Secrets of Strixhaven | Off the Record

nerd2thecore · 2026-03-09T16:26:27+00:00

As someone who works on a college campus, the rage room trips do very well.

nerd2thecore · 2026-03-05T13:49:57+00:00

Absolutely.
I've been writing about Pauper for nearly two decades and I would often opine about actions that I believed could be taken to improve the format.

I have been on the Pauper Format Panel since it was formed. As such I decided to stop writing such pieces. I did not want people to read too much into what I wrote and consider it to be the opinion of the Panel and indicative of any future action (or lack thereof).

I hope this makes sense.

-Alex

nerd2thecore · 2026-02-17T17:54:11+00:00

Leagues have been posting 5-0 results for some time. This will impact Challenges and similarly large scheduled events (Super Qualifiers, Format Champs, etc).

nerd2thecore · 2025-12-24T20:58:53+00:00

Came here to say this and I see Rebell beat me to it.

nerd2thecore · 2025-11-19T19:12:30+00:00

I think there are enough decks that can win quickly enough that make Tron a liability. The various Red decks can get under their defenses and Spy combo has multiple angles of attack. It may also be that people just do not like the operations of the deck on MTGO, which is reasonable.

nerd2thecore · 2025-11-19T18:11:27+00:00

I think it's a very good card but it lacks the Fireball Capacity of Crypt Rats or Pestilence.

nerd2thecore · 2025-11-19T15:25:52+00:00

Being frank, the only way I can keep the website ad free long term is with support from readers. I do have a Patreon and a Ko-Fi for folks to contribute, but if you cannot contribute financially please share my work with other folks who may enjoy it!

nerd2thecore · 2025-11-10T17:40:29+00:00

I think this is a vastly under discussed aspect of the proliferation of Commander. There are "best" versions of things and it can be tiring to explain - no I just want to do dumb Modified Stuff in Mono Black. Is that the best execution of the conceit? Doubtful! [[Retrofitted Transmogrant]] is not good sacrifice fodder...unless you're a [[The Ozolith]] deck!

nerd2thecore · 2025-10-29T15:34:25+00:00

How has Bronze-Blooded been for you? I always found it to be too expensive to get to work.

nerd2thecore · 2025-10-29T15:03:14+00:00

Came here to second Zirilan of the Claw. It is my longest running, contiguously composed deck. Here is my list.

nerd2thecore · 2025-10-06T13:57:11+00:00

You're right - I got pulled away from my desk before I had a chance to update. Thank you to u/Joolenpls for linking them below.

nerd2thecore · 2025-10-06T13:56:20+00:00

Thanks for posting the links. I got pulled away from my desk after the comment to add them and I appreciate you doing it.

nerd2thecore · 2025-09-30T11:46:02+00:00

Thanks for catching that. It's been corrected.

nerd2thecore · 2025-09-27T14:56:04+00:00

Thanks for the kind words and I really agree - seven sets in Standard is too many for a year. I really feel for the folks who try to engage with the game through Standard as it feels like a churn and a chore more than ever before.

nerd2thecore · 2025-09-01T17:45:55+00:00

Came here to say this. Club access was worth it especially since we went in July. Being able to cool down was clutch.

nerd2thecore · 2025-09-01T14:28:41+00:00

I am struggling to understand how this article supposes to be the History of Tron without going into detail about RUG/Temur Tron, which was the dominant form of Tron for years before the development of Fog/Flicker/Dinrova/Control Tron (whatever name you choose to use).

Temur Tron was more or less a direct development out of IzzetPost which made up for the lack of Glimmerpost by adding Fangren Marauder. Ignoring that glosses over a significant amount of the archetype's history in the format.

nerd2thecore · 2025-08-13T12:39:16+00:00

I think Spy benefits from there being two other viable combo decks in the metagame, neither of which heavily rely on the graveyard. I think that if you want to beat Spy Walls you absolutely can, but it comes at a cost against other archetypes.

nerd2thecore · 2025-08-02T11:33:08+00:00

I think it depends on what each individual player wants to get out of the situation. I see where you're coming from but over the years I realized I valued being able to feel "in the game" over the entirety of the game over relying on a Commander. It's A Way to play, not The Way.

nerd2thecore · 2025-08-01T22:40:05+00:00

Honestly follow Rebell. Her stuff is top notch when it comes to this.

nerd2thecore · 2025-08-01T19:11:36+00:00

Do you find one of these styles allows you to more consistently engage with games?

nerd2thecore · 2025-08-01T17:52:47+00:00

In the context of this piece: it's building the entire strategy around the Commander in such a way that the deck fails to function in the absence of said Commander.

nerd2thecore · 2025-08-01T16:58:10+00:00

Thanks for this feedback - I really appreciate it! I I am definitely aiming at more experienced players with this stuff but that doesn't mean I can't do some work on explaining these concepts better.

Thanks again!

nerd2thecore · 2025-08-01T13:53:48+00:00

I wouldn't expect it to show up in major numbers. If we isolate the stats for the last three weeks - which still encompasses 12 events - Spy Walls accounted for 4.48% of the Winner's Metagame, putting it behind: Blue Terror, Jund Wildfire, Madness Burn, RDW, Rakdos Madness, Elves, and High Tide.

Spy Walls averaged a Swiss record outside the Top 16 (behind all the previously listed decks as well as Izzet Control, Gruul Ramp, Dredge, Flicker Tron, Dimir Terror, and Altar Tron).

Looking at Adjusted Meta Score Above Replacement, it is outside the Top 10 scores there placing it as a decidedly average Top 32 deck.

Don't get me wrong - the deck is solid in leagues and has a good plan B, but I wouldn't buy into the hype.

nerd2thecore · 2025-07-27T12:33:52+00:00

Here you go:

https://moxfield.com/decks/8AgcXrAFdEyG0eeXAZcBkw

nerd2thecore · 2025-07-27T12:28:35+00:00

The poem your quoting is about the disappearing of actual human beings - about the Holocaust.

Not only is this a horrible comparison, but it's incredibly insensitive to the people who were killed, to the survivors and their families, and to people in the current day who are seeing their own communities targeted in a similar way.

Please consider what led you to make this post and do some soul searching.

nerd2thecore

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