Alchemy vs. Standard in MTG: 6 Key Differences

Last updated on January 8, 2025

Forbidden Alchemy | Illustration by David Rapoza

Magic: The Gathering Arena used to be a very streamlined way to play Magic. However, as more and more formats are added to the platform, the more players are forced to choose how to engage with it. Much like paper Magic, there are a variety of different competitive formats that can be played on Arena. This may leave you wondering about the dissimilarities between some of them, which cards are different, and which format is right for you.

Today we focus on two similar formats on Arena: Standard and Alchemy. My initial impression of Alchemy was that it was simply Standard, with a few extra bells and whistles attached. However, after looking more at the metagame of each format, and considering Standard’s rotation schedule, there are some key differences between these two ways to play.

I run through the major differences between these two formats to give you a better understanding of each.

What’s the Difference Between Alchemy and Standard?

Arterial Alchemy | Illustration by Caio Monteiro

One of the key differences between Alchemy and Standard is that Alchemy is exclusively a digital format. In fact, it can only be played on Magic Arena, not on MTGO. As a purely digital format, Alchemy’s cards can be rebalanced on the fly and can use specific, digital-only mechanics that otherwise wouldn’t work in paper Magic.

Standard uses only cards that are available in paper. It can be played in person and on either Arena or MTGO. Because Standard only includes the most recent physical cards, the meta isn’t as easily impacted by changing cards, and bans are the main way that it’s impacted over time.

Standard has a longer set rotation than Alchemy. The Alchemy format was originally based on Standard, it now follows the Alchemy rotation that covers a narrower scope of releases.

#6. Format Rules

Standard is a one-on-one Constructed format. Decks are built out of a minimum of 60 cards. There’s no upper limit on how many cards you can have in your deck and Arena takes care of your ability to shuffle it on your own. You may also have up to 15 cards in a sideboard, for best of three matches, which are the default for all paper Standard events.

Standard’s legal card pool is made up of the premier sets from the three most recent years. Each fall, sets that came out more than three years ago are removed as a new set is released.

Alchemy has similar rules when it comes to deck construction as Standard, with one key difference. As a digital-only format, you don’t have to worry about how big your deck is. That’s how you get things like the 200+ card Yorion, the Sky Nomad decks that used to show up on Arena.

Alchemy also has a quicker set rotation than Standard. Alchemy sticks to the two-year rotation that Standard originally had.

Alchemy also has digital-only sets that release shortly after the Standard sets do. These sets share a name and some themes with the main sets, but are marked as Alchemy sets; for example Alchemy: Eldraine is the Alchemy supplement for Wilds of Eldraine. These cards use digital-only mechanics and allow Alchemy to have a different meta from Standard. In addition, Alchemy versions of premier paper sets sometimes also come out. For example, March of the Machine: The Aftermath and The Lord of the Rings: Tales of Middle-earth also appeared in Alchemy form on Arena.

Can Alchemy Cards be Played in Standard?

Not quite, any Arena-exclusive cards are not playable in Standard. Otherwise, yes, the main sets of Alchemy are legal in Standard.

#5. Affordability

When discussing the difference between Alchemy and Standard in terms of cost, I only look at the cost for MTG Arena. Since you can’t play Alchemy anywhere else, it doesn’t make a lot of sense to compare it to the cost of a paper Standard deck. This is more an analysis of which is more affordable on Arena.

It really comes down to how many wildcards you need to craft the most popular meta decks. You can dig into the approximate dollar amount needed to get a certain number of wildcards, but for today’s purposes I'll stick wildcards comparisons. The main thing is that the more wildcards you need to craft a deck, the more expensive that deck is.

I collected all the cards for a mono white life deck, but need a few more mythics, rares and uncommons for Hydra Lands.

When I use Arena Tutor’s Meta Deck Browser, I am easily able to see the most popular deck types in both Standard and Alchemy on Arena. This also gives me an easy one-to-one comparison when it comes to relative deck costs.

Arena Tutor shows me that one of the decks with the best win rate in both formats is White-Red Aggro. While the style of deck is the same, the actual cost is rather different. In Standard, you might need 7 mythic and 20 rare wildcards in order to craft the full deck. In Alchemy, you might need 1 mythic and 1 rare wildcard to craft, making it far less expensive.

Look at decks that run similar cards in both formats can help show us the difference in cost. For example, take a popular Rakdos midrange deck in Standard and a mono-black midrange deck in Alchemy. They also both use cards like Sheoldred, the Apocalypse and Lord Skitter, Sewer King. The Standard deck required 11 mythic and 32 rare wildcards. The Alchemy deck uses 12 mythic and 12 rare wildcards.

To be fair, a multicolor deck always uses more rares due to the types of land you need. When I removed the wildcards needed for lands, I still got 11 mythic and 14 rare wildcards for the Standard deck. While not as big of a difference, I still need more wildcards for the Standard version than a similar deck played in Alchemy even disregarding lands.

Now this isn’t a universal truth. Some meta Alchemy decks, use an insane number of wildcards. But if you’re just looking for a popular meta deck in one of the two formats, I'd say Alchemy has the slight edge over Standard in costing less wildcards.

What’s important to remember, however, is that Alchemy’s meta shifts more frequently than Standard’s. With a quicker rotation and the ability for cards to be rebalanced, Alchemy might be a less sound investment than a slightly more expensive Standard deck.

Another small detail is the “Alchemist Bundle” bundle, usually available at the store about four weeks after a Standard set is released. This bundle offers about a 5,000 gold or 1,000 gem discount on 20 Alchemy boosters at 3,000 gems or 15,000 gold.

#4. Fun and Player Reception

Your enjoyment of Alchemy is largely based on how you feel about digital-only cards and mechanics. Some players like having a unique set of cards that take advantage of the game being digital. It’s almost like a selling point for Arena, since these cards can’t be played on any other platform. However, this is also why players who prefer their digital Magic to simply emulate the paper game don’t really like Alchemy. This is especially true for Timeless players who gravitated to the format simply to avoid keeping up with rotations and feel outpaced by cards using digital-only mechanics.

Another sticking point for Alchemy is that it doesn’t have as many chances to draft on Arena to get cards from its sets. This means that it’s more difficult to get format staples than it would be in Standard, where you can expect to be able to draft as much as your gold and gem cache allow. A lot of players don’t like that they have to spend real money to try out a format they might not like.

Standard is a bit safer of a bet for a few reasons. First, any Standard-legal cards can also be played in any other Arena format. This means there’s no risk of investing in cards that you might not end up using. Second, there are simply more Standard drafts, meaning you’re more likely to be able to put together meta decks without sinking as much real money into the game.

#3. Mechanics

Alchemy’s digital-only mechanics change the game, so I want to get a little more specific about how exactly. Among the most popular are perpetual and seek. Perpetual effects like on Sarkhan, Wanderer to Shiv would require immense tracking and memorization on a players part and seek as seen on the survivalist and enlist card, Effie, Fast Learner and Seek New Knowledge would ask a player to randomly grab a card from that meets certain conditions from the library.

These and other similar Alchemy mechanics give the format a unique feel, but one that some players don’t like since it doesn’t feel like paper Magic.

#2. Long-Term Viability

It’s always good to consider how long a deck you’re building is going to last you. Standard has one more year of than Alchemy and gives you extra time to play with your cards. Generally there are more nerfs and rebalances than bans, so your best cards are safer in Standard than in Alchemy.

#1. Meta Diversity

Standard isn’t exactly a bastion of deck diversity. In this glimpse at the top of Arena Tutor, are Boros Convoke with 55.8% win rate. There are more than 10 decks that have an over 50% win rate, so theoretically there’s some diversity in the meta. That said, over half the time you’re playing it’ll likely be against a red aggro deck, so it may not feel that diverse.

Meta diversity tends to be worse in Alchemy according to Arena Tutor. A chunk of decks are Rakdos aggro and they win 61.9%. Far fewer decks have an average win rate of over 50% compared to the best of Standard.

Why is Standard More Popular than Alchemy?

Players like the reflection of Magic cards that stay true to their paper copies, and Alchemy feels more like a digital card game with complex and sometimes convoluted cards.

Should I Play Alchemy or Standard?

The easy answer is you should play Standard because you can play it more ways and your favorite cards for longer. But if you want a great digital card game, Alchemy certainly provides that and there's nothing wrong with enjoying Alchemy.

Wrap Up

Thraben Standard Bearer | Illustration by Volkan Baga

When comparing these two formats, it really comes down to your opinion on Alchemy’s digital-only elements. The format lives and dies by those, as they are really the only unique things about it. If you don’t like them, you probably won’t like Alchemy.

Which format do you prefer? What would make Alchemy more exciting to you if you aren’t sold on it? Let me know in the comments below or on Draftsim’s X (formerly Twitter).

Thank you for reading and see you next time!