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The Dive Down

The Dive Down

The Dive Down

The Dive Down is a Magic: The Gathering podcast focused on the latest decks, trends, and strategies for the casual spikes in Modern, Pioneer, Explorer, and more! Each week your hosts Dave, Shane, and Stanislav discuss the latest innovations, competitive events, and level-up topics for paper and online players. Support us on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/thedivedown Proudly sponsored by Heavy Play, a new card gaming accessories brand that'll improve your gameplay and game day. Use code THEDIVEDOWN2024 for 10% off your first order at https://www.heavyplay.com/ We're also sponsored by ManaTraders, the best Magic card rental service for both Magic Online and paper! Get 10% off your first 2 months of ManaTraders! https://www.manatraders.com/?medium=thedivedown or use Manatraders coupon code THEDIVEDOWN_8LU
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Top 10 The Dive Down Episodes

Goodpods has curated a list of the 10 best The Dive Down episodes, ranked by the number of listens and likes each episode have garnered from our listeners. If you are listening to The Dive Down for the first time, there's no better place to start than with one of these standout episodes. If you are a fan of the show, vote for your favorite The Dive Down episode by adding your comments to the episode page.

This week we're doing a bit of a news show — we're covering and discussing a bunch of current topics in Modern and Pioneer including Monday, March 9th's B&R, Pioneer on Arena, and SCG Regionals in Modern. Join us as we break down and break down and break down the last week of mtg.

The Break Down 1: Pioneer Masters
The Break Down 2: B&R
The Dive Down: SCG Regionals (Modern)

Become a citizen of The Dive Down Nation!: http://www.patreon.com/thedivedown
Now get 15% off your first 3 months of ManaTraders! https://www.manatraders.com/?medium=thedivedown and use code "thedivedown"

Timestamps:
2:43 - Housekeeping
4:21 - The Break Down begins: Pioneer Masters on Arena
19:32 - BANS!
32:53 - NO BANS??
48:21 - The Dive Down begins: SCG Regionals Weekend
50:48 - The top decks across all the top 8s
1:04:42 - The winners!
1:12:45 - The spicy decks
1:32:29 - Surprises
1:37:29 - Stan and Dave’s Regionals Experiences
1:47:28 - Closing out

Our opening music is Nowhere - You Never Knew, and our closing music is Space Blood - Goro? Is That Your Christian Name?

email us: [email protected]
twitter: https://twitter.com/thedivedown

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For the 375th time this year, we descend into the madness of trying to work out what cards from a new set will make an impact in our formats. It's Lost Caverns of Ixalan time! Spelunk with us as Dave, Shane, and Devon debate the great questions of this set. Which removal card is better — Get Lost or Molten Collapse? Which combo piece unlocks more combinations — The Millennium Calendar or Bartolome del Presidio? Which Merfolk is the most... gilly (?) — Tishana's Tidebender or Cenote Scout? You decide! But listen first before... you decide!

• Is this Removal Good?
• Are These Combo Cards Good?
• The Splendid Descended

Timestamps:
3:54 - Heavy Play!
5:57 - This week's show/housekeeping
7:48 - The Break Down begins: Metagame Mentor and the state of Modern
17:12 - The standout decks right now
24:23 - The Dive Down begins: The Lost Caves of Ixalan!
27:18 - Get Lost
32:17 - Molten Collapse
37:03 - Inti, Seneschal of the Sun
41:26 - The Ancient One
46:33 - Souls of the Lost
49:53 - Spelunking
53:14 - Restless Vents
55:45 - Enterprising Scallywag
58:42 - Glimpse the Core
1:02:24 - Helping Hand
1:04:42 - Tishana's Tidebinder
1:09:11 - Cenote Scout/Nicanzil, Current Conductor
1:13:07 - The Millenium Calendar
1:17:14 - Market Gnome
1:18:51 - Amalia Benavides Aguirre
1:20:39 - Bartolome del Presidio
1:24:03 - Squirming Emergence
1:29:37 - Wrapping up

Links from this week's episode:
Dr. Frank's Office Hours: https://magic.gg/news/metagame-mentor-the-top-15-modern-decks-for-november-2023

Our opening music is Nowhere - You Never Knew, and our closing music is Space Blood - Goro? Is That Your Christian Name?

email us: [email protected]
twitter: https://twitter.com/thedivedown

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The gang is reunited this week for an episode full of new cards, pivot tables, and tournament surprises. We start off with our initial reactions to the new charms spoiled from Streets of New Capenna, and imagine the impact of the complete triome cycle on our favorite formats. Then we go over the results of March's Modern metagame, the Manatraders Modern tournament, and the latest NRG results to analyze the growing and shrinking popularity of various decks in a post-Lurrus metagame. Finally, we wrap up with a Wind Down of our plans for SCG Con Dallas. Turns out... it's technically in Fort Worth!
The Break Down: Greetings from New Capena
The Dive Down: Greetings from Fort Wayne
The Wind Down: Greetings from Dallas/Fort Worth

Check out our NEW SPONSOR, Barrister and Mann! https://www.barristerandmann.com/ Use code THEDIVEDOWN2022 for 15% off your first order of some incredible fragrances, soaps, beard oils, and more.

Become a citizen of The Dive Down Nation!: http://www.patreon.com/thedivedown
Get 15% off your first 2 months of ManaTraders! https://www.manatraders.com/?medium=thedivedown and use code "THEDIVEDOWN2022"

Timestamps:
4:59 - Housekeeping
8:50 - We're getting a preview card!
10:59 - Streets of New Capenna early spoilers - The Triomes
18:24 - The Charms - Obscura Charm
22:35 - Maestro's Charm
25:52 - Riveteers Charm
29:23 - Cabaretti Charm
33:03 - The Dive Down begins - March's metagame report
33:30 - The top decks
39:48 - The top cards
43:22 - The most winning decks
46:51 - The NRG Modern 20k
48:30 - The NRG meta
55:50 - The winrates
1:05:55 - The top 8
1:10:15 - The Manatraders Modern event swiss meta
1:14:20 - The best decks of Manatraders
1:17:20 - The top 8
1:23:05 - The Wind Down begins - SCGCon Dallas
1:28:57 - What we are playing in Dallas
1:39:55 - Closing out

Links from this week's episode:
Streets of New Capenna spoilers: https://scryfall.com/sets/snc?as=grid&order=spoiled
The NRG tournament: https://mtgmelee.com/Tournament/View/8591

Our opening music is Nowhere - You Never Knew, and our closing music is Space Blood - Goro? Is That Your Christian Name?

Watch us stream our episodes every Sunday night at 8pm Central: https://www.twitch.tv/thedivedown_shane

email us: [email protected]
twitter: https://twitter.com/thedivedown
Leave us an audio message: https://www.podinbox.com/thedivedown

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Turns out that Neon Dynasty may have had a little more impact on our formats than we originally anticipated. The reason why? Why, it's (mostly) thanks to Magic's favorite no-downside card type: Artifacts. Tune in as we try out builds of Urzaful/Urzaless Affinity and UW Hammer in Modern, Vehicle Tribal in Historic, and a whole new Ensoul Artifact build in Pioneer. But first, we take a look across 3 high level Modern MTGO events from the weekend. Dave asks for forgiveness. Shane withholds a harsh judgement. Stan gets chipped.

The Break Down: Not many NEO cards in the Challenges
The Dive Down: NEO cards in Leagues: Vehicles, Affinity, and Ensoul
The Dive Down, cont: Stan's New Love: 4-0in' Prelims

Check out our NEW SPONSOR, Barrister and Mann! https://www.barristerandmann.com/ Use code THEDIVEDOWN2022 for 15% off your first order of some incredible fragrances, soaps, beard oils, and more.

Become a citizen of The Dive Down Nation!: http://www.patreon.com/thedivedown
Get 15% off your first 2 months of ManaTraders! https://www.manatraders.com/?medium=thedivedown and use code "THEDIVEDOWN2022"

Timestamps:
2:56 - Housekeeping
7:30 - The Break Down begins - Saturday's Challenge with NEW cards!
18:13 - The Sunday Challenge
25:25 - The Modern PTQ
30:25 - Some tournament takeaways
35:34 - A fun diversion
38:10 - The Dive Down begins - S/B/H Artifacts Ed.
40:20 - Shane with Historic Vehicles
57:02 - Dave on Modern Affinity
1:09:44 - Dave on Modern Vehicles
1:18:04 - Stan on Azorius Hammertime
1:31:34 - Stan on Ensoul Artifact
1:40:55 - Oni-Cult Anvil, briefly
1:43:15 - Closing out

Links from this week's episode:
Saturday's Challenge: https://www.mtggoldfish.com/tournament/modern-challenge-12387446#paper
Sunday's Challenge: https://www.mtggoldfish.com/tournament/modern-challenge-12387452#paper
Sunday's PTQ: https://www.mtggoldfish.com/tournament/modern-premier-12387425#paper
Historic Vehicles: https://twitter.com/jaredfarris/status/1491972071404052481?s=20&t=ITEHIewCd0CHmRVSBee6Xg
Spike's Consulate Dreadnaught Affinity: https://www.streamdecker.com/deck/ou3s6zIwy
SpiderSpace Affinity: https://twitter.com/SpiderSpaceMTG/status/1492623539773394944?s=20&t=qGj6nPhmn6AhDrLdDAknNw
Azorius Hammertime: https://www.mtggoldfish.com/deck/4613330#paper
Pioneer Ensoul Artifact: https://www.mtggoldfish.com/deck/4614011#paper

Our opening music is Nowhere - You Never Knew, and our closing music is Space Blood - Goro? Is That Your Christian Name?

Watch us stream our episodes every Sunday night at 8pm Central: https://www.twitch.tv/thedivedown_shane

email us: [email protected]
twitter: https://twitter.com/thedivedown
Leave us an audio message: https://www.podinbox.com/thedivedown

Support The Dive Down

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The Dive Down - Episode 160: A Dynasty of Neon Spoilers, Vol. 2
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02/10/22 • 108 min

In the epic conclusion of our Neon Dynasty picks to click, we scan the complete set spoiler and shout out our favorite dragon, counterspell, samurai, and skyturtle. Before that, we kick off the show with break down of January's Modern MTGO metagame with another installment of the monthly report, and wrap up with a brief love letter to Legacy.

The Break Down: Monthly Modern Metagame: January
The Dive Down: Mode Cards Than You Could Ever Reconfigure
The Wind Down: Stan's New Love: Legacy

Check out our NEW SPONSOR, Barrister and Mann! https://www.barristerandmann.com/ Use code THEDIVEDOWN2022 for 15% off your first order of some incredible fragrances, soaps, beard oils, and more.

Become a citizen of The Dive Down Nation!: http://www.patreon.com/thedivedown
Get 15% off your first 2 months of ManaTraders! https://www.manatraders.com/?medium=thedivedown and use code "THEDIVEDOWN2022"

Timestamps:
4:19 - Housekeeping
9:00 - The Break Down: The January Meta Breakdown
23:40 - The most popular cards of January
30:46 - The Dive Down: Neon Dynasty spoilers!
32:43 - Blade of the Oni
36:52 - Eater of Virtue
38:34 - Mnemonic Sphere
41:39 - March of Burgeoning Life
44:48 - Colossal Skyturtle/Mirrorshell Crab
46:41 - Otawara, Soaring City
49:21 - Atsushi, the Blazing Sky
52:45 - Mukotai Soulripper
54:44 - Invoke the Ancients
56:44 - Reinforced Ronin
1:00:25 - Hidetsugu Consumes All
1:05:43 - Experimental Synthesizer
1:08:08 - Enthusiastic Mechanaut
1:09:40 - Mech Hanger/Greasefang, Okiba Boss
1:13:09 - March of Wretched Sorrow
1:14:30 - Containment Construct
1:18:11 - Silverfur Master
1:19:45 - Light-Paws, Emperor's Voice
1:22:42 - March of Swirling Mist
1:25:27 - Mechtitan Core
1:27:52 - Explosive Singularity
1:30:12 - Generous Visitor
1:31:20 - Disruption Protocol
1:33:56 - Eiganjo, Seat of the Empire/Takenuma, Abandoned Mire
1:38:09 - What are we most excited to play with?
1:40:55 - The Wind Down: Stan <3 Legacy
1:46:20 - Closing out

Links from this week's episode:
Full spoilers: https://scryfall.com/sets/neo?as=grid

Our opening music is Nowhere - You Never Knew, and our closing music is Space Blood - Goro? Is That Your Christian Name?

Watch us stream our episodes every Sunday night at 8pm Central: https://www.twitch.tv/thedivedown_shane

email us: [email protected]
twitter: https://twitter.com/thedivedown
Leave us an audio message: https://www.podinbox.com/thedivedown

Support The Dive Down

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Jobs were lost (after next year) and new cards are announced (for next week). We go through all 25 additions from Historic Anthology 5, consider their potential and their competitive past. We also reflect on what the competitive future looks like for casual spikes.

The Break Down: Goodbye MPL
The Dive Down: Hello Historic Anthology 5

Become a citizen of The Dive Down Nation!: http://www.patreon.com/thedivedown
Get 15% off your first 2 months of ManaTraders! https://www.manatraders.com/?medium=thedivedown and use code "thedivedown2021"

Timestamps:
1:48 - Housekeeping
4:46 - The Break Down begins: We are all Casual Spikes now
36:05 - The Dive Down begins: HA5
36:58 - The Praetors
48:02 - Silumgar's Command
49:49 - Ojutai's Command
51:38 - Dromoka's Command
56:31 - Atarka's Command
1:06:05 - Kolaghan's Command
1:13:45 - Ancient Grudge
1:14:44 - Ray of Revelation
1:15:51 - Grisly Salvage
1:18:14 - Dragonstorm
1:20:24 - Intangible Virtue
1:23:10 - Into the North
1:24:36 - Relic of Progenitus
1:26:56 - Trash for Treasure
1:27:49 - Ichor Wellspring
1:29:41 - Stifle
1:30:56 - Merfolk Looter
1:32:32 - Reverse Engineer
1:33:50 - Court Homunculus, Vault Skirge, and Whirler Rogue
1:37:15 - Final thoughts on Historic Anthology 5
1:39:15 - Closing Out

Links from this week's episode:
https://scryfall.com/sets/ha5
https://magic.gg/news/esports-transitions-and-getting-back-to-gathering

Our opening music is Nowhere - You Never Knew, and our closing music is Space Blood - Goro? Is That Your Christian Name?

Watch us stream our episodes every Sunday night at 8pm Central: https://www.twitch.tv/thedivedown_shane

email us: [email protected]
twitter: https://twitter.com/thedivedown

Support The Dive Down

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The Dive Down - Episode 78: Pioneer Possibilities & Core 21, pt. 2
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06/19/20 • 111 min

This week we receive a short but substantial ray of sunshine about Pioneer from Shane and then talk about our our second and final batch of picks to click from Core Set 2021!
The Break Down: Pioneer is Actually Good
The Break Down, cont: But What About Inverter? Stan Speaks
The Dive Down: Spoilers, Spoilers, Spoilers (again)

Become a citizen of The Dive Down Nation!: http://www.patreon.com/thedivedown
Now get 15% off your first 3 months of ManaTraders! https://www.manatraders.com/?medium=thedivedown and use code "thedivedown"

Timestamps:
3:00 - Housekeeping
5:00 -The Break Down begins — Get Up on Pioneer
6:15 - Shane’s Ray of Light: Pioneer Challenges
6:30 - The first Pioneer Challenge’s Top 8
9:45 - The second Pioneer Challenge’s Top 8
12:20 - Top 8s takeaways
13:00 - Top 32s assessment
15:10 - But what about Inverter? Stan speaks.
16:00 - The bottom line on Pioneer + what we’re playing
19:25 - The Dive Down begins: more Core 21 cards
19:35 - Conspicuous Snoop
27:30 - Ghostly Pilferer + Shacklegeist
36:20 - Terror of the Peaks
42:30 - Sublime Epiphany
47:20 - Heartfire Immolator
54:05 - Stormwing Entity
1:00:10 - Conclave Mentor
1:04:05 - Llanowar Visionary + Fierce Empath
1:09:40 - Lofty Denial
1:15:55 - Miscast
1:19:55 - Liliana, Waker of the Dead
1:27:18 - Colossal Dreadmaw
1:27:45 - Frantic Inventory
1:32:33 - See the Truth
1:34:32 - Subira, Tulzidi Caravanner
1:38:36 - Angelic Ascention
1:41:55 - The Wind Down begins — Core 21 called shots

Links from this episode:
Pioneer Challenge, June 14th
https://magic.wizards.com/en/articles/archive/mtgo-standings/pioneer-challenge-2020-06-14
Pioneer Challenge, June 15th
https://magic.wizards.com/en/articles/archive/mtgo-standings/pioneer-challenge-2020-06-15
Jim Davis on Conspicuous Snoop
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jgp12xXMlX0
https://www.coolstuffinc.com/a/jimdavis-06122020-the-scoop-on-conspicuous-snoop

Our opening music is Nowhere - You Never Knew, and our closing music is Space Blood - Goro? Is That Your Christian Name?

email us: [email protected]
twitter: https://twitter.com/thedivedown

Support The Dive Down

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The Dive Down: Our picks to click from Throne of Eldraine
The Wind Down: What we plan to do with some downtime
**
Become a citizen of The Dive Down Nation!: http://www.patreon.com/thedivedown
Get 10% off your first 3 months of ManaTraders! https://www.manatraders.com/?medium=thedivedown and use code "thedivedown"**

Timestamps:
2:10 - Housekeeping
4:38 - The Dive Down begins - What makes a card appealing for Modern?
11:44 - The mechanics of Eldraine
24:43 - The Dive Down Nation's set review survey
25:48 - Once Upon a Time
33:36 - Emry, Lurker of the Loch
45:22 - Hushbringer
53:46 - Brazen Borrower
60:18 - Grumgully the Generous
66:00 - Charming Prince
71:45 - The Royal Scions
78:48 - Claim the Firstborn
82:19 - The Wind Down - Our plans for the break in Modern tournaments
89:18 - How to find Emma Partlow

Links from this week's episode:
The Dive Down Nation's set analysis: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1_jHEbC0kKlcXxC3qrtMjMnT4x1VrVCX-Tn4CAqP0rs0/viewanalytics
https://scryfall.com/card/celd/371/once-upon-a-time
https://scryfall.com/card/celd/342/emry-lurker-of-the-loch
https://scryfall.com/card/celd/339/hushbringer
https://scryfall.com/card/celd/281/brazen-borrower-petty-theft
https://scryfall.com/card/eld/192/grumgully-the-generous
https://scryfall.com/card/celd/335/charming-prince
https://scryfall.com/card/celd/272/the-royal-scions
https://scryfall.com/card/eld/118/claim-the-firstborn
Emma's twitter: https://twitter.com/emmmzyne
Emma's twitch: https://www.twitch.tv/emmmzyne
Emma's TCGPlayer articles: http://magic.tcgplayer.com/db/article_search_result.asp?author=Emma%20Partlow

Our opening music is Nowhere - You Never Knew, and our closing music is Space Blood - Goro? Is That Your Christian Name?

email us: [email protected]
twitter: https://twitter.com/thedivedown

Support The Dive Down

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The Dive Down - Episode 265: Why Does Everyone Hate Modern Now?
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03/07/24 • 100 min

A discourse is brewing on this week's Dive Down, as the rhino boyz reflect on some of the issues Modern players seem to have with the current format and metagame. Can we close Pandora's box of free spells and triomes? Will MH3 save us? Or could WOTC do something more... drastic..?

The Break Down: Devon asked, you answered.

The Dive Down: Eight Hateful Hypotheses

The Wind Down: Love that joker... for about 20 minutes.

Timestamps:
4:30 - Heavy Play: easy to open
8:09 - This week's episode/housekeeping
11:50 - The Dive Down begins: Modern's Hate Hypotheses
21:25 - Grief.
27:55 - Cascade.
39:15 - Free spells.
49:35 - The mana.
58:37 - The One Ring/Bowmasters.
1:07:51 - Modern is stale.
1:12:16 - Did a perfect Modern ever exist?
1:19:50 - The Wind Down: It's Balatro time!
1:38:18 - Wrapping up

Our opening music is Nowhere - You Never Knew, and our closing music is Space Blood - Goro? Is That Your Christian Name?

email us: [email protected]
twitter: https://twitter.com/thedivedown

Support The Dive Down

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This week Aspiring Spike is back to help us understand the Companion metagame in Pioneer and Modern. What's good, what's not so good, and how to next-level your opponents!

The Break Down: Lotus Box Modern
The Dive Down: Shane Has Facts
The Dive Down, pt. 2: A Love/Hate Relationship

Become a citizen of The Dive Down Nation!: http://www.patreon.com/thedivedown
Now get 15% off your first 3 months of ManaTraders! https://www.manatraders.com/?medium=thedivedown and use code "thedivedown"

Timestamps:
2:55 - Housekeeping
4:37 - The Break Down sorta begins - Another B&R annoucement
10:48 - The Break Down really begins - The Team Lotus Box modern 1k
13:25 - The 1k metagame
31:52 - Companion stats and the top 8
33:30 - Tournament takeaways
36:36 - The Dive Down begins - the Companion metas
41:43 - Why has the metagame coalesced around Companions?
47:06 - Who's having fun?
51:28 - How is this metagame different than before?
58:55 - How are you getting an edge?
1:09:01 - Playing against Companions
1:29:03 - What do we think will happen to Companions?
1:34:25 - What are WOTCs long-term plans for Companions?
1:36:45 - Why might WOTC change Companions?
1:41:41 - Full-time Aspiring Spike
1:45:30 - The Sorta Wind Down - questions for Aspiring Spike
1:53:22 - Closing out

Links from this week's episode:
The Team Lotus Box Modern 1K: https://mtgdecks.net/Modern/lotus-box-league-season-1-modern-1k-team-lotus-box-tournament-62866
Ari Lax: How to Exploit Every Companion in Constructed: https://articles.starcitygames.com/premium/how-to-exploit-every-companion-in-constructed/
Aspiring Spike on Twitter: https://twitter.com/MoughonEvart
Aspiring Spike on Twitch: https://www.twitch.tv/aspiringspike

Our opening music is Nowhere - You Never Knew, and our closing music is Space Blood - Goro? Is That Your Christian Name?

email us: [email protected]
twitter: https://twitter.com/thedivedown

Support The Dive Down

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FAQ

How many episodes does The Dive Down have?

The Dive Down currently has 320 episodes available.

What topics does The Dive Down cover?

The podcast is about Leisure, Games, Explorer, Gaming, Podcasts, Magic The Gathering and Modern.

What is the most popular episode on The Dive Down?

The episode title 'Episode 267: Somewhere Over the Rainbow: Post-Ban Modern Results & Testing' is the most popular.

What is the average episode length on The Dive Down?

The average episode length on The Dive Down is 100 minutes.

How often are episodes of The Dive Down released?

Episodes of The Dive Down are typically released every 7 days.

When was the first episode of The Dive Down?

The first episode of The Dive Down was released on Dec 22, 2018.

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