hey guys,

as title says, i want to find my second deck after boros burn. started modern about 3 months ago, and i like burning other players, but i want to go deeper in modern, but cannot decide which deck to try: boros ponza or jeskai energy (scepter chant). i play standard too, and i play exclusively 4c control (jeskai from december and 4c from ~april). i love control decks, and from standard, i know that playing a control deck requires the knowing the meta very well. in other hand, i was always interested in decks that have to pilot a little bit different, and ponza is very uniqe from my pov.

so guys, can you write me why and why not choose one or the other, please?

edit: i want to choose between boros ponza and jeskai energy. the question is, why and why not one and why and why not the other

With Phlage leaving us after being the most played nonland card in the entirity of 2025 Solitude/riddler have taken that spot in 2026. sporting a 20-26% meta share last 2 months in major events & overall meta share in 2026.

Eldrazi have picked up phase and dominated recently. Prowess winrate went from 47% to 52% post phlage ban. Maybe druid being a popular good matchup helped it too.

Blink X remains ever so dominant and is Broodscale currently preying on the current meta or simply too busted?

What do you guys think? B&R on monday (middle of RC season) & another in december.
Would the format be healthier without Solitude, Frog or Riddler?
Would broodscale need a nerf or would it be swallowed up by a meta shift?
It doesnt have the same targeted hate weakness Affinity did during the last meta shift.

I've been feeling really conflicted about Magic lately and I'd like to hear from people who've gone through something similar.

I've been playing Modern since around September 2025. I've spent a fair amount of money on it, but I've only cashed twice, for about $150 total. The money isn't really the problem — it's more that I feel like I'm spending money, playing tournaments, losing, and not really improving.

I also have a bad habit of constantly wanting to switch decks. I'll see someone doing well with another deck and immediately think, "Maybe I should be playing that instead." I never really stick with one deck long enough to become an expert with it.

Lately I've also been getting tired of the commitment. Going to the store for 4 hours feels like a chore sometimes, and webcam games are even worse because of the setup and having to schedule games with random people.

The weird part is that I still really like Magic. I love watching content, talking about decks, brewing, looking at cards, etc. It's probably been my longest-lasting hobby in recent years. I just don't seem to want to actually play much right now.

I'm thinking about trying Pauper next week with a borrowed deck, without buying anything, just to see how I feel about the format. I also like the idea of Pauper/other format because they're much cheaper to maintain. Maybe having a cheap, more straightforward/aggro deck would make playing feel less mentally demanding.

But I'm also considering just taking a month off from playing altogether. No selling my collection, no buying new decks, no big decisions. Just enjoy Magic as a hobby and see if I actually start missing playing.

Has anyone else gone through this? Did you eventually realize you were burned out on the game, or did changing formats/decks make it fun again?

Link to list
https://melee.gg/Decklist/View/34961b8c-b05a-42e3-9ee2-b4d60108c432

I'm looking for advice on the deck below. Specifically for the prowess/broodscale matchups. I've had good success against my friend's elfball and goryo's. I haven't played against broodscale/affinity/blink just yet.

Seeing the new FRA cards, I felt like I could update my Dimir midrange pile to include green for powerful early game plays including:
- [[Badgermole Cub]]
- [[Abrupt Decay]]
- [[Growth Spiral]]

I also added [[Hexhaven Invigorator]] since it's hurt trigger can fetch a [[Roiling Canopy]] + fetchlands. Which means on a followup turn I can swing with a flyer (like tamiyo/bop/etc), then crack the fetchlands for Breeding Pools/Overgrown Tombs to pump off canopy. This can finish games on its own (if my opponents aren't at 20) or just act as a persistent threat to make blocking invigorator/attacking into it not worth the risk.

Finally, I'm using [[Essence Flux]] + [[Quantum Riddler]] for midgame card advantage.

The general gameplan is largely the same as other midrange decks otherwise.

Here's the list: https://moxfield.com/decks/IpteJl8X-UmRv1r7TXE8QA

Some ideas I had include:
- Adding [[Yavimaya, Cradle of Growth]] for synergy w/ canopy.
- [[Force of Negation]] for additional interaction.

Feel free to ask questions or make suggestions in the comments, thank you!