So I'm currently 2-2 against Temur Opponents tonight which was the main thing I wanted to test, the UB CfB list really wants the Siren as a big harnessed lightning to make you recast the scarab god is huge especially if they have the mana for a scarab god or chandra afterwards. I got one game in with a Ramanup red opponent and one in with a Temur Aggro opponent. I lost my Temur Aggro game and won the Red matchup. SO as of now, the record is 3-3.
My main takeaways from playing the UB Midrange deck are
-Essence Scatter is amazing possibly want 1 mainboard going forward in all UB pirate/midrange builds
-Gonti, Lord of Luxury is an absurd magic card against midrange decks
-Contraband Kingpin is very good against Mono-Red
-The midrange variant is very weak to decks like vehicles and temur aggro due to not having cheap counters available from pirates
-Chart a course was nice, but I'd rather have the body from Champion of Wits which also provides a ton of value in the late game.
-Main benefits of this deck are the Torrential Gearhulks and the draw spells.
I like both decks, but I need to play both more before I make a decision. I will be taking one of these lists to a PPTQ on Saturday.
FYI, you can have the name of the deck appear in the header by using « deck=name ». See above... I edited your decks in the quote.
Also... Maybe it's a crazy idea, but I'm considering Torment of Hailfire as a one of in the SB as a « single card Combo » to side in against Midrange decks that are vulnerable to combos. Suppose we can reach turn 6 against Temur Energy, and we cast this for 4 X. Opponent is likely to only have 1 or 2 cards in hand, and maybe zero. Taking 12 damage could be enough to expose oneself to an attack that would otherwise not been lethal. And if opponent is cautious with his life and instead sacrifice non land cards, this still removes pressure and battlefield presence.
Me, I'll stay with my version of the deck, and not even test the UB Midrange. I love it that The Pirate God can fight on two axis. And looking at UB Midrange decklist, it seems a pure Midrange deck, or a Midrange/Control deck. With the rise of Control decks lately, I much prefer the Aggro-Control plan, and easy wins against Control decks.
Went 2-2 tonight, so I won't post my list. My losses were due to me keeping lands to ensure I'd make land drops while hoping to draw into action later into those games. Going to try fiddling around with the deck with Essence Scatters.
My wins were against:
- Grixis Energy Control where I won the first game staring down a Liliana mirror and the second game sucessfully resolving Scarab God after picking apart my opponent with Duress and Doomfall.
- Orzhov Tokens going 2-1 after scooping to 2 resolved Annointed Processions in the first game.
Lost to:
- Dimir Control playing no Scarab Gods. This opponent was a friend I made whom I played standard with back in RTR-Theros Standard. I kept an iffy 2-lander thinking I could draw into lands later on. Won the second game by ulting Jace and then resolving Liliana. Lost the 3rd game after my opponent dug into another copy of Search for Azcanta after I Ghost Quartered his Azcanta, The Sunken Ruin away with Field of Ruin.
- Jund Midrange maindecking Doomfall. This was a match that threw me for a loop. My opponent here wiped my board with Sweltering Suns and had the Vraska's Contempt in hand to exile 2 of my Scarab Gods. His creature package consisted of Carnage Tyrants, Glorybringers, Ripjaw Raptors, and Merfolk Branchwalkers. After the game I asked why he opted for Branchwalkers instead of Attune with Aether. He explained he was okay with the option of having body in play that either netted him a land or came into play as a 3/2 for 2 mana as opposed to just netting the land. Rather than having Harnessed Lightning, he went for Abrades and Lightning Strikes to couple with Fatal Push. All in all, this list of his looked well-suited to beating what I had to offer.
Went 2-2 tonight, so I won't post my list. My losses were due to me keeping lands to ensure I'd make land drops while hoping to draw into action later into those games. Going to try fiddling around with the deck with Essence Scatters.
Posting your list would certainly help us. Knowing what set of cards you played and what went wrong, is really important data to make this deck better.
Lost to:
- Dimir Control playing no Scarab Gods. This opponent was a friend I made whom I played standard with back in RTR-Theros Standard. I kept an iffy 2-lander thinking I could draw into lands later on. Won the second game by ulting Jace and then resolving Liliana. Lost the 3rd game after my opponent dug into another copy of Search for Azcanta after I Ghost Quartered his Azcanta, The Sunken Ruin away with Field of Ruin.
- Jund Midrange maindecking Doomfall. This was a match that threw me for a loop. My opponent here wiped my board with Sweltering Suns and had the Vraska's Contempt in hand to exile 2 of my Scarab Gods. His creature package consisted of Carnage Tyrants, Glorybringers, Ripjaw Raptors, and Merfolk Branchwalkers. After the game I asked why he opted for Branchwalkers instead of Attune with Aether. He explained he was okay with the option of having body in play that either netted him a land or came into play as a 3/2 for 2 mana as opposed to just netting the land. Rather than having Harnessed Lightning, he went for Abrades and Lightning Strikes to couple with Fatal Push. All in all, this list of his looked well-suited to beating what I had to offer.
Maybe I've been lucky, but I've faced many opponents with Search for Azcanta, and never lost a matchup even after it transformed. Against Control decks, you really have to play Aggro-Control. Resolving The Scarab God (a Midrange card ; and remember that Midrange loses to Control on the metagame clock) is less important than keeping up a counterspell ready for the next big thing. I don't mind beating for 2-3 damage per turn with weenies until I win. But I know I want Lookout's Dispersal to counter Torrential Gearhulk.
For the Jund Midrange matchup... Maybe it won’t help, but I recall reading in What I Know About Magic that Control is closer to 6 than 8 on the metagame clock if it plays a lot of counterspells. For that reason, against Midrange, I would be very cautious when playing The Scarab God. You'll win with this card, but it has to resolve and stay on the battlefield for a few turns. I wouldn't play it without some cover from Siren Stormtamer or Lookout's Dispersal, even without anything else to play. Facing open mana, opponent will be very cautious and may well not play at all or not play their best spell (guessing you have a counterspell).
Eh. By the time I lost the 2nd game, he showed me he sideboarded in 3 copies of Lost Legacy whereas I sideboarded such that I had no planeswalkers but had discard spells and Negates. I never managed to draw into said cards in that game.
You don't need to land the god to win. That's why Liliana is in the deck. I'm thinking bought using torrential gearhulk as a one of to snap back a contempt over using noxious gearhulk.
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1. (Ravnica Allegiance): You can't keep a good esper control deck down... Or Wilderness Reclamation... or Gates...
2. (War of the Spark): Guys, I know what we need! We need a cycle of really idiotic flavor text victory cards! Jace's Triumph...
3. (War of the Spark): Lets make the format with control have even more control!
Got another 2-0 victory vs Ramunap Red. But I've lost 1-2 to UB Control. It's the first time I played that matchup. I was hoping to win the long game, but didn't managed to resolve The Scarab God. Game 1, I've burned my counterspells on removals to protect my creatures. Big mistake. It would have turned out differently if I would have let them die to make sure The Scarab God could resolve later.
I'm wondering, however, if the main deck is too geared vs creatures heavy decks. The metagame is shifting to include more and more Control decks. Maybe we should include some Duress or Negate in the main deck...
Just wanted to share something I recently learned...
I have, thus far, been operating under the misguided assumption that Kitesail Freebooter and Hostage Taker both function the same way that Tidehollow Sculler does; namely, that if they're destroyed or otherwise removed while their ETB trigger is still on the stack, whatever they target is exiled permanently. It's not.
Here are the relevant rulings from Gatherer:
Tidehollow Sculler: "If Tidehollow Sculler leaves the battlefield before its first ability has resolved, its second ability will trigger. This ability will do nothing when it resolves. Then its first ability will resolve and exile the chosen card forever."
Kitesail Freebooter: "If Kitesail Freebooter leaves the battlefield before its enters-the-battlefield ability resolves, the opponent will reveal his or her hand, but no card will be exiled."
Hostage Taker: "If Hostage Taker leaves the battlefield before its triggered ability resolves, the target permanent won’t be exiled."
I'm now guessing that Sculler works the way it does because they're two separate abilities?
I added a few games on XMage to my testing spree. Without too much details, just some highligts :
2-1 vs GB Midrange : Let's just say that I'm quite certain we can beat Midrange. He played more than oneWalking Balista on me, every games, but I still managed to win (fun fact : can pump a 4/4 Walking Ballista you've just eternalized). Key is knowing we're not the beatdown, until we can assume that role in the late game.
2-1 vs UB Control : That matchup was EPIC! My opponent even told me this was easily in the best Top 5 games he played of all time. For me, it's Top 3! We really had to dance and circle around, and play smart. At one point, we both had The Scarab God in play. This can lead to some crazy plays (see below).
2-0 vs Ramunap Red : He untapped with a previously exerted Glorybringer, attacked and burned Kitesail Apprentice (that fizzled earlier and had no exiled spell). I activated The Scarab God, eternalized Kitesail Freebooter. Opponent was laughting hard because there were no noncreature spell in his hand, again. That's until he realized I ambushed just ambushed his dragon with a 4/4 flying Pirate.
0-2 vs Esper Gift : Never played that matchup before, ever. Took me some time to realize what I was up against, in game 1. And then it was too late. Game 2, a Kitesail Freebooter revealed 3 Hostage Taker in his hand. I only had one in hand, so I had to play smart. And I did! I killed the first with a removal. Then kidnapped the second one with my own Hostage Taker. He played his third, but I countered its ETB trigger with Siren Stormtamer. I casted the exiled Hostage Taker next turn, and used it to kidnap the one that fizzled. Great! I've done it!!! But... but... of course he top decked his FOURTHHostage Taker next turn, and everything fell apart. I worked so hard, it was so close...
PRECIOUS ADVICE :I've learned something precious in the UB Control matchup. When 2 The Scarab God are facing each other, never be the first one to activate its ability if opponent can activate his own God. The first player to activate his God will lose the reanimation contest, because the other player can "counter" the ability by activating his own God and choosing the same target. The only way to fight this is too have enough mana to activate the God one more time than the opponent can.
Otherwise, just be super patient in that matchup. Games will be very long, but you'll lose if you're in a hurry. If you've won game 1, you can consider conceading game 2 right away (or after 4-5 turns, just in case opponent is mana screw). Winning on the draw in this matchup is really hard if opponent doesn't miss a land drop. You may be better going to game 3 right away, and have a chance to win the matchup before the timer decides it's a draw (1-1).
Just wanted to share something I recently learned...
I have, thus far, been operating under the misguided assumption that Kitesail Freebooter and Hostage Taker both function the same way that Tidehollow Sculler does; namely, that if they're destroyed or otherwise removed while their ETB trigger is still on the stack, whatever they target is exiled permanently. It's not.
Here are the relevant rulings from Gatherer:
Tidehollow Sculler: "If Tidehollow Sculler leaves the battlefield before its first ability has resolved, its second ability will trigger. This ability will do nothing when it resolves. Then its first ability will resolve and exile the chosen card forever."
Kitesail Freebooter: "If Kitesail Freebooter leaves the battlefield before its enters-the-battlefield ability resolves, the opponent will reveal his or her hand, but no card will be exiled."
Hostage Taker: "If Hostage Taker leaves the battlefield before its triggered ability resolves, the target permanent won’t be exiled."
I'm now guessing that Sculler works the way it does because they're two separate abilities?
Can anyone confirm that?
it's the old fiend hunter trick. you were able to blink it with cloudshift in response to its first trigger ending up exiling two things one of which permanently. which is why they then printed banisher priest
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Huey, Dewey and Louie are always dressed in RUG. it is CLEARLY going to be the wedges block Pioneer: WURFaerie fires BRGDragons ModernBGElves WRBurn UR Fires Turns URGift Storm UG Twiddle Storm
Lukas Berthoud got 2nd at Brazil Nationals with a UB Midrange deck that has some similarities to The Pirate God. You can read what Frank Karsten has to say about it in this article.
Lukas' deck is really deep into Midrange, and I like The Pirate God better because our Aggro-Control plan helps us cover a wider range of matchups. But maybe there are some hidden secrets in his decks that we should look at...
what are you guys doing for the WBx tokens matchups? I feel like if I can't catch their Precession or Stockpile it's game over, are there any other angles to take? I play primarily on MTGO and that is a really popular deck there, maybe River's Rebuke or Perilous Voyage? Maybe even Spyglass on Stockpile? The one 50/50 match I played my opponent went almost to time with 45 seconds left and the only thing from keeping me from dying was reanimating his Priest and making zombies, I couldn't get damage in the air because of that green wurm enchantment.
what are you guys doing for the WBx tokens matchups? I feel like if I can't catch their Precession or Stockpile it's game over, are there any other angles to take? I play primarily on MTGO and that is a really popular deck there, maybe River's Rebuke or Perilous Voyage? Maybe even Spyglass on Stockpile? The one 50/50 match I played my opponent went almost to time with 45 seconds left and the only thing from keeping me from dying was reanimating his Priest and making zombies, I couldn't get damage in the air because of that green wurm enchantment.
I guess if that matchup becomes a major problem, then some Make Obsolete in the SB might be worthwhile. Idk if it's worth it though, I think the matchup is pretty okay for us.
Game 1, don't be shy spending removals on their tokens. Particularly if you can kill their last token on your turn (and not during their turn, or it will trigger Revolt). Without tokens to trigger Hidden Stockpile and cause a chain reaction, they'll be powerless for a turn or two. To that end, it's actually better killing their tokens than Anointer Priest.
What I usually do is attack with all I have, and this should eventually force them to chump block (free removals) or gang block. They see their tokens as expendable ressources, and will usually be quite happy to lose two tokens to kill Grifted Aetherborn or Hostage Taker (exiled card, if any, already casted before you attack). As long as they have one token at the beginning of their upkeep, they're fine. And they also assume you'll never lose a precious removal on a token (big mistake). So, mass attack, depleat their numbers, kill the token that's left, and you should be safe for a turn or two. Use that time to reduce their life in the danger zone, and eventually you'll just win.
One last thing : You can use Hostage Taker to exile a token. Even if it's just a 1/1. Don't wait for value in this matchup, you won't have any.
Edit : it's sometimes better to just skip turn 4 and counter Procession if you suspect they'll cast it next turn (because of Freebooter). If they think you'll counter it, and skip their turn, you won't have lost anything and you can repeat that until you have more lands (or you can get a rebate on Dispersal's casting cost).
Thanks for the tips! I think that was my issue, I was overlooking their scrying power while I was trying to get value out of my removal by holding it for Priest. Makes sense stepping back and looking at it that way.
BTW Patbou thanks for the primers, I've been around since Tempo Jacks, once I decided after Ixalan I wanted some UB pirate build, they've been helpful for not widely explored archtypes.
Don't forget that Kingpin can comeback as a 4/4 lifelink in the late game with The Scarab God's ability.
Poll #2 : Should we side out Vraska’s Contempt vs Control? I guess the answer will be different if it’s UB Control or UW Approach... I'm not sure we want this removal for the matchup, but it's a bit creepy to think a God, Gearhulk or Planeswalker could hit the battlefield and be unable to deal with it.
Thanks for the tips! I think that was my issue, I was overlooking their scrying power while I was trying to get value out of my removal by holding it for Priest. Makes sense stepping back and looking at it that way.
BTW Patbou thanks for the primers, I've been around since Tempo Jacks, once I decided after Ixalan I wanted some UB pirate build, they've been helpful for not widely explored archtypes.
You're welcome! Feel free to +1 the posts you like! A bit of karma never hurts!!!
Don't forget that Kingpin can comeback as a 4/4 lifelink in the late game with The Scarab God's ability.
Poll #2 : Should we side out Vraska’s Contempt vs Control? I guess the answer will be different if it’s UB Control or UW Approach... I'm not sure we want this removal for the matchup, but it's a bit creepy to think a God, Gearhulk or Planeswalker could hit the battlefield and be unable to deal with it.
Poll #1: I think Essence Extraction is correct in this list against Aggro. Contraband Kingpin DOES force a 2-for-1 without Chandra or Glorybringer a lot of the time, but we don't get to utilize his scry at all. Essence Extraction trades for everything except Hazoret and Glorybringer at instant speed and gains 3 life immediately. We also already have a lot of good targets for our God. It's probably worth testing still, but my gut says pass.
Poll #2: This one's interesting. My first thought is to leave them in. Adding in Doomfalls gives a lot of answers to U/B's threats... Idk how worrisome Gideon really is for us, but Approach sides in Caracals and Gearhulks under fear of Lost Legacy so there are certainly worthy targets. I guess the question comes down to what do we side in their place? We already take out 4 Hostage Taker, 4 Fatal Push for 3 Duress, 2 Negate, 2 Doomfall, 1 Liliana. I run 1 Essence Scatter in place of Trial of Ambition and don't run Lost Legacy at all. Idk what else I'd side in those matchups.
Anyone has FNM results to share? I took a break tonight, because I'll be going to a PPTQ Sunday. I still have to fine tune my SB, but I think I'm otherwise ready. I've even printed two 4/4 Black Zombie tokens for each of my creatures using https://www.mtgcardmaker.com!
Standard Showdown tonight. Went 3-1 for 4th place finish.
Round 1: Dino Enrage. 2-0. This was against the store owner and he was testing out a janky Naya Walking Ballista Dinos deck. We didn't SB against each other. First game I got off to a strange start with 3 Gifted Aetherborn and a Siren Stormtamer by turn 4. He assembled a weird combo of that Dino with enrage that makes 3/3s, a Walking Ballista with 3 counters and a spell that makes a creature indestructible until end of turn. He made 3 3/3s with Ballista. Next turn I Baral's Expertise'd and Aetherborns got me there. Second game was pretty similar, a couple Aetherborn kept the board under control until I landed Scarab God for game.
Round 2: Ramunap Red. 2-0. This was against my GF and after a lot more testing from the last time I posted, the matchup is closer to 50/50 so I was a bit worried going in. I lost the die roll but ended up drawing the perfect hand to go against hers the first game, pushing a Bomat and Dispersal on T4 Hazoret. Kitesail ripped her only removal and Hostage Taker grabbed a Crasher and I got through with an Aetherborn a lot. Sided out 1 Baral's Expertise, 1 Hostage Taker, 1 Walk the Plank, 1 Champion of Wits, and 1 Siren Stormtamer, sided in 3 Essence Extraction, 2 Doomfall. Game 2 I had a hand of Fatal Push, Aetherborn, Essence Extraction, Freebooter, Scarab God, Catacomb, Swamp. I ripped enough lands to drop Scarab God turn 5 and she had no way of getting rid of it.
Round 3: Sultai Energy 0-2. I kept a 5 land hand with Champion of Wits and Fatal Push. Thought it was keepable with the Champion of Wits, which was probably fine. But I proceeded to just draw land every turn and then Champion of Wits found 2 lands. I played 2 spells that game. Oh well. Game 2 was probably one of the most entertaining matches ever. I sided out 3 Kitesail Freebooter, 1 Champion of Wits, 1 Baral's Expertise, sided in 2 Bontu's, 1 Harsh Scrutiny, 2 Doomfall. I got a great start and Harsh Scrutiny took out a Bristling Hydra, Push got Cub, Doomfall grabbed a Ballista from his hand. He dropped T6 Carnage Tyrant out of left field and I played Bontu's leaving us both basically empty handed. The rest of the match was so grindy and hilarious. Every time one of us would get the upper hand, the other would draw the exact answer needed. At one point he played a Glint-Sieve Siphoner and then Vizier of Many Faces copying it. I pushed the copy at end of his turn and then Hostage Taker took the original on my turn and I played it. Drew a card off of it eventually and he pushed it. I had him at 2 and I was at 14 at one point. He was able to stabilize and gain life with Deathgorge Scavenger and I Deadlands'd it. He eventually topdecked a huuuuge Walking Ballista and killed me with it. At the end of the match I had 15 cards left in my library and I had not seen Scarab God ONCE. All I had to do was draw it to win, but nope. I can't even be mad though, that match was amazing and it took so long everyone had gathered around to watch the shenanigans.
Round 4: Temur Energy. 2-0. Good ol' Temur *groans*. First game I controlled the early game and just out midranged him until I could drop Scarab God with protection. That was literally it, he couldn't beat a resolved Scarab God with Stormtamer on the field. I was fairly certain he was going to side into more control, so I sided out 1 Field of Ruin, 1 Baral's Expertise, 2 Champion of Wits, 2 Hostage Taker, 2 Lookout's Disperal (I run 1 Essence Scatter main) and sided in 2 Bontu's, 1 Harsh Scrutiny, 2 Negate, 1 Duress, 2 Doomfall.
Second game was some good ol' midrange strats. Duress and Freebooter took out Essence Scatter and Harnessed Lightning letting me land T5 Scarab God. He didn't rip an answer, but he did land 3 Whirlers and a Bristling Hydra up to this point so it wasn't over immediately. After my Scarab God, though, he unnecessarily played out the rest of his hand onto the field and I got a nice 6-for-1 with Bontu's. He wasn't expecting a sweeper. Replayed Scarab God and it carried me. He managed to find a Confiscation Coup, but I had enough mana to reanimate and sacrifice a Stormtamer and he scooped showing me the Negate backup in his hand. Lol.
Lots of good games tonight and I'm pretty happy overall. Some matchups are a coinflip like Ramunap, but against other midrange strategies and slower aggro we seem to be favored. I really feel I should've won the Sultai match, but flooding the first game and never finding Scarab God the second game was pretty brutal.
Closing notes: Bontu's is great against Energy decks, it might be worth fitting a 3rd in the SB. 3 of the 5 Energy decks tonight were running Carnage Tyrants in the SB as tech against Temur and control so look out for that. Essence Scatter was extremely strong in the MB. Some matches are really grindy and a 4 mana tax becomes negligible at a certain point. I think I'm going to try 1 more Essence Scatter over a Lookout's Dispersal for a total of 2 Scatters/3 Dispersal.
Changes I want to make include -1 Lookout's Dispersal MB for +1 Essence Scatter and -1 Gonti SB for +1 Bontu's Last Reckoning. Baral's Expertise has been really hit or miss and it feels like I'm siding it out a lot. I'm looking for something else to put in it's spot, possibly +1 Vraska's Contempt.
Lukas Berthoud got 2nd at Brazil Nationals with a UB Midrange deck that has some similarities to The Pirate God. You can read what Frank Karsten has to say about it in this article.
Lukas' deck is really deep into Midrange, and I like The Pirate God better because our Aggro-Control plan helps us cover a wider range of matchups. But maybe there are some hidden secrets in his decks that we should look at...
I've been running River's Rebuke for a while now. It seems like it is slow, but against tokens it's really, really good. Against opposing scarab gods I still kind of like the good old fashion Unsummon since it basically reads "Destroy target eternalized creature, it can't be regenerated". I still like it more in my merfolk build because of Rishkar, Peema Renegade sometimes letting you get to use it more quickly than expected.
Mostly been playing against friends at the moment, though, and some of the antics that happen there aren't exactly common in tournament play. Namely, one of them runs what he has named "Ral Zarek's Gifts", which is basically completely built on just gambling like a madman on cards like Combustible Gearhulk and Rowdy Crew along with cheating out God-Pharaoh's Gift. I kind of want to see his list because somehow he has made it work.
Private Mod Note
():
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
1. (Ravnica Allegiance): You can't keep a good esper control deck down... Or Wilderness Reclamation... or Gates...
2. (War of the Spark): Guys, I know what we need! We need a cycle of really idiotic flavor text victory cards! Jace's Triumph...
3. (War of the Spark): Lets make the format with control have even more control!
FYI, you can have the name of the deck appear in the header by using « deck=name ». See above... I edited your decks in the quote.
Also... Maybe it's a crazy idea, but I'm considering Torment of Hailfire as a one of in the SB as a « single card Combo » to side in against Midrange decks that are vulnerable to combos. Suppose we can reach turn 6 against Temur Energy, and we cast this for 4 X. Opponent is likely to only have 1 or 2 cards in hand, and maybe zero. Taking 12 damage could be enough to expose oneself to an attack that would otherwise not been lethal. And if opponent is cautious with his life and instead sacrifice non land cards, this still removes pressure and battlefield presence.
Me, I'll stay with my version of the deck, and not even test the UB Midrange. I love it that The Pirate God can fight on two axis. And looking at UB Midrange decklist, it seems a pure Midrange deck, or a Midrange/Control deck. With the rise of Control decks lately, I much prefer the Aggro-Control plan, and easy wins against Control decks.
1st, GP Toronto Sunday Super Series 2016 : Ally Company RWBG
Top 8, PPTQ Shadows over Innistrad : Boros Humans WR.
Use a hypergeometric calculator for your deckbuilding maths,
and use TopDecked to manage your decks and collection on your Apple or Android device.
My wins were against:
- Grixis Energy Control where I won the first game staring down a Liliana mirror and the second game sucessfully resolving Scarab God after picking apart my opponent with Duress and Doomfall.
- Orzhov Tokens going 2-1 after scooping to 2 resolved Annointed Processions in the first game.
Lost to:
- Dimir Control playing no Scarab Gods. This opponent was a friend I made whom I played standard with back in RTR-Theros Standard. I kept an iffy 2-lander thinking I could draw into lands later on. Won the second game by ulting Jace and then resolving Liliana. Lost the 3rd game after my opponent dug into another copy of Search for Azcanta after I Ghost Quartered his Azcanta, The Sunken Ruin away with Field of Ruin.
- Jund Midrange maindecking Doomfall. This was a match that threw me for a loop. My opponent here wiped my board with Sweltering Suns and had the Vraska's Contempt in hand to exile 2 of my Scarab Gods. His creature package consisted of Carnage Tyrants, Glorybringers, Ripjaw Raptors, and Merfolk Branchwalkers. After the game I asked why he opted for Branchwalkers instead of Attune with Aether. He explained he was okay with the option of having body in play that either netted him a land or came into play as a 3/2 for 2 mana as opposed to just netting the land. Rather than having Harnessed Lightning, he went for Abrades and Lightning Strikes to couple with Fatal Push. All in all, this list of his looked well-suited to beating what I had to offer.
Posting your list would certainly help us. Knowing what set of cards you played and what went wrong, is really important data to make this deck better.
Maybe I've been lucky, but I've faced many opponents with Search for Azcanta, and never lost a matchup even after it transformed. Against Control decks, you really have to play Aggro-Control. Resolving The Scarab God (a Midrange card ; and remember that Midrange loses to Control on the metagame clock) is less important than keeping up a counterspell ready for the next big thing. I don't mind beating for 2-3 damage per turn with weenies until I win. But I know I want Lookout's Dispersal to counter Torrential Gearhulk.
For the Jund Midrange matchup... Maybe it won’t help, but I recall reading in What I Know About Magic that Control is closer to 6 than 8 on the metagame clock if it plays a lot of counterspells. For that reason, against Midrange, I would be very cautious when playing The Scarab God. You'll win with this card, but it has to resolve and stay on the battlefield for a few turns. I wouldn't play it without some cover from Siren Stormtamer or Lookout's Dispersal, even without anything else to play. Facing open mana, opponent will be very cautious and may well not play at all or not play their best spell (guessing you have a counterspell).
1st, GP Toronto Sunday Super Series 2016 : Ally Company RWBG
Top 8, PPTQ Shadows over Innistrad : Boros Humans WR.
Use a hypergeometric calculator for your deckbuilding maths,
and use TopDecked to manage your decks and collection on your Apple or Android device.
1. (Ravnica Allegiance): You can't keep a good esper control deck down... Or Wilderness Reclamation... or Gates...
2. (War of the Spark): Guys, I know what we need! We need a cycle of really idiotic flavor text victory cards! Jace's Triumph...
3. (War of the Spark): Lets make the format with control have even more control!
I'm wondering, however, if the main deck is too geared vs creatures heavy decks. The metagame is shifting to include more and more Control decks. Maybe we should include some Duress or Negate in the main deck...
1st, GP Toronto Sunday Super Series 2016 : Ally Company RWBG
Top 8, PPTQ Shadows over Innistrad : Boros Humans WR.
Use a hypergeometric calculator for your deckbuilding maths,
and use TopDecked to manage your decks and collection on your Apple or Android device.
I have, thus far, been operating under the misguided assumption that Kitesail Freebooter and Hostage Taker both function the same way that Tidehollow Sculler does; namely, that if they're destroyed or otherwise removed while their ETB trigger is still on the stack, whatever they target is exiled permanently. It's not.
Here are the relevant rulings from Gatherer:
Tidehollow Sculler: "If Tidehollow Sculler leaves the battlefield before its first ability has resolved, its second ability will trigger. This ability will do nothing when it resolves. Then its first ability will resolve and exile the chosen card forever."
Kitesail Freebooter: "If Kitesail Freebooter leaves the battlefield before its enters-the-battlefield ability resolves, the opponent will reveal his or her hand, but no card will be exiled."
Hostage Taker: "If Hostage Taker leaves the battlefield before its triggered ability resolves, the target permanent won’t be exiled."
I'm now guessing that Sculler works the way it does because they're two separate abilities?
Can anyone confirm that?
PRECIOUS ADVICE :
I've learned something precious in the UB Control matchup. When 2 The Scarab God are facing each other, never be the first one to activate its ability if opponent can activate his own God. The first player to activate his God will lose the reanimation contest, because the other player can "counter" the ability by activating his own God and choosing the same target. The only way to fight this is too have enough mana to activate the God one more time than the opponent can.
Otherwise, just be super patient in that matchup. Games will be very long, but you'll lose if you're in a hurry. If you've won game 1, you can consider conceading game 2 right away (or after 4-5 turns, just in case opponent is mana screw). Winning on the draw in this matchup is really hard if opponent doesn't miss a land drop. You may be better going to game 3 right away, and have a chance to win the matchup before the timer decides it's a draw (1-1).
1st, GP Toronto Sunday Super Series 2016 : Ally Company RWBG
Top 8, PPTQ Shadows over Innistrad : Boros Humans WR.
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Pioneer: WURFaerie fires BRGDragons
ModernBGElves WRBurn UR Fires Turns URGift Storm UG Twiddle Storm
Lukas' deck is really deep into Midrange, and I like The Pirate God better because our Aggro-Control plan helps us cover a wider range of matchups. But maybe there are some hidden secrets in his decks that we should look at...
River's Rebuke for the Tokens matchups; Contraband Kingpin vs Aggro... what else?
1st, GP Toronto Sunday Super Series 2016 : Ally Company RWBG
Top 8, PPTQ Shadows over Innistrad : Boros Humans WR.
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I guess if that matchup becomes a major problem, then some Make Obsolete in the SB might be worthwhile. Idk if it's worth it though, I think the matchup is pretty okay for us.
Game 1, don't be shy spending removals on their tokens. Particularly if you can kill their last token on your turn (and not during their turn, or it will trigger Revolt). Without tokens to trigger Hidden Stockpile and cause a chain reaction, they'll be powerless for a turn or two. To that end, it's actually better killing their tokens than Anointer Priest.
What I usually do is attack with all I have, and this should eventually force them to chump block (free removals) or gang block. They see their tokens as expendable ressources, and will usually be quite happy to lose two tokens to kill Grifted Aetherborn or Hostage Taker (exiled card, if any, already casted before you attack). As long as they have one token at the beginning of their upkeep, they're fine. And they also assume you'll never lose a precious removal on a token (big mistake). So, mass attack, depleat their numbers, kill the token that's left, and you should be safe for a turn or two. Use that time to reduce their life in the danger zone, and eventually you'll just win.
One last thing : You can use Hostage Taker to exile a token. Even if it's just a 1/1. Don't wait for value in this matchup, you won't have any.
Edit : it's sometimes better to just skip turn 4 and counter Procession if you suspect they'll cast it next turn (because of Freebooter). If they think you'll counter it, and skip their turn, you won't have lost anything and you can repeat that until you have more lands (or you can get a rebate on Dispersal's casting cost).
1st, GP Toronto Sunday Super Series 2016 : Ally Company RWBG
Top 8, PPTQ Shadows over Innistrad : Boros Humans WR.
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and use TopDecked to manage your decks and collection on your Apple or Android device.
BTW Patbou thanks for the primers, I've been around since Tempo Jacks, once I decided after Ixalan I wanted some UB pirate build, they've been helpful for not widely explored archtypes.
Don't forget that Kingpin can comeback as a 4/4 lifelink in the late game with The Scarab God's ability.
Poll #2 : Should we side out Vraska’s Contempt vs Control? I guess the answer will be different if it’s UB Control or UW Approach... I'm not sure we want this removal for the matchup, but it's a bit creepy to think a God, Gearhulk or Planeswalker could hit the battlefield and be unable to deal with it.
You're welcome! Feel free to +1 the posts you like! A bit of karma never hurts!!!
Can you post your deck list?
1st, GP Toronto Sunday Super Series 2016 : Ally Company RWBG
Top 8, PPTQ Shadows over Innistrad : Boros Humans WR.
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and use TopDecked to manage your decks and collection on your Apple or Android device.
Poll #1: I think Essence Extraction is correct in this list against Aggro. Contraband Kingpin DOES force a 2-for-1 without Chandra or Glorybringer a lot of the time, but we don't get to utilize his scry at all. Essence Extraction trades for everything except Hazoret and Glorybringer at instant speed and gains 3 life immediately. We also already have a lot of good targets for our God. It's probably worth testing still, but my gut says pass.
Poll #2: This one's interesting. My first thought is to leave them in. Adding in Doomfalls gives a lot of answers to U/B's threats... Idk how worrisome Gideon really is for us, but Approach sides in Caracals and Gearhulks under fear of Lost Legacy so there are certainly worthy targets. I guess the question comes down to what do we side in their place? We already take out 4 Hostage Taker, 4 Fatal Push for 3 Duress, 2 Negate, 2 Doomfall, 1 Liliana. I run 1 Essence Scatter in place of Trial of Ambition and don't run Lost Legacy at all. Idk what else I'd side in those matchups.
1st, GP Toronto Sunday Super Series 2016 : Ally Company RWBG
Top 8, PPTQ Shadows over Innistrad : Boros Humans WR.
Use a hypergeometric calculator for your deckbuilding maths,
and use TopDecked to manage your decks and collection on your Apple or Android device.
Round 1: Dino Enrage. 2-0. This was against the store owner and he was testing out a janky Naya Walking Ballista Dinos deck. We didn't SB against each other. First game I got off to a strange start with 3 Gifted Aetherborn and a Siren Stormtamer by turn 4. He assembled a weird combo of that Dino with enrage that makes 3/3s, a Walking Ballista with 3 counters and a spell that makes a creature indestructible until end of turn. He made 3 3/3s with Ballista. Next turn I Baral's Expertise'd and Aetherborns got me there. Second game was pretty similar, a couple Aetherborn kept the board under control until I landed Scarab God for game.
Round 2: Ramunap Red. 2-0. This was against my GF and after a lot more testing from the last time I posted, the matchup is closer to 50/50 so I was a bit worried going in. I lost the die roll but ended up drawing the perfect hand to go against hers the first game, pushing a Bomat and Dispersal on T4 Hazoret. Kitesail ripped her only removal and Hostage Taker grabbed a Crasher and I got through with an Aetherborn a lot. Sided out 1 Baral's Expertise, 1 Hostage Taker, 1 Walk the Plank, 1 Champion of Wits, and 1 Siren Stormtamer, sided in 3 Essence Extraction, 2 Doomfall. Game 2 I had a hand of Fatal Push, Aetherborn, Essence Extraction, Freebooter, Scarab God, Catacomb, Swamp. I ripped enough lands to drop Scarab God turn 5 and she had no way of getting rid of it.
Round 3: Sultai Energy 0-2. I kept a 5 land hand with Champion of Wits and Fatal Push. Thought it was keepable with the Champion of Wits, which was probably fine. But I proceeded to just draw land every turn and then Champion of Wits found 2 lands. I played 2 spells that game. Oh well. Game 2 was probably one of the most entertaining matches ever. I sided out 3 Kitesail Freebooter, 1 Champion of Wits, 1 Baral's Expertise, sided in 2 Bontu's, 1 Harsh Scrutiny, 2 Doomfall. I got a great start and Harsh Scrutiny took out a Bristling Hydra, Push got Cub, Doomfall grabbed a Ballista from his hand. He dropped T6 Carnage Tyrant out of left field and I played Bontu's leaving us both basically empty handed. The rest of the match was so grindy and hilarious. Every time one of us would get the upper hand, the other would draw the exact answer needed. At one point he played a Glint-Sieve Siphoner and then Vizier of Many Faces copying it. I pushed the copy at end of his turn and then Hostage Taker took the original on my turn and I played it. Drew a card off of it eventually and he pushed it. I had him at 2 and I was at 14 at one point. He was able to stabilize and gain life with Deathgorge Scavenger and I Deadlands'd it. He eventually topdecked a huuuuge Walking Ballista and killed me with it. At the end of the match I had 15 cards left in my library and I had not seen Scarab God ONCE. All I had to do was draw it to win, but nope. I can't even be mad though, that match was amazing and it took so long everyone had gathered around to watch the shenanigans.
Round 4: Temur Energy. 2-0. Good ol' Temur *groans*. First game I controlled the early game and just out midranged him until I could drop Scarab God with protection. That was literally it, he couldn't beat a resolved Scarab God with Stormtamer on the field. I was fairly certain he was going to side into more control, so I sided out 1 Field of Ruin, 1 Baral's Expertise, 2 Champion of Wits, 2 Hostage Taker, 2 Lookout's Disperal (I run 1 Essence Scatter main) and sided in 2 Bontu's, 1 Harsh Scrutiny, 2 Negate, 1 Duress, 2 Doomfall.
Second game was some good ol' midrange strats. Duress and Freebooter took out Essence Scatter and Harnessed Lightning letting me land T5 Scarab God. He didn't rip an answer, but he did land 3 Whirlers and a Bristling Hydra up to this point so it wasn't over immediately. After my Scarab God, though, he unnecessarily played out the rest of his hand onto the field and I got a nice 6-for-1 with Bontu's. He wasn't expecting a sweeper. Replayed Scarab God and it carried me. He managed to find a Confiscation Coup, but I had enough mana to reanimate and sacrifice a Stormtamer and he scooped showing me the Negate backup in his hand. Lol.
Lots of good games tonight and I'm pretty happy overall. Some matchups are a coinflip like Ramunap, but against other midrange strategies and slower aggro we seem to be favored. I really feel I should've won the Sultai match, but flooding the first game and never finding Scarab God the second game was pretty brutal.
Closing notes: Bontu's is great against Energy decks, it might be worth fitting a 3rd in the SB. 3 of the 5 Energy decks tonight were running Carnage Tyrants in the SB as tech against Temur and control so look out for that. Essence Scatter was extremely strong in the MB. Some matches are really grindy and a 4 mana tax becomes negligible at a certain point. I think I'm going to try 1 more Essence Scatter over a Lookout's Dispersal for a total of 2 Scatters/3 Dispersal.
1st, GP Toronto Sunday Super Series 2016 : Ally Company RWBG
Top 8, PPTQ Shadows over Innistrad : Boros Humans WR.
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and use TopDecked to manage your decks and collection on your Apple or Android device.
6 Swamp
5 Island
4 Drowned Catacomb
4 Fetid Pools
3 Evolving Wilds
2 Ifnir Deadlands
1 Field of Ruin
Creatures (22)
3 Siren Stormtamer
4 Kitesail Freebooter
4 Gifted Aetherborn
4 Champion of Wits
4 Hostage Taker
3 The Scarab God
4 Fatal Push
1 Essence Scatter
1 Walk the Plank
4 Lookout's Dispersal
2 Vraska's Contempt
1 Baral's Expertise
3 Duress
2 Negate
2 Bontu's Last Reckoning
2 Doomfall
3 Essence Extraction
1 Harsh Scrutiny
2 Gonti, Lord of Luxury
Changes I want to make include -1 Lookout's Dispersal MB for +1 Essence Scatter and -1 Gonti SB for +1 Bontu's Last Reckoning. Baral's Expertise has been really hit or miss and it feels like I'm siding it out a lot. I'm looking for something else to put in it's spot, possibly +1 Vraska's Contempt.
I'm working hard right now on the SB plan. I've just come to these conclusions :
Edit : BTW, why did you side in Negate and Duress vs Temur Energy? For Chandra, Torch of Defiance and Confiscation Coup? Wouldn't it have been better to keeep Hostage Taker to out Midrange opponent?
1st, GP Toronto Sunday Super Series 2016 : Ally Company RWBG
Top 8, PPTQ Shadows over Innistrad : Boros Humans WR.
Use a hypergeometric calculator for your deckbuilding maths,
and use TopDecked to manage your decks and collection on your Apple or Android device.
I've been running River's Rebuke for a while now. It seems like it is slow, but against tokens it's really, really good. Against opposing scarab gods I still kind of like the good old fashion Unsummon since it basically reads "Destroy target eternalized creature, it can't be regenerated". I still like it more in my merfolk build because of Rishkar, Peema Renegade sometimes letting you get to use it more quickly than expected.
Mostly been playing against friends at the moment, though, and some of the antics that happen there aren't exactly common in tournament play. Namely, one of them runs what he has named "Ral Zarek's Gifts", which is basically completely built on just gambling like a madman on cards like Combustible Gearhulk and Rowdy Crew along with cheating out God-Pharaoh's Gift. I kind of want to see his list because somehow he has made it work.
1. (Ravnica Allegiance): You can't keep a good esper control deck down... Or Wilderness Reclamation... or Gates...
2. (War of the Spark): Guys, I know what we need! We need a cycle of really idiotic flavor text victory cards! Jace's Triumph...
3. (War of the Spark): Lets make the format with control have even more control!
1st, GP Toronto Sunday Super Series 2016 : Ally Company RWBG
Top 8, PPTQ Shadows over Innistrad : Boros Humans WR.
Use a hypergeometric calculator for your deckbuilding maths,
and use TopDecked to manage your decks and collection on your Apple or Android device.