Standard is in a good place right now. Not great, but pretty good, and much better than it has been in months. Sure, Izzet 5.0 is still going strong after multiple bannings, but it feels like the format is adapting to the deck in a way that makes it feel like beating it is possible. I don't see anything that needs to be on a watch list (yet...) and with Lorwyn Eclipsed on the horizon, it feels like the excitement for Standard in 2026 is rising.

But before we dive into that, into the next preview season (and Lorwyn Eclipsed looks amazing), I wanted to take one final look back at 2025. This year will go down as one of the most important and turbulent in Magic's history, and I wanted to take a moment to look back at my favorite cards for the year. These aren't the best cards (though many are quite good), but the ones that inspired me to brew, to smash decks on Arena whether my rank was going up or down, and made me reconsider how it is that I evaluate cards during preview season.

10. Badgermole Cub

I know a lot of people are already sick of this card, but I love the little guy. Green had been lacking in powerful early game cards (other than Llanowar Elves) and the Cub seeing print finally made Green feel like an actual color worth playing in Standard. This is a pushed card, a powerful card, but it is not broken. It dances that fine line, and as someone who loves both big mana decks and go-wide decks, it slots into so many decks that I can't help but love the little fella.

9. Spider-Sense

Versatile and thematic, this is the best non-land card from Spider-Man. I'm not a big fan of Web-Slinging (honestly, it's probably the worst ability printed this year), but it works in this case because it can be used at instant speed. This is one of those cards that will always find its way into a sideboard spot for many decks.

8. Multiversal Passage

The Verges are my favorite land cycle since the Shocklands, and this is tailor-made to make them better in Standard. It's not often we get a land that effectively fixes for any color and this is the glue that binds so many of my decks manabases together.

7. Elspeth, Storm Slayer

The best Planeswalker in Standard, and one of the best finishers for any go-wide deck in the format. The biggest issue this card has seen is that most games have been over before it could come down. But, Standard looks like it might finally be slowing down a touch, so maybe it's time for Elspeth to come out and play?

6. Devastating Onslaught

From junk Mythic to a card that looked like it could be the defining part of a Tier 1 deck for a bit. This is one of those cards you have to keep in the back of your mind with every non-legendary card that's printed, because it's always one wrong/right card away from breaking.

5. Obsessive Pursuit

I was not enamored of this card when it was initially spoiled. I thought it would take too much work to make viable and kinda dismissed it. But, when I opened it in my first Sealed pool for Avatar: The Last Airbender and shoved it in my deck, I quickly saw the raw power this provides. I've built 3-4 decks around the card at this point, and my favorite thing to do is find ways other than just paying the 2 mana to sac the clue to trigger this.

4. Airbender Ascension

If this was just active the turn it came into play, it would be busted. As is, you have to work for it but given the number of Mulldrifter-style creatures in Standard, the payoff for this is huge. I'm a big fan of grindy value decks and this definitely fall in that category. I look forward to trying more with this as the mana gets better with Temple Garden and Hallowed Fountain arrive with Lorwyn Eclipsed.

3. Winternight Stories

Stock Up and Consult the Star Charts got all the press, but Winternight Stories may be the best of the three because it actually draws cards (the others just put them in your hand) and it pairs so well with a Warped Quantum Riddler to Harmonize out of the graveyard. I've had a ton of fun finding ways to mill this into the graveyard in a variety of decks to make it pure power. That's good, clean Magic: The Gathering the way Richard Garfield intended right there.

2. Loot, the Pathfinder

Put me down as a charter member of team Loot. Temur is my favorite 3-color wedge, and this card has tantalized me with its possibilities since it was printed. Often paired with Agatha's Soul Cauldron, this card still feels like it's so close to being a powerhouse in Standard. If we get to a place where 6-drops can consistently see play, I'll build a ton of decks with this one.

1. Esper Origins

Boy, did I miss the boat on this card. When it was previewed I hated it, thinking that it was incredibly underpowered compared to the other cards in Final Fantasy (my pick for the best set form 2025). I think my problem was looking at the front side of the card as the target, when it's the backside that really makes it playable. Turns out, a 4/4 for four that gains some life and (usually) draws a card, that can be cast from your graveyard, that boosts your mana, and later acts as a mini-Overrun is a playable card. The front is just the set-up, though milling this through another means is also enticing. I didn't start out with this in any of my decks, but seeing it pop up in others made me give it a chance, and I've never looked back. I've jammed this into just about every deck I've brewed in the last 6 months, and it has become one of my favorite cards this decade. It doesn't hurt that the alternate art is my favorite Magic card art of the year too.

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