Here's a long, overdue report on my last couple of weeks of duelling:
WEEK 4 -
WU Boggles (2-1)
Facing a rogue deck that uses hexproof creatures and Arcanum Wings to swap in an Eldrazi Conscription. G1: Kept a 1-land hand, went "all in" for a 1st turn Blood Moon, then didn't hit a land in 5 or 6 turns. The other two games were "business as usual", with Ensnaring Bridge locking up the board.
Jund (2-1)
This felt like a good matchup. The game I lost was to early hand disruption taking away lock pieces, and not recovering quickly enough. Blood Moon causes a lot of headaches for the opponent, and locking a Dark Confidante behind an Ensnaring Bridge was very satisfying.
WU Flash (1-2)
Grindy, difficult matchup - the opponent counters whatever is relevant, and plays Flash creature with any leftover mana at the end of your turn. Aether Vial and Cavern of Souls both work around Chalice.
WEEK 5 -
Bant Eldrazi (0-2)
Lost Game 1 in 4 or 5 turns before I could get a Bridge down. While Game 2 dragged on, my opponent was eventually able to chain Eldrazi that generate Eldrazi Scions (for colorless mana) and cast something big despite Blood Moon.
Infect (2-0)
2 quick, easy wins with Chalice on 1 and Blood Moon. Anger of the Gods saved me in both matches as well. So far, Infect seems like one of the best matchups for this deck.
Nahiri Control (0-2)
My opponent knows my deck and played very skillfully as soon as Game 1: keeping a "so-so" hand in because it had basics, fetching basics right away, etc. Wear/Tear is brutal against the deck, being able to get rid of a Blood Moon AND a Chalice on 1 with a single spell.
WEEK 6 -
Jeskai Burn (1-2)
Lost Game 1 after a miscalculation on Vexing Devil, not paying 4 life then not being able to empty my hand quickly enough for Bridge. Game 2 was locked quickly with Chalice on 1 and Blood Moon, followed by 18 points of hard-cast Simian Spirit Guide beatdown (and a Magma Jet)! For Game 3, I mulligan down to 5, keeping a 1-land hand, and not drawing another land for 6 turns.
Eldrazi Tron (1-2)
All very tight matches. Siding in Goblin Rabblemaster was fantastic in G2: my opponent had sided out all removal, and I had two of them in play by turn 3.
In G3, I had my opponent locked under Blood Moon + Bridge, while Rabblemasters were building up a critical mass of tokens to get through defending Eldrazis. However, I had to keep committing cards to the board to stay empty-handed for bridge. Eventually, my opponent got to enough mana to cast All is Dust (clearing all Blood Moons and goblins), then sacrificed Ugin's Sanctum to get Ulamog and exile the Bridge.
Esper Control (2-1)
Long, grindy matchups. Won G2 and G3 after locking out my opponent with Blood Moon & Chalice, beating down with Goblin Rabblemaster.
LESSONS LEARNED
- @Raystack, I'm starting to see why you favor the more aggressive route. Even when piling on Blood Moon, Chalices on 1-2, Spellskites and Pithing Needles, eventually, something WILL get through and things unravel. The lock is never completely unbreakable, and the deck needs to close the game fairly quickly.
- That being said, a "transitional sideboard" into Goblin Rabblemaster worked extremely well, once the way was clear of creature removal. I'll give Pia and Kiran a try: I think the flying thopters could do a lot of damage in the long run under a Bridge.
- Spellskites are back in main. After experimenting, I think they're of such help in so many G1 (Burn, Infect...) that it outweighs the sneaky "let's side them in after the opponent sides out their removal" approach.
- I know it's been brought up before, but I'm seriously considering Molten Rain to strengthen the lock. Even though many of my opponents fetch a basic on turn 1... they seem to only have 1 of each color in their deck. Thinking back on the Eldrazi Tron matchup, if I had Molten Rain for my opponent's single Wastes, it would likely have been game over. Against Esper Control, it might have been impossible for them to get to UUU for Cryptic Command. And, worst cast scenario, you can target a nonbasic (even under Blood Moon) for that extra 2 dmg, either to the opponent's face or to deal with an opposing Planeswalker, so it's never completely dead.
@Raystack: I really like your suggestion of Slagstorm. I'm still running 2x Magus of the Moon, and I often found myself torn between having to cast Anger of the Gods to stay empty-handed for Bridge, or exposing myself to attacks so my Magus doesn't get wiped.
Having the choice between 3 dmg to players OR creatures is very neat in situations like this, and the possibility to damage opposing Planeswalkers is a nice bonus.
If my Molten Rain experiment doesn't pan out, I'll try running a pair of Slagstorms instead!
And, In this Corner: Slagstorm hits creatures, players, or planeswalkers.
It seems like a pretty easy choice on which is better. Break it down: when you carefully go through the Tier 1 and Tier 2 decks in MTGsalvation, what do you find? Which one seems to have more applications. I get that Slag doesn't wipe away Voice of Resurgence, Kitchen Finks, Prized Amalgam, Bloodghast....but, Ensnaring Bridge renders all of these creatures ineffectual. Nonetheless, slagstorm just doesn't seem to get any respect.
@jfmajor: I really respect your observations on the McLaren construction - can't argue with any of your points. And, why didn't I think of that interaction with Ghost Quarter. Ha! Totally.
As for your summary observations:
- Pia and Kiran Nalaar: I absolutely swear by these guys in my maindeck. No way I wouldn't run them. They are a perfect drop before a planeswalker for protection, and a resilient threat, and a good blocking troop, and mid-late game removal.
- Spellskite...yeah, glad to see you came around on that one. I'm struggling between 2-3 in MD, but they are a necessity.
BREAKING NEWS:
Last night's FNM had 22 people, and I walked away with a 4-0. Another Undefeated night up on the big board! Report and New Decklist upcoming (I'm short on time right now).
Oh, but I did crack a Walking Ballista in one of my won packs (18 - not too shab, eh?). Walking motherhumpin' Ballista. Huh. Possibility. I think it might be a very strong possibility.
I first came across SaffronOlive's deck when it originally released in 2015 and it jumped out to me as "This is going to be the jank deck that I invest in paper". I have made minor tweaks here and there (sideboarding into mono red burn to surprise my opponent, screwing around with different builds and even splashing white(red has no answers for enchantment removal) for a little bit before I went back to mono red) but I had no idea there was a community that was working towards optimizing it. Pia and Kiran, Slagstorm, Goblin Rabblemaster, and many other suggestions are blowing me away to the point that I've stopped being a lurker and made an account just to comment on this.
Question: Why the Gemstone Caverns?
Looking forward to my next trip to my LGS to make some much needed purchases.
Modern - Pyro Prison
Modern - GW Tron
Modern - Mono G Tron
Modern - RWg Burn
Commander - Yisan, The Wanderer Bard cEDH build
Commander - Edric, Spymaster of Trest - Budget/Casual list - complete
Commander - Kynaios and Tiro of Meletis - $35 Budget upgrade
Commander - Edgar Markov - $150 upgrade
@Vegita1998: Welcome to the Mountain Club! For me too, this thread is the reason I created a forum account!
Here are my thoughts on Gemstone Caverns:
- Gemstone Caverns are yet one more way to build acceleration whenever you're on the draw.
- They fill a similar role to Simian Spirit Guide in your opening hand, allowing to go 1st turn Desperate Ritual and Blood Moon, Magus of the Moon, etc.
- You're essentially "ahead one land" for the rest of the game.
- They work great with Ensnaring Bridge (immediately lowering your starting hand from 7 to 5 cards).
- Being mono-red, the mana base for the deck isn't very sophisticated: so they won't hurt you much on the play (and will likely turn into Mountains quickly with Blood Moon).
- I see them as a low-risk, high-reward card.
I personally run 3: good chances I'll have them in my opening hand, but you want to avoid drawing multiples (the Legend rule still applies to them under Blood Moon). If I know I'm on the play in Game 2 or Game 3, I'll typically side out one copy.
Do you feel like sharing your current decklist? It's always fun to see what tweaks other people come up with.
- You name (22) lands, but list 23 lands. Which is it? I've been at 23 for a while, but recently followed your lead on going to 4 desperate ritual and trading that down to 22 lands. With 4 scrying magma jet, I don't mind going down to 22 land. Does this fall in line with your reasoning as well?
- 2 Molten Rain in the main? I'm eagerly awaiting your feedback, but I fear that it's a 'lock more', and not enough of proactively closing out the game with a win. 2 Pia and Kiran Nalaar seem like good substitutions for these slots. Sisuslayer commented similarly on this approach.
- 4 Desperate Ritual...shoosh, I'm doing it too. But, man, I wish I could either find some good mana sinks or discard outlets for these extra 'dead' cards in late game. Grim Lavamancer and Jaya Ballard, Task Mage come to mind. Or, if only we could make it work with Tormenting Voice without worrying about hellbenting against the bridge.
Regarding the lands: the (22) is a typo (I copy+pasted my previous decklist for forum formatting). I ran 22 lands for several weeks, but was getting mana-screwed too frequently, and didn't consistently hit "one land drop per turn for the first 4 turns". I've been more satisfied since I went back up to 23 (20 mountains, 3 gemstone caverns).
Molten Rain's an experiment at the moment. My FLGS usually only has 8-10 people showing up for Modern Monday, and the regulars know the deck I play pretty well. I feel they'll often keep an "okay" hand in G1 if it has basics, or delay cracking their fetch (even if they could, for example, go turn 1 Serum Visions) until they know they're safe from Blood Moon. I also know most of them only have 1 basic of each color they need (vs. Ghost Quarter or Path to Exile). Removing the right basic could completely lock them out of the game, whereas right now, they can find ways around the lock.
I probably wouldn't run maindeck Molten Rain at a large tournament.
If that doesn't pan out, I'll give the more aggressive route a more serious try. I'll actually a maindeck Pia and Kiran Nalaar this week, you've convinced me. ;-)
And yes, I'll second the deck needs a mana sink pretty badly. That's why I've been pleased with Crystal Ball so far (1 main deck) for filtering, but I play a more "control-ish" version.
Since this hasn't been posted yet and we can admit that we really destroy people after sideboarding, I am going to post the sideboard matches that Seth posted about so we can have a reference in this thread. Maybe we can spitball better options for sideboarding given our new options that we have in this thread that aren't in his deck. This was copied from Seth and I take no credit for the following tips.
Infect: The Infect matchup is mostly about Chalice of the Void; if we can get it set on one, it becomes extremely difficult for our opponent to win the game. Blood Moon is also often game over, assuming we get it down fast enough (before Noble Hierarch comes down). If we have Turn 1 Blood Moon, that's usually the right choice; otherwise, play the Chalice of the Void on one first. Even better, Infect doesn't even have good sideboard options, since most of the builds rely on Nature's Claim to deal with artifacts and enchantments, and Nature's Claim also gets locked out by Chalice of the Void on one.
Dredge: Dredge is one of our more difficult matchups in game one but one of our best matchups after sideboarding. In game one, our only real hope is to get an Ensnaring Bridge on the battlefield, and even then, we can lose to Conflagrate damage. In games two and three, we are built to destroy Dredge, since we get to bring in four copies of Relic of Progenitus and a couple more Anger of the Gods to give us four total. One thing that might not be obvious: do not take out Blood Moon. While it might be tempting, since Dredge can win without casting spells (and their best dredge enablers like Cathartic Reunion are red), Blood Moon is our best answer to our opponent's answers. Typically, Dredge will board in Ancient Grudge (and sometimes Nature's Claim) to deal with Ensnaring Bridge (which is almost unbeatable), but since the deck plays between zero and one basic Forests, with a Blood Moon on the battlefield, it's almost impossible for Dredge to beat our hate cards. Blood Moon also shuts down Life from the Loam, and with Loam, it's unlikely our opponent will have enough cards in hand to burn us out with Conflagrate, which is their only hope once we get the Blood Moon / Ensnaring Bridge lock assembled.
Jund / Abzan: Jund is all about getting a Blood Moon as fast as possible. If our opponent is able to fetch out a basic Swamp and Forest, things go really bad for us, since our opponent can Abrupt Decay all of our hate cards. On the other hand, Jund only plays a couple of basic lands, so if we can Blood Moon before they get any basics, they usually die to our planeswalkers before they even cast a meaningful spell.
Bant Eldrazi: Bant Eldrazi is one of our best matchups, since both Blood Moon and Ensnaring Bridge simply end the game. They often don't even have answers in the sideboard, and if they do, they cost one mana, so set your Chalice of the Void on one. If they happen to draw a Worship, things become odd, but we still win eventually, since we will sooner or later ultimate a Koth of the Hammer, use our Mountains to kill all of our opponent's creatures, and then finally kill our opponent.
Naya Burn: Naya Burn (or Burn in general) might seem like a bad matchup, but it's actually a very good matchup. Our most powerful play is Chalice of the Void on one, which locks out most of our opponent's plays. This is another matchup where Blood Moon is better than it looks, because once we get a Chalice of the Void on one, our opponent's game plan is to use two-mana burn like Boros Charm and Atarka's Command. The problem for our opponent is that just about all of their two-mana burn is multicolor, and they don't play any non-Mountain basic lands. We also have some great sideboard cards in Dragon's Claw, Sun Droplet, and Witchbane Orb.
Lantern Control: This is one of the matchups I've played the least, and apart from knowing that it's miserable for both players, I'm really not sure who is favored. On one hand, our Ensnaring Bridges and Blood Moons do nothing. On the other hand, Chalice of the Void on one is amazingly good against our opponent. Plus, we don't really care about Ensnaring Bridge, so if we can resolve just a single Chandra, Torch of Defiance or Koth of the Hammer, we should be able to win the game with our planeswalker before our opponent can mill us out.
Affinity: Chalice of the Void is great, Blood Moon is questionable (although it does lock out creature lands), and Ensnaring Bridge is game over, assuming we can kill our opponent's zero-powered creatures (mostly Ornithopter). We also get Pyroclasm and Anger of the Gods from the sideboard, which are very good in the matchup. That said, the matchup is far from an auto-win. If our opponent gets a fast draw and we miss on Anger of the Gods and Ensnaring Bridge, we don't get much time to find our hate cards. Plus, while Chalice of the Void is great, it doesn't do anything when our opponent can simply dump their entire hand on Turn 1.
Tron (RG, GW, Mono-Blue): Tron is actually one of our harder matchups, which sounds strange because we are a Blood Moon deck and Blood Moon seems great against Tron. The problem is that Tron is one of the only decks in Modern that plays a bunch of main-deck ways to deal with all of our hateful artifacts and enchantments. While Blood Moon can slow our opponent down significantly, if we can't back up Blood Moon with a fast clock from Chandra, Torch of Defiance or Koth of the Hammer, our opponent will eventually draw into Oblivion Stone, Karn Liberated, or Ugin, the Spirit Dragon (and cast them with Mountains), at which point we almost certainly can't win.
The Death's Shadow Zoo: This deck can't beat Chalice of the Void on one, although if it gets a really fast start, it can occasionally ride its Turn 1 play to victory if we stumble.
Thing Ascension: This is a hard matchup. Chalice of the Void on one seems great, but if our opponent gets a Pyromancer Ascension on the battlefield, they can sometimes win even with all of their spells getting countered (because the copies resolve).
Against various Nahiri Control decks (mostly Jeskai, but also Mardu): Make sure to bring in Pithing Needle from the sideboard to shut down the namesake planeswalker, which is good at exiling Blood Moon. Also, be aware of Wear // Tear, which can get around Chalice of the Void on one or two if our opponent can fuse it.
Scapeshift: These matchups are all about Blood Moon, while Ensnaring Bridge is also helpful against the Primeval Titan builds. It's also important to focus on trying to close out the game quickly because their answers to the lock pieces (Cryptic Command and Reclamation Sage) are too expensive to stop with Chalice of the Void.
Merfolk: This deck can't beat Ensnaring Bridge in game one, and then in game two, they are hoping to find a Hurkyl's Recall to bounce it for a turn. The game plan is to get not only an Ensnaring Bridge but also a Chalice of the Void on two or our Witchbane Orb on the battlefield at the same time, at which point our opponent is typically drawing dead.
Private Mod Note
():
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Modern - Pyro Prison
Modern - GW Tron
Modern - Mono G Tron
Modern - RWg Burn
Commander - Yisan, The Wanderer Bard cEDH build
Commander - Edric, Spymaster of Trest - Budget/Casual list - complete
Commander - Kynaios and Tiro of Meletis - $35 Budget upgrade
Commander - Edgar Markov - $150 upgrade
We launched 1 year ago, and it's been a monumental one for Hammer's Slammer - Mono Red Prison Deck thread. For as many threads that get posted, it seems like even more fade into the twilight. We've prospered: 14,000 views and 150 posts. I nabbed my sixth LGS 1st place finish this Friday, and we're getting more and more wise contributors shouting out each day.
I love hearing from Octopusman, as he authored the deck that was 1/2 the reason for why I launched this thread: Bloody Humans. It'd be boss to hear from the other 1/2, Saffron Olive who authored Free Win Red. But, as Vegita1998 notes, we have been hearing from Saffron Olive. He has been continuing to develop Free Win Red independently, and posting it to MTGGoldfish.com
And, here's the thing, my mountainfolk kin, his evolutions are starting to resemble Hammer's Slammer - Mono Red Prison. Jfmajor, who has been crushing in his posts lately, astutely notes, Saffron Olive is in the Mountain Club. Just like Jund gets compared to B/G Rock, Abzan Midrange to Kiki/Chord, and Eldrazi decks to each other, we share a lot of the same tools, Free Win Red and Hammer's Slammer naturally found themselves in similar places after a year of development. Indeed, online players have asked if I'm playing "Free Win Red"? As I view it, "Free Win Red" maintains that same narrow, mountain-only, creatureless win focus from a year ago. But, its latest evolution has incorporated (1) critical component that we pioneered, Chalice of the Void, and our newest, bestest friend, and big toe: Chandra, Torch of Defiance.
This is welcome news! Skred, our cousin deck, and now Free Win Red's continued evolution, give us more data to consider. Thanks to Vegitas1998 for posting up a sideboarding guideline crafted by SaffronOlive [[PREVIOUS POST]]. Well, 1 year down. And, we're just getting started.......
Oh, I had a Eureka moment...maybe?? Outpost Siege. What do you think? It's essentially a Chandra, Pyromaster +0 // Chandra, Torch of Defiance +1 (2 damage bonus) ability with some nifty advantages. It can't be attacked and killed, can't be bolted out, and there isn't much out there for enchantment removal. I don't think I'd have any problem sinking SSG/Rituals on Turn 1 into casting Outpost Siege. It'd be a 1-sided howling mine. I have (1) Crystal Ball in my deck, but I think it's getting replaced with the Siege set to Khans. The other option is a 4th Chandra, Torch of Defiance which does seem intuitively correct. However, it's not uncommon to get too many in hand, or have one on the board and a 2nd one that's just a dead card in your hand....hmmm. This is the problem with running 4 'legendary' permanents that are the same exact card. I don't know, Outpost Siege just occurred to me in a flash, so I'll have to kick this around.
Thanks for the shoutout I am not sure if outpost siege is something that I want to play just because it can screw us if we hit double lands and it leaves cards in hand. The 4cmc is a little rough as well as we could be spending that mana on Chandra, Koth, or chalice on two, which further our gameplan a lot more.
I now have a crazy thought for you so bear with me.
If we agree that Pia and Karen as well as Goblin Rabblemaster are good because they produce 1/1's and get under our bridge, what are your thoughts on the new red legendary Kari Zev, Skyship Raider?
She has menace and first strike and brings out a 2/1 tapped and attacking which gets around our bridge and she's only 2CMC. The only weakness I see is that she's like all the other creatures we have ... they all die to bolt. Unlike everything else however, she has three toughness so we can use her to chump block early creatures while we establish our lock.
Private Mod Note
():
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Modern - Pyro Prison
Modern - GW Tron
Modern - Mono G Tron
Modern - RWg Burn
Commander - Yisan, The Wanderer Bard cEDH build
Commander - Edric, Spymaster of Trest - Budget/Casual list - complete
Commander - Kynaios and Tiro of Meletis - $35 Budget upgrade
Commander - Edgar Markov - $150 upgrade
Thanks for the shoutout I am not sure if outpost siege is something that I want to play just because it can screw us if we hit double lands and it leaves cards in hand. The 4cmc is a little rough as well as we could be spending that mana on Chandra, Koth, or chalice on two, which further our gameplan a lot more.
I now have a crazy thought for you so bear with me.
If we agree that Pia and Karen as well as Goblin Rabblemaster are good because they produce 1/1's and get under our bridge, what are your thoughts on the new red legendary Kari Zev, Skyship Raider?
She has menace and first strike and brings out a 2/1 tapped and attacking which gets around our bridge and she's only 2CMC. The only weakness I see is that she's like all the other creatures we have ... they all die to bolt. Unlike everything else however, she has three toughness so we can use her to chump block early creatures while we establish our lock.
pucatrade
big receipts
alpha mox emerald
beta time walk
4 goyfs received
3 liliana of the veil
4 karn liberated
3 force of will
4 grove of the burnwillows
snapcaster mage
3 horizon canopy
2 full art damnation
Outpost Siege is a fine card. It's not great now that we have the Pyromaster, but hitting two lands is still fine. It lets you dig deeper than your opponent games that long, but does take a turn get going. Unlike Chandra
This was a StarCityGames Classic tournament held in Columbus, OH last weekend. I have been carefully reviewing these decklists. This is my favorite part of being in The Mountain Club: the Sideboarding. We are a Sideboard Deck. Most players adjust their '15' to the new data. We adjust our '60'. How are we going to adapt and overcome?? Let's backburner that question for a minute, and review the new posts on the thread.....
Vegitas1998 wrote:
I am not sure if outpost siege is something that I want to play just because it can screw us if we hit double lands and it leaves cards in hand. The 4cmc is a little rough as well, as we could be spending that mana on Chandra, Koth, or chalice on two, which further our gameplan a lot more.
Just like Elijah.M points out, "hitting two lands is fine" Since the land 'drawn' off of Outpost Siege is actually in exile. So, you're hand won't get jammed. As for the other cards listed, I'm already maxed on those counts. This is definitely a search for card 60 of the deck.
Kari Zev, Skyship Raider? There will always be a special place in my heart for ill-tempered, white spider monkey tokens. Always. Ragavan!!! It's not a crazy thought. If I were to continue to ride the Goblin Rabblemaster/Pia and Kiran Nalaar maindeck, then a 2 drop that can block annoyances like Goblin Guide, Thalia, Guardian of Thraben, and Glistener Elf sounds enticing. Well, the deck I ran at the last FNM had Rabblemasters in the sideboard Only. Is there a line of reasoning to keep them in the Main? Anybody wanna put up a decklist suggestion that features some of these new creatures?? - just a rough brainstorm would be great to get up on the board. For new folks, in order to format a decklist, type [deck*] at the start of the decklist and [/deck*] at the end - but don't include the asterisk.
So, Creatures to Consider are:
Pia and Kiran Nalaar
Goblin Rabblemaster
Kari Zev, Skyship Raider
Walking Ballista
As for Prophetic Flamespeaker, PokerKingDave, it's been a while since we've heard talk of the acclaimed firewalker. That was a cornerstone of Bloody Humans, but it takes the deck in a very aggressive direction. Maybe.
This was a StarCityGames Classic tournament held in Columbus, OH last weekend. I have been carefully reviewing these decklists. This is my favorite part of being in The Mountain Club: the Sideboarding. We are a Sideboard Deck. Most players adjust their '15' to the new data. We adjust our '60'. How are we going to adapt and overcome?? Let's backburner that question for a minute, and review the new posts on the thread.....
Vegitas1998 wrote:
I am not sure if outpost siege is something that I want to play just because it can screw us if we hit double lands and it leaves cards in hand. The 4cmc is a little rough as well, as we could be spending that mana on Chandra, Koth, or chalice on two, which further our gameplan a lot more.
Just like Elijah.M points out, "hitting two lands is fine" Since the land 'drawn' off of Outpost Siege is actually in exile. So, you're hand won't get jammed. As for the other cards listed, I'm already maxed on those counts. This is definitely a search for card 60 of the deck.
Kari Zev, Skyship Raider? There will always be a special place in my heart for ill-tempered, white spider monkey tokens. Always. Ragavan!!! It's not a crazy thought. If I were to continue to ride the Goblin Rabblemaster/Pia and Kiran Nalaar maindeck, then a 2 drop that can block annoyances like Goblin Guide, Thalia, Guardian of Thraben, and Glistener Elf sounds enticing. Well, the deck I ran at the last FNM had Rabblemasters in the sideboard Only. Is there a line of reasoning to keep them in the Main? Anybody wanna put up a decklist suggestion that features some of these new creatures?? - just a rough brainstorm would be great to get up on the board. For new folks, in order to format a decklist, type [deck*] at the start of the decklist and [/deck*] at the end - but don't include the asterisk.
So, Creatures to Consider are:
Pia and Kiran Nalaar
Goblin Rabblemaster
Kari Zev, Skyship Raider
Walking Ballista
As for Prophetic Flamespeaker, PokerKingDave, it's been a while since we've heard talk of the acclaimed firewalker. That was a cornerstone of Bloody Humans, but it takes the deck in a very aggressive direction. Maybe.
Another thing to consider is that chalice often is set on 1 or 2, so prophetic flamespeaker gets around it.
Private Mod Note
():
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
pucatrade
big receipts
alpha mox emerald
beta time walk
4 goyfs received
3 liliana of the veil
4 karn liberated
3 force of will
4 grove of the burnwillows
snapcaster mage
3 horizon canopy
2 full art damnation
I am not sure if outpost siege is something that I want to play just because it can screw us if we hit double lands and it leaves cards in hand. The 4cmc is a little rough as well, as we could be spending that mana on Chandra, Koth, or chalice on two, which further our gameplan a lot more.
Just like Elijah.M points out, "hitting two lands is fine" Since the land 'drawn' off of Outpost Siege is actually in exile. So, you're hand won't get jammed. As for the other cards listed, I'm already maxed on those counts. This is definitely a search for card 60 of the deck.
I misread the card and you are correct. I was reading it as having an ability like Chandra, Pyromaster. When she exiles the card, you have to use it on that phase and you can't hold it till the end of the turn like Outpost Siege.
I was referring more to the scenario that outpost triggers on upkeep and you pull a land, you have no cards in hand so you send the land to the battlefield. The next card you hit on your draw phase is also a land but you've already played a land this turn so now you're stuck with one card in hand until your next turn. That misplay allows token decks to swing big for one turn which could be lethal if it took you a while to set up your lock.
Private Mod Note
():
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Modern - Pyro Prison
Modern - GW Tron
Modern - Mono G Tron
Modern - RWg Burn
Commander - Yisan, The Wanderer Bard cEDH build
Commander - Edric, Spymaster of Trest - Budget/Casual list - complete
Commander - Kynaios and Tiro of Meletis - $35 Budget upgrade
Commander - Edgar Markov - $150 upgrade
Last year I tried Pia and Kiran and liked them quite a bit. I will try supplementing them with a Pia Nalaar next time I jam some games.
For what it's worth, I ran Stone Rain in Dragon Stompy in Legacy for a period to handle singleton/fetched basics and it was pretty good. The problem with the Legacy build is that, at the time, the clock was semi weak when on the Stone Rain build. That might be different with Chandra and Prodder now. Will revisit. Excited to see that jfmajor is testing Molten Rain and excited to hear how it goes!
We're humming, here. So, before I explore the idea of more 'ground troops - rolling rocks' in the main deck, I want to share, essentially, what I ran at FNM and got a 4-0. Rather than Koth-Chandra // Rabblemaster, i.e. Hammer // Anvil, this is more Planeswalker based with some choice creature selections.
Brief Tourney Report (it was 5 days ago, and my melon is only so sharp)
ROUND 1: G/x Tron -- Skilled & Jovial player. Blood Moon and Chalice slowed him up, but Mutavault paired with Koth 4/4 attacks drove home the wins in G1. He Ugins me in G2. I Goblin Rabblemaster and Shattering Spree his Oblivion Stone in G3.
ROUND 2: Grixis Control -- Blood Moon and Chalice again for the Game 1 grind down and Rabblemaster in Game 2 brought home the bacon.
ROUND 3: U/B Faeries -- I love this deck. But, as it all too often happens, Bitterblossom stung for a self-inflicted loss against my bulwark of sweepers and bridge. In Game 3, an early Blood Moon knocked him off of all black mana, and the threats closed in for the win.
ROUND 4: Death'n'Taxes -- This matchup always turns into a race of who can set up their overwhelming board state first. I generally feel very favored. We are mono-color and the accelerants can bypass Thalia and Leonin Arbiter shenanigans. Once you drop the 2nd bridge or bridge/spellskite, the flickerwisp threat flutters away.
I like where this deck is at. It's a little top-heavy on the curve, and a little light on the land count. But, I want to continue to ramp out threats and an increasing board lock - not fritter away the game with small fry spells. As a contributor wrote recently, we usually destroy after sideboarding. So, what do we need to achieve in Game 1? My benchmarks are:
Speed - Am I fast enough or finely tuned enough to edge out a G1 win against: Burn / Infect / Affinity? Lock Down - Is the Power Lock Down Suite being found and readily cast against linear decks? Win Condition - Am I putting a clock on my opponent?
My initial impressions with the post ban of Golgari Grave-Troll and Gitaxian Probe is that we have a little more time than we may think. I keep a watchful eye on Ad Nauseam and Tron, but otherwise feel pretty good about this Firewalker variant of Hammer's Slammer.
In the top line of the post, I wrote that the deck list is "essentially" what I ran on Friday. Outpost siege wasn't in that deck, but it's in my current deck. The deck is probably 3 cards different in the 60 from Friday.
However, I have positive initial impressions of Outpost Siege. It's extraordinarily hard for an opponent to remove, and it will make all the difference against decks like Jund and Grixis - for instance. Basically, Crystal Ball, Walking Ballista, Spellskite, Outpost Siege, and Magma Jet inhabit this hazy area that exists between the "locks" and "control" aaaaaand, they ultimately help to effect a "win".
It's FNM tonight, who's sleeving up and chucking cardboard?
Final tinkerings has me considering some experimental changes: 4 Molten Rain for my 4 Goblin Rabblemaster. Also, instead of a 2nd Piran: Octopusman mentioned Pia Nalaar a couple times on this thread. Initially, I dismissed the regal lady, as a lesser version of the partnered pair: Pia and Kiran Nalaar. But, then again.....
- She comes out one turn earlier. Significant since we're a bridge deck - also, fast decks will blast you before you reach 4-cmc.
- She doesn't conflict with the legendary rule on another Pia and Kiran Nalaar. You can have both on the field at the same time.
- Her pumping ability finally finds us a 'mana sink'.
- Against the very popular Lantern deck, I can pump my Spellskite to get under their bridge and smack face.
- Against the very popular Affinity deck, I can pump their Ornithopter or Signal Pest, so they can't get under my bridge. If I Chalice for 1, then Pia's protected from Galvanic Blast & that's GG!
Is this along the lines you were thinking, Octopus? It all seems pretty sound. I'll put her out on the dance floor and we'll see what happens tonight.
RULING QUESTION: Someone said earlier that 2 gemstone caverns under a cherry moon will trigger the legendary rule effect. Is this true? Does blood moon see past these now 'non-basic' mountains??
WEEK 4 -
WU Boggles (2-1)
Facing a rogue deck that uses hexproof creatures and Arcanum Wings to swap in an Eldrazi Conscription. G1: Kept a 1-land hand, went "all in" for a 1st turn Blood Moon, then didn't hit a land in 5 or 6 turns. The other two games were "business as usual", with Ensnaring Bridge locking up the board.
Jund (2-1)
This felt like a good matchup. The game I lost was to early hand disruption taking away lock pieces, and not recovering quickly enough. Blood Moon causes a lot of headaches for the opponent, and locking a Dark Confidante behind an Ensnaring Bridge was very satisfying.
WU Flash (1-2)
Grindy, difficult matchup - the opponent counters whatever is relevant, and plays Flash creature with any leftover mana at the end of your turn. Aether Vial and Cavern of Souls both work around Chalice.
WEEK 5 -
Bant Eldrazi (0-2)
Lost Game 1 in 4 or 5 turns before I could get a Bridge down. While Game 2 dragged on, my opponent was eventually able to chain Eldrazi that generate Eldrazi Scions (for colorless mana) and cast something big despite Blood Moon.
Infect (2-0)
2 quick, easy wins with Chalice on 1 and Blood Moon. Anger of the Gods saved me in both matches as well. So far, Infect seems like one of the best matchups for this deck.
Nahiri Control (0-2)
My opponent knows my deck and played very skillfully as soon as Game 1: keeping a "so-so" hand in because it had basics, fetching basics right away, etc. Wear/Tear is brutal against the deck, being able to get rid of a Blood Moon AND a Chalice on 1 with a single spell.
WEEK 6 -
Jeskai Burn (1-2)
Lost Game 1 after a miscalculation on Vexing Devil, not paying 4 life then not being able to empty my hand quickly enough for Bridge. Game 2 was locked quickly with Chalice on 1 and Blood Moon, followed by 18 points of hard-cast Simian Spirit Guide beatdown (and a Magma Jet)! For Game 3, I mulligan down to 5, keeping a 1-land hand, and not drawing another land for 6 turns.
Eldrazi Tron (1-2)
All very tight matches. Siding in Goblin Rabblemaster was fantastic in G2: my opponent had sided out all removal, and I had two of them in play by turn 3.
In G3, I had my opponent locked under Blood Moon + Bridge, while Rabblemasters were building up a critical mass of tokens to get through defending Eldrazis. However, I had to keep committing cards to the board to stay empty-handed for bridge. Eventually, my opponent got to enough mana to cast All is Dust (clearing all Blood Moons and goblins), then sacrificed Ugin's Sanctum to get Ulamog and exile the Bridge.
Esper Control (2-1)
Long, grindy matchups. Won G2 and G3 after locking out my opponent with Blood Moon & Chalice, beating down with Goblin Rabblemaster.
LESSONS LEARNED
- @Raystack, I'm starting to see why you favor the more aggressive route. Even when piling on Blood Moon, Chalices on 1-2, Spellskites and Pithing Needles, eventually, something WILL get through and things unravel. The lock is never completely unbreakable, and the deck needs to close the game fairly quickly.
- That being said, a "transitional sideboard" into Goblin Rabblemaster worked extremely well, once the way was clear of creature removal. I'll give Pia and Kiran a try: I think the flying thopters could do a lot of damage in the long run under a Bridge.
- Spellskites are back in main. After experimenting, I think they're of such help in so many G1 (Burn, Infect...) that it outweighs the sneaky "let's side them in after the opponent sides out their removal" approach.
- I know it's been brought up before, but I'm seriously considering Molten Rain to strengthen the lock. Even though many of my opponents fetch a basic on turn 1... they seem to only have 1 of each color in their deck. Thinking back on the Eldrazi Tron matchup, if I had Molten Rain for my opponent's single Wastes, it would likely have been game over. Against Esper Control, it might have been impossible for them to get to UUU for Cryptic Command. And, worst cast scenario, you can target a nonbasic (even under Blood Moon) for that extra 2 dmg, either to the opponent's face or to deal with an opposing Planeswalker, so it's never completely dead.
Here's what I'll be testing next week:
Creatures (5)
2 Magus of the Moon
3 Spellskite
Accelerators (8)
4 Simian Spirit Guide
4 Desperate Ritual
Enchantments (4)
4 Blood Moon
Removal (6)
2 Molten Rain
4 Magma Jet
2 Koth of the Hammer
3 Chandra, Torch of Defiance
Artifacts (10)
4 Ensnaring Bridge
4 Chalice of the Void
1 Crystal Ball
Lands (22)
20 Mountains
3 Gemstone Caverns
3 Goblin Rabblemaster
1 Pia and Kiran Nalaar
3 Pithing Needle
3 Pyroclasm
1 Molten Rain
1 Witchbane Orb
2 Dragon's Claw
1 Slagstorm
Having the choice between 3 dmg to players OR creatures is very neat in situations like this, and the possibility to damage opposing Planeswalkers is a nice bonus.
If my Molten Rain experiment doesn't pan out, I'll try running a pair of Slagstorms instead!
Anger of the Gods hits creatures (exiles them)
And, In this Corner:
Slagstorm hits creatures, players, or planeswalkers.
It seems like a pretty easy choice on which is better. Break it down: when you carefully go through the Tier 1 and Tier 2 decks in MTGsalvation, what do you find? Which one seems to have more applications. I get that Slag doesn't wipe away Voice of Resurgence, Kitchen Finks, Prized Amalgam, Bloodghast....but, Ensnaring Bridge renders all of these creatures ineffectual. Nonetheless, slagstorm just doesn't seem to get any respect.
@jfmajor: I really respect your observations on the McLaren construction - can't argue with any of your points. And, why didn't I think of that interaction with Ghost Quarter. Ha! Totally.
As for your summary observations:
- Pia and Kiran Nalaar: I absolutely swear by these guys in my maindeck. No way I wouldn't run them. They are a perfect drop before a planeswalker for protection, and a resilient threat, and a good blocking troop, and mid-late game removal.
- I'm back with Goblin Rabblemaster all in the sideboard.
- Spellskite...yeah, glad to see you came around on that one. I'm struggling between 2-3 in MD, but they are a necessity.
BREAKING NEWS:
Last night's FNM had 22 people, and I walked away with a 4-0. Another Undefeated night up on the big board! Report and New Decklist upcoming (I'm short on time right now).
Oh, but I did crack a Walking Ballista in one of my won packs (18 - not too shab, eh?). Walking motherhumpin' Ballista. Huh. Possibility. I think it might be a very strong possibility.
I first came across SaffronOlive's deck when it originally released in 2015 and it jumped out to me as "This is going to be the jank deck that I invest in paper". I have made minor tweaks here and there (sideboarding into mono red burn to surprise my opponent, screwing around with different builds and even splashing white(red has no answers for enchantment removal) for a little bit before I went back to mono red) but I had no idea there was a community that was working towards optimizing it. Pia and Kiran, Slagstorm, Goblin Rabblemaster, and many other suggestions are blowing me away to the point that I've stopped being a lurker and made an account just to comment on this.
Question: Why the Gemstone Caverns?
Looking forward to my next trip to my LGS to make some much needed purchases.
Modern - GW Tron
Modern - Mono G Tron
Modern - RWg Burn
Commander - Yisan, The Wanderer Bard cEDH build
Commander - Edric, Spymaster of Trest - Budget/Casual list - complete
Commander - Kynaios and Tiro of Meletis - $35 Budget upgrade
Commander - Edgar Markov - $150 upgrade
Here are my thoughts on Gemstone Caverns:
- Gemstone Caverns are yet one more way to build acceleration whenever you're on the draw.
- They fill a similar role to Simian Spirit Guide in your opening hand, allowing to go 1st turn Desperate Ritual and Blood Moon, Magus of the Moon, etc.
- You're essentially "ahead one land" for the rest of the game.
- They work great with Ensnaring Bridge (immediately lowering your starting hand from 7 to 5 cards).
- Being mono-red, the mana base for the deck isn't very sophisticated: so they won't hurt you much on the play (and will likely turn into Mountains quickly with Blood Moon).
- I see them as a low-risk, high-reward card.
I personally run 3: good chances I'll have them in my opening hand, but you want to avoid drawing multiples (the Legend rule still applies to them under Blood Moon). If I know I'm on the play in Game 2 or Game 3, I'll typically side out one copy.
Do you feel like sharing your current decklist? It's always fun to see what tweaks other people come up with.
Creatures (5)
2 Magus of the Moon
3 Spellskite
Accelerators (8)
4 Simian Spirit Guide
4 Desperate Ritual
Enchantments (4)
4 Blood Moon
Removal (6)
2 Molten Rain
4 Magma Jet
2 Koth of the Hammer
3 Chandra, Torch of Defiance
Artifacts (10)
4 Ensnaring Bridge
4 Chalice of the Void
1 Crystal Ball
Lands (22)
20 Mountains
3 Gemstone Caverns
3 Goblin Rabblemaster
1 Pia and Kiran Nalaar
3 Pithing Needle
3 Pyroclasm
1 Molten Rain
1 Witchbane Orb
2 Dragon's Claw
1 Slagstorm
Solid Construction -- Questions:
- You name (22) lands, but list 23 lands. Which is it? I've been at 23 for a while, but recently followed your lead on going to 4 desperate ritual and trading that down to 22 lands. With 4 scrying magma jet, I don't mind going down to 22 land. Does this fall in line with your reasoning as well?
- 2 Molten Rain in the main? I'm eagerly awaiting your feedback, but I fear that it's a 'lock more', and not enough of proactively closing out the game with a win. 2 Pia and Kiran Nalaar seem like good substitutions for these slots. Sisuslayer commented similarly on this approach.
- 4 Desperate Ritual...shoosh, I'm doing it too. But, man, I wish I could either find some good mana sinks or discard outlets for these extra 'dead' cards in late game. Grim Lavamancer and Jaya Ballard, Task Mage come to mind. Or, if only we could make it work with Tormenting Voice without worrying about hellbenting against the bridge.
Regarding the lands: the (22) is a typo (I copy+pasted my previous decklist for forum formatting). I ran 22 lands for several weeks, but was getting mana-screwed too frequently, and didn't consistently hit "one land drop per turn for the first 4 turns". I've been more satisfied since I went back up to 23 (20 mountains, 3 gemstone caverns).
Molten Rain's an experiment at the moment. My FLGS usually only has 8-10 people showing up for Modern Monday, and the regulars know the deck I play pretty well. I feel they'll often keep an "okay" hand in G1 if it has basics, or delay cracking their fetch (even if they could, for example, go turn 1 Serum Visions) until they know they're safe from Blood Moon. I also know most of them only have 1 basic of each color they need (vs. Ghost Quarter or Path to Exile). Removing the right basic could completely lock them out of the game, whereas right now, they can find ways around the lock.
I probably wouldn't run maindeck Molten Rain at a large tournament.
If that doesn't pan out, I'll give the more aggressive route a more serious try. I'll actually a maindeck Pia and Kiran Nalaar this week, you've convinced me. ;-)
And yes, I'll second the deck needs a mana sink pretty badly. That's why I've been pleased with Crystal Ball so far (1 main deck) for filtering, but I play a more "control-ish" version.
Infect: The Infect matchup is mostly about Chalice of the Void; if we can get it set on one, it becomes extremely difficult for our opponent to win the game. Blood Moon is also often game over, assuming we get it down fast enough (before Noble Hierarch comes down). If we have Turn 1 Blood Moon, that's usually the right choice; otherwise, play the Chalice of the Void on one first. Even better, Infect doesn't even have good sideboard options, since most of the builds rely on Nature's Claim to deal with artifacts and enchantments, and Nature's Claim also gets locked out by Chalice of the Void on one.
Dredge: Dredge is one of our more difficult matchups in game one but one of our best matchups after sideboarding. In game one, our only real hope is to get an Ensnaring Bridge on the battlefield, and even then, we can lose to Conflagrate damage. In games two and three, we are built to destroy Dredge, since we get to bring in four copies of Relic of Progenitus and a couple more Anger of the Gods to give us four total. One thing that might not be obvious: do not take out Blood Moon. While it might be tempting, since Dredge can win without casting spells (and their best dredge enablers like Cathartic Reunion are red), Blood Moon is our best answer to our opponent's answers. Typically, Dredge will board in Ancient Grudge (and sometimes Nature's Claim) to deal with Ensnaring Bridge (which is almost unbeatable), but since the deck plays between zero and one basic Forests, with a Blood Moon on the battlefield, it's almost impossible for Dredge to beat our hate cards. Blood Moon also shuts down Life from the Loam, and with Loam, it's unlikely our opponent will have enough cards in hand to burn us out with Conflagrate, which is their only hope once we get the Blood Moon / Ensnaring Bridge lock assembled.
Jund / Abzan: Jund is all about getting a Blood Moon as fast as possible. If our opponent is able to fetch out a basic Swamp and Forest, things go really bad for us, since our opponent can Abrupt Decay all of our hate cards. On the other hand, Jund only plays a couple of basic lands, so if we can Blood Moon before they get any basics, they usually die to our planeswalkers before they even cast a meaningful spell.
Bant Eldrazi: Bant Eldrazi is one of our best matchups, since both Blood Moon and Ensnaring Bridge simply end the game. They often don't even have answers in the sideboard, and if they do, they cost one mana, so set your Chalice of the Void on one. If they happen to draw a Worship, things become odd, but we still win eventually, since we will sooner or later ultimate a Koth of the Hammer, use our Mountains to kill all of our opponent's creatures, and then finally kill our opponent.
Naya Burn: Naya Burn (or Burn in general) might seem like a bad matchup, but it's actually a very good matchup. Our most powerful play is Chalice of the Void on one, which locks out most of our opponent's plays. This is another matchup where Blood Moon is better than it looks, because once we get a Chalice of the Void on one, our opponent's game plan is to use two-mana burn like Boros Charm and Atarka's Command. The problem for our opponent is that just about all of their two-mana burn is multicolor, and they don't play any non-Mountain basic lands. We also have some great sideboard cards in Dragon's Claw, Sun Droplet, and Witchbane Orb.
Lantern Control: This is one of the matchups I've played the least, and apart from knowing that it's miserable for both players, I'm really not sure who is favored. On one hand, our Ensnaring Bridges and Blood Moons do nothing. On the other hand, Chalice of the Void on one is amazingly good against our opponent. Plus, we don't really care about Ensnaring Bridge, so if we can resolve just a single Chandra, Torch of Defiance or Koth of the Hammer, we should be able to win the game with our planeswalker before our opponent can mill us out.
Affinity: Chalice of the Void is great, Blood Moon is questionable (although it does lock out creature lands), and Ensnaring Bridge is game over, assuming we can kill our opponent's zero-powered creatures (mostly Ornithopter). We also get Pyroclasm and Anger of the Gods from the sideboard, which are very good in the matchup. That said, the matchup is far from an auto-win. If our opponent gets a fast draw and we miss on Anger of the Gods and Ensnaring Bridge, we don't get much time to find our hate cards. Plus, while Chalice of the Void is great, it doesn't do anything when our opponent can simply dump their entire hand on Turn 1.
Tron (RG, GW, Mono-Blue): Tron is actually one of our harder matchups, which sounds strange because we are a Blood Moon deck and Blood Moon seems great against Tron. The problem is that Tron is one of the only decks in Modern that plays a bunch of main-deck ways to deal with all of our hateful artifacts and enchantments. While Blood Moon can slow our opponent down significantly, if we can't back up Blood Moon with a fast clock from Chandra, Torch of Defiance or Koth of the Hammer, our opponent will eventually draw into Oblivion Stone, Karn Liberated, or Ugin, the Spirit Dragon (and cast them with Mountains), at which point we almost certainly can't win.
The Death's Shadow Zoo: This deck can't beat Chalice of the Void on one, although if it gets a really fast start, it can occasionally ride its Turn 1 play to victory if we stumble.
Thing Ascension: This is a hard matchup. Chalice of the Void on one seems great, but if our opponent gets a Pyromancer Ascension on the battlefield, they can sometimes win even with all of their spells getting countered (because the copies resolve).
Against various Nahiri Control decks (mostly Jeskai, but also Mardu): Make sure to bring in Pithing Needle from the sideboard to shut down the namesake planeswalker, which is good at exiling Blood Moon. Also, be aware of Wear // Tear, which can get around Chalice of the Void on one or two if our opponent can fuse it.
Scapeshift: These matchups are all about Blood Moon, while Ensnaring Bridge is also helpful against the Primeval Titan builds. It's also important to focus on trying to close out the game quickly because their answers to the lock pieces (Cryptic Command and Reclamation Sage) are too expensive to stop with Chalice of the Void.
Merfolk: This deck can't beat Ensnaring Bridge in game one, and then in game two, they are hoping to find a Hurkyl's Recall to bounce it for a turn. The game plan is to get not only an Ensnaring Bridge but also a Chalice of the Void on two or our Witchbane Orb on the battlefield at the same time, at which point our opponent is typically drawing dead.
Modern - GW Tron
Modern - Mono G Tron
Modern - RWg Burn
Commander - Yisan, The Wanderer Bard cEDH build
Commander - Edric, Spymaster of Trest - Budget/Casual list - complete
Commander - Kynaios and Tiro of Meletis - $35 Budget upgrade
Commander - Edgar Markov - $150 upgrade
We launched 1 year ago, and it's been a monumental one for Hammer's Slammer - Mono Red Prison Deck thread. For as many threads that get posted, it seems like even more fade into the twilight. We've prospered: 14,000 views and 150 posts. I nabbed my sixth LGS 1st place finish this Friday, and we're getting more and more wise contributors shouting out each day.
I love hearing from Octopusman, as he authored the deck that was 1/2 the reason for why I launched this thread: Bloody Humans. It'd be boss to hear from the other 1/2, Saffron Olive who authored Free Win Red. But, as Vegita1998 notes, we have been hearing from Saffron Olive. He has been continuing to develop Free Win Red independently, and posting it to MTGGoldfish.com
https://www.mtggoldfish.com/articles/instant-deck-tech-free-win-red-modern
And, here's the thing, my mountainfolk kin, his evolutions are starting to resemble Hammer's Slammer - Mono Red Prison. Jfmajor, who has been crushing in his posts lately, astutely notes, Saffron Olive is in the Mountain Club. Just like Jund gets compared to B/G Rock, Abzan Midrange to Kiki/Chord, and Eldrazi decks to each other, we share a lot of the same tools, Free Win Red and Hammer's Slammer naturally found themselves in similar places after a year of development. Indeed, online players have asked if I'm playing "Free Win Red"? As I view it, "Free Win Red" maintains that same narrow, mountain-only, creatureless win focus from a year ago. But, its latest evolution has incorporated (1) critical component that we pioneered, Chalice of the Void, and our newest, bestest friend, and big toe: Chandra, Torch of Defiance.
This is welcome news! Skred, our cousin deck, and now Free Win Red's continued evolution, give us more data to consider. Thanks to Vegitas1998 for posting up a sideboarding guideline crafted by SaffronOlive [[PREVIOUS POST]]. Well, 1 year down. And, we're just getting started.......
Oh, I had a Eureka moment...maybe?? Outpost Siege. What do you think? It's essentially a Chandra, Pyromaster +0 // Chandra, Torch of Defiance +1 (2 damage bonus) ability with some nifty advantages. It can't be attacked and killed, can't be bolted out, and there isn't much out there for enchantment removal. I don't think I'd have any problem sinking SSG/Rituals on Turn 1 into casting Outpost Siege. It'd be a 1-sided howling mine. I have (1) Crystal Ball in my deck, but I think it's getting replaced with the Siege set to Khans. The other option is a 4th Chandra, Torch of Defiance which does seem intuitively correct. However, it's not uncommon to get too many in hand, or have one on the board and a 2nd one that's just a dead card in your hand....hmmm. This is the problem with running 4 'legendary' permanents that are the same exact card. I don't know, Outpost Siege just occurred to me in a flash, so I'll have to kick this around.
I now have a crazy thought for you so bear with me.
If we agree that Pia and Karen as well as Goblin Rabblemaster are good because they produce 1/1's and get under our bridge, what are your thoughts on the new red legendary Kari Zev, Skyship Raider?
She has menace and first strike and brings out a 2/1 tapped and attacking which gets around our bridge and she's only 2CMC. The only weakness I see is that she's like all the other creatures we have ... they all die to bolt. Unlike everything else however, she has three toughness so we can use her to chump block early creatures while we establish our lock.
Modern - GW Tron
Modern - Mono G Tron
Modern - RWg Burn
Commander - Yisan, The Wanderer Bard cEDH build
Commander - Edric, Spymaster of Trest - Budget/Casual list - complete
Commander - Kynaios and Tiro of Meletis - $35 Budget upgrade
Commander - Edgar Markov - $150 upgrade
Wouldn't prophetic flamespeaker just be better than kari zev, skyship raider?
pucatrade
big receipts
alpha mox emerald
beta time walk
4 goyfs received
3 liliana of the veil
4 karn liberated
3 force of will
4 grove of the burnwillows
snapcaster mage
3 horizon canopy
2 full art damnation
http://sales.starcitygames.com//deckdatabase/deckshow.php?&t[C1]=28&start_date=2017-01-22&end_date=2017-01-22&event_ID=36&city=Columbus&state=OH&t_num=1&limit=8&start_num=8&start_num=0&limit=8
This was a StarCityGames Classic tournament held in Columbus, OH last weekend. I have been carefully reviewing these decklists. This is my favorite part of being in The Mountain Club: the Sideboarding. We are a Sideboard Deck. Most players adjust their '15' to the new data. We adjust our '60'. How are we going to adapt and overcome?? Let's backburner that question for a minute, and review the new posts on the thread.....
Vegitas1998 wrote:
Just like Elijah.M points out, "hitting two lands is fine" Since the land 'drawn' off of Outpost Siege is actually in exile. So, you're hand won't get jammed. As for the other cards listed, I'm already maxed on those counts. This is definitely a search for card 60 of the deck.
Kari Zev, Skyship Raider? There will always be a special place in my heart for ill-tempered, white spider monkey tokens. Always. Ragavan!!! It's not a crazy thought. If I were to continue to ride the Goblin Rabblemaster/Pia and Kiran Nalaar maindeck, then a 2 drop that can block annoyances like Goblin Guide, Thalia, Guardian of Thraben, and Glistener Elf sounds enticing. Well, the deck I ran at the last FNM had Rabblemasters in the sideboard Only. Is there a line of reasoning to keep them in the Main? Anybody wanna put up a decklist suggestion that features some of these new creatures?? - just a rough brainstorm would be great to get up on the board. For new folks, in order to format a decklist, type [deck*] at the start of the decklist and [/deck*] at the end - but don't include the asterisk.
So, Creatures to Consider are:
Another thing to consider is that chalice often is set on 1 or 2, so prophetic flamespeaker gets around it.
pucatrade
big receipts
alpha mox emerald
beta time walk
4 goyfs received
3 liliana of the veil
4 karn liberated
3 force of will
4 grove of the burnwillows
snapcaster mage
3 horizon canopy
2 full art damnation
I misread the card and you are correct. I was reading it as having an ability like Chandra, Pyromaster. When she exiles the card, you have to use it on that phase and you can't hold it till the end of the turn like Outpost Siege.
I was referring more to the scenario that outpost triggers on upkeep and you pull a land, you have no cards in hand so you send the land to the battlefield. The next card you hit on your draw phase is also a land but you've already played a land this turn so now you're stuck with one card in hand until your next turn. That misplay allows token decks to swing big for one turn which could be lethal if it took you a while to set up your lock.
Modern - GW Tron
Modern - Mono G Tron
Modern - RWg Burn
Commander - Yisan, The Wanderer Bard cEDH build
Commander - Edric, Spymaster of Trest - Budget/Casual list - complete
Commander - Kynaios and Tiro of Meletis - $35 Budget upgrade
Commander - Edgar Markov - $150 upgrade
This is very outdated but you can check out the article I did for Modern Nexus which touches on Gemstone Caverns:
http://modernnexus.com/bloody-humans-15th-at-scg-vegas/
Last year I tried Pia and Kiran and liked them quite a bit. I will try supplementing them with a Pia Nalaar next time I jam some games.
For what it's worth, I ran Stone Rain in Dragon Stompy in Legacy for a period to handle singleton/fetched basics and it was pretty good. The problem with the Legacy build is that, at the time, the clock was semi weak when on the Stone Rain build. That might be different with Chandra and Prodder now. Will revisit. Excited to see that jfmajor is testing Molten Rain and excited to hear how it goes!
Loving this momentum.
Creatures (5)
2 Spellskite
2 Pia and Kiran Nalaar
1 Walking Ballista
Accelerators (8)
4 Simian Spirit Guide
4 Desperate Ritual
Enchantments (5)
4 Blood Moon
1 Outpost Siege
Removal (7)
4 Magma Jet
2 Slagstorm
1 Anger of the Gods
1 Koth of the Hammer
3 Chandra, Torch of Defiance
Artifacts (9)
4 Ensnaring Bridge
4 Chalice of the Void
1 Crystal Ball
Lands (22)
18 Mountains
2 Mutavault
2 Gemstone Caverns
4 Goblin Rabblemaster
3 Shattering Spree
2 Anger of the Gods
2 Grafdigger's Cage
2 Sun Droplet
1 Dragon's Claw
1 Witchbane Orb
Brief Tourney Report (it was 5 days ago, and my melon is only so sharp)
ROUND 1: G/x Tron -- Skilled & Jovial player. Blood Moon and Chalice slowed him up, but Mutavault paired with Koth 4/4 attacks drove home the wins in G1. He Ugins me in G2. I Goblin Rabblemaster and Shattering Spree his Oblivion Stone in G3.
ROUND 2: Grixis Control -- Blood Moon and Chalice again for the Game 1 grind down and Rabblemaster in Game 2 brought home the bacon.
ROUND 3: U/B Faeries -- I love this deck. But, as it all too often happens, Bitterblossom stung for a self-inflicted loss against my bulwark of sweepers and bridge. In Game 3, an early Blood Moon knocked him off of all black mana, and the threats closed in for the win.
ROUND 4: Death'n'Taxes -- This matchup always turns into a race of who can set up their overwhelming board state first. I generally feel very favored. We are mono-color and the accelerants can bypass Thalia and Leonin Arbiter shenanigans. Once you drop the 2nd bridge or bridge/spellskite, the flickerwisp threat flutters away.
I like where this deck is at. It's a little top-heavy on the curve, and a little light on the land count. But, I want to continue to ramp out threats and an increasing board lock - not fritter away the game with small fry spells. As a contributor wrote recently, we usually destroy after sideboarding. So, what do we need to achieve in Game 1? My benchmarks are:
Speed - Am I fast enough or finely tuned enough to edge out a G1 win against: Burn / Infect / Affinity?
Lock Down - Is the Power Lock Down Suite being found and readily cast against linear decks?
Win Condition - Am I putting a clock on my opponent?
My initial impressions with the post ban of Golgari Grave-Troll and Gitaxian Probe is that we have a little more time than we may think. I keep a watchful eye on Ad Nauseam and Tron, but otherwise feel pretty good about this Firewalker variant of Hammer's Slammer.
However, I have positive initial impressions of Outpost Siege. It's extraordinarily hard for an opponent to remove, and it will make all the difference against decks like Jund and Grixis - for instance. Basically, Crystal Ball, Walking Ballista, Spellskite, Outpost Siege, and Magma Jet inhabit this hazy area that exists between the "locks" and "control" aaaaaand, they ultimately help to effect a "win".
Final tinkerings has me considering some experimental changes: 4 Molten Rain for my 4 Goblin Rabblemaster. Also, instead of a 2nd Piran: Octopusman mentioned Pia Nalaar a couple times on this thread. Initially, I dismissed the regal lady, as a lesser version of the partnered pair: Pia and Kiran Nalaar. But, then again.....
RULING QUESTION: Someone said earlier that 2 gemstone caverns under a cherry moon will trigger the legendary rule effect. Is this true? Does blood moon see past these now 'non-basic' mountains??