Formats change the way we play Magic. Every time a set is added, or removed from a format, they game changes. I often like to say how much different each OS Format is, because of the different banlists and how they need to be played because of this.
In this new series, I wish to explore the extremely wide and varied formats that litter retro Magic: the Gathering. Whether it be Fallen Empires, A40, 9340, 95, Scryings, Middle School, ect. I wish to explore them all over the course of the year, giving my honest, unbiased opinion on each of them.
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| As of writing the current ban list, and potential prizes to the top 8. As well as contact info. |
Legality: Four Horsemen is a format consisting of the infamous 'Four Horsemen' sets of Old School, which are Arabian Nights, Antiquities, Legends, and The Dark. In addition to the cards legal to these sets, basic lands and the Limited Edition Duals are legal in the set as well.
The set allows proxies, and all reprints, and over the course of several years has had a dynamic ban list, with a number of problematic cards being banned slowly over it. The format is mostly stable now, though a recent restriction to Sylvan Library and Dark Heart of the Woods shows the committee is willing to put a damper on long term strategies.
There was something nice about the proverbial 'Wild West Days' when the banlist was only ante cards, however 5 hour games get boring fast.
The Rules use modern MTG rules with the exception of mana burn. Falling Star has special errata common in other retro formats.
Currently on its 18th tournament, there have been variants, including pauper, "Legends Spice", and Highlander to mix up the mixture up the otherwise tedium of the format and keep it exciting. These are often done to a vote.
The Good
Prize Support: Not just for bragging rights, prize support has been given out to tournament winners in the past. This includes Tokens with art from Ken Meyer Jr, playmats, custom made proxies by John Ekleberry, and I even got an art book and poster for winning the Spice Award one time (though what deck won the spice award I forget).
Community: The community is rather small, as is with most of these niche formats, so it's very (sometimes I'd say to) relaxed. Though, you are expected to play with tournament decorum, since these are tournaments. There is currently a dedicated Website, Facebook, YouTube page, and discord.
Deck options: There is a surprising number of deck building options despite its relatively small card pool, and the four classical archetypes all have decks that can be built and played. For combo you have Land Tax, control has stax and tempo strategies, aggro has a number of decks, and midrange include Ernham/burnem, suicide black, and blue skies.
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| My current deck for tournament 18. A 4 color midrange build. |
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| Tron deck, older, but after Strip and Mine restricted. Still has multiple Factories. |
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| "They Might be Giants" a red \white experimentation of banding. |
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| Legends from a previous tournament, before the restricting of Strip Mine and Maze of Ith. Although I admit these are my personal decks, and I'm not as varied as other players, this shows an example of the variety of cards that can be used, which wouldn't be playable in other formats. |
The Bad
Enchantments are extremely powerful in the format. In fact, you need to build around the fact that options for removal are limited. While The Abyss can be answered to with other Enchant worlds, few options exist for destroying other global enchantments. Presence of the Master and Desert Twister infact are the only generic hard removal for them. Remember this when designing the deck.
Removal: Very few instant speed removal exists in the format. While I do enjoy this, if you're coming in from a faster format like Old School proper, it can be a big adjustment. This however, does inspire creativity, which I feel is a net positive in the long run.
The Ugly
Creatures: While many good creatures exist in the format, there is an extremely wide variety of just unplayable ones. While this is true in almost every retro format, giving the smaller card pool and lack of core set it becomes more noticable when designing a deck. Most of these however, are from Legends, which luckily, is easy to overlook.
Simplicity: No text change effects exist in the format, nor (with the exception of Blood Moon) are there ways to change land types. One of my favorite casual strategies is gone with the wind, but alas, I live with it.
Set Hosers: The Set Hosers are banned (City in a Bottle, Golgothian Sylex, and Arena of the Ancients). I always felt they added an interesting dynamic to both this, and old school, but for the health of the format, they are banned.
Links: Website - https://www.fourhorsemenmagic.com/ YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/@4HMOSMTG/?sub_confirmation=1 Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/groups/fourhorsemenmtg Discord - https://discord.gg/wyXFHtgsar Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/fourhorsemenmtg/ Etsy - https://thefourhorsemenshop.etsy.com/