I'm not sold on Hexdrinker at all. A 2/1 is a "meh" body at best and provides a 10 turn clock. He gets walled by too many things and loses/trades in combat against most threats. He really only becomes a beefy threat after you've invested 3 subsequent mana into him… at sorcery speed. Even then, he basically gets "Protection from Path to Exile and Fatal Push". To really figure out how good he is, you need to ask yourself how often your threats are being picked off by those two spells.
Part of the reason Temur is an attractive option is because the threats just don't much in the way or resources or babysitting. And RUG Delver is all about precise usage of each of your resources. You need to get the best bang for your buck at each turn and every single mana. Tarmogoyf is usually a 4/5 without really having to try, so he wins combat against most things, he turns on Stubborn Denial and he comes down as a 5 turn clock. Just drop him and keep turning him sideways. Hooting Mandrills requires playing Thought Scour… which is sort of lackluster, but it's a roleplayer.
The only way I see Hexdrinker being decent is if you go all in on the free countermagic. Even then, I'm just not confident that Force of Negation is enough… and I think there definitely is a limit to how much card disadvantage this deck can facilitate with free counterspell effects.
I don't think Hexdrinker is what we want. I don't even think it's particularly good in the scope of Modern. I'm certainly ready to eat my words if results prove otherwise!
As I keep saying, I'm just going to test it. I'm replacing Mandrills with it because I want to see it enough to see how it does. Worst case scenario is that I get my teeth kicked in for a few weeks before going back to Mandrills. Best case is that this deck gets a makeover. I see it as zero downside for me to test it, and you all do as you please and continue crushing with this deck.
Private Mod Note
():
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
I can't say I'm pleased to see you and must warn you I may have to do something about it.
EDH: UGEdric
Pauper: URDelver
Modern: UGRDelver
Draft my cube: Eric's 390 Unpowered
After seeing Force of Negation and Nimble Mongoose I could not resist, as these cards overpower this deck so much (I dare say Nimble Mongoose is the best creature for this deck since Goyf).
I feel like with both mongoose and hexdrinker being added to the format it may be time to rethink the creture base and the way the deck function. Something along the lines of
This makes stubbon denial irelevent but with the new free counters we should be able maintain protection.
Also by not using the gy to fuel mandrills and 0 mana counters to help against Gy hate the deck should have a consistently large enough gy to maintain the threshold for mongoose and ptermander. This also makes goyf and snap caster a little stronger over the long game and allows the deck to run 1/2 of the new red removal spell. I'm honestly not shore if this will be stronger than the current build but I'll test and get back to you.
a) Nimble Mongoose is occasionally good, but it gets either shrinked by grave hate (it's way worse than Mandrills in this aspect, cause it's not one go) or stonewalled by opponents. 100% the worst creature we could run.
b) Force of Negation gets good only if you also run Stubborn Denial. It seems like a non-sense, but you have to have that counterspell on your turn, and without running Disrupting Shoal it's the only way to play this deck.
c) 14 creatures are the sweet spot.
d) Hexdrinker has been game-winning far more times than I expected, and I highly suggest you guys to try it.
Sorry for the double post. I wanted to share some reasonings with you guys.
I'm still in the middle of deciding IF this deck is worth attention over Grixis. At the same time, I don't think we can afford too many free counterspells in the maindeck - while they do have a good supportive role in the sideboard against some archetypes.
That said.
If we want to be better than other color combinations, I guess the only option is trying to be faster. Yet, I read continuosly people who like diluiting the deck with too many cantrips or slowish Snapcaster Mage, people who are entusiastic for Nimble Mongoose (which attacks for one the turn later... IF it isn't stonewalled by anything, really, and it conflicts with Hooting Mandrills, which IS a far better race creature) and, immediately after, are bashing on Hexdrinker who races better and works alongside our dear Monkey. Now, I'm not stating that you should play Hexdrinker, but most of the alternatives suggested are definitely worse than it.
If this experiment is going to fail, I'll probably be back on Young Pyromancer (aka: threat that isn't grave-dependent and that grinds if we have to). Basically, Hexdrinker is better on the curve while Young Pyromancer is a beast vs BGx. Hexdrinker is awesome as a topdeck while Peezy is horrible. But Peezy also races quite good if unaswered. The metagame at the moment is quite Combo/Big-Mana centered, so I like (hypotetically) Hexdrinker more, but both are viable options. Anyway, that's what we need: a creature who can race the opponent, not something cute that prolongs the game.
Another aspect I want to appoint: Spell Snare is a card that I love in Grow strategies (expecially when we can't afford black removals for opponent's Tarmogoyf) but we need a better coverage for our counterspells. Negate effects don't pile up nicely against certain strategies (Vial decks) but they are pretty much necessary to cover the other slice of the metagame. This is what I'm working on, as a reference.
I'm in on the Hexdrinker train I think it just works better in modern than goose, with that said for creature 13 and 14 has anyone tried nimble obstructionist? I've had alot of success with that card in styles of decks like this.
I like Nimble Obstructionist in UWx Control-Flash strategies. Here it doesn't do much. You want it creature mode 99% of the time, due to the deck's configuration. And, when it's like that, Vendilion Clique fullfill the role the same way, but better.
I think that for those who like Hexdrinker, it might be worth it to try and go RUG Midrange instead. Have every creature played be a bigger threat than both Delver and Mongoose. Basically give up speed for power, since that's what Hexdrinker does anyway.
I think that for those who like Hexdrinker, it might be worth it to try and go RUG Midrange instead. Have every creature played be a bigger threat than both Delver and Mongoose. Basically give up speed for power, since that's what Hexdrinker does anyway.
Ehr, I wholehearthedly disagree with this statement. It's the opposite, if any.
We did the math: Hexdrinker attacks for two on turn two. Only flipped Delver can do better than this. Nimble Mongoose is certainly not better in this aspect (it's way worse, expecially considered the fact we can't play it alongside Hooting Mandrills). Same reasoning for Pteramander.
Really, Hexdrinker is NOT a faster clock than Goyf or Mandrills. Without outside factors, the extra attack phase you get for 2 isn't actually doing anything to speed the clock up. Of course, when you add things like incidental life loss from fetches and bolts, that could account for shaving off a single turn on the clock when comparing it to Mandrills/Goyf.
However, to make it as fast as a Goyf/Mandrills (T7 kill), you need to invest a total of 4 mana into it, effectively eating 2.5 turns worth of mana. That's 2 turns of not interacting with your opponent's spells. 2 turns of not using spells to maintain board superiority. Hexdinker's potential upside, is that it turns some cards in your opponent's hand into dead cards.
I'm still not convinced on Hexdrinker. He seems like too much of a mana sink for not enough benefit on his own. He's not really actually a faster clock than the other threats (aside from Delver who's a lower mana investment and has evasion). I'd need to see some concrete numbers and results to become a believer.
However, to make it as fast as a Goyf/Mandrills (T7 kill), you need to invest a total of 4 mana into it, effectively eating 2.5 turns worth of mana. That's 2 turns of not interacting with your opponent's spells. 2 turns of not using spells to maintain board superiority. Hexdinker's potential upside, is that it turns some cards in your opponent's hand into dead cards.
This.
And on top of that, you can't just judge the cards in a vacuum. Hexdrinker has some drawbacks that go against the idea of playing tempo. 1: Have to level up at sorcery speed. 2: Have to invest extra ressources. 3: Have to level up 1 level at a time, setting you up for being set back after you've sunk the extra mana into it and not reaching the good levels.
Nimble Mongoose has a slower clock and doesn't let you play Mandrills.
Pteramander has the same issue of Mongoose, albeit in a different way.
Snapcaster Mage isn't a creature, more like a reusable spell. I would have accepted the argument with Gitaxian Probe still between us, but now I can't.
Just look at my latest list, and you'll understand what I'm saying. There is no merit in speaking about how we have to invest resources in it. We won't, unless the game has already developed in another direction from the simple "race 'em". Yes, the card still needs to be tested. No, we don't know it's going to be good for granted. But I don't get why we're discussing about it as a competitor for Goyf/Mandrills.
I was refuting the fact that Hexdrinker somehow makes the deck more aggressive. The reason I was comparing it to the other threats was more about evaluating how it matches up with currently used threats and partially due to this statement:
Ehr, I wholehearthedly disagree with this statement. It's the opposite, if any.
We did the math: Hexdrinker attacks for two on turn two. Only flipped Delver can do better than this. Nimble Mongoose is certainly not better in this aspect (it's way worse, expecially considered the fact we can't play it alongside Hooting Mandrills). Same reasoning for Pteramander.
What are we talking about?
It doesn't actually make the deck more aggressive. It may, perhaps, add consistency to an opener, if it is indeed a hearty threat on its own. If anything, it actually plays more into a midrange plan, since the hope with a Hexdrinker is that using its ability creates virtual card advantage by changing your opponent's live cards into dead cards at the cost of lost tempo.
Thoughts on using Electrodominance and Crashing Footfalls?
Best case scenario, it's 8 power with trample on turn 2 that can be flashed in EOT, more typical scenario it comes down a turn later than Mandrills but gives you 2 Mandrills bodies (except worse against bounce and fatal push). And it keeps the spell count higher, and plays nice with Pteramander.
It doesn't actually make the deck more aggressive. It may, perhaps, add consistency to an opener, if it is indeed a hearty threat on its own
Adding consistency to an opener DOES make any deck more aggressive.
f anything, it actually plays more into a midrange plan, since the hope with a Hexdrinker is that using its ability creates virtual card advantage by changing your opponent's live cards into dead cards at the cost of lost tempo
It's primarly an undercosted beater. Most and foremost. That turns into a big threat if we draw it from the midgame on. It could be good, could be bad, but that's it.
Adding consistency to an opener DOES make any deck more aggressive.
It doesn't. It might change the number of keepable 7 handers you have. It doesn't increase your clock or velocity.
It's primarly an undercosted beater. Most and foremost. That turns into a big threat if we draw it from the midgame on. It could be good, could be bad, but that's it.
Is it undercosted? We've had access to 1 mana threats before. Narnam Renegade was tried and is basically always a 2/3 that always trades up AND has psuedo unblockable due to deathtouch. Gnarled Dryad, while it does take a bit of extra work to activate, can also be swinging in as a 3/3 by turn 2. Goblin Guide is also a 2/2 for 1, but we really have no interest in that threat. I think you're overvaluing the 2/1 body.
It doesn't. It might change the number of keepable 7 handers you have. It doesn't increase your clock or velocity.
It seems we have very different ideas about the concept of "being aggressive". But the bold part is simply false. Again, it changes your clock. I don't really understand what are you talking about.
Is it undercosted? We've had access to 1 mana threats before. Narnam Renegade was tried and is basically always a 2/3 that always trades up AND has psuedo unblockable due to deathtouch. Gnarled Dryad, while it does take a bit of extra work to activate, can also be swinging in as a 3/3 by turn 2. Goblin Guide is also a 2/2 for 1, but we really have no interest in that threat. I think you're overvaluing the 2/1 body.
Yes, it is. A 2/1 for G is a good starting point for a beater. Because we're taking into consideration the turn one play, obviously. The likes of Narnam Renegade and Gnarled Dryad have a HUGE issue: they are very decent on turn one, they are terrible later in the game. That's exactly why Hexdrinker seems to be good: it's basically the same on turn one, but if we draw it later in the game it's our best threat hands down. It's very easy to evaluate this.
---
I won't bother to convince anyone. Hexdrinker still needs more reps. I know for sure that, in the two tournaments and in several testing games I did with it, it was very decent/good half the time and awesome the other half. Try it on your own.
Lost against Mardu Pyromancer (1-2), won against Grixis Shadow (2-1), won against G-Tron (2-1), won against Affinity (2-0), won against Neoform Combo (2-0). Took away the quarterfinals vs Naya Burn (2-0), lost semifinals vs G-Tron (1-2).
Interesting take from Mardu's opponent (who played some Force of Despair between main and side) and Wrenn and Six from Burn's. From my side, Force of Negation was often a very overcosted Spell Pierce, but I got one win vs Tron thanks to it. Threads of Disloyalty + Entrancing Melody confirmed good options against creatures match-ups and Midrange strategies. In the last game vs Grixis Shadow I had two 7/7 Death's Shadow on my side. Tron is the usual coinflip. We could run some additional hate in the sideboard, but I prefer to go for less narrow cards (and my win ratio against it is still around 50%, which is okay).
Hexdrinker overperformed again. I'm 100% buying a set of it. I'm not sure about if they are better in two or three copies here, but for the time being I'm very satisfied with them. I won my g1 vs Mardu Pyromancer on the back of a topdecked snake, and it litterarly stalled for eons in g2 vs Shadow after entering Progenitus mode. It was important to race Tron and Burn during the swiss, played on turn one, and it ate a Galvanic Blast against Affinity who would have killed my Hooting Mandrills the turn after, thank to whom I was able to Stubborn Denial a Cranial Plating and a Welding Jar.
Still on the fence concerning the third Tarfire. It could be either a Seal of Fire (not really interested in it) or the second Flame Slash (would be good against Phoenix and Humans, but worse vs any combo deck and it doesn't add utility with Tarmogoyf).
I decided for going down to one Island maindeck. There is no draw in playing two while not running Blood Moon (even though it's ankward when you mill your only one with Thought Scour). I needed one more red mana to support Anger of the Gods in the sideboard, which was useless the whole day but still a pretty damn good card in this meta.
I'm not sold on Hexdrinker at all. A 2/1 is a "meh" body at best and provides a 10 turn clock. He gets walled by too many things and loses/trades in combat against most threats. He really only becomes a beefy threat after you've invested 3 subsequent mana into him… at sorcery speed. Even then, he basically gets "Protection from Path to Exile and Fatal Push". To really figure out how good he is, you need to ask yourself how often your threats are being picked off by those two spells.
Part of the reason Temur is an attractive option is because the threats just don't much in the way or resources or babysitting. And RUG Delver is all about precise usage of each of your resources. You need to get the best bang for your buck at each turn and every single mana. Tarmogoyf is usually a 4/5 without really having to try, so he wins combat against most things, he turns on Stubborn Denial and he comes down as a 5 turn clock. Just drop him and keep turning him sideways. Hooting Mandrills requires playing Thought Scour… which is sort of lackluster, but it's a roleplayer.
The only way I see Hexdrinker being decent is if you go all in on the free countermagic. Even then, I'm just not confident that Force of Negation is enough… and I think there definitely is a limit to how much card disadvantage this deck can facilitate with free counterspell effects.
I don't think Hexdrinker is what we want. I don't even think it's particularly good in the scope of Modern. I'm certainly ready to eat my words if results prove otherwise!
EDH: UGEdric
Pauper: UR Delver
Modern: UGR Delver
Draft my cube: Eric's 390 Unpowered
After seeing Force of Negation and Nimble Mongoose I could not resist, as these cards overpower this deck so much (I dare say Nimble Mongoose is the best creature for this deck since Goyf).
I'm gonna try 2 variants:
"Classic" RUG Delver
4 Nimble Mongoose
4 Tarmogoyf
4 Serum Visions
4 Opt
4 Thought Scour
4 Force of Negation
4 Remand
2 Stubborn Denial
1 Deprive
4 Lightning Bolt
1 Forked Bolt
2 Vapor Snag
4 Scalding Tarn
4 Misty Rainforest
2 Steam Vents
2 Breeding Pool
1 Stomping Grounds
2 Fiery Islet
2 Waterlogged Grove
1 Island
2 Collector Ouphe
2 Flame Slash
2 Flusterstorm
3 Surgical Extraction
2 Grim Lavamancer
2 Damping Sphere
and another which I feel may be even better, Wrenn and Six is retardedly good.
4 Tarmogoyf
4 Snapcaster Mage
4 Serum Visions
2 Faithless Looting
4 Opt
4 Thought Scour
3 Remand
4 Force of Negation
4 Lightning Bolt
2 Vapor Snag
3 Wrenn and Six
4 Scalding Tarn
4 Misty Rainforest
2 Steam Vents
2 Breeding Pool
1 Stomping Grounds
2 Fiery Islet
2 Waterlogged Grove
1 Botanical Sanctum
2 Collector Ouphe
2 Flame Slash
2 Flusterstorm
3 Surgical Extraction
2 Grim Lavamancer
2 Damping Sphere
Very excited for Horizons to come out
4 mongoose
4 delver
3 hexdrinker
2 ptermander
2 clique/snapcaster/goyf
This makes stubbon denial irelevent but with the new free counters we should be able maintain protection.
Also by not using the gy to fuel mandrills and 0 mana counters to help against Gy hate the deck should have a consistently large enough gy to maintain the threshold for mongoose and ptermander. This also makes goyf and snap caster a little stronger over the long game and allows the deck to run 1/2 of the new red removal spell. I'm honestly not shore if this will be stronger than the current build but I'll test and get back to you.
Competitive Decks
Devotion to the Lash B ----
Monkey Conservation WUGR ---- Dragon WorshipR
a) Nimble Mongoose is occasionally good, but it gets either shrinked by grave hate (it's way worse than Mandrills in this aspect, cause it's not one go) or stonewalled by opponents. 100% the worst creature we could run.
b) Force of Negation gets good only if you also run Stubborn Denial. It seems like a non-sense, but you have to have that counterspell on your turn, and without running Disrupting Shoal it's the only way to play this deck.
c) 14 creatures are the sweet spot.
d) Hexdrinker has been game-winning far more times than I expected, and I highly suggest you guys to try it.
4x Tarmogoyf
3x Hexdrinker
3x Hooting Mandrills
I'm still in the middle of deciding IF this deck is worth attention over Grixis. At the same time, I don't think we can afford too many free counterspells in the maindeck - while they do have a good supportive role in the sideboard against some archetypes.
That said.
If we want to be better than other color combinations, I guess the only option is trying to be faster. Yet, I read continuosly people who like diluiting the deck with too many cantrips or slowish Snapcaster Mage, people who are entusiastic for Nimble Mongoose (which attacks for one the turn later... IF it isn't stonewalled by anything, really, and it conflicts with Hooting Mandrills, which IS a far better race creature) and, immediately after, are bashing on Hexdrinker who races better and works alongside our dear Monkey. Now, I'm not stating that you should play Hexdrinker, but most of the alternatives suggested are definitely worse than it.
If this experiment is going to fail, I'll probably be back on Young Pyromancer (aka: threat that isn't grave-dependent and that grinds if we have to). Basically, Hexdrinker is better on the curve while Young Pyromancer is a beast vs BGx. Hexdrinker is awesome as a topdeck while Peezy is horrible. But Peezy also races quite good if unaswered. The metagame at the moment is quite Combo/Big-Mana centered, so I like (hypotetically) Hexdrinker more, but both are viable options. Anyway, that's what we need: a creature who can race the opponent, not something cute that prolongs the game.
Another aspect I want to appoint: Spell Snare is a card that I love in Grow strategies (expecially when we can't afford black removals for opponent's Tarmogoyf) but we need a better coverage for our counterspells. Negate effects don't pile up nicely against certain strategies (Vial decks) but they are pretty much necessary to cover the other slice of the metagame. This is what I'm working on, as a reference.
4x Misty Rainforest
4x Scalding Tarn
2x Breeding Pool
2x Steam Vents
2x Spirebluff Canal
1x Botanical Sanctum
2x Island
1x Forest
Creatures (15)
4x Delver of Secrets
4x Tarmogoyf
4x Hooting Mandrills
3x Hexdrinker
4x Sleight of Hand
4x Thought Scour
4x Vapor Snag
4x Lightning Bolt
3x Tarfire
4x Stubborn Denial
3x Deprive
1x Force of Negation
3x Ceremonious Rejection
2x Force of Negation
2x Abrade
2x Engineered Explosives
2x Entrancing Melody
4x Surgical Extraction
Ehr, I wholehearthedly disagree with this statement. It's the opposite, if any.
We did the math: Hexdrinker attacks for two on turn two. Only flipped Delver can do better than this. Nimble Mongoose is certainly not better in this aspect (it's way worse, expecially considered the fact we can't play it alongside Hooting Mandrills). Same reasoning for Pteramander.
What are we talking about?
Hexdrinker (assuming level up to second-tier ASAP):
T1=0
T2=2
T3=6
T4=10
T5=14
T6=18
T7=22
Goyf/Mandrills:
T1=0
T2=0
T3=4
T4=8
T5=12
T6=16
T7=20
Delver of Secrets (assuming blind flip):
T1=0
T2=3
T3=6
T4=9
T5=12
T6=15
T7=18
T8=21
Really, Hexdrinker is NOT a faster clock than Goyf or Mandrills. Without outside factors, the extra attack phase you get for 2 isn't actually doing anything to speed the clock up. Of course, when you add things like incidental life loss from fetches and bolts, that could account for shaving off a single turn on the clock when comparing it to Mandrills/Goyf.
However, to make it as fast as a Goyf/Mandrills (T7 kill), you need to invest a total of 4 mana into it, effectively eating 2.5 turns worth of mana. That's 2 turns of not interacting with your opponent's spells. 2 turns of not using spells to maintain board superiority. Hexdinker's potential upside, is that it turns some cards in your opponent's hand into dead cards.
I'm still not convinced on Hexdrinker. He seems like too much of a mana sink for not enough benefit on his own. He's not really actually a faster clock than the other threats (aside from Delver who's a lower mana investment and has evasion). I'd need to see some concrete numbers and results to become a believer.
This.
And on top of that, you can't just judge the cards in a vacuum. Hexdrinker has some drawbacks that go against the idea of playing tempo. 1: Have to level up at sorcery speed. 2: Have to invest extra ressources. 3: Have to level up 1 level at a time, setting you up for being set back after you've sunk the extra mana into it and not reaching the good levels.
Hexdrinker is complementary to Tarmogoyf and Hooting Mandrills.
Nimble Mongoose has a slower clock and doesn't let you play Mandrills.
Pteramander has the same issue of Mongoose, albeit in a different way.
Snapcaster Mage isn't a creature, more like a reusable spell. I would have accepted the argument with Gitaxian Probe still between us, but now I can't.
Just look at my latest list, and you'll understand what I'm saying. There is no merit in speaking about how we have to invest resources in it. We won't, unless the game has already developed in another direction from the simple "race 'em". Yes, the card still needs to be tested. No, we don't know it's going to be good for granted. But I don't get why we're discussing about it as a competitor for Goyf/Mandrills.
It doesn't actually make the deck more aggressive. It may, perhaps, add consistency to an opener, if it is indeed a hearty threat on its own. If anything, it actually plays more into a midrange plan, since the hope with a Hexdrinker is that using its ability creates virtual card advantage by changing your opponent's live cards into dead cards at the cost of lost tempo.
Best case scenario, it's 8 power with trample on turn 2 that can be flashed in EOT, more typical scenario it comes down a turn later than Mandrills but gives you 2 Mandrills bodies (except worse against bounce and fatal push). And it keeps the spell count higher, and plays nice with Pteramander.
Adding consistency to an opener DOES make any deck more aggressive.
It's primarly an undercosted beater. Most and foremost. That turns into a big threat if we draw it from the midgame on. It could be good, could be bad, but that's it.
It doesn't. It might change the number of keepable 7 handers you have. It doesn't increase your clock or velocity.
Is it undercosted? We've had access to 1 mana threats before. Narnam Renegade was tried and is basically always a 2/3 that always trades up AND has psuedo unblockable due to deathtouch. Gnarled Dryad, while it does take a bit of extra work to activate, can also be swinging in as a 3/3 by turn 2. Goblin Guide is also a 2/2 for 1, but we really have no interest in that threat. I think you're overvaluing the 2/1 body.
It seems we have very different ideas about the concept of "being aggressive". But the bold part is simply false. Again, it changes your clock. I don't really understand what are you talking about.
Yes, it is. A 2/1 for G is a good starting point for a beater. Because we're taking into consideration the turn one play, obviously. The likes of Narnam Renegade and Gnarled Dryad have a HUGE issue: they are very decent on turn one, they are terrible later in the game. That's exactly why Hexdrinker seems to be good: it's basically the same on turn one, but if we draw it later in the game it's our best threat hands down. It's very easy to evaluate this.
---
I won't bother to convince anyone. Hexdrinker still needs more reps. I know for sure that, in the two tournaments and in several testing games I did with it, it was very decent/good half the time and awesome the other half. Try it on your own.
4x Misty Rainforest
4x Polluted Delta
3x Spirebluff Canal
1x Botanical Sanctum
2x Steam Vents
2x Breeding Pool
1x Island
1x Forest
Creatures (15)
4x Delver of Secrets
3x Hexdrinker
4x Tarmogoyf
4x Hooting Mandrills
4x Sleight of Hand
4x Thought Scour
4x Lightning Bolt
3x Vapor Snag
3x Tarfire
1x Flame Slash
4x Stubborn Denial
3x Deprive
1x Force of Negation
3x Ceremonious Rejection
3x Surgical Extraction
1x Threads of Disloyalty
2x Entrancing Melody
2x Anger of the Gods
2x Abrade
2x Force of Negation
Lost against Mardu Pyromancer (1-2), won against Grixis Shadow (2-1), won against G-Tron (2-1), won against Affinity (2-0), won against Neoform Combo (2-0). Took away the quarterfinals vs Naya Burn (2-0), lost semifinals vs G-Tron (1-2).
Interesting take from Mardu's opponent (who played some Force of Despair between main and side) and Wrenn and Six from Burn's. From my side, Force of Negation was often a very overcosted Spell Pierce, but I got one win vs Tron thanks to it. Threads of Disloyalty + Entrancing Melody confirmed good options against creatures match-ups and Midrange strategies. In the last game vs Grixis Shadow I had two 7/7 Death's Shadow on my side. Tron is the usual coinflip. We could run some additional hate in the sideboard, but I prefer to go for less narrow cards (and my win ratio against it is still around 50%, which is okay).
Hexdrinker overperformed again. I'm 100% buying a set of it. I'm not sure about if they are better in two or three copies here, but for the time being I'm very satisfied with them. I won my g1 vs Mardu Pyromancer on the back of a topdecked snake, and it litterarly stalled for eons in g2 vs Shadow after entering Progenitus mode. It was important to race Tron and Burn during the swiss, played on turn one, and it ate a Galvanic Blast against Affinity who would have killed my Hooting Mandrills the turn after, thank to whom I was able to Stubborn Denial a Cranial Plating and a Welding Jar.
Still on the fence concerning the third Tarfire. It could be either a Seal of Fire (not really interested in it) or the second Flame Slash (would be good against Phoenix and Humans, but worse vs any combo deck and it doesn't add utility with Tarmogoyf).
I decided for going down to one Island maindeck. There is no draw in playing two while not running Blood Moon (even though it's ankward when you mill your only one with Thought Scour). I needed one more red mana to support Anger of the Gods in the sideboard, which was useless the whole day but still a pretty damn good card in this meta.