May 2025 Update - European Highlander

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In the future this page might be closed down or redirected.

Summary

Bans and unbans:
- Mystical Tutor is unbanned after trial.
- Survival of the Fittest is unbanned for a 3-month trial.
- Nadu, Winged Wisdom is banned.
Council meeting: The council held a video meeting on 6.4.2025. Main topics were player questionnaire feedback, previous tournaments and discussion on the ban and unban candidates
Player questionnaire: Besides Mystical Tutor, the top 2 cards brought up were Survival of the Fittest (positive) and Nadu, Winged Wisdom (negative).
New council member: Samu K. from Turku, Finland.
Next update: August 1st, 2025.

Bans, unbans, and trials

Effective from May 15th, 2025:

Mystical Tutor is unbanned.
Nadu, Winged Wisdom is banned.

Effective from May 15th to August 15th, 2025:

Survival of the Fittest is unbanned for a 3-month unban trial.

Cards discussed

Unban: Mystical Tutor (4 yes; 1 no)

Mystical Tutor was previously banned at a time when blue decks heavily dominated the format. Combined with other powerful blue staples like Treasure Cruise, Mystical Tutor contributed to an environment where blue’s structural advantages—card quality and selection at instant speed—felt overwhelming to players. Its role as an instant-speed setup piece, including enabling miracle, added to concerns about gameplay patterns and diversity.

However, the context around Mystical Tutor has shifted. The format and the game have evolved significantly, with broader deck diversity and more tools across all colors. In the current wider metagame, Mystical Tutor is not a make-or-break card for any archetype. Its impact is real but manageable, dependent on surrounding deckbuilding trends rather than inherent imbalance.

Importantly, stronger tutors than Mystical are already legal. Its one-shot, top-of-library design demands sequencing and carries real gameplay costs. Rather than being a universal powerhouse, Mystical Tutor now plays a supportive, strategic role, offering interaction and setup possibilities without undermining format health.

We believe Mystical Tutor contributes positively to the strategic depth of European Highlander today, and as always, we will monitor its impact going forward.

Unban trial: Survival of the Fittest (4 yes; 1 no)

Survival of the Fittest was originally banned in April 2010. At the time it was mentioned that there was no single compelling reason to get rid of the card; it was a compilation of smaller factors in the then-metagame of the format.

In 15 years, the landscape of Magic has evolved.

Activating and sustaining Survival now requires meaningful resource investment in a faster format
Answer quality has improved dramatically.

Beyond simply reevaluating a formerly powerful card, this trial is an opportunity to explore underrepresented archetypes, including toolbox creature decks and creature combo strategies.

While the concerns we raised in February are still real, we believe there are enough compelling reasons to gather real-world experience with Survival once again.

Ban: Nadu, Winged Wisdom (5 yes; 0 no)

Nadu, Winged Wisdom has consistently created tournament logistics problems across multiple events and communities. Its gameplay patterns involve long, non-deterministic loops where games often stretch far beyond reasonable round times.

Crucially, Nadu creates a time equity problem:

Once its engine is online, games frequently shift into solitaire-mode sequences dominated by one player.
The opponent often has no meaningful actions during these loops, but must still sit through them.
Even when played correctly and quickly, Nadu consumes a disproportionate share of the round time.

These lead to:

A disrupt in tournament pacing.
Force tournaments into overtime.
Negatively impact not only the players involved in the match but the entire tournament.

This decision is about maintaining the integrity and flow of tournaments for all participants, and ensuring that the format remains accessible, enjoyable, and competitive at every level.

Council meeting

In preparation for the May update, the council met to review the results of the player questionnaire and share observations from local communities. We also had a chat with an applicant to the council—more on that in a separate segment.

The bulk of the meeting focused on evaluating specific cards that were brought up both in the questionnaire and through ongoing local discussions. These are addressed in detail in the previous card-by-card summary section.

Player questionnaire

We recently asked the European Highlander community for feedback on the trial unban of Mystical Tutor and any other cards on their minds. With total 60 responses, here’s a look at the sentiment behind three of the most discussed cards.

Mystical Tutor

The majority—36 players—support Mystical Tutor being unbanned as a result of the trial, with another 12 sitting on the fence (or not having enough play experience with it) and 12 voicing concerns. Many of those in favor acknowledged the card’s strength, but emphasized that it hasn’t proven format-warping. They pointed out that Mystical Tutor supports control and spell-based combo decks without dominating events or making games uninteractive. Critics, meanwhile, worry about its synergy with already-strong decks like Scapeshift and Reanimator, or argue that it pushes blue decks too far ahead of others. Overall, the tone was cautiously optimistic: most players are happy with it.

Survival of the Fittest

Top 3 positive mentions
1	Survival of the Fittest	11
2	Tolarian Academy	6
3	Natural Order	4

Among all cards mentioned in the open feedback, Survival of the Fittest stood out as the clear frontrunner, with 11 positive mentions. Players repeatedly described it as a powerful but fair tool that could reintroduce unique archetypes and support underrepresented strategies. Many expressed confidence that the format’s current speed and available interaction would keep Survival in check, especially in a meta already filled with high-powered cards.

Nadu, Winged Wisdom

Top 3 negative mentions
1	Nadu, Winged Wisdom	13
2	Oath of Druids	9
3	The One Ring	3

The most frequently criticized card in the feedback was Nadu, Winged Wisdom, mentioned negatively by 13 players. Interestingly, Nadu was not framed as overpowered in terms of win rate or format dominance. Instead, the concern was about how the card plays. Respondents described Nadu games as slow, convoluted, and frustrating—especially when combo lines stretch into extra turns or involve repeated decision points with minimal interaction. This creates a time equity problem, particularly in larger events where delayed rounds and drawn-out turns impact the overall player experience and tournament logistics. While a few respondents noted that Nadu hasn’t posted overwhelming results, the “Nadu experience” alone was enough for many to call for a ban or, at minimum, close monitoring.

Change in council

We’re excited to welcome Samu K. to the European Highlander council. Based in Turku, Finland, Samu has long been a pillar of the local community, both as an organizer and a creative deckbuilder. His approach to the format reflects a more modern mindset, often challenging assumptions and exploring fresh angles in both play and design.

Samu is an enjoyer of all competitive 1v1 formats and enjoys applying those skills to European Highlander. With his strong communication skills and structured thinking, Samu brings a valuable perspective to council discussions. We’re looking forward to his contributions in shaping the format’s future.

Next regular update

The next regular update will be August 1st, 2025.