Currently I have 2 decks for standard, a rather run of the mill MUD deck and a Selesnya Aggro deck that is nearing completion. Now the primary issue is my playing field is overrun with Gruul Monsters decks, MBD and UW Control. I can't figure out for the life of me what I'm doing wrong when I play MUD or if it's just a poor playing field for MUD, I don't know. My MUD deck is pretty standard with a sideboard that attempts to fit the store's players.
I run 4 Gainsay, 2 Negate, 3 Dissolve, Pithing Needle, Ratchet Bomb, Jace; Architect of Thought, 2 Domestication, Aetherling.
I can't for the love me crack the meta game; sure sometimes I'll get seeded well and play 2 of our Gruul Decks and win before they become a true threat but then I get seeded into MBD and UW/x Control matchups and it's just downhill from there.
I don't know whether to stick it out with MUD or just put it on hold until Journey and play Selesnya Aggro until then; I mean Selesnya has answers to those decks in Charms, Hydras, or hell even Smiters and straight combat tricks. But it's just a tough choice because I've invested a lot of time and effort into the matchups and ever since born hit the only matchup that feels even favorable for me is White Weenie and Gruul Monsters and even Gruul Monsters is a toss up.
If you have a lot of MBD and UWx control, it's a tough field for you to be playing MUD. The match ups are winnable, but tough. Game one for you against UWX will usually be a wash.
And I'm experiencing that almost weekly, I mean I have two local game stores but the other front has considerably worse players and I wash 4-0 and go at worst 3-1. I mean I've taken games from Control and MBD but it's stressful and just not fun because it's 3 straight games of attrition. I will be so happy when Verdict and DSphere rotate out.
You should check out the MUD thats splashing White. Adding Dsphere, Glare of Heresy, Revoke Existance and Ephara to your 75 will make a lot of those match ups more favorable.
MBD becomes a pretty easy match up since not only does their Pack Rat get blown by Dsphere, but also Ephara will put you very far ahead. I played about 6-7 matches verses MBD and lost maybe 1 either due to mana screw or my own misplay.
GR monsters is still a pretty bad match up since Mistcutter Hydra is still too difficult to beat but no changes can be made to MUD to deal with it really. You just have to hope you can get ahead of them quicker and try to race them with Thassas and Epharas.
UWx control gets better once you have access to the white cards. Ephara again is an MVP here. Dsphere is very good verse their Jaces and Glare is good for breaking the Dspheres and Elspeths.
I think your sideboard needs work. Gainsay is pretty bad right now. Negate is way better since it hoses control better and its also very good against Burn and even the mirror. Dispel is pretty underrated since control decks never see it coming. Aethering takes too much mana, Ratchet Bomb can hurt yourself too easily, and if MBC is heavily played, I'd probably run 3 Domestication in the side.
I havent played much GW Aggro but it seems pretty lackluster atm. With all the Orzhova midrange and GR monsters, I just don't see it having the upper hand against anything. Id probably experiment more with the Uw Devotion, from my practice with it I think its really good if you can play it correctly.
If your meta has a lot of G/R Monsters in it I'd say go with Mono Blue. It has a higher potential to do well against a green/red creature based deck with cards like Tidebinder Mage and Master of Waves. I second going with the splash white version, it seems to give the deck a few more options in terms of strategy than it previously had.
Gainsay is a tough call atm. If your meta has more control decks it's a great card against them. If it's more creature oriented (as it sounds like) then I'd perhaps try something like Essence Scatter. A well timed Scatter can really disrupt the tempo of a lot of decks.
^ these guys. MUD is well positioned overall, im not completely sold in Ephara, but she is a SB option against control if you feel you can't stick any flyers + a bident. The white SB options are really strong right now, tidebinder and rapid hybridization are good against g/r monsters, and the rest of the deck is actually set up against midrange pretty well U/W and B/W and MBC are tough. If they have nightveil you want 3 domestication, if they have brimaz you want rapids. Wins from MUD come from good SB plans, good mulligans, and playing to your outs (usually racing, bident tricks, thassa)
Its not easy to play though, and your constantly going to be needing to answer the question, is losing devotion worth it here? Is it likely I draw a thassa, or master, to win this game or do I block and play toward the attrition and d-sphere path, scraping along with mutavault.
IMO particually good cards against U/W will be cyclonic rifts post sb, because saving a two drop from verdict can often really help. Verdict isn't as good as it seems, and they almost always lose tempo if you play it right (at max have a 1 drop and 2 drop, or a lone 3 drop. Never put yourself in a spot where they are spending as much many to 2 for 1 you as you did to play the 2 threats. Save gainsay for revelations, glare for elspeth. Hope they keep a suspect hand and you curve through a verdict!
I dropped MUD for GW aggro. MUD was fun but then everyone started devoting 8 s/b cards to that matchup alone. There are only so many games where someone goes, "T2: Skylasher, T3: Skylasher, T4: Mistcutter for 3, T5 Mistcutter for 4 etc etc" before I let the archetype cool down a little. I know you can play around these cards, but not when they draw them and play them on curve.
1) No one sees GW aggro coming
2) It has a great matchup against MonoB and a fair matchup against G/R. This deck eats up control without even sideboarding. Against Jund, you had better hope they get locked out of a color or you draw the nuts
3) Playing it feels like playing a more resilient RDW. Instead of my duders just dying to Verdict, I get flash creatures and Voice and Fleecemane.
4) Against other aggro decks you have Unflinching Courage
5) Gods Willing is soooooo good right now. Turn 3 Hero's Downfall? Gods Willing. Tempo, scry and maybe the game right there if they were low on life.
Try it. Tweak your sideboard to defeat G/R monsters and you'll have an excellent deck.
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I run 4 Gainsay, 2 Negate, 3 Dissolve, Pithing Needle, Ratchet Bomb, Jace; Architect of Thought, 2 Domestication, Aetherling.
I can't for the love me crack the meta game; sure sometimes I'll get seeded well and play 2 of our Gruul Decks and win before they become a true threat but then I get seeded into MBD and UW/x Control matchups and it's just downhill from there.
I don't know whether to stick it out with MUD or just put it on hold until Journey and play Selesnya Aggro until then; I mean Selesnya has answers to those decks in Charms, Hydras, or hell even Smiters and straight combat tricks. But it's just a tough choice because I've invested a lot of time and effort into the matchups and ever since born hit the only matchup that feels even favorable for me is White Weenie and Gruul Monsters and even Gruul Monsters is a toss up.
MBD becomes a pretty easy match up since not only does their Pack Rat get blown by Dsphere, but also Ephara will put you very far ahead. I played about 6-7 matches verses MBD and lost maybe 1 either due to mana screw or my own misplay.
GR monsters is still a pretty bad match up since Mistcutter Hydra is still too difficult to beat but no changes can be made to MUD to deal with it really. You just have to hope you can get ahead of them quicker and try to race them with Thassas and Epharas.
UWx control gets better once you have access to the white cards. Ephara again is an MVP here. Dsphere is very good verse their Jaces and Glare is good for breaking the Dspheres and Elspeths.
I think your sideboard needs work. Gainsay is pretty bad right now. Negate is way better since it hoses control better and its also very good against Burn and even the mirror. Dispel is pretty underrated since control decks never see it coming. Aethering takes too much mana, Ratchet Bomb can hurt yourself too easily, and if MBC is heavily played, I'd probably run 3 Domestication in the side.
I havent played much GW Aggro but it seems pretty lackluster atm. With all the Orzhova midrange and GR monsters, I just don't see it having the upper hand against anything. Id probably experiment more with the Uw Devotion, from my practice with it I think its really good if you can play it correctly.
Gainsay is a tough call atm. If your meta has more control decks it's a great card against them. If it's more creature oriented (as it sounds like) then I'd perhaps try something like Essence Scatter. A well timed Scatter can really disrupt the tempo of a lot of decks.
Vi Veri Veniversum Vivus Vici.
Its not easy to play though, and your constantly going to be needing to answer the question, is losing devotion worth it here? Is it likely I draw a thassa, or master, to win this game or do I block and play toward the attrition and d-sphere path, scraping along with mutavault.
IMO particually good cards against U/W will be cyclonic rifts post sb, because saving a two drop from verdict can often really help. Verdict isn't as good as it seems, and they almost always lose tempo if you play it right (at max have a 1 drop and 2 drop, or a lone 3 drop. Never put yourself in a spot where they are spending as much many to 2 for 1 you as you did to play the 2 threats. Save gainsay for revelations, glare for elspeth. Hope they keep a suspect hand and you curve through a verdict!
1) No one sees GW aggro coming
2) It has a great matchup against MonoB and a fair matchup against G/R. This deck eats up control without even sideboarding. Against Jund, you had better hope they get locked out of a color or you draw the nuts
3) Playing it feels like playing a more resilient RDW. Instead of my duders just dying to Verdict, I get flash creatures and Voice and Fleecemane.
4) Against other aggro decks you have Unflinching Courage
5) Gods Willing is soooooo good right now. Turn 3 Hero's Downfall? Gods Willing. Tempo, scry and maybe the game right there if they were low on life.
Try it. Tweak your sideboard to defeat G/R monsters and you'll have an excellent deck.