I've been running fabled hero with some good success. It has great synergy with gods willing, unflinching courage, boon satyr, ethereal armor and even ajani. He also doesn't fall to Smiter, SoP or various aggro.
The top4 decks in the meta include Esper and Colossal Gruul which is where my Green and White concerns comes from.
However if you truly believe they're nothing to fret about could you share your new tech? I find Colossal Gruul to be one of my harder MUs (almost as difficult as mono blue) and I recall you struggling with WBR before.
This is very true. I just got my ass handed to me by colossal gruul 2-1. BTE won me game 1... But that was without an unflinching courage in play.
Chained to the Rocks is also worth noting, it's found in Dega Midrange or Brad Nelson's new Naya Control deck.
I'll concede that lot of the other decks in the format tend to be based solely in other colors. Monoblack Devotion, Monoblue Devotion, and RDW present no impediments to Brave the Elements
Good point. I suppose if unflinching courage is the only thing holding is back from that, it's a worthy sacrifice.
If you're concerned about BtE and Unflinching courages' interaction, just run Gods willing. I had that delimma too that's why I won't be running unflinching courages mb next fnm.
Truth is... How often do we really need protection from white or green?
So, no. I probably won't be cutting green as having it allows you to play the most efficient creatures in standard.
@ET1USN: The loss of Call really doesn't bother me, as Experiment One rarely stays below 3 power, and Loxodon Smiter more than makes up for it. Moreover, it doesn't get hit by BtE, so that's kind of a nonbo combo. On the ironic side though, I will likely be going -1 Militant, +1 BtE in the main, and then replacing that slot in the SB with a third last breath.
That sounds good. I like the direction you are going. I am really surprised your not playing ajani though.
He has never been anything short of amazing for me. Have you considered him?
I've been having very good results with this list, and since I have read that some people are asking for a fresh take on the deck, I figured I'd post this 0 Rootborn Defenses list.
The biggest changes I've made from the Erik Finnegan list and a bunch of the lists I've subsequently seen here are as follows (that I've observed at least):
1. Brave the Elements: In my personal experiences, Brave the Elements is exactly where this deck wants to be. A one-mana counterspell to any spot removal as well as Anger of the Gods does an incredible amount of work. The only creatures it doesn't hit are Experiment One, Boon Satyr, and Advent of the Wurm tokens. Experiment One evolves more often than not (and if not, I'm okay with them using spot removal on my one drop, Boon Satyr usually only comes in at instant speed (and sometimes as an enchantment on a white creature at that) and Advent tokens (which usually can't be killed by anything outside of black).
More importantly though, Brave the Elements gives the deck an incredible amount of reach against every single devotion deck in the format. Against every mono-color deck, Brave represents usually game over, and allows you to advance your board state while holding it up.
2. No Rootborn Defenses and token interactions:
I don't think defenses are is where the deck wants to be. It is almost always strictly a reactive card (Yes, I know it can populate tokens to put more power on board) designed to hate verdicts more than anything else. My play against verdict decks instead to to simply apply enough pressure early on to force them to have the wrath, then follow up with an EoT Boon Satyr or Advent of the Wurm (Heck, even a Selesnya Charm token might be good enough at times). The card also costs 3, which in many ways stymies your board aggression in my experience.
3. Loxodon Smiter:
Most decks seem to have dropped him, and I can't help but feel this is wrong. I suppose in other builds it makes sense, but I built this deck to maximize by threat efficiency, and a 4/4 for three at very easy mana cost (and uncounterable to boot), has been absolutely nuts. Moreover, it interacts incredibly well with brave the elements (as I listed above). Brave allows you to play Smiter much more favorably than in the Rootborn lists.
4. 10 1-Drops
I feel like in a field of Mono Black devotion which lacks 1-mana removal, you need as much aggression as possible Game 1. Having 10 2-power 1-drops also allows you to pressure a control opponent effectively with only your first two turns of mana, freeing up your third turn to follow up by booning EoT for lethal post Anger or Verdict. In my experience, the downside of drawing an Experiment One late in the game is vastly outweighed by the benefit of having turn 1 guildgate, turn 2 land, experiment one, soldier or dryad (evolve).
Still not sure whether I want mistcutters or skylashers out of the SB, as I've played both to great success (skylasher is more often just a removal spell for an attacking tidebinder mage or if they're crazy, Master).
All in all, this deck has extremely powerful draws, especially when punctuated by a Brave the Elements lethal alpha strike. Anyway, hope you guys try it out, and enjoy.
I love this idea... And plan on trying it with -2 militants, -1 Satyr, +2 Ajani, +1 BTE.
How do you feel about the lack of Call? Even without populate a 3/3 for 2 is nice.
As much as I appreciate the love... I wish stuff like this didn't happen... Now next week I'm going to get crushed at the SCG open because everyone is going to be ready for Selesnya.. As if they didn't do well enough already.
In the last few pages I saw a trend of "diluting" our core plan.
It is: Play the biggest dudes available on curve, add some resilience, a few combat tricks, go to town.
Not: play a mana dude, play a hate giant, enchant it, try to beat down. Gr is just better at that.
For example (!), Witchstalker is a good card, yes. But he's miserable against a lot of MUs, too. RDW has higher priority targets in our deck. Mono U doesn't give a damn. RG couldn't care less.
In all these MUs, the guy is basically a 3/3 for 3, with a prohibitive mana cost.
I get that we need ways to beat the top decks, but if we distort our own deck so much that it has problems beating the other contenders, we won't even get to play against Esper in the Top8.
All those cards that are particularly good against 2 or 3 MUs should be in the Sideboard. If those decks are very frequent, I can totally see 4 Witchstalker in there. But playing a 3/3 for 3, whose other abilities don't matter at all (let's say against Gr, against RDW hexproof is ok i guess, they'd rather burn Fleecemane Lion though) is a bad play.
Yeah. Your absolutely right. I guess the opposition is so difficult right now that everyone has just been searching for answers at the expense of synergy.
It's a hard world out there right now
I do find it interesting how much the guy who won states complimented gods willing. To run that instead of rootborn, charm, or unflinching courage seems questionable.
And don't get me wrong, I'm not debating its usefulness.. It's a great card and I wish I had room for it.. But for now it believe it should stay in the sideboard if at all.
If anyone has a different outlook on it id love to hear it though.
How so? I dont play modern so I am just curious. What would be use instead?
This is very true. I just got my ass handed to me by colossal gruul 2-1. BTE won me game 1... But that was without an unflinching courage in play.
Good point. I suppose if unflinching courage is the only thing holding is back from that, it's a worthy sacrifice.
Have you come across anyone actually use those against you? I've played against ployukranos but that's it.
Yea those are white and green cards...
And also nothing that we should be worried about.
Truth is... How often do we really need protection from white or green?
Every single creature your playing except experiment one and the wurm is white.. So why not BTE over gods willing?
That sounds good. I like the direction you are going. I am really surprised your not playing ajani though.
He has never been anything short of amazing for me. Have you considered him?
I love this idea... And plan on trying it with -2 militants, -1 Satyr, +2 Ajani, +1 BTE.
How do you feel about the lack of Call? Even without populate a 3/3 for 2 is nice.
I'm starting to realize that myself... It's crazy how much we depend on those two lands... If we get them though.. It's fine.
As much as I appreciate the love... I wish stuff like this didn't happen... Now next week I'm going to get crushed at the SCG open because everyone is going to be ready for Selesnya.. As if they didn't do well enough already.
Thanks. We worked hard on that, but we were finally able to come up with a solution.
Funny thing is.. The article says Selesnya... But he won with G/R lol... Some great editing.
Yeah. Your absolutely right. I guess the opposition is so difficult right now that everyone has just been searching for answers at the expense of synergy.
It's a hard world out there right now
I do find it interesting how much the guy who won states complimented gods willing. To run that instead of rootborn, charm, or unflinching courage seems questionable.
And don't get me wrong, I'm not debating its usefulness.. It's a great card and I wish I had room for it.. But for now it believe it should stay in the sideboard if at all.
If anyone has a different outlook on it id love to hear it though.