Last Year’s Most Powerful Mythics Collide in Format-Defining Simic Deck

Last updated on January 16, 2026

Quantum Riddler | by Cacho Rubione

Simic () Ouroboroid decks have overtaken Izzet () Lesson decks as the most played decks in Standard by a hair, according to mtgdecks.net. The deck leans heavy into green, exploiting cheap mana dorks to power out lethal mythic rares like Ouroboroid and Quantum Riddler.

What Is Simic Ouroboroid?

Ouroboroid | Illustration by Samuel Perin

Decklist credit: _IlNano_

Simic Ouroboroid, also called Simic Aggro and Simic Nature's Rhythm, is an aggressive deck that exploits mana dorks to churn out powerful threats, the most significant of which are Ouroboroid and Quantum Riddler.

The early turns are spent casting dorks like Llanowar Elves, Gene Pollinator, and Badgermole Cub to cast early copies of the aforementioned mythics, as well as additional threats like Craterhoof Behemoth and Marang River Regent.

Spider Manifestation (Leyline Weaver to Arena players) gives the deck more consistency.

With this much mana production, the deck can afford a full playset of Nature's Rhythm, and a handful of silver bullets to fetch with them. The example deck includes Sentinel of Lost Lore to mess with Lessons and other graveyard decks, Abhorrent Oculus as a premium yet inexpensive threat, and so on; some versions might include cards such as Surrak, Elusive Hunter or Reclamation Sage, as they see fit. As one would expect of an aggro deck, the removal suite is light pre-sideboarding, relying on sheer explosiveness to take game 1.

A History of Ouroboroid

Quantum Riddler | Illustration by Cacho Rubione

Ouroboroid has been a threat used in Standard since the release of Edge of Eternities (EOE), though earlier iterations of the deck looked far different; with less mana dorks and more cards like Spyglass Siren and Pawpatch Recruit, as seen in this list by MTGO player Hamuda, it fit the picture of a more traditional aggressive deck that dropped cheap threats from turn 1 and relied upon only a few copies of the most terrifying planet outside the Multiverse. Versions of this deck also excluded Quantum Riddler.

The deck would only get better with the release of Avatar: the Last Airbender and one of Standard’s best green cards: Badgermole Cub. The Cub took the already-powerful 1-mana accelerants and pushed them to new heights. While there were a smattering of Golgari Ouroboroid decks, like this one piloted by Charles Wong in the 2025 World Championship, those stopped placing around November 2025, seemingly usurped by the new Simic version.

Badgermole Cub gave the deck two things: A surge in power and consistency, and access to Nature's Rhythm. The power and consistency comes first. Early editions of the deck felt, in my experience, inconsistent; the difference between a hand with a turn 1 Llanowar Elves and one without hurt. But the Cub not only added a dork, but its mana doubling ability warranted the inclusion of additional copies. Once all that extra mana was unlocked, the deck got access to Nature's Rhythm, a strong yet expensive tutor that would gave been unreliable in earlier iterations. This lets the deck run a few silver bullets and makes it even more consistent because it finds its best cards more often.

This increased mana production also gave the deck access to another busted mythic from EOE: Quantum Riddler. The Riddler has proved powerful in multiple formats, including other Standard decks that might pair it with Splash Portal for scam action, but its best Standard home might be these Simic lists. Warp makes it a fantastically flexible card, allowing youto spend extra mana (which is rarely hard to come by) or helping smooth the early turns. And paying full-price feels good, too; a big flying creature that draws a card is hard to remove profitably and ends the game quickly, especially with a power boost from Ouroboroid.

Simic Ouroboroid, or Aggro, or Nature’s Rhythm, has a strong position in the current Standard metagame and looks poised to keep it thanks to its explosive potential. It also has a new toy coming up in Lorwyn Eclipsed: Wistfulness, the Simic elemental incarnation, which has two great modes. The Naturalize effect is welcome so long as Izzet Lessons keeps casting Artist's Talent and Monument to Endurance, and the card filtration mitigates flood. It isn’t a perfect fit due to the anti-synergy with Nature’s Rhythm, but a copy or two likely enhances this already-powerful deck.