Episodes

Monday Feb 21, 2022
#109 -The Good, the Bad, and the Gauntlets
Monday Feb 21, 2022
Monday Feb 21, 2022
The Kamigawa Neon Dynasty metagame is starting to heat up so The First Pioneers thought we should talk about some of the fun new decks everybody is playing as well as how our picks did in our set review episode. We also thought it was a good time to talk about making a Pioneer Gauntlet. Many of the decks in the current metagame have been around for more than a few seasons so it would make sense to prepare yourself for strategies that you're going to see over and over again in competitive Pioneer. Whether you're like Ryan and want to go from a casual player to a competitive one, or if you're focused on becoming one of the best Pioneer players there is, you're going to need to understand how the decks in the format work, how to beat them, and how to play them if you're going to choose a deck for your next event. We go over all the permutations and combinations of the aggro, midrange, combo, and control decks you might see at an event and give suggestions on how to build your own!
What is your area's metagame like? What decks are you trying to beat? Share your ideas for a Pioneer gauntlet in our Discord or @ us on Twitter!
Our Discord: https://discord.gg/SBRF8DH
Our Twitter: https://twitter.com/MtgPioneer

Monday Feb 14, 2022
#108 - Brewing with Neon
Monday Feb 14, 2022
Monday Feb 14, 2022
With a set leaning heavily on technology and the futuristic, you can be sure that there will upgrades galore in the Pioneer format. But technology also brings changes. Old tech becomes obsolete and things that used to work very well in the past are now thrown away. In this week's episode MTGO grinder and streamer ClaudiohMTG joins us again to talk about what cards he's excited to brew with, how he'll be making "upgrades", and also helps out the First Pioneers with their brews.
If you have cards you want to brew with or some sweet brews of your own, be sure to join our Discord channel and Twitter and share them with us!
Our Discord: https://discord.gg/SBRF8DH
Our Twitter: https://twitter.com/MtgPioneer

Monday Feb 07, 2022
#107 - Kamigawa Neon Dynasty Pioneer set review
Monday Feb 07, 2022
Monday Feb 07, 2022
The Pioneer format continues to grow and draw in new players. Decks are being optimized and new strategies are being made viable every week. Even with all this remarkable growth there is still a lot of exploring yet to be done and with Kamigawa: Neon Dynasty the format is set to expand once more. Twitch streamer and MTGO grinder EkerossMTG joins us this time to talk about what cards he's excited for in competitive Pioneer, while Kevin gives us his "Johnny" perspective and Ryan brings you jank that only an overly optimistic "Timmy" player can dream up.
Whether you're looking for new deck ideas, ways to make your current deck better, or just want to see if we talked about your favorite cards from the newest set, be sure to listen to this week's show! Also don't forgot to join the Discord channel and share what cards you're most excited for from the new set!
Our Discord: https://discord.gg/SBRF8DH
Our Twitter: https://twitter.com/MtgPioneer

Monday Jan 31, 2022
#106 - Neon Tinted Glasses: A First Look at Kamigawa Neon Dynasty
Monday Jan 31, 2022
Monday Jan 31, 2022
With Kamigawa: Neon Dynasty just around the corner, the First Pioneers wanted to get a jump on some of the new cards and mechanics and talk about what kind of impact the newest Magic the Gathering set will have on the Pioneer format. We're happy to welcome back returning guest ClaudiohMTG to talk about his recent experiences in Pioneer, his thoughts on the Pioneer Mana Traders invitational, as well as what he's most excited about from the new Kamigawa set.
We break down the newest spoilers and how the Crimson Vow Pioneer season ended in this weeks episode, so if you want to keep yourself up to date with everything new and interesting in the world of Pioneer, don't miss this show!

Sunday Jan 23, 2022
#105 - Making a Splash
Sunday Jan 23, 2022
Sunday Jan 23, 2022
No, we're not remaking the classic Tom Hanks and Daryl Hannah rom com, this week we're discussing "splashing" a color into Pioneer decks. We want to explore what it means to splash a 2nd or 3rd color into an existing deck, what impact a splash of color can make, which cards are worth adding another color for, and which deck could improve with another color.
If your brew hasn't been doing as well as you would like it to, you want to make your favorite deck fresh again, or just want some ideas as to how you can out meta your opponents, be sure to check out this week's episode!
Our Discord: https://discord.gg/SBRF8DH
Our Twitter: https://twitter.com/MtgPioneer

Sunday Jan 16, 2022
#104 - Breaking the Mirror
Sunday Jan 16, 2022
Sunday Jan 16, 2022
The Pioneer format is heating up and with more events firing online and more events being held in Paper, there's a good chance you're going to be doing some tournaments this year. While the format is diverse and there are various builds of individual archetypes out there, every once in a while you will face the dreaded mirror match. If you're joining the metagame, and not attacking it, then you better be prepared to be your own worst enemy.
In this week's episode Kevin and Ryan talk about which decks are most likely to come face to face with themselves in the mirror match, and which cards you could be playing to break that mirror (and hopefully not get 7 years bad luck in the process). If your favorite deck is also many other's favorite deck, don't miss this show!
Our Discord: https://discord.gg/SBRF8DH
Our Twitter: https://twitter.com/MtgPioneer

Monday Jan 10, 2022
#103 - Wrapping and Ramping Up the Crimson Vow Pioneer season
Monday Jan 10, 2022
Monday Jan 10, 2022
ClaudiohMTG, streamer and S-tier MTGO player, joins us to wind down the Crimson Vow Pioneer season and to talk about what the future holds for the format. In this week's episode we go over how the format has evolved since the most recent set was released, the latest results from large events like the Pioneer PTQ at the start of January, how the SCG event announcement will affect paper Pioneer, as well as if Ryan is making a good or bad deck choice for next week's paper Pioneer event in Tokyo.
If you're looking to stay up to date with everything that's happened or is happening in Pioneer be sure to listen to this week's episode!
Our Discord: https://discord.gg/SBRF8DH
Our Twitter: https://twitter.com/MtgPioneer

Monday Dec 27, 2021
#102 - Revisiting Mechanics
Monday Dec 27, 2021
Monday Dec 27, 2021
In our last episode of 2021, the First Pioneers thought we'd wrap up the year with another look at the mechanics of Pioneer. Having already finished talking about the Planes of Pioneer, we thought it would be a good idea to talk about how the newer mechanics fit into the format from Ikoria forward. New mechanics mean new opportunities and we don't want to miss a chance. So which of the newer mechanics are worth playing? Which have potential? And how does the returning mechanic of Ninjutusu find its way into Pioneer? All this in more in our final episode of the year!
Our Discord: https://discord.gg/SBRF8DH
Our Twitter: https://twitter.com/MtgPioneer

Monday Dec 20, 2021
#101 - Pioneer 101: Interview with a Vampire (player)
Monday Dec 20, 2021
Monday Dec 20, 2021
We've been putting together Pioneer 101 shows for a while now to help new players and curious ones who want to know more about the decks of the Pioneer format, so it seemed like a perfect idea for our 101st episode. This also coincided with one of the most prestigious Vampire players making their comeback to Pioneer so of course we had to ask EkerossMTG to come on two weeks in a row to tell us whether or not vampires suck in the literal sense or just when they find their prey.
Whether you want to know how the deck plays, what cards are best for it, or how it matches up with the rest of the Pioneer metagame we got you covered! Luckily the last two sets gave the archetype a lot of new tools to work with so there is quite a lot to talk about. Listening to us talk about vampires for an hour might be a 'pain in the neck' but it's totally worth it! I promise!
Our Discord: https://discord.gg/SBRF8DH
Our Twitter: https://twitter.com/MtgPioneer

Monday Dec 13, 2021
#100 - Pioneer 2021: A Format Odyssey
Monday Dec 13, 2021
Monday Dec 13, 2021
The were many ups and downs in 2021 for Magic the Gathering but after some shaky footing in 2000, the Pioneer format hit the ground running and never looked back. We had some bans, some new decks, some brave new strategies, but most of all we had a record number of players turn to the format. Just what lies in store for Pioneer in the future? Special guest EkerossMTG makes his triumphant return to the podcast (after his big move and new job) and joins The First Pioneers to close out the year and hype up our listeners for what's next!
Our Discord: https://discord.gg/SBRF8DH
Our Twitter: https://twitter.com/MtgPioneer