After some testing against Zoo, I have to say, Threads of Disloyalty is an all-star in the sideboard. Zoo doesn't really have an answer for it, and once you take a Tarmogoyf, it nullifies one of theirs, because of the +1 defense.
Also, I'm going to try out x2 Wurmcoil Engine in the sideboard, because that also seems like it would be good. I'm not sure if Zoo has an answer to a Wurmcoil, but, we'll see.
Wurmcoil Engine seems really slow to me, especially in a deck only 20 land or so as most of the decks listed in the primer are. I'm having a hard time envisioning even running Cryptic Command because it costs so much.
Condemn is probably the best but it's only useful on defense so it's not as interesting to me. Mutagenic is nice but the life cost might be problematic against zoo. Harm's Way seems pretty good against zoo as it's a 4 damage swing that can be used against burn or creature combat damage.
The Tricksters may go back to being Cursecatchers, but as of now they're working out pretty well- so many decks out there run sack-lands, they rarely don't get at least one, if not more (many more in some cases, and against a deck like 12-post that never hurts). Their synergy with Ghost Quarter is also great; either way it's a win-win situation- if they choose to search, counter, if not, well, then we're just running Wastelands and effing up their tempo.
When looking at counterspells, I think that people are going about it the wrong way in trying to find replacements for Force- it's just not going to happen. I was originally running the full set of 4 Cryptic Commands (as per successful builds in old extended), but found them to be far too slow, ended up taking them out one by one until I realized that what I was really looking for was a cheaper alternative... I went looking and found one with legs in Spellstutter Sprite- no, it's not a hard-counter for everything like Cryptic, but by abusing it early you get a tempo gain and a dude, in addition to all your other dudes, which allows us to be just that much more aggro. The synergy with Mutavault is great, as is the fact that you can vial her in if need be, saving mana for another counter. Of course, even without another fae (like another Sprite or Clique) or a Mutavault on board, the Sprite still counters every cmc 1-mana kill-spell out there... which are, well, most of them, not counting Tribal Flames and Punishing Fire, of course (Kira, Relic SB help with those).
Against combo, Clique may as well be Thoughtseize on a 3-power flier (that also synergizes with Sprite, of course), and against aggro I've flashed her in to block and kill many an attacking Nactl/ Pridemage, etc... very versatile- a kill-spell for most attacking things with 3 toughness or less, a Thoughtseize, AND a 3-power, flying beater? Sign me up.
I do also have a UW build of this that also has decent success, but the main thing I found that I was really looking for in white is at least mostly covered here by Dismember. That said, there are a few other interesting things that the color has to offer (like Aven Mindcensor, Leonin Arbiter, and Mana Tithe) and will post another list including it after more testing.
So far, this mono-u list seems to have about a 60/40 MU against 12-post, one of the important MU's I'm trying to shore up. I find that in this MU Deprive, as a hard-counter, is indispensable. Bouncing a land is usually not that big of an issue with Vial out, especially if you wait 'til late game to do it when you can afford to. The higher creature count also allows the deck a faster clock, and of course all the LD lands help to keep all those posts in check ...though I suppose if things get really bad we can always just splash Red for Blood Moons, as I've had great success with in a WW build.
Against other combo (Dragonstorm, Living End, Eggs varients, etc) I find that the sheer number of counters (and Clique) main deck and SB in addition to the huge amount of pressure the higher creature count can provide are usually more than enough to do them in (Rune Snag is, of course, amazing here- got even better when I went back and noticed that, yes, it's penalty cost increases by TWO for every other one in the 'yard, not just one- so much better than Mana Leak, and that was never a bad card to begin with).
The only time I've faced Zoo with it I actually ended up out-aggroing the guy for a 2/1 win, could be some potential here, definitely warrants more testing as Zoo (or some hateful version of it) is bound to remain a top deck.
Thoughts? The SB could use a little work, and of course still looking for something more to bring in to seal the deal against 12-post, hopefully without having to splash for red.
I don't like Cursecatcher in the current aggro meta. It' doesn't save your creatures from removal unless you have a godhand and are able to out aggro a zoo deck. And it's too small to be useful against one mana 3/3s and 2/3s. Same for Cosi's Trickster. They fetch once, maybe twice, and it still dies to a bolt or maybe trades with their one drop. I think more removal would be better in this spot. And I think the splash is necessary. Sygg, River Guide is worth it just by himself. Same with Path. Another card (which I haven't tried yet) I think could be very good right now is Sunlance, which kills everything but Goyf, who you save your Path for anyway.
Also, Spell Pierce is still very good against pretty much every deck. It actually counters removal (especially from Rock decks) and disrupts combo pretty well. I've started with three, and I always feel near-invincible when I have one in my opening hand.
I haven't been impressed with the Sovereigns, I might cut those to try out Sunlances. I should also add some number of Ghost Quarters to the maindeck. I don't need that many duals (Seachrome Coast has been awesome though).
@gpoc, I like the idea of bob in this list. How has he been working here? I worry about the life loss from him and the thoughtseizes though, how's your game against aggressive decks?
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Inquisition of Kozilek seems better right now. Especially against aggro. And in control decks, there's nothing like Force of Will that you need to worry about in the early game, and anything they have that can disrupt you in the early game can be taken with Inquisition anyway.
I do like Thoughtseize in the sideboard though.
Cursecatcher throws off tempo more than anything else. A t1 Cursecatcher on the play prevents a t1 Nactl which means no 3/3 swinging at you t2. I think its a great card and don't plan on taking it out of my list.
Cursecatcher throws off tempo more than anything else. A t1 Cursecatcher on the play prevents a t1 Nactl which means no 3/3 swinging at you t2. I think its a great card and don't plan on taking it out of my list.
How does it counter a Nacatl on turn one? Cursecatcher only counters instants and sorceries, unless im missing something.
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Standard: Rakdos Aggro
Modern: U/W Merfolk
EDH: Kaalia and Friends, Naya tokens featuring Rith the Awakener, Jarad's Golgari Guild, and Double Riku
I'd probably stay away from dismember in the bob list though, as it'll hit you for another point over GoFtT and I would suspect that you would not often want to pay the life to cast it, which is the major reason for picking it over the 2cc option.
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I played against 3 opponents, but I would only count the last two, as the first guy only played Dredge Skeletons and Swamps. The 2nd opponent was playing Fish also, but without the Scrying Sheet engine and with Kira. He quit before the game could really get going. I figure he decided to try adding in the Sheets, because he had board presence but I started using my Sheets to keep me in the game, ensuring I didn't draw dead land drops.
The 3rd opponent was playing monoG 12post. We played 5 games, he won 3 of them. Very close games, very fun. Spreading Seas in the side would work amazing for this, but unfortunately I'm on a netbook and Cockatrice won't let me see the button to make a sideboard
I know that running 4 Syggs is a bit weird, but I find it useful, as it ensures that I always have that opportunity to draw, and the extras I can pitch to the Shoal. I'm still on the fence about the Shoal, but it did win me games. Now if only they would unban Mental Misstep...
I also know that some would disagree with my lack of Mutavaults, but I have 12 cards in here that I really want to drop 2nd turn that cost double-U. That single lost turn of tempo really hurts.
The rest of the sideboard is still up in the air. I don't really have a local meta to speak of quite yet, so all my testing is on Cockatrice so far.
If you're playing Clique and Spellstutter Sprite, have you considered Familiar's Ruse over Deprive? It bounces a creature instead of a land (meaning that it's ETB effect can be reused). Thoughts?
Yeah I definately noticed that after some testing, and goFtT have been excellent against all decks basically, rare that I'd rather have dismember anyway. I did notice I have a hard time against RDW due to all their burn spells which my SB can't fight properly, anyone got suggestions for some rare gems to fight that since we don't have jitte
I can see Spreading Seas maybe slowing RDW down, and also being useful to making your creatures unblockable, but Mindbreak Trap might also prove useful, and can double against decks that run the Punishing Fire combo. If you do expect a good amount of RDW, I figure that maybe Kira would be a wise maindeck choice. I feel that this deck can probably race RDW, although I haven't played against any RDW in testing yet, so I don't know this for sure. I would also run Sygg, River Cutthroat over Sygg, River Guide in a RDW heavy meta, to support running Disrupting Shoal. If you are going to run Kira, then the River Guide just becomes redundant.
If you're playing Clique and Spellstutter Sprite, have you considered Familiar's Ruse over Deprive? It bounces a creature instead of a land (meaning that it's ETB effect can be reused). Thoughts?
Yeah, I considered that and it could work well, only thing is I can see it running into problems if you don't have a creature on board and need to counter something, or only have like one late game, say a fully-lvled Coralhelm or something, or a Trickster with counters on it, but I think that it does def warrant testing.
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Currently Playing:
:symr::symg::symb: Living End Modern
:symu:, :symu::symw: Merfolk Fish ("Marine Freaks") Legacy, Modern
Death and Taxes Legacy
This is my attempt at Modern Merfolk, i'm forming one in a haste as my mates is requesting for a modern format playtest tomorrow. Do let me you what you guys think. I always like the utility white bring along thus i'm splashing it as a minor color.
I'm not sure if spell snare or Mana Tithe is better in the sideboard. The ceck also looks like it is very reliant on a first turn Aether Vial to work effectively.
I also have a couple of Kira, but i cant seem to find space for it at the moment.
Why is everyone playing Mana Leak over Rune Snag? Am I missing something there? Your first Rune Snag will often come down early (T2-4), and really is no different than Mana Leak at that point...after that it's simply better.
EDIT: And by everyone, I guess I mean the last two lists I saw...I understand if you include 1-2 copies as Rune Snags #5-6.
I have to agree here with AEIOUsometimesY, Rune Snag is really better especially when the game goes into mid-game mode. Just that i didnt think of the card at all. After being exposed to Mana leak so frequently, it is the first thing that came to mind when i was searching for counterspells.
Rune Snag requires you to aggressively counter spells in the early game, which is definitely not what you want. Merfolk isn't a control deck, so you don't want to be countering everything that is cast. Merfolk is a tempo deck, so, you need to time your counters wisely, and without causing yourself to tap out. (Which is why Daze, Mental Misstep, and Force of Will are so good in the Legacy version.)
The same is true for Mana Leak. It just doesn't do enough. It's a soft counter at two mana, when you want your mana to be readily available.
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This is my attempt at Modern Merfolk, i'm forming one in a haste as my mates is requesting for a modern format playtest tomorrow. Do let me you what you guys think. I always like the utility white bring along thus i'm splashing it as a minor color.
I'm not sure if spell snare or Mana Tithe is better in the sideboard. The ceck also looks like it is very reliant on a first turn Aether Vial to work effectively.
I also have a couple of Kira, but i cant seem to find space for it at the moment.
I think you need a lot more than four white sources if you're playing four paths. Seachrome Coast has been very good for me. And seeing as you have nothing above three mana, I think it would fit well in this deck.
I've also noticed that this one and many other lists here have four Mutavaults and four Ghost Quarters. I play four Mutavault and two Ghost Quarter and I still find myself without a second blue for Lord or Commander on turn two more often than I think is acceptable.
Anyone else have this problem?
I would also like to discuss Cursecatcher again, as I still see it as an auto-four of in every list here. Can anyone explain why he's been good for them in this format? I realize he's amazing in other Eternal formats, but I think that's because so many decks rely on their free counters in the early turns. In modern though (in the current meta), what decks are casting noncreature spells in the early game (honest question, not rhetorical)? And how many of those spells would you willingly trade a creature for?
Also sideboarding against Zoo?
I have a couple Threads of Disloyalty, Sunlance, and Surgical Extraction.
Sunlance has been pretty good so far. Not great though.
How do you all deal with Punishing Fire?
Vialing in a lord can help, but most games they can keep that from happening by just playing a 3/3 or two, then waiting for your lords with multiple removal spells.
Commander has been the only thing I've found to help in the maindeck. If I can get him to level four, then I have a chance.
After sideboarding, I just hope to be able to Spell Pierce the first Punishing Fire, then extract it.
Ideas?
Let's say you have 2 spots left in your deck and are debating between Mana Leak and Rune Snag. The chance of drawing both Rune Snag in a game is slim, and the first one is strictly worse than a Mana Leak. Not that it makes that big a difference, and I'm not saying that either should really be in the deck, but Mana Leak would probably be the better choice in that situation.
Spell Pierce, I like because you can still play out your threats while keeping up some sort of resistance to removal.
I think you need a lot more than four white sources if you're playing four paths. Seachrome Coast has been very good for me. And seeing as you have nothing above three mana, I think it would fit well in this deck.
I've also noticed that this one and many other lists here have four Mutavaults and four Ghost Quarters. I play four Mutavault and two Ghost Quarter and I still find myself without a second blue for Lord or Commander on turn two more often than I think is acceptable.
Anyone else have this problem?
I would also like to discuss Cursecatcher again, as I still see it as an auto-four of in every list here. Can anyone explain why he's been good for them in this format? I realize he's amazing in other Eternal formats, but I think that's because so many decks rely on their free counters in the early turns. In modern though (in the current meta), what decks are casting noncreature spells in the early game (honest question, not rhetorical)? And how many of those spells would you willingly trade a creature for?
Also sideboarding against Zoo?
I have a couple Threads of Disloyalty, Sunlance, and Surgical Extraction.
Sunlance has been pretty good so far. Not great though.
How do you all deal with Punishing Fire?
Vialing in a lord can help, but most games they can keep that from happening by just playing a 3/3 or two, then waiting for your lords with multiple removal spells.
Commander has been the only thing I've found to help in the maindeck. If I can get him to level four, then I have a chance.
After sideboarding, I just hope to be able to Spell Pierce the first Punishing Fire, then extract it.
Ideas?
4 White Sources isn't nearly enough. You have a good chance of never seeing white mana or if you do and it gets ghost quartered you have a bunch of dead cards in your hand. Run 10 minimum (Hallowed Fountain, Wanderwine Hub, Crack Lands)
Threads seems very good against Zoo. Sunlance not as much since it isn't reliable against half their creatures (goyf, loam lion, pridemage etc). I'm considering Oust in addition to path. I'm not too worried about punishing fire tbh since it's kinda slow and most of your creatures should be over 2 toughness very early. But yeah extraction probably deserves to be in the board somewhere.
The two biggest challenges for this deck are finding the right removal and finding the correct counters. I think spell pierce is probably the best at this point. After that I'm not so sure. I love remand in a tempo deck like this but I'm concerned it costs too much.
Ya, I'm beginning to doubt Cursecatcher more and more for the Modern Meta.
Current popular decks:
Pyromancer's Ascension: Can counter many cards in deck but doesn't prevent PA from getting charged.
Zoo: Lightning Bolt, Path to Exile, Lightning Helix, Riftbolt
Mono U 12post: Increases mana they have to use counterspells early.
Melira Combo: Thoughtseize, Inquisition of Kozilek, Maelstrom Pulse
UW Cawblade: Path to Exile, and prevents early counterspells.
Goblins: Lightning Bolt, Goblin Grenade, Ancient Grudge, Dragon Fodder
MWC: Wrath of God, Day of Judgement, Disenchant, Silence
MBC: Thoughtseize, Inquisition of Kozilek, Doomblade, Go for the Throat, Duress
I don't know, maybe it's alright... I'm bad at analyzing without play testing.
Wurmcoil Engine seems really slow to me, especially in a deck only 20 land or so as most of the decks listed in the primer are. I'm having a hard time envisioning even running Cryptic Command because it costs so much.
I wish aether adept was a merfolk.
This is a stretch but maybe something like Gelid Shackles or Cowed by Wisdom, Guard Duty, Spirit Link or even Pacifism out of the board for zoo?
These fall over to Pridemage but it costs them a creature to nullify them and you can counter it perhaps.
Other options I thought of:
Condemn is probably the best but it's only useful on defense so it's not as interesting to me. Mutagenic is nice but the life cost might be problematic against zoo. Harm's Way seems pretty good against zoo as it's a 4 damage swing that can be used against burn or creature combat damage.
Rafiq of the Many UWG
Sedris, the Traitor King URB
Kaalia of the Vast RWB
Savra, Queen of Golgari GB
Trostani, Selesnya's Voice GW
Eight-and-a-Half-Tails EquipmentW
Hoping for a cure, or at least an outbreak.
Level 1 Judge (yay)
I like Mana Tithe but aren't cards like Spell Snare or Dispel better options?
Anyone like Oust or Sunlance against Zoo?
Rafiq of the Many UWG
Sedris, the Traitor King URB
Kaalia of the Vast RWB
Savra, Queen of Golgari GB
Trostani, Selesnya's Voice GW
Eight-and-a-Half-Tails EquipmentW
Currently Playing:
R Mono Red Goblins R
UW Charitable Donations WU
U Merfolk U
Commander
G Verdeloth Token G
RGW Uril, the Mist Stalker WGR
4x Cosi's Trickster
4x Silvergill Adept
4x Coralhelm Commander
4x Lord of Atlantis
4x Merrow Reejerey
4x Spellstutter Sprite
2x Vendilion Clique
4x Aether Vial
Spells: 7
1x Mana leak
2x Deprive
4x Rune Snag
Lands: 23
4x Mutavault
4x Ghost Quarter
1x Tectonic Edge
14x Island
2x Tectonic Edge
1x Vendilion Clique
2x Mana Leak
1x Deprive
4x Dismember
3x Relic of Progenitus
2x Kira, Great Glass-Spinner
A few notes on card-choice:
The Tricksters may go back to being Cursecatchers, but as of now they're working out pretty well- so many decks out there run sack-lands, they rarely don't get at least one, if not more (many more in some cases, and against a deck like 12-post that never hurts). Their synergy with Ghost Quarter is also great; either way it's a win-win situation- if they choose to search, counter, if not, well, then we're just running Wastelands and effing up their tempo.
When looking at counterspells, I think that people are going about it the wrong way in trying to find replacements for Force- it's just not going to happen. I was originally running the full set of 4 Cryptic Commands (as per successful builds in old extended), but found them to be far too slow, ended up taking them out one by one until I realized that what I was really looking for was a cheaper alternative... I went looking and found one with legs in Spellstutter Sprite- no, it's not a hard-counter for everything like Cryptic, but by abusing it early you get a tempo gain and a dude, in addition to all your other dudes, which allows us to be just that much more aggro. The synergy with Mutavault is great, as is the fact that you can vial her in if need be, saving mana for another counter. Of course, even without another fae (like another Sprite or Clique) or a Mutavault on board, the Sprite still counters every cmc 1-mana kill-spell out there... which are, well, most of them, not counting Tribal Flames and Punishing Fire, of course (Kira, Relic SB help with those).
Against combo, Clique may as well be Thoughtseize on a 3-power flier (that also synergizes with Sprite, of course), and against aggro I've flashed her in to block and kill many an attacking Nactl/ Pridemage, etc... very versatile- a kill-spell for most attacking things with 3 toughness or less, a Thoughtseize, AND a 3-power, flying beater? Sign me up.
I do also have a UW build of this that also has decent success, but the main thing I found that I was really looking for in white is at least mostly covered here by Dismember. That said, there are a few other interesting things that the color has to offer (like Aven Mindcensor, Leonin Arbiter, and Mana Tithe) and will post another list including it after more testing.
So far, this mono-u list seems to have about a 60/40 MU against 12-post, one of the important MU's I'm trying to shore up. I find that in this MU Deprive, as a hard-counter, is indispensable. Bouncing a land is usually not that big of an issue with Vial out, especially if you wait 'til late game to do it when you can afford to. The higher creature count also allows the deck a faster clock, and of course all the LD lands help to keep all those posts in check ...though I suppose if things get really bad we can always just splash Red for Blood Moons, as I've had great success with in a WW build.
Against other combo (Dragonstorm, Living End, Eggs varients, etc) I find that the sheer number of counters (and Clique) main deck and SB in addition to the huge amount of pressure the higher creature count can provide are usually more than enough to do them in (Rune Snag is, of course, amazing here- got even better when I went back and noticed that, yes, it's penalty cost increases by TWO for every other one in the 'yard, not just one- so much better than Mana Leak, and that was never a bad card to begin with).
The only time I've faced Zoo with it I actually ended up out-aggroing the guy for a 2/1 win, could be some potential here, definitely warrants more testing as Zoo (or some hateful version of it) is bound to remain a top deck.
Thoughts? The SB could use a little work, and of course still looking for something more to bring in to seal the deal against 12-post, hopefully without having to splash for red.
Sig by me!
Currently Playing:
:symr::symg::symb: Living End Modern
:symu:, :symu::symw: Merfolk Fish ("Marine Freaks") Legacy, Modern
Death and Taxes Legacy
RDW/ Burn ("Peking Duck w/ 8 Pancakes") Legacy, Modern
:symu::symb::symr: Worldgorger Dragon Vintage
:symu::symr::symw: Narset EDH
:symw::symu::symb::symr::symg: Cube
Also, Spell Pierce is still very good against pretty much every deck. It actually counters removal (especially from Rock decks) and disrupts combo pretty well. I've started with three, and I always feel near-invincible when I have one in my opening hand.
Threads of Disloyalty is an all star out of the sideboard, and I've found Surgical Extraction to be a pretty good answer to Punishing Fire.
I also want to try out Deprive (as someone here mentioned), because it seems awesome.
What I've got so far, with a sideboard of cards I'd consider.
4 Wanderwine Hub
4 Seachrome Coast
4 Misty Rainforest
2 Hallowed Fountain
4 Mutavault
4 Silvergill Adept
4 Lord of Atlantis
4 Coralhelm Commander
3 Sygg, River Guide
4 Merrow Reejerey
2 Merfolk Sovereign
1 Vendilion Clique
1 Reveillark
4 Path to Exile
2 Spreading Seas
3 Spell Pierce
2 Cryptic Command
1 Harm's Way
1 Meddling Mage
1 Negate
1 Sower of Temptation
1 Ethersworn Canonist
1 Pithing Needle
1 Vendilion Clique
1 Spell Snare
1 Reciprocate
1 Remand
1 Leonin Arbiter
1 Cursecatcher
1 Surgical Extraction
1 Threads of Disloyalty
1 Ghost Quarter
1 Deprive
1 Sunlance
I haven't been impressed with the Sovereigns, I might cut those to try out Sunlances. I should also add some number of Ghost Quarters to the maindeck. I don't need that many duals (Seachrome Coast has been awesome though).
I do like Thoughtseize in the sideboard though.
Currently Playing:
R Mono Red Goblins R
UW Charitable Donations WU
U Merfolk U
Commander
G Verdeloth Token G
RGW Uril, the Mist Stalker WGR
How does it counter a Nacatl on turn one? Cursecatcher only counters instants and sorceries, unless im missing something.
Standard: Rakdos Aggro
Modern: U/W Merfolk
EDH: Kaalia and Friends, Naya tokens featuring Rith the Awakener, Jarad's Golgari Guild, and Double Riku
4x Aether Vial
Creatures 22
4x Curse Catcher
4x Silvergill Adept
4x Coralhelm Commander
4x Lord of Atlantis
4x Merfolk Reejery
2x Merfolk Sovereign
4x Manaleak
3x Spell Snare
3x Spell Pierce
3x Dismember
Lands 21
13 x Island
4x Mutavault
4x Ghostquarter
4x Boomerang
4x Spreading Seas
3x Flashfreeze
2x Pithing needle
2x Relic of Progenitus
Here's my first attempt, more or less a basic port
4 Scrying Sheets
4 Aether Vial
4 Spell Pierce
4 Disrupting Shoal
4 Cosi's Trickster
4 Lord of Atlantis
4 Sygg, River Cutthroat
4 Silvergill Adept
4 Merrow Reejerey
4 Coralhelm Commander
I played against 3 opponents, but I would only count the last two, as the first guy only played Dredge Skeletons and Swamps. The 2nd opponent was playing Fish also, but without the Scrying Sheet engine and with Kira. He quit before the game could really get going. I figure he decided to try adding in the Sheets, because he had board presence but I started using my Sheets to keep me in the game, ensuring I didn't draw dead land drops.
The 3rd opponent was playing monoG 12post. We played 5 games, he won 3 of them. Very close games, very fun. Spreading Seas in the side would work amazing for this, but unfortunately I'm on a netbook and Cockatrice won't let me see the button to make a sideboard
I know that running 4 Syggs is a bit weird, but I find it useful, as it ensures that I always have that opportunity to draw, and the extras I can pitch to the Shoal. I'm still on the fence about the Shoal, but it did win me games. Now if only they would unban Mental Misstep...
I also know that some would disagree with my lack of Mutavaults, but I have 12 cards in here that I really want to drop 2nd turn that cost double-U. That single lost turn of tempo really hurts.
The rest of the sideboard is still up in the air. I don't really have a local meta to speak of quite yet, so all my testing is on Cockatrice so far.
Lantern Control
(with videos)
Uc Tron
Netdecking explained
Netdecking explained, Part 2
On speculators and counterfeits
On Interaction
Every single competitive deck in existence is designed to limit the opponent's ability to interact in a meaningful way.
Record number of exclamation points on SCG homepage: 71 (6 January, 2018)
"I don't want to believe, I want to know."
-Carl Sagan
I can see Spreading Seas maybe slowing RDW down, and also being useful to making your creatures unblockable, but Mindbreak Trap might also prove useful, and can double against decks that run the Punishing Fire combo. If you do expect a good amount of RDW, I figure that maybe Kira would be a wise maindeck choice. I feel that this deck can probably race RDW, although I haven't played against any RDW in testing yet, so I don't know this for sure. I would also run Sygg, River Cutthroat over Sygg, River Guide in a RDW heavy meta, to support running Disrupting Shoal. If you are going to run Kira, then the River Guide just becomes redundant.
Lantern Control
(with videos)
Uc Tron
Netdecking explained
Netdecking explained, Part 2
On speculators and counterfeits
On Interaction
Every single competitive deck in existence is designed to limit the opponent's ability to interact in a meaningful way.
Record number of exclamation points on SCG homepage: 71 (6 January, 2018)
"I don't want to believe, I want to know."
-Carl Sagan
Yeah, I considered that and it could work well, only thing is I can see it running into problems if you don't have a creature on board and need to counter something, or only have like one late game, say a fully-lvled Coralhelm or something, or a Trickster with counters on it, but I think that it does def warrant testing.
Sig by me!
Currently Playing:
:symr::symg::symb: Living End Modern
:symu:, :symu::symw: Merfolk Fish ("Marine Freaks") Legacy, Modern
Death and Taxes Legacy
RDW/ Burn ("Peking Duck w/ 8 Pancakes") Legacy, Modern
:symu::symb::symr: Worldgorger Dragon Vintage
:symu::symr::symw: Narset EDH
:symw::symu::symb::symr::symg: Cube
This is my attempt at Modern Merfolk, i'm forming one in a haste as my mates is requesting for a modern format playtest tomorrow. Do let me you what you guys think. I always like the utility white bring along thus i'm splashing it as a minor color.
I'm not sure if spell snare or Mana Tithe is better in the sideboard. The ceck also looks like it is very reliant on a first turn Aether Vial to work effectively.
I also have a couple of Kira, but i cant seem to find space for it at the moment.
4 Coralhelm Commander
4 Cursecatcher
4 Lord of Atlantis
4 Merrow Reejerey
1 Phyrexian Metamorph
4 Silvergill Adept
1 Sygg, River Guide
4 AEther Vial
4 Mana Leak
4 Path to Exile
4 Spell Pierce
Lands [22]
4 Ghost Quarter
10 Island
4 Mutavault
4 Wanderwine Hub
4 Hurkyl's Recall
3 Mana Tithe
4 Meddling Mage
4 Relic of Progenitus
Signature by Syndarion from Aeternal Studios!
[Deck/Primer] Knights in Legacy
[Deck] Darth Knights in Legacy
[Deck] Casual Knights in Legacy
[Deck/Primer] Modern Knights
[Deck/Primer] Modern Ninjas
LEGACY
Legacy Knights Variants WG,WU,WR,WB,W,B
Soldiers Stompy W
NinjaStill UB
FOWless Merfolk UW
Aggro Elves G
MODERN
Modern Knights Variants WG,BR
Modern Ninjas Variants UB,UG,UW,UWR
Modern Kithkins WR,W
EDIT: And by everyone, I guess I mean the last two lists I saw...I understand if you include 1-2 copies as Rune Snags #5-6.
Signature by Syndarion from Aeternal Studios!
[Deck/Primer] Knights in Legacy
[Deck] Darth Knights in Legacy
[Deck] Casual Knights in Legacy
[Deck/Primer] Modern Knights
[Deck/Primer] Modern Ninjas
LEGACY
Legacy Knights Variants WG,WU,WR,WB,W,B
Soldiers Stompy W
NinjaStill UB
FOWless Merfolk UW
Aggro Elves G
MODERN
Modern Knights Variants WG,BR
Modern Ninjas Variants UB,UG,UW,UWR
Modern Kithkins WR,W
Rune Snag requires you to aggressively counter spells in the early game, which is definitely not what you want. Merfolk isn't a control deck, so you don't want to be countering everything that is cast. Merfolk is a tempo deck, so, you need to time your counters wisely, and without causing yourself to tap out. (Which is why Daze, Mental Misstep, and Force of Will are so good in the Legacy version.)
The same is true for Mana Leak. It just doesn't do enough. It's a soft counter at two mana, when you want your mana to be readily available.
Spell Pierce, I like because you can still play out your threats while keeping up some sort of resistance to removal.
I think you need a lot more than four white sources if you're playing four paths. Seachrome Coast has been very good for me. And seeing as you have nothing above three mana, I think it would fit well in this deck.
I've also noticed that this one and many other lists here have four Mutavaults and four Ghost Quarters. I play four Mutavault and two Ghost Quarter and I still find myself without a second blue for Lord or Commander on turn two more often than I think is acceptable.
Anyone else have this problem?
I would also like to discuss Cursecatcher again, as I still see it as an auto-four of in every list here. Can anyone explain why he's been good for them in this format? I realize he's amazing in other Eternal formats, but I think that's because so many decks rely on their free counters in the early turns. In modern though (in the current meta), what decks are casting noncreature spells in the early game (honest question, not rhetorical)? And how many of those spells would you willingly trade a creature for?
Also sideboarding against Zoo?
I have a couple Threads of Disloyalty, Sunlance, and Surgical Extraction.
Sunlance has been pretty good so far. Not great though.
How do you all deal with Punishing Fire?
Vialing in a lord can help, but most games they can keep that from happening by just playing a 3/3 or two, then waiting for your lords with multiple removal spells.
Commander has been the only thing I've found to help in the maindeck. If I can get him to level four, then I have a chance.
After sideboarding, I just hope to be able to Spell Pierce the first Punishing Fire, then extract it.
Ideas?
Currently Playing:
R Mono Red Goblins R
UW Charitable Donations WU
U Merfolk U
Commander
G Verdeloth Token G
RGW Uril, the Mist Stalker WGR
4 White Sources isn't nearly enough. You have a good chance of never seeing white mana or if you do and it gets ghost quartered you have a bunch of dead cards in your hand. Run 10 minimum (Hallowed Fountain, Wanderwine Hub, Crack Lands)
Threads seems very good against Zoo. Sunlance not as much since it isn't reliable against half their creatures (goyf, loam lion, pridemage etc). I'm considering Oust in addition to path. I'm not too worried about punishing fire tbh since it's kinda slow and most of your creatures should be over 2 toughness very early. But yeah extraction probably deserves to be in the board somewhere.
The two biggest challenges for this deck are finding the right removal and finding the correct counters. I think spell pierce is probably the best at this point. After that I'm not so sure. I love remand in a tempo deck like this but I'm concerned it costs too much.
Rafiq of the Many UWG
Sedris, the Traitor King URB
Kaalia of the Vast RWB
Savra, Queen of Golgari GB
Trostani, Selesnya's Voice GW
Eight-and-a-Half-Tails EquipmentW
Current popular decks:
Pyromancer's Ascension: Can counter many cards in deck but doesn't prevent PA from getting charged.
Zoo: Lightning Bolt, Path to Exile, Lightning Helix, Riftbolt
Mono U 12post: Increases mana they have to use counterspells early.
Melira Combo: Thoughtseize, Inquisition of Kozilek, Maelstrom Pulse
UW Cawblade: Path to Exile, and prevents early counterspells.
Goblins: Lightning Bolt, Goblin Grenade, Ancient Grudge, Dragon Fodder
MWC: Wrath of God, Day of Judgement, Disenchant, Silence
MBC: Thoughtseize, Inquisition of Kozilek, Doomblade, Go for the Throat, Duress
I don't know, maybe it's alright... I'm bad at analyzing without play testing.
Currently Playing:
R Mono Red Goblins R
UW Charitable Donations WU
U Merfolk U
Commander
G Verdeloth Token G
RGW Uril, the Mist Stalker WGR