Standard rotation is coming, much sooner than you think! Traditionally, rotation happened around September/October with the fall Standard set. However, with the new release schedule of six Standard sets per year, rotation is happening much sooner this year - with the release of Edge of Eternities in late July!

Hearing this news caught me off guard and is very relevant for Standard players, as the next Standard RCQ season begins around the same time. While there are a lot of sets in Standard currently, rotation won't have as big an impact as in prior years. However, you should be aware of these key cards that are leaving Standard right before the new season.

Card Rotating from Dominaria United

Temporary Lockdown, Leyline Binding, Cut Down, Liliana of the Veil, Sheoldred, the Apocalypse, Herd Migration, Zur, Eternal Schemer, Shivan Reef, Caves of Koilos, Karplusan Forest, Adarkar Wastes, Yavimaya Coast, Sulfurous Springs

First up is Dominaria United, and we lose a lot of cards from this set. Temporary Lockdown has been a Control and Domain staple since its printing, and one that's especially relevant now given the dominance of Cori-Steel Cutter. Most recently it's been the centerpiece of Orzhov Pixie, as it lets you exile all of your enchantments only to have them re-enter upon you resolving a Nurturing Pixie or Sunpearl Kirin. The only similar card at this mana cost is Split Up, which sadly does not get rid of Artifacts or Enchantments.

In Black we lose Liliana of the Veil, Sheoldred, the Apocalypse, and Cut Down - all staples of the current Mono-Black Demons deck in Standard. While Sheoldred has disappeared from Standard in recent months, due to the speed of the format, Cut Down is a card that's seen play since week one of its legality, and has earned its spot as the best 1-drop spell in Standard. This also affects decks like Golgari and Dimir Midrange, Dimir which has also seen a resurgence as of late.

From Domain we lose Herd Migration and Leyline Binding, but more importantly, Zur, Eternal Schemer. While we retain Up the Beanstalk, which has proven to be very powerful with the Overlord cycle from Duskmourn, Zur, Eternal Schemer was one way Domain was able to win swiftly in one single turn, with lifelink being relevant against Aggro decks.

Lastly, we lose the painland cycle. This mainly affects Aggro decks, due to the accessibility of fast mana, but there are still at least a lot of dual land options that remain in the format. However this also greatly impacts Nurturing Pixie decks, as both Orzhov and Esper Pixie rely heavily on their fast mana bases (Orzhov less so).

Card Rotating from The Brothers' War

Monastery Swiftspear, Loran of the Third Path, Gix's Command, Legions to Ashes, Underground River, Llanowar Wastes, Brushland, Battlefield Forge

We lose less-relevant cards in The Brother's War, but these are the standouts. Monastery Swiftspear is probably the most-played card out of the bunch, as it's seen play in Red-based Aggro decks the entirety of its legality. This loss is most relevant to Izzet Prowess, as Monastery Swiftspear is one of its premier threats. While the loss of Swiftspear won't kill this deck by any means, it does lose one of its essential threats.

Loran of Third Path has been around in Standard decks for years, and it's a way various Midrange decks have been dealing with Cori-Steel Cutter - I even played a copy of Loran in my Jeskai deck at the Minneapolis Regional Championship. Gix's Command has been a Black Midrange sideboard staple for a long time now, especially in Golgari and Dimir, and Legions to Ashes has been popping up in Orzhov-Midrange decks as of late as a way to have more flexible removal.

Four more pain lands also leave with this set's rotation.

Card Rotating from Phyrexia: All Will Be One

Jace, the Perfected Mind, Archfiend of the Dross, Urabrasks's Forge, Nissa, Ascended Animist, Glissa Sunslayer, Blackcleave Cliffs, Copperline Gorge, Darkslick Shores, Razorverge Thicket, Seachrome Coast

Alas, one of my favorite Standard cards rotates in Jace, the Perfected Mind. Jace has been the centerpiece of many a Control deck that I've played over the last few years, the star of both my store championship and RCQ wins. Jace ties in perfectly with the ideals detailed in Mike Flores' "Commanding Relevance in the Face of Superior Forces" article, as it is the perfect endgame finisher to kill your opponent in one go as you distract their attention with all sorts of flashy cards. Jace will be gone soon, but not forgotten, and is remembered by Riverchurn Monument.

Golgari loses another couple of threats in Archfiend of the Dross, Nissa, Ascended Animist, and Glissa Sunslayer. Archfiend has been a bit more relevant in recent metagames because of its synergy with Unholy Annex // Ritual Chamber, so Standard does lose another very relevant demon card for Black-based Midrange. Urabraks's Forge also bites the dust, a card that's seen play in sideboards ranging from Mono-Red to Jeskai Control. This card has single-handedly beaten me on a number of occasions, so I'm not too sad to see it rotate.

Lastly, another hit to Aggro's mana base, five fastlands rotate out of Standard, although we keep the enemy-colored pairs in Outlaws of Thunder Junction. This impacts Dimir Midrange, and various Convoke strategies.

Card Rotating from March of the Machine

Sunfall, Faerie Mastermind, Change the Equation, Lithomantic Barrage, Moment of Truth, Ephara's Dispersal

For such a monumental set in Magic's storyline it's kind of surprising to only lose a few key cards from Standard. Sunfall was a mainstay in Azorius Control decks, I even played one in my Jeskai RC list, but its numbers have dwindled since Day of Judgment's printing in Magic Foundations. In the upcoming Final Fantasy set we get Ultima, a wrath that seems just as good as it not only destroys all creatures for 5 mana, but also destroys all artifacts and abruptly ends the turn, negating any of your opponent's death triggers.

Faerie Mastermind was also a mainstay of Dimir Midrange, but as those decks have deviated away from Faebloom Trick, this card has also seen fewer copies across winning decklists. Change the Equation is a card that we've seen pop up mainly against Red-Aggro, but with Flashfreeze in Magic Foundations, the format doesn't care too much about this card's rotation.

A few more minor spells leave the format, such as Lithomantic Barrage (an Aggro sideboard card) and two spells from Azorius Omniscience, Moment of Truth and Ephara's Dispersal. Losing these two spells doesn't make Omniscience unplayable by any means, but it is a dent in the deck's removal and card selection suites.

Card Rotating from March of the Machine: The Aftermath

Tranquil Frillback, Blot Out

Lastly, with March of the Machine: The Aftermath we lose two fringe Midrange cards, Tranquil Frillback and Blot Out. Tranquil Frillback is definitely good against Cori-Steel Cutter, but Golgari has seen so little play as of late that this card rotating is pretty irrelevant. Same with Blot Out, this was a card that I've seen numbers of in Mono-Black variants and Dimir, but only as a one or two-of max.

While we may lose a decent amount of cards in Standard I'm curious to see how much the format actually changes. The fact of the matter is the main core of many decks still sticks around. Sure, Domain loses Zur and Leyline Binding, but that might just mean we see a new variant of the Overlords deck come into play.

Mono-Red seems like the clear winner post-rotation, as it maintains the mice package, Sunspine Lynx, and Hired Claw from Bloomburrow, alongside Screaming Nemesis, Monstrous Rage, Burst Lightning, and Witchstalker Frenzy. While this deck and Izzet lose Monastery Swiftspear, I still think these decks are powerful enough to not care about one card rotating - especially with Temporary Lockdown out of the picture.

One interesting aspect about Standard will be how Esper Pixie functions with so much of its mana base rotating. While the core set of cards don't rotate (I guess Temporary Lockdown is a big loss from Orzhov Pixie), the mana base of Esper rotates (Adarkar Wastes, Caves of Koilos, Underground River, Seachrome Coast, Darkslick Shores) while only Concealed Courtyard stays. With decks like Domain and Pixie taking so many hits, with Red and Izzet maintaining so many of their cards, it will be interesting to see what the counter play to Aggro decks will be come late July. Keep in mind, we also get a whole new Standard set right around rotation with Edge of Eternities - and we still have Final Fantasy, Spiderman, and Avatar: The Last Airbender too!

While a lot of core cards stay in Standard this rotation might be a rocky one, and I'll be keeping you up to date with my thoughts and the latest decks as we see the fallout from four new sets entering the format alongside a massive rotation this year. I hope you're just as excited as I am for new Standard, but I'm especially curious if we'll see any bannings, or if my beloved Jeskai Shiko deck will be just as powerful come July.

-Roman Fusco