The Dive Down

A Magic: The Gathering podcast for the casual spike, focused on Modern, Pioneer, Explorer, and more!

About the show

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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Episodes and Blog Entries

  • Episode 15: 1+1+1=7

    Episode  |  March 29th, 2019  |  1 hr 45 mins

    The Break Down: Analyzing the results from SCG Cincinnati's Team Open and Modern Classic.
    The Dive Down: We dive down into the big green menace: TRON. How it works, what it's trying to do, and how you can try to stop it.
    The Wind Down: The crew answers a listener question about the Modern decks we miss most.

  • Episode 14: The Bird That Shan't Be Named ft. Ross Merriam

    Episode  |  March 22nd, 2019  |  2 hrs 9 mins

    The Break Down: Analyzing the results from GPs Tampa and Bilbao, and SCG Philadelphia.
    The Dive Down: We interview Ross Merriam about Izzet Phoenix, tournament preparation, Modern Horizons reprints, and more.
    The Wind Down: New decks the hosts are looking at.

  • Episode 13: Modern Modulation ft. GP LA Runner-Up Gal Schlesinger

    Episode  |  March 15th, 2019  |  1 hr 42 mins

    The Break Down: Digesting all the top 8 results from the SCG Regionals
    The Dive Down: Gal Schlesinger joins us for an interview to talk all things Hardened Scales
    The Wind Down: Another B&R announcement with no changes

  • Episode 12: Surgical Precision

    Episode  |  March 8th, 2019  |  1 hr 43 mins

    The Break Down: The Grand Prix Los Angeles metagame, fun and winning decks, and the power of Faithless Looting.
    The Dive Down: How to avoid and overcome 3 problems related to Surgical Extraction.
    The Wind Down: How Stan is prepping for this weekend's SCG Regionals.

  • Episode 11: Dredge: It's Confla-Great!

    Episode  |  March 1st, 2019  |  1 hr 48 mins

    First things first, we talk about the announcement of Modern Horizons!
    The Break Down - Feb 24 Modern Challenge and MagicFest Cleveland's Modern MCQ, as well as some spicy picks from this weeks Modern Leagues
    The Dive Down - an in-depth look at Dredge: how it works, how it wants to win, and how to try to beat it
    The Wind Down - We talk the newly proposed mulligan rule

  • Episode 10: Prime Real Estate

    Episode  |  February 22nd, 2019  |  1 hr 18 mins

    We break down the GP Strasbourg and Magic Online Modern Mythic Champ Qualifiers, dive down into four different decks built around Primeval Titan, then wind things down with a conversation on what happens if your favorite deck gets banned.

  • Episode 9: Sleeve It / Believe It / Heave It: The Latest Developments in Modern

    Episode  |  February 15th, 2019  |  1 hr 20 mins

    We go over GP Toronto and the Nerd Rage Gaming 5k in Milwaukee, then rate 5 of the latest winning decks in Modern, and finally define the burning question: what is a "casual spike?"

  • Episode 8: To Tweak: Weak, or on Fleek?

    Episode  |  February 8th, 2019  |  1 hr 20 mins

    We talk about the Modern portion of the Team Constructed event at SCG Baltimore, then dive down into the highs and lows of tweaking decks for the metagame, and bring it home with a listener question.

  • Episode 7: When In Doubt, Burn 'Em Out!

    Episode  |  February 1st, 2019  |  1 hr 11 mins

    We go over the latest Modern Challenge and the new Pod, talk about Stanislav's awesome finish at the SCG Classic, then dive down into a discussion of the latest experiments with Burn.

  • Episode 6: My Shadow Hold Me Down 4 Whatever

    Episode  |  January 25th, 2019  |  1 hr 17 mins

    We discuss the banning of KCI and some MTGO tournament results, dive down into an analysis of Death's Shadow decks, and chat about Gavin Varhey's interview with The Professor.

  • Episode 5: Pterry, Phoenix, and Pfriends

    Episode  |  January 18th, 2019  |  1 hr 27 mins

    We discuss the results of SCG Worcester, analyze ways to beat Izzet Phoenix, and break down our picks for the top modern cards from Ravnica Allegiance.

  • Episode 4: I, For One, Welcome Our New Furnace Overlords

    Episode  |  January 11th, 2019  |  1 hr 12 mins

    The crew break down the SCG Non-Unified Team Modern and GP Oakland results, then talk about KCI, what makes a deck bannable, and the impact of some potential upcoming bans in modern.

  • Episode 3: These Planes Were Made For Walking

    Episode  |  January 5th, 2019  |  1 hr 17 mins

    The crew talks about the MTGO Modern "Finals" (whatever that means) results, then dives down into the topic of Planeswalkers in Modern.

  • Episode 2: 2018 in Review

    Episode  |  December 29th, 2018  |  1 hr 15 mins

    In this episode, the crew talks about the most impactful cards of 2018, then breaks down the 2018 metagame across all the Modern GPs.

  • Episode 1: Modern Izzet Phoenix and the costs and benefits of self-mill

    Episode  |  December 22nd, 2018  |  1 hr 11 mins

    Welcome to the first episode of The Dive Down, a modern focused podcast for the casual spike! In this episode we talk about Izzet Phoenix, and the feels vs. reals of milling yourself.