I'm underwhelmed by these forums. Is there another, more active, forum for Modern to have this discussion or is this it in the states? I feel like there should be more activity.
Thanks for continuing to update. I plan on adjusting my list soon to be more similar to Raystacks.
I'm brainstorming on other win-cons that can hurt/kill with a bridge out.
Blood Clock seems interesting with Rabblemaster...
My formatting for this deck is probably going to be terrible (I've never posted a list on here before), but I've been working on what started out as a free win red/tezzeret mashup that gradually took out a lot of the artifact interaction and replaced it with blue moon-style early game control and card selection. I haven't gotten a chance to play too much, but went 3-1 at the last FNM (2-1 affinity, 1-2 affinity, 2-1 boggles, 2-1 kiki chord).
It isn't too close to what you guys have going, but it fits here probably better than most threads. This is where it stands at the moment.
If anyone has any thoughts, I'd be thrilled to hear them! I know it's not the mono-red version discussed here, but I didn't like the dead ritual topdecks. So I replaced the rituals with early interaction, but then the deck also had no/little library manipulation or card draw, which makes it have clunky draws. Then I went heavier on blue and burn/draw spells. The mana base isn't perfect, but it's got 10 sources of basic islands/swamps, which is pretty good for getting them up before a blood moon. The mana is surprisingly smooth for a Grixis moon deck.
Cheers!
Edit: to comment on what the first thing that comes to mind when I think about this: the artifact count is indeed low for tezzeret, but tezzeret is still the main way I've been killing so far. Tezzeret +1 basically fetches for either spellskite, chalice, or bridge. At a rate of ~10% of the deck per turn, you do miss a reasonable amount but you almost don't care. Tezz hitting means more hate artifacts and people aren't comfortable with him sitting on the table. I would absolutely rather tezzeret to clear out the top 5 cards of non-hate (excluding blood moon) than chandra a random card off the top. However, chandra is still very good and 2 extra cards a turn off the pair of them is amazing. If only blood moon were an artifact....
Spike777 - We seem to be kindred spirits. I crafted up something very similar, and it's a hoot to run. http://www.mtgsalvation.com/forums/the-game/modern/deck-creation-modern/641720-iron-souldiers-robots-with-black-belts-affinity I called my deck Tezzam! It definitely ran more artifacts - your 12 count is a little too low to run 4 Tezz. And, it had more win conditions. As I look at the deck, I would comment that it has a lot of removal AND a multiple ensnaring bridge. I would suggest going one way of the other. Since you play no creatures, I would use that distinction to your advantage: Damnation is devastating. I think I'd add Creeping Tar Pit and explore some weenie creatures that could fly over the bridge.
For some ideas with what you're doing, this is my DECK LIST
As I review your decklist, it's got some spunk....but, it ain't a Mono-Red Prison Deck, my man. Tezzeret, Agent of Bolas is my single favorite planeswalker, and I often post into the U/B Tezzeret thread. I definitely encourage you to share that list with the cats over there - it's a super bunch of helpful and wise folks. http://www.mtgsalvation.com/forums/the-game/modern/developing-competitive-modern/558912-ub-tezzeret-agent-of-bolas-control
Like Sam Kinison once said to Thornton Melon, "I like the way you think. I'll be watching you." Cool Deck, Spike, and good luck!
One of the cards that Spike 777 brings up in multiples is one that I've reduced to a singleton in my Mono-Red Prison deck: Spellskite.
A.) We're favored against Infect and Bogles already.
B.) The neat thing about the lock pieces (CHALICE / BLOOD MOON / ENSNARING BRIDGE) is that - when you really think about it - Just 1. Just 1 and you're fine. There are few answers provided when it hits. and, duplicates mean little. A spellskite is 'that double'. It's redundancy
C.) how is someone going to off a chalice? If it's a 1-cmc deck, they don't run the ability. how is someone going to kill a blood moon? I run 6 anyway. same with bridge - is merfolk or soul sisters or zoo going to off my bridge? and, Abzan will off a bridge - sure // zoo with cat wizard, but basically that's not all that bad of a thing. Since, bridges actually get sideboarded out against Abzan.
Yeah, Spellskite's just not what it used to be since Twin got the banhammer.
My mono red ramp deck is sort of shaping up like yours, raystack. although i run a lot more ramp and a playset of Koth of the Hammer. i find he's too hard to deal with on turn one, especially if you're on the play and going against somebody who doesn't usually stick a creature their first turn. even though you can't attack with the landon first turn, you can still have mana for a bolt, which is nice. i run Sarkhan Dragonspeaker as my Koth 5-6, and also run a playset of Blood Moons with 2 Magis of the Moon.
then, i pray to topdeck one of my two Reforge the Soul so i can miracle it for 1R because i hate not having cards in my hand. i've even had a few games where i can hardcast RtS on turn one, and it's screwed over my opponents which was an added bonus.
i've only first-turned a Sarkhan once, but it made the game mighty short.
now, my questions:
-Is bridge really worth it? i mean, it makes it so you can't swing with your Koth'ed mountain or Sarkhan later on in the game unless you halt playing things. but that strategy would also allow your opponents to attack with small creatures.
-Do you prefer to set Chalice on one, and how often do you play chalice when it's in your opening hand?
Really glad that there is a forum for this because I randomly came across the Free-Win Red decklist and have been very intrigued. So much, that I am currently building it to pilot at GP Charlotte. Will have a decklist soon for review!
alright @raystack, I have a couple questions. Ive read through this entire thread.
Koth or NO Koth? I feel kinda underwelmed by him main but could see his value in a transitional sideboard plan when you remove the bridges for 2 Koth of the Hammer and 2 Kargan Dragonlord...
Does anger of the gods have a place in the 75? CoCo-Chord is definitely a top and common deck and the ability to exile seems like a powerhouse in that particular matchup. No Eternal Witness shenanigans and no triggers form Voice of Resurgence or Kitchen Finks...
So, we've got a couple Standard Bearers bringing Hammer's Slammer to 2 Grand Prix events: Charlotte and Los Angeles....or is that one in Lower Alabama? Let's collaborate and get our fighters pumped up and ready to get in the ring! I figure the easiest way is to bullet point out some thoughts I have on where Mono-Red Prison can take you in the Post-Ban Spring of 2016.
First and Foremost: Koth of the Hammer. I was recently at the EMP museum in Seattle, and saw the original painting in a stately gold leaf frame (the version where he is jumping sideways). A thing of motherhumpin' beauty my friends. My liege! O.K., as for the deck. He is hotly contested. Some call for (4) and others dabble with (0). I'm right down the middle. As a four-drop, I don't want him in my opening hand and multiples don't benefit each other. Also, he is hard to defend as his starting loyalty is very low. I prefer to get a little stable and then pop him as opposed to a quick roll out at a high expense of mana resources. This type of judgement is different for everyone as you have to make careful judgements about mana generation, ensnaring bridge or not, and creature counts.
Ensnaring Bridge: Another tough call. Bloody Humans by Octopusman had 0 bridge in the main deck. I started out with 4 in the main deck which is similar to Free Win Red. Now? (3) is my count, but that 4th bridge is my 61st card. At this point, the card that snapped up the 60th spot is Tormenting Voice which allows for one less land in the build and more dig to get to the right Lock Pieces. The disadvantage is that you might get stuck with it on a top deck hellbent draw when you're on the bridge plan. In order to figure out if bridge is for you, look at the anticipated meta for Grand Prix. Understand that we can not stop a full wave of aggro. If we go heavy on a creature horde ourselves, then we can go toe-to-toe and punch-for-punch....but, can we really? I would say no. Zoo has beef. Affinity has evasion and pump. Merfolk and Tokens will run right over your face. I advocate board shut down when facing creature decks, and Kargan Dragonlord / Goblin Rabblemaster when facing midrange-control-combo.
Chalice of the Void: I can't advocate this card enough. It does limit your card selection as you can't effectively use 1-CMC cards. I do everything I can to drop this card on 1 on turn 1.
Anger of the Gods: I do not like this card at all in my build. It kills my own creatures, and I can't turn it into damage to the opponents face. I don't like that Coco/Chord decks benefit from its absence, however, I will say that Kargan Dragonlord is an allstar at stomping them since they rarely play Path to Exile [with Eldrazi gone] and they can't handle the evasion of flying. That's why I raised his count to (3).
I went 3-1 at a 33 person event in Boston, Massachusetts with this list. The only loss was a flood to Burn which usually doesn't present a problem. Otherwise, I beat Infect, Jund, and Coco/Chord. The level of play was extraordinarily high, so my 1-2 loss to Burn (largely due to a mana flood/screw) was tolerable.
Can someone give me a link to the tutorial on how to post a deck on here? I am new to the forum. In the meantime, here is a link to what i have for my deck so far. I really like how it is layed out. Only question I have at this point is if running 4 Mutavault is too ambitious? Would hate to have to pitch good starting hands because I had Mutavaults instead of Mountains.
Ok, a little background story first... Just came back to magic a month ago after selling off all of my cards two years ago. Was a dedicated Imperial Painter player in Legacy and GW Hatebears in modern. I love lockdown style decks. When I saw the free win red list, i was immediately intrigued. Just played in my first tourney last night and here are the comments and results.
Finished 3rd overall so the deck definitely has real power. The superstars of the deck are Chalice of the Void on 1, and Ensnaring Bridge. The deck quickly generated talk around the store as I heard people discussing how to possibly beat it.
The Scapeshift was a very fast lose. I feel like it is multiple Blood Moon or Bust and finish fast before they draw their answers. Had to mulligan to mediocre 5-card hands both games and never really had any solid action not to mention he played Repeal maindeck to deal with any answers I had.
Going forward I would move 1 Magus of the Moon to the sideboard and add another Pia and Kiran main. Card is very good at stabilizing a game. Phyrexian Revoker was also very important against the Bogles deck to name Qasali Pridemage which won him game 2. Also need to add a land since I was really fighting for mana in most of my games.
Going to be playing with some other 1-ofs here and there to refine the deck but I will say that i belive this deck is very strong against much of the field and I feel very confident moving forward to GP Charlotte.
Shipcc! Awesome showing with your Mono-Red Lockdown Deck. Working the (3) Angles of Prison - Chalice of the Void // Blood Moon // Ensnaring Bridge - in a post-Eldrazi ban world is alive and well. I always thought that the fact we could crush tentacles was a lucky coincidence.
A noted difference in your deck is the (4) Magma Jet. How have they been working? With the scry 2 function, do you think you'd adjust some of your counts on the core cards? I would say that I don't believe you need to go above 21 lands if you're playing 4 scry-2 cards - I'd chalk up your experience to simple variance. Speaking of lands, all mountains? Do you think there is some benefit from other lands:
With 6 blood moon effects and no Kargan Dragonlord in your build, I'd definitely look to diversify those mountains.
Agree that Pia and Kiran are simply too good to be run as a 1-of. It seems like lunacy, I'm sure, but I still run 1 Torpor Orb main {such a non-bo} simply because my meta is loaded with Kiki-Chord-Finks combos. How about a sideboard??
Round 1: 2-0 against Zoo
Round 2: 1-1-1 against UWR control (could have been a 2-0 but made crucial play mistake game 1 which led to the loss)
Round 3: 0-2 against UWR control again (same exact 75). Mana Screw game 1 and crucial play mistakes game 2 (got too aggressive with thopter tokens instead of using them to protect a resolved Koth of the Hammer and a resolved Chandra, Pyromaster from Celestial Colonnade
Round 4: 2-0 against Merfolk
The deck absolutely prays on creature based decks. The only losses I have had so far is against decks playing permission. I think 2 Rending Volley in the sideboard will go a long way in the UWx Control matchups because Celestial Colonnade is so crucial to their gameplan.
Still not completely happy with the main 60 either. I definitely see the value in having Slagstorm instead of Anger of the Gods main. Would have been great in my game 1s against the control decks.
@Raystack The magma jets have been very important in running the deck smoothly. Being able to have spot removal to ships unneeded lands to the bottom or 4-drops to hit mana has been crucial. Im not opposed to running Kargan Dragonlord, I just don't have any ATM and I wonder how does the card work out game 1 next to Ensnaring Bridge.
Match Record: 5-2-1 62.5% match win percentage. Not terrible in a format like modern, but really want to push that over 70% consistently and this deck can definitely get there. I played loosely against the control decks, and it cost me.
Usually my first turn acceleration is off of the monkeys, and late game you still get a 2/2 if need be, but ritual is just a completely dead draw late game and i think the deck would benefit better from having a less narrow card in that slot maybe in the form of Lightning Strike or a versatile threat like Scab-Clan Berserker. By going up to 22 lands, and having 1-2 Gemstone Caverns in the deck, the early acceleration and subsequent land drops are still on track.
Hey Shipcc, ain't nothing wrong with a 5-2-1 record. A lot of 'Tier 1' decks that get played in FNMs can't claim that. As I've said before Tier 1 isn't the best, it's just the most popular. And, Hammer's Slammer eyes up these Johnny Football Popular Cliquers, and slaps 'em down with the Triple Lockout Prison. Sometimes the best 60 card deck is one that is built out of the focus of the 15 card sidecar. I think this deck wrecks, and am surprised more people aren't jumping on board...
As for the Tourney Report, you're right that we are a house with a huge back porch against creatures based and any sort of linear deck. Mid-range control can get dicey if a blood moon doesn't appear. But, we run so many that I don't know if I would fear Celestial Colonnade. I sometimes consider Ghost Quarter, but back away as I play some pretty red intensive spells.
Slagstorm over Anger of the Gods! Thank you for the agreement. I have a playtest buddy that still believes otherwise, but Slagstorm is the most miserly tech out there. I'll fire off 1 or 2 early game against Patriot - provided I don't fear for the Geist of Saint Traft - and find that such simple bolts paired with their ping lands and the attacks and burn I'm throwing down will accumulate towards a win.
Kargan Dragonlord - I was doubtful, but can not sing enough praises about this motherhumper. He will ramp out of control in no time. I've done 20+ damage in (2) attacks with him...and, we're talking flying/trample. The only explicit non-bo in my deck is Ensnaring Bridge vs. Kargan Dragonlord....and Torpor Orb vs. Pia and Kiran Nalaar (but my meta is LOADED with Abzan/Coco/Kiki-combo), but that is the nature of a "Sideboard Deck" - there will be misses, but the hits are so devastating that they make up for the whiffs. Understand as well that these 2 cards won't make it to the board successfully in all games. An opponent isn't opening the door to allowing you to do whatever you want. He will shut down one line of attack, and you'll simply pivot to a 2nd approach - which can be contradictory. Thus, putting him in complete disarray. We're like Salmon swimming upstream...not all of our spells are going to make it, and that's o.k.
Who is throwing some cardboard in the big leagues?? A couple premier events this weekend, and I think the lockdown can hit hard in this meta.
I have to say that I am re-focusing on this archetype. I think it's a powerhouse. The question right now: how fast do we want to lay down the Blood Moon lock? ShippCC says that Desperate Ritual may be unnecessary. Is this true. Can we slow roll a blood moon in the interest of introducing diversified threats??
Since people will fetch for their very few basic lands in response/anticipation of Blood Moon, I am thinking about including Molten Rain(s) to enhance the lock. Thoughts?
FNM result: 3-1. I've been keeping up the testing and development, and put it to practice this weekend. Wins were against Patriot mid-range, Patriot mid-range, and a Prized Amalgam deck. The lost was to Jund. The heartbreaker on this one was that on Game 1, Round 1: I fire off a SSG, SSG, and Mountain for a Turn 1 Magus of the Moon. He crushes my 3 card play with a single lightning bolt off of a verdant catacombs. My card economy loss was too much to overcome after that hosing. Game 2, he drew just the right amount of Kolaghan's Command and Kolaghan's Command to shut me out. As we closed out the round, he openly admitted that if I'd only had the blood moon instead of the Magus in the first game, then the game was unquestionably mine. This leaves me with just one more game of two to close out the win, and Jund is extraordinarily soft to Blood Moon. Alas, it was a round 1 loss. After that, I went 6-0 in the following 3 rounds.
As for deck evolutions, I've given it a far more aggressive slant. Less ensnaring bridge and more ways to drive home the win. In game 2, i am more prepared to remove the bridges and shift to an attack posture. I feel really confident with the style. It allows Kargan Dragonlord to shine alongside a rampaging Goblin horde. And, my turn 2 drops were buttressed with the pair of phyrexian revokers which rarely miss a target. Even if it means that early Kargans and Revokers trade against an attacker or help block an early planeswalker, there is a benefit to dropping a 2 powered, 2-cmc creature.
I built this deck recently and I see that's hard to win TRON and SCAPESHIFT. I'll bring some results soon, the previous tournaments I played was the 1st version from MTGGoldfish (without Chalice of the Void). Now I have the "current" version. Let's see what happens
Thanks for continuing to update. I plan on adjusting my list soon to be more similar to Raystacks.
I'm brainstorming on other win-cons that can hurt/kill with a bridge out.
Blood Clock seems interesting with Rabblemaster...
It isn't too close to what you guys have going, but it fits here probably better than most threads. This is where it stands at the moment.
4 chalice of the void
3 ensnaring bridge
4 tezzeret, agent of bolas
1 keranos, god of storms
2 chandra, pyromaster
3 spellskite
3 terminate
2 electrolyze
2 anger of the gods
1 pyroclasm
4 magma jet
4 polluted delta
4 bloodstained mire
4 flooded strand
1 mountain
2 island
2 swamp
1 blood crypt
1 steam vents
1 watery grave
2 darksteel citadel
1 academy ruins
1 ensnaring bridge
2 slaughter games
3 torpor orb
3 phyrexian revoker
1 pyroclasm
1 spellskite
1 keranos, god of storms
3 sub droplet (maybe should be dragon's claw)
If anyone has any thoughts, I'd be thrilled to hear them! I know it's not the mono-red version discussed here, but I didn't like the dead ritual topdecks. So I replaced the rituals with early interaction, but then the deck also had no/little library manipulation or card draw, which makes it have clunky draws. Then I went heavier on blue and burn/draw spells. The mana base isn't perfect, but it's got 10 sources of basic islands/swamps, which is pretty good for getting them up before a blood moon. The mana is surprisingly smooth for a Grixis moon deck.
Cheers!
Edit: to comment on what the first thing that comes to mind when I think about this: the artifact count is indeed low for tezzeret, but tezzeret is still the main way I've been killing so far. Tezzeret +1 basically fetches for either spellskite, chalice, or bridge. At a rate of ~10% of the deck per turn, you do miss a reasonable amount but you almost don't care. Tezz hitting means more hate artifacts and people aren't comfortable with him sitting on the table. I would absolutely rather tezzeret to clear out the top 5 cards of non-hate (excluding blood moon) than chandra a random card off the top. However, chandra is still very good and 2 extra cards a turn off the pair of them is amazing. If only blood moon were an artifact....
For some ideas with what you're doing, this is my DECK LIST
Creatures
4 Vault Skirge
4 Ensoul Artifact
4 Spellskite
2 Vendilion Clique
2 Pia and Kiran Nalaar
Artifacts
4 Mishra's Bauble
3 Chalice of the Void
2 Relic of Progenitus
3 Ensnaring Bridge
Mana Generation
3 Mox Opal
Planeswalkers
3 Tezzeret, Agent of Bolas
Utility
2 Blood Moon
2 Whipflare
1 Ghirapur Aether Grid
4 Darksteel Citadel
2 Glimmervoid
4 Flooded Strand
2 Polluted Delta
3 Island
2 Steam Vents
1 Watery Grave
1 Creeping Tar Pit
1 Blinkmoth Nexus
1 Ghost Quarter
3 Thoughtseize
2 Sun Droplet
2 Spellsnare
2 Anger of the Gods
1 Molten Rain
1 Glen Elendra Archmage
1 Chalice of the Void
1 Relic of Progenitus
1 Sower of Temptation
1 Slaughter Pact
Like Sam Kinison once said to Thornton Melon, "I like the way you think. I'll be watching you." Cool Deck, Spike, and good luck!
One of the cards that Spike 777 brings up in multiples is one that I've reduced to a singleton in my Mono-Red Prison deck: Spellskite.
A.) We're favored against Infect and Bogles already.
B.) The neat thing about the lock pieces (CHALICE / BLOOD MOON / ENSNARING BRIDGE) is that - when you really think about it - Just 1. Just 1 and you're fine. There are few answers provided when it hits. and, duplicates mean little. A spellskite is 'that double'. It's redundancy
C.) how is someone going to off a chalice? If it's a 1-cmc deck, they don't run the ability. how is someone going to kill a blood moon? I run 6 anyway. same with bridge - is merfolk or soul sisters or zoo going to off my bridge? and, Abzan will off a bridge - sure // zoo with cat wizard, but basically that's not all that bad of a thing. Since, bridges actually get sideboarded out against Abzan.
Yeah, Spellskite's just not what it used to be since Twin got the banhammer.
then, i pray to topdeck one of my two Reforge the Soul so i can miracle it for 1R because i hate not having cards in my hand. i've even had a few games where i can hardcast RtS on turn one, and it's screwed over my opponents which was an added bonus.
i've only first-turned a Sarkhan once, but it made the game mighty short.
now, my questions:
-Is bridge really worth it? i mean, it makes it so you can't swing with your Koth'ed mountain or Sarkhan later on in the game unless you halt playing things. but that strategy would also allow your opponents to attack with small creatures.
-Do you prefer to set Chalice on one, and how often do you play chalice when it's in your opening hand?
Really glad that there is a forum for this because I randomly came across the Free-Win Red decklist and have been very intrigued. So much, that I am currently building it to pilot at GP Charlotte. Will have a decklist soon for review!
Koth or NO Koth? I feel kinda underwelmed by him main but could see his value in a transitional sideboard plan when you remove the bridges for 2 Koth of the Hammer and 2 Kargan Dragonlord...
Does anger of the gods have a place in the 75? CoCo-Chord is definitely a top and common deck and the ability to exile seems like a powerhouse in that particular matchup. No Eternal Witness shenanigans and no triggers form Voice of Resurgence or Kitchen Finks...
Have you found the 4 Desperate Ritual to be enough?
Do you not feel the need of card draw or scry with Faithless Looting and Magma Jet?
CURRENT DECK LIST
Creatures (12)
4 Goblin Rabblemaster
3 Kargan Dragonlord
2 Pia and Kiran Nalaar
1 Phyrexian Revoker
2 Magus of the Moon
Accelerators (7)
4 Simian Spirit Guide
3 Desperate Ritual
Enchantments (4)
4 Blood Moon
Instant/Sorcery (5)
3 Slagstorm
1 Bonfire of the Damned
1 Tormenting Voice
2 Koth of the Hammer
1 Chandra, Pyromaster
Artifacts (8)
3 Ensnaring Bridge
4 Chalice of the Void
1 Torpor Orb
Lands (21)
18 Mountains
2 Gemstone Caverns
1 Mutavault
1 Ensnaring Bridge
3 Dragon's Claw
3 Shattering Spree
2 Pyroclasm
1 Kargan Dragonlord
1 Spellskite
1 Torpor Orb
1 Ratchet Bomb
1 Grafdigger's Cage
1 Tormod's Crypt
I went 3-1 at a 33 person event in Boston, Massachusetts with this list. The only loss was a flood to Burn which usually doesn't present a problem. Otherwise, I beat Infect, Jund, and Coco/Chord. The level of play was extraordinarily high, so my 1-2 loss to Burn (largely due to a mana flood/screw) was tolerable.
Let's see some more decklists posted up!
http://tappedout.net/mtg-decks/18-04-16-free-win-red/
If you quote someone's post with a decklist you can see how it is formatted.
I'm not sure I can make LA now but I will try. Will post my list and talk brews more when I can confirm/deny whether I can actually attend.
Ok, a little background story first... Just came back to magic a month ago after selling off all of my cards two years ago. Was a dedicated Imperial Painter player in Legacy and GW Hatebears in modern. I love lockdown style decks. When I saw the free win red list, i was immediately intrigued. Just played in my first tourney last night and here are the comments and results.
3 Magus of the Moon
4 Goblin Rabblemaster
1 Pia and Kiran Nalaar
1 Phyrexian Revoker
4 Simian Spirit Guide
4 Magma Jet
3 Anger of the Gods
4 Desperate Ritual
LockDown:
4 Blood Moon
4 Ensnaring Bridge
4 Chalice of Void
2 Koth of the Hammer
1 Chandra, Pyromaster
Lands:
21 Mountain
2-1 Bogles
2-0 Goblin Burn
0-2 Scapeshift
2-0 Infect
Finished 3rd overall so the deck definitely has real power. The superstars of the deck are Chalice of the Void on 1, and Ensnaring Bridge. The deck quickly generated talk around the store as I heard people discussing how to possibly beat it.
The Scapeshift was a very fast lose. I feel like it is multiple Blood Moon or Bust and finish fast before they draw their answers. Had to mulligan to mediocre 5-card hands both games and never really had any solid action not to mention he played Repeal maindeck to deal with any answers I had.
Going forward I would move 1 Magus of the Moon to the sideboard and add another Pia and Kiran main. Card is very good at stabilizing a game. Phyrexian Revoker was also very important against the Bogles deck to name Qasali Pridemage which won him game 2. Also need to add a land since I was really fighting for mana in most of my games.
Going to be playing with some other 1-ofs here and there to refine the deck but I will say that i belive this deck is very strong against much of the field and I feel very confident moving forward to GP Charlotte.
A noted difference in your deck is the (4) Magma Jet. How have they been working? With the scry 2 function, do you think you'd adjust some of your counts on the core cards? I would say that I don't believe you need to go above 21 lands if you're playing 4 scry-2 cards - I'd chalk up your experience to simple variance. Speaking of lands, all mountains? Do you think there is some benefit from other lands:
Gemstone Caverns
Blinkmoth Nexus
Mutavault
Ghost Quarter
With 6 blood moon effects and no Kargan Dragonlord in your build, I'd definitely look to diversify those mountains.
Agree that Pia and Kiran are simply too good to be run as a 1-of. It seems like lunacy, I'm sure, but I still run 1 Torpor Orb main {such a non-bo} simply because my meta is loaded with Kiki-Chord-Finks combos. How about a sideboard??
Excited to hear about what happens in LA. Wish I could go...
Round 1: 2-0 against Zoo
Round 2: 1-1-1 against UWR control (could have been a 2-0 but made crucial play mistake game 1 which led to the loss)
Round 3: 0-2 against UWR control again (same exact 75). Mana Screw game 1 and crucial play mistakes game 2 (got too aggressive with thopter tokens instead of using them to protect a resolved Koth of the Hammer and a resolved Chandra, Pyromaster from Celestial Colonnade
Round 4: 2-0 against Merfolk
The deck absolutely prays on creature based decks. The only losses I have had so far is against decks playing permission. I think 2 Rending Volley in the sideboard will go a long way in the UWx Control matchups because Celestial Colonnade is so crucial to their gameplan.
Still not completely happy with the main 60 either. I definitely see the value in having Slagstorm instead of Anger of the Gods main. Would have been great in my game 1s against the control decks.
@Raystack The magma jets have been very important in running the deck smoothly. Being able to have spot removal to ships unneeded lands to the bottom or 4-drops to hit mana has been crucial. Im not opposed to running Kargan Dragonlord, I just don't have any ATM and I wonder how does the card work out game 1 next to Ensnaring Bridge.
I am also interested in maybe trying Sarkhan, the Dragonspeaker out of the sideboard.
Match Record: 5-2-1 62.5% match win percentage. Not terrible in a format like modern, but really want to push that over 70% consistently and this deck can definitely get there. I played loosely against the control decks, and it cost me.
What is the worst card in the deck after turn 2?
.
..
...
....
.....
Usually my first turn acceleration is off of the monkeys, and late game you still get a 2/2 if need be, but ritual is just a completely dead draw late game and i think the deck would benefit better from having a less narrow card in that slot maybe in the form of Lightning Strike or a versatile threat like Scab-Clan Berserker. By going up to 22 lands, and having 1-2 Gemstone Caverns in the deck, the early acceleration and subsequent land drops are still on track.
Food for thought
As for the Tourney Report, you're right that we are a house with a huge back porch against creatures based and any sort of linear deck. Mid-range control can get dicey if a blood moon doesn't appear. But, we run so many that I don't know if I would fear Celestial Colonnade. I sometimes consider Ghost Quarter, but back away as I play some pretty red intensive spells.
Slagstorm over Anger of the Gods! Thank you for the agreement. I have a playtest buddy that still believes otherwise, but Slagstorm is the most miserly tech out there. I'll fire off 1 or 2 early game against Patriot - provided I don't fear for the Geist of Saint Traft - and find that such simple bolts paired with their ping lands and the attacks and burn I'm throwing down will accumulate towards a win.
Kargan Dragonlord - I was doubtful, but can not sing enough praises about this motherhumper. He will ramp out of control in no time. I've done 20+ damage in (2) attacks with him...and, we're talking flying/trample. The only explicit non-bo in my deck is Ensnaring Bridge vs. Kargan Dragonlord....and Torpor Orb vs. Pia and Kiran Nalaar (but my meta is LOADED with Abzan/Coco/Kiki-combo), but that is the nature of a "Sideboard Deck" - there will be misses, but the hits are so devastating that they make up for the whiffs. Understand as well that these 2 cards won't make it to the board successfully in all games. An opponent isn't opening the door to allowing you to do whatever you want. He will shut down one line of attack, and you'll simply pivot to a 2nd approach - which can be contradictory. Thus, putting him in complete disarray. We're like Salmon swimming upstream...not all of our spells are going to make it, and that's o.k.
I have to say that I am re-focusing on this archetype. I think it's a powerhouse. The question right now: how fast do we want to lay down the Blood Moon lock? ShippCC says that Desperate Ritual may be unnecessary. Is this true. Can we slow roll a blood moon in the interest of introducing diversified threats??
Since people will fetch for their very few basic lands in response/anticipation of Blood Moon, I am thinking about including Molten Rain(s) to enhance the lock. Thoughts?
Creatures (15)
4 Goblin Rabblemaster
4 Kargan Dragonlord
2 Pia and Kiran Nalaar
2 Phyrexian Revoker
2 Magus of the Moon
1 Spellskite
Accelerators (6)
4 Simian Spirit Guide
2 Desperate Ritual
Enchantments (4)
4 Blood Moon
4 Slagstorm
1 Tormenting Voice
Planeswalker (3)
2 Koth of the Hammer
1 Chandra, Pyromaster
Artifacts (6)
2 Ensnaring Bridge
4 Chalice of the Void
Lands (21)
18 Mountains
2 Gemstone Caverns
1 Mutavault
1 Ensnaring Bridge
3 Dragon's Claw
3 Shattering Spree
2 Torpor Orb
2 Pyroclasm
2 Tormod's Crypt
1 Spellskite
1 Ratchet Bomb
As for deck evolutions, I've given it a far more aggressive slant. Less ensnaring bridge and more ways to drive home the win. In game 2, i am more prepared to remove the bridges and shift to an attack posture. I feel really confident with the style. It allows Kargan Dragonlord to shine alongside a rampaging Goblin horde. And, my turn 2 drops were buttressed with the pair of phyrexian revokers which rarely miss a target. Even if it means that early Kargans and Revokers trade against an attacker or help block an early planeswalker, there is a benefit to dropping a 2 powered, 2-cmc creature.
Edit: Seems now we have a Chandra, Pyromaster replacement: Chandra, Torch of Defiance