The First Pioneers

#178 - The Wilds of Eldraine Pioneer Set Review

The next set has finally dropped and The First Pioneers are ready to head deep into the woods with the Wilds of Eldraine! As always we focus on the cards we think will have the biggest impact on the Pioneer format, talk about which archetypes will get a boost, and give our Top 5 picks we think will make a splash.

After listening, if you want to drop your own Top 5 picks from Wilds of Eldraine, be sure to visit our Discord or let us know on Twitter!

 

Our Discord: https://discord.gg/SBRF8DH

Our Twitter: https://twitter.com/MtgPioneer

You can find our other episodes on the Untap Leagues website as well! https://untapleagues.com/author/the-first-pioneers/

#177 - The Future of Pioneer

Gen Con in Indianapolis dropped A LOT of information about the future of Magic the Gathering, or at least one heck of a timeline of new sets that will be affecting the Pioneer format when they release. Before we jump into the Wilds of Eldraine next show, we want to invite you to go over all the new sets that were announced and talk about their potential impact on our favorite eternal format. In this episode we talked about what these new sets are going to be about, what kind of themes we can expect, as well as a wishlist of cards we'd like to see show up and any possible reprints.

 

But what about your reaction to all the news? Are you as excited as us or are you being a little more cautious? Whatever you're thinking, we'd love to hear it so be sure to jump into our Discord or find us on Twitter after listening!

 

Our Discord: https://discord.gg/SBRF8DH

Our Twitter: https://twitter.com/MtgPioneer

You can find our other episodes on the Untap Leagues website as well! https://untapleagues.com/author/the-first-pioneers/

#176 - The Less Things Change, The More They are the Same

Pioneer players were met with the news that there would be NO cards banned or restricted in Wizards of the Coast's annual ban announcement this week, deflating a lot of people's hope that the format would have some new life breathed into it after a draining season of qualifiers against Mono Green devotion, Rakdos, and various combo and control decks. We at The First Pioneers had been taking it easy this summer making content so we could focus on self care and enjoying a slower pace of life for once, but after this announcement we could stay quiet no longer. There is a lot we want to say about the silence and deaf ear being turned to competitive formats in Magic the Gathering, and we're sure many of our followers would like to hear their concerns voiced as well.

We also go over some of the early spoilers from Wilds of Eldraine and talk about what kind of cards we'd like to see printed (or reprinted!) in the set. After listening to this week's episode, if you would like to add to the discussion you can do so on our Discord or you can give us a follow on Twitter.

Our Discord: https://discord.gg/SBRF8DH

Our Twitter: https://twitter.com/MtgPioneer

You can find our other episodes on the Untap Leagues website as well! https://untapleagues.com/author/the-first-pioneers/

#175 - Exploring the Unexplored Reaches of Pioneer

One of the great things about Pioneer is that new decks are still being discovered every season. While it might now be at the same frequency as the format's early years, you can still count on things to be shaken up from time to time. Color combinations of all types have found strategies to play, and since we finished most of the land cycles, mana bases have never been better. But not all color combinations have been so fortunate. For every Rakdos or Azorious archetype, color combinations like Orzhov (BW) and Golgari (BG) have few or none.

 

In this week's episode the First Pioneers want to get to the bottom of the reason why not every Guild combination is created equal. We focus solely on those forgotten colors with very few or no playable archetypes in Pioneer and discuss what we think their identity should be. We also go over what Wizards of the Coast needs to print in those colors in order to make them viable.

 

After listening, if you want to add some suggestions of your own, stop into our Discord and join the discussion or tweet at us on Twitter!

 

Our Discord: https://discord.gg/SBRF8DH

Our Twitter: https://twitter.com/MtgPioneer

You can find our other episodes on the Untap Leagues website as well! https://untapleagues.com/author/the-first-pioneers/

#174 - Dear Wizards of the Coast . . .

As the end of the Pioneer regional qualifier season draws to a close, The First Pioneers go over the most recent results from the last 2 weeks of events and talk about the future of the Pioneer format. While the majority of Pioneer players probably think that the format is fine, many people would be happy to see it change too. But what are the problems that Wizards of Coast needs to fix in Pioneer and how should they fix them? There's always room for improvement and we give Wizards of the Coast a long list of things we don't like about the format at the moment and what we'd like to see happen to it in the near future.

I'm sure many of you also have some suggestions for Pioneer and we'd like to hear from you! Join our discord and talk about it or give us a follow on Twitter!

Our Discord: https://discord.gg/SBRF8DH

Our Twitter: https://twitter.com/MtgPioneer

You can find our other episodes on the Untap Leagues website as well! https://untapleagues.com/author/the-first-pioneers/

#173 - Can You Dig It?

The First Pioneers aren't some group of jive turkeys. We're cooler than cool, hipper than hip, and if you want to play a card nobody else plays in Pioneer, we can dig it. In fact, we love to dig up new things to do in the format. After our last show's topic on Boros Convoke, we wanted to expand on Knight Errant of Eos' ability to "dig" for cards. Were there any other cards that could do the same type of thing in Pioneer? What kind of ways can you "dig" through your deck?

After discussing the idea with my co-hosts we decided that any ability that lets you look at 4 or more cards at a time would be included, and with that in mind we went through the entire pool of Pioneer. We started with the most played cards that can "dig" and finished with cards that also dug into decks, but weren't seeing much or any play. We hoped that somebody else would hear about these cards and further help expand the format. You'd be surprised by how many dig cards there are that people currently aren't using. We hope that after listening to this week's show though, that you too, can "dig" it.

Our Discord: https://discord.gg/SBRF8DH

Our Twitter: https://twitter.com/MtgPioneer

You can find our other episodes on the Untap Leagues website as well! https://untapleagues.com/author/the-first-pioneers/

#172 - Pioneer 101: Boros Convoke

The Boros Convoke deck has made big waves in Pioneer over the last few weeks but not everybody has been able to wrap their heads around it. As with every other new deck that breaks onto the scene, at first it seems broken and unstoppable. But is it? Does it have any bad match ups? And what about its good ones? What are the main cards of the deck and what is the best deck list?

This week The First Pioneers give you the total run down on this new strategy and talk about its place in the new Pioneer metagame. We go over the last few weeks of Pioneer tournament results, including the Grand Open Qualifier at Valencia, and discuss what Pioneer will look like going forward with this new deck.

If you're looking to learn to play or play against Boros Convoke, definitely give this week's show a listen!

Our Discord: https://discord.gg/SBRF8DH

Our Twitter: https://twitter.com/MtgPioneer

You can find our other episodes on the Untap Leagues website as well! https://untapleagues.com/author/the-first-pioneers/

#171 - Pioneer’s Days of Future Past

This week The First Pioneers hop into the way back machine to revisit some of the best decks the Pioneer format has ever seen to talk about what made them tick, what the format lost when the decks disappeared, and what happened to the deck's cards when the deck was forgotten. We believe it's time to take another look at some of those past strategies and cards to see if they could have life once more in the Pioneer format in some other shape or form.

While we were on the topic of cards that were once we good, we thought it would also be good to talk about cards that we think people should give a chance to in Pioneer. New cards are always pushing old ones to the forefront in Magic the Gathering, but just because we find one thing that works doesn't mean we should stop looking. Join us this week as we rediscover cards and look for new things to do in Pioneer!

 

Our Discord: https://discord.gg/SBRF8DH

Our Twitter: https://twitter.com/MtgPioneer

You can find our other episodes on the Untap Leagues website as well! https://untapleagues.com/author/the-first-pioneers/

#170 - March of the Machines Spring Metagame Recap

This Mother's Day, skip out on the flowers and candies and get her something special, like a break down of the Pioneer metagame leading up to March of the Machines Aftermath. She'll be grateful for your thoughtfulness and happy that you care (about Magic the Gathering).

While short, the MOM metagame created a lot of innovation and added a lot of new lines of play to a wide variety of decks. But will the new decks and cards stick around as the Aftermath cards shake things up yet again? Will we continue to see decks innovate and optimize or players give up on doing so until after the next Pioneer qualifier season? Listen to The First Pioneers discuss what's happened to the Pioneer metagame since March of the Machines since it launched, and where we think it will go now that Aftermath is out.

 

Our Discord: https://discord.gg/SBRF8DH

Our Twitter: https://twitter.com/MtgPioneer

You can find our other episodes on the Untap Leagues website as well! https://untapleagues.com/author/the-first-pioneers/

#169 - March of the Machines: Aftermath Pioneer Set Review

The paint on the cards in March of the Machines had barely dried when Wizards of the Coast decided to release Aftermath, a supplemental, undraftable mini set (but Standard/Pioneer legal). How will competitive players react to this set? Will they embrace the cards or will they dismiss them as an afterthought? The First Pioneers believe we should give some of them a try in the Pioneer format, but with players still feeling out the last set, it might be some time before any of the Aftermath cards makes a splash in the format.

If you're feeling some new set fatigue or just don't want to devote any time to the new cards right now, let us give you some suggestions to get you started brewing or to prepare you for what you might see in the metagame this summer. And if we missed some cards be sure to pop into our Discord or onto our Twitter to let us know how you'd build decks with them!

Our Discord: https://discord.gg/SBRF8DH

Our Twitter: https://twitter.com/MtgPioneer

You can find our other episodes on the Untap Leagues website as well! https://untapleagues.com/author/the-first-pioneers/