Magic: The Gathering's release schedule this year made some formats evolve even more rapidly than before, thanks to a mix of three in-multiverse sets and three Universes Beyond sets for a total of six. The most recent release was Edge of Eternities, which is seemingly doing very well financially for Wizards of the Coast, and it's also getting rave reviews from fans despite initial worries about its setting. Despite its bulk of almost 400 cards, only one Edge of Eternities card is played in one of the best Magic: The Gathering decks at the moment, and, unfortunately for fans who want to build it, it costs well over $700.

Magic: The Gathering's Final Fantasy earned $200 million in a single day, and it's currently considered one of the single best-selling releases in the history of the game. With many new fans and longtime players making decks with this set, it's no wonder that some cards are extremely valuable and widely played across the board, even after Edge of Eternities. Such is the case for Standard as a format, which is home to the ridiculously strong and equally costly Izzet Cauldron deck, using the infamous $50 Vivi Ornitier card from the Final Fantasy set as one of its stars.

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Magic: The Gathering's Izzet Cauldron Deck Breaks Records

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Considering that Standard is still adjusting a little over one week into the launch of Edge of Eternities, the decklist could change in the coming weeks to address new counters or to counter new combos. For the time being, an MTG Standard deck using the Izzet Cauldron staples runs the following cards:

  • Creatures:
    • 1x/2x Draconautics Engineer (Aetherdrift, $0.50)
    • 4x Fear of Missing Out (Duskmourn, $9)
    • 0x/1x Marang River Regent (Tarkir: Dragonstorm $3.50)
    • 4x Marauding Mako (Aetherdrift, $1.50)
    • 2x Quantum Riddler (Edge of Eternities, $22-25)
    • 4x Vivi Ornitier (Final Fantasy, $45-60)
    • 3x Tersa Lightshatter (Tarkir: Dragonstorm, $1.50-2)

  • Artifacts:
    • 4x Agatha's Soul Cauldron (Wilds of Eldraine, $55-70)

  • Instants:
    • 2x Abrade (Foundations, $0.30)
    • 0x/1x Fire Magic (Final Fantasy, $2-3)
    • 3x Into the Floodmaw (Bloomburrow, $7)
    • 1x/2x Spell Pierce (Aetherdrift, $1)

  • Sorceries:
    • 4x Winternight Stories (Tarkir: Dragonstorm, $2)

  • Enchantments:
    • 4x Proft's Eidetic Memory (Murders at Karlov Manor, $7-8)

  • Lands:
    • 4x Island ($0.01)
    • 4x Mountain ($0.01)
    • 4x Riverpyre Verge (Aetherdrift, $18)
    • 4x Spirebluff Canal (Outlaws of Thunder Junction, $6-7)
    • 2x Soulstone Sanctuary (Foundations, $6.50)
    • 1x/2x Starting Town (Final Fantasy, $35-40)
    • 3x/4x Thundering Falls (Murders at Karlov Manor, $23-25)

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Quantum Riddler is the only EoE card in the deck.

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With even the minimum number of copies listed per card, this deck amounts to a whopping $820, with average prices, and considering that players may have no cards for the deck already. As such, new players would likely need to spend at least upward of $700, whereas veterans may be looking at a few hundred bucks less from the total, depending on their collection.

MTG's Standard Izzet Cauldron Deck Explained

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Yet, this deck is one of the best in Standard, if not the best, and it can be worth the investment for those looking for a competitive list. Marauding Mako can be an incredible 1-drop thanks to its ability to get +1/+1 counters based on how many cards the user discards, which can be achieved with cards like Magic: The Gathering's Fear of Missing Out, Tersa Lightshatter, and Winternight Stories. This then combos with discarding Vivi Ornitier and exiling it with Agatha's Soul Cauldron, making each creature on the battlefield have its mana-generating effect.

Fear of Missing Out has Duskmourn's new MTG mechanic called delirium, which allows for multiple combat phases with four or more card types in the user's graveyard. With several discard engines, this works rather reliably.

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In the meantime, cards like Abrade are great in mirror matches for destroying opposing Cauldrons, while Into the Floodmaw is a cheap bounce to gain tempo. Proft's Eidetic Memory is a cheap card draw, with the extra ability to make creatures bigger with +1/+1 counters, which further helps with the Vivi + Cauldron combo by allowing players to generate even more mana more easily. MTG's June 2025 bans are the last until November, so until then (and possibly still after that), Standard will most likely be dominated by FF9's little wizard, Vivi.

magic the gathering
Magic: The Gathering
Original Release Date
August 5, 1993
Designer
Richard Garfield
Player Count
2+
Age Recommendation
13+