Introduction:
Valentines have been sent, received, and thrown away according to their relative corniness, and yet here I sit, nostalgic for that wonderful season--okay, maybe not totally nostalgic. I'm really only stuck on the colorof the season--red. And, after burning holes in your pockets with tons of chocolates and roses and other ridiculous gifts, what better way to celebrate your survival of the selectively joyous holiday known as Valentines Day then by saving money on some of the least romantic decks you can think of--Burn, Goblins, and Werewolf Stompy.
Decks:
Deck Name: Burn
Deck Type: Aggro
Cost: 170
Burn should be nothing new to most of you, but the meta has changed a bit, and we've got a few new ways to blaze.
| DeckMagic OnlineOCTGN2ApprenticeBuy These Cards | |
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Creatures[8] 4 Goblin Guide 4 Vexing Devil Spells [33] 4 Chain Lightning 4 Fireblast 3 Flame Rift 4 Lava Spike 4 Lightning Bolt 2 Magma Jet 4 Price of Progress 4 Rift Bolt 4 Volcanic Fallout | Lands [19] 2 Barbarian Ring 17 Mountain |
Key Interactions-
Nothing too special. The deck is a bunch of burn spells.
The first thing to notice with this list is its lack of creatures, specifically Keldon Marauders, Hellspark Elemental and Grim Lavamancer. While the Lavamancer may in fact be worth playing nowadays thanks to Delver of Secrets and Deathrite Shaman being literally everywhere, I have opted out of him for now. Instead, I have decided to focus almost purely on both VCA--Virtual Card Advantage--and on one of my favorite cards of all time, Volcanic Fallout.
Goblin Guide, as always, is one of the best cards in the deck (and one of the only ones worth using that defies the VCA rules). That little sucker will almost always get in four-to-six damage for a one-mana investment. Newcomer to the Burn scene Vexing Devil works along the same char marks. Though he opens up your opponent's removal spells, he is just too powerful in the early game to pass up.
Magma Jet may seem like a sub-par inclusion, but the card still gets rid of problem threats of the Delver, Deathrite and Stoneforge variety. It also gives you some nifty scry, which is always nice in a deck that is almost 100% reliant on the draw phase to produce threats. Everything else should be pretty self-explanatory. I go with the full four Price of Progress because, let's face it, that card turns BUG to ash like a 9-year-old with a magnifying glass, and the majority of today's top decks don't fare any better.
Sideboard Suggestions-
Your sideboard cards should try to counter the cards your opponent's will sideboard against you--namely life gain. Smash to Smithereens is probably your best bet for things like Umezawa's Jitte, though Shattering Spree can also be used. Sulfuric Vortex is another great answer to life gain that packs a punch against control decks alongside Vexing Shusher and Red Elemental Blast or Pyroblast.
As far as your answers to actual opposing strategies goes, Pyrostatic Pillar is your main answer to combo, but depending on what your meta looks like Mindbreak Trap is also an option. Graveyard hate is always good to have in Legacy, and you've got options there. Tormod's Crypt and Faerie Macabre are favorites, but almost anything that your mana base can support should be fine. Finally, Ensnaring Bridge is often used to combat creature-based aggro decks, Show and Tell decks, and anything that plays Delver of Secrets.
Deck Name:Goblins
Deck Type:Aggro
Cost:230
I have written about Goblins in one of my previous articles, but that was deviant list compared to a typical Little Green Man deck. Today's list sticks much more closely to the ones you will normally find at top tables.
| DeckMagic OnlineOCTGN2ApprenticeBuy These Cards | |
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Creatures [32] 3 Gempalm Incinerator 1 Goblin Chieftain 4 Goblin Lackey 4 Goblin Matron 3 Goblin Piledriver 4 Goblin Ringleader 1 Goblin Sharpshooter 4 Goblin Warchief 1 Krenko, Mob Boss 2 Mogg War Marshal 2 Siege-Gang Commander 1 Skirk Prospector 2 Warren Instigator | Spells [6] 4 AEther Vial 2 Tarfire Lands [22] 22 Mountain |
Key Interactions-
Goblin Lackey or Warren Instigator + Siege-Gang Commander or Goblin Ringleader
Krenko, Mob Boss or Mogg War Marshal + Skirk Prospector
Goblin Matron + Tarfire or Goblin Sharpshooter or any other goblin
On your first turn you want to play either Goblin Lackey or Aether Vial. By using either of them (or both), you will spend the rest of the game playing a bunch of goblins faster than your opponent can answer them (hopefully all while yelling "Zergrush KEKEKE!" every time you attack). If you can't get a Lackey out on turn one, or your opponent answers him, Warren Instigator is always there to bring on the hurt even more. Key goblins to cheat into play are Siege-Gang Commander, Goblin Warchief, and the heart and soul of the deck, Goblin Ringleader. Of course, playing any goblin in your deck for free is always a plus, but these are the big guns.
Goblin Matron is your toolbox goblin. She can find you whatever you may need to pull ahead of your opponent. Tarfire, Goblin Sharpshooter, and Gempalm Incinerator can be pulled from the deck like guns from a holster--and used for almost the same purpose, to kill off blockers that are preventing your Lackeys from hitting (and numerous other threats). Goblin Matron is also helpful in finding any sideboard-specific goblins you may have brought in, or for finding key threat goblins like Krenko, Piledriver or Goblin Chieftain.
Goblin Sharpshooter in particular is a much more powerful card than he is given credit for. One can benefit massively from using his triggered ability correctly; he can answer large creatures after multiple tokens are used to block, and do other nifty tricks. For every token you lose in combat you get a Sharpshooter trigger. For every threat your tokens kill, as well as your Sharpshooter himself, you get a Sharpshooter trigger. This guy is nuts and it does not surprise me that he is depicted with a freaking machine gun in his art (despite this being a fantasy card game). He is just that cool. So what if you have to sacrifice a few of his buddies in the process? Goblin decks produce more creatures faster than 99% of all Legacy decks. Plus, He's got a machine gun.
Aside from simply swarming out your opponent, Goblin Piledriver is your main finisher. He is awesome when combined with Krenko. Add on a Goblin Chieftain or Goblin Warchief and he becomes the literal stone-cold nuts. If all else fails and the board stalls, don't forget that both Sharpshooter and Siege-Gang Commander can be used to burn away at your opponent, creating a heckuva reach.
On a side note, the Zerg from Starcraft resemble Goblins quite nicely, and I'm riled up just imagining a Starcraft themed altered-art Goblins deck. Do any of you know of someone who has altered their Goblin deck this way? It seems too perfect for it not to have happened. I mean, come on, Aether Vial would make a sick Spawning Pool. If you know of any, send some photos my way, and I may show them off in my next article!
Sideboard Suggestions-
A goblins sideboard should be built to handle what your little LGMs can't: really big creatures, equipment, and combo. Pyrokinesis is a favorite, killing many of the larger creatures that Tarfire just can't handle. Plus it's free and can still be used to kill off blockers to get a Lackey through. Grafdigger's Cage and other graveyard hate cards can be used if graveyard decks are ambling through your meta, and depending on what you choose, they can even help against Deathrite Shaman or Tarmogoyf. Red Elemental Blast helps against blue decks, but it's really there for Show and Tell and similar combo. Toolbox goblins like Stingscourger and Goblin Tinkerer help against some specific threats while Goblin King can be tutored up for the mirror match (or against any deck that uses red). I have also seen Pyrostatic Pillar used against combo decks, but I am not sure how effective it is; it can be pretty rough for you as well.
Deck Name:Werewolf Stompy
Deck Type:Aggro/Control
Cost:245
Some of you may have heard of Dragon Stompy, an old Chalice of the Void-and-Trinishphere-based red deck that was popular a few years back but has since fallen into obscurity. One of the major flaws with the archetype--and one of the major reasons it fell out of favor--was its creature base. Werewolf Stompy is the modern take that tries to fix that very problem. I never thought I would see the day that werewolves were better than dragons, but, well, here we are.
| DeckMagic OnlineOCTGN2ApprenticeBuy These Cards | ||
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Creatures [23] 4 Hanweir Watchkeep 3 Instigator Gang 4 Kruin Outlaw 1 Kuldotha Phoenix 4 Magus of the Moon 3 Mondronen Shaman 4 Simian Spirit Guide | Spells [18] 4 Blood Moon 4 Chalice of the Void 4 Chrome Mox 4 Trinisphere 2 Umezawa's Jitte | Lands [19] 4 Ancient Tomb 11 Mountain 4 Sandstone Needle |
Key Interactions-
Sandstone Needle or Ancient Tomb + Blood Moon or Magus of the Moon
Chrom Mox + Simian Spirit Guide
Trinishphere or Chalice of the Void + Any Werewolf
The strategy for Werewolf Stompy is simple compared to other Legacy decks. Turn one of the game should consist of using some kind of mana acceleration, of which you have many choices, to play either Chalice of the Void, Trinisphere, or a Blood Moon effect. Once you have some soft-lock cards in play, accelerate into one of your many werewolves. As long as things go well for you all of your werewolves should have no trouble transforming and staying that way on the back of each of your soft-lock cards.
Blood Moon and Magus of the Moon are really why this deck exists, as they have unquestionable howling power in a developed meta. RUG Delver, BUG, Jund and a slew of other tier decks will have a tough time playing through a Moon card. Besides causing mana issues for your opponent, the moon monsters can also help your mana base by turning your Sandstone Needle or Ancient Tomb into a mountain, keeping the Needle around longer and stopping that life loss from Tomb after you have used them to accelerate in the early game.
Sideboard Suggestions-
With any Chalice deck your sideboard is rough to create, since you have to stick to the rules of the deck. This means, though it is very good, Pyroblast and his buddy are probably not the best choice for you. I have seen them played, but doing so means you risk trapping yourself under your own Chalice or Trinisphere. Pyrokinesis is often used to get rid of threats, along with board wipe cards like Pyroclasm and Volcanic Fallout. Heck, I've even seen Wildfire, but I don't think I would suggest it. As with all decks in Legacy, some graveyard hate is probably smart to take with you. Tormod's Crypt is also popular, but you could make an argument for a lot of other options. Spitebellows is occasionally used against Goyf and Knight of the Reliquary. Sulfur Elemental helps against white and control due to its being uncounterable. Ingot Chewer is probably your best answer to artifacts because it can also become a threat, but Shattering Spree comes up every so often because it can bypass Chalice. Finally, I really like Defense Grid against control, as it either lures a counter out or makes it incredibly difficult for them to counter anything else you play.
Conclusion:
Whelp, that's it for the February article. Hope you guys enjoyed the red decks! I'll see you in a couple of weeks for St. Patricks Day!
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