I believe you need some mana acceleration to make her viable - coupled with powerful 2-drop spells. Additionally, I don't see her power to continually lock down a board as well as enable a win condition // or crippling board state for your opponent - the same way that Koth of the Hammer or Liliana of the Veil can devastate. That said, I haven't tested her enough. I'm probably wrong, and my initial impression is probably more accurate...
Lavaclaw Reaches? I dig it as a one-of. Especially when you're not overly relying on a deck that curves low into a lot of 1-drops. Rix Maadi, Dungeon Palace? That card is more your speed: rack enabler or pauper liliana substitute. But, The Dungeon palace could see more play if there is a resurgence of patriot control. For now, I think we are mostly focusing on Blood Moon instead of tricksy land tech.
We've gone away from the Wrench Mind, Shrieking Affliction, The Rack, Blightning, Liliana of the Veil as a four of, and similar plans. However, I'm starting to wonder if the ability to play a Terminate effect that can enhance our game state makes these strategies worthwhile, and Unlicensed Disintegration gives the deck some reach while not always being a dead card (many times Blightning is just a three-mana Lightning Bolt to players only).
What artifact would you suggest using to turn on the burn half of the spell? EE? Ratchet Bomb?
We've gone away from the Wrench Mind, Shrieking Affliction, The Rack, Blightning, Liliana of the Veil as a four of, and similar plans. However, I'm starting to wonder if the ability to play a Terminate effect that can enhance our game state makes these strategies worthwhile, and Unlicensed Disintegration gives the deck some reach while not always being a dead card (many times Blightning is just a three-mana Lightning Bolt to players only).
What artifact would you suggest using to turn on the burn half of the spell? EE? Ratchet Bomb?
I think he refers to The Rack/ Ensnaring Bridge. Not sure...
When you look at the Tiers out there, I feel like Magma Jet - at a 2cmc - doesn't impact enough. I think I'd rather arc trail. Easy 2-for-1 against so many decks these days.
S'aaaaalllll about speed, and a 2 drop to do 3 damage probably ranks higher than a 3 drop to do 3 damage (albeit split an extra way), dOrsal. I consider how Arc Trail would play out. I'd rather be able to turn 2 kill a couple affinity critters or an infector beside a noble hierarch. Or, maybe it's DeathNtaxes - merfolk - elf....G/w variant with Birds of paradise. A wise man once said, 'always bolt the bird.'
We've gone away from the Wrench Mind, Shrieking Affliction, The Rack, Blightning, Liliana of the Veil as a four of, and similar plans. However, I'm starting to wonder if the ability to play a Terminate effect that can enhance our game state makes these strategies worthwhile, and Unlicensed Disintegration gives the deck some reach while not always being a dead card (many times Blightning is just a three-mana Lightning Bolt to players only).
What artifact would you suggest using to turn on the burn half of the spell? EE? Ratchet Bomb?
I think he refers to The Rack/ Ensnaring Bridge. Not sure...
Oh you're right lol, idk how I missed the entire context lol
Dash Hopes used to be a 2of but after failing to hit power discard in a few test games last night I decided the 4th Wrench Mind was more important to my build. CA and Threats are obviously where most of the janky budget stuff is going on. Eventually I'll probably run 4 Nyxathid, 2 Obliterator, and 2 Kalitas
@Dejadal, I like almost every card in your deck. The problem is that there are too many "one-of" cards. The best thing you can do for yourself is to pick the cards that you know are the most effective, and increase the ratio that you are likely to see those cards with each draw.
==========================
I am spending the next month in Lakeland, Florida. I'm helping a card store with its expansion. During this timeframe, I have been playing a bit of Modern, and re-tooling the decklist. Here is the current list as it stands:
I'm still making sideboard adjustments over time, considering a Leyline of the Void as well as boarding into some more interesting options. I'm also liking Molten Rain as a choice with the Eldrazi decks running around, and some other possibilities.
If anybody in the Florida area wants to come visit me personally, feel free to PM me and let me know before I head back home.
Private Mod Note
():
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Modern: BR Control BR Standard: Temur Energy RUG Pauper: Fireball Black B Commander: Kaervek the MercilessBR
Yeah I realize that, I'm kinda experimenting with the cards in the Threats and Card Advantage sections. Nights whisper is always fantastic but I only own 1, Chandra is useful for other things as well so I for sure want 1-2 of her. The part I'm not sure about is Asylum Visitor vs Abbot vs Arena. Any suggestions?
@dejadal Night's Whisper isis not modern legal I think. We have Sign in Blood though. Maybe put a dredger in there. nevermind totally legal. still prefer Sign in Blood for that last burn effect.
Also what are the best rakdos removal as my deck runs subpar removal
I'll take that into consideration!
Well Terminate is by far the best, Lightning Bolt isn't great in the current meta but bolt is always a good card. There's been a lot of talk about magma jet and arc trail lately. Also if you're going the Demigod of Revenge/Faitless Looting/Collective Brutality/Bloodghast route, Fiery Temper + Lightning Axe is a pretty good option IMO.
Otherwise just your typical powerful black removal like Dismember, Go for the Throat, etc
Hey - you almost picked the right season to leave Chicago for Florida, Smash, but you'll be returning to the wind and the snows. Nonetheless - Living the Dream! Work and Magic together as one. Right on.
Dejadal has crafted up a good stuff deck with a lot of neat cards, but.....for tournament competitiveness, there needs to be a little more synergy/focused direction towards a win. Keep at it. Since there are so many styles of play in that one concoction of yours, I don't feel 'right' about pushing you in one direction or another. You'll find your way as you test. I envy. I envy. So much grand knowledge to accumulate whereas I'm carefully dissecting the excruciating minutia of each and every last card in my 75.
Pizzap: I agree that Magma Jet just isn't cutting it these days. It's used often in Skred construction and decks that need to dig for specific answer or combo cards. We aren't those decks. And, indeed, 2 damage spells for 2 mana aren't all that shiny. I also wonder about Tormenting Voice in a low curve deck that won't often hold cards back. Night's Whisper seems to be better or there is the option of you playing more cards that are beneficial when they are discarded (madness) or like the graveyard as much as brer rabbit enjoys a good briar patch (bloodghast for instance...you do indeed have some GY interactions), but perchance they can be more.
As for my time on the battlefield? Simple. When you see a deck that went top 1% in a field of 900 people in Asia....then you take notice. Aaaaaand, begin that process of scrutinizing every last card of the 75 to come up with a superior build in today's meta. Have I done so?? Well, I dropped all of the Hangarback Walkers. I simply don't get that card. I went with more mid-range and sweepers. It feels better, but results are only from 1 tourney where I dropped a game to the winner (1-2) with a G/W Knightfall-Coco variant. Otherwise, it was a 3-1 finish in last week's FNM.
Right now the ideal games go T1 targeted discard into T2/T3 power Discard and then Nyxathid beat down along with some Spells for reach/removal
What changes would you suggest to streamline that gameplan? I'd also like to include some creatures that are powerful on their own (Kalitas, Phyrexian Obliterator) as some protection against decks who can turn the power discard against me (lots of Abzan at my LGS).
Also this deck isn't super serious for me, but I am interested in refining it ofc. My main deck is Dredge but I'll also probably never attend something bigger than an FNM
Alright ladies and gentlemen, no more playing for peanuts. I got us a legitimate VICTORY this weekend!!!
I took down the Modern $1K in Lakeland this weekend. Finally got a 1st Place as opposed to just a "strong finish." This was a clean one as well. Not only went undefeated through the entire tournament, but only dropped a singular game the entire tournament!
Here's the list, not much different than expected:
Game 1 - Had a bunch of removal, and his start was not a rapid-fire start. Slay a Vault Skirge, slay a Signal Pest, and turn the corner pretty hard. Additionally, he didn't have enough artifacts to keep the Etched Champion alive after an Anger of the Gods.
Game 2 - This was a brutal one. I took an Arcbound Ravager out of his hand on the first turn with an Inquisition of Kozilek, and on turn three, passed the turn. He played a Cranial Plating, and tried to equip it to his Vault Skirge for his turn four. His land base was three Glimmervoids, and he also had a Mox Opal and an Ornithopter in play. I cast Kolaghan's Command to shatter the Cranial Plating and shock the Vault Skirge. On my turn, I cast an Engineered Explosives for 0 and popped it, wrathing his entire board, including his lands.
Round 2 - Infect Win 2-0
Game 1 - Take one of his creatures on the play with Inquisition of Kozilek, and Terminate the other creature as soon as he casts it. Turn the corner really hard, and hit the opponent with three Demigod of Revenge on Turn 5 when he has no way to attack.
Game 2 - For those of you who haven't had much experience playing against Infect, this is one of the few decks that has a solid matchup against it. Anger of the Gods to take out draws with Noble Hierarch and another creature, Lightning Bolt and Terminate for removal, Inquisition of Kozilek for hand disruption, and even Blood Moon neutralizes Inkmoth Nexus. Nothing special happened in the second game, the opponent went down to five on mulligans and I killed his only creature. However, this is generally a strong matchup as far as Infect goes, especially considering how good the deck is against most other decks.
Round 3 - Jeskai Control Win 2-0
Game 1 - Inquisition to take his only counterspell on turn two, and slamming Blood Moon to take him off of two of his colors for the first ten turns. Set up the Demigod of Revenge kill with three of them after digging with Faithless Looting multiple times.
Game 2 - Similar to Game 1, Blood Moon was his undoing. He kept a sketchy hand and assumed that multiple fetch lands would win him the game, and Blood Moon's presence alone made his opening hand not good enough for the onslaught of planeswalkers that I kept in my opening hand. Liliana of the Veil into Chandra, Torch of Defiance is a pretty strong curve, and he had to expend all of his resources to prevent Chandra from using her ultimate. Meanwhile, a Kalitas and a Pia and Kiran were going to town.
Round 4 - Skred Red Win 2-1
Game 1 - Accounting for my one loss all day long, I was unable to answer a Koth of the Hammer in the first game. We had a good fight back and forth, but the Koth Emblem was very difficult to overcome. I was able to set up multiple Demigod of Revenges, but unfortunately, he was able to produce more damage than I was.
Game 2 - Another back and forth fight, I felt I had the game on lockdown until he played a Koth of the Hammer on turn five, generated five mana, and cast a Thundermaw Hellkite to kill my Thopter tokens from Pia and Kiran. After that happened, I was able to slay the Thundermaw Hellkite and hit the Koth with a Lightning Bolt, and eventually turned the corner hard enough to win the game through a pair of Demigods.
Game 3 - This one went fairly better than the first two. My opponent made a few attempts to land a finishing blow, but I was able to fight through all four Koth of the Hammers in his deck with direct damage, Thoughtseize copies, and a Kolaghan's Command that destroyed his Mind Stone and made him discard one of them. Once I stabilized, Kalitas gained me 15 life over five turns.
====Double Draw into Top 8====
Top 8 - UR Delver Win 2-0
Game 1 - I drew five removal spells, and he only found four creatures. Not much else to tell here.
Game 2 - My opponent kept a risky hand, and I had the goods in my opening hand, especially for the situation. Multiple Terminates later, and a few Lightning Bolts, the game ended favorably.
Top 4 - Death & Taxes Win 2-0
Game 1 - This matchup can go very badly if you do not know the matchup. Fortunately, I was able to play around many of the deck's tricks, including hitting multiple lands with Ghost Quarters and Tectonic Edges. The game went VERY long, and I got about 40 cards deep into the deck. The turning point came when I had a Blood Moon in play, neutralizing my opponent's nonbasic lands, two Swamps, and four other lands. I cast a Chandra, Torch of Defiance and used her +1 to make two mana, then cast Kalitas, Traitor of Ghet. My opponent was unable to answer both threats immediately, and opted to try to flood the board. I was able to slay two creatures the next turn, and make two zombies. From there, I had the attrition battle on lockdown.
Game 2 - Another brutally long game, but one that found me having better answers out of my sideboard. Sulfur Elemental caused a massive blowout in this game, taking out both an Aven Mindcensor and a Flickerwisp, and while it was killed immediately, it was essentially a three-for-one. That tends to win battle of attrition from the onset, and I was able to then slam a Liliana of the Veil and a Chandra, Torch of Defiance back-to-back. I got to a Chandra emblem eventually, though it was the Sulfur Elemental play that got the job done after a number of turns fighting back and forth for board state.
Finals - Abzan Company Win 2-0
Game 1 - This was not a matchup that I expected to win, as it is not one of the better matchups for the deck. However, I was fortunate and my opponent was not. Blood Moon is an insane Magic card, and that's why we play it. He had three dual lands into a Kitchen Finks, and the Blood Moon took him right out of the game. Kalitas into a removal spell for Kitchen Finks all but ended the game because he couldn't cast spells.
Game 2 - Much like the first game, my opponent was forced to keep a sketchy six cards and Blood Moon was his undoing. There's no way around it...Blood Moon won me this tournament. It was even good against the Monowhite deck in the Top 4 to keep my opponent off of his necessary lands, and other than the Skred Red matchup, it was the best card in the deck. My opponent was able to get a basic Plains and cast a few Restoration Angels, which I guess his build played more than one of the card. His deck seemed sweet, but it just couldn't function without the manabase.
=======================================
I'm fairly certain that a 1st Place finish at a $1K is the best finish that the archetype has had since its inception, and definitely since we started moving away from the full discard package. Hopefully I can keep the roll going, as I've technically won 18 consecutive rounds of Modern over the last few weeks (4-0 FNM, 3-0 Sunday Modern, 4-0 FNM, 7-0 Modern 1K). Chandra, Torch of Defiance is the absolute truth in this deck, and it is the 60th card that I have been seeking for that slot. I've tried many cards, and she works the best. Bedlam Reveler is also insanely powerful, and puts the deck right back in the game after turn five even if we are behind, which we often are not.
Either way, I'm extremely pleased, as you might imagine. Onwards and upwards!
Private Mod Note
():
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Modern: BR Control BR Standard: Temur Energy RUG Pauper: Fireball Black B Commander: Kaervek the MercilessBR
Congrats on the awesome finish! Great to see someone is winning with the demigod! How did you like running 23 lands with the 5 drop though? Were you ever wishing you had gone up to 24 lands?
Private Mod Note
():
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Modern UMerfolk WDeath and Taxes BRBliztkrieg GStompy
- - -
"Rock is overpowered. Paper is fine."
-Scissors
Congrats on the awesome finish! Great to see someone is winning with the demigod! How did you like running 23 lands with the 5 drop though? Were you ever wishing you had gone up to 24 lands?
I felt that, with Faithless Looting and the overall low curve of the deck's instants and sorceries into Bedlam Reveler, I very rarely felt restricted with my manabase. The nice thing about this deck in the current aggressive Modern format is that getting to three lands allows this deck to buy plenty of time in the event that we DO need more land, through Blood Moon, Anger of the Gods, Terminates, Bolts, and K-Commands.
Private Mod Note
():
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Modern: BR Control BR Standard: Temur Energy RUG Pauper: Fireball Black B Commander: Kaervek the MercilessBR
I like a lot your list and I've almost each card of the deck so I'm thinking on building it because it seems to be lot of fun
Anyways I've some doubts about cards in your list and about the tourney you played. In all the report you didn't tell anything or even name Liliana of the Veil. Are they neccessary? Can be replaced with any other thing instead. Because you haven't named them in all the report I urderstand they were not very useful or have a high impact in any game, so perhaps we could replace them with any other thing?
The other doubt I have about your list is why are you playing Hangarback Walker in sideboard? In which pairings this card worthwhile?
Finally, does Pia and Kiran Nalaar deserves a spot there?. why? You haven't much more artifacts to sacrify and being a 2/2 (with two copters) doesn't seem very imppresive to me.
I like a lot your list and I've almost each card of the deck so I'm thinking on building it because it seems to be lot of fun
Anyways I've some doubts about cards in your list and about the tourney you played. In all the report you didn't tell anything or even name Liliana of the Veil. Are they neccessary? Can be replaced with any other thing instead. Because you haven't named them in all the report I urderstand they were not very useful or have a high impact in any game, so perhaps we could replace them with any other thing?
The other doubt I have about your list is why are you playing Hangarback Walker in sideboard? In which pairings this card worthwhile?
Finally, does Pia and Kiran Nalaar deserves a spot there?. why? You haven't much more artifacts to sacrify and being a 2/2 (with two copters) doesn't seem very imppresive to me.
Lot of thanks for your answer and congrats again for your result
PD: I love demigod so I know I'm going to build this deck for sure
I'm happy to address each of the card choices individually, what they bring to the table, and how they can be best utilized.
Liliana of the Veil - This is the most polarizing card in the entire archetype, in my opinion. We have strong matchups against Affinity and Infect in comparison to many other decks, and she is honestly not the #1 choice in my opinion for those matchups. She is also atrocious against Dredge, which may be the most powerful deck in Modern at the moment. Liliana is very powerful and can take over a game in the right circumstances, despite her potential drawbacks, and this deck has the ability to set her up with the perfect board state. She is not always slammed on Turn 3, and honestly, I almost never cast her before Turn 5 unless I have to. I do believe she is a necessary part of the deck's success, but if you decided not to play her (because of finances, personal theories, etc.), then there are ways to replace her. If I took the two out of the main, then I would play a third copy of Kolaghan's Command in the main, and either a fourth Anger of the Gods or a copy of Liliana, the Last Hope. However, I highly recommend having access to her.
Hangarback Walker - This is my pet card. Hangarback Walker is best utilized against decks that have a hard time removing mass amounts of creatures, and many times you will end up sitting back and up-ticking the card while eventually using a removal spell on it to make many Thopters. This card is good against Jund, BW Token variants, and it's not bad against Affinity if the opponent is playing four copies of Etched Champion and any number of Welding Jar.
Pia and Kiran Nalaar - This card is stupidly powerful. It may not seem like a lot, but putting a card into play that can generate three creatures while representing at least two removal spells is a ton for four mana when we're also backing it up with Blood Moon, Terminate, and Lightning Bolt. Also, Kolaghan's Command works very well with her if she is thrown into the graveyard off of a Liliana +1 or a Faithless Looting, as she can just be retrieved and recast. Also, she works very well with the Hangarback Walker package. Lastly, the two Thopters are almost impossible for Affinity to deal with if you stabilize, and can even block Etched Champion.
Phyrexian Obliterator is a cool card, and I'm not opposed to seeing some copies of it in the deck. Almost every land you will have available taps for black mana with the exception of the singular Mountain that is in the deck. I haven't tested that card in the deck, and it's not my personal style, as I prefer to widen the board state with cards such as Pia and Kiran Nalaar. Obliterator might be reasonable though, and if you don't like the artifact package, then maybe that's a good plan for you personally. Depending on the rooms, I've also considered and played with quite a few main deck options, including Engineered Explosives, Ratchet Bomb, and Funeral Charm. I'm also strongly considering a copy or two of Leyline of the Void in the sideboard, and am currently only playing Rakdos Charm in that slot because of the versatility of the card.
Thanks for the kind words about the deck!
Private Mod Note
():
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Modern: BR Control BR Standard: Temur Energy RUG Pauper: Fireball Black B Commander: Kaervek the MercilessBR
Obliterator and Blood moon seems like a pretty big non-bo.
The largest reason why I'd rather keep it out of my decklists, but for those interested in having it as a pet card, you'd better make sure that you're playing a large amount of basic Swamps.
Private Mod Note
():
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Modern: BR Control BR Standard: Temur Energy RUG Pauper: Fireball Black B Commander: Kaervek the MercilessBR
The most recent lists look almost unrecognizable to the lists in the premier. No rack effects, barely any 2 for 1 discard, heavy on creatures. I suppose Memorylapse was correct way back when he suggested that this deck would benefit from dropping the racks and aligning itself with Rakdos Midrange. Has the trans-formative sideboard plan using bridge completely fallen out of favor now that we play so many creatures?
I was always a fan of the version running a few rack effects, are they not viable anymore?
The most recent lists look almost unrecognizable to the lists in the premier. No rack effects, barely any 2 for 1 discard, heavy on creatures. I suppose Memorylapse was correct way back when he suggested that this deck would benefit from dropping the racks and aligning itself with Rakdos Midrange. Has the trans-formative sideboard plan using bridge completely fallen out of favor now that we play so many creatures?
I was always a fan of the version running a few rack effects, are they not viable anymore?
Honestly, at this particular period in time, discard effects are at their all-time weakest. They did not used to be, but currently, that's simply where things stand. Why? A few different decks that have come into heavy favor as of late, and the upgrades of other decks over the last two years.
- Dredge, the current worst-case matchup for any deck playing Wrench Mind, Blightning, and Liliana of the Veil
- Affinity, making Wrench Mind a bad card, which is still the best discard effect in Modern.
- Burn, getting upgraded into a topdeck experience with more early game power that Rack-style decks generally can't ever beat.
- Tron, and all it's friends, the various different ways that are all HORRIBLE matchups for Rack-style decks.
- Kiki-Chord, making topdecks into the friend of the opponent instead of the enemy.
I have my foil copies of The Rack and Shrieking Affliction, as well as Wrench Minds and Blightnings, ready to go in case the format shifts more favorably. Unfortunately, it seems like every time a new event happens or a new set gets printed, there are simply more and more ways to crush a Rack-style strategy. Kolaghan's Command alone, in my opinion, kind of signaled the death of the card 'The Rack' in Modern for the foreseeable future.
Private Mod Note
():
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Modern: BR Control BR Standard: Temur Energy RUG Pauper: Fireball Black B Commander: Kaervek the MercilessBR
I totally agree that full-on discard may not be the best course of action given the decks you mentioned in your post, but knowing that, we can definitely pack a lot of hate in our sideboard. Cards like Relic of Progenitus and Rakdos Charm should be great against GY based strategies. Pyroclasm and Drown in Sorrow come in against aggro while Thoughtseize gives us more aggressive discard when needed.
http://www.mtgsalvation.com/forums/the-game/modern/deck-creation-modern/620524-8rackdos
When it comes to Chandra, Torch of Defiance, I thought it was a jokey misprint when I first saw it. There was no way that Wizards would print such a powerful card. I've since run some testing on the scorcher of a gal. But, not in a Blitzkrieg shell. I feel like she is better suited to inhabit a 'prison/lock' style of deck, so I put her in my Mono-Red, Koth of the Hammer Prison deck: Hammer's Slammer
http://www.mtgsalvation.com/forums/the-game/modern/deck-creation-modern/663335-hammers-slammer-mono-red-prison-the-sideboard-deck?page=4
I believe you need some mana acceleration to make her viable - coupled with powerful 2-drop spells. Additionally, I don't see her power to continually lock down a board as well as enable a win condition // or crippling board state for your opponent - the same way that Koth of the Hammer or Liliana of the Veil can devastate. That said, I haven't tested her enough. I'm probably wrong, and my initial impression is probably more accurate...
Lavaclaw Reaches? I dig it as a one-of. Especially when you're not overly relying on a deck that curves low into a lot of 1-drops. Rix Maadi, Dungeon Palace? That card is more your speed: rack enabler or pauper liliana substitute. But, The Dungeon palace could see more play if there is a resurgence of patriot control. For now, I think we are mostly focusing on Blood Moon instead of tricksy land tech.
What artifact would you suggest using to turn on the burn half of the spell? EE? Ratchet Bomb?
I think he refers to The Rack/ Ensnaring Bridge. Not sure...
Flames of the Firebrand would be better then Arc Trail wudnt it?
Oh you're right lol, idk how I missed the entire context lol
Also aware that the SB is godawful right now
Threats
1 Goblin Rabblemaster
1 Lashwrithe
1 Kalitas
4 Nyxathid
1 Pack Rat
Card Advantage
1 Asylum Visitor
1 Abbot of Keral Keep
1 Night's Whisper
1 Chandra, Pyromaster
1 Phyrexian Arena
Removal
3 Lightning Bolt
3 Terminate
2 Anger of the Gods
1 Arc Trail
Discard
2 Thoughtseize
4 Inquisition
4 Wrench Mind
3 Blightning
Other
2 Kolaghan's Command
1 Dash Hopes
Land 22
4 Bloodstained Mire
2 Polluted Delta
3 Blood Crypt
8 Swamp
1 Godless Shrine
3 Dragonskull Summit
1 Ghost Quarter
Sideboard 15
3 Wear // Tear
1 Shatterstorm
2 Rakdos Charm
2 Nihil Spellbomb
2 Surgical Extraction
2 Slaughter Games
1 Grave Titan
1 Death's Shadow
1 Timely Reinforcements
Dash Hopes used to be a 2of but after failing to hit power discard in a few test games last night I decided the 4th Wrench Mind was more important to my build. CA and Threats are obviously where most of the janky budget stuff is going on. Eventually I'll probably run 4 Nyxathid, 2 Obliterator, and 2 Kalitas
==========================
I am spending the next month in Lakeland, Florida. I'm helping a card store with its expansion. During this timeframe, I have been playing a bit of Modern, and re-tooling the decklist. Here is the current list as it stands:
2 Kalitas, Traitor of Ghet
4 Demigod of Revenge
1 Pia and Kiran Nalaar
4 Blood Moon
2 Liliana of the Veil
1 Chandra, Torch of Defiance
4 Inquisition of Kozilek
4 Lightning Bolt
4 Faithless Looting
3 Terminate
1 Collective Brutality
3 Anger of the Gods
2 Kolaghan's Command
4 Bloodstained Mire
4 Verdant Catacombs
4 Blackcleave Cliffs
2 Blood Crypt
1 Smoldering Marsh
1 Temple of Malice
1 Graven Cairns
5 Swamp
1 Mountain
1 Sulfur Elemental
2 Thoughtseize
1 Shattering Spree
1 Surgical Extraction
1 Ratchet Bomb
1 Terminate
2 Hangarback Walker
1 Slaughter Games
1 Engineered Explosives
2 Rakdos Charm
I'm still making sideboard adjustments over time, considering a Leyline of the Void as well as boarding into some more interesting options. I'm also liking Molten Rain as a choice with the Eldrazi decks running around, and some other possibilities.
If anybody in the Florida area wants to come visit me personally, feel free to PM me and let me know before I head back home.
Standard: Temur Energy RUG
Pauper: Fireball Black B
Commander: Kaervek the Merciless BR
"Always Bolt the Bird."
@dejadal Night's Whisper isis not modern legal I think. We have Sign in Blood though. Maybe put a dredger in there.nevermind totally legal. still prefer Sign in Blood for that last burn effect.Also what are the best rakdos removal as my deck runs subpar removal
Well Terminate is by far the best, Lightning Bolt isn't great in the current meta but bolt is always a good card. There's been a lot of talk about magma jet and arc trail lately. Also if you're going the Demigod of Revenge/Faitless Looting/Collective Brutality/Bloodghast route, Fiery Temper + Lightning Axe is a pretty good option IMO.
Otherwise just your typical powerful black removal like Dismember, Go for the Throat, etc
Dejadal has crafted up a good stuff deck with a lot of neat cards, but.....for tournament competitiveness, there needs to be a little more synergy/focused direction towards a win. Keep at it. Since there are so many styles of play in that one concoction of yours, I don't feel 'right' about pushing you in one direction or another. You'll find your way as you test. I envy. I envy. So much grand knowledge to accumulate whereas I'm carefully dissecting the excruciating minutia of each and every last card in my 75.
Pizzap: I agree that Magma Jet just isn't cutting it these days. It's used often in Skred construction and decks that need to dig for specific answer or combo cards. We aren't those decks. And, indeed, 2 damage spells for 2 mana aren't all that shiny. I also wonder about Tormenting Voice in a low curve deck that won't often hold cards back. Night's Whisper seems to be better or there is the option of you playing more cards that are beneficial when they are discarded (madness) or like the graveyard as much as brer rabbit enjoys a good briar patch (bloodghast for instance...you do indeed have some GY interactions), but perchance they can be more.
As for my time on the battlefield? Simple. When you see a deck that went top 1% in a field of 900 people in Asia....then you take notice. Aaaaaand, begin that process of scrutinizing every last card of the 75 to come up with a superior build in today's meta. Have I done so?? Well, I dropped all of the Hangarback Walkers. I simply don't get that card. I went with more mid-range and sweepers. It feels better, but results are only from 1 tourney where I dropped a game to the winner (1-2) with a G/W Knightfall-Coco variant. Otherwise, it was a 3-1 finish in last week's FNM.
Right now the ideal games go T1 targeted discard into T2/T3 power Discard and then Nyxathid beat down along with some Spells for reach/removal
What changes would you suggest to streamline that gameplan? I'd also like to include some creatures that are powerful on their own (Kalitas, Phyrexian Obliterator) as some protection against decks who can turn the power discard against me (lots of Abzan at my LGS).
Also this deck isn't super serious for me, but I am interested in refining it ofc. My main deck is Dredge but I'll also probably never attend something bigger than an FNM
I took down the Modern $1K in Lakeland this weekend. Finally got a 1st Place as opposed to just a "strong finish." This was a clean one as well. Not only went undefeated through the entire tournament, but only dropped a singular game the entire tournament!
Here's the list, not much different than expected:
1 Pia and Kiran Nalaar
4 Demigod of Revenge
2 Bedlam Reveler
4 Blood Moon
2 Liliana of the Veil
1 Chandra, Torch of Defiance
4 Inquisition of Kozilek
4 Lightning Bolt
4 Faithless Looting
4 Terminate
3 Anger of the Gods
2 Kolaghan's Command
4 Blackcleave Cliffs
4 Bloodstained Mire
4 Verdant Catacombs
2 Blood Crypt
1 Temple of Malice
1 Graven Cairns
1 Smoldering Marsh
5 Swamp
1 Mountain
1 Anger of the Gods
2 Thoughtseize
1 Sulfur Elemental
1 Surgical Extraction
1 Ratchet Bomb
1 Kolaghan's Command
1 Engineered Explosives
1 Slaughter Games
2 Hangarback Walker
2 Rakdos Charm
1 Shattering Spree
======================================================
Round 1 - Affinity
Win 2-0
Game 1 - Had a bunch of removal, and his start was not a rapid-fire start. Slay a Vault Skirge, slay a Signal Pest, and turn the corner pretty hard. Additionally, he didn't have enough artifacts to keep the Etched Champion alive after an Anger of the Gods.
Game 2 - This was a brutal one. I took an Arcbound Ravager out of his hand on the first turn with an Inquisition of Kozilek, and on turn three, passed the turn. He played a Cranial Plating, and tried to equip it to his Vault Skirge for his turn four. His land base was three Glimmervoids, and he also had a Mox Opal and an Ornithopter in play. I cast Kolaghan's Command to shatter the Cranial Plating and shock the Vault Skirge. On my turn, I cast an Engineered Explosives for 0 and popped it, wrathing his entire board, including his lands.
Round 2 - Infect
Win 2-0
Game 1 - Take one of his creatures on the play with Inquisition of Kozilek, and Terminate the other creature as soon as he casts it. Turn the corner really hard, and hit the opponent with three Demigod of Revenge on Turn 5 when he has no way to attack.
Game 2 - For those of you who haven't had much experience playing against Infect, this is one of the few decks that has a solid matchup against it. Anger of the Gods to take out draws with Noble Hierarch and another creature, Lightning Bolt and Terminate for removal, Inquisition of Kozilek for hand disruption, and even Blood Moon neutralizes Inkmoth Nexus. Nothing special happened in the second game, the opponent went down to five on mulligans and I killed his only creature. However, this is generally a strong matchup as far as Infect goes, especially considering how good the deck is against most other decks.
Round 3 - Jeskai Control
Win 2-0
Game 1 - Inquisition to take his only counterspell on turn two, and slamming Blood Moon to take him off of two of his colors for the first ten turns. Set up the Demigod of Revenge kill with three of them after digging with Faithless Looting multiple times.
Game 2 - Similar to Game 1, Blood Moon was his undoing. He kept a sketchy hand and assumed that multiple fetch lands would win him the game, and Blood Moon's presence alone made his opening hand not good enough for the onslaught of planeswalkers that I kept in my opening hand. Liliana of the Veil into Chandra, Torch of Defiance is a pretty strong curve, and he had to expend all of his resources to prevent Chandra from using her ultimate. Meanwhile, a Kalitas and a Pia and Kiran were going to town.
Round 4 - Skred Red
Win 2-1
Game 1 - Accounting for my one loss all day long, I was unable to answer a Koth of the Hammer in the first game. We had a good fight back and forth, but the Koth Emblem was very difficult to overcome. I was able to set up multiple Demigod of Revenges, but unfortunately, he was able to produce more damage than I was.
Game 2 - Another back and forth fight, I felt I had the game on lockdown until he played a Koth of the Hammer on turn five, generated five mana, and cast a Thundermaw Hellkite to kill my Thopter tokens from Pia and Kiran. After that happened, I was able to slay the Thundermaw Hellkite and hit the Koth with a Lightning Bolt, and eventually turned the corner hard enough to win the game through a pair of Demigods.
Game 3 - This one went fairly better than the first two. My opponent made a few attempts to land a finishing blow, but I was able to fight through all four Koth of the Hammers in his deck with direct damage, Thoughtseize copies, and a Kolaghan's Command that destroyed his Mind Stone and made him discard one of them. Once I stabilized, Kalitas gained me 15 life over five turns.
====Double Draw into Top 8====
Top 8 - UR Delver
Win 2-0
Game 1 - I drew five removal spells, and he only found four creatures. Not much else to tell here.
Game 2 - My opponent kept a risky hand, and I had the goods in my opening hand, especially for the situation. Multiple Terminates later, and a few Lightning Bolts, the game ended favorably.
Top 4 - Death & Taxes
Win 2-0
Game 1 - This matchup can go very badly if you do not know the matchup. Fortunately, I was able to play around many of the deck's tricks, including hitting multiple lands with Ghost Quarters and Tectonic Edges. The game went VERY long, and I got about 40 cards deep into the deck. The turning point came when I had a Blood Moon in play, neutralizing my opponent's nonbasic lands, two Swamps, and four other lands. I cast a Chandra, Torch of Defiance and used her +1 to make two mana, then cast Kalitas, Traitor of Ghet. My opponent was unable to answer both threats immediately, and opted to try to flood the board. I was able to slay two creatures the next turn, and make two zombies. From there, I had the attrition battle on lockdown.
Game 2 - Another brutally long game, but one that found me having better answers out of my sideboard. Sulfur Elemental caused a massive blowout in this game, taking out both an Aven Mindcensor and a Flickerwisp, and while it was killed immediately, it was essentially a three-for-one. That tends to win battle of attrition from the onset, and I was able to then slam a Liliana of the Veil and a Chandra, Torch of Defiance back-to-back. I got to a Chandra emblem eventually, though it was the Sulfur Elemental play that got the job done after a number of turns fighting back and forth for board state.
Finals - Abzan Company
Win 2-0
Game 1 - This was not a matchup that I expected to win, as it is not one of the better matchups for the deck. However, I was fortunate and my opponent was not. Blood Moon is an insane Magic card, and that's why we play it. He had three dual lands into a Kitchen Finks, and the Blood Moon took him right out of the game. Kalitas into a removal spell for Kitchen Finks all but ended the game because he couldn't cast spells.
Game 2 - Much like the first game, my opponent was forced to keep a sketchy six cards and Blood Moon was his undoing. There's no way around it...Blood Moon won me this tournament. It was even good against the Monowhite deck in the Top 4 to keep my opponent off of his necessary lands, and other than the Skred Red matchup, it was the best card in the deck. My opponent was able to get a basic Plains and cast a few Restoration Angels, which I guess his build played more than one of the card. His deck seemed sweet, but it just couldn't function without the manabase.
=======================================
I'm fairly certain that a 1st Place finish at a $1K is the best finish that the archetype has had since its inception, and definitely since we started moving away from the full discard package. Hopefully I can keep the roll going, as I've technically won 18 consecutive rounds of Modern over the last few weeks (4-0 FNM, 3-0 Sunday Modern, 4-0 FNM, 7-0 Modern 1K). Chandra, Torch of Defiance is the absolute truth in this deck, and it is the 60th card that I have been seeking for that slot. I've tried many cards, and she works the best. Bedlam Reveler is also insanely powerful, and puts the deck right back in the game after turn five even if we are behind, which we often are not.
Either way, I'm extremely pleased, as you might imagine. Onwards and upwards!
Standard: Temur Energy RUG
Pauper: Fireball Black B
Commander: Kaervek the Merciless BR
"Always Bolt the Bird."
UMerfolk
WDeath and Taxes
BRBliztkrieg
GStompy
- - -
"Rock is overpowered. Paper is fine."
-Scissors
I felt that, with Faithless Looting and the overall low curve of the deck's instants and sorceries into Bedlam Reveler, I very rarely felt restricted with my manabase. The nice thing about this deck in the current aggressive Modern format is that getting to three lands allows this deck to buy plenty of time in the event that we DO need more land, through Blood Moon, Anger of the Gods, Terminates, Bolts, and K-Commands.
Standard: Temur Energy RUG
Pauper: Fireball Black B
Commander: Kaervek the Merciless BR
"Always Bolt the Bird."
I like a lot your list and I've almost each card of the deck so I'm thinking on building it because it seems to be lot of fun
Anyways I've some doubts about cards in your list and about the tourney you played. In all the report you didn't tell anything or even name Liliana of the Veil. Are they neccessary? Can be replaced with any other thing instead. Because you haven't named them in all the report I urderstand they were not very useful or have a high impact in any game, so perhaps we could replace them with any other thing?
The other doubt I have about your list is why are you playing Hangarback Walker in sideboard? In which pairings this card worthwhile?
Finally, does Pia and Kiran Nalaar deserves a spot there?. why? You haven't much more artifacts to sacrify and being a 2/2 (with two copters) doesn't seem very imppresive to me.
Can I replace them with Phyrexian Obliterator which is another favorite of mine?
Lot of thanks for your answer and congrats again for your result
PD: I love demigod so I know I'm going to build this deck for sure
I'm happy to address each of the card choices individually, what they bring to the table, and how they can be best utilized.
Liliana of the Veil - This is the most polarizing card in the entire archetype, in my opinion. We have strong matchups against Affinity and Infect in comparison to many other decks, and she is honestly not the #1 choice in my opinion for those matchups. She is also atrocious against Dredge, which may be the most powerful deck in Modern at the moment. Liliana is very powerful and can take over a game in the right circumstances, despite her potential drawbacks, and this deck has the ability to set her up with the perfect board state. She is not always slammed on Turn 3, and honestly, I almost never cast her before Turn 5 unless I have to. I do believe she is a necessary part of the deck's success, but if you decided not to play her (because of finances, personal theories, etc.), then there are ways to replace her. If I took the two out of the main, then I would play a third copy of Kolaghan's Command in the main, and either a fourth Anger of the Gods or a copy of Liliana, the Last Hope. However, I highly recommend having access to her.
Hangarback Walker - This is my pet card. Hangarback Walker is best utilized against decks that have a hard time removing mass amounts of creatures, and many times you will end up sitting back and up-ticking the card while eventually using a removal spell on it to make many Thopters. This card is good against Jund, BW Token variants, and it's not bad against Affinity if the opponent is playing four copies of Etched Champion and any number of Welding Jar.
Pia and Kiran Nalaar - This card is stupidly powerful. It may not seem like a lot, but putting a card into play that can generate three creatures while representing at least two removal spells is a ton for four mana when we're also backing it up with Blood Moon, Terminate, and Lightning Bolt. Also, Kolaghan's Command works very well with her if she is thrown into the graveyard off of a Liliana +1 or a Faithless Looting, as she can just be retrieved and recast. Also, she works very well with the Hangarback Walker package. Lastly, the two Thopters are almost impossible for Affinity to deal with if you stabilize, and can even block Etched Champion.
Phyrexian Obliterator is a cool card, and I'm not opposed to seeing some copies of it in the deck. Almost every land you will have available taps for black mana with the exception of the singular Mountain that is in the deck. I haven't tested that card in the deck, and it's not my personal style, as I prefer to widen the board state with cards such as Pia and Kiran Nalaar. Obliterator might be reasonable though, and if you don't like the artifact package, then maybe that's a good plan for you personally. Depending on the rooms, I've also considered and played with quite a few main deck options, including Engineered Explosives, Ratchet Bomb, and Funeral Charm. I'm also strongly considering a copy or two of Leyline of the Void in the sideboard, and am currently only playing Rakdos Charm in that slot because of the versatility of the card.
Thanks for the kind words about the deck!
Standard: Temur Energy RUG
Pauper: Fireball Black B
Commander: Kaervek the Merciless BR
"Always Bolt the Bird."
I'll try the list without lilianas and after seeing how it work I'll post the results.
That's really awesome. The deck looks great and really well tuned. I'll have to sleeve it up and give it a go.
But mostly, congrats! That win is huge, brother.
Modern: Bogles // 8-Whack/Goblins // UW Titan // Hollow One // Affinity // Dredge
EDH: Nissa, Vastwood Seer // Atraxa, Praetor's Voice // Meren of Clan Nel Toth
The largest reason why I'd rather keep it out of my decklists, but for those interested in having it as a pet card, you'd better make sure that you're playing a large amount of basic Swamps.
Standard: Temur Energy RUG
Pauper: Fireball Black B
Commander: Kaervek the Merciless BR
"Always Bolt the Bird."
I was always a fan of the version running a few rack effects, are they not viable anymore?
Honestly, at this particular period in time, discard effects are at their all-time weakest. They did not used to be, but currently, that's simply where things stand. Why? A few different decks that have come into heavy favor as of late, and the upgrades of other decks over the last two years.
- Dredge, the current worst-case matchup for any deck playing Wrench Mind, Blightning, and Liliana of the Veil
- Affinity, making Wrench Mind a bad card, which is still the best discard effect in Modern.
- Burn, getting upgraded into a topdeck experience with more early game power that Rack-style decks generally can't ever beat.
- Tron, and all it's friends, the various different ways that are all HORRIBLE matchups for Rack-style decks.
- Kiki-Chord, making topdecks into the friend of the opponent instead of the enemy.
I have my foil copies of The Rack and Shrieking Affliction, as well as Wrench Minds and Blightnings, ready to go in case the format shifts more favorably. Unfortunately, it seems like every time a new event happens or a new set gets printed, there are simply more and more ways to crush a Rack-style strategy. Kolaghan's Command alone, in my opinion, kind of signaled the death of the card 'The Rack' in Modern for the foreseeable future.
Standard: Temur Energy RUG
Pauper: Fireball Black B
Commander: Kaervek the Merciless BR
"Always Bolt the Bird."
I totally agree that full-on discard may not be the best course of action given the decks you mentioned in your post, but knowing that, we can definitely pack a lot of hate in our sideboard. Cards like Relic of Progenitus and Rakdos Charm should be great against GY based strategies. Pyroclasm and Drown in Sorrow come in against aggro while Thoughtseize gives us more aggressive discard when needed.
4x Bloodghast
2x Asylum Visitor
2x Gurmag Angler
1x Grim Lavamancer
2x Bloodhall Priest
1x Pia and Nalaar
Enchantment (3)
3x Necrogen Mists
Sorcery (12)
1x Collective Brutality
4x Inquisition of Kozilen
2x Raven's Crime
2x Wrench Mind
3x Faithless Looting
4x Lightning Bolt
4x Terminate
2x Fiery Temper
Land (22)
4x Blackcleave Cliffs
4x Bloodstained Mire
1x Gravern Cairns
1x Temple of Malice
2x Blood Crypt
6x Swamp
4x Mountain
1x Collective Brutality
1x Dreadbore
4x Relic of Progenitus
1x Big Game Hunter
2x Rakdos Charm
1x Drown in Sorrow
2x Pyroclasm
1x Ratchet Bomb
2x Thoughtseize