I'd really recommend fitting in a 22nd land. This is a deck that absolutely needs to play land turns 1-3, and often turn 4 as well. All the advantage of a turn 1 mana creature is lost if you miss your land drop on turn 3, or can't cast that coco/chord in your hand. Otherwise, I think this build looks really good and is close to what I'd play right now. I'm not sure the saffi and ralliers are worth the slots, but they are some cool tech.
I've been working on a build with 4X Tidehollow Sculler in the maindeck, but have been struggling to make the mana work since needing B/W turn 2 and GGGX turn 3 for chord is a tall order, especially with Gavony Township in the mix. Sculler is just good against everything right now and I'm trying to figure out if this deck can be configured to support the casting cost.
I've been working on a build with 4X Tidehollow Sculler in the maindeck, but have been struggling to make the mana work since needing B/W turn 2 and GGGX turn 3 for chord is a tall order, especially with Gavony Township in the mix. Sculler is just good against everything right now and I'm trying to figure out if this deck can be configured to support the casting cost.
I played with 4 scullers maindeck once. The only change in my manabase was including a blooming marsh. If you want to chord on turn 3, you probably have a mana dork in play, and that provides W (and maybe B) for the sculler. Or maybe you should try playing Kitesail Freebooter instead. I never tried these, but they seem like a nice (and less mana intensive) alternative.
Blooming Marsh should help with the mana needs of my build. I just feel like the mana base gets stretched very thin as I want to have 2X Gavony Township and at least 4 basics for the number of path to exile and field of ruin floating around these days. Kitesail Freebooter is alright, but is pretty bad against humans which is the number 1 deck right now, I like that Tidehollow Sculler is able to take creatures as well. It is extremely relevant in just about every match and that's why I've been trying to make it fit into the main-deck.
I'd really recommend fitting in a 22nd land. This is a deck that absolutely needs to play land turns 1-3, and often turn 4 as well. All the advantage of a turn 1 mana creature is lost if you miss your land drop on turn 3, or can't cast that coco/chord in your hand. Otherwise, I think this build looks really good and is close to what I'd play right now. I'm not sure the saffi and ralliers are worth the slots, but they are some cool tech.
I've been working on a build with 4X Tidehollow Sculler in the maindeck, but have been struggling to make the mana work since needing B/W turn 2 and GGGX turn 3 for chord is a tall order, especially with Gavony Township in the mix. Sculler is just good against everything right now and I'm trying to figure out if this deck can be configured to support the casting cost.
Also, Renegade Rallier can grab a fetch from the graveyard if you're stuck on 2 lands. That along with the infinite combo with Saffi + Seer is really nice. I'd rather go all-in combo on game 1, then have a Beat-down/Utility sideboard for G2 and 3.
I did see that list and I'm really glad to see the good result. I agree with the decision to run the finks combo right now since infinite life seems to lock up the game against a lot of the top decks including dredge, burn, humans, and spirits. It also turns just about every creature into a must kill threat which really taxes our opponent's removal. I'm running something similar with the following changes:
-1 Saffi
-2 Rallier
-1 Voice
-1 Ooze
+1 E-wit
+1 land
+3 Tidehollow Sculler
My mana-base is a little different than that list and includes 2x blooming marsh to help meet the mana requirements of sculler. I think going all-in on the combo G1 is the right plan right now My reasoning for running sculler main-deck is that I feel it effectively supports the combo plan. When you play it against a fair deck and take a removal piece it forces your opponent to spend at least 1 removal spell to get rid of it and if they only had 1 removal spell you are clear to go for the combo win. Against unfair opponents, sculler is strong disruption and taking their key spell can often buy you 2 or more turns which helps us to win the race. I might consider replacing the 3 scullers with 2 renegade ralliers and 1 Saffi if the mana base proves to be too painful with sculler in the mix.
I'm also thinking about putting a Knight of Autumn main-deck since it seems like such a flexible card. Has anyone experimented with this card?
I play Knight of Autumn, but not main deck. It's flexible, but does not help with our going all in on combo gameplan. Maybe you could play it, but I still like Ooze as my one-of flex slot.
Played this deck for the first time in a while since I've been on GTron for PPTQ season. I got my Buglers which I've been itching to try out as I talked about here, and sailed to a 4-0 for the night! The deck felt super powerful, possibly the most powerful iteration of the deck I've played yet. My sample size is only 4 matches mind you, but I had some crazy games which are explained below. List for reference:
Some notes about the deck before the games:
- Yes that is a 14 card sideboard. I must have forgot one at home, but it didn't seem to matter at all.
- Omitting the Finks + Seer package for Bugler + KotR. This allows Bugler to hit every card in the deck.
- 1 Courser of Kruphix compliments the KotR's. Because of it's inclusion I am playing 7 dorks and 22 lands, as opposed to my normal 8 dorks and 21 lands. Yes I like to cheat on the lands, but not here.
- KotR even acts as a dork in some cases, especially if you play it turn 2, so you are playing what is essentially 15 "dorks" not even inducing EWit getting fetches back. I never had mana problems.
- Only 3 Eternal Witness. I always like 4, but I figured with Bugler I could drop one to make the deck a little less reliant on the graveyard.
- I played before with 6 land destruction lands, but found that against the majority of decks they didn't do what I wanted them to do. Because of this I dropped to 3. This lets me still kill stuff like the random Inkmoth/Mutavault while also slowing down Tron and Valakut enough to win those matchups (in theory). With the 3 extra "utility land" slots I was able to include a second Horizon Canopy to help out the combo and flooding in general, and a Gavony Township for when the deck goes real wide.
Onto the games:
Round 1 vs Grixis Death's Shadow:
Game 1 was a grind fest with him removing my Druids, but not having a fast start himself. Once I accepted that I wasn't going to combo I went all in on the KotR plan. The game was decided with him using a Temur Battlerage on his 8/8 Shadow to kill my 10/10 Knight. I then Companied into Knight + EWit, using the company again to hit another Knight and win the game since he ran out of blockers. Game 2 was more of the same with me boarding out the combo and into a midrange deck (everything but Kataki, Rec Sage, and Eidolon). I overwhelmed him with value and won with 2 11/11 Knights while destroying his lands thanks to Path removing his only two basic lands. Bugler kept on finding Knights or EWits that Companies couldn't and kept the value train going. 2-0
Round 2 vs Mardu Pyromancer:
More of the same as round 1. The dude went Lootings into Pyromancer and I won some turns after with the combo by casting some Companies and Bugler finding what I wanted. Boarded the same as against Death's Shadow since I figured I couldn't combo again through all of the removal. The game this time went pretty long with him killing my turn 2 druid and resolving a LotV which I had to then throw away a Knight and Ewit to. I eventually got there though as he couldn't discard my companies, and I started chaining them to fill up the board. I found my Scooze and kept his graveyard out of relevant stuff while I had a Spellskite and Forge-Tender as backup. The Scooze then went on to continually attack him and win. 2-0
Round 3 vs UG Infect:
This was the guy I lost to in the top 8 of the PPTQ on Sunday. Game 3 was the only relevant one and super intense with him on the play. Turn 2 he has a Blighted Agent while I have a Temple Garden and Horizon Canopy to play a Devoted Druid. His turn 3 he hits me for 7 infect, and will hit me for a guaranteed 3 more the next turn so I have to win. I untap, and my hand is Vizier, Ghost Quarter, Bugler, and some other not relevant stuff. I play the Vizier with the Temple Garden since I can draw a card with Canopy. This is only better than playing Bugler if I draw a Chord or Company, so I figure I'll Bugler instead sine I can hit 2 Recruiters and 1 Ballista in 4 cards. I miss, but hit another Bugler. It then dawned on me that I could Ghost Quarter my land to get an untapped Plains and cast the second Bugler to tray again. Lo and behold it hits a Recruiter and I get a clutch win! You can watch the video of the match here. 2-1
Round 4 vs Eldrazi Tron:
This is the guy I beat in round 5 of the PPTQ. Games were grindy with me eventually using a Chord to get through his Chalice on 2 and win the game. It was weird since he know the Chord was coming but didn't Dismember the Druid... Game 2 was won off of the back of KotR and some land fetching shenanigans to block Reality Smashers after the wiped my graveyard. Again a misplay on his part as he should have waited and he would have won. Re-watching the footage I also missed a Duskwatch trigger, so I'll have to remember that for the future. It didn't matter though as it died the turn after. You can watch the video of the match here. 2-0
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Thoughts on the deck:
- I really really liked Bugler. The deck has been getting away from the graveyard more and more, but is still dependent with Eternal Witness and Knight of the Reliquary. It's not the worst is hate is brought in for it, but it certainly is annoying. Bugler helps get away from this (replacing Finks).
- Hitting a Bugler off of a Company almost guarantees hitting something that you need since you get to keep digging. I found if I was ever wanting a card I could always find it within the next 1-2 turns. It also makes the combo much more consistent meaning you will fizzle less when getting infinite mana.
- A downside with Bugler is that you are more dependent on W during the combo, so you have to be mindful to fetch it out.
- KotR is a beast, and is often the biggest thing on the battlefield. With Finks I found I was using it to chump and stay alive until I could squeak out a combo. Now for the same mana cost I am winning combats, ramping, and thinning my deck. You lose life gain in the deck, and if anything take more damage from fetches, so I can imagine the Burn matchups is suddenly harder.
- The plan of going super-combo maindeck and transitional value-midrange deck in the sideboard worked out well. I was able to race things like without interaction like Infect (and Affinity in pre-event games) while absolutely destroying the opponent with value post-board.
- I'm not sure what I want sideboard card #15 to be. Perhaps a Pridemage, or another Scooze...?
I will hopefully play this again Wednesday and see if I can replicate the results.
Took the deck to a 3-1 tonight, which puts Bugler version at 7-1 overall. Only changes were +1 Selfless Spirit MD, +1 Courser of Kruphix & +1 Qasali Pridemage SB so I had 15 cards this time. List for reference:
Wins were 2-0 vs taking Turns. I won the match in about 10 mins total with a turn 3 combo each game. 2-1 vs G Devotion. I kept a slow hand game 1 hoping I could just get there, whereas games 2 and 3 I forced the combo and blew him out of the water. 2-1 vs Scales Affinity, with game 3 him mulling to 5 while I had the turn 3 win. He didn't have removal on his turn 2 so I won.
My loss was to UW Control, 0-2. Game 1 I kept a 1 land hand with Hierarch, Druid, Druid, Vizier, Chord, EWit, Forest. On turn 2 I drew a second Chord, and he Logic Knotted my Druid for 1. If I had drawn a land it would have resolved and I was pretty confident in my chances, but alas I didn't. I went on to draw Chords for 2 more turns, so I had all 4 in hand before I got my second land. Wasn't winning that one. Second game was more of the same, with a T2 Bugler finding Druid, playing the Druid T3, and him wrathing the board on his T4. From there he stabilized with a Teferi and then Jace, so I was lost at that point. I hoped to see a Company so I could start trying to flood the board with it and EWits, but never saw either card and was grinded out.
The control matchup was pretty bad, especially with them playing Terminus now. My strategy was to force the combo and hope they can't Logic Knot for enough on Turn 2, as we aren't going to win the long game. Their Planeswalkers out value us, unlike other midrange decks that we can play the grindy-value game with. Perhaps adding a Breeding Pool and 3 Unified Will to the sideboard is the best bet for this matchup. Countering their first wrath or PW will give us a window to try and win. Thoughts on the matchup?
My list was unchanged from the one I played when I went 3-1. Matchups went as follows:
2-0 vs Eldrazi Tron, 2-1 vs Infect, 2-0 vs Hardened Scales Affinity, 2-1 vs Bant mirror (he played Queller's instead of Bugler's). Not a ton to talk about since the games are really playing out the same each time. With the addition of Militia Buglers I can slam the combo pretty much whenever I need too since digging for it is really easy, and this was a night of playing very uninteractive decks allowing me to combo as fast as I wanted. Pretty much every match I was sideboarding out the Knights and bringing in Spellskites and Paths, among other things. I didn't really get to play vs any midrange decks which my sideboard is tuned for. The good thing about that is that it means the maindeck is good enough to combo at the speed of some the best. Only changes to the deck I would do would be the addition of another Militia Bugler since that card has been insane and helps the deck be less graveyard dependent.
If you want to watch the Infect match you can here, and the Bant Company match here.
I have a player of the year championship on Saturday I may take this too since it's been doing so well, but I'm expecting a lot of UW Control to show up. At the last PPTQ at this store there was 6/47 pure UW Control which is scary. This will be an invite only tourney though, so possibly more KCI and Humans (less pet decks) which I'm fine with. I guess there are no haymaker cards that can beat UW Control while staying pure GW eh? Something like Pharika, God of Affliction vs GB decks.
My main LGS has a bi-annually "Players Championship" which is a 24 player invite only tourney and you get there by a point system from playing events. First place was free events for a year, and second place was free events for a year but you had to pick week days or weekends. It was a three format tournament of Standard, Modern, M19 draft. I hadn't touched Standard cards since ~2012, but managed to go 1-2 and made the cut to the Modern round. Continuing my hot streak lately, I went 3-0 in the Modern portion (putting my record at 13-1 match wins in the last 4 events since a guy dropped to me round 3) to make top 8 and drafted a pretty average BW Lifegain deck that was pretty weak individually, but had a billion synergies in it. Had a super grindy 3 games against RW Aggro, and then lost to the most disgusting UB deck I've ever seen. He curved Walking Corpse into Death Baron, into Skeleton Archer which killed my only creature, and then into Bone Dragon. Game 2 wasn't much different and I lost that one real fast. Still ended up with $100 in credit which was a good result for a free tournament.
I played UW Control winning 2-1, and Boggles winning 2-0. List was slightly changed and optimized:
There are 2 Field of Ruin and 1 Ghost Quarter maindeck now because FoR keeps your lands and you have lots of basics so it's fine, and you can still hit Tron before they Tron you but you have that 1 Ghost Quarter in case you reeeally need it. Sideboard is the same since the combo is so damn fast game 1 now I want to just side into an unbeatable midrange deck.
I beat UW Control in a super grindy game 1 where he just bricked after his first miracled Terminus. Game 2 he brought in Spell Quellers (??? why???) and they caught me off guard and beat me down. Game 3 was super grindy and I eventually out-valued/outplayed him to win on Turn 4 of turns since we went to time.
The second round against boggles was quick since I combo'd on turn 3 each game. They don't have any interaction to stop it. And my third round never happened because the person wanted to go home.
I'm sticking with this list for a while as it's been doing great, and I liked the land change. Now if only they printed Sumala Woodshaper at 1GW it would have broken the format in half (I can dream).
Skipped a week of Modern and played for the first time last night to a garbage fire 2-2 record, dropping the deck winrate from 92.8% to 83.3%
Lost round 1 to Hardened Scales Affinity. I won game 1 when he couldn't find a Ballista, and lost game 2 when I untapped with infinite mana and only a Company which missed big time. I then went on to draw 3 lands in a row while he grew his team and beat me down. Game 3 my Druids met 2 Dispatches before I could get some protection down, and then he landed a Ballista which locked me out. I've been having such a good run of Company and Bugler flips recently my luck was bound to run out eventually.
Round 2 was vs Mardu Pyromancer in which KotR's and Scavenging Ooze beat him down both games.
Round 3 I beat Revolt Zoo in some close-ish games. I just threw chumpblockers infront of his guys until I could combo off. Post-board, my Knights and Spellskites, and Buglers were able to stall and widdle down his board while keeping me at a reasonable life total the whole time.
Round 4 I lost to Humans. Won game 1 when he drew all 4 Vials and 3 Hierarchs. Games 2 and 3, I mulled to 6 and never had a turn 1 dork but wasn't about to push it further. Missed some landdrops and got overrun pretty bad.
Still like the configuration of the deck, but I was thinking about dropping Knight of the Reliquary from the main once Knight of Autumn is legal. It does a bit of everything but nothing great. Moreso, it would open up 3-4 sideboard slots for other things that I can play which is big. I could even drop the 2 Voice of Resurgence I have for midrange matchups and have lots of space for Tireless Trackers to grind out midrange harder.
I've been quite busy and not playing much lately. Managed to get out after about a month or more and went undefeated 3-0-1. Beat BG Rock, Drew with UW Control, Beat Burn, Beat Humans. You can see the Burn match here and the Humans match here. I'm playing the same list as before, but with 3x Knight of Autumn in the sideboard instead of Pridemage, Recsage, and Kataki.
Played this deck for the first time in a while since I've been on GTron for PPTQ season. I got my Buglers which I've been itching to try out as I talked about here, and sailed to a 4-0 for the night! The deck felt super powerful, possibly the most powerful iteration of the deck I've played yet. My sample size is only 4 matches mind you, but I had some crazy games which are explained below. List for reference:
Some notes about the deck before the games:
- Yes that is a 14 card sideboard. I must have forgot one at home, but it didn't seem to matter at all.
- Omitting the Finks + Seer package for Bugler + KotR. This allows Bugler to hit every card in the deck.
- 1 Courser of Kruphix compliments the KotR's. Because of it's inclusion I am playing 7 dorks and 22 lands, as opposed to my normal 8 dorks and 21 lands. Yes I like to cheat on the lands, but not here.
- KotR even acts as a dork in some cases, especially if you play it turn 2, so you are playing what is essentially 15 "dorks" not even inducing EWit getting fetches back. I never had mana problems.
- Only 3 Eternal Witness. I always like 4, but I figured with Bugler I could drop one to make the deck a little less reliant on the graveyard.
- I played before with 6 land destruction lands, but found that against the majority of decks they didn't do what I wanted them to do. Because of this I dropped to 3. This lets me still kill stuff like the random Inkmoth/Mutavault while also slowing down Tron and Valakut enough to win those matchups (in theory). With the 3 extra "utility land" slots I was able to include a second Horizon Canopy to help out the combo and flooding in general, and a Gavony Township for when the deck goes real wide.
Onto the games:
Round 1 vs Grixis Death's Shadow:
Game 1 was a grind fest with him removing my Druids, but not having a fast start himself. Once I accepted that I wasn't going to combo I went all in on the KotR plan. The game was decided with him using a Temur Battlerage on his 8/8 Shadow to kill my 10/10 Knight. I then Companied into Knight + EWit, using the company again to hit another Knight and win the game since he ran out of blockers. Game 2 was more of the same with me boarding out the combo and into a midrange deck (everything but Kataki, Rec Sage, and Eidolon). I overwhelmed him with value and won with 2 11/11 Knights while destroying his lands thanks to Path removing his only two basic lands. Bugler kept on finding Knights or EWits that Companies couldn't and kept the value train going. 2-0
Round 2 vs Mardu Pyromancer:
More of the same as round 1. The dude went Lootings into Pyromancer and I won some turns after with the combo by casting some Companies and Bugler finding what I wanted. Boarded the same as against Death's Shadow since I figured I couldn't combo again through all of the removal. The game this time went pretty long with him killing my turn 2 druid and resolving a LotV which I had to then throw away a Knight and Ewit to. I eventually got there though as he couldn't discard my companies, and I started chaining them to fill up the board. I found my Scooze and kept his graveyard out of relevant stuff while I had a Spellskite and Forge-Tender as backup. The Scooze then went on to continually attack him and win. 2-0
Round 3 vs UG Infect:
This was the guy I lost to in the top 8 of the PPTQ on Sunday. Game 3 was the only relevant one and super intense with him on the play. Turn 2 he has a Blighted Agent while I have a Temple Garden and Horizon Canopy to play a Devoted Druid. His turn 3 he hits me for 7 infect, and will hit me for a guaranteed 3 more the next turn so I have to win. I untap, and my hand is Vizier, Ghost Quarter, Bugler, and some other not relevant stuff. I play the Vizier with the Temple Garden since I can draw a card with Canopy. This is only better than playing Bugler if I draw a Chord or Company, so I figure I'll Bugler instead sine I can hit 2 Recruiters and 1 Ballista in 4 cards. I miss, but hit another Bugler. It then dawned on me that I could Ghost Quarter my land to get an untapped Plains and cast the second Bugler to tray again. Lo and behold it hits a Recruiter and I get a clutch win! You can watch the video of the match here. 2-1
Round 4 vs Eldrazi Tron:
This is the guy I beat in round 5 of the PPTQ. Games were grindy with me eventually using a Chord to get through his Chalice on 2 and win the game. It was weird since he know the Chord was coming but didn't Dismember the Druid... Game 2 was won off of the back of KotR and some land fetching shenanigans to block Reality Smashers after the wiped my graveyard. Again a misplay on his part as he should have waited and he would have won. Re-watching the footage I also missed a Duskwatch trigger, so I'll have to remember that for the future. It didn't matter though as it died the turn after. You can watch the video of the match here. 2-0
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Thoughts on the deck:
- I really really liked Bugler. The deck has been getting away from the graveyard more and more, but is still dependent with Eternal Witness and Knight of the Reliquary. It's not the worst is hate is brought in for it, but it certainly is annoying. Bugler helps get away from this (replacing Finks).
- Hitting a Bugler off of a Company almost guarantees hitting something that you need since you get to keep digging. I found if I was ever wanting a card I could always find it within the next 1-2 turns. It also makes the combo much more consistent meaning you will fizzle less when getting infinite mana.
- A downside with Bugler is that you are more dependent on W during the combo, so you have to be mindful to fetch it out.
- KotR is a beast, and is often the biggest thing on the battlefield. With Finks I found I was using it to chump and stay alive until I could squeak out a combo. Now for the same mana cost I am winning combats, ramping, and thinning my deck. You lose life gain in the deck, and if anything take more damage from fetches, so I can imagine the Burn matchups is suddenly harder.
- The plan of going super-combo maindeck and transitional value-midrange deck in the sideboard worked out well. I was able to race things like without interaction like Infect (and Affinity in pre-event games) while absolutely destroying the opponent with value post-board.
- I'm not sure what I want sideboard card #15 to be. Perhaps a Pridemage, or another Scooze...?
I will hopefully play this again Wednesday and see if I can replicate the results.
Took the deck to a 3-1 tonight, which puts Bugler version at 7-1 overall. Only changes were +1 Selfless Spirit MD, +1 Courser of Kruphix & +1 Qasali Pridemage SB so I had 15 cards this time. List for reference:
Wins were 2-0 vs taking Turns. I won the match in about 10 mins total with a turn 3 combo each game. 2-1 vs G Devotion. I kept a slow hand game 1 hoping I could just get there, whereas games 2 and 3 I forced the combo and blew him out of the water. 2-1 vs Scales Affinity, with game 3 him mulling to 5 while I had the turn 3 win. He didn't have removal on his turn 2 so I won.
My loss was to UW Control, 0-2. Game 1 I kept a 1 land hand with Hierarch, Druid, Druid, Vizier, Chord, EWit, Forest. On turn 2 I drew a second Chord, and he Logic Knotted my Druid for 1. If I had drawn a land it would have resolved and I was pretty confident in my chances, but alas I didn't. I went on to draw Chords for 2 more turns, so I had all 4 in hand before I got my second land. Wasn't winning that one. Second game was more of the same, with a T2 Bugler finding Druid, playing the Druid T3, and him wrathing the board on his T4. From there he stabilized with a Teferi and then Jace, so I was lost at that point. I hoped to see a Company so I could start trying to flood the board with it and EWits, but never saw either card and was grinded out.
The control matchup was pretty bad, especially with them playing Terminus now. My strategy was to force the combo and hope they can't Logic Knot for enough on Turn 2, as we aren't going to win the long game. Their Planeswalkers out value us, unlike other midrange decks that we can play the grindy-value game with. Perhaps adding a Breeding Pool and 3 Unified Will to the sideboard is the best bet for this matchup. Countering their first wrath or PW will give us a window to try and win. Thoughts on the matchup?
My list was unchanged from the one I played when I went 3-1. Matchups went as follows:
2-0 vs Eldrazi Tron, 2-1 vs Infect, 2-0 vs Hardened Scales Affinity, 2-1 vs Bant mirror (he played Queller's instead of Bugler's). Not a ton to talk about since the games are really playing out the same each time. With the addition of Militia Buglers I can slam the combo pretty much whenever I need too since digging for it is really easy, and this was a night of playing very uninteractive decks allowing me to combo as fast as I wanted. Pretty much every match I was sideboarding out the Knights and bringing in Spellskites and Paths, among other things. I didn't really get to play vs any midrange decks which my sideboard is tuned for. The good thing about that is that it means the maindeck is good enough to combo at the speed of some the best. Only changes to the deck I would do would be the addition of another Militia Bugler since that card has been insane and helps the deck be less graveyard dependent.
If you want to watch the Infect match you can here, and the Bant Company match here.
I have a player of the year championship on Saturday I may take this too since it's been doing so well, but I'm expecting a lot of UW Control to show up. At the last PPTQ at this store there was 6/47 pure UW Control which is scary. This will be an invite only tourney though, so possibly more KCI and Humans (less pet decks) which I'm fine with. I guess there are no haymaker cards that can beat UW Control while staying pure GW eh? Something like Pharika, God of Affliction vs GB decks.
My main LGS has a bi-annually "Players Championship" which is a 24 player invite only tourney and you get there by a point system from playing events. First place was free events for a year, and second place was free events for a year but you had to pick week days or weekends. It was a three format tournament of Standard, Modern, M19 draft. I hadn't touched Standard cards since ~2012, but managed to go 1-2 and made the cut to the Modern round. Continuing my hot streak lately, I went 3-0 in the Modern portion (putting my record at 13-1 match wins in the last 4 events since a guy dropped to me round 3) to make top 8 and drafted a pretty average BW Lifegain deck that was pretty weak individually, but had a billion synergies in it. Had a super grindy 3 games against RW Aggro, and then lost to the most disgusting UB deck I've ever seen. He curved Walking Corpse into Death Baron, into Skeleton Archer which killed my only creature, and then into Bone Dragon. Game 2 wasn't much different and I lost that one real fast. Still ended up with $100 in credit which was a good result for a free tournament.
I played UW Control winning 2-1, and Boggles winning 2-0. List was slightly changed and optimized:
There are 2 Field of Ruin and 1 Ghost Quarter maindeck now because FoR keeps your lands and you have lots of basics so it's fine, and you can still hit Tron before they Tron you but you have that 1 Ghost Quarter in case you reeeally need it. Sideboard is the same since the combo is so damn fast game 1 now I want to just side into an unbeatable midrange deck.
I beat UW Control in a super grindy game 1 where he just bricked after his first miracled Terminus. Game 2 he brought in Spell Quellers (??? why???) and they caught me off guard and beat me down. Game 3 was super grindy and I eventually out-valued/outplayed him to win on Turn 4 of turns since we went to time.
The second round against boggles was quick since I combo'd on turn 3 each game. They don't have any interaction to stop it. And my third round never happened because the person wanted to go home.
I'm sticking with this list for a while as it's been doing great, and I liked the land change. Now if only they printed Sumala Woodshaper at 1GW it would have broken the format in half (I can dream).
Skipped a week of Modern and played for the first time last night to a garbage fire 2-2 record, dropping the deck winrate from 92.8% to 83.3%
Lost round 1 to Hardened Scales Affinity. I won game 1 when he couldn't find a Ballista, and lost game 2 when I untapped with infinite mana and only a Company which missed big time. I then went on to draw 3 lands in a row while he grew his team and beat me down. Game 3 my Druids met 2 Dispatches before I could get some protection down, and then he landed a Ballista which locked me out. I've been having such a good run of Company and Bugler flips recently my luck was bound to run out eventually.
Round 2 was vs Mardu Pyromancer in which KotR's and Scavenging Ooze beat him down both games.
Round 3 I beat Revolt Zoo in some close-ish games. I just threw chumpblockers infront of his guys until I could combo off. Post-board, my Knights and Spellskites, and Buglers were able to stall and widdle down his board while keeping me at a reasonable life total the whole time.
Round 4 I lost to Humans. Won game 1 when he drew all 4 Vials and 3 Hierarchs. Games 2 and 3, I mulled to 6 and never had a turn 1 dork but wasn't about to push it further. Missed some landdrops and got overrun pretty bad.
Still like the configuration of the deck, but I was thinking about dropping Knight of the Reliquary from the main once Knight of Autumn is legal. It does a bit of everything but nothing great. Moreso, it would open up 3-4 sideboard slots for other things that I can play which is big. I could even drop the 2 Voice of Resurgence I have for midrange matchups and have lots of space for Tireless Trackers to grind out midrange harder.
I've been quite busy and not playing much lately. Managed to get out after about a month or more and went undefeated 3-0-1. Beat BG Rock, Drew with UW Control, Beat Burn, Beat Humans. You can see the Burn match here and the Humans match here. I'm playing the same list as before, but with 3x Knight of Autumn in the sideboard instead of Pridemage, Recsage, and Kataki.
I like your list but I'm not sure about Militia Bugler, seems kind of "win more" if you're combo'ing, and doesn't really do much if you're not combo'ing. I'd rather have a mix of silver bullets, or a third combo (Saffi + Rallier) like the Modern 10k List has.
I like your list but I'm not sure about Militia Bugler, seems kind of "win more" if you're combo'ing, and doesn't really do much if you're not combo'ing. I'd rather have a mix of silver bullets, or a third combo (Saffi + Rallier) like the Modern 10k List has.
I think Bugler is there to find the Combo more often. Sure, it isn't as fast, but Bugler finding a missing piece is still 1-2 turns off the "ideal" turn 3 kill. It may also be there as a "value" creature in those types of matchups, but you'll have to ask Torpf about that.
I'm not gonna lie though; that Saffi list was hot. I think the next time I run this deck, I'm going to be doing that. I'm so sad I sold my foil one for $60 half a year ago.
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Legacy - Sneak Show, BR Reanimator, Miracles, UW Stoneblade
Premodern - Trix, RecSur, Enchantress, Reanimator, Elves https://www.facebook.com/groups/PremodernUSA/ Modern - Neobrand, Hogaak Vine, Elves
Standard - Mono Red (6-2 and 5-3 in 2 McQ)
Draft - (I wish I had more time for limited...)
Commander - Norin the Wary, Grimgrin, Adun Oakenshield (taking forever to build) (dead format for me)
I'm playing the same list as before, but with 3x Knight of Autumn in the sideboard instead of Pridemage, Recsage, and Kataki.
I'm staunchly against cutting all copies of Pridemage. The ability to respond to Grafdigger's Cage on the stack by Chording or CoCo'ing for Pridemage, letting Cage resolve, then shoot Cage with Pridemage is something that no other Naturalize-on-a-stick can do.
You are absolutely correct. My revision:
Among the played and discussed options, what QPridemage does "is something no other Naturalize-on-a-stick can do."
GP Atlanta was high on linear decks and tempo decks. I'm not surprised that a combo-only shell was most successful. You try to run that in New England (where I am), you're gonna get Fatal-Pushed, Lightning-Bolted, and Cryptic-Commanded to death.
Does anyone have some advice for playing against Dredge? I feel like if I go the combo route then they have too much removal (Conflagrate hitting multiple dorks is rough) and if I go the midrange route then they out-grind me.
I've been considering adding 1 copy of Shalai, Voice of Plenty to the main-deck. Not only is it a nice mana sink that acts like another expensive version of Gavony Township or immediate win condition with infinite mana, but it also blanks a lot of removal and stops burn and some combo cards. In the worst case it is still a 3/4 with flying for 4 which is reasonable on its own.
I'm always hesitant to add cards that make CoCo less reliable, but it seems to have a lot of upside right now. Has anyone played Shalai main-deck and how have the results been?
I've been considering adding 1 copy of Shalai, Voice of Plenty to the main-deck. Not only is it a nice mana sink that acts like another expensive version of Gavony Township or immediate win condition with infinite mana, but it also blanks a lot of removal and stops burn and some combo cards. In the worst case it is still a 3/4 with flying for 4 which is reasonable on its own.
I'm always hesitant to add cards that make CoCo less reliable, but it seems to have a lot of upside right now. Has anyone played Shalai main-deck and how have the results been?
I briefly tried Shalai, Voice of Plenty in the SB for a month, but it just rarely ever came in. Maybe that's a good thing to not play against those types of matchups often? The few times I did side it in, I never got it or was able to Chord for it. So I am pretty ambivalent to it.
On the other hand, it has been incredibly good against me a few times when it has been on the opponent's side (not always on Company, but other decks too). It has been very tough to overcome, so I may revisit Shalai in Company again some time.
*Regarding the new art Devoted Druid, that's cool for others, but I prefer the art I already have. Also the foiling on Shadowmoor cards is insane!
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Legacy - Sneak Show, BR Reanimator, Miracles, UW Stoneblade
Premodern - Trix, RecSur, Enchantress, Reanimator, Elves https://www.facebook.com/groups/PremodernUSA/ Modern - Neobrand, Hogaak Vine, Elves
Standard - Mono Red (6-2 and 5-3 in 2 McQ)
Draft - (I wish I had more time for limited...)
Commander - Norin the Wary, Grimgrin, Adun Oakenshield (taking forever to build) (dead format for me)
Shalai never worked out for me either, though I really thought she would. At one point I played all 3 mana dump win cons: Walking Ballista was consistently the best, followed by Rhonas, and Shalai last.
Shalai probably has more value in a combo-only shell (playing at least 2 copies of her) as the protection is more relevant. In the hybrid versions, Shalai is at most a 1-of, she takes up a precious flex slot, and her protection is less relevant as there are many high value cards in the deck.
I've been working on a build with 4X Tidehollow Sculler in the maindeck, but have been struggling to make the mana work since needing B/W turn 2 and GGGX turn 3 for chord is a tall order, especially with Gavony Township in the mix. Sculler is just good against everything right now and I'm trying to figure out if this deck can be configured to support the casting cost.
I played with 4 scullers maindeck once. The only change in my manabase was including a blooming marsh. If you want to chord on turn 3, you probably have a mana dork in play, and that provides W (and maybe B) for the sculler. Or maybe you should try playing Kitesail Freebooter instead. I never tried these, but they seem like a nice (and less mana intensive) alternative.
4 Birds of Paradise
1 Noble Hierarch
1 Viscera Seer
4 Devoted Druid
2 Duskwatch Recruiter
1 Scavenging Ooze
4 Tidehollow Sculler
4 Vizier of Remedies
3 Eternal Witness
4 Kitchen Finks
1 Rhonas the Indomitable
4 Collected Company
1 Blooming Marsh
2 Forest
2 Gavony Township
1 Godless Shrine
2 Horizon Canopy
2 Overgrown Tomb
1 Plains
1 Swamp
2 Temple Garden
4 Verdant Catacombs
4 Windswept Heath
1 Burrenton Forge-Tender
3 Path to Exile
1 Kataki, War's Wage
1 Qasali Pridemage
3 Voice of Resurgence
1 Eidolon of Rhetoric
1 Maelstrom Pulse
1 Orzhov Pontiff
1 Sin Collector
2 Distended Mindbender
edit: included decklist.
Have you seen this:
https://www.reddit.com/r/ModernMagic/comments/9qtlmg/1st_place_at_modern_10k_with_abzan_company_101/
Also, Renegade Rallier can grab a fetch from the graveyard if you're stuck on 2 lands. That along with the infinite combo with Saffi + Seer is really nice. I'd rather go all-in combo on game 1, then have a Beat-down/Utility sideboard for G2 and 3.
RWG Burn
GW Abzan Company
-1 Saffi
-2 Rallier
-1 Voice
-1 Ooze
+1 E-wit
+1 land
+3 Tidehollow Sculler
My mana-base is a little different than that list and includes 2x blooming marsh to help meet the mana requirements of sculler. I think going all-in on the combo G1 is the right plan right now My reasoning for running sculler main-deck is that I feel it effectively supports the combo plan. When you play it against a fair deck and take a removal piece it forces your opponent to spend at least 1 removal spell to get rid of it and if they only had 1 removal spell you are clear to go for the combo win. Against unfair opponents, sculler is strong disruption and taking their key spell can often buy you 2 or more turns which helps us to win the race. I might consider replacing the 3 scullers with 2 renegade ralliers and 1 Saffi if the mana base proves to be too painful with sculler in the mix.
I'm also thinking about putting a Knight of Autumn main-deck since it seems like such a flexible card. Has anyone experimented with this card?
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Staff4 Noble Hierarch
3 Birds of Paradise
4 Devoted Druid
4 Vizier of Remedies
2 Duskwatch Recruiter
1 Scavenging Ooze
1 Courser of Kruphix
3 Eternal Witness
3 Militia Bugler
4 Knight of the Reliquary
1 Walking Ballista
4 Collected Company
4 Chord of Calling
Lands (22)
4 Windswept Heath
4 Verdant Catacombs
2 Temple Garden
2 Horizon Canopy
1 Razorverge Thicket
1 Gavony Township
2 Ghost Quarter
1 Field of Ruin
4 Forest
1 Plains
1 Burrenton Forge-Tender
1 Kataki, War's Wage
1 Selfless Spirit
2 Spellskite
2 Voice of Resurgence
1 Reclamation Sage
1 Eidolon of Rhetoric
1 Shalai, Voice of Plenty
3 Path to Exile
1 Worship
- Yes that is a 14 card sideboard. I must have forgot one at home, but it didn't seem to matter at all.
- Omitting the Finks + Seer package for Bugler + KotR. This allows Bugler to hit every card in the deck.
- 1 Courser of Kruphix compliments the KotR's. Because of it's inclusion I am playing 7 dorks and 22 lands, as opposed to my normal 8 dorks and 21 lands. Yes I like to cheat on the lands, but not here.
- KotR even acts as a dork in some cases, especially if you play it turn 2, so you are playing what is essentially 15 "dorks" not even inducing EWit getting fetches back. I never had mana problems.
- Only 3 Eternal Witness. I always like 4, but I figured with Bugler I could drop one to make the deck a little less reliant on the graveyard.
- I played before with 6 land destruction lands, but found that against the majority of decks they didn't do what I wanted them to do. Because of this I dropped to 3. This lets me still kill stuff like the random Inkmoth/Mutavault while also slowing down Tron and Valakut enough to win those matchups (in theory). With the 3 extra "utility land" slots I was able to include a second Horizon Canopy to help out the combo and flooding in general, and a Gavony Township for when the deck goes real wide.
Onto the games:
Round 1 vs Grixis Death's Shadow:
Game 1 was a grind fest with him removing my Druids, but not having a fast start himself. Once I accepted that I wasn't going to combo I went all in on the KotR plan. The game was decided with him using a Temur Battlerage on his 8/8 Shadow to kill my 10/10 Knight. I then Companied into Knight + EWit, using the company again to hit another Knight and win the game since he ran out of blockers. Game 2 was more of the same with me boarding out the combo and into a midrange deck (everything but Kataki, Rec Sage, and Eidolon). I overwhelmed him with value and won with 2 11/11 Knights while destroying his lands thanks to Path removing his only two basic lands. Bugler kept on finding Knights or EWits that Companies couldn't and kept the value train going. 2-0
Round 2 vs Mardu Pyromancer:
More of the same as round 1. The dude went Lootings into Pyromancer and I won some turns after with the combo by casting some Companies and Bugler finding what I wanted. Boarded the same as against Death's Shadow since I figured I couldn't combo again through all of the removal. The game this time went pretty long with him killing my turn 2 druid and resolving a LotV which I had to then throw away a Knight and Ewit to. I eventually got there though as he couldn't discard my companies, and I started chaining them to fill up the board. I found my Scooze and kept his graveyard out of relevant stuff while I had a Spellskite and Forge-Tender as backup. The Scooze then went on to continually attack him and win. 2-0
Round 3 vs UG Infect:
This was the guy I lost to in the top 8 of the PPTQ on Sunday. Game 3 was the only relevant one and super intense with him on the play. Turn 2 he has a Blighted Agent while I have a Temple Garden and Horizon Canopy to play a Devoted Druid. His turn 3 he hits me for 7 infect, and will hit me for a guaranteed 3 more the next turn so I have to win. I untap, and my hand is Vizier, Ghost Quarter, Bugler, and some other not relevant stuff. I play the Vizier with the Temple Garden since I can draw a card with Canopy. This is only better than playing Bugler if I draw a Chord or Company, so I figure I'll Bugler instead sine I can hit 2 Recruiters and 1 Ballista in 4 cards. I miss, but hit another Bugler. It then dawned on me that I could Ghost Quarter my land to get an untapped Plains and cast the second Bugler to tray again. Lo and behold it hits a Recruiter and I get a clutch win! You can watch the video of the match here. 2-1
Round 4 vs Eldrazi Tron:
This is the guy I beat in round 5 of the PPTQ. Games were grindy with me eventually using a Chord to get through his Chalice on 2 and win the game. It was weird since he know the Chord was coming but didn't Dismember the Druid... Game 2 was won off of the back of KotR and some land fetching shenanigans to block Reality Smashers after the wiped my graveyard. Again a misplay on his part as he should have waited and he would have won. Re-watching the footage I also missed a Duskwatch trigger, so I'll have to remember that for the future. It didn't matter though as it died the turn after. You can watch the video of the match here. 2-0
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Thoughts on the deck:
- I really really liked Bugler. The deck has been getting away from the graveyard more and more, but is still dependent with Eternal Witness and Knight of the Reliquary. It's not the worst is hate is brought in for it, but it certainly is annoying. Bugler helps get away from this (replacing Finks).
- Hitting a Bugler off of a Company almost guarantees hitting something that you need since you get to keep digging. I found if I was ever wanting a card I could always find it within the next 1-2 turns. It also makes the combo much more consistent meaning you will fizzle less when getting infinite mana.
- A downside with Bugler is that you are more dependent on W during the combo, so you have to be mindful to fetch it out.
- KotR is a beast, and is often the biggest thing on the battlefield. With Finks I found I was using it to chump and stay alive until I could squeak out a combo. Now for the same mana cost I am winning combats, ramping, and thinning my deck. You lose life gain in the deck, and if anything take more damage from fetches, so I can imagine the Burn matchups is suddenly harder.
- The plan of going super-combo maindeck and transitional value-midrange deck in the sideboard worked out well. I was able to race things like without interaction like Infect (and Affinity in pre-event games) while absolutely destroying the opponent with value post-board.
- I'm not sure what I want sideboard card #15 to be. Perhaps a Pridemage, or another Scooze...?
I will hopefully play this again Wednesday and see if I can replicate the results.
4 Noble Hierarch
3 Birds of Paradise
4 Devoted Druid
4 Vizier of Remedies
2 Duskwatch Recruiter
1 Scavenging Ooze
1 Selfless Spirit
3 Eternal Witness
3 Militia Bugler
4 Knight of the Reliquary
1 Walking Ballista
4 Collected Company
4 Chord of Calling
Lands (22)
4 Windswept Heath
4 Verdant Catacombs
2 Temple Garden
2 Horizon Canopy
1 Razorverge Thicket
1 Gavony Township
2 Ghost Quarter
1 Field of Ruin
4 Forest
1 Plains
1 Burrenton Forge-Tender
1 Kataki, War's Wage
1 Courser of Kruphix
2 Spellskite
2 Voice of Resurgence
1 Qasali Pridemage
1 Reclamation Sage
1 Eidolon of Rhetoric
1 Shalai, Voice of Plenty
3 Path to Exile
1 Worship
My loss was to UW Control, 0-2. Game 1 I kept a 1 land hand with Hierarch, Druid, Druid, Vizier, Chord, EWit, Forest. On turn 2 I drew a second Chord, and he Logic Knotted my Druid for 1. If I had drawn a land it would have resolved and I was pretty confident in my chances, but alas I didn't. I went on to draw Chords for 2 more turns, so I had all 4 in hand before I got my second land. Wasn't winning that one. Second game was more of the same, with a T2 Bugler finding Druid, playing the Druid T3, and him wrathing the board on his T4. From there he stabilized with a Teferi and then Jace, so I was lost at that point. I hoped to see a Company so I could start trying to flood the board with it and EWits, but never saw either card and was grinded out.
The control matchup was pretty bad, especially with them playing Terminus now. My strategy was to force the combo and hope they can't Logic Knot for enough on Turn 2, as we aren't going to win the long game. Their Planeswalkers out value us, unlike other midrange decks that we can play the grindy-value game with. Perhaps adding a Breeding Pool and 3 Unified Will to the sideboard is the best bet for this matchup. Countering their first wrath or PW will give us a window to try and win. Thoughts on the matchup?
2-0 vs Eldrazi Tron, 2-1 vs Infect, 2-0 vs Hardened Scales Affinity, 2-1 vs Bant mirror (he played Queller's instead of Bugler's). Not a ton to talk about since the games are really playing out the same each time. With the addition of Militia Buglers I can slam the combo pretty much whenever I need too since digging for it is really easy, and this was a night of playing very uninteractive decks allowing me to combo as fast as I wanted. Pretty much every match I was sideboarding out the Knights and bringing in Spellskites and Paths, among other things. I didn't really get to play vs any midrange decks which my sideboard is tuned for. The good thing about that is that it means the maindeck is good enough to combo at the speed of some the best. Only changes to the deck I would do would be the addition of another Militia Bugler since that card has been insane and helps the deck be less graveyard dependent.
If you want to watch the Infect match you can here, and the Bant Company match here.
I have a player of the year championship on Saturday I may take this too since it's been doing so well, but I'm expecting a lot of UW Control to show up. At the last PPTQ at this store there was 6/47 pure UW Control which is scary. This will be an invite only tourney though, so possibly more KCI and Humans (less pet decks) which I'm fine with. I guess there are no haymaker cards that can beat UW Control while staying pure GW eh? Something like Pharika, God of Affliction vs GB decks.
I played UW Control winning 2-1, and Boggles winning 2-0. List was slightly changed and optimized:
4 Noble Hierarch
3 Birds of Paradise
4 Devoted Druid
4 Vizier of Remedies
2 Duskwatch Recruiter
1 Scavenging Ooze
1 Selfless Spirit
3 Eternal Witness
3 Militia Bugler
4 Knight of the Reliquary
1 Walking Ballista
4 Collected Company
4 Chord of Calling
Lands (22)
4 Windswept Heath
4 Verdant Catacombs
2 Temple Garden
2 Horizon Canopy
1 Gavony Township
1 Ghost Quarter
2 Field of Ruin
5 Forest
1 Plains
1 Burrenton Forge-Tender
1 Kataki, War's Wage
2 Spellskite
2 Voice of Resurgence
1 Qasali Pridemage
1 Reclamation Sage
1 Eidolon of Rhetoric
1 Courser of Kruphix
1 Shalai, Voice of Plenty
3 Path to Exile
1 Worship
I beat UW Control in a super grindy game 1 where he just bricked after his first miracled Terminus. Game 2 he brought in Spell Quellers (??? why???) and they caught me off guard and beat me down. Game 3 was super grindy and I eventually out-valued/outplayed him to win on Turn 4 of turns since we went to time.
The second round against boggles was quick since I combo'd on turn 3 each game. They don't have any interaction to stop it. And my third round never happened because the person wanted to go home.
I'm sticking with this list for a while as it's been doing great, and I liked the land change. Now if only they printed Sumala Woodshaper at 1GW it would have broken the format in half (I can dream).
Lost round 1 to Hardened Scales Affinity. I won game 1 when he couldn't find a Ballista, and lost game 2 when I untapped with infinite mana and only a Company which missed big time. I then went on to draw 3 lands in a row while he grew his team and beat me down. Game 3 my Druids met 2 Dispatches before I could get some protection down, and then he landed a Ballista which locked me out. I've been having such a good run of Company and Bugler flips recently my luck was bound to run out eventually.
Round 2 was vs Mardu Pyromancer in which KotR's and Scavenging Ooze beat him down both games.
Round 3 I beat Revolt Zoo in some close-ish games. I just threw chumpblockers infront of his guys until I could combo off. Post-board, my Knights and Spellskites, and Buglers were able to stall and widdle down his board while keeping me at a reasonable life total the whole time.
Round 4 I lost to Humans. Won game 1 when he drew all 4 Vials and 3 Hierarchs. Games 2 and 3, I mulled to 6 and never had a turn 1 dork but wasn't about to push it further. Missed some landdrops and got overrun pretty bad.
Still like the configuration of the deck, but I was thinking about dropping Knight of the Reliquary from the main once Knight of Autumn is legal. It does a bit of everything but nothing great. Moreso, it would open up 3-4 sideboard slots for other things that I can play which is big. I could even drop the 2 Voice of Resurgence I have for midrange matchups and have lots of space for Tireless Trackers to grind out midrange harder.
undefeated3-0-1. Beat BG Rock, Drew with UW Control, Beat Burn, Beat Humans. You can see the Burn match here and the Humans match here. I'm playing the same list as before, but with 3x Knight of Autumn in the sideboard instead of Pridemage, Recsage, and Kataki.MTGO/MTGA: Tyclone
My Primers ~ GWx Vizier Company ~ Knightfall ~ RG Eldrazi ~ Green's Sun's Zenith
More Brews ~ Modern Four Horsemen ~ Gitrog Dredge
I like your list but I'm not sure about Militia Bugler, seems kind of "win more" if you're combo'ing, and doesn't really do much if you're not combo'ing. I'd rather have a mix of silver bullets, or a third combo (Saffi + Rallier) like the Modern 10k List has.
RWG Burn
GW Abzan Company
I think Bugler is there to find the Combo more often. Sure, it isn't as fast, but Bugler finding a missing piece is still 1-2 turns off the "ideal" turn 3 kill. It may also be there as a "value" creature in those types of matchups, but you'll have to ask Torpf about that.
I'm not gonna lie though; that Saffi list was hot. I think the next time I run this deck, I'm going to be doing that. I'm so sad I sold my foil one for $60 half a year ago.
Premodern - Trix, RecSur, Enchantress, Reanimator, Elves https://www.facebook.com/groups/PremodernUSA/
Modern - Neobrand, Hogaak Vine, Elves
Standard - Mono Red (6-2 and 5-3 in 2 McQ)
Draft - (I wish I had more time for limited...)
Commander -
Norin the Wary, Grimgrin, Adun Oakenshield (taking forever to build)(dead format for me)I'm staunchly against cutting all copies of Pridemage. The ability to respond to Grafdigger's Cage on the stack by Chording or CoCo'ing for Pridemage, letting Cage resolve, then shoot Cage with Pridemage is something that no other Naturalize-on-a-stick can do.
Legacy: Strawberry Shortcake, Aggro Loam, DnT+b
Modern: Devoted Karn
Vintage: Survival
You are absolutely correct. My revision:
Among the played and discussed options, what QPridemage does "is something no other Naturalize-on-a-stick can do."
Legacy: Strawberry Shortcake, Aggro Loam, DnT+b
Modern: Devoted Karn
Vintage: Survival
Not that we know of. I asked this earlier and got no replies.
Legacy: Strawberry Shortcake, Aggro Loam, DnT+b
Modern: Devoted Karn
Vintage: Survival
Legacy: Strawberry Shortcake, Aggro Loam, DnT+b
Modern: Devoted Karn
Vintage: Survival
I'm always hesitant to add cards that make CoCo less reliable, but it seems to have a lot of upside right now. Has anyone played Shalai main-deck and how have the results been?
She's good. I wouldn't play more than one though
I briefly tried Shalai, Voice of Plenty in the SB for a month, but it just rarely ever came in. Maybe that's a good thing to not play against those types of matchups often? The few times I did side it in, I never got it or was able to Chord for it. So I am pretty ambivalent to it.
On the other hand, it has been incredibly good against me a few times when it has been on the opponent's side (not always on Company, but other decks too). It has been very tough to overcome, so I may revisit Shalai in Company again some time.
*Regarding the new art Devoted Druid, that's cool for others, but I prefer the art I already have. Also the foiling on Shadowmoor cards is insane!
Premodern - Trix, RecSur, Enchantress, Reanimator, Elves https://www.facebook.com/groups/PremodernUSA/
Modern - Neobrand, Hogaak Vine, Elves
Standard - Mono Red (6-2 and 5-3 in 2 McQ)
Draft - (I wish I had more time for limited...)
Commander -
Norin the Wary, Grimgrin, Adun Oakenshield (taking forever to build)(dead format for me)Shalai probably has more value in a combo-only shell (playing at least 2 copies of her) as the protection is more relevant. In the hybrid versions, Shalai is at most a 1-of, she takes up a precious flex slot, and her protection is less relevant as there are many high value cards in the deck.
Legacy: Strawberry Shortcake, Aggro Loam, DnT+b
Modern: Devoted Karn
Vintage: Survival