MTG Salvation

Introduction
UW Control is the Modern successor to The Deck. Like it's predecessor, Modern UW Control combines the spell control offered by blue with the board control offered by white. Together, the combination offers answers both on the stack and on the battlefield. UW Control distinguishes itself from a UW Midrange strategy by including board sweepers like Supreme Verdict and/or Wrath of God in the maindeck. Eschewing a third colour in favour of a less painful manabase, staying on two colours permits one to run maindeck answers to problematic lands in the form of Ghost Quarter or Tectonic Edge.

The style of gameplay appeals to those looking to gain incremental advantages over a longer game, before 'turning the corner' and closing out the game.

Decklists


Maindeck Card Choices
UW Control has a small core of cards which forms the starting point for building the deck. With a huge pool of answers at our disposal, the deck is highly adaptable to evolving metagame environments.

• 4 Path to Exile
  
• 3 Supreme Verdict
  
• 3 Cryptic Command
  
• 4 Celestial Colonnade

This core is supplemented with additional countermagic, removal, card draw and threats. There are many good choices, and the building this deck to suit your expected metagame is an art unto itself.

Countermagic
We have both 'soft' and 'hard' countermagic available. 'Soft' countermagic applies a tax to a spell which is countered if the tax can't be paid, while 'hard' countermagic is a direct counter. The deck's strategy is to interact and deny the opposing strategy before committing to our own win condition, so 'soft' counters can quickly lose relevancy as decks make their land drops. Be careful not to include too many 'soft' counters lest your draw step will be notably weakened.
Spell Snare - Classic early game answer that is always tempo-positive. Most lists play 2-4.
Dispel - Great answer and almost always a tempo gain, but narrow. Many decks run 1 main, with an additional in SB if needed.
Spell Pierce - Loses value once the game progresses, and is therefore at odds with our gameplan. This is exacerbated by the target restriction. Not seen often, normally played in the SB if at all.
Mana Tithe - Loses value quickly, but the card sees little play and some players enjoy having a single in the main to "get'em". The lack of restrictions and white colour make it an interesting choice, but not many find a spot for it in their 75.
Remand - Great card with upside against flashback and delve, but lackluster if you are not at least tempo neutral (targeting 2CMC+ spells). This card can feel bad against some of the faster decks (like infect, affinity and burn), and has seen a decline in play. 2 in the maindeck is plenty, and can be boarded out on the draw. Particularly good in counter wars for returning your own spell.
Mana Leak - Mediocre card that tries to be Counterspell but is notably weaker in the lategame. That being said, it is the most flexible 2 mana answer without much competition. Numbers range broadly from those who omit it entirely, to those running 2-4 in the maindeck.
Logic Knot - Another card trying to be Counterspell, but falling just short. This does a reasonable impression of it once the yard is stocked, but drawing it early can mean a dead card in hand. Highly flexible, but can be hard to cast. Most players include 1 at the most.
Negate - Sometimes thought to be too narrow for your maindeck, negate has been seeing more and more maindeck play. A deck with ample path and blessed alliance might consider running negate in the maindeck.
Condescend - Sometimes this card plays like Mana leak with upside, but otherwise is too mana intensive.
Ojutai's Command - This card is still being explored. Plays well with Snapcaster Mage, Wall of Omens and Jace, Vryn's Prodigy. This card has been seeing more and more play, anywhere from 0-3 appearing in maindecks leaning on the aforementioned creatures.
Cryptic Command - Flexible spell that can answer almost any situation. Whether bouncing a problematic permanent or just tapping the opponents team to buy a draw step (Supreme Verdict is down there somewhere!), this card is almost never dead.

Removal
Path to Exile - The quintessential white removal. Downside of ramping the opponent (non-bo with "soft" counters) is real, but mitigated by the low number of basics. This downside becomes marginal as the game progresses - the opponent will only have so many basics to find! 4 in the maindeck.
Blessed Alliance - A newer option that can get around hexproof and regeneration. This card is flexible enough for maindeck play, quickly finding itself the second-choice removal after path to exile.
Dismember It's no Path, but it can supplement a removal suite well enough. Not appearing in numbers beyond 1.
Condemn - Being unable to target a creature until it attacks or blocks is a huge restriction. Often only played when 4 paths just isn't enough
Sunlance - Can be narrow, but avoids the problem of being unable to remove creatures that don't attack or block. Again, usually just an option when 4 paths isn't enough.
Valorous Stance - Flexible card that can also protect your own threats. The role this card fills is not generally valued, and it therefore sees little play.
Azorius Charm - Flexible but only temporary answer. Combined with targeting restrictions, this card sees little play. Still, some find the flexible valuable and play 1-2.
Journey to Nowhere - Abrupt decay makes this card a bit unreliable. However, it is faster than Detention sphere - if more narrow.
Detention Sphere - Highly flexible answer to any (non-hexproof) permanent, and can be abused with Cryptic (bounce/draw) into Supreme Verdict to reuse as needed. Many decks play 1-3.
Supreme Verdict - Source of card advantage, tempo gain and ultimate comeback card. Bring 2 only when the metagame is low on aggro, otherwise you'll need 3-4 in the maindeck.
Wrath of God - Answers regeneration if that matters.
Engineered Explosives Great answer to some decks - especially those using tokens. While normally reserved for the sideboard, sometimes it can make it into the maindeck. 1-2.

Card Draw
Ancestral Vision - This slow card costs little mana, but a lot of time. While you wait, you play down a card until it resolves. That being said, a single mana for +2 CA is the most efficient rate you'll find, allowing even a slow card like this to see play. Not all builds play this card, but those who do pay from 2-4 in the 75.
Serum Visions - The lack of card advantage and sorcery speed has many players eschew this modern staple in UW control in favour of more mana intensive options that yield card advantage rather than selection. If selection is important in your build, consider playing this card.
Wall of Omens - Perfect way to stonewall Wild Nacatl. When combined with Restoration Angel or Ojutai's Command, the card advantage can really add up. 3-4 find their way into many builds.
Jace, Vryn's Prodigy - Slowish addition to the deck, might be too slow/low impact. Still, the card advantage offered is tempting many players into including 2-3 in their maindecks. It helps that Ojutai's Command can bring him back into play.
Think Twice - Card advantage with upside against discard. This source of card advantage is very mana intensive, but can be spread across multiple turns. Many decks opt to play 2-4
Anticipate - Card selection at instant speed. Again not consistently played, usually 2-3 when it appears.
Compulsive research - Card advantage at sorcery speed for at a reasonable price. Not commonly seen, but 1-2 are occasionally tried.
Thirst for Knowledge - Card advantage at instant speed for a reasonable price. Most lists do not play enough artifacts to warrant its inclusion.
Sphinx's Revelation - Our ultimate source of card advantage - the only question is if it is too expensive to ever cast. 1-2 can be seen in some maindecks with lower creature counts.
Jace, Architect of Thought - Slows the board down and gives card advantage on a stick. It would not be unexpected to see 1-2 in the 75.

Threats
The creature package often played is pure synergy. Each card offers an answer to a strategy while putting power on the board to start turning the corner, or leading opponents into overplaying to the board.
Myth Realized - Perfect synergy for less popular draw-go builds. Pairs well with Supreme Verdict,Snapcaster Mage and secure the wastes.
Secure the Wastes - Moderate efficiency at instant speed to go wide. A new tool that improves the flash game of the deck that works with snapcaster mage.
Snapcaster Mage - Amazing card. Works with more spell heavy builds. This card is so good that we should always be looking to play as many as possible - Snap + cryptic is incredibly strong. 2-4 in the maindeck.
Phantasmal Image - Flexible card with varied application. A bit vulnerable, but also very efficient. Not seen often, but 1-2 appear in some lists.
Thing in the Ice - Cheap threat that might not control the board well enough for the expenditure of tempo on-curve (TiTi wants to be played on-curve).
Sword of the Meek + Thopter Foundry This unban had little effect as the combo isn't particularly quick to assemble, and still takes several turns to win the game. This remains an option, yet only some esper/gifts player have seen even moderate success with it.
Kitchen Finks - Great anti-aggro card that promotes over-extension into a Supreme verdict. Restoration Angel combo! to reset the counter and gain life can grind through many aggressive decks. Present metagame conditions find players including 3-4 in their maindeck.
Filigree Familiar - Lacking synergy with Resto puts the pup decidedly behind Finks, but if you need more finks...
Vendilion Clique - Flash evasive threat with hand disruption makes a great way to close out the game while still distrupting. 1-2 can be found in many maindecks.
Geist of Saint Traft - One of the fastest clocks available, weak when the ground isn't clear.
Restoration Angel - Pure synergy here on an evasive flash threat.
Gideon, Ally of Zendikar - Newer option widely considered better than elspeth KE in non-geist builds.
Elspeth, Knight-Errant - This card has seen play as a finisher, but is often cited as too low impact for the top end. 1-2
Narset Transcendent - Having seen sparse play, Narset never cemented her place. While her stats/abilities are solid, none make her particularly attractive considering opportunity cost.
Tamiyo, the Moon Sage - Protects itself and has enough card draw to win the game with a ham sandwich. 1
Venser, the Sojourner - Interacts favourably with the creature package often seen. The ultimate is quite strong as well, but minimal board impact makes it difficult to tap out for it while behind on the board. 1
Jace, Memory Adept - This version of Jace is used at times for his milling ability as a quick clock.
Gideon Jura - Everything we want in a planeswalker/win condition - it can protect itself or the player, and still hits hard. 1-2
Batterskull - Great for grinding out the game, this threat comes with built-in protection. 1-2 would be reasonable for the maindeck.
Baneslayer Angel - Most efficient 5 drop around. All the key words. However, tapping out for 5 without protection can result in tempo swings via Terminate or path.
Dragonlord Ojutai - Hexproof with attached anticipate are great features of a finisher. Minamo, school at water's edge is used help keep hexproof. 1-2 are starting to appear in lists.
Elspeth, Sun's Champion - If you want a 6 mana card to grind through the grindiest matchups, look no further. 1-2 in the 75 can make for a potent top end.
Sun Titan - You certainly get all the value, but the mana cost can be prohibitive in some metas. 1
Wurmcoil Engine - Resilient threat that can stabilize troublesome board positions quickly. 1
Torrential Gearhulk - Snapcaster #5+, gearhulk can only hit instants which means cryptic is the best hit. 1-2

Manabase
The manabase if fairly straightforward. Builds vary between 25-26 lands depending on how high you are going - if you plan on including 6 drops such as Elspeth, Sun's Champion or Sun titan, consider going up to 26.


Sideboard
Aven Mindcensor - Threat that can hose search effects. Often brought in to slow down Tron builds and Scapeshift.
Celestial Purge - Mainly used as an answer to Liliana of the Veil, Keranos, God of Storms, Nahiri, the Harbinger, Prized Amalgam, Bloodghast and Blood Moon, this card is flexible enough to frequent sideboards. 1-2.
Celestial Flare - Strictly worse than Blessed Alliance
Consecrated Sphinx - The card advantage will surely win the game if it sticks, but the control mirror you'd want this for does not lend itself to landing such an expensive threat at sorcery speed. 1
Crucible of Worlds - In case 4 ghost quarters just isn't enough, you might need to recycle them. Meta's don't often require this level of Redundancy
Disdainful Stroke - Big mana can be an issue, and this is a straightforward answer that sees only fringe play.
Disenchant - This follows the KISS rule: Keep it Simple, Stupid. Snappy makes this card a reasonable choice.
Ethersworn Canonist - Tool against some combo decks, it is not a tool often kept at the ready. 1-2
Fracturing Gust - Sweeping away artifacts/enchantments is relevant, although this is a slow way to do it. The symmetry can also limit your own deckbuilding.
Fragmentize - Cheaper than disenchant at the cost of max 4 cmc and sorcery speed.
Ghostly Prison Without other locking mechanisms, this option is not often played in this deck. That being said, it has a couple matchups where it is particularly strong such as Eldrazi.
Glen Elendra Archmage - Good in control mirrors if you run Restoration Angel.
Grafdigger's Cage - Turns off some graveyard or chord/collected company strategies. Useful against dredge
Kor Firewalker - Watch out for skullcrack when blocking, but otherwise is the perfect answer to burn. 2-4 depending on how much burn is seeing play.
Leyline of Sanctity - Seeing little play as it takes many sb slots and makes a fairly weak draw step. Most run 0 or 4.
Pithing Needle - Turn off planeswalkers, fetchlands, Knight of the Reliquary, Griselbrand and a host of other relevant cards. 1-2 in the sb is common.
Meddling Mage - In the matchups where sweepers are less important, mage can turn off key cards from the opponent. 2-3 can see play if less aggressive metas.
Rest in Peace - Turns off your snapcasters, ojutai's command and finks, but against dredge in particular it can be a knock-out.
Runed Halo - Answers random combo like Lightning Storm or problematic permanents such as slippery bogle.
Shadow of Doubt - Answers scapeshift, chord of calling, expedition map and fetchlands while cantripping. Excellent out of the board – but you'll never want more than 2.
Spellskite - Another anti-aggro card that infect, affinity, burn and bogles all hate to see.
Spreading Seas - Great option to shut down non-basic lands. This card is good enough to see maindeck play if the meta is warped around powerful lands.
Stony Silence - Affinity, and to a lesser extent, Lantern control and Tron have a hard time playing through this card. Always include at least 1, and let the concentration of affinity in the meta dictate if you need 2 or even 3.
Summary Dismissal Very powerful answer to some threats that were previously unanswerable. This includes Ulamog, the Ceaseless Hunger and Valakut, the Molten Pinnacle
Surgical Extraction - The rise of dredge has caused the stock of this once mediocre option to increase significantly. Cleaningly answering many threats from the graveyard starting turn 0, surgical extraction plays especially well with snapcaster mage.
Teferi, Mage of Zhalfir Flash threat that, upon resolution, will win blue mirrors and some combo matchups. Value limited when blue decks are not common. 1
Threads of Disloyalty - 2 for 1 that is vulnerable to enchantment removal and abrupt decay
Timely Reinforcements - Great anti-aggro card can find space in some maindecks – especially potent with higher concentrations of Snapcaster Mage.

Tips for Playing UW Control
Most players building UW Control opt to play value creatures early on the curve with Wall of Omens and Kitchen Finks keeping the board under control and promoting over-extending into a Supreme Verdict. One of the more difficult parts is determining when to turn the corner and start attacking with Celestial Colonnade. Adept pilots will identify the earliest opportunity to turn the corner while either bluffing or holding interaction. While UW control tries to win the long game, we still can't afford to allow the game to linger as many Modern decks have very powerful draw steps.

Cryptic Command is by far the most flexible answer in the deck - but at 4 cmc can be slow for some metagames. This card opens up many lines of play, such as bouncing your own detention sphere at opponent's end step to set up a main phase Supreme Verdict.

While tight play is important for this deck, the deck offers its greatest rewards at the deckbuilding phase. Properly identifying a metagame and choosing the appropriate answers is a skill required in order to optimize this deck for each event. A good example of this is Spreading Seas and/or Crucible of Worlds finding their way into the maindeck when powerful non-basic lands run rampant across the meta, or increasing your Supreme Verdict count when aggressive creature strategies become more common.

Last updated Jan 1/17

Links:
Facebook.com/ModernUWxControl
Facebook.com/Groups/MTGModernUWx

User Neo7hinker share some rather extensive thoughts on the Finks/Omens/Resto build

Update: 9/25/16
UW Midrange Control Primer
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1ozsKsd-HjV1SRjzFUpY-6mpHHwA2dy1tY3yNlVUtM_Q

For editing concerns or suggestions on how to improve the OP, please send a PM!

Author's Build of Choice

What do you think specifically about Raymond Perez GP decklist?

Raymond Perez's GP list was a good example of how the deck can be biased against any strategy. Spreading seas MD at 4 copies plus crucible is slow against the fastest aggro decks, but against Eldrazi it's good. Same with 6 cmc Elspeth.

That list is a very good example of how to attack known metagames by piling those hate cards right into the maindeck. The same principle can be applied after Eye of Ugin is banned and we are fending off all those aggro decks again. We'll bring back things like finks and wall to the maindeck if the aggro decks are overwhelming the meta.

Thanks for your response. From what you know, until EoU get the axe, is that strategy still viable in a small to medium crowded event?

I think you'd have to have a good idea on what to expect from the particular meta. If there really is going to be 40%+ eldrazi in the room, that list looks like a good answer. If the meta is a bit faster with more infect, burn, affinity, etc, you might want to cut some of the top end stuff for kitchen finks/resto.

Great Primer!

*Considerations*

Spells/Enchantments/Artifacts:

-Pithing Needle: 1-2
-Engineered Explosives: 1-2
-Mana Leak: 2-4 instead of 3-4.
-Runed Halo: Good vs Thought-Knot Seer and Reality Smasher, too.
-Journey to Nowhere: 1-2
-Ghostly Prison: 1-2
-Compulsive Research: 1-2

Creatures (MD/SB):

-Jace, Vryn's Prodigy: 2-4 (he absolutely needs to be there)
-Phantasmal Image: 1-2
-Ethersworn Canonist: 1-2
-Meddling Mage: 2-3
-Blade Splicer: 2-4
-Brimaz, King of Oreskos: 1-2
-Flickerwisp: 2-3
-Teferi, Mage of Zhalfir: 1
-Consecrated Sphinx: 1
-Wurncoil Engine: 1

Planeswalkers:

-Elspeth, Sun's Champion: 1-2 instead of 1 (and can also be played in the main)
-Venser, the Sojourner: 1
-Tamiyo, the Moon Sage: 1
-Jace, Memory Adept: 1

I'm an avid UW player and I'm the founder of a couple of communities on FB dedicated to UWx Midrange/Control:

(This is only updated by me to provide the latest for UWx)
https://m.facebook.com/ModernUWxControl/

(This is a community where players can post and engage in discussion)
https://www.facebook.com/groups/MTGModernUWx/

About Me:

Started Playing: 2009 (M10)

Experience: 7+ Years

Proficiency: UWx Midrange Control

Notables:

I was featured in an article on TCG Player in 2015, by Ali Aintrazi, to discuss my Esper Twix brew ("two for me, none for you"), which was designed to beat Twin, Bloom, and other Combo decks (I had a 70/30 MU vs Twin and Bloom). I took it to GP Charlotte, but went 5-4:

2-0 vs UR Twin
2-0 vs UR Twin
2-0 vs Bloom Titan
2-0 vs UB Mill 
2-1 vs 4c Ascendancy 
1-2 vs Blue Moon
1-2 vs UB Faeries (Turns - top deck Cryptic Command)
1-2 vs Scapeshift (Turns - top deck Scapeshift) 

http://magic.tcgplayer.com/db/article.asp?ID=12585

I've recently written an article regarding the resurrection and evolution of Modern UW Control:

"Francesco Neo Amati shares his most recent innovations with UW Control in Modern and gives us profound perspectives on the game we all love and play."

https://cardknocklifepodcast.wordpress.com/2016/03/11/the-resurrection-evolution-of-modern-uw-control/

In the following podcast, prior to GP Detroit/Melbourne/Bologna, I propsed a viable gameplan vs Eldrazi with UW and why the Midrange Control (i.e. Attrition or a.k.a. 'Reactive Jund/Junk') was one of the best ways to play UWx in Modern:

https://cardknocklifepodcast.wordpress.com/2016/03/04/card-knock-life-39-aint-yo-mamas-control-deck-feat-francesco-neo-amati/

The deck I was referring to, and have played a similar style since Delverless (2012), was 'Clash of the Titans':

http://www.mtggoldfish.com/deck/382264#paper#online

I’ve been discussing aspects of this this deck for the past couple few weeks, explaining why it’s one of the best gameplans with UWx vs Eldrazi; but it’s also one of the most versatile, resilient, and adaptive decks I’ve played since 2011-2012, when I played a deck very similar to this one vs Caw-Blade, Valakut, and Eldrazi. This also means we’ll continue to be relevant even after Eldrazi is nerfed. We’re well-positioned vs several decks beyond Eldrazi and it’s based on our adaptive gameplan (between main and side) vs Aggro/Midrange/Combo/Control.

In its current form, it’s designed to stabilize between turns 2-5, clear the board, and recover with value and pressure through various angles. Post-board, it can transition into a more reactive deck vs Combo. The main theme is to ‘rinse, reset, and recover’. We’re basically mirroring Eldrazi’s gameplan, but by turn 5+ instead of 2 to 5.

David Saucier Therrien, a player from my UWx community, went 10-4-1 with a variation of of this deck. This is a solid record and could have easily been 11-4 or 12-3 with tighter play.

David Saucier Therrien
GP Detroit – 3/6/16
Record: 10-4-1 (161st)



Tournament Report:

(Day 1)

Round 1: Bye
Round 2: Bye
Round 3: Merfolk
Score: 0-2
Round 4: Mardu Midrange
Score: 2-0
Round 5: Abzan CoCo
Score: 2-1
Round 6: RG Tron
Score: 1-2
Round 7: UW Eldrazi
Score: 1-2
Round 8: Affinity
Score: 2-1
Round 9: Burn
Score: 2-1
Record: 6-3

(Day 2)

Round 10: Abzan CoCo
Score: 2-1
Round 11: UR Delver
Score: 2-0
Round 12: Affinity
Score: 1-1-1
Round 13: UW Eldrazi
Score: 2-1
Round 14: UW Mirror
Score: 2-1
Round 15: Gorgyo Vengence
Score: 1-2
Record: 10-4-1

Final Thoughts:

“I’m still very happy about the deck. The deck itself felt right in the meta even if I didn’t face a lot of Eldrazi. I did a lot of testing of this matchup with my friend and I think it’s at least 60/40 for us. Overall, I would play this deck again.”

The updated version will likely revert back to the way it was prior to Eldrazi dominating the format, but with some additional spice – possibly Archangel Avacyn, for starters. The deck will also undergo a name change.

Moving Forward:

-Spreading Seas will still be good, but probably better out of the board. Tron will certainly be more popular after Eldrazi and one of my best gameplans vs Tron was T2 Seas, T3 Geist/Clique, T4 Clique/Resto/Elspeth, K-E or Ghost Quarter/Counter, etc.

-Geist of Saint Traft will be a viable SB option as a 2-3 of alongside Clique (and maybe Aven Mindcensor) vs Tron/Combo. We’d swap out Finks for Geist.

-We’ll want to be on anywhere from 6-9 counters in the main. They can be a combination of Spell Snare, Dispel, Remand, Mana Leak, Negate, Ojutai's Command, and Cryptic Command.

-Because of our power level and the importance of turn 4-5 (i.e. Cryptic, Verdict, Resto, Avacyn, Gideon, etc.), I wouldn’t mind cutting Colonnade to 3 as it’s theoretically a T6 play anyway. We definitely want less CiPT lands.

-Snapcaster Mage will become more relevant as we increase the spell count in the deck.

-Cavern of Souls is going to be great tech vs the mirror, and other decks packing more counters post-Eldrazi, to jam in Resto/Avacyn, for example. We can even name Wizard here.

Stay tuned for updates!

UW Midrange Control is my bread and butter. I’m going to be playing what I play best. I’m confident I’ll make day 2 this time around.

Note: I will not be sharing my final 75 prior to GP Charlotte, but will reveal it after I’ve completed the tournament.

I've also released videos discussing the deck, adapting to the meta, theorycrafting, etc. This is the one I released today:

Video 5 - 3/18/16 (you can find the others in my community)

https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=1570152833275299&id=1514674672156449

I discuss evaluating and choosing the best combination of 3 drops, capitalizing on our 'Interaction + Pressure' Midrange Control gameplan, the importance of Elspeth, Knight-Errant in our design, and getting ahead with Crucible of Worlds and land disruption in the upcoming meta.

Lastly, I wrote an article on the benefits of main deck Spellskite in place of, or alongside, Wall of Omens (this was when Tron was dominating the scene with Ulamog 2.0 before Eldrazi took its spotlight):

https://cardknocklifepodcast.wordpress.com/2015/12/03/modern-tech-feature-fear-the-horror/

Feel free to include any or all of this information in the Primer.

Thank you.

#TeamUW

-Francesco Neo Amati

Overwhelming Denial has been really good to me recently. I have scapeshift in my meta and being able to say absolutely not in the main has been really nice.
Pathing a turd and surging it in has been really solid as well.

I'm also on one mainboard terminus, and it's been good to me. I had 2 for a while but I kept having one in my opener and it felt like a waste.

Great write-up! In my opinion a much needed update of the old thread. Nice to have a fresh point for further discussion.

Also, nice to see a fellow Myth fan. I'm utilizing it myself, and honestly think it's an overlooked card. Personally I splash black for Lingering Souls which is a alongside the Myth. My deck plays & feels like "blue junk", I enjoy the more synergistic and proactive gameplay.

http://tappedout.net/mtg-decks/mythic-command/

Ajani Vengeant is exactly the type of card you want to splash: a single shock plus 5-6 fetches should be enough to find your red source by the time you want to play him. The opportunity cost of playing him is fairly low, and should be compared to Elspeth, Knight-Errant, Gideon, Ally of Zendikar and Jace, Architect of Thought. It might just be that either Gideon or Jace can perform a similar role without requiring a splash. Although the splash has upside with Keranos, God of Storms and Wear // Tear.

My own preference is to maintain the strong and less painful manabase to max out on cryptic command, but the splash seems reasonable.

This is a good write up and a welcome update to the old thread.

Quote from wpgstevo »

Author's Build of Choice

Equinox2793's DeckMagic OnlineOCTGN2ApprenticeBuy These Cards
4 Celestial Colonnade 4 Flooded Strand 2 Hallowed Fountain 2 Glacial Fortress 2 Mystic Gate 4 Island 3 Plains 4 Ghost Quarter 4 Myth Realized 4 Snapcaster mage 2 Timely Reinforcements	4 Serum Visions 4 Path to exile 4 Supreme Verdict 3 Spell Snare 1 Dispel 2 Remand 3 Mana Leak 4 Cryptic Command	Sideboard 2 Kor Firewalker 2 Stony Silence 2 Runed Halo 2 Spreading Seas 2 Celestial Purge 2 Shadow of Doubt 2 Detention Sphere 1 Dispel

I like this deck since I'm a huge myth fan but I feel like there should be planeswalkers in this list or a batterskull so you have more wincons to fall back on. That's just my opinion.

I know it's nasty but I have been enjoying Dissolve as a 1 of for a while and I have found it nice since running too many cryptics (I'm at 3) plus resto plus verdict makes me run too many 4 drops.

Wpgstevo -

Did you get a chance to read my reply above? Let us know when you make updates to the OP. Thank you.

Quote from Equinox2793 »

I like this deck since I'm a huge myth fan but I feel like there should be planeswalkers in this list or a batterskull so you have more wincons to fall back on. That's just my opinion.

I agree, 1 timely reinforcements has been a Gideon Jura at times - and Batterskull is another card I've often considered. However, with the amount of aggro in the meta, the timely reinforcements has been performing better. Myth realized supported by 4 snappies and 4 colonnades is getting the job done right now, but Gideon Jura is waiting in the wings for a time when we need to go over the top a bit more.

As an aside, I played 4 rounds of modern tonight (at the local store) against Ad Nauseam, Bogles, Burn and Mono-white Prison going 4-0. Runed Halo, after sitting a few events in the board and never seeing play, was instrumental in the Bogles matchup and did work against Ad Nauseam. Love that card every time I bring it in - even if it spends a bit more time on the bench than some other sideboard options.

Quote from Neo7hinker »

Wpgstevo -

Did you get a chance to read my reply above? Let us know when you make updates to the OP. Thank you.

Thanks for pointing out some more cards to add! I omitted the mid-range creatures like brimaz and blade splicer as I have not really seen them played in the control decks. I'm not intending to be authoritarian about the card choice list, so if I'm mistaken I could put them in (couldn't really think of a way to mention them without pointing out options which seems easily superior).

Quote from wpgstevo »

Quote from Equinox2793 »

I like this deck since I'm a huge myth fan but I feel like there should be planeswalkers in this list or a batterskull so you have more wincons to fall back on. That's just my opinion.

I agree, 1 timely reinforcements has been a Gideon Jura at times - and Batterskull is another card I've often considered. However, with the amount of aggro in the meta, the timely reinforcements has been performing better. Myth realized supported by 4 snappies and 4 colonnades is getting the job done right now, but Gideon Jura is waiting in the wings for a time when we need to go over the top a bit more.

As an aside, I played 4 rounds of modern tonight (at the local store) against Ad Nauseam, Bogles, Burn and Mono-white Prison going 4-0. Runed Halo, after sitting a few events in the board and never seeing play, was instrumental in the Bogles matchup and did work against Ad Nauseam. Love that card every time I bring it in - even if it spends a bit more time on the bench than some other sideboard options.

Quote from Neo7hinker »

Wpgstevo -

Did you get a chance to read my reply above? Let us know when you make updates to the OP. Thank you.

Thanks for pointing out some more cards to add! I omitted the mid-range creatures like brimaz and blade splicer as I have not really seen them played in the control decks. I'm not intending to be authoritarian about the card choice list, so if I'm mistaken I could put them in (couldn't really think of a way to mention them without pointing out options which seems easily superior).

They are viable options in the Midrange Control version (i.e. Watanabe's deck or mine - 'Clash of the Titans' that went 10-4-1 at GP Detroit. I included it in my comment and in my article).

Thanks fot including the others. A couple of things:

-Jace, Memory Adept is hardly implemented as a 1 of for his +1 ability. He's a SB option in grindy MU's, especially the mirror, to put the game away with his 0 ability. It's often a 2-3 turn clock at the right time.

-Jace, Vryn's Prodigy is being utilized as pure value on both sides. The Walker side has synergy with Supreme Verdict, Path to Exile, Ojutai's Command, and other spells.

If you don't mind, please include the links to my Modern Competitive UWx Midrange/Control communities on Facebook as they provide a wealth of information regarding our archetype. They are in my comment above.

Otherwise, great job, bud.

Quote from Neo7hinker »

-Jace, Memory Adept is hardly implemented as a 1 of for his +1 ability. He's a SB option in grindy MU's, especially the mirror, to put the game away with his 0 ability. It's often a 2-3 turn clock at the right time.

Could this card also have an application vs Lantern Control? It seems like if you could find it and then manage to cast it will surely seal the game for you especially if your opponent is hiding behind Ensnaring Bridge.

Links added!

Quote from wpgstevo »

Links added!

Thanks! Be sure to update the information on Memory Adept.

Timely is indeed great alongside Myth. It just fits the strategy so well as the card won't do early blocks and doesn't count as a creature making it easy to get the full effect out of the reinforcements.

I'd recommend testing a single Terminus in the list. It facilitate some great blow-outs for the strategy. I've had success with it.

Also Narset is a card I've enjoyed as we naturally bring a high spell count to support Myth.