At this point, it is absolutely clear that Standard is a diverse format. And I hate it. I am not sure if I hate it because it’s so easy to lose to Delver, or because it’s so easy to lose to anything. I have many reasons for my hatred of such a magical, powerful, and varied format. Let’s start by naming cards that I currently hate in Standard and whether or not they’ll rotate:
| Card Name | Rarity | Rotating? |
| Snapcaster Mage | Rare | not rotating |
| Geist of Saint Traft | Mythic Rare | not rotating |
| Bonfire of the Damned | Mythic rare | not rotating |
| Restoration Angel | Rare | not rotating |
| Wurmcoil Engine | Mythic Rare | rotating |
| Inkmoth Nexus | Rare | rotating |
| Birthing Pod | Rare | rotating |
| Blade Splicer | Rare | rotating |
| Elesh Norn, Grand Cenobite | Mythic Rare | rotating |
| Sword of War and Peace | Mythic Rare | rotating |
| The Titans | Mythic Rare | rotating |
| Phantasmal Image | Rare | rotating |
| Gideon Jura | Mythic Rare | rotating |
You’ll notice that I included rarity in the table, because more often than not, rarity matters. You’ll notice that I haven’t included any commons or uncommons on the list. The reason for this is that the suspect commons and uncommons (Mana Leak, Ponder, Gut Shot, Mutagenic Growth, Vapor Snag, Celestial Purge, Gitaxian Probe) are only good when used with one of the rares/mythics above (Snapcaster Mage, Inkmoth Nexus). I chose this small list of cards because of their interactions with the great, cheap commons & uncommons of Standard and their interactions with the other cards on the list. Examples of this include Phantasmal Image/Sun Titan, Restoration Angel/Blade Splicer, and Birthing Pod/Elesh Norn. These interactions are downright criminal and I can’t wait for them to leave the format.
Let’s take a look at the list and the issues with each card.
Snapcaster Mage is a problem because of all the cheap, powerful instants in the format and the fact that amost alll of this takes place in one color, blue. This makes support colors even better as Ponder, Probe, etc, allow you to smooth out your draws in any Snapcaster deck. The first Ponder wasn’t enough? Snap that Ponder back and the second one should do the trick! Opponent’s elves got you down? Snapcastering Gut Shot ought to take care of that. Snapcaster Mage is versatile enough in conjunction with its arsenal to be the focus of many decks to come. The thing I look forward to is that all of his best support cards are rotating! Yay!
Geist of Saint Traft: If this guy didn’t have Hexproof and instead had Flying or Vigilance or any other keyword, he would be decent. To those who think it’s not that good of a card because U/W Delver seems to be going out of favor, I assure you the card and the deck are alive and well.
Bonfire of the Damned: This thing is a one-card combo. As a one-sided Wrath of God that also damages the opponent… it’s too powerful. It is cast for the miracle cost far too often and even the straight cost is not a hindrance to most mana dork powered decks. And the longer the game goes the more dangerous it becomes.
Restoration Angel: This card wouldn’t be that bad without its interaction with other cards on this list (Snapcaster Mage, Blade Splicer, etc). Thankfully most if its degenerate support is rotating, which should lower its power level after rotation. I can’t wait to see what’s in Return to Ravnica and I hope that it doesn’t recommit these cards to the heights they’ve enjoyed thus far.
Wurmcoil Engine: This one is just very difficult for aggro decks to overcome. Revoke Existence is one of the only answers to it and devoting multiple sideboard slots to one narrow card can be treacherous.
Inkmoth Nexus: Dodges all sorcery-speed removal and puts the opponent on a 10-turn clock (unless it’s paired with pump effects, which it always is). The most obvious outcome if your opponent is swinging with Nexus is that you have three turns maximum to take it out before it takes you out.
Birthing Pod: This thing just makes decks awkward. I can’t wait for it to go because it enables crazy niche cards to be run in a mainstream deck, but only one copy. This hurts both the Pod deck because it makes for some really wonky draws but also the competition because of the silver-bullet nature of most Pod targets.
Blade Splicer: Two bodies for the price of one, this one is here because of its interaction with Restoration Angel. But mainly because it gives a 3/3 body and gives it first strike, which can be an annoyance.
Elesh Norn, Grand Cenobite: Her effect is simply too powerful. With the added benefit of being able to cheat her into play (Birthing Pod, Unburial Rites), she’s just too good. One of the only ways to combat her is on this list as well, Phantasmal Image.
Sword of War and Peace: Gives the controller too big of a lead in games where it comes down early and is uncontested. I mean, if you choose to use red in your deck for removal or white for creatures, this card destroys you, invalidating those strategies completely. I feel the same way about all the swords for different reasons.
The Titans: Do I need to say anything about these guys? They’ve been the bane of many deckbuilders’ existence since their first printing. There simply are not many creatures at 6 mana or higher (Elesh Norn is about it) that are better than the Titans.
Phantasmal Image: The bane of legendary creatures everywhere. Two mana is entirely too cheap for a clone effect. The added “drawback” of sacrificing upon targeting isn’t much of a drawback in an environment with little reusable targeting effects. Also, it can be a positive thing if you intend on reanimating those Images (see Sun Titan).
Gideon Jura: This is one planeswalker that has overstayed his welcome in Standard. Going up to 8 counters and forcing all creatures to attack him is simply too good in an environment filled with Bonfires, Terminus’, Mutilates, Black Sun’s Zeniths, Whipflares, etc, etc, etc.
Sigh.
Force of Nature 