Urdjur, creator of the old primer. Insaney, Wolf_Cub82, TRAMD for helping with card analysis. Nantuko for card analysis and for all of the additional research provided.
Introduction -
Burn is a deck that uses efficient creatures and Red instant and sorcery spells to deal direct damage to your opponent in an effort to end the game as quickly as possible using little to no disruption. Burn has long been a strategy, and many of the original "burn spells" like Lightning Bolt and Chain Lightning are still relevant in burn decks today. These spells when used together, can reduce your opponent's life total to zero before they are able to stabilize and carry out their strategy, ending the game in a fiery fashion.
Why Play Burn?
Burn is the perfect example of what happens when speed meets consistency. In fact, burn is arguably the most consistent deck in the format due to the fact that almost every spell you cast will have the same 3 damage for 1 mana effect. Your typical burn deck will contain at least 16 "bolts". "Bolt" spells are variations of, and are named after the iconic card Lightning Bolt. Each bolt spell is a red instant or sorcery spell costing 1 mana that will deal 3 damage in some way shape or form. Every other non-bolt spell in your deck should be the next closest thing to a bolt for the mana you are paying for it. This consistency makes it difficult for tempo decks to repel our onslaught as there is no "key" spell for them to counter or discard and with each draw, only more will be coming at them. While the deck maintains superior consistency, it also maintains a clock that aggro decks dream of achieving. Burn can win as early as turn 3 in a goldfish, which makes this deck one of the best in the format at punishing mulligans and slow hands. Regarding mulligans, the deck also mulligans very well as it typically only has to do so when land drops are not optimal. Again, the spells in the deck are all very similar upon resolution so as long as a burn player has 2-3 lands to start with, they should be able to go to work on their opponent very quickly.
The Life Factor - Legacy is all about value, and most of the time the best value cards require a life payment. This plays to our advantage as cards like Thoughtseize, Ancient Tomb, Dark Confidant, The fetchlands, phyrexian mana, etc all help us as much as our opponent (and sometimes more).
Budget - Another reason to play burn is that the deck is very budget friendly. Whether you are new to the format and do not have the funds to purchase expensive staples yet, or you are an experienced pro looking to add another deck to your arsenal, competitive burn decks can be built for as low as $100-200. Fully optimized lists (typically fetchland builds) may run closer to $300-500 depending on the deck.
Cons - As with every deck there are downsides to deal with. The biggest by far is that our deck does not have any disruption and has a hard time dealing with non-creature permanents and "unfair" combo decks. You should not consider playing burn in a meta full of glass cannon combo as there is almost no alternate strategy that you can apply during game 1 that can disrupt their plan. The good news is that due to our remarkable speed, our deck always has a chance even in bad matchups simply by racing our opponent.
The Cards
"Embermages aren't well known for their diplomatic skills."
The Core
Lightning Bolt - Instant speed, 1 Red, 3 Damage. One of the best cards ever made, flexible and efficient. Players have even splashed red into aggro decks just as an excuse to fit this card in.
Chain Lightning - The only other card that will immediately 3 for 1 to target creature or player for 1 red. You will use this card hundreds of times without seeing your opponent take advantage of this card's drawback.
Rift Bolt - Does 3 for 1 like Chain, but does not resolve as quickly as Chain does. This is quite possibly the most skill intensive card in the deck, and very underrated at that. If you're good, you can trick an opponent into time-walking themselves by suspending it at the right time, and it also has a unique way of sneaking around Chalice of the Void/Counterbalance if hardcast for 3.
Lava Spike - 3 to the face. Limited, but one of our meat and potatoes spells.
Fireblast - Instant speed game winner. Gets around Counterbalance/Chalice/ locks, and can be used as removal when land flooded. This card can team up with bolts to win you the game with your opponent at an almost comfortable 12 life.
Goblin Guide - Fastest aggro creature in the game. The best way to start a game is turn 1 Goblin Guide, turn 2, Goblin Guide. Sometimes, his drawback can actually be used to your advantage if your opponent reveals a card that tells you what deck they are on. Usually averages 4 damage throughout the game which is disgusting for the 1 red you pay.
Every burn deck should be playing 4 of the above cards, no exceptions.
Outer Core
Price of Progress - Price is technically a core card. However while this card should absolutely be in every burn deck, some builds have found it to be better suited as a 3 piece as instead of 4. Part of the reason is due to virtual card advantage (IE) once your opponent knows you are on burn, they fetch basic lands or leave fetches uncracked in anticipation of price. The other reason is of course meta. If your meta has a lot of Elf, Mono Black, Merfolk, D&T, High Tide etc. 3 may be the better choice.
Grim Lavamancer - Probably the most debated card until Vexing Devil. GLM has long been debated as to whether or not it is viable in most metas. The card has recieved skepticism due to the lack of haste or a big body, and the requirement of a fetchland build. However, GLM has proven itself in tournament play time and time again and probably belongs in the "inner" core as an auto 4 of, but he's not included simply due to the fact that despite his advantages, one can build a reputable burn deck without him. That said, do not underestimate GLM. The card can run games against aggro decks and acts as a way around cards like Counterbalance, Ethersworn Canonist, and Thalia, Guardian of Thraben.
Other Optimal Non-Core Cards
Flame Rift - 2 Mana 4 damage. Curves nicely in a goldfish and kills with Fireblast all the way from 8 life. The card has seen heavy tournament play but needless to say the damage/mana ratio is weak and the card can sometimes hurt more than it helps when going up against the aggro mirror. Still, its one of the few cards that can deal 4 damage for us, and it sneakily plays around Leyline of Sanctity and Misdirection type effects.
Sulfuric Vortex - The only 3 mana spell in the deck (unless you count Rift Bolt). 3 mana is a steep price for a deck that wants to cast multiple spells per turn, but this card gets the job done against control (free damage every turn), and simultaneously hates on those pesky lifegainers. Like Flame Rift and Price of Progress, this card ignores Leyline of Sanctity, and it is especially good in game 2 if you have not shown it to your opponent yet. Typically, your opponent goes to the board for lifegain so if they haven't seen Vortex yet, it can really catch them off guard and make any lifegaining spells that they may have sided in useless against us. This card will sometimes see maindeck play, and sometimes sideboard play, meta depending.
Vexing Devil - One of the most heatedly debated creatures this game has seen in some time. Loved by some for the efficient body/easy damage, hated by others for the Browbeat style mechanic/inconsistency. Devil definitely can have a place in this deck but that is certainly dependent on personal preference and meta. Devil has proven to be explosive, but it is also inconsistent and will never be as useful as Guide or Lavamancer. For this reason, its likely that it may be replaced if and when the time comes when another solid burn creature is printed. In any case, this creature does serve its purpose. Leading off turn 1 with Devil and doing the same turn 2 is enough to give your opponent a massive migraine. The same goes for a turn 1 Guide, turn 2 Devil, or even a turn 1 fetchland, Lavamancer, turn 2 Devil (notice the synergy there with GLM). However drawing into Devil on turn 5 when your opponent already has an established board position is underwhelming at best. All in all, due to its inconsistency, the decision to run Vexing Devil is based on preference and meta, so lots of playtesting is recommended.
Keldon Marauders - Marauders has taken a bit of a backseat role in recent times in favor of the 8 creature build that focuses on using less 2 drops in the deck. Still, a 3/3 for 2 that deals 2 guaranteed and can trade with Thalia, Mongoose and co. isn't bad. Marauders does helps in the fight against decks that use Chalice of the Void and Spell Pierce. It's also worth nothing that Marauders can be a core card in Sligh/tempo builds.
Hellspark Elemental - A potential 6 damage for 4 mana. Its unearth ability gives us decent Virtual card advantage since it can slow down an opposing aggro player by forcing them to leave blockers while still expanding your options. The cons to HSE are that the damage/mana ratio is slightly underwhelming, and it can never be used to chump block since unearth can only be used at sorcery speed.
Figure of Destiny - A mana sink creature that gets bigger as the game goes on. The mana sink is beneficial when you run into mana flood since you can use it to make Figure a 4/4 which will easily trade with nearly every creature in legacy. The drawback here is that your opponent can Plow him in response to your activation which essentially wastes you a turn if you had other spells in hand.
Skullcrack - Skullcrack is tough to analyze due to its young age. This card may compete with Flame Rift for a position in the deck since it smashes lifegain and protection effects at instant speed without dealing the 4 damage to your own face. As of April 2013, it hasn't shown up in any burn lists, though the card is still only a few months old and it may take time for the verdict on this one to become clearer.
Lands
"Crovax hungered for power, and the stronghold devoured the sky."
Mountain - Taps for Red mana. Give us virtual card advantage against decks that use Wasteland, and Blood Moon. Also most obviously it synergizes with Price of Progress.
Barbarian Ring - Barbarian Ring has been absent from mainstream burn decks in recent memory, but its history with the deck merits discussion at the very least. Hitting threshold is very easy with this deck and Barbarian Ring provides an uncounterable way to damage something for 2. Remember, it can't be sacrificed to Fireblast, but Fireblast can help you ramp to threshold to get it online. You should only run 1-2 of these if you decide to include them. Barbarian Ring is not the type of card you want to see with Grim Lavamancer as they counteract each other.
Every burn deck needs to have some form of lifegain hate in their sideboard if not their maindeck (sometimes both is recommended). It's also important to have some way to deal with storm, non-creature spell hate, and artifacts.
The most common - Cards that frequently see play in burn sideboards.
Pyroblast/Red Elemental Blast - One of the best counterspells in the game. The key to using this card is bringing it in against the right deck. Just because a deck has blue in it, doesn't mean you want a REB instead of a burn spell. The decks it works best against are Counterbalance, Jace/control decks, Show and Tell Variants, U/R Delver, and High Tide. Usually it is less optimal to bring in against decks Merfolk, RUG Delver, Bant, and Reanimator as typically those decks don't have any one blue spell or permanent that will shut down our strategy.
Searing Blaze - Searing Blaze is much better suited as a sideboard card since it requires two legal targets in order to be cast. However, in creature heavy metas it can be a viable option for your maindeck. Regardless, it kills threats while at the same time keeping your opponent on a clock. This is a card that will usually not see play in non-fetchland builds due to the increased difficulty of achieving the landfall trigger.
Mindbreak Trap - The Storm Killer. Usually the best chance you have to beating degenerate turn 1 combo as it gets around the storm mechanic and any Overmaster trickery.
Smash to Smithereens - Destroy an Artifact + Lava Spike. Generally better than Shattering Spree in a blind meta since it gives us a Searing Blaze type effect that keeps the pressure on our opponent. Knowing your opponent's archetype is important since most decks use artifacts in their sideboard for their flexibility. Ex. If you are playing against Goblins, you might sideboard Smash in anticipation of Chalice of the Void and Umezawa's Jitte.
Ensnaring Bridge - Most obviously it can buy time against Show and Tell/Reanimator, but Ensnaring Bridge also works very well against RUG Delver, or any aggro deck that relies on Tarmogoyf or even Knight of the Reliquary. Also given the nature or our deck, its usually not hard to get your cards in hand below the power of an opposing Delver, Tombstalker, or Tarmogoyf.
Surgical Extraction - Instant Speed graveyard/combo hate that also lets you look at their library and hand for any surprises that they may be hiding. The Phyrexian mana cost is great in times where playing around Daze or Spell Pierce is necessary.
Vexing Shusher - Can't be countered and has a cheap mana sink that can hose permission decks. 2/2 body can get in for some damage also which means it doesn't lose too much value when drawing multiples. Best used against Counterbalance and Chalice of the Void locks.
Less common
The cards below are less common in burn decks specifically, but are by no means unusable. The decision to run these cards depends on playing in a certain meta where they may be more optimal than the traditional options.
Pithing Needle - The all purpose hater. Doesn't see as much play in burn decks but its worth mentioning for its flexibility and the fact that its almost always a great card to take into a blind meta.
Shattering Spree - The other artifact hate of choice. The copy ability requires mana sink and unlike Smash to Smithereens it doesn't Lava Spike and can only be used as a sorcery. Better suited at dealing with problems like Chalice of the Void and Trinisphere.
Tormod's Crypt - Zero cost graveyard hate. Works best against dredge though its important to practice timing when cracking it.
Pyrostatic Pillar - Combo hate that promotes our win condition. This card is better suited to use against AnT/TES decks and is typically not fast enough to stop strategies that include Goblin Charbelcher.
Volcanic Fallout - Can't be countered sweeper that hits them for 2 as well. Typically if you decide to include Fallout, you are not using a Grim Lavamancer build as those decks prefer Searing Blaze instead. Fallout can be played in the maindeck in some metas.
Faerie Macabre - Uncounterable by conventional means. You generally only want to bring this in against combo as it dilutes your deck. Arguably the best way to hate Reanimator since it gets around Daze and Force of Will.
Grafdigger's Cage - Punishes Reanimator and Dredge. Also hoses Green Sun Zenith.
Relic of Progenitus - Cantrips. Note that Grim Lavamancer builds will have a harder time with this one.
Chaos Warp - One of the few unconditional permanent removal spells ever printed for red. Though at 3 mana it is a bit clunky and doesn't actually net you card advantage.
Ratchet Bomb - Ratchet Bomb is a great answer-all to not only permanent based soft-lock card such as Trinisphere and Counterbalance, but it also deals offers strong card advantage against decks that use an inline cost curve like Elves and other tribal decks.
Builds
For the most part there are two major styles in which to build your deck around. One is a sligh, tempo based mana curve build, and the other is a pure burn based strategy.
Sligh
- Runs more creatures.
- Generally tops out the CMC curve at 3, and sometimes 4 for cards in the sideboard.
- Utilizes cards that are more broadly applicable, albeit slower. Examples - Magma Jet, Volcanic Fallout, Sulfuric Vortex.
- Doesn't use Grim Lavamancer or fetchlands.
"Pure" Burn -
- Typically tops out at 8-12 creatures.
- Likes to use Grim Lavamancer + fetchlands, which means they forego cards like Volcanic Fallout, and instead favor Searing Blaze.
- Is faster than Sligh because it uses more narrower cards that deal damage more efficiently (IE) Flame Rift.
The Sligh build has been noticeably less common as the speed and consistency that the Lavamancer/fetchlands build offers has proven to be a powerful strategy over the last year or so. Decks like Zoo, which is a deck that Sligh builds triumph over, have fallen to the wayside thanks to cards like Delver of Secrets. Aggro decks now have to have a faster clock in order to play against the mirror and the Sligh build just does not have the cards to support those requirements. For example, why wait until at least turn 3 to be able to cast Volcanic Fallout against a Delver player when instead you could just have played a Grim Lavamancer on turn 1 and expanded your options while at the same time forcing your opponent to deal with the threat you've just presented?
Note: Don't be fooled into thinking that a "creatureless" build is somehow more optimal. The design of the creatureless builds is flawed, as well as the concept of gaining virtual card advantage against removal spells. You actually gain more card advantage simply by having a recurring source of damage in the form of a creature than you do by (maybe) being able to negate one of your opponent's spells. Additionally, the "advantage" you gained from Swords to Plowshares, you lost to Spell Pierce, Flusterstorm, Duress, Thalia, Guardian of Thraben, Ethersworn Canonist etc. Land Destruction and mana denial also punishes creatureless decks since those builds are reliant on casting multiple spells each turn since they have no threats already in play.
Bad cards
Cards that are not optimal in our deck
This section is intended to close the case on less optimal cards choices in order to minimize repetitive and tedious discussions throughout the thread.
Thanks to Insaney for putting everything together -
Below are just some of the cards that are considered bad for a deck like Burn. Highlighted are the reasons why they are bad, as well as some examples of such cards.
Note that this list is far from complete. What it aims to do is provide deck builders certain guidelines on what cards NOT to run when attempting to build an optimal Burn list.
Bad Cards:
2 Damage for 1 Mana Spells: Burn has access to 16 3-for-1 Burn spells. 2-for-1 is not efficient enough to be included. Examples:Shock, Seal of Fire, Forked Bolt, etc.
4 Damage for 3 Mana Spells: Burn cannot afford to fill the 3cmc slot with too many cards, as Burn has relatively fewer lands, and is better suited to running cheap, efficient spells. As such, any 3cmc card needs to have a game-changing effect (like Sulfuric Vortex) in order to be considered “good” for Burn. Examples:Flames of the Blood Hand, Char, Flame Javelin, etc.
3 Damage for 2 Mana Spells: For the same reason that 2-for-1 spells are considered bad, 3-for-2 spells also do not merit a space in most Burn lists. An exception exists for cards with a special effect attached to them (like Smash to Smithereens, which destroys problematic Artifacts, or Skullcrack, which prevents Damage Prevention and Life-gain at Instant Speed), but for the most part, they are not good for Burn. Examples:Incinerate, ThunderboltKindle, Flame Burst, etc.
Any card with 4cmc or higher: Burn cannot afford to play cards higher than 4cmc most of the time. There are only a few exceptions to the rule, such as “last ditch effort” cards like Anarchy, which may merit inclusion in the sideboard slot.
X-for-X+1 Spells: They will never come close to the mana efficiency of the other Burn spells. These spells will always have a low damage-to-mana ratio. Just terrible for a deck like Burn. Examples:Fireball, Disintegrate, Banefire, etc.
Acceleration: People might think that Burn requires explosive starts. It doesn’t. What Burn needs is to resolve 6-7 spells in a timely fashion. As such, acceleration is merely taking up space in the opening hand, which could have been an efficient Burn spell instead. Most acceleration cards are also sources for Card Disadvantage, which will hurt Burn by causing long term mana shortage. Examples:Simian Spirit Guide, Lotus Petal, Chrome Mox.
Other Non-Basic Lands: Beyond Barbarian Ring and Fetchlands, Burn should not run any other Non-Basic Lands. This is due to the virtual card advantage that running basics provides – you are more likely to “turn off” cards like Wasteland and Back to Basics and render them blanks. Running Artifact lands to fuel Shrapnel Blast, or Shivan Gorge for “reach” are usually a bad idea.
Cantrips: Threat density is also important to Burn, meaning in order to run Cantrips, you will need to cut lands to maintain threat density. Since you want at least 2 lands in your starting hand, cutting land will force you to mulligan more often, giving you card disadvantage. To make matters worse, you're still running the same threat density so you'll be just as likely to top deck land off those cantrips as in a standard build. So you're still running the same amount of "effective" land, only you pay the price in more mulligans. This doesn't compensate for the added card quality when cutting your "worst" Burn spell for cantrips. Examples:Gitaxian Probe, Street Wraith, Mishra’s Bauble, etc.
Bad Top-Decks with Situational Power: When playing Burn, you will often find yourself in the situation where you're waiting to top deck those last 2-or-so points of damage. While these cards can be just as efficient as any burn spell in very unlikely situations, it's a very bad trade to sacrifice consistency for horrible top decks. As a rule of thumb, if it doesn't deal damage on its own, it doesn't belong in your main deck. Examples:Ankh of Mishra, Fork, Reiterate, Reverberate, Pyromancer Ascension, Shrine of the Burning Rage, Quest for the Pure Flame, etc.
Almost all creatures: Burn doesn't run "creatures" in the strictest sense – rather, it runs the most efficient burn spells ever printed. On very rare occasions, these happen to be creatures. The ONLY thing that matters is how much damage the creature *will* (not can) deal, in actual play, to the opponent - either directly or by virtue of some other mechanic. Extremely few creatures measure up to this level of efficiency. Not even a beast like Tarmogoyf is considered to be efficient enough for Burn. Examples: Any creatures not mentioned in the optimal card choices section.
Bad sweepers: There are only really two choices for sweepers in Burn - Volcanic Fallout and Flamebreak (and for most metas you want Fallout). However, there are many "cool" choices that should probably never be played. Examples:Breath of Darigaaz, Slagstorm, Cave-in, Starstorm etc.
“Pick-your-poison” Cards: These cards will never be better than their worst option - to the point where they will sometimes be completely useless. These cards aren't ”tech”, they are just bad. Examples:Browbeat, Blazing Salvo and Skullscorch. NOTE:One possible “exception” to this rule is Vexing Devil, as both choices result in dealing 4 damage to the opponent. It suffers from inconsistency issues as with the other cards of this type, but in actual testing, it deals the intended 4 damage fairly often. I would personally not use it, but it is worth play-testing.
Close cases: These cards are border-line playable - they may work in certain metas or with specific builds, but you're usually better off avoiding them.
*Shard Volley: This was a staple in many Burn lists before Goblin Guide. It improved our clock and permitted more T3 wins, despite forcing us to run only 3 Fireblast. Since the printing of Guide however, going back up to 4 Fireblast and running the hasty goblin gives even more speed. If you wish though, you can probably run 2 of these alongside a full playset of Fireblasts, but most lists don't have the room.
*Reckless Abandon: A hugely efficient Burn spell that unfortunately shoehorns you into playing a more creatures than most are comfortable with. Supporting more than 2 is not feasible, and you need at least 11 creatures in the deck at all times to do that (meaning you probably need to run more than 11 creatures to not make sideboarding a pain).
*Burning Wish: In a meta that's all over the place with many opponents running main deck shenanigans, Wish can be a way to make more of your 15 SB slots. Only useful in splash builds where you have access to needed bombs like Retribution of the Meek or Tranquility. Most of the time though, you're better off not building a 2-mana tax (and often a 1 turn delay) into your answers.
*Cursed Scroll: Cursed Scroll has both advantages and disadvantages when compared to similar cards that are actually played, such as Grim Lavamancer and Sulfuric Vortex, but right now the meta doesn't favor those advantages. Not targeting players is more important than dealing colorless (Vortex) and coming on-line quickly is more important than resilience and longevity (Lavamancer).
*Magma Jet: While not at all efficient in terms of damage-to-mana ratio, it does provide a very powerful effect in Scry 2, which will help the quality of your draws. However, Burn is consistent enough to not need Scry-effects a whole lot, so it’s more of a preference than anything.
Color Splashing
Historically color splashing has proven to be less optimal for burn though the most common colors to splash have been white and black. (Do not confuse U/R tempo decks as a burn deck with a "blue splash", they are a different strategy all together.) White being the most common for cards like Steppe Lynx, which can get big quickly thanks to landfall, Lightning Helix, which acts as another bolt that gains life, and Oblivion Ring, as an "answer all" sideboard option that the color red typically does not have.
Black is the second most common which splashes for cards like Cabal Therapy (gives us a chance against storm), Bump in the Night, (acts as a 5th bolt), and Rakdos Charm, a powerful sideboard toolbox.
Primarily, the reason that splash builds have not had much success is because the consistency in the mana base drops significantly upon adding splashes. As noted above, the deck already enjoys the benefits of being immune to Price of Progress, Wasteland (most notably), Blood Moon, and to a lesser extent cards like Stifle, Rishadan Port, and Sinkhole.
Also, the splash colors seem to lose consistency regarding the speed of the deck. For example, Lightning Helix probably replaces Flame Rift and Steppe Lynx replaces Keldon Marauders, but the only thing that is guaranteed to happen from this is 2-3 less points of damage (Lightning Helix -1 to Flame Rift, and Marauders guarantees 2 damage, where Lynx guarantees none). In addition, Oblivion Ring might replace a card like Smash to Smithereens, which means -3 damage post boarding.
Play Strategies
How to play the deck
Opening Hand - The most optimal opening hand usually consists of 2 lands, at least one creature, and 3-4 instant/sorcery spells. Our deck runs on all cylinders with 3 lands in play so starting with 2 lands and 5 spells is a great start. One landers are tempting, but most often they should be mulliganed. Daze and Spell Pierce decks will beat you before the game begins if you keep a one lander and dont see another drop until turn 3.
Statistics on land drops - (Thank you Obermeir)
(From the previous burn primer)
I've been flipping through the pages of this thread, as I had missed a couple before, and I really wanted to sort out ''once and for all'' the ideal number of lands to use in a burn deck.
Lormador, who appears to have a combo-oriented mind, suggested to reduce the land count to 14.
in a 60 card deck (Y) of 14 lands (X), what percentage would a seven card hand (Z) yield 0 lands (N)?
the answer is 13.9%. This means that you have an 86.1% chance of drawing AT LEAST 1 land in your opening 7. Those actually aren't bad odds, when you think about it. But what are the odds of getting 2 or more lands in your opening hand?
100 - (13.9 + 34) = 52.1%. These odds are not as impressive. I don't think most burn players would want a coin flip to decide whether they have a starting hand of 2+ lands (2 being the ideal number).
obviously, the lower land count gives us better results in that respect. But to find the ''window'' of the right number of lands to use, we have to do 100 - ((the % of getting 1-0 lands in 7) + (the % of getting 4 or more lands in 7))
21 lands in your deck therefore yields you a 59.7% chance of having 2 or 3 lands in your opening hand.
I find it fascinating how famous Burn players all run mostly 21-land builds. Did they do this math too? Was it intuition?
Of course, I hope you noticed there is only a .6% difference between 20 and 21 lands, and a .21% difference between 21 and 22 lands. Will that really make a difference in a game? No, probably not.
I conclude that running 20-22 lands is the most efficient number. What do you think?
After you have decided to keep your opening hand, you'll want to lead off with a creature if you have it. If not, you want to get rid of your least useful spells first (Lava Spike, Rift Bolt) so that you can save your Chain Lightning's and Lightning Bolt's for removal should you need it. The next 2-3 turns are all about applying pressure while not overextending your burn. Once you get them down within striking distance, finish them off cleanly in one turn. Remember if you have lethal, you have to go for it, don't worry about if they have countermagic or not, if they have it, they have it but the longer you wait the more chances you give them to dig back into the game.
Typically, the order you cast your spells in should look something like this -
Creatures - They get in for the most damage so play them early and let them go to work for you.
Lava Spike, Rift Bolt, - The narrowest cards in the deck so get rid of them for damage quickly. Try to make Rift Bolt the last spell you cast (in this case suspend) per turn to minimize the chance of your other spells being countered by Daze and Spell Pierce.
Chain Lightning - More useful than Rift Bolt and Lava Spike so ideally this is held on to until at least turn 2.
Sulfuric Vortex - Stopping any potential life gain before it starts is important so play this early unless you have reasons not to.
Flame Rift, Lightning Bolt, Fireblast - Finishers. Play them when you are going for the kill or if you absolutely need them for removal. Try to think of Lightning Bolt as our Brainstorm. You basically never want to cast it until you have to.
Regarding Flame Rift, the reason you generally don't want to cast it turn 2 is because it leaves a lot of grey area especially against aggro. For example, playing a turn 1 Goblin Guide into a turn 2 Flame Rift against a Merfolk deck is a good way to get yourself smashed by a horde of Fish in short time. By turn 3 against a Fish deck, Guide is a blocker, not an attacker, they have likely hoarded countermagic and will be vialing in Lords left and right. In this case, the 4 damage you dealt to yourself essentially took a turn off of their clock for them while you haven't made any advances in board position.
The Information War
"Fools dig for water, corpses or gold. The earth's real treasure is much deeper."
If you've played magic before, you've heard the term "overextending". Overextending can be an example of an aggro player casting more many creature spells then necessary which potentially plays into opposing removal/Wrath effects. In burn, it is possible to overextend by casting burn spells when they aren't necessary. To use an example, your opponent is at 11 life and you have a Flame rift, a Fireblast, and a Lightning Bolt in your hand and its your turn, you have two mana. "Getting the most for your mana" here dictates you to play Flame Rift, bringing your opponent down to 7 and leaving you tapped out. By doing this, you get the most with the mana you have available but also you left yourself open by not leaving mana for a Lightning Bolt on your opponent's turn should you need it. More importantly, you also just telegraphed to your opponent that they need to speed up their own clock, which effects their decisions during their next turn - versus burn, the difference between 7 life and 11 life is huge when deciding what cards to play. In other words, in contrast with a storm deck for example, it is important to be aware that your opponent knows your clock - they can see it, because it's their life total! Try to be deceptive with your play, even if they have seen your hand from Thoughtseize, they don't know what you've drawn since then (most players still have to read Fireblast). Sometimes swinging with a creature, then playing a spell, then dropping a land can throw them off since it goes agains the traditional land first main phase, spells second main. If you don't attempt to keep your opponent guessing, you're going to gas out your deck which will in turn cut your opponent's work out for them.
I do however, suggest you reassess Magma Jet. I'm convinced that card creates its own self-fulfilling prophecy - doing less damage per mana and card, thus increasing the importance of the Scry effect to dig into more damage. It does work, but in my own experience you are just as well off running any better damage to mana ratio burn to increase your overall burn efficiency. I used to run the card myself. Just my thoughts on the matter.
Your sideboard has me curious what kind of meta you're going into. You have a lot of sweeper effects. 2 Fallout, 3 Ratchet, AND 3 Bridge??? That's a lot of creature hate in the sideboard for a deck that has good creature based matchups to start with. I also notice the complete lack of graveyard hate and the absence of Red Elemental Blast and Pyroblast. No Dredge, Reanimator, or Omni-Tell in your meta, then?
I do however, suggest you reassess Magma Jet. I'm convinced that card creates its own self-fulfilling prophecy - doing less damage per mana and card, thus increasing the importance of the Scry effect to dig into more damage. It does work, but in my own experience you are just as well off running any better damage to mana ratio burn to increase your overall burn efficiency. I used to run the card myself. Just my thoughts on the matter.
Your sideboard has me curious what kind of meta you're going into. You have a lot of sweeper effects. 2 Fallout, 3 Ratchet, AND 3 Bridge??? That's a lot of creature hate in the sideboard for a deck that has good creature based matchups to start with. I also notice the complete lack of graveyard hate and the absence of Red Elemental Blast and Pyroblast. No Dredge, Reanimator, or Omni-Tell in your meta, then?
Hi and thanks for feedbacks!
About magma jet, what would you switch with, in my actual deck setting??
About side, I was keeping REB for a while in side, but never using it...
I have 2 fallout to get rid of weenies but Ratchet works also for other permanents... bridge instead is to block big fatties that can enter with Green sun's zenith or Show and tell...
I have grav-hate in all the rest of my legacy decks (3 more decks), but with burn I would not be sure which slot sacrifice to put relic or tormod inside....
About magma jet, what would you switch with, in my actual deck setting??
About side, I was keeping REB for a while in side, but never using it...
I have 2 fallout to get rid of weenies but Ratchet works also for other permanents... bridge instead is to block big fatties that can enter with Green sun's zenith or Show and tell...
I have grav-hate in all the rest of my legacy decks (3 more decks), but with burn I would not be sure which slot sacrifice to put relic or tormod inside....
I'd start with -2 Magma Jet, +2 Flame Rift. Non-Lavamancer list tend to be geared more towards pure speed. Test that and see if the increased amount of mutual damage works for you. After that, I'd recommend trying +2 creatures. Vexing Devil, Figure of Destiny, and Keldon Marauders come to mind as first picks since you don't like Grim Lavamancer.
As for the sideboard, you say you weren't ever using the REBs but they're one of Burn's few ways of fighting Show and Tell. Ensnaring Bridge will stop the fatties, but Omni-Tell varients can get around that with alternate win cons. But you can get by without REB if that's your preference. I just like it's versatility.
You know your Bridges can block more than just fatties like Griselbrand? So you don't necessarily need so much creature answers. Burn empties it's hand real fast. By the time you cast a Bridge on turn 3/4 you ought to be able to keep a flipped Delver of Secrets from attacking you.
As for the "how to play" section, I think you could tell that it's not always to use Rift bolts as first ones. I can imagine 2 exceptions right away: Trinisphere and counterbalance. Trinisphere, as you need to pay 3 mana even if you suspend it (yes, with alternate cost you still need to pay 3 mana from Fireblast too, so this "fireblast plays around trinisphere" statement isn't true. Nothing plays around Trinisphere!") and counterbalance because lightning bolts and chain lightnings are easier to counter with that pesky enchantment than Rift Bolts ever are.
I'm not sure exactly what you're suggesting here. Suspending Rift Bolt early is a generally sound rule of thumb. Like every rule of thumb for game play in Legacy there are corner case exceptions. The Primer clearly states that this is a "typical" suggested order for spells, not a matter of "always". Furthermore, the reasons for casting spells in that order are explained. If a particular matchup changes those reasons, then it's a small leap of logic to change your gameplay in response.
There actually was a matchup section for the primer, but I'm not sure what happened to it...
The primer is intended to be an introduction to how the deck works. If every single detail is covered (and granted this primer is much longer than most MTGS Primers), there would need to be several pages of written material that no one wants to read when they are simply getting an idea of what the deck is about.
Michaelangelo, I notice in your sig that you describe your mono R deck as "Vexing Devil Wins," and I'm curious to see how you've utilized the creature. Could you possibly post that list? It's absent from the (wonderful) primer.
Michaelangelo, I notice in your sig that you describe your mono R deck as "Vexing Devil Wins," and I'm curious to see how you've utilized the creature. Could you possibly post that list? It's absent from the (wonderful) primer.
Thanks! This is what I have been working with recently.
Vexing Devil is mainly used in my build as an additional way to jump start my first 1-3 turns. Leading off with it turns 1 and 2 almost always results in a game win against non-combo decks. With them at 12 (10 or 11 if they have used fetchlands), they are already in range for lethal if you can drop a land on turn three and have a Fireblast or situation depending, Price of Progress. Game 2 I usually side Devil out after showing it to my opponent which hopefully makes them strategize against him when sideboarding.
Right now I'm considering adding the 4th Price of Progress back in due to the the hungry mana bases we're seeing right now. I may also drop 1 Pyroblast for 1 more Smash to Smithereens for consistency.
By the way, diid you see the little Easter Egg I left for you in the land stats section?
I'd start with -2 Magma Jet, +2 Flame Rift. Non-Lavamancer list tend to be geared more towards pure speed. Test that and see if the increased amount of mutual damage works for you. After that, I'd recommend trying +2 creatures. Vexing Devil, Figure of Destiny, and Keldon Marauders come to mind as first picks since you don't like Grim Lavamancer.
What would you remove for this 2 more creatures?
Did you mean -2 magma jet again, so no magma jet in the end?
Vexing Devil is mainly used in my build as an additional way to jump start my first 1-3 turns. Leading off with it turns 1 and 2 almost always results in a game win against non-combo decks. With them at 12 (10 or 11 if they have used fetchlands), they are already in range for lethal if you can drop a land on turn three and have a Fireblast or situation depending, Price of Progress. Game 2 I usually side Devil out after showing it to my opponent which hopefully makes them strategize against him when sideboarding.
Right now I'm considering adding the 4th Price of Progress back in due to the the hungry mana bases we're seeing right now. I may also drop 1 Pyroblast for 1 more Smash to Smithereens for consistency.
By the way, diid you see the little Easter Egg I left for you in the land stats section?
Ha ha! Wow, I has almost forgotten about the time I suggested 14 lands. I think that's quite an awful idea now: it's just asking to be locked out of the game by a Thalia, Port, or both, and it wouldn't allow one to play Sulfuric Vortex at all.
...but back to Vexing Devil, I've started really testing him out and I think he's better than he looks on paper. 4 damage is just a whole lot for 1 mana. Sometimes it fails, sure, but sometimes Price of Progress fails. Heck, 4 damage from 2 mana is so much that Flame Rift is very playable!
Another card that I think may be worth a second look in Lavamancer builds is Gitaxian Probe. If 1 life and Stifle-danger is worth it to put a land in the graveyard for GLM and Searing Blaze, is there any a priori reason why 2 life shouldn't be worth it for the same card, higher average burn quality, and information?
Vexing Devil is mainly used in my build as an additional way to jump start my first 1-3 turns. Leading off with it turns 1 and 2 almost always results in a game win against non-combo decks. With them at 12 (10 or 11 if they have used fetchlands), they are already in range for lethal if you can drop a land on turn three and have a Fireblast or situation depending, Price of Progress. Game 2 I usually side Devil out after showing it to my opponent which hopefully makes them strategize against him when sideboarding.
I actually really like this idea. Having Devil be the first thing to side out is probably the best way to make the most of both its' explosiveness and its' weakness.
Another card that I think may be worth a second look in Lavamancer builds is Gitaxian Probe. If 1 life and Stifle-danger is worth it to put a land in the graveyard for GLM and Searing Blaze, is there any a priori reason why 2 life shouldn't be worth it for the same card, higher average burn quality, and information?
This is an interesting thought. My only concern is that probe draws a random card, instead of tutoring up a mountain. This is an essential part of fetches, and one I believe that makes the superior Glm fuel. Would the build in question remove 4 fetches and replace with 4 probes? If so I'd be weary of mana issues.
How the deck matches up against various tier 1 and 2 archetypes.
"I've been all over this world. I even remember some of those places."
BUG Control - Favorable - This deck tries to work a card advantage engine that it based on wasting creatures, lands, and other permanent cards. This gives us good virtual card advantage which goes a long way in a matchup where we are clearly faster than our opponent. Be sure to remove Deathrite Shaman early so that they can't buy time to use Hymn to Tourach, Liliana, and Jace to get themselves back into the game.
Pox - Favorable - Like BUG control, they focus on land screw and permanent based removal. Hymn to Tourach is probably their best card in this matchup but our superior speed allows us to get rid of our hand before they can make too much of an impact. Again, we gain a lot of virtual card advantage against this deck thanks to us being immune to Wasteland and because we only need 1-2 lands to function which makes Sinkhole and Smallpox less of a threat. You will however want to be careful though as some Pox lists will include Chalice of the Void in their sideboard. Another card to watch out for is Syphon Life, which can be repeatedly spammed if they are playing the Green/Black Life From the Loam variant.
Lands - Favorable - Price of Progress is GG for this deck barring Zuran Orb/Glacial Chasm combo. Using the stack can beat this lockdown by responding with burn to their Life From The Loam, and from their Orb activations. Smash to Smithereens is good to board in for their Mox Diamond and Zuran Orb. Also if you're feeling cute Faerie Macabre and Surgical Extraction can break their Life From the Loam loop.
The Gate - Favorable. They have a hard time slowing us down as we gain advantages off of their own bread and butter spells such as Dark Confidant, Thoughtseize, and Bitterblossom. Typically, the gate will run Vampire Nighthawk and Jitte maindeck, with possibly a Sword in the sideboard. Deal with these two problems and it is generally a solid matchup for us. You'll want to cut out Lava Spike for Searing Blaze and potentially something else for Smash to Smithereens if you suspect more artifacts in addition to Jitte. Even so, Sulfuric Vortex takes care of any lifegain and luckily black has no way to deal with enchantments unless they are using the Green splash for Abrupt Decay.
Affinity - Even to favorable. This matchup usually comes down to a race favoring Burn slightly, although Affinity can simply come out of the gates too fast with dream hands that are overwhelming. Save bolts that can act as removal for lifelinkers like Vault Skirge and anything with a Cranial Plating attached if your life total is in danger. Lavamancer can kill almost every creature the deck plays and Price of Progress wins us games. Smash to Smithereens, Shattering Spree, and/or Searing Blaze out of the sideboard can really push the advantage to your favor. Side out anything that isn't removal like Lava Spike.
Jund - Even to favorable - We are faster than they are and their only lifegainer (Deathrite Shaman) dies to any removal we throw at him. They will however use Thoughtseize, Liliana, and Hymn to Tourach to slow us down. Searing Blaze is a decent card to board in since they run a good amount of creatures and you'll want to have removal for Deathrite Shaman before he becomes a problem.
Elves - Even to favorable - Now that they have Deathrite Shaman they have upped their threat count on us but ultimately it comes down to burning out their weenies until they run out of gas. Searing Blaze is usually a helpful card to board in against them. Also, it may be tempting to bring in Mindbreak Trap, but it is not at all the card we want against Elves. Firstly, it is too situational, and second is that they can win without their bomb spells (presumably what you would use Mindbreak Trap on) by just swinging at us with an army of 1/1's and 2/2's after combo-ing off.
Zombardment - Even - Remember that any creature you kill is coming back (Gravecrawler, Bloodghast, Geralf's Messenger) so use your removal wisely, hitting Carrion Feeder at the right time can erase a lot of work that they put in. Again, Searing Blaze works well as you race their clock. Don't board out creatures since you will need blockers and lame duck targets to eat removal so that you can keep your Grim Lavamancer in play.
RUG - Even - Our clock is faster than theirs but they have good countermagic tech (Spell Pierce, Daze). Luckily, they have no life-gainers in their deck and Grim Lavamancer can ruin their clock especially if you get him to ping off Delver early. Their deck only runs 12 creatures so removing one of their threats can heavily disrupt their gameplan. Ensnaring Bridge is killer to bring in post boarding. Also keep in mind that if you side out creatures, you begin to play into cards like Flusterstorm and Spell Pierce, so usually its a better move to side out cards like Lava Spike and Flame Rift.
U/R Delver - Even - Feels like RUG but with Goblin Guide and Grim Lavamancer instead of Mongoose and Tarmogoyf. Board out Sulfuric Vortex for Searing Blaze and Pyroblast. Also be careful of Flame Rift in this matchup since they have a fast clock and like us they are packing Lightning Bolts and Fireblasts. Price of Progress will still work on them since their Wastelands can't be cracked on our lands, meaning that they will likely have some excess mana.
BUG aggro - Even - Similar to the RUG version choosing to omit Lightning Bolts and Forked Bolts for Abrupt Decay and Shardless Agent. Again, burn out Deathrite Shaman when you can and try to play around their countermagic. Ensnaring Bridge works against this variant as well and especially hurts Tombstalker.
12 Post - Even - Another race. Game 1 we have an advantage thanks to Price of Progress and just being faster than they are. Game 2 they will pack Show and Tell so bring Ensnaring Bridge and don't forget that these decks typically use 11-12 artifacts main deck and usually have a way to tutor them so Smash to Smithereens can be a house on its own.
Maverick - Even to less favorable - They use creatures such as Scavenging Ooze, Stoneforge Mystic, and Thalia, Guardian of Thraben to disrupt our gameplan with more coming from the sideboard (Ethersworn Canonist, Gaddock Teeg). It's usually a good move to burn Mom as Thalia + Mother of Runes lockdown is extremely frustrating to play against. That said, a good management of spells and tempo can guide you to victory against Maverick.
Death and Taxes - Even to less favorable - Similar to Maverick but without cards like Teeg, Scavenging Ooze, and Knight of the Reliquary. Smash to Smithereens is great to board in against Aether Vial, Batterskull, Phyrexian Revoker, and Umezawa's Jitte. Treat this deck like Maverick but with a slower clock and more controllish elements.
High Tide - Even to less favorable - While they dont pack heavy discard like Tendrils, they do have maindeck room for Force of Will and Flusterstorm. Sideboarding is obvious, bring Mindbreak Trap and Pyroblast. If you're bold you can try bringing Smash to Smithereens for their Candelabra. We don't have any relevant disruption for them game 1 but the good news is that this deck takes until at least turn 3 to combo off which gives us a solid chance to race them.
Goblins - Even to less favorable - Try to burn their Goblin Lackey or you'll be staring down Ringleader, Warchief, and Piledriver before you know it. What makes this matchup tough is that they can put out more threats than we can afford to remove so it becomes a balance of which Goblin to kill while also maintaining pressure on their life total. Watch out for Jitte and Chalice of the Void game 2. Generally you'll want to board out Flame Rift since it improves their already fast clock. Replace that with Searing Blaze and/or Smash to Smithereens.
TES/AnT - Less Favorable - While both burn and tendrils decks have about the same clock, Tendrils decks will pack Duress and Cabal Therapy which often slows us down just enough for them to go off before we can finish them. The one positive is that playing burn can shut down the Ad Nauseam route which limits them to Past in Flames/ Ill-gotten Gains. Bring in Mindbreak Trap and make them play around you.
Esperblade/UW control - Less Favorable - They have a lot of maindeck answers, Counterblance is a tough lockdown, Rest in Peace shuts down Lavamancer, Stoneforge Mystic can tutor lifegaining equipment cards. In this matchup, board in Smash to Smithereens for their equipment and Pyroblast for Jace and co.
Dredge - Less favorable - There are a couple things we can do to slow them down. One is to use Lavamancer or a burn spell to kill one of our own creatures to shut off Bridge From Below. Another is Ensnaring Bridge if it comes down early enough. Other than that, it's a race that they are generally a bit faster at. On the other hand, if you have Volcanic Fallout, you'll have some nice tech against their zombie tokens.
Merfolk - Less Favorable - Even without the Islandwalk bonus, the Lords make their creatures into 4/4's and 5/5's very quickly and they also maindeck cards like Spell Pierce, Daze, Force of Will, and Cursecatcher, with Hydroblast, Flusterstorm, and more Spell Pierces coming from the sideboard. Board out Price of Progress and Sulfuric Vortex for Red blast and Searing Blaze.
Belcher - Unfavorable - Game 1 is almost impossible to win against this deck barring a horrible hand on their part, or a whiff on a Belcher activation. Take Grim Lavamancer and Price of Progress out for Mindbreak Trap and mulligan aggressively.
Show and Tell - Unfavorable - Game 1 our only two outs are racing them, and having a Sulfuric Vortex in hand when they Show Griselbrand. Game 2 we can bring in Ensnaring Bridge which can single-handedly win us the game against Show, but does nothing against Sneak Attack unless we manage to resolve it before they do. It may be worth it to board in Mindbreak Trap against the OmniTell variant as they typically run 12-16 cantrips/tutors and also use the Petals of Insight + Grapeshot win-con.
Reanimator - Unfavorable - They are fast, especially variants using Lotus Petal. Iona, Shield Emeria lock is usually an instant scoop and Griselbrand isn't much better unless we already have a resolved Sulfuric Vortex. The one thing that can help is sometimes they have to rely on Careful Study for reanimation which may limit their choice of which fattie to reanimate (Elesh Norn isn't that big of a deal for us). Plus Reanimate is a good 7-9 free damage for us. It's worth noting that Sulfuric Vortex isn't exactly the card to side out against them as they usually go for Show and Tell post boarding, which if played can shut down Griselbrand and Sphinx of the Steel Wind from gaining life for them.
MUD - Unfavorable - Trinisphere, Lodestone Golem, and Chalice of the Void lockdown is a tough one. Luckily they have Ancient Tomb in their deck and may need to use it more than once which may help our cause. Game 2 and 3 board out your slowest cards for Smash to Smithereens, and potentially Ensnaring Bridge if you think you can manage it.
Is there any way we can get the matchup section on the first page of the primer?
P.s. The new Chandra is a let down.. Please WOTC give red some love.
Yes. Yes it is a letdown. I was really, really hoping for a 3 CMC Chandra that Burn could actually use. The saddest thing of all is that I love the new Chandra's 0 ability. I think it's exactly the kind of useful, but not broken sort of effect that would be perfect to put on a planeswalker that Burn could use. But the rest of her just doesn't fit. So close, but so far away.
Another card that I think may be worth a second look in Lavamancer builds is Gitaxian Probe. If 1 life and Stifle-danger is worth it to put a land in the graveyard for GLM and Searing Blaze, is there any a priori reason why 2 life shouldn't be worth it for the same card, higher average burn quality, and information?
Cantrips are a bad idea for Burn IMO. You might think that it improves card quality, but making space for it in the deck involves 1 of 2 scenarios:
1. You cut land, which will cause mana problems later on; or
2. You cut threats, which will lower the deck's threat density (which is not really tantamount to "burn quality")
If Gitaxian Probe guaranteed that you draw exactly what you need when you need it, then fine it merits inclusion. But that isn't the case.
Besides, with only a maximum of 4 copies, the perceived "deck-thinning" and "improved card quality" it supposedly produces is negligible. If 12 fetchlands don't give significant deck-thinning, what more 4 Gitaxian Probes?
For me, Cantrips are strictly for engine-type combo decks like Storm, and not for Burn.
See the Bad Cards section of the primer. The list there was derived from the myriad of testing that various Burn players have done with the deck, and most tests conclude that adding Cantrips does nothing but hurt Burn.
Actually, Burn's matchup against 12-post is favorable. 12-post has little basics, so Price of Progress just kills them outright. Their only chance of winning is to Show and Tell Emrakul on Turn 3 on the back of 2 Glimmerposts and a Basic Island. Beyond that, they are extremely easy to race, as they do little during the first 3 turns.
Playing with the stack is vital in this matchup, as you will need to respond to Primeval Titan's Triggered Ability with Instant-Speed Burn, so it's best to spend the first few turns playing your Sorceries like Lava Spike and Rift Bolt. Also, you can respond to Glimmerpost's ETB ability. Skullcrack and Sulfuric Vortex are key to this matchup.
Game 2 and 3 they will be bringing in counterspells to stop key Burn Spells, and maybe even debilitating Show and Tell targets like Iona and Platinum Emperion, so watch out for that. Smash to Smithereens can come in from the board to take care of Candelabra and Expedition Maps.
It's kind of hard to label matchups for this deck since we're not really favorable or unfavorable against too many decks, we're just faster than they are, and they have more answers than we do. So ultimately, due to our consistency, we can beat decks like Counterbalance and Trinisphere just from redundancy alone.
I have a few questions.
I only own two fetch lands, is it worth playing them, also should I be running Grim Lavamancer with just two fetches?
If I drop the Lavamancers, is Ball Lightning a suitable replacement?
Thanks!
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Vintage! Where the early game is Shuffling, the midgame is Mulliganing, and the Late game is turn 1
I have a few questions.
I only own two fetch lands, is it worth playing them, also should I be running Grim Lavamancer with just two fetches?
If I drop the Lavamancers, is Ball Lightning a suitable replacement?
Thanks!
Any number of fetches is better than none in a Lavamancer build. Two will help. Try to trade for more. I myself only run 8, though many prefer 10. You will often have enough fuel for Lavamancer even without the fetches. The fetches just push you up to the level of absolute consistency. And they turn on Searing Blaze if you want to sideboard that.
Ball Lightning is not suitable for Burn in any way, shape, or form. Ball Lightning only seems good until you run up against Daze or Thalia. Run Hellspark Elemental if you want to try that style of creature.
See the Bad Cards section of the primer. The list there was derived from the myriad of testing that various Burn players have done with the deck, and most tests conclude that adding Cantrips does nothing but hurt Burn.
I noticed the Bad Cards section. Many cards listed there are obviously bad, and some are borderline. I'm simply not willing to put my faith in the "myriad" of testing others have done, possibly because I don't personally know any players who have put more than a few hours of thought into Burn, they're all playing Show and Tell, Deathblade, Tin Fins, Omnitell, Miracles, Jund perhaps, you know... the "real decks." Even I'm going to pilot DnT, rather than Burn, at the SCG this weekend.
One really has to do one's own testing, hence my comment: I'm not asking whether Probe is ok, I'm making the contribution that my own testing has come out, to my great surprise, somewhat in favor of this dumb-looking card. YMMV. My name is Lormador, and I approve this message.
It comes down to the information. Sometimes it helps to know if there's a Stifle over there, or a Daze, or an Abrupt Decay, or if the Mother of Runes just played is going to protect a Stoneforge Mystic, or if Thalia is going to be a problem. Gitaxian Probe is a card in the grave for Lava Man to eat, 2 life lost, and pretty good information for the rest of the game. It doesn't deck thin, and that doesn't matter. As for land/threat count, that calculation is trivial.
...at the end of the day I may prefer Marauders, but Probe is better than it looks.
I noticed the Bad Cards section. Many cards listed there are obviously bad, and some are borderline. I'm simply not willing to put my faith in the "myriad" of testing others have done, possibly because I don't personally know any players who have put more than a few hours of thought into Burn, they're all playing Show and Tell, Deathblade, Tin Fins, Omnitell, Miracles, Jund perhaps, you know... the "real decks." Even I'm going to pilot DnT, rather than Burn, at the SCG this weekend.
One really has to do one's own testing, hence my comment: I'm not asking whether Probe is ok, I'm making the contribution that my own testing has come out, to my great surprise, somewhat in favor of this dumb-looking card. YMMV. My name is Lormador, and I approve this message.
It comes down to the information. Sometimes it helps to know if there's a Stifle over there, or a Daze, or an Abrupt Decay, or if the Mother of Runes just played is going to protect a Stoneforge Mystic, or if Thalia is going to be a problem. Gitaxian Probe is a card in the grave for Lava Man to eat, 2 life lost, and pretty good information for the rest of the game. It doesn't deck thin, and that doesn't matter. As for land/threat count, that calculation is trivial.
And as a side note, normally I play pretty ballsy when I play Burn. Meaning even if I expect Daze or Stifle, so long as I can afford getting Dazed or Stifled, I just run into it blindly. More times than not, I get to do what I want because of the psychological edge of playing a linear (ergo, "ballsy") deck like Burn.
...at the end of the day I may prefer Marauders, but Probe is better than it looks.
Granted of course that the Bad Cards section was meant to be a starting point for one's own testing.
Still, most of the scenarios you mentioned about having good information are already examples of what experienced players with Burn ought to be doing. For example, if you know you play against RUG, automatically you play around Daze and Stifle without having to think whether they have it in hand or not. Mother of Runes is almost-always an auto-kill (unless your hand has a turn 3 kill which renders Mommy irrelevant), and Thalia is ALWAYS a problem when facing Maverick.
Still, I can understand your perspective, as I've always loathed getting hit by an opponent's probe because it gives them a significant advantage, particularly during the early game when both players have full hands.
But personally, I've played with Cantrips before, and they really feel as if they're unnecessary in Burn for the sake of Cantripping. Now, adding a non-tangible effect like Gitaxian Probe's can have some merit, but at the end of the day, I dunno if the idea of "Perfect" information is something I'd really want in my list at the risk of cutting additional threats.
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Introduction -
Burn is a deck that uses efficient creatures and Red instant and sorcery spells to deal direct damage to your opponent in an effort to end the game as quickly as possible using little to no disruption. Burn has long been a strategy, and many of the original "burn spells" like Lightning Bolt and Chain Lightning are still relevant in burn decks today. These spells when used together, can reduce your opponent's life total to zero before they are able to stabilize and carry out their strategy, ending the game in a fiery fashion.
Why Play Burn?
Burn is the perfect example of what happens when speed meets consistency. In fact, burn is arguably the most consistent deck in the format due to the fact that almost every spell you cast will have the same 3 damage for 1 mana effect. Your typical burn deck will contain at least 16 "bolts". "Bolt" spells are variations of, and are named after the iconic card Lightning Bolt. Each bolt spell is a red instant or sorcery spell costing 1 mana that will deal 3 damage in some way shape or form. Every other non-bolt spell in your deck should be the next closest thing to a bolt for the mana you are paying for it. This consistency makes it difficult for tempo decks to repel our onslaught as there is no "key" spell for them to counter or discard and with each draw, only more will be coming at them. While the deck maintains superior consistency, it also maintains a clock that aggro decks dream of achieving. Burn can win as early as turn 3 in a goldfish, which makes this deck one of the best in the format at punishing mulligans and slow hands. Regarding mulligans, the deck also mulligans very well as it typically only has to do so when land drops are not optimal. Again, the spells in the deck are all very similar upon resolution so as long as a burn player has 2-3 lands to start with, they should be able to go to work on their opponent very quickly.
The Life Factor - Legacy is all about value, and most of the time the best value cards require a life payment. This plays to our advantage as cards like Thoughtseize, Ancient Tomb, Dark Confidant, The fetchlands, phyrexian mana, etc all help us as much as our opponent (and sometimes more).
Budget - Another reason to play burn is that the deck is very budget friendly. Whether you are new to the format and do not have the funds to purchase expensive staples yet, or you are an experienced pro looking to add another deck to your arsenal, competitive burn decks can be built for as low as $100-200. Fully optimized lists (typically fetchland builds) may run closer to $300-500 depending on the deck.
Cons - As with every deck there are downsides to deal with. The biggest by far is that our deck does not have any disruption and has a hard time dealing with non-creature permanents and "unfair" combo decks. You should not consider playing burn in a meta full of glass cannon combo as there is almost no alternate strategy that you can apply during game 1 that can disrupt their plan. The good news is that due to our remarkable speed, our deck always has a chance even in bad matchups simply by racing our opponent.
The Cards
"Embermages aren't well known for their diplomatic skills."
The Core
Lightning Bolt - Instant speed, 1 Red, 3 Damage. One of the best cards ever made, flexible and efficient. Players have even splashed red into aggro decks just as an excuse to fit this card in.
Chain Lightning - The only other card that will immediately 3 for 1 to target creature or player for 1 red. You will use this card hundreds of times without seeing your opponent take advantage of this card's drawback.
Rift Bolt - Does 3 for 1 like Chain, but does not resolve as quickly as Chain does. This is quite possibly the most skill intensive card in the deck, and very underrated at that. If you're good, you can trick an opponent into time-walking themselves by suspending it at the right time, and it also has a unique way of sneaking around Chalice of the Void/Counterbalance if hardcast for 3.
Lava Spike - 3 to the face. Limited, but one of our meat and potatoes spells.
Fireblast - Instant speed game winner. Gets around Counterbalance/Chalice/ locks, and can be used as removal when land flooded. This card can team up with bolts to win you the game with your opponent at an almost comfortable 12 life.
Goblin Guide - Fastest aggro creature in the game. The best way to start a game is turn 1 Goblin Guide, turn 2, Goblin Guide. Sometimes, his drawback can actually be used to your advantage if your opponent reveals a card that tells you what deck they are on. Usually averages 4 damage throughout the game which is disgusting for the 1 red you pay.
Every burn deck should be playing 4 of the above cards, no exceptions.
Outer Core
Price of Progress - Price is technically a core card. However while this card should absolutely be in every burn deck, some builds have found it to be better suited as a 3 piece as instead of 4. Part of the reason is due to virtual card advantage (IE) once your opponent knows you are on burn, they fetch basic lands or leave fetches uncracked in anticipation of price. The other reason is of course meta. If your meta has a lot of Elf, Mono Black, Merfolk, D&T, High Tide etc. 3 may be the better choice.
Grim Lavamancer - Probably the most debated card until Vexing Devil. GLM has long been debated as to whether or not it is viable in most metas. The card has recieved skepticism due to the lack of haste or a big body, and the requirement of a fetchland build. However, GLM has proven itself in tournament play time and time again and probably belongs in the "inner" core as an auto 4 of, but he's not included simply due to the fact that despite his advantages, one can build a reputable burn deck without him. That said, do not underestimate GLM. The card can run games against aggro decks and acts as a way around cards like Counterbalance, Ethersworn Canonist, and Thalia, Guardian of Thraben.
Other Optimal Non-Core Cards
Flame Rift - 2 Mana 4 damage. Curves nicely in a goldfish and kills with Fireblast all the way from 8 life. The card has seen heavy tournament play but needless to say the damage/mana ratio is weak and the card can sometimes hurt more than it helps when going up against the aggro mirror. Still, its one of the few cards that can deal 4 damage for us, and it sneakily plays around Leyline of Sanctity and Misdirection type effects.
Sulfuric Vortex - The only 3 mana spell in the deck (unless you count Rift Bolt). 3 mana is a steep price for a deck that wants to cast multiple spells per turn, but this card gets the job done against control (free damage every turn), and simultaneously hates on those pesky lifegainers. Like Flame Rift and Price of Progress, this card ignores Leyline of Sanctity, and it is especially good in game 2 if you have not shown it to your opponent yet. Typically, your opponent goes to the board for lifegain so if they haven't seen Vortex yet, it can really catch them off guard and make any lifegaining spells that they may have sided in useless against us. This card will sometimes see maindeck play, and sometimes sideboard play, meta depending.
Vexing Devil - One of the most heatedly debated creatures this game has seen in some time. Loved by some for the efficient body/easy damage, hated by others for the Browbeat style mechanic/inconsistency. Devil definitely can have a place in this deck but that is certainly dependent on personal preference and meta. Devil has proven to be explosive, but it is also inconsistent and will never be as useful as Guide or Lavamancer. For this reason, its likely that it may be replaced if and when the time comes when another solid burn creature is printed. In any case, this creature does serve its purpose. Leading off turn 1 with Devil and doing the same turn 2 is enough to give your opponent a massive migraine. The same goes for a turn 1 Guide, turn 2 Devil, or even a turn 1 fetchland, Lavamancer, turn 2 Devil (notice the synergy there with GLM). However drawing into Devil on turn 5 when your opponent already has an established board position is underwhelming at best. All in all, due to its inconsistency, the decision to run Vexing Devil is based on preference and meta, so lots of playtesting is recommended.
Keldon Marauders - Marauders has taken a bit of a backseat role in recent times in favor of the 8 creature build that focuses on using less 2 drops in the deck. Still, a 3/3 for 2 that deals 2 guaranteed and can trade with Thalia, Mongoose and co. isn't bad. Marauders does helps in the fight against decks that use Chalice of the Void and Spell Pierce. It's also worth nothing that Marauders can be a core card in Sligh/tempo builds.
Hellspark Elemental - A potential 6 damage for 4 mana. Its unearth ability gives us decent Virtual card advantage since it can slow down an opposing aggro player by forcing them to leave blockers while still expanding your options. The cons to HSE are that the damage/mana ratio is slightly underwhelming, and it can never be used to chump block since unearth can only be used at sorcery speed.
Figure of Destiny - A mana sink creature that gets bigger as the game goes on. The mana sink is beneficial when you run into mana flood since you can use it to make Figure a 4/4 which will easily trade with nearly every creature in legacy. The drawback here is that your opponent can Plow him in response to your activation which essentially wastes you a turn if you had other spells in hand.
Skullcrack - Skullcrack is tough to analyze due to its young age. This card may compete with Flame Rift for a position in the deck since it smashes lifegain and protection effects at instant speed without dealing the 4 damage to your own face. As of April 2013, it hasn't shown up in any burn lists, though the card is still only a few months old and it may take time for the verdict on this one to become clearer.
Lands
"Crovax hungered for power, and the stronghold devoured the sky."
Mountain - Taps for Red mana. Give us virtual card advantage against decks that use Wasteland, and Blood Moon. Also most obviously it synergizes with Price of Progress.
Barbarian Ring - Barbarian Ring has been absent from mainstream burn decks in recent memory, but its history with the deck merits discussion at the very least. Hitting threshold is very easy with this deck and Barbarian Ring provides an uncounterable way to damage something for 2. Remember, it can't be sacrificed to Fireblast, but Fireblast can help you ramp to threshold to get it online. You should only run 1-2 of these if you decide to include them. Barbarian Ring is not the type of card you want to see with Grim Lavamancer as they counteract each other.
The Red Fetches
Bloodstained Mire, Wooded Foothills, Arid Mesa, and Scalding Tarn - They feed Grim Lavamancer, Barbarian Ring, and Searing Blaze. If you play the fetchland build note that you do become vunerable to Stifle.
Sideboarding
Every burn deck needs to have some form of lifegain hate in their sideboard if not their maindeck (sometimes both is recommended). It's also important to have some way to deal with storm, non-creature spell hate, and artifacts.
The most common - Cards that frequently see play in burn sideboards.
Pyroblast/Red Elemental Blast - One of the best counterspells in the game. The key to using this card is bringing it in against the right deck. Just because a deck has blue in it, doesn't mean you want a REB instead of a burn spell. The decks it works best against are Counterbalance, Jace/control decks, Show and Tell Variants, U/R Delver, and High Tide. Usually it is less optimal to bring in against decks Merfolk, RUG Delver, Bant, and Reanimator as typically those decks don't have any one blue spell or permanent that will shut down our strategy.
Searing Blaze - Searing Blaze is much better suited as a sideboard card since it requires two legal targets in order to be cast. However, in creature heavy metas it can be a viable option for your maindeck. Regardless, it kills threats while at the same time keeping your opponent on a clock. This is a card that will usually not see play in non-fetchland builds due to the increased difficulty of achieving the landfall trigger.
Mindbreak Trap - The Storm Killer. Usually the best chance you have to beating degenerate turn 1 combo as it gets around the storm mechanic and any Overmaster trickery.
Smash to Smithereens - Destroy an Artifact + Lava Spike. Generally better than Shattering Spree in a blind meta since it gives us a Searing Blaze type effect that keeps the pressure on our opponent. Knowing your opponent's archetype is important since most decks use artifacts in their sideboard for their flexibility. Ex. If you are playing against Goblins, you might sideboard Smash in anticipation of Chalice of the Void and Umezawa's Jitte.
Ensnaring Bridge - Most obviously it can buy time against Show and Tell/Reanimator, but Ensnaring Bridge also works very well against RUG Delver, or any aggro deck that relies on Tarmogoyf or even Knight of the Reliquary. Also given the nature or our deck, its usually not hard to get your cards in hand below the power of an opposing Delver, Tombstalker, or Tarmogoyf.
Surgical Extraction - Instant Speed graveyard/combo hate that also lets you look at their library and hand for any surprises that they may be hiding. The Phyrexian mana cost is great in times where playing around Daze or Spell Pierce is necessary.
Vexing Shusher - Can't be countered and has a cheap mana sink that can hose permission decks. 2/2 body can get in for some damage also which means it doesn't lose too much value when drawing multiples. Best used against Counterbalance and Chalice of the Void locks.
Less common
The cards below are less common in burn decks specifically, but are by no means unusable. The decision to run these cards depends on playing in a certain meta where they may be more optimal than the traditional options.
Pithing Needle - The all purpose hater. Doesn't see as much play in burn decks but its worth mentioning for its flexibility and the fact that its almost always a great card to take into a blind meta.
Shattering Spree - The other artifact hate of choice. The copy ability requires mana sink and unlike Smash to Smithereens it doesn't Lava Spike and can only be used as a sorcery. Better suited at dealing with problems like Chalice of the Void and Trinisphere.
Tormod's Crypt - Zero cost graveyard hate. Works best against dredge though its important to practice timing when cracking it.
Pyrostatic Pillar - Combo hate that promotes our win condition. This card is better suited to use against AnT/TES decks and is typically not fast enough to stop strategies that include Goblin Charbelcher.
Volcanic Fallout - Can't be countered sweeper that hits them for 2 as well. Typically if you decide to include Fallout, you are not using a Grim Lavamancer build as those decks prefer Searing Blaze instead. Fallout can be played in the maindeck in some metas.
Faerie Macabre - Uncounterable by conventional means. You generally only want to bring this in against combo as it dilutes your deck. Arguably the best way to hate Reanimator since it gets around Daze and Force of Will.
Grafdigger's Cage - Punishes Reanimator and Dredge. Also hoses Green Sun Zenith.
Relic of Progenitus - Cantrips. Note that Grim Lavamancer builds will have a harder time with this one.
Chaos Warp - One of the few unconditional permanent removal spells ever printed for red. Though at 3 mana it is a bit clunky and doesn't actually net you card advantage.
Ratchet Bomb - Ratchet Bomb is a great answer-all to not only permanent based soft-lock card such as Trinisphere and Counterbalance, but it also deals offers strong card advantage against decks that use an inline cost curve like Elves and other tribal decks.
Builds
For the most part there are two major styles in which to build your deck around. One is a sligh, tempo based mana curve build, and the other is a pure burn based strategy.
Sligh
- Runs more creatures.
- Generally tops out the CMC curve at 3, and sometimes 4 for cards in the sideboard.
- Utilizes cards that are more broadly applicable, albeit slower. Examples - Magma Jet, Volcanic Fallout, Sulfuric Vortex.
- Doesn't use Grim Lavamancer or fetchlands.
"Pure" Burn -
- Typically tops out at 8-12 creatures.
- Likes to use Grim Lavamancer + fetchlands, which means they forego cards like Volcanic Fallout, and instead favor Searing Blaze.
- Is faster than Sligh because it uses more narrower cards that deal damage more efficiently (IE) Flame Rift.
The Sligh build has been noticeably less common as the speed and consistency that the Lavamancer/fetchlands build offers has proven to be a powerful strategy over the last year or so. Decks like Zoo, which is a deck that Sligh builds triumph over, have fallen to the wayside thanks to cards like Delver of Secrets. Aggro decks now have to have a faster clock in order to play against the mirror and the Sligh build just does not have the cards to support those requirements. For example, why wait until at least turn 3 to be able to cast Volcanic Fallout against a Delver player when instead you could just have played a Grim Lavamancer on turn 1 and expanded your options while at the same time forcing your opponent to deal with the threat you've just presented?
Note: Don't be fooled into thinking that a "creatureless" build is somehow more optimal. The design of the creatureless builds is flawed, as well as the concept of gaining virtual card advantage against removal spells. You actually gain more card advantage simply by having a recurring source of damage in the form of a creature than you do by (maybe) being able to negate one of your opponent's spells. Additionally, the "advantage" you gained from Swords to Plowshares, you lost to Spell Pierce, Flusterstorm, Duress, Thalia, Guardian of Thraben, Ethersworn Canonist etc. Land Destruction and mana denial also punishes creatureless decks since those builds are reliant on casting multiple spells each turn since they have no threats already in play.
Bad cards
Cards that are not optimal in our deck
This section is intended to close the case on less optimal cards choices in order to minimize repetitive and tedious discussions throughout the thread.
Thanks to Insaney for putting everything together -
Below are just some of the cards that are considered bad for a deck like Burn. Highlighted are the reasons why they are bad, as well as some examples of such cards.
Note that this list is far from complete. What it aims to do is provide deck builders certain guidelines on what cards NOT to run when attempting to build an optimal Burn list.
Bad Cards:
2 Damage for 1 Mana Spells: Burn has access to 16 3-for-1 Burn spells. 2-for-1 is not efficient enough to be included. Examples: Shock, Seal of Fire, Forked Bolt, etc.
4 Damage for 3 Mana Spells: Burn cannot afford to fill the 3cmc slot with too many cards, as Burn has relatively fewer lands, and is better suited to running cheap, efficient spells. As such, any 3cmc card needs to have a game-changing effect (like Sulfuric Vortex) in order to be considered “good” for Burn. Examples: Flames of the Blood Hand, Char, Flame Javelin, etc.
3 Damage for 2 Mana Spells: For the same reason that 2-for-1 spells are considered bad, 3-for-2 spells also do not merit a space in most Burn lists. An exception exists for cards with a special effect attached to them (like Smash to Smithereens, which destroys problematic Artifacts, or Skullcrack, which prevents Damage Prevention and Life-gain at Instant Speed), but for the most part, they are not good for Burn. Examples: Incinerate, Thunderbolt Kindle, Flame Burst, etc.
Any card with 4cmc or higher: Burn cannot afford to play cards higher than 4cmc most of the time. There are only a few exceptions to the rule, such as “last ditch effort” cards like Anarchy, which may merit inclusion in the sideboard slot.
X-for-X+1 Spells: They will never come close to the mana efficiency of the other Burn spells. These spells will always have a low damage-to-mana ratio. Just terrible for a deck like Burn. Examples: Fireball, Disintegrate, Banefire, etc.
Acceleration: People might think that Burn requires explosive starts. It doesn’t. What Burn needs is to resolve 6-7 spells in a timely fashion. As such, acceleration is merely taking up space in the opening hand, which could have been an efficient Burn spell instead. Most acceleration cards are also sources for Card Disadvantage, which will hurt Burn by causing long term mana shortage. Examples: Simian Spirit Guide, Lotus Petal, Chrome Mox.
Other Non-Basic Lands: Beyond Barbarian Ring and Fetchlands, Burn should not run any other Non-Basic Lands. This is due to the virtual card advantage that running basics provides – you are more likely to “turn off” cards like Wasteland and Back to Basics and render them blanks. Running Artifact lands to fuel Shrapnel Blast, or Shivan Gorge for “reach” are usually a bad idea.
Cantrips: Threat density is also important to Burn, meaning in order to run Cantrips, you will need to cut lands to maintain threat density. Since you want at least 2 lands in your starting hand, cutting land will force you to mulligan more often, giving you card disadvantage. To make matters worse, you're still running the same threat density so you'll be just as likely to top deck land off those cantrips as in a standard build. So you're still running the same amount of "effective" land, only you pay the price in more mulligans. This doesn't compensate for the added card quality when cutting your "worst" Burn spell for cantrips. Examples: Gitaxian Probe, Street Wraith, Mishra’s Bauble, etc.
Bad Top-Decks with Situational Power: When playing Burn, you will often find yourself in the situation where you're waiting to top deck those last 2-or-so points of damage. While these cards can be just as efficient as any burn spell in very unlikely situations, it's a very bad trade to sacrifice consistency for horrible top decks. As a rule of thumb, if it doesn't deal damage on its own, it doesn't belong in your main deck. Examples: Ankh of Mishra, Fork, Reiterate, Reverberate, Pyromancer Ascension, Shrine of the Burning Rage, Quest for the Pure Flame, etc.
Almost all creatures: Burn doesn't run "creatures" in the strictest sense – rather, it runs the most efficient burn spells ever printed. On very rare occasions, these happen to be creatures. The ONLY thing that matters is how much damage the creature *will* (not can) deal, in actual play, to the opponent - either directly or by virtue of some other mechanic. Extremely few creatures measure up to this level of efficiency. Not even a beast like Tarmogoyf is considered to be efficient enough for Burn. Examples: Any creatures not mentioned in the optimal card choices section.
Bad sweepers: There are only really two choices for sweepers in Burn - Volcanic Fallout and Flamebreak (and for most metas you want Fallout). However, there are many "cool" choices that should probably never be played. Examples: Breath of Darigaaz, Slagstorm, Cave-in, Starstorm etc.
“Pick-your-poison” Cards: These cards will never be better than their worst option - to the point where they will sometimes be completely useless. These cards aren't ”tech”, they are just bad. Examples: Browbeat, Blazing Salvo and Skullscorch. NOTE: One possible “exception” to this rule is Vexing Devil, as both choices result in dealing 4 damage to the opponent. It suffers from inconsistency issues as with the other cards of this type, but in actual testing, it deals the intended 4 damage fairly often. I would personally not use it, but it is worth play-testing.
Cards with irrelevant, bad or risky effects: This is Burn - play burn spells. Examples: Molten Rain, Wheel of Fate, Final Fortune, Blood Moon.
Close cases: These cards are border-line playable - they may work in certain metas or with specific builds, but you're usually better off avoiding them.
*Shard Volley: This was a staple in many Burn lists before Goblin Guide. It improved our clock and permitted more T3 wins, despite forcing us to run only 3 Fireblast. Since the printing of Guide however, going back up to 4 Fireblast and running the hasty goblin gives even more speed. If you wish though, you can probably run 2 of these alongside a full playset of Fireblasts, but most lists don't have the room.
*Reckless Abandon: A hugely efficient Burn spell that unfortunately shoehorns you into playing a more creatures than most are comfortable with. Supporting more than 2 is not feasible, and you need at least 11 creatures in the deck at all times to do that (meaning you probably need to run more than 11 creatures to not make sideboarding a pain).
*Burning Wish: In a meta that's all over the place with many opponents running main deck shenanigans, Wish can be a way to make more of your 15 SB slots. Only useful in splash builds where you have access to needed bombs like Retribution of the Meek or Tranquility. Most of the time though, you're better off not building a 2-mana tax (and often a 1 turn delay) into your answers.
*Cursed Scroll: Cursed Scroll has both advantages and disadvantages when compared to similar cards that are actually played, such as Grim Lavamancer and Sulfuric Vortex, but right now the meta doesn't favor those advantages. Not targeting players is more important than dealing colorless (Vortex) and coming on-line quickly is more important than resilience and longevity (Lavamancer).
*Magma Jet: While not at all efficient in terms of damage-to-mana ratio, it does provide a very powerful effect in Scry 2, which will help the quality of your draws. However, Burn is consistent enough to not need Scry-effects a whole lot, so it’s more of a preference than anything.
Color Splashing
Historically color splashing has proven to be less optimal for burn though the most common colors to splash have been white and black. (Do not confuse U/R tempo decks as a burn deck with a "blue splash", they are a different strategy all together.) White being the most common for cards like Steppe Lynx, which can get big quickly thanks to landfall, Lightning Helix, which acts as another bolt that gains life, and Oblivion Ring, as an "answer all" sideboard option that the color red typically does not have.
Black is the second most common which splashes for cards like Cabal Therapy (gives us a chance against storm), Bump in the Night, (acts as a 5th bolt), and Rakdos Charm, a powerful sideboard toolbox.
Primarily, the reason that splash builds have not had much success is because the consistency in the mana base drops significantly upon adding splashes. As noted above, the deck already enjoys the benefits of being immune to Price of Progress, Wasteland (most notably), Blood Moon, and to a lesser extent cards like Stifle, Rishadan Port, and Sinkhole.
Also, the splash colors seem to lose consistency regarding the speed of the deck. For example, Lightning Helix probably replaces Flame Rift and Steppe Lynx replaces Keldon Marauders, but the only thing that is guaranteed to happen from this is 2-3 less points of damage (Lightning Helix -1 to Flame Rift, and Marauders guarantees 2 damage, where Lynx guarantees none). In addition, Oblivion Ring might replace a card like Smash to Smithereens, which means -3 damage post boarding.
Play Strategies
How to play the deck
Opening Hand - The most optimal opening hand usually consists of 2 lands, at least one creature, and 3-4 instant/sorcery spells. Our deck runs on all cylinders with 3 lands in play so starting with 2 lands and 5 spells is a great start. One landers are tempting, but most often they should be mulliganed. Daze and Spell Pierce decks will beat you before the game begins if you keep a one lander and dont see another drop until turn 3.
Statistics on land drops - (Thank you Obermeir)
(From the previous burn primer)
I've been flipping through the pages of this thread, as I had missed a couple before, and I really wanted to sort out ''once and for all'' the ideal number of lands to use in a burn deck.
Lormador, who appears to have a combo-oriented mind, suggested to reduce the land count to 14.
in a 60 card deck (Y) of 14 lands (X), what percentage would a seven card hand (Z) yield 0 lands (N)?
the answer is 13.9%. This means that you have an 86.1% chance of drawing AT LEAST 1 land in your opening 7. Those actually aren't bad odds, when you think about it. But what are the odds of getting 2 or more lands in your opening hand?
100 - (13.9 + 34) = 52.1%. These odds are not as impressive. I don't think most burn players would want a coin flip to decide whether they have a starting hand of 2+ lands (2 being the ideal number).
So what's a decent number?
18 lands = 68%
19 lands = 72%
20 lands = 75%
21 lands = 78%
As these percentages go up, so does the likelihood of drawing 4 or more lands (most consider a mulligan then).
EDIT: So, the likelihood of drawing 4 or more lands with:
18 lands = 11.2%
19 lands = 13.3%
20 lands = 15.9%
21 lands = 18.7%
obviously, the lower land count gives us better results in that respect. But to find the ''window'' of the right number of lands to use, we have to do 100 - ((the % of getting 1-0 lands in 7) + (the % of getting 4 or more lands in 7))
Here is the ''window'':
14 lands = 52.4%
18 lands = 57.3%
19 lands = 58.6%
20 lands = 59.1%
21 lands = 59.7%
22 lands = 59.49%
21 lands in your deck therefore yields you a 59.7% chance of having 2 or 3 lands in your opening hand.
I find it fascinating how famous Burn players all run mostly 21-land builds. Did they do this math too? Was it intuition?
Of course, I hope you noticed there is only a .6% difference between 20 and 21 lands, and a .21% difference between 21 and 22 lands. Will that really make a difference in a game? No, probably not.
I conclude that running 20-22 lands is the most efficient number. What do you think?
After you have decided to keep your opening hand, you'll want to lead off with a creature if you have it. If not, you want to get rid of your least useful spells first (Lava Spike, Rift Bolt) so that you can save your Chain Lightning's and Lightning Bolt's for removal should you need it. The next 2-3 turns are all about applying pressure while not overextending your burn. Once you get them down within striking distance, finish them off cleanly in one turn. Remember if you have lethal, you have to go for it, don't worry about if they have countermagic or not, if they have it, they have it but the longer you wait the more chances you give them to dig back into the game.
Typically, the order you cast your spells in should look something like this -
Creatures - They get in for the most damage so play them early and let them go to work for you.
Lava Spike, Rift Bolt, - The narrowest cards in the deck so get rid of them for damage quickly. Try to make Rift Bolt the last spell you cast (in this case suspend) per turn to minimize the chance of your other spells being countered by Daze and Spell Pierce.
Chain Lightning - More useful than Rift Bolt and Lava Spike so ideally this is held on to until at least turn 2.
Sulfuric Vortex - Stopping any potential life gain before it starts is important so play this early unless you have reasons not to.
Flame Rift, Lightning Bolt, Fireblast - Finishers. Play them when you are going for the kill or if you absolutely need them for removal. Try to think of Lightning Bolt as our Brainstorm. You basically never want to cast it until you have to.
Regarding Flame Rift, the reason you generally don't want to cast it turn 2 is because it leaves a lot of grey area especially against aggro. For example, playing a turn 1 Goblin Guide into a turn 2 Flame Rift against a Merfolk deck is a good way to get yourself smashed by a horde of Fish in short time. By turn 3 against a Fish deck, Guide is a blocker, not an attacker, they have likely hoarded countermagic and will be vialing in Lords left and right. In this case, the 4 damage you dealt to yourself essentially took a turn off of their clock for them while you haven't made any advances in board position.
The Information War
"Fools dig for water, corpses or gold. The earth's real treasure is much deeper."
If you've played magic before, you've heard the term "overextending". Overextending can be an example of an aggro player casting more many creature spells then necessary which potentially plays into opposing removal/Wrath effects. In burn, it is possible to overextend by casting burn spells when they aren't necessary. To use an example, your opponent is at 11 life and you have a Flame rift, a Fireblast, and a Lightning Bolt in your hand and its your turn, you have two mana. "Getting the most for your mana" here dictates you to play Flame Rift, bringing your opponent down to 7 and leaving you tapped out. By doing this, you get the most with the mana you have available but also you left yourself open by not leaving mana for a Lightning Bolt on your opponent's turn should you need it. More importantly, you also just telegraphed to your opponent that they need to speed up their own clock, which effects their decisions during their next turn - versus burn, the difference between 7 life and 11 life is huge when deciding what cards to play. In other words, in contrast with a storm deck for example, it is important to be aware that your opponent knows your clock - they can see it, because it's their life total! Try to be deceptive with your play, even if they have seen your hand from Thoughtseize, they don't know what you've drawn since then (most players still have to read Fireblast). Sometimes swinging with a creature, then playing a spell, then dropping a land can throw them off since it goes agains the traditional land first main phase, spells second main. If you don't attempt to keep your opponent guessing, you're going to gas out your deck which will in turn cut your opponent's work out for them.
Decklists, Links, and Videos (Cont. on next page)
29th place - Patrick Sullivan - GP Columbus (1,397 players)
2nd place - Kyle Miller - SCG Denver (125 players)
2011:
6th place - David Menor Gutierrez - Open City of Bridges, Spain (171 players)
5th place - Patrick Sullivan - SCG Los Angeles (216 players) Round 8 Top 4
7th place - Michele Salardi - Legnano-MLL#8 (116 players)
1st place - Manuel Gomez - LCL Lliga Catalana de Legacy 4, Abril, inGenio (118 players)
14th place - Iain Bartolomei - SCG Denver (117 players)
15th place - Jacob Shapiro - SCG Cincinnati (228 players)
8th place - Luisma Augusto - Eternal Weekend 2011 Legacy Main Event (293 players)
8th place - Samuel Davis - SCG Kansas (156 players)
8th place - Austin Yost - SCG Las Vegas (168 players)
2012:
1st place - Austin Yost - SCG Washington (234 players) Top 4 Finals
1st place - James Allen - SCG Richmond (118 players) Finals
11th place - Cary Duncan - SCG Cincinnati (297 players)
2nd place - Anthony Phaneuf SCG Memphis (94 players) Top 4 Finals
13th place - Lou Stefanovic - SCG Tampa (141 players)
16th place - Jeremy Dunn - SCG Tampa (141 players)
11th place - Issac Sears - SCG Sacramento (116 players)
5th place - Burt Hamernick - SCG Des Moines (148 players)
7th place - Niklas Rauterberg - Legacy Event in Maintal (127 players)
5th place - Robert Swiecki - Magiccardmarket 5th anniversary tournament (131 players)
15th place - James Syed - SCG Worchester (213 players)
32nd place - Lou Stefanovic - SCG Worchester (213 players) Round 8
30th place - Burt Hamernick - SCG Indianapolis (313 players)
14th place - Jay Shield - SCG Washington DC (350 players)
19th place - Charles R Dyk - 2012 Gen Con Legacy Championship (350 players)
30th place - Charles Fitzgerald - 2012 Gen Con Legacy Championship (350 players)
27th place- Austin Yost SCG Denver Round 3 Round 7
3rd place - Patrick Sullivan - SCG Los Angeles (235 players) Round 8 Top 8
8th place - Ali Aintrazi - SCG Invitational Atlanta 2012 (311 players) Round 3 Round 11 Top 8
21st place - Joel Gibson - SCG Dallas (175 players)
9th place - Jacob Dobbs - SCG Los Angeles (269 players)
2013:
21st place - Michael Shelkofsky - SCG Atlanta (230 players)
16th place - Jacob Harris - SCG Cincinnati (279 players)
12th place - Jacob Dobbs - SCG Las Vegas (142 players) Round 8
Burn articles/reports/etc:
2012:
http://starcitygames.com/events/cove...derson_ru.html Feature match, Burn in the top 8, SCG Invitational Atlanta (Ali Aintrazi)
http://www.starcitygames.com/article...ek---Burn.html Article, after the two SCG 1st place wins (Patrick Sullivan)
http://www.starcitygames.com/events/...f_vs_zac_.html Feature match, Burn in the finals, SCG Memphis (Anthony Phoneuf)
http://www.starcitygames.com/events/..._vs_james.html Feature match, Burn in the finals, SCG Richmond (James Allen)
http://www.starcitygames.com/events/..._josh_cho.html Feature match, Burn in the finals, SCG Washington (Austin Yost)
http://www.starcitygames.com/magic/legacy/19927_Finals_Constantine_Vigderman_vs_Kyle_Miller.html Feature match, Burn in the finals, SCG Washington (Austin Yost)
2011:
http://www.starcitygames.com/magic/s...eport-5th.html Article, playing burn (Patrick Sullivan)
Burn decklist sources:
Starcitygames.com Burn
http://www.thecouncil.es/tcdecks/tip...&format=Legacy
Legacy metagame:
http://www.starcitygames.com/pages/decklists/
http://www.thecouncil.es/tcdecks/for...=Legacy&page=1
http://www.mtgthesource.com/forums/s...y(started-2012)
Misc Links
Caleb Durward Legacy Burn Daily Event
Legacy Underplayed Cards
Joe Phillips - SCG RichmondGame 1
Game 2
Game 3
http://www.channelfireball.com/articles/recurring-nightmares-the-land-continues-to-burn/
Pauper Burn Primer
Legacy Burn
NO Combo Elves
Reanimator
Trades
Burn Primer
:symg:Free Gaea's Cradle:symg:
Have any questions or concerns? Come take a dip in my pool.
20 Mountain
// Creatures
4 Goblin Guide
3 Hellspark Elemental
// Spells
4 Lightning Bolt
4 Fireblast
3 Sulfuric Vortex
4 Chain Lightning
4 Magma Jet
4 Lava Spike
4 Rift Bolt
4 Price of Progress
2 Flame rift
2 Volcanic Fallout
3 Ratchet Bomb
3 Ensnaring Bridge
4 Vexing Shusher
3 Smash to Smithereens
I am not running GLM because I do not like the way it performs, even with fetches... just basic mountain and we are good to go!
I love the way magma jet help the deck and the 2 Flame rift are also doing good...
2 volcanic fallout in side could turn useful for mass effects and the bridge protects us against fatties
H/W - Website
I am a fan of Grim Lavamancer, but to each their own.
I do however, suggest you reassess Magma Jet. I'm convinced that card creates its own self-fulfilling prophecy - doing less damage per mana and card, thus increasing the importance of the Scry effect to dig into more damage. It does work, but in my own experience you are just as well off running any better damage to mana ratio burn to increase your overall burn efficiency. I used to run the card myself. Just my thoughts on the matter.
Your sideboard has me curious what kind of meta you're going into. You have a lot of sweeper effects. 2 Fallout, 3 Ratchet, AND 3 Bridge??? That's a lot of creature hate in the sideboard for a deck that has good creature based matchups to start with. I also notice the complete lack of graveyard hate and the absence of Red Elemental Blast and Pyroblast. No Dredge, Reanimator, or Omni-Tell in your meta, then?
formely known as Wolf_Cub82
my altered cards on Facebook my altered cards on Tumblr
BurnR(Legacy)
ReanimatorUB(Legacy)
Ghave, Guru of SporesWGB(Commander)
HumansRW(Standard)
Hi and thanks for feedbacks!
About magma jet, what would you switch with, in my actual deck setting??
About side, I was keeping REB for a while in side, but never using it...
I have 2 fallout to get rid of weenies but Ratchet works also for other permanents... bridge instead is to block big fatties that can enter with Green sun's zenith or Show and tell...
I have grav-hate in all the rest of my legacy decks (3 more decks), but with burn I would not be sure which slot sacrifice to put relic or tormod inside....
H/W - Website
I'd start with -2 Magma Jet, +2 Flame Rift. Non-Lavamancer list tend to be geared more towards pure speed. Test that and see if the increased amount of mutual damage works for you. After that, I'd recommend trying +2 creatures. Vexing Devil, Figure of Destiny, and Keldon Marauders come to mind as first picks since you don't like Grim Lavamancer.
As for the sideboard, you say you weren't ever using the REBs but they're one of Burn's few ways of fighting Show and Tell. Ensnaring Bridge will stop the fatties, but Omni-Tell varients can get around that with alternate win cons. But you can get by without REB if that's your preference. I just like it's versatility.
You know your Bridges can block more than just fatties like Griselbrand? So you don't necessarily need so much creature answers. Burn empties it's hand real fast. By the time you cast a Bridge on turn 3/4 you ought to be able to keep a flipped Delver of Secrets from attacking you.
formely known as Wolf_Cub82
my altered cards on Facebook my altered cards on Tumblr
BurnR(Legacy)
ReanimatorUB(Legacy)
Ghave, Guru of SporesWGB(Commander)
HumansRW(Standard)
I'm not sure exactly what you're suggesting here. Suspending Rift Bolt early is a generally sound rule of thumb. Like every rule of thumb for game play in Legacy there are corner case exceptions. The Primer clearly states that this is a "typical" suggested order for spells, not a matter of "always". Furthermore, the reasons for casting spells in that order are explained. If a particular matchup changes those reasons, then it's a small leap of logic to change your gameplay in response.
There actually was a matchup section for the primer, but I'm not sure what happened to it...
You're right about Fireblast not getting around Trinisphere. That needs to be edited. But it does get around Counterbalance and Chalice of the Void nicely.
formely known as Wolf_Cub82
my altered cards on Facebook my altered cards on Tumblr
BurnR(Legacy)
ReanimatorUB(Legacy)
Ghave, Guru of SporesWGB(Commander)
HumansRW(Standard)
Legacy Burn
NO Combo Elves
Reanimator
Trades
Burn Primer
:symg:Free Gaea's Cradle:symg:
Overall record: 139-98-15
Total number of matches: 252
Win percentage ignoring draws: 58.649789
Win percentage including draws: 55.158730
Thanks! This is what I have been working with recently.
4 Grim Lavamancer
4 Vexing Devil
4 Lightning Bolt
4 Chain Lightning
4 Rift Bolt
4 Lava Spike
3 Price of Progress
3 Skullcrack
3 Sulfuric Vortex
9 Mountain
4 Scalding Tarn
1 Bloodstained Mire
3 Arid Mesa
2 Wooded Foothills
4 Mindbreak Trap
3 Ensnarning Bridge
2 Smash to Smithereens
2 Searing Blaze
Vexing Devil is mainly used in my build as an additional way to jump start my first 1-3 turns. Leading off with it turns 1 and 2 almost always results in a game win against non-combo decks. With them at 12 (10 or 11 if they have used fetchlands), they are already in range for lethal if you can drop a land on turn three and have a Fireblast or situation depending, Price of Progress. Game 2 I usually side Devil out after showing it to my opponent which hopefully makes them strategize against him when sideboarding.
Right now I'm considering adding the 4th Price of Progress back in due to the the hungry mana bases we're seeing right now. I may also drop 1 Pyroblast for 1 more Smash to Smithereens for consistency.
By the way, diid you see the little Easter Egg I left for you in the land stats section?
Legacy Burn
NO Combo Elves
Reanimator
Trades
Burn Primer
:symg:Free Gaea's Cradle:symg:
What would you remove for this 2 more creatures?
Did you mean -2 magma jet again, so no magma jet in the end?
H/W - Website
Yes. Exactly that. Sorry if I was unclear.
formely known as Wolf_Cub82
my altered cards on Facebook my altered cards on Tumblr
BurnR(Legacy)
ReanimatorUB(Legacy)
Ghave, Guru of SporesWGB(Commander)
HumansRW(Standard)
Ha ha! Wow, I has almost forgotten about the time I suggested 14 lands. I think that's quite an awful idea now: it's just asking to be locked out of the game by a Thalia, Port, or both, and it wouldn't allow one to play Sulfuric Vortex at all.
...but back to Vexing Devil, I've started really testing him out and I think he's better than he looks on paper. 4 damage is just a whole lot for 1 mana. Sometimes it fails, sure, but sometimes Price of Progress fails. Heck, 4 damage from 2 mana is so much that Flame Rift is very playable!
Another card that I think may be worth a second look in Lavamancer builds is Gitaxian Probe. If 1 life and Stifle-danger is worth it to put a land in the graveyard for GLM and Searing Blaze, is there any a priori reason why 2 life shouldn't be worth it for the same card, higher average burn quality, and information?
Overall record: 139-98-15
Total number of matches: 252
Win percentage ignoring draws: 58.649789
Win percentage including draws: 55.158730
I actually really like this idea. Having Devil be the first thing to side out is probably the best way to make the most of both its' explosiveness and its' weakness.
UGTurboFogGU
BRSacrificial AggroBR
16The Paper Pauper Battle Bag16
EDH
BRRakdos, Lord of PingersBR
GTitania, Protector of ArgothG
UB Ramses OverdarkUB
Sig by Ace5301 of Ace of Spades Studio
This is an interesting thought. My only concern is that probe draws a random card, instead of tutoring up a mountain. This is an essential part of fetches, and one I believe that makes the superior Glm fuel. Would the build in question remove 4 fetches and replace with 4 probes? If so I'd be weary of mana issues.
(Decklists cont.)
Patrick Sullivan
3rd Place
Star City Games Open, Los Angeles, 9/17/12
4 Grim Lavamancer
4 Chain Lightning
4 Fireblast
4 Flame Rift
4 Lava Spike
4 Lightning Bolt
4 Price of Progress
4 Rift Bolt
3 Sulfuric Vortex
3 Bloodstained Mire
9 Mountain
3 Scalding Tarn
3 Wooded Foothills
4 Mindbreak Trap
4 Searing Blaze
4 Vexing Shusher
Jacob Harris
9th-16th
Star City Games Open, Cincinnati, 2/17/13
4 Grim Lavamancer
4 Chain Lightning
4 Fireblast
4 Flame Rift
4 Lava Spike
4 Lightning Bolt
4 Price of Progress
4 Rift Bolt
3 Sulfuric Vortex
4 Bloodstained Mire
9 Mountain
4 Scalding Tarn
2 Ensnaring Bridge
2 Pithing Needle
4 Red Elemental Blast
3 Searing Blaze
3 Smash to Smithereens
1 Volcanic Fallout
Ali Aintrazi
5th-8th
Star City Games Invitational, Atlanta, 9/26/12
4 Grim Lavamancer
4 Chain Lightning
4 Fireblast
4 Lava Spike
4 Lightning Bolt
4 Price of Progress
4 Rift Bolt
4 Searing Blaze
3 Sulfuric Vortex
9 Mountain
4 Scalding Tarn
4 Wooded Foothills
4 Flame Rift
4 Mindbreak Trap
4 Vexing Shusher
Matchups
How the deck matches up against various tier 1 and 2 archetypes.
"I've been all over this world. I even remember some of those places."
More information for those interested:
MTGthesource Burn Primer
Previous MTGS Burn Primer
Legacy Burn
NO Combo Elves
Reanimator
Trades
Burn Primer
:symg:Free Gaea's Cradle:symg:
P.s. The new Chandra is a let down.. Please WOTC give red some love.
Yes. Yes it is a letdown. I was really, really hoping for a 3 CMC Chandra that Burn could actually use. The saddest thing of all is that I love the new Chandra's 0 ability. I think it's exactly the kind of useful, but not broken sort of effect that would be perfect to put on a planeswalker that Burn could use. But the rest of her just doesn't fit. So close, but so far away.
formely known as Wolf_Cub82
my altered cards on Facebook my altered cards on Tumblr
BurnR(Legacy)
ReanimatorUB(Legacy)
Ghave, Guru of SporesWGB(Commander)
HumansRW(Standard)
Cantrips are a bad idea for Burn IMO. You might think that it improves card quality, but making space for it in the deck involves 1 of 2 scenarios:
1. You cut land, which will cause mana problems later on; or
2. You cut threats, which will lower the deck's threat density (which is not really tantamount to "burn quality")
If Gitaxian Probe guaranteed that you draw exactly what you need when you need it, then fine it merits inclusion. But that isn't the case.
Besides, with only a maximum of 4 copies, the perceived "deck-thinning" and "improved card quality" it supposedly produces is negligible. If 12 fetchlands don't give significant deck-thinning, what more 4 Gitaxian Probes?
For me, Cantrips are strictly for engine-type combo decks like Storm, and not for Burn.
See the Bad Cards section of the primer. The list there was derived from the myriad of testing that various Burn players have done with the deck, and most tests conclude that adding Cantrips does nothing but hurt Burn.
Actually, Burn's matchup against 12-post is favorable. 12-post has little basics, so Price of Progress just kills them outright. Their only chance of winning is to Show and Tell Emrakul on Turn 3 on the back of 2 Glimmerposts and a Basic Island. Beyond that, they are extremely easy to race, as they do little during the first 3 turns.
Playing with the stack is vital in this matchup, as you will need to respond to Primeval Titan's Triggered Ability with Instant-Speed Burn, so it's best to spend the first few turns playing your Sorceries like Lava Spike and Rift Bolt. Also, you can respond to Glimmerpost's ETB ability. Skullcrack and Sulfuric Vortex are key to this matchup.
Game 2 and 3 they will be bringing in counterspells to stop key Burn Spells, and maybe even debilitating Show and Tell targets like Iona and Platinum Emperion, so watch out for that. Smash to Smithereens can come in from the board to take care of Candelabra and Expedition Maps.
Legacy Burn
NO Combo Elves
Reanimator
Trades
Burn Primer
:symg:Free Gaea's Cradle:symg:
I only own two fetch lands, is it worth playing them, also should I be running Grim Lavamancer with just two fetches?
If I drop the Lavamancers, is Ball Lightning a suitable replacement?
Thanks!
Any number of fetches is better than none in a Lavamancer build. Two will help. Try to trade for more. I myself only run 8, though many prefer 10. You will often have enough fuel for Lavamancer even without the fetches. The fetches just push you up to the level of absolute consistency. And they turn on Searing Blaze if you want to sideboard that.
Ball Lightning is not suitable for Burn in any way, shape, or form. Ball Lightning only seems good until you run up against Daze or Thalia. Run Hellspark Elemental if you want to try that style of creature.
formely known as Wolf_Cub82
my altered cards on Facebook my altered cards on Tumblr
BurnR(Legacy)
ReanimatorUB(Legacy)
Ghave, Guru of SporesWGB(Commander)
HumansRW(Standard)
I noticed the Bad Cards section. Many cards listed there are obviously bad, and some are borderline. I'm simply not willing to put my faith in the "myriad" of testing others have done, possibly because I don't personally know any players who have put more than a few hours of thought into Burn, they're all playing Show and Tell, Deathblade, Tin Fins, Omnitell, Miracles, Jund perhaps, you know... the "real decks." Even I'm going to pilot DnT, rather than Burn, at the SCG this weekend.
One really has to do one's own testing, hence my comment: I'm not asking whether Probe is ok, I'm making the contribution that my own testing has come out, to my great surprise, somewhat in favor of this dumb-looking card. YMMV. My name is Lormador, and I approve this message.
It comes down to the information. Sometimes it helps to know if there's a Stifle over there, or a Daze, or an Abrupt Decay, or if the Mother of Runes just played is going to protect a Stoneforge Mystic, or if Thalia is going to be a problem. Gitaxian Probe is a card in the grave for Lava Man to eat, 2 life lost, and pretty good information for the rest of the game. It doesn't deck thin, and that doesn't matter. As for land/threat count, that calculation is trivial.
...at the end of the day I may prefer Marauders, but Probe is better than it looks.
Overall record: 139-98-15
Total number of matches: 252
Win percentage ignoring draws: 58.649789
Win percentage including draws: 55.158730
Granted of course that the Bad Cards section was meant to be a starting point for one's own testing.
Still, most of the scenarios you mentioned about having good information are already examples of what experienced players with Burn ought to be doing. For example, if you know you play against RUG, automatically you play around Daze and Stifle without having to think whether they have it in hand or not. Mother of Runes is almost-always an auto-kill (unless your hand has a turn 3 kill which renders Mommy irrelevant), and Thalia is ALWAYS a problem when facing Maverick.
Still, I can understand your perspective, as I've always loathed getting hit by an opponent's probe because it gives them a significant advantage, particularly during the early game when both players have full hands.
But personally, I've played with Cantrips before, and they really feel as if they're unnecessary in Burn for the sake of Cantripping. Now, adding a non-tangible effect like Gitaxian Probe's can have some merit, but at the end of the day, I dunno if the idea of "Perfect" information is something I'd really want in my list at the risk of cutting additional threats.