I think this card is good enough to change our manabase permanently. If we going for a Bant build, with only 3 mines and 3 powerplants we can fill in the rest if the manabase and replace an entire set of eggs with Transverse the Ulvenwald. If we lose eye of ugin it won't matter because now we have 4 world tutors in our deck, and we'll have better control options in Bant that will help fuel delirium. We could run Fog, Remand, pte, then boardwipe and drop anything we want. We could even run snapcaster for extra fog/holy day turns until we feel like wiping there board, and snapcaster on pte always feels good.
I just think we have enough tutors now to mean real business if we enable Transverse the Ulvenwald.
That's just it; we have enough consistent tutors to not rely on a card that makes us weaker to things like graveyard hate (traditionally something Gx Tron could prey upon). Traverse seems cute, at best. Cutting any number of Tron lands to accommodate these for Bant builds or whatever wouldn't be remotely competitive at a high level.
Edit:
Regardless of what land or lands get banned, I think Thought-Knot Seer is a real contender for our 75. TKS gives us more options against fast combo and aggro, and allows us to do so while not taking away from our core game plan. Turn three with Tron online? I can still drop Karn, of course, but now I can also drop both TKS and:
-Fetch with Expedition Map
-Fetch with Egg/Scrying
-Drop O-Stone
-Drop Egg/crack to Pyroclasm
-Drop Egg/Skite
-Pay for Mana Leak
TKS is a great card to bring in anytime you want hand information or disruption. It's a great complement when we have dead cards (such as sweepers), and doesn't require fetching oddly or sacrificing tempo to affect the game. Opponents will often side out Dismember against us, which makes TKS harder to remove in the following game.
Of course, if only Temple gets the axe, TKS is and will be that much better for us combined with Eye. If Eye is banned, it also allows us to be a bit more threat-dense throughout the game in a deck that's traditionally top-heavy. Right now, I've got one in the main, with two in the side, and it's exceeded my expectations. You guys should give it a shot and see what you think.
I don't think you know how much this card can do for us. it is not just a cheaper sylvan scrying, it can literally get any creature we want from our deck. it doesn't need to be Bant, i think G/W is good enough, but we could seriously change our gears back to a tempo deck that ends the game with Emarkul instead of being fat jund. delay the game with fog/holy day - drop ghostly prison - boardwipe with any classic white boardwipe (because we can keep our ghostly prison intact then take over the game from there with karn, Ulamog, etc.
What i am saying is Tron's manabase has never mustered up two colored mana on one turn consistently enough to maindeck any double colored mana spells, and now we don't need to rush tron and fill our deck full of mana fixers because turn three karn isn't as appealing anymore, and Path to exile and wrath of God look a whole lot more useful.
I only suggested blue for better interaction with non-creature based deck, which, although not as popular right now, will be a problem and have been a problem for tron in the past
That's just it; we have enough consistent tutors to not rely on a card that makes us weaker to things like graveyard hate (traditionally something Gx Tron could prey upon). Traverse seems cute, at best. Cutting any number of Tron lands to accommodate these for Bant builds or whatever wouldn't be remotely competitive at a high level.
Edit:
Regardless of what land or lands get banned, I think Thought-Knot Seer is a real contender for our 75. TKS gives us more options against fast combo and aggro, and allows us to do so while not taking away from our core game plan. Turn three with Tron online? I can still drop Karn, of course, but now I can also drop both TKS and:
-Fetch with Expedition Map
-Fetch with Egg/Scrying
-Drop O-Stone
-Drop Egg/crack to Pyroclasm
-Drop Egg/Skite
-Pay for Mana Leak
TKS is a great card to bring in anytime you want hand information or disruption. It's a great complement when we have dead cards (such as sweepers), and doesn't require fetching oddly or sacrificing tempo to affect the game. Opponents will often side out Dismember against us, which makes TKS harder to remove in the following game.
Of course, if only Temple gets the axe, TKS is and will be that much better for us combined with Eye. If Eye is banned, it also allows us to be a bit more threat-dense throughout the game in a deck that's traditionally top-heavy. Right now, I've got one in the main, with two in the side, and it's exceeded my expectations. You guys should give it a shot and see what you think.
I've been saying for a long time, TKS is a beast in Tron, the only reason i didnt test yet is because i dont have it lol
This is a list that took 3rd place in some Modern GPT in LA, i really like this creature shell.
I don't think you know how much this card can do for us. it is not just a cheaper sylvan scrying, it can literally get any creature we want from our deck. it doesn't need to be Bant, i think G/W is good enough, but we could seriously change our gears back to a tempo deck that ends the game with Emarkul instead of being fat jund. delay the game with fog/holy day - drop ghostly prison - boardwipe with any classic white boardwipe (because we can keep our ghostly prison intact then take over the game from there with karn, Ulamog, etc.
What i am saying is Tron's manabase has never mustered up two colored mana on one turn consistently enough to maindeck any double colored mana spells, and now we don't need to rush tron and fill our deck full of mana fixers because turn three karn isn't as appealing anymore, and Path to exile and wrath of God look a whole lot more useful.
I only suggested blue for better interaction with non-creature based deck, which, although not as popular right now, will be a problem and have been a problem for tron in the past
That is not a cheaper SS, we need delirium and it is not easy to get it. We want to put Tron together asap, and that dont help us. Turn 3 Karn is most of the time good ...
And why would we need interaction with non-creature based decks ? That's what we are strong against (but combos), fast creatures decks are our problem. The longer the game, the stonger we get.
Also, TKS give us interaction, thats why we should test this insane creature.
When I was talking about non-creature based decks combo was exactly what i was thinking of: storm, grishoalbrand and ad nauseam specificlly, and you still are ignoring what i am talking about with tron. in this meta, i would rather have a ghostly prison and then cast wrath of god then karn into o-stone right now.
I am saying run less threats, more answers, and when our instant, sorcery, land, and artifact hits the graveyard we can cast our Traverse search for Emrakul or search for the extra tower then Emrakul and win of of her.
while we are talking about TKS I am starting to think it is all we need against combo and packing three or so in our 75 should change our win rate by 20 points
ASpicyStrawberry over on the Reddit Tron forum had this to say about Traverse the Ulvenwald, and I completely agree. If it wasn't just completely dud-terrible pre-delirium, maybe...but the payoff just isn't worth the deck slots here. Other decks, sure; just not Gx Tron.
Last night I went 4-0 with the following list (2-0 Merfolk, 2-1 Elves, 2-1 Skred, 2-1 Burn):
-Pithing Needle, which completely won games for me against Merfolk (set to AV and Mutavault) and Elves (set to Ezuri)
-TKS, which allowed me some back-breaking sequences, especially against Burn and Elves (twice I was able to turn three Tron->Egg->Pyroclasm->TKS)
Whoever made the case for Pithing Needle some time ago, you were right. I bring it in far more often than I would have guessed before having played it; what a great way to punish risky keeps or take swingy cards away from opponents. Great call!
TKS...I said it the other day, but this card really is exactly what this deck needs in more ways than one. Pick it up (hell, proxy it if you need to) and test it out...if your results are even close to mine, there's no way you'll be dropping at least a few of them out of your 75. I prefer three at the moment, but 2-4 could all be correct depending on your meta. This is the best card in the past year and a half for this deck to include, along with Newlamog and Ugin. No joke.
Eye of Ugin was critical against Skred; if it gets banned, noting will really replace the sickness of the repeatable tutoring. I really need to test contenders for that slot's replacement; so far Sanctum of Ugin, Sea Gate Wreckage, Cavern of Souls, or another Forest are my top picks. Urza's Factory...haha no, but that would be fun for one random night or something.
I have been wanting a good 5 drop card. Guess what? TKS fills that gap!
Anyone else ever feel like they could really use a good five drop? Sometimes, I feel like I want to play an egg and a five drop but my current build just doesn't have them (Thragtusk SB) but that doesn't count.
Anyway, just something I thought the deck could use....just no other good colorless five drops are coming to mind except TKS.
I have been wanting a good 5 drop card. Guess what? TKS fills that gap!
Anyone else ever feel like they could really use a good five drop? Sometimes, I feel like I want to play an egg and a five drop but my current build just doesn't have them (Thragtusk SB) but that doesn't count.
Anyway, just something I thought the deck could use....just no other good colorless five drops are coming to mind except TKS.
TKS is a 4 drop, that makes a huge difference lol, but anyway, there is alot of Tron lists with maindeck Tusk, it's not a bad call depending on ur meta.
It's ironic, then, that I plan on pulling out my pair of SB Thragtusk for the old 2x Feed the Clan board option. I figure that once Eldrazi takes a hit, Burn will be back in full force, and the thought of dropping TKS on turn three to screen their anti-lifegain before a 10-life boost seems amazing.
Yeah, this doesn't make the cut as long as we have Ancient Stirrings.
Has anyone given any thought to sideboarding Tremor as a way of getting rid of Eldrazi Mimics on turn 1? Seems like it'd need a bit more focus on lands that make red (we'd probably have to run Mountains instead of Forests), but it looks like it'd buy us time to O-Stone the biggies away and Ghost Quarter their Eye.
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Hey all... I'm retired, not dead. Check out what I'm doing these days (and beg me to come back if you want):
Can someone explain a little bit why Spellskite is worth playing main deck still?
I've been struggling to beat combo decks. I'm considering going 2 TKS main and 1-2 more in the sideboard. Whats the best way to approach the storm MU? What about Ad Nauseam? I'm even contemplating playing Lodestone Golem as well.
Yeah, this doesn't make the cut as long as we have Ancient Stirrings.
Has anyone given any thought to sideboarding Tremor as a way of getting rid of Eldrazi Mimics on turn 1? Seems like it'd need a bit more focus on lands that make red (we'd probably have to run Mountains instead of Forests), but it looks like it'd buy us time to O-Stone the biggies away and Ghost Quarter their Eye.
I tested both RG and GW against Eldrazi, and GW is WAY better, i'd say is at least 50/50, so if you can, go GW for now. About the question, i dont like that, it's too specific, Pyroclasm or Kozilek's Return still better options. My RG version has only 4R cards, the manabase i use is 3 Grove of the Burnwillows, 2 Forest and 2 Ghost Quarter, that works really well for me.
OFF: If you really want to test something for Eldrazi Mimic, i would w8 until 04/04. I don't think we'll need to worry about him after that.
Can someone explain a little bit why Spellskite is worth playing main deck still?
I've been struggling to beat combo decks. I'm considering going 2 TKS main and 1-2 more in the sideboard. Whats the best way to approach the storm MU? What about Ad Nauseam? I'm even contemplating playing Lodestone Golem as well.
It helps against Infect, Boggles, Ad Nauseam (if they don't have Slaughter Pact), and Scapeshift and can act as a blocker.
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Modern RGTron UGInfect URStorm WUBRAd Nauseam BRGrishoalbrand URGScapeshift WBGAbzan Company WUBRGAmulet Titan BRGLiving End WGBogles
Can someone explain a little bit why Spellskite is worth playing main deck still?
I've been struggling to beat combo decks. I'm considering going 2 TKS main and 1-2 more in the sideboard. Whats the best way to approach the storm MU? What about Ad Nauseam? I'm even contemplating playing Lodestone Golem as well.
Mainly, Infect and a few month ago, the late Twin. But it's also good agains't Burn, Zoo's, Auras and any Path to Exile decks. If there is no Infect in your meta, you can cut off Spellskite from MD, but never from SB. Thought-Knot Seer is our new weapon again't combos, i would even go 4 off MD. Against Storm and Living End, Relic of Progenitus is really good. Ad Nauseam is a hopeless MU, unwinnable, we depend on there bad luck, i would say it's 20/80 tops.
I still neeed to test, but i think Thought-Knot Seer can improve our Ad Nauseam MU alot.
Heya! Many people, myself included, feel that Emrakul isn't an optimal choice anymore. It sounds like heresy, I know, but hear me out.
Emrakul's job is to be the big unstoppable game over button once the game goes long. As such, he is best against control, or any games we can draw out past a certain point. The thing is...those decks aren't high tier or prevalent anymore. Twin was the last holdout for a serious reason to play Emrakul over Newlamog, but now that Twin is banned, Emmy just ends up as early hand clutter far too often against the sea of fast, popular decks.
Newlamog can affect the game as early as turn four (versus turn six for Emmy), and so is at least possibly relevant pre-board against some of the faster decks. Seeing one in an opening hand with 2-3 Tron pieces and some land search means you can break the game at a point before it's otherwise decided. Multiples are nice due to the disgusting cast trigger and Path being a pain.
So, despite the fact that Emrakul has won me more games than I can count, Newlamog is just a better fit for the current Modern scene. If Eye of Ugin gets banned, the inability to tutor for one-off creatures means Emrakul will be that much less likely to reliably take over games, so I don't see it coming back either.
Ugin, though fantastic, is probably best as a sideboard card currently. Once Eldrazi take a hit, we'll see, but with so much colorless out there, he's often too slow to do anything relevant. Of course, your meta may vary; if he's still doing great things, keep it up. I just have a single copy in my SB pending the announcement next Monday.
Thought-Knot Seer has been a huge boon for this deck's capabilities, so I'm glad you're giving it a chance. Combined with Karn, TKS actually gives you hope against miserable match-ups like Ad Nauseam and Scapeshift. You don't need to do weird things to make it work, either; it gives you a relevant early threat/disruption even without Tron, but with it, you can take many decks out of the game on the spot with the right cards (TKS/egg/Clasm is just sick). I can't recommend it highly enough.
Chalice is a meta call in the deck, but man, can Chalice trip you up if you don't get it in your opening hand. At one, it really hurts us as well. Some people swear by it, and I love it in other decks, but it's not for me. Maybe you've had better luck with it, but I'd rather just play more Skites and Claims.
Good luck to you; let us know how your list serves you!
Heya! Many people, myself included, feel that Emrakul isn't an optimal choice anymore. It sounds like heresy, I know, but hear me out.
Emrakul's job is to be the big unstoppable game over button once the game goes long. As such, he is best against control, or any games we can draw out past a certain point. The thing is...those decks aren't high tier or prevalent anymore. Twin was the last holdout for a serious reason to play Emrakul over Newlamog, but not that Twin is banned, Emmy just ends up as early hand clutter far too often against the sea of fast, popular decks.
Newlamog can affect the game as early as turn four (versus turn six for Emmy), and so is at least possibly relevant pre-board against some of the faster decks. Seeing one in an opening hand with 2-3 Tron pieces and some land search means you can break the game at a point before it's otherwise decided. Multiples are nice due to the disgusting cast trigger and Path being a pain.
So, despite the fact that Emrakul has won me more games than I can count, Newlamog is just a better fit for the current Modern scene. If Eye of Ugin gets banned, the inability to tutor for one-off creatures means Emrakul will be that much less likely to reliably take over games, so I don't see it coming back either.
Ugin, though fantastic, is probably best as a sideboard card currently. Once Eldrazi take a hit, we'll see, but with so much colorless out there, he's often too slow to do anything relevant. Of course, your meta may vary; if he's still doing great things, keep it up. I just have a single copy in my SB pending the announcement next Monday.
Thought-Knot Seer has been a huge boon for this deck's capabilities, so I'm glad you're giving it a chance. Combined with Karn, TKS actually gives you hope against miserable match-ups like Ad Nauseam and Scapeshift. You don't need to do weird things to make it work, either; it gives you a relevant early threat/disruption even without Tron, but with it, you can take many decks out of the game on the spot with the right cards (TKS/egg/Clasm is just sick). I can't recommend it highly enough.
Chalice is a meta call in the deck, but man, can Chalice trip you up if you don't get it in your opening hand. At one, it really hurts us as well. Some people swear by it, and I love it in other decks, but it's not for me. Maybe you've had better luck with it, but I'd rather just play more Skites and Claims.
Good luck to you; let us know how your list serves you!
Thanks,
You make good points. Chalice of the Void is in there for my affinity/infect/ad nauseam rich post-GP meta. It's not so bad if you play around it, but it remains a very circumstantial addition atm, hence the 'subject to change' notification in my previous post.
I just think we have enough tutors now to mean real business if we enable Transverse the Ulvenwald.
Edit:
Regardless of what land or lands get banned, I think Thought-Knot Seer is a real contender for our 75. TKS gives us more options against fast combo and aggro, and allows us to do so while not taking away from our core game plan. Turn three with Tron online? I can still drop Karn, of course, but now I can also drop both TKS and:
-Fetch with Expedition Map
-Fetch with Egg/Scrying
-Drop O-Stone
-Drop Egg/crack to Pyroclasm
-Drop Egg/Skite
-Pay for Mana Leak
TKS is a great card to bring in anytime you want hand information or disruption. It's a great complement when we have dead cards (such as sweepers), and doesn't require fetching oddly or sacrificing tempo to affect the game. Opponents will often side out Dismember against us, which makes TKS harder to remove in the following game.
Of course, if only Temple gets the axe, TKS is and will be that much better for us combined with Eye. If Eye is banned, it also allows us to be a bit more threat-dense throughout the game in a deck that's traditionally top-heavy. Right now, I've got one in the main, with two in the side, and it's exceeded my expectations. You guys should give it a shot and see what you think.
What i am saying is Tron's manabase has never mustered up two colored mana on one turn consistently enough to maindeck any double colored mana spells, and now we don't need to rush tron and fill our deck full of mana fixers because turn three karn isn't as appealing anymore, and Path to exile and wrath of God look a whole lot more useful.
I only suggested blue for better interaction with non-creature based deck, which, although not as popular right now, will be a problem and have been a problem for tron in the past
I've been saying for a long time, TKS is a beast in Tron, the only reason i didnt test yet is because i dont have it lol
This is a list that took 3rd place in some Modern GPT in LA, i really like this creature shell.
1 Emrakul, the Aeons Torn
2 Ulamog, the Ceaseless Hunger
4 Thought-Knot Seer
Sorceries [8]
4 Ancient Stirrings
4 Sylvan Scrying
Planeswalkers [6]
2 Ugin, the Spirit Dragon
4 Karn Liberated
4 Chromatic Sphere
4 Chromatic Star
4 Expedition Map
4 Oblivion Stone
4 Relic of Progenitus
Lands [19]
1 Eye of Ugin
1 Ghost Quarter
4 Urza's Mine
4 Urza's Power Plant
4 Urza's Tower
5 Forest
That is not a cheaper SS, we need delirium and it is not easy to get it. We want to put Tron together asap, and that dont help us. Turn 3 Karn is most of the time good ...
And why would we need interaction with non-creature based decks ? That's what we are strong against (but combos), fast creatures decks are our problem. The longer the game, the stonger we get.
Also, TKS give us interaction, thats why we should test this insane creature.
GXTronGX
RWxBurnRWx
I am saying run less threats, more answers, and when our instant, sorcery, land, and artifact hits the graveyard we can cast our Traverse search for Emrakul or search for the extra tower then Emrakul and win of of her.
while we are talking about TKS I am starting to think it is all we need against combo and packing three or so in our 75 should change our win rate by 20 points
Last night I went 4-0 with the following list (2-0 Merfolk, 2-1 Elves, 2-1 Skred, 2-1 Burn):
1 Eye of Ugin
1 Forest
2 Ghost Quarter
4 Grove of the Burnwillows
4 Urza's Mine
4 Urza's Power Plant
4 Urza's Tower
Creatures:
1 Thought-Knot Seer
2 Ulamog, the Ceaseless Hunger
2 Spellskite
3 Wurmcoil Engine
4 Pyroclasm
4 Karn Liberated
4 Expedition Map
4 Chromatic Sphere
4 Chromatic Star
4 Ancient Stirrings
4 Sylvan Scrying
4 Oblivion Stone
1 Ugin, the Spirit Dragon
1 Spellskite
2 Pithing Needle
2 Thought-Knot Seer
2 Thragtusk
3 Relic of Progenitus
4 Nature's Claim
MVPs:
-Pithing Needle, which completely won games for me against Merfolk (set to AV and Mutavault) and Elves (set to Ezuri)
-TKS, which allowed me some back-breaking sequences, especially against Burn and Elves (twice I was able to turn three Tron->Egg->Pyroclasm->TKS)
Whoever made the case for Pithing Needle some time ago, you were right. I bring it in far more often than I would have guessed before having played it; what a great way to punish risky keeps or take swingy cards away from opponents. Great call!
TKS...I said it the other day, but this card really is exactly what this deck needs in more ways than one. Pick it up (hell, proxy it if you need to) and test it out...if your results are even close to mine, there's no way you'll be dropping at least a few of them out of your 75. I prefer three at the moment, but 2-4 could all be correct depending on your meta. This is the best card in the past year and a half for this deck to include, along with Newlamog and Ugin. No joke.
Eye of Ugin was critical against Skred; if it gets banned, noting will really replace the sickness of the repeatable tutoring. I really need to test contenders for that slot's replacement; so far Sanctum of Ugin, Sea Gate Wreckage, Cavern of Souls, or another Forest are my top picks. Urza's Factory...haha no, but that would be fun for one random night or something.
Anyone else ever feel like they could really use a good five drop? Sometimes, I feel like I want to play an egg and a five drop but my current build just doesn't have them (Thragtusk SB) but that doesn't count.
Anyway, just something I thought the deck could use....just no other good colorless five drops are coming to mind except TKS.
TKS is a 4 drop, that makes a huge difference lol, but anyway, there is alot of Tron lists with maindeck Tusk, it's not a bad call depending on ur meta.
GXTronGX
RWxBurnRWx
GXTronGX
RWxBurnRWx
Yeah, this doesn't make the cut as long as we have Ancient Stirrings.
Has anyone given any thought to sideboarding Tremor as a way of getting rid of Eldrazi Mimics on turn 1? Seems like it'd need a bit more focus on lands that make red (we'd probably have to run Mountains instead of Forests), but it looks like it'd buy us time to O-Stone the biggies away and Ghost Quarter their Eye.
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Can someone explain a little bit why Spellskite is worth playing main deck still?
I've been struggling to beat combo decks. I'm considering going 2 TKS main and 1-2 more in the sideboard. Whats the best way to approach the storm MU? What about Ad Nauseam? I'm even contemplating playing Lodestone Golem as well.
I tested both RG and GW against Eldrazi, and GW is WAY better, i'd say is at least 50/50, so if you can, go GW for now. About the question, i dont like that, it's too specific, Pyroclasm or Kozilek's Return still better options. My RG version has only 4R cards, the manabase i use is 3 Grove of the Burnwillows, 2 Forest and 2 Ghost Quarter, that works really well for me.
OFF: If you really want to test something for Eldrazi Mimic, i would w8 until 04/04. I don't think we'll need to worry about him after that.
GXTronGX
RWxBurnRWx
It helps against Infect, Boggles, Ad Nauseam (if they don't have Slaughter Pact), and Scapeshift and can act as a blocker.
RGTron
UGInfect
URStorm
WUBRAd Nauseam
BRGrishoalbrand
URGScapeshift
WBGAbzan Company
WUBRGAmulet Titan
BRGLiving End
WGBogles
Mainly, Infect and a few month ago, the late Twin. But it's also good agains't Burn, Zoo's, Auras and any Path to Exile decks. If there is no Infect in your meta, you can cut off Spellskite from MD, but never from SB.
Thought-Knot Seer is our new weapon again't combos, i would even go 4 off MD. Against Storm and Living End, Relic of Progenitus is really good. Ad Nauseam is a hopeless MU, unwinnable, we depend on there bad luck, i would say it's 20/80 tops.
I still neeed to test, but i think Thought-Knot Seer can improve our Ad Nauseam MU alot.
GXTronGX
RWxBurnRWx
What does Spellskite do against Ad Naus / Scapeshift? Sorry not seeing the interaction.
I've been off in Colorless Eldrazi land for the past couple weeks and am now making the shift back to my GR Tron deck. Is Emrakul, the AEons Torn not in the MD anymore? I've added in a Thought-Knot Seer over a 4th Wurmcoil Engine, but should I really add in a second Ulamog, the Ceaseless Hunger over Emrakul, the AEons Torn? I know it's super slow and I dread seeing Emrakul, the AEons Torn (as well as Ulamog, the Ceaseless Hunger) in my opening hand, but resolving an Emrakul, the AEons Torn wins the game without a hitch 9/10. Maybe I'm old school and remember the billions of times resolving an Emrakul, the AEons Torn has won me the game, but what's the argument against running 1 in the MD (BESIDES 'HERP DERP ITS TOO SLOW FOR THIS META!')???
Here's my current list for reference:
4 urza's power plant
4 urza's mine
3 grove of the burnwillows
2 ghost quarter
2 forest
1 cavern of souls
1 eye of ugin
4 karn liberated
2 ugin, the spirit dragon
4 chromatic sphere
4 expedition map
3 oblivion stone
4 ancient stirrings
4 pyroclasm
4 sylvan scrying
3 wurmcoil engine
1 thought-knot seer
1 ulamog, the ceaseless hunger
1 emrakul, the aeons torn
4 relic of progenitus
3 nature's claim
2 spellskite
2 pithing needle
2 chalice of the void
1 thragtusk
1 crucible of worlds
Any thoughts/suggestions would be appreciated as I haven't played this deck at my LGS since Eldrazi became a thing!
Heya! Many people, myself included, feel that Emrakul isn't an optimal choice anymore. It sounds like heresy, I know, but hear me out.
Emrakul's job is to be the big unstoppable game over button once the game goes long. As such, he is best against control, or any games we can draw out past a certain point. The thing is...those decks aren't high tier or prevalent anymore. Twin was the last holdout for a serious reason to play Emrakul over Newlamog, but now that Twin is banned, Emmy just ends up as early hand clutter far too often against the sea of fast, popular decks.
Newlamog can affect the game as early as turn four (versus turn six for Emmy), and so is at least possibly relevant pre-board against some of the faster decks. Seeing one in an opening hand with 2-3 Tron pieces and some land search means you can break the game at a point before it's otherwise decided. Multiples are nice due to the disgusting cast trigger and Path being a pain.
So, despite the fact that Emrakul has won me more games than I can count, Newlamog is just a better fit for the current Modern scene. If Eye of Ugin gets banned, the inability to tutor for one-off creatures means Emrakul will be that much less likely to reliably take over games, so I don't see it coming back either.
Ugin, though fantastic, is probably best as a sideboard card currently. Once Eldrazi take a hit, we'll see, but with so much colorless out there, he's often too slow to do anything relevant. Of course, your meta may vary; if he's still doing great things, keep it up. I just have a single copy in my SB pending the announcement next Monday.
Thought-Knot Seer has been a huge boon for this deck's capabilities, so I'm glad you're giving it a chance. Combined with Karn, TKS actually gives you hope against miserable match-ups like Ad Nauseam and Scapeshift. You don't need to do weird things to make it work, either; it gives you a relevant early threat/disruption even without Tron, but with it, you can take many decks out of the game on the spot with the right cards (TKS/egg/Clasm is just sick). I can't recommend it highly enough.
Chalice is a meta call in the deck, but man, can Chalice trip you up if you don't get it in your opening hand. At one, it really hurts us as well. Some people swear by it, and I love it in other decks, but it's not for me. Maybe you've had better luck with it, but I'd rather just play more Skites and Claims.
Good luck to you; let us know how your list serves you!
Thanks,
You make good points. Chalice of the Void is in there for my affinity/infect/ad nauseam rich post-GP meta. It's not so bad if you play around it, but it remains a very circumstantial addition atm, hence the 'subject to change' notification in my previous post.
How about running 1 Ulamog, the Ceaseless Hunger and two Thought-Knot Seers?