Slightly tweaked from the last time he went 5-0, with Emrakul in the sideboard being the most notable change, which I definitely agree with. I've been testing the deck all week and the biggest issue I've had so far was reliably getting Emrakul to actually cost something reasonable. Most of the time, topping out at Thragtusk and Kalitas was enough to win games.
The deck feels a lot like the Control list I've been playing, but with a much more powerful late game. Traverse the Ulvenwald off the top usually swings games in our favor and makes our sideboard cards more potent.
If anyone wants to watch a true master pilot the deck, Todd Stevens played it on his stream last month to a 9-1 finish. It's a great watch for anyone interested in learning to play the deck and showcases some of the pretty insane lines its capable of.
I prefer the version with Goyfs over the Flayer version myself. Goyf is simply a better creature overall and in this metagame, and Flayer takes too much work to be good.
I agree with his decision to run Jace over Snap as the main source of utilizing the yard. Jace helps loot through the deck to find what we need and discard what we don't, while also helping to fuel Delirium. He also rounds out the curve better since the deck is pretty heavy on 3+ drops.
That said, Todd Stevens played a single Snap main and another side in his videos and it seemed to do well, so you could run some sort of split based on your preference.
Thanks for the reply. But you didn't answer one of my questions (the one I'm most curious about). Does this run like a control deck or is it more of a midrange deck?
To answer your question, it mostly plays like a midrange toolbox deck. In this metagame, we are definitely not the "beatdown" and almost always the control deck.
Every game feels like a puzzle you're trying to solve, so if you like decision trees, this is definitely a deck for you.
One of the issues I've had with my version of this beck is Thought Knot Seer, Reality Smasher and Death Shadow. In searching for an answer, one that I've found I like quite a bit is Pharika, God of Affliction. Turning your dead guys into deathtouch snakes is amazing for beating the midrange beaters that are better than most of our beaters. One Pharika in the sideboard to Traverse for has really helped.
I've also settled on Putrefy as the maindeck wanna-be Terminate of choice. I was on Slaughter Pact for a while, but Grixis fatties would just wreck me. I still don't love Putrefy, but it is the best I've found so far for the job that needs to be done.
Why Putefry instead of the other usual suspects? Like Dismember, Go for the throat and Victim of Night? Sorry if you already answered this question before.
Why Putefry instead of the other usual suspects? Like Dismember, Go for the throat and Victim of Night? Sorry if you already answered this question before.
Dismember is a reasonable consideration and with as little aggro as I've played against recently probably would be better. I may go to 1 of each.
Affinity and Tron decks are in my meta, and Go for the Throat being dead essentially against them is a big strike against the card game 1.
Victim of Night is legit, especially if black is one of your primary colors. Black is my splash color, so I don't like relying on having to get BB.
Also, I am playing mana acceleration rather than discard early game, so I can tolerate a little bit more expensive spells, but I don't love Putrefy, and I especially don't love feeling like I have to play 2. I think I'll try at least 1 Dismember and see how it goes. Thanks for the feedback.
I tried Slaughter Pact, but it doesn't answer Tasigur or Angler. I also tried Sultai Charm and its not bad, but Tron and Eldrazi are significant issues. Murderous Cut I haven't tried and also could be an answer. I am playing a blue reactive shell, so sorcery speed is an issue for me with Maelstrom Pulse, but in a discard oriented list it could be a maindeck card.
I'm a bit surprised he didn't run any Stubborn Denials, but an interesting list nonetheless.
Speaking of Death's Shadow, how's everyone finding the Jund and Grixis Shadow matchups? I started testing against the Jund version this week with my Control list and the matchup feels very much in our favor. I suspect the Grixis version would be more even, but the Jund version doesn't seem like it can hang with our ability to grind.
Turbo goyf growth when you're playing against decks not playing goyfs? Side in your BBs and with a glimpse plus thought scour, your goyfs are going to be enormous. Also puts answers in your yard for snaps and tasigur to fish out.
Thank you for the clarification, at least that makes sense. what matchups would youbring that in for, specifically that you can afford the tempo and CA loss against?
Another possibility is that he's using it as part of a Surgical Extraction/Thought Scour package to mill his opponent and hit combo pieces, Tron lands, etc.
I'm starting to think, rather than struggle to find the right Terminate effect, because we don't have the real thing, a plausible answer is to play some of the pretty good deathtouch guys that have been printed recently, either Gnarlwood Dryad or Narnam Renegade.
I think I am going to try Renegade first, because I don't like having so many graveyard reliant threats and see how it goes.
Also, I've always been a huge believer in Treetop Village, but Death Shadow has me potentially interested in Hissing Quagmire as the manland of choice.
I ran my control list last night and found that a pair of Dismember out of the board helped quite a bit when we need that Terminate-esque effect for particular matchups. It hits everything in Bant Eldrazi and Eldrazi Tron, except Ulamog, the Ceaseless Hunger or if we don't play around exalted triggers. I suppose you could kill Ulamog if you flashed it back the same turn as a last resort, but generally it's game over for us if he comes down anyway.
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https://www.mtggoldfish.com/deck/593851#online
https://www.mtggoldfish.com/deck/596919
Slightly tweaked from the last time he went 5-0, with Emrakul in the sideboard being the most notable change, which I definitely agree with. I've been testing the deck all week and the biggest issue I've had so far was reliably getting Emrakul to actually cost something reasonable. Most of the time, topping out at Thragtusk and Kalitas was enough to win games.
The deck feels a lot like the Control list I've been playing, but with a much more powerful late game. Traverse the Ulvenwald off the top usually swings games in our favor and makes our sideboard cards more potent.
If anyone wants to watch a true master pilot the deck, Todd Stevens played it on his stream last month to a 9-1 finish. It's a great watch for anyone interested in learning to play the deck and showcases some of the pretty insane lines its capable of.
https://www.twitch.tv/videos/121651505
What's the win condition of that deck? Wouldn't snapcasters and goyfs help?
I agree with his decision to run Jace over Snap as the main source of utilizing the yard. Jace helps loot through the deck to find what we need and discard what we don't, while also helping to fuel Delirium. He also rounds out the curve better since the deck is pretty heavy on 3+ drops.
That said, Todd Stevens played a single Snap main and another side in his videos and it seemed to do well, so you could run some sort of split based on your preference.
Every game feels like a puzzle you're trying to solve, so if you like decision trees, this is definitely a deck for you.
I've also settled on Putrefy as the maindeck wanna-be Terminate of choice. I was on Slaughter Pact for a while, but Grixis fatties would just wreck me. I still don't love Putrefy, but it is the best I've found so far for the job that needs to be done.
Here's my new 75:
1 Bojuka Bog
2 Botanical Sanctum
2 Breeding Pool
1 Darkslick Shores
1 Forest
2 Island
3 Misty Rainforest
1 Overgrown Tomb
4 Polluted Delta
1 Swamp
2 Treetop Village
1 Watery Grave
//Spells
2 Abrupt Decay
1 Autumnal Gloom
3 Deprive
2 Fatal Push
2 Putrefy
3 Search for Tomorrow
1 Simic Charm
4 Stubborn Denial
3 Traverse the Ulvenwald
4 Architects of Will
4 Grim Flayer
3 Noble Hierarch
4 Tarmogoyf
1 Thrun, the Last Troll
2 Tireless Tracker
1 Collective Brutality
2 Countersquall
1 Dark Heart of the Wood
1 Fatal Push
1 Ghost Quarter
1 Golgari Charm
1 Maelstrom Pulse
2 Natural State
2 Nihil Spellbomb
1 Pharika, God of Affliction
1 Scavenging Ooze
One open SB slot.
Dismember is a reasonable consideration and with as little aggro as I've played against recently probably would be better. I may go to 1 of each.
Affinity and Tron decks are in my meta, and Go for the Throat being dead essentially against them is a big strike against the card game 1.
Victim of Night is legit, especially if black is one of your primary colors. Black is my splash color, so I don't like relying on having to get BB.
Also, I am playing mana acceleration rather than discard early game, so I can tolerate a little bit more expensive spells, but I don't love Putrefy, and I especially don't love feeling like I have to play 2. I think I'll try at least 1 Dismember and see how it goes. Thanks for the feedback.
Speaking of Death's Shadow, how's everyone finding the Jund and Grixis Shadow matchups? I started testing against the Jund version this week with my Control list and the matchup feels very much in our favor. I suspect the Grixis version would be more even, but the Jund version doesn't seem like it can hang with our ability to grind.
http://magic.tcgplayer.com/db/article.asp?ID=13870&writer=Corbin Hosler&articledate=3-27-2017
4 Birds of Paradise
1 Catacomb Sifter
4 Coiling Oracle
2 Eternal Witness
1 Glen Elendra Archmage
1 Grave Titan
3 Kitchen Finks
1 Melira, Sylvok Outcast
1 Mikaeus, the Unhallowed
1 Murderous Redcap
1 Scavenging Ooze
1 Shriekmaw
1 Solemn Simulacrum
1 Thragtusk
1 Vengeful Rebel
1 Viscera Seer
2 Wall of Roots
1 Woodland Bellower
3 Abrupt Decay
3 Chord of Calling
4 Eldritch Evolution
Land [22]
4 Blooming Marsh
1 Breeding Pool
2 Forest
1 Island
2 Misty Rainforest
2 Overgrown Tomb
3 Polluted Delta
1 Swamp
1 Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth
4 Verdant Catacombs
1 Watery Grave
1 Acidic Slime
1 Duplicant
1 Fatal Push
1 Fulminator Mage
1 Kalitas, Traitor of Ghet
1 Maelstrom Pulse
1 Massacre Wurm
1 Murderous Cut
1 Phyrexian Revoker
1 Reclamation Sage
1 Sower of Temptation
1 Spellskite
3 Thoughtseize
I think I am going to try Renegade first, because I don't like having so many graveyard reliant threats and see how it goes.
Also, I've always been a huge believer in Treetop Village, but Death Shadow has me potentially interested in Hissing Quagmire as the manland of choice.