Top-Tier Standard Staple Finally Reprinted After 13 Years

Last updated on September 4, 2024

Pyroclasm | Illustrated by Néstor Ossandón Leal

Pyroclasm is coming back to Standard for the first time in over a decade thanks to a reprint in MTG’s upcoming Duskmourn set. 

The uncommon red sorcery will be new-to-Pioneer and Explorer: Originally from Ice Age and last reprinted into Standard in Magic 2011, Pyroclasm was too old to be legal in those two formats. Duskmourn will also introduce the card to MTG Arena‘s digital-only formats like Historic, Timeless, and Brawl.

Pyroclasm is one of the best anti-aggro cards in Magic, and its return comes at a time when Aggro decks make up significant portions of both Standard and Pioneer’s meta.

While Pyroclasm will still likely be relegated to the sideboard of most midrange red decks, it provides some space for red to develop more in Standard. Of the top five red decks, the top four are all aggro variants, and the only non-aggro deck is token-based and will never run it.

Of Monks and Mice

If you played any Standard or Pioneer since Bloomburrow landed, you have surely seen these four:

While Red Deck Wins is a common sight in both formats, these aggressive 1 and 2-drops lean into green to dominate Standard, or Rakdos to terrorize Pioneer. Gruul Aggro has over 15% of the Standard meta share, while Rakdos Aggro claims over 17% of Pioneer's.

Pyroclasm mangles mice, monks, and birds in one fiery swoop while also wiping out another aggressive staple: Boros (or Jeskai) Convoke. Except for Knight-Errant of Eos (and Venerated Loxodon in the Pioneer build), Convoke's creatures can't survive the red board wipe if unbuffed.

And the list goes on (Lizards Rakdos is another deck that will see this reprint and weep), making Pyroclasm a sure-fire Standard meta-shaker.

Interestingly, Pyroclasm hadn't seen too much Modern play until two months ago. That changed with Modern Horizons 3: since early July, Pyroclasm has become a sideboard staple to fight against the rise of Energy decks.

Fighting Fire with Fire

With only a handful of DSK cards revealed, it's too early to predict how Duskmourn‘s metagame will look like. But there are already three Standard control decks with access to red: Jeskai Control, Boros Control (the breakout deck that won the MTG Japan Open 2024), and above all Domain Control, a Standard staple since before Bloomburrow‘s rotation.

All three of these decks play spot removal and cheap board wipes until they can resolve a Sunfall and take over, and Pyroclasm could slot in any of them.

Wrap Up

Pyroclasm is an all-time classic of anti-aggro strategies in Magic, and it’s been a long time since it was included in Standard. 

At a time when powercreep is steadily increasing, aggro decks dominate Standard and Pioneer, and Foundations is just around the corner, there couldn't be a better time to get this tool back in the sideboard.