Gearing up for this tournament, I wasn't quite sure I wanted to play Lantern. I have only played it about 2 weeks, and everything I have read about the deck says that it is super complicated and unless you're especially skilled with the deck you probably won't do well. I, however, had played a few weekly modern events (monday and wednesday night modern here in OKC) and quickly realized the deck is insanely powerful and I became convinced it is far and away the best thing you can be doing in modern. Before this, I was playing infect, and while that deck is quite good, it is easily hated out AND has a number of bad match ups that you want to dodge. That said, the day of the tourney i had 2 decklists printed out and was up in the air about what to play. The friend I made the trip with convinced me to play lantern deck, so I sleeved up the following decklist:
Being texas, I knew there would be a lot of burn so I added the 2 leyline to the board last minute and sat down re-wrote my deck list and left my fate up to whether or not I was smart enough to determine what matters and what doesn't.
Round 1: Jeskai Delver 2-0
My opponent in round 1 started with a myth realized into a second myth realized, and i just pithing needled his enchantment. Both games I was able to establish the lock fairly early, but he decided he wanted me to legitimately kill him. We nearly went to time in 2 games because i had to put my aethergrid onto the bottom of my library in order to get a bridge.
Round 2: Burn 0-2
My opponent went goblin guide into swiftspear into eidolon into eidolon. I boarded 4 sundroplets 2 leyline of sanctity, 2 welding jar, 2 nature's claim, and 2 pyroclasm. I saw exactly 1 droplet before he destructive revelry'd it and I died.
Round 3: Turbo turns 2-0
I don't know what to call this deck other than turbo turns. It played 12 timewalk effects or something and a day's undoing. Both games i thoughtseized his dictate of kruphix and then surgical extracted it. It makes taking an extra turn far worse when you're not burying someone in the pure number of cards you're drawing when you do it.
Round 4: Grixis Twin 2-0
This was the first of my opponents to get salty. I was able to inquisition early enough to remove a turn 4 combo in game 1, and he had a lot of dead cards in his hand. I boarded in the grafdigger's cage, welding jars, and nature's claims but I ended up not needing them much. I had a turn 3 hellbent bridge with 2 mill rocks and a lantern in play. He refused to say anything post match. I wasn't sure if it was because of the deck i was playing or the guy himself just getting his second loss early and being really mad.
Round 5: Infect 2-0
Not going to lie.... i completely luck-sacked out in this round. My opponent played a turn 1 glistener elf and i played a turn 1 codex shredder. He played a turn 2 noble, groundswell, and mutagenic growing 8ing me on turn 2. I could draw exactly Abrupt decay, or pyrite spellbomb to survive and ripped the decay. It was his only infect creature and he began to noble hierarch beat me down. I played my bridge, and just hoped he didn't get enough pump to kill me with damage. He didn't get enough before i got my grid online and I killed him. Game 2 was similar, but a bit more grindy. My opponent had put me dead on board. I was hell-bent looking for a bridge. I had 4 mana available, 3 mill rocks and a lantern in play. He put me to 7 infect and passed. At his end step I milled myself 3 times, no bridge. my upkeep i milled myself 3 times, no bridge. My hailmary play was to sacrifice lantern, shuffle my deck and draw.....ENSARING BRIDGE!!!!! I slam the bridge on the table and my opponent just mentions my incredible luck. I try to point out that I essentially drew 7 cards looking for the bridge but he doesn't see it that way. I boarded in this game 3 pyroclasm, Bow of Nylea, and 1 welding jar. This is also one of the few matches I don't board out my aether grid on the draw.
Round 6: Grixis Control 1-2
This was much harder than it was in testing. I played a lot against this deck before, but it was very jundy. I don't remember a lot of specific details from the match itself, but there unlike many matchups there are MANY MANY cards in this deck that actually matter. I know game 3 was mine to lose but I didn't pithing needle tasigur like I should have. He got 2 very very good tasigur activations that ended up winning him the game and match. Over all, this was my favorite match of the tournament. It was back and forth the entire time, and I really enjoyed playing this guy.
Round 7: Affinity 2-1
I was apparently playing a friend of Zach here, and Zach I am told was watching my match. In game 1, I foolishly started looping spellbombs to try and win the game early as I had no cards in hand but I missed my opponent's out to this and he was actually able to kill me with a 0/2 ornithopter and an instant speed cranial plating. Whoops. Game 2, I was able to just establish the lock and get the right answers for the right pieces my opponent drew. I had 3 bridges in play and welding jar and 2 needles naming plating and ravager. He had me at 6, and had galv-blast in hand. I ended the game at 2 life. My opponent made a blunder in game 3 and thought i was hellbent when i was not. (He never asked me how many cards were in my hand.) I always put my hand face down in font of me when it's not my turn and i have 1 card in it.. just a habit i have. He missed an attack with 2 1 power guys that would have put me in range of his galv blast. I top decked the lantern that saw my opponent's second blast on top of his deck which immidiately was milled. I ended up killing him while i was at 2 life. I was quite sad that I wasn't able to bow of nylea any signal pests though
Round 8: Boggles 2-1
I enjoyed playing this opponent as well... chiefly because he was the first person all day to get into the lock and say "okay next game" Game 2 I thoughtseized him and he had nothing important. I played my bridge and went hellbent. I had no lantern yet in play, and he top decks creeping corrosion and blows me out. Game 3 he has both of the corrosions in his opening hand I just thoughtseized one of them and surgical'd it. He had no kataki or stony in his deck and i just easily won from there.
Round 9 grixis control 0-2
I was tired in this round and had locked up day 2. I made 2 VERY bad mulligan decisions and was handily beaten. I kept a 1 land hand without ancient stirrings, and without being able to produce colored manna. I should have known better and I do infact know better, but it was a stupid mistake at the end of a very long day of magic. Consider my lesson learned.
I'll finish my day 2 a little while later in the day... as right now I have some family things to take care of.
As far as I know there was only one lantern control player that made Day 2 in Dallas this past weekend,(according to their meta-breakdown) Which was me. I finished 45th, but feel like i was 1 topdeck away from top 16 and 2 mulligan decisions away from top8.
I picked up the deck about 2 weeks ago, and honestly cannot put it down. It is easily the best deck in modern, and just has burn as a bad match up. I'm gonna write up a tournament report here in a few minutes.
I think it is hilarious that they can't print functional reprints of the dual lands but they can print strictly better versions of them if they wanted to.
"Glorious Tundra"
Land- Island Plains
When Glorious Tundra enters the battlefield, tap or untap target land.
Tap to add U or W to your mana pool
this would be "okay" to print under the reserved list... although, something stupid like this wouldn't get printed... but it doesn't violate the reserved list.
This is not always true... last standard I played and top8'd the open in St. Louis with G/W aggro, playing as my 1 drops experiment one, Sunblade elf, and Soldier of the pantheon. 10 total 1 drops, in 2 different colors.
the anger will deal 3 damage to both creatures. The rageblood will die, and a replacement effect will exile it instead. Then, the Ragemonger will be a 2/3 will 3 damage marked on it. State based actions will check and kill it, again triggering the replacement effect exiling the Ragemonger.
I went 5-0 through swiss rounds and then 1-0 in top 8 before splitting prize support in top4. Here are the decks I played
Round 1: Black/White enchantments. 2-0 Both games were similar, with my opponent playing cards like arrest, pacifism, oppressive rays on my dudes, while trying to play a sphere of safety. Both games, my nightveil specters got his sphere before he could, and I coasted to victory. Sideboarded negate and dissolve just in case, but didn't have to use them.
Round 2: Mono Black aggro: 2-1. Played a friend in my playtesting group. Game 1 Iwas able to just out-pace him in the air, and a well timed hybridization on his master of feasts. Game 2, he was able to chain together 2x mogis's marauders on back to back turns. Game 3, i was able to tempo him pretty well with tidebinder mage locking down his cacklers, hybridization/domestication. I won with exact damage when he forgot to factor in mutavault as a 3/3 due to master of waves
Round 3: Boss sligh. 2-0. This wasn't even a match. Seriously. He ran out of steam very quickly and ran into walls of frostburn weirds and nightveil specters. Both games were over very quickly
Round 4: Mono-Black devotion 2-1. He won game 1 when I couldn't stick enough devotion to turn on thassa or create enough tokens to kill him with master. Sticking master for 2 to see him die the following turn is horrible. Game 2/3 were better when i brought in more non-creature ways to get devotion, which is how i won both games. Best play of the night comes from Hybridizing my opponent's mutavault on turn 5, then domesticating the token on turn 6, leaving him a land and a creature down, while also giving enough devotion to bash in with thassa that turn.
Round 5: Jund Monsters 2-0 out Curving out perfectly both games allowed me to coast to victory, especially game 2 where i was able to stick a hall of triumph before he was able to kill master of waves.
top8: B/W midrange 2-0 he was stuck on lands game 1, and i was very aggressive hybridizing my own judge's familiar to trigger evolve on 2 raptors early on. he wasn't able to regain footing being so far behind and he just died. Game 2, I brought in dispel, negates and bident stuck a master and dispeled the downfall. Untapping with 14 power on board against an opponent with no answer usually gives you the win.
My favorite part is where they say "the only reason it did well was because of a meta-game call"
except that mono-blue tended to do well in the States tournaments as well. As long as green decks are being played, mono blue seems to be a pretty good choice to play IMO
I like the deck, but what about Bant instead of BUG using Ajani... who is part of the combo, but a bit more resilient, and can also dig for other parts of the combo.
4 codex shredder
4 Ghoulcaller's bell
4 Ensnaring Bridge
4 Ancient Stirrings
3 Pithing Needle
3 Spellskite
2 pyrite spellbomb
2 abrupt decay
3 thoughtseize
3 inquisition of Kozilek
2 surgical extraction
4 mox opal
1 Ghirapur Æther Grid
2 blackcleave cliffs
1 copperline gorge
1 forest
2 ghost quarter
2 Academy Ruins
4 Llanowar Wastes
1 Tendo Ice bridge
4 Sun Droplet
2 leyline of sanctity
1 bow of nylea
3 pyroclasm
2 welding jar
2 nature's claim
1 grafdigger's cage
Being texas, I knew there would be a lot of burn so I added the 2 leyline to the board last minute and sat down re-wrote my deck list and left my fate up to whether or not I was smart enough to determine what matters and what doesn't.
Round 1: Jeskai Delver 2-0
My opponent in round 1 started with a myth realized into a second myth realized, and i just pithing needled his enchantment. Both games I was able to establish the lock fairly early, but he decided he wanted me to legitimately kill him. We nearly went to time in 2 games because i had to put my aethergrid onto the bottom of my library in order to get a bridge.
Round 2: Burn 0-2
My opponent went goblin guide into swiftspear into eidolon into eidolon. I boarded 4 sundroplets 2 leyline of sanctity, 2 welding jar, 2 nature's claim, and 2 pyroclasm. I saw exactly 1 droplet before he destructive revelry'd it and I died.
Round 3: Turbo turns 2-0
I don't know what to call this deck other than turbo turns. It played 12 timewalk effects or something and a day's undoing. Both games i thoughtseized his dictate of kruphix and then surgical extracted it. It makes taking an extra turn far worse when you're not burying someone in the pure number of cards you're drawing when you do it.
Round 4: Grixis Twin 2-0
This was the first of my opponents to get salty. I was able to inquisition early enough to remove a turn 4 combo in game 1, and he had a lot of dead cards in his hand. I boarded in the grafdigger's cage, welding jars, and nature's claims but I ended up not needing them much. I had a turn 3 hellbent bridge with 2 mill rocks and a lantern in play. He refused to say anything post match. I wasn't sure if it was because of the deck i was playing or the guy himself just getting his second loss early and being really mad.
Round 5: Infect 2-0
Not going to lie.... i completely luck-sacked out in this round. My opponent played a turn 1 glistener elf and i played a turn 1 codex shredder. He played a turn 2 noble, groundswell, and mutagenic growing 8ing me on turn 2. I could draw exactly Abrupt decay, or pyrite spellbomb to survive and ripped the decay. It was his only infect creature and he began to noble hierarch beat me down. I played my bridge, and just hoped he didn't get enough pump to kill me with damage. He didn't get enough before i got my grid online and I killed him. Game 2 was similar, but a bit more grindy. My opponent had put me dead on board. I was hell-bent looking for a bridge. I had 4 mana available, 3 mill rocks and a lantern in play. He put me to 7 infect and passed. At his end step I milled myself 3 times, no bridge. my upkeep i milled myself 3 times, no bridge. My hailmary play was to sacrifice lantern, shuffle my deck and draw.....ENSARING BRIDGE!!!!! I slam the bridge on the table and my opponent just mentions my incredible luck. I try to point out that I essentially drew 7 cards looking for the bridge but he doesn't see it that way. I boarded in this game 3 pyroclasm, Bow of Nylea, and 1 welding jar. This is also one of the few matches I don't board out my aether grid on the draw.
Round 6: Grixis Control 1-2
This was much harder than it was in testing. I played a lot against this deck before, but it was very jundy. I don't remember a lot of specific details from the match itself, but there unlike many matchups there are MANY MANY cards in this deck that actually matter. I know game 3 was mine to lose but I didn't pithing needle tasigur like I should have. He got 2 very very good tasigur activations that ended up winning him the game and match. Over all, this was my favorite match of the tournament. It was back and forth the entire time, and I really enjoyed playing this guy.
Round 7: Affinity 2-1
I was apparently playing a friend of Zach here, and Zach I am told was watching my match. In game 1, I foolishly started looping spellbombs to try and win the game early as I had no cards in hand but I missed my opponent's out to this and he was actually able to kill me with a 0/2 ornithopter and an instant speed cranial plating. Whoops. Game 2, I was able to just establish the lock and get the right answers for the right pieces my opponent drew. I had 3 bridges in play and welding jar and 2 needles naming plating and ravager. He had me at 6, and had galv-blast in hand. I ended the game at 2 life. My opponent made a blunder in game 3 and thought i was hellbent when i was not. (He never asked me how many cards were in my hand.) I always put my hand face down in font of me when it's not my turn and i have 1 card in it.. just a habit i have. He missed an attack with 2 1 power guys that would have put me in range of his galv blast. I top decked the lantern that saw my opponent's second blast on top of his deck which immidiately was milled. I ended up killing him while i was at 2 life. I was quite sad that I wasn't able to bow of nylea any signal pests though
Round 8: Boggles 2-1
I enjoyed playing this opponent as well... chiefly because he was the first person all day to get into the lock and say "okay next game" Game 2 I thoughtseized him and he had nothing important. I played my bridge and went hellbent. I had no lantern yet in play, and he top decks creeping corrosion and blows me out. Game 3 he has both of the corrosions in his opening hand I just thoughtseized one of them and surgical'd it. He had no kataki or stony in his deck and i just easily won from there.
Round 9 grixis control 0-2
I was tired in this round and had locked up day 2. I made 2 VERY bad mulligan decisions and was handily beaten. I kept a 1 land hand without ancient stirrings, and without being able to produce colored manna. I should have known better and I do infact know better, but it was a stupid mistake at the end of a very long day of magic. Consider my lesson learned.
I'll finish my day 2 a little while later in the day... as right now I have some family things to take care of.
I picked up the deck about 2 weeks ago, and honestly cannot put it down. It is easily the best deck in modern, and just has burn as a bad match up. I'm gonna write up a tournament report here in a few minutes.
"Glorious Tundra"
Land- Island Plains
When Glorious Tundra enters the battlefield, tap or untap target land.
Tap to add U or W to your mana pool
this would be "okay" to print under the reserved list... although, something stupid like this wouldn't get printed... but it doesn't violate the reserved list.
I built this on a dare. http://tappedout.net/mtg-decks/08-02-15-jund-ld/
4x Cloudfin Raptor
4x Judge's Familiar
4x Frostburn Weird
4x Tidebinder Mage
4x nightveil specter
4x Thassa, God of the Sea
4x Master of Waves
1x Hypnotic Siren
1x Bident of Thassa
2x Rapid Hybridization
2x Hall of Triumph
1x Cyclonic Rift
Lands
20x Island
4x Mutavault
1x Nykthos, Shrine to Nyx
3x Dissolve
2x Negate
1x Dispel
1x Gainsay
1x Bident of Thassa
1x Rapid Hybridization
2x Jace, Architect of thought
1x Jace, Memory Adept
1x Domestication
2x Claustrophobia
I went 5-0 through swiss rounds and then 1-0 in top 8 before splitting prize support in top4. Here are the decks I played
Round 1: Black/White enchantments. 2-0 Both games were similar, with my opponent playing cards like arrest, pacifism, oppressive rays on my dudes, while trying to play a sphere of safety. Both games, my nightveil specters got his sphere before he could, and I coasted to victory. Sideboarded negate and dissolve just in case, but didn't have to use them.
Round 2: Mono Black aggro: 2-1. Played a friend in my playtesting group. Game 1 Iwas able to just out-pace him in the air, and a well timed hybridization on his master of feasts. Game 2, he was able to chain together 2x mogis's marauders on back to back turns. Game 3, i was able to tempo him pretty well with tidebinder mage locking down his cacklers, hybridization/domestication. I won with exact damage when he forgot to factor in mutavault as a 3/3 due to master of waves
Round 3: Boss sligh. 2-0. This wasn't even a match. Seriously. He ran out of steam very quickly and ran into walls of frostburn weirds and nightveil specters. Both games were over very quickly
Round 4: Mono-Black devotion 2-1. He won game 1 when I couldn't stick enough devotion to turn on thassa or create enough tokens to kill him with master. Sticking master for 2 to see him die the following turn is horrible. Game 2/3 were better when i brought in more non-creature ways to get devotion, which is how i won both games. Best play of the night comes from Hybridizing my opponent's mutavault on turn 5, then domesticating the token on turn 6, leaving him a land and a creature down, while also giving enough devotion to bash in with thassa that turn.
Round 5: Jund Monsters 2-0 out Curving out perfectly both games allowed me to coast to victory, especially game 2 where i was able to stick a hall of triumph before he was able to kill master of waves.
top8: B/W midrange 2-0 he was stuck on lands game 1, and i was very aggressive hybridizing my own judge's familiar to trigger evolve on 2 raptors early on. he wasn't able to regain footing being so far behind and he just died. Game 2, I brought in dispel, negates and bident stuck a master and dispeled the downfall. Untapping with 14 power on board against an opponent with no answer usually gives you the win.
except that mono-blue tended to do well in the States tournaments as well. As long as green decks are being played, mono blue seems to be a pretty good choice to play IMO