I once played a against a deck using smokebraider to consistently play a woodland wanderer on turn 3 for max converge (making it a 6/6 vigilance w/trample). He also used flamekin harbinger to grab what he needed.
Casting random spells in your library that cost less than Shardless Agent actually gets pretty useful. Seems like you've never had the pleasure of Cascading this bad boy into targeted discard, Bolt, a cantrip, Path to Exile, or Goyf (to name the Modern equivalents of Legacy's targeted discard, Bolt, superior cantrips, Swords to Plowshares, and Goyf).
You forgot the all important Ancestral Visions there. Grizzly Bear + Ancestral Recall is pretty good.
So, here's a question I have been pondering. Should we drop our mutavaults if we go with the mentor route? They just become vanilla 2/2s at that point. Maybe switch to a full set of Ted edges?
Mirran Crusader is probably awesome agains Jund/Junk but is really bad agains red in general. That's why I run them in the board.
One question I have is why the lack of lingering souls? That seems like a place your deck would like to be. Otherwise, I would switch the rats over to monastery mentor since mm fits with seeker so much better than the rats, and they occupy similar but competing slots. If you like the rats, I would find some way to fit in lingering souls, since that is still usable even when it becomes another rat.
To me it seems like you have a lot of places to life with bobs, dismember, bitterblossom, and thought seize. I would cut down your targeted discard and add more removal personally, possibly an utter end or something to hit a permanent instead of straight up creature removal. Instead of dismember have you considered smother?
I would agree with the previous poster, as I have always played a really controlling game by wearing down an opponents threats until they are hellbent and then playing a out Pack Rat or another win con. If you are playing Monastery Mentor, then I think you need to drop the rats (especially since making more rats via discard or more prowess tokens by playing spells are mutually exclusive).
Either way, I know from experience that Pack Rat is best friends with Dark Confidant, and I can't see MM being any different.
I think Monastery Mentor could find a home here, but it seems like he will want more cards to help protect him. Unlike Pack Rat, Brimaz, King of Oreskos, or Hero of Bladehold, Mentor does not survive bolts, but I think you can get a lot of value from him by playing things like zealous persecution, which would require you to build around him a lot more than our other win cons.
Hey y'all. Totally new here, but I've been lurking this forum for awhile. Just got the chance to play this deck at my LGS' FNM after spending some time putting it together. Here's my list:
FNM was 4 rounds, and I went 3-1, so it was pretty good. I hadn't played modern in like 2 months, so it felt a little reusty at first, but once I was moving it was great.
Round 1 vs. Junk-Cruise:
I played against a Junk deck running a treasure cruise splash round 1. Siege Rhino, Creeping Tar Pit, and Scavenging Ooze were its big threats to me. The deck seemed kind of off, because it was running Treasure Cruise alongside his Tarmogoyf, which didn't seem terribly great for him.
Game 1: I have to mull to 5 and end up with lots of souls, he has scoozes in play.
-Side out IoK and Seizes for 3 Pithing Needles and 4 Runed Halos.
Game 2: I sculler away his abrupt decay, letting me freely play runed halo against the rhino out. He also has a pitifully small goyf this game (I think it maxed at a 3/4). I stick 4 spirit tokens with the sword, struggling against a siege rhino swing. I end up drawing into a crusader which blocks and kills his siege rhino with the disfigure I held in hand (gotta love me them black combat tricks), at which point he scoops.
Game 3: Riding pack rat and mutavaults away to victory.
Round 2 vs. Monowhite Devotion:
He ran a neat brew of his own. He main decked 4 Leyline of Sanctity, and used Mirror Entity to super pump his guys with Nykthos mana.
Game 1: I believe I won this one on the back of Smother against his deck (I think his only >3 cmc creature was Angel of Jubilation). Tectonic Edge on Nykthos was also pretty stellar.
I board out my Seizes, as I don't have that many good cards to board in against him. I put in my runed halos.
Game 2: He beats me here, as I mull down and he removes my threats.
Game 3: Super close match, it comes down to a sword of war and peace on hero giving me 7 life (thanks for the full hand Bob!) a turn while racing his 2+ 8/8's from mirror entity. I end the game by drawing into enough removal and runed halo to stop his threats cold.
Round 3 vs. Bant
Don't really know much more than that about the deck. He ran Birds, Hierarchs, and Avacyn's Pilgrims as dorks with some other tough to remove creatures such as Thalia, Loxodon Smiter, Obstinate Baloth, et al. He used sword of war and peace as a finisher. I lost to this one do to some bad misplays on my part.
Game 1: I mull to five again as the non-colored mana sources really hurt. He easily outraces me with threats and ramp.
Game 2: I make the horrid mistake of not hitting his mana-dork with an inquisition when he only had 1 land in his hand (stupid knee-jerk reaction to Thalia). Lost to smiter again.
Don't really remember how I boarded, was way too out of it for this round.
Round 4 vs. Ad Nauseum-Unlife-Lightning Storm Combo
This was my fastest round.
Game 1: He gets combo, kills me.
I side out removal (2 paths, 2 smother, disfigure, and slaughter pact) and Hero and Mirran Crusader to put in 3 Pithing Needle, 2 Stony Silence (to stop his mana rocks), and 4 Runed Halo.
Game 2: I play a Pithing Needle turn 1 naming Lightning Storm, he immediately folds.
Game 3: Same thing, only he sided properly to deal with needle (apparently). He mulls to four, I play a turn one needle. I rip apart his hand with sculler, inquisition, and Liliana. Tectonic Edge keeps him off of W. He mentions that if I play one more hate card, he is going to fold. I play Stony Silence, cancelling out the mana rock he just played.
My thoughts on the deck:
I really love super-grindy games, and my match-ups didn't feel that bad at all tonight. Sword of War and Peace is definitely stellar, as it gives protection from the most prevalent removal, and it can totally undo the damage confidant does to your life. Tidehollow Sculler is a great card, but I would never want to see it more than once. It really helped to throw down a body, grab a card, but most importantly see what the opponent had in hand. I like it just fine at 2.
I definitely need to cut out one or more colorless lands, as I had to mull way too many times because of not having one color in an opening draw. It'll probably end up being Vault of the Archangel, as I never even once activated it. Mirran Crusader and Hero of Bladehold were nice to have, as they both can really take control of the game if they stick. Runed Halo is also super awesome. I might try moving it to the main since it felt so good to cast. It never felt dead to have, and the WW wasn't too bad to cast with fetid heaths around. I am considering making this into more of an equipment based build, using some steelshapers' gift and a small equipment package, maybe also find room to put in squadron hawk like old Cawblade.
You forgot the all important Ancestral Visions there. Grizzly Bear + Ancestral Recall is pretty good.
One question I have is why the lack of lingering souls? That seems like a place your deck would like to be.Otherwise, I would switch the rats over to monastery mentor since mm fits with seeker so much better than the rats, and they occupy similar but competing slots.If you like the rats, I would find some way to fit in lingering souls, since that is still usable even when it becomes another rat.To me it seems like you have a lot of places to life with bobs, dismember, bitterblossom, and thought seize. I would cut down your targeted discard and add more removal personally, possibly an utter end or something to hit a permanent instead of straight up creature removal. Instead of dismember have you considered smother?
Either way, I know from experience that Pack Rat is best friends with Dark Confidant, and I can't see MM being any different.
4 Dark Confidant
4 Pack Rat
2 Tidehollow Sculler
2 Mirran Crusader
1 Hero of Bladehold
Sorceries
3 Inquisition of Kozilek
4 Thoughtseize
4 Lingering Souls
Instants
4 Path to Exile
2 Smother
1 Disfigure
1 Slaughter Pact
3 Liliana of the Veil
Artifacts
1 Sword of War and Peace
Lands
4 Marsh Flats
4 Godless Shrine
2 Isolated Chapel
2 Fetid Heath
4 Mutavault
3 Tectonic Edge
1 Vault of the Archangel
1 Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth
1 Swamp
2 Plains
4 Runed Halo
3 Pithing Needle
2 Rest in Peace
2 Torpor Orb
2 Kor Firewalker
2 Stony Silence
FNM was 4 rounds, and I went 3-1, so it was pretty good. I hadn't played modern in like 2 months, so it felt a little reusty at first, but once I was moving it was great.
Round 1 vs. Junk-Cruise:
I played against a Junk deck running a treasure cruise splash round 1. Siege Rhino, Creeping Tar Pit, and Scavenging Ooze were its big threats to me. The deck seemed kind of off, because it was running Treasure Cruise alongside his Tarmogoyf, which didn't seem terribly great for him.
Game 1: I have to mull to 5 and end up with lots of souls, he has scoozes in play.
-Side out IoK and Seizes for 3 Pithing Needles and 4 Runed Halos.
Game 2: I sculler away his abrupt decay, letting me freely play runed halo against the rhino out. He also has a pitifully small goyf this game (I think it maxed at a 3/4). I stick 4 spirit tokens with the sword, struggling against a siege rhino swing. I end up drawing into a crusader which blocks and kills his siege rhino with the disfigure I held in hand (gotta love me them black combat tricks), at which point he scoops.
Game 3: Riding pack rat and mutavaults away to victory.
Round 2 vs. Monowhite Devotion:
He ran a neat brew of his own. He main decked 4 Leyline of Sanctity, and used Mirror Entity to super pump his guys with Nykthos mana.
Game 1: I believe I won this one on the back of Smother against his deck (I think his only >3 cmc creature was Angel of Jubilation). Tectonic Edge on Nykthos was also pretty stellar.
I board out my Seizes, as I don't have that many good cards to board in against him. I put in my runed halos.
Game 2: He beats me here, as I mull down and he removes my threats.
Game 3: Super close match, it comes down to a sword of war and peace on hero giving me 7 life (thanks for the full hand Bob!) a turn while racing his 2+ 8/8's from mirror entity. I end the game by drawing into enough removal and runed halo to stop his threats cold.
Round 3 vs. Bant
Don't really know much more than that about the deck. He ran Birds, Hierarchs, and Avacyn's Pilgrims as dorks with some other tough to remove creatures such as Thalia, Loxodon Smiter, Obstinate Baloth, et al. He used sword of war and peace as a finisher. I lost to this one do to some bad misplays on my part.
Game 1: I mull to five again as the non-colored mana sources really hurt. He easily outraces me with threats and ramp.
Game 2: I make the horrid mistake of not hitting his mana-dork with an inquisition when he only had 1 land in his hand (stupid knee-jerk reaction to Thalia). Lost to smiter again.
Don't really remember how I boarded, was way too out of it for this round.
Round 4 vs. Ad Nauseum-Unlife-Lightning Storm Combo
This was my fastest round.
Game 1: He gets combo, kills me.
I side out removal (2 paths, 2 smother, disfigure, and slaughter pact) and Hero and Mirran Crusader to put in 3 Pithing Needle, 2 Stony Silence (to stop his mana rocks), and 4 Runed Halo.
Game 2: I play a Pithing Needle turn 1 naming Lightning Storm, he immediately folds.
Game 3: Same thing, only he sided properly to deal with needle (apparently). He mulls to four, I play a turn one needle. I rip apart his hand with sculler, inquisition, and Liliana. Tectonic Edge keeps him off of W. He mentions that if I play one more hate card, he is going to fold. I play Stony Silence, cancelling out the mana rock he just played.
My thoughts on the deck:
I really love super-grindy games, and my match-ups didn't feel that bad at all tonight. Sword of War and Peace is definitely stellar, as it gives protection from the most prevalent removal, and it can totally undo the damage confidant does to your life. Tidehollow Sculler is a great card, but I would never want to see it more than once. It really helped to throw down a body, grab a card, but most importantly see what the opponent had in hand. I like it just fine at 2.
I definitely need to cut out one or more colorless lands, as I had to mull way too many times because of not having one color in an opening draw. It'll probably end up being Vault of the Archangel, as I never even once activated it.
Mirran Crusader and Hero of Bladehold were nice to have, as they both can really take control of the game if they stick.
Runed Halo is also super awesome. I might try moving it to the main since it felt so good to cast. It never felt dead to have, and the WW wasn't too bad to cast with fetid heaths around. I am considering making this into more of an equipment based build, using some steelshapers' gift and a small equipment package, maybe also find room to put in squadron hawk like old Cawblade.