He also has Gigadrowse on the sideboard. The idea is to build up enough mana on the storage lands to Gigadrowse all the opponent's permanents at his EOT, then go combo safely during your turn.
ohhh okok. Then my next question is, against who do you bust out this sideboard plan? I just restarted playing magic after 2 years (just found out that modern and legacy were fun) so I have no idea whats really played right now
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Playing:
Legacy:
:symw::symb::symg::symu::symr:Dredge
:symu::symb: ANT
The Gate
Modern:
:symu::symr: Past in flames Storm
EDH:
:symr::symw::symb: Kaalia of the Vast
Gigadrowse and storage lands come in against control/slower clock decks. You're not in a huge rush to combo out like you are against zoo. You use Giga at the end of your opponent's turn so they can't counter what you want to play. The only bad thing is they can still use Mindbreak Trap. The one advantage that storm has right now is that people are more worried about zoo and a few of the other major decks and not so much UR storm due to the bannings.
Lightning bolt seems like it would work pretty well as a removal/win con slot. With pyromancers active its 6 damage for 1, or with pyro - past it is 12 right? or do past casts not trigger pyros?
Also I really don't know about Desperate Ravings.. It seems suboptimal.. but then again we are still playing serum visions. I'm going to build the deck with 2 Empty the warrens 3 lightning bolts and 3 pyros and see what happens.
Playtesting UR Storm is fun. One thing for sure is that Past in Flames Storm wrecks blue-based control. If they can't get a clock on time, they WILL not win. The turn they run out of counterspells or tap out to do something else is the turn they die to double Grapeshot.
This is a log of me playing against myself on Cockatrice, UR PiF Storm versus Esper Teachings (Teachings is Player 1, Storm is Player 2, Teachings is on the play):
The game has started.
It is now Player 1's turn.
It is now the untap step.
Player 1 shuffles his library.
Player 1 draws 7 card(s).
Player 1 shuffles his library.
Player 1 draws 6 card(s).
Player 1 puts Swamp from hand on top of his library.
Player 1 puts Creeping Tar Pit from hand on top of his library.
Player 1 puts Path to Exile from hand on top of his library.
Player 1 puts Snapcaster Mage from hand on top of his library.
Player 1 puts Soul Manipulation from hand on top of his library.
Player 1 puts Island from hand on top of his library.
Player 1 puts Island from hand on top of his library.
It is now Player 2's turn.
It is now the untap step.
Player 2 shuffles his library.
Player 2 draws 7 card(s).
It is now Player 1's turn.
It is now the untap step.
It is now the first main phase.
Player 1 puts Marsh Flats into play from hand.
It is now the ending phase.
It is now Player 2's turn.
It is now the untap step.
Player 2 untaps his permanents.
It is now the draw step.
Player 2 draws 1 card(s).
It is now the first main phase.
Player 2 puts Scalding Tarn into play from hand.
Player 2 taps Scalding Tarn.
Player 2 puts Scalding Tarn from table into graveyard.
Player 2 sets counter life to 19 (-1).
Player 2 is looking at his library.
Player 2 puts Steam Vents into play from library.
Player 2 stops looking at his library.
Player 2 shuffles his library.
Player 2 sets counter life to 18 (-1).
Player 2 sets counter life to 17 (-1).
Player 2 taps Steam Vents.
Player 2 plays Serum Visions from hand.
Player 2 draws 1 card(s).
Player 2 puts Serum Visions from the stack into graveyard.
Player 2 is looking at the top 2 cards of his library.
Player 2 puts Gitaxian Probe from the top of his library on bottom of his library.
Player 2 stops looking at his library.
It is now the ending phase.
Player 1 taps Marsh Flats.
Player 1 puts Marsh Flats from table into graveyard.
Player 1 sets counter life to 19 (-1).
Player 1 is looking at his library.
Player 1 puts Hallowed Fountain into play from library.
Player 1 taps Hallowed Fountain.
Player 1 stops looking at his library.
Player 1 shuffles his library.
It is now Player 1's turn.
It is now the untap step.
Player 1 untaps his permanents.
It is now the draw step.
Player 1 draws 1 card(s).
It is now the first main phase.
Player 1 puts Scalding Tarn into play from hand.
It is now the ending phase.
It is now Player 2's turn.
It is now the untap step.
Player 2 untaps his permanents.
It is now the draw step.
Player 2 draws 1 card(s).
It is now the first main phase.
Player 2 puts Scalding Tarn into play from hand.
Player 2 taps Steam Vents.
Player 2 plays Sleight of Hand from hand.
Player 2 puts Sleight of Hand from the stack into graveyard.
Player 2 is looking at the top 2 cards of his library.
Player 2 moves Pyretic Ritual from library to hand.
Player 2 puts Seething Song from the top of his library on bottom of his library.
Player 2 stops looking at his library.
Player 2 taps Scalding Tarn.
Player 2 puts Scalding Tarn from table into graveyard.
Player 2 sets counter life to 16 (-1).
Player 2 is looking at his library.
Player 2 puts Steam Vents into play from library.
Player 2 stops looking at his library.
Player 2 shuffles his library.
Player 2 sets counter life to 15 (-1).
Player 2 sets counter life to 14 (-1).
Player 2 taps Steam Vents.
Player 2 plays Sleight of Hand from hand.
Player 2 puts Sleight of Hand from the stack into graveyard.
Player 2 is looking at the top 2 cards of his library.
Player 2 moves Seething Song from library to hand.
Player 2 puts Misty Rainforest from the top of his library on bottom of his library.
Player 2 stops looking at his library.
It is now the ending phase.
Player 1 taps Scalding Tarn.
Player 1 puts Scalding Tarn from table into graveyard.
Player 1 sets counter life to 18 (-1).
Player 1 is looking at his library.
Player 1 puts Watery Grave into play from library.
Player 1 taps Watery Grave.
Player 1 stops looking at his library.
Player 1 shuffles his library.
It is now Player 1's turn.
It is now the untap step.
Player 1 untaps his permanents.
It is now the draw step.
Player 1 draws 1 card(s).
It is now the first main phase.
Player 1 puts Scalding Tarn into play from hand.
It is now the ending phase.
It is now Player 2's turn.
It is now the untap step.
Player 2 untaps his permanents.
It is now the draw step.
Player 2 draws 1 card(s).
It is now the first main phase.
Player 1 taps Scalding Tarn.
Player 1 puts Scalding Tarn from table into graveyard.
Player 1 sets counter life to 17 (-1).
Player 1 is looking at his library.
Player 1 puts Island into play from library.
Player 1 stops looking at his library.
Player 1 shuffles his library.
Player 1 taps Island.
Player 1 taps Watery Grave.
Player 1 taps Hallowed Fountain.
Player 1 plays Vendilion Clique from hand.
Player 1 puts Vendilion Clique into play from the stack.
Player 2 puts Seething Song from hand on bottom of his library.
Player 2 draws 1 card(s).
Player 2 puts Mountain into play from hand.
Player 2 taps Mountain.
Player 2 untaps Mountain.
Player 2 taps Mountain.
Player 2 taps Steam Vents.
Player 2 plays Pyretic Ritual from hand.
Player 2 sets counter storm to 1 (+1).
Player 2 sets counter storm to 2 (+1).
Player 2 puts Pyretic Ritual from the stack into graveyard.
Player 2 sets counter r to 1 (+1).
Player 2 sets counter r to 2 (+1).
Player 2 sets counter r to 3 (+1).
Player 2 plays Seething Song from hand.
Player 2 sets counter storm to 3 (+1).
Player 2 sets counter r to 4 (+1).
Player 2 sets counter r to 5 (+1).
Player 2 puts Seething Song from the stack into graveyard.
Player 2 plays Seething Song from hand.
Player 2 sets counter storm to 4 (+1).
Player 2 sets counter r to 6 (+1).
Player 2 sets counter r to 7 (+1).
Player 2 puts Seething Song from the stack into graveyard.
Player 2 plays Manamorphose from hand.
Player 2 sets counter storm to 5 (+1).
Player 2 sets counter r to 6 (-1).
Player 2 sets counter r to 5 (-1).
Player 2 sets counter u to 1 (+1).
Player 2 sets counter u to 2 (+1).
Player 2 draws 1 card(s).
Player 2 puts Manamorphose from the stack into graveyard.
Player 2 taps Steam Vents.
Player 2 plays Grapeshot from hand.
Player 2 sets counter storm to 6 (+1).
Player 2 sets counter r to 4 (-1).
Player 2 sets counter r to 3 (-1).
Player 2 sets counter u to 3 (+1).
Player 2 puts Grapeshot from the stack into graveyard.
Player 1 sets counter life to 16 (-1).
Player 1 sets counter life to 15 (-1).
Player 1 sets counter life to 14 (-1).
Player 1 sets counter life to 13 (-1).
Player 1 sets counter life to 12 (-1).
Player 1 sets counter life to 11 (-1).
Player 2 plays Past in Flames from hand.
Player 2 sets counter storm to 7 (+1).
Player 2 sets counter r to 2 (-1).
Player 2 sets counter r to 1 (-1).
Player 2 sets counter u to 2 (-1).
Player 2 sets counter u to 1 (-1).
Player 2 puts Past in Flames from the stack into graveyard.
Player 2 sets counter u to 0 (-1).
Player 2 sets counter r to 2 (+1).
Player 2 sets counter r to 3 (+1).
Player 2 plays Pyretic Ritual from graveyard.
Player 2 sets counter storm to 8 (+1).
Player 2 exiles Pyretic Ritual from the stack.
Player 2 plays Seething Song from graveyard.
Player 2 sets counter storm to 9 (+1).
Player 2 sets counter r to 4 (+1).
Player 2 sets counter r to 5 (+1).
Player 2 exiles Seething Song from the stack.
Player 2 plays Seething Song from graveyard.
Player 2 sets counter storm to 10 (+1).
Player 2 sets counter r to 6 (+1).
Player 2 sets counter r to 7 (+1).
Player 2 exiles Seething Song from the stack.
Player 2 plays Manamorphose from graveyard.
Player 2 sets counter storm to 11 (+1).
Player 2 sets counter r to 6 (-1).
Player 2 sets counter r to 5 (-1).
Player 2 sets counter u to 1 (+1).
Player 2 sets counter u to 2 (+1).
Player 2 draws 1 card(s).
Player 2 exiles Manamorphose from the stack.
Player 2 sets counter storm to 12 (+1).
Player 2 sets counter r to 4 (-1).
Player 2 sets counter r to 3 (-1).
Player 2 plays Grapeshot from graveyard.
Teachings concedes straight afterwards, being dead to Grapeshot for 12.
Note that this is a Turn 3 UR Storm win, deciding to combo out when Teachings casts Vendilion Clique, bottoms a Seething Song, and Storm topdecks a Past in Flames.
Other playtesting games against the same Teachings deck involved having rituals countered (around three per game) and Storm winning despite that, and one of them was pretty funny, with Teachings gaining 8 life with Pulse of the Fields and still finding itself dead to double Grapeshot (and a Lightning Bolt or two).
I haven't tested Games 2-3 against Teachings yet, though, but Storm boarding in Dispels and Teachings boarding in Mindbreak Trap and graveyard hate are probably the ways to go.
This should be one of the standards against which decks should be tested against--if you can't get a decent clock in time before UR Storm wins, tune your deck.
Playtesting UR Storm is fun. One thing for sure is that Past in Flames Storm wrecks blue-based control. If they can't get a clock on time, they WILL not win. The turn they run out of counterspells or tap out to do something else is the turn they die to double Grapeshot.
This is a log of me playing against myself on Cockatrice, UR PiF Storm versus Esper Teachings (Teachings is Player 1, Storm is Player 2, Teachings is on the play):
The game has started.
It is now Player 1's turn.
It is now the untap step.
Player 1 shuffles his library.
Player 1 draws 7 card(s).
Player 1 shuffles his library.
Player 1 draws 6 card(s).
Player 1 puts Swamp from hand on top of his library.
Player 1 puts Creeping Tar Pit from hand on top of his library.
Player 1 puts Path to Exile from hand on top of his library.
Player 1 puts Snapcaster Mage from hand on top of his library.
Player 1 puts Soul Manipulation from hand on top of his library.
Player 1 puts Island from hand on top of his library.
Player 1 puts Island from hand on top of his library.
It is now Player 2's turn.
It is now the untap step.
Player 2 shuffles his library.
Player 2 draws 7 card(s).
It is now Player 1's turn.
It is now the untap step.
It is now the first main phase.
Player 1 puts Marsh Flats into play from hand.
It is now the ending phase.
It is now Player 2's turn.
It is now the untap step.
Player 2 untaps his permanents.
It is now the draw step.
Player 2 draws 1 card(s).
It is now the first main phase.
Player 2 puts Scalding Tarn into play from hand.
Player 2 taps Scalding Tarn.
Player 2 puts Scalding Tarn from table into graveyard.
Player 2 sets counter life to 19 (-1).
Player 2 is looking at his library.
Player 2 puts Steam Vents into play from library.
Player 2 stops looking at his library.
Player 2 shuffles his library.
Player 2 sets counter life to 18 (-1).
Player 2 sets counter life to 17 (-1).
Player 2 taps Steam Vents.
Player 2 plays Serum Visions from hand.
Player 2 draws 1 card(s).
Player 2 puts Serum Visions from the stack into graveyard.
Player 2 is looking at the top 2 cards of his library.
Player 2 puts Gitaxian Probe from the top of his library on bottom of his library.
Player 2 stops looking at his library.
It is now the ending phase.
Player 1 taps Marsh Flats.
Player 1 puts Marsh Flats from table into graveyard.
Player 1 sets counter life to 19 (-1).
Player 1 is looking at his library.
Player 1 puts Hallowed Fountain into play from library.
Player 1 taps Hallowed Fountain.
Player 1 stops looking at his library.
Player 1 shuffles his library.
It is now Player 1's turn.
It is now the untap step.
Player 1 untaps his permanents.
It is now the draw step.
Player 1 draws 1 card(s).
It is now the first main phase.
Player 1 puts Scalding Tarn into play from hand.
It is now the ending phase.
It is now Player 2's turn.
It is now the untap step.
Player 2 untaps his permanents.
It is now the draw step.
Player 2 draws 1 card(s).
It is now the first main phase.
Player 2 puts Scalding Tarn into play from hand.
Player 2 taps Steam Vents.
Player 2 plays Sleight of Hand from hand.
Player 2 puts Sleight of Hand from the stack into graveyard.
Player 2 is looking at the top 2 cards of his library.
Player 2 moves Pyretic Ritual from library to hand.
Player 2 puts Seething Song from the top of his library on bottom of his library.
Player 2 stops looking at his library.
Player 2 taps Scalding Tarn.
Player 2 puts Scalding Tarn from table into graveyard.
Player 2 sets counter life to 16 (-1).
Player 2 is looking at his library.
Player 2 puts Steam Vents into play from library.
Player 2 stops looking at his library.
Player 2 shuffles his library.
Player 2 sets counter life to 15 (-1).
Player 2 sets counter life to 14 (-1).
Player 2 taps Steam Vents.
Player 2 plays Sleight of Hand from hand.
Player 2 puts Sleight of Hand from the stack into graveyard.
Player 2 is looking at the top 2 cards of his library.
Player 2 moves Seething Song from library to hand.
Player 2 puts Misty Rainforest from the top of his library on bottom of his library.
Player 2 stops looking at his library.
It is now the ending phase.
Player 1 taps Scalding Tarn.
Player 1 puts Scalding Tarn from table into graveyard.
Player 1 sets counter life to 18 (-1).
Player 1 is looking at his library.
Player 1 puts Watery Grave into play from library.
Player 1 taps Watery Grave.
Player 1 stops looking at his library.
Player 1 shuffles his library.
It is now Player 1's turn.
It is now the untap step.
Player 1 untaps his permanents.
It is now the draw step.
Player 1 draws 1 card(s).
It is now the first main phase.
Player 1 puts Scalding Tarn into play from hand.
It is now the ending phase.
It is now Player 2's turn.
It is now the untap step.
Player 2 untaps his permanents.
It is now the draw step.
Player 2 draws 1 card(s).
It is now the first main phase.
Player 1 taps Scalding Tarn.
Player 1 puts Scalding Tarn from table into graveyard.
Player 1 sets counter life to 17 (-1).
Player 1 is looking at his library.
Player 1 puts Island into play from library.
Player 1 stops looking at his library.
Player 1 shuffles his library.
Player 1 taps Island.
Player 1 taps Watery Grave.
Player 1 taps Hallowed Fountain.
Player 1 plays Vendilion Clique from hand.
Player 1 puts Vendilion Clique into play from the stack.
Player 2 puts Seething Song from hand on bottom of his library.
Player 2 draws 1 card(s).
Player 2 puts Mountain into play from hand.
Player 2 taps Mountain.
Player 2 untaps Mountain.
Player 2 taps Mountain.
Player 2 taps Steam Vents.
Player 2 plays Pyretic Ritual from hand.
Player 2 sets counter storm to 1 (+1).
Player 2 sets counter storm to 2 (+1).
Player 2 puts Pyretic Ritual from the stack into graveyard.
Player 2 sets counter r to 1 (+1).
Player 2 sets counter r to 2 (+1).
Player 2 sets counter r to 3 (+1).
Player 2 plays Seething Song from hand.
Player 2 sets counter storm to 3 (+1).
Player 2 sets counter r to 4 (+1).
Player 2 sets counter r to 5 (+1).
Player 2 puts Seething Song from the stack into graveyard.
Player 2 plays Seething Song from hand.
Player 2 sets counter storm to 4 (+1).
Player 2 sets counter r to 6 (+1).
Player 2 sets counter r to 7 (+1).
Player 2 puts Seething Song from the stack into graveyard.
Player 2 plays Manamorphose from hand.
Player 2 sets counter storm to 5 (+1).
Player 2 sets counter r to 6 (-1).
Player 2 sets counter r to 5 (-1).
Player 2 sets counter u to 1 (+1).
Player 2 sets counter u to 2 (+1).
Player 2 draws 1 card(s).
Player 2 puts Manamorphose from the stack into graveyard.
Player 2 taps Steam Vents.
Player 2 plays Grapeshot from hand.
Player 2 sets counter storm to 6 (+1).
Player 2 sets counter r to 4 (-1).
Player 2 sets counter r to 3 (-1).
Player 2 sets counter u to 3 (+1).
Player 2 puts Grapeshot from the stack into graveyard.
Player 1 sets counter life to 16 (-1).
Player 1 sets counter life to 15 (-1).
Player 1 sets counter life to 14 (-1).
Player 1 sets counter life to 13 (-1).
Player 1 sets counter life to 12 (-1).
Player 1 sets counter life to 11 (-1).
Player 2 plays Past in Flames from hand.
Player 2 sets counter storm to 7 (+1).
Player 2 sets counter r to 2 (-1).
Player 2 sets counter r to 1 (-1).
Player 2 sets counter u to 2 (-1).
Player 2 sets counter u to 1 (-1).
Player 2 puts Past in Flames from the stack into graveyard.
Player 2 sets counter u to 0 (-1).
Player 2 sets counter r to 2 (+1).
Player 2 sets counter r to 3 (+1).
Player 2 plays Pyretic Ritual from graveyard.
Player 2 sets counter storm to 8 (+1).
Player 2 exiles Pyretic Ritual from the stack.
Player 2 plays Seething Song from graveyard.
Player 2 sets counter storm to 9 (+1).
Player 2 sets counter r to 4 (+1).
Player 2 sets counter r to 5 (+1).
Player 2 exiles Seething Song from the stack.
Player 2 plays Seething Song from graveyard.
Player 2 sets counter storm to 10 (+1).
Player 2 sets counter r to 6 (+1).
Player 2 sets counter r to 7 (+1).
Player 2 exiles Seething Song from the stack.
Player 2 plays Manamorphose from graveyard.
Player 2 sets counter storm to 11 (+1).
Player 2 sets counter r to 6 (-1).
Player 2 sets counter r to 5 (-1).
Player 2 sets counter u to 1 (+1).
Player 2 sets counter u to 2 (+1).
Player 2 draws 1 card(s).
Player 2 exiles Manamorphose from the stack.
Player 2 sets counter storm to 12 (+1).
Player 2 sets counter r to 4 (-1).
Player 2 sets counter r to 3 (-1).
Player 2 plays Grapeshot from graveyard.
Teachings concedes straight afterwards, being dead to Grapeshot for 12.
Note that this is a Turn 3 UR Storm win, deciding to combo out when Teachings casts Vendilion Clique, bottoms a Seething Song, and Storm topdecks a Past in Flames.
Other playtesting games against the same Teachings deck involved having rituals countered (around three per game) and Storm winning despite that, and one of them was pretty funny, with Teachings gaining 8 life with Pulse of the Fields and still finding itself dead to double Grapeshot (and a Lightning Bolt or two).
I haven't tested Games 2-3 against Teachings yet, though, but Storm boarding in Dispels and Teachings boarding in Mindbreak Trap and graveyard hate are probably the ways to go.
This should be one of the standards against which decks should be tested against--if you can't get a decent clock in time before UR Storm wins, tune your deck.
well to be fair the teachings player played it completely wrong, You can't use vendilion clique on the draw step against a combo deck. Strictly at EOT only. He pretty much played you without even putting lands into play, or at least he might as well of.
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In life all we can do is try to make things better. Sitting lost in old ways and fearing change only makes us outdated and ignorant.
Peace cannot be kept by force. It can only be achieved by understanding.
Albert Einstein
Millions of innocent men, women and children, since the introduction of Christianity, have been burnt, tortured, fined and imprisoned; yet we have not advanced one inch towards uniformity.
My friend and I have been testing out this deck VS Mono-White Control
Pre-game, it seems to be in Mono-White's favor. If you can bate a minor storm into Empty the Warrens, and they blow their Wrath or DoJ, then you can get it (this is also considering they don't have Ghostly Prison in play).
I played around 2 Wrath effects in one game...still came out with >200 tokens.
Haven't tested many Post-board, so we'll see how that goes.
People are really underestimating Remand. This card is so much more than people think. It can completely invalidate Mindbreak Trap and in some scenarios create absurd loops.
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Modern (I collect the format):
WURDelver
[/MANA]MANA]R[/MANA]GTron WDeath and Taxes WSoul Sisters RWG Pod Combo URSplinter Twin URStorm RBurn
Remand cannot completely invalidate Mindbreak Trap, as that exiles all (copies of) your Storm spell on the stack, and if you're dumb and Remand the Trap, your opponent will just cast it again for free. If you don't have the mana to cast Grapeshot again (possible if you had to dig mid-combo to find Grapeshot), Remanding your own Grapeshot won't save you. Trying to save your Empty the Warrens with Remand is even worse.
Since I like the deck so much, I'm working on a primer for this deck. I'll update this post or a later one when it's done.
I started playing this today so I've only been goldfishing so far, trying to learn the intricacies of the deck. For example, spending all your mana except 1 red is a mistake that you never make twice. Locket of Yesterdays is awesome. When it's active, your rituals net you 2/3 mana, and all your dig/draw costs only 1 mana. 1 mana dig 4 (Goblin Lore) and dig 5 (Peer Through Depths)? Yes please. It's not as powerful as an active Pyromancer Ascension, but it costs less and is easier to "turn on".
Don't laugh at Burning Inquiry and Goblin Lore - their discard drawback is negated by Past in Flames. You can just maindeck the full 4 Pasts, since extras can be discarded. With Locket, if you end up discarding a Past, the next one you cast is 1 mana cheaper.
Peer Through Depths is...peerless. It grabs Past in Flames handily, and if you don't find Past, you'll probably find a dig spell to get you closer to it.
Since I've only goldfished with this deck, the two most obvious ways to improve it would be to 1) add outs against grave hate, storm hate, Leyline of Sanctity effects and 2) trade speed for control elements like removal, counterspells.
Wasn't there an combo with Desperate Ritual and Izzet Guildmage? Something about making tons of mana. Perhaps that would be an option for sideboards versus grave hate.
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In case I didn't tell you, I don't care about your opinion I just want your facts. And not the facts that make you seem smart. I want the ones that are actual facts.
Wasn't there an combo with Desperate Ritual and Izzet Guildmage? Something about making tons of mana. Perhaps that would be an option for sideboards versus grave hate.
The combo was Desperate Ritual, Izzet Guildmage and Lava Spike. Splice and copy for infinite damage. I would know, look at my username. I wouldn't play it though, as it's 3 cards and each of the cards does nothing useful on its own.
Grave hate is something that this deck just doesn't take well to. Your best bet is just to maximize your Game 1 win %. Keep in mind that this deck plays no creatures, so all your opponent's kill spells are worthless G1. Maybe you can play a transformational SB into Kiln Fiend/Wee Dragonauts combo (if you're expecting your opponent to take out all his kill spells), I don't know.
I'm not sure if Locket is supposed to work in the way that it works on MTGO, but it certainly has been good to me--glitch or not. Online, a spell with flashback reduces its own cost, so a Manamorphose in your yard considers itself to cost R/G and nets you a mana. That's obviously really powerful. If you think Past in Flames is broken, try casting it with one red open and a locket on the table. Your Desperate Ritual is now a Dark Ritual when you flash it back, and your draw spells are all suddenly way cheaper. I've been literally drawing my entire deck (or easily capable of doing so) in around 70% of combo turns that aren't stopped by disruption, including turns that fizzle.
I've read the flashback and alternate casting cost sections of the rulebook carefully and I have also read the section on Locket of Yesterdays in the Time Spiral Set FAQ, and the two seem to clash. The rulebook seems to clearly describe things in a way that makes Locket function this way with flashback spells counting themselves, just like casting a Frogmite off of nothing but two Lotus Petals or a Thoughtcast off of . However, the TS Set FAQ specifically states that a spell cannot make itself cheaper. I wonder if the rules have changed since then--the rulebook certainly has (or, at least, been rearranged). And I also wonder if the FAQ is downright wrong. It's possible a mistake was made somewhere--the rulebook seems to clash with the FAQ here, and I would imagine the rulebook supersedes any FAQ.
I've looked into talking to some level 2 judges about this, through my friend in the judge circuit. I know that MTGO has had some glitches in the past, with the flashback mechanic. Venser, Shaper Savant used to be able to bounce a flashbacked Momentary Blink directly to its owners hand, as opposed to exiling it. I've also heard about Snapcaster Mage having a glitch with the Zenith cycle; it seems to shuffle them into the deck (as opposed to exiling them). But this rules question doesn't seem so cut-and-dry to me as a simple MTGO glitch. I think it's more of a gray area, and hopefully some higher-up judges can give me a detailed explanation.
Remand cannot completely invalidate Mindbreak Trap, as that exiles all (copies of) your Storm spell on the stack, and if you're dumb and Remand the Trap, your opponent will just cast it again for free. If you don't have the mana to cast Grapeshot again (possible if you had to dig mid-combo to find Grapeshot), Remanding your own Grapeshot won't save you. Trying to save your Empty the Warrens with Remand is even worse.
Since I like the deck so much, I'm working on a primer for this deck. I'll update this post or a later one when it's done.
Well, while it won't invalidate MBTrap, it can still help. There are 3 ways your opponent can use MBTrap on your combo turn:
1. He counters a key spell--usually Past in Flames or a clutch Seething Song/bomb draw spell that you probably need to resolve. (How I personally prefer to use Mindbreak Trap in most cases, since I prefer to attack the engine rather than the Fireball when dealing with combo decks.)
2. Your grapeshot trigger resolves and you target him with all the copies, and he responds by Trap targetting all the copies and the original. (This is the most common use of the Trap.)
3. You play a Grapeshot, Remand it in response to the Storm trigger, and he Mindbreak Traps your Remand and original Grapeshot. Doing this allows your storm trigger to resolve, so if the copies are lethal...he can't play around this plan with just one Trap. Since the spells aren't actually on the stack yet, they can't be targetted--it's just the storm trigger waiting to resolve. So if you have 3RRU and Remand+Shot with a storm of 21+, this is the way to go.
Well, if you have two Manamorphose in your graveyard, then one will reduce the cost of the other.
Here's what Gatherer has to say:
Quote from "Gatherer" »
The spell being cast doesn't reduce its own cost, even if you're casting it from a graveyard. At the time the cost is reduced, the spell is on the stack.
edit:
Quote from "i-never-smile" »
3. You play a Grapeshot, Remand it in response to the Storm trigger, and he Mindbreak Traps your Remand and original Grapeshot. Doing this allows your storm trigger to resolve, so if the copies are lethal...he can't play around this plan with just one Trap. Since the spells aren't actually on the stack yet, they can't be targetted--it's just the storm trigger waiting to resolve. So if you have 3RRU and Remand+Shot with a storm of 21+, this is the way to go.
Your opponent can target the copies with Mindbreak Trap as well. The correct way to play if your opponent has one MBT (you'll know what's in his hand due to Gitaxian Probe) is Grapeshot first: if Grapeshot and all copies resolve then you win. If your opponent MBTs, Remand Grapeshot back to hand, because he can't change the target(s) of MBT to include Remand.
In case I didn't tell you, I don't care about your opinion I just want your facts. And not the facts that make you seem smart. I want the ones that are actual facts.
By discard do you mean black discard (Inquisition, Duress, Thoughtseize) or "looting" (you discard and draw)?
Black discard is...ok, I guess, but this deck has better things to do.
The discard drawback of looting is negated by Past in Flames. In fact, the only drawback of looting is that the discard is random (Burning Inquiry and Goblin Lore are), so you might end up throwing away a ritual that you need to hit that crucial 6 mana to combo off. Past can be flashed back, so discarding it is no biggie.
Speaking of black, Infernal Tutor might have a place in the deck. The only reason I use blue is for Peer through Depths; if a better card comes along I'm all open.
By discard do you mean black discard (Inquisition, Duress, Thoughtseize) or "looting" (you discard and draw)?
Black discard is...ok, I guess, but this deck has better things to do.
The discard drawback of looting is negated by Past in Flames. In fact, the only drawback of looting is that the discard is random (Burning Inquiry and Goblin Lore are), so you might end up throwing away a ritual that you need to hit that crucial 6 mana to combo off. Past can be flashed back, so discarding it is no biggie.
Speaking of black, Infernal Tutor might have a place in the deck. The only reason I use blue is for Peer through Depths; if a better card comes along I'm all open.
I've played PiF storm now since Inn and I just don't like blue in the deck. It might be that I don't like how fragile the deck can be at times. This might also be a byproduct of all the bans.
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In case I didn't tell you, I don't care about your opinion I just want your facts. And not the facts that make you seem smart. I want the ones that are actual facts.
Playing blue is a bit more fiddly, since rituals only produce red mana. The only thing you have for switching red mana to blue is Manamorphose or filter lands (which no-one uses). If Manamorphose is your only form of filtering, it'll pay to include Pyromancer Ascension so that you can make more blue mana.
Burning Inquiry and the upcoming FL are arguably better draw/dig spells than Ponder and Preordain, in this deck at least. Rite of Flame is too powerful for this archetype; imagine Dredge with only Grave-Troll banned and Dread Return free to reanimate Iona and you'll have an idea of how powerful this deck would be.
Are you playing Past in Modern or Standard? It's hard to make this deck work in Standard due to the lack of rituals.
The primary reasons for blue in a storm deck are for digging (cantrips/draw spells/looting/self-milling) and protection. Since there isn't anything like High Tide in this format, blue isn't a part of the mana engine. That mean's it's definitely not necessary. However, if you can run it, you get a lot of perks. When Ponder was around, it made Storm infinitely more consistent. Peer Through Depths still does that, and some of the weaker blue cantrips don't exactly hurt. So when you're looking at splashing another color, the issue is: does it make the deck more consistent, or does it make it less consistent? I don't think that Serum Visions and Sleight of hand are strong enough to warrant a splash, but if you start getting into more powerful dig like Thirst for Knowledge, Compulsive Research, and Peer through Depths--that's a huge boon.
But that's not the reason why I run blue. I run blue because of Remand. I don't trust Empty the Warrens and Ignite Memories and I don't like how Dragonstorm destroys deck space (among other issues), so the storm spell that I trust is Grapeshot. If Grapeshot is your win condition and you're under pressure as well as disruption, Grapeshot+Remand is going to be your best game plan for comboing in a lot of cases. It's the best way to fight counterspells, too--they start countering your spells, and then the storm count is suddenly high enough that double or triple Grapeshot will kill them through 2-3 counters and a Mindbreak Trap. That's not even an exaggeration; that's just playing like Storm is played in Legacy and Vintage.
Remand cannot completely invalidate Mindbreak Trap, as that exiles all (copies of) your Storm spell on the stack, and if you're dumb and Remand the Trap, your opponent will just cast it again for free. If you don't have the mana to cast Grapeshot again (possible if you had to dig mid-combo to find Grapeshot), Remanding your own Grapeshot won't save you. Trying to save your Empty the Warrens with Remand is even worse.
Since I like the deck so much, I'm working on a primer for this deck. I'll update this post or a later one when it's done.
No one is silly enough to remand the trap. Im talking about remanding your own grapeshot in response.
And when is any storm deck ever at a loss for mana? When you re-do the ritual chain from your grave you should have 6+ mana. Ussualy. Anyways made a thread for it. So I guess we should stop getting off topic.
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Modern (I collect the format):
WURDelver
[/MANA]MANA]R[/MANA]GTron WDeath and Taxes WSoul Sisters RWG Pod Combo URSplinter Twin URStorm RBurn
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ohhh okok. Then my next question is, against who do you bust out this sideboard plan? I just restarted playing magic after 2 years (just found out that modern and legacy were fun) so I have no idea whats really played right now
Playing:
Legacy:
:symw::symb::symg::symu::symr:Dredge
:symu::symb: ANT
The Gate
Modern:
:symu::symr: Past in flames Storm
EDH:
:symr::symw::symb: Kaalia of the Vast
Also I really don't know about Desperate Ravings.. It seems suboptimal.. but then again we are still playing serum visions. I'm going to build the deck with 2 Empty the warrens 3 lightning bolts and 3 pyros and see what happens.
This is a log of me playing against myself on Cockatrice, UR PiF Storm versus Esper Teachings (Teachings is Player 1, Storm is Player 2, Teachings is on the play):
It is now Player 1's turn.
It is now the untap step.
Player 1 shuffles his library.
Player 1 draws 7 card(s).
Player 1 shuffles his library.
Player 1 draws 6 card(s).
Player 1 puts Swamp from hand on top of his library.
Player 1 puts Creeping Tar Pit from hand on top of his library.
Player 1 puts Path to Exile from hand on top of his library.
Player 1 puts Snapcaster Mage from hand on top of his library.
Player 1 puts Soul Manipulation from hand on top of his library.
Player 1 puts Island from hand on top of his library.
Player 1 puts Island from hand on top of his library.
It is now Player 2's turn.
It is now the untap step.
Player 2 shuffles his library.
Player 2 draws 7 card(s).
It is now Player 1's turn.
It is now the untap step.
It is now the first main phase.
Player 1 puts Marsh Flats into play from hand.
It is now the ending phase.
It is now Player 2's turn.
It is now the untap step.
Player 2 untaps his permanents.
It is now the draw step.
Player 2 draws 1 card(s).
It is now the first main phase.
Player 2 puts Scalding Tarn into play from hand.
Player 2 taps Scalding Tarn.
Player 2 puts Scalding Tarn from table into graveyard.
Player 2 sets counter life to 19 (-1).
Player 2 is looking at his library.
Player 2 puts Steam Vents into play from library.
Player 2 stops looking at his library.
Player 2 shuffles his library.
Player 2 sets counter life to 18 (-1).
Player 2 sets counter life to 17 (-1).
Player 2 taps Steam Vents.
Player 2 plays Serum Visions from hand.
Player 2 draws 1 card(s).
Player 2 puts Serum Visions from the stack into graveyard.
Player 2 is looking at the top 2 cards of his library.
Player 2 puts Gitaxian Probe from the top of his library on bottom of his library.
Player 2 stops looking at his library.
It is now the ending phase.
Player 1 taps Marsh Flats.
Player 1 puts Marsh Flats from table into graveyard.
Player 1 sets counter life to 19 (-1).
Player 1 is looking at his library.
Player 1 puts Hallowed Fountain into play from library.
Player 1 taps Hallowed Fountain.
Player 1 stops looking at his library.
Player 1 shuffles his library.
It is now Player 1's turn.
It is now the untap step.
Player 1 untaps his permanents.
It is now the draw step.
Player 1 draws 1 card(s).
It is now the first main phase.
Player 1 puts Scalding Tarn into play from hand.
It is now the ending phase.
It is now Player 2's turn.
It is now the untap step.
Player 2 untaps his permanents.
It is now the draw step.
Player 2 draws 1 card(s).
It is now the first main phase.
Player 2 puts Scalding Tarn into play from hand.
Player 2 taps Steam Vents.
Player 2 plays Sleight of Hand from hand.
Player 2 puts Sleight of Hand from the stack into graveyard.
Player 2 is looking at the top 2 cards of his library.
Player 2 moves Pyretic Ritual from library to hand.
Player 2 puts Seething Song from the top of his library on bottom of his library.
Player 2 stops looking at his library.
Player 2 taps Scalding Tarn.
Player 2 puts Scalding Tarn from table into graveyard.
Player 2 sets counter life to 16 (-1).
Player 2 is looking at his library.
Player 2 puts Steam Vents into play from library.
Player 2 stops looking at his library.
Player 2 shuffles his library.
Player 2 sets counter life to 15 (-1).
Player 2 sets counter life to 14 (-1).
Player 2 taps Steam Vents.
Player 2 plays Sleight of Hand from hand.
Player 2 puts Sleight of Hand from the stack into graveyard.
Player 2 is looking at the top 2 cards of his library.
Player 2 moves Seething Song from library to hand.
Player 2 puts Misty Rainforest from the top of his library on bottom of his library.
Player 2 stops looking at his library.
It is now the ending phase.
Player 1 taps Scalding Tarn.
Player 1 puts Scalding Tarn from table into graveyard.
Player 1 sets counter life to 18 (-1).
Player 1 is looking at his library.
Player 1 puts Watery Grave into play from library.
Player 1 taps Watery Grave.
Player 1 stops looking at his library.
Player 1 shuffles his library.
It is now Player 1's turn.
It is now the untap step.
Player 1 untaps his permanents.
It is now the draw step.
Player 1 draws 1 card(s).
It is now the first main phase.
Player 1 puts Scalding Tarn into play from hand.
It is now the ending phase.
It is now Player 2's turn.
It is now the untap step.
Player 2 untaps his permanents.
It is now the draw step.
Player 2 draws 1 card(s).
It is now the first main phase.
Player 1 taps Scalding Tarn.
Player 1 puts Scalding Tarn from table into graveyard.
Player 1 sets counter life to 17 (-1).
Player 1 is looking at his library.
Player 1 puts Island into play from library.
Player 1 stops looking at his library.
Player 1 shuffles his library.
Player 1 taps Island.
Player 1 taps Watery Grave.
Player 1 taps Hallowed Fountain.
Player 1 plays Vendilion Clique from hand.
Player 1 puts Vendilion Clique into play from the stack.
Player 2 puts Seething Song from hand on bottom of his library.
Player 2 draws 1 card(s).
Player 2 puts Mountain into play from hand.
Player 2 taps Mountain.
Player 2 untaps Mountain.
Player 2 taps Mountain.
Player 2 taps Steam Vents.
Player 2 plays Pyretic Ritual from hand.
Player 2 sets counter storm to 1 (+1).
Player 2 sets counter storm to 2 (+1).
Player 2 puts Pyretic Ritual from the stack into graveyard.
Player 2 sets counter r to 1 (+1).
Player 2 sets counter r to 2 (+1).
Player 2 sets counter r to 3 (+1).
Player 2 plays Seething Song from hand.
Player 2 sets counter storm to 3 (+1).
Player 2 sets counter r to 4 (+1).
Player 2 sets counter r to 5 (+1).
Player 2 puts Seething Song from the stack into graveyard.
Player 2 plays Seething Song from hand.
Player 2 sets counter storm to 4 (+1).
Player 2 sets counter r to 6 (+1).
Player 2 sets counter r to 7 (+1).
Player 2 puts Seething Song from the stack into graveyard.
Player 2 plays Manamorphose from hand.
Player 2 sets counter storm to 5 (+1).
Player 2 sets counter r to 6 (-1).
Player 2 sets counter r to 5 (-1).
Player 2 sets counter u to 1 (+1).
Player 2 sets counter u to 2 (+1).
Player 2 draws 1 card(s).
Player 2 puts Manamorphose from the stack into graveyard.
Player 2 taps Steam Vents.
Player 2 plays Grapeshot from hand.
Player 2 sets counter storm to 6 (+1).
Player 2 sets counter r to 4 (-1).
Player 2 sets counter r to 3 (-1).
Player 2 sets counter u to 3 (+1).
Player 2 puts Grapeshot from the stack into graveyard.
Player 1 sets counter life to 16 (-1).
Player 1 sets counter life to 15 (-1).
Player 1 sets counter life to 14 (-1).
Player 1 sets counter life to 13 (-1).
Player 1 sets counter life to 12 (-1).
Player 1 sets counter life to 11 (-1).
Player 2 plays Past in Flames from hand.
Player 2 sets counter storm to 7 (+1).
Player 2 sets counter r to 2 (-1).
Player 2 sets counter r to 1 (-1).
Player 2 sets counter u to 2 (-1).
Player 2 sets counter u to 1 (-1).
Player 2 puts Past in Flames from the stack into graveyard.
Player 2 sets counter u to 0 (-1).
Player 2 sets counter r to 2 (+1).
Player 2 sets counter r to 3 (+1).
Player 2 plays Pyretic Ritual from graveyard.
Player 2 sets counter storm to 8 (+1).
Player 2 exiles Pyretic Ritual from the stack.
Player 2 plays Seething Song from graveyard.
Player 2 sets counter storm to 9 (+1).
Player 2 sets counter r to 4 (+1).
Player 2 sets counter r to 5 (+1).
Player 2 exiles Seething Song from the stack.
Player 2 plays Seething Song from graveyard.
Player 2 sets counter storm to 10 (+1).
Player 2 sets counter r to 6 (+1).
Player 2 sets counter r to 7 (+1).
Player 2 exiles Seething Song from the stack.
Player 2 plays Manamorphose from graveyard.
Player 2 sets counter storm to 11 (+1).
Player 2 sets counter r to 6 (-1).
Player 2 sets counter r to 5 (-1).
Player 2 sets counter u to 1 (+1).
Player 2 sets counter u to 2 (+1).
Player 2 draws 1 card(s).
Player 2 exiles Manamorphose from the stack.
Player 2 sets counter storm to 12 (+1).
Player 2 sets counter r to 4 (-1).
Player 2 sets counter r to 3 (-1).
Player 2 plays Grapeshot from graveyard.
Note that this is a Turn 3 UR Storm win, deciding to combo out when Teachings casts Vendilion Clique, bottoms a Seething Song, and Storm topdecks a Past in Flames.
Other playtesting games against the same Teachings deck involved having rituals countered (around three per game) and Storm winning despite that, and one of them was pretty funny, with Teachings gaining 8 life with Pulse of the Fields and still finding itself dead to double Grapeshot (and a Lightning Bolt or two).
I haven't tested Games 2-3 against Teachings yet, though, but Storm boarding in Dispels and Teachings boarding in Mindbreak Trap and graveyard hate are probably the ways to go.
This should be one of the standards against which decks should be tested against--if you can't get a decent clock in time before UR Storm wins, tune your deck.
- T2:
UWB Esper Hero
UR Phoenix
UGB Steal-o-matic
- Modern:
UR Storm
WBG Vizier
*testing* WBG Astral Drift
well to be fair the teachings player played it completely wrong, You can't use vendilion clique on the draw step against a combo deck. Strictly at EOT only. He pretty much played you without even putting lands into play, or at least he might as well of.
Albert Einstein
Thomas Jefferson
Pre-game, it seems to be in Mono-White's favor. If you can bate a minor storm into Empty the Warrens, and they blow their Wrath or DoJ, then you can get it (this is also considering they don't have Ghostly Prison in play).
I played around 2 Wrath effects in one game...still came out with >200 tokens.
Haven't tested many Post-board, so we'll see how that goes.
Deck for reference:
4x Shivan Reef
4x Cascading Bluff
4x Sulfur Falls
3x Island
1x Mountain
1x Misty Rainforest
Instants:
4x Seething Song
4x Pyretic Ritual
4x Manamorphose
4x Desperate Ritual
4x Desperate Ravings
3x Pyromancer's Ascension
Sorceries:
4x Sleight of Hand
4x Serum Visions
4x Grapeshot
4x Gitaxian Probe
3x Past in Flames
2x Empty the Warrens
2x Gigadrowse
3x Lightning Bolt
1x Dreadship Reef
1x Calciform Pools
1x Banefire
3x Shattering Spree
2x Mass Hysteria
2x Empty the Warrens
:symw::symg::symu:Turbo Fog:symu::symg::symw:
Legacy:
Dredge
:symg::symw::symr:Enchantress:symr::symw::symg:
:symg:Combo Elves:symg:
:symr:Burn:symr:
Modern:
:symr::symu:PiF Storm:symu::symr:
EDH
:symr:Norin the Wary:symr:
:symg::symu:Experiment Kraj:symu::symg:
:symu::symb:Wrexial, the Risen Deep:symb::symu:
:symw::symg::symr::symb::symu:Cromat: Mazes End:symu::symb::symr::symg::symw:
Warp World Primer!
WURDelver
[/MANA]MANA]R[/MANA]GTron
WDeath and Taxes
WSoul Sisters
RWG Pod Combo
URSplinter Twin
URStorm
RBurn
Since I like the deck so much, I'm working on a primer for this deck. I'll update this post or a later one when it's done.
4 Scalding Tarn
4 Arid Mesa
4 Steam Vents
2 Mountain
1 Island
4 Faithless Looting
4 Burning Inquiry
4 Gitaxian Probe
4 Manamorphose
4 Goblin Lore
4 Peer Through Depths
3 Locket of Yesterdays
4 Desperate Ritual
4 Pyretic Ritual
4 Seething Song
Wincons 6
2 Grapeshot
4 Past in Flames
I started playing this today so I've only been goldfishing so far, trying to learn the intricacies of the deck. For example, spending all your mana except 1 red is a mistake that you never make twice.
Locket of Yesterdays is awesome. When it's active, your rituals net you 2/3 mana, and all your dig/draw costs only 1 mana. 1 mana dig 4 (Goblin Lore) and dig 5 (Peer Through Depths)? Yes please. It's not as powerful as an active Pyromancer Ascension, but it costs less and is easier to "turn on".
Don't laugh at Burning Inquiry and Goblin Lore - their discard drawback is negated by Past in Flames. You can just maindeck the full 4 Pasts, since extras can be discarded. With Locket, if you end up discarding a Past, the next one you cast is 1 mana cheaper.
Peer Through Depths is...peerless. It grabs Past in Flames handily, and if you don't find Past, you'll probably find a dig spell to get you closer to it.
Since I've only goldfished with this deck, the two most obvious ways to improve it would be to 1) add outs against grave hate, storm hate, Leyline of Sanctity effects and 2) trade speed for control elements like removal, counterspells.
| Ad Nauseam
| Infect
Big Johnny.
Cockatrice username: Blackcat77
The combo was Desperate Ritual, Izzet Guildmage and Lava Spike. Splice and copy for infinite damage. I would know, look at my username. I wouldn't play it though, as it's 3 cards and each of the cards does nothing useful on its own.
Grave hate is something that this deck just doesn't take well to. Your best bet is just to maximize your Game 1 win %. Keep in mind that this deck plays no creatures, so all your opponent's kill spells are worthless G1. Maybe you can play a transformational SB into Kiln Fiend/Wee Dragonauts combo (if you're expecting your opponent to take out all his kill spells), I don't know.
| Ad Nauseam
| Infect
Big Johnny.
I've read the flashback and alternate casting cost sections of the rulebook carefully and I have also read the section on Locket of Yesterdays in the Time Spiral Set FAQ, and the two seem to clash. The rulebook seems to clearly describe things in a way that makes Locket function this way with flashback spells counting themselves, just like casting a Frogmite off of nothing but two Lotus Petals or a Thoughtcast off of . However, the TS Set FAQ specifically states that a spell cannot make itself cheaper. I wonder if the rules have changed since then--the rulebook certainly has (or, at least, been rearranged). And I also wonder if the FAQ is downright wrong. It's possible a mistake was made somewhere--the rulebook seems to clash with the FAQ here, and I would imagine the rulebook supersedes any FAQ.
I've looked into talking to some level 2 judges about this, through my friend in the judge circuit. I know that MTGO has had some glitches in the past, with the flashback mechanic. Venser, Shaper Savant used to be able to bounce a flashbacked Momentary Blink directly to its owners hand, as opposed to exiling it. I've also heard about Snapcaster Mage having a glitch with the Zenith cycle; it seems to shuffle them into the deck (as opposed to exiling them). But this rules question doesn't seem so cut-and-dry to me as a simple MTGO glitch. I think it's more of a gray area, and hopefully some higher-up judges can give me a detailed explanation.
Well, while it won't invalidate MBTrap, it can still help. There are 3 ways your opponent can use MBTrap on your combo turn:
1. He counters a key spell--usually Past in Flames or a clutch Seething Song/bomb draw spell that you probably need to resolve. (How I personally prefer to use Mindbreak Trap in most cases, since I prefer to attack the engine rather than the Fireball when dealing with combo decks.)
2. Your grapeshot trigger resolves and you target him with all the copies, and he responds by Trap targetting all the copies and the original. (This is the most common use of the Trap.)
3. You play a Grapeshot, Remand it in response to the Storm trigger, and he Mindbreak Traps your Remand and original Grapeshot. Doing this allows your storm trigger to resolve, so if the copies are lethal...he can't play around this plan with just one Trap. Since the spells aren't actually on the stack yet, they can't be targetted--it's just the storm trigger waiting to resolve. So if you have 3RRU and Remand+Shot with a storm of 21+, this is the way to go.
Here's what Gatherer has to say:
edit:
Your opponent can target the copies with Mindbreak Trap as well. The correct way to play if your opponent has one MBT (you'll know what's in his hand due to Gitaxian Probe) is Grapeshot first: if Grapeshot and all copies resolve then you win. If your opponent MBTs, Remand Grapeshot back to hand, because he can't change the target(s) of MBT to include Remand.
| Ad Nauseam
| Infect
Big Johnny.
Cockatrice username: Blackcat77
Black discard is...ok, I guess, but this deck has better things to do.
The discard drawback of looting is negated by Past in Flames. In fact, the only drawback of looting is that the discard is random (Burning Inquiry and Goblin Lore are), so you might end up throwing away a ritual that you need to hit that crucial 6 mana to combo off. Past can be flashed back, so discarding it is no biggie.
Speaking of black, Infernal Tutor might have a place in the deck. The only reason I use blue is for Peer through Depths; if a better card comes along I'm all open.
| Ad Nauseam
| Infect
Big Johnny.
I've played PiF storm now since Inn and I just don't like blue in the deck. It might be that I don't like how fragile the deck can be at times. This might also be a byproduct of all the bans.
Cockatrice username: Blackcat77
Burning Inquiry and the upcoming FL are arguably better draw/dig spells than Ponder and Preordain, in this deck at least. Rite of Flame is too powerful for this archetype; imagine Dredge with only Grave-Troll banned and Dread Return free to reanimate Iona and you'll have an idea of how powerful this deck would be.
Are you playing Past in Modern or Standard? It's hard to make this deck work in Standard due to the lack of rituals.
| Ad Nauseam
| Infect
Big Johnny.
But that's not the reason why I run blue. I run blue because of Remand. I don't trust Empty the Warrens and Ignite Memories and I don't like how Dragonstorm destroys deck space (among other issues), so the storm spell that I trust is Grapeshot. If Grapeshot is your win condition and you're under pressure as well as disruption, Grapeshot+Remand is going to be your best game plan for comboing in a lot of cases. It's the best way to fight counterspells, too--they start countering your spells, and then the storm count is suddenly high enough that double or triple Grapeshot will kill them through 2-3 counters and a Mindbreak Trap. That's not even an exaggeration; that's just playing like Storm is played in Legacy and Vintage.
And when is any storm deck ever at a loss for mana? When you re-do the ritual chain from your grave you should have 6+ mana. Ussualy. Anyways made a thread for it. So I guess we should stop getting off topic.
WURDelver
[/MANA]MANA]R[/MANA]GTron
WDeath and Taxes
WSoul Sisters
RWG Pod Combo
URSplinter Twin
URStorm
RBurn