I'm playing this deck for a while and no doubt it's very strong, but I feel GW tokens is a very bad matchup. I'm not sure about how good Radiant Flames is, as sometimes they can go over it very fast, making it a poor topdeck. The eot Secury the Wastes plus Westvale Abbey flip is very hard to handle also. My only answers are a single Silumgar's Command and two copies of Dragonlord Silumgar (not so helpful if I'm at 9 or less life).
I started playing with this deck last Friday's FNM (went to final table but lost and finished 4th), to prepare for the Game Day on Saturday, wich I finished second. Played Mike Sigrid's list, only two differences were a single Day's Undoing main instead of Collateral Damage and a Thopter Engineer replacing Rending Volley SB.
Round 1 - Mardu Dragons (2-1): Won game one easily. Second game kept a hand with just one land, scissors, Thopter and Springleaf, he thoughtseized my Thopter and I never found another land. G3 was the only game in tournament where I drew Day's Undoing. He was full tapped at 4 life with Thunderbreak Regent and Seeker of the Way in play and four cards in hand, and I was at 16, with an equipped Revoker and just Day's Undoing in hand. I attacked with Revoker and traded with Seeker (because of the lifelink), played day's undoing and got some card advantage, topdecked a Blast and killed him next round. Even though, Day's Undoing is so situational to deserve a place MD, I'm moving it to SB, it's great against Control and Rally decks.
Round 2 - GB Megamorph (2-1): Won G1 so fast I couldn't guess his deck. G2 I saw it was similar to Abzan Megamorph, but he left white out for more black control. Was about to kill him when he played a Disciple of Nylea. G3 I mulled to four, kept a hand of Darksteel Citadel, Thopter, Mana Confluence and Shraphnel Blast. My fisrt draw (turn two) was a Shivan Reef, the second (turn 3) was Scissors, so I killed him on turn 5. He was shocked, me too.
Round 3 - Jeskai Ascendancy Combo (2-0): Just crushed him both games, turn 5 kill g1 and turn 4 kill g2 (he showed he his hand after game, he would combo next turn).
Round 4 - Atarka Devotion (1-2): All three games were very close. His deck was just green devotion with Dragonlord Atarka (didn't see other red cards). This game can go from very easy for us (if we start with Topther + Scissors) to impossible to win, if we don't find flyers. He won G1 after a turn 5 Atarka left me with just two Thopter tokens from a Hangarback (I had a Blast in hand but he was at 10 life), I won g2 playing consecutives Chiefs of the Foundry on turns 2 and 3 followed by a Whirler Rogue, and he won G3 with a Genesys Hydra for 8, wich found an Atarka. I was left with four Thopter Tokens when he attacked with Everything, needed just one Topther alive to kill him after, but had to use all of then to stay alive, so he won. Courser was great for him, I coudn't manage with it due to 3 Polukranos I saw, and the life gain kept him out of Shraphnel's Blast range.
Round 5 - Rally (2-0): Similar to monogreen, he doesn't block flyers and is short on removal. Both games were easy, I killed him very fast so he was unable to use Rally.
All the guys I played, except for the guy from round 2, finished on top 8 (the Atarka Devotion guy won the Game Day), this deck is very strong.
I'd like to see more sideboard tech here. As the deck has a lot of sinergy, it's hard to sideout. Also thinking about Act of Treason SB, it's great against any deck with big creatures. Also think I can cut a Roast, never used the full 4.
Dragon's Eye Savants could be of good use now (Triton Tactics is in the same color), I think, but I don't see this card in any serious tournament deck.
I like Returned Phalanx, but I don't think it's good in this deck, comes a turn earlier than Jorubai but doesn't do enought. I prefer an instant speed removal that kills Rabblemaster/Mentor and gains some life.
I'm running one copy of Empty the Pits SB and it's for sure my best finisher against midrange/control decks and the mirror, since my opponents generally sideout End Hostilities, Crux and Bile Blight. I know it's a dead card in starting hand, as are PLA and Ugin, but I almost never cast it for less than 5 zombies, and its clock is faster than PLA's.
I'm using just one Jorubai SB and feeling it's unnecessary (used to use 3). Even against the aggro matchups, Drown in Sorrow, Bile Blight and Pharika's Cure are enought to keep me alive.
As Garazu pointed, GR and Temur are the matchups I feel the worst, especially Temur. They can put early pressure and keep mana open to deal with our removal. Any suggestion on sideboard against them?
Would be nice to bring back Nicol Bolas to the action.
Not sure about the source.
My current list is as follows:
2x Dragonlord Silumgar
4x Goblin Dark-Dwellers
4x Jace, Vryn's Prodigy
3x Kalitas, Traitor of Ghet
Planeswalker (2)
2x Chandra, Flamecaller
Instant (11)
3x Fiery Impulse
2x Grasp of Darkness
3x Kolaghan's Command
1x Silumgar's Command
2x Ultimate Price
Sorcery (8)
1x Radiant Flames
3x Read the Bones
2x Ruinous Path
2x Transgress the Mind
3x Evolving Wilds
4x Foreboding Ruins
1x Island
2x Mountain
2x Shivan Reef
3x Smoldering Marsh
2x Sunken Hollow
5x Swamp
4x Wandering Fumarole
3x Duress
1x Rending Volley
1x Transgress the Mind
2x Negate
1x Infinite Obliteration
3x Fevered Visions
2x Radiant Flames
1x Ob Nixilis Reignited
1x Dark Petition
Need to figure what to cut for Virulent Plague. Guess at least two are necessary, as I'm seeing Angelic Purge in some GW lists. I like Dark Petition versatility (also allows to have just one Infinite Obliteration), while Fevered Visions is great against control.
Should the cut be on Transgress the Mind?
How could we make this match better for us?
Rishadan Port
Counterspell
Tendrils of Agony
Enlightened Tutor
Grindstone
Will NOT be reprinted:
Thoughtseize
Deathrite Shaman
Snapcaster Mage
Liliana of the Veil
Abrupt Decay
Round 1 - Mardu Dragons (2-1): Won game one easily. Second game kept a hand with just one land, scissors, Thopter and Springleaf, he thoughtseized my Thopter and I never found another land. G3 was the only game in tournament where I drew Day's Undoing. He was full tapped at 4 life with Thunderbreak Regent and Seeker of the Way in play and four cards in hand, and I was at 16, with an equipped Revoker and just Day's Undoing in hand. I attacked with Revoker and traded with Seeker (because of the lifelink), played day's undoing and got some card advantage, topdecked a Blast and killed him next round. Even though, Day's Undoing is so situational to deserve a place MD, I'm moving it to SB, it's great against Control and Rally decks.
Round 2 - GB Megamorph (2-1): Won G1 so fast I couldn't guess his deck. G2 I saw it was similar to Abzan Megamorph, but he left white out for more black control. Was about to kill him when he played a Disciple of Nylea. G3 I mulled to four, kept a hand of Darksteel Citadel, Thopter, Mana Confluence and Shraphnel Blast. My fisrt draw (turn two) was a Shivan Reef, the second (turn 3) was Scissors, so I killed him on turn 5. He was shocked, me too.
Round 3 - Jeskai Ascendancy Combo (2-0): Just crushed him both games, turn 5 kill g1 and turn 4 kill g2 (he showed he his hand after game, he would combo next turn).
Round 4 - Atarka Devotion (1-2): All three games were very close. His deck was just green devotion with Dragonlord Atarka (didn't see other red cards). This game can go from very easy for us (if we start with Topther + Scissors) to impossible to win, if we don't find flyers. He won G1 after a turn 5 Atarka left me with just two Thopter tokens from a Hangarback (I had a Blast in hand but he was at 10 life), I won g2 playing consecutives Chiefs of the Foundry on turns 2 and 3 followed by a Whirler Rogue, and he won G3 with a Genesys Hydra for 8, wich found an Atarka. I was left with four Thopter Tokens when he attacked with Everything, needed just one Topther alive to kill him after, but had to use all of then to stay alive, so he won. Courser was great for him, I coudn't manage with it due to 3 Polukranos I saw, and the life gain kept him out of Shraphnel's Blast range.
Round 5 - Rally (2-0): Similar to monogreen, he doesn't block flyers and is short on removal. Both games were easy, I killed him very fast so he was unable to use Rally.
All the guys I played, except for the guy from round 2, finished on top 8 (the Atarka Devotion guy won the Game Day), this deck is very strong.
I'd like to see more sideboard tech here. As the deck has a lot of sinergy, it's hard to sideout. Also thinking about Act of Treason SB, it's great against any deck with big creatures. Also think I can cut a Roast, never used the full 4.
I like Returned Phalanx, but I don't think it's good in this deck, comes a turn earlier than Jorubai but doesn't do enought. I prefer an instant speed removal that kills Rabblemaster/Mentor and gains some life.
I'm using just one Jorubai SB and feeling it's unnecessary (used to use 3). Even against the aggro matchups, Drown in Sorrow, Bile Blight and Pharika's Cure are enought to keep me alive.
As Garazu pointed, GR and Temur are the matchups I feel the worst, especially Temur. They can put early pressure and keep mana open to deal with our removal. Any suggestion on sideboard against them?