Modern
General forum
Posted on Oct. 18, 2021, 4:28 p.m. by spacecoyote1313
I used to be a huge fan of modern, but over the last few years the format has taken a legacy like turn where games are decided upon the die roll and they hardly ever go past turn 3 (I understand they do but a majority of the time you can figure out who's going to win by turn 3).
Am I not adjusting to the new direction modern has taken or because of the constant additions of sets, it was only a matter of time until it started to take on that legacy feeling.
Post note - Does anyone miss Pioneer?
RyuSama420 I wouldn't say there's anything wrong with Legacy, really. (I've never played a competitive Legacy match, so maybe a grain of salt is needed here.) But it's at the point where turn 3 is late game, and even turn 1 seems like early-mid game. If you like fast setup and knowing the outcome before your third draw step, then Legacy is perfect.
Modern used to be a slower game (barring the occasional Arcbound Ravager deck), with a good amount of back and forth play. Now, even if you haven't actually won by turn 4, you either have a good lock on the game or you're losing. It's sped up considerably, resources are freely available, and cards like Thassa's Oracle tend to reduce interaction. It's still not quite on the level of Legacy, but it will only get closer.
October 18, 2021 5:03 p.m.
RyuSama420 says... #5
The top deck in modern right now is control. But i’d rather games be over by turn 4 as opposed to dragging on until i cant get a break between rounds
October 18, 2021 7:15 p.m.
xtechnetia says... #6
Historically Legacy has actually been a slower format like Modern. While Legacy decks absolutely can kill faster than Modern decks, the average Legacy game is actually longer and grindier than the average Modern game, due to the increased possibility and incentives for interaction.
The feeling you're currently experiencing in Modern is not exclusive to Modern at all. Every constructed format (including Legacy) is feeling it, due to the massive influx of powerful cards from the past couple of years. I don't like it anymore than you do, but it's just reality now.
I don't know what you mean by "missing" Pioneer. The format is still very much alive. It is not as broadly popular as Modern and it has much less MTGO presence, but there's a wide gap between that and "dead".
October 18, 2021 7:45 p.m.
The threats in Modern have gotten better than ever, and Hammer Time has an incredibly fast goldfish, but the answers and interaction in Modern are also the best they've ever been. The decks are built around handling Ragavan and Hammer Time, but many plan to go to turn 4 or 5. You can argue about when games are decided, but many decks have powerful interaction to stop the opponent's plans. A month or two ago I would've been more concerned with the dominance of Izzet Murktide, but the format's adjusted and a lot of fast and slow decks are putting up MTGO finishes, not just the fastest ones.
October 18, 2021 10:22 p.m.
Grubbernaut says... #8
Both modern and legacy are very interactive. In modern, BRx decks can be hyper-swingy.
Regarding Oracle... I can't think of any competitive deck playing it in Modern, right now.
To me, it sounds more like you miss the old modern in general, rather than that the current meta actually decides games so early. As someone who played since the beginning, I understand. Pioneer was supposed to replace that feeling, but hasn't caught on, largely being recycled old standard decks.
legendofa says... #2
Between Modern Horizons and the sheer number of sets, it was going to take a turn for the Legacy-ish sooner or later.
Here's a little bit of historical trivia: Modern was officially codified in 2011, when it replaced Extended. Legacy was formalized in 2004. As of August next year, Modern will have existed for 11 years, the same amount of time (give or take a few weeks) between Alpha Edition and the formal introduction of Legacy. Basically, Modern now is what Legacy was ten years ago, in terms of card count and availability.
October 18, 2021 4:50 p.m.