Combo is often a dirty word in Magic: The Gathering. Everyone has a bad beat story about the time they ran into a combo deck they weren't prepared for and watched in horror (and sometimes a little awe, if we're honest) as their opponent, "combed off" and either ended the game on the spot, or taken such a commanding lead that they may as well have.

As a long-time player of the game, I've had the honor of dying to combo in many different ways. The, "I win" combos are, or course the most memorable. I've had my face burnt off with Dragonstorm, watched as Splinter Twin rose from a "cute" little deck to the defining combo of the early days of Modern, and even experienced Tolarian Academy before it was banned.

But, I've also been subject to the combos that just take the game over, even if I didn't die immediately. I've felt helpless as Tron was assembled on turn three and Karn Liberated hit the board, been on the bad end of a Stasis, and I've F6ed as my opponent assembled their Eggs.

So, with all that in mind, let's look at some of the best combos available to us in Standard right now in all the forms. Some of them are very well known and some of them are only seeing play on the fringes, but could use more exploration.

Superior Spider-Man and Bringer of the Last Gift

Living End enjoyers have been given a reprieve, and this combo looks like it has some staying power in Standard. Using Superior Spider-Man to copy Bringer triggers the cast ability, so you get to nuke the board and return all your graveyard creatures as early as turn four.

Consult the Star Charts and Stock Up

This is the combo that gives control decks a fighting chance right now. The card selection available to them is crazy good, and the ability to dig deep, find the answer to your immediate problem, or the wincon to slam the door shut. These two cards may not seem like a traditional, "combo" but they will combine to cause more losses than most cards in this article. They're the reason the control decks win, even if they're not all that flashy.

Arachne, Psionic Weaver and Dazzling Theater

This one is new and underexplored, but I think it has potential. Build around a similar idea that won a Pioneer Challenge online, you use the one White-mana Web-Slinging cost of Arachne and the convoke ability of Dazzling Theater to cast a creature an infinite number of times (at least two of Arachne and Spider-Man, Web Slinger, in any combination). With Haliya, Guided by Light in play you gain infinite life. With Tinybones Joins Up in play, you can drain the opponent for infinite damage.

Devastating Onslaught and Railway Brawler

I've written about this one, and I still think it has a lot of potential, we just need to find the right shell (or for Standard to slow down). But, plotting Brawler on turn four to cast Onslaught on turn five for x=2 is a pair of hasty 20/20 tramplers.

Monument to Endurance and Shadow of the Goblin

Probably the grindiest combo on this list. You won't exactly notice that this is killing you right away, but the card advantage and damage engine this presents will slowly allow you to take over the game.

Dopplegang and Lands

Sorry, just had to slip this one in. Lots of mana and Doppelgang is still my favorite way to win in this format. I can't tell you how many games I've won by casting Doppelgang to make multiple copies of Fountainport.

Peter Parker and Collector's Cage

We've seen Cage decks work off-and-on for a while now, and creatures that make multiple bodies has been a staple of the deck. Peter Parker provides this at the cheapest rate we've seen yet, allowing ages to go active as early as turn three.

Kona, Rescue Beastie and Omniscience

Whenever, wherever Omniscience is legal, there will be players trying to find a way to sneak it into play at a discounted rate. We've seen this recently when WOTC was forced to ban Abuelo's Awakening. Now, brewers have turned their head to Kona, using cards like The Seriema, Lumbering Worldwagon, and Evendo, Walking Haven to tap down the legend and drop Omniscience on turn four.

Proft's Eidetic Memory and Winternight Stories

I started to list Fear of Missing Out or Steamcore Scholar with Proft's, but really, it's when you chain Winternight Stories, stack the counters on a creature, then use it to cast the Harmonized Winternight Stories that the deck goes bonkers.

Vivi Ornitier and Agatha's Soul Cauldron

This had to be the last one, right? Mono-Red is on the rise right now (mostly because it can play as a pre-sideboard deck against Vivi decks in the main), but there's no combination of cards in the format better at pulling you out of a hole and turning your opponent into a smear on the bottom of your shoe. Vivi Cauldron is going to be one of the decks that's still mentioned five years from now, an easy demarcation for Magic at this point in time.

And, that's why Izzet is still the best deck in the format. Vivi and the Cauldron get all of the headline, but the deck is also packing what might be the second-best combo in the format as well.

You can find more of my Magic musings on Twitter/X @travishall456 and on Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/anakinsdad.bsky.social