The 10 Best Removal Spells in Innistrad: Midnight Hunt Standard

As we venture into new Standard, many new decks are emerging to claim viability in the metagame, one thing to think about is what are the best removal spells in the format? You can play one of the many aggro decks in the format, but you still need to have some removal to be able to push through your creatures. Today we’ll look at the 10 best removal spells in the format that you should be playing in your decks.

The Metagame

yasharn implacable earth — *Wizards of the Coast*

At the time of writing, there’s a few decks that are pushing to the front of the meta. The first is Gruul Werewolves / Gruul Aggro. Next up is Selesnya Ramp / Landfall featuring Wrenn and Seven. Next is Mono Green Aggro, followed by Izzet Dragons and lastly Mono White Aggro / Book of Exalted Deeds combo. In light of these, let’s get into our list.

10. Cinderclasm

is our first card, and this makes the list because it can deal with an entire board. It does need to be kicked to get the most out of it, but this clears some important creatures like , , and and Tokens.

9. Tangletrap

stx-145-tangletrap — *Wizards of the Coast*

Next up is Tangletrap. This one is a bit more narrow, but this can deal with various flying creatures such as Goldspan Dragon, but can also handily set back The Book of Exalted Deeds.

8. Fracture

comes in next. This inexpensive instant can help to deal with some powerful cards like , , and [tooltip]The Book of Exalted Deeds[/tooltips]. This is requiring you to be at least in Orzhov, which is a lesser played color pair, but this is still very strong

7. Vanishing Verse

stx-244-vanishing-verse — *Wizards of the Coast*

In a similar vein as Fracture, Vanishing Verse is a very useful tool to have in your back pocket. Many of the important permanents that you’ll want to hit in the format are monocolored, so this can easily find a target. Since control isn’t as prevalent right now, this is rarely dead in your hand. Once again, you do have to play Orzhov in some fashion, which isn’t very popular right now.

7. Doomskar

best-board-wipes-mtg-doomskar — *Wizards of the Coast*

comes in at Number 7. This one is a bit tricky, as this can handily deal with a curved out board, but this doesn’t play into any popular decks at the moment. As we’ve stated, control isn’t very popular right now, and the only deck this really sees play in is the Book of Exalted Deeds deck. If you can find a deck that can play this, it’s great

6. Portable Hole

Portable-Hole-AFR-672 — *Wizards of the Coast*

Number 6 is Portable Hole. This 1 mana removal spell deals with many very important permanents in the game. Werewolf Pack Leader, Prosperous Innkeeper, other Portable Holes, and tokens come to mind for great targets. It’s cheap and a pretty hard card type to deal with right now, so this can slot into many decks.

5. Infernal Grasp

is the best black removal spell out there. It’s unconditional for creatures which is a really big deal. The life loss is a drawback, but at the end of the day, if you aren’t dying to a massive creature, then the trade off is worth it.

4. Cathartic Pyre

Cathartic-Pyre-MID — *Wizards of the Coast*

comes in next. The flexibility of being a 3 damage burn spell and a rummage spell is very valuable in decks that want it. Often times, this is going to slot into the aggro / midrange decks where card draw isn’t a main focus, so this is a great option to help fuel their hand.

3. Fateful Absence

Fateful-Absence-MID — *Wizards of the Coast*

comes in at number 3 and for good reason. This is the only white instant speed unconditional creature / planeswalker removal. The flexibility to hit planeswalkers is also why this is mentioned this late in the game. The downside of having your opponent Investigate is a pretty small one so this is a great option for decks playing white.

2. Burning Hands

Number 2 and Number 1 on the list are VERY close, nearly tied. Number 2 is Burning Hands. With Green being a very heavily played color in the format, this card is often dealing 6 damage to it’s target. Being able to cleanly deal with various Werewolves, or Wrenn and Seven for only 2 mana is a huge benefit.

1. Dragon’s Fire

comes in at our number 1 spot for Standard. The reason that this sits up at number 1 is because it does 3 damage on its face, but if you’re playing a dragon, ie , then this deals 4 damage. Here’s some of the important creatures that you can hit with the 4 damage:

Righteous Valkyrie
Smoldering Egg
Moonveil Regent
Goldspan Dragon
Esika’s Chariot
Froghemoth
Galazeth Prismari
Yasharn, Implacable Earth

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That’s a pretty decent list, and each of these creatures are definitely high value targets to remove from the board.

This list definitely could change, but these definitely are the best and most efficient removal spells in the format right now. You definitely should be playing these in your 75. What are your thoughts on this? Are there any spells that you’d add to this list? Let us know in the comments!