Why play Bant Midrange?
Bant Midrange is a "value" midrange deck, full of creatures which can allow you to put early pressure on opponents without being completely dead in the late game. It possess the ability to ramp into powerful turn 3 and 4 plays and can end the game immediately past that. Access to sphinx's revelation means that flooding out isn't always the death of you in grindy matches, and can provide you the ability to drown your opponent in card advantage. The deck also has access to one of the best removal spells in the game in the form of detention sphere, and the deck is highly customizable allowing for good performance no matter what your particular meta is.
Arbor Colossus Great answer to stormbreath and can shut down and take over the ground game if necessary, GGG is a slight drawback but adds to devotion which is good, recommend 0-2
Scavenging Ooze Powerful card in the late game and a solid turn two play, recommend 4
Centaur Healer It was great in wolfrun bant to help beat aggro and add to the board, and is still good now, sort of lackluster against midrange and control though so only recommended if aggro is prevalent in your meta, 0-4, meta dictated.
Nylea, God of the Hunt Can completely swing the game in your favor by giving your fatties trample and pumping is relevant in most cases. Hitting five devotion can be a chore though unless you go a heavy green route, recommend 0-2
Prime Speaker Zegana She's expensive, and sometimes a gamble, but can turn the game around in a single turn, and with an on average draw of 4 cards off of her, she's still a good card. recommend 1-2
Prophet of Kruphix Tested this car extensively and found it very poor in the aggro matchup, good in the control matchup and phenomenal in the midrange matchup, but not a very relevant body, meta dictated, 0-3
Aetherling Closes out games with little to no effort, but can be hard to find room for him without cluttering the 6-drop slot, recommend 0-2 in main and mandatory in the sideboard at least
Progenitor Mimick I have a soft spot for this card as it allows you to win games you otherwise have no business winning, but is a high variance card. It will punish any opponent who cannot remove it immediately when you hit a value creature such as master of waves or grey merchant, or desecration demon, or even arbor colossus. If you need to cut room in your deck he'd be the first to go, but likewise if you need an extra slot on the upper end of the curve, give him a chance, recommend 0-1.
Loxodon Smiter The other side of the centaur healer coin, if midrange and control are prevalent in your meta sleeve this up instead, recommend 0-4, meta dictated
Spells
Sphinx's Revelation The main reason for this deck to even dip into white. An amazing card and well worth using, recommend 2-4 though I feel 3 is the correct number
Detention Sphere One of the best removal spells in the format by being able to hit gods, legendary equipment, and score 2 or 3 for ones, recommend 3-4
Supreme Verdict Ultimately a Poor choice for this deck unless you intend on playing a very high curve and few dorks, great against aggro and devotion decks, if you go this route I suggest not using mystics, 0-4 build specific
Cyclonic Rift Allows for amazing blowouts and instant wins in a single turn. Recommend 2-3 though I feel 2 is the correct number.
Primeval Bounty An amazing utility spell, most feel that it's a "win-more" card but can be almost as crucial as sphinx for bailing you out of a tough spot. recommend 0-2
Dissolve mandatory counterspell for the control matchup, if going a creature heavy route, then probably found in the SB, recommend 0-2
Jace, Architect of Thought Great card, however in this deck even he can be an under-performer. Often you will gain more card advantage by ramping into a huge sphinx or zegana. If you intend to play a higher curve build then recommend 2-3
Plasm Capture An amazing card that can turn the game around if you have the right follow-up cards in hand. However, UUGG is very taxing on a tri-color mana base and this is the card you want to run only if you intend to go a more high end control-style build, recommend 0-2
Bow of Nylea I haven't tested this card, but it seems good on paper, and can add to devotion, but the 3 drop slot may be better served by either smiter or healer, though I feel if you wish to run it then 0-2 would be the correct number.
Sideboard Staples
Fleecemane Lion Amazing against control if you can manage to monstrous it, recommend 0-3
Mistcutter Hydra Great against mono-blue and control alike, recommend 2-3
Selesnya Charm Hits Gods whe they're turned on as well as desecration demon, and obzedat, recommend 0-3
Unflinching Courage Great way to get ahead and quick too against midrange and aggro, recommend 0-2
Gainsay An important card to win counter wars as well as stop an early thassa, or master of waves. recommend 0-2
Jace, Memory Adept Very much still the bane of control when you can protect it that it always has been. Also gives an extra way to attack the control deck. recommend 1-2
Advent of the Wurm great against midrange and aggro, especially when backed up with an unflinching courage. recommend 2-3
Below is my current list that I am running in a meta which is typically full of aggro, some mono black and mono blue, and the occasional midrange or control matchup. Sample Decklist
I played Mono-Black Devotion in rounds 1 and 3, and in the top 8 (same guy from round 1). While all of those were close matches, I one each of them. The biggest issue they present is the hand disruption, so if anyone knows a good way to combat that (besides Smiter, since they'll never make me discard him), I'd love some suggestions. Desecration Demon, Erebos, and Pack Rat never really worried me. Between Verdict and Sphere, it was easy to deal with any major threats they put down, and the deck can draw enough cards to almost always have an answer.
The all-stars in the match up were probably Verdict and Sphere, but Polukranos was always good, if played intelligently. You have to work around them having removal, but the threat of killing one of their creatures makes them want to wait, leaving you to attack with a 5/5 until they finally commit, at which time you kill their Specter (or whatever).
Round 2 was against a budget U/W aggro deck. Nothing worthwhile to say here.
Round 4 was against R/G Monsters, and while I'd love to give some input on this match up, I kept really bad hands both games and it bit me in the ass, so I don't really have any experience to share. First game's hand was a green source, Mystic, Caryatid, Healer, and some other stuff, didn't draw another land before it mattered. Second game's hand was six lands and a Verdict with two scry lands. I scryed off a land and a Mystic, and still drew two lands on the first two turns. He just crushed me down real quick.
Round 5 was an ID to get into top 8.
Top 8 match went basically the same as round 1, since it was the same guy. His hand disruption was pretty troublesome, and made it hard to fight back, but I always seemed to draw out of it. Jace, AoT was completely insane in making that happen, and Revelation was, as always, great.
---
So, I guess I don't have a lot to add to the match ups in this match, but the deck ran really smoothly nearly every games, except for the bad keeps in round 4. I did make some changes, though, to try next week.
Main Deck.
-3 Dissolve
+1 Jace, Architect of Thought
+2 Prophet of Kruphix
Sideboard
-2 Fade Into Antiquity
-2 Bident of Thassa
+3 Dissolve
+1 ???
The Dissolves constantly underperformed for me. They sat in my hand, totally useless, more than any other card. I think they'll be relevant if I play against control, but I always sided them out. I also sided in the other two Verdicts in every match, but in case control shows up, I still don't feel there need to be four main. Jace was amazing enough to play four, so now I am. A lot of people at my shop talked about how good Prophet can be, and it looks like a ton of fun, so I'm going to try it.
I think I'll also try one Progenitor Mimic next week, just for fun. It may just replace the Angel of Serenity. Sideboard is probably going to be in a lot of flux. -Jack
I personally have very little experience against mono-black and I don't quite know exactly how their lists will change once born hits, but both games I've played I won when I either A) mimicked a desecration demon, or B) mimicked a grey merchant and in both cases they failed to draw any of their relevant kill spells. I personally run a more creature centered list that forgoes, the use of planeswalkers as I felt that elspeth was too clunky when I really wanted to be ending the game on turn 8 at the latest, cyclonic rift is an all-star for me, and I felt as though verdict was counter productive with as many dorks as I am running. I'll have my results for tonight posted later using the exact list I have in the primer though I'm considering changing out the 2 primeval bounties for 2 progenitor mimicks as I often find myself seeing it as a win-con they must answer and at the very least a time buyer. I like having prophet of kruphix but idk where to fit him into my build. Maybe a couple in the side versus other midrange and control decks. I typically had issues of having a very high curve meaning I just auto-lost to aggro the one tournament I used him, but when he stuck for more than two turns he basically sealed the game for me. I also like Jace, but I feel like against midrange and mono black, which is more prevalent in my meta he's a tad lackluster. As for beating mono-black's disruption I've found that it's extremely hard to do anything against back to back discard spells, the best option I've found is streamlining the deck post side to play high quality threats so even if they remove a sphinx, or a d-sphere or verdict, there's something they still have to be afraid of or just lose to.
As for other news, with born of the gods completely spoiled I want to make some comments about cards I'll be excited to have in the deck. I feel like most people that blitz aggro will probably decrease in popularity after born of the gods becomes legal, and with that I'll probably be replacing my centaur healers with coursers of kruphix. The oracle of mul daya effect and 2/4 body are very relevant in the new meta we may see, I can see also removing more of the 2 drops to make room for more utility and counters.
Had a bad night last night, went 1-3 drop to get some food because I was starving, first Thing I've noticed, my list flooded out a ton, against the matchup I tuned it to beat (R/W devotion) I lost 4 of 5 games to flooding out. not being able to have a hard answer to stormbreath other than arbor colossus or polukranos monstrosity is devastating.
Round 1 was against R/W devotion. Game 1 I flooded out hard and lost to easily one of their slower hands. Game 2 went much better and I was able to curve out mystic, healer, polukranos, unflinching courage, monstrous polukranos, the game ended very fast without a chain for them. Game 3 I flooded out again after only being able to land a couple dorks and a healer and die. 0-1
Round 2 was also against R/W aggro, and in both games I was on the play and flooded out terribly, I do consider flooding out btw drawing nothing but lands and dorks as they are effectively lands for this deck's purposes. 0-2
Round 3 was against a rogue mono-black newt, cauldron, witch deck that I was able to win very easily with healers and polukranos and Nylea.
Which leads me to the second point and I definitely agree with you H1jack, this deck needs Verdict. Maybe not all 4 in the main but atleast 2, and agruably 3 in an agressive meta. 1-2
At this point I was out of pack contention as we do not make a top 8 cut, and my friends were not playing this week and asked if I wanted to drop and go get half off appetizers at applebees.....I chose the more delicious option.
Changes I will be making
Maindeck
-2 cyclonic rift
-1 sylvan caryatid
+3 supreme verdict
I feel like the deck just needs verdict to have a chance of answering red/W devotion and mono black. We are the deck which durdles more, and as a result they just go cackler, zealot, tree, tree nykthose, fanatic and we're dead by turn 4 or 5, when we want to start attacking into them. d-sphere can only do so much work, and it's hard to get profitable 2-for one's sometimes, but verdict can often generate 3 and 4 for one's allowing time to catch up with a sphinx and get the game back on track.
Once born of the god's hits and the meta shifts, a more "Big Green Men" approach may be better, but for right now I think verdict is the plan to be on until then.
Your bad match ups with bant of any kind is stormbreath and polukranos. Rapid Hybridization fixes these issues. You can easily handle a 3/3 with this deck.
I agree, I need to find some hybridizations, and I also see your point about the scooze, it probably needs to be flipped in numbers with the healer, as I've noticed it does become a bear usually, post verdict it does get a little bit better, but I've often found myself wanting it to just be a healer in some scenarios.
So I've decided recently I really like the Bant shard colors as far as play-style goes, and unlike that 11-page thread, I am not a fan of Prophet of Kruphix at all, I just don't think it does enough for any given deck and it doesn't do anything when it hits the field. So now I found myself designing a different style of deck much like Bant Good-Stuff, or as some like to call it, Bant Midrange. I've playtested it against my friends who play U/W Control, Mono-Black splash Green, R/G Monsters, Esper Midrange, and B/W Midrange respectively and I've found the deck to perform reasonably well against all of them even pre-sideboard except for U/W Control (Where I haven't gotten to play a post-sideboard match yet). I was looking for some outside opinions on it and if there's any glaring holes in the deck which I haven't been able to find, so without further explanation:
Sideboard has cards that allow us to morph into a Bant Control deck, or go on the aggro plan against decks like U/W Control or Esper Control quite easily and the deck has an answer to every card in standard with the only large problem being Stormbreath Dragon which I haven't encountered too often so far. The options against it end up being Elspeth, Kiora (who the haste can hit anyways) and Prognostic Sphinx (who doesn't want to be blocking) which are all substandard to deal with it. So far I was thinking about sideboarding Blind Obedience or Celestial Flare to deal with them, but I don't have any clue of what to cut given all our sideboard is pretty packed.
I tend to disagree with some of your points, the deck's high curve is around 3-mana which is what most Midrange decks are shooting for especially in this slow Standard format with so many CIPT lands. Midrange decks of last Standard had only 4 mana accelerators and 4 removal spells on turn 2 which is pretty similar to what we are running, I could opt to play Cyclonic Rift over the Selesnya Charms, but that would all I would do to the 2-mana compartment. Prognostic Sphinx is a direct combo with Courser, you can swing, scry 3, place a land on top of your deck and ensure there isn't another land under it so you aren't forced to draw land with your draw step and ensures you hit (almost) every single land drop for the rest of the game, this is insane for a deck playing Sphinx's Revelation. I can't count the number of times I've been up mana over my opponent because of the Courser + Sphinx combo. I also would definitely like to fit in another AoS to top the curve, but I again have no clue what I'd cut given how solid the card-base is.
If I ran Cyclonic Rift mainboard over the Selesnya Charm, that would deal with the Stormbreath for a turn, essentially fogging our opponent, although that doesn't fix the problem, I think Rapid Hybridization and Celestial Flare are the only "real" answer to it in our colors sadly.
So if I were to put in a second Angel of Serenity, along with 2 Rapid Hybridizations, what do you think is on the list of "first to be cut" I'm looking at the Selesnya Charms first, and then probably the Azorius Charms, and MAYBE a Forest, although we're already pushing it running 25 lands and 24 might just be too few (although we have Courser and Caryatids).
The Selesnya Charms are great against R/G Monsters and Mono-Black while the Azorius Charms are good against aggro and when we're in a racing situation (lifelink to all our dudes is pretty massive when we are running Archangel). Honestly, I have no clue, I might just want to play a 61-card special given the options are just so good in the colors.
So this is the list that I'm currently testing. It's in it's first stages, but has already beaten Jund monsters post board with a close game 1. I haven't ran the gauntlet with it, but it gains so much life that it's hard for decks to compete.
Went to FNM tonight and played against Mono-White Hero of Iroas Enchant Aggro, Two R/G Monsters decks, and Rakdos Control decks and 2-0'd them all for 1st place. I think the single Prophet is a good idea, the two games I played it I was already winning though so I don't know how good it actually is(I had stellar draws all night despite being on the draw all 4 matches). Jace + Kiora in combination won me 3 rounds by themselves, tick up Jace, tick up Kiora, have a single blocker, then ultimate Kiora and win the game.
The Planeswalkers did work all night, Advents did work all night, Archangel did work, AoS did work, Detention Sphere did work (unsurprisingly), the times when I had Rev it was amazing to be able to gain enough life to put you out of range of decks and draw answers. Selesnya Charms were amazing main-deck at removing any large threat that every hit the board whether it was Polu, a Kalonian Hydra, Desecration Demon, etc. The Azorius Charm was really good as a 1-of that I drew against the decks where I wanted him. Nothing like shoving a mana dork to the top of a deck that is revealing a land.
The cards I didn't like: Prognostic Sphinx. I never drew him all day (thankfully), but almost every game I felt like I wanted to sideboard him out for some reason, he just doesn't seem to match-up well against Desecration Demons, Big Power Ground-Pounders, or other aggressive strategies. Maybe it's because I played against 3 aggressive decks? I'm not sure, but against other Midrange/Control decks it's not a bad card, but against R/G and Black based decks he just doesn't shine (which isn't where you want to be).
I spent the weekend testing it against Monoblack, B/w Devotion, and U/w Devotion. It's put up oustanding results, especially against the Monoblack and B/w. I'll be testing against U/W/x control later this week. Prime Speaker should probably be Sphinx's Revelation, but having a big beater and the extra threat is relevant. Trostani is probably unnecessary, but she presents another angle of attack.
Give it a spin if you're at all interested. It's a fun deck.
Trying out a Bant Midrange build this week, thought I'd take a break from playing control. Here's a list I've come up with based off of the SCG article. So far in playtesting, the deck has been rather dominating. Most decks just can't seem to answer a game winning threat on every turn. Played against a Bant Control deck that had a full compliment of 4 Banishing Lights and 4 D Sphere's main board and I overloaded his removal. I'm unsure of the Selesnya Charm, I was thinking of replacing it with an Armada Wurm. It's been a blast to play in playtesting and seems to have an edge in every match up mainboard. The Sideboard still need a lot of work before Friday, but I feel like I should not lose to any blue based deck as is. I feel like my biggest matchup problem will be against Black based Devotion decks. Would Witchstalker be a valid option? I feel it takes me off track from what I'm trying to do with the deck, in playing bigger, better spells then my opponent.
This decision turned out to be great. I went 1-1 before having to drop and leave. I had to take a phone call during my 2nd game and it caused me to make some blatent play mistakes, I lost even though my opponent agreed with me that I should have won the match. This deck feels extremely strong, and I will be trying it out again this week at FNM. I may replace a Kalonian Hydra or the Hydra Broodmaster
A turn 3 or 4 Kiora easily leads to a blow out game by giving you a land advantage, and the draw power of the deck is just insane. I'm not sure on keeping the Detention Sphere's as I constantly find myself wanting to play threats rather then remove anything. The only problem card I've run into is Stormbreath Dragon. I believe I'm gonna side a couple Plummet to shore up that. Blood Baron of Vizkopa is no threat to this deck as my creatures are generally just bigger and don't die to him.
The deck is extremely powerful and tons of fun to play with. The only thing I need change is the mana base. I'm considering 1 or 2 copies of Mana Confluence or more basics.
The deck is extremely powerful and tons of fun to play with. The only thing I need change is the mana base. I'm considering 1 or 2 copies of Mana Confluence or more basics.
I'd suggest Mana Confluence. I know our mana base is painful already, but keeping on curve is much more important, especially when we can gain the life back via ooze or Archangel. How have you liked Prime Speaker as a draw mechanic? I'm debating on trying it in my list, but there's tons of creature removal in my meta so I've been hesitant.
I'd suggest Mana Confluence. I know our mana base is painful already, but keeping on curve is much more important, especially when we can gain the life back via ooze or Archangel. How have you liked Prime Speaker as a draw mechanic? I'm debating on trying it in my list, but there's tons of creature removal in my meta so I've been hesitant.
There's always going to be a ton of creature removal. that cant be an excuse to not play great creatures. zegana has been great and i think 2 is the perfect number. your list plays a lot more walkers and less creatures though so i wouldnt recommend it. im going to try out a mana confluence over a temple of mystery. this week is a little busy for me so i might not get a chance to playtest until fnm.
Depending on how FNM goes this week, I will either run my Midrange deck for a SCG IQ Sunday or I'll put control back together. I think I'm gonna run a list more like this.
I'm unsure of keeping the Broodmaster in the deck. I'm also thinking of adding 3-4 Centaur healer's to the sideboard to deal with RW Burn. I had trouble with Strombreath Dragon last Friday so I think the Agoraphobia's will help deal with that problem.
My biggest recommendation would be Mistcutter Hydra and/or Skylasher out of the SB. Between all the control variants and Mono U, you're going to always want the Pro-Blue creatures in your 75 if you're playing green. Unsure how I feel about the Dictate in your deck, it seems like you'd want more creatures if you're going to run it.
This is the deck I ran last night in our ~30-40 man Monday night standard. Went 3-1. Lost to the winner of the night and ended up 4th. Rundown below.
Match 1: RW Heroic
A bit of a brew deck with Hero of Iroas, God's Willing, coordinated assault and the like. Nyx-Fleece Ram, Kiora, and Archangel sealed games 1 and 3.
Match 2: UW Heroic
A massive brew with Fabled Hero, Phalanx Leader, Ephara's Enlightenment, Gods Willing, Brave, etc. Very dangerous to play against because of the limited amount of removal we run at sorcery speed, and the fierce potential of double-strike. Games 1 & 2 were tight, but defensive play, Monstrous Fleecemane and active Ephara blocking, with Archangel to finish got there. God's willing responded to 2 of 3 exile enchantments I ran.
Match 3: RW Burn
The net-deck version, with little/no variation. On the play game 1, Nyx-Fleece/Courser helps hold off death early on. Drop Archangel when I hit six mana holding a Mending Touch in hand. He Warleader's Helix and I Mend in response. Seals game 1. Game 2 I hit Ram on turn 2, he taps out for toil/trouble, I Unflinching Courage my Ram (2/7!!) and start gain 3 life every turn. I get out of his range quickly, especially after negating a Skullcrack.
Match 4: RW Devotion/Aggro
I'm at the bottom of the top 3 going into this match. Game 1 he floods out hard and I win with the combo in play (Ephara+Prophet). Sick. We board, and he wins game 2 with a flashed in dictate of the twin gods into Stormbreath with Skullcrack combo. Game 3 I'm able to contain him a bit, but drawing no removal against the Mad-Cap Skills Phoenix did me in before Archangel got online.
Overall quite happy with the performance. Skyknight I think is not a great choice and I will be replacing it as I boarded it out first thing every match. Polukranos was... Fine. Didn't excel once. Sessian Tactics will get cut as well for something that can deal with Stormbreath and Blood Baron (Rapid or something). Everything else did really well. NyxFleece Ram was a boss every game. Not great against control, but I think having access to 4 in the 75 is crucial. I would play 2 Ajani if I had him. That will probably replace the Skyknights. Polukranos will stay for now, though I'm starting to feel Arbor Colossus more, but that means sooooo many 5 drops. The only things that the deck currently fears are Blood Baron (some), Stormbreath, Sphinx Rev/Verdict, and D Demon/Gray Merchant. I thought weenie aggros would be more of a problem, but the Ram fixes all those matchups. My side has good choices for the UWx matchup (negate, mist-cutter, banishing light) and against black... Well, what is great against mono-black anyway?! Getting a couple Rapids in the board (or maybe Turn?) would be good for those other problem dudes.
For those having issues with Stormbreath, Agoraphobia has been working great in testing. It does leave them with a blocker, but we can get outgrow it eventually. Plus it allows us to bounce it an reuse it if they chump block.
I've been thinking last night and today, and I'm gonna move to 2 Arbor Colossus main and 2 in the board. I can't think of any other card I'd want more against mono-black, Stormbreath or blood Baron. He's a huge threat, is a possible two-for-one against any decks running flyers (red, black, blue), and can be just as great defensively as offensively. I'm trying to fill my 75 with as many must answer threats as possible. The only way to midrange out mono blacks removal and WUs answers is too overload them with big threats.
Thanks Slow. I'm unable to quote due to not having enough posts yet.
I have actually made room for it (changes at bottom). I took this to my locals last night and went 1-1 drop (basketball).
R1 vs Naya Midrange
G1 I opened really well and derped so hard. Long story short, I wasted a Detention Sphere and miscounted turns and got Domri Ulted.
Sided: -1 Brimaz, -2 Advent, -1 Prophet (filler), -1 Dictact (now not in build) for +2 Blind Obedience , +2 Verdict, +2 Rambulance. In hindsight I probably could've/should've? put in Deicide/Selesnya Charm
G2 The deck did what it was supposed to and I curved out well.
G3 I derped hard here too. I ran into an overloaded Mizzium Mortars on turn 5 and had a little juice left. He then dropped Ruric Thar, Xenagodded it and then dropped Ghor-Clan -.-. The next turn I completely derped blockers. He had an active Xenagod, Ruric and Reckoner to my Horizon Chimera, Fleecemane (not monstrous), Courser and 4/4 Voice Token. I single blocked everything instead of double blocking Ruric (I was drawing D.Sphere the next turn).
R2 vs Block Dredge
New player and they were really tired. Easy 2-0.
I did make a few changes to the list as well
Main:
+2 Ajani, Mentor of Heroes
-1 Dictate
-1 Courser
Side:
-2 Reprisal
+2 Mistcutter
I'm not fully sure on my side yet. The main seems quite solid to me, but I wouldn't mind attempting to pit in 1 Ephara.
Should I be playing Aetherling? Dissolve (not sure if mana can support it)? I also want to fit in something that can deal with Stormbreath/Blood Baron/etc outside of Elspeth and racing with Archangel.
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Why play Bant Midrange?
Bant Midrange is a "value" midrange deck, full of creatures which can allow you to put early pressure on opponents without being completely dead in the late game. It possess the ability to ramp into powerful turn 3 and 4 plays and can end the game immediately past that. Access to sphinx's revelation means that flooding out isn't always the death of you in grindy matches, and can provide you the ability to drown your opponent in card advantage. The deck also has access to one of the best removal spells in the game in the form of detention sphere, and the deck is highly customizable allowing for good performance no matter what your particular meta is.
Card Discussion
Creatures
Elvish Mystic Solid turn one dork, recommend 4
Sylvan Caryatid No birds of Paradise, but almost as good since it can chump effectively, recommend 4
Polukranos World Eater One of this decks best bombs, recommend 3-4
Arbor Colossus Great answer to stormbreath and can shut down and take over the ground game if necessary, GGG is a slight drawback but adds to devotion which is good, recommend 0-2
Scavenging Ooze Powerful card in the late game and a solid turn two play, recommend 4
Centaur Healer It was great in wolfrun bant to help beat aggro and add to the board, and is still good now, sort of lackluster against midrange and control though so only recommended if aggro is prevalent in your meta, 0-4, meta dictated.
Nylea, God of the Hunt Can completely swing the game in your favor by giving your fatties trample and pumping is relevant in most cases. Hitting five devotion can be a chore though unless you go a heavy green route, recommend 0-2
Prime Speaker Zegana She's expensive, and sometimes a gamble, but can turn the game around in a single turn, and with an on average draw of 4 cards off of her, she's still a good card. recommend 1-2
Prophet of Kruphix Tested this car extensively and found it very poor in the aggro matchup, good in the control matchup and phenomenal in the midrange matchup, but not a very relevant body, meta dictated, 0-3
Aetherling Closes out games with little to no effort, but can be hard to find room for him without cluttering the 6-drop slot, recommend 0-2 in main and mandatory in the sideboard at least
Progenitor Mimick I have a soft spot for this card as it allows you to win games you otherwise have no business winning, but is a high variance card. It will punish any opponent who cannot remove it immediately when you hit a value creature such as master of waves or grey merchant, or desecration demon, or even arbor colossus. If you need to cut room in your deck he'd be the first to go, but likewise if you need an extra slot on the upper end of the curve, give him a chance, recommend 0-1.
Loxodon Smiter The other side of the centaur healer coin, if midrange and control are prevalent in your meta sleeve this up instead, recommend 0-4, meta dictated
Spells
Sphinx's Revelation The main reason for this deck to even dip into white. An amazing card and well worth using, recommend 2-4 though I feel 3 is the correct number
Detention Sphere One of the best removal spells in the format by being able to hit gods, legendary equipment, and score 2 or 3 for ones, recommend 3-4
Supreme Verdict Ultimately a Poor choice for this deck unless you intend on playing a very high curve and few dorks, great against aggro and devotion decks, if you go this route I suggest not using mystics, 0-4 build specific
Cyclonic Rift Allows for amazing blowouts and instant wins in a single turn. Recommend 2-3 though I feel 2 is the correct number.
Primeval Bounty An amazing utility spell, most feel that it's a "win-more" card but can be almost as crucial as sphinx for bailing you out of a tough spot. recommend 0-2
Dissolve mandatory counterspell for the control matchup, if going a creature heavy route, then probably found in the SB, recommend 0-2
Syncopate see above
Jace, Architect of Thought Great card, however in this deck even he can be an under-performer. Often you will gain more card advantage by ramping into a huge sphinx or zegana. If you intend to play a higher curve build then recommend 2-3
Plasm Capture An amazing card that can turn the game around if you have the right follow-up cards in hand. However, UUGG is very taxing on a tri-color mana base and this is the card you want to run only if you intend to go a more high end control-style build, recommend 0-2
Bow of Nylea I haven't tested this card, but it seems good on paper, and can add to devotion, but the 3 drop slot may be better served by either smiter or healer, though I feel if you wish to run it then 0-2 would be the correct number.
Sideboard Staples
Fleecemane Lion Amazing against control if you can manage to monstrous it, recommend 0-3
Mistcutter Hydra Great against mono-blue and control alike, recommend 2-3
Selesnya Charm Hits Gods whe they're turned on as well as desecration demon, and obzedat, recommend 0-3
Unflinching Courage Great way to get ahead and quick too against midrange and aggro, recommend 0-2
Gainsay An important card to win counter wars as well as stop an early thassa, or master of waves. recommend 0-2
Jace, Memory Adept Very much still the bane of control when you can protect it that it always has been. Also gives an extra way to attack the control deck. recommend 1-2
Advent of the Wurm great against midrange and aggro, especially when backed up with an unflinching courage. recommend 2-3
Core Creature-Base
4x Sylvan Caryatid
4x Scavenging Ooze
3x Polukranos, World Eater
2x Prime Speaker Zegana
Core Spell-Base
4x Detention Sphere
2x Primeval Bounty
Below is my current list that I am running in a meta which is typically full of aggro, some mono black and mono blue, and the occasional midrange or control matchup.
Sample Decklist
4x Breeding Pool
4x Temple Garden
4x Hallowed Fountain
4x Temple of Mystery
2x Nykthos, Shrine to Nyx
3x forest
2x Selsnya Guildgate
2x Azorius Guildgate
creatures 22
4x Scavenging Ooze
4x Elvish Mystic
4x Sylvan Caryatid
3x Polukranos
3x Centaur Healer
2x Arbor Colossus
2x Prime Speaker Zegana
2x Nylea God of the Hunt
3x Sphinx's Revelation
4x Detention Sphere
2x Cyclonic Rift
2x Primeval Bounty
2x Fleecemane Lion
3x Mistcutter Hydra
3x Unflinching Courage
2x Gainsay
2x Selesnya Charm
2x Dissolve
1x Jace, memory Adept
4 Hallowed Fountain
4 Temple Garden
4 Breeding Pool
4 Temple of Mystery
3 Plains
3 Island
3 Forest
Creatures (18)
1 Angel of Serenity
1 Aetherling
4 Centaur Healer
3 Elvish Mystic
3 Sylvan Caryatid
2 Scavenging Ooze
2 Polukranos, World Eater
2 Prime Speaker Zegana
3 Jace, Architect of Thought
2 Elspeth, Sun's Champion
Other (12)
3 Dissolve
3 Sphinx's Revelation
2 Supreme Verdict
4 Detention Sphere
3 Arbor Colossus
2 Fade Into Antiquity
4 Loxodon Smiter
2 Bident of Thassa
2 Selesnya Charm
2 Supreme Verdict
I played Mono-Black Devotion in rounds 1 and 3, and in the top 8 (same guy from round 1). While all of those were close matches, I one each of them. The biggest issue they present is the hand disruption, so if anyone knows a good way to combat that (besides Smiter, since they'll never make me discard him), I'd love some suggestions. Desecration Demon, Erebos, and Pack Rat never really worried me. Between Verdict and Sphere, it was easy to deal with any major threats they put down, and the deck can draw enough cards to almost always have an answer.
The all-stars in the match up were probably Verdict and Sphere, but Polukranos was always good, if played intelligently. You have to work around them having removal, but the threat of killing one of their creatures makes them want to wait, leaving you to attack with a 5/5 until they finally commit, at which time you kill their Specter (or whatever).
Round 2 was against a budget U/W aggro deck. Nothing worthwhile to say here.
Round 4 was against R/G Monsters, and while I'd love to give some input on this match up, I kept really bad hands both games and it bit me in the ass, so I don't really have any experience to share. First game's hand was a green source, Mystic, Caryatid, Healer, and some other stuff, didn't draw another land before it mattered. Second game's hand was six lands and a Verdict with two scry lands. I scryed off a land and a Mystic, and still drew two lands on the first two turns. He just crushed me down real quick.
Round 5 was an ID to get into top 8.
Top 8 match went basically the same as round 1, since it was the same guy. His hand disruption was pretty troublesome, and made it hard to fight back, but I always seemed to draw out of it. Jace, AoT was completely insane in making that happen, and Revelation was, as always, great.
---
So, I guess I don't have a lot to add to the match ups in this match, but the deck ran really smoothly nearly every games, except for the bad keeps in round 4. I did make some changes, though, to try next week.
Main Deck.
-3 Dissolve
+1 Jace, Architect of Thought
+2 Prophet of Kruphix
Sideboard
-2 Fade Into Antiquity
-2 Bident of Thassa
+3 Dissolve
+1 ???
The Dissolves constantly underperformed for me. They sat in my hand, totally useless, more than any other card. I think they'll be relevant if I play against control, but I always sided them out. I also sided in the other two Verdicts in every match, but in case control shows up, I still don't feel there need to be four main. Jace was amazing enough to play four, so now I am. A lot of people at my shop talked about how good Prophet can be, and it looks like a ton of fun, so I'm going to try it.
I think I'll also try one Progenitor Mimic next week, just for fun. It may just replace the Angel of Serenity. Sideboard is probably going to be in a lot of flux. -Jack
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Vizzerdrix Count = 183, 3 in Italian, 2 Foil
As for other news, with born of the gods completely spoiled I want to make some comments about cards I'll be excited to have in the deck. I feel like most people that blitz aggro will probably decrease in popularity after born of the gods becomes legal, and with that I'll probably be replacing my centaur healers with coursers of kruphix. The oracle of mul daya effect and 2/4 body are very relevant in the new meta we may see, I can see also removing more of the 2 drops to make room for more utility and counters.
Round 1 was against R/W devotion. Game 1 I flooded out hard and lost to easily one of their slower hands. Game 2 went much better and I was able to curve out mystic, healer, polukranos, unflinching courage, monstrous polukranos, the game ended very fast without a chain for them. Game 3 I flooded out again after only being able to land a couple dorks and a healer and die. 0-1
Round 2 was also against R/W aggro, and in both games I was on the play and flooded out terribly, I do consider flooding out btw drawing nothing but lands and dorks as they are effectively lands for this deck's purposes. 0-2
Round 3 was against a rogue mono-black newt, cauldron, witch deck that I was able to win very easily with healers and polukranos and Nylea.
Which leads me to the second point and I definitely agree with you H1jack, this deck needs Verdict. Maybe not all 4 in the main but atleast 2, and agruably 3 in an agressive meta. 1-2
At this point I was out of pack contention as we do not make a top 8 cut, and my friends were not playing this week and asked if I wanted to drop and go get half off appetizers at applebees.....I chose the more delicious option.
Changes I will be making
Maindeck
-2 cyclonic rift
-1 sylvan caryatid
+3 supreme verdict
I feel like the deck just needs verdict to have a chance of answering red/W devotion and mono black. We are the deck which durdles more, and as a result they just go cackler, zealot, tree, tree nykthose, fanatic and we're dead by turn 4 or 5, when we want to start attacking into them. d-sphere can only do so much work, and it's hard to get profitable 2-for one's sometimes, but verdict can often generate 3 and 4 for one's allowing time to catch up with a sphinx and get the game back on track.
Once born of the god's hits and the meta shifts, a more "Big Green Men" approach may be better, but for right now I think verdict is the plan to be on until then.
Better Luck next time.
4 Temple Garden
4 Hallowed Fountain
4 Breeding Pool
4 Temple of Plenty
4 Temple of Enlightenment
2 Temple of Mystery
3 Forest
Creature:
4 Sylvan Caryatid
4 Courser of Kruphix
1 Prophet of Kruphix
1 Prognostic Sphinx
2 Archangel of Thune
2 Angel of Serenity
4 Advent of the Wurm
3 Sphinx's Revelation
1 Azorius Charm
2 Selesnya Charm
Other:
4 Detention Sphere
3 Jace, Architect of Thought
2 Kiora, the Crashing Wave
2 Elspeth, Sun's Champion
1 Pithing Needle
1 Supreme Verdict
1 Blind Obedience
1 Fated Retribution
2 Unravel the Aether
1 Glare of Heresy
2 Dissolve
2 Gainsay
3 Mistcutter Hydra
1 Aetherling
Sideboard has cards that allow us to morph into a Bant Control deck, or go on the aggro plan against decks like U/W Control or Esper Control quite easily and the deck has an answer to every card in standard with the only large problem being Stormbreath Dragon which I haven't encountered too often so far. The options against it end up being Elspeth, Kiora (who the haste can hit anyways) and Prognostic Sphinx (who doesn't want to be blocking) which are all substandard to deal with it. So far I was thinking about sideboarding Blind Obedience or Celestial Flare to deal with them, but I don't have any clue of what to cut given all our sideboard is pretty packed.
Let me know what you guys think!
If I ran Cyclonic Rift mainboard over the Selesnya Charm, that would deal with the Stormbreath for a turn, essentially fogging our opponent, although that doesn't fix the problem, I think Rapid Hybridization and Celestial Flare are the only "real" answer to it in our colors sadly.
Monstrous Fleeceman lion into supreme verdict is also a good combo.
The Selesnya Charms are great against R/G Monsters and Mono-Black while the Azorius Charms are good against aggro and when we're in a racing situation (lifelink to all our dudes is pretty massive when we are running Archangel). Honestly, I have no clue, I might just want to play a 61-card special given the options are just so good in the colors.
4x Archangel of Thune
3x Brimaz, King of Oreos
4x Courser of Kruphix
4x Elvish Mystic
4x Horizon Chimera
3x Loxodon Smiter
1x Scavenging Ooze
4x Sylvan Caryatid
Enchantments:
4x Detention Sphere
2x Elspeth
3x Kiora
lands:
4x Breeding pool
4x Hallowed fountain
4x Temple garden
4x Temple of Plenty
3x Temple of Enlightenment
3x Temple of Mystery
1x Forest
1x Plains
3x Scavenging Ooze
3x Mistcutter
3x Unflinching courage
2x Rapid Hybridization
4x Supreme verdict
So this is the list that I'm currently testing. It's in it's first stages, but has already beaten Jund monsters post board with a close game 1. I haven't ran the gauntlet with it, but it gains so much life that it's hard for decks to compete.
Follow the link for nice cheap clothing.
Playing:
Death's Shadow Jund
Played:
Kiki Chord, Zoo variants, Goblins, Burn
The Planeswalkers did work all night, Advents did work all night, Archangel did work, AoS did work, Detention Sphere did work (unsurprisingly), the times when I had Rev it was amazing to be able to gain enough life to put you out of range of decks and draw answers. Selesnya Charms were amazing main-deck at removing any large threat that every hit the board whether it was Polu, a Kalonian Hydra, Desecration Demon, etc. The Azorius Charm was really good as a 1-of that I drew against the decks where I wanted him. Nothing like shoving a mana dork to the top of a deck that is revealing a land.
The cards I didn't like: Prognostic Sphinx. I never drew him all day (thankfully), but almost every game I felt like I wanted to sideboard him out for some reason, he just doesn't seem to match-up well against Desecration Demons, Big Power Ground-Pounders, or other aggressive strategies. Maybe it's because I played against 3 aggressive decks? I'm not sure, but against other Midrange/Control decks it's not a bad card, but against R/G and Black based decks he just doesn't shine (which isn't where you want to be).
3x Archangel of Thune
3x Scavenging Ooze
4x Voice of Resurgence
4x Courser of Kruphix
4x Sylvan Caryatid
1x Trostani, Selesnya's Voice
3x Kiora, the Crashing Wave
2x Ajani, Mentor of Heroes
1x Elspeth, Sun's Champion
1x Jace, Architect of Thought
4x Detention Sphere
3x Advent of the Wurm
4x Temple Garden
4x Breeding Pool
3x Hallowed Fountain
3x Mana Confluence
4x Temple of Plenty
2x Temple of Enlightenment
2x Temple of Mystery
2x Forest
1x Plains
2x Banishing Light
1x Aetherling
3x Mistcutter Hydra
1x Dispel
2x Negate
2x Unflinching Courage
2x Last Breath
I spent the weekend testing it against Monoblack, B/w Devotion, and U/w Devotion. It's put up oustanding results, especially against the Monoblack and B/w. I'll be testing against U/W/x control later this week. Prime Speaker should probably be Sphinx's Revelation, but having a big beater and the extra threat is relevant. Trostani is probably unnecessary, but she presents another angle of attack.
Give it a spin if you're at all interested. It's a fun deck.
Standard: I, for one, welcome our new rhinoceros overlords
Modern: Pod's dead, Bob's back.
Legacy: Lands, Deathblade, Death and Taxes, Elves, MUD
Retired Legacy: Merfolk, Goblins, Jund, Delver, Reanimator
4 Temple of Mystery
4 Temple of Enlightenment
4 Temple of Plenty
4 Hallowed Fountain
4 Temple Garden
3 Breeding Pool
1 Island
1 Mana Confluence
Creatures
4 Courser of Kruphix
4 Sylvan Caryatid
2 Archangel of Thune
2 Kalonian Hydra
2 Mistcutter Hydra
1 AEtherling
1 Hydra Broodmaster
3 Jace, Architect of Thought
3 Kiora, the Crashing Wave
3 Ajani, Mentor of Heroes
2 Elspeth, Sun's Champion
Spells
4 Detention Sphere
2 Sphinx's Revelation
1 banishing Light
1 Selesnya Charm
3 Skylasher
2 Negate
1 Mistcutter Hydra
1 Primeval Bounty
http://www.mtgsalvation.com/forums/the-game/modern/developing-competitive-modern/598381-kiki-chord-kiki-company
Bring to Niv
https://www.mtgsalvation.com/forums/the-game/modern/deck-creation-modern/814060-bring-to-niv-the-golden-deck
Legacy - Lands
http://www.mtgsalvation.com/forums/the-game/legacy-type-1-5/established-legacy/control/535484-primer-lands
-1 Ajani, Mentor of Heroes
-1 Selesnya Charm
-2 Detention Sphere
+4 Nyx-Fleece Ram
This decision turned out to be great. I went 1-1 before having to drop and leave. I had to take a phone call during my 2nd game and it caused me to make some blatent play mistakes, I lost even though my opponent agreed with me that I should have won the match. This deck feels extremely strong, and I will be trying it out again this week at FNM. I may replace a Kalonian Hydra or the Hydra Broodmaster
A turn 3 or 4 Kiora easily leads to a blow out game by giving you a land advantage, and the draw power of the deck is just insane. I'm not sure on keeping the Detention Sphere's as I constantly find myself wanting to play threats rather then remove anything. The only problem card I've run into is Stormbreath Dragon. I believe I'm gonna side a couple Plummet to shore up that. Blood Baron of Vizkopa is no threat to this deck as my creatures are generally just bigger and don't die to him.
http://www.mtgsalvation.com/forums/the-game/modern/developing-competitive-modern/598381-kiki-chord-kiki-company
Bring to Niv
https://www.mtgsalvation.com/forums/the-game/modern/deck-creation-modern/814060-bring-to-niv-the-golden-deck
Legacy - Lands
http://www.mtgsalvation.com/forums/the-game/legacy-type-1-5/established-legacy/control/535484-primer-lands
4 Voice of Resurgence
2 Scavenging Ooze
3 Loxodon Smiter
3 Courser of Kruphix
2 Archangel of Thune
2 Prime Speaker Zegana
4 Kiora, the Crashing Wave
1 Ajani, Mentor of Heroes
2 Elspeth, Sun's Champion
4 Detention Sphere
4 Temple Garden
4 Breeding Pool
4 Hallowed Fountain
4 Temple of Plenty
2 Temple of Enlightenment
3 Temple of Mystery
2 Forest
1 Island
1 Plains
The deck is extremely powerful and tons of fun to play with. The only thing I need change is the mana base. I'm considering 1 or 2 copies of Mana Confluence or more basics.
I'd suggest Mana Confluence. I know our mana base is painful already, but keeping on curve is much more important, especially when we can gain the life back via ooze or Archangel. How have you liked Prime Speaker as a draw mechanic? I'm debating on trying it in my list, but there's tons of creature removal in my meta so I've been hesitant.
http://www.mtgsalvation.com/forums/the-game/modern/developing-competitive-modern/598381-kiki-chord-kiki-company
Bring to Niv
https://www.mtgsalvation.com/forums/the-game/modern/deck-creation-modern/814060-bring-to-niv-the-golden-deck
Legacy - Lands
http://www.mtgsalvation.com/forums/the-game/legacy-type-1-5/established-legacy/control/535484-primer-lands
There's always going to be a ton of creature removal. that cant be an excuse to not play great creatures. zegana has been great and i think 2 is the perfect number. your list plays a lot more walkers and less creatures though so i wouldnt recommend it. im going to try out a mana confluence over a temple of mystery. this week is a little busy for me so i might not get a chance to playtest until fnm.
4 Temple of Enlightenment
4 Temple of Mystery
4 Temple of Plenty
4 Hallowed Fountain
4 Temple Garden
3 Breeding Pool
1 Island
1 Mana Confluence
Creatures
4 Sylvan Caryatid
4 Courser of Kruphix
4 Nyx-Fleece Ram
2 Archangel of Thune
2 Kalonian Hydra
2 Mistcutter Hydra
1 AEtherling
1 Armada Wurm
1 Hydra Broodmaster
2 Detention Sphere
2 Sphinx's Revelation
1 Banishing Light
Planeswalkers
3 Jace, Architect of Thought
3 Kiora, the Crashing Wave
2 Ajani, Mentor of Heroes
1 Elspeth, Sun's Champion
4 Agoraphobia
3 Skylasher
2 Deicide
2 Scavenging Ooze
1 Mistcutter Hydra
1 Detention Sphere
1 Banishing Light
1 Angel of Serenity
I'm unsure of keeping the Broodmaster in the deck. I'm also thinking of adding 3-4 Centaur healer's to the sideboard to deal with RW Burn. I had trouble with Strombreath Dragon last Friday so I think the Agoraphobia's will help deal with that problem.
http://www.mtgsalvation.com/forums/the-game/modern/developing-competitive-modern/598381-kiki-chord-kiki-company
Bring to Niv
https://www.mtgsalvation.com/forums/the-game/modern/deck-creation-modern/814060-bring-to-niv-the-golden-deck
Legacy - Lands
http://www.mtgsalvation.com/forums/the-game/legacy-type-1-5/established-legacy/control/535484-primer-lands
4 Breeding Pool
2 Forest
4 Hallowed Fountain
1 Island
2 Plains
4 Temple Garden
2 Temple of Enlightenment
2 Temple of Mystery
3 Temple of Plenty
Creatures
2 Archangel of Thune
2 Brimaz, King of Oreskos
4 Courser of Kruphix
2 Elvish Mystic
2 Fleecemane Lion
2 Horizon Chimera
4 Sylvan Caryatid
4 Voice of Resurgence
2 Advent of the Wurm
2 Sphinx's Revelation
4 Detention Sphere
1 Dictate of Heliod
Planeswalkers
2 Elspeth, Sun's Champion
2 Jace, Architect of Thought
1 Kiora, the Crashing Wave
1 AEtherling
2 Blind Obedience
2 Deicide
2 Dissolve
2 Nyx-Fleece Ram
2 Reprisal
2 Selesnya Charm
2 Supreme Verdict
My biggest recommendation would be Mistcutter Hydra and/or Skylasher out of the SB. Between all the control variants and Mono U, you're going to always want the Pro-Blue creatures in your 75 if you're playing green. Unsure how I feel about the Dictate in your deck, it seems like you'd want more creatures if you're going to run it.
http://www.mtgsalvation.com/forums/the-game/modern/developing-competitive-modern/598381-kiki-chord-kiki-company
Bring to Niv
https://www.mtgsalvation.com/forums/the-game/modern/deck-creation-modern/814060-bring-to-niv-the-golden-deck
Legacy - Lands
http://www.mtgsalvation.com/forums/the-game/legacy-type-1-5/established-legacy/control/535484-primer-lands
3 Fleecemane Lion
2 Nyx-Fleece Ram
4 Sylvan Caryatid
4 Courser of Kruphix
2 Lyev Skyknight
2 Ephara, God of the Polis
3 Polukranos, World Eater
1 Seraph of the Sword
4 Archangel of Thune
2 Prophet of Kruphix
2 Mending Touch
3 Detention Sphere
3 Kiora, the Crashing Wave
Lands:25
4 Breeding Pool
3 Forest
2 Plains
4 Temple Garden
4 Temple of Enlightenment
4 Temple of Mystery
4 Temple of Plenty
3 Mistcutter Hydra
3 Negate
2 Nyx-Fleece Ram
2 Setessan Tactics
3 Banishing Light
2 Unflinching Courage
This is the deck I ran last night in our ~30-40 man Monday night standard. Went 3-1. Lost to the winner of the night and ended up 4th. Rundown below.
Match 1: RW Heroic
A bit of a brew deck with Hero of Iroas, God's Willing, coordinated assault and the like. Nyx-Fleece Ram, Kiora, and Archangel sealed games 1 and 3.
Match 2: UW Heroic
A massive brew with Fabled Hero, Phalanx Leader, Ephara's Enlightenment, Gods Willing, Brave, etc. Very dangerous to play against because of the limited amount of removal we run at sorcery speed, and the fierce potential of double-strike. Games 1 & 2 were tight, but defensive play, Monstrous Fleecemane and active Ephara blocking, with Archangel to finish got there. God's willing responded to 2 of 3 exile enchantments I ran.
Match 3: RW Burn
The net-deck version, with little/no variation. On the play game 1, Nyx-Fleece/Courser helps hold off death early on. Drop Archangel when I hit six mana holding a Mending Touch in hand. He Warleader's Helix and I Mend in response. Seals game 1. Game 2 I hit Ram on turn 2, he taps out for toil/trouble, I Unflinching Courage my Ram (2/7!!) and start gain 3 life every turn. I get out of his range quickly, especially after negating a Skullcrack.
Match 4: RW Devotion/Aggro
I'm at the bottom of the top 3 going into this match. Game 1 he floods out hard and I win with the combo in play (Ephara+Prophet). Sick. We board, and he wins game 2 with a flashed in dictate of the twin gods into Stormbreath with Skullcrack combo. Game 3 I'm able to contain him a bit, but drawing no removal against the Mad-Cap Skills Phoenix did me in before Archangel got online.
Overall quite happy with the performance. Skyknight I think is not a great choice and I will be replacing it as I boarded it out first thing every match. Polukranos was... Fine. Didn't excel once. Sessian Tactics will get cut as well for something that can deal with Stormbreath and Blood Baron (Rapid or something). Everything else did really well. NyxFleece Ram was a boss every game. Not great against control, but I think having access to 4 in the 75 is crucial. I would play 2 Ajani if I had him. That will probably replace the Skyknights. Polukranos will stay for now, though I'm starting to feel Arbor Colossus more, but that means sooooo many 5 drops. The only things that the deck currently fears are Blood Baron (some), Stormbreath, Sphinx Rev/Verdict, and D Demon/Gray Merchant. I thought weenie aggros would be more of a problem, but the Ram fixes all those matchups. My side has good choices for the UWx matchup (negate, mist-cutter, banishing light) and against black... Well, what is great against mono-black anyway?! Getting a couple Rapids in the board (or maybe Turn?) would be good for those other problem dudes.
http://www.mtgsalvation.com/forums/the-game/modern/developing-competitive-modern/598381-kiki-chord-kiki-company
Bring to Niv
https://www.mtgsalvation.com/forums/the-game/modern/deck-creation-modern/814060-bring-to-niv-the-golden-deck
Legacy - Lands
http://www.mtgsalvation.com/forums/the-game/legacy-type-1-5/established-legacy/control/535484-primer-lands
I have actually made room for it (changes at bottom). I took this to my locals last night and went 1-1 drop (basketball).
R1 vs Naya Midrange
G1 I opened really well and derped so hard. Long story short, I wasted a Detention Sphere and miscounted turns and got Domri Ulted.
Sided: -1 Brimaz, -2 Advent, -1 Prophet (filler), -1 Dictact (now not in build) for +2 Blind Obedience , +2 Verdict, +2 Rambulance. In hindsight I probably could've/should've? put in Deicide/Selesnya Charm
G2 The deck did what it was supposed to and I curved out well.
G3 I derped hard here too. I ran into an overloaded Mizzium Mortars on turn 5 and had a little juice left. He then dropped Ruric Thar, Xenagodded it and then dropped Ghor-Clan -.-. The next turn I completely derped blockers. He had an active Xenagod, Ruric and Reckoner to my Horizon Chimera, Fleecemane (not monstrous), Courser and 4/4 Voice Token. I single blocked everything instead of double blocking Ruric (I was drawing D.Sphere the next turn).
R2 vs Block Dredge
New player and they were really tired. Easy 2-0.
I did make a few changes to the list as well
Main:
+2 Ajani, Mentor of Heroes
-1 Dictate
-1 Courser
Side:
-2 Reprisal
+2 Mistcutter
I'm not fully sure on my side yet. The main seems quite solid to me, but I wouldn't mind attempting to pit in 1 Ephara.
Should I be playing Aetherling? Dissolve (not sure if mana can support it)? I also want to fit in something that can deal with Stormbreath/Blood Baron/etc outside of Elspeth and racing with Archangel.