Traditional Esper archetypes can put players in control of armies of massive artifact creatures or have them sitting back behind a wall of counter spells and board control while more modern ones encourage tons of token generation and card draw combos
Universal AutomatonUniversal Automaton can be played in any color, can block, and triggers artifact effects in addition to creature ones
"At the time, it was probably the most powerful deck you could play," one Magic player at a San Francisco game night tells The Independent
Izzet Spellementals (10.5% of the Winner's Metagame) 6 Island 4 Riverpyre Verge 4 Spirebluff Canal 4 Steam Vents 4 Eddymurk Crab 4 Hearth Elemental 4 Sunderflock 4 Opt 4 Prismari Charm 4 Sleight of Hand 3 Burst Lightning 2 Get Out 2 Traumatic Critique 2 Spell Snare 2 Impractical Joke 2 Stormcarved Coast 2 Flow State 2 Winternight Stories 1 Spell Pierce 3 Colorstorm Stallion 2 Annul 2 Ghost Vacuum 2 Slagstorm 2 Ral, Crackling Wit 1 Disdainful Stroke 1 Flashfreeze 1 Octopus Form 1 Spell Pierce Izzet Spellementals is built around a high density of cheap instants and sorceries that draw cards, interact early in the game, and stock the graveyard for Eddymurk Crab and Hearth Elemental
(Food is an artifact with " , , Sacrifice this token: You gain 3 life." Treasure is an artifact with " , Sacrifice this token: Add one mana of any color.") Creature - Elf Scout Color tag templates(None) Tough Cookie When this creature enters, create a Food token
Enchantment - Aura Color tag templates(None) Feed the Swarm Destroy target creature or enchantment an opponent controls