duelist of the Mind’s power is equal to the number of cards you draw in a turn, that’s already +2 attack. Pair that with Raffine, Scheming Seer, which has you Connive X on a creature (X is equal to the number of attacking creatures).

Connive is an effect in MTG that has you Draw X and Discard X, and for each nonland card discarded this way, that creature gains that many +1/+1 counters. Suddenly, Duelist of the Mind flies over your opponent’s field and decimates them.

You could choose to do it with cards like Deep-Cavern Bat instead of Lifelink. Pair that with a wealth of control options and you’ve got a horrifying deck. While we don’t know what MTG deck will win the Pro Tour out of the Outlaws of Thunder Junction decks, this one has one of the best chances.

Decklist

• 2 Tinybones, the Pickpocket
• 4 Deep-Cavern Bat
• 2 Faerie Mastermind
• 4 Duelist of the Mind
• 2 Dennick, Pious Apprentice
• 1 Tishana's Tidebinder
• 2 Lord Skitter, Sewer King
• 4 Raffine, Scheming Seer
• 1 Aclazotz, Deepest Betrayal
• 3 Cut Down
• 3 Go for the Throat
• 1 Get Lost
• 3 No More Lies
• 2 Virtue of Loyalty
• 1 Island
• 1 Plains
• 2 Underground River
• 3 Caves of Koilos
• 2 Seachrome Coast
• 4 Darkslick Shores
• 2 Concealed Courtyard
• 2 Shattered Sanctum
• 4 Restless Anchorage
• 2 Raffine's Tower
• 1 Eiganjo, Seat of the Empire
• 1 Otawara, Soaring City
• 1 Takenuma, Abandoned Mire

Sideboard

• 1 Tishana's Tidebinder
• 1 Aclazotz, Deepest Betrayal
• 2 Negate
• 3 Knockout Blow
• 2 Duress
• 2 Gix's Command
• 2 Rest in Peace
• 2 Temporary Lockdown

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Outlaws of Thunder Junction is the latest MTG expansion, and it brings plenty of new cards that will no doubt affect several formats. This includes Commander, as there are quite a few amazing new offerings for deck leaders.