After a strong showing in the World Championship Qualifiers in Lille, Treyst went on to accomplish what others have struggled to do, breaking Sigismar and Afanas’s hold on the top competitive wins for July. This marks the first time since the release of Trial by Frost that the two positions have gone to any hero other than those two. Beyond that shift in the meta, players are also preparing for the Whispers from the Maze midseason patch to go into effect, bringing Afanas an errata to his ability.

This monthly snapshot is an effort to give players a high-level view of the trends going on in competitive play across the season, developed from stats and decklists from 39cards.com. These are unofficial details based on results reported to 39cards.com, and may not accurately reflect official standings reported to Equinox. These statistics, which include mainly online and some in-person events, only represent competitive play and shouldn’t be taken to inform trends for other modes of play. While some stats are shared directly, others are intentionally vague. These notes are meant to provide context around competitive recaps as well as spark ideas for new approaches and deckbuilding.

This snapshot begins our coverage of the Whispers from the Maze season, beginning May 30 to the present. In June’s snapshot, players worked with Kojo more than any other hero but still couldn’t break Sigimar’s hold on the top spot even as the WFM season began.

July hero distribution

1. Sigismar ↗1
2. Kojo ↘1
3. Teija =
4. Afanas =
5. Treyst ↗8
6. Fen ↘1
7. Basira =
8. Sierra ↗1

Sigismar reasserted his leadership of the hero distribution through July, pulling it back from Kojo. Less than 50 decklists separate the two, similar to their reversed positions in in June. The two of them have mostly had their own competition since the release of WFM for the hearts and minds of players, leaving all the rest of the heroes behind by about a 3% drop (roughly four Warus this month). Teija is waiting there in third, having held her place alongside Afanas this month. Possibly heralding the first major shakeup of the meta in months, Treyst absolutely launched up into fifth place overall. Fen shifted out of the way to make way for Treyst, while Basira kept her place in seventh. Sierra shouldered past Gulrang to take eighth, putting two Axiom heroes in the Top 8 for the first time since the start of the TBF season. Atsadi, who had held sixth place for May and June, backslid out of the cutoff to ninth place. That marks the first time since April that all three of the Bravos heroes haven’t been represented in the Top 8. Treyst’s advance to fifth in July is the first time that the top five heroes (at different ranks) have not been Sigismar, Kojo, Teija, Afanas and Fen since February.

One small, if bittersweet, note is that Arjun fully doubled their representation in July from June. They held 0.71% of all competitive decks tracked on 39cards.com in June. Here in July, they secured 1.42%. The advance left Waru the only hero at less than 1% play for the month, a spot that they’ve typically shared since the release of TBF.

Season-to-date hero distribution

1. Kojo =
2. Sigismar =
3. Teija =
4. Afanas =
5. Fen =
6. Basira ↗1
7. Treyst ↗6
8. Atsadi ↘2

Looking at the season, the top five distribution positions haven’t changed since the set’s release at the start of June. Players seem to remain convinced that it’s Kojo’s time, even as he struggles to pull victories at anywhere close to the same rate as the Ordis hero. As the season goes on, Kojo has lost noticeable ground to Sigismar: Less than 0.2% separates the two now, compared to more than 2% last month. Even as they go rounds, they have a commanding lead over the rest of the pack at a combined 26.97% of all competitive decks tracked by 39cards.com for the season. It would take the next three places added together to catch that number. Teija, Afanas and Fen all have held their position, each losing around 1% from where they stood this time last month. Basira climbed past Atsadi to take sixth, and Treyst splashed his way onto the season rankings, skipping a spot to land at seventh. Atsadi holds on at eighth, though these last three ranks have been contentious. Similar to the top two, less than 0.2% separates Basira, Treyst and Atsadi.

Once again, all six factions are represented in the Top 8. As a faction, Bravos has continued to be the only one with all three heroes making the Top 8. Together, they make up 24% of all competitive decks tracked by 39cards.com for the season, almost exactly the same as their total in June. At this point in the season, they’re the only single faction with a total representation of more than 20%. While Sigismar has done an enormous lift, he’s barely shared any of the glory with his compatriots. For the first time in months (possibly due to Arjun’s slight gain in July?), if Teija paused long enough to allow her fellow Muna to team up with her, they would take first place together at nearly 14%. Also for the first time in months, Axiom’s total distribution has moved past 10%, climbing to almost 12%. The leap is impressive, but it still puts them almost 2% behind the next lowest faction, Muna. With the additional decklists added this month, Arjun also (barely) climbed past the 1% line at this point in the season, leaving Waru the only hero currently with less than 1% representation.

Similar to last month, while the ranks are different, the top five heroes for July are the same top five as the TBF season taken as a whole.

Top cards

These card rankings are determined by total number of instances of a card across all tracked decks for a faction, as opposed to the percentage of decks that include a particular card. A “number of months” indicator means the number of consecutive months that a card has remained in the top three cards (since the Blog began tracking snapshots in March), though not specifically at that rank. A star indicates the card’s first appearance in the top three spots of tracked decklists altogether. No duration mentioned indicates that the card has been in the top three spots for fewer than two months, but has been included in one of those positions before.

Axiom

Common

1. Frozen Delivery ↗1 / 5 months
2. The Grems ↘1 / 2 months
3. Foundry Mechanic = / 5 months

Rare

1. Hooked = / 2 months
2. Axiom Salvager ↗3
3. Haven, Bravos Bastion ↗4

Treyst’s influence is immediately evident in the top cards for Axiom in July. Frozen Delivery, popular since its release in February, moves back into first place in commons after taking a break in June. It supports Treyst’s already prodigious card advantage and serves as effective After You while lining up more characters to take advantage of being played from reserve. The Grems shift into second, made even more dangerous with Treyst’s versatility with cheaper permanents. Foundry Mechanic holds its place in third.

Hooked continues to be the key rare for Axiom, outpacing all others by a significant amount. Being able to move a target character while drawing a card gives a level of adaptability that the engineers sometimes struggle to display. Axiom Salvager and Haven jump up to take second and third, respectively. Their arrival more than other cards show Treyst making a move within the faction: The two card bumped out of the way are Brassbug Hive and Bug-Out Bag, the latter of which had just enjoyed its first appearance on the top lists ever.

Bravos

Common

1. Haven Seiringar = / 5 months
2. Fire Rabbit = / 5 months
3. Talarian Skater ↗3 | ★

Rare

1. Tiny Jinn = / 5 months
2. Haven, Bravos Bastion ↗2
3. Mighty Jinn ↘1 / 5 months

While Kojo is struggling to find a steady decklist in the WFM meta, Basira is doing her share of deckbuilding. The first two Bravos commons are unchanged from the start from the start of the season, and haven’t left the top three since their release. Talarian Skater debuts in the third spot, providing a quick scout boost to Tiny Jinn for Kojo and an ability fuse for Basira. The Skater checks the Haven Bouncer out of the way to take her place.

Tiny Jinn has no problem keeping its place as the top Bravos rare since March, played at a significantly higher rate than anything else. Haven retakes the place it’s held since March from Mighty Jinn, which moves down to third. While Duel of Grit briefly cracked the Bravos top three rares (possibly as Atsadi was seeing a rise in popularity), this month’s standings reassert the same three that have been in place since February.

Lyra

Common

1. Hathor = / 5 months
2. Twinkle Twinkle = / 2 months
3. Martengale ↗1

Rare

1. Ouroboros Inkcaster ↗1 / 5 months
2. Magical Training ↘1 / 5 months
3. Aloe Vera = / 5 months

WFM cards have yet to show up at all in the top three spots for Lyra decklists in either common or rare. Hathor is untouchable as the top common, and Twinkle Twinkle holds the place that it took in June. Martengale darts past Anansi to take the third spot, providing cost reduction and some slight coverage for new die-rolling effects. The highest WFM common is still Lyra Contortionist, but she’s moved down even further to seventh place from sixth.

Lyra’s rares have shifted slightly in position, with Ouroboros Inkcaster and Magical Training swapping places again. Otherwise, the top three Lyra rares have remained unchanged since the start of the TBF season. The top two are especially tough to pass up in any Lyra deck and are played at near-parity. The top WFM Lyra rare is Daedalus in fourth, with an obvious combo with Martengale.

Muna

Common

1. Floral Tent = / 5 months
2. Muna Druid = / 3 months
3. Dracaena ↗1

Rare

1. Aloe Vera = / 5 months
2. The Spindle, Muna Bastion ↗1 / 2 months
3. Ogun ↗1

The top two Muna commons again remain unchanged from June, with Floral Tent providing defense alongside shoring up reserves and a minor After You. Muna Druid continues to hold second place, but Caregiver moved out of the way to give Dracaena third. With strong removal still a huge challenge for the faction to overcome, adding a character that can self-anchor alongside a Floral Tent without giving up card advantage can make the difference. Requiem remains Muna’s first WFM common on the list, still in sixth place from last month.

Filling a similar action to common Dracaena, self-anchoring Aloe Vera is still the group’s top rare, the same spot it’s held for the past five months. The Spindle itself makes another appearance second in the top rares, providing protection and boosts while also acting as a lightning rod for removal that would otherwise be directed at characters. Ogun pushes past the Spindle Harvesters again this month to take third, providing plant boosts at a low mana cost.

Ordis

Common

1. License Withdrawal = / 2 months
2. Teamwork Training = / 5 months
3. Aegis Templar ↗2 | ★

Rare

1. Ordis Attorney = / 5 months
2. Ordis Trooper = / 2 months
3. Jack Frost = / 3 months

License Withdrawal escaped notice in the WFM midseason patch, not even being added to the watchlist despite its high versatility and danger to the most common status in the game at a 3-mana cost. It remains the top-played common for Ordis, and the only WFM common still in a top position this month. It’s also played at near-parity to Teamwork Training in second place, meaning that if you see one, you’ll almost certainly see both. Ordis is also the only faction that lists more than one WFM common in the top three at all this month, as Aegis Templar makes its debut to provide a quick Recruit scout.

Ordis’s rares are unchanged from June. Ordis Attorney, who is still on the watchlist, continues to bring the heroes additional cards or force advances, holding the top place that she took from Baba Yaga in May. Ordis Trooper keeps second, and Jack Frost maintains third. The highest-placing WFM Ordis rare is Mesektet, landing ninth this month.

Yzmir

Common

1. Off You Go = / 5 months
2. Conjuring Seal ↗2
3. Tooth Fairy ↘1 / 5 months

Rare

1. Magical Training = / 2 months
2. Beauty Sleep = / 3 months
3. Kadigiran Mage-Dancer ↗2

The effects of the WFM midseason patch hadn’t yet impacted Afanas by the end of July, meaning that decks won’t likely meaningfully make changes until after Aug. 11. Off You Go keeps its hold on the top spot in Yzmir commons this month, where it’s been since March. Conjuring Seal, taking second, is a new addition to the top commons, but has been waiting around the edges for months. Tooth Fairy pushes the Studious Disciple out of the way to stay in the top three. The top WFM Yzmir common is Evanescence, moving up to eighth place this month.

Magical Training is still in the lead for Yzmir’s top rares again this month, but it might be a short-lived lead with Afanas’s modified ability. Beauty Sleep, also a 1-mana spell, might share a similar fate but holds second place this month. Baba Yaga moves out of the way for Kadigiran Mage-Dancer, trading additional card advantage for boosts. The top WFM Yzmir rare is, understandably, License Withdrawal in eighth place, behind four 1-mana cost spells.

Hero standings

For the first time since February of this year, neither Sigismar nor Afanas are the hero with the most first place victories for a single-month period. Kojo may have been tussling with Sigismar for months and Teija took an early run on the lead in May, but it was Treyst leading the otherwise humble Axiom engineers who cracked the meta for the first time in six months. Not only did Treyst outpace Afanas, he picked up multiple wins on Sigismar as well. Given that where Treyst landed on hero distribution spread compared to the other two, the low number of Treyst players are getting incredible value on the decks they’re playing. Sigismar and Afanas did still take second and third place, respectively. Kojo pulled out fourth for the month, and Nevenka and Teija tied for fifth. Sierra takes sixth, and then Atsadi, Basira, Fen, Rin, Gulrang, Akesha and Lindiwe all share seventh with one win each.

It feels as though there are several possible factors at play at once. It can’t be ignored that a Treyst deck broke through to win at Lille’s Qualifier, which likely inspired others to try out the deck to solve Afanas’s riddle. But while that deck leaned into card returning-uniques with Bugfix, the deck’s overall success can’t be only attributed to uniques. A mix of Haven and rare Kelon Cylinders also allow Treyst to get more boost value out of cheap mana permanents, where License Withdrawal actually manages not to be as efficient compared to the permanent it’s removing. Plus, compared to the other Axiom heroes, Treyst has an incredible amount of card advantage to combat the otherwise ridiculously equipped and versatile Ordis and Yzmir heroes. Also, Afanas’s reworked ability goes into effect in just a few days, and players have likely been looking for a new approach to the meta, even moreso than what happened at the start of the WFM season.

Once again, while the majority of victories went to just a handful of heroes, a total of 14 out of the 18 total picked up at least one win through the month. Subhash, Auraq, Waru and Arjun were the only heroes who missed out on at least a single gold. Also, though Treyst built up a solid bulk of wins, the others weren’t so far behind this month as to fight for scraps. Kojo and Nevenka working together pass Afanas and almost catch Sigismar, which wasn’t the case last month. And Sigismar and Afanas together still surpass Treyst’s quick rise. Even the two tied for fifth place, Nevenka and Teija (who has struggled horribly in the WFM season) working together would tie Afanas in third. With the meta cracked, it suddenly feels like there’s a wide amount of opportunity to play with.

Sigismar was the most-common second- and third-place finisher for the month. Treyst may have taken the lead for the month, but it wasn’t without Sigismar fighting his hardest.

Season-to-date first-place victories by hero

1. Sigismar =
2. Treyst ↗2
3. Afanas ↘1
4. Kojo ↘1 / Teija =
5. Nevenka ↘1
6. Fen ↘3
7. Atsadi ↘3 / Lindiwe ↘3
8. Sierra ↘2 / Basira ↘3 / Akesha ↘3
9. Rin ↘3 / Waru ↘4 / Gulrang ↘3

July’s results brought two large changes to the season’s hero rankings. First, Treyst may not have broken Sigismar’s hold on the season overall, but he offered a solid challenge to it while also splitting Afanas away from the top two spots in a single month. Second, it broadened the overall field for the season, bringing in nearly the entire hero roster (missing just three total at this point). If nothing else, this month’s results show the power of competitive players getting the chance to see alternate play styles and decklists in the World Championship Qualifiers. It certainly doesn’t feel like a coincidence that Nevenka continued to get attention this month after showing up in the finals at Lille, as well. With more qualifiers on the way, the current meta might evolve even more quickly before Skybound Odyssey arrives Oct. 3.