Worlds Week is in the books and it's time to gear up for another weekend of Magic tournaments. The biggest weekend of the year is past, but our favorite formats and decks are far from done evolving in new and exciting ways. With Grand Prix Baltimore, Cardmageddon, and a Star City Games Invational all on the same weekend, there's more Magic this weekend than a rational person knows what to do with, and there's plenty of decks for us to consider. Here are a few great choices from across your favorite formats.

When everyone's trying to be the most midrangey deck they possibly can, sometimes you don't need to go bigger. Sometimes you just have to go better instead. We've seen a few takes on four-color midrange decks featuring the tag team of Siege Rhino and Butcher of the Horde to make sure that you always have better removal and more haymakers than your midrange opponents. This is giventofly's take on the archetype.

Four-Color Midrange ? Khans of Tarkir Standard | giventofly, 4-0 Standard Daily Event

• Lands (25)
• 1 Battlefield Forge
• 1 Bloodstained Mire
• 1 Caves of Koilos
• 3 Forest
• 1 Llanowar Wastes
• 2 Mountain
• 4 Nomad Outpost
• 4 Sandsteppe Citadel
• 1 Swamp
• 2 Temple of Plenty
• 1 Temple of Triumph
• 4 Wooded Foothills

• Creatures (17)
• 2 Anafenza, the Foremost
• 3 Butcher of the Horde
• 4 Courser of Kruphix
• 4 Siege Rhino
• 4 Sylvan Caryatid

• Spells (18)
• 2 Abzan Charm
• 4 Crackling Doom
• 3 Lightning Strike
• 1 Murderous Cut
• 1 Ajani, Mentor of Heroes
• 2 Elspeth, Sun's Champion
• 2 Sarkhan, the Dragonspeaker
• 1 Sorin, Solemn Visitor
• 2 Xenagos, the Reveler

• Sideboard (15)
• 1 Xenagos, the Reveler
• 4 Anger of the Gods
• 1 Back to Nature
• 1 Chandra, Pyromaster
• 1 Drown in Sorrow
• 2 End Hostilities
• 4 Thoughtseize
• 1 Utter End

Buy This Deck

There are two interesting things about this new take on four-color midrange. First, we've added Anafenza to the mix as a way to hate on the Whip of Erebos decks that try to go bigger with Hornet Queen and Soul of Innistrad. Second, giventofly has adjusted the threats to be more planeswalker-centric, much like Patrick Chapin's Abzan Midrange deck from the World Championships.

This particular combination of Planeswalkers is intended to accomplish a number of interesting things. Sorin, Elspeth, and Ajani are powerful threats against other midrange decks, creating consistent board advantage and card advantage. Sarkhan and Xenagos, on the other hand, are powerful trumps in Planeswalker fights, because they create hasty attackers that can apply consistent pressure.

All in all, this is a deck that goes a little bigger than other four-color decks and a little better than the three-color Planeswalker decks. You have infinitely more tools in post-sideboarded games than most other decks in the format and get to play some of the sweetest cards in the format. Seems like a great place to be if you ask me.

Gerry Thompson first unleashed Nivmagus Combo at Pro Tour Return to Ravnica. Unfortunately, the format was dominated by Jund and consequently well-prepared for a fragile creature-based combo deck. As we've seen the format begin to shift towards turn 5 and 6 combo-control decks, maybe the time for a fast, fragile combo deck has returned? Let's take a look at this newest iteration by Dejohne Umtuch.

Nivmagus Combo ? Modern | Dejohne Umtuch

• Creatures (12)
• 3 Death's Shadow
• 3 Kiln Fiend
• 3 Monastery Swiftspear
• 3 Nivmagus Elemental

• Spells (32)
• 3 Apostle's Blessing
• 1 Dismember
• 3 Gut Shot
• 3 Lightning Bolt
• 4 Mutagenic Growth
• 3 Tainted Strike
• 2 Assault Strobe
• 4 Gitaxian Probe
• 2 Ground Rift
• 4 Thoughtseize
• 3 Treasure Cruise

• Lands (16)
• 2 Blackcleave Cliffs
• 4 Blood Crypt
• 2 Bloodstained Mire
• 2 Polluted Delta
• 1 Steam Vents
• 4 Sulfurous Springs
• 1 Watery Grave

• Sideboard (15)
• 3 Young Pyromancer
• 1 Apostle's Blessing
• 1 Dismember
• 2 Rakdos Charm
• 2 Duress
• 2 Inquisition of Kozilek
• 2 Pyroclasm
• 2 Shattering Spree

Buy This Deck

The basic combo is still the same. Cast Nivmagus Elemental. Eat a bunch of cheap spells like Slaughter Pact. Ground Rift their blockers away, eat the extra copies, and Assault Strobe your opponent to death. Substitute Kiln Fiend as necessary.

The problem with this deck has always been consistency. If they have removal for your one threat, what do you do? With the addition of Khans of Tarkir, Dejohne has found a way to increase your threat density without resorting to splashing a billion colors and decreasing your consistency. The answers? Death's Shadow and Monastery Swiftspear. When you're dealing a million to yourself anyway with Gitaxian Probes and Thoughtseizes, there's no reason you can't shock yourself once or twice more than necessary to make some one-mana 6/6's.

In addition that, this deck gains Treasure Cruise to refuel and Gut Shot to stay ahead of the other aggressive Delver of Secrets and Young Pyromancer decks that are dominating the format right now. If there were a time that this style of deck was going to be well-positioned, it'd seem to be now, when everyone is hating on Scapeshift, Jeskai Ascendancy, and other spell-based combo decks rather than aggressive creature decks.

So Jeskai Ascendancy might be busted in Modern. That's not really surprising, is it? But what if it turns out that Ascendancy is also busted in Legacy? This week Drew Levin set out to find out if he could put together a powerful combo-control shell for this new take on the combo deck, and I think he's come out of the lab with something awesome.

[Cardlist Title= Jeskai Ascendancy ? Legacy | Drew Levin]

• Lands (20)
• 1 Island
• 1 Arid Mesa
• 2 Faerie Conclave
• 4 Flooded Strand
• 4 Scalding Tarn
• 4 Tundra
• 4 Volcanic Island

• Creatures (4)
• 4 Fatestitcher

• Spells (36)
• 4 Sensei's Divining Top
• 4 Counterbalance
• 4 Jeskai Ascendancy
• 4 Brainstorm
• 4 Force of Will
• 1 Pyroblast
• 4 Swords to Plowshares
• 3 Gitaxian Probe
• 4 Ponder
• 4 Treasure Cruise

• Sideboard (15)
• 1 Snapcaster Mage
• 1 Flusterstorm
• 1 Hydroblast
• 1 Path to Exile
• 3 Pyroblast
• 2 Wear
• 2 Vendilion Clique
• 1 Elspeth, Knight-Errant
• 3 Pyroclasm

Buy This Deck

Just like Josh Utter-Leyton figured out that you'd rather be a combo control deck in Modern, Drew has slowed this deck way down. We don't need to get aggressive with Young Pyromancer; people are prepared for that plan. What we want to do is go a little bigger with Counterbalance plus Sensei's Divining Top. This changes everything.

Now you have two real angles of attack that are awesome against the bulk of the format. Playing Young Pyromancer does nothing but turn on opponents' removal spells for no reason. Counterbalance is a proactive plan that your opponents need to deal with. It stands on its own as an engine that demands an Abrupt Decay or Pyroblast. It protects your Jeskai Ascendancy combo turn if your opponent refuses to try to break through the Counterbalance Top lock.

Now you've got two plans that are awesome against the format but demand very different kinds of interaction. Jeskai Ascendancy lets you threaten to combo early, but Counterbalance means that you an easily win going long and have a game one advantage against other decks that are low-to-the-ground like combo and Delver. Flexible, proactive, and resilient combo decks with two gameplans have a history of being super busted. Remember Steve Sadin's win at Grand Prix Columbus with Counterbalance Flash? This feels terrifyingly similar.

You know what's good in a format where everyone's playing midrangey Blue decks? Merfolk. Whether they're playing combo or Delver, a giant team of evasive fish backed by conditional disruption does a fantastic job of pressuring their removal and their life total while straining their ability to meaningfully interact. Has Mr.Monopoly found the right combination of Lords and interaction for this format? Let's find out:

[Cardlist title= Merfolk ? Legacy | Mr.Monopoly, 4-0 Legacy Daily Event]

• Lands (20)
• 4 Cavern of Souls
• 12 Island
• 4 Mutavault

• Creatures (24)
• 4 Cursecatcher
• 4 Lord of Atlantis
• 4 Master of the Pearl Trident
• 4 Phantasmal Image
• 4 Silvergill Adept
• 4 True-Name Nemesis

• Spells (16)
• 4 Daze
• 1 Echoing Truth
• 4 Force of Will
• 2 Spell Pierce
• 1 Umezawa's Jitte
• 4 Aether Vial

• Sideboard (15)
• 1 Umezawa's Jitte
• 2 Arcane Laboratory
• 2 Chalice of the Void
• 2 Flusterstorm
• 1 Grafdigger's Cage
• 1 Pithing Needle
• 2 Relic of Progenitus
• 2 Submerge
• 2 Swan Song

Buy This Deck

The formula hasn't changed very much in the last few years, but the available tools have. We don't need Merrow Reejery or Coralhelm Commander anymore. Not when True-Name Nemesis is a card. And you know what's better than one True-Name Nemesis? Using Phantasmal Image to make multiple copies that can't be targeted anyway.

This deck is also interesting in that it eschews the Wastelands that have been typical in this style of deck. I think it's important to ask whether Wasteland is good right now, and if you can afford to take turns off of casting your Merfolk to try to steal games with Wasteland. Eight colorless lands in Mutavault and Wasteland is a lot when you're trying to cast a bunch of double-blue spells, so maybe you just can't afford is now that the format is all about raw efficiency.

Either way, I'm excited to see Merfolk making its way back into the mix, and I hope that we see more of it in the future. It's a fun deck to watch, and is capable of some truly absurd feats. I can't wait to see what comes next for the original Blue tempo tribe.

Once or twice a year, I find a Shadowborn Apostle deck and get excited. Once or twice a year, I'm tempted to build one of my own. This Grenzo, Dungeon Warden deck by mmcgeach may be the one that finally gets me to pull the trigger:

[Cardlist title= Grenzo and the Apostles - Commander | mmcgeach]

• Commander (0)

• Lands (37)
• 1 Crypt of Agadeem
• 1 Spinerock Knoll
• 1 Howltooth Hollow
• 1 Nykthos, shrine to Nyx
• 33 Other Lands

• Creatures (40)
• 1 Solemn Simulacrum
• 1 Purphoros, God of the Forge
• 1 Pawn of Ulamog
• 1 Anger
• 1 Balthor the Defiled
• 1 Blood Artist
• 1 Gray Merchant of Asphodel
• 1 Butcher of Malakir
• 1 Doomed Necromancer
• 1 Stronghold Assassin
• 30 Shadowborn Apostle

• Demons (8)
• 1 Harvester of Souls
• 1 Malfegor
• 1 Reaper from the Abyss
• 1 Rune-Scarred Demon
• 1 Abhorrent Overlord
• 1 Sire of Insanity
• 1 Eater of Hope
• 1 Ob Nixilis, Unshackled

• Spells (4)
• 1 All is Dust
• 1 Demonic Tutor
• 1 Dread Return
• 1 Patriarch's Bidding

• Artifacts and Enchantments (10)
• 1 Phyrexian Arena
• 1 Skullclamp
• 1 Dark Prophecy
• 1 Carnival of Souls
• 1 Mana Echoes
• 1 Heartstone
• 1 Thrumming Stone
• 1 Reito Lantern
• 1 Crystal Ball
• 1 Black Market

Buy This Deck

So about one-third of the time, Grenzo is going to flip a Shadowborn Apostle into play off of the bottom of your deck. In conjunction with Reito Lantern, you can basically guarantee it. What's fun is the combination of Demons that you gain access to in this color combination to really dominate the board and take control of the game.

The combination of Malfegor and Sire of Insanity as tutor targets is particularly insane. So is Rune-Scarred Demon, particularly if you're tutoring for something like Patriarch's Bidding or Mikaeus, the Unhallowed. Personally, my favorite is Harvester of Souls, turning your Apostles into draw sevens that also tutor a creature into play. I'm especially fond of these discard engines because of how busted Grenzo plus Shadowborn Apostle is against a table without hands.

My biggest concern with this deck is putting together a manabase that does the kind of work you want the rest of your deck to do. The manafixing lands like Bloodfell Caves, Tained Peak, and Temple of Malice are pretty easy. Crypt of Agadeem also seems like a great inclusion, as does some number of copies of Deserted Temple, Vesuva, and Thespian's Stage to help you combo off with Crypt. There are plenty of other options, but these kinds of powerful lands should give you a pretty solid foundation to build on.