Playing Bant In Standard Part One.

Hello!
Today I am going to begin to talk about Bant, a very strong contender in the standard metagame. In part one I am going to share with you the deck list (rooting from Manuel Bucher's deck that placed 6th at worlds. I give him credit for designing this deck, well the base of it.) and what role each card plays in the deck. Then in part two I will share Side boarding tips and match up strengths. So, let's get started!

If you do not know what to play in the current standard metagame then look no further. Bant is a powerful deck that utilizes some of T2's most powerful creatures such as Baneslayer Angel , Knight Of The Reliquary, Rhox War Monk and Emeria Angel. It also includes a great selection of mana accelerators to bring your War Monks and Knights out on turn two! Without further ado, here is the list. You can also find it in better format here (recommended). Also check out http://www.mtgfanatic.com/ for more great magic decks and articles!

Main Deck:
4 Noble Hiearch
2 Birds of Paradise
4 Steward of Valeron
4 Baneslayer Angel
4 Emeria Angel
4 Knight of the Reliquary
1 Battlegrace Angel
4 Rhox War Monk
2 Path to Exile
3 Brave the Elements
2 Ajani Goldmane
1 Elspeth, Knight-Errant
2 honor of the pure

4 mist rainforest
3 marsh flats
1 verdant catacombs
3 seaside citadel
4 sunpedal grove
1 kabiri crossroads
1 island
2 plains
4 forest

Sideboard:
2 battlegrace angel
4 wall of denial
2 qasil pridemage
1 world queller
3 great sable stag
2 path to exile
1 gargoyle castle

Again, if you want you to see the stats of any of these cards or want to see the deck in a better format just click here.

Alright so, the main deck first.

4 Baneslayer Angel- A must, this card is insane and having the power to drop this beast on turn 3 (via, hiearch's, Steward's and bird's) puts your opponent into a bad position. Although it is better to cast War monks and Knights first to try to force your opponent to waste their removal on them instead Baneslayer is still a brute that can win the game in a single attack!

4 Rhox War Monk, 4 Knight of the Reliquary- Again two very strong creatures to play on the second turn thanks to hiearch and birds. Knight is also insane with Emeria Angel allowing you to sacrifice a forest or plains and grab a fetch, then fetch into another land pumping the knight +2/+2 and bringing two birds into play. It can also search Crossroads when low on life and Castle from the board.

4 Emeria Angel- Great evasion and creates great chump blockers. This beast also provides a lethal strike force when backed up by Ajani, Honor
or Knight.

1 Battlegrace Angel- Good against Naya and Eldrazi green.

4 Noble Hiearch, 2 Birds of Paradise, 4 Steward of the Valeron- For accelerating the speed of the deck and dropping gigantic creatures very early in the game.

2 Path to Exile- Two may seem odd but your creatures are normally much bigger then your opponents so leaving only 2 main deck isn't that big of deal as you do not need to kill their guys to win. However, 2 more should be boarded in in every deck that plays Baneslayer Angel.

3 Brave the Elements- A great card for protecting The Queen (Baneslayer) and has won me a number of games against Vampires or Green when the board was clogged with creatures and no one could risk attacking..

2 Ajani Goldmane, 2 Honor of the Pure, 1 Elspeth, Knight-Errant- They are here to make your creatures even bigger.

23 lands- You need lands to play spells...

As for the sideboard and match up analysis check out my next post. Coming soon.

And Remember, if you ever need Magic cards but your local stores are sold out and no one is trading them then go to http://www.mtgfanatic.com/ and order your cards from them. They have a wide selection or cards to choose from with great prices.
Stay tuned.
Scott Metzger

Phazr, on http://www.mtgfanatic.com/