Hey guys, it's been about a year and a half since I played modern. I just bought MTGO because it's easier for me to play magic online and this Eldrazi deck looks so much fun. I have two questions:
1. How is this deck generally performing on MTGO against the more established archetypes in modern?
2. I see some of the more popular lists sporting Liliana. I am a bit hesitant in shelling out the cash for her. Is she absolutely required in the B/W variant?
I've been testing the original list online, and I've been running into issues.
Aggro decks like infect are too fast and I keep getting my ooze and/or rites countered while a resto angel beats my face in for the control matchup. The mana base is quite painful, but it seems like a necessary evil.
EDIT:
I've also been trying out Boseiju and Cavern of Souls for combo protection. Life from the Loam has also been good.
I mean I do run 4 stony silence in my side, good against affinity, Tron, and Relic.
I'm not sure how Stony Silence is help against aggro (besides affinity) and control matchups - these are the two primary matchups I run into consistent issues with. Even if aggro doesn't kill me by the turn I can combo off, there were times when I was in single digits of life and I couldn't go off because of the painful lands.
I've been testing the original list online, and I've been running into issues.
Aggro decks like infect are too fast and I keep getting my ooze and/or rites countered while a resto angel beats my face in for the control matchup. The mana base is quite painful, but it seems like a necessary evil.
EDIT:
I've also been trying out Boseiju and Cavern of Souls for combo protection. Life from the Loam has also been good.
I like your no-pod pod deck.
This must be a draft. Your mana base can afford some man lands, like treetop village or mutavault.You really should consider them, cos they are good beaters. And BoPs are bad topdecks. That is to say, you have 7 discards and 4 BoPs to be air-draw in the late game, which must be solved. My solution is Pack Rats, which turn your bad draws into good beaters.
Yeah, I've been experimenting with manlands, just not quite sure how many just yet. I've been thinking of getting rid of my BoPs for Lilianas/Pack Rats/something else...
If you're going to play BoP and souls, gavony township will do a lot of work for you. Also, 12 fetch lands is way too many. For the dredge decks, just play nihil spellbomb over relic if you're going to play something like that. Nihil spellbomb saves your goyfs and lingering souls.
Hey guys, former Cruise and Dig player here. I've been testing out the following deck on Cockatrice and it has been doing alright, but I would like to run it by you guys:
The Relics in the sideboard are for the rising number of Dredge decks. What do you think? I'm not sure about the Smiters, but they have been putting on nice pressure.
Is there any reason not to run Liliana of the Veil? She's most likely going to be incredible in the new meta (can always board her out against Dredge if you see a lot of it) and of course works well with your Lingering Souls. Otherwise seems pretty solid. You might miss card draw but it's aggressive enough that you might not, echoing Mastodon that Gavony Township will be very helpful here.
Thanks for the advice. I will include Gavony and replace relic with spellbomb. I have been on the fence about Liliana. While I agree she is very powerful right now, I'm not sure what to cut and how many copies I should run...
Hey guys, former Cruise and Dig player here. I've been testing out the following deck on Cockatrice and it has been doing alright, but I would like to run it by you guys:
The Relics in the sideboard are for the rising number of Dredge decks. What do you think? I'm not sure about the Smiters, but they have been putting on nice pressure.
Hey guys, former Cruise and Dig player here. I've been testing out the following deck on Cockatrice and it has been doing alright, but I would like to run it by you guys:
The Relics in the sideboard are for the rising number of Dredge decks. What do you think? I'm not sure about the Smiters, but they have been putting on nice pressure.
Nice deck! I was thinking of building something like this, but instead of Storm Crow, I want to use Squadron Hawk. What do you think? Is the Hawk a viable choice or is the Crow too good against the meta right now?
Thank you for letting me know about Ponder. Seems like a very strange and arbitrary card to ban. Ponder is banned yet somehow Time Warp is completely okay? The mtg community makes no sense; especially when Sage Owl and Sage of Epityr aren't banned and they serve the same purpose as Ponder.
At any rate, I wasn't really looking for a different deck entirely...although I appreciate the comments. I want to stick with the blue/green theme. Grozoth is good if you have other 9 cmc creatures like Inkwell Leviathan. I suppose I could use those and get rid of some of the others like Tromokratis and Shipbreaker Kraken. Thing is, I already own those cards, and I don't have the inkwells or grozoth. Serum Powder is interesting, but I personally don't like it and would never run it. And Street Wraith is just plain trash. Why include a card just to cycle it and throw away 2 life?
Ponder is banned, along with other cantrips, because it lets you dig 3 cards deep AND draws you one of those cards immediately. That's very powerful for only one mana. It allows you to set up your draws AND dig for answers. Sage Owl and Sage of Epityr do not have card draws and that's a huge difference (not to mention the Owl costs an extra mana). Time Warp costs 5 mana - why would it be banned? Street Wraith is not plain trash, again, never underestimate card draws.
What sideboard cards are good against URW control and Pod?
For Pod, I don't mean silver bullets like Pithing Needle, but rather cards that can do something and burn them, such as Searing Blood and Searing Blaze.
Edit:
Hm, I guess Pillar of Flame is good - tired of finks and voices.
What d'yall think of Rift Bolt? Whenever I play it it seems very bad. Why is this a staple? Isnt shard volley better?
Rift Bolt is awesome.
It can kill creatures.
It can be hardcast for 3.
It's CMC is 3 so Chalice of the Void is never a problem.
It is slower than other spells, but then just play it early when you can. It is rarely a bad topdeck since you usually have 3 lands at this point and you can hardcast it.
Never play without them. Of course, there may be some matchups where siding them out would be good, but I don't see much of them.
I agree. Just the other day my opponent had Chalice = 1, and I had bolts and spikes sitting in my hand. He had exactly 3 life remaining and I would die next turn. I top-decked a rift bolt and hardcasted it for the win.
1. How is this deck generally performing on MTGO against the more established archetypes in modern?
2. I see some of the more popular lists sporting Liliana. I am a bit hesitant in shelling out the cash for her. Is she absolutely required in the B/W variant?
Thanks guys.
I'm not sure how Stony Silence is help against aggro (besides affinity) and control matchups - these are the two primary matchups I run into consistent issues with. Even if aggro doesn't kill me by the turn I can combo off, there were times when I was in single digits of life and I couldn't go off because of the painful lands.
Aggro decks like infect are too fast and I keep getting my ooze and/or rites countered while a resto angel beats my face in for the control matchup. The mana base is quite painful, but it seems like a necessary evil.
EDIT:
I've also been trying out Boseiju and Cavern of Souls for combo protection. Life from the Loam has also been good.
Yeah, I've been experimenting with manlands, just not quite sure how many just yet. I've been thinking of getting rid of my BoPs for Lilianas/Pack Rats/something else...
Thanks for the advice. I will include Gavony and replace relic with spellbomb. I have been on the fence about Liliana. While I agree she is very powerful right now, I'm not sure what to cut and how many copies I should run...
4 Birds of Paradise
2 Courser of Kruphix
2 Loxodon Smiter
4 Siege Rhino
4 Tarmogoyf
Non-creature spells (19)
4 Abrupt Decay
4 Path to Exile
4 Lingering Souls
4 Inquisition of Kozilek
3 Thoughtseize
1 Forest
2 Godless Shrine
1 Isolated Chapel
4 Marsh Flats
2 Overgrown Tomb
1 Plains
1 Swamp
1 Temple Garden
4 Verdant Catacombs
4 Windswept Heath
1 Wooded Cemetery
3 Relic of Progenitus
2 Fulminator Mage
2 Thrun, the Last Troll
2 Stony Silence
2 Creeping Corrosion
2 Damnation
2 Maelstrom Pulse
The Relics in the sideboard are for the rising number of Dredge decks. What do you think? I'm not sure about the Smiters, but they have been putting on nice pressure.
4 Birds of Paradise
2 Courser of Kruphix
2 Loxodon Smiter
4 Siege Rhino
4 Tarmogoyf
Non-creature spells (19)
4 Abrupt Decay
4 Path to Exile
4 Lingering Souls
4 Inquisition of Kozilek
3 Thoughtseize
1 Forest
2 Godless Shrine
1 Isolated Chapel
4 Marsh Flats
2 Overgrown Tomb
1 Plains
1 Swamp
1 Temple Garden
4 Verdant Catacombs
4 Windswept Heath
1 Wooded Cemetery
3 Relic of Progenitus
2 Fulminator Mage
2 Thrun, the Last Troll
2 Stony Silence
2 Creeping Corrosion
2 Damnation
2 Maelstrom Pulse
The Relics in the sideboard are for the rising number of Dredge decks. What do you think? I'm not sure about the Smiters, but they have been putting on nice pressure.
Ponder is banned, along with other cantrips, because it lets you dig 3 cards deep AND draws you one of those cards immediately. That's very powerful for only one mana. It allows you to set up your draws AND dig for answers. Sage Owl and Sage of Epityr do not have card draws and that's a huge difference (not to mention the Owl costs an extra mana). Time Warp costs 5 mana - why would it be banned? Street Wraith is not plain trash, again, never underestimate card draws.
For Pod, I don't mean silver bullets like Pithing Needle, but rather cards that can do something and burn them, such as Searing Blood and Searing Blaze.
Edit:
Hm, I guess Pillar of Flame is good - tired of finks and voices.
I recently beat Scapeshift 2-1, but the whole entire time I felt nervous thinking he'll go off during my next turn.
I agree. Just the other day my opponent had Chalice = 1, and I had bolts and spikes sitting in my hand. He had exactly 3 life remaining and I would die next turn. I top-decked a rift bolt and hardcasted it for the win.