Guilds of Ravnica draws ever nearer and with it a whole bunch of new decks ideas to inspire brewers. Each of the guilds and their mechanics provide some interesting gameplay possibilities, and I for one am looking forward to seeing what the community comes up with in the next couple of weeks (especially with rotation also coming up). But while we will be getting new cards to brew with, it is important to remember that there are also many existing strategies that will continue to be viable in the new meta. We have already looked at Mono Green Stompy, but today it is the turn of Blue/Red Wizards to get the upgrade treatment.

With Red/Black Aggro on the way out (losing far too many cards to be playable in its current build), aggressive players will be eager to fill the void it is about to leave behind. Some will try to make use of the new Boros Mentor mechanic, while others will do their best to overrun their opponents with Goblins. But it is important to remember that Blue/Red Wizards has many great cards that avoid the chopping block, while also gaining some interesting new tools from Guilds of Ravnica.

Let’s begin with the cards that remain in the deck. Ghitu Lavarunner is a great one drop that can still put pressure on later after we cast some of our non-creature spells. Viashino Pyromancer is a fabulous little aggressive two drop that gives us some addition direct damage, while Dismissive Pyromancer will help to keep our hands full of gas and not trash. Guttersnipe, while not a Wizard, is an amazing include to a deck that wants to fling about a bunch of non-spells. Lastly Adeliz, the Cinder Wind pulls the whole of our deck together, pumping up our team with her ‘give every Wizard Prowess’ ability.

Now we have talked a lot about non-creature spells, but what spells do we want to include? Well, lots and lots of direct damage, that’s what. Shock, Lightning Strike, Wizard’s Lightning and the new Risk Factor all provides us with lots of ways to damage to our opponent without even having to enter the ‘red zone’. Most can also be used to deal with opposing threats, but this should only really be done when we wish to clear the route for our creatures to attack. Risk Factor on the other had is all about smashing face. Browbeat 2.0 is the best example of a ‘choice’ card done right. Both options are completely fine with us, and we get to Jump-start it for even more value.

So that’s what we get to keep, but what do we get to add? As well as the above mentioned Risk Factor we also get the  reprinted Goblin Electromancer to cheapen our Instants, while also filling out our two drop slot. It might not be the most aggressive creature in our deck, but cost reductions should never be underestimated. We will be also including a full playset of the brand-new counter spell, Ionize. The great thing about this deck is that we are able to get down a ton of threats quite quickly, but this leaves us open to been blown out by a sweeper like Settle the Wreckage. Ionize is a counter spell we can easily hold up to protect our team or stop an opposing threat from resolving. Plus, it also has a Shock stapled onto the back of it which is not too shabby.

For the Sideboard we include four copies of Negate to bring in against more Control heavy decks. Fight with Fire and the new Lava Coil give us some more tailor-made removal. Sentinel Totem as always is a simple and effective answer to graveyard strategies, while Blink of an Eye can give us tempo play against larger threats. Finally, Ral, Izzet Viceroy is a usefully include for games that go long, as he gives us card advantage before becoming a win condition in his own right. And in the appropriate lands and there you have it.

So, what do you all think of Izzit Wizards for Guilds of Ravnica Standard. Is this the kind of deck you would sleeve up after rotation? Have you all ready had some look with U/R Wizards and have a different idea on where to take the deck? Let us know in the comments below, and while you are there don’t forget to like and subscribe to keep up to date with all we do here at Master of Magics. We have all of Guilds of Ravnica’s cards revealed to us now, so expect some spice brews in the next week or two (I’m currently working on a Surveil deck myself). But until then remember wherever you choose to sleeve up, Good Luck and Have Fun.

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