This Week in Magic: Friday, April 4th

Posted on April 4, 2025

Tarkir Prerelease Kicks Off This Weekend

It's prerelease weekend once again! Tarkir: Dragonstorm prereleases are happening all weekend long as of today, so get out to your local game store and join the fray! Pick from your favorite of the five clans and represent them on your way to glory! This also makes the set fully legal and available for sale at local game stores around the world. If your local game store doesn't have what you need, make sure to check out the CoolStuffInc.com Tarkir: Dragonstorm store page where you can pick up all your Tarkir needs. Whether it's singles, sealed products, or supplies, we've got what you need!

A Big Banned and Restricted Announcement Lands

This Monday started the week off strong with some huge news: the banned and restricted announcement dropped and it was a doozy! Modern was perhaps the biggest with the ban of Underworld Breach following the Temur Grinding Station Breach deck's absolute dominance. Legacy also saw two major bans for Sowing Mycospawn and Troll of Khazad-dum to bring down the power level of some of the biggest decks. Finally, Pauper saw not only three bans, but two unbans, as the Pauper Format Panel (which I'm a part of) banned Basking Broodscale, Deadly Dispute, and Kuldotha Rebirth as well as unbanned High Tide and Prophetic Prism!

If you want to read the official announcements, you can check out the main banned and restricted announcement here. You can also check out an in-depth look at the Pauper updates in article form or in video form. Additionally, I've provided a lengthier write-up on the topic here on CoolStuffInc.com earlier this week, so give it a read!

No Joke: Secret Lair x Marvel's Deadpool Releases

Going live shortly after the banned and restricted announcement was another Secret Lair reveal... of sorts, anyways. The article was initially heavily redacted, proving impossible to read though simultaneously filled with jokes for those who tried to find workarounds to read the text. The following day, on April 1st, the Secret Lair x Marvel's Deadpool lair was revealed! The fourth wall breaking, in-joke laden lair had people jumping on it fast and it sold out quickly. For those who missed out on it, though, it was also revealed that the non-foil version of the lair will be coming to local game stores everywhere on April 25. Be sure to check with your LGS for more details.

Special Coverage Announced for Magic Spotlight: Dragons

Magic players who have been around long enough might remember Grand Prix Reid Duke - the event that heavily focused its coverage on hall of famer Reid Duke. This event and its coverage was heavily praised and fondly remembered by many. Now it's happening once more at Magic Spotlight Series: Dragons in Denver next weekend with coverage once again following Reid Duke around as well as fellow hall of famer Luis Scott-Vargas. Be sure to check out all the event coverage and find out all the details of the announcement here.

Decklist of the Week

Mono-Red Aggro | Pioneer | Kristoffer Lindqvist, 1st Place Arena Championship 8

Enchantments (4)
4 Kumano Faces Kakkazan // Etchings of Kumano

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The latest MTG Arena Championship happened this weekend, focusing on the Explorer format (Pioneer missing a few minor fringe cards). The Top 8 was dominated by six variations on Mono-Red Aggro, leading to a blisteringly fast finals in record time. Kristoffer Lindqvist took home the gold on the back of his take on Mono-Red Aggro, featuring some unconventional inclusions like Greasewrench Goblin. This deck looks frighteningly close to the Standard Red Aggro lists - something not lost on players hoping to see change in formats like Pioneer and Standard this past Monday. Nevertheless, it was a great showing at the event. Congratulations Kristoffer!

Paige Smith

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