As Saffron Olive / PV have recently pointed out, Breaking // Entering is the most powerful way to abuse the Expertise cycle from Aether Revolt. To exploit the power of this interaction, I came up with a variant on Grixis Goryo's Vengeance that combines the Breaking // Entering combo with Goryo's Venegeance:
The deck revolves around three overlapping combos--Goryo's Vengeance + a discarded fatty, Kari Zev's Expertise / Yahenni's Expertise + Breaking // Entering, Breaking // Entering + Goryo's Vengeance--which gives us a fair amount of resiliency and flexibility. Unlike the traditional Goryo's Vengeance deck (https://www.mtggoldfish.com/archetype/modern-goryo-s-vengeance-30582#paper), this version is more reliant on the graveyard since it doesn't run Through the Breach. But it makes up for this weakness with increased speed and power: Breaking // Entering can be cast much more quickly than Through the Breach thanks to the expertise cards and allows us to keep the creature we reanimate permanently. Breaking // Entering also allows us to dodge most non-static graveyard hate, like Surgical Extraction, Scavenging Ooze, Relic of Progenitus, etc. since a fused Breaking // Entering resolves as one card without a round of priority in between each half. This means we only need to worry about Rest in Peace, Leyline of the Void, and Grafdigger's Cage.
Some notes on card choices:
Because the deck isn't running mana dorks or Dryad Arbor, it uses Forbidden Orchard to insure that there is a creature on board for Kari Zev's Expertise. The tokens that Orchard produces can become annoying, especially if we have to tap Orchard for mana before the combo turn, but Yahenni's Expertise cleans them up.
The Breaking side of Breaking // Entering can be used to set up Goryo's Vengeance, although it's best to wait until you have the mana to cast both Breaking and Goryo's in case you hit an Emrakul.
Pact of Negation is a hedge against control decks, but I could see swapping them out for something in the sideboard depending on your meta. Thoughtseize might actually be a better choice because it can be used to bin our own fatties.
At the moment, I'm running Jin-Gitaxias, Core Augur as the ninth creature since it acts like a fifth Griselbrand, but I'm considering other options such as Goblin Dark-Dwellers and Narset, Enlightened Master. I originally ran Ulamog, the Infinite Gyre but found that he was a weak Goryo's Vengeance target. Annihilating four permanents and maybe dealing 10 damage was not enough to justify the resources expended on Goryo's Vengeance. As it stands, Griselbrand is usually a better Goryo's Vengeance target than Emrakul anyway because it draws you 7-14 cards and allows you to either combo again the next turn or set a up a second Goryo's Vengeance or Breaking // Entering on the spot. Emrakul is at its best as a Goryo's Vengeance target when your opponent is at 15 or less life or you can annihilate most of their board, giving your self plenty of time to reassemble the combo.
The sideboard is fairly tentative right now until I figure out exactly what the deck's weaknesses are.
So far the deck has preformed very well in testing. It can go off by turn 3 regularly and has the potential for a turn one combo (Forbidden Orchard, Kari Zev's Expertise, 2 SSG, Breaking // Entering). I welcome your feedback and suggestions for improvement.
I did something similar but stayed RB and kept the shoal combo so that I am more resilient to hate and less glass cannon especially game two. Took it to FNM and went 4-0 very easily beating Jund, Elves, Tron and Monon green ramp.
The sideboard is preliminary and a direct result of what I've run up against in testing (in paper and on Cockatrice). The Chancellor seems pretty iffy, but slowing down Grafdigger's Cage even a turn, when on the draw, can be exactly what you need to go off.
I think playing Goblin Dark-Dwellers almost has to be correct, as it can flashback almost everything in the deck, and enables so many alternative lines (e.g., Play GDD, Flashback an Expertise, and Cast B&E from hand for free).
Additionally, the conflagrate can help close matches by just tossing all the cards you draw off of Griselbrand at your opponent's face.
The primary issue I've found with the deck is the tension between wanting to keep things in your yard, and the shuffle trigger off of Emrakul. I'm looking for an alternative, but few creature are evasive, are difficult to remove, close the game quickly, and make up for the card disadvantage associated with assembling the combo.
Your point about Yahenni's and the tokens from Orchard is a good one. I went with Brain in a Jar as my fifth Expertise effect because, although it costs the same amount of mana to cast a B&E, because my version is reliant on rituals for fast mana, getting to three mana of any color is much easier than getting 2BB.
I think Thoughtseize is definitely an include over Pact of Negation, which has far less utility in the early game.
Interesting deck, but Orchard and emrakul is such a nonbo unless you combo with exactly the -3-3 expertise spell. Pretty sad to attack with Emrakul and have the opponent sacrificing 3 Orchard tokens. Considering how few lands the deck play I can see this beeing quite an issue since you lean heavy on Orchard even to cast your normal spells
I played a slightly tweaked version of the list at FNM last night and went 3-1. I beat Infect, Naya Allies, and BR Eldrazi and lost to Grixis Delver due to play error in game 1 and then miss-sideboarding in game 2. The changes to the list were MD -2 Pact of Negation +2 Swan Song, SB -2 Swan Song +2 Dispel. As JorahM pointed out, Pact of Negation is too much of a liability since the deck doesn't often win the turn it goes off. Swan Song, on the other hand, is an efficient counter and makes a creature for Kari Zev's Expertise.
The MD configuration felt pretty tight. I'm going to experiment with -4 Sleight of Hand, -1 Jin-Gitaxias, +4 Ancestral Vision, +1 Goblin Dark-Dwellers to give the deck more resilience against control and midrange and free up some SB slots.
The SB needs work. Leyline of Sanctity and Wear // Tear preformed well, but Gemstone Caverns, Dispel, Fatal Push did not. I never had a chance to play Ancestral Vision. Going forward I'm going to try -1 Gemstone Caverns, -2 Dispel, -2 Fatal Push, +1 Yahenni's Expertise, +2 Defense Grid, +2 Beck // Call (as a hedge against graveyard hate). If I do end of moving Ancestral Vision to the MD, I'll add the other two Beck // Call and either a third Defense Grid or a Living End (as a Wrath of God against creature decks and another way to beat Grafdigger's Cage).
I really like both RB versions. Beck // Call with Nourishing Shoal seems pretty sick as does Conflagrate as combination discard outlet and finisher. I'm going to work on a RB version as well and will post it in the next couple of days. How consistently have you been able to assemble the combo using Faithless Looting, Cathartic Reunion, and/or Night's Whisper?
Jorah M: Yeah, Emrakul seems like a necessary evil at the moment. I've been looking for alternatives too.
I would consider running Wear // Tear over Fragmentize in your SB. The Tear side is strict upgrade over Fragmentize, plus you get Wear for Grafdigger's Cage and the ability to cast both sides.
> Emrakul seems like a necessary evil at the moment.
I agree. I tried at Newmrakul, but the annihilator trigger is very relevant.
> I would consider running Wear // Tear[...]
I did think of it, but is the instant speed really worth one more mana? Moreover, there aren't any 4+ CMC enchantments that we're worried about. Fragmentize is sorcery speed, but it always costs one mana, and hits all pertinent hate.
Also, I'm considering going down the Chancellor, so perhaps Wear // Tear can be a 5th anti-hate card, or I was considering Nephalia Academy.
In the version I run, it's rare for your opponent to have 3+ tokens to sac to the annihilator trigger (largely due to the SSG and rituals providing alternate sources of mana), but, in the end, you'd be surprised how quickly a 15/15 that essentially cannot be removed closes the game.
Does Orchard lower the MU win% against hyper-Aggro? Likely, yes. But it also enables Turn 0/Turn 1 wins.
I've been able to assemble the combo regularly by turn 3/4 at the latest, but often start with at least one piece in hand. I'm trying to keep track of exactly what turn/which lines I took in future testing. I would be interested in cards that offer more consistency, though; perhaps, Painful Truths
I just played against Jund— and that match up is hard if the combo doesn't happen Turn 1/2 or we don't hit Emrakul off B&E.
I'm thinking of running a couple Tasigur or Angler in the side for MUs that are removal-, discard-, and hate-heavy. Additionally, Vengeful Pharaoh is a consideration.
Leyline is very good vs jund but I also like sideboarding alternatives to graveyard and take out 3 vengeance. I find against jund and control decks I want to be able to put creatures into play. If you add a couple of quicksilver amulets to your side you should also be be better against them. I prefer amulet vs jund and through the breach vs control. I bait out all their counters by splicing onto shoals and rituals then I just win on my turn. Moon also recks them. Moon on the play vs jund. Having the shoal combo also lets you win turn one before they even play a card. The thing I do dislike is having less draw than the regular deck.
Have you tested with Quicksilver Amulet against Jund? It constantly dies to K. Command, in my experience.
Also, getting to 6 mana for a spliced Through the Breach seems difficult to achieve. Which control MUs have you tested?
I can see having Blood Moon in the side, but I'm not sure which MUs it actually improves.
In the games I've played, the biggest issue I found was that targeted discard is really good against the deck. A Turn 1 Thoughtseize can absolutely wreck an otherwise perfect hand. I'm not sure how to add resiliency to an already tight list.
Jund runs like 1-2 commands only so it does not get hit all that often.
You only need 4 mana to splice through the breach. cast shoal for free then splice onto it. This is for grixis control and jeskai control. most decks you don't side in the full 3 through the breaches. you side 1-2 extra to hedge against graveyard hate. Game two i often take out 2 vengence for two through the breach and keep all the exterise combo. Against tron decks that have like 4 warping wait now I keep goryo and change expertise combo out for moons and through the breach.
For moon you side in 4 vs valakut, jeskai and grixis control decks. Also eldrazi tron and regular tron.
Jund/abzan i side in a moon or two on the play but often just adding a couple of leylines is best.
The old grishoalbrand decks were best geared to beat jund and is one of the best decks vs jund. I simply transform to be more like them.
I started playing this deck about a week ago after playing traditional Goryo's Vengeance for the last few months, and it seems much more consistent as far as getting a combo off and a Griselbrand/Emrakul out. Out of my first 10 games, I'd successfully cast the combo 5 times by turn 3, and hit a game-ending Emrakul 3 times. Maybe that doesn't sound that consistent, but first time piloting the deck, I thought it was pretty good. After that, I took out the Swan Songs for x2 Sleight of Hand, because I thought more cantrips might perform a little better than the little bit of control, especially since I'm usually digging with my blue one-drops early game rather than risking conservation of that mana.
I bought 4x Beck//Call, but I'm not sure where to fit them in. They seem so good, especially if you're digging for something to take care of a RIP or Grafdigger's Cage. Sideboard is currently Leyline of Sanctity x4, Thoughtseize x4, Through the Breach x4, Wear//Tear x3. I'm kind of thinking of dropping the Through the Breach, with the thinking that adding Beck//Call would give me another way to dig out Wear//Tear if I'm getting hated on and also is a semi-decent way to deal with Infect, given our lack of chump blockers otherwise.
Control and hand disruption are my worst match-ups, I think. So far, against Control, I just try to cast through their counter magic because there are just SO MANY combo pieces and possibilities. By my third Expertise, I was able to cast it into the Breaking//Entering. Even if your opponent understands the combo, the number of possible combinations seems to catch them off guard. I also did okay against Burn and Dredge, and really well against smaller creature decks like GW Humans and Elves. Bant Eldrazi wrecked me with multiple Thought Knot Seers, but I think that running Thoughtseize and Leyline of Sanctity vs hand disruption decks like that could be effective.
My kitchen table started calling the deck the "Felony" deck, because of Breaking//Entering. There's also the "I guess this time it's just a misdemeanor" joke when you whiff on the Breaking//Entering. Just throwing it out there.
Felony is a sweet name. I had been calling the deck "Thief in the Night."
Base on the last two FNM's I've decided to make the following chances to my list (an updated version can be found in my signature):
MD
-2 Swan Song
-1 Sleight of Hand
+2 Spirebluff Canal
+1 Living End
Swan Song hasn't been particularly relevant in the local meta and the deck does feel a little mana light at times especially when trying to build up to Yahenni's Expertise or Breaking + Goryo's Vengeance. The lviving End is to give the deck a fifth reanimation spell to cast off the Expertises and a fourth board wipe. It also gets around Grafdigger's Cage, which is the predominant form of graveyard hate in my local meta. If it tests well, I might cut another Sleight of Hand for a second copy and swap Jin-Gitaxias for Goblin Dark-Dwellers.
I'm still not sure about the SB. Leyline and Wear // Tear have been great; everything else has been meh. I might try Thoughtseize over Defense Grid since it's a bit more proactive and can be used to bin Griselbrand.
Interestingly, a Grixis Goryo's Vengeance deck using Kari Zev's Expertise, Forbidden Orchard, and Breaking // Entering got second at an SCG regionals tournament. You can find the deck list here. I wonder if he had any problems with whiffing since he was only running eight creatures. I also wonder if two Forbidden orchards is enough. If so, maybe we should cut down, since it's really annoying to get a double orchard draw.
How do you guys feel about Goblin Dark-Dwellers? I tested them out but found out that you can only fuse spells when they are cast from your hand. Are you just using them as a way to get goryo's cast from the yard again?
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You can't fuse spells out of your graveyard with GDD, but you can cast the Entering half of Breaking//Entering if there is already a copy of it in your graveyard, as well as a creature to grab. I managed a turn one (on the draw) Kari Zev's Expertise+Breaking//Entering, to a GDD into an Emrakul. Ended up swinging for 20 off of that combo including the Monastery Swiftspear I'd stolen with Kari Zev's. I doubt the stars will align like that again, but it was cool!
I tried Grixis at first, and while I liked it, I found myself just getting way too many cantrips. I tried cutting blue, and have been running a red/black version with Brain in a Jar for the last two weeks. It's been the most consistent so far for me as far as getting to the combo, but still whiffs on the combo occasionally. That might just be bad luck, or maybe running a few more targets for Breaking//Entering would help.
I'm thinking of cutting stuff to run a playset of Thoughtseize. A turn one RIP or Grafdigger's Cage is super annoying, and I think taking that away would be really satisfying. Plus the ability to Thoughtseize yourself in a pinch isn't bad, either. So far, Brain in a Jar hasn't performed super well. The other two candidates might be Collective Brutality, because I doubt I'd need the redundancy (although it's safer than Thoughtseize vs Burn), or maybe Beck//Call. Beck//Call has kind of surprised me with how good it can be, though. The birds are great - I'm not used to having blockers after playing traditional Goryo's Vengeance! And then the card draw is an obvious perk.
One card that has been a real MVP has been Goblin Dark Dwellers. I'm only running three, but they're great. Sometimes I'll fish one out with Breaking//Entering if I don't see one of the big guys - or even better, turn a big guy, a GDD, and a second Breaking//Entering, then you get 2-for-1! Which can also give me another Faithless Looting, Collective Brutality (or Thoughtseize) either half of Beck//Call - there's a lot of options. More often than I thought would happen, I find myself hardcasting GDD to get one of these things out - if you have Breaking//Entering in your hand and a Kari Zev's Expertise in the yard, GDD can cast it for you! If a Breaking//Entering and a Griselbrand end up in your graveyard, you can GDD and choose to cast just Entering to get your Griselbrand back with haste! This card has been one of my favorites in the deck, which I didn't expect. It's just so versatile.
In response to cutting Orchards, I tried running two and the deck was not nearly as smooth. It's annoying to have spirits out when you don't need one to target, but I think that having all four Orchards is worth it. Being able to get off a Tear (Wear//Tear) vs a RIP at the cost of giving them a 1/1 is fine. Also, just being able to tap for either Red or Black for Yahenni's Expertise or Kari Zev's Expertise is great, it's nice to have that wiggle room almost guaranteed. I have 4 Gemstone Mines, but the Orchards are a backup. Having flexible mana options early on has been really great.
There's a treasure trove of lists and videos today.
Ari Lax recorded a video series with Dan Ward's SCG Regionals list here. His comments on sideboarding and role assessment were particularly helpful.
Two different Fuse combo decks made the top 16 of the SCG Modern Classic this weekend: a Dan Ward style-list swapping Cathartic Reunion for Izzet Charm and overhauling the Sideboard got 3rd and a new version featuring Brain in a Jar and Insolent Neonate got 11th.
I haven't played mtg in 8 months so i flubbed a few times. Also, I don't run Goryo's because I'm not entirely sure it's worth it?
Match 1. Burn.
Game 1: I get lucky as he keeps a 1 lander with a 2 goblin guides and a swift spear. But I get a T3 Madcap experiment to get plat emperion. Stalls me long enough to get srams expertise into beck call. He concedes.
Game 2: I play turn 1 visions. Drawing simian, showing a Kari Zev and an Emrakul with my scry and I have breaking/Entering in hand. Easy money.
1-0
Match 2. Death Shadow
Not a fan of the MU.
game 1: I live long enough to get turn 4 madcap experiment. I don't think he had any main board way to kill it so he concedes.
game 2/3: his hand hate blows me out as I mull to 6 both games and never seeing a leyline. Afterwards, I realized I only put in 3 leylines and not 4.
1-1
Game 3. Infect
least favorite mu. makes me consider adding izzet charms
game 1: I only play 2 scry lands (U/W temples) and kills me on his turn 3. (He thinks i'm on ad nauseum)
game 2: He goes turn 1 noble so I'm not instantly dead. I get a t3 kari zev with Beck call. I continue to chain beck/calls with Srams expertise or kari zevs.
He concedes due to his mis sideboarding (I assume he took out distortion strikes for things like Dispel as he told me after the match he had a dispel in hand
Game 3: turn 1 G-Elf. I found a silence with my Turn 1 serum visions but I misplayed and didn't play a white source. (sequencing probs.
1:2
Game 4. coco combo with melira, finks, and friends
Game 1: turn 3 Griselbrand that I knew I'd get (discarded him turn 1 with a faithless looting) he never draws an answer.
Game 2: He sides in tide hallows and I forgot those were a thing. Oops. Madcap'd plat emperion dies to a pridemage. I scoop
Game 3: I get a open hand leyline. Hand is protected. Turn 4 Srams expertise into breaking gets me an Ulamog (my last emrakul didn't come in the mail)
He sacs things but doesn't concede. hoped to YUGIOOOOOOH into a PtE. Doesn't.
2-2
I feel like Srams is better than Yahenni's in all honesty. Yahenni's is a dumb nonbo with Beck/call. The tokens are mostly just to stall into getting a reanimator combo going. Or to overwhelm them with birds while the sram tokens fight the good fight and die to protect us. things that Yahenni's kill don't have trample anyway soooo who cares? Sure the spirit tokens can be annoying but they've been an acceptable loss.
NOTE: I talked to infect guy. He said if I had silenced him on his upkeep like I had intended, It would've bought me a turn while I had Red expertise and beck in hand. Feels bad but lesson learned: S E Q U E N C I N G
Note: I might try Goryo's soon though. maybe as a two of? I'm note entirely sure how I feel about it.
4 Griselbrand
4 Emrakul, the Aeon’s Torn
1 Jin-Gitaxias, Core Augur
4 Kari Zev’s Expertise
4 Breaking // Entering
4 Goryo’s Vengeance
4 Faithless Looting
4 Serum Visions
4 Sleight of Hand
3 Yahenni’s Expertise
2 Pact of Negation
4 Forbidden Orchard
4 Polluted Delta
4 Scalding Tarn
1 Mountain
1 Island
1 Swamp
1 Blood Crypt
1 Steam Vents
1 Watery Grave
3 Ancestral Vision
3 Wear // Tear
2 Swan Song
2 Fatal Push
1 Gemstone Caverns
The deck revolves around three overlapping combos--Goryo's Vengeance + a discarded fatty, Kari Zev's Expertise / Yahenni's Expertise + Breaking // Entering, Breaking // Entering + Goryo's Vengeance--which gives us a fair amount of resiliency and flexibility. Unlike the traditional Goryo's Vengeance deck (https://www.mtggoldfish.com/archetype/modern-goryo-s-vengeance-30582#paper), this version is more reliant on the graveyard since it doesn't run Through the Breach. But it makes up for this weakness with increased speed and power: Breaking // Entering can be cast much more quickly than Through the Breach thanks to the expertise cards and allows us to keep the creature we reanimate permanently. Breaking // Entering also allows us to dodge most non-static graveyard hate, like Surgical Extraction, Scavenging Ooze, Relic of Progenitus, etc. since a fused Breaking // Entering resolves as one card without a round of priority in between each half. This means we only need to worry about Rest in Peace, Leyline of the Void, and Grafdigger's Cage.
Some notes on card choices:
Because the deck isn't running mana dorks or Dryad Arbor, it uses Forbidden Orchard to insure that there is a creature on board for Kari Zev's Expertise. The tokens that Orchard produces can become annoying, especially if we have to tap Orchard for mana before the combo turn, but Yahenni's Expertise cleans them up.
The Breaking side of Breaking // Entering can be used to set up Goryo's Vengeance, although it's best to wait until you have the mana to cast both Breaking and Goryo's in case you hit an Emrakul.
Pact of Negation is a hedge against control decks, but I could see swapping them out for something in the sideboard depending on your meta. Thoughtseize might actually be a better choice because it can be used to bin our own fatties.
At the moment, I'm running Jin-Gitaxias, Core Augur as the ninth creature since it acts like a fifth Griselbrand, but I'm considering other options such as Goblin Dark-Dwellers and Narset, Enlightened Master. I originally ran Ulamog, the Infinite Gyre but found that he was a weak Goryo's Vengeance target. Annihilating four permanents and maybe dealing 10 damage was not enough to justify the resources expended on Goryo's Vengeance. As it stands, Griselbrand is usually a better Goryo's Vengeance target than Emrakul anyway because it draws you 7-14 cards and allows you to either combo again the next turn or set a up a second Goryo's Vengeance or Breaking // Entering on the spot. Emrakul is at its best as a Goryo's Vengeance target when your opponent is at 15 or less life or you can annihilate most of their board, giving your self plenty of time to reassemble the combo.
The sideboard is fairly tentative right now until I figure out exactly what the deck's weaknesses are.
Leyline of Sanctity protects us from discard.
Ancestral Vision is for grindy match ups where it can be suspended turn one or cast off of an expertise.
Wear // Tear allows us to economize on sideboard space because it can hit both Grafdigger's Cage and Rest in Peace / Leyline of the Void. It can also be cast off the expertise cards if necessary.
Swan Song can counter Rest in Peace and provides additional countermagic against control decks.
Fatal Push kills problematic creatures like Scavenging Ooze and Anafenza, the Foremost. I'm not sure if it's necessary though.
Gemstone Caverns lets us make up for lost tempo on the draw, but I'm not sure if it's worth a sideboard slot.
Other sideboard options I'm considering are Inquisition of Kozilek, Thoughtseize, Echoing Truth, Defense Grid, Silence and, more speculatively Turn // Burn[/card].
So far the deck has preformed very well in testing. It can go off by turn 3 regularly and has the potential for a turn one combo (Forbidden Orchard, Kari Zev's Expertise, 2 SSG, Breaking // Entering). I welcome your feedback and suggestions for improvement.
Goryo's Fuse Combo UBR
4 Simian Spirit Guide
4 Goblin Dark-Dwellers
4 Griselbrand
4 Emrakul, the Aeons Torn
Sorceries (16)
4 Faithless Looting
4 Breaking // Entering
4 Kari Zev's Expertise
3 Cathartic Reunion
1 Conflagrate
4 Desperate Ritual
4 Goryo's Vengence
Lands (19)
4 Forbidden Orchard
4 Blackcleave Cliffs
3 Gemstone Mine
3 Bloodstained Mire
2 Gemstone Caverns
2 Mountain
1 Swamp
4 Leyline of Sanctity
1 Chancellor of the Annex
4 Fragmentize
3 Ricochet Trap
3 Leyline of the Void
The sideboard is preliminary and a direct result of what I've run up against in testing (in paper and on Cockatrice). The Chancellor seems pretty iffy, but slowing down Grafdigger's Cage even a turn, when on the draw, can be exactly what you need to go off.
I think playing Goblin Dark-Dwellers almost has to be correct, as it can flashback almost everything in the deck, and enables so many alternative lines (e.g., Play GDD, Flashback an Expertise, and Cast B&E from hand for free).
Additionally, the conflagrate can help close matches by just tossing all the cards you draw off of Griselbrand at your opponent's face.
The primary issue I've found with the deck is the tension between wanting to keep things in your yard, and the shuffle trigger off of Emrakul. I'm looking for an alternative, but few creature are evasive, are difficult to remove, close the game quickly, and make up for the card disadvantage associated with assembling the combo.
I think Thoughtseize is definitely an include over Pact of Negation, which has far less utility in the early game.
I played a slightly tweaked version of the list at FNM last night and went 3-1. I beat Infect, Naya Allies, and BR Eldrazi and lost to Grixis Delver due to play error in game 1 and then miss-sideboarding in game 2. The changes to the list were MD -2 Pact of Negation +2 Swan Song, SB -2 Swan Song +2 Dispel. As JorahM pointed out, Pact of Negation is too much of a liability since the deck doesn't often win the turn it goes off. Swan Song, on the other hand, is an efficient counter and makes a creature for Kari Zev's Expertise.
The MD configuration felt pretty tight. I'm going to experiment with -4 Sleight of Hand, -1 Jin-Gitaxias, +4 Ancestral Vision, +1 Goblin Dark-Dwellers to give the deck more resilience against control and midrange and free up some SB slots.
The SB needs work. Leyline of Sanctity and Wear // Tear preformed well, but Gemstone Caverns, Dispel, Fatal Push did not. I never had a chance to play Ancestral Vision. Going forward I'm going to try -1 Gemstone Caverns, -2 Dispel, -2 Fatal Push, +1 Yahenni's Expertise, +2 Defense Grid, +2 Beck // Call (as a hedge against graveyard hate). If I do end of moving Ancestral Vision to the MD, I'll add the other two Beck // Call and either a third Defense Grid or a Living End (as a Wrath of God against creature decks and another way to beat Grafdigger's Cage).
I really like both RB versions. Beck // Call with Nourishing Shoal seems pretty sick as does Conflagrate as combination discard outlet and finisher. I'm going to work on a RB version as well and will post it in the next couple of days. How consistently have you been able to assemble the combo using Faithless Looting, Cathartic Reunion, and/or Night's Whisper?
Goryo's Fuse Combo UBR
I would consider running Wear // Tear over Fragmentize in your SB. The Tear side is strict upgrade over Fragmentize, plus you get Wear for Grafdigger's Cage and the ability to cast both sides.
Goryo's Fuse Combo UBR
I agree. I tried at Newmrakul, but the annihilator trigger is very relevant.
> I would consider running Wear // Tear[...]
I did think of it, but is the instant speed really worth one more mana? Moreover, there aren't any 4+ CMC enchantments that we're worried about. Fragmentize is sorcery speed, but it always costs one mana, and hits all pertinent hate.
Also, I'm considering going down the Chancellor, so perhaps Wear // Tear can be a 5th anti-hate card, or I was considering Nephalia Academy.
Does Orchard lower the MU win% against hyper-Aggro? Likely, yes. But it also enables Turn 0/Turn 1 wins.
I just played against Jund— and that match up is hard if the combo doesn't happen Turn 1/2 or we don't hit Emrakul off B&E.
I'm thinking of running a couple Tasigur or Angler in the side for MUs that are removal-, discard-, and hate-heavy. Additionally, Vengeful Pharaoh is a consideration.
Spirits
Also, getting to 6 mana for a spliced Through the Breach seems difficult to achieve. Which control MUs have you tested?
I can see having Blood Moon in the side, but I'm not sure which MUs it actually improves.
In the games I've played, the biggest issue I found was that targeted discard is really good against the deck. A Turn 1 Thoughtseize can absolutely wreck an otherwise perfect hand. I'm not sure how to add resiliency to an already tight list.
You only need 4 mana to splice through the breach. cast shoal for free then splice onto it. This is for grixis control and jeskai control. most decks you don't side in the full 3 through the breaches. you side 1-2 extra to hedge against graveyard hate. Game two i often take out 2 vengence for two through the breach and keep all the exterise combo. Against tron decks that have like 4 warping wait now I keep goryo and change expertise combo out for moons and through the breach.
For moon you side in 4 vs valakut, jeskai and grixis control decks. Also eldrazi tron and regular tron.
Jund/abzan i side in a moon or two on the play but often just adding a couple of leylines is best.
The old grishoalbrand decks were best geared to beat jund and is one of the best decks vs jund. I simply transform to be more like them.
al_the_mighty: Did you ever cast Breaking on yourself to bin Griselbrand or Bobo?
Goryo's Fuse Combo UBR
I bought 4x Beck//Call, but I'm not sure where to fit them in. They seem so good, especially if you're digging for something to take care of a RIP or Grafdigger's Cage. Sideboard is currently Leyline of Sanctity x4, Thoughtseize x4, Through the Breach x4, Wear//Tear x3. I'm kind of thinking of dropping the Through the Breach, with the thinking that adding Beck//Call would give me another way to dig out Wear//Tear if I'm getting hated on and also is a semi-decent way to deal with Infect, given our lack of chump blockers otherwise.
Control and hand disruption are my worst match-ups, I think. So far, against Control, I just try to cast through their counter magic because there are just SO MANY combo pieces and possibilities. By my third Expertise, I was able to cast it into the Breaking//Entering. Even if your opponent understands the combo, the number of possible combinations seems to catch them off guard. I also did okay against Burn and Dredge, and really well against smaller creature decks like GW Humans and Elves. Bant Eldrazi wrecked me with multiple Thought Knot Seers, but I think that running Thoughtseize and Leyline of Sanctity vs hand disruption decks like that could be effective.
My kitchen table started calling the deck the "Felony" deck, because of Breaking//Entering. There's also the "I guess this time it's just a misdemeanor" joke when you whiff on the Breaking//Entering. Just throwing it out there.
Base on the last two FNM's I've decided to make the following chances to my list (an updated version can be found in my signature):
MD
-2 Swan Song
-1 Sleight of Hand
+2 Spirebluff Canal
+1 Living End
Swan Song hasn't been particularly relevant in the local meta and the deck does feel a little mana light at times especially when trying to build up to Yahenni's Expertise or Breaking + Goryo's Vengeance. The lviving End is to give the deck a fifth reanimation spell to cast off the Expertises and a fourth board wipe. It also gets around Grafdigger's Cage, which is the predominant form of graveyard hate in my local meta. If it tests well, I might cut another Sleight of Hand for a second copy and swap Jin-Gitaxias for Goblin Dark-Dwellers.
I'm still not sure about the SB. Leyline and Wear // Tear have been great; everything else has been meh. I might try Thoughtseize over Defense Grid since it's a bit more proactive and can be used to bin Griselbrand.
Interestingly, a Grixis Goryo's Vengeance deck using Kari Zev's Expertise, Forbidden Orchard, and Breaking // Entering got second at an SCG regionals tournament. You can find the deck list here. I wonder if he had any problems with whiffing since he was only running eight creatures. I also wonder if two Forbidden orchards is enough. If so, maybe we should cut down, since it's really annoying to get a double orchard draw.
Goryo's Fuse Combo UBR
http://deck.tk/9Vlw6Nh6
I'm thinking of cutting stuff to run a playset of Thoughtseize. A turn one RIP or Grafdigger's Cage is super annoying, and I think taking that away would be really satisfying. Plus the ability to Thoughtseize yourself in a pinch isn't bad, either. So far, Brain in a Jar hasn't performed super well. The other two candidates might be Collective Brutality, because I doubt I'd need the redundancy (although it's safer than Thoughtseize vs Burn), or maybe Beck//Call. Beck//Call has kind of surprised me with how good it can be, though. The birds are great - I'm not used to having blockers after playing traditional Goryo's Vengeance! And then the card draw is an obvious perk.
One card that has been a real MVP has been Goblin Dark Dwellers. I'm only running three, but they're great. Sometimes I'll fish one out with Breaking//Entering if I don't see one of the big guys - or even better, turn a big guy, a GDD, and a second Breaking//Entering, then you get 2-for-1! Which can also give me another Faithless Looting, Collective Brutality (or Thoughtseize) either half of Beck//Call - there's a lot of options. More often than I thought would happen, I find myself hardcasting GDD to get one of these things out - if you have Breaking//Entering in your hand and a Kari Zev's Expertise in the yard, GDD can cast it for you! If a Breaking//Entering and a Griselbrand end up in your graveyard, you can GDD and choose to cast just Entering to get your Griselbrand back with haste! This card has been one of my favorites in the deck, which I didn't expect. It's just so versatile.
In response to cutting Orchards, I tried running two and the deck was not nearly as smooth. It's annoying to have spirits out when you don't need one to target, but I think that having all four Orchards is worth it. Being able to get off a Tear (Wear//Tear) vs a RIP at the cost of giving them a 1/1 is fine. Also, just being able to tap for either Red or Black for Yahenni's Expertise or Kari Zev's Expertise is great, it's nice to have that wiggle room almost guaranteed. I have 4 Gemstone Mines, but the Orchards are a backup. Having flexible mana options early on has been really great.
Ari Lax recorded a video series with Dan Ward's SCG Regionals list here. His comments on sideboarding and role assessment were particularly helpful.
Two different Fuse combo decks made the top 16 of the SCG Modern Classic this weekend: a Dan Ward style-list swapping Cathartic Reunion for Izzet Charm and overhauling the Sideboard got 3rd and a new version featuring Brain in a Jar and Insolent Neonate got 11th.
Goryo's Fuse Combo UBR
http://tappedout.net/mtg-decks/fusion-experts/
I haven't played mtg in 8 months so i flubbed a few times. Also, I don't run Goryo's because I'm not entirely sure it's worth it?
Match 1. Burn.
Game 1: I get lucky as he keeps a 1 lander with a 2 goblin guides and a swift spear. But I get a T3 Madcap experiment to get plat emperion. Stalls me long enough to get srams expertise into beck call. He concedes.
Game 2: I play turn 1 visions. Drawing simian, showing a Kari Zev and an Emrakul with my scry and I have breaking/Entering in hand. Easy money.
1-0
Match 2. Death Shadow
Not a fan of the MU.
game 1: I live long enough to get turn 4 madcap experiment. I don't think he had any main board way to kill it so he concedes.
game 2/3: his hand hate blows me out as I mull to 6 both games and never seeing a leyline. Afterwards, I realized I only put in 3 leylines and not 4.
1-1
Game 3. Infect
least favorite mu. makes me consider adding izzet charms
game 1: I only play 2 scry lands (U/W temples) and kills me on his turn 3. (He thinks i'm on ad nauseum)
game 2: He goes turn 1 noble so I'm not instantly dead. I get a t3 kari zev with Beck call. I continue to chain beck/calls with Srams expertise or kari zevs.
He concedes due to his mis sideboarding (I assume he took out distortion strikes for things like Dispel as he told me after the match he had a dispel in hand
Game 3: turn 1 G-Elf. I found a silence with my Turn 1 serum visions but I misplayed and didn't play a white source. (sequencing probs.
1:2
Game 4. coco combo with melira, finks, and friends
Game 1: turn 3 Griselbrand that I knew I'd get (discarded him turn 1 with a faithless looting) he never draws an answer.
Game 2: He sides in tide hallows and I forgot those were a thing. Oops. Madcap'd plat emperion dies to a pridemage. I scoop
Game 3: I get a open hand leyline. Hand is protected. Turn 4 Srams expertise into breaking gets me an Ulamog (my last emrakul didn't come in the mail)
He sacs things but doesn't concede. hoped to YUGIOOOOOOH into a PtE. Doesn't.
2-2
I feel like Srams is better than Yahenni's in all honesty. Yahenni's is a dumb nonbo with Beck/call. The tokens are mostly just to stall into getting a reanimator combo going. Or to overwhelm them with birds while the sram tokens fight the good fight and die to protect us. things that Yahenni's kill don't have trample anyway soooo who cares? Sure the spirit tokens can be annoying but they've been an acceptable loss.
NOTE: I talked to infect guy. He said if I had silenced him on his upkeep like I had intended, It would've bought me a turn while I had Red expertise and beck in hand. Feels bad but lesson learned: S E Q U E N C I N G
Note: I might try Goryo's soon though. maybe as a two of? I'm note entirely sure how I feel about it.
RGTron
UGInfect
URStorm
WUBRAd Nauseam
BRGrishoalbrand
URGScapeshift
WBGAbzan Company
WUBRGAmulet Titan
BRGLiving End
WGBogles