WotC haunts players

MTG Madness news

Welcome to the eighth installment of MTG Madness. Thank you to all who entered the first giveaway for the Squirrelled Away Bloomburrow Precon. Remember to check your inbox and spam folders so you don't lose out on your winnings—and get excited because another giveaway is coming shortly. 

The Modern meta is settling after the ban of Nadu and Grief, according to Frank Karsten, with Boros and Mardu Energy builds now dominating the most-played decks rankings. Gruul Breach, Dimir Murktide, and Ruby Storm builds are also seeing play. 

The top performing competitive bo3 Bloomburrow Standard decks from this past week were Azorius Control, Jeskai Convoke, Dimir Aggro, Gruul Slickshot, Atraxa five-color Domain, and Mono-Red Aggro. What decks are you enjoying? 

Horrifying spoilers

Duskmourn House of Horror spoilers officially began on Aug. 31 at PAXWest, dropping the new and improved Kaito Planeswalker card (he's growing up so fast) and the face commanders for the Duskmourn Commander Precon decks. Spoilers are officially running through Sept. 13 for the "13 days of Duskmourn previews." Stay up to date with all the Duskmourn drops with our release schedule. 

I've put together a list of my favorite spoilers so far, but not on the list is Meathook Massacre II. The design is cool, but how the sequel Enchantment will perform in Standard and Limited is unknown at time of writing. Let us know what you think of the second version of Meathook Massacre, and do you think WotC should continue to print MTG cards like this?

Much like Bloomburrow. All subscribers will receive a graded breakdown of Duskmourn House of Horrors after the preview season has ended, so make sure our emails aren't ending up in the Spam folder. Here's a breakdown of some of my favorite Duskmourn House of Horror spoilers so far:

Common and Uncommon

Piggy Bank: A two-drop 3/2 in Red that creates a Treasure token when it dies. Limited B-

Nowhere to Run: A two-drop Flash Enchantment removal with benefits. Not a four-of, but a great piece of removal at Uncommon. Limited B

Patchwork Beastie: A perfect replacement for Deathbonnet Sprout, as long as milling a card at the beginning of your upkeep was the main objective. It's not Deathbonnet Hulk, lowering the Artifact creature's value. But it can work as a creature by around turn four, or become sacrificial fodder if no longer needed. Limited TBD. 

Spineseeker Centipede: A solid mana-fixer for Limited. I don't know how impactful the Delirium value will be. Limited C+

Shardmage's Rescue: I like one-drop protection spells at instant speed with value, and Shardmage's Rescue does just that while also having Enchantment synergy. Limited B- 

Pyroclasm: An answer to go-wide Aggro decks in Standard. Limited TBD. 

Fear of Isolation: Potentially a strong two-drop in ETB decks, especially Dimir builds. Limited TBD. 

Rare and Mythic Rare

Rare Dual Verge lands: A potential replacement for triomes in Standard? I think so. Don't sleep on the Verge's and the impact they'll have on Standard. Limited A 

Twitching Doll: A buy-a-box promo that doesn't feel bad when you crack the box. I love the Artifact creature's design as a mana dork that leaves behind at least a 1/1 unless sniped when it enters. That's good value for a two-drop. 

Dollmaker's Shop//Porcelain Gallery: I'm a sucker for token generators, and Dollmaker's Shop is great in Tempo builds. Plus it has the anthem if needed. Limited B+. Standard TBD. 

Marina Vendrell's Grimoire: A Control build bomb in Constructed that draws five cards for six mana up front, potentially extends your life, and draws cards if you gain life. Limited TBD. 

Grievous Wound: Be afraid of what Mono-Black is cooking with the release of Duskmourn. Any ping of damage can cause your opponent to lose half their life. Then they'll lose two more from Sheoldred and half their life again, and so on. Limited A+ bomb. 

The Swarmweaver: The wrath of Patchwork Beastie on turn four. Two Insect creature tokens in addition to a 2/3 body at a cost of four mana is a decent value. Delirium takes everything to another level by turning those Insect and Spider  (Commander) tokens into 2/2 Deathtouch creatures. Limited B-

The Rollercrusher Ride: Another answer to Aggro in Standard by channeling Meathook Massacre vibes that also doubles noncombat damage through Delirium. Limited A-

Hedge Shredder: Crew one on a 5/5 at a cost of four mana is a great starting rate. The Vehicle is also a form of ramp each turn if you want it to be. Limited A

What are some of your favorite Duskmourn spoilers so far?

And that's a wrap for this week's MTG Madness. Next week the grades spreadsheet for Duskmourn cards will be available. The 13th is the final day, so some entries may be missing a grade initially. I will also be updating grades after participating in the MTG Arena Early Access Streamer event on Sept. 18.