I brought this to last FNM. Went 3-1 overall. Beat Tron, Burn, GW Value, but lost to Storm, Split top 4.
SB plan, while cute, probably could be a bit different. Right now I have it set up to board out Death's Shadow and Wraiths and put in 2 lands, Rhinos, and Collective Brutality against decks packing heavy burn. Any ideas?
Vs Tron I went 2-1. Game 1 they didn't have a good enough payoff and our clock is too fast. Game 2 I didn't get any SB cards and was steamed by Ugin. Game 3 I was able to Tropy a Mine and extract it. They can't keep up with our clock.
Vs Storm I lost 1-2. Game 1 I took with a fast clock and good discard targets. Game 2 they got a turn 3 kill. Game 3 was much more interesting. Surgical on Gifts and Electromancer, but he was able to put together a win with Boral around turn 7. I just didn't draw gas.
Vs GW Valuetown I took it 2-0. Really easy matchup. Discard any cute tricks, I hit a Coco and a druid game 1 and was able to kill off any hope of blocks. Game 2 was Ranger and Drinker and Shadow applying beats. Goyf came in but by that time they were on the fence.
Vs Burn 2-1 I won the die roll game 1 and was able to sneak out a win with heavy discard and only goyf and Sculler attacks. Game 2 I was beat with Skullcrack on a Rhino. Normally this wouldn't happen as they wouldn't expect the transformation SB, but this was a close friend that I went over the idea with. Game 3 the plan worked. Fetch basics and lands tapped to minimize damage while landing a Brutality and 2 Rhinos with no Cracks to be found.
Edit: I found this play to be cool. Game 3 1 was on 3 lands. Ranger-captain was played and grabbed Dryad Arbor. That gave me the 4th land to be able to go off with the Rhinos. Was risky but having that option available helped significantly. May not have gotten there otherwise.
I hope you guys enjoy and feedback always welcome.
The transformation side board is very interesting. I think I would still keep a shadow or two post board because they are still gunning for your life total heavily.
The Arbor is a sweet trick with Ranger that I hadn't thought of. Personally I would be worried that the Rhinos would get stuck in my hand.
I like your list. Hexdrinker doesn't do it for me but how has it worked for you? Seems like a heavy mana sink that looks horrible when facing a Wrenn and Six, unless you have mana to pump it all the way the same turn you drop it (not likely in this build)
Thanks for the comments and concerns. Yes, I agree with you about leaving in 1 or 2 shadows against burn. I started doing just that. Usually burn vs shadow is a very skill intense game as burn holds back waiting for you to bring your life low, my plan is to just play that against them and gain life and play bombs they can't possibly keep up with. But the package of hexdrinker (with the increased land count), Death's Shadow, Giver, and in niche cases Dryad Arbor gives plenty of options for the burn matchup. Rhino grinding them down when they can't complete their game plan puts us out of range and a body they can't deal with without serious card disadvantage.
Well I played this again on Friday. 3-1 yet again. Loss was to an Gruul Eldrazi build. Beat storm, burn, and death and taxes.
Gruul Eldrazi was an interesting deck just meant to crush face. Good build that mains Burning tree Shanan to combat Druid Vizer combo and deal some extra points to players for casting planeswalkers. Fetchland hate was a shocking effect from them also.
I thought I had the upper hand until a bloodrushed Ghor clan Rampager on a Thoughtknot Seer busted through my goyf left on defense. Game 2 I took with little effort. Was pretty sure game 1 was a fluke. Game 3 proved it wasn't. Deck came out swinging and turn 2 BTS, Turn 3 and 4 smashers wrapped that round up.
Burn was a simple match. Won 2-0. Just good discard and guys came out fast enough to stop their little guys from putting any kind of pressure. Guide and swifties arent nearly good enough to stop rhinos. I was at 7 life. Rhino gained 3 putting me at 10. Their turn they played a swiftspear and swung. Obviously I block. They have to bolt it just to make a trade. That kind of life gain against them is way way too much to come overcome. To get me back to 7 they had to play yet another burn spell. That means the single rhino costed them 2 bolts and a dude. 3-1 with this decks discard and removal is gg.
Storm was 2-1. I won the die roll and lead with seize. Followed with Sculler, turn 3 was another thoughseize and a shadow and a push on Boral. Turn 4 was Ranger getting shadow and sacing on their turn to prevent them from storming off. Game 2 they were able to stick a dude and go off the following turn. I drew the wrong side of the deck. Game 3 was good discard and dudes finishing up. I really need to find room for more Scullers in the board.
Death and taxes was a long game 1. They were able to stripmine me and play a cat jesus but of course don't draw any real pressure. Luckily this deck can get it done with only 2 mana. Game 2 came down to double stripmine and me being fetchland flooded. I really needed a path or push to get into the game. Game 3 a turn 1 hexdrinker grew over the course of a few turns into a 4/4 they couldn't deal with. After a few more turns it being an unblockable, untargetabke, 6/6 finished up the game. They were blinking splicers and going to town. But needed a block or some form of life gain which they couldn't put together.
I'll probably run this in 2 weeks again. Right now I'm loving my main. Boros Amber Beatdown. But this does show promise. Great clock, great discard, and great multipurpose removal.
P.S. what do you guys think of Putrid Leech in this build. Something tells me sculler is justbetter, but I was thinking in terms of Death's Shadow, looks good to play and activate. On their turn activate it again. Then can activate again to make it a 6 point life loss. It is also a 4/4 beater for just 2 mana.
2 Hexdrinker
1 Giver of Runes
4 Tarmogoyf
2 Tidehollow Sculler
4 Ranger-Captain of Eos
4 Street Wraith
4 Thoughtseize
3 Inquisition of Kozilek
3 Fatal Push
2 Path to Exile
2 Assassin's Trophy
1 Abrupt Decay
4 Verdant Catacombs
1 Windswept Heath
3 Marsh Flats
1 Horizon Canopy
2 Silent Clearing
3 Godless Shrine
2 Overgrown Tomb
1 Temple Garden
1 Swamp
1 Forest
1 Plains
1 Heroic Intervention
3 Surgical Extraction
2 Collective Brutality
4 Seige Rhino
1 Dryad Arbor
1 Murmuring Bosk
2 Plague Engineer
1 Loaming Shaman
I brought this to last FNM. Went 3-1 overall. Beat Tron, Burn, GW Value, but lost to Storm, Split top 4.
SB plan, while cute, probably could be a bit different. Right now I have it set up to board out Death's Shadow and Wraiths and put in 2 lands, Rhinos, and Collective Brutality against decks packing heavy burn. Any ideas?
Vs Tron I went 2-1. Game 1 they didn't have a good enough payoff and our clock is too fast. Game 2 I didn't get any SB cards and was steamed by Ugin. Game 3 I was able to Tropy a Mine and extract it. They can't keep up with our clock.
Vs Storm I lost 1-2. Game 1 I took with a fast clock and good discard targets. Game 2 they got a turn 3 kill. Game 3 was much more interesting. Surgical on Gifts and Electromancer, but he was able to put together a win with Boral around turn 7. I just didn't draw gas.
Vs GW Valuetown I took it 2-0. Really easy matchup. Discard any cute tricks, I hit a Coco and a druid game 1 and was able to kill off any hope of blocks. Game 2 was Ranger and Drinker and Shadow applying beats. Goyf came in but by that time they were on the fence.
Vs Burn 2-1 I won the die roll game 1 and was able to sneak out a win with heavy discard and only goyf and Sculler attacks. Game 2 I was beat with Skullcrack on a Rhino. Normally this wouldn't happen as they wouldn't expect the transformation SB, but this was a close friend that I went over the idea with. Game 3 the plan worked. Fetch basics and lands tapped to minimize damage while landing a Brutality and 2 Rhinos with no Cracks to be found.
Edit: I found this play to be cool. Game 3 1 was on 3 lands. Ranger-captain was played and grabbed Dryad Arbor. That gave me the 4th land to be able to go off with the Rhinos. Was risky but having that option available helped significantly. May not have gotten there otherwise.
I hope you guys enjoy and feedback always welcome.
The Arbor is a sweet trick with Ranger that I hadn't thought of. Personally I would be worried that the Rhinos would get stuck in my hand.
I like your list. Hexdrinker doesn't do it for me but how has it worked for you? Seems like a heavy mana sink that looks horrible when facing a Wrenn and Six, unless you have mana to pump it all the way the same turn you drop it (not likely in this build)
Draft My Cube!
Well I played this again on Friday. 3-1 yet again. Loss was to an Gruul Eldrazi build. Beat storm, burn, and death and taxes.
Gruul Eldrazi was an interesting deck just meant to crush face. Good build that mains Burning tree Shanan to combat Druid Vizer combo and deal some extra points to players for casting planeswalkers. Fetchland hate was a shocking effect from them also.
I thought I had the upper hand until a bloodrushed Ghor clan Rampager on a Thoughtknot Seer busted through my goyf left on defense. Game 2 I took with little effort. Was pretty sure game 1 was a fluke. Game 3 proved it wasn't. Deck came out swinging and turn 2 BTS, Turn 3 and 4 smashers wrapped that round up.
Burn was a simple match. Won 2-0. Just good discard and guys came out fast enough to stop their little guys from putting any kind of pressure. Guide and swifties arent nearly good enough to stop rhinos. I was at 7 life. Rhino gained 3 putting me at 10. Their turn they played a swiftspear and swung. Obviously I block. They have to bolt it just to make a trade. That kind of life gain against them is way way too much to come overcome. To get me back to 7 they had to play yet another burn spell. That means the single rhino costed them 2 bolts and a dude. 3-1 with this decks discard and removal is gg.
Storm was 2-1. I won the die roll and lead with seize. Followed with Sculler, turn 3 was another thoughseize and a shadow and a push on Boral. Turn 4 was Ranger getting shadow and sacing on their turn to prevent them from storming off. Game 2 they were able to stick a dude and go off the following turn. I drew the wrong side of the deck. Game 3 was good discard and dudes finishing up. I really need to find room for more Scullers in the board.
Death and taxes was a long game 1. They were able to stripmine me and play a cat jesus but of course don't draw any real pressure. Luckily this deck can get it done with only 2 mana. Game 2 came down to double stripmine and me being fetchland flooded. I really needed a path or push to get into the game. Game 3 a turn 1 hexdrinker grew over the course of a few turns into a 4/4 they couldn't deal with. After a few more turns it being an unblockable, untargetabke, 6/6 finished up the game. They were blinking splicers and going to town. But needed a block or some form of life gain which they couldn't put together.
I'll probably run this in 2 weeks again. Right now I'm loving my main. Boros Amber Beatdown. But this does show promise. Great clock, great discard, and great multipurpose removal.
P.S. what do you guys think of Putrid Leech in this build. Something tells me sculler is justbetter, but I was thinking in terms of Death's Shadow, looks good to play and activate. On their turn activate it again. Then can activate again to make it a 6 point life loss. It is also a 4/4 beater for just 2 mana.