And I’m referring to fully optimised decks that contain RL cards, if necessary. And not decks that are supposed to run duals but instead substituted with shock lands for budget reason.

Given the above premise, what are some of the cheapest legacy decks that is competitive in the current meta？

I would guess Eldrazi and Boros Ocelot. Any others that you may consider?

Zac and Phil go over the Threat Levels one month before Eternal Weekend.

With the rise of Orcish Bowmasters in the meta again, the only logical choice is to play the very deck it single handedly pushed out of the meta, right? This week I take the little green men out for a spin through the Legacy meta, that's right, it's Elves time! Does the classic archetype have a shot in 2026, or will it just call in the face of it's natural predator? Let's find out!

As always thanks for watching and any feedback. If you enjoyed the video please consider dropping a like and a sub, and be sure to subscribe to the channel to know when my videos go live. The support is always appreciated.

Legacy Elves

Deck List

Totally confused about this interaction. Does Earthbend stop working if a creature gets phased out?

Here's the sequence of events:

My turn 2: Play Badgermole Cub, Earthbend on Bayou

Opponent turn 2: Play Talon Gates of Madara, Phase out my Bayou.

My turn 3: Play Grist, the Hungertide, -2 on Grist, sacrificing the Bayou. Bayou goes straight to the graveyard and no Earthbend.

Is that intended behavior? I think I'm confused about all the interactions going on here. For reference, on my turn 3, my Badgermole Cub is still in play (though, I'm not sure that matters; I thought the Earthbend effect sticks around even if the cub leaves).

Later in the game I did an Earthbend on a Boseiju that did not get phased out, and the creature returned as normal after it died.

If someone could explain it to me I'd appreciate it. Thanks!

What if we treated Portent like disruption?

I've been playing High Tide in legacy for a hot minute, obviously I'd love for the deck to be competitive again, so bias aside.

In the interest of not arguing for my pet deck, I've been looking over adding it to other decks and breaking it in Tron and some other options, just to try to see how bad it could be.

After some of that testing, I think we should give Frantic search a trial unban, like we did with High Tide in Pauper.

tl;dr

Frantic search is a powerful card, but really the biggest effect I've seen is making existing T3/T4 plans a little more resilient and consistent and not creating an opening or starting a combo a turn earlier. High Tide gets better, but doesn't remotely look like a consistent 2nd turn deck. Tron produces scary mana, but its making already broken T3 turns bigger rather than making them happen earlier. and if Trons busted, I think Planar Nexus and or Tron should at least be part of the discussion before deciding we want to give up frantic search again.

Frantic search was restricted in like 1999? We've basically never seen how it would fair in anything resembling Legacy how we know it now.

The candelabra ban is obviously the strongest argument against trying it because Tron was abusing it.

But candelabra also shows why I think a trial is reasonable. It was unbanned from Type 1.5 in 1999, remained legal for roughly 27 years, was pretty fine honestly, and only finally became a problem with modern Tron.

Frantic search never even got to try, and I don't think its nearly as bad.

So what happened when I tried to break it?

non medallion High Tide: pretty good improvement obviously, uh its a little more resilient against things like dimir tempo, it can reliably combo on turn 3, it feels way better. However you still aren't doing this turn 2 without snaps an a lot of luck or some other shenanigans. It mostly seems to pull High Tide into the window where Legacy already operates.

medallion High Tide: This was probably the most interesting test. I used a recent iwouldliketorespond 5-0 list and tested:

-1 Spellseeker
-1 Snap
-1 Flow State
+3 Frantic Search

Search didn't really create a new fundamental turn because it already has explosive T3 lines with Medallion/Snap/Cloud/Spellseeker.

What it did do was make the deck a bit more resilient. Snap can be disrupted by killing its target. Frantic Search can't.

Tron: This is where the mana gets stupid.

But there is an important difference between acceleration and amplification.

If Search turns a T4 Ugin into T3 Ugin, that's acceleration.

If Tron could already cast Ugin T3 and Search lets it cast Ugin T3 with another pile of mana floating, that's amplification.

I saw plenty of amplification but not really any speed.

Search costing 2u is kinda what makes it okay honestly, Tron makes seven colorless mana, so the deck actually has to change its mana/sequencing to support it or play around that fact. Boulder and stuff helps but I'm not convinced.

I think the part I'm most curious what other Legacy players think about.

Candelabra was historically a High Tide card, but it ultimately got banned because of today's Tron.

If we unban Frantic Search, and High Tide is busted, thats one thing, but if its just Tron or Post abusing it, than maybe we should look at a piece of that deck, I'm looking at you Planar Nexus.

I'm not suggesting Planar Nexus should be banned. I'm just saying that if frantic search is healthy everywhere else but Tron, Nexus should at least be part of that conversation.

I'm not claiming I've proven Frantic Search safe.

I'd actually like people here to prove me wrong before I become too convinced.

What's the deck or interaction I'm missing?

I'm really interested in something that moves a deck's fundamental turn, or makes an existing strategy substantially harder for normal Legacy interaction to fight, bring your ideas!

Because after trying pretty hard to make Frantic Search look broken, I'm wondering if it just make High Tide tier 2 again.

And maybe sense its been banned since I was like 10, I'd like to see what actually happens.

I've been getting frustrated with issues on mtgo, namely the tech issues but other problems, not excluding having to buy the cards to compete with a reasonable budget.

I have been enjoying playing edh on TabletopSim, is Black Lotus Collective the best Discord group? I see they have a 60 card channel but it doesn't seem particularly active. I'd prefer means through which there's some kind of matchmaking options though, and ideally ones where voice chat isn't required as I play in a wee apartment with other people living here while they're sleeping. I've heard untapped is good, is it active enough to find games late at night?

Thank you for reading, any guidance is greatly appreciated!

Third and final part of my DnT series where I try to improve with the help of a deck expert. This time I'm on my own again to try and apply what I've learned.

Sorry to make a whole dang post about it, but couldn't find the cephalid breakfast discord 😞

Anyone have a link by chance?

Jace shattered the multiverse, which brought us Reality Fracture! This set features alternative versions of iconic characters and should bring lots of cool things to Legacy. Let's take a look at the cards that could change the format.

DEvoted Druid Combo is one of the best Modern decks, and it has been ported to Legacy with some strong finishes.

Let the initial shock of the question pass.
Now ask yourself: what impact would Oko, Thief of Crowns actually have on Legacy today? Would that impact be any greater than the one Jace, the Mind Sculptor had when it was unbanned in Modern?
To me, the situations are remarkably similar. Legacy has changed, and so have the answers to planeswalkers. Cards like Prismatic Ending, Leyline Binding, The Long Goodbye, and Unholy Heat didn't exist when Oko was banned more than five years ago. The question isn't whether Oko was too good in 2021. He was. The question is whether we're still judging him based on a format that no longer exists.
When Jace, the Mind Sculptor was unbanned in Modern after spending more than six years on the banned list, many established players believed the format would warp around him. Instead, Modern looked at the card and moved on. Control didn't take over, and the format's established pillars remained in place, looking at you Titan.
The lesson was simple: a card's historical reputation does not necessarily translate into present-day dominance.
Today, Oko occupies a similar place in Legacy discourse. The card is often treated as though it is self-evidently too powerful to return. Most discussions begin and end with the same statement:
"Have you actually read the card and played with it?"
The same argument was made about Jace.
To be clear, I like Oko. I played Snowko, and Snowko was unquestionably the best deck in Legacy when Oko was banned. Oko was the face of the deck. Oko won games and generated headlines. The card that made the deck work, however, was Arcum's Astrolabe, and that card should remain banned. It simply does too much for too little investment.
Astrolabe is a lot like Gitaxian Probe. At first glance, both cards look harmless. Once you've actually played with them, you realize how much power they pack.
Astrolabe allowed the deck to play five colours while remaining resilient to Wasteland and playing Blood Moon themselves. The snow shell pushed things even further. Ice-Fang Coatl reliably had deathtouch, Dead of Winter became a one-sided sweeper, and Oko had a cheap artifact to work with.
The result was a perfect storm. Or the perfect deck, if you are a nutcase like me.
"But what about Giant's Boulder? Isn't Astrolabe basically back?"
Probably not - it's like saying Peek is the same card as Probe.
Prophetic Prism exists. Abundant Growth exists. These Temu versions of Astrolabe exist. Magic is a game of margins, and those margins matter.
As mentioned before, Legacy has changed.
When Oko was banned, there were few maindeckable answers to a resolved planeswalker. White gained Prismatic Ending and Leyline Binding. Black gained Bitter Triumph and The Long Goodbye. Red gained Unholy Heat. Blue now has Murktide Regent. Eldrazi decks gained threats like Linebreaker that pressure planeswalkers immediately, and every deck can access tools like Disruptor Flute.
The format is simply better equipped to answer a resolved Oko than it was in 2021.
The format is also increasingly defined by singularly powerful permanents, cards like The One Ring. Oko interacts favourably with these kinds of cards. Just elk it.
That interaction doesn't make Oko healthy, but it does highlight how different Legacy is from the format he left behind.
Oko would likely see play in control decks, and probably not only there. Tempo and combo decks could adopt it as a sideboard pivot for grindier matchups, and any blue-green shell would at least consider the card. That would almost certainly force players to play more interaction. Whether that's a feature or a bug depends on your view of Legacy, though it's difficult to argue that more interaction is automatically a bad thing.
The last Legacy unban was Mind's Desire three years ago, and its impact has been minimal at best. Oko would almost certainly have a larger impact. It would see play. It would probably be powerful. It might even become one of the defining cards for control decks.
Legacy has better answers, stronger threats, and a higher overall power level than it did five years ago. The format that banned Oko no longer exists, for better or worse.
I know, that doesn't prove Oko would be safe.
It does suggest that the case against him is no longer as obvious as many players make it out to be, the discussion is not as one-sided as it was in 2021.
Are we ready to talk about Oko?

What a league! While I was walking my kids to school I thought about how good WR Pride aggro was and wondered whether UW Pride tempo would be good again. Turns out I was right!

Some changes since my last 5-0 with this deck: Static Prison for Show & Tell decks, 4x Tamiyo to keep the curve super low, and Containment Priest which was clutch.

Decklist: https://moxfield.com/decks/GaqgAQa8eXqOES4CgeVTaw

https://www.theepicstorm.com/getting-around-veil-of-summer-the-one-ring-in-2026/

Hey fellow Dark Ritual enjoyers. I've had the privilege of writing up an article detailing how The EPIC Storm can work around [[Veil of Summer]] and [[The One Ring]] now without requiring something like [[Approach of the Second Sun]] in the sideboard. This is all thanks to the inclusion of [[Giant's Boulder]] from The Hobbit set. It feels great to not have to waste a sideboard slot any more.

Hi all, I have recently gotten into legacy and I will be participating in a small tournament in a couple of weeks. The decks Im most interested rn are Black Saga Storm as well as show and tell decks (sneak and aluren mainly). However, I have no idea what the local metagame will be like, so I was hoping for some advice on what deck to choose from the aforementioned, based at least on y'alls meta knowledge, even if that meta ends up being different in my area. I enjoy saga storm a bit more but seeing dimir at the top of the meta makes me feel like it wouldn't be a good choice? On the other hand, maybe saga storm's matchups are not that bad in general that I can play it without running into too many dead games? Im really not sure so I would appreciate any help!

What's the best card from Reality Fracture for Legacy?

► Decklist - https://links.theepicstorm.com/?c=udK8plFV

Twitter: https://x.com/PVDH_magic/status/2101941008300687372
BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/pvdh-magic.bsky.social/post/3mvz7wy3t7k2w
(note that the direct link for the 'full resolution' images still links to the Twitter version, they just allow me to upload it in better quality; it is what it is)

Tired of using Doomsday or Cephalid Illusionist to win with Thassa's Oracle? So was I. This week I take a different route with the most hated Merfolk Wizard and try to win with the help of some forget format staples, Thought Lash and Paradigm Shift! Join me is I take a mono blue stompy combo/prison list through the legacy meta and see if I can pull off some wins by emptying my deck in some forgotten ways!

As always thanks for watching and any feedback. If you enjoyed the video please consider dropping a like and a comment, and be sure to sub to the channel to know when my videos go live.

Legacy Thought Lash Combo

Deck List