I consider Marsh Flats to be pretty important for the deck, especially if you expect to face any Blood Moon at all. However fetching W is most important under Moon since it turns on both Souls and Path, which can get you another basic, so Flooded Strand might be OK if you don't have a lot of Moons in your meta.
I am not playing Concealed Courtyard, instead opting for a single Isolated Chapel, because to my way of thinking, the only turn I don't mind a tapland too much is T1.
[EDIT] Played to a 3-1 finish in a field of 36 players tonight.
2-1 vs. Infect (1-0)
G1 went to his Blighted Agent, AKA the only real threat Infect has against us. G2 and 3 went to my abundant targeted removal plus Ratchet Bomb.
2-0 vs. Grixis Control (2-0)
Decks running Snapcaster, Tasigur, and Ancestral Vision fare poorly against Processors and this match was no exception. My opponent misplayed into a couple of Paths to make it easier for me tonight.
1-2 vs. Abzan Midrange (2-1)
G1 saw me keep a clunky 6 with TKS, Smasher, a Relic, and two lands. I never drew a third land, but I did draw two more Seers and another Smasher...lol. I shouldn't have kept that six. Opening two-land hands that include Seer and Smasher can be very slow to convert, which is part of the reason I find Mind Stone so essential to the build. I won G2 with removal and Spirit tokens; G3 went to him with Paths for all my Smashers and two Rhinos to power through my Spirit tokens.
2-0 vs. Naya Burn (3-1)
My opponent hadn't played competitively for a few years and I had some surprises for him. Strangler and Brutality were both new information. With one Collective Brutality main and another in the side, plus Blessed Alliance side as well, I now feel that this match is well favored for us. Players who run Inquisition of Kozilek will do even better here; I side out all my Thoughtseizes for this match, but that leaves me with two Relics that don't have a good replacement. Relic here is only good for Strangler and that is not good enough, in my opinion.
Thoughts: Brutality was totally amazing again and I am sold on keeping two in the 75. I called an audible tonight and sided in two Surgical Extraction (removing Stony Silence) when I noticed some players on Dredge before the event began, but I didn't encounter those guys so it was not needed. I probably would not do that in a blind meta, though.
I reminded myself about the danger of keeping two-land openers that are full of big Eldrazi, which is a truly key insight into playing the deck. Hands like that are a trap and should be avoided; if the hand includes a Lingering Souls (AND you can scry and/or are on the draw) then it MAY pan out, but it is still a big risk, especially in a fast meta like the current one.
What cards are you having trouble casting? I run similar land base (3 khans fetches instead of flats). I've found that it rarely makes a difference. Sure you may lose a few % points but those few points aren't worth the $150 it would cost me for the flats. Sometimes in the face of a blood moon you can ghost quarter your own land or path your own creatures for basics.
I haven't been playing modern in ages, but I regularly read Modern Reddit. It had a thread about budget Midrange decks, and this deck was mentioned by the person who is deaddrift here I believe. I've read posts from the last 20 pages and I've een playtesting this deck on cockatrice with surprisingly good results (although hardly ever against tier decks).
I'm considering purchasing it. I've been playing B/W tokens and this deck is basically a souped up version of it. That said; I'm wary of buying a deck that's not even classified as competitive by MTG Salvation. What is the honest opinion of you guys? Will this deck ever compete against the likes of Collected Company Combo, Merfolk or - dare I say it - Affinity, Delver and Jund? Because that's basically my FNM location. The one good thing about where I play FNMs is that it's mostly all tier decks (even visited by some pro tour players), but never seen ANY tron there! Lucky me, huh? \
tl;dr: Do you think this deck will ever become a tier deck again?
I haven't been playing modern in ages, but I regularly read Modern Reddit. It had a thread about budget Midrange decks, and this deck was mentioned by the person who is deaddrift here I believe. I've read posts from the last 20 pages and I've een playtesting this deck on cockatrice with surprisingly good results (although hardly ever against tier decks).
I'm considering purchasing it. I've been playing B/W tokens and this deck is basically a souped up version of it. That said; I'm wary of buying a deck that's not even classified as competitive by MTG Salvation. What is the honest opinion of you guys? Will this deck ever compete against the likes of Collected Company Combo, Merfolk or - dare I say it - Affinity, Delver and Jund? Because that's basically my FNM location. The one good thing about where I play FNMs is that it's mostly all tier decks (even visited by some pro tour players), but never seen ANY tron there! Lucky me, huh? \
tl;dr: Do you think this deck will ever become a tier deck again?
Tiered decks on MTG salvation are not a representation of power, rather of abundance of play. This is a good deck for sure. I top 8ed a PTQ a few years ago with deadguy ale and have since moved it more towards eldrazi ale and it just feels like it has gotten better. There is no deck that I feel I can't beat (soul sisters and burn are the two worst matchups in my opinion but that changes a lot based on your deck construction). Keep in mind though that the deck rewards tight play better than most decks in modern, and similarly punishes mistakes hard. You won't win many games where you make 2 or 3 mistakes but other games you feel like you are playing a legacy deck against a standard deck.
This deck destroys affinity. You can lose obviously, but with lingering souls, tons of removal, and a good clock I would absolutely say the match is in our favor.
I haven't been playing modern in ages, but I regularly read Modern Reddit. It had a thread about budget Midrange decks, and this deck was mentioned by the person who is deaddrift here I believe. I've read posts from the last 20 pages and I've een playtesting this deck on cockatrice with surprisingly good results (although hardly ever against tier decks).
I'm considering purchasing it. I've been playing B/W tokens and this deck is basically a souped up version of it. That said; I'm wary of buying a deck that's not even classified as competitive by MTG Salvation. What is the honest opinion of you guys? Will this deck ever compete against the likes of Collected Company Combo, Merfolk or - dare I say it - Affinity, Delver and Jund? Because that's basically my FNM location. The one good thing about where I play FNMs is that it's mostly all tier decks (even visited by some pro tour players), but never seen ANY tron there! Lucky me, huh? \
tl;dr: Do you think this deck will ever become a tier deck again?
In order to become a 'tiered deck' it needs to get a huge influx of players, and in order for a bunch of players to start playing it it needs to have some dominant performance(s) on the pro/large-scale tournament scene. Did Dredge get any more powerful all of a sudden? No, it had a whole ***** load of decks in the top 32 of some SCG tournament, everyone thinks "hey the deck must be strong and must be able to win lots, I want to switch to it NOW", and within a week after that its 10% of the meta. Decks become tiered by becoming more popular, not stronger.
Processors right now, in my opinion, has legit game against a massive portion of the current modern meta, and honestly I'd say path, relic, and ramping reshaper/tks/smasher out 1-2 turns early are the largest reasons for that. Relic is seriously a house, many times I'll play 4 rounds at an FNM and realize every single opponent had something I could get value out of relic exiling. The deck has different approaches against decks trying to win different ways, and feels incredibly flexible in that regard. As jwf239 said, it feels like it rewards practice, tight play, and knowledge of the opponent's deck and strategy and overall modern format, very much. I had been away from MTG for like 12 years and started playing again in January of this year. I picked modern for my format and jumped right in, choosing processors because I loved eldrazi right away. Starting from getting absolutely destroyed my first couple months because I didn't know the format AT ALL, or any cards AT ALL, or even the more complex rules of the game like the stack, to now almost a year later and I'm one of the few people at FNM consistently playing for/tying for first after starting 3-0. I feel like with each game or match loss, I can pinpoint why that loss happened; a mistake or two or more, drawing/mulliganing extremely unlucky/poorly with lands, or getting unlucky in not drawing your key sideboard/removal/discard/etc. when you have plenty of copies in the deck. Reflecting on why you lost the game, and what you could have done to as little as increase your percentage of winning had you had a chance for a do-over, is how you improve as a player IMO. This deck is absolutely capable of crushing at an FNM level, and from what I've seen from others even at a PPTQ level. So unless you're planning on traveling the country and attending larger than PPTQ tournaments and doing well enough to net a profit, this deck is every bit as competitive as jund/abzan/infect/affinity/whatever else.
I will close with saying the one thing I am worried about is processors getting some collateral damage from bant eldrazi and getting Eldrazi Temple banned. Hopefully dredge's rise has taken the heat off bant eldrazi, but you never know what wizards is thinking. When I first picked up the deck I was on the Eye of Ugin, Oblivion sower and blight herder ramping into Ulamog version. God that version was fun. Then Oath hits and it brings TKS, smasher, and Eldrazi Mimic. The eldrazi winter begins and it had something like well over 20% of the format I believe. Eye of Ugin gets banned and our little processors project gets the shaft. If we get hit again due to the bant eldrazi salt I would be so crushed. I really believe that wizards wants eldrazi in the format, so I would lean toward a non-ban of Temple, but I worry about this deck getting yet another setback after it's what I've invested into. I do have R/G tron built as well (I guess I like ramp and big beats, big whoop, wanna fight about it?) and I'd have no problem going to that, its super fun for me to play, but I just love playing a non-linear deck that plays both reactive and proactive, that plays like Jund but has way more gas with temple and smasher, and is like less than 1/4 the price.
I reminded myself about the danger of keeping two-land openers that are full of big Eldrazi, which is a truly key insight into playing the deck. Hands like that are a trap and should be avoided; if the hand includes a Lingering Souls (AND you can scry and/or are on the draw) then it MAY pan out, but it is still a big risk, especially in a fast meta like the current one.
I don't know, that is such a tough one. I have been so let down by like every 5 card hand I've seen, it feels so bad going down to 5 because you know if it's a trash hand you've just thrown the game away before turn 1. With that 6 all you need is a temple in the first 3 draws or two lands in the first 3 draws, or a land and a mind stone. Or a land and a lingering souls in the first 3 draws. Oh I totally forgot about scrying, so factor in a scry in there to boost the probability. I see so many ways for that hand to pan out, and percentage wise it feels like the better option than going down to 5. When I goldfish with tron I go down to 4 all day err day and don't care in the slightest, but when I do it with processors it feels so painful to go below 6. Like i legit hate it. Maybe that's just a bias I've had based on my small sample size and string of luck with 5 card hands.
I haven't been playing modern in ages, but I regularly read Modern Reddit. It had a thread about budget Midrange decks, and this deck was mentioned by the person who is deaddrift here I believe. I've read posts from the last 20 pages and I've een playtesting this deck on cockatrice with surprisingly good results (although hardly ever against tier decks).
I'm considering purchasing it. I've been playing B/W tokens and this deck is basically a souped up version of it. That said; I'm wary of buying a deck that's not even classified as competitive by MTG Salvation. What is the honest opinion of you guys? Will this deck ever compete against the likes of Collected Company Combo, Merfolk or - dare I say it - Affinity, Delver and Jund? Because that's basically my FNM location. The one good thing about where I play FNMs is that it's mostly all tier decks (even visited by some pro tour players), but never seen ANY tron there! Lucky me, huh? \
tl;dr: Do you think this deck will ever become a tier deck again?
I have said before that this deck feels like a secret to me. It is good for sure; though midrange as an archetype is having a tough time right now, I still feel very competitive. Affinity, Delver, and Jund are all well-favored matches for Processors; maindeck Relics help a lot with any Goyf or Snapcaster deck, while Ghost Quarter and Lingering Souls are also amazing. I would not hesitate to bring this deck to the local meta you describe.
Tough matches include especially RG Valakut builds (RUG Scapeshift and BTL Scapeshift are exceptions), RG Tron, and mono-colored go-wide fast aggro like Merfolk or Elves, who don't tend to put cards in the graveyard to turn Strangler on through Relic. I find most other matchups favored to even, though the current Cathartic Reunion Dredge deck isn't something I have played enough to feel certain of ranking. There is a pretty significant learning curve associated with the deck, as Tituba9 mentions.
In order to become a 'tiered deck' it needs to get a huge influx of players. Decks become tiered by becoming more popular, not stronger.
Starting from getting absolutely destroyed my first couple months because I didn't know the format AT ALL, or any cards AT ALL, or even the more complex rules of the game like the stack, to now almost a year later and I'm one of the few people at FNM consistently playing for/tying for first after starting 3-0. I feel like with each game or match loss, I can pinpoint why that loss happened; a mistake or two or more, drawing/mulliganing extremely unlucky/poorly with lands, or getting unlucky in not drawing your key sideboard/removal/discard/etc. when you have plenty of copies in the deck. Reflecting on why you lost the game, and what you could have done to as little as increase your percentage of winning had you had a chance for a do-over, is how you improve as a player IMO.
Ha, perfect timing! I found taking good notes to be really helpful in identifying misplays or clever angles, plus I wanted to record hand info from Thoughtseize or TKS anyway, so I made myself a notebook. So many players at my shop wanted one that I had some printed and have been selling them at my LGS. I just today put them on eBay, so if anyone is interested, here is the link:
I have been so let down by like every 5 card hand I've seen, it feels so bad going down to 5 because you know if it's a trash hand you've just thrown the game away before turn 1. With that 6 all you need is a temple in the first 3 draws or two lands in the first 3 draws, or a land and a mind stone. Or a land and a lingering souls in the first 3 draws. Oh I totally forgot about scrying, so factor in a scry in there to boost the probability. I see so many ways for that hand to pan out, and percentage wise it feels like the better option than going down to 5. When I goldfish with tron I go down to 4 all day err day and don't care in the slightest, but when I do it with processors it feels so painful to go below 6. Like i legit hate it. Maybe that's just a bias I've had based on my small sample size and string of luck with 5 card hands.
Going to five is not great, but drawing each of two cards needed to make a hand live is really pretty unlikely. Mulligan decisions are one of the most skill-intensive parts of the game and require insight into the deck and the matchup, both. Last time I mulled to five--twice--against Suicide Zoo, I was able to win because I found the removal I needed to survive.
Both Relic and Mind Stone help make iffy land draws much better; Stone because of ramp and Relic because it is an added card for cheap on any turn after T1.
Any experience with Fulminator Mage yet? Let us know after you have enough matches to draw conclusions.
Going to five is not great, but drawing each of two cards needed to make a hand live is really pretty unlikely. Mulligan decisions are one of the most skill-intensive parts of the game and require insight into the deck and the matchup, both. Last time I mulled to five--twice--against Suicide Zoo, I was able to win because I found the removal I needed to survive.
Both Relic and Mind Stone help make iffy land draws much better; Stone because of ramp and Relic because it is an added card for cheap on any turn after T1.
Any experience with Fulminator Mage yet? Let us know after you have enough matches to draw conclusions.
Yeah, you're probably right to pitch the 6 hand. As I said the few times I've gone down to 5 I've been displeased so I'm biased. Almost always I try to stick to the rule that I don't keep hands that have cards I don't have the lands/colors to play, and am depending on a certain top deck to make it work,
I haven't had near enough experience to make a decision on Fulminator, I only play once every two weeks typically so I've only had two FNMs since I picked them up. The first time, I had it in the opener against bant eldrazi, but it ended up being a super weird game where shutting down an early temple was irrelevant, we both went an absurdly long time without drawing gas. The next time, the players I brought the fulms in for weren't attending. I brought them in because the best players at my LGS play bant eldrazi, tron, and through the breach/Valakut. I feel it's a pretty good card against both tron and through the breach. I just haven't had the number of FNMs to show how well it performs. I'm also wary of only having one in the side, because it's a card you want to have ready to play t3 against tron and bant eldrazi, and asap when a Valakut hits the field, so running two seems a better idea than hoping to have a single copy in your opening hand.
How do you feel about Batterskull in the current state of modern? I was running it a while back but took it out with herders to add reshapers, but I've been thinking about adding it back in. If only we could more consistently ramp it out on T4 than just mind stones. Feels like T5 is a turn too slow against burn/aggro.
I haven't had near enough experience to make a decision on Fulminator, I only play once every two weeks typically so I've only had two FNMs since I picked them up. The first time, I had it in the opener against bant eldrazi, but it ended up being a super weird game where shutting down an early temple was irrelevant, we both went an absurdly long time without drawing gas. The next time, the players I brought the fulms in for weren't attending. I brought them in because the best players at my LGS play bant eldrazi, tron, and through the breach/Valakut. I feel it's a pretty good card against both tron and through the breach. I just haven't had the number of FNMs to show how well it performs. I'm also wary of only having one in the side, because it's a card you want to have ready to play t3 against tron and bant eldrazi, and asap when a Valakut hits the field, so running two seems a better idea than hoping to have a single copy in your opening hand.
How do you feel about Batterskull in the current state of modern? I was running it a while back but took it out with herders to add reshapers, but I've been thinking about adding it back in. If only we could more consistently ramp it out on T4 than just mind stones. Feels like T5 is a turn too slow against burn/aggro.
I'm not too sure about Fulminator, then again I haven't tested it as well. Sure it's land destruction for 3 mana but that's all it does and you will probably cut Reshaper or Strangler for it since it's in that slot and I'm not sure that is what you'd want. GQ does that same but will still give your opponent a land back IF they still have basics in their deck.
IF you would add Batterskull, what would you cut for it?
I'm not too sure about Fulminator, then again I haven't tested it as well. Sure it's land destruction for 3 mana but that's all it does and you will probably cut Reshaper or Strangler for it since it's in that slot and I'm not sure that is what you'd want. GQ does that same but will still give your opponent a land back IF they still have basics in their deck.
IF you would add Batterskull, what would you cut for it?
Well its a sideboard card, so all I need it for is land destruction against a few key matchups that will determine whether I get a top spot for the night. Not sure if you're wondering what I'd take out for it post-sideboard, or you thought I was talking about maindecking fulminator. For instance against tron and through the breach I'd have no issues taking out a strangler or two, there is literally nothing to use its -3/-3 on. For Batterskull, I'd probably move the ratchet in my main to the side and maybe go down to 1 EE in the side? Not sure.
Round 1 i crushed Infect. Inquisition of kozilek and strangler plus Souls were Beatings. 2-0
Round 2 was UWr Emeria. Match he literally folds to Relic of Progenitus. Match 2 he was able to handle my RiP and goes off wiht Sun Titan shenanigans. Match 3 i had much Business, but no Grave-hoser. He goes off with Titan / Saheeli-Combo. 1-2
Round 3 i kept a greedy 1-Lander and lost w/o any more Lands. Match 2 i was stuck on 2 Lands and lost against Blood Moon. 0-2
Although i've lost because of being too greedy, the deck felt great overall. The Sideboard needs some tweaking, but that's no Problem at all.
I tried Batterskull and also Blood Baron of Vizkopa for several weeks each, and found that both were too high a mana cost because they didn't get ramped by Temple. Right now I am not considering them for the deck; Reality Smasher and Sorin both seem like stronger choices to me.
I've recently been re-considering the idea of playing two Surgical Extraction in the side for the atrocious RG Valakut matches, since I am still running three Ghost Quarters. (Right now I pretty much just hope to avoid Titanshift and RG Breach decks.) It could be a good side-in for Tron, Dredge, and combo like Living End or Ad Nauseam too. Don't know what I'd take out, though. I have been conflicted about Declaration in Stone because the card draw it gives the opponent is really pretty awful. But the added targeted creature removal--that exiles, no less--has been excellent, even at sorcery speed.
I tried Batterskull and also Blood Baron of Vizkopa for several weeks each, and found that both were too high a mana cost because they didn't get ramped by Temple. Right now I am not considering them for the deck; Reality Smasher and Sorin both seem like stronger choices to me.
I've recently been re-considering the idea of playing two Surgical Extraction in the side for the atrocious RG Valakut matches, since I am still running three Ghost Quarters. (Right now I pretty much just hope to avoid Titanshift and RG Breach decks.) It could be a good side-in for Tron, Dredge, and combo like Living End or Ad Nauseam too. Don't know what I'd take out, though. I have been conflicted about Declaration in Stone because the card draw it gives the opponent is really pretty awful. But the added targeted creature removal--that exiles, no less--has been excellent, even at sorcery speed.
I've found declaration in stone useful against Jund decks and against Tezzerator decks (thopters). More removal always seems good against Jund. I originally put in the SB for Dredge but haven't played against in since I've put it in.
What's your current SB plan for Valakut decks? Mine is 2 warping wails (scapeshift), a surgical extraction, and a disenchant if I think they're running prismatic omen. I'll take out 4 relics for these.
i'm new to this deck too, but not new to the format at all.
Tidehollow Sculler looks great on paper, but i ensure you, after some test matches i concluded that it is super-clunky and totally off-curve.
blight herder is inferior to reality smasher because Smasher closes Games much faster and forces 2-for-1's the same way Herder does. matter reshaper is a 3-of for me right now. He is alright, providing a clock, chumps and cantrips.
Here are my own findings with teh deck:
I've cutted vault of the archangel because i always died before i got time to use it.
For now i'm running 3 Quarter + 1 Wreckage.
Sideboarding is tough at times.
I recently lost bluntly to Affinity. Match 1 he dropped his hand Turn 1 and killed me Turn 3.
Match he spell pierce'd my Stony and killed me Turn 3 again.
Does anyone board surgical extraction against Bant Eldrazi?
I found this MU tough to board.
Another question:
Do we have something really great against Uwr Nahiri?
Another Planeswalker or something else?
I finally have some more time to get back into MTG. Recently, the processor brew has been mediocre. My last 4 events I have either won it or went 2-2. This is a big change where I used to x-0 the majority of the local modern events and I believe that it is due to three things. First, the people around here know my deck pretty well now and have started adding specific sideboard cards for me (night of souls' betrayal really hurts). Second, mistakes on my part. This happens, I am a human. Third, the deck stalls out. This is probably due to me cutting mind stone in favor of liliana of the veil. Liliana is amazing, BUT I have lost a lot of games by only hitting 2 mana. Our deck needs to hit 3 (minimum) during a match to do decent.
I am cutting my liliana's in favor of mind stone. I have missed them. I talked about why I initially cut them here.
I have been back and forth on the tidehollow sculler train. The 2/2 body is underwhelming but do not underestimate the importance of looking at the opponents hand. I have had a love/hate relationship with the 'sculler and I rambled on a lot about the card here. However, I feel this deck needs some more card draw and I really don't like it when my creatures eat a removal spell. Therefore, I am going to cut tidehollow sculler in favor of selfless spirit. This will ease up the mana restrictions and I can give sea gate wreckage another chance.
Here is my decklist that I'll be trying out in the future (suggestions more than welcome!):
i'm new to this deck too, but not new to the format at all.
Tidehollow Sculler looks great on paper, but i ensure you, after some test matches i concluded that it is super-clunky and totally off-curve.
blight herder is inferior to reality smasher because Smasher closes Games much faster and forces 2-for-1's the same way Herder does. matter reshaper is a 3-of for me right now. He is alright, providing a clock, chumps and cantrips.
Here are my own findings with teh deck:
I've cutted vault of the archangel because i always died before i got time to use it.
For now i'm running 3 Quarter + 1 Wreckage.
Sideboarding is tough at times.
I recently lost bluntly to Affinity. Match 1 he dropped his hand Turn 1 and killed me Turn 3.
Match he spell pierce'd my Stony and killed me Turn 3 again.
Does anyone board surgical extraction against Bant Eldrazi?
I found this MU tough to board.
Another question:
Do we have something really great against Uwr Nahiri?
Another Planeswalker or something else?
Surgical extraction is just a bad card. Modern decks are resilient enough to usually survive and they don't rely on one win-con. It automatically puts you one card behind in your hand and it relys on another card to put whatever you want to extract in their graveyard. What decks are you bringing it in for?
Hello all, long time lurker in this thread. I have buit this deck in paper and would like some advice on how to make it more competitive. I find that the Blight Herder is mediocre at best since there is nothing to ramp into. Sideboard is lacking as well so i would appreciate any help. I will take to it to unknown meta, but generally there are some people with tron and afinity decks.
Lose the Windswept Heath and add a Godless Shrine; black is more important early-on than white.
I think 4 Vents is too many, since they slow the build down. This is especially true if you decide not to run Mind Stone as a ramp/cantrip. If you have the 4th Flats I would run it in place of one of these, especially if you add a Shrine as recommended above.
Blight Herder is amazing when he processes BUT he is conditional. Minimizing the processing angle by cutting Herder means that the deck is less reliant on Relics, which are useless in a large number of matches. Smasher is one of the best planeswalker-destroyers and late-game topdecks in the whole format. I think Smasher is better overall--but pushing the build towards C affects the manabase, especially if you expect to encounter Blood Moon. Running both Sculler and lots of C cards together really is kind of a stretch.
I don't like LotV in this deck, because she tends to shred my hand of the high CMC threats that make the deck work, or of the mana I need to cast them.
I think your SB looks pretty good except you do not need 2 Stony AND 2 Kataki. Pick one and free up a couple of slots.
Does anyone board surgical extraction against Bant Eldrazi?
I found this MU tough to board.
Another question:
Do we have something really great against Uwr Nahiri?
Another Planeswalker or something else?
I would not side Extraction against Bant Eldrazi. I have oriented my SB heavily towards aggro with Brutality, Unmaking, Blessed Alliance, Declaration in Stone, Ratchet Bomb, and Damnation. I am thinking I would like to have a couple Extractions in my side, but I worry about losing some of that removal.
I find Jeskai Nahiri to be pretty well-favored for us, actually. Cards I like to see in this match include Cavern of Souls, Lingering Souls, Smasher, Thoughtseize (more than Inquisition), TKS (especially when ramped by Temple or Mind Stone), Unmaking, and from the side, Pithing Needle and Ratchet Bomb.
I finally have some more time to get back into MTG. Recently, the processor brew has been mediocre. My last 4 events I have either won it or went 2-2. This is a big change where I used to x-0 the majority of the local modern events and I believe that it is due to three things. First, the people around here know my deck pretty well now and have started adding specific sideboard cards for me (night of souls' betrayal really hurts). Second, mistakes on my part. This happens, I am a human. Third, the deck stalls out. This is probably due to me cutting mind stone in favor of liliana of the veil. Liliana is amazing, BUT I have lost a lot of games by only hitting 2 mana. Our deck needs to hit 3 (minimum) during a match to do decent.
I am cutting my liliana's in favor of mind stone. I have missed them. I talked about why I initially cut them here.
I have been back and forth on the tidehollow sculler train. The 2/2 body is underwhelming but do not underestimate the importance of looking at the opponents hand. I have had a love/hate relationship with the 'sculler and I rambled on a lot about the card here. However, I feel this deck needs some more card draw and I really don't like it when my creatures eat a removal spell. Therefore, I am going to cut tidehollow sculler in favor of selfless spirit. This will ease up the mana restrictions and I can give sea gate wreckage another chance.
Here is my decklist that I'll be trying out in the future (suggestions more than welcome!):
Surgical extraction is just a bad card. Modern decks are resilient enough to usually survive and they don't rely on one win-con. It automatically puts you one card behind in your hand and it relys on another card to put whatever you want to extract in their graveyard. What decks are you bringing it in for?
Good to see you back, herfs! You have consistently had some great ideas for these decks we play. I think you were the one who first gave Mind Stone a shot, weren't you? I am 100% sold on that card now in this high-curve build. As mentioned above I am not a fan of Lili, in this deck.
Regarding the oft-discussed 2-drop slot, I see it as a special case in this build and work around it by A) playing a T2 tapland plus 1 CMC card; B) Mind Stone, Go for the Throat (much better than Path against dorks) or Brutality; or C) Temple plus Reshaper or Strangler. As you know, T3 is the crucial turn for this deck and T1-2 are just setting up. I do have a lot of 2 -drops in the side as well, and most are there for the fast decks, so that helps.
Extraction is inherent card-disadvantage, it's true. However it can lead to some backbreaking (albeit sometimes difficult to execute) plays against decks that do have one key card, like combo or Valakut. And it can get Prized Amalgam at any time, which is a big deal.
Right now I am considering adding two SE's for Dredge, Ad Nauseam, and the RG Valakut decks, but I can't find room for it without nerfing the aggro hate I am finding so useful right now. Can't believe I'm saying it, but I'm thinking of taking out a Stony Silence, since SE could also come in against Tron, and Affinity is really pretty easy overall. One of my two Declarations is the other candidate. That would make my side look like this, with both Unmaking and Brutality as a 2-of split main/side:
How much work is Shambling Vent doing for you guys? Do you use the ability often? Does it impact the game? Is the getting into play tapped causing problems often or is the manland so good that it doesn't matter that much?
Good to see you back, herfs! You have consistently had some great ideas for these decks we play. I think you were the one who first gave Mind Stone a shot, weren't you? I am 100% sold on that card now in this high-curve build. As mentioned above I am not a fan of Lili, in this deck.
Thanks! I am pretty sure that was me. The bw eldrazi archtype needed a mana ramp source and it was between mind stone or a crappy talisman or keystone. I played a in a very small event last night and mind stone worked perfectly. I was able to consistently hit 3 mana and I could keep opening hands that contained 2 lands and a mind stone.
Regarding the oft-discussed 2-drop slot, I see it as a special case in this build and work around it by A) playing a T2 tapland plus 1 CMC card; B) Mind Stone, Go for the Throat (much better than Path against dorks) or Brutality; or C) Temple plus Reshaper or Strangler. As you know, T3 is the crucial turn for this deck and T1-2 are just setting up. I do have a lot of 2 -drops in the side as well, and most are there for the fast decks, so that helps.
I still feel like the deck is lacking on the 2-drop slot. I ordered some selfless spirits to test out. My thought process on why these are decent for the deck are:
It has 2 power, evasion, is easy on the mana, and can apply pressure.
On a stalled board, we can play our sweepers and sac the spirit in response. This is a complete blowout but will not happen often.
People love killing thought-knot seer and reality smasher and we need our own spellskite-like creature to protect our more important creatures. It doesn't protect us against path but I would rather have a 2/1 flyer instead of spellskite.
It might help the tron matchup. Oblivion stones would be useless and we can go all out.
One downfall of selfless spirit is that it has 1 toughtness. It will die to anything.
Extraction is inherent card-disadvantage, it's true. However it can lead to some backbreaking (albeit sometimes difficult to execute) plays against decks that do have one key card, like combo or Valakut. And it can get Prized Amalgam at any time, which is a big deal.
Right now I am considering adding two SE's for Dredge, Ad Nauseam, and the RG Valakut decks, but I can't find room for it without nerfing the aggro hate I am finding so useful right now. Can't believe I'm saying it, but I'm thinking of taking out a Stony Silence, since SE could also come in against Tron, and Affinity is really pretty easy overall. One of my two Declarations is the other candidate. That would make my side look like this, with both Unmaking and Brutality as a 2-of split main/side:
HA! That is great. I was thinking the same thing a few weeks ago about stony silence. Between my all of my sweepers in the board, lingering souls, and disenchant the matchup isn't too terrible.
I don't find the dredge matchup to be that difficult. It can be very explosive at times, but once we get our larger creatures out there prized amalgam is not a problem. I'm just not a fan of surgical because you need to be able to put the problematic card in their graveyard and the odds of that are somewhat low. Scapeshift (or rg breach) and tron are hard matchups that I have just given up on. Maybe we should just put a couple duress in the side. I haven't tried out declaration in stone and I don't know how it preforms.
How much work is Shambling Vent doing for you guys? Do you use the ability often? Does it impact the game? Is the getting into play tapped causing problems often or is the manland so good that it doesn't matter that much?
Shambling vent is a great utility card that is available to us. It helps us when there is a stalled board state and gains us a little life when we need it. It is a good 2-of in the deck but doesn't put in any serious work. Raging ravine is a much better manland, but shambling vent is what we have. Coming into play tapped can be a problem. However, it is usually in our opening hand or a top deck later in the game.
I am not playing Concealed Courtyard, instead opting for a single Isolated Chapel, because to my way of thinking, the only turn I don't mind a tapland too much is T1.
[EDIT] Played to a 3-1 finish in a field of 36 players tonight.
2-1 vs. Infect (1-0)
G1 went to his Blighted Agent, AKA the only real threat Infect has against us. G2 and 3 went to my abundant targeted removal plus Ratchet Bomb.
2-0 vs. Grixis Control (2-0)
Decks running Snapcaster, Tasigur, and Ancestral Vision fare poorly against Processors and this match was no exception. My opponent misplayed into a couple of Paths to make it easier for me tonight.
1-2 vs. Abzan Midrange (2-1)
G1 saw me keep a clunky 6 with TKS, Smasher, a Relic, and two lands. I never drew a third land, but I did draw two more Seers and another Smasher...lol. I shouldn't have kept that six. Opening two-land hands that include Seer and Smasher can be very slow to convert, which is part of the reason I find Mind Stone so essential to the build. I won G2 with removal and Spirit tokens; G3 went to him with Paths for all my Smashers and two Rhinos to power through my Spirit tokens.
2-0 vs. Naya Burn (3-1)
My opponent hadn't played competitively for a few years and I had some surprises for him. Strangler and Brutality were both new information. With one Collective Brutality main and another in the side, plus Blessed Alliance side as well, I now feel that this match is well favored for us. Players who run Inquisition of Kozilek will do even better here; I side out all my Thoughtseizes for this match, but that leaves me with two Relics that don't have a good replacement. Relic here is only good for Strangler and that is not good enough, in my opinion.
Thoughts: Brutality was totally amazing again and I am sold on keeping two in the 75. I called an audible tonight and sided in two Surgical Extraction (removing Stony Silence) when I noticed some players on Dredge before the event began, but I didn't encounter those guys so it was not needed. I probably would not do that in a blind meta, though.
I reminded myself about the danger of keeping two-land openers that are full of big Eldrazi, which is a truly key insight into playing the deck. Hands like that are a trap and should be avoided; if the hand includes a Lingering Souls (AND you can scry and/or are on the draw) then it MAY pan out, but it is still a big risk, especially in a fast meta like the current one.
i surely don't want to trade for Marsh Flats because it's a bad long-term investation.
Literally 0 relevant Decks play Flats ATM.
so there it is.
Maybe i'll cut more Strands / Deltas for Chapel or Basics, based on there performance.
Green @ it's best
UBR Grixis Death's shadow
I'm considering purchasing it. I've been playing B/W tokens and this deck is basically a souped up version of it. That said; I'm wary of buying a deck that's not even classified as competitive by MTG Salvation. What is the honest opinion of you guys? Will this deck ever compete against the likes of Collected Company Combo, Merfolk or - dare I say it - Affinity, Delver and Jund? Because that's basically my FNM location. The one good thing about where I play FNMs is that it's mostly all tier decks (even visited by some pro tour players), but never seen ANY tron there! Lucky me, huh? \
tl;dr: Do you think this deck will ever become a tier deck again?
Merfolk Wizards AKA "Wizards of the Coast"
Tiered decks on MTG salvation are not a representation of power, rather of abundance of play. This is a good deck for sure. I top 8ed a PTQ a few years ago with deadguy ale and have since moved it more towards eldrazi ale and it just feels like it has gotten better. There is no deck that I feel I can't beat (soul sisters and burn are the two worst matchups in my opinion but that changes a lot based on your deck construction). Keep in mind though that the deck rewards tight play better than most decks in modern, and similarly punishes mistakes hard. You won't win many games where you make 2 or 3 mistakes but other games you feel like you are playing a legacy deck against a standard deck.
This deck destroys affinity. You can lose obviously, but with lingering souls, tons of removal, and a good clock I would absolutely say the match is in our favor.
In order to become a 'tiered deck' it needs to get a huge influx of players, and in order for a bunch of players to start playing it it needs to have some dominant performance(s) on the pro/large-scale tournament scene. Did Dredge get any more powerful all of a sudden? No, it had a whole ***** load of decks in the top 32 of some SCG tournament, everyone thinks "hey the deck must be strong and must be able to win lots, I want to switch to it NOW", and within a week after that its 10% of the meta. Decks become tiered by becoming more popular, not stronger.
Processors right now, in my opinion, has legit game against a massive portion of the current modern meta, and honestly I'd say path, relic, and ramping reshaper/tks/smasher out 1-2 turns early are the largest reasons for that. Relic is seriously a house, many times I'll play 4 rounds at an FNM and realize every single opponent had something I could get value out of relic exiling. The deck has different approaches against decks trying to win different ways, and feels incredibly flexible in that regard. As jwf239 said, it feels like it rewards practice, tight play, and knowledge of the opponent's deck and strategy and overall modern format, very much. I had been away from MTG for like 12 years and started playing again in January of this year. I picked modern for my format and jumped right in, choosing processors because I loved eldrazi right away. Starting from getting absolutely destroyed my first couple months because I didn't know the format AT ALL, or any cards AT ALL, or even the more complex rules of the game like the stack, to now almost a year later and I'm one of the few people at FNM consistently playing for/tying for first after starting 3-0. I feel like with each game or match loss, I can pinpoint why that loss happened; a mistake or two or more, drawing/mulliganing extremely unlucky/poorly with lands, or getting unlucky in not drawing your key sideboard/removal/discard/etc. when you have plenty of copies in the deck. Reflecting on why you lost the game, and what you could have done to as little as increase your percentage of winning had you had a chance for a do-over, is how you improve as a player IMO. This deck is absolutely capable of crushing at an FNM level, and from what I've seen from others even at a PPTQ level. So unless you're planning on traveling the country and attending larger than PPTQ tournaments and doing well enough to net a profit, this deck is every bit as competitive as jund/abzan/infect/affinity/whatever else.
I will close with saying the one thing I am worried about is processors getting some collateral damage from bant eldrazi and getting Eldrazi Temple banned. Hopefully dredge's rise has taken the heat off bant eldrazi, but you never know what wizards is thinking. When I first picked up the deck I was on the Eye of Ugin, Oblivion sower and blight herder ramping into Ulamog version. God that version was fun. Then Oath hits and it brings TKS, smasher, and Eldrazi Mimic. The eldrazi winter begins and it had something like well over 20% of the format I believe. Eye of Ugin gets banned and our little processors project gets the shaft. If we get hit again due to the bant eldrazi salt I would be so crushed. I really believe that wizards wants eldrazi in the format, so I would lean toward a non-ban of Temple, but I worry about this deck getting yet another setback after it's what I've invested into. I do have R/G tron built as well (I guess I like ramp and big beats, big whoop, wanna fight about it?) and I'd have no problem going to that, its super fun for me to play, but I just love playing a non-linear deck that plays both reactive and proactive, that plays like Jund but has way more gas with temple and smasher, and is like less than 1/4 the price.
WG G/W Tron GW
BG G/B Tron GB
GG Mono G Tron GG
RG G/R Tron GR
I don't know, that is such a tough one. I have been so let down by like every 5 card hand I've seen, it feels so bad going down to 5 because you know if it's a trash hand you've just thrown the game away before turn 1. With that 6 all you need is a temple in the first 3 draws or two lands in the first 3 draws, or a land and a mind stone. Or a land and a lingering souls in the first 3 draws. Oh I totally forgot about scrying, so factor in a scry in there to boost the probability. I see so many ways for that hand to pan out, and percentage wise it feels like the better option than going down to 5. When I goldfish with tron I go down to 4 all day err day and don't care in the slightest, but when I do it with processors it feels so painful to go below 6. Like i legit hate it. Maybe that's just a bias I've had based on my small sample size and string of luck with 5 card hands.
WG G/W Tron GW
BG G/B Tron GB
GG Mono G Tron GG
RG G/R Tron GR
Tough matches include especially RG Valakut builds (RUG Scapeshift and BTL Scapeshift are exceptions), RG Tron, and mono-colored go-wide fast aggro like Merfolk or Elves, who don't tend to put cards in the graveyard to turn Strangler on through Relic. I find most other matchups favored to even, though the current Cathartic Reunion Dredge deck isn't something I have played enough to feel certain of ranking. There is a pretty significant learning curve associated with the deck, as Tituba9 mentions. Ha, perfect timing! I found taking good notes to be really helpful in identifying misplays or clever angles, plus I wanted to record hand info from Thoughtseize or TKS anyway, so I made myself a notebook. So many players at my shop wanted one that I had some printed and have been selling them at my LGS. I just today put them on eBay, so if anyone is interested, here is the link:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/132012847147?ssPageName=STRK:MESELX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1555.l2649
Going to five is not great, but drawing each of two cards needed to make a hand live is really pretty unlikely. Mulligan decisions are one of the most skill-intensive parts of the game and require insight into the deck and the matchup, both. Last time I mulled to five--twice--against Suicide Zoo, I was able to win because I found the removal I needed to survive.
Both Relic and Mind Stone help make iffy land draws much better; Stone because of ramp and Relic because it is an added card for cheap on any turn after T1.
Any experience with Fulminator Mage yet? Let us know after you have enough matches to draw conclusions.
Yeah, you're probably right to pitch the 6 hand. As I said the few times I've gone down to 5 I've been displeased so I'm biased. Almost always I try to stick to the rule that I don't keep hands that have cards I don't have the lands/colors to play, and am depending on a certain top deck to make it work,
I haven't had near enough experience to make a decision on Fulminator, I only play once every two weeks typically so I've only had two FNMs since I picked them up. The first time, I had it in the opener against bant eldrazi, but it ended up being a super weird game where shutting down an early temple was irrelevant, we both went an absurdly long time without drawing gas. The next time, the players I brought the fulms in for weren't attending. I brought them in because the best players at my LGS play bant eldrazi, tron, and through the breach/Valakut. I feel it's a pretty good card against both tron and through the breach. I just haven't had the number of FNMs to show how well it performs. I'm also wary of only having one in the side, because it's a card you want to have ready to play t3 against tron and bant eldrazi, and asap when a Valakut hits the field, so running two seems a better idea than hoping to have a single copy in your opening hand.
How do you feel about Batterskull in the current state of modern? I was running it a while back but took it out with herders to add reshapers, but I've been thinking about adding it back in. If only we could more consistently ramp it out on T4 than just mind stones. Feels like T5 is a turn too slow against burn/aggro.
WG G/W Tron GW
BG G/B Tron GB
GG Mono G Tron GG
RG G/R Tron GR
IF you would add Batterskull, what would you cut for it?
Well its a sideboard card, so all I need it for is land destruction against a few key matchups that will determine whether I get a top spot for the night. Not sure if you're wondering what I'd take out for it post-sideboard, or you thought I was talking about maindecking fulminator. For instance against tron and through the breach I'd have no issues taking out a strangler or two, there is literally nothing to use its -3/-3 on. For Batterskull, I'd probably move the ratchet in my main to the side and maybe go down to 1 EE in the side? Not sure.
WG G/W Tron GW
BG G/B Tron GB
GG Mono G Tron GG
RG G/R Tron GR
Round 1 i crushed Infect. Inquisition of kozilek and strangler plus Souls were Beatings. 2-0
Round 2 was UWr Emeria. Match he literally folds to Relic of Progenitus. Match 2 he was able to handle my RiP and goes off wiht Sun Titan shenanigans. Match 3 i had much Business, but no Grave-hoser. He goes off with Titan / Saheeli-Combo. 1-2
Round 3 i kept a greedy 1-Lander and lost w/o any more Lands. Match 2 i was stuck on 2 Lands and lost against Blood Moon. 0-2
Although i've lost because of being too greedy, the deck felt great overall. The Sideboard needs some tweaking, but that's no Problem at all.
Green @ it's best
I've recently been re-considering the idea of playing two Surgical Extraction in the side for the atrocious RG Valakut matches, since I am still running three Ghost Quarters. (Right now I pretty much just hope to avoid Titanshift and RG Breach decks.) It could be a good side-in for Tron, Dredge, and combo like Living End or Ad Nauseam too. Don't know what I'd take out, though. I have been conflicted about Declaration in Stone because the card draw it gives the opponent is really pretty awful. But the added targeted creature removal--that exiles, no less--has been excellent, even at sorcery speed.
I've found declaration in stone useful against Jund decks and against Tezzerator decks (thopters). More removal always seems good against Jund. I originally put in the SB for Dredge but haven't played against in since I've put it in.
What's your current SB plan for Valakut decks? Mine is 2 warping wails (scapeshift), a surgical extraction, and a disenchant if I think they're running prismatic omen. I'll take out 4 relics for these.
UBR Grixis Death's shadow
i'm new to this deck too, but not new to the format at all.
Tidehollow Sculler looks great on paper, but i ensure you, after some test matches i concluded that it is super-clunky and totally off-curve.
blight herder is inferior to reality smasher because Smasher closes Games much faster and forces 2-for-1's the same way Herder does.
matter reshaper is a 3-of for me right now. He is alright, providing a clock, chumps and cantrips.
Be sure to run some amount of collective brutality, it's the real deal.
Your sideboard looks solid, cut the timely reinforcements for blessed alliance or brutality.
Both are faster and much more versatile. I found also ratchet bomb to be super-useful in my side.
Here are my own findings with teh deck:
I've cutted vault of the archangel because i always died before i got time to use it.
For now i'm running 3 Quarter + 1 Wreckage.
Sideboarding is tough at times.
I recently lost bluntly to Affinity. Match 1 he dropped his hand Turn 1 and killed me Turn 3.
Match he spell pierce'd my Stony and killed me Turn 3 again.
Does anyone board surgical extraction against Bant Eldrazi?
I found this MU tough to board.
Another question:
Do we have something really great against Uwr Nahiri?
Another Planeswalker or something else?
Green @ it's best
I am cutting my liliana's in favor of mind stone. I have missed them. I talked about why I initially cut them here.
I have been back and forth on the tidehollow sculler train. The 2/2 body is underwhelming but do not underestimate the importance of looking at the opponents hand. I have had a love/hate relationship with the 'sculler and I rambled on a lot about the card here. However, I feel this deck needs some more card draw and I really don't like it when my creatures eat a removal spell. Therefore, I am going to cut tidehollow sculler in favor of selfless spirit. This will ease up the mana restrictions and I can give sea gate wreckage another chance.
Here is my decklist that I'll be trying out in the future (suggestions more than welcome!):
3 Selfless Spirit
1 Eldrazi Displacer
3 Matter Reshaper
2 Wasteland Strangler
4 Thought-Knot Seer
3 Reality Smasher
Artifacts (5)
3 Relic of Progenitus
2 Mind Stone
Sorcery (9)
4 Lingering Souls
2 Inquisition of Kozilek
2 Thoughtseize
1 Collective Brutality
4 Path to Exile
Planeswalkers (2)
2 Sorin, Solemn Visitor
Land (24)
4 Eldrazi Temple
4 Caves of Koilos
3 Concealed Courtyard
3 Marsh Flats
2 Ghost Quarter
2 Godless Shrine
2 Shambling Vent
1 Vault of the Archangel
1 Sea Gate Wreckage
1 Swamp
1 Plains
1 Anguished Unmaking
1 Blessed Alliance
1 Day of Judgment
2 Disenchant
1 Engineered explosives
1 Stony Silence
1 Grafdigger's Cage
1 Rest in peace
1 Zealous persecution
2 Pithing needle
1 Worship
1 Celestial Purge
1 Smother
Surgical extraction is just a bad card. Modern decks are resilient enough to usually survive and they don't rely on one win-con. It automatically puts you one card behind in your hand and it relys on another card to put whatever you want to extract in their graveyard. What decks are you bringing it in for?
Against UWR Nahiri I would bring in celestial purge. It hits a lot of problematic modern cards (liliana of the veil, nahiri, the harbinger, blood moon, kalitas, traitor of ghet, and many more) that I recommend it in your sideboard.
CBW midrange deck
CBW eldrazi processor deck
CBW bw eldrazi shadow midrange
I find Jeskai Nahiri to be pretty well-favored for us, actually. Cards I like to see in this match include Cavern of Souls, Lingering Souls, Smasher, Thoughtseize (more than Inquisition), TKS (especially when ramped by Temple or Mind Stone), Unmaking, and from the side, Pithing Needle and Ratchet Bomb. Good to see you back, herfs! You have consistently had some great ideas for these decks we play. I think you were the one who first gave Mind Stone a shot, weren't you? I am 100% sold on that card now in this high-curve build. As mentioned above I am not a fan of Lili, in this deck.
Regarding the oft-discussed 2-drop slot, I see it as a special case in this build and work around it by A) playing a T2 tapland plus 1 CMC card; B) Mind Stone, Go for the Throat (much better than Path against dorks) or Brutality; or C) Temple plus Reshaper or Strangler. As you know, T3 is the crucial turn for this deck and T1-2 are just setting up. I do have a lot of 2 -drops in the side as well, and most are there for the fast decks, so that helps.
Extraction is inherent card-disadvantage, it's true. However it can lead to some backbreaking (albeit sometimes difficult to execute) plays against decks that do have one key card, like combo or Valakut. And it can get Prized Amalgam at any time, which is a big deal.
Right now I am considering adding two SE's for Dredge, Ad Nauseam, and the RG Valakut decks, but I can't find room for it without nerfing the aggro hate I am finding so useful right now. Can't believe I'm saying it, but I'm thinking of taking out a Stony Silence, since SE could also come in against Tron, and Affinity is really pretty easy overall. One of my two Declarations is the other candidate. That would make my side look like this, with both Unmaking and Brutality as a 2-of split main/side:
Thanks! I am pretty sure that was me. The bw eldrazi archtype needed a mana ramp source and it was between mind stone or a crappy talisman or keystone. I played a in a very small event last night and mind stone worked perfectly. I was able to consistently hit 3 mana and I could keep opening hands that contained 2 lands and a mind stone.
I still feel like the deck is lacking on the 2-drop slot. I ordered some selfless spirits to test out. My thought process on why these are decent for the deck are:
HA! That is great. I was thinking the same thing a few weeks ago about stony silence. Between my all of my sweepers in the board, lingering souls, and disenchant the matchup isn't too terrible.
I don't find the dredge matchup to be that difficult. It can be very explosive at times, but once we get our larger creatures out there prized amalgam is not a problem. I'm just not a fan of surgical because you need to be able to put the problematic card in their graveyard and the odds of that are somewhat low. Scapeshift (or rg breach) and tron are hard matchups that I have just given up on. Maybe we should just put a couple duress in the side. I haven't tried out declaration in stone and I don't know how it preforms.
Shambling vent is a great utility card that is available to us. It helps us when there is a stalled board state and gains us a little life when we need it. It is a good 2-of in the deck but doesn't put in any serious work. Raging ravine is a much better manland, but shambling vent is what we have. Coming into play tapped can be a problem. However, it is usually in our opening hand or a top deck later in the game.
CBW midrange deck
CBW eldrazi processor deck
CBW bw eldrazi shadow midrange