Ponza is easily my favorite deck archetype of all time. But i havent seen any successful attempts to try and rebuild the classic in modern. So im here to try and generate some discussion and see if i can put together anything even remotely viable.
So let me start by explaining the core of what Ponza is and they key types of cards it needs. Ponza, historically, was a mono-red land destruction deck at its core. It would ramp up with mana producing artifacts while mythodically picking away at the opponents mana base. Would run lots of creature removal to deal with low cost threats, and recurring removal like Hammer of Bogardan to retain card advantage. Then with a mana advantage, it would do some trading with cards like Wildfire, where your 4 lands mean less to you than theirs do to them, since they likely only have 4 to their name. It would finish with some big bomb creature when the opponent was sufficiently unable to act.
So lets just jump right into my initial list of possible inclusions in the deck. And a brief explanation of what they bring to the table. This list is gonna include some black in it though, because it gives us a lot of strong options.
Crack the Earth:
This card is perfect for Ponza. The expectation when you play it is that they have only lands as permanents. And you should both have more land, and have other permanents you can afford to lose. It was actually the card that got me thinking about Ponza again a while back when it came out.
Molten Rain:
You cant have a land destruction deck without land destruction. Basically a better stone rain since youll be mono or primarily red. No reason not to run it unless...
Seismic Spike:
Another solid option. Can be run as a replacement for or alongside Molten Rain. Not much more to say.
Icefall:
The later game option. Gives you recurring destruction at a heavy cost if you want it. Probably good if youre not gonna have any mass destructs.
Boom//Bust:
Trading land for land early game(a trade always in your favor), and a way to seal fates lategame. Combos very well with Bloodghast, a suspended Detrivore, and any artifact mana sources you may have.
Smallpox:
Its like a big brother to Crack the Earth. Half the reason i wanted to throw black into the mix. This deck isnt attached to any of its creatures in the early game, or its land. And would give an answer to big creatures like goyf, or indestructible things.
Lightning Bolt:
Best burn card ever made? There is almost no reason to not have this as a 4-of in any decklist.
Seal of Fire:
Solid red removal. Neither an instant nor sorcery if you need to evade specific counters. But more importantly it serves the dual purpose of being a sacrifice option to Crack the Earth/etc. When you dont need the damage.
Hammer of Bogardan:
The old mainstay of the deck. Not sure if its strong enough in the current meta. But overlooking it as an option would be a mistake. Repeatable removal, not many of those to choose from.
Pyroclasm:
This deck fails if your opponent gets out too strong a board position. And against aggro decks, that means some board sweeps. Cheap and efficient in red.
Earthquake:
An alternate sweeper if youre worried about things with more than two toughness. And theres any number of similar cards in modern, but I wont list them all.
Fireball:
Umbrella term for any number of X cost burn spells that some variants use as finishers.
Terminate:
(Or Dreadbore if you fear planeswalkers) Basically if you want more removal for big threats, this is your answer.
Wildfire:
Just like in the old days, if one of these resolves youre in a very comfortable spot. Should be leaving an opponent with no board and no mana, while setting you back far less.
Skred:
If you swap out for snow lands and some Coldsteel Hearts, it gives you some strong removal, especially in mono-red.
Avalanche Riders:
Kills a land. Swings for the face. Provides a sacrifice. Literally Ponzas best card. Needs to be a 4-of in every deck.
Simian Spirit Guide:
Lets you ramp into some faster land destruction. Allows for a free Crack turn one before you drop your land. Provides a beatstick if you need it to be.
Zo-Zu the Punisher:
Whats worse for your opponent than losing all their land? Losing all their land and then being shocked whenever they try and play more.
Fulminator Mage:
With so many non-basic lands in the format, youll always have a target. Options are always good. Just like the spirit guide, usually just pops a land but beats if needed.
Bloodghast:
A wonderful recurring creature. Makes sure you always have a sacrifice. With you constantly clearing the board yourself youll need something you can bring back. Gives you something to painlessly discard to Smallpox. All around solid option.
Razormane Masticore:
Not quite the beast his daddy was. But still a strong finisher. Survives Wildfire, keeps your opponents board dead, hits hard.
Magnivore:
This deck runs a LOT of sorceries. Meaning this guy is gonna be a big hitter when he lands. And being low cost means he can easily fall after a Wildfire.
Shivan Dragon:
Now i know what youre thinking. Everyones favorite childhood dragon. Well it saw some play back in the younger days of Ponza. Its big, it flies, and its got a manadump finisher akin to the fireball variants. And who doesnt want to see the look of shock on someones face when they lose to it in a serious game?
Orgg:
Is actually a very good card when your opponent is stuck on next to no land. Because that means his creatures are meak at best. If youre running into a lot of weenie it can drop reasonably fast and make it through any chumps.
Detrivore:
Serves the dual purpose of destruction and finisher. And instead of weathering the EQ/Wildfire storm, he just drops in the next turn. Problem being hes a dead card against budget monocolor decks, or just decks that decks that dont run many nonbasics. Not common in Modern, but it happens.
Helldozer:
Heavy on the black. But it provides you a finisher that makes sure your opponents mana never comes back to him. Definitely a strong choice.
Shivan Wumpus:
Apparently when people are hard up for lands, they rarely want to sacrifice them willingly. Which makes this a pretty guaranteed 4-cost 6/6 Trampler with no downside.
Talisman of Indulgence:
Artifact mana ramp. Survives the fires, speeds you into Rains. Artifact ramp is a staple of the deck, and the talisman series was terribly underrated imo.
Coldsteel heart:
Basically only useful if youre running Skred. The downside is it wont help you much if youre hurting for 2 colors. But something to keep in mind.
Ghost Quarter:
If you want your lands to kill theirs, this would be the first choice. Theres plenty of decks than run no basics at all and this punishes them. And even if they do get something out of it, you can make sure their options are limited.
Tectonic Edge:
The normal goto option for killing lands. Feels less useful in Ponza considering you should be keeping them from getting so much land in the first place. But should keep it in mind.
Heres a sample deck I threw together for people who dont know the archetype and want to get a better feel for it. Hasnt been thoroughly tested and is just a mainboard, but its just meant as a sample:
So let me start by explaining the core of what Ponza is and they key types of cards it needs. Ponza, historically, was a mono-red land destruction deck at its core. It would ramp up with mana producing artifacts while mythodically picking away at the opponents mana base. Would run lots of creature removal to deal with low cost threats, and recurring removal like Hammer of Bogardan to retain card advantage. Then with a mana advantage, it would do some trading with cards like Wildfire, where your 4 lands mean less to you than theirs do to them, since they likely only have 4 to their name. It would finish with some big bomb creature when the opponent was sufficiently unable to act.
So lets just jump right into my initial list of possible inclusions in the deck. And a brief explanation of what they bring to the table. This list is gonna include some black in it though, because it gives us a lot of strong options.
Crack the Earth:
This card is perfect for Ponza. The expectation when you play it is that they have only lands as permanents. And you should both have more land, and have other permanents you can afford to lose. It was actually the card that got me thinking about Ponza again a while back when it came out.
Molten Rain:
You cant have a land destruction deck without land destruction. Basically a better stone rain since youll be mono or primarily red. No reason not to run it unless...
Seismic Spike:
Another solid option. Can be run as a replacement for or alongside Molten Rain. Not much more to say.
Icefall:
The later game option. Gives you recurring destruction at a heavy cost if you want it. Probably good if youre not gonna have any mass destructs.
Boom//Bust:
Trading land for land early game(a trade always in your favor), and a way to seal fates lategame. Combos very well with Bloodghast, a suspended Detrivore, and any artifact mana sources you may have.
Smallpox:
Its like a big brother to Crack the Earth. Half the reason i wanted to throw black into the mix. This deck isnt attached to any of its creatures in the early game, or its land. And would give an answer to big creatures like goyf, or indestructible things.
Lightning Bolt:
Best burn card ever made? There is almost no reason to not have this as a 4-of in any decklist.
Seal of Fire:
Solid red removal. Neither an instant nor sorcery if you need to evade specific counters. But more importantly it serves the dual purpose of being a sacrifice option to Crack the Earth/etc. When you dont need the damage.
Hammer of Bogardan:
The old mainstay of the deck. Not sure if its strong enough in the current meta. But overlooking it as an option would be a mistake. Repeatable removal, not many of those to choose from.
Pyroclasm:
This deck fails if your opponent gets out too strong a board position. And against aggro decks, that means some board sweeps. Cheap and efficient in red.
Earthquake:
An alternate sweeper if youre worried about things with more than two toughness. And theres any number of similar cards in modern, but I wont list them all.
Fireball:
Umbrella term for any number of X cost burn spells that some variants use as finishers.
Terminate:
(Or Dreadbore if you fear planeswalkers) Basically if you want more removal for big threats, this is your answer.
Wildfire:
Just like in the old days, if one of these resolves youre in a very comfortable spot. Should be leaving an opponent with no board and no mana, while setting you back far less.
Skred:
If you swap out for snow lands and some Coldsteel Hearts, it gives you some strong removal, especially in mono-red.
Avalanche Riders:
Kills a land. Swings for the face. Provides a sacrifice. Literally Ponzas best card. Needs to be a 4-of in every deck.
Simian Spirit Guide:
Lets you ramp into some faster land destruction. Allows for a free Crack turn one before you drop your land. Provides a beatstick if you need it to be.
Zo-Zu the Punisher:
Whats worse for your opponent than losing all their land? Losing all their land and then being shocked whenever they try and play more.
Fulminator Mage:
With so many non-basic lands in the format, youll always have a target. Options are always good. Just like the spirit guide, usually just pops a land but beats if needed.
Bloodghast:
A wonderful recurring creature. Makes sure you always have a sacrifice. With you constantly clearing the board yourself youll need something you can bring back. Gives you something to painlessly discard to Smallpox. All around solid option.
Razormane Masticore:
Not quite the beast his daddy was. But still a strong finisher. Survives Wildfire, keeps your opponents board dead, hits hard.
Magnivore:
This deck runs a LOT of sorceries. Meaning this guy is gonna be a big hitter when he lands. And being low cost means he can easily fall after a Wildfire.
Shivan Dragon:
Now i know what youre thinking. Everyones favorite childhood dragon. Well it saw some play back in the younger days of Ponza. Its big, it flies, and its got a manadump finisher akin to the fireball variants. And who doesnt want to see the look of shock on someones face when they lose to it in a serious game?
Orgg:
Is actually a very good card when your opponent is stuck on next to no land. Because that means his creatures are meak at best. If youre running into a lot of weenie it can drop reasonably fast and make it through any chumps.
Detrivore:
Serves the dual purpose of destruction and finisher. And instead of weathering the EQ/Wildfire storm, he just drops in the next turn. Problem being hes a dead card against budget monocolor decks, or just decks that decks that dont run many nonbasics. Not common in Modern, but it happens.
Helldozer:
Heavy on the black. But it provides you a finisher that makes sure your opponents mana never comes back to him. Definitely a strong choice.
Shivan Wumpus:
Apparently when people are hard up for lands, they rarely want to sacrifice them willingly. Which makes this a pretty guaranteed 4-cost 6/6 Trampler with no downside.
Talisman of Indulgence:
Artifact mana ramp. Survives the fires, speeds you into Rains. Artifact ramp is a staple of the deck, and the talisman series was terribly underrated imo.
Coldsteel heart:
Basically only useful if youre running Skred. The downside is it wont help you much if youre hurting for 2 colors. But something to keep in mind.
Ghost Quarter:
If you want your lands to kill theirs, this would be the first choice. Theres plenty of decks than run no basics at all and this punishes them. And even if they do get something out of it, you can make sure their options are limited.
Tectonic Edge:
The normal goto option for killing lands. Feels less useful in Ponza considering you should be keeping them from getting so much land in the first place. But should keep it in mind.
Heres a sample deck I threw together for people who dont know the archetype and want to get a better feel for it. Hasnt been thoroughly tested and is just a mainboard, but its just meant as a sample:
4 Sulfurous Springs
3 Dragonskull Summit
3 Swamp
9 Mountain
4 Avalanche Riders
4 Bloodghast
3 Razormane Masticore
4 Crack the Earth
4 Smallpox
4 Molten Rain
4 Lightning Bolt
3 Talisman of Indulgence
2 Earthquake
1 Wildfiire