Challenger Decks are back for 2020, and Magic players are already excited about what this new batch of decks has to offer. All four decks are currently available at Card Kingdom individually or as a set of four for just $99.99.
Challenger Decks are preconstructed Standard decks, built to be competitive out of the box at Friday Night Magic. As such, each deck contains a full 60-card main deck and 15-card sideboard. So, if you’re new to Magic or want to play in your first tabletop tournament after starting on Arena, this is the product for you.
While this may be the most competitive crop of Challenger Decks we’ve seen in the product’s three-year run, there’s still room to streamline these lists. Check out the full decklists and our suggested upgrades below!
Allied Fires
3 Sarkhan the Masterless
1 Ugin, the Ineffable
3 Kasmina, Enigmatic Mentor
4 Narset, Parter of Veils
2 Saheeli, Sublime Artificer
1 Kenrith, the Returned King
2 Fae of Wishes
3 Deafening Clarion
2 Drawn from Dreams
2 Time Wipe
4 Fires of Invention
2 Banishing Light
4 Omen of the Sea
1 Steam Vents
1 Temple of Enlightenment
1 Temple of Epiphany
1 Temple of Triumph
4 Interplanar Beacon
3 Swiftwater Cliffs
3 Tranquil Cove
4 Wind-Scarred Crag
5 Island
2 Mountain
2 Plains
Sideboard:
1 Sarkhan the Masterless
1 Time Wipe
1 Mass Manipulation
1 Ashiok, Dream Render
2 Devout Decree
1 Dovin, Hand of Control
1 Dovin’s Veto
2 Fry
2 Revoke Existence
3 Thirst for Meaning
Allied Fires is a take on the popular Jeskai Fires deck in Standard. As its name suggests, the key card in this deck is Fires of Invention from Throne of Eldraine. Fires allows you to cast two spells per turn without paying their mana costs, at the cost of only casting spells during your turn. Consequently, most players build Fires as a “tap-out”-style control deck: instead of using counterspells and removal to manage the board, you can lean on board-wipes and demand answers to your own threats.
Allied Fires differs a bit from the Fires decks we saw at Worlds: the deck uses Planeswalkers to close out the game in place of the popular Cavaliers of Flame and Gales. While ending the game with flying Planeswalkers is appealing, this deck has relatively few permanents that allow it to use its leftover mana. Kenrith is a valuable inclusion here, as is Omen of the Sea; consider stocking up on additional mana sinks, like Castle Vantress.
Cavalcade Charge
3 Chandra, Acolyte of Flame
4 Bonecrusher Giant
4 Fervent Champion
4 Runaway Steam-Kin
4 Torbran, Thane of Red Fell
4 Rimrock Knight
4 Scorch Spitter
3 Tin Street Dodger
4 Light Up the Stage
1 Embercleave
4 Cavalcade of Calamity
3 Castle Embereth
18 Mountain
Sideboard:
3 Experimental Frenzy
3 Satyr’s Cunning
4 Shock
3 Slaying Fire
2 Tibalt, Rakish Instigator
If red creature decks are your speed, charge into battle with Cavalcade Charge! This deck’s signature spell is Cavalcade of Calamity, which deals damage to your opponent whenever a one-power creature attacks. As expected, Cavalcade Charge features plenty of one-power creatures, plus Torbran, Thane of Red Fell to increase their damage output. (Torbran increases damage dealt by Cavalcade of Calamity, too!)
Cavalcade Charge is quite similar to the Mono-Red deck that Seth Manfield brought to the recent World Championship. Interestingly, those decks eschewed Cavalcade and the main-deck Chandra’s for Robber of the Rich, Anax, and additional copies of Embercleave. The ‘Cleave is a great way to go over the top in close matches, but Cavalcade will serve you just fine if you’re looking for a budget option. However, if you expect to face a lot of control decks at Friday Night Magic, we recommend giving Anax a try.
Final Adventure
1 Vraska, Golgari Queen
4 Edgewall Innkeeper
2 Blacklance Paragon
2 Knight of the Ebon Legion
4 Lovestruck Beast
2 Midnight Reaper
2 Murderous Rider
4 Foulmire Knight
4 Order of Midnight
4 Smitten Swordmaster
2 Find // Finality
2 Disfigure
4 Lucky Clover
2 Castle Locthwain
1 Fabled Passage
2 Temple of Malady
3 Jungle Hollow
7 Forest
8 Swamp
Sideboard:
2 Massacre Girl
1 Cling to Dust
4 Duress
2 Kraul Harpooner
4 Noxious Grasp
2 Thrashing Brontodon
Final Adventure bears a striking resemblance to Ally Warfield’s Golgari Adventures list from Mythic Championship VII. The core of the deck is the same: use Edgewall Innkeeper and creatures with adventure abilities to draw lots of cards, and copy your adventures with Lucky Clover. The deck also plays quite a few knights, so Smitten Swordmaster can end the game with Lucky Clover in play. Final Adventure even adds a few more knights to the mix — Knight of the Ebon Legion and Blacklance Paragon.
While this deck has a fairly synergistic core, there’s plenty of room for customization. Black and green provide tons of removal options, so feel free to add in Assassin’s Trophy or Casualties of War as needed. You can also streamline the manabase a bit if you have access to Overgrown Tombs. And if you expect to face many blue decks at FNM, Shifting Ceratops is a great option for your sideboard.
Flash of Ferocity
1 Brazen Borrower
4 Nightpack Ambusher
1 Wavebreak Hippocamp
4 Wildborn Preserver
4 Brineborn Cutthroat
4 Frilled Mystic
4 Spectral Sailor
2 Thassa’s Intervention
4 Opt
4 Quench
2 Sinister Sabotage
2 Unsummon
2 Castle Vantress
1 Fabled Passage
2 Temple of Mystery
3 Thornwood Falls
8 Forest
8 Island
Sideboard:
3 Shifting Ceratops
3 Aether Gust
2 Disdainful Stroke
2 Mystical Dispute
2 Negate
3 Threnody Singer
Simic Flash decks have evolved over the past few months, but Flash of Ferocity stays true to the deck’s roots. This deck backs up Brineborn Cutthroat and Nightpack Ambusher with counterspells to win the game in a flash. The core of the deck is classic late-summer-2019 Standard with a few Theros Beyond Death additions: Wavebreak Hippocamp and Thassa’s Intervention.
The core of this deck is powerful, but there are some variations you could consider. Some Flash decks cut the aggressive creatures in favor of Nissa, Who Shakes the World and Hydroid Krasis. Others combined Brazen Borrower and Brineborn Cutthroat with Bonecrusher Giant to form the formidable Izzet Flash. Regardless of how you build this deck, we highly recommend having a plan to deal with Teferi, Time Raveler if you plan on playing this deck at FNM.
Which of these Challenger Decks will you be picking up? Which one would you recommend to a friend? Sound off on social media and be sure to tag us at @Card_Kingdom!