Introduction Before jumping in, a quick note: this review will take on a slightly humorous tone inspired by the legal world — a nod to the TV series Better Call Saul, from which the title of this column, Better Call Sauk, originally takes off.
Reminder before the analysis
Before diving into the graphs, here are a few key things to keep in mind:
➤ Timeframe: We're comparing the September 29 banlist (effective for two months) with data collected up to November 19, which gives us a little less than one month of actual play for this first meta-review.
➤ Data scope: Only tournaments with more than 40 players worldwide are included.
➤ Disclaimer : This is a personal initiative that does not bind the committee or affect any of its possible decisions. Other voluntary projects can also be submitted on our new website. Please do not hesitate to ask us for more information. I’d like to remind everyone that my work relies on data analysis — the more data we have, the more reliable the results are. Please remind your Tournament Organizers that it’s important to to report and share their events.
➤ Updates : I’ve overhauled the archetype system: there are now four archetypes, with Tempo mostly being replaced by Aggro or Midrange, and occasionally by Control or Combo from now on. Another new element is the inclusion of data from China and a short summary. New Graphs! And finally, there’s a structural change: the MetaReview will now be published every two months instead of monthly. It’s obviously hard to show the differences between the previous banlist (two months ago) and the current one, while simultaneously commenting on what has changed since the last MetaReview from a month ago. This leads to vague explanations and a lack of clarity overall. It will now be released on the Wednesday right before each banlist announcement.
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What will we find at the stand this month?
Exhibit A - Population Check: Is the Case Solid?
New feature this month: before diving into the core analysis, we’re going to check the population size behind the data to find out how relevant the rest of the review will be.
What we see is that this banlist period is slightly less prolific than the previous one, with a bit less data overall — 22 to 25 tournaments. That’s still totally fine, considering that the yearly average usually sits around 25 events. So overall, we’re right on the expected baseline.
However, even if there were slightly fewer tournaments than in the previous banlist period, Relic’s impact is massive: we’ve almost doubled the total number of players from one banlist to the next. That should give us a much stronger foundation for the numbers presented afterward.
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Let's start with the courtroom's exhibit B: the deck popularity chart.
Remember: popularity ≠ performance. We’re talking presence only here — no verdict on performance yet.
What do we see?
➤ Squee's commanding presence — double the representation of the 4th most-played deck.
➤ Yoshimaru shows one of the biggest declines, yet still holds 2nd place — appeal pending.
➤ Zurgo’s supposed comeback was overruled ! — he’s completely absent now.
➤ Azusa takes the blow ! — the recent set releases have dealt serious damage to her case.
➤ Mono-white rivalry: after months of Cloud's dominance, Phelia is now the crowd’s favorite witness in mono-white. On the other hand, Cloud just won a major case (Relic). However, it is too early to see if the ruling changes the meta.
➤ Newcomer on the stand ! Spider-Man 2099, seizing 6th place.
➤ Tifa is rising fast, a very MTG-like deck winning the jury’s heart.
➤ Honorable mentions waiting outside the courtroom: Cosmic Spider, Peter Parker, Aminatou, Rograkh, Terra.
🔸Verdict: Slimefoot dominates, Yoshi slips, Spider99 rises, and the rest are still pleading their case.
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Now, exhibit C — the meta breakdown by archetype.
This still isn’t about performance— just representation. So, what do we see?
This time we’re looking at archetypes, now split into 4 groups instead of 5.
➤ The story is simple: Combo and Control follow the exact same trends as the previous banlist.
➤ Previously holding onto its spot, Aggro has now lost popularity, and Midrange has absorbed that share, almost vampirizing Aggro’s presence.
➤ The midrange block is more dominant than ever with the new addition of spider99. It also encompasses 3 of the 4 most played decks in the format: Slimefoot & Squee, Aragorn and Deadpool.
🔸 Verdict: Midrange still rules the court, Control and Combo keeps steady, Aggro gets drained .
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Now, exhibit D — the meta breakdown by color identity.
We're still not talking performance yet — just representation. And what do we see?
➤ As expected, Jund becomes the most dominant color combination, overtaking Boros’s spot during the last banlist.
➤ A large number of Yoshimarus have switched to Jeskai — but many of these are “fake Jeskai” lists still functioning like Boros.
➤ Five-color had a small hype spike thanks to Cosmic Spider-Man, and the arrival of Aang might amplify that growth.
➤ The biggest winners this cycle are Izzet (Spider99), Esper (Tivit and Aminatou) and Blue (Lady Octopus and Lier).
➤ However, Lady Octopus had a huge fall after Relic, so the hype may not last.
🔸 Verdict: Jund takes the crown, Boros slips, 5C grows, 4C collapses, and this month’s real winners are Izzet, Esper, and Blue.
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Now, exhibit E — the meta breakdown by CMC.
New case file: this time, we’re examining the Converted Mana Cost of commanders. We’re looking from CMC 0 to CMC 7 — with 0 including cards like Rograkh.
➤ Overall, the situation is extremely stable compared to the previous banlist.
➤ The format overwhelmingly revolves around CMC 2 and CMC 3 commanders. Those two alone make up about 50% of the entire field — clearly dominating.
➤ In third place, we find CMC 4, thanks to Deadpool & Aragorn.
🔸Verdict: the court remains stable—CMC 2 and 3 dominate the witness stand.
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Alright, your honor, for the exhibit F, we're taking the case region by region.
This graph works differently from the others: it combines the current and previous banlists to increase the sample size. We’re looking at the Top 10 of geographic regions, sorted by total player attendance, from highest to lowest. France is split into five sub-regions to make the data more meaningful.
Because just like in real courts, every district has its own style of defense:
➤ For Aggro, Italy shows the highest percentage…but because the Philippines host far more tournaments, they remain the true kings of Aggro in practical terms.
➤ For Control, China makes a dramatic entrance with the most control-heavy territory in the dataset. Still, considering population size, Île-de-France remains the historical and practical stronghold of Control, just like in the previous review.
➤ For Combo, the crown shifts: the southeast of France now steals the title from Czechia’s Combo Court.
➤ For Midrange, Italy shows the strongest proportional preference, largely thanks to their love of Aragorn. But again, population matters: the Northeast of France becomes the true heartland of Midrange: “the Elven Paradise”.
➤ France’s southwest stands out as one of the most balanced regions, even if not the single most balanced. That’s reassuring. After the Relic weekend, seeing such a massive weekend produce a naturally balanced archetype spread is a positive sign for the present, and perhaps even the future of the format.
🔸Verdict: In short, Philippines rule Aggro, Île-de-France rule Control, the southeast steals the Combo crown, the northeast becomes the Midrange homeland - and the balanced south of France gives hope for a balanced format..
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Who's guilty of dominating the meta? The efficiency trial begins.
Exhibit G : Who Truly Delivers on the Stand?
We’re now done with the meta side — time to examine deck performance.
I’m showing a global chart to help visualize the relationship between presence and Top 8 conversion.
This chart includes the 29 decks that reached at least 44 recorded entries across the two banlists.
That threshold gives us a “Top 30” sample, but remember: the more data, the stronger the case.
Across the two banlists, we recorded: ➤ 3,300 decks at event start
➤ 500 Top 8 appearances
From this, the average conversion rate is 15%. Meaning: ➤ Around 12-18% = “normal”
➤ Above 18% = overperforming
➤ Below 12% = underperforming
Another thing worth checking is the layout symmetry between presence and Top 8 results. A balanced deck should roughly mirror its share of the field with its share of the Top 8.
The overperformers: ➤ At first glance, Combo seems a bit ahead in overall performance…but we must be cautious, since many combo decks have small sample sizes.
➤ With larger margins, here are the clear overperformers: Spider99, Thrasios, Phelia, Squee, Aragorn.
The underperformers: ➤ At first glance, Control seems a bit behind in overall performance.
➤ With larger margins, here are the clear underperformers: Azusa, Aminatou.
Slimefoot, Deadpool, and Yoshi seem to be the metronomes of the format : if you want to win the case, you'll have to start by choosing a strategy or deck that can beat them, regardless of their lawyer.
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Now, exhibit H — Presence vs. Performance: Who Lives Up to Their Testimony?
Now we’re comparing the promises of the meta with the reality of performance. This time, we’re looking at the distribution of Top 8 results by archetype.
The logic is simple: If a deck is heavily represented in the meta, it should also be strongly represented in Top 8s and if it is barely present, it shouldn’t magically appear in large numbers at the end.
The graph shows the Top 15 decks, ordered from left to right by presence (the red dots). The turquoise bars represent their real Top 8 performance.
➤ Squee, Phelia, Spiderman 99 (with an insane overperformance) and Thrasios Combo are above the top.
➤ Everything else is extremely balanced, with most decks landing roughly where they “should” be based on presence.
➤ Only two decks truly underperform: Kefka, the biggest disappointment in the lineup and Yoshi, but only slightly — barely noticeable compared to Kefka.
🔸 Verdict: Squee, Phelia, Spidey 2099 and Thrasios overperform hard, most decks stay balanced, and Kefka stands out as the clear underperformer.
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Now, exhibit I — Which Archetypes Takes the Crown.
We are still viewing the distribution of Top 8 results by archetype.
➤ Despite similar (or even identical) presence between Combo and Control, Control underperforms and Combo overperforms.
➤ On the opposite side: Aggro underperforms and Midrange overperforms.
➤ Overall, Midrange fully assumes its role as the archetype delivering solid and reliable results.
🔸 Verdict: Midrange solidifies its role as the most reliable archetype in the courtroom.
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Now, exhibit J — The Archetypes Face the Verdict.
Let’s keep the performance train rolling — this time, taking a look at how each of the four archetypes performs. This chart measures how often decks from each archetype convert into the Top 8, not how the Top 8 is divided among archetypes.
➤ Compared to the previous banlist, every archetype except Combo has dropped slightly in performance. Combo is the only one that rose, absorbing the small declines from the other three.
➤ As a result, Combo becomes the top-performing archetype, overtaking Midrange. Previously, Midrange was barely ahead of Combo in performance — the lead was small. Now the situation flips: Combo takes the advantage, by a very narrow margin.
🔸 Verdict: All archetypes dip except for Combo, which absorbs the difference and narrowly overtakes Midrange as the top performer.
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TEST
Finally, exhibit K — How Old Is the Crime Scene?
Final point for today — and this time, it’s a test run, an experimental angle. I’m trying something new: checking the whole metagame based on deck age, meaning the year their commander first appeared. This gives us a look at how “new” or “old” the most played decks really are.
➤ There are a huge number of decks less than one year old.
➤ Far fewer decks are one to two years old.
➤ Then we see a big spike at exactly two years, and after that the numbers drop off sharply. That’s when Slimefoot & Squee and Aragorn were released. Those two alone represent around 630 decks.
➤ So the chart naturally inflates that specific window — not because of time itself, but because several of the format’s giants were all born in the same year.
➤ Some dinosaurs are still alive
🔸 Verdict: A huge surge in “two-year-old” decks - mainly because Slimefoot, Aragorn, Atraxa and Hidetsugu all entered the format at the same time
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Huge congratulations to Relic for their RelicFest 2025
A new world record for DC attendance!
This event was a fantastic milestone for the community, and several members of the Committee were on-site to share the moment — and even meet for the first time! A special shout-out to our Regional Coordinator Bitzelberg, whom we were delighted to finally meet in person.
We’re wrapping this up with a small group photo to mark the occasion.
And if you haven’t already, feel free to join the Relic Discord to stay connected with this amazing community! Thanks again to the whole Relic team for their passion and dedication :
While we’re at it — and since this is his favorite kind of message — we’re also sharing our own Discord link. Come join us too: we’re almost at 2,000 members now :
That's all from me. I hope what I presented was interesting, that the verdict is clear to you, and that you'll make the right calls when it's time to find the deck guilty of victory in your next tournament!
We will publish every Wednesday until the next announcement. NEXT ONE WILL BE 21TH JANUARY
Feel free to contact (PM or directly in Discord) me to suggest other statistics that could be interesting.
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BONUS
When the courtroom goes digital, every click becomes evidence.
Exclusive data from MTGO Trials (and RelicFest this time) — huge thanks to Jiliac and his team for making this possible.
➤ Some confidence intervals are too wide → interpret with caution.
🔸 Verdict: treat MTGO data as supporting evidence, not the final ruling.
What about the Chinese Court ?
To wrap things up, we’re ending with the data sent from China by our Regional Coordinator. It’s a very interesting dataset covering the Chinese metagame over the last two months under the current banlist. The chart shows the full metagame distribution for China only.
➤ We can see they have a higher-than-average interest in 5-color decks.
➤ Yoshimaru is also more popular there than in most regions.
➤ Meanwhile, Squee is less dominant in China compared to the global field.
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Remember: in this court, everyone's innocent… until proven broken.
Better Call Sauk
Meta Review #2
19th November 2025
Duel Commander
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