Start your engines, because Pro Tour Aetherdrift featured at Magic Con Chicago is almost upon us! While Aetherdrift hasn't led to any major changes in the Standard format, which is usually the case nowadays with so many sets in Standard at a given moment, there are a couple of key takeaways to note before going into the Pro Tour weekend.

This morning the Standard Metagame for Pro Tour Aetherdrift was shared. While these numbers don't surprise me, it's interesting to see where Standard has come over the past few weeks. Gruul and Mono-Red sit at just about 22% of the meta share, as the most represented archetype of the weekend. Esper Pixie (and Dimir Bounce) come a close second, only a few percentage points behind. With the rise of Esper and Dimir Bounce Domain has also seen an uptick, although I worry about Domain's Red matchup, especially if you lose the roll.

Various midrange decks like Oculus, Golgari and Dimir, and Selesnya Cage round out the rest of the meta before getting into the 27.8% of "other" decks. Before talking about some of the less-represented decks at the Pro Tour, I do want to note just how small of a meta share Dimir Midrange has. Dimir felt like a much bigger meta player, especially around the time of Spotlight Series Atlanta at the top of this year, but here only nine players have registered it. This feels like a pretty significant drop-off, and it'll be interesting to see how those players do over the course of the weekend.

While I yearn for the return of Azorius Control or something similar in Standard, I was pleasantly surprised to see this decklist on Twitter as I was looking at posts from Pro Tour Aetherdrift competitors:

Super proud of this brew! My teammate Omri G submitted our WB KetraTome for PT Aetherdrift after we spent the week refining the list. Thanks to Mavin Liu for the initial idea. I'm so happy to be back playing Control in Standard! pic.twitter.com/3VttVAdMIZ

— I LOVE AZORIUS (@AzoriusI) February 19, 2025

Orzhov Control is something I was interested in trying when Ketramose, the New Dawn was spoiled, and I'm happy to see a group bring it to an event as large as the Pro Tour. I like this list, using Mazemind Tome and Ketramose as draw engines, while protecting yourself with various wrath-effects and spot removal spells. I actually feel like this deck wants more lands, especially to both draw a card with Mazemind Tome and cast a removal spell in the same turn at later points in the game. I'd also be a little wary about my Domain matchup if they can get out from under you on mana, but I think you have enough removal to keep yourself at bay. I hope we get to see this deck on camera!

While Azorius Oculus has been a decent part of the Standard meta, I also wanted to mention the Jeskai versions that we'll see at the Pro Tour this weekend, this list specifically by competitor DaVinciMTG.

After weeks of testing all kind of brews together with @MTGTeamPeace this is what i submitted for PT Chicago ?? pic.twitter.com/Q0ZaR4r1t5

— DaVinciMtg ? PT Chicago (@MtgVinci) February 19, 2025

It's a bit funny to me that this deck only gained two new cards, one of them being a land. While there aren't any Picklock Pranksters in this list, I like that there are fourteen sources of discarding away Abhorrent Oculus. While some previous iterations of this deck included Spyglass Siren, Marauding Mako gives the deck more aggressive starts while also being another big threat that can push through hate cards like Rest in Peace and Ghost Vacuum. I also like the plan of just sticking a Sheltered by Ghosts on a Marauding Mako post-board against Red decks.

Marauding Mako isn't the only important card from Aetherdrift in this deck. Spell Pierce is also a very important card in this deck, giving you a cheap counter when you're tight on mana. This gives you some leeway on a turn where you need to Recommission back an Oculus but get to keep it for a turn by Spell Piercing some sort of removal spell. It also can counter Rest in Peace on turn one, or Ghost Vacuum, if you're on the play with an untapped Blue source.

While there are some new evolutions of decks, and some new decks entirely racing toward Chicago, there are some players that are playing the same old same old.

#PTDFT but no DFT card?? pic.twitter.com/cFI2iy4Beq

— Mingyang Chen (@MingyangChen4) February 19, 2025

Chinese player Mingyang Chen shared their Gruul Aggro list, making note of no new cards! While Mono-Red and Gruul lists shift here and there, ultimately the core of the deck hasn't changed because it's just that good. While I personally think this deck is almost too strong for Standard, I do applaud those for sticking to it. At the end of the day, a Heartfire Hero into Emberheart Challenger into Screaming Nemesis is maybe all you need to get the job done, but I wouldn't leave home without my Green cards.

Innkeeper's Talent and Questing Druid are just what gives this deck enough reach and can help you rebuild in the face of removal and permission. I would not be surprised to see half the Top 8 be Gruul, and you sure as heck better have a plan for it if you're not sleeving up Thornspire Verges.

With Aetherdrift, Standard hasn't changed all too much. We still have decks like Gruul running rampant, and other strategies like Esper Pixie, Domain, and Dimir and Golgari Midrange trailing close behind. I'm interested to see if any other rogue strategies make their way into Pro Tour Aetherdrift, and hopefully we get to see some new decks make it to the top tables over the course of the event.

Good luck to all those going to Magic Con Chicago! I'll be back next week to talk more Pro Tour Aetherdrift decks and a first look at some Standard Final Fantasy cards. Until then!

-Roman Fusco