I would think so. Deck is pretty solid if it is 3 out of the top 4 in the pro-tour. I am amazed at how the rhino just keeps you just out of range of being killed and abzan charm clears the way just enough.
I was very impressed out how it played out in the end.
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Current Decks
Modern
No idea because my favorite decks keep getting banned or having the rules changed against them
Riding the train to the competitive forum! Was such a great game to watch. Really glad I got the Abzan cards while I could. Siege Rhino going to be leading standard for awhile.
Woot woot for Abzan. Soooooooo glad I went junk back in August when I got back into paper play. I predict Hornet Queen will continue her dark horse price rise.....because if you aren't with us, you gotta be ready to beat us. Devotion may well benefit from this result and claim second best deck since all the Jeskai just couldn't get it done.
Im also glad that Abzan took its place at the front of the pack for the PT. I do however think that Jeskai is still going to maintain it's place in 2nd considering the fact that 1/2 of the top 8 was in Jeskai
All the top creatures right now seem so weird. We've got...a rhino? And a couple of insects (well, one is riding an insect, but still)? And don't get me started on the number of playable kitties and birds. And our top mana card is a...plant? I mean, some of them are nice to see actually be played again, like the hydras or goblins, but....rhinos, insects, and cats? What are we going to get next set, a playable elk? Actually, can we have a playable elk now I want that.
All the top creatures right now seem so weird. We've got...a rhino? And a couple of insects (well, one is riding an insect, but still)? And don't get me started on the number of playable kitties and birds. And our top mana card is a...plant? I mean, some of them are nice to see actually be played again, like the hydras or goblins, but....rhinos, insects, and cats? What are we going to get next set, a playable elk? Actually, can we have a playable elk now I want that.
what we should really start thinking about is what to do in the mirror match....cos we all know that now LOTS of people will start running this deck.
btw tell me what you want but after seeing the pro tour I'm more and more happy to have decided to run hornet nest instead of courser
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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
Hi first time in the boards. I luckily got my rhinos and wingmate's last week before the price madness that will follow the protour. I have played a decent share of mirrors and they are very very grindy as you guys have said. So, now that they will be even more common: what about an alternative form of win con from the sb? Say a couple of grindlocks ? or something along those lines, that attacks the library ? Or should one just stick to the asymmetric duneblast?
I really didn't want the deck to win just because I didn't want the field swarmed with mirror matches, haha. Also I've been crushing my local meta and now I'm sure everyone will just copy Ari's list.
To all the Elspeth "haters", look at how many of them are run by Lax
Since i had no time watching the PT ...*ARGH*...i would like to know:
Did the Eslpeths even matter in the games? I mean, playing 3 is great ...but if they never came down on the field or they did not do anything good...if you know what i mean.
Would like to here, how the Elspeths performed :).
Thanks!
In the top 8 matches, Elspeth served as a super strong top deck in attrition battles. It is a fast clock and doesn't even need to go ultimate to win the game so if they do top deck a Wingmate Roc or Hero's Downfall to threaten Elspeth, you can still get there. Great card in these kinds of games. There was on play where Ari snap picked Elspeth on a Thoughtseize knowing that if it dropped he probably would just lose.
That said, it isn't good everywhere - just like last season. Against a fast deck with reach or evasion, specifically Jeskai Burn, Elspeth is extremely threatened by fliers and direct damage. Sideboard it out there.
I was satisfied with all of my choices. I wanted to go a little more aggro than the usual controlish builds, so I added 2 Rakshasa Deathdealers to the main, and I was impressed with how it came down on T2 or T3 and either traded with an early creature or burn spell (that would have gone to the face or killed a more important guy)from aggro, blocked a fattie indefinitely, or served as an abyss in the late game until they ran out of chump blockers.
Here were my matches:
R1 vs RWu Aggro - won 2-0, 1-0 overall
R2 vs Jeskai Tempo (he made Top 8) - lost 1-2, 1-1 overall
R3 vs mirror - won 2-1, 2-1 overall
R4 vs Red Devotion - won 2-1, 3-1 overall
R5 vs Junk Reanimator - won 2-1, 4-1 overall
R6 vs Red Aggro Burn - won 2-0, 5-1 overall
R7 vs GR Devotion (he made Top 8) - lost 1-2, 5-2 overall
R8 vs GR Devotion - won 2-1, 6-2 overall
R1 was against a new player, and I crushed him with multiple Siege Rhinos.
R2 was a close match, he overran me with Goblin Rabblemaster in the first game and I won with lifegain from Nyx-Fleece Ram and wrecked his goblin hoard with Drown in Sorrow game 2. I unfortunately never saw any Rhinos or enough removal game 3.
R3 we steamrolled each other with great draws in the first 2 games, and in G3 a creature stalemate was broken with a topdecked Liliana Vess, who searched up a Silence the Believers to kill 2 Siege Rhinos for the win.
R4 was another set of great draws by each of us in the first 2 games, and then in G3 I was able to set up a back-breaking End Hostilities to kill his board and my monstroused Fleecemane Lion and Elspeth tokens killed him quickly.
R5 Anafenza, the Foremost did a lot of work, obviously with her exile ability but also with her add counters ability -- 6/6 monstrous FML are nice. In G3 I had to essentially kill him twice, when Resolute Archangel gained him 16 life.
R6 was scary with all the burn he had, but 2 Siege Rhinos won game 1. G2 I was stuck on 3 lands for quite a while. At 2 life, I found a 4th land and went up to 5 from the Rhino, he untapped, cast Stoke the Flames, and never drew any more burn for 3 turns while I killed him.
R7 I was paired up against one of the 3 6-0s, and lost a close game 3 to topdecked big monsters vs my topdecked lands.
R8 I got my revenge against the GR Devotion deck. After (yet again) 2 blowouts with great draws the first 2 games, in G3 on a static board I revealed a Rhino, Elspeth, and Utter End for his Soul of Shandalar with my Courser of Kruphix, and he drew nothing for those 3 turns, for the win.
All the top creatures right now seem so weird. We've got...a rhino? And a couple of insects (well, one is riding an insect, but still)? And don't get me started on the number of playable kitties and birds. And our top mana card is a...plant? I mean, some of them are nice to see actually be played again, like the hydras or goblins, but....rhinos, insects, and cats? What are we going to get next set, a playable elk? Actually, can we have a playable elk now I want that.
Too bad, that was rhetorical. y'all getting numbers.
The red and green cells in the field remain the same as last time. The columns to the right have been adjusted to fit the increase of data (red is 5 or fewer decks played it, gold is 5 or fewer decks DID NOT play it)
Before you ask which list is Saporito's, the answer is none of them - he went 6-3-1 in the constructed rounds, so his list isn't factored into the equation. All six of the lists with the PTH tag went 7-3 or better in constructed, and three people got 7-3 with Ari Lax's exact 75 (their limited rounds doing them in, I'm sure - Ari went 7-1-2 in the constructed portion)
I'll be back a little later today with some commentary.
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Top 16 - 2012 Indiana State Championships Currently Playing: GBStandard - Golgari Safari MidrangeBG RBWModern - Mardu PyromancerWBR RLegacy - Good Old Fashioned BurnR
Too bad, that was rhetorical. y'all getting numbers.
The red and green cells in the field remain the same as last time. The columns to the right have been adjusted to fit the increase of data (red is 5 or fewer decks played it, gold is 5 or fewer decks DID NOT play it)
Before you ask which list is Saporito's, the answer is none of them - he went 6-3-1 in the constructed rounds, so his list isn't factored into the equation. All six of the lists with the PTH tag went 7-3 or better in constructed, and three people got 7-3 with Ari Lax's exact 75 (their limited rounds doing them in, I'm sure - Ari went 7-1-2 in the constructed portion)
I'll be back a little later today with some commentary.
This thread loves you, Charm_Master! Thanks so much for this update. Time to process some information!
I was very impressed out how it played out in the end.
Seriously though.....the mirror matches last forever.
Peak rating 1832
Brain Freeze is the coolest card ever printed.
On a bright note, one of the best creatures in standard is a RHINO!
UBRGrixis Kiki Control
BGUSultai Shadow
GWRBushwhacker Zoo
EDH:
BGU Sidisi, Brood Tyrant
UBR Marchesa, the Black Rose
GWU Roon of the Hidden Realm
Welcome to Standard, where a demon straight out of Nyx somehow loses a fight against a cat with a sword, and a human riding a goat can beat the crap out of either of them.
GWU Bant Manifest - The Future Is Here. Or it will be at the end of turn. GWU
Also added a link to a new ChannelFireball article: http://www.channelfireball.com/articles/teamcfbp-deck-tech-abzan-midrange/
and bonus! another ChannelFireball article about the more aggressive variant: http://www.channelfireball.com/home/pardee-time-demonic-zoo/
GWU Bant Manifest - The Future Is Here. Or it will be at the end of turn. GWU
btw tell me what you want but after seeing the pro tour I'm more and more happy to have decided to run hornet nest instead of courser
Pioneer: WURFaerie fires BRGDragons
ModernBGElves WRBurn UR Fires Turns URGift Storm UG Twiddle Storm
Thanks
Modern
UWGB 4c Snow Control BGWU
In the top 8 matches, Elspeth served as a super strong top deck in attrition battles. It is a fast clock and doesn't even need to go ultimate to win the game so if they do top deck a Wingmate Roc or Hero's Downfall to threaten Elspeth, you can still get there. Great card in these kinds of games. There was on play where Ari snap picked Elspeth on a Thoughtseize knowing that if it dropped he probably would just lose.
That said, it isn't good everywhere - just like last season. Against a fast deck with reach or evasion, specifically Jeskai Burn, Elspeth is extremely threatened by fliers and direct damage. Sideboard it out there.
Probably a meta call.
UBRGrixis Kiki Control
BGUSultai Shadow
GWRBushwhacker Zoo
EDH:
BGU Sidisi, Brood Tyrant
UBR Marchesa, the Black Rose
GWU Roon of the Hidden Realm
2 Forest
1 Plains
4 Temple of Malady
1 Caves of Koilos
3 Temple of Silence
4 Llanowar Wastes
1 Mana Confluence
4 Sandsteppe Citadel
1 Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth
3 Windswept Heath
Creatures - 21
4 Fleecemane Lion
4 Siege Rhino
4 Sylvan Caryatid
2 Wingmate Roc
3 Courser of Kruphix
2 Rakshasa Deathdealer
2 Anafenza, the Foremost
2 Elspeth, Sun's Champion
3 Abzan Charm
3 Hero's Downfall
2 Utter End
2 Sorin, Solemn Visitor
2 Bile Blight
1 Murderous Cut
1 Utter End
1 Bile Blight
3 Thoughtseize
3 Drown in Sorrow
3 Nyx-Fleece Ram
1 End Hostilities
1 Garruk, Apex Predator
1 Silence the Believers
1 Liliana Vess
I was satisfied with all of my choices. I wanted to go a little more aggro than the usual controlish builds, so I added 2 Rakshasa Deathdealers to the main, and I was impressed with how it came down on T2 or T3 and either traded with an early creature or burn spell (that would have gone to the face or killed a more important guy)from aggro, blocked a fattie indefinitely, or served as an abyss in the late game until they ran out of chump blockers.
Here were my matches:
R1 vs RWu Aggro - won 2-0, 1-0 overall
R2 vs Jeskai Tempo (he made Top 8) - lost 1-2, 1-1 overall
R3 vs mirror - won 2-1, 2-1 overall
R4 vs Red Devotion - won 2-1, 3-1 overall
R5 vs Junk Reanimator - won 2-1, 4-1 overall
R6 vs Red Aggro Burn - won 2-0, 5-1 overall
R7 vs GR Devotion (he made Top 8) - lost 1-2, 5-2 overall
R8 vs GR Devotion - won 2-1, 6-2 overall
R1 was against a new player, and I crushed him with multiple Siege Rhinos.
R2 was a close match, he overran me with Goblin Rabblemaster in the first game and I won with lifegain from Nyx-Fleece Ram and wrecked his goblin hoard with Drown in Sorrow game 2. I unfortunately never saw any Rhinos or enough removal game 3.
R3 we steamrolled each other with great draws in the first 2 games, and in G3 a creature stalemate was broken with a topdecked Liliana Vess, who searched up a Silence the Believers to kill 2 Siege Rhinos for the win.
R4 was another set of great draws by each of us in the first 2 games, and then in G3 I was able to set up a back-breaking End Hostilities to kill his board and my monstroused Fleecemane Lion and Elspeth tokens killed him quickly.
R5 Anafenza, the Foremost did a lot of work, obviously with her exile ability but also with her add counters ability -- 6/6 monstrous FML are nice. In G3 I had to essentially kill him twice, when Resolute Archangel gained him 16 life.
R6 was scary with all the burn he had, but 2 Siege Rhinos won game 1. G2 I was stuck on 3 lands for quite a while. At 2 life, I found a 4th land and went up to 5 from the Rhino, he untapped, cast Stoke the Flames, and never drew any more burn for 3 turns while I killed him.
R7 I was paired up against one of the 3 6-0s, and lost a close game 3 to topdecked big monsters vs my topdecked lands.
R8 I got my revenge against the GR Devotion deck. After (yet again) 2 blowouts with great draws the first 2 games, in G3 on a static board I revealed a Rhino, Elspeth, and Utter End for his Soul of Shandalar with my Courser of Kruphix, and he drew nothing for those 3 turns, for the win.
GWU Bant Manifest - The Future Is Here. Or it will be at the end of turn. GWU
A playable elk is possible... great sable stag saw lots of play
GWU Bant Manifest - The Future Is Here. Or it will be at the end of turn. GWU
Too bad, that was rhetorical. y'all getting numbers.
The red and green cells in the field remain the same as last time. The columns to the right have been adjusted to fit the increase of data (red is 5 or fewer decks played it, gold is 5 or fewer decks DID NOT play it)
Before you ask which list is Saporito's, the answer is none of them - he went 6-3-1 in the constructed rounds, so his list isn't factored into the equation. All six of the lists with the PTH tag went 7-3 or better in constructed, and three people got 7-3 with Ari Lax's exact 75 (their limited rounds doing them in, I'm sure - Ari went 7-1-2 in the constructed portion)
I'll be back a little later today with some commentary.
Currently Playing:
GBStandard - Golgari Safari MidrangeBG
RBWModern - Mardu PyromancerWBR
RLegacy - Good Old Fashioned BurnR
Clan Contest 3 Mafia - Mafia Co-MVP
This thread loves you, Charm_Master! Thanks so much for this update. Time to process some information!
GWU Bant Manifest - The Future Is Here. Or it will be at the end of turn. GWU