What are the four MTG archetypes?

Aggro decks win fast with cheap creatures and pressure. Midrange decks play efficient threats and answers and grind value. Control decks answer everything and win late. Combo decks assemble a specific card interaction to win the game outright.

How does mana value indicate archetype?

A low average mana value (around 1.5 to 2.2) points to aggro, a moderate one (2.3 to 3.0) to midrange, and a higher one (3.0 and up) to control. Combo decks vary but lean on a handful of key pieces rather than the curve alone.

Why does removal and card draw matter?

Heavy removal and card draw with few creatures signals control, which trades resources and wins late. Many cheap creatures with little removal signals aggro. A balance of threats and answers signals midrange.

What counts as a combo piece?

Combo pieces are cards whose main purpose is to assemble a game-winning interaction — engines, tutors that find the combo, and the payoff cards themselves. A high combo-piece count shifts the classification toward combo regardless of the curve.

Is the classification definitive?

No. Archetypes are a spectrum and many real decks blend them, such as aggro-combo or control-midrange. Treat the result as the closest single label and a starting point for tuning, not a strict rule.

MTG Deck Archetype Analyzer

Magic decks fall along a spectrum from aggro to control, with combo and midrange in the mix. This analyzer scores your deck against each archetype from its mana curve and spell mix, then names the closest match and gives tuning advice.

How it works

Each archetype gets a score from weighted signals in your deck:

aggro    favored by low average mana value and many cheap creatures
midrange favored by a moderate curve and a balance of creatures + removal
control  favored by a high curve, heavy removal, and lots of card draw
combo    favored by a high count of dedicated combo pieces and tutors

The mana value contributes a graded score per archetype, and the spell counts add proportional weight. The highest total score wins; ties lean toward the more threat-dense archetype.

Example and notes

A deck with an average mana value of 1.9, twenty-two one-and-two-drop creatures, four removal spells, and no combo pieces scores heavily toward aggro: the low curve and creature density both point there, with little card draw or removal to suggest control. Tuning advice for aggro is to keep the curve low, add reach (burn or evasion), and trim clunky high-cost cards. Remember many decks blend styles — an aggro deck with a small combo finish is real — so use the result as a guide, not a verdict.