Last updated on November 10, 2025
Vivi Ornitier | Illustrated by Ryanroro
The day has finally come. Another Banned and Restricted announcement is upon us, and it brings enormous changes to Magic’s Standard format.
Vivi Ornitier is BANNED in Standard
Proft’s Eidetic Memory is BANNED in Standard
Screaming Nemesis is BANNED in Standard
Heartfire Hero is BANNED in Pioneer
Entomb is BANNED in Legacy
Nadu, Winged Wisdom is BANNED in Legacy
High Tide is BANNED in Pauper
Strip Mine is BANNED in Brawl
Mana Drain is BANNED in Brawl
Chrome Mox is BANNED in Brawl
Ancient Tomb is BANNED in Brawl
Vivi: The Gathering
We’ve covered a truly staggering amount of Vivi Ornitier news. The little Izzet Wizard has caused countless other cards to rocket skyward in price, and it rapidly ascended to the #1 Izzet commander spot. Vivi Ornitier is an insanely fun card to play with, but it’s just too broken. It’s everything an Izzet player could want: Easy to abuse mana generation, and big ping damage.
Once you’ve got a few bodies on the board, you start using Proft’s Eidetic Memory, and other comparable abilities, to scale up. Things consistently get out of hand. You generate an increasingly giant board that allows you to keep creating more and more mana and take more and more game actions…it’s a hardcore combo beatdown.
Vivi Cauldron is Gone
Vivi Cauldron has been wrecking Standard for months and months now, completely dominating the competitive metagame. In an announcement regarding the potential of an emergency ban, WotC even admitted that “Vivi Ornitier is warping the Standard format and likely needs to go.”
Folks were surprised when Omniscience dodged the ban, but Abuelo’s Awakening was the one card that enabled the combo to work. Vivi Ornitier, Agatha’s Soul Cauldron and Proft’s Eidetic Memory form a shell that is too infallible.
Fast Mana BANNED in Brawl
With the recent inaugural Brawl Metagame Challenge, the format has seen an explosion in popularity. The metagame can’t handle many Turn 1 or 2 commander casts. Strip Mine equates to mass land denial, and we all know how much fun that is.
Red Deck Wins…Too Much
Screaming Nemesis | Illustrated by Liiga Smilshkalne
The only real contender to stand up to Vivi Cauldron has been, you guessed it, Mono-Red (aka Red Deck Wins). RDW got knocked down a peg with the banning of Monstrous Rage and Heartfire Hero, but it didn’t take too long for the deck to rise up once again. A few of its current all-stars are a just too cracked for the format.
Screaming Nemesis
People hated Monstrous Rage + Heartfire Hero so much because it made blocking an impossibility. If a defending player blocks with a Raged up Heartfire Hero, then they risk taking a ton of damage from its death trigger. Screaming Nemesis is a comparable design.
Legacy Shakeup
Entomb, an absolute mainstay in Legacy reanimator decks, has gotten the axe after many years of contentious legality in the format. Nadu comes as no surprise, as it combos off with a light breeze.
High Tide REBANNED
High Tide was carefully unbanned in Pauper, with the stipulation that it could just as well be banned again. Looks as though the card’s combo potential is too vicious for the format.
The Shape of Things to Come
Aang, the Last Airbender | Illustrated by Yueko
Universes Beyond: Avatar the Last Airbender Prerelease begins on November 14th, we’ll get our first shot at playing the newest Standard-legal cards.
Today’s B&R severely kneecapped Standard’s two best decks, so what happens now? Will Simic Aggro led by Ouroboroid continue to rise the ranks, will Superior Spider-Man bring reanimator straight to the forefront?
Follow Draftsim for awesome articles and set updates:
Eli Weinberg
Eli Weinberg is an actor, freelance writer, and avid MTG player. He hosts monthly Commander meetups in SoCal with his collective Infinite Loop
