Magic is a game of numbers: sixty cards, 20 life, draw two cards, take 7 damage, and add three counters. There are even more numbers surrounding the game—facts and figures, prices and trivia, they are everywhere. In Affinity for Numbers, I uncover and highlight some of the more interesting numbers in Magic.

4-Color Decks

If you ever wanted to realistically play four-color Standard decks, Battle for Zendikar is the set for you. Lands matter, again, and the stats prove it: 27% of the top decks from major tournaments so far use four colors, most predominately Dark Jeskai and Four-Color Rally.

9 of the Top 10

Did I mention that, in Battle for Zendikar Standard, lands matter? You need more proof? Well, I'm giving it to you anyway. Nine of the top ten most-played cards from major tournaments have been lands. Flooded Strand is at the top of pack and present in 70% of those decks. The card that breaks a complete monopoly is Duress, played in 51% of top decks.

10 Spots

Martin Mueller jumped ten spots in the Magic Top 25 Pro Rankings to #7 on the strength of Team Denmark's great showing at the World Magic Cup. The year ends with a virtual tie at the top: Owen Turtenwald leads Seth Manfield by a mere two-tenths of a point.

19% Abzan

There was a time early in Battle for Zendikar Standard when it appeared Abzan would actually be dethroned as the top deck of the metagame. Dark Jeskai came on strong and has performed well throughout the season, with 17% of the top decks at major tournaments, second only to Abzan at 19%. The Siege Rhino will not be denied, people.

21% of Modern Decks

What deck should you play at the next Modern event? The numbers say Jund or Affinity. The two decks made up just over one fifth of the top decks from major tournaments in 2015 (11% for Jund and 10% for Affinity). That pair of heavyweights were the only decks in double digits. U/R Twin, Grixis Twin, and Burn were the next highest at 5%.

48% of Top Modern Decks

4 toughness and 4 damage to a creature or player—both those are very popular things in 2015 Modern. Spellskite and Lightning Bolt were both played in 48% of the top Modern decks at major tournaments, more than any other card.

50 Months

The end of an era is upon us. Adam Styborski took over as the content manager of Gathering Magic in November 2011 and has been the driving force behind this site ever since. Adam is moving on at the end of this year, taking the next step in his Magic journey, and we will miss him. So long, Stybs; thanks for all the awesome.

70% Red

Red was the color of Modern in 2015. Seventy percent of the top decks in major tournaments played red, including the top five decks of the metagame: Affinity, Jund, Burn, and both U/R and Grixis Twin.

312 Card Changes

Colorless mana is coming soon to a set near you. There is a cool-looking new symbol, and colorless mana will be represented by "C" and "CC" rather than "1" and "2" wherever the symbol is not used. This move will result in an estimated three hundred twelve card-text changes and at least that many fist-shaking comments on social media. Imagine that, discontent on the Internet . . . 

$329,000,000

According to this Bloomberg Business infographic, Magic: The Gathering made $329m in 2014. That was roughly on par with big guns Transformers ($390m) and Star Wars ($377m), though methinks the latter may spike in 2015 and 2016. Monopoly made about $70m more, and My Little Pony made $100m more than Magic in 2014. Hasbro rival Mattel has two products that completely dwarf Magic: Barbie ($1.9b) and Fisher-Price ($2.8b).

Those are all the numbers I have for you today. If you also have an affinity for numbers and have one you think I should share, let me know on Twitter @MrVigabool.