If I'm really concerned about ruining lingering souls I'd much rather play illness in the ranks as it can come down immediately. That said I don't know if hurting young pz is worth it.
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With the banning of twin comes the end of an era...
my biggest issue with dropping angler is that vampiric link is now kinda iffy as my burn hate i need something else. As for anti lingering souls electrickery and darkblast have done a lot of work for me against that particular card
Short Version
- 3 Liliana (until you get them)
+1 Land (I have been running a Ghost Quarter)
+1 Surgical Extraction (With all the discard and Quarter you should be able to grab something important)
+1 Echoing Truth (Deals with everything, if need you can Iok/Thoughtseize it afterwards)
Long Version
Adding a Ghost Quarter has help against a lot of match up's. Someone said earlier that the deck feels like it want to run 20.5 lands and I agree, 20 feels a little light and 21 feels like to much. Tron, blow up on of their lands, the Surgical Extraction all of those, just feels right. Burn, same thing, take out their green or white source and you have left a lot of cards in their hands. With as many decks have very greed mana bases, rarely have I been unhappy to draw this. Sometimes just the treat of it makes them play differently.
Most decks in modern have at least one card that just makes their deck. All the combo decks, CoCo etc. Being able to force them to discard it then exiling all of them is very powerful. This also gets non-basic lands and can be flashed back with Jace/Snappy. Can not express how much this card has helped my match up's. I run a 2nd SB.
Echoing Truth, or any 2 mana bounce, lets us deal with stuff that we normally can't. Hitting a bounce of goblin or sprite tokens is very sweet. Or a walker, enchantment and so on. Add that to the amount of hand disruption we have and surgical, it just makes baby kittens cry.
So far this has worked really well for me. Also I have swapped my Angler for a Grim Lavamancer and have been very pleased. The pinging for 2 hits a ton of dudes right now or can help finish off a player/bigger dude if needed. Also helps clear stuff out of your graveyard for Taz's ability, don't underestimate this.
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Modern
Currently Playing UW UW Control/Miracles R Skred Red
Another possibility is to replace 3 Liliana and a land with 4 free cantrips. They will play synergistically with the deck and effectively increase the density of the other 56 cards in the deck.
That's the deck I played yesterday at the FNM with a score 2-1-1. Wins against Affinity and Junk, draw against Junk, loss against Merfolk (super close games but expected)
So let me explain a few stuff first. I used to play Cruel Control a few years ago and I just love Cruel Ultimatum. I've been playing Grixis control lately and now I wanted to try the tappout version.
I don't have lilis so I decided to go with a Gerry Thompson like list.
While I was checking the list I figured that with some manipulation on the mana base I can easily support Cruel Ultimatum as a finisher. I added it to the list in the expense of a Mr. and Mrs. Nalaar and I never looked back. I don't know if it was the correct card to replace but it was definitely the correct card to add. All my games were so grindy and long that I managed to resolve it literally in EVERY game with Jace's -3. The card simply wins you the game on the spot and can easily bring you back from the dead if you are losing. You might say it is my fanboysm for the card but I really REALLY think that there is a place for it in the deck. It was just steller.
Pia and Kiran Nalaar are just the nuts. Especially against the people I played. They just wreck all aggro and are amazing against lingering souls. Might want to add a second.
Thouseize is mainly because I don't have Rise//Fall otherwise it would be that one.
I definitely want a third K. Command. I wanted to see it in every game and 2 feel too few.
I had troubles closing games after I established control. Once you empty their board and have Jace you have almost 100% won the game but you need some time to find a threat to close it. I know that Abbot helps but I don't really wanna play the version with Abbot. Any suggestions?
I really love the split between the removals but I might need another one. I will probably replace a Thought Scour cause 4 are too many with only 2 delve creatures. Or the 4rth Scour will be the 3rd Command.
I am unsure of the split between remand and leak. Maybe 2 leak/1 Remand is better.
So I've been testing with Pia and Kiran Nalaar a lot recently. (cut the 3 abbots for another land and 2 pias) and they're great! I still love Abbot, and I do miss him at times, and I think that Abbot and Pia are pretty close. But right now I've been seeing a bunch of souls, affinity, infect, etc, and I'm sad to say that Pia might be better positioned right now. I think I would rather have the Abbot if you're playing against more combo decks (because you would much rather have the option to play Abbot on turn 2 and start swinging than be stuck with 4 drop) or if there weren't as many go wide decks (which there seems to be a lot of right now) then I would go back to Abbot. But Pia seems really good right now. I still don't think I really want counterspells mainboard (I love my rise/falls too much, and I'm surprised some of you guys think that it is too situational/mediocre, I'm almost never unhappy seeing a rise/fall) but I do feel a lot better about having some counters in the board now that I can't him them with Abbot.
Just thought I would share. Thank you to Gerry T! I probably wouldn't have ever tried them if it weren't for him.
I just cant fit abbot and pia together. Im using atm last GerryT article list. Good results grindy matchs and im not sold to abbot yet. Will keep testing.
I just cant fit abbot and pia together. Im using atm last GerryT article list. Good results grindy matchs and im not sold to abbot yet. Will keep testing.
Can you post this link, can't find it.
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Hi I'm Infecter4life and ironically I only play GBx decks.
The two namesakes of the deck, abbot and jace, like the vandalblast more. Hitting shatterstorm off of abbot would be awkward, but vandalblast is still good. You can also overload vandalblast from the graveyard with Jace. Just in general the deck wants a lower curve and "modal" spells so that you have the flexibility of when to cast them, rather than the objectively more efficient (but less flexible) spells.
I like the pia version with 3-4 counter spells and more in the side. I actually still play one copy of abbot in my Gerry inspired list. Pia is strong making value instantly with evasive creatures she actually does a lot of work. I think Gerry T. was definitely on to something here the ability to play a couple mana leak and remand and side in more counters post board puts us in a nice position. The deck plays pretty close but we can defend ourselves and our threats a little better at the cost of a having a couple less threats. Our topdecks are a little worse as you can't abbot into value as much but all in all its a fun new way to play the deck and it works well.
Yeah, souls are rough. What are you going to play for token hate? I THINK (haven't tested enough) that pia, lavamancer, echoing truth, and staticaster will be good enough.
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Short Version
- 3 Liliana (until you get them)
+1 Land (I have been running a Ghost Quarter)
+1 Surgical Extraction (With all the discard and Quarter you should be able to grab something important)
+1 Echoing Truth (Deals with everything, if need you can Iok/Thoughtseize it afterwards)
Long Version
Adding a Ghost Quarter has help against a lot of match up's. Someone said earlier that the deck feels like it want to run 20.5 lands and I agree, 20 feels a little light and 21 feels like to much. Tron, blow up on of their lands, the Surgical Extraction all of those, just feels right. Burn, same thing, take out their green or white source and you have left a lot of cards in their hands. With as many decks have very greed mana bases, rarely have I been unhappy to draw this. Sometimes just the treat of it makes them play differently.
Most decks in modern have at least one card that just makes their deck. All the combo decks, CoCo etc. Being able to force them to discard it then exiling all of them is very powerful. This also gets non-basic lands and can be flashed back with Jace/Snappy. Can not express how much this card has helped my match up's. I run a 2nd SB.
Echoing Truth, or any 2 mana bounce, lets us deal with stuff that we normally can't. Hitting a bounce of goblin or sprite tokens is very sweet. Or a walker, enchantment and so on. Add that to the amount of hand disruption we have and surgical, it just makes baby kittens cry.
So far this has worked really well for me. Also I have swapped my Angler for a Grim Lavamancer and have been very pleased. The pinging for 2 hits a ton of dudes right now or can help finish off a player/bigger dude if needed. Also helps clear stuff out of your graveyard for Taz's ability, don't underestimate this.
Modern
Currently Playing
UW UW Control/Miracles
R Skred Red
Retired
BU Faeries
RGW Naya Burn
BW B/W Tokens
3 Jace, Vryn's Prodigy
1 Pia and Kira Nalaar
1 Grim Lavamancer
2 Tasigur, the Golden Fang
1 Cruel Ultimatum
4 Lightning Bolt
4 Thought Scour
1 Dismember
2 Kolaghan's Command
2 Remand
1 Go for the Throat
1 Terminate
1 Mana Leak
4 Serum Visions
4 Inquisition of Kozilek
1 Thoughtseize
1 Mountain
1 Swamp
1 Bloodstained Mire
4 Scalding Tarn
1 Sulfur Falls
1 Blackcleave Cliffs
1 Darkslick Shores
4 Polluted Delta
2 Creeping Tar Pit
2 Steam Vents
1 Watery Grave
2 Blood Crypt
1 Anger of the Gods
1 Damnation
1 Darkblast
2 Dispel
1 Duress
1 Engineered Explosives
1 Izzet Statickaster
2 Molten Rain
2 Negate
1 Spellskite
2 Vandalblast
So let me explain a few stuff first. I used to play Cruel Control a few years ago and I just love Cruel Ultimatum. I've been playing Grixis control lately and now I wanted to try the tappout version.
I don't have lilis so I decided to go with a Gerry Thompson like list.
While I was checking the list I figured that with some manipulation on the mana base I can easily support Cruel Ultimatum as a finisher. I added it to the list in the expense of a Mr. and Mrs. Nalaar and I never looked back. I don't know if it was the correct card to replace but it was definitely the correct card to add. All my games were so grindy and long that I managed to resolve it literally in EVERY game with Jace's -3. The card simply wins you the game on the spot and can easily bring you back from the dead if you are losing. You might say it is my fanboysm for the card but I really REALLY think that there is a place for it in the deck. It was just steller.
Pia and Kiran Nalaar are just the nuts. Especially against the people I played. They just wreck all aggro and are amazing against lingering souls. Might want to add a second.
Thouseize is mainly because I don't have Rise//Fall otherwise it would be that one.
I definitely want a third K. Command. I wanted to see it in every game and 2 feel too few.
I had troubles closing games after I established control. Once you empty their board and have Jace you have almost 100% won the game but you need some time to find a threat to close it. I know that Abbot helps but I don't really wanna play the version with Abbot. Any suggestions?
I really love the split between the removals but I might need another one. I will probably replace a Thought Scour cause 4 are too many with only 2 delve creatures. Or the 4rth Scour will be the 3rd Command.
I am unsure of the split between remand and leak. Maybe 2 leak/1 Remand is better.
I'd love some feedback on my list.
UB Faeries (15-6-0)
UWR Control (10-5-1)/Kiki Control/Midrange/Harbinger
UBR Cruel Control (6-4-0)/Grixis Control/Delver/Blue Jund
UWB Control/Mentor
UW Miracles/Control (currently active, 14-2-0)
BW Eldrazi & Taxes
RW Burn (9-1-0)
I do (academic) research on video games and archaeology! You can check out my open access book here: https://www.sidestone.com/books/the-interactive-past
Just thought I would share. Thank you to Gerry T! I probably wouldn't have ever tried them if it weren't for him.
Can you post this link, can't find it.
4 Jace, Vryn's Prodigy
3 Snapcaster Mage
2 Tasigur, the Golden Fang
2 Pia and Kiran Nalaar
2 Young Pyromancer
1 Grim Lavamancer
25
4 Serum Visions
2 Thought Scour
1 Twisted Image
4 Lightning Bolt
2 Terminate
1 Go for the Throat
4 Inquisition of Kozilek
3 Rise // Fall
2 Kolaghan's Command
2 Liliana of the Veil
4 Polluted Delta
3 Bloodstained Mire
1 Scalding Tarn
2 Steam Vents
1 Watery Grave
1 Blood Crypt
3 Blackcleave Cliffs
1 Darkslick Shores
2 Creeping Tar Pit
1 Swamp
1 Island
1 Mountain