Hey guys, I'm a first time poster looking for help with my BW Lingering and Taxes build. I got the base of this decklist from Death and Catmix, and have been tweeking numbers and trying different things out over the past month. I'll go over the list I ran last night, the general flex spots and possible card choices, and what I am concerned about/thinking about changing.
Just as a quick note, please read the card choices section, as this deck had some last minute changes that I was testing and I will go over in that section.
First and foremost, since I'm running Dark Confidant, I don't feel comfortable running 4 drops (except maybe 1 planeswalker), nor do I have any intention of shifting to Eldrazi and taxes.
Current Card Choices
Non-Changeable Slots
4 Leonin Arbiter -> Cat Jesus has been a constant power house for me
3 Dark Confidant -> Bob is a great draw, but I usually don't want to see more than 2 in any game
3 Thalia, Gaurdian of Thraben -> awkward legendary rule sometimes, but still amazing so its 3
2 Thalia, Heretic Cathar -> new thalia has won me several games through both land and creature taps
4 Path to Exile and 2 Fatal Push -> I prefer 4 path as I am running 4 Cat Jesus
Strong Slots
3 Blade Splicer -> I prefer a high number of these because they are good bodies for affinity, get around Lili's sac ability if I'm playing into a dead board. However, it does lead to a "blowout" from Kolaghan's Command, sure just a 1-for-1 but it just feels bad.
3 Lingering Souls -> Amazing card, but drawing more than 1 at a time can be terrible if I have a Thalia out.
2 Mirran Crusader -> This card has been strong in my meta because of a strong presence of Abzan decks. Also, I think in general because of a lot of decks running fatal push.
2 Selfless Spirit -> The presence of this card has changed many games in my favor, as there is a good bit of control in my area (mostly UW and Grixus).
Questionable Slots
2 Flickerwisp -> I absolutely love this card in legacy. I have not been so impressed with it in modern. I'm thinking about going back up to 3, but I don't think I'd go up to 4 ever.
1 Aven Mindcensor -> Tried this card out, at its best it was used as an ambush viper, this needs to be replaced with something.
2 Smuggler's Copter -> has been strong, and is great when paired with souls tokens. the questionable part is really whether to go up to 3 or down to 1. It's an easy target for Kolaghan's but it is also very relevant if I ever start running low on gas. Also it is great against affinity.
1 Judge's Familiar -> I like this in my 1 drop slot, but having just 1 is a waste.
Land Base
I am not going up to 23 lands. I find 22 lands to suit me well, and if by some miracle I did go to 23, I would add another Tectonic Edge.
I had Caves of Koilos over Godless Shrine because I was running Eldrazi Displacer for a while, but took them out this week. I am comfortable with running 8 non-color lands, as each of them has been rather impactful, but occasionally I do find myself color screwed out of black. I cut Displacers because I am rather aggressive with my land destruction.
Sideboard Slots
Just going over what I think is questionable, as some of these are major staples: Stony Silence hasn't been great. I would rather run active hate instead of passive hate, and while this card is strong, I am wondering if there are better options? maybe even just going up to 2 copies of Kataki. One of our affinity players even said that he isn't that afraid of stony silence, and was suggesting some other cards.
Kitchen Finks is something I bring in against burn, uw control, and any deck that either kills me fast or doesn't want me to have a board state. I just started running it this week, so that's why I'm not sure about it.
Zealous Persecution has been good for 1 blowout in 4 weeks, that's just not really cutting it for me. Also, it could be eadily replaceable with Orzhov Pontiff, and that has a body.
Athreos, God of Passage is something I bring in against any deck that likes to kill my creatures (uw control, abzan, grixus...) because it lets me gain value either in life, or repeatable threats. When I've landed him, he's been super relevant but I wanted to hear opinions on this one.
Elspeth, Knight-Errant is my planeswalker card. No real reason, I just own her and have not been dissapointed upon landing her 90% of the time.
Potential Cards
3 Drops Brimaz, King of Oreskos seems like a good creature if you can get a profitable swing and start rolling the board in your favor with tokens. I don't own one, so I haven't tested him yet, Also he's kind of awkward if I have to attack into big enemy creatures, then I'd rather have flyers.
Eldrazi Displacer can be good, even great. This card is simply not that strong usually with my play-style because I sac my land destruction lands very aggressively, constantly leaving me with no colorless sources. Also, as I am not running (nor will I) Eldrazi Temple it just seems lacking in power and consistency.
Orzhov Pontiff seems playable, but I don't have any and haven't thought of what I would cut for it. Also it seems better with either displacers or more wisps.
Vryn Wingmare could act as extra copys of Thalia however, I think it just doesn't feel strong enough, but maybe it's worth testing.
2 Drops Spellskite was in my main board previously, but I took it out because I would rather have more aggressive creatures. I didn't put it into my sideboard, although that would be a perfectly valid option.
Tidehollow Sculler seems bad, as I often have trouble with colors, and without Wasteland Strangler, it seems like it's just buying me a little time without having a good, long impact on the game. But I may just be under-valuing the hand disruption.
Serra Avenger was great when I played it in 2010, I just feel like I would rather have more copters instead of this card, to facilitate my draws and keep the engine going.
1 Drops Dryad Militant is what I'm leaning towards more and more as the weeks go by. With a few UW control decks, several Grixus delve decks, and a couple Gift storm decks, this seems like it could be a relevant 1 drop. My two hesitations are that I think Judge's Familiar does a better job at protecting my early drops, and I am considering just not running 1 drops as I think my 2/3 drops are usually just better.
Thraben Inspector doesn't seem great. It basically is a 1 drop chump-blocker that replaces itself, and I'd rather run something more aggressive/impactful.
Inquisition of Kozilek really is tempting because it gives me more information, and I love information, as well as being relevant in almost every matchup. Big concerns are that 1) this isn't a creature, 2) I need black early, 3) it gets awkward because it's another non-creature. I played Deadguy Ale long ago in Legacy, so this has been on my radar for a while, but haven't tested it.
Side Board Choices Ghostly Prison could be an excellent answer to affinity. Maybe also abzan? I don't really have troubles with matchups other than that where I would bring this in. (at least not that I am aware of)
Not having enough early pressure without a solid 1 drop (besides Aether Vial)
Basically straight losing to UW control, as well as having a rough matchup against Grixus
To address #1, I think that running 3 more godless shrines seems fine. Also if I do this is it worth it to run Isolated Chapel instead of caves? I don't really need the caves because I'm not running Eldrazi Displacer.
#2 is more complicated for me. I am not sure which is more important, interacting with potential graveyard spell recursion/delving, protecting our early drops with Judge's Familiar, disrupting their hand with Inquisition of Kozilek, or simply skimping on the 1 drops and adding more 2 drops that can be more impactful.
General Thoguhts
I think going to 3 copter's may be for the best because that card is amazing in every matchup besides grixus (and storm). While hand disruption is really a D&T thing, I think that I miss it and kind want some hand interaction.
I'm also really never sure how to sidebaord properaly. I usually just add whatever feels good, and take out whatever feels "worst" although often times that means cutting a vial post game 1. Tips about sidebaording supoer appreciated.
If you took the time to read everything, thanks a bunch! Let me know what you think of my list and about the potential card selection.
TL;DR:
Help me fix my mana base.
Do I need 1 drops (and if so which one should I use)?
How do I answer UW control?
Is there a good resource for specific guides to sideboarding I can look at?
And give general thoughts on decklist.
2 Thalia, Heretic Cathar
2 Flickerwisp
2 Mirran Crusader
1 Aven Mindcensor
3 Blade Splicer
3 Thalia, Guardian of Thraben
2 Selfless Spirit
3 Dark Confidant
4 Leonin Arbiter
1 Judge's Familiar
Artifacts-6
4 Aether Vial
2 Smuggler's Copter
3 Lingering Souls
4 Path to Exile
2 Fatal Push
Lands-22
4 Caves of Koilos
4 Concealed Courtyard
1 Godless Shrine
4 Ghost Quarter
2 Tectonic Edge
2 Mutavault
4 Snow-Covered Plains
1 Swamp
2 Burrenton Forge-Tender
1 Kataki, War's Wage
2 Blessed Alliance
2 Rest in Peace
2 Stony Silence
2 Kitchen Finks
2 Zealous Persecution
1 Athreos, God of Passage
1 Elspeth, Knight-Errant
Just as a quick note, please read the card choices section, as this deck had some last minute changes that I was testing and I will go over in that section.
4 Leonin Arbiter -> Cat Jesus has been a constant power house for me
3 Dark Confidant -> Bob is a great draw, but I usually don't want to see more than 2 in any game
3 Thalia, Gaurdian of Thraben -> awkward legendary rule sometimes, but still amazing so its 3
2 Thalia, Heretic Cathar -> new thalia has won me several games through both land and creature taps
4 Path to Exile and 2 Fatal Push -> I prefer 4 path as I am running 4 Cat Jesus
3 Blade Splicer -> I prefer a high number of these because they are good bodies for affinity, get around Lili's sac ability if I'm playing into a dead board. However, it does lead to a "blowout" from Kolaghan's Command, sure just a 1-for-1 but it just feels bad.
3 Lingering Souls -> Amazing card, but drawing more than 1 at a time can be terrible if I have a Thalia out.
2 Mirran Crusader -> This card has been strong in my meta because of a strong presence of Abzan decks. Also, I think in general because of a lot of decks running fatal push.
2 Selfless Spirit -> The presence of this card has changed many games in my favor, as there is a good bit of control in my area (mostly UW and Grixus).
2 Flickerwisp -> I absolutely love this card in legacy. I have not been so impressed with it in modern. I'm thinking about going back up to 3, but I don't think I'd go up to 4 ever.
1 Aven Mindcensor -> Tried this card out, at its best it was used as an ambush viper, this needs to be replaced with something.
2 Smuggler's Copter -> has been strong, and is great when paired with souls tokens. the questionable part is really whether to go up to 3 or down to 1. It's an easy target for Kolaghan's but it is also very relevant if I ever start running low on gas. Also it is great against affinity.
1 Judge's Familiar -> I like this in my 1 drop slot, but having just 1 is a waste.
I am not going up to 23 lands. I find 22 lands to suit me well, and if by some miracle I did go to 23, I would add another Tectonic Edge.
I had Caves of Koilos over Godless Shrine because I was running Eldrazi Displacer for a while, but took them out this week. I am comfortable with running 8 non-color lands, as each of them has been rather impactful, but occasionally I do find myself color screwed out of black. I cut Displacers because I am rather aggressive with my land destruction.
Just going over what I think is questionable, as some of these are major staples:
Stony Silence hasn't been great. I would rather run active hate instead of passive hate, and while this card is strong, I am wondering if there are better options? maybe even just going up to 2 copies of Kataki. One of our affinity players even said that he isn't that afraid of stony silence, and was suggesting some other cards.
Kitchen Finks is something I bring in against burn, uw control, and any deck that either kills me fast or doesn't want me to have a board state. I just started running it this week, so that's why I'm not sure about it.
Zealous Persecution has been good for 1 blowout in 4 weeks, that's just not really cutting it for me. Also, it could be eadily replaceable with Orzhov Pontiff, and that has a body.
Athreos, God of Passage is something I bring in against any deck that likes to kill my creatures (uw control, abzan, grixus...) because it lets me gain value either in life, or repeatable threats. When I've landed him, he's been super relevant but I wanted to hear opinions on this one.
Elspeth, Knight-Errant is my planeswalker card. No real reason, I just own her and have not been dissapointed upon landing her 90% of the time.
Brimaz, King of Oreskos seems like a good creature if you can get a profitable swing and start rolling the board in your favor with tokens. I don't own one, so I haven't tested him yet, Also he's kind of awkward if I have to attack into big enemy creatures, then I'd rather have flyers.
Eldrazi Displacer can be good, even great. This card is simply not that strong usually with my play-style because I sac my land destruction lands very aggressively, constantly leaving me with no colorless sources. Also, as I am not running (nor will I) Eldrazi Temple it just seems lacking in power and consistency.
Orzhov Pontiff seems playable, but I don't have any and haven't thought of what I would cut for it. Also it seems better with either displacers or more wisps.
Vryn Wingmare could act as extra copys of Thalia however, I think it just doesn't feel strong enough, but maybe it's worth testing.
Spellskite was in my main board previously, but I took it out because I would rather have more aggressive creatures. I didn't put it into my sideboard, although that would be a perfectly valid option.
Tidehollow Sculler seems bad, as I often have trouble with colors, and without Wasteland Strangler, it seems like it's just buying me a little time without having a good, long impact on the game. But I may just be under-valuing the hand disruption.
Serra Avenger was great when I played it in 2010, I just feel like I would rather have more copters instead of this card, to facilitate my draws and keep the engine going.
Dryad Militant is what I'm leaning towards more and more as the weeks go by. With a few UW control decks, several Grixus delve decks, and a couple Gift storm decks, this seems like it could be a relevant 1 drop. My two hesitations are that I think Judge's Familiar does a better job at protecting my early drops, and I am considering just not running 1 drops as I think my 2/3 drops are usually just better.
Thraben Inspector doesn't seem great. It basically is a 1 drop chump-blocker that replaces itself, and I'd rather run something more aggressive/impactful.
Inquisition of Kozilek really is tempting because it gives me more information, and I love information, as well as being relevant in almost every matchup. Big concerns are that 1) this isn't a creature, 2) I need black early, 3) it gets awkward because it's another non-creature. I played Deadguy Ale long ago in Legacy, so this has been on my radar for a while, but haven't tested it.
Ghostly Prison could be an excellent answer to affinity. Maybe also abzan? I don't really have troubles with matchups other than that where I would bring this in. (at least not that I am aware of)
Gideon, Ally of Zendikar, I am told that this card is a monster, so maybe this should go in place of Elspeth.
Linvala, Keeper of Silence, I'm not even sure what matchups this comes in against besides affinity(?).
Collective Brutality is a great card, and I have definitely considered running this, I'm just not sure what to cut for this card.
Main Issues
As I see it, my deck has 3 main issues:
To address #1, I think that running 3 more godless shrines seems fine. Also if I do this is it worth it to run Isolated Chapel instead of caves? I don't really need the caves because I'm not running Eldrazi Displacer.
#2 is more complicated for me. I am not sure which is more important, interacting with potential graveyard spell recursion/delving, protecting our early drops with Judge's Familiar, disrupting their hand with Inquisition of Kozilek, or simply skimping on the 1 drops and adding more 2 drops that can be more impactful.
As for #3, maybe I'm still a little salty from losing to UW, but I don't have many great answers for a Jace, Architect of Thought, especially as it just nulls my Lingering Souls tokens. I really wish I could just run Coucil's Judgement, but alas. Maybe an Oblivion Ring?
General Thoguhts
I think going to 3 copter's may be for the best because that card is amazing in every matchup besides grixus (and storm). While hand disruption is really a D&T thing, I think that I miss it and kind want some hand interaction.
I'm also really never sure how to sidebaord properaly. I usually just add whatever feels good, and take out whatever feels "worst" although often times that means cutting a vial post game 1. Tips about sidebaording supoer appreciated.
If you took the time to read everything, thanks a bunch! Let me know what you think of my list and about the potential card selection.
TL;DR:
Help me fix my mana base.
Do I need 1 drops (and if so which one should I use)?
How do I answer UW control?
Is there a good resource for specific guides to sideboarding I can look at?
And give general thoughts on decklist.