For variants of UW Stoneblade that run Spellstutter Sprite, Mutavault is a better choice because it counts as a faerie when activated, which can give your Sprites more reach. If you don't run Sprites, Mishra's Factory is better.
I started a few months ago and played legacy tourneys when possible. I used to have BW Stoneblade but with the rise of decks like Hivemind in my meta I feel like having U in the mix is better.
Anyways here's my decklist for UW Stoneblade.
4 Stoneforge Mystic
4 Spellstutter Sprite
1 Batterskull
1 Sword of the Meek
2 Thopter Foundry
3 Jace, The Mind Sculptor
2 Enlightened Tutor
4 Force of Will
4 Mental Misstep
4 Brainstorm
4 Swords to Plowshares
2 Echoing Truth
I thought one of the best cards for my old BW deck was bitterblossom because of the army it provides you. Using a UW shell, I remembered the ThopterSword combo and thought it comparable. With Etutors and Stoneforges fetching the combo pieces, it shouldn't be too hard to get them online.
The spellstutter sprites and mutavaults + Riptide Laboratory also put out a soft lock that could seal a win.
Of course the old Stoneforge into Batterskull is still there and if all else fails, Jace can come it to steal a win.
Two U/W Stoneblade lists were in the top 16 of the latest SCG Open in Richmond. Both of them being the Spellstutter Sprite version with Mutavaults and whatnot. Unfortunately for me, this seems like more evidence that the Stoneblade list with more faeries is better than the usual list I have with Mishra's Factory thanks to a superior Hive Mind matchup.
I wonder if running Surgical Extractions in the sideboard (for the regular UW Stoneblade list) is enough to shore up the Hive Mind matchup because you can use it on whatever they Intuition for. Worst case scenario is that it draws a counterspell, potentially weakening their Show and Tell/Hive Mind protection. Angel's Grace seems like a much better answer, but at least Surgical Extraction isn't as narrow and can be used against other decks like Reanimator, Dredge (together with Relics), and other graveyard-based combo decks.
Special thanks to Hakai Studios and SushiOtter for the sig!
Legacy:UR Sneak and Show IUBG Team America IX Metalworker MUD Modern:UBR Blue Jund IWBX Eldrazi Processors IX Affinity IWRG Nacatl Burn IGR Tron IUBR Grishoalbrand
R1: UW Counterbalance 1-1-1 Draw
R2: Vengvine Elves 1-2 Loss (Hardest deck to beat)
R3: Zoo 2-0 Win
R4: NO Rug 2-1 Win
R5: Team America 2-0 Win
So I've been playing this deck for a pretty long time now and this is the updated list that I've come to. I ran it at my store on Sunday going 3-1-1 which of course put me out of top 4 . Someone else there was running an almost identical list with the exception of Magus/ sideboard and he went 4-0 draw into top4 and ended up taking the whole thing I believe.
Changes I made after the tournament were:
-2 Phyrexian Metamorph -1 Sword of L&S // +2 Fire/Ice +1 Jitte
-1 Sword of Body and Mind // +1 Sword of Feast and Famine
I couldn't find a Sword of War and Peace in time for the tourney and ran L&S pretty much for the pro colors and nothing else. It turned out to be horrible.
I've been playing with Magus of the Moon for a while now, but I'm not so sure I'd like to keep him. At points he can be a total bomb and other times you top deck two of them in a game where he is dead. So far he really shines against BUG and Junk colored decks and can lock unsuspecting greedy players out of game 1 (I locked NO Rug out with him LOL :D). If I were to cut him I would probably add another Clique as well as Karakas for an endgame lock.
Oh and I haven't made a sideboard yet, but Llawan would be in it for more Karakas hilarity.
Also, what is with all the fetches? Some list are running a ridiculous amount, like equal or more than fetchable lands. Also, they don't add much of any synergy to this deck.
:symu::symg::symb:Sir, may I see your graveyard(Mimeoplasm):symb::symg::symu:
:symw::symw::symw:Michiko Konda, Truth Seeker:symw::symw::symw:
:symu::symb::symu:Oona, Queen of the Faye:symu::symb::symu:
Fetchlands are vital to most multicolour Legacy decks. Apart from smoothing out the mana base and having the flexibility to search for either a dual land or a basic land, you can leave it in play to play around Wasteland. Also, we play this many fetchlands also because of their shuffle effect, which is very important when using Brainstorm or Jace-Storm. They do have synergy with the deck.
I really don't like AEther Vial in this deck. It doesn't seem like we're built to abuse it. Also, the reason to not use Daze was explained earlier in this thread.
For your mana base I would add more lands (19 is definitely not enough for this deck), cut the Hallowed Fountains (you really don't need more than a playset of one dual) for Flooded Strands.
Mangara of Corondor is interesting, though. Let us know how it works for you.
Special thanks to Hakai Studios and SushiOtter for the sig!
Legacy:UR Sneak and Show IUBG Team America IX Metalworker MUD Modern:UBR Blue Jund IWBX Eldrazi Processors IX Affinity IWRG Nacatl Burn IGR Tron IUBR Grishoalbrand
Fetches do help shuffle away unwanted Brainstorm cards, I guess I'll try them more. In place of Hallowed Fountain.
I like AEther Vial because it smooths the Mangara/Vedilion Clique + Karakas lock being able to never have your Mangara with Summoning Sickness is very useful. Additionally it makes Spellstutter Sprite yet another "free" counterspell and gets Stoneforge Mystic around counters.
Mangara of Corondor lock is amazing because of one key phrase in its ability "any permanent." Any time any specific target is getting on your nerves, Remove it. It also works wonder while you are Fatesealing with Jace, you can be removing all their lands. If anything gets past your counter magic it dead when this guy hits the board.
:symu::symg::symb:Sir, may I see your graveyard(Mimeoplasm):symb::symg::symu:
:symw::symw::symw:Michiko Konda, Truth Seeker:symw::symw::symw:
:symu::symb::symu:Oona, Queen of the Faye:symu::symb::symu:
Yeah, switched to Ancestral Vision again. I can't seem to make my mind up between that and Standstill, but I ran the latter last time and got destroyed by control decks so we'll see how this goes.
I wanted to ask for some last minute opinions on my sideboard. I don't know if I'm over-preparing for Hive Mind or not with both Angel's Grace and Surgical Extraction, but I know that my list's matchup with it is pretty abysmal and I'm pretty sure it'll be present tomorrow thanks to how popular the deck's been lately (and because tons of people in my meta have access to Sol Lands, Show and Tells and Intuitions and can easily construct that deck). The Extractions can also double as additional, although admittedly subpar, Dredge hate.
I'll also try to post a small report on how I did.
Private Mod Note
():
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Special thanks to Hakai Studios and SushiOtter for the sig!
Legacy:UR Sneak and Show IUBG Team America IX Metalworker MUD Modern:UBR Blue Jund IWBX Eldrazi Processors IX Affinity IWRG Nacatl Burn IGR Tron IUBR Grishoalbrand
@ Grand. I really like your build I'm in the process of putting this deck together as I've grown tired of playing Bant.
I'm running a list identical to your's except mine has -3 Spell Snare + 2 Spell Pierce + 1 Jace.
I'm thinking of running an Espeth in there to make my Factories/SFM's fly.
Good luck at your tourney!
I wanted to side out the irrelevant sword, but my sideboarding didn't really matter for game two. It was pretty much the same thing and I won the game with Jace again. Jace, the Mind Sculptor, better than all.
2-0
1-0
Round 2 - UW Stoneblade
Pretty much a mirror match. Everything was the same except his list ran Daze and Stifle.
Game one I keep a questionable hand and he suspends an Ancestral Vision, letting me know that I'm playing the mirror. He has Ancestral Vision advantage throughout the whole game as he resolves three Visions and the one that I suspended got Forced. We eventually each get a Batterskull on the table and with some pretty bad misplays on my part (I forgot to return an empty Batterskull to my hand at the end of his turn), he wins the Batterskull war.
I keep a Force of Will-light but Mental Misstep/Spell Snare-heavy hand and I manage to stop his early game business. Unfortunately, he lands a Jace, the Mind Sculptor on turn four and starts fatesealing early. I topdeck the singleton Elspeth, Knight-Errant and resolve it, feeling like a champ... until he casts his own Elspeth next turn to legend-rule her and Jace wrecks my draws until the ultimate.
Definitely a game I could've played differently, particularly in game one. I still need to learn proper Batterskull maintenance. I also had no idea how to sideboard for that matchup. I knew I wanted what I put in, but I probably should've kept the opportunity for the Crucible-lock open, particularly against such a nonbasic land-heavy deck.
0-2
1-1
Round 3 - Burn
The burn player was a friend of mine I'd faced before so I knew exactly what I was getting into. Game one I mull and keep a hand of four good spells... and two Mishra's Factory. I never get my coloured sources in time and he burns me to death. Mental note: never ever keep a hand with only colourless lands.
Game three I get an amazing hand of two Mental Misstep and Spell Snare and I manage to keep the Zoo player's field relatively empty. Vendilion Clique came down and managed to absorb two spells thanks to the Karakas that my opponent missed (he spends a removal spell to deal with Clique, I Karakas my Clique in response, and he hesitantly spends his last burn spell to kill the Clique in response to Karakas). With the spells out of the way, I was able to assemble the Stoneforge Mystic-Batterskull interaction with five lands always untapped to protect the Batterskull from the enemy Qasali Pridemage and I won handily.
2-1
3-1
Third place finish.
Overall I was pretty happy with the event. I definitely over-prepared for Hive Mind as I did not see it at all, but I still feel like my sideboard was effective (I talked to my round two opponent about the deck and he agreed completely with the Angel's Graces as when he tested his brew versus Hive Mind he couldn't win at all). I might consider replacing the Surgical Extractions for something else but for the moment I like them as a card that I can bring in against both Hive Mind and Dredge.
Special thanks to Hakai Studios and SushiOtter for the sig!
Legacy:UR Sneak and Show IUBG Team America IX Metalworker MUD Modern:UBR Blue Jund IWBX Eldrazi Processors IX Affinity IWRG Nacatl Burn IGR Tron IUBR Grishoalbrand
Did your Round 2 opponents Stifle affect the matchup at all? That'd be a good card to replace your Spell Snares and my Spell Pierces with. Cast it to counter Hive Mind trigger?? It's also very versatile so...thoughts?
Did your Round 2 opponents Stifle affect the matchup at all? That'd be a good card to replace your Spell Snares and my Spell Pierces with. Cast it to counter Hive Mind trigger?? It's also very versatile so...thoughts?
I didn't even know he had Stifles in his list until he told me after the game (he did cast Daze, though, which countered my Jace and caught me completely by surprise). The best way to use Stifle against Hive Mind is to not counter the Hive Mind trigger, but to counter the pact's "pay up or lose the game" trigger during your upkeep. It's definitely interesting, and I may consider getting some Stifles. I really really enjoy Spell Snare in my list, though.
Private Mod Note
():
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Special thanks to Hakai Studios and SushiOtter for the sig!
Legacy:UR Sneak and Show IUBG Team America IX Metalworker MUD Modern:UBR Blue Jund IWBX Eldrazi Processors IX Affinity IWRG Nacatl Burn IGR Tron IUBR Grishoalbrand
I hear ya bro, Snare is good but you said it yourself; Hive Mine is a tough matchup for decks not running Sprite/Multavault.
Im going to test 3 and ill see how they fare.
Heres da list
I have tested stifle in the deck before and it just doesn't feel right as the deck really wasn't able to capatalize on it to well. I also had a conversation with a significantly more expierenced player at my shop who had been trying UW with daze / stifle for a while and didn't much care for it either. He came back to UWR and I've never switched. For me, having REB / blood moon effects is to good to pass up.
I have tested stifle in the deck before and it just doesn't feel right as the deck really wasn't able to capatalize on it to well. I also had a conversation with a significantly more expierenced player at my shop who had been trying UW with daze / stifle for a while and didn't much care for it either. He came back to UWR and I've never switched. For me, having REB / blood moon effects is to good to pass up.
Wouldn't Blood Moon really screw up the mana base for this deck?
I do agree with not using Stifle in this deck, we just wouldn't capitalize on it enough. Maybe if someone wanted to try it with Phyrexian Dreadnought, but that really just doesn't seem right for our deck.
:symu::symg::symb:Sir, may I see your graveyard(Mimeoplasm):symb::symg::symu:
:symw::symw::symw:Michiko Konda, Truth Seeker:symw::symw::symw:
:symu::symb::symu:Oona, Queen of the Faye:symu::symb::symu:
Wouldn't Blood Moon really screw up the mana base for this deck?
I run a UWr.
When I drop magus of the moon, I am either
a) set on basics through fetching before dropping the magus
or
b) beating them to death with the magus on an empty board so it doesn't matter that I've hosed access to two of my colors.
I've sometimes used the magus just to eat removal against something like NO-RUG (Don't have the bolt? i'll beat you to death. Have the bolt? One less bolt for my mystic ...). But if I'm not doing one of the above - or am playing against a deck with lots of basics - I shuffle it away (if I can) and sideboard it out.
YMMV, and it *is* sometimes awkward, and as a disclaimer I keep getting my face bashed in during legacy dailies on Magic Online. But it's not actually that bad - if the Blood Moon has a body.
So we finally saw a stoneblade deck take down a SCG event, I think I really like his build with the V. island, seems good in the mirror match with REB and Pyro-B.
Private Mod Note
():
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
winning isnt everything, it's the only thing
Caw-Blade by Me!
Format: Standard - NPH
Location: 2011 MMS Qualifier - Minneapolis, MN (6/4)
Players: 99
Finished: 2nd Place
oh, I see.
Right now I am playing a WUB Rogue Stone Blade with Back to Basics because I don't have the duals :S But I am looking forward to finish this deck!
I'm new to the forum and new to the format.
I started a few months ago and played legacy tourneys when possible. I used to have BW Stoneblade but with the rise of decks like Hivemind in my meta I feel like having U in the mix is better.
Anyways here's my decklist for UW Stoneblade.
4 Stoneforge Mystic
4 Spellstutter Sprite
1 Batterskull
1 Sword of the Meek
2 Thopter Foundry
3 Jace, The Mind Sculptor
2 Enlightened Tutor
4 Force of Will
4 Mental Misstep
4 Brainstorm
4 Swords to Plowshares
2 Echoing Truth
4 Mutavault
4 Flooded Strand
4 Plains
5 Islands
1 Riptide Laboratory
SB:
2 Llawan
1 Humility
1 Enlightened Tutor
1 Warmth
2 Relic of Progenitus
1 Umezawa's Jittle
1 Tormond's Crypt
1 Manriki-Gusari
1 Phyrexian Metamorph
2 Vendillion Clique
2 Meddling Mage
I thought one of the best cards for my old BW deck was bitterblossom because of the army it provides you. Using a UW shell, I remembered the ThopterSword combo and thought it comparable. With Etutors and Stoneforges fetching the combo pieces, it shouldn't be too hard to get them online.
The spellstutter sprites and mutavaults + Riptide Laboratory also put out a soft lock that could seal a win.
Of course the old Stoneforge into Batterskull is still there and if all else fails, Jace can come it to steal a win.
What do you guys think?
I wonder if running Surgical Extractions in the sideboard (for the regular UW Stoneblade list) is enough to shore up the Hive Mind matchup because you can use it on whatever they Intuition for. Worst case scenario is that it draws a counterspell, potentially weakening their Show and Tell/Hive Mind protection. Angel's Grace seems like a much better answer, but at least Surgical Extraction isn't as narrow and can be used against other decks like Reanimator, Dredge (together with Relics), and other graveyard-based combo decks.
Special thanks to Hakai Studios and SushiOtter for the sig!
Legacy: UR Sneak and Show I UBG Team America I X Metalworker MUD
Modern: UBR Blue Jund I WBX Eldrazi Processors I X Affinity I WRG Nacatl Burn I GR Tron I UBR Grishoalbrand
4x Stoneforge Mystic
4x Grim Lavamancer
2x Vendilion Clique
2x Magus of the Moon
Instants:
3x Mental Misstep
3x Spell Snare
4x Force of Will
4x Brainstorm
4x Swords to Plowshare
2x Fire/Ice
Artifacts:
1x Batterskull
1x Sword of Feast and Famine
1x Umezawa's Jitte
3x Jace, The Mind Sculptor
Land:
4x Flooded Strand
3x Scalding Tarn
1x Arid Mesa
3x Tundra
3x Volcanic Island
1x Plateau
3x Wasteland
1x Mountain
1x Plains
2x Island
3x Red Elemental Blast
1x Sword of Fire and Ice
2x Enlightened Tutor
1x Humility
1x Ethersworm Canonist
1x Crucible of Worlds
2x Tormod's Crypt
1x Pithing Needle
1x Ensnaring Bridge
1x Engineered Explosives
1x Blood Moon
R1: UW Counterbalance 1-1-1 Draw
R2: Vengvine Elves 1-2 Loss (Hardest deck to beat)
R3: Zoo 2-0 Win
R4: NO Rug 2-1 Win
R5: Team America 2-0 Win
So I've been playing this deck for a pretty long time now and this is the updated list that I've come to. I ran it at my store on Sunday going 3-1-1 which of course put me out of top 4 . Someone else there was running an almost identical list with the exception of Magus/ sideboard and he went 4-0 draw into top4 and ended up taking the whole thing I believe.
Changes I made after the tournament were:
-2 Phyrexian Metamorph -1 Sword of L&S // +2 Fire/Ice +1 Jitte
-1 Sword of Body and Mind // +1 Sword of Feast and Famine
I couldn't find a Sword of War and Peace in time for the tourney and ran L&S pretty much for the pro colors and nothing else. It turned out to be horrible.
I've been playing with Magus of the Moon for a while now, but I'm not so sure I'd like to keep him. At points he can be a total bomb and other times you top deck two of them in a game where he is dead. So far he really shines against BUG and Junk colored decks and can lock unsuspecting greedy players out of game 1 (I locked NO Rug out with him LOL :D). If I were to cut him I would probably add another Clique as well as Karakas for an endgame lock.
Retired
Legacy:
GRUB Lands
Modern:
U Tron
RG Tron
RG Ponza
2 Karakas
4 Hallowed Fountain
1 Island
1 Riptide Laboratory
4 Tundra
4 Wasteland
3 Mutavault
4 Stoneforge Mystic
3 Mangara of Corondor
3 Vendilion Clique
4 Spellstutter Sprite
Other Spells:
3 Mental Misstep
2 Daze
1 Batterskull
1 Sword of Fire and Ice
1 Sword of Feast and Famine
1 Umezawa's Jitte
4 AEther Vial
4 Swords to Plowshares
4 Brainstorm
3 Force of Will
3 Jace, the Mind Sculptor
I would like to hear opinions; feel free to ask questions and critique.
It is a bit different then the lists I see here mainly because I choose to use the Mangara of Corondor + Karakas lock, which can do double duty with Vendilion Clique.
Oh and I haven't made a sideboard yet, but Llawan would be in it for more Karakas hilarity.
Also, what is with all the fetches? Some list are running a ridiculous amount, like equal or more than fetchable lands. Also, they don't add much of any synergy to this deck.
:symb::symb::symb:The Gate:symb::symb::symb:
:xmana::xmana::xmana:Affinity:xmana::xmana::xmana:
:symu::symw:W/U Liquid Swords:symw::symu:
:symg::symr::symw::symb:Aggro Loam:symb::symw::symr::symg:
Leveling Towards:
:symw::symw::symw:Michiko Konda, Truth Seeker:symw::symw::symw:
:symu::symb::symu:Oona, Queen of the Faye:symu::symb::symu:
I really don't like AEther Vial in this deck. It doesn't seem like we're built to abuse it. Also, the reason to not use Daze was explained earlier in this thread.
For your mana base I would add more lands (19 is definitely not enough for this deck), cut the Hallowed Fountains (you really don't need more than a playset of one dual) for Flooded Strands.
Mangara of Corondor is interesting, though. Let us know how it works for you.
Special thanks to Hakai Studios and SushiOtter for the sig!
Legacy: UR Sneak and Show I UBG Team America I X Metalworker MUD
Modern: UBR Blue Jund I WBX Eldrazi Processors I X Affinity I WRG Nacatl Burn I GR Tron I UBR Grishoalbrand
I like AEther Vial because it smooths the Mangara/Vedilion Clique + Karakas lock being able to never have your Mangara with Summoning Sickness is very useful. Additionally it makes Spellstutter Sprite yet another "free" counterspell and gets Stoneforge Mystic around counters.
Mangara of Corondor lock is amazing because of one key phrase in its ability "any permanent." Any time any specific target is getting on your nerves, Remove it. It also works wonder while you are Fatesealing with Jace, you can be removing all their lands. If anything gets past your counter magic it dead when this guy hits the board.
I would also like to point out "free" blocking with Riptide Laboratory.
:symb::symb::symb:The Gate:symb::symb::symb:
:xmana::xmana::xmana:Affinity:xmana::xmana::xmana:
:symu::symw:W/U Liquid Swords:symw::symu:
:symg::symr::symw::symb:Aggro Loam:symb::symw::symr::symg:
Leveling Towards:
:symw::symw::symw:Michiko Konda, Truth Seeker:symw::symw::symw:
:symu::symb::symu:Oona, Queen of the Faye:symu::symb::symu:
3 Vendilion Clique
4 Ancestral Vision
4 Brainstorm
4 Force of Will
4 Mental Misstep
3 Spell Snare
4 Swords To Plowshares
3 Jace, the Mind Sculptor
1 Batterskull
1 Crucible of Worlds
1 Sword of Feast and Famine
1 Plains
3 Flooded Strand
1 Karakas
1 Marsh Flats
4 Mishra's Factory
3 Polluted Delta
4 Tundra
4 Wasteland
1 Manriki-Gusari
1 Relic of Progenitus
1 Sword of Fire and Ice
1 Tormod's Crypt
1 Umezawa's Jitte
3 Angel's Grace
1 Elspeth, Knight-Errant
2 Path to Exile
2 Wrath of God
2 Surgical Extraction
Yeah, switched to Ancestral Vision again. I can't seem to make my mind up between that and Standstill, but I ran the latter last time and got destroyed by control decks so we'll see how this goes.
I wanted to ask for some last minute opinions on my sideboard. I don't know if I'm over-preparing for Hive Mind or not with both Angel's Grace and Surgical Extraction, but I know that my list's matchup with it is pretty abysmal and I'm pretty sure it'll be present tomorrow thanks to how popular the deck's been lately (and because tons of people in my meta have access to Sol Lands, Show and Tells and Intuitions and can easily construct that deck). The Extractions can also double as additional, although admittedly subpar, Dredge hate.
I'll also try to post a small report on how I did.
Special thanks to Hakai Studios and SushiOtter for the sig!
Legacy: UR Sneak and Show I UBG Team America I X Metalworker MUD
Modern: UBR Blue Jund I WBX Eldrazi Processors I X Affinity I WRG Nacatl Burn I GR Tron I UBR Grishoalbrand
4x Stoneforge Mystic
4x Spellstutter Sprite
3x Vendillion Clique
Instants 16
4x Mental Misstep
3x Force of Will
2x Counterspell
3x Swords to Plowshares
4x Brainstorm
Sorcery 4
4x Ancestral Vision
Artifacts 4
1x Crucible of Worlds
1x Sword of Feast and Famine
1x Umezawa's Jitte
1x Batterskull
2x Jace the Mindsculpter
Land 23
2x Island
2x Plains
4x Tundra
3x Scalding Tarn
4x Flooded Strand
4x Wasteland
3x Mutavault
1x Riptide Labratory
4x Surgical Extraction
3x Phantasmal Image
3x Energy Flux
2x Wrath of God
1x Manriki-Gwarasami
1x Sword of Fire and Ice
1x Swords to Plowshares
I'm running a list identical to your's except mine has -3 Spell Snare + 2 Spell Pierce + 1 Jace.
I'm thinking of running an Espeth in there to make my Factories/SFM's fly.
Good luck at your tourney!
Thanks to Dantcg for the Sig!
Round 1 - A UW Control homebrew
Game one involved a flurry of counterspells and Swords to Plowshares that quickly dealt with my Stoneforge Mystic plan. After resolving an Ancestral Vision, I was able to land a Jace, the Mind Sculptor on him and together with the Vendilion Clique - Karakas lock the following turn, he was drawing dead and couldn't come back.
Sideboard:
-1 Sword of Feast and Famine
+1 Sword of Fire and Ice
I wanted to side out the irrelevant sword, but my sideboarding didn't really matter for game two. It was pretty much the same thing and I won the game with Jace again. Jace, the Mind Sculptor, better than all.
2-0
1-0
Round 2 - UW Stoneblade
Pretty much a mirror match. Everything was the same except his list ran Daze and Stifle.
Game one I keep a questionable hand and he suspends an Ancestral Vision, letting me know that I'm playing the mirror. He has Ancestral Vision advantage throughout the whole game as he resolves three Visions and the one that I suspended got Forced. We eventually each get a Batterskull on the table and with some pretty bad misplays on my part (I forgot to return an empty Batterskull to my hand at the end of his turn), he wins the Batterskull war.
Sideboard:
-1 Wasteland, -1 Crucible of Worlds, -1 Sword of Feast and Famine
+1 Elspeth, Knight Errant, +1 Umezawa's Jitte, +1 Manriki-Gusari
I keep a Force of Will-light but Mental Misstep/Spell Snare-heavy hand and I manage to stop his early game business. Unfortunately, he lands a Jace, the Mind Sculptor on turn four and starts fatesealing early. I topdeck the singleton Elspeth, Knight-Errant and resolve it, feeling like a champ... until he casts his own Elspeth next turn to legend-rule her and Jace wrecks my draws until the ultimate.
Definitely a game I could've played differently, particularly in game one. I still need to learn proper Batterskull maintenance. I also had no idea how to sideboard for that matchup. I knew I wanted what I put in, but I probably should've kept the opportunity for the Crucible-lock open, particularly against such a nonbasic land-heavy deck.
0-2
1-1
Round 3 - Burn
The burn player was a friend of mine I'd faced before so I knew exactly what I was getting into. Game one I mull and keep a hand of four good spells... and two Mishra's Factory. I never get my coloured sources in time and he burns me to death. Mental note: never ever keep a hand with only colourless lands.
Sideboard:
-1 Crucible of Worlds, -1 Sword of Feast and Famine
+1 Sword of Fire and Ice, +1 [CARD]Umezawa's Jitte
[/CARD]
Game two starts out like the first game, though this time I manage a turn two Stoneforge Mystic to grab the all important Batterskull before ms. Mystic ate a Lightning Bolt. I land a Jace, the Mind Sculptor and bounce one of his Grim Lavamancers to try to mitigate the pain. Jace miraculously survives and the next turn I Jace-storm into the fifth land I needed to hardcast Batterskull and stabilize the game at six life. A Force of Will on a key Flames of the Blood Hand helps me lifelink back up and steal the game.
Game three went very well as I was blessed with tons of Mental Missteps and I was able to win with a Vendilion Clique equipped with an Umezawa's Jitte.
2-1
2-1
Round 4 - Zoo
Game one was pretty uneventful on my side, but the Zoo player filled his side with Goblin Guide and two Loam Lions and had the Lightning Helix and Path to Exile for my Stoneforge Mystic and Vendilion Clique. I just couldn't deal with his army and I scooped.
Sideboard:
-4 Force of Will, -1 Jace, the Mind Sculptor, -1 Crucible of Worlds
+1 Elspeth, Knight-Errant +2 Path to Exile, +2 Wrath of God, +1 Umezawa's Jitte
In game two I manage to slow the Zoo offensive thanks to Path to Exile and Swords to Plowshares, but I punt horribly with Elspeth, Knight-Errant. Rather than protecting her with the soldier token, I let her take 2 from a Goblin Guide attack and she gets killed by a Chain Lightning. She would've won that game all by herself if she survived. Nevertheless, after an Ancestral Vision I manage to assemble the Voltron of Vendilion Clique armed with Sword of Feast and Famine and Umezawa's Jitte, which is pretty good against Zoo.
Game three I get an amazing hand of two Mental Misstep and Spell Snare and I manage to keep the Zoo player's field relatively empty. Vendilion Clique came down and managed to absorb two spells thanks to the Karakas that my opponent missed (he spends a removal spell to deal with Clique, I Karakas my Clique in response, and he hesitantly spends his last burn spell to kill the Clique in response to Karakas). With the spells out of the way, I was able to assemble the Stoneforge Mystic-Batterskull interaction with five lands always untapped to protect the Batterskull from the enemy Qasali Pridemage and I won handily.
2-1
3-1
Third place finish.
Overall I was pretty happy with the event. I definitely over-prepared for Hive Mind as I did not see it at all, but I still feel like my sideboard was effective (I talked to my round two opponent about the deck and he agreed completely with the Angel's Graces as when he tested his brew versus Hive Mind he couldn't win at all). I might consider replacing the Surgical Extractions for something else but for the moment I like them as a card that I can bring in against both Hive Mind and Dredge.
Special thanks to Hakai Studios and SushiOtter for the sig!
Legacy: UR Sneak and Show I UBG Team America I X Metalworker MUD
Modern: UBR Blue Jund I WBX Eldrazi Processors I X Affinity I WRG Nacatl Burn I GR Tron I UBR Grishoalbrand
Thanks to Dantcg for the Sig!
I didn't even know he had Stifles in his list until he told me after the game (he did cast Daze, though, which countered my Jace and caught me completely by surprise). The best way to use Stifle against Hive Mind is to not counter the Hive Mind trigger, but to counter the pact's "pay up or lose the game" trigger during your upkeep. It's definitely interesting, and I may consider getting some Stifles. I really really enjoy Spell Snare in my list, though.
Special thanks to Hakai Studios and SushiOtter for the sig!
Legacy: UR Sneak and Show I UBG Team America I X Metalworker MUD
Modern: UBR Blue Jund I WBX Eldrazi Processors I X Affinity I WRG Nacatl Burn I GR Tron I UBR Grishoalbrand
Im going to test 3 and ill see how they fare.
Heres da list
3 Vendilion Clique
4 Brainstorm
4 Swords to Plowshares
4 Ancestral Visions
4 Force of Will
4 Mental Misstep
3 Stifle
1 Crucible of Worlds
1 Batterskull
1 Sword of Feast and Famine
4 Mishra's Factory
4 Tundra
3 Wasteland
4 U/W Fetch
1 Karakas
4 Scalding Tarn
2 Island
2 Plains
Thanks to Dantcg for the Sig!
Retired
Legacy:
GRUB Lands
Modern:
U Tron
RG Tron
RG Ponza
Wouldn't Blood Moon really screw up the mana base for this deck?
I do agree with not using Stifle in this deck, we just wouldn't capitalize on it enough. Maybe if someone wanted to try it with Phyrexian Dreadnought, but that really just doesn't seem right for our deck.
:symb::symb::symb:The Gate:symb::symb::symb:
:xmana::xmana::xmana:Affinity:xmana::xmana::xmana:
:symu::symw:W/U Liquid Swords:symw::symu:
:symg::symr::symw::symb:Aggro Loam:symb::symw::symr::symg:
Leveling Towards:
:symw::symw::symw:Michiko Konda, Truth Seeker:symw::symw::symw:
:symu::symb::symu:Oona, Queen of the Faye:symu::symb::symu:
I run a UWr.
When I drop magus of the moon, I am either
a) set on basics through fetching before dropping the magus
or
b) beating them to death with the magus on an empty board so it doesn't matter that I've hosed access to two of my colors.
I've sometimes used the magus just to eat removal against something like NO-RUG (Don't have the bolt? i'll beat you to death. Have the bolt? One less bolt for my mystic ...). But if I'm not doing one of the above - or am playing against a deck with lots of basics - I shuffle it away (if I can) and sideboard it out.
YMMV, and it *is* sometimes awkward, and as a disclaimer I keep getting my face bashed in during legacy dailies on Magic Online. But it's not actually that bad - if the Blood Moon has a body.
Format: Standard - NPH
Location: 2011 MMS Qualifier - Minneapolis, MN (6/4)
Players: 99
Finished: 2nd Place
TRADE THREAD
http://forums.mtgsalvation.com/showthread.php?t=347708