If your expected Meta is very grindy, cutting a single Street Wraith can actually be a good idea because drawing them in the late game can become a liability when your life total is already low.
You can sometimes hardcast it as a threat lategame. Should not be underestimated.
The only cards that you should cut for bolt if you want to play them are the 2 flex slots. Cutting anything more seems a little loose to me. Opt/Sleight vs. Bolt is more of a meta dependent thing and it's only like 2 slots so don't worry about it too much. I'm currently back on the bolt version and it's been fine.
Also I notice the Shatterstorm in your side. How often are you able to cast the card? I cut anger from my side a while ago because I always hated having to look for double red, but more importantly how consistently are you able to hit 4 mana on 4?
Edit: Just noticed you also have strands. If you are going to run double red spells then I would recommend adding a second Steam Vents for the situations that the only fetches you draw are Strands.
Hey! I haven't seen many affinity decks in my lgs, so I haven't actually been able to cast it yet and am considering replacing it for something like rakdos charm. But from my experience with the deck, double red on turn 4 is rough.
Can you share your version with bolts?
Yesterday I was thinking about what to cut for opts and bolts and couldn't come to a conclusion. One of my thoughts was going down to 18 lands, leaving one slot.
The other was kologhan's command, I currently run 2 and I think it's sometimes to slow and awkward when I have two of them in my hand.
I've actually been running Rakdos Charm in the side for some time now. It's surprisingly good. It doubles as artifact removal and sneaky graveyard removal. Since Nihil Spellbomb is so expected at this point, people often get caught off guard by it. They play right into it thinking that they're in the clear, only to be blown out by instant speed grave removal.
I've been on the 3 Push/1 Bolt split for a while now, been serving me good in my meta. I don't see a point in turning the decks removal suite into gospel, since it's probably the most meta-dependent part of the deck and should be considered flexible outside of a good baseline for an open field.
Hy guys! Sorry for my bad english. Recently i see many copies of 5 color death shadow, maybe time for this new aproach or GDS is better choice? Other question, i see one copie of deck, he using 2 copies of search for Azcanta in SB, how good is this card in this deck, and what match her using this?
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Modern:
Mardu Pyromancer
Grixis Shadow
Traverse Shadow
Jund
Abzan
The Rock
Search for Azcanta seems too slow for us, I think it's better in Grixis/UW Control. I suppose he's using it in control matchups, as a way to gain virtual card advantage and getting better quality draws. I'd rather stick to landing a card like Liliana on the battlefield in GDS.
Thinking of running a pretty standard list, what would you all suggest for an Affinity-heavy meta? (Also have Esper Draw-Go, TitanShift, Griselbrand Reanimator, Jeskai Ascendancy Combo.)
I'd swap that watery grave for a second blood crypt (it feels really bad to scour your only one away), since you usually want watery grave into blood crypt.
Can you share your version with bolts?
Yesterday I was thinking about what to cut for opts and bolts and couldn't come to a conclusion. One of my thoughts was going down to 18 lands, leaving one slot.
The other was kologhan's command, I currently run 2 and I think it's sometimes to slow and awkward when I have two of them in my hand.
It's nothing special, just a stock list with 2 bolts. It's more of a meta dependent choice if you more need cheap removal, or if you're craving that bolt-snap-bolt life without having to play Grixis Control again. If I were to go to a GP I would replace the bolts for something like Sleight of Hand or Opt. Kommand can be awkward but the card is so versatile it's almost never a dead card in most matchups. I would not cut Kommands for bolts though. Bolts are often a supplement to Kommand and occupy a different slot than it does. Kommand is usually cut in versions with 16 cantrips since those versions have a higher velocity to run through their deck and find the singleton copy.
Thinking of running a pretty standard list, what would you all suggest for an Affinity-heavy meta? (Also have Esper Draw-Go, TitanShift, Griselbrand Reanimator, Jeskai Ascendancy Combo.)
I'm not sure what the Affinity-other deck balance is in your meta, but if that's the case you can cut your 3rd Denial for another copy of Lightning Bolt. Your list also seems to lack sweepers, which are great cards against affinity. Kozilek's Return is fantastic against affinity and if possible I would recommend adding a couple copies in your side.
You also have Shatterstorm with only 1 Vents and 1 Crypt so I'll ask you the same question. How reliably can you get 4 mana and double red? If you do stumble a decent amount of the time perhaps By Force may be better suited for a similar effect.
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Modern URBSome variant of Death's Shadow URB Grixis Control (Chapin Version) JFM Storm / Treasure Cruise Delver / Splinter Twin / Infect
2x Kozilek's Return makes a lot of sense. Would Kommand be a good second cut to make room for it? I don't know if 2/1 is required; 3 mana is a lot for a 19 land deck.
Thinking of running a pretty standard list, what would you all suggest for an Affinity-heavy meta? (Also have Esper Draw-Go, TitanShift, Griselbrand Reanimator, Jeskai Ascendancy Combo.)
2x Kozilek's Return makes a lot of sense. Would Kommand be a good second cut to make room for it? I don't know if 2/1 is required; 3 mana is a lot for a 19 land deck.
(Only touching on things others haven't mentioned)
The Kommand in the SB probably isn't necessary with 2 MD. Also consider changing the Lilianas in the SB to Pia and Kiran Nalaar. Lily is only medium again affinity because most of their X/1s are manlands. P&K additionally gives you more outs to Etched Champion, plus it's still a great card to bring in vs. the grindy matchups. (This swap makes getting another red source in the deck even more important)
The Negate and Dispel in the SB seem redundant with 4 Stubs already in the 75. Stuff like Ceremonious Rejection (which is, again, useful against affinity), and Disdainful Stroke are better counters to have because they cover things that Stubborn Denial can't - Primeval Titan, Wurmcoil Engine, Thought Knot Seer, Reality Smasher, Etched Champion, etc.
With that much combo in your meta, consider -2 IoK, +2 Mana Leak MD. I admit this is my own idiosyncratic choice that no one else seems to be convinced by, but specifically against a combo heavy meta I think it's an improvement. (I like having them MD more generally, but I'm less certain about it) The tempo gain is very important, and IoK also misses stuff like Primeval Titan, Through the Breach, etc. Plus, some of those combo degenerates might SB in Leyline of Sanctity against you, so it's good to diversify your disruption a bit.
Mostly, though, get some games in. Practice is more important with this deck than the precise 75.
I was thinking Lili was a good answer to Lingering Souls.dec, as I've heard that's a pretty hard card to work through for GDS.
I'm not totally sold on bringing MD discard to 4 from 6, but if I have issues with combo I'll consider it.
I was thinking about going 2/2 on MD Stubborns and Lightning Bolt, but I could see dropping Negate. I feel like it's nice to be able to have a "better" 1 mana counter against control, though.
Are Mom and Dad answers to Champions just because they give us 2 blockers? And if Shatterstorm isn't good enough against affinity, isn't a card that offers 2 blockers for the same price just as bad if not worse? (I'm also planning on going 2/2 Blood Crypt and Watery Grave after others' suggestions.)
I was thinking Lili was a good answer to Lingering Souls.dec, as I've heard that's a pretty hard card to work through for GDS.
I'm not totally sold on bringing MD discard to 4 from 6, but if I have issues with combo I'll consider it.
I was thinking about going 2/2 on MD Stubborns and Lightning Bolt, but I could see dropping Negate. I feel like it's nice to be able to have a "better" 1 mana counter against control, though.
Are Mom and Dad answers to Champions just because they give us 2 blockers? And if Shatterstorm isn't good enough against affinity, isn't a card that offers 2 blockers for the same price just as bad if not worse? (I'm also planning on going 2/2 Blood Crypt and Watery Grave after others' suggestions.)
P&K is pretty good against Lingering Souls too. Remember, you have K Command to recur it, though if the opponent is smart they'll prioritize their paths for P&K. LtlH is probably better against Souls and definitely better against stuff like CoCo and Elves. But it's worse against Affinity and against any non-Souls/CoCo grindy matchup. It depends on what you want to prioritize beating. Yes, the tokens from P&K block and kill Etched Champion if they attack with it (barring a Ravager). Shatterstorm is certainly good enough against Affinity. But if you want dedicated Affinity hate, there's better because 4 CMC is a bit steep. P&K is significantly worse as an anti-affinity card, but it comes in against far more decks. Note that I suggested cutting LtlH for P&K to improve your Affinity matchup. Not to cut Shatterstorm for P&K. I prefer Kozilek's Return over Shatterstorm, to be honest, because it's cheaper, kills manlands, and has many more applications (Elves, Merfolk, CoCo decks, even Lingering Souls and an out to Empty the Warrens vs. Storm). If you bring in, e.g., 2 Ceremonious Rejection, 1 Staticaster, 2 P&K, 2 Kozilek's Return, 2 Collective Brutality against Affinity for 4 Street Wraith, 4 Thoughtseize, 1 Stubborn D (using your original MD), you'll be able to consistently make the game go long enough to make P&K castable and should have a pretty solid post-board matchup vs them. The Stubs you leave in even insulate you against Blood Moon and late Galvanic Blasts.
Vs. Control, you mostly want haymakers and card advantage engines. Stuff like planeswalkers, k command, and P&K are your go-tos. Having access to a couple of counters that are not dead without a creature in play is good, but probably not enough to justify playing a Negate in addition to the obligatory 4 Stubborn D in the 75. Also, if you did really want to play Negate, Countersquall is probably worth the tougher color requirements.
That all makes a lot of sense. I guess I just have a lot of respect for the strength of Lili in grindy matchups because I played a lot of Jund/Abzan. I only really played with P&K during a short stint with BreachTitan a while ago.
This is currently what I'm sitting at, I've been told it might be worth going 2/2 on Bolt/Stub when there's a lot of affinity around. I figured a second Disdainful Stroke is probably better than Negate most of the time.
Went 4-2-1. Lost my last round in a 80+ attendance tournament.
Round 1 Draw vs BG Tron 1-1
Game 1: Turn 2 Angler.GG
Game 2: Long grindy game which he won.Managed to hold on via Phyrexian Revoker and Pithing needle from the side.
Game 3: No time left.
Round 2 Win vs Eldrazi 2-0
Game 1: Turn 1 Basilisk Collar Turn 2 Matter Reshaper Turn 3 Thought Knot Seer curve. But i still managed to win via Fatal Push and Terminates. Won with Gurmag and Tasigur.
Game 2: I played Revoker for his Collar. He has a turn 3 COTV but i aleady have K-Command in hand. Destroyed it EOT, and Thoughtscour myself on my turn, for Gurmag angler and played 1 DS. Got 1 Deprive and 1 Snapcaster in hand for his Thoughtknot and Reality Smasher.
1-0-1
Round 3 Loss vs Jeskai Midrange 0-2
Game 1: We both played slowly with our hands after i Thoughtseize and saw 2 PTE and 3 Bolts. Turn 5 is the turning point when he cast Geist of Saint Traft, i countered with deprive, he has Logic Knot. I lost a few turns later.
Game 2: Spell Quellers raped me. Logic Knot is a solid counter.
1-1-1
Round 4 Win vs BW Eldrazi 2-1
Game 1: We both exhausted our hands and i have better board position with 1 DS and 1 Angler. We are both down to 5. He topdecked Reality Smasher. Maindeck Relics are really hard matchups.
Game 2: He tapped out for an Eldrazi Displacer. I played thoughtseize and saw Thought Knot and PTE.I get PTE and played Thoughtscour + Gurmag Angler.He missed a land drop and can't play Thought Knot. Next turn I played Revoker for his Eldrazi Displacer. He played Thought Knot on his turn but has to choose between 1 Dismember and 1 Terminate.Gurmag took it home
Game 3: Managed to survived an Aven Mindcensor i was stucked to 2 lands. I decided to crack a fetch just to kill the Mindcensor with Push. We both exhausted our hands and we are both down to 5. I have 2 DS and 1 Tasigur. He has 3 Creatures too but is forced to block 2 DS, i don't attack my Tasigur for safety of another topdeck Reality Smasher. GG
2-1-1
Round 5 Win vs UB deck 2-0
Game 1: Turn 1 Thoughtseize Turn 2 Scour + Gurmag.GG
Game 2: Same story but this time he cast Exhaustion. I countered. He scooped.
3-1-1
Round 6 Win vs SKRED 2-0
Game 1: Turn 1 Thoughtseize i get Bloodmoon. Turn 2 Gurmag angler. GG
Game 2: Grindy matchup, managed to resolve a phyrexian revoker for his planeswalker but managed to Skred it, i brought it back via K-Command! Flashfreeze his Dragon creature. He cast another Dragon I Snapcaster>>> flashfreeze. Revoker and Snap beatdown!
4-1-1 must win.
Round 7 Loss to Jeskai 0-2
Game 1: Geist and 3 bolts and Helix.
Game 2: Stucked to 2 lands. Geist Quellers and 2 Cyrptic command.Killed me.
Jeskai is on the rise (at least here) 2 Jeskai on the Top 8. Lightning Helix, Geist and Quellers are pain in the ass. Deprive midgame is really big. UW gideon decks are plenty here and 2 made it the top 8 really a bad matchup for GDS. Revoker is really good can also be recurred via K-command. Will add 1 Dreadbore maindeck next time.
My main issue with your posting was your claim that "good storm players" would do this. Just because one player (or even a handful of players) chooses to go down that road doesn't mean that this is the only good approach to the matchup. But this is what you claimed and apparently still claim. I'm still not worried about MAYBE having 5 or 6 dead cards against Storm after sideboarding, especially since I'm often going to need discard fodder for LotV and can avoid flooding with Opt.
Furthermore, Grixis Shadow has evolved since we last discussed the matter. Back then, Dredge was perhaps the biggest threat to the deck. Thus, many sideboards had 2 sweepers, an Izzet Staticcaster, 2 Surgical Extractions, sometimes even Rakdos Charm, and maindeck TBRs where not unheard of. Nowadays, these slots (except for the sweeper slots) are usually filled with cards that are much less effective against the Empty the Warrens gamble. Therefore it's not all that suprising if this strategy is becoming more popular.
But that still doesn't mean that you where right back then and nearly everybody else was wrong. Some of your postings have an arrogant undertone to them.
Food for thought: the Storm team that has put more players in the Top 8 with Storm than any other, probably knows what they're talking about when it comes to beating your run-of-the-mill GDS player.
It's a perfectly fine strategy to remove the reducers from the MB against GDS, precisely because that's the axis GDS wants to operate on. By taking them out and increasing their "grindy" game, Storm is operating in a way that GDS isn't very well-equipped to handle, that is going wide.
YES, there is a nonzero chance you draw either EE or some red sweeper. But the storm player gets 4-6 chances to put their goblins into play en masse because of PiF, so it's not exactly a slam dunk just by wiping them once.
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You can sometimes hardcast it as a threat lategame. Should not be underestimated.
I've actually been running Rakdos Charm in the side for some time now. It's surprisingly good. It doubles as artifact removal and sneaky graveyard removal. Since Nihil Spellbomb is so expected at this point, people often get caught off guard by it. They play right into it thinking that they're in the clear, only to be blown out by instant speed grave removal.
Mardu Pyromancer
Grixis Shadow
Traverse Shadow
Jund
Abzan
The Rock
@Robo_Memer on Twitter, Twitch, Reddit, and YouTube
Feel free to PM me about Affinity decks in any format!
Thinking of running a pretty standard list, what would you all suggest for an Affinity-heavy meta? (Also have Esper Draw-Go, TitanShift, Griselbrand Reanimator, Jeskai Ascendancy Combo.)
3 Watery Graves
1 Steam Vents
1 Blood Crypt
1 Island
1 Swamp
4 Bloodstained Mire
4 Polluted Delta
4 Scalding Tarn
Creatures 16
4 Snapcaster Mage
4 Street Wraith
4 Death's Shadow
2 Tasigur, the Golden Claw
2 Gurmag Angler
4 Thoughtseize
2 Inquisition of Kozilek
4 Serum Visions
Instants 15
4 Thoughtscour
3 Stubborn Denial
3 Fatal Push
1 Lightning Bolt
2 Kolaghan's Command
2 Terminate
2 Collective Brutality
1 Negate
1 Disdainful Stroke
1 Dispel
1 Stubborn Denial
2 Ceremonious Rejection
2 Liliana, the Last Hope
1 Kolaghan's Command
1 Izzet Staticaster
2 Surgical Extraction
1 Shatterstorm
If there's anything else that seems off, let me know. (I'm not 100% sure on the lands.) Pretty new to the archetype.
1x Blood Crypt
3x Bloodstained Mire
1x Island
4x Polluted Delta
4x Scalding Tarn
2x Steam Vents
1x Swamp
2x Watery Grave
2x Inquisition of Kozilek
4x Serum Visions
4x Thoughtseize
Instant (16)
4x Fatal Push
2x Kolaghan's Command
2x Lightning Bolt
2x Stubborn Denial
2x Terminate
4x Thought Scour
4x Death's Shadow
2x Gurmag Angler
4x Snapcaster Mage
4x Street Wraith
2x Tasigur, the Golden Fang
It's nothing special, just a stock list with 2 bolts. It's more of a meta dependent choice if you more need cheap removal, or if you're craving that bolt-snap-bolt life without having to play Grixis Control again. If I were to go to a GP I would replace the bolts for something like Sleight of Hand or Opt. Kommand can be awkward but the card is so versatile it's almost never a dead card in most matchups. I would not cut Kommands for bolts though. Bolts are often a supplement to Kommand and occupy a different slot than it does. Kommand is usually cut in versions with 16 cantrips since those versions have a higher velocity to run through their deck and find the singleton copy.
I'm not sure what the Affinity-other deck balance is in your meta, but if that's the case you can cut your 3rd Denial for another copy of Lightning Bolt. Your list also seems to lack sweepers, which are great cards against affinity. Kozilek's Return is fantastic against affinity and if possible I would recommend adding a couple copies in your side.
You also have Shatterstorm with only 1 Vents and 1 Crypt so I'll ask you the same question. How reliably can you get 4 mana and double red? If you do stumble a decent amount of the time perhaps By Force may be better suited for a similar effect.
URB Some variant of Death's Shadow
URB Grixis Control (Chapin Version)
JFM Storm / Treasure Cruise Delver / Splinter Twin / InfectCommander/EDH
This pile of cards when I feel like it
Death's Shadow discord link
You gotta kill those etched champions.
(Only touching on things others haven't mentioned)
The Kommand in the SB probably isn't necessary with 2 MD. Also consider changing the Lilianas in the SB to Pia and Kiran Nalaar. Lily is only medium again affinity because most of their X/1s are manlands. P&K additionally gives you more outs to Etched Champion, plus it's still a great card to bring in vs. the grindy matchups. (This swap makes getting another red source in the deck even more important)
The Negate and Dispel in the SB seem redundant with 4 Stubs already in the 75. Stuff like Ceremonious Rejection (which is, again, useful against affinity), and Disdainful Stroke are better counters to have because they cover things that Stubborn Denial can't - Primeval Titan, Wurmcoil Engine, Thought Knot Seer, Reality Smasher, Etched Champion, etc.
With that much combo in your meta, consider -2 IoK, +2 Mana Leak MD. I admit this is my own idiosyncratic choice that no one else seems to be convinced by, but specifically against a combo heavy meta I think it's an improvement. (I like having them MD more generally, but I'm less certain about it) The tempo gain is very important, and IoK also misses stuff like Primeval Titan, Through the Breach, etc. Plus, some of those combo degenerates might SB in Leyline of Sanctity against you, so it's good to diversify your disruption a bit.
Mostly, though, get some games in. Practice is more important with this deck than the precise 75.
I'm not totally sold on bringing MD discard to 4 from 6, but if I have issues with combo I'll consider it.
I was thinking about going 2/2 on MD Stubborns and Lightning Bolt, but I could see dropping Negate. I feel like it's nice to be able to have a "better" 1 mana counter against control, though.
Are Mom and Dad answers to Champions just because they give us 2 blockers? And if Shatterstorm isn't good enough against affinity, isn't a card that offers 2 blockers for the same price just as bad if not worse? (I'm also planning on going 2/2 Blood Crypt and Watery Grave after others' suggestions.)
P&K is pretty good against Lingering Souls too. Remember, you have K Command to recur it, though if the opponent is smart they'll prioritize their paths for P&K. LtlH is probably better against Souls and definitely better against stuff like CoCo and Elves. But it's worse against Affinity and against any non-Souls/CoCo grindy matchup. It depends on what you want to prioritize beating. Yes, the tokens from P&K block and kill Etched Champion if they attack with it (barring a Ravager). Shatterstorm is certainly good enough against Affinity. But if you want dedicated Affinity hate, there's better because 4 CMC is a bit steep. P&K is significantly worse as an anti-affinity card, but it comes in against far more decks. Note that I suggested cutting LtlH for P&K to improve your Affinity matchup. Not to cut Shatterstorm for P&K. I prefer Kozilek's Return over Shatterstorm, to be honest, because it's cheaper, kills manlands, and has many more applications (Elves, Merfolk, CoCo decks, even Lingering Souls and an out to Empty the Warrens vs. Storm). If you bring in, e.g., 2 Ceremonious Rejection, 1 Staticaster, 2 P&K, 2 Kozilek's Return, 2 Collective Brutality against Affinity for 4 Street Wraith, 4 Thoughtseize, 1 Stubborn D (using your original MD), you'll be able to consistently make the game go long enough to make P&K castable and should have a pretty solid post-board matchup vs them. The Stubs you leave in even insulate you against Blood Moon and late Galvanic Blasts.
Vs. Control, you mostly want haymakers and card advantage engines. Stuff like planeswalkers, k command, and P&K are your go-tos. Having access to a couple of counters that are not dead without a creature in play is good, but probably not enough to justify playing a Negate in addition to the obligatory 4 Stubborn D in the 75. Also, if you did really want to play Negate, Countersquall is probably worth the tougher color requirements.
4x Bloodstained Mire
4x Death's Shadow
3x Fatal Push
2x Gurmag Angler
2x Inquisition of Kozilek
1x Island
2x Kolaghan's Command
1x Lightning Bolt
4x Polluted Delta
4x Scalding Tarn
4x Serum Visions
4x Snapcaster Mage
1x Steam Vents
4x Street Wraith
3x Stubborn Denial
1x Swamp
2x Tasigur, the Golden Fang
2x Terminate
4x Thought Scour
4x Thoughtseize
2x Watery Grave
2x Ceremonious Rejection
2x Collective Brutality
2x Disdainful Stroke
1x Dispel
1x Izzet Staticaster
2x Kozilek's Return
2x Liliana, the Last Hope
1x Stubborn Denial
2x Surgical Extraction
This is currently what I'm sitting at, I've been told it might be worth going 2/2 on Bolt/Stub when there's a lot of affinity around. I figured a second Disdainful Stroke is probably better than Negate most of the time.
Round 1 Draw vs BG Tron 1-1
Game 1: Turn 2 Angler.GG
Game 2: Long grindy game which he won.Managed to hold on via Phyrexian Revoker and Pithing needle from the side.
Game 3: No time left.
Round 2 Win vs Eldrazi 2-0
Game 1: Turn 1 Basilisk Collar Turn 2 Matter Reshaper Turn 3 Thought Knot Seer curve. But i still managed to win via Fatal Push and Terminates. Won with Gurmag and Tasigur.
Game 2: I played Revoker for his Collar. He has a turn 3 COTV but i aleady have K-Command in hand. Destroyed it EOT, and Thoughtscour myself on my turn, for Gurmag angler and played 1 DS. Got 1 Deprive and 1 Snapcaster in hand for his Thoughtknot and Reality Smasher.
1-0-1
Round 3 Loss vs Jeskai Midrange 0-2
Game 1: We both played slowly with our hands after i Thoughtseize and saw 2 PTE and 3 Bolts. Turn 5 is the turning point when he cast Geist of Saint Traft, i countered with deprive, he has Logic Knot. I lost a few turns later.
Game 2: Spell Quellers raped me. Logic Knot is a solid counter.
1-1-1
Round 4 Win vs BW Eldrazi 2-1
Game 1: We both exhausted our hands and i have better board position with 1 DS and 1 Angler. We are both down to 5. He topdecked Reality Smasher. Maindeck Relics are really hard matchups.
Game 2: He tapped out for an Eldrazi Displacer. I played thoughtseize and saw Thought Knot and PTE.I get PTE and played Thoughtscour + Gurmag Angler.He missed a land drop and can't play Thought Knot. Next turn I played Revoker for his Eldrazi Displacer. He played Thought Knot on his turn but has to choose between 1 Dismember and 1 Terminate.Gurmag took it home
Game 3: Managed to survived an Aven Mindcensor i was stucked to 2 lands. I decided to crack a fetch just to kill the Mindcensor with Push. We both exhausted our hands and we are both down to 5. I have 2 DS and 1 Tasigur. He has 3 Creatures too but is forced to block 2 DS, i don't attack my Tasigur for safety of another topdeck Reality Smasher. GG
2-1-1
Round 5 Win vs UB deck 2-0
Game 1: Turn 1 Thoughtseize Turn 2 Scour + Gurmag.GG
Game 2: Same story but this time he cast Exhaustion. I countered. He scooped.
3-1-1
Round 6 Win vs SKRED 2-0
Game 1: Turn 1 Thoughtseize i get Bloodmoon. Turn 2 Gurmag angler. GG
Game 2: Grindy matchup, managed to resolve a phyrexian revoker for his planeswalker but managed to Skred it, i brought it back via K-Command! Flashfreeze his Dragon creature. He cast another Dragon I Snapcaster>>> flashfreeze. Revoker and Snap beatdown!
4-1-1 must win.
Round 7 Loss to Jeskai 0-2
Game 1: Geist and 3 bolts and Helix.
Game 2: Stucked to 2 lands. Geist Quellers and 2 Cyrptic command.Killed me.
Jeskai is on the rise (at least here) 2 Jeskai on the Top 8. Lightning Helix, Geist and Quellers are pain in the ass. Deprive midgame is really big. UW gideon decks are plenty here and 2 made it the top 8 really a bad matchup for GDS. Revoker is really good can also be recurred via K-command. Will add 1 Dreadbore maindeck next time.
Here's the list i took.
18 Lands
4 Polluted Delta
4 Bloodstained Mire
3 Scalding Tarn
2 Watery Grave
2 Blood Crypt
1 Steam Vents
1 Island
1 Swamp
15 Creatures
4 Death's Shadow
4 Street Wraith
3 Snapcaster Mage
2 Gurmag Angler
2 Tasigur, the Golden Fang
27 Spells
4 Serum Visions
4 Thought Scour
2 Opt
4 Thoughtseize
2 Inquisition of Kozilek
3 Fatal Push
1 Terminate
1 Dismember
1 Lightning Bolt
2 Deprive
2 Stubborn Denial
1 Kolaghan's Command
15 SB
2 Ceremonious Rejection
2 Collective Brutality
1 Flashfreeze
1 Kolaghan's Command
1 Rakdos Charm
1 Surgical Extraction
1 Phyrexian Revoker
1 Pithing Needle
1 Liliana, the Last Hope
1 Liliana of the Veil
1 Izzet Staticaster
1 Echoing Truth
1 Savage Alliance
Thanks for reading.
PS I'm glad 1 GDS was on the top 8.
Furthermore, Grixis Shadow has evolved since we last discussed the matter. Back then, Dredge was perhaps the biggest threat to the deck. Thus, many sideboards had 2 sweepers, an Izzet Staticcaster, 2 Surgical Extractions, sometimes even Rakdos Charm, and maindeck TBRs where not unheard of. Nowadays, these slots (except for the sweeper slots) are usually filled with cards that are much less effective against the Empty the Warrens gamble. Therefore it's not all that suprising if this strategy is becoming more popular.
But that still doesn't mean that you where right back then and nearly everybody else was wrong. Some of your postings have an arrogant undertone to them.
It's a perfectly fine strategy to remove the reducers from the MB against GDS, precisely because that's the axis GDS wants to operate on. By taking them out and increasing their "grindy" game, Storm is operating in a way that GDS isn't very well-equipped to handle, that is going wide.
YES, there is a nonzero chance you draw either EE or some red sweeper. But the storm player gets 4-6 chances to put their goblins into play en masse because of PiF, so it's not exactly a slam dunk just by wiping them once.
@Robo_Memer on Twitter, Twitch, Reddit, and YouTube
Feel free to PM me about Affinity decks in any format!