Liputan6.com, Jakarta Wizards of the Coast (WotC) officially released the latest Banned and Restricted (B&R) announcement for Magic: The Gathering on November 10, 2025.
This decision brings significant changes to various game formats, from Standard to Brawl.
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This MTG Banned and Restricted announcement includes card bans across six major formats: Standard, Pioneer, Legacy, Pauper, Historic, and Brawl.
This drastic measure was taken to address the dominance of certain decks that have reduced game variety and player experience.
Effective immediately, players are expected to immediately adjust their strategies.
The most significant change is seen in Standard, which underwent a major overhaul with the banning of three key cards.
The next announcement is scheduled for February 9, 2026.
Standard Undergoes Major Overhaul
The Standard format was the focus of attention in this week's MTG ban and restriction announcement, with three significant cards being banned.
These cards are Vivi Ornitier, Screaming Nemesis, and Proft's Eidetic Memory.
These bans directly target the dominance of the "Izzet Cauldron" deck, which has dominated the metagame.
Vivi Ornitier was banned because it created a strategy that was difficult to counter, while Proft's Eidetic Memory served as a highly efficient card draw engine.
The combination of these two cards, especially with Agatha's Soul Cauldron, resulted in unhealthy win rates and usage.
Furthermore, Screaming Nemesis was also added to the ban list to anticipate the potential dominance of Mono-Red Aggro.
Wizards of the Coast wants to prevent the format from becoming monotonous after the weakening of the Izzet Cauldron deck.
These bans aim to maintain balance and strategic diversity in the Standard format.
- Vivi Ornitier
- Screaming Nemesis
- Proft's Eidetic Memory
Pioneer and Legacy Also Affected
In the Pioneer format, Heartfire Hero was banned due to the high win rate of Mono-Red Aggro decks.
Especially in Best-of-One mode on MTG Arena, these decks were overly dominant.
Meanwhile, the Legacy format saw the banning of Entomb and Nadu, Winged Wisdom.
Entomb was banned after years of dominance by the hard-to-match Dimir Reanimator deck.
This deck had withstood numerous previous balancing attempts, making the banning of Entomb a crucial step.
Nadu, Winged Wisdom was also banned in Legacy, a decision that came as no surprise to many players.
This card has long been considered problematic and disruptive to the format's balance.
- Pioneer: Heartfire Hero
- Legacy: Entomb, Nadu, Winged Wisdom
Pauper, Historic, and Brawl Adjustments
The Pauper format has re-banned High Tide, after previously testing it as a "trial unban."
After evaluation, Wizards of the Coast decided to reinstate it to the banned card list.
This suggests that some cards may have been too powerful even for this temporary testing period.
For Historic in MTG Arena, several cards were "pre-banned" to prevent instability early on.
These cards include Force of Negation, Frantic Search, Mystical Tutor, Entomb, and Dark Depths.
Finally, the Brawl format also saw the banning of several key cards, namely Strip Mine, Mana Drain, Chrome Mox, and Ancient Tomb.
These bans aim to reduce the rapid early game acceleration and prevent format homogenization.
WotC wants to encourage more interactive and varied gameplay in Brawl.
- Pauper: High Tide
- Historic (Pre-banned): Force of Negation, Frantic Search, Mystical Tutor, Entomb, Dark Depths
- Brawl: Strip Mine, Mana Drain, Chrome Mox, Ancient Tomb
Several other formats, such as Modern, Vintage, Alchemy, and Timeless, remained unchanged in this MTG Banned and Restricted announcement.
Wizards of the Coast has also announced plans to increase the frequency of Banned and Restricted announcements in the future.
The next Banned and Restricted announcement is scheduled for February 9, 2026.