Standard has been rough lately. Vivi Ornitier with Agatha’s Soul Cauldron is everywhere, and the ban talk is loud. Still, there is room to attack the format in a different way. This Boros Mice deck tech gives you a fast, synergistic plan that pressures the combo and punishes the slower midrange arms race. This is a full Boros Mice deck tech with card choices, tips, and a sideboard guide for the big matchups.
Current Decklist
Boros Mice took down an MTGO Standard Challenge on August 23, 2025, and the shell is tight. Use this list as your base and adjust to taste.
Maindeck 60
Creatures 29
4 Emberheart Challenger
4 Flowerfoot Swordmaster
4 Hired Claw
3 Mabel, Heir to Cragflame
4 Manifold Mouse
3 Screaming Nemesis
3 Twinmaw Stormbrood
4 Whiskervale Forerunner
Instants 4
4 Burst Lightning
Enchantments 3
3 Sheltered by Ghosts
Lands 24
6 Mountain
1 Plains
2 Soulstone Sanctuary
2 Rockface Village
4 Inspiring Vantage
4 Sunbillow Verge
4 Sacred Foundry
1 Restless Bivouac
Sideboard 15
3 Exorcise
3 Rest in Peace
3 Obliterating Bolt
3 Scorching Dragonfire
3 Sunspine Lynx
Why this works right now: the core is a low-to-the-ground creature suite with real payoff from Valiant and equipment triggers, backed by efficient burn and sticky protection. Your plan is simple. Curve out, force them to answer, and use small edges like ward, equipment, and manlands to keep pressure rolling after removal.
Key Main Deck Cards
Mabel, Heir to Cragflame
Mabel is the glue. She pumps your entire Mouse team and makes a Cragflame equipment token on entry. That token turns every random body into a threat. It also stacks with Valiant creatures and prowess lines from Emberheart Challenger. You do not want four copies because of the legend rule, but three feels right. When you draw Mabel, combat math becomes a mess for the opponent. Good for us.
Whiskervale Forerunner
This is the controversial slot. On rate, a four drop that does nothing the turn it enters is a risk in an aggro deck. The payoff is real, though. When you target it, it looks at five and can put a cheap creature into play on your turn. That means free bodies like Manifold Mouse or a surprise Screaming Nemesis that suddenly threatens the last few points. The catch is consistency. After boarding, when you add more noncreature spells, Forerunner’s hit rate gets worse. I like three copies main and I trim it often in postboard games.
Twinmaw Stormbrood
Think of this as flexible removal that can also be a body. The sorcery half cleanly answers ground creatures that red sometimes struggles with. In a metagame full of ground-based engines, the five damage matters. It also has a cute interaction with Screaming Nemesis. If you need reach, you can deal damage to your own Nemesis and throw that damage upstairs to close.
Screaming Nemesis
This is your best reach card. It punishes blockers and makes racing tough. Opponents who try to stabilize with life gain get a rude surprise. In a deck that can poke its own creatures with burn or fight effects, Nemesis turns those exchanges into game-ending swings.
Emberheart Challenger and Manifold Mouse
Your bread and butter. These cards reward you for targeting and sequencing cleanly. Challenger brings haste, prowess, and the ability to gain cards with Valiant. Manifold Mouse grants double strike or trample at combat, which is perfect with equipment and pump. These two define your low curve and make bad blocks for the opponent.
Sheltered by Ghosts
This is protection that also acts like removal. You enchant your creature, exile their permanent, and you get ward 2 to boot. Stack them and it gets even harder to interact. Against decks that rely on Nowhere to Run to turn off ward, you will feel the strain, but in many other matchups it is the cleanest way to press a lead without overextending.
The mana
Soulstone Sanctuary gives you a late-game body without costing a slot. Rockface Village helps cast creatures and can grant haste to Mice, Lizards, Otters, or Raccoons. Sunbillow Verge smooths Boros colors, and Restless Bivouac adds post-sweeper pressure. The count is tight but stable.
Tips & Tricks
- Cragflame’s equip can be activated multiple times in a turn. Each equip is another Valiant trigger for cards like Flowerfoot Swordmaster and Emberheart Challenger. Sometimes that line is better than casting a spell.
- Stacking Sheltered by Ghosts gives multiple ward 2 instances. If your opponent has to pay twice, many removal sequences break down.
- Soulstone Sanctuary permanently becomes a creature after you activate it. Animate on their end step when shields are down, then attack with vigilance.
- Think about damage math with Screaming Nemesis. Your own burn can redirect through it for lethal.
- Rockface Village haste lines matter. Post-wipe, play a Mabel or Manifold Mouse, give it haste, and keep the pressure up.
Matchups & Sideboard Guide
Below are my default plans. Always adjust for what you see.
Izzet Cauldron
They try to discard Vivi Ornitier, exile it with Agatha’s Soul Cauldron, and then turbo-charge a board with counters and mana. Your plan is to race while forcing them to use interaction on your early creatures instead of assembling the engine.
In
3 Rest in Peace
3 Exorcise
2 Scorching Dragonfire
2 Obliterating Bolt
Out
3 Whiskervale Forerunner
2 Burst Lightning
2 Hired Claw
1 Flowerfoot Swordmaster
2 Emberheart Challenger
Notes: Rest in Peace turns off the graveyard path and shrinks a lot of the value tools. Exorcise hits Cauldron and problem permanents like Proft’s Eidetic Memory while also nailing large creatures mid-combat. Prioritize cards that exile. Save removal for key enablers and close quickly.
Dimir Midrange
They grind with Enduring Curiosity, Kaito, and efficient interaction. They often stumble on offense against fast starts. You are the beatdown.
In
3 Obliterating Bolt
2 Scorching Dragonfire
3 Sunspine Lynx
Out
3 Whiskervale Forerunner
2 Burst Lightning
3 Flowerfoot Swordmaster
Notes: Exile-based removal is premium. Lynx does real work because Dimir lists tend to lean on nonbasic lands and incidental life gain. Keep hands that curve creature into protection or removal. Be ready to play around instant-speed Curiosity.
Izzet Prowess
When Vivi shows up on curve, they snowball. If not, they play a slower, reactive game that you can exploit.
In
3 Obliterating Bolt
3 Scorching Dragonfire
Out
3 Whiskervale Forerunner
3 Sheltered by Ghosts
Notes: Kill Vivi on sight. Do not get fancy. Your ward enchantments are weaker here due to Nowhere to Run showing up in many lists. Keep cheap removal and pressure.
Esper Pixie
This is tough. Cheap removal and Pixie engines generate constant value. Nowhere to Run turning off ward is a problem.
In
3 Obliterating Bolt
3 Scorching Dragonfire
3 Sunspine Lynx
Out
3 Sheltered by Ghosts
3 Whiskervale Forerunner
3 Hired Claw
Notes: Trade early, then pivot to two-for-ones. Flowerfoot Swordmaster and Manifold Mouse help you grind. Bolt is key to answer Cosmogrand Zenith at sorcery speed. Lynx can hit hard because these decks run few basics. Trim Forerunner since your postboard spell count rises.
Azorius Control
You are favored. Keep steady pressure, respect sweepers, and lean on manlands.
In
3 Sunspine Lynx
2 Obliterating Bolt
Out
3 Whiskervale Forerunner
2 Hired Claw
Notes: Spread threats across lands, creatures, and equipment. Lynx punishes greedy manabases and turns off life gain. Try to force them to tap low on your turn, then punish with manland attacks and hasty lines.
Final Thoughts
Boros Mice is simple to pick up and skill-testing to master. The deck rewards tight sequencing, smart targeting for Valiant, and clean postboard mapping. If you want a proactive plan that pressures Vivi decks and does not fold to midrange mirrors, this is a strong metagame call. My advice is to keep the core intact, keep Mabel at three, and stay flexible with the last five to six slots as Standard shifts. This Boros Mice deck tech should give you a clear path to tune, queue, and win.
