What began with over 300 skilled competitors vying for glory at MagicCon: Las Vegas culminated in an elite Top 8 showdown at Pro Tour Magic: The Gathering—FINAL FANTASY™. This high-stakes tournament, featuring the latest Standard format infused with cards from the highly anticipated Universes Beyond set, saw players battle it out for cash prizes, invitations to future Pro Tours, and coveted spots at the Magic World Championship 31.
After three intense days of Standard and Draft competition, the field was distilled to just eight players. Remarkably, the Top 8 was dominated exclusively by the two most prevalent archetypes of the weekend: Izzet Prowess and Mono-Red Aggro, with four players piloting each strategy into Sunday’s elimination rounds. While Izzet Prowess arrived as the most-played deck in the overall field (making up over 42% of submitted lists), interestingly, Mono-Red Aggro posted a higher win rate among the top three decks across the entire tournament. The new FINAL FANTASY set didn’t completely reshaped the meta overnight but introduced key cards like Vivi Ornitier, Self-Destruct, and Magebane Lizard that significantly impacted these dominant strategies.
Let’s meet the eight players who rose to the top and the decks they piloted:
Meet the Elite Eight
The Top 8 featured a mix of seasoned veterans and rising stars, each navigating the complex meta with their chosen weapon.
Izzet Prowess Power
Four players brought the aggressive, spell-slinging power of Izzet Prowess to the top tables. This archetype leverages cheap creatures like Stormchaser’s Talent and Cori-Steel Cutter, powered up by a barrage of instant and sorcery spells to apply early pressure and control the board. The new card Vivi Ornitier proved a critical addition, providing mana acceleration and spell synergy.
Christian Baker: Qualifying via a Regional Championship, Baker had a dream start, going undefeated on Day One. Despite some challenges later in the tournament, he recovered to clinch a Top 8 berth and a World Championship 31 invitation, proving his mettle against the game’s best.
Toni Portolan: A prominent competitor from Croatia with a history of Team World Championship appearances. His seasonal goal was ambitious: play in all four premier events. After qualifying for Pro Tour Magic: The Gathering—FINAL FANTASY™ with a strong finish at Pro Tour Aetherdrift, making the Top 8 here locked in his spots for both Pro Tour Edge of Eternities and World Championship 31, achieving his primary goal for the season.
Ian Robb: Robb made a statement by securing his second consecutive Pro Tour Top 8, repeating his success from Pro Tour Aetherdrift. This consistent elite performance earned him invites to both this Pro Tour and World Championship 31. Piloting the popular Izzet Prowess, Robb demonstrated mastery of the archetype on the biggest stage.
David Rood: A true veteran of the game, Rood’s experience spans decades, including a team Pro Tour win 20 years prior. Qualifying through a Canadian Regional Championship, he returned to the Sunday stage for the third time in his storied career. Bringing the weekend’s most-played deck, Izzet Prowess, Rood aimed to add an individual Pro Tour trophy to his impressive resume.
Mono-Red Aggro Specialists
Matching the Izzet count were four pilots who put their faith in the raw speed and direct damage of Mono-Red Aggro. Focused on quick threats like Heartfire Hero and Emberheart Challenger, backed by burn spells and damage-boosting effects like Monstrous Rage, this deck aimed to close games rapidly. Magebane Lizard, a new FINAL FANTASY card, was a key inclusion for its disruptive power, particularly against spell-heavy opponents like Izzet Prowess.
Percy Fang: Described as a player on the rise, Fang returned to the Pro Tour stage after previous appearances years ago. Recent success at Regional Championships and qualifying via Arena Championship 8 highlighted his renewed form. Piloting a Mono-Red Aggro list he helped perfect alongside teammates, Fang boasted an impressive 34-10-1 record leading into the event, showcasing his expertise with the archetype.
Andy Garcia-Romo: After a perfect Day One draft, Garcia-Romo faced adversity with a tough 3-2 start in Standard. However, an incredible four-round win streak to end Day Two, combined with a strong 5-1 draft record overall, allowed him to squeak into the Top 8 by the narrowest of tiebreaker margins – a true testament to perseverance.
Yuchen Liu: Achieving back-to-back Pro Tour Top 8s, Liu decisively clinched his spot after a narrow miss at Pro Tour Aetherdrift. Notably, Liu eschewed the dominant Izzet Prowess, opting instead for the speed of Mono-Red Aggro to slice through the competition all weekend, demonstrating confidence in the archetype’s ability to pressure the field.
Ken Yukuhiro: A fan favorite and frequent flyer in the Sunday spotlight, this marked Yukuhiro’s eighth Pro Tour Top 8 appearance, dating back to 2012! Known for often piloting unique or unexpected strategies, in Las Vegas, Yukuhiro demonstrated mastery with Mono-Red Aggro, blitzing his way through the tournament field and proving the archetype’s raw power in expert hands.
The Road to the Final
The structure of the Top 8 bracket guaranteed intense mirror matches in both the Quarterfinals and Semifinals. This meant players had to overcome opponents wielding the exact same strategy they were, leading to fascinating battles where subtle deck variations and precise sideboarding decisions were paramount.
The Mono-Red mirrors often began incredibly fast but could devolve into board stalls post-sideboarding as players focused on removing threats and navigating cards like Screaming Nemesis. New additions like Self-Destruct were showcased, as seen when Yukuhiro utilized it in a Mono-Red mirror to close out a game.
The Izzet Prowess mirrors were races to build dominant boards and leverage powerful spell sequences. Key plays often involved maximizing tokens from Cori-Steel Cutter or Stormchaser’s Talent and using spells like Monstrous Rage for lethal damage through blockers. Differences in creature packages, such as including Drake Hatcher or focusing solely on others, created strategic wrinkles.
The Grand Finale: Yukuhiro Claims the Title
After navigating their respective mirror matches, the tournament culminated in a fitting final clash between the two dominant archetypes: Ken Yukuhiro piloting Mono-Red Aggro against Ian Robb on Izzet Prowess.
Ian Robb, making his second straight Pro Tour Top 8, represented the strong preparation of his testing team, Flexslot Diamond. Ken Yukuhiro, an eight-time Top 8 competitor with numerous deep runs, sought his elusive first Pro Tour trophy.
The final match proved to be a swift and decisive victory for the Mono-Red master. Yukuhiro’s aggressive strategy put Robb on the back foot from the outset, preventing the Izzet Prowess deck from establishing its engine effectively.
Game 1 saw Yukuhiro’s Mono-Red deck quickly overwhelm Robb’s defenses, securing the win swiftly.
Game 2 was closer, with Robb getting on the board with Cori-Steel Cutter and generating tokens. Despite Robb building towards a powerful turn with Stormchaser’s Talent and Wild Ride into a pumped-up Cori-Steel Cutter, Yukuhiro’s relentless attack and a well-timed Heartfire Hero pushed through lethal damage, putting Yukuhiro up 2-0.
Game 3 featured early threats on both sides. Robb used a crucial sideboard card, Unable to Scream, to remove Yukuhiro’s Emberheart Challenger, denying card advantage. Robb continued to develop his board, threatening lethal damage on the next turn. Facing down multiple Prowess creatures with just one blocker, Yukuhiro made an aggressive attack to leave Robb at a mere 2 life. When Robb attempted to clear the final blocker using Into the Flood Maw to set up his winning attack, Yukuhiro revealed his final card: the new FINAL FANTASY spell Self-Destruct. He cast it targeting his own creature, dealing damage equal to its power directly to Robb, securing the dramatic final game and the match.
Ken Yukuhiro triumphed with a dominant 3-0 victory over Ian Robb, finally claiming his first Pro Tour title in his eighth Top 8 appearance. His mastery of Mono-Red Aggro, capped off by a memorable use of a new FINAL FANTASY card in the final moments, cemented his place in Magic history.
Beyond the Top 8: A Diverse Meta
While the Top 8 was a battle of two, the broader metagame of Pro Tour Magic: The Gathering—FINAL FANTASY™ showcased more diversity. Many innovative “spicy” decklists appeared, utilizing cards from the new set in unique ways. Strategies like Naya Yuna leveraging Overlord of the Boilerbilges and Yuna, Hope of Spira, various “Roots” decks built around Insidious Roots, and Orzhov Sacrifice featuring Sephiroth, Fabled SOLDIER highlighted the potential for the new set to enable entirely new archetypes beyond the established powerhouses.
Ultimately, Pro Tour Magic: The Gathering—FINAL FANTASY™ was a showcase of high-level play, the power of refining dominant archetypes, and the exciting impact of new cards entering the competitive landscape. Congratulations again to Ken Yukuhiro, the champion, and all the competitors who battled at MagicCon: Las Vegas!
