Thanks guys for the reports : saw Raleigh, Duluth, Orlando and such coming in up in discussion, but I'm still waiting for the mothership to post up official results!
magic.wizards.com will be the place to check for scg regionals? Not starcitygames.com ?
They're trickling in on SCG's website. Check the "decklists" panel.
Fringe decks:
Sultai Delver at San Diego
Amulet at Orlando
Abzan Evolution at Lenexa
Soul Sisters at Plano
8Rack at Minneapolis and Catskill
Gifts Storm at Baltimore
Landfall Zoo at Raleigh
BR Midrange at Raleigh
Decks with 3 copies in a single T8 (oh no, Modern is ruined forever):
3 Abzan Company at Duluth
3 Gx Tron at San Diego (all different splash colors)
3 Bant Eldrazi at Columbus
3 Jund at Plano
GGT ban and Rallier helped put Abzan Company back on the map.
For all the hype Cheeri0s has gotten, it hasn't showed up yet. Reminds me of Jeskai Ascendancy during TC.
Ironically, I think the hype ruined us this time. It all exploded only a week ago, meaning new pilots were unprepared and opponents recieved tons of warning and analysis. But even with those circumstances we still grabbed some very, very good finishes, so I expect a strong second wave.
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Slowly breaking.
Any more of this, and Team Troll will be more than just a name.
Very, the games have been good, even the Bant Eldrazi mirror that stalled out with Worship.
Death's Shadow is a silly deck, it really is, but hey cant win them all.
As a fellow turns aficionado, I think we share some of the same appreciation of magic. That said, every match with shadow jund has been a joy to watch! Complex, strange plays that even seem wrong, so many lines and choices for what is effectively an aggro deck with some hand disruption. It's a truly fantastic deck & props to the developers of it. Sam black pilots it very well, as well... I've seen some terrible (but somehow popular) magic players just fail completely with the deck over the last week or so, but watching Sam is like seeing someone operate on a different level haha. Some seriously challenging and brilliant plays seen today, I found it enlightening honestly.
If modern is going to be the permanent home for this new deck, bring it on!
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Modern: G Tron, Vannifar, Jund, Druid/Vizier combo, Humans, Eldrazi Stompy (Serum Powder), Amulet, Grishoalbrand, Breach Titan, Turns, Eternal Command, As Foretold Living End, Elves, Cheerios, RUG Scapeshift
Very, the games have been good, even the Bant Eldrazi mirror that stalled out with Worship.
Death's Shadow is a silly deck, it really is, but hey cant win them all.
As a fellow turns aficionado, I think we share some of the same appreciation of magic. That said, every match with shadow jund has been a joy to watch! Complex, strange plays that even seem wrong, so many lines and choices for what is effectively an aggro deck with some hand disruption. It's a truly fantastic deck & props to the developers of it. Sam black pilots it very well, as well... I've seen some terrible (but somehow popular) magic players just fail completely with the deck over the last week or so, but watching Sam is like seeing someone operate on a different level haha. Some seriously challenging and brilliant plays seen today, I found it enlightening honestly.
If modern is going to be the permanent home for this new deck, bring it on!
I know this is going to sound like "that guy who thinks he plays well, but doesn't," but the deck is not as hard to play as one might think. I personally always avoided playing DSA because I thought it would be tough to sequence the lands correctly, whereas most land play in Modern is super easy. I also thought I would run into those poor matchups or poor variance that the deck would have. But after play testing for a day, (yes, I know), it has surprised me how fairly easy it is. You think your opponent has removal? Play discard so they won't use it, unless you don't care if they use it, etc. The deck is just basically make your opponent discard until they don't feel like playing anymore, then drop Shadow after Shadow after Goyf/Goyf/Goyf....
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Legacy - Sneak Show, BR Reanimator, Miracles, UW Stoneblade
Premodern - Trix, RecSur, Enchantress, Reanimator, Elves https://www.facebook.com/groups/PremodernUSA/ Modern - Neobrand, Hogaak Vine, Elves
Standard - Mono Red (6-2 and 5-3 in 2 McQ)
Draft - (I wish I had more time for limited...)
Commander - Norin the Wary, Grimgrin, Adun Oakenshield (taking forever to build) (dead format for me)
Very, the games have been good, even the Bant Eldrazi mirror that stalled out with Worship.
Death's Shadow is a silly deck, it really is, but hey cant win them all.
As a fellow turns aficionado, I think we share some of the same appreciation of magic. That said, every match with shadow jund has been a joy to watch! Complex, strange plays that even seem wrong, so many lines and choices for what is effectively an aggro deck with some hand disruption. It's a truly fantastic deck & props to the developers of it. Sam black pilots it very well, as well... I've seen some terrible (but somehow popular) magic players just fail completely with the deck over the last week or so, but watching Sam is like seeing someone operate on a different level haha. Some seriously challenging and brilliant plays seen today, I found it enlightening honestly.
If modern is going to be the permanent home for this new deck, bring it on!
I know this is going to sound like "that guy who thinks he plays well, but doesn't," but the deck is not as hard to play as one might think. I personally always avoided playing DSA because I thought it would be tough to sequence the lands correctly, whereas most land play in Modern is super easy. I also thought I would run into those poor matchups or poor variance that the deck would have. But after play testing for a day, (yes, I know), it has surprised me how fairly easy it is. You think your opponent has removal? Play discard so they won't use it, unless you don't care if they use it, etc. The deck is just basically make your opponent discard until they don't feel like playing anymore, then drop Shadow after Shadow after Goyf/Goyf/Goyf....
Ok so yes, what you said is true from an 'operations' standpoint, but there's something else going on:
I saw two or three popular streamers play in the way you described, making what seemed on the surface like the correct operations and sequencing, but the whole thing fell apart.
Take Sam black's performances recently; he makes seemingly questionable plays, uses slightly odd sequencing and a couple of times even made what looks like the actual wrong line of play; but he wins!
There's something going on with this deck underneath the surface, like it has oniony layers... And it'll be down to that deeper understanding, muscle-memory thing where you can make those plays that look awkward but pay off in four turns' time. I haven't seen anyone except Sam black and Josh utter-leyton pull this off so far (haven't seen gerry T on camera). The other people I've seen with the deck are playing it the "normal way" you described above, and they are either leas successful, or it's obvious from my vantage as an observer that they are worse magic players.
Caveat: it's a new deck. People are still figuring out how to play against it, let alone pilot it. Still, it seems like a good deck for an observer to judge which players are on another level and which ones are just muddling through.
Double caveat; it's also possible that there's some aspect of the deck that I'm familiar with that allows me to make these observations, and with other decks I'm likely in the dark & wouldn't necessarily notice the difference between a "Sam black" and a "guy from tcgplayer". That said, I'm well-versed in tron, scapeshift, jund, control... I think where I lack the insight might be decks such as abzan company or maybe affinity. Who knows. I just really enjoy seeing shadow jund on coverage is all. Haha
Do we know what Justin Cohen is playing this weekend to 9-0? I want it to be amulet, but have a feeling he'll be on death's shadow, since he's good friends with Sam Black! Cant seem to get any decklists or streams from yesterday!!
Death's Shadow. He was on camera in the last round.
Do we know what Justin Cohen is playing this weekend to 9-0? I want it to be amulet, but have a feeling he'll be on death's shadow, since he's good friends with Sam Black! Cant seem to get any decklists or streams from yesterday!!
Death's Shadow. He was on camera in the last round.
Sweet, Justin Cohen is a great player to watch; he does this super-concentrating frown that is really expressive (and he's a top player of course).
I had to switch off after watching Sam black beat ross the boss in round 6 or whatever. Did anyone else catch the final standings on Saturday? Any highlights?
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Modern: G Tron, Vannifar, Jund, Druid/Vizier combo, Humans, Eldrazi Stompy (Serum Powder), Amulet, Grishoalbrand, Breach Titan, Turns, Eternal Command, As Foretold Living End, Elves, Cheerios, RUG Scapeshift
Very, the games have been good, even the Bant Eldrazi mirror that stalled out with Worship.
Death's Shadow is a silly deck, it really is, but hey cant win them all.
As a fellow turns aficionado, I think we share some of the same appreciation of magic. That said, every match with shadow jund has been a joy to watch! Complex, strange plays that even seem wrong, so many lines and choices for what is effectively an aggro deck with some hand disruption. It's a truly fantastic deck & props to the developers of it. Sam black pilots it very well, as well... I've seen some terrible (but somehow popular) magic players just fail completely with the deck over the last week or so, but watching Sam is like seeing someone operate on a different level haha. Some seriously challenging and brilliant plays seen today, I found it enlightening honestly.
If modern is going to be the permanent home for this new deck, bring it on!
I know this is going to sound like "that guy who thinks he plays well, but doesn't," but the deck is not as hard to play as one might think. I personally always avoided playing DSA because I thought it would be tough to sequence the lands correctly, whereas most land play in Modern is super easy. I also thought I would run into those poor matchups or poor variance that the deck would have. But after play testing for a day, (yes, I know), it has surprised me how fairly easy it is. You think your opponent has removal? Play discard so they won't use it, unless you don't care if they use it, etc. The deck is just basically make your opponent discard until they don't feel like playing anymore, then drop Shadow after Shadow after Goyf/Goyf/Goyf....
You're definitely simplifying it. There's a lot of consideration when your opponent is pressuring you, when you have to put pressure on while they're going wide while having enough to stay back and block your low life total, using bauble to see your land before you Crack it, etc.
I've been having a blast with it on mtgo, and I'm winning a nice chunk in the practice rooms, but I'm also catching so many mistakes that are easy to make with this deck. Also played a few mirror matches and it's obvious they have no clue to to sideboard the deck
Very, the games have been good, even the Bant Eldrazi mirror that stalled out with Worship.
Death's Shadow is a silly deck, it really is, but hey cant win them all.
As a fellow turns aficionado, I think we share some of the same appreciation of magic. That said, every match with shadow jund has been a joy to watch! Complex, strange plays that even seem wrong, so many lines and choices for what is effectively an aggro deck with some hand disruption. It's a truly fantastic deck & props to the developers of it. Sam black pilots it very well, as well... I've seen some terrible (but somehow popular) magic players just fail completely with the deck over the last week or so, but watching Sam is like seeing someone operate on a different level haha. Some seriously challenging and brilliant plays seen today, I found it enlightening honestly.
If modern is going to be the permanent home for this new deck, bring it on!
I know this is going to sound like "that guy who thinks he plays well, but doesn't," but the deck is not as hard to play as one might think. I personally always avoided playing DSA because I thought it would be tough to sequence the lands correctly, whereas most land play in Modern is super easy. I also thought I would run into those poor matchups or poor variance that the deck would have. But after play testing for a day, (yes, I know), it has surprised me how fairly easy it is. You think your opponent has removal? Play discard so they won't use it, unless you don't care if they use it, etc. The deck is just basically make your opponent discard until they don't feel like playing anymore, then drop Shadow after Shadow after Goyf/Goyf/Goyf....
You're definitely simplifying it. There's a lot of consideration when your opponent is pressuring you, when you have to put pressure on while they're going wide while having enough to stay back and block your low life total, using bauble to see your land before you Crack it, etc.
I've been having a blast with it on mtgo, and I'm winning a nice chunk in the practice rooms, but I'm also catching so many mistakes that are easy to make with this deck. Also played a few mirror matches and it's obvious they have no clue to to sideboard the deck
Yes, I should say that those are a bit tougher. But usually it's somewhat obvious of when to attack and when not to. Opponents have creatures with evasion and you don't win by holding too much back with this deck. Not to mention, decks like Abzan Company or similar can put 2-3 creatures on the board next turn and set up for a lethal attack, so you're not winning by blocking.
Sam Black is an amazing player and probably a future Hall of Famer. I've played him before, in Limited. I've watched him several times, including right next to him at a GP when my match ended early and his was grindy. I'm in no way, shape, or form taking anything away from him. He and others had the guts to try an innovative Modern deck and absolutely destroy the competition. They get a lot of credit for that.
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Legacy - Sneak Show, BR Reanimator, Miracles, UW Stoneblade
Premodern - Trix, RecSur, Enchantress, Reanimator, Elves https://www.facebook.com/groups/PremodernUSA/ Modern - Neobrand, Hogaak Vine, Elves
Standard - Mono Red (6-2 and 5-3 in 2 McQ)
Draft - (I wish I had more time for limited...)
Commander - Norin the Wary, Grimgrin, Adun Oakenshield (taking forever to build) (dead format for me)
I posted this in the Abzan thread, but I noticed that there is a discrepancy between Patrick Tilsen's Top 8 Abzan decklist at SCG Indianapolis and what he was actually playing on stream.
If you look at the Twitch stream of SCG Indianapolis Day 2, he plays a Stirring Wildwood at 8:08:45, but there is no Wildwood in his decklist, which is a full 75 cards with nothing that looks out of place.
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These days, some wizards are finding they have a little too much deck left at the end of their $$$.
MTG finance guy- follow me on Twitter@RichArschmann or RichardArschmann on Reddit
I posted this in the Abzan thread, but I noticed that there is a discrepancy between Patrick Tilsen's Top 8 Abzan decklist at SCG Indianapolis and what he was actually playing on stream.
If you look at the Twitch stream of SCG Indianapolis Day 2, he plays a Stirring Wildwood at 8:08:45, but there is no Wildwood in his decklist, which is a full 75 cards with nothing that looks out of place.
You're right, but it could be a mistake by SCG as well. I've had the deck name that I put on the deck list be changed many times when posted online. It's not necessarily a mistake by the player.
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Legacy - Sneak Show, BR Reanimator, Miracles, UW Stoneblade
Premodern - Trix, RecSur, Enchantress, Reanimator, Elves https://www.facebook.com/groups/PremodernUSA/ Modern - Neobrand, Hogaak Vine, Elves
Standard - Mono Red (6-2 and 5-3 in 2 McQ)
Draft - (I wish I had more time for limited...)
Commander - Norin the Wary, Grimgrin, Adun Oakenshield (taking forever to build) (dead format for me)
Ad Nauseam with Peer Through Depths and Mystical Teachings and even Desperate Ritual, 3 fetches and 7 temples as well as Steam Vents : this is one the greatest win for the deck with winning GP Charlotte in 2016 and also going 8-0-1 at Pro Tour with Bryan Gottlieb! This was a great run, such a sweet take on the deck (he did 26th at Open Charlotte in 2015 if I recall correctly)!
I'm relieved Death Shadow Jund isn't dominating the tables
It's really interesting that Death Shadow and Junk are kinda squeezing regular jund out of the meta, I've barely seen a jund deck on camera on camera the past few tournaments.
There seems to be a lot of burn going around. A lot of diversity though. Skred at 6-0, revolt zoo at 5-1, GW company at 6-1 Faeries on camera at 4-0 (eventually 4-3), at least 2 burns at 6-x, brant eldrazi at 5-0, infect at 5-0. These are the scores I can remember.
Greetings,
Kathal
Modern/Legacy
either funpolice (Delver, Deathcloud, UW Control) or the fun decks (especially those ft. Griselbrand)
Greetings,
Kathal
Modern/Legacy
either funpolice (Delver, Deathcloud, UW Control) or the fun decks (especially those ft. Griselbrand)
Fringe decks:
Sultai Delver at San Diego
Amulet at Orlando
Abzan Evolution at Lenexa
Soul Sisters at Plano
8Rack at Minneapolis and Catskill
Gifts Storm at Baltimore
Landfall Zoo at Raleigh
BR Midrange at Raleigh
Decks with 3 copies in a single T8 (oh no, Modern is ruined forever):
3 Abzan Company at Duluth
3 Gx Tron at San Diego (all different splash colors)
3 Bant Eldrazi at Columbus
3 Jund at Plano
GGT ban and Rallier helped put Abzan Company back on the map.
For all the hype Cheeri0s has gotten, it hasn't showed up yet. Reminds me of Jeskai Ascendancy during TC.
| Ad Nauseam
| Infect
Big Johnny.
Any more of this, and Team Troll will be more than just a name.
I know where you post.
Death's Shadow is a silly deck, it really is, but hey cant win them all.
Spirits
As a fellow turns aficionado, I think we share some of the same appreciation of magic. That said, every match with shadow jund has been a joy to watch! Complex, strange plays that even seem wrong, so many lines and choices for what is effectively an aggro deck with some hand disruption. It's a truly fantastic deck & props to the developers of it. Sam black pilots it very well, as well... I've seen some terrible (but somehow popular) magic players just fail completely with the deck over the last week or so, but watching Sam is like seeing someone operate on a different level haha. Some seriously challenging and brilliant plays seen today, I found it enlightening honestly.
If modern is going to be the permanent home for this new deck, bring it on!
I know this is going to sound like "that guy who thinks he plays well, but doesn't," but the deck is not as hard to play as one might think. I personally always avoided playing DSA because I thought it would be tough to sequence the lands correctly, whereas most land play in Modern is super easy. I also thought I would run into those poor matchups or poor variance that the deck would have. But after play testing for a day, (yes, I know), it has surprised me how fairly easy it is. You think your opponent has removal? Play discard so they won't use it, unless you don't care if they use it, etc. The deck is just basically make your opponent discard until they don't feel like playing anymore, then drop Shadow after Shadow after Goyf/Goyf/Goyf....
Premodern - Trix, RecSur, Enchantress, Reanimator, Elves https://www.facebook.com/groups/PremodernUSA/
Modern - Neobrand, Hogaak Vine, Elves
Standard - Mono Red (6-2 and 5-3 in 2 McQ)
Draft - (I wish I had more time for limited...)
Commander -
Norin the Wary, Grimgrin, Adun Oakenshield (taking forever to build)(dead format for me)Ok so yes, what you said is true from an 'operations' standpoint, but there's something else going on:
I saw two or three popular streamers play in the way you described, making what seemed on the surface like the correct operations and sequencing, but the whole thing fell apart.
Take Sam black's performances recently; he makes seemingly questionable plays, uses slightly odd sequencing and a couple of times even made what looks like the actual wrong line of play; but he wins!
There's something going on with this deck underneath the surface, like it has oniony layers... And it'll be down to that deeper understanding, muscle-memory thing where you can make those plays that look awkward but pay off in four turns' time. I haven't seen anyone except Sam black and Josh utter-leyton pull this off so far (haven't seen gerry T on camera). The other people I've seen with the deck are playing it the "normal way" you described above, and they are either leas successful, or it's obvious from my vantage as an observer that they are worse magic players.
Caveat: it's a new deck. People are still figuring out how to play against it, let alone pilot it. Still, it seems like a good deck for an observer to judge which players are on another level and which ones are just muddling through.
Double caveat; it's also possible that there's some aspect of the deck that I'm familiar with that allows me to make these observations, and with other decks I'm likely in the dark & wouldn't necessarily notice the difference between a "Sam black" and a "guy from tcgplayer". That said, I'm well-versed in tron, scapeshift, jund, control... I think where I lack the insight might be decks such as abzan company or maybe affinity. Who knows. I just really enjoy seeing shadow jund on coverage is all. Haha
Death's Shadow. He was on camera in the last round.
WGUBR 5c Humans
GWR Naya Zoo
Legacy:
GW GW Maverick
R Goblins
Sweet, Justin Cohen is a great player to watch; he does this super-concentrating frown that is really expressive (and he's a top player of course).
I had to switch off after watching Sam black beat ross the boss in round 6 or whatever. Did anyone else catch the final standings on Saturday? Any highlights?
You're definitely simplifying it. There's a lot of consideration when your opponent is pressuring you, when you have to put pressure on while they're going wide while having enough to stay back and block your low life total, using bauble to see your land before you Crack it, etc.
I've been having a blast with it on mtgo, and I'm winning a nice chunk in the practice rooms, but I'm also catching so many mistakes that are easy to make with this deck. Also played a few mirror matches and it's obvious they have no clue to to sideboard the deck
Yes, I should say that those are a bit tougher. But usually it's somewhat obvious of when to attack and when not to. Opponents have creatures with evasion and you don't win by holding too much back with this deck. Not to mention, decks like Abzan Company or similar can put 2-3 creatures on the board next turn and set up for a lethal attack, so you're not winning by blocking.
Sam Black is an amazing player and probably a future Hall of Famer. I've played him before, in Limited. I've watched him several times, including right next to him at a GP when my match ended early and his was grindy. I'm in no way, shape, or form taking anything away from him. He and others had the guts to try an innovative Modern deck and absolutely destroy the competition. They get a lot of credit for that.
Premodern - Trix, RecSur, Enchantress, Reanimator, Elves https://www.facebook.com/groups/PremodernUSA/
Modern - Neobrand, Hogaak Vine, Elves
Standard - Mono Red (6-2 and 5-3 in 2 McQ)
Draft - (I wish I had more time for limited...)
Commander -
Norin the Wary, Grimgrin, Adun Oakenshield (taking forever to build)(dead format for me)Top 32: http://sales.starcitygames.com//deckdatabase/deckshow.php?&t[C1]=28&start_date=02/24/2017&end_date=02/26/2017&start=1&finish=32&event_ID=47&city=Indianapolis&limit=50
Day 2 Metagame breakdown: http://www.starcitygames.com/events/coverage/4017_day_2_metagame_breakdown_.html
Modern Classic: http://sales.starcitygames.com//deckdatabase/deckshow.php?&t[C1]=28&start_date=02/26/2017&end_date=02/26/2017&event_ID=36&city=Indianapolis&state=IN
Lots of Death Shadow Jund, high number of Griselbanned decks (1 in the main event, 2 in the Classic), rest is roughly the same as always.
Greetings,
Kathal
Modern/Legacy
either funpolice (Delver, Deathcloud, UW Control) or the fun decks (especially those ft. Griselbrand)
http://sales.starcitygames.com//deckdatabase/displaydeck.php?DeckID=111973
If you look at the Twitch stream of SCG Indianapolis Day 2, he plays a Stirring Wildwood at 8:08:45, but there is no Wildwood in his decklist, which is a full 75 cards with nothing that looks out of place.
MTG finance guy- follow me on Twitter@RichArschmann or RichardArschmann on Reddit
You're right, but it could be a mistake by SCG as well. I've had the deck name that I put on the deck list be changed many times when posted online. It's not necessarily a mistake by the player.
Premodern - Trix, RecSur, Enchantress, Reanimator, Elves https://www.facebook.com/groups/PremodernUSA/
Modern - Neobrand, Hogaak Vine, Elves
Standard - Mono Red (6-2 and 5-3 in 2 McQ)
Draft - (I wish I had more time for limited...)
Commander -
Norin the Wary, Grimgrin, Adun Oakenshield (taking forever to build)(dead format for me)Aggro: Naya Burn RWG
Combo: Scapeshift RG
Control: Jeskai Control UWR
Legacy
Control: Miracles UW
Aggro: Burn R
Spirits
It's really interesting that Death Shadow and Junk are kinda squeezing regular jund out of the meta, I've barely seen a jund deck on camera on camera the past few tournaments.
UB Faeries (15-6-0)
UWR Control (10-5-1)/Kiki Control/Midrange/Harbinger
UBR Cruel Control (6-4-0)/Grixis Control/Delver/Blue Jund
UWB Control/Mentor
UW Miracles/Control (currently active, 14-2-0)
BW Eldrazi & Taxes
RW Burn (9-1-0)
I do (academic) research on video games and archaeology! You can check out my open access book here: https://www.sidestone.com/books/the-interactive-past
UB Faeries (15-6-0)
UWR Control (10-5-1)/Kiki Control/Midrange/Harbinger
UBR Cruel Control (6-4-0)/Grixis Control/Delver/Blue Jund
UWB Control/Mentor
UW Miracles/Control (currently active, 14-2-0)
BW Eldrazi & Taxes
RW Burn (9-1-0)
I do (academic) research on video games and archaeology! You can check out my open access book here: https://www.sidestone.com/books/the-interactive-past