One of the oldest trading card games still being printed,Magic: The Gatheringdoesn’t stop for anything. The COVID-19 pandemic only increased the number of players using the newMTG: Arena, and newMagicsets are still being printed. Since thelatest Core Set recently came toMTG: Arena, playership is going strong all across the board. It’s safe to say the game is nowhere near being tapped out.
That said,Magic: The Gatheringhas not remained a static game. It has changed and evolved many times over the years, with new concepts, rules, and approaches to the game. New formats have been introduced, new avenues of play likeMTG: Arenahave been created, and new policies have been adopted when it comes to cards. One of those new policies has been enacted because ofMTG: Arenaand the immediacy and rapidity of matches it provides.
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Wizards of the Coast, the company that publishesMagic: The Gathering, recently releasednew banlists for several formats. In most cases, this banlist would be the final say on the matter for some time, but apparently it was not enough. In a surprise move, Wizards unleashed additional bans for Standard, Pioneer, and Brawl formats, as well as theMTG: Arenaexclusive Historic format. The cards in question for Standard were, according toMagicdesigner Ian Duke, simply too powerful in the current meta for Wizards to wait for them to rotate out naturally.
The Standard bans hit Wilderness Reclamation, Growth Spiral, Teferi Time Raveler, and Cauldron Familiar. Reclamation and Growth Spiral were banned thanks to being key components of very powerful ramp decks. A good ramp strategy can quickly run away with the game, and the two above cards made them easier and faster to pull off. Meanwhile, in Pioneer format, the card Inverter of Truth got the ban hammer, as did Kethis, the Hidden Hand, Walking Ballista, and Underworld Breach. Inverter of Truth was such a ubiquitous threat that the fact it wasn’t banned in July madeMTGplayers furious. Now those players can rest easy, as the dreaded Inversion deck has lost its primary threat.
Meanwhile, Teferi, Time Raveler was banned because of what it shut player sout of doing, rather than what it did. This iteration of Teferi prevents oponents from casting spells at instant speed as a static effect. Despite being rare instead of ultra rare, like the Teferi that comes with thelatest Planeswalker Decks, the Time Raveler was much more oppressive. Add to that two other good effects and a very cheap cost to play, and you have a card easily worthy of being banned.
Teferi and Reclamation have also been suspended/banned in Historic and Brawl formats. Last but not least, Cauldron Familiar was banned because of the ease with which it enabled many triggers. The immortal cat would die, then return, then die again, making it a perfect combo piece. With these cards gone, a new meta will no doubt shape quickly. Then, of course,Zendikar Risingwill release and everything starts all over again.
