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Deckbuilding in Magic: The Gathering Arena is not always as complicated as it might sound. With the casual Gladiator format becoming official soon, thanks to Wizards of the Coast, it’s definitely about to see a lot more players checking it out. This mode, in particular, is arriving in Magic: The Gathering Arena as part of an upcoming event, so many players are going to be trying it out for potentially the first time.
When it comes to designing a deck, there are a few things that players should consider before they go diving into the delightful world of Gladiator in Magic: The Gathering Arena. It’s a fun, casual mode that allows players to make some amazing plays, but it does take some thought when it comes to actually creating a deck.
What is the Gladiator format in Magic: The Gathering Arena?
In Magic: The Gathering, deckbuilding can be a fun but also challenging experience. Many of the tips in this article can also help with deckbuilding in other formats, with some notable exceptions.
Furthermore, it's important to note that in Gladiator for Arena, there will be a few banned cards, but not that many. Other than these cards, any card in Magic: The Gathering Arena can be used in a deck, but only one copy of each. Basic lands can be used infinitely, as can cards that specify they can have multiple cards in the card text.
Banned cards for Gladiator
- Field of the Dead
- Natural Order
- Nexus of Fate
- Oko, Thief of Crowns
- Teferi, Time Raveler
Gladiator is a genuinely fun Magic: The Gathering Arena format and is being highlighted by Wizards of the Coast as a limited-time event within the game. It’s currently not known if it will join the game as a permanent mode to play in, but here are some tips to help players with tabletop as well as digital Magic: The Gathering.
Tips to help new Gladiator players
- Decide on a purpose and identity for the deck
- Avoid having multiple strategies in the deck
- Play the deck repeatedly before deciding on deck adjustments
- Don't be afraid to gain inspiration from other players' decks
- Gladiator decks need more mana than regular MTG decks
5) Decide on a purpose and identity for the deck
Unlike Commander, players don’t have a character to essentially build their deck around. While players in Gladiator can do whatever they want with regards to their deck, a deck will typically perform better if it has one clear identity.
It’s important to decide on a deck archetype, whether it’s aggro, control, or whatever the player is into. Magic: The Gathering Arena players can still run card draw, card seeking, and removal cards in any deck archetype, but it’s important to have a solid idea before going in.
Also, remember that there is no sideboard for this format, so every card that players need has to be in the mainboard. Even if the deck is just one to have fun with, decide on a design and stick to it.
4) Avoid running multiple strategies in the same deck
Once a deck type has been decided on, it’s important to stick to that idea. One of the major problems with formats like this is that players see that they have 100 cards to work with. This generally leads to overloading a deck with too many different combinations.
Don’t mix and match strategies. If the deck is going to focus around creature strategies and synergy, avoid cards that gain extra power from Instants and Sorceries. Control decks will not run swarms of weak creatures. It’s going to want creatures that have major value, can end games, and can add value to the strategy of locking down the board.
It’s fun to have an answer to every problem, but focus and consistency brings the possibility of incredible, game-winning plays. If everything in the deck is focused around the initial deck strategy, winning becomes easier and more enjoyable. It’s also worth focusing on just colors that typically build towards your strategy.
3) Play the deck repeatedly before deciding on adding/removing cards
As Magic players get experience with a deck, they will notice that there are cards that are underperforming and may need to be removed. Conversely, they may decide that another card or two needs to go in and the struggle to find room for it begins.
Don’t base a deck’s success off of one or two matches. A few losses doesn’t mean that a deck is bad and needs to be scrapped. Instead, give it a few more matches and carefully consider how things went.
Look at what went right or wrong, and consider what cards were needed to right the ship. One of the hardest parts of Gladiator is that players have a 100-card deck, and so that one amazing, overpowered card may take 5-10 games to even show up once.
When deciding to adjust a Magic: The Gathering Arena deck, approach it from an analytical point of view instead of simply liking or disliking a card. Don’t be afraid to record matches or take notes about what is or is not doing well.
2) Don’t be afraid to find inspiration in other peoples' decks
Netdecking is a concept that almost always leads to heated discussions in Magic: The Gathering Arena. When someone talks about Netdecking, it’s when someone goes online and copies the deck of another player wholesale.
It's not that players should just copy whatever deck they see is winning and use it themselves, but it’s never a bad idea to look at other decklists, either on websites or on Discord servers. This way, players can see how others are approaching the aggro, control, or combo deck they desire to build.
There are always players innovating in Magic: The Gathering, and it’s an amazing way to discover ways to win that may not have been obvious initially. One of the best things about Magic: The Gathering Arena is being able to talk to others about the game and get ideas and suggestions.
1) Gladiator decks need more mana than regular MTG decks
It’s important to note that a standard Magic: The Gathering Arena deck is going to need far more mana compared to a regular deck. Getting mana screwed (drawing fewer lands than needed in a match) a few times does not necessarily mean that a deck’s mana base is bad.
In a 100-card deck, players are likely going to need somewhere between 33 and 42 lands, with a blend of basic lands and special lands. In a mono-colored deck, it’s much easier to figure out what type of lands a player needs.
It’s far easier to build mono-colored and two-colored decks, but three becomes much harder. In that case, players will want to determine which is the primary color, the secondary color, and the splash color. There’s an online calculator that can help with this and is known as the MTG Mana Calculator. For anyone that isn’t sure, they can fill out this calculator and figure out what their mana base needs to be.
Gladiator is supposed to be a fun format, but since this is an event in Magic: The Gathering Arena, having a solid deck is going to be necessary to get wins. If players are able to play against each other in a casual format, then more ridiculous decks will likely begin showing up.
While the event is a limited-time feature, many fans hope it sticks around to create another casual way to play with friends.
