How To Build A Mono-Red Aggro In MTG Standard

An ever-popular Standard archetype in Magic: The Gathering, mono-red aggro is an ideal deck for those new to the game, or ultra-aggressive players who want to end games early as opposed to being part of long, drawn-out battles for board control.

With more cards than ever legal in the default Standard format, there are plenty of ways to build an effective mono-red deck, and arguably, there’s no more satisfying way to win a game of Magic than your opponents surrendering early on as you rip their strategy to shreds.

Mono-Red Aggro Deck List

Aggro decks are naturally the most compact decks in MTG, meaning you’re typically not using any single or double copies of cards, instead opting for the max four copies of most cards in the deck, making it simple to keep track of what you have and haven’t drawn yet.

This deck also limits the use of enchantments, artifacts, vehicles, and other such cards that typically require time to build or a high mana cost. Beyond the creature and instant cards, there’s only one sorcery card in this entire deck.

It’s this simplified card structure that makes the deck great for beginners, but there’s still a nuance to aggro decks that means you can’t just blow all your creatures and spells carelessly and expect to win every match and reach mythic in MTG Arena ranked play.

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How This Mono-Red Aggro Deck Works

Aggression is the name of the game, and this deck is built to start doing damage from turn one.

This is apparent thanks to the use of haste, which lets creatures attack on the same turn that they are played, rather than having to wait a turn for summoning sickness to pass.

The spell cards in this deck are also low-cost and cause serious damage. This is great for targeting creatures or your opponent, with even the highest mana-cost card in the deck, Witchstalker Frenzy, possible to cast for less if you’ve already attacked with creatures during your turn.

Ideal Starting Hands

When it comes to ideal starting hands for aggro decks, it can vary depending on just how aggressive you want to try and play. Ideally, you want at least three mana, three creatures, and an instant spell, but given that none of the creatures in this deck cost more than two mana, you could quite easily start with just two mana in your hand and hope to pull one in turns one to three.

If you are going to push on with just two mana, it’s best to try to have an extra instant card in your hand, either to remove a potential blocker or apply the pressure with more direct damage to your opponent.

Changes You Can Make

In the current meta, it’s hard to suggest too many obvious changes to this mono-red aggro deck, but here are some card swaps you can consider:

• Remove – Shock, Include – Abrade
• Remove – Lightning Strike, Include – Boulder Dash
• Remove – Witchstalker Frenzy, Include – Charming Scoundrel
• Remove – Witchstalker Frenzy, Include – Hexing Squelcher

Lorwyn Eclipsed sadly didn’t bring any incredible additions for mono-red aggro beyond Hexing Squelcher. Still, the synergy isn’t quite there to introduce a random goblin card, especially one without haste, although its ability to ward and the fact that it can’t be countered is food for thought.

As it stands, this mono-red-aggro deck is well-balanced, so any changes should be based on your experiences with the deck and how other popular decks in the meta are dealing with your threat.

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