I really like the Pyromancer Ascension! I started using 3 maindeck a few days ago before the tournament! Cool to see someone was sharing my thought on the card!
I don't know how I feel about the green splash though.. seems out there! Like I get the idea of thought scouring a grudge and then flashing it back but still.. seems so narrow haha
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UU"Brute force can sometimes kick down a locked door, but knowledge is a skeleton key"UU
Legacy - Sneak Show, BR Reanimator, Miracles, UW Stoneblade
Premodern - Trix, RecSur, Enchantress, Reanimator, Elves https://www.facebook.com/groups/PremodernUSA/ Modern - Neobrand, Hogaak Vine, Elves
Standard - Mono Red (6-2 and 5-3 in 2 McQ)
Draft - (I wish I had more time for limited...)
Commander - Norin the Wary, Grimgrin, Adun Oakenshield (taking forever to build) (dead format for me)
just wanted to post a link to this article by ross merriam for ur phoenix sideboarding. its about a month old, but it was premium only and can now be viewed by everyone.
Hey guys, I'm very interested in this deck, it looks very fun.
How is it's game against burn and aggro matchups such as humans, elves.
Is it an easy deck to learn and master? I can't go to many fnm's per month.
It's more on the easier side of the modern spectrum and nowhere near the complexity of KCI or GDS. Sequencing is the most important part besides some basic skills (remeber your triggers, fetch before casting Serum Visions etc). The deck wants to tap out pretty much every turn so many of your decisions are straight forwarded.
Burn is one of the tougher MU's whereas humans should be in your favour, same with spirits.
Edit: For example when i picked up the deck i played like 3-4 goldfish games and then did okay at the next 3 FNM's going 3-1, 3-1 and 4-0 without much further practice.
However this was when people did not expect the deck and had no clue what was going on. Should be a lot harder now that the deck is well known.
The Fluff made a comparison between ur phoenix and affinity, and i think it is apt to a degree. the 'skill floor' for the deck to realize most of its power isnt particularly hard to achieve. affinity is the same way, but still widely considered one of the hardest decks to master because of its deep combat math required to squeeze out extra points of damage.
ur phoenix doesnt play on combat math like affinity, but the amount of selection and sequencing that goes on with the cantrips gives a large number of optimization points. so its shifting gamestate analysis combined with multiple small probability plays. sometimes you wanna max your ability to see more cheap cantrips, other times a phoenix or other threat, or maybe its a sideboard card. small things like fetching when maybe you dont need the mana right then, scrying cards away at certain times or shuffling them back in, or just choosing what cantrips to use when can leave percentage points on the table.
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Modern: UWGSnow-Bant Control BURGrixis Death's Shadow GWBCoCo Elves WCDeath and Taxes (sold)
Bedlam Reveler is a very different card. He's basically a 2 mana Ancestral Recall that also happens to leave a decent sized body that can grow with each spell cast. Pteromander fills a very different role. He doesn't reload your hand after you've dispensed all of your spells.
Crackling Drake and Thing in the Ice both serve valuable roles. They allow you to attack on an angle that does not require your graveyard, which gives you ways to win if your opponent has grave hate. Thing in the Ice also provides massive tempo swings that can completely turn a game sideways.
My initial instinct is that Pteromander just isn't good enough. As a 1 drop, he's unimpressive. A 1/1 evasive body that only hits for 1 every turn is not really what the deck wants. He does at least scale that later the game goes on... but at the cost of making you more dependent on the grave.
I'm rather hopeful about Pteramander actually. I'm also very surprised nobody mentions it. It's a 2-cmc 5/5 flyer when slow-rolled. I want to play it after I flip Titi, and I like to topdeck it.
The fact it becomes bad post-SB is the real issue with the card, but it's a better G1 threat than Swiftspear imho.
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Pioneer - A bunch of stuff Modern - Humans Legacy - Grixis Phoenix / Death & Taxes
I'm rather hopeful about Pteramander actually. I'm also very surprised nobody mentions it. It's a 2-cmc 5/5 flyer when slow-rolled. I want to play it after I flip Titi, and I like to topdeck it.
The fact it becomes bad post-SB is the real issue with the card, but it's a better G1 threat than Swiftspear imho.
Swiftspear having Haste gets you bonus points of damage when you play it after flipping Thing in the Ice, though. Pteramander not having Haste isn't so hot.
I personally suspect that Pteramander has a better home in more counterspell-heavy decks, but not playing nice with Delve isn't so hot, and neither is the inability to get a fatty on Turn 2 with shrewd Thought Scour usage (unlike with Delve dudes).
Hello guys! first time with the deck at an FNM. Went 4-0 yesterday. I have been playtesting like crazy before going live for the first time. Played against Humans, Spirits, Elves, UR Breach(a-la Twin). 3 first felt like great matchups(especially the elf deck). The last one felt super bad. Fortunately the opponent never drew 5th land never in the game
What do you think are the deck's bad matchups? What do you think about playing vs Tron, Burn, Jund, UWx Control, other various combos(like Amulet Titan, etc)? I feel like those matchups range from bad to super bad, but let's hear it out.
Burn amd Rock are two of our toughest match-ups.
Burn - Very Difficult
Jund - Very Difficult
Amulet - Difficult
Tron - Even
UW Control - Difficult
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Modern Decks
------------ URW Jeskai Control GUWRB Amulet Titan GR Ponza
On the play, TiTi plus an Izzet Charm to stop their turn 3 Tron play is viable, even more so, or without the charm, if they turn 4 Tron. But it is tough. Much better post board.
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Modern Decks
------------ URW Jeskai Control GUWRB Amulet Titan GR Ponza
Hey guys, over the past two weeks I've been utilising a Singleton-Only sideboard plan which I believe to be quite effective given our cantrip density. Now I have decided that I want to hedge against big mana by upping my Blood Moon count to 2 and my Rejection count to 2. This means I have to lose 1 more Singleton from the board for 1 more Rejection.
Can you guys help me decide? I run Grixis, with 2x Brutality and 2x Surgical main, and am leaning towards cutting the Ego or Kommand, but I have liked both very much. Ego for versatile applications vs. Dredge, Amulet, and Tron, and I like Kommand due to it being the 3rd artifact removal (EE, Abrade, Kommand) and also giving me an extra sideboard slot card for GBx.
Ryan Overturf managed to take down the Team Open this weekend with an interesting innovation on Phoenix. He cut out many of the flex slots for a playset of Traverse the Ulvenwald and Mishra's Bauble main.
Yes, but he was very lucky his team carried him to victory in the finals: he was absolutely crushed by Mono red Phoenix both games (turn 3-4 kills, though to be fair, game 2 was a non game due to mana screw). Jeffrey Carr with his mono red Phoenix apparently ran 16-0 this weekend, losing only 5 games (I read it on Reddit, though I did hear the commenters saying he was personally undefeated day 2). The deck is absurdly explosive: game 2 of the finals he dealt 10 damage on turn 2.
yeah that mono-R list looks more like a sligh/RDW deck featuring prowess with phoenix as a backup plan that sometimes nuts on your opponent.
temur phoenix is certainly interesting since its a case of fully embracing 3 colors, which either hasnt been explored as much or just has failed to post any results. traverse for value or to grab another phoenix to discard opens a lot of different lines of play.
another phoenix variant that has picked up a bit of traction is goryo's phoenix. it includes the goryo's + griselbrand package as another combo/explosive axis of attack. still subject to GY hate, and maybe a bit too much going on to be consistent - but it looks fun.
ELI KASSIS'S IZZET PHOENIX
4 Arclight Phoenix
2 Crackling Drake
4 Thing in the Ice
//Sorcery
4 Faithless Looting
2 Flame Slash
4 Serum Visions
4 Sleight of Hand
//Instant
3 Gut Shot
1 Izzet Charm
4 Lightning Bolt
4 Manamorphose
4 Thought Scour
2 Pyromancer Ascension
//Land
1 Breeding Pool
2 Island
1 Misty Rainforest
2 Mountain
4 Scalding Tarn
3 Spirebluff Canal
2 Steam Vents
2 Sulfur Falls
1 Wooded Foothills
2 Ancient Grudge
2 Anger of the Gods
2 Blood Moon
2 Ceremonious Rejection
1 Engineered Explosives
2 Surgical Extraction
2 Threads of Disloyalty
2 Young Pyromancer
Spirits
I don't know how I feel about the green splash though.. seems out there! Like I get the idea of thought scouring a grudge and then flashing it back but still.. seems so narrow haha
Premodern - Trix, RecSur, Enchantress, Reanimator, Elves https://www.facebook.com/groups/PremodernUSA/
Modern - Neobrand, Hogaak Vine, Elves
Standard - Mono Red (6-2 and 5-3 in 2 McQ)
Draft - (I wish I had more time for limited...)
Commander -
Norin the Wary, Grimgrin, Adun Oakenshield (taking forever to build)(dead format for me)2 Flame Slash, as the Thing hate for the mirror.
I wonder on the Threads of Disloyalty, GDS hate I assume?
Spirits
http://magic.facetofacegames.com/hitting-platinum-with-izzet-phoenix/
Spirits
http://www.starcitygames.com/articles/38096_The-Izzet-Phoenix-Sideboard-Guide.html
UWGSnow-Bant Control
BURGrixis Death's Shadow
GWBCoCo Elves
WCDeath and Taxes(sold)How is it's game against burn and aggro matchups such as humans, elves.
Is it an easy deck to learn and master? I can't go to many fnm's per month.
It's more on the easier side of the modern spectrum and nowhere near the complexity of KCI or GDS. Sequencing is the most important part besides some basic skills (remeber your triggers, fetch before casting Serum Visions etc). The deck wants to tap out pretty much every turn so many of your decisions are straight forwarded.
Burn is one of the tougher MU's whereas humans should be in your favour, same with spirits.
Edit: For example when i picked up the deck i played like 3-4 goldfish games and then did okay at the next 3 FNM's going 3-1, 3-1 and 4-0 without much further practice.
However this was when people did not expect the deck and had no clue what was going on. Should be a lot harder now that the deck is well known.
Modern // Legacy // Pauper
WUBRG
"Of course you should fight fire with fire. You should fight everything with fire."
ur phoenix doesnt play on combat math like affinity, but the amount of selection and sequencing that goes on with the cantrips gives a large number of optimization points. so its shifting gamestate analysis combined with multiple small probability plays. sometimes you wanna max your ability to see more cheap cantrips, other times a phoenix or other threat, or maybe its a sideboard card. small things like fetching when maybe you dont need the mana right then, scrying cards away at certain times or shuffling them back in, or just choosing what cantrips to use when can leave percentage points on the table.
UWGSnow-Bant Control
BURGrixis Death's Shadow
GWBCoCo Elves
WCDeath and Taxes(sold)It seems like Bedlam Reveler on steroïds, and in case of graveyard hate you still get a 1/1 flyer.
But maybe it's not worth replacing Cackling Drake or Thing in the Ice.
Crackling Drake and Thing in the Ice both serve valuable roles. They allow you to attack on an angle that does not require your graveyard, which gives you ways to win if your opponent has grave hate. Thing in the Ice also provides massive tempo swings that can completely turn a game sideways.
My initial instinct is that Pteromander just isn't good enough. As a 1 drop, he's unimpressive. A 1/1 evasive body that only hits for 1 every turn is not really what the deck wants. He does at least scale that later the game goes on... but at the cost of making you more dependent on the grave.
The fact it becomes bad post-SB is the real issue with the card, but it's a better G1 threat than Swiftspear imho.
Swiftspear having Haste gets you bonus points of damage when you play it after flipping Thing in the Ice, though. Pteramander not having Haste isn't so hot.
I personally suspect that Pteramander has a better home in more counterspell-heavy decks, but not playing nice with Delve isn't so hot, and neither is the inability to get a fatty on Turn 2 with shrewd Thought Scour usage (unlike with Delve dudes).
If not, then maybe it's decent, but it's a turn 4 5/5 on average which is fairly slow.
------------
URW Jeskai Control
GUWRB Amulet Titan
GR Ponza
Burn amd Rock are two of our toughest match-ups.
Burn - Very Difficult
Jund - Very Difficult
Amulet - Difficult
Tron - Even
UW Control - Difficult
------------
URW Jeskai Control
GUWRB Amulet Titan
GR Ponza
------------
URW Jeskai Control
GUWRB Amulet Titan
GR Ponza
Can you guys help me decide? I run Grixis, with 2x Brutality and 2x Surgical main, and am leaning towards cutting the Ego or Kommand, but I have liked both very much. Ego for versatile applications vs. Dredge, Amulet, and Tron, and I like Kommand due to it being the 3rd artifact removal (EE, Abrade, Kommand) and also giving me an extra sideboard slot card for GBx.
Sideboard (15)
1 Ral, Izzet Viceroy
1 Ceremonious Rejection
1 Dispel
1 Duress
1 Spell Pierce
1 Thoughtseize
1 Abrade
1 Anger of the Gods
1 Beacon Bolt
1 Kolaghan's Command
1 Unmoored Ego
1 Engineered Explosives
1 Bitterblossom
2 Blood Moon
Full Decklist - Shared via TopDecked MTG
https://www.topdecked.me/decks/ae757f25-7954-4045-9787-b3acf2a15551
------------
URW Jeskai Control
GUWRB Amulet Titan
GR Ponza
4 Thing in the Ice
4 Arclight Phoenix
1 Crackling Drake
1 Snapcaster Mage
Spells (28)
4 Thought Scour
4 Serum Visions
4 Traverse the Ulvenwald
4 Faithless Looting
4 Manamorphose
3 Gut Shot
4 Lightning Bolt
1 Lightning Axe
4 Mishra's Bauble
Land (18)
4 Scalding Tarn
4 Misty Rainforest
3 Wooded Foothills
3 Steam Vents
1 Breeding Pool
1 Stomping Ground
1 Island
1 Mountain
2 Life Goes On
2 Rending Volley
2 Surgical Extraction
1 Dispel
2 Spell Pierce
1 Faerie Macabre
1 Magus of the Moon
2 Ancient Grudge
1 Lightning Axe
1 Blood Moon
Light Up the Stage and Skewer the Critics really pushed mono red.
WBC Eldrazi & Taxes CBW
UR Keep on Cantripin' (UR Phoenix) RU
WU Surprise! It's not UW Control! (UW Midrange) UW
BG The Rock, Straight BG
U Mono-Blue Fish U
RBW Mardu Pyromancer BWR
RG Rabble! Rabble! (GR Blood Moon Aggro) GR
Legacy
W Death & Taxes W
temur phoenix is certainly interesting since its a case of fully embracing 3 colors, which either hasnt been explored as much or just has failed to post any results. traverse for value or to grab another phoenix to discard opens a lot of different lines of play.
another phoenix variant that has picked up a bit of traction is goryo's phoenix. it includes the goryo's + griselbrand package as another combo/explosive axis of attack. still subject to GY hate, and maybe a bit too much going on to be consistent - but it looks fun.
https://www.mtggoldfish.com/deck/1635713#online
UWGSnow-Bant Control
BURGrixis Death's Shadow
GWBCoCo Elves
WCDeath and Taxes(sold)