Despite some speculation to the contrary, the new modified format for the 2006-2007 season will use all sets from EX Deoxys and on. (POP's announcement is here.) This may surprise some who had expected EX Emerald to be the first legal set of the format.

It's an interesting choice, as many "lesser" archetypes will still be playable while some of the stronger ones will be lost. For instance, BLS, Queendom, Rock Lock, and anything involving Dark Pokemon will be pretty much destroyed, while Liability, Ludicargo, and newer decks like Metanite and even Mewtric could be dangerous. I'd expect that Lunarock and Espycham will lose some power with the removal of Quick Search Pidgeot, as there's no longer a need to fear the super-searcher. Likewise, Battle Frontier will probably be more useful just to block the Delta Species Pokemon as well as the occasional rogue tactic. Using four in any deck may not be nearly such a good idea as before.

Of course, a lot of this will depend heavily on what new strategies develop from Crystal Guardians and beyond, so any analysis at this point is certainly nothing more than a general idea of what may occur. But the cutoff point is very intriguing, nonetheless.