R2 vs GB I feel this match is gb pushing $^&t uphill. Easy 2-0. He stuck the 3 mana artifact to scry and then g for draw each creature cast both games. He did mull to 5 g2 though.
R3 vs Jund Energy. See R2, east 2-0. I thought he was jund midrange after g1 so didn't side...
R4 vs Mardu Vehicles. This was a tough one, 0-2. He drew well g1 and my draw was a little awkward. G2 my 7 had 4 land, 2 hulk and a push. My 6 was 5 lands and a decomission. I kept my 5 and drew really well, but didn't have enough cards, also misplayed by anguishing a scrounger instead of a harvester.
Thoughts:
Didn't miss anticipate
Grip of desolation is too slow for the meta
Might want a boardwipe
Unsure on blessed alliance vs immolating glare
Mana was good, only got awkward mana once
I really like the deck
EDIT: sorry for formatting if any issues. On phone.
The gearhulks aren't enough for win cons, and I like thing better than tapping out for Kalitas, Traitor of Ghet. The things also work as pseudo-sweepers. Another bonus is that they prevent fatal push from ever being completely dead in the main because worst case, you can target any creature just to tick down on thing.
I want to try out Compelling Deterrence as a faster answer to resolved planeswalkers. It might be just enough delay to turn the corner.
Edit: Accidentally put Noxious Gearhulks in the sideboard instead of Demons.
R2 vs GB I feel this match is gb pushing $^&t uphill. Easy 2-0. He stuck the 3 mana artifact to scry and then g for draw each creature cast both games. He did mull to 5 g2 though.
R3 vs Jund Energy. See R2, east 2-0. I thought he was jund midrange after g1 so didn't side...
R4 vs Mardu Vehicles. This was a tough one, 0-2. He drew well g1 and my draw was a little awkward. G2 my 7 had 4 land, 2 hulk and a push. My 6 was 5 lands and a decomission. I kept my 5 and drew really well, but didn't have enough cards, also misplayed by anguishing a scrounger instead of a harvester.
Thoughts:
Didn't miss anticipate
Grip of desolation is too slow for the meta
Might want a boardwipe
Unsure on blessed alliance vs immolating glare
Mana was good, only got awkward mana once
I really like the deck
EDIT: sorry for formatting if any issues. On phone.
You would do better with this list cutting white all together. Your only running 3 total cards that use white mana+2 man lands. I think you are just hurting yourself
I get what you're saying. But the white splash was a actually quite good all night, anguished was an all star. I have a lot of enchantments and artifacts in my area currently and I don't always have the counter.
I'm currently in the middle of trying to figure out exactly what I want to play. I'd like esper colours and this ran quite smoothly. I've been on ub for a while and wanted to change it up slightly.
EDIT: Also changing the grip to a 2 mana w removal spell.
As an esper player myself blessed alliance is a must even if just a 1 of in the 75 due to the flexibility of the card and an all star against rg energy combo, and aggro matchup 4 life make a big difference between stabilizing and losing. Another card I'm testing are skywhaleer shot due to the scry ability and horribly awry as it a turn 2 counter that will buy time. Also would you consider some artifact hate in your 75?
R2 vs GB I feel this match is gb pushing $^&t uphill. Easy 2-0. He stuck the 3 mana artifact to scry and then g for draw each creature cast both games. He did mull to 5 g2 though.
R3 vs Jund Energy. See R2, east 2-0. I thought he was jund midrange after g1 so didn't side...
R4 vs Mardu Vehicles. This was a tough one, 0-2. He drew well g1 and my draw was a little awkward. G2 my 7 had 4 land, 2 hulk and a push. My 6 was 5 lands and a decomission. I kept my 5 and drew really well, but didn't have enough cards, also misplayed by anguishing a scrounger instead of a harvester.
Thoughts:
Didn't miss anticipate
Grip of desolation is too slow for the meta
Might want a boardwipe
Unsure on blessed alliance vs immolating glare
Mana was good, only got awkward mana once
I really like the deck
EDIT: sorry for formatting if any issues. On phone.
You would do better with this list cutting white all together. Your only running 3 total cards that use white mana+2 man lands. I think you are just hurting yourself
That's exactly how I got started on Esper. I tried building a BW control deck. Then it turned into a UB control deck. It essentially became UB control deck splashing white for 1 Immolating Glare, 1 Blessed Alliance, 1 Sorin, Grim Nemesis, 3 Anguished Unmaking and 3 Shambling Vent. All of those cards have ended up being critical for the way I play to deal with Vehicles (still a tough but slightly favorable match), GB counters (easy mode) and Jeskai Saheeli (a 50/50 match but it gets better when I go to a flash sideboard).
There is a PPTQ tomorrow and I am making a metagame call that control won't show up, which is what I've been hearing from everyone locally. If it does I'm going to have a lean on the Sphinx with the limited counters I have. My plan is to prey on the aggro decks with Summonings tokens pre-board and Fumigate post-board. If I get some free blowouts with Yahenni's Expertise into Lili or Anguished, I'll take it.
Edit: I've been tuning the mana base and I'm very happy with it. Like any Esper list, you can have all sorts of issues, but when this list draws well it can be such an unstoppable weapon!
Is it even a right call to shave fumigate main board since it does do a lot of work against gb? How does liliana and sorin working for you? What is the most aggressive deck you faced so far for you to build the deck as is?
I wrote the list largely from memory, but I think it's accurate. Apparently, iirc I guess I'm only running two Anguished Unmaking in the main. I know for a long time I had three there but I can't find my notes as to why I did that. I have been testing one Oath of Jace in place of one Anticipate. Sometimes it's good. Sometimes I should leave well enough alone. I really don't like Anticipate, but it serves an important function that I haven't figured out how to solve any other way. We're just lacking decent card drawing spells. I really wish I could find room for a fourth Fatal Push in the main deck or the sideboard. I'm really at a loss for how to get it though. Sweepers have been pretty important for me against all the GB decks and some fringe decks I've repeatedly run into. I don't think Scrapheap Scrounger is a big deal. I have removal for days, and if that's the what they're choosing to focus on, I'm alright with that. Also, I'm leaning towards changing one of the sideboard Dispels back to another Negate or Horribly Awry. I'm not sure which way to go yet.
If Sorin resolves and stays on the table at least 3 turns I never lose, but sometimes when way behind he isn't enough.
Unless opponent has slow start on aggro/midrange I rarely jam Lili early; she is awesome for recurring creatures, growing the yard for GH and drawing fire away from life total; she is almost never going to ultimate; I love her but she isn't always what you need, hence the one copy.
Fumigate main feels wrong with this manabase; I'm already pushing the envelope with 2 Summonings in the main. They are only needed against that crazy GB Snakes list at this stage. That Walking Balista is a menace, and they can just go crazy with many large creatures so quickly!
@chaos - Love your list! Avacyn in the side, interesting. I think 2 Dispel in the side are correct, I'm just making a metagame call with my list; I may crash and burn tho. Our mana bases are so close that I can tell we're both working to enable Fatal Push but be able to have untapped mana consistently in the early turns. (3 Evolving Wilds speaks volumes!)
If Sorin resolves and stays on the table at least 3 turns I never lose, but sometimes when way behind he isn't enough.
Unless opponent has slow start on aggro/midrange I rarely jam Lili early; she is awesome for recurring creatures, growing the yard for GH and drawing fire away from life total; she is almost never going to ultimate; I love her but she isn't always what you need, hence the one copy.
Fumigate main feels wrong with this manabase; I'm already pushing the envelope with 2 Summonings in the main. They are only needed against that crazy GB Snakes list at this stage. That Walking Balista is a menace, and they can just go crazy with many large creatures so quickly!
My thing with Sorin is this: Even in a game where I'm behind the 8-ball, as long as he resolves, I can take something down with him and gain some life (which usually buys me time). To that end, I could also play something like Battle at the Bridge as a 1-of, but when Sorin sticks, you just win.
I concur on Liliana. The only time I jam her is against Mardu Vehicles so long as they don't have an early vehicle, which happens more often than I thought it would. Otherwise, our views on her pretty much line up.
True. There are times when Fumigate feels not-so-good, but it's rarely ever been a dead draw for me. Even when I ran into Emerge decks last weekend at a PPTQ. It's really only a dead card against control so far, but I haven't faced many control decks outside a few Jeskai Combo-Cat decks. In times like that, Oath of Jace pulls a lot of weight. However, I can honestly say I've never had a problem casting Fumigate. I'm more likely to get mana screwed than be unable to cast Fumigate because of bad mana source issues.
@chaos - Love your list! Avacyn in the side, interesting. I think 2 Dispel in the side are correct, I'm just making a metagame call with my list; I may crash and burn tho. Our mana bases are so close that I can tell we're both working to enable Fatal Push but be able to have untapped mana consistently in the early turns. (3 Evolving Wilds speaks volumes!)
One thing I've learned from playing against Splinter Twin back in the day is that if you can play your spells on your opponent's turn, it screws up their math badly. That's the biggest reason I play Archangel Avacyn. She's big enough to pressure their planeswalkers and doesn't ever get eaten by Nahiri, the Harbinger's -2 ability. It also comes down a little earlier than Torrential Gearhulk. Spell Queller is usually enough of a tempo loss (and often a surprise) in game 2 that they tend to board in some more removal, which they generally don't want to do against control. It's a cat-and-mouse game, but it gives me something to pressure them with so they can't sit back and eventually find the right mix of cards. So far it's working. I just wonder how long it will continue to work.
@chaos That looks nice. I haven't missed Anticipate since I stopped running it, granted I've had like 6 matches with Esper without it. Regarding sweepers, I haven't found a need for them vs GB. We just 1 for 1 them into oblivion and Glimmer.
I've been liking awry as a 1of mb. I think go with a Negate over the 3rd Dispel, just because you it has more relevant applications.
I'm a newer player (~3 months) and I'm hoping to attend Games Day tomorrow (first ever Magic event) and I wish to play Esper control. I'll post up my deck list later today but I'd like some help on Mulligan.
I read somewhere that control decks Mulligan infrequently. Are lands the most important thing to judge hand quality? Or if I am running something like Thing in the Ice, would I try once to look for that?
It really depends on the matchup. vs mardu vehicles, I want 3-4 lands and removal/counters (inc a way to deal with Gideon) and don't really want to see Gearhulks. Whereas vs control, I want 5ish lands, Glimmer and something. I've got a report up on the bottom of page 26 where I mulled to 5 vs Vehicles (I probs would kept the 7 vs control).
Dovin seems Meh in a draw go shell. Is he a late game win condition, great against control, or am I missing something?
Dovin is a Jack Of All Trades. Draws cards, gains life, stops creature abilities (huge vs. Selfless Spirit), slows aggro. The ultimate almost never happens, but in a control mirror, if you can get the emblem, you can instigate a counter war EOT with little repercussions.
Dovin seems Meh in a draw go shell. Is he a late game win condition, great against control, or am I missing something?
Dovin is a Jack Of All Trades. Draws cards, gains life, stops creature abilities (huge vs. Selfless Spirit), slows aggro. The ultimate almost never happens, but in a control mirror, if you can get the emblem, you can instigate a counter war EOT with little repercussions.
All of these things(!) whereas Jace pretty much does what Jace does: Draw cards. His bounce ability can get extra mileage out of your own Torrential Gearhulks or slow an opponent down. However, there are a ton of ETB triggers out there attached to creatures and, if I'm bouncing them, I want to do that on their turn. Jace's ultimate is pretty good, but I feel like Jace's general utility isn't what I'm looking for.
So what mu do you bring him in? Aggro and control?
It really depends on what I've seen played. There are so many minor tweaks to every deck I've run across, but largely it's been Mardu Vehicles, GB Aggro, any decks that don't have man-lands (such as UB control) and UW Spirits (it's a thing locally).
I decided to go the Esper route because my previous UB version seemed too focused on Mardu Vehicles, and I didn't think it would do well against GB Constrictor or Jund Energy. I also like having access to Blessed Alliance to deal with the occasional Bristling Hydra.
I was thinking about adding a Fumigate to the SB to have 3 against GB Constrictor and Jund Energy, but I'm not sure if that's too many for a 5 mana sweeper.
Also still on the fence about Gisela versus Mardu vehicles.
I played a casual event tonight after play testing and had my worst showing yet with Esper. Less than 3 Anguished main feels like a mistake, but without Kalitas for life gain that is rough. Aether Thief mainboard is also not great. Maybe it's time to try TitI, I just hate tapping out early.
Jamming Lili against Mardu Vehicles when they don't have a vehicle did work quite well!
I played a casual event tonight after play testing and had my worst showing yet with Esper. Less than 3 Anguished main feels like a mistake, but without Kalitas for life gain that is rough. Aether Thief mainboard is also not great. Maybe it's time to try TitI, I just hate tapping out early.
Jamming Lili against Mardu Vehicles when they don't have a vehicle did work quite well!
Yea. I was pretty sure I used to played three Anguished Unmaking in the main, and I even pulled my deck out earlier today to make sure that wasn't a typo. Sure enough, I'm only playing two in the main deck, and I remember always thinking that I never saw it enough when I played less than three. Apparently I either lost my notes on why I cut one, or I never wrote it in comments. I also remember getting multiple Anguished Unmaking in my opening hand felt bad against Vehicle decks in general. The life loss and my general distaste for playing Kalitas, Traitor of Ghet was the reason I used to run two (at one time, up to three!) Blessed Alliance. I've just learned to ride the wave out and gain some of my life back with Shambling Vent instead. I really hate Kalitas. Every time I imagine playing it, I feel like I'm walking into a trap.
What decks did you face?
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R1 I got the bye.
R2 vs GB I feel this match is gb pushing $^&t uphill. Easy 2-0. He stuck the 3 mana artifact to scry and then g for draw each creature cast both games. He did mull to 5 g2 though.
Sided -1 grip -1 suspicions +1 anguished +1 negate.
R3 vs Jund Energy. See R2, east 2-0. I thought he was jund midrange after g1 so didn't side...
R4 vs Mardu Vehicles. This was a tough one, 0-2. He drew well g1 and my draw was a little awkward. G2 my 7 had 4 land, 2 hulk and a push. My 6 was 5 lands and a decomission. I kept my 5 and drew really well, but didn't have enough cards, also misplayed by anguishing a scrounger instead of a harvester.
Sided -1 grip -1 jace -1 ob -1 suspicions -3 disallow +1 decomission +1 push +1 kalitas +2 feeder +1 alliance +1 slaughter (possibly should've done -1 anguished +1 negate too)
4 torrential gearhulk
2 kalitas, traitor of ghet
Planeswalkers (2)
1 jace, unravler of secrets
1 ob nixilis reignited
Instant (25)
4 glimmer of genius
3 anguished unmaking
4 grasp of darkness
2 murder
4 disallow
2 negate
3 fatal push
1 Confirm Suspicions
1 horribly awry
1 grip of desolation
4 sunken hollow
3 prairie stream
4 evolving wilds
1 concealed courtyard
2 shambling vents
3 choked Estuary
1 plains
3 island
4 swamp
2 aether hub
1 metallurgical summonings
1 sorin, grim nemesis
1 anguished unmaking
1 decommission
2 negate
1 blighted cataract
2 dispel
1 to the slaughter
2 fathom feeder
1 kailtas, traitor of ghet
1 fatal push
1 blessed alliance
Thoughts:
Didn't miss anticipate
Grip of desolation is too slow for the meta
Might want a boardwipe
Unsure on blessed alliance vs immolating glare
Mana was good, only got awkward mana once
I really like the deck
EDIT: sorry for formatting if any issues. On phone.
3 Torrential Gearhulk
4 Thing in the Ice
Spells
3 Glimmer of Genius
3 Anticipate
3 Disallow
3 Void Shatter
3 Negate
3 Compelling Deterrence
2 Murder
4 Grasp of Darkness
3 Fatal Push
4 Aether Hub
4 Sunken Hollow
4 Choked Estuary
7 Swamp
7 Island
2 Sphinx of the Final Word
2 Ruinous Path
2 Demon of Dark Schemes
3 Flaying Tendrils
3 Ceremonious Rejection
3 Dispel
The gearhulks aren't enough for win cons, and I like thing better than tapping out for Kalitas, Traitor of Ghet. The things also work as pseudo-sweepers. Another bonus is that they prevent fatal push from ever being completely dead in the main because worst case, you can target any creature just to tick down on thing.
I want to try out Compelling Deterrence as a faster answer to resolved planeswalkers. It might be just enough delay to turn the corner.
Edit: Accidentally put Noxious Gearhulks in the sideboard instead of Demons.
You would do better with this list cutting white all together. Your only running 3 total cards that use white mana+2 man lands. I think you are just hurting yourself
I'm currently in the middle of trying to figure out exactly what I want to play. I'd like esper colours and this ran quite smoothly. I've been on ub for a while and wanted to change it up slightly.
EDIT: Also changing the grip to a 2 mana w removal spell.
That's exactly how I got started on Esper. I tried building a BW control deck. Then it turned into a UB control deck. It essentially became UB control deck splashing white for 1 Immolating Glare, 1 Blessed Alliance, 1 Sorin, Grim Nemesis, 3 Anguished Unmaking and 3 Shambling Vent. All of those cards have ended up being critical for the way I play to deal with Vehicles (still a tough but slightly favorable match), GB counters (easy mode) and Jeskai Saheeli (a 50/50 match but it gets better when I go to a flash sideboard).
Creatures (6)
3 Torrential gearhulk
3 Shielded Aether Thief
Planeswalkers (2)
1 Sorin, Grim Nemesis
1 Liliana, the Last Hope
Enchantment (2)
2 Metallurgic Summonings
Instant (23)
3 Glimmer of Genius
2 Anguished Unmaking
2 Anticipate
3 Grasp of Darkness
1 Murder
3 Disallow
2 Negate
4 Fatal Push
1 Confirm Suspicions
1 Horribly Awry
1 Yahenni's Expertise
2 Aether Hub
3 Evolving Wilds
1 Concealed Courtyard
2 Shambling Vent
4 Sunken Hollow
4 Choked Estuary
3 Prairie Stream
1 Port Town
4 Swamp
3 Island
1 Plains
2 Sphinx of the Final Word
3 Fumigate
1 Jace, Unraveler of Secrets
1 Overwhelming Denial
1 Void Shatter
1 Torrential Gearhulk
1 Glimmer of Genius
1 Ruinous Path
1 To the Slaughter
1 Kalitas, Traitor of Ghet
1 Grasp of Darkness
1 Blessed Alliance
Edit: I've been tuning the mana base and I'm very happy with it. Like any Esper list, you can have all sorts of issues, but when this list draws well it can be such an unstoppable weapon!
Edit2: Regarding Lili - http://www.mtgsalvation.com/forums/the-game/standard-type-2/established-standard/758220-esper-ub-control?comment=510
EDIT: spelling
1 Sorin, Grim Nemesis
4 Glimmer of Genius
3 Anticipate
1 Fumigate
1 Yahenni's Expertise
2 Murder
3 Grasp of Darkness
3 Fatal Push
1 Blessed Alliance
1 Immolating Glare
2 Anguished Unmaking
4 Disallow
1 Confirm Suspicions
4 Sunken Hollow
3 Choked Estuary
3 Prairie Stream
1 Port Town
3 Shambling Vent
3 Evolving Wilds
1 Aether Hub
4 Swamp
3 Island
2 Plains
1 Sphinx of the Final Word
2 Archangel Avacyn
3 Spell Queller
1 Dovin Baan
1 Liliana, the Last Hope
1 Metallurgic Summonings
1 Void Shatter
1 Anguished Unmaking
1 To the Slaughter
3 Dispel
I wrote the list largely from memory, but I think it's accurate. Apparently, iirc I guess I'm only running two Anguished Unmaking in the main. I know for a long time I had three there but I can't find my notes as to why I did that. I have been testing one Oath of Jace in place of one Anticipate. Sometimes it's good. Sometimes I should leave well enough alone. I really don't like Anticipate, but it serves an important function that I haven't figured out how to solve any other way. We're just lacking decent card drawing spells. I really wish I could find room for a fourth Fatal Push in the main deck or the sideboard. I'm really at a loss for how to get it though. Sweepers have been pretty important for me against all the GB decks and some fringe decks I've repeatedly run into. I don't think Scrapheap Scrounger is a big deal. I have removal for days, and if that's the what they're choosing to focus on, I'm alright with that. Also, I'm leaning towards changing one of the sideboard Dispels back to another Negate or Horribly Awry. I'm not sure which way to go yet.
Unless opponent has slow start on aggro/midrange I rarely jam Lili early; she is awesome for recurring creatures, growing the yard for GH and drawing fire away from life total; she is almost never going to ultimate; I love her but she isn't always what you need, hence the one copy.
Fumigate main feels wrong with this manabase; I'm already pushing the envelope with 2 Summonings in the main. They are only needed against that crazy GB Snakes list at this stage. That Walking Balista is a menace, and they can just go crazy with many large creatures so quickly!
My thing with Sorin is this: Even in a game where I'm behind the 8-ball, as long as he resolves, I can take something down with him and gain some life (which usually buys me time). To that end, I could also play something like Battle at the Bridge as a 1-of, but when Sorin sticks, you just win.
I concur on Liliana. The only time I jam her is against Mardu Vehicles so long as they don't have an early vehicle, which happens more often than I thought it would. Otherwise, our views on her pretty much line up.
True. There are times when Fumigate feels not-so-good, but it's rarely ever been a dead draw for me. Even when I ran into Emerge decks last weekend at a PPTQ. It's really only a dead card against control so far, but I haven't faced many control decks outside a few Jeskai Combo-Cat decks. In times like that, Oath of Jace pulls a lot of weight. However, I can honestly say I've never had a problem casting Fumigate. I'm more likely to get mana screwed than be unable to cast Fumigate because of bad mana source issues.
One thing I've learned from playing against Splinter Twin back in the day is that if you can play your spells on your opponent's turn, it screws up their math badly. That's the biggest reason I play Archangel Avacyn. She's big enough to pressure their planeswalkers and doesn't ever get eaten by Nahiri, the Harbinger's -2 ability. It also comes down a little earlier than Torrential Gearhulk. Spell Queller is usually enough of a tempo loss (and often a surprise) in game 2 that they tend to board in some more removal, which they generally don't want to do against control. It's a cat-and-mouse game, but it gives me something to pressure them with so they can't sit back and eventually find the right mix of cards. So far it's working. I just wonder how long it will continue to work.
I've been liking awry as a 1of mb. I think go with a Negate over the 3rd Dispel, just because you it has more relevant applications.
I read somewhere that control decks Mulligan infrequently. Are lands the most important thing to judge hand quality? Or if I am running something like Thing in the Ice, would I try once to look for that?
Dovin is a Jack Of All Trades. Draws cards, gains life, stops creature abilities (huge vs. Selfless Spirit), slows aggro. The ultimate almost never happens, but in a control mirror, if you can get the emblem, you can instigate a counter war EOT with little repercussions.
All of these things(!) whereas Jace pretty much does what Jace does: Draw cards. His bounce ability can get extra mileage out of your own Torrential Gearhulks or slow an opponent down. However, there are a ton of ETB triggers out there attached to creatures and, if I'm bouncing them, I want to do that on their turn. Jace's ultimate is pretty good, but I feel like Jace's general utility isn't what I'm looking for.
It really depends on what I've seen played. There are so many minor tweaks to every deck I've run across, but largely it's been Mardu Vehicles, GB Aggro, any decks that don't have man-lands (such as UB control) and UW Spirits (it's a thing locally).
3 Torrential Gearhulk
4 Thing in the Ice
Spells
1 Fumigate
3 Glimmer of Hope
2 Anguished Unmaking
3 Fatal Push
4 Disallow
2 Void Shatter
3 Negate
3 Blessed Alliance
3 Anticipate
3 Immolating Glare
4 Aether Hub
4 Port Town
2 Prairie Stream
1 Choked Estuary
2 Concealed Courtyard
3 Shambling Vent
8 Island
1 Plains
1 Swamp
1 Fumigate
2 Gisela, the Broken Blade
3 Declaration in Stone
3 Authority of the Consuls
3 Ceremonious Rejection
3 Dispel
I was thinking about adding a Fumigate to the SB to have 3 against GB Constrictor and Jund Energy, but I'm not sure if that's too many for a 5 mana sweeper.
Also still on the fence about Gisela versus Mardu vehicles.
Jamming Lili against Mardu Vehicles when they don't have a vehicle did work quite well!
Yea. I was pretty sure I used to played three Anguished Unmaking in the main, and I even pulled my deck out earlier today to make sure that wasn't a typo. Sure enough, I'm only playing two in the main deck, and I remember always thinking that I never saw it enough when I played less than three. Apparently I either lost my notes on why I cut one, or I never wrote it in comments. I also remember getting multiple Anguished Unmaking in my opening hand felt bad against Vehicle decks in general. The life loss and my general distaste for playing Kalitas, Traitor of Ghet was the reason I used to run two (at one time, up to three!) Blessed Alliance. I've just learned to ride the wave out and gain some of my life back with Shambling Vent instead. I really hate Kalitas. Every time I imagine playing it, I feel like I'm walking into a trap.
What decks did you face?