Whenever we see a powerful card in Standard serving as either the lynchpin of a linear strategy or as a key role-player in multiple archetypes, it’s worth considering what that card can do in larger formats. Tireless Tracker, Kalitas, Traitor of Ghet, and Pia and Kiran Nalaar are cards which have personified this kind of transformation from Standard superstar to multi-format staple. From Naya Humans to this new Mono-White take, Thalia’s Lieutenant may be the next card to make the jump from Standard to Eternal formats. Here’s a look at zyxwvutrsqpon’s take on Thalia’s Lieutenant in Modern:

Mono-White Humans — Modern | zyxwvutsrqpon, 5-0 Modern League
Creatures (27)
3 Thraben Inspector
4 Boros Elite
4 Champion of the Parish
4 Doomed Traveler
4 Kytheon, Hero of Akros
4 Thalia, Guardian of Thraben
4 Thalia's Lieutenant
Spells (13)
2 Path to Exile
4 Brave the Elements
4 Gather the Townsfolk
3 Honor of the Pure
Lands (20)
16 Plains
2 Horizon Canopy
2 Mutavault
Sideboard (15)
2 Path to Exile
2 Grafdigger's Cage
2 Gut Shot
1 Knight of the White Orchid
2 Mana Tithe
2 Rest in Peace
4 Stony Silence

One of the issues with mono-White in Modern is you have to walk an awkward line between applying sufficient pressure and playing hate bears to buy enough time for your small White creatures to get the job done. That leads to playing awkward cards like Leonin Arbiter and Aven Mindcensor, which are awesome at preventing your opponent from doing things, but don’t really cut it when it comes to applying real pressure.

Thalia’s Lieutenant changes everything. Thalia’s Lieutenant is a Steel Overseer with Haste for small White creatures. Not only that, but it shows up in a deck capable of comfortably playing Cavern of Souls to fight against the Ancestral Vision decks which have become so popular in recent weeks. The combination of Thalia’s Lieutenant and Honor of the Pure give this deck the ability to end games on turn four through interaction.

Traditionally, the issue is this kind of aggressive strategy featuring creature-based anthems is very vulnerable to sweepers and efficient removal like Electrolyze. With the likes of Kytheon, Hero of Akros and Thraben Inspector in the mix, the deck now has some additional staying power outside of Doomed Traveler to provide increased resilience to removal and sweepers. This means, not only does this deck have the ability to aggro opponents out, you can also grind away with Clues and Horizon Canopy or Mutavault and Kytheon to fight through a dearth of removal or sweepers.

Does this increased flexibility and power make Humans a staple in the Modern metagame? Your draws are less explosive than something like Infect or Affinity, but much more consistent since so many of your cards do more or less the same thing. There’s certainly a tradeoff, and I can’t wait to see which side people fall on.

Speaking of arrivals, Thalia's Lieutenant makes White Weenie possible. This deck pumps out a ton of creatures fast and then pumps them with Thalia's Lieutenant or Honor of the Pure. Brave the Elements is insurance against Pyroclasm or Anger of the Gods while Thalia, Guardian of Thraben makes sure we outrace all the combo decks. And since we're white, we get access to all the best sideboard hate.

Humans have been the premier white aggressive tribe for several years now. All I can say is that I'm not surprised to see them leave their mark in Modern now that they've gotten some new top-tier toys.

Thalia's Lieutenant is absolutely no joke, both functioning as a “lord” and an individually powerful creature. Thraben Inspector, innocuous as it may seem, is an awesome tool for aggressive decks as a cheap body that is able to generate advantage whenever mana is available. These are really the only additions that it takes to put an already aggressive curve over the top.

In some ways, Champion of the Parish is the “original” Thalia's Lietuenant, and once ZYXWVUTSRQPON was able to combine the two, they were able to build a potent and efficient machine.

Gather the Townsfolk is another seemingly innocent card that has gotten miles better now that there are eight “Humans matters” cards present. It lets us go wide and simultaneously build up several of our creatures to unmanageable sizes.

The real hero here is Brave the Elements. Not only is this card effectively a counterspell for removal, it's also a Falter effect. It provides the Mono-White deck an incredible amount of reach by being able to push an entire squad through on a key turn.

A huge benefit of being Mono-White rather than other colors is that your Modern sideboard cards are still excellent. This hyper-aggressive deck that is capable of absolutely punishing draws still gets to pack the best of the best in its sideboard, notably Stony Silence and Rest in Peace. Grafdigger's Cage is undoubtedly a nod to the rise in Abzan Company strategies, and you can't help but love the addition of a few copies of Mana Tithes. When your curve is as low as this Humans deck, the margins on which your opponents can fight back to survive are incredibly slim. Sometimes all you need is a well-timed Force Spike.

The Human invasion is coming.

Mono-White Humans
Modern
Creatures (27)
4 Boros Elite
4 Champion of the Parish
4 Doomed Traveler
4 Thalia's Lieutenant
3 Thraben Inspector
4 Kytheon, Hero of Akros
4 Thalia, Guardian of Thraben
Lands (20)
16 Plains
2 Horizon Canopy
2 Mutavault
Spells (13)
3 Honor of the Pure
4 Brave the Elements
2 Path to Exile
4 Gather the Townsfolk
Sideboard
2 Grafdigger's Cage
1 Knight of the White Orchid
2 Rest in Peace
4 Stony Silence
2 Gut Shot
2 Mana Tithe
2 Path to Exile