Banning a card is the easy part. It almost never solves the format.

cEDH learned that years ago. Flash got banned to end the standoff where anyone with two open mana could combo off at any moment. Then Borne Upon a Wind and friends brought the same threat right back. Riftbound sealed is learning it now: take out the obvious problem, and the real one is still sitting in the packs.

I’ve run enough events to know what happens after a ban list drops. Half the room spends the week asking what should go next. The other half asks what’s still good. That half makes top cut.

This week: a threat that outlived its ban, and a problem the fix never touched.

Let’s get into it.

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Every counterspell the table spends on another player is one it can’t spend on you.

By Eisenherz

1. Why instant-speed-lines are essential

In cEDH it’s not just important who has the strongest win condition or accumulated the most resources, but also when you try to present your winning line. A player can have all the necessary cards on the board, their hand and the graveyard, enough mana available, but still be in a position where they can’t put a win on the stack and be forced to wait to get back to their turn, because their win condition is restricted to sorcery-speed.

Luckily cEDH decks today have multiple tools at their disposal that allow them to present wins at instant-speed. This potential threat of instant-speed wins fundamentally changes the dynamic of a cEDH game, not because you have to win at instant-speed, but because everyone potentially has the option to do so.

A player that is pushing for a win at sorcery-speed always runs the risk that their opponents will use that window to react, interact or even go over them. This implies that if you don’t have the option to push at instant-speed, you are highly limiting your strategic options compared to players that do have instant-speed lines available. 

But this is just the tip of the iceberg. Let’s dive a bit deeper.

2. From Flash-Hulk to modern cEDH

The importance of instant-speed wins is nothing new in cEDH. The so-called “Flash-Hulk-Meta” was known for having the option to win at instant speed for only 2 mana, by casting Flash, putting Protean Hulk into play, sacrificing it and finding a game-winning pile of creatures. It was incredibly efficient, resilient and changed cEDH in a way that made the banning of Flash unavoidable. Essentially, most games quickly devolved into a „Mexican standoff“, because any player that had at least 2 mana available was permanently presenting the option to win on top of any other game action. And while the banning of Flash solved one problematic line, it didn’t solve the underlying problem, because today we have new tools at our disposal that essentially do the same thing, such as Emergence Zone, Leyline of Anticipation, Borne Upon a Wind, Valley Floodcaller and High Fae Trickster.

These cards made threatening a win at instant-speed much more reliable again – not just for turbo Necropotence decks, but for all decks that are able to play at least some of these cards. Instant-speed has again become a strategic tool that affects every stack-interaction, because if everyone is potentially able to win at instant-speed, every other player has to anticipate that threat at every point of the game.

3. Turn Structure

To fully grasp the strategic value of flash-enablers like Emergence Zone, Borne Upon a Wind and Valley Floodcaller it’s worth looking at the turn-structure in cEDH. A regular turn is split into multiple steps and phases:

Windows to present wins at sorcery speed

In a full turn rotation these steps and phases happen four times – once for every player. Without flash-enablers or instant-speed lines, your options to present a combo are limited to only two small windows – your own main phase 1 and main phase 2.

Flash-enablers and instant-speed lines greatly increase your options though. Essentially, you can present a win at any time you get priority.

Windows to present wins at instant speed

4. Instant Speed wins in practice

The strategic value of instant-speed lines and flash-enablers becomes very clear if you look at specific game play situations in which the timing of an action decides over which player can use their abilities first and thereby end up winning. Two factors are are especially relevant:
- Winning over an opposing win attempt that’s already on the stack.

- Abusing APNAP trigger-order to gain an advantage while combing off.

4.1 Example 1: Winning over your opponent – instant-speed as pseudo-interaction

The most obvious application of instant-speed lines is the ability to bypass the need to directly answer an opponent's win attempt by giving you the option to just win on top of them.

Suppose a player holds their winning line as well as several pieces of interaction in hand. When an opponent initiates a win attempt they force the other players to commit their interaction. Rather than jumping on the stack early and exhausting their own resources, another player that has an instant-speed line available can simply wait until their opponents have depleted their resources. Now that player can present their own winning line, with the original win attempt still on the stack.

This shifts the classic dynamic of a win attempt: Typically, a player must force their combo through the opponent’s interaction and therefore keep at least a few pieces of protection available. With instant-speed lines however, they can wait until the opponents have already spent their resources on a different win attempt.

In this sense, a flash-enabler effectively functions as an additional form of interaction or protection. It doesn’t counter an opponent’s spell, but it opens a new window of opportunity with a specific strategic advantage that makes their own win attempt particularly hard to stop.

Silence-effects like Silence, Orim’s Chant or Ranger-Captain of Eos can also support such attempts, because they can be used to stop an opponents combo, silence all other players and safely win on top of an existing combo.

That being said, one must always keep in mind that other players might also be preparing their own instant-speed wins. It is crucial that your opponent's attempts no longer pose an immediate threat by going over your winning line. Instant-speed lines and flash-enablers don’t replace the need to analyze the game state. They merely expand the options of choosing the optimal moment to push.

4.2 Example 2: Abusing APNAP trigger-order – the first to trigger is the last to benefit

Another example for the value of instant-speed lines and flash-enablers is the order in which triggers are placed on the stack and resolve. Assume a game state like this:

If player 1 is the active player (AP) and they try to win via Thassa’s Oracle, they will trigger their own Birgi, God of Storytelling as well as player 2s Rhystic Study. This will trigger player 3s Orcish Bowmasters as well as player 4s Smothering Tithe. Smothering Tithe resolves first, creating a treasure token and allowing player 4 to draw a card from Marneus Calgar, which again will trigger player 3s Orcish Bowmasters.

With player 1s Thassa’s Oracles as well as their Birgi-trigger still on the bottom of the stack player 3 will send 2 damage to their face, putting them at 2 life. Now player 4 can use their treasure token to cast any instant. This will trigger player 1s Rhystic Study as well as player 2s Rhystic Study. Since player 1 is the AP, their triggers go on the stack first, then player 2s trigger is placed on the stack and therefore resolves first.

Player 2 draws a card, which again triggers player 3s Orcish Bowmasters and player 4s Smothering Tithe. Player 4 creates a treasure token and draws a card from Marneus Calgar, which also triggers player 3s Orcish Bowmasters. Now both Orcish Bowsmasters triggers can resolve and  2 more damage can be sent towards player 1, killing them with their Thassa’s Oracle, Birgi-trigger and Rhystic Study-trigger still on the stack. RIP.

Player 1s mistake is not that they lack resources or opted for a bad win condition, but simply timing, because the order in which triggers are put on the stack and resolve hurt him. If player 1 had the option to present their win at instant-speed, the outcome would be drastically different. Let’s assume this game state:

As the non-active player is last in priority order after the active player, player 1s triggers will be put on the stack last and resolve first. So if player 1 casts Thassa’s Oracle during player 2s turn, they will trigger both player 2s Rhystic Study as well as their own Birgi. Because of how triggers are placed on the stack and resolve, player 1 will get their Birgi-trigger first, floating 1 red mana, which they can use to pay for player 2s Rhystic Study. Now player 2 will not draw a card and neither Orcish Bowmasters nor Smothering Tithe will trigger, allowing player 1 to win the game without risking being pinged to death.

The important takeaway from both scenarios are:

5. Conclusion (tl;dr)

Flash-enablers and instant-speed lines provide four main benefits:

Not every deck has to play all or even the same flash-enablers, especially if the commander provides the option to win at instant-speed such as Sisay, Weatherlight Captain or Magda, Brazen Outlaw. Cards like Borne Upon a Wind and Valley Floodcaller have to be viewed in the context of the decks strategy and specific winning-lines. The most important factor isn’t the specific flash-enabler, but whether or not the deck has the options to use its win conditions in a flexible manner.

In cEDH more often than not it’s not the player who puts the combo into play first who wins the game. Often the winning player is the one that identifies the right moment to put the win on the stack.

And although instant-speed lines are absolutely game-changing for cEDH, you don’t have to force yourself to win at instant-speed. What matters is that you have the option to do so, because it’s a threat your opponents have to take into account and it might be the difference between a failed and a successful win attempt.

Remember: If your deck can’t win at instant speeeeeeed it’s probably shiiiiiiiiit.

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Riot’s next set, Legacy, is built for draft. Here’s what it should leave behind, starting with rares that beat their own epics.

By Teddy

Radiance Pre-Rifts have come and gone, and it’s time to focus on competitive play and Regional Championships, but before that, I want to send off this format with my thoughts on the first “block,” as I want to call it, of limited Riftbound. Legacy is on the horizon as the first set of 2027 and is labeled as the first set to be designed for limited play. For those reading, my online moniker is LimitedTeddy, so inherently I was very excited to hear about this in the state of the game back in August. That’s for a later date though; so let’s recap the good and the bad to come from the first block of Pre-Rifts.

Let’s define this block first. For all purposes, I will be excluding Origins from it. The prerelease format for that was pre-built decks and doesn’t compare well to what was made for Spiritforged through Radiance, which are the sets that will be included in this first block.

The biggest thing that Pre-Rifts have done is bring the community of Riftbound together. New players had an opportunity to experience the game in an easy-to-learn setting. I know it was an opportunity to see friends who normally don’t go to the stores I go to, because we all go to all the stores in my local area during pre-rifts. And seeing people’s faces light up when they open their favorite legend overnumber or chase card is always the best. All TCGs do their pre-releases well, and Riftbound didn’t miss on the community-building part.

Secondly, the team at Riot listened to feedback. I think back to Yone as the promo in Spiritforged, and it was up to stores to say if it could be played with or not. This card ran rampant through that meta, and if you could play a deck that included it, you did. The community made their voices heard about it, and in due response, Riot announced that promos would no longer be allowed to be used in decks. I do believe this was the right choice and made it so players couldn’t abuse a card that came “freely” in the kit.

Deckbuilding suited both casual and competitive players. Most people fall into two categories: wanting to experience the cards for the first time in these events, as well as giving quote-unquote tryhards a way to flex their deckbuilding skills and knowledge of everything in the set. I know there are many differing opinions on how hard people should try in these events, but catering to each party is a good and healthy approach to things, in my opinion.

Body (orange) as a domain was really bad. Straight up. It felt like every set of this color dominated what was considered a good legend and had the good cards. Spiritforged: it was the aforementioned Yone and Punch First, plus Lucian and the new introduction of a gear to the set. Unleashed was Kha’Zix, having the innate ability to move around your units and being one of two units that used the new XP mechanic. Master Yi from that set was also rather solid. Having both XP legends with prebuilts being Orange was a bad design choice. I do understand XP was made for Body, with Poppy also using it, but in a limited environment, that extra resource can really change the game. Ambessa led the charge in Vendetta, getting to use the new Empower mechanic and had access to cards like Guttural Roar and Rampage. And most recently, with Radiance, K’Sante, Evelynn, and Jarvin IV could all be played comfortably and perform well. Also, don’t get me started on Graves or Armored Tusker. Those cards are genuinely some of the best limited cards I’ve ever seen printed in Riftbound so far.

Needless to say, I would really like to see this domain toned down a bit in the future. Yes, I understand everything I just talked about is in the identity of the color, but I hope heading into Legacy we see some other colors get really strong cards that can dethrone Body as the de facto best thing to play.

The other thing I want to mention is how good the rares are. Just taking Radiance, for example, I’d consider the Riven, J4, Mordekaiser, Ziggs, K’Sante, and Orianna rares to be better than the epic versions of their cards. You also have Graves, Kai’Sa, Akali, Lulu, and Bedeveling Stranger as all rares that are super playable. To play devil's advocate again, I do understand having good rares is always a good thing so people can play playable decks. Yet, when over half the legend rares are better, and being able to just get them if you get their seeded pack, I think if there is truly to be a balanced format, cutting back on how many good rares there are wouldn’t be such a bad idea. Something that would need to be internally tested, but could happen.

If you made it this far, I appreciated you taking the time to read! If you do enjoy limited, focused content that is nearly all I talk about online, especially Cube. I will be covering a lot more content in that realm of the Riftbound space heading into Legacy, so make sure to follow me on my platforms (most actively on X and YouTube) so you don't miss a beat with the best way to play TCGs.

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