Sphere of Influence: December 5, 2025

Sanguine Evangelist | Illustrated by Zezhou Chen

Welcome to Sphere of Influence, a pre-FNM look at some potential movers and shakers that are worth picking up before their prices increase.

Standard has been in a bit of a flux since the release of Avatar and the recent bans; the meta has refused to settle as new decks continually vie for the top spot. For those who are following the format, here are some excellent pick-ups for some top decks that you can snag for cheap:

Keen-Eyed Curator - $2

Scavenging Ooze saw only modest play when it was in Standard and hasn't appeared much since that time, but Keen-Eyed Curator arrived with Bloomburrow to give Scooze a run for its money. It's not hard for this to become a late-game 7/7 with trample; plus, its activation cost only consumes colorless mana, which provides the card a significant leg-up from Scavenging Ooze's green mana requirement. Wherever Delirium decks thrive, Keen-Eyed Curator is there to pick and choose what stays in the 'yard. Slot this into your Gruul aggro decks or into sideboards of all stripes.

Restless Anchorage - $ 1.50

Azorius control lists are always searching for a piece of inevitability for after they've decimated their opponent's resources. Restless Anchorage is only a tiny step above Celestial Colonnade, which has already fallen out of favor in Modern, but it still provides an evasive creature that pumps itself and provides some deck filtering. It's great to have one or two around for when the going gets tough.

Sanguine Evangelist - $0.50

Mono-white aggro decks succeed on the backs of cards like Voice of Victory and Enduring Innocence, but their cheaper relative, Sanguine Evangelist, also puts in major work. Grab a few of these before others catch on and realize just how cheap this key deck piece is.

Bringer of the Last Gift - $1.50

I keep waiting for folks to catch onto this card, seeing as it's basically Living Death, one of the game's strongest cards, attached to a creature, but it has yet to happen. Any reanimator shell is going to want at least a few of these baddies flying around.

Sandman, Shifting Scoundrel - $0.50

Three mana for a big creature like Sandman that can't be chump blocked is a steal. The fact that this is a threat that can easily be recurred while ramping you is sand icing on the beach cake. Mr. Sandman, bring me a dream…

Standard Operating Procedure

What decks have you been rocking in Standard? Have any overperformed thanks to Avatar?