Orzhov Pixie: Complete Deck Guide and Sideboard Strategy

Orzhov Pixie – Self-Bounce Midrange in Standard

Format: Standard

Archetype: Midrange (Self-Bounce)

Colors: Black, White (Orzhov)

Meta Share: ~11%

Key Features:

Orzhov Pixie has emerged as a strong deck in the current metagame. The core plan is to assemble a self-bounce engine early, then use enchantments and removal to stabilize and out-value opponents. Recent results (multiple 5–0 league runs) and meta data confirm its competitiveness.

Sample Decklist

This deck was piloted by Randerson1 to a 5–0 finish in a Standard League on May 15, 2025.

Lands (24)

Sideboard (15)

Key Deck Features

This 5-0 list maximizes the bounce engine with a full playset of both key creatures. Note the heavy commitment to Liliana (3 copies), suggesting a metagame where hand disruption is strong. The mana base is carefully constructed with all available Orzhov dual lands to ensure consistent early plays while maintaining enough basics to avoid pain damage against aggro.

Core Game Plan

Establish the engine

In the opening turns, deploy your enchantments Hopeless Nightmare proactively and Momentum Breaker in response. A typical start is Hopeless Nightmare on turn 1 followed by Nurturing Pixie on turn 2 if possible to return the Hopeless Nightmare and recast it. Each bounce grants card advantage gradually building the board. Temporary Lockdown provides a great sweeper against agressive decks and can be bounced to trigger Hopeless Nightmare and Momentum Breaker again.

Maintain card advantage

Use your creatures and enchantments to generate value. Preacher of the Schism provides a mid-game blocker. If the opponent floods the board, Temporary Lockdown sweeps everything to reset the game. Throughout, remember that Sunpearl Kirin has flash and can be used to protect something like a lockdown or another creature. It should be held in hand as a protection spell more than a beater.

Deploy finishers

Once you've established a lead, transition to big threats. Casting Liliana of the Veil can goad opponents into sacrificing creatures, or ultimates for massive advantages plus you can shred your opponents hand every turn. Sheoldred, the Apocalypse provides life gain and punishment for drawing engines. You win the game two damage at a time by controling your opponents board. Always calculate if one more enchantment bounce plus an attack is lethal, rather than playing too safely.

Card Choices

Bounce Creatures

  • Nurturing Pixie (4): Early bounce engine and beater
  • Sunpearl Kirin (4): A flying creature that bounces another permanent on ETB (if it was a token, you draw a card). Often use to protect things.
  • Loran of the Third Path (1–2): Flexible tool. Use to destroy enchanments or artifacts then bounce to use again - remember to bounce after attacks and your use it's ability to draw a card since it has vigiliance.

Utility Creatures

Enchantments

  • Hopeless Nightmare (4): Enters the battlefield and forced an opponent to discard a card and lose a life. In most cases you don't want to sacrafice it becuase you can bounce it with bounce critters and lockdown.
  • Nowhere to Run (4): Flash enchantment (Aura) – on ETB, gives target opponent's creature –3/-3 (can kill most 3-toughness creatures). Also makes opponents' creatures losing hexproof/ward. Good against everything - also can be used to bring 5/5's into killing range by a pixie.
  • Temporary Lockdown (4): Board-wipe enchantment. Exiles all nonland permanents when you cast it. Devastating against go-wide decks or stalled boards, with an added bonus of being bouncable making all your enchantments ETB again.
  • Momentum Breaker (3–4): Enchantment that forced your opponent to sacrafice a creature and if they cannot discard a card plus potential life gain... really strong with lockdown bounce.
  • Unholy Annex // Ritual Chamber // Ritual Chamber (0–2): Often in maindeck or SB. Huge 6/6 Demon and lifegain / pain while getting card advantage.. this is often the finisher.

Planeswalkers

  • Liliana of the Veil (0–2): Powerful top-end. +1 forces discard (disrupts control/hotdrop decks), –2 kills an opposing creature, and ultimate forced your opponent to lose a lot.. Very good for controling games where your opponent wants to react.

Lands (21–24)

Core Cards Summary

The non-negotiable pieces are the 4-of bounce engine and enchantment suite: Nurturing Pixie , Sunpearl Kirin , and Preacher of the Schism (all typically 4 copies) combined with full playsets of Hopeless Nightmare , Nowhere to Run , and Temporary Lockdown . These create the backbone of the deck. Other cards like Liliana or Beza are flex slots adjusted by matchup or personal preference, but the core 60 barely changes.

Tips & Tricks

Efficient Sequencing

Always optimize your bounce triggers. For example, if you have Sunpearl Kirin on board with an enchantment in hand, cast the enchantment first, then Kirin so you bounce it with value. Similarly, use Hopeless Nightmare when available.

Managing Preacher and Life

Preacher of the Schism Don't hesitate to block and trade with it. Delay playing until mid-game if possible.

Sideboard Planning

Prepare in- and out-cards for each matchup. For aggressive decks (Mono-Red, Mono-White Tokens), bring in additional sweepers ( Unholy Annex // Ritual Chamber ), Get Lost for big threats, and life-gain (like Wilt-Leaf Liege in SB) to stabilize. Cut some enchantments or finishers (like one Liliana or Beza) if needed to lower the curve.

Against control or combo (Azorius, Domain Overlords), favor disruption: bring Duress (which appears in ~69% of Orzhov boards) to take key spells, and consider Loran of the Third Path to force opponents into bad bounces. Rest in Peace (in ~62% of boards) is excellent against graveyard strategies. Trim redundant bounce pieces as needed and rely on your resilient threats to pressure them.

Matchup Guide

Mono-Red Aggro (Even)

Red decks race by dealing direct damage quickly. Your goal is to survive the early onslaught with life and removal. Kill their one-drops with Nowhere to Run or Momentum Breaker , and use Temporary Lockdown or Unholy Annex // Ritual Chamber to stablize when you can cast the demon.

Sideboard Plan:

Bring in extra sweepers and blockers. Typically, +2–3 Unholy Annex // Ritual Chamber , +2 Temporary Lockdown , and perhaps +1 Get Lost . You might also add a Wilt-Leaf Liege for life gain. Take out some enchantments or finishers (e.g. one Liliana, Beza) that aren't needed when racing.

Key Tip: Kill their early threats while building up your engine. If behind on life, "let one creature through and chump-block" to live another turn – each life is precious. Once you cast Lockdown, they often can't keep up, and your leftover cards seal the win.

Mono-Black Midrange (Mirror) (Even)

Versus fellow Orzhov/Midrange, it's a grind. Both decks value cards and removal. Preacher and Liliana shine here. Use Temporary Lockdown after both sides have creatures to draw a barrage of cards. Liliana's discard and sac effects trade with their threats. Keep bouncing your own creatures (or even theirs with Lockdown) to stay ahead on card advantage.

Sideboard Plan:

Bring Duress and Get Lost to disrupt their gameplan. Expect them to have their own Lilianas/Sheoldreds – use Sheoldred, the Apocalypse or Get Lost on key creatures. Slot in Wilt-Leaf Liege and extra Rest in Peace if they use grave recursion. Cut a redundant enchantment or two if needed.

Key Tip: Value wins this mirror. If you force more sacrifices or draw more cards, you'll overwhelm them. Don't be afraid to chump and lose tempo if it means your Preacher or Liliana can capitalize on the deaths.

Azorius Control (Favorable)

Azorius is heavy on counters and board wipes. Your main plan is to flood the board with value faster than they can answer. Place Hopeless Nightmare and bounce it repeatedly – they often won't counter an enchantment. Preacher and Liliana should stay online as life and card engines. Azorius often struggles to remove repeated threats (they have limited spot removal).

Sideboard Plan:

+3 Duress , +2 Get Lost , +1 Loran of the Third Path . Bring Discard to strip away key counterspells (they might counter Liliana or a bounce enchantment). Take out 1–2 enchantments (since they can counter them) and possibly Temporary Lockdown (too slow), adding in more threats like a 5th creature or extra Liliana if you have it.

Key Tip: Force them to tap out on removal. Even if they counter a Nightmare, you still have bounced cards in hand to replay. Keep pressuring with tokens and small creatures so they must choose between killing those or countering your threats. Your resilient card advantage often outpaces theirs.

Domain "Overlords" (Favorable)

These Tron-style decks (Domain-based Akroma/Aurelia builds) can cheat out big enchantments and creatures. You need to race and disrupt them before they lock you out. Use early removal ( Nowhere to Run ) on small fliers, and apply pressure with Pixies tokens. Temporary Lockdown can clear an otherwise dominating board.

Sideboard Plan:

+2 Duress , +1 Get Lost , +1 Rest in Peace . Bring in discard to hit cards like The One Ring or big spells. Rest in Peace negates graveyard synergies if present. Consider extra Liliana of the Veil (swap out a 2-drop enchantment) to grind out card advantage.

Key Tip: Exploit their slow mana. Domain builds can't always counter low-cost enchantments. Each threat you resolve forces them to answer (often awkwardly, e.g. bouncing Archon of Cruelty). Don't overcommit – one big Lockdown at the right time (after they've played domain lands) often swings the game, letting your engine run wild.

Izzet Prowess (Slightly Unfavorable)

This deck is very fast and can out-tempo you. You must disrupt its speed. Play your early Pixies and Kirins on curve and try to remove Stormchaser's Talent or Cori-Steel Cutter quickly with Momentum Breaker or Nowhere to Run . Use Preacher to gain health and draw through their burn. Racing is hard, so aim to stabilize: a timely Temporary Lockdown will empty the board of their small creatures and tokens.

Sideboard Plan:

+2 Unholy Annex // Ritual Chamber , +1 Temporary Lockdown , +2 Wilt-Leaf Liege , +1 Loran of the Third Path . Lockdown to kill tokens, Liege to stabilize life, and Duress (if SB) to take their key pump spells. You can cut 1–2 copies of Go for the Throat and some Beza or Sheoldred if the curve is too high.

Key Tip: Surviving turn 3 is critical. If they flood you with pumped creatures, trade efficiently – one blocker is often enough. After that, cast Lockdown when they overextend and you'll likely draw more cards. Each Lingering Soul's worth of life and tokens from Preacher makes a big difference. Remember that any spells they cast (like Burst Lightning ) add to your Preacher triggers.

Conclusion

Orzhov Pixie has cemented itself as a potent midrange option in the post-rotation meta. With a unique self-bounce engine and a suite of enchantments that grind out value, it stands well-positioned among tier-1 decks. Recent competitive data shows it consistently placing in top finishes.

The deck's strengths lie in its flexibility: it can flood the board and race aggressive decks or outlast control with overwhelming card advantage. While it has a few tricky matchups (very fast aggro or combo decks), its resilient gameplan and deep customization make it a rewarding choice for skilled pilots.

As the Standard meta evolves, Orzhov Pixie's combination of explosive starts and late-game power ensures it will remain a force to be reckoned with.

Data sourced from multiple competitive events and metagame analysis sites. Last updated based on meta reports from the past 30 days.