Here's a small sideboard guide. I don't remember exactly how I sideboarded for this tournament, so if you have questions, I'll try to answer.
Kor Firewalker - Burn, UR Delver
Kitchen Finks - Burn, UR Delver, Grindy Midrange, Control, Aggro
Blood Moon - Scapeshift, Amublet Bloom, Jund, Junk, Bogles
Thalia - Control, Scapeshift, Bogles, Twin, Combo
Molten Rain - Control, Scapeshift, Amulet Bloom, Through the Breach, Maybe Twin
Fiery Justice - Aggro, Mirrror, Affinity, Elves, Fish
Domri Rade - Control, Jund/Junk, Fish, Elves, Maybe Twin,
Dromoka's Command - Bogles, Aggro, Mirror, Affinity, Elves, Courser Jund/Junk, Scapeshift, Twin, Grixis/Jeskai if I suspect Anger
Kataki, War's Rage - Affinity
Round 1: Merfolk
Game 1: We both have strong starts and he swings me down to one before I manage to gum up the board and keep his lords/board in check. I eventually win a long drawn out game.
Game 2: He's up 2 lords and a cursecatcher two my Nacatl and Goyf, but I draw Fiery Justice to shootdown his lords. He proceeds to draw Master of Waves, Tidebinder Mage, Master of Waves and I promptly get smothered to death by fish.
Game 3: I mull to 5 keeping two lands, Nacatl, Smiter, Path. He keeps a hand of Silvergill Adept, Master of the Pearl Trident, 5 islands. 4 of out his next 5 draws are islands and he gets run over. He told me after the match that me mulling made him feel good enough about the hand to keep it, fwiw.
1-0 (2-1 in games) got pretty lucky winning a game at 1 life and winning on a mull to 5, but you have to get a little lucky to win a tournament.
Round 2: Grixis Delve
Game 1: He tries to 1-for-1 me out of the game and Collected Company really shines when they're on the plan.
Game 2: The 1 for 1 plan is much better this time as I don't draw any CoCo and I eventually die to a zombie fish.
Game 3: I end up starting fast and win with pressure backed up by CoCo.
2-0 (4-2 in games) Turns out drawing Collected Company is good vs Grixis.
Round 3: Bogles
Game 1: He mulligans and I keep a double Pridemage opening hand thinking that at least I'm swinging for 4 on turn 2. He plays a turn one hexproof guy after mulling to 5 and my eyes light up with double Pridemage in hand. Game wasn't close.
Game 2: Thalia was great here and really slowed the Bogles player down while also making him take extra damage off tapping Horizon Canopies. Game came down to one bad attack with me losing track of Kor Spiritdancer math (card is hard to keep track of, especially with Rancor and Ethereal Artmor) and I lose a game that I probably should have won.
Game 3: He rolls me with a huge hexproof creature. Not interactive, but that's why Bogles is an attractive deck.
2-1 (5-4 in games) Awful matchup, really dependent on drawing Pridemage. Will be replacing the Voice of Resurgence in my list with a 4th. Also may take out Kataki for a Destructive Revelry.
Round 4: Through the Breach Valakut
Game 1: I keep a reasonable hand and he keeps a hand that's one turn too slow of casting Through the Breach.
Game 2: Anger of the Gods and an Obstinate Baloth buy him enough time to Through the Breach in an Emrakul and kill me from 14. I make a play where I swing with my Smiter, get the exalted trigger, then use Dromoka's Command to edict away a Courser of Kruphix and fight my 5/5 into his 4/4 before blocks, which I thought we be enough.
Game 3: Once again, you have to get a little lucky to win a tournament. Here though I would say I got REALLY lucky. He tanks on the final turn of the game and winds up being so focused on my creatures that he points 12 points of damage worth of Valakut triggers at them with me at 11. I win the game on the next turn. A reminder to never scoop even if your only out is your opponent screwing up. This is especially true late in tournaments as the pressure is higher and things outside the game can affect your opponents thought process and lines of play.
3-1 (7-5 in games)
Round 5: Grixis Delve
Game 1: Goes very similar to my match in round 2 with Collected Company being the best card in my deck against him.
Game 2: I play around Anger of the Gods (leaving up Dromoka's Command, but he never seems to have it and I'm able to Path an Angler and a Tasigur trading one for one with his removal spells on my creatures. We play draw go, topdecking for a while before I draw a Knight. He shows me the Damnation he had brought in after, we makes me think that maybe I want a Boros Charm in my board.
4-1 (9-5 in games)
Round 6: Scapeshift
ID: This round I was actually paired against one of my best friends who was also in the group that I drove with. He started 4-0 and could afford to double draw.
4-1-1 (5th Seed going into Top 8)
Quarterfinals: Basically Gruul Zoo w/Nacatls
Game 1: The game starts pretty close, with him playing Nacatl, Burning-Tree Emissary, Goyf. This is all before he gets really greedy trying to win a Goyf war by forcing a Vines of Vastwood. I path his Goyf in response for a 2-for-1 and he never recovers.
Game 2: He mulls to 5 and my draw is much better than his. Awkward situation after where I, stupidly mind you, say "Good Games" and he responds with "not really". I felt bad and didn't mean to come off as a jerk. I was more relieved that I was moving on.
Semifinals: Abzan
Game 1: We trade his removal for my creature until turn 3 comes around. He Abrupt Decays my Nacatl on turn 2 then casts Lili into my board of Hierarch and 3 lands. He decides to plus Lili amd I get to pitch a Smiter and cast Collected Company hitting Nacatl and Scooze. I attack his Lili with Smiter and him for 5. He has a Maelstrom Pulse for my Smiter, but dies to the Nacatl, Ooze and a freshly drawn Knight.
Game 2: He mulls to 6 and keeps a hand of Inquisition, Tarmogoyf, Lingering Souls, Lingering Souls, Gavony Township, Overgrown Tomb. My draw is excellent and I run him over before he can find a white source.
Finals: Bogles (Same guy from the Swiss)
Game 1: He keeps 7 and in turn mulligan. He asks if my hand was land light or flooded. I respond with "It was a fine hand, but no pridemage, no keep." I mull to six and keep a hand with Pridemage and Dromoka's Command. I put him in an awkward spot where he can block, but I can sac my Pridemage to blow up his Spirit Mantle to force a trade. He blocks and we trade. He winds up in a situation where he has two Kor Spiritdancer, but is dead unless he can find a lifelink enchantment. He plays 3 auras (DRAWING 6!) before playing the last which taps him out and exclaims "Well that was a little late". I untap and swing for lethal.
Game 2: We both keep one landers, him leading with a hexproof creature and me with a Hierarch. After a couple turns of both of us bricking on lands he plays his Daybreak Coronet and I Command in response, forcing him to sac his other enchantment, fizzling the Daybreak. I have a chance to edict him getting an Ethereal Armor off the table later in the match (Which I absolutely should have done), but instead die to a giant first-striking, trampling Spiritdancer.
Game 3: We both mulligan and I keep Goyf, Bolt, Nacatl, and 3 lands. I play a Nacatl and he plays a 1 drop. I draw Dromoka's Command and play a squire Goyf whilee Rancors his guy. I bolt, swing for 6 and say go. He again walks into the Dromoka's Command edict causing someone watching to whisper "can we change the oracle text on that card to epic blowout". He paths my Goyf, chumps my Nacatl and I play a Knight. He plays a Spiritdancer, enchants it with rancor, plays a fetch and passes at 7. Carefully doing math in my head I decide to swing with just the Nacatl since I can't kill him no matter what if I attack with both. He fetches Dryad Arbor and goes to chump. Before damage I float a white, activate Knight to fetch Wolf-Run and pump for lethal. Felt super good to end the tournament that way.
Final Record: 7-1-1 (15-6 in games)
As for going forward, I would cut Voice of Resurgence, the card felt really underwhelming all day and I wished it was Pridemage every time I drew it. Card's that overperformed were Fiery Justice, and Dromoka's COmmand, they were awesome just about every time I cast them. Would also cut Kataki for Destructive Revelry (comes in vs Twin/Bogles, while still being great vs Affiinty). I felt like I didn't draw many sideboard cards, which speaks to the power and consistency of the maindeck, seeing as I did well in spite of this. I boarded in Domri almost every round (only didn't versus Through the Breach and Bogles, but never drew him. He seemed really good in those matchups, but I don't actually know since I failed to draw him.
I'm super excited to be Q'd for an RPTQ and am currently considering flying out to Colorado instead of attending the RPTQ in my area (New England, so would have to drive to New York). The spring RPTQ in the Colorado area had 39 players, while the NY RPTQ had over 70. I also have two close friends who live in Colorado, so I would be staying for free. I'll definitely be playing Zoo as long as we have the "green Dig Through Time" as I like to call it!
I'm not a fant of the basic mountain, after trying it out.
I rather have 2 forest 2 plains as basics. Mountain can lead to some strange hands and it's super unlikely that I'd want to fetch a basic mountain that can only be used to cast Bolt and side cards (and pay colorless, of course).
Just my 2 cents after watching Lantern struggle with a basic mountain in one of the videos. I tried it out and didn't like it.
Yeah I'm thinking about cutting it into a plains again as well. I need it less now I have the trackers in the board. I need to fit space for more dromokas commands in the side. Maybe 1 voice for a command main, or the blood moon for it.
Would directly cutting the mountain even be so bad?
You'd still have 11 Red sources, 12 white and 14 Green. If you count mana dorks as .5 you'd end up with 11.5R/14.5W/16.5G which is still acceptable considering the red is just a tiny splash.
I'm wondering where people stand on leading with Nacatl vs Hierarch. I think it's right to lead with Nacatl more often than not. Hitting for four on turn two puts an insane amount of pressure on the opposition and really makes a follow up Knight or CoCo backbreaking. Just wondering what other people think regarding the play when you have the option since it came up in Lantern's first match.
Even if you're trying to CoCo asap for powerful sideboard cards you can still cast it early with turn 2 Hierarch.
Played the second plains again. I always felt as though the mountain was really awkward.
I do want to try out a 2nd horizon canopy in that spot, however.
Didn't have tracker to test, unfortunately.
Back on bonfire as well, I think justice has potential, but I think bonfire is better overall.
T1 Hierarch is mainly for a T2 3 drop, main reason to run it out before Nacatl. Nacatl is still the best 1 drop we have but some time a big 3 drop on T2 is better, especially in my case where I run 4c with Geist.
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Current Decks Standard : WB Orzhov Vampires BWGUB Sultai Constrictor BUG Brawl : GB Hapatra, Vizier of Poisons BG Modern : GB Golgari Elves BGGR Atarka Goblins RG Pauper : W Heroic WGB Delve BG
Played the second plains again. I always felt as though the mountain was really awkward.
I do want to try out a 2nd horizon canopy in that spot, however.
Didn't have tracker to test, unfortunately.
Back on bonfire as well, I think justice has potential, but I think bonfire is better overall.
3rd ooze... good or no? I cut it for a dromokas in the main.
There's so much cheap removal running around, it's ridicolous.
Only thing that doesn't get hit by Bonker's Dude
is Count Money-Grubber and a huge Fish.
I'm wondering where people stand on leading with Nacatl vs Hierarch. I think it's right to lead with Nacatl more often than not. Hitting for four on turn two puts an insane amount of pressure on the opposition and really makes a follow up Knight or CoCo backbreaking. Just wondering what other people think regarding the play when you have the option since it came up in Lantern's first match.
Even if you're trying to CoCo asap for powerful sideboard cards you can still cast it early with turn 2 Hierarch.
On the play it would be almost always right to lead with hierarch to go for the turn 2 knight or smiter.
On the draw however is where things get less straightforward. Running a 3-drop into 2 open mana vs some decks like grixis control is not a good idea. In such matchups I would think t1 nacatl to go under before their shields are up is the much better opener. Following up with a goyf or a 3-drop after they deal with your nacatl is also a much better recovery play as compared to casting a nacatl after your smiter or knight get destroyed or countered.
Guys please opinions on japanese cards. Lost a 3/3 creature against Japan celestial colonade. This guy played all creatures and spells in english cards, but some cards in his manabase was japanese. I dont registrated this really ( my brain say its all fine and all english to me lets attack his empty board)...and i am sure it is a Kind of legal cheating. It is not ok, but i know legal. I Hate such people. I never forget colonade normally, but with this Tricks it can happen one time in 3 years and such people take advantage of this
If I am a customer spending premium amount of dollars, I expect a premium service. Jund falls into the category of a premium deck costing more dollars than a majority of the rest of the format. I'm not getting the desired performance ratio per dollars spent out of the Jund deck because WOTC decided to make the format more diverse.
I always go for Nacatl unless I have a 3 drop already in hand and, if it is KotR, I only play him vs Bolt decks if he is at least 4/4 when he hits the field.
So I've been pretty interested in building Naya Small Zoo for the past few weeks after a friend asked me about a deck that seemed pretty similar and got me keen to try it out. I've been watching whatever videos I can find to try and see how it plays out and have bought or have most of the core cards coming in the next few days to assemble the deck but I've left most of the flex cards out until I can get an opinion from a few of you guys.
So I guess I could go up to 4x Artarka's Command as it seems to be doing work everytime I see it played, and maybe take out Ooze's for 4 Path? Ooze was meant to be a psuedo-replacement for Goyf.
I'm not really sure about the Loxodon Smiter, I like that it's a 4/4 for 3 that can't be countered, and with all the Grixis around at the moment that has to count for something, but I feel like it fights for a place with KotR and I don't know which is better... Burning-Tree is just to hopefully make the deck a bit quicker, I'm not running Goblin guides or Loam Lions so I have less 1-Drops, so hopefully being able to chain BTE's or even drop another Nacatl or Kird Ape would be nice.
Sideboard seems a bit messed up, I like Thalia because my meta is pretty full of control and combo, so she will slow them down, Kor Firewalker will hopefully help against Burn and make it less of a race and more of an inevitable loss for them because I'm running Lightning Helix as well. The Crusader is for Jund Matchups and Abzan, and the fact he's already a double-striker with protection from their colours is nice, apart from path which can still hit him, but if I could Bloodrush and Vines on him in response to a Path, I think it would be nice, but that's in a perfect world. He can also hit through Young Pyro and his tokens and double strikes the flipped delver if they decide to block which is good.
Quasali Pridemage just seems like nice sideboard tech against Affinity or Bogles, or even Twin. he's a 2/2 for 2 with a nice ability, so I'm happy to run him. Destructive Revelry is the same as Pridemage, and removal in the affinity matchup.
The rest of my sideboard I'm not too sure about, Mirran Crusader and Dromoka's Command I'm still not really sure about, I think I just want to run the Crusader because I can.
I'd love as much criticism and advice as possible, as I said before, I have most of the one-drops and burns spells and land, it's the flex cards I havent bought yet and i'm holding out until I can find a decent decklist. And be as harsh as needed, I don't want to waste money on cards I'm not going to use.
With 20 lands, you should lower the number of 3 drops. It's possible to get stuck with them in your hand and that will be bad for a deck that wants to put pressure as soon as possible. Since you only run 8 fetches, I would probably cut Knights, maybe going for 3 Paths and 1 more Command.
Also, when you were talking about Mirran Crusader, remember that he has pro-green, so you can't use Vines or Ghor-Clan's Bloodrush on him.
Like r497 said, cut the Knights since your only running 8 fetches, althou I would suggest you picking up Windswept Heaths now as they are still cheap due to the reprint and it would prob go up in price soon as time passes.
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Standard : What is Stand-tart
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EDH : UBGW Thrasios / Tymna Combo UBGW // GRW Mayael Big Stuff GRW // GU Edric Timewalkers GU
@ Polymorph: Depends on your metagame. I live in an area that is mostly midrange by a huge margin, so CoCo Zoo is the idiot proof choice. Little Zoo preys on less interactive decks.
I’m having an unproductive day, so I have decided to pause banging my head against the wall to finally write up my testing results for you all. This consists of a few weeks worth of 3-5 round tournaments. My notes are generally brief, but at least it is concrete testing results.
R1: Non-competitive burn - W
G1: On the draw. I mull. End up at 1, then he draws 4 lands in a row. W
G2: On the draw. I win at a safe 7 life. W
1-0 matches, 2-0 games
R2: Didn’t record opponent’s deck - W
G1: On the play. Draw all lands. L
G2: On the play. Mull once. W
G3: On the draw. W
2-0 matches, 4-1 games
R3: Through the Breach / Scapeshift - L
G1: On the draw. I believe I lost to Emrakul. L
G2: On the play. Savage beatdown. W
G3: On the draw. Had Blood Moon in hand for a while, but never played it. Got Scapeshifted to death. L
2-1 matches, 5-3 games
R4: Jund - W
G1: On the play. He mulls once. Aggro beats. W
G2: Draw. I mull once. Dead draws and one small mistake kill me. L
G3: Play. I mull once. Interact a bunch, but my better creatures do their work. W
3-1 matches, 7-4 games
R1: BRW Master of Cruelties brew - W
G1: Draw. Beats. W
G2: Draw. Beats. W
4-1 matches, 9-4 games
R2: Mill - W
G1: Draw. Beat. W
G2 Draw. Mull once. Not enough pressure and he gets there with the mage guy. L
G3: Play. Mill feeds my Goyf and Knight. W
5-1 matches, 11-5 games
R3: Jund - W
G1: Draw. Beats. W
G2: Draw. Mull once. Beats. W
R4: Draw into 1st/2nd split
R1: Non-competitive build RG Tron - L
G1: Draw. Lose to Tooth and Nail. L
G2: Play. Pressure + Ghost Quarter is good, or so I hear. W
G3: Draw. Mull twice. Draw no lands. L
5-2 matches, 12-7 games
R2: UB Faeries - W
G1: Play. He mulls once. I beat him down. W
G2: Draw. My hand is slow, my draws suck, and his start is strong. L
G3: Play. Beats beats beats. W
6-2 matches, 14-8 games.
R3: RG Tron, also kinda weird build - W
G1: Play. He doesn’t do enough in time. My beats are slow but big. W
G2: Draw. I mull once. Stick 2 Blood Moons. Still lose. L
G3: Play. He mulls twice. Kill him in 2-3 swings. W
7-2 matches, 16-9 games
R4: Grixis Twin - L
G1: Draw. I mull once. I played this one very wrong. Afraid of his counter magic, I killed all of his Twin targets on my turn. So he never wasted any Twins. After killing 4 of his Twin targets, he mises another one, while he is at one life. L
G2: Play. Mull twice. ***** draws. L
7-3 matches, 16-11 games
R1: Merfolk splash red - W
G1: Play. I fetch a lot and he gets in a little beats. But my beats are way better. W
G2: Draw. I mull twice. I had a slow start and he had the necessary Spreading Seas. L
G3: Play. Hand full of Wild Nacatls snack on delicious fishies. W
8-3 matches, 18-12 games
R2: Infect - W
G1: Play. I mull twice. Lose narrowly. One more mana source and I would have won. L
G2: Play. Fetch and shock a lot because I can. Beatdown. W
G3: Draw. We both mull once. See game 2. W
9-3 matches, 20-13 games
R3: Affinity - L
G1: Draw. Lose to math error when he is at 3 life. L
G2: Play. Win with Bonfire blowout. W
G3: Draw. He gets a nut draw and I can’t stop Cranial Plating. L
9-4 matches, 21-15 games
R4: Elves - L
G1: Draw. I see no removal. L
G2: Play. I Bonfire away his board. I proceed to topdeck lands while he topdecks gas. L
9-5 matches, 21-17 games
R5: Amulet Bloom - W
G1: Play. We both mull once. He doesn’t find an Amulet. I eat his face. W
G2: Draw. He finds an Amulet too late. My offense is slow, but overwhelms his late PrimeTime. W
10-5 matches, 23-17 games
GP Providence Friday side event
I win this one on luck, to be honest.
R1: Twin - W
G1: Play. I spend so much time playing around Twin that I lose to his tempo plan. Included a misplay on my part. L
G2: Play. His hand sucks. W
G3: Draw. He can’t keep up with my pressure. W
11-5 matches, 25-18 games
R2: Kuldotha Red / Burn - W
G1: He got a game loss for decklist issue. W
G2: Draw. He topdecks Shrapnel Blast on the last possible turn. L
G3: Play. I keep a hand with one land (a white source), Thalia, and Kor Firewalker. Proceed to topdeck a white source, and eventually draw two more Firewalkers. W
12-5 matches, 27-19 games
R3: Jund (I think) - W
G1: Draw. He mulls once. Draws no lands. W
G2: Draw. He draws all lands. W
13-5 matches, 29-19 games
R4: Grixis Delver full of basic lands - W
G1: Play. We both mull. Prioritize his Pyromancer so he has no extra blockers. Pressure is really good against tempo decks that lack lifegain. W
G2: Draw. His draws suck. W
14-5 matches, 31-19 games
Won a FTV:20 Jace, The Mind Sculptor!
R1: Elves - W
G1: Draw. He gets a fast combo hand. L
G2: Play. Beats and removal get there. W
G3: Draw. He mulls twice. Very interactive game, but my removal trumps his key critters and my big dudes trump his little dorks. W
15-5 matches, 33-20 games
R2: UWR Tempo (unexperienced pilot) - W
G1: Play. We both have ***** hands and ***** draws. W
G2: Draw. His inexperience shines here. I eat him alive. W
16-5 matches, 35-20 games
R3: Skred Red - W
G1: Play. I play through his Relic of Progenituses like pro. W
G2: Draw. Fast beats. W
17-5 matches, 37-20 games
R4: Draw into 1st/2nd split
R1: UBR Delve - W
G1: Play. Decently fast beats and removal for his few creatures. W
G2: Draw. Slowly chip away at his life total white he durdles and tilts into minor misplays. W
18-5 matches, 39-20 games
R2: UWR Tempo (easily the best player in the store) - L
G1: Draw. He mulls once. He draws badly. W
G2: I mull once. Draw. Lose a SUPER close game. I drew no Collected Companys L
G3: Play. Don’t draw Collected Company. Close game. L
I believe I made no play mistakes. I just drew zero copies of a trump card.
18-6 matches, 40-22 games
R3: UBR Twin - W
G1: Play. I mull once. I had the game in hand, but got greedy and used most of my minimal mana that turn. Kept one up for Pridemage activation. EOT Exarch taps my last mana down. Then he untaps and casts Twin.
G2: Play. He mulls once. I slowly eat him while keeping up removal. W
G3. Draw. He mulls once. See game 2. W
19-6 matches, 42-23 games
R4: Mono white brew - W
G1: Play. Savage beats. W.
G2. Draw. He has a creature heavy hand, forcing me to commit to the board. I still dominate the board, but commit one to many creatures into play. He Wraths, then rebuilds and I can’t draw enough raw strength to keep up. L
G3: Play. Bait a Wrath, then put out big beats. W
20-6 matches, 44-24 games
4 Wild Nacatl
4 Noble Hierarch
4 Tarmogoyf
1 Voice of Resurgence
3 Qasali Pridemage
2 Scavenging Ooze
4 Loxodon Smiter
4 Knight of the Reliquary
Spells: 11
4 Lightning Bolt
4 Path to Exile
3 Collected Compnay
1 Dromoka's Command
4 Wooded Foothills
4 Windswept Heath
4 Arid Mesa
2 Stomping Ground
2 Sacred Foundry
1 Temple Garden
1 Forest
1 Mountain
1 Plains
1 Kessig Wolf-Run
1 Horizon Canopy
3 Kor Firewalker
2 Kitchen Finks
2 Blood Moon
2 Thalia, Guardian of Thraben
2 Molten Rain
1 Fiery Justice
1 Domri Rade
1 Dromoka's Command
1 Kataki War's Rage
Here's a small sideboard guide. I don't remember exactly how I sideboarded for this tournament, so if you have questions, I'll try to answer.
Kor Firewalker - Burn, UR Delver
Kitchen Finks - Burn, UR Delver, Grindy Midrange, Control, Aggro
Blood Moon - Scapeshift, Amublet Bloom, Jund, Junk, Bogles
Thalia - Control, Scapeshift, Bogles, Twin, Combo
Molten Rain - Control, Scapeshift, Amulet Bloom, Through the Breach, Maybe Twin
Fiery Justice - Aggro, Mirrror, Affinity, Elves, Fish
Domri Rade - Control, Jund/Junk, Fish, Elves, Maybe Twin,
Dromoka's Command - Bogles, Aggro, Mirror, Affinity, Elves, Courser Jund/Junk, Scapeshift, Twin, Grixis/Jeskai if I suspect Anger
Kataki, War's Rage - Affinity
Round 1: Merfolk
Game 1: We both have strong starts and he swings me down to one before I manage to gum up the board and keep his lords/board in check. I eventually win a long drawn out game.
Game 2: He's up 2 lords and a cursecatcher two my Nacatl and Goyf, but I draw Fiery Justice to shootdown his lords. He proceeds to draw Master of Waves, Tidebinder Mage, Master of Waves and I promptly get smothered to death by fish.
Game 3: I mull to 5 keeping two lands, Nacatl, Smiter, Path. He keeps a hand of Silvergill Adept, Master of the Pearl Trident, 5 islands. 4 of out his next 5 draws are islands and he gets run over. He told me after the match that me mulling made him feel good enough about the hand to keep it, fwiw.
1-0 (2-1 in games) got pretty lucky winning a game at 1 life and winning on a mull to 5, but you have to get a little lucky to win a tournament.
Round 2: Grixis Delve
Game 1: He tries to 1-for-1 me out of the game and Collected Company really shines when they're on the plan.
Game 2: The 1 for 1 plan is much better this time as I don't draw any CoCo and I eventually die to a zombie fish.
Game 3: I end up starting fast and win with pressure backed up by CoCo.
2-0 (4-2 in games) Turns out drawing Collected Company is good vs Grixis.
Round 3: Bogles
Game 1: He mulligans and I keep a double Pridemage opening hand thinking that at least I'm swinging for 4 on turn 2. He plays a turn one hexproof guy after mulling to 5 and my eyes light up with double Pridemage in hand. Game wasn't close.
Game 2: Thalia was great here and really slowed the Bogles player down while also making him take extra damage off tapping Horizon Canopies. Game came down to one bad attack with me losing track of Kor Spiritdancer math (card is hard to keep track of, especially with Rancor and Ethereal Artmor) and I lose a game that I probably should have won.
Game 3: He rolls me with a huge hexproof creature. Not interactive, but that's why Bogles is an attractive deck.
2-1 (5-4 in games) Awful matchup, really dependent on drawing Pridemage. Will be replacing the Voice of Resurgence in my list with a 4th. Also may take out Kataki for a Destructive Revelry.
Round 4: Through the Breach Valakut
Game 1: I keep a reasonable hand and he keeps a hand that's one turn too slow of casting Through the Breach.
Game 2: Anger of the Gods and an Obstinate Baloth buy him enough time to Through the Breach in an Emrakul and kill me from 14. I make a play where I swing with my Smiter, get the exalted trigger, then use Dromoka's Command to edict away a Courser of Kruphix and fight my 5/5 into his 4/4 before blocks, which I thought we be enough.
Game 3: Once again, you have to get a little lucky to win a tournament. Here though I would say I got REALLY lucky. He tanks on the final turn of the game and winds up being so focused on my creatures that he points 12 points of damage worth of Valakut triggers at them with me at 11. I win the game on the next turn. A reminder to never scoop even if your only out is your opponent screwing up. This is especially true late in tournaments as the pressure is higher and things outside the game can affect your opponents thought process and lines of play.
3-1 (7-5 in games)
Round 5: Grixis Delve
Game 1: Goes very similar to my match in round 2 with Collected Company being the best card in my deck against him.
Game 2: I play around Anger of the Gods (leaving up Dromoka's Command, but he never seems to have it and I'm able to Path an Angler and a Tasigur trading one for one with his removal spells on my creatures. We play draw go, topdecking for a while before I draw a Knight. He shows me the Damnation he had brought in after, we makes me think that maybe I want a Boros Charm in my board.
4-1 (9-5 in games)
Round 6: Scapeshift
ID: This round I was actually paired against one of my best friends who was also in the group that I drove with. He started 4-0 and could afford to double draw.
4-1-1 (5th Seed going into Top 8)
Quarterfinals: Basically Gruul Zoo w/Nacatls
Game 1: The game starts pretty close, with him playing Nacatl, Burning-Tree Emissary, Goyf. This is all before he gets really greedy trying to win a Goyf war by forcing a Vines of Vastwood. I path his Goyf in response for a 2-for-1 and he never recovers.
Game 2: He mulls to 5 and my draw is much better than his. Awkward situation after where I, stupidly mind you, say "Good Games" and he responds with "not really". I felt bad and didn't mean to come off as a jerk. I was more relieved that I was moving on.
Semifinals: Abzan
Game 1: We trade his removal for my creature until turn 3 comes around. He Abrupt Decays my Nacatl on turn 2 then casts Lili into my board of Hierarch and 3 lands. He decides to plus Lili amd I get to pitch a Smiter and cast Collected Company hitting Nacatl and Scooze. I attack his Lili with Smiter and him for 5. He has a Maelstrom Pulse for my Smiter, but dies to the Nacatl, Ooze and a freshly drawn Knight.
Game 2: He mulls to 6 and keeps a hand of Inquisition, Tarmogoyf, Lingering Souls, Lingering Souls, Gavony Township, Overgrown Tomb. My draw is excellent and I run him over before he can find a white source.
Finals: Bogles (Same guy from the Swiss)
Game 1: He keeps 7 and in turn mulligan. He asks if my hand was land light or flooded. I respond with "It was a fine hand, but no pridemage, no keep." I mull to six and keep a hand with Pridemage and Dromoka's Command. I put him in an awkward spot where he can block, but I can sac my Pridemage to blow up his Spirit Mantle to force a trade. He blocks and we trade. He winds up in a situation where he has two Kor Spiritdancer, but is dead unless he can find a lifelink enchantment. He plays 3 auras (DRAWING 6!) before playing the last which taps him out and exclaims "Well that was a little late". I untap and swing for lethal.
Game 2: We both keep one landers, him leading with a hexproof creature and me with a Hierarch. After a couple turns of both of us bricking on lands he plays his Daybreak Coronet and I Command in response, forcing him to sac his other enchantment, fizzling the Daybreak. I have a chance to edict him getting an Ethereal Armor off the table later in the match (Which I absolutely should have done), but instead die to a giant first-striking, trampling Spiritdancer.
Game 3: We both mulligan and I keep Goyf, Bolt, Nacatl, and 3 lands. I play a Nacatl and he plays a 1 drop. I draw Dromoka's Command and play a squire Goyf whilee Rancors his guy. I bolt, swing for 6 and say go. He again walks into the Dromoka's Command edict causing someone watching to whisper "can we change the oracle text on that card to epic blowout". He paths my Goyf, chumps my Nacatl and I play a Knight. He plays a Spiritdancer, enchants it with rancor, plays a fetch and passes at 7. Carefully doing math in my head I decide to swing with just the Nacatl since I can't kill him no matter what if I attack with both. He fetches Dryad Arbor and goes to chump. Before damage I float a white, activate Knight to fetch Wolf-Run and pump for lethal. Felt super good to end the tournament that way.
Final Record: 7-1-1 (15-6 in games)
As for going forward, I would cut Voice of Resurgence, the card felt really underwhelming all day and I wished it was Pridemage every time I drew it. Card's that overperformed were Fiery Justice, and Dromoka's COmmand, they were awesome just about every time I cast them. Would also cut Kataki for Destructive Revelry (comes in vs Twin/Bogles, while still being great vs Affiinty). I felt like I didn't draw many sideboard cards, which speaks to the power and consistency of the maindeck, seeing as I did well in spite of this. I boarded in Domri almost every round (only didn't versus Through the Breach and Bogles, but never drew him. He seemed really good in those matchups, but I don't actually know since I failed to draw him.
I'm super excited to be Q'd for an RPTQ and am currently considering flying out to Colorado instead of attending the RPTQ in my area (New England, so would have to drive to New York). The spring RPTQ in the Colorado area had 39 players, while the NY RPTQ had over 70. I also have two close friends who live in Colorado, so I would be staying for free. I'll definitely be playing Zoo as long as we have the "green Dig Through Time" as I like to call it!
Thanks for reading and good luck!
EDIT: Formatting
I rather have 2 forest 2 plains as basics. Mountain can lead to some strange hands and it's super unlikely that I'd want to fetch a basic mountain that can only be used to cast Bolt and side cards (and pay colorless, of course).
Just my 2 cents after watching Lantern struggle with a basic mountain in one of the videos. I tried it out and didn't like it.
WGUBR 5c Humans
GWR Naya Zoo
Legacy:
GW GW Maverick
R Goblins
You'd still have 11 Red sources, 12 white and 14 Green. If you count mana dorks as .5 you'd end up with 11.5R/14.5W/16.5G which is still acceptable considering the red is just a tiny splash.
Follow the link for nice cheap clothing.
Playing:
Death's Shadow Jund
Played:
Kiki Chord, Zoo variants, Goblins, Burn
WGUBR 5c Humans
GWR Naya Zoo
Legacy:
GW GW Maverick
R Goblins
G1 fish
R1 - bad draws
R2 - choke + stony silence = win
R3 - flooded out
G2 another fish
R1 - wild nacatl and loxodon smiter beats got me there
R2 - choke + stony silence and he conceded
G3 Jund
R1 - mull to 5, yeah u know where it goes after that.
R2 - bad draws, either dorks or lands. So yeah.
Modern : Huh?
EDH : UBGW Thrasios / Tymna Combo UBGW // GRW Mayael Big Stuff GRW // GU Edric Timewalkers GU
Even if you're trying to CoCo asap for powerful sideboard cards you can still cast it early with turn 2 Hierarch.
4 Windswept Heath
4 Wooded Foothills
4 Arid Mesa
2 Stomping Ground
1 Temple Garden
1 Sacred Foundry
1 Horizon Canopy
1 Kessig Wolf Run
2 Forest
2 Plains
4 Wild Nacatl
4 Noble Hierarch
4 Tarmogoyf
3 Qasali Pridemage
3 Scavenging Ooze
4 Knight of the Reliquary
4 Loxodon Smiter
11 Spells
4 Lightning Bolt
4 Path to Exile
3 Collected Company
1 Ghost Quarter
3 Kor Firewalker
2 Thalia, Guardian of Thraben
2 Stony Silence
1 Ethersworn Canonist
1 Dromoka's Command
2 Blood Moon
2 Choke
1 Bonfire of the Damned
Round 1 Affinity 2-1
Round 2 Infect 2-1
Round 3 Grixis Twin 2-0
Round 4 Grixis Delver 2-0
Played the second plains again. I always felt as though the mountain was really awkward.
I do want to try out a 2nd horizon canopy in that spot, however.
Didn't have tracker to test, unfortunately.
Back on bonfire as well, I think justice has potential, but I think bonfire is better overall.
Current Decks
Standard : WB Orzhov Vampires BW GUB Sultai Constrictor BUG
Brawl : GB Hapatra, Vizier of Poisons BG
Modern : GB Golgari Elves BG GR Atarka Goblins RG
Pauper : W Heroic W GB Delve BG
3rd ooze... good or no? I cut it for a dromokas in the main.
after i saw Lantern's Prelimn i had been damned sure about one thing:
I don't want to run CoCo Zoo.
I'm still convinced that RG is the Way to go right now. You know why?
Eidolon of the Great Revel
There's so much cheap removal running around, it's ridicolous.
Only thing that doesn't get hit by Bonker's Dude
is Count Money-Grubber and a huge Fish.
Even BGx had huge trouble with Burn. So why not try that route and go for
Smash your Face all day long,I trample everything down
and Dudes Testosteron?
Maybe i'm a bit crazy or looked at the Meta noone else has looked at before, but what's your oppinion on that?
Green @ it's best
On the play it would be almost always right to lead with hierarch to go for the turn 2 knight or smiter.
On the draw however is where things get less straightforward. Running a 3-drop into 2 open mana vs some decks like grixis control is not a good idea. In such matchups I would think t1 nacatl to go under before their shields are up is the much better opener. Following up with a goyf or a 3-drop after they deal with your nacatl is also a much better recovery play as compared to casting a nacatl after your smiter or knight get destroyed or countered.
my 2 cents.
WGUBR 5c Humans
GWR Naya Zoo
Legacy:
GW GW Maverick
R Goblins
4x Experiment One
4x Kird Ape
4x Ghor-Clan Rampager
4x Burning-Tree Emissary
4x Loxodon Smiter
4x Knight of the Reliquary
4x Scavenging Ooze (Thinking of this or 4x Path to Exile)
Spells (8)
4x Lightning Bolt
2x Lightning Helix
2x Artarka's Command
4x Wooded Foothills
4x Arid Mesa
2x Stomping Ground
2x Temple Garden
2x Sacred Foundry
2x Forest
2x Plains
1x Mountain
1x Slayers Stronghold
2x Thalia, Guardian of Thraben
1x Kor Firewalker
1x Mirran Crusader
2x Quasali Pridemage
2x Destructive Revelry
1x Dromoka's Command
1x Fiery Justice
1x Grafdiggers Cage
2x Choke
2x Vines of Vastwood
So I guess I could go up to 4x Artarka's Command as it seems to be doing work everytime I see it played, and maybe take out Ooze's for 4 Path? Ooze was meant to be a psuedo-replacement for Goyf.
I'm not really sure about the Loxodon Smiter, I like that it's a 4/4 for 3 that can't be countered, and with all the Grixis around at the moment that has to count for something, but I feel like it fights for a place with KotR and I don't know which is better... Burning-Tree is just to hopefully make the deck a bit quicker, I'm not running Goblin guides or Loam Lions so I have less 1-Drops, so hopefully being able to chain BTE's or even drop another Nacatl or Kird Ape would be nice.
Sideboard seems a bit messed up, I like Thalia because my meta is pretty full of control and combo, so she will slow them down, Kor Firewalker will hopefully help against Burn and make it less of a race and more of an inevitable loss for them because I'm running Lightning Helix as well. The Crusader is for Jund Matchups and Abzan, and the fact he's already a double-striker with protection from their colours is nice, apart from path which can still hit him, but if I could Bloodrush and Vines on him in response to a Path, I think it would be nice, but that's in a perfect world. He can also hit through Young Pyro and his tokens and double strikes the flipped delver if they decide to block which is good.
Quasali Pridemage just seems like nice sideboard tech against Affinity or Bogles, or even Twin. he's a 2/2 for 2 with a nice ability, so I'm happy to run him. Destructive Revelry is the same as Pridemage, and removal in the affinity matchup.
The rest of my sideboard I'm not too sure about, Mirran Crusader and Dromoka's Command I'm still not really sure about, I think I just want to run the Crusader because I can.
I'd love as much criticism and advice as possible, as I said before, I have most of the one-drops and burns spells and land, it's the flex cards I havent bought yet and i'm holding out until I can find a decent decklist. And be as harsh as needed, I don't want to waste money on cards I'm not going to use.
Cheers
Also, when you were talking about Mirran Crusader, remember that he has pro-green, so you can't use Vines or Ghor-Clan's Bloodrush on him.
WGUBR 5c Humans
GWR Naya Zoo
Legacy:
GW GW Maverick
R Goblins
Like r497 said, cut the Knights since your only running 8 fetches, althou I would suggest you picking up Windswept Heaths now as they are still cheap due to the reprint and it would prob go up in price soon as time passes.
Modern : Huh?
EDH : UBGW Thrasios / Tymna Combo UBGW // GRW Mayael Big Stuff GRW // GU Edric Timewalkers GU
Legacy: Strawberry Shortcake, Aggro Loam, DnT+b
Modern: Devoted Karn
Vintage: Survival
I like having 3 because its so good against the decks its good in. I could see cutting one, but I would play another creature instead.
4 Wild Nacatl
4 Tarmogoyf
3 Qasali Pridemage
3 Scavenging Ooze
4 Loxodon Smiter
4 Knight of the Reliquary
4 Lightning Bolt
4 Path to Exile
1 Dromoka's Command
3 Collected Company
4 Wooded Foothills
3 Arid Mesa
2 Stomping Grounds
1 Sacred Foundry
1 Temple Garden
2 Forest
2 Plains
1 Raging Ravine
1 Ghost Quarter
1 Kessig Wolf Run
3 Kor Firewalker
3 Bonfire of the Damned
3 Thalia, Guardian of Thraben
3 Blood Moon
2 Stony Silence
1 Collected Company
R1: Non-competitive burn - W
G1: On the draw. I mull. End up at 1, then he draws 4 lands in a row. W
G2: On the draw. I win at a safe 7 life. W
1-0 matches, 2-0 games
R2: Didn’t record opponent’s deck - W
G1: On the play. Draw all lands. L
G2: On the play. Mull once. W
G3: On the draw. W
2-0 matches, 4-1 games
R3: Through the Breach / Scapeshift - L
G1: On the draw. I believe I lost to Emrakul. L
G2: On the play. Savage beatdown. W
G3: On the draw. Had Blood Moon in hand for a while, but never played it. Got Scapeshifted to death. L
2-1 matches, 5-3 games
R4: Jund - W
G1: On the play. He mulls once. Aggro beats. W
G2: Draw. I mull once. Dead draws and one small mistake kill me. L
G3: Play. I mull once. Interact a bunch, but my better creatures do their work. W
3-1 matches, 7-4 games
R1: BRW Master of Cruelties brew - W
G1: Draw. Beats. W
G2: Draw. Beats. W
4-1 matches, 9-4 games
R2: Mill - W
G1: Draw. Beat. W
G2 Draw. Mull once. Not enough pressure and he gets there with the mage guy. L
G3: Play. Mill feeds my Goyf and Knight. W
5-1 matches, 11-5 games
R3: Jund - W
G1: Draw. Beats. W
G2: Draw. Mull once. Beats. W
R4: Draw into 1st/2nd split
R1: Non-competitive build RG Tron - L
G1: Draw. Lose to Tooth and Nail. L
G2: Play. Pressure + Ghost Quarter is good, or so I hear. W
G3: Draw. Mull twice. Draw no lands. L
5-2 matches, 12-7 games
R2: UB Faeries - W
G1: Play. He mulls once. I beat him down. W
G2: Draw. My hand is slow, my draws suck, and his start is strong. L
G3: Play. Beats beats beats. W
6-2 matches, 14-8 games.
R3: RG Tron, also kinda weird build - W
G1: Play. He doesn’t do enough in time. My beats are slow but big. W
G2: Draw. I mull once. Stick 2 Blood Moons. Still lose. L
G3: Play. He mulls twice. Kill him in 2-3 swings. W
7-2 matches, 16-9 games
R4: Grixis Twin - L
G1: Draw. I mull once. I played this one very wrong. Afraid of his counter magic, I killed all of his Twin targets on my turn. So he never wasted any Twins. After killing 4 of his Twin targets, he mises another one, while he is at one life. L
G2: Play. Mull twice. ***** draws. L
7-3 matches, 16-11 games
R1: Merfolk splash red - W
G1: Play. I fetch a lot and he gets in a little beats. But my beats are way better. W
G2: Draw. I mull twice. I had a slow start and he had the necessary Spreading Seas. L
G3: Play. Hand full of Wild Nacatls snack on delicious fishies. W
8-3 matches, 18-12 games
R2: Infect - W
G1: Play. I mull twice. Lose narrowly. One more mana source and I would have won. L
G2: Play. Fetch and shock a lot because I can. Beatdown. W
G3: Draw. We both mull once. See game 2. W
9-3 matches, 20-13 games
R3: Affinity - L
G1: Draw. Lose to math error when he is at 3 life. L
G2: Play. Win with Bonfire blowout. W
G3: Draw. He gets a nut draw and I can’t stop Cranial Plating. L
9-4 matches, 21-15 games
R4: Elves - L
G1: Draw. I see no removal. L
G2: Play. I Bonfire away his board. I proceed to topdeck lands while he topdecks gas. L
9-5 matches, 21-17 games
R5: Amulet Bloom - W
G1: Play. We both mull once. He doesn’t find an Amulet. I eat his face. W
G2: Draw. He finds an Amulet too late. My offense is slow, but overwhelms his late PrimeTime. W
10-5 matches, 23-17 games
GP Providence Friday side event
I win this one on luck, to be honest.
R1: Twin - W
G1: Play. I spend so much time playing around Twin that I lose to his tempo plan. Included a misplay on my part. L
G2: Play. His hand sucks. W
G3: Draw. He can’t keep up with my pressure. W
11-5 matches, 25-18 games
R2: Kuldotha Red / Burn - W
G1: He got a game loss for decklist issue. W
G2: Draw. He topdecks Shrapnel Blast on the last possible turn. L
G3: Play. I keep a hand with one land (a white source), Thalia, and Kor Firewalker. Proceed to topdeck a white source, and eventually draw two more Firewalkers. W
12-5 matches, 27-19 games
R3: Jund (I think) - W
G1: Draw. He mulls once. Draws no lands. W
G2: Draw. He draws all lands. W
13-5 matches, 29-19 games
R4: Grixis Delver full of basic lands - W
G1: Play. We both mull. Prioritize his Pyromancer so he has no extra blockers. Pressure is really good against tempo decks that lack lifegain. W
G2: Draw. His draws suck. W
14-5 matches, 31-19 games
Won a FTV:20 Jace, The Mind Sculptor!
R1: Elves - W
G1: Draw. He gets a fast combo hand. L
G2: Play. Beats and removal get there. W
G3: Draw. He mulls twice. Very interactive game, but my removal trumps his key critters and my big dudes trump his little dorks. W
15-5 matches, 33-20 games
R2: UWR Tempo (unexperienced pilot) - W
G1: Play. We both have ***** hands and ***** draws. W
G2: Draw. His inexperience shines here. I eat him alive. W
16-5 matches, 35-20 games
R3: Skred Red - W
G1: Play. I play through his Relic of Progenituses like pro. W
G2: Draw. Fast beats. W
17-5 matches, 37-20 games
R4: Draw into 1st/2nd split
R1: UBR Delve - W
G1: Play. Decently fast beats and removal for his few creatures. W
G2: Draw. Slowly chip away at his life total white he durdles and tilts into minor misplays. W
18-5 matches, 39-20 games
R2: UWR Tempo (easily the best player in the store) - L
G1: Draw. He mulls once. He draws badly. W
G2: I mull once. Draw. Lose a SUPER close game. I drew no Collected Companys L
G3: Play. Don’t draw Collected Company. Close game. L
I believe I made no play mistakes. I just drew zero copies of a trump card.
18-6 matches, 40-22 games
R3: UBR Twin - W
G1: Play. I mull once. I had the game in hand, but got greedy and used most of my minimal mana that turn. Kept one up for Pridemage activation. EOT Exarch taps my last mana down. Then he untaps and casts Twin.
G2: Play. He mulls once. I slowly eat him while keeping up removal. W
G3. Draw. He mulls once. See game 2. W
19-6 matches, 42-23 games
R4: Mono white brew - W
G1: Play. Savage beats. W.
G2. Draw. He has a creature heavy hand, forcing me to commit to the board. I still dominate the board, but commit one to many creatures into play. He Wraths, then rebuilds and I can’t draw enough raw strength to keep up. L
G3: Play. Bait a Wrath, then put out big beats. W
20-6 matches, 44-24 games
Legacy: Strawberry Shortcake, Aggro Loam, DnT+b
Modern: Devoted Karn
Vintage: Survival