Couldnt make FNM due to preparing for a huge tournament for speech and debate. Glad the deck got you there! Are you running it again next week?
I appreciate it! Good to be here. The meta really is very balanced in Southern California, you can expect a variety of many decks basically all of them tier 1 or 2. Its also very competitive as an environment so its always good testing.
I probably will run it again. I didn't have a matchup to use Fiery Justice. I want to see the look on my opponent's face when they realize that them gaining 5 life allowed me to kill 3 of their creatures for 3 mana.
But who knows? I nearly decided to play UW Emeria Control because it seemed like Junk/Jund/Burn were on the uptick and that deck crushes those in my testing. I also considered playing Slivers because I got my 4th Sedge Sliver in the mail just last week finally. The deck runs more powerful with just that 12th lord.
I always thought that this deck wouldn't function well without Chord of Calling, but then I had an opening 7 of BoP, Restoration Angel, Kiki-Jiki, Mirror Breaker, and 4 land.
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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)
That's what I love about the deck; even if you theoretically played 0 Chords, it's still a sweet midrange creature deck that occasionally combo kills people.
Anyways, I noticed that Hoogland(-Senpai) recently switched to a blue splash like some of you have been doing but then switched back. I saw some interesting choices like Keranos and Negate.
He put up some videos trying some retreat to coralhelm stuff. Didnt do too well. But he was up against only jund in the videos testing the deck which admittedly is a poor match for any combo deck. And the list was a little loose i think. Either way it could be a thing but i think his feeling was that his regular version was mich better
I don't think the blue is necessary at all. What does it actually add to our current plan which we can't already do?
More resiliency to spell-based decks and combo protection. Blue also gives access to the gift ungiven engine which can be a nice sb option. So added value, nothing really new i agree
I am also trying the blue splash at the moment. Here is my current list:
Artvi - how good is Alesha? I love that card, and would like to work it into my list. But I don't have Saffi Eriksdotter (and don't think I want her), and don't have glen elendra as I'm running black. I still have a tonne of targets for Alesha, but just wondered when the card felt good and when it felt bad?
Does the 3/3 split work well for you on Bop/hierarch? I'd have thought 4 Bop / 2 Hierarch would have been better?
How are the new lands (can't remember what they're nick-named) working? It seems like they stretch our manabase a bit too much? They're not great when there's not enough basics, and if you bring them into play tapped, might as well be another shock?
Is Evolutionary Leap still amazing in the grindy games?
Saffi is in fact a choice which is initially linked to reveillark (they loop).
To be honest i have not yet had the time to test alesha enough. If it does not fit the bill it will just become a third witness.
The new lands are great if you consider not a straight fetch for a shockland but fill the btf with basics first. It is basically a dual for one life out of a fetch once you have set the scene.
Alesha suffers from the common problem of being a 3 drop that dies to bolt without getting you any value. I understand the allure but I'm not sure she's good enough. That's what testing is for I suppose.
Try lightning bolts over helix. Generally i dont think the deck needs the life gain and paying 1 instead of 2 is a bigger advantage than gaining 3 life. Bolt lets you get rid of early problem creatures (bobs, birds, snaps) without activly ramping your opponent with a path. It also lets you save the paths for the real problem creatures. Ive also gone down to 2 wall of omens and 1 wall of roots. I like them in those numbers. Run into them occasionally but the deck doesnt rely on them, and it avoids durdlong around with a bunch of walls
I included cavern of souls, set on "shaman", in case I want to prevent counters on cast Fauna Shaman, Fulminator Mage, Eternal Witness, or Kiki. As for Thalia, I keep her until the turn before I plan to chord and often suicide her when necessary. She is merely there to buy me time.
There really isnt a set rule of when to "go off" if youre against something fast with little interaction like affinity of elves probably go off ASAP. But against a slower deck your going to want to leverage for incrimental advantages like chroding for witness to get back chord. Force them to deal with your board and then assemble the combo quickly when they provide an opening.
The biggest strength of this deck is in its fluidity to change gears and to pressure and interact in different ways, due to chord of calling. I generally never try to go off unless im guarenteed to win or im dead the next turn regardless.
To your point, what is the play against elves? They combo faster so I am curious as to the appropriate hate card, path to exile aside. Hope for Worship?
To your point, what is the play against elves? They combo faster so I am curious as to the appropriate hate card, path to exile aside. Hope for Worship?
They're just a quicker Combo deck than us. You could try Pyroclasm in your SB, which also hurts us some. But it really hurts Elves and can set them back 2-3 turns.
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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)
Pontiff EE and Sin Collector (company and chord) help the matchup. Also saving paths for the lords make it easy. Its not a terrible matchup in my experience we can race it potentially even. Elves isnt represented much in the metagame anyway honestly.
Explosives isn't quite as one-sided as Fiery Justice, though I'll admit there are some boards that elves and fish can build that Fiery Justice can't save you from.
Although if theyve built that, nothing short of wrath of god is bringing you back into the game. EE does work but 2 cards in a side board might not be enough to find in time, thats why the suplimented fiery justices do so mich work. Allowing you more early game sweepers and this one comes with some tactical precision removal
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I appreciate it! Good to be here. The meta really is very balanced in Southern California, you can expect a variety of many decks basically all of them tier 1 or 2. Its also very competitive as an environment so its always good testing.
But who knows? I nearly decided to play UW Emeria Control because it seemed like Junk/Jund/Burn were on the uptick and that deck crushes those in my testing. I also considered playing Slivers because I got my 4th Sedge Sliver in the mail just last week finally. The deck runs more powerful with just that 12th lord.
I always thought that this deck wouldn't function well without Chord of Calling, but then I had an opening 7 of BoP, Restoration Angel, Kiki-Jiki, Mirror Breaker, and 4 land.
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)Anyways, I noticed that Hoogland(-Senpai) recently switched to a blue splash like some of you have been doing but then switched back. I saw some interesting choices like Keranos and Negate.
Modern
Value Town
Amulet Titan
Legacy
4C Loam
My Peasant Cube
http://cubetutor.com/viewcube/11667
UWR Control
Legacy:
W D&T
More resiliency to spell-based decks and combo protection. Blue also gives access to the gift ungiven engine which can be a nice sb option. So added value, nothing really new i agree
I am also trying the blue splash at the moment. Here is my current list:
4 windswept heath
4 wooded foothills
4 forest
2 plains
2 temple garden
2 stomping ground
1 breeding pool
1 canopy vista
1 cinder glade
2 gavony township
Creatures (27)
3 birds of paradise
3 noble hierarch
1 kytheon, hero of akroas
2 strangleroot geist
1 voice of resurgence
1 scavenging ooze
1 spellskite
1 saffi eriksdotter
2 kitchen finks
1 deceiver exarch
1 alesha, who smiles at death
4 restoration angel
1 glen elendra archmage
1 avalanche riders
1 kiki-jiki, mirror breaker
1 reveillark
Non-creature spells (10)
4 chord of calling
4 path to exile
2 evolutionary leap
1 burrenton forge-tender
1 spellskite
1 kataki, war's wage
1 fulminator mage
1 izzet staticaster
1 linvala, keeper of silence
1 obstinate baloth
1 keranos, god of storms
2 negate
1 pact of negation
2 stony silence
2 fiery justice
Saffi is in fact a choice which is initially linked to reveillark (they loop).
To be honest i have not yet had the time to test alesha enough. If it does not fit the bill it will just become a third witness.
The new lands are great if you consider not a straight fetch for a shockland but fill the btf with basics first. It is basically a dual for one life out of a fetch once you have set the scene.
Still a big fan of leap in the deck indeed.
Modern
Value Town
Amulet Titan
Legacy
4C Loam
My Peasant Cube
http://cubetutor.com/viewcube/11667
Creature (30)
4x Birds of Paradise
2x Courser of Kruphix
2x Eternal Witness
2x Fauna Shaman
1x Fulminator Mage
2x Kiki-Jiki, Mirror Breaker
1x Pia and Kiran Nalaar
3x Restoration Angel
1x Scavenging Ooze
1x Spellskite
2x Thalia, Guardian of Thraben
4x Voice of Resurgence
2x Wall of Omens
3x Wall of Roots
Land (22)
1x Cavern of Souls
2x Fire-Lit Thicket
1x Forest
1x Mountain
1x Plains
2x Razorverge Thicket
2x Sacred Foundry
2x Stomping Ground
2x Temple Garden
4x Windswept Heath
4x Wooded Foothills
Instant (8)
4x Chord of Calling
4x Path to Exile
I included cavern of souls, set on "shaman", in case I want to prevent counters on cast Fauna Shaman, Fulminator Mage, Eternal Witness, or Kiki. As for Thalia, I keep her until the turn before I plan to chord and often suicide her when necessary. She is merely there to buy me time.
The biggest strength of this deck is in its fluidity to change gears and to pressure and interact in different ways, due to chord of calling. I generally never try to go off unless im guarenteed to win or im dead the next turn regardless.
They're just a quicker Combo deck than us. You could try Pyroclasm in your SB, which also hurts us some. But it really hurts Elves and can set them back 2-3 turns.
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)Against elves, affinity or fish, you need a sweeper to ease the job. Without sweepers, you can be rapidly overwhelmed.
Modern
Value Town
Amulet Titan
Legacy
4C Loam
My Peasant Cube
http://cubetutor.com/viewcube/11667