[Top 10] Best MTG Arena Decks That Wreck Hard! (August 2021)

Updated:

09 Aug 2021

The current Standard meta still currently revolve around creatures bashing each other. With the next major set coming up in September, we still won’t expect drastic changes to the meta, especially in Standard. Except for a few decks, creature-based decks are still dominant in Standard.

10. Jeskai Cycling

What’s good about this deck?

The most unique deck in terms of win condition and concept
You can win with either beatdown using creatures or a single shot of Zenith Flare to the opponent’s face
It can provide you with easy access to cards as your deck revolves around drawing cards

How to play this deck effectively

This deck does not have a lot of strategies that you need to be aware of
Maximizing your turns is the only advice that you need as you can always Cycle your cards during the opponent’s turn
You should also take note that when using Zenith Flare, you don’t always need to have the exact amount of damage to end the game. You can always cast another copy to finish off the remaining health points.

Decklist

4 Valiant Rescuer
4 Irencrag Pyromancer
4 Flourishing Fox
4 Drannith Stinger
1 Shredded Sails
4 Startling Development
4 Zenith Flare
4 Boon of the Wish-Giver
4 Go for Blood
4 Improbable Alliance
4 Footfall Crater
4 Riverglide Pathway
4 Needleverge Pathway
4 Hengegate Pathway
4 Raugrin Triome
1 Plains
1 Island
1 Mountain

9. Sultai Yorion

What’s good about this deck?

Just like the past versions of Esper Yorion, the Sultai counterpart is also a powerful deck that can deal with a wider range of threats in the meta
Since the meta is focused primarily on creatures, this version of the deck is fine-tuned to deal with those
It also presents a great win condition for a dynamic gameplay

How to play this deck effectively

Utilizing the proper sequencing of your spells can help in securing wins with this deck
Making sure you have the right amount, and order, of ETB cards when casting Yorion can be the difference between a win or a loss

Decklist

Yorion, Sky Nomad - companion
2 Polukranos, Unchained
1 Valki, God of Lies
2 Elder Gargaroth
1 Vorinclex, Monstrous Raider
1 Quandrix Cultivator
1 Duress
2 Disdainful Stroke
1 Negate
4 Heartless Act
1 Mystical Dispute
4 Cultivate
1 Extinction Event
3 Shadows’ Verdict
2 Alrund’s Epiphany
2 Sea Gate Restoration
4 Emergent Ultimatum
4 Omen of the Sea
4 Wolfwillow Haven
2 Elspeth’s Nightmare
1 Kiora Bests the Sea God
4 Barkchannel Pathway
1 Blightstep Pathway
4 Clearwater Pathway
4 Darkbore Pathway
4 Zagoth Triome
1 Ketria Triome
3 Temple of Malady
4 Fabled Passage
2 Swamp
3 Island
3 Forest

8. Sacrifice

What’s good about this deck?

Sacrifice decks are still pretty powerful as they can deal with a huge portion of decks in the meta
The creature-based meta makes for a good target for Sacrifice as it can wipe out your opponent’s creatures easily
It also gives a good amount of value with regards to the spells you cast

How to play this deck effectively

Since this deck is graveyard-based, use your sacrifice spells as well as discard spells frequently to ensure a constant source for your graveyard spells
Maximize Valki, God of Lies to copy whatever powerful creature is exiled with it
Tibalt is also a good mana sink that can surely secure a win if you can cast it and protect it for the succeeding turns

Decklist

Jegantha, the Wellspring - companion
2 Kroxa, Titan of Death’s Hunger
3 Valki, God of Lies
4 Bonecrusher Giant
4 Immersturm Predator
4 Mire Triton
4 Woe Strider
4 Heartless Act
4 Village Rites
4 Claim the Firstborn
3 The Akroan War
4 Temple of Malice
4 Blightstep Pathway
1 Castle Locthwain
1 Den of the Bugbear
1 Hive of the Eye Tyrant
4 Fabled Passage
5 Swamp
4 Mountain

7. Dimir Mill

What’s good about this deck?

One of the best versions of control in the meta is Dimir Control
By eliminating the concept of Rogues and focusing primarily on mill, you can get a faster combo to deal with your opponent’s library
It is also equipped with spells that can protect your life total or your hand so you can reach the later stage of the game with a massive advantage

How to play this deck effectively

The main concept of this deck is to prevent the opponent from casting their big spells so that you can hang around until you mill them out
Use your counterspells as well as your board wipes frequently and you will be in a good position for the later parts of the game

Decklist

4 Thieves’ Guild Enforcer
4 Brazen Borrower
4 Frantic Inventory
4 Omen of the Sea
4 Drown in the Loch
4 Didn’t Say Please
4 Teferi’s Tutelage
3 Mythos of Nethroi
3 Extinction Event
2 Into the Story
4 Zagoth Triome
4 Temple of Deceit
4 Fabled Passage
1 Castle Vantress
2 Castle Locthwain
5 Island
4 Swamp

6. Izzet Dragons

What’s good about this deck?

With the ability to ramp out into the late game, Izzet Dragons is the type of midrange deck that fits well into the meta
It is equipped with a decent amount of control cards to protect your creatures
It also has a lot of strong creatures that will definitely give you the bang for your buck

How to play this deck effectively

Izzet Dragons is a mixture of a control deck and a midrange-creature deck. This means that you will utilize the early turns to deny any advantage that your opponent tries to create
You can do this by using your counterspells and your spell removals
When the game reaches the midstage of the game, you can simply cast your creatures and hit them from the air

Decklist

4 Bonecrusher Giant
3 Brazen Borrower
3 Galazeth Prismari
4 Goldspan Dragon
4 Frost Bite
1 Disdainful Stroke
3 Expressive Iteration
1 Shatterskull Smashing
2 Mystical Dispute
3 Saw It Coming
3 Alrund’s Epiphany
2 Magma Opus
2 Mazemind Tome
4 Riverglide Pathway
4 Volatile Fjord
3 Faceless Haven
4 Fabled Passage
6 Snow-Covered Island
4 Snow-Covered Mountain

5. Mono-Red Aggro

What’s good about this deck?

Aggressive decks never go out of style and it is once again proven by none other than the Mono-Red Aggro deck
Since you are facing a lot of creature-based decks, being more aggressive than them can help you evade going into the late game where they have bigger creatures
It is also great against midrange and control decks as you can easily pressure your opponent then rebuild your board state when they decide to clear the board

How to play this deck effectively

The only wrong way to play this deck is if you hold out on your spells and your attacks
The name already suggests that you go pedal to the metal right from the start to gain all the advantages you can muster
Swing for the fences early on to force your opponent to either react immediately or to press the concede button as soon as possible

Decklist

1 Phoenix of Ash
1 Fireblade Charger
2 Trobran, Thane of Red Fell
4 Bonecrusher Giant
4 Fervent Champion
4 Hall Monitor
4 Rimrock Knight
4 Robber of the Rich
4 Anax, Hardened in the Forge
4 Embercleave
3 Frostbite
1 The Akroan War
4 Faceless Haven
1 Castle Embereth
19 Snow-Covered Mountain

4. White Weenies

What’s good about this deck?

A good counter to the Mono-Red Hyper-aggressive deck, White Weenies is also an aggressive bunch but they can gain life
Any point of life that you can gain against a red deck is a lifeline that you can hold onto when it comes to the late stage of the game
You also have cards that can protect your board state making this a pretty scary threat once you get to build a solid board state

How to play this deck effectively

You can be more aggressive with this deck compared to the mono-red aggro
Since you have creatures that can protect your other creatures, you can easily swing for an attack or chump block your opponent’s offense
Whatever you do, you are guaranteed to get an advantage because you get to gain life when doing so

Decklist

4 Reidane, God of the Worthy
4 Giant Killer
4 Selfless Savior
3 Drannith Magistrate
4 Luminarch Aspirant
4 Seasoned Hallowblade
1 Archon of Emeria
4 Elite Spellbinder
3 Guardian of Faith
3 Skyclave Apparition
1 Legion Angel
2 Alseid of Life’s Bounty
4 Faceless Haven
2 Cave of the Frost Dragon
17 Snow-Covered Plains

3. Boros Winota

What’s good about this deck?

Winota has been a thorn on a lot of MTG Arena players as it provides a whole load of value when it goes unchecked
In the current format, you can easily get a lot of triggers from this creature, giving you a huge advantage in terms of board state
You can simply run over your opponent with your cheap creatures, or wait for a beat down with the creatures that you get from Winota

How to play this deck effectively

Building up your board is a good way to ensure that when Winota enters the battlefield, you can easily get triggers
Cards like Selfless Savior and Stonebinder’s Familiar are the best cards to cast in your first turns as they are Non-Human creatures
You can hard cast a Skyclave Apparition to deal with an opponent’s threat or you can simply wait for it to come out from a Winota trigger

Decklist

4 Selfless Savior
4 Stonebinder’s Familiar
4 Robber of the Rich
4 Bonecrusher Giant
4 Elite Spellbinder
3 Skyclave Apparition
4 Blade Historian
4 Winota, Joiner of Forces
2 Spikefield Hazard
3 Starnheim Unleashed
4 Furycalm Snarl
4 Needleverge Pathway
1 Faceless Haven
10 Snow-Covered Plains
5 Snow-Covered Mountains

2. Naya Adventures

What’s good about this deck?

A more refined version of Gruul Adventure decks, Naya gives the deck a better range when dealing with the current meta
It generates a lot of value especially in the early game
This value can translate into a mid- to late-game strategy where you are completely in control of the game

How to play this deck effectively

With a lot of cheap cards, you can easily bring out your combo pieces for the latter stages of the game
Having an Edgewall Innkeeper early can help you with card draw issues later on
The other cards on your deck are support cards that can help deal the remaining amount of damage that you are missing

Decklist

2 Drannith Magistrate
2 Clarion Spirit
3 Tangled Florahedron
4 Edgewall Innkeeper
4 Elite Spellbinder
4 Giant Killer
4 Jaspera Sentinel
4 Lovestruck Beast
4 Bonecrusher Giant
2 The Akroan War
4 Showdown of the Skalds
4 Needleverge Pathway
4 Branchloft Pathway
4 Cragcrown Pathway
3 Forest
3 Plains
1 Mountain

1. Mono-Green Stompy

What’s good about this deck?

Mono-Green Stompy is a deck that has all the right ingredients to keep it on top for the foreseeable future
With cards that can ramp, draw, and of course, beatdown, this deck is surely the jack-of-all-trades in the current metagame
It can easily string out spells that can leave the opponent scrambling for the concede button as fast as they can

How to play this deck effectively

Focus on building a stable board state at the start of the game
Whether you are casting multiple copies of 1/1 Stonecoil Serpents or having a proper curve with Lovestruck Beast, as long as you are putting creatures on the board, then you are in a good state already
The remaining parts of the game revolve around you dealing massive amounts of damage for a beatdown

Decklist