(It does seem intriguing to try Jace as a budget Snapcaster option, so I guess it is worth a shot. Maybe try the other changes first since they cost less.)
JohanCore, the list seems like a decent beginning to this deck that you can test. The list is a little slow with 13 cards with 4+ Cmc, which may not work out in modern. You probably do not need all of the huge wincons (elspeth, sphinxs rev, dragonlord ojutai). Go with 2 or so of them. Try two dragonlord ojutai only and cut the elspeths and revs, maybe. Also, add in early or cheaper interaction. Path to exile is absolutely essential as a 4-of in this format, or you will auto-lose to many of the popular decks like BGx. Cheap counter spells work great also--Dispel and Spell Snare are great now, and Mana Leak is probably needed. Add about 4 of those cheap counters. Consider cutting down to 3 electrolyze and 2 cryptics for your mana curve. Forked bolt is a nice early spell that can do something similar to Electrolyze without the card draw, if the flexible two damage is useful in your meta. Going up to 4 Geist given your mana curve may also be a good idea.
I assume that leaving out scalding tarn/arid Mesa is a budget choice. That is ok. Consider the cheaper "off-color" fetches like polluted delta since they can get you all three of your colors. Temples may be slow, and 9 basics is too many for the greedy UWR 3-color Manabase, especially eith cryptic command. Your mana add could also use either Tectonic Edge or Ghost Quarter for manlands/ utility lands/ tron lands.
The real money card is snapcaster Mage, which is just a way better version of Jace in my opinion. It can flashback counters, and Jace can't. The two power is also very useful. Jace can also get bolted right away, which seems like bad tempo. Still, I see Jace in some top lists, so you can test it out--don't go out of your way to buy more if cost is an issue, though. Snapcaster is the best creature in modern IMO and is irreplaceable, but it does cost a lot now. Jace may be a semi-budget replacement, but just understand that it's impossible to get close to Snapcaster. To get the Snapcaster selection value, serum visions may also be useful in your list.
Overall, the best improvements for their cost are: Path to Exile, low cmc counterspells, ghost quarters/tec edge, off color fetch lands. Sucks that Snapcaster costs so much, but I'm tempted to say it is the best card in the whole deck.
Yeah, GreatNate, would love to hear what you come up with as well. Also definitely value your perspective greatly.
Paradox Omega, which match ups do you board in izzet staticaster against? I do like taking it out in your meta, which doesn't seem predominated by Abzan/Jund. In Jund/Grixis, path is usually enough. Maybe cutting EE with that setup is ok, but EE has been an all star for me against so many decks. How about Anger of the Gods? If exiling isn't relevant, EE/staticaster may be enough. If your main doesn't have another Grindy card, then yeah, I like your choice to have Elspeth+keranos in the board.
Oh, missed the part where you said you're running into a lot of affinity. Yeah definitely bring in 2 stony silence. Game-winner. Game 1 is tough, so boosting win rate to very high levels games 2-3 is necessary.
paradox Omega I've been running 1-2 stony silence in the board for a while now and have been pretty happy. Really depends on the prevalence of Affinity in your meta. It is also decent early against Tron. I didn't face any affinity somehow in my last tournament, but there was a lot of it.
EE and Stony silence are fine to run together imo. If you stick a stony silence, you're in good shape anyway, so the dead EE doesn't matter. Also affinity runs some board enchantment removal, so getting both down is fine as well once they deal with Stony Silence. I'd recommend dropping Izzet staticaster for one stony silence since electrolyze can fill a similar role. Valorous stance seems fine, but I'd consider that one also. Maybe also Elspeth. Depends if you have a mainboard expensive win con. If you do, you may not need elspeth.
TheAller, I agree. Seems like grixis is basically a better Aggro- control style deck with access to the same blue and red cards. Turn two tasigur/angler feels like turn 3 Geist, except that it stands up better to golf/rhino. Only great cards missing from that deck are the colonnades and paths (exile can be relevant). Helix is good against burn, but I guess those quick tasigur/anglers can brick their creatures? Not sure, would love to build that deck and test it against burn. Still, I love Geist for fun haha.. The deck is just missing one piece somewhere...
(Bgx is still winnable, but Tron and Amulet Bloom are extremely tough. They're tough for bgx as well, so maybe we will see more burn soon? That'd be sweet for UWR.)
Xxhellfirexx3 I think the problem right now is that bgx is a tough matchup and is something you'll have to face at the higher levels of a big tournament. Tron is very difficult as well, as is Bloom Titan. Those decks have been back on the rise. We have great match ups against the decks you mention, but they're a bit less prevalent right now.
Still, a great deck that could maybe make top 8 of a big tournament depending on the luck of match ups you face and your draws. Also, it has the added benefit of being a semi-rogue deck. many people board poorly.
GreatNate, thanks for the feedback. I will be boarding out Cryptics in the future. I would imagine the Grixis matchup improves a lot after that?
Costs just 4 vs. Gideon Jura (5), makes chump blockers vs BGx/Grixis (or attackers), and gets indestructible instead of "prevent all damage." Only Path takes him out. Looks like an solid wincon.
Blood Moon--great against the super bad Amulet Bloom matchup and also against Tron. Yes, we're running a 3-color deck, but we can still win with the Blood Moon anyway. BGx decks also get greedy with their manabases, so it's great there as well.
Fulminator Mage
Sowing Salt--could be good, but it may also come down a little late
Aven Mindcensor--kind of a mediocre card, but it has been solid for me in the past vs Amulet Bloom, Tron, and randomly Stone Raining fetchlands
I just brought UWR Geist to the WMCQ Channelfireball was running this weekend and managed to go 7-2 (17th). The deck did ok and I felt like I didn't have any particularly bad matchup. Grixis control and Jund are a little tough, and Abzan is probably the toughest commonly played matchup. I did manage to avoid Amulet and Tron, which are two of the hardest matchups.
Round-by-round:
(Boarding plans where I have them written down)
R1 Infect 2-0. Matchup is incredibly favorable, pretty hard to mess up.
(1-0)
R2 RUG Twin 2-0. I also like the Twin matchup. Spell Snares were amazing in this matchup. The 2nd game came down to the wire, with me untapping at 3 life with Cryptic Command in hand and a V-Clique in play, and my opponent at 1. Opponent tried to bolt me, but that didn't work out for him.
(2-0)
R3 Jund 0-2. Opponent cast multiple Lilianas each game, and I could only counter so many. Had to fight hard to deal with the others, and they got entirely out of control. Discard and Lilianas are impossible for UWR Geist to beat. One Boros Charm may even be an ok solution here to deal with Liliana once she ticks up to 4. It can also contribute to the burn plan, and indestructible clause has uses as well. It could maybe replace a Lightning Helix. (I'm not impressed by Helix these days--it is still great against burn, but otherwise, there aren't quite as many targets. Burn can also now run Atarka's command + Skullcrack for even more anti-lifegain, so sequencing when to cast it can sometimes get a little tricky.)
(2-1)
R4 Abzan 2-0. Anytime you can Bolt or Helix a Goyf, it feels like the opponent did something terribly wrong. That should never happen, but when it does, it usually contributes to easy wins. Spell Snares were great also. I think I finished the game off with a Geist + Thundermaw. He made me sac one of the two with a Liliana, which wasn't enough.
(3-1)
R4 BW Tokens 2-1. Opponents lingering souls/spectra processions/bitterblossoms got out of control game 1. Game 2 was tough, but I kept him down to 2 attackers per turn with Bolts/Helixes/Electrolyze because he had 3 Windbrisk Heights in play. Opponent told me after the game that he had a Bitterblossom, Spectral Procession, and Intangible Virtue below those, which would have been rough. I bought enough time till I threw down an EE and then a Geist and killed him off with Geist + burn + Colonnade + Resto. Game 3 was a little easier with multiple EE's.
Sideboard: -4 Path, -2 Clique, -1 Helix, +2 EE, +2 Wear//Tear, +1 Negate, +1 Anger, +1 Celestial Purge
(4-1)
R6 Grixis control 0-2. I had a really tough time in this matchup. Game 1 was a mull to 6 with 1 land (Sulfur Falls), which I should have ditched. Opponent landed a turn 2 Gurmag Angler, and that was it. Game 2 was a little bit more interactive. Opponent cast dispel a couple times to counter my more expensive spells, which set me back a lot on tempo, and that was mostly enough. After the games, my opponent told me that he actually takes out Cryptics against other blue control decks because it gets trumped so easily by the 1-mana answer of Dispel. This makes a lot of sense, but I don't think I've seen anyone else do it. Pretty clever.
(4-2)
R7 Burn 2-1. Lost game 1 pretty handily. Game 2 was a lot better with all of the sideboard options coming in (2 Kor Firewalker, 2 Dispel, 1 Negate, 1 Purge) for some of the clunkier spells (3 Remand, 2 Electrolyze, 1 Thundermaw). I think V-Clique is fine in this matchup. It either eats a burn spell or a guy, unless they have Searing Blaze, which gets turned on at some point anyway. In this matchup, I targeted myself with V-Clique multiple times rather than my opponent. If you have any extra lands or any of the clunkier spells, it really helps to dig toward a Helix or Kor Firewalker. An interesting interaction I haven't seen before: Skullcrack (resolves) + Volcanic Fallout against a board of Kor Firewalker and Geist. Ouch. Game 3 wasn't fair since my opponent mulled to 5.
(5-2)
R8 Abzan 2-0. Each of these super grindy games came down to the wire. I stabilized at 2 life in game 1 and won with some combination of Colonnade/Geist/burn/Resto (can't remember). Game 2, I won with Keranos cast when both me and my opponent were at 9. He's pretty tough to beat at a healthy life total. I managed to keep the Lilianas in check (the key to this matchup) with a combination of counters, Celestial Purge, and Snapcasters.
Sideboard: -2 Geist, -2 V-Clique, -1 Helix, -1 Mana Leak; +1 Negate, +2 EE, +1 Purge, +1 Keranos, +1 Gideon
(6-2)
R9 Grixis Delver 2-1. Actually played Caleb Durward here, who is an amazing player and a really nice guy. Big fan of his CFB videos. Neither of us were in contention for top 8 at that point. I definitely had fun this match. Game 1, I mulled to 5, but I put up a little bit of a fight. He landed a Gurmag Angler, which was really bad for me. I cast a Clique to see his hand, which just looked unbeatable. It had a Tasigur, Dispel, 2 Bolts, and a Terminate. The Tasigur went to the bottom of his library. Clique got killed off immediately. My hand was garbage, just Snap & Bolt and some clunky stuff that wasn't going to help much while I was on however few lands I was on. My best route to victory was for him to mess up (which wasn't gonna happen). I'm at 11, so I can't really afford hits from Gurmag Angler. (Also relevant--no Paths in the yard.) I cast Bolt on the Angler (resolves), Snap (resolves), and flashback Bolt on Angler. Since he was awake, that didn't work. He Dispels the Bolt and Terminates the Snap. I'm dead the next turn. Game 2 was very interactive. Game 3, he mulled to 5, but it was still a real game due to Kolaghan's Command. (This card is amazing with Snaps.) It was either in game 2 or 3 where there was a fun counter war involving Snapcaster. On 4 mana, I spell snared Snap, which gets Dispeled, then Remanded the Spell Snare and recast it. Resolved Snaps are bad news. Geist + burn + Gideon + Colonnade finished the job in these games. (Gideon didn't do much, but he was good that game.) Electrolyze was great against Snap + Young Pyro. I didn't see Delvers, but I know he was playing those.
(7-2)
Felt pretty good about the tournament, but wish it went even better.
Tldr, general thoughts:
Favorable matchups: Infect is an amazing matchup, and Burn is pretty good. I also like the matchup vs Twin. Dodged Affinity, but I think that one's pretty decent also. BW tokens is a great matchup post-board with EE, Anger, and Wear // Tear coming in, but makes some of our cards look silly pre-board.
BGx--a pretty bad matchup, but it seemed ok today (2-1). I think the better pilots of those decks are still favored. I think Abzan's worse since the Path to Exiles are spread so much thinner. I hate Liliana.
Grixis control--matchup's a little hard, but do-able. It might be worth siding out Cryptics like my opponent did. I also don't know if it's right or wrong to keep in Geists. They only have 4-5 creatures that can block it and can't otherwise interact with it. Turn 2 Tasigur/Angler is just bad news if you're not holding a Path/Remand/Leak. (Even then, they could hold up a Dispel if they wait until turn 3 to play those threats.)
Grixis Delver--plays out similarly to Grixis control, but some of the threats can be dealt with a little more easily.
Bad matchups: Tron (dodged a bullet), Amulet Bloom (very few copies in the tournament), Grishoalbrand (haven't decided whether this is good or bad yet, but I think it's hard post-board with their control-hate)
Cards:
Spell Snare--this card is great. 2 is the right number for the meta. Counters so many relevant threats/counters/Snaps in the tier 1 decks.
Serum Visions--still don't think it's necessary, but I think it's a judgment call.
Lightning Helix--pretty bad outside of the Burn matchup.
Mana Leak--what a nonbo with the Path in the BGx matchups. It's at least good early, so still uncertain. Otherwise it's mediocre.
Tectonic Edge--I like this over Ghost Quarters. Keeps Leaks live later (see above).
Electrolyze--I like 3-of against the top tier decks. It helps the deck's consistency and burn plan as well.
Thundermaw--actually a solid mainboard threat even against decks not running tokens/Lingering Souls. It can be sided out for better lategame cards afterward, but it is fine in almost all matchups pre-board.
Vendilion Clique--love having 2 of these. Very few Lingering Souls around these days.
Restoration Angel--great to have 2, would feel a little clunkier to have have more. Did manage to pull ahead late game by Resto blinking Cliques, Snap + Dispel/Bolt/Snare (1-mana spells), or a creature targeted by removal (once in a while).
Remand--I find it's not just a Time Walk, but it just helps to hit early land drops and add to consistency. Having 3-of has been great.
Cryptic Command--2-of is great. I think others have decided this is the right number as well.
Eiganjo Castle--wow, Castle + Geist = gg in so many games.
Spellskite--this may be controversial, but I don't think we need it. It helps matchups we don't need much help in, though it has its uses in the Burn and Affinity matchups. It's unnecessary in Twin or Infect. Bogles is uncommon, and EE is fine there.
Engineered Explosives/Anger--these are the sweepers I want. Fantastic.
Dispel--amazing
Negate--solid
Targeted hate cards (Kor Firewalker, Stony Silence)--like having these since those matchups have pretty bad game 1's otherwise. Need to boost those win %'s post-board.
Late game wincons (Thundermaw, Keranos, Gideon Jura)--Thundermaw is great to have in the main. Keranos was fine to have. Gideon Jura was decent, but I'm not sold. I may go back to Batterskull there for the decks that don't run Kolaghan's Command since Geist + BSkull is OP. I have tried Sphinx's Rev, and it hardly ever felt great. It usually only gets cast for X=4, which isn't always quite enough when you're under pressure. Gideon is great for those situations when you're behind and also great when you're ahead.
The namesake (Geist)--I didn't want to go down to 3, but I think it's the right move. It sucks against BGx decks (Liliana + giant dudes) and gets bricked by Anglers/Tasigurs/Rhinos/Goyfs. It's not amazing vs. decks that gum up the ground. I think 3 is pretty decent to maintain the deck's aggressive elements.
Anyway, that was long. Hope it was somewhat informative. I think the deck's reasonable, though it's definitely not tier 1 or anything. With tight play, I think it can still be competitive, depending on your goals. (If you want to top 8 a GP, this thing isn't for you. But then you're unlikely to be on this site because you're busy playtesting with your team anyway. If you are happy with something that keeps you in most games and can put up solid results with tight play, then it's fantastic. Maybe it'll randomly top 8 a GP again someday.)
The list I used for the two PPTQs I've attended is below. What are people doing to deal with Collected Company? I had a lot of trouble dealing with Collected Company decks (0-2 against them), and I am wondering how to change the main and sideboard. I'm considering a second Vendilion Clique main and maybe a second Anger of the Gods sideboard (to deal with Finks/Voice better). This is a rough matchup. I'm considering dropping the Forked Bolt for the second clique. That does make the matchup against Burn/Affinity worse, though. I'm thinking of taking out the Supreme Verdict for the second Anger of the Gods sideboard. That is worse against some other creature-heavy decks with X/4+'s, like Merfolk once it gets rolling. Also, Merfolk was pretty tough for me (0-1)--once they get the Aether Vials going, swarming the board with Merfolk lords, it gets rough.
If anyone's interested in more details, I can pass along more info on my matchups.
I think the counterspell suite is great. Spell Snare hits hugely relevant targets in almost all matchups, and the extra hard counters (Mana Leak) are useful in fighting off Collected Company and aggro decks. (We're not going to out-tempo Collected Company with Remands if we can't get our Geists through.)
Potential cuts:
Thundermaw Hellkite--Lingering Souls isn't seeing as much play as a month ago
Forked Bolt--same reasoning--also tends to go dead late and in certain matchups such as Twin/Zoo with X/3+'s/Collected Company with Finks/Voice
Potential additions:
Vendilion Clique--does well against everything except Burn and Lingering Souls decks. It seems like Lingering Souls are on the decline.
Elspeth Knight Errant, Ajani Vengeant, Keranos, or Gideon--I can't figure out what to replace Thundermaw with. I end up boarding out T-Maw in almost all of my matchups, and something else would be useful. I have used Keranos in the past, but he can be really slow. I'd really only like to replace T-Maw, not Batterskull. I still like Batterskull against any deck not playing Kolaghan's Command (still a lot of the meta).
Timely Reinforcements--this might be a replacement for Kor Firewalkers. They could be more broadly useful, like against Affinity, Zoo, Merfolk, and Collected Company decks.
Graveyard hate? Could be useful against Collected Company decks running Eternal Witness?
I'd also prefer not to add Cryptic Commands. They feel a little slow, but maybe other people haven't had the same experience? GuardianJohn, have they been working out for you?
I assume that leaving out scalding tarn/arid Mesa is a budget choice. That is ok. Consider the cheaper "off-color" fetches like polluted delta since they can get you all three of your colors. Temples may be slow, and 9 basics is too many for the greedy UWR 3-color Manabase, especially eith cryptic command. Your mana add could also use either Tectonic Edge or Ghost Quarter for manlands/ utility lands/ tron lands.
The real money card is snapcaster Mage, which is just a way better version of Jace in my opinion. It can flashback counters, and Jace can't. The two power is also very useful. Jace can also get bolted right away, which seems like bad tempo. Still, I see Jace in some top lists, so you can test it out--don't go out of your way to buy more if cost is an issue, though. Snapcaster is the best creature in modern IMO and is irreplaceable, but it does cost a lot now. Jace may be a semi-budget replacement, but just understand that it's impossible to get close to Snapcaster. To get the Snapcaster selection value, serum visions may also be useful in your list.
Overall, the best improvements for their cost are: Path to Exile, low cmc counterspells, ghost quarters/tec edge, off color fetch lands. Sucks that Snapcaster costs so much, but I'm tempted to say it is the best card in the whole deck.
Good luck!
Paradox Omega, which match ups do you board in izzet staticaster against? I do like taking it out in your meta, which doesn't seem predominated by Abzan/Jund. In Jund/Grixis, path is usually enough. Maybe cutting EE with that setup is ok, but EE has been an all star for me against so many decks. How about Anger of the Gods? If exiling isn't relevant, EE/staticaster may be enough. If your main doesn't have another Grindy card, then yeah, I like your choice to have Elspeth+keranos in the board.
EE and Stony silence are fine to run together imo. If you stick a stony silence, you're in good shape anyway, so the dead EE doesn't matter. Also affinity runs some board enchantment removal, so getting both down is fine as well once they deal with Stony Silence. I'd recommend dropping Izzet staticaster for one stony silence since electrolyze can fill a similar role. Valorous stance seems fine, but I'd consider that one also. Maybe also Elspeth. Depends if you have a mainboard expensive win con. If you do, you may not need elspeth.
I'm definitely going to continuing to run Geist
Still, a great deck that could maybe make top 8 of a big tournament depending on the luck of match ups you face and your draws. Also, it has the added benefit of being a semi-rogue deck. many people board poorly.
GreatNate, thanks for the feedback. I will be boarding out Cryptics in the future. I would imagine the Grixis matchup improves a lot after that?
Gideon, Ally of Zendikar
Costs just 4 vs. Gideon Jura (5), makes chump blockers vs BGx/Grixis (or attackers), and gets indestructible instead of "prevent all damage." Only Path takes him out. Looks like an solid wincon.
Blood Moon--great against the super bad Amulet Bloom matchup and also against Tron. Yes, we're running a 3-color deck, but we can still win with the Blood Moon anyway. BGx decks also get greedy with their manabases, so it's great there as well.
Fulminator Mage
Sowing Salt--could be good, but it may also come down a little late
Aven Mindcensor--kind of a mediocre card, but it has been solid for me in the past vs Amulet Bloom, Tron, and randomly Stone Raining fetchlands
Here's the list, with round notes below
Lands (25)
3x Scalding Tarn
2x Arid Mesa
3x Flooded Strand
2x Steam Vents
1x Hallowed Fountain
1x Sacred Foundry
4x Celestial Colonnade
2x Sulfur Falls
1x Eiganjo Castle
2x Tectonic Edge
2x Island
1x Plains
1x Mountain
4x Snapcaster Mage
3x Geist of Saint Traft
2x Vendilion Clique
2x Restoration Angel
1x Thundermaw Hellkite
Spells
4x Lightning Bolt
4x Path to Exile
2x Spell Snare
3x Lightning Helix
3x Remand
2x Mana Leak
3x Electrolyze
2x Cryptic Command
2x Dispel
1x Negate
2x Wear // Tear
1x Celestial Purge
2x Stony Silence
2x Kor Firewalker
1x Anger of the Gods
2x Engineered Explosives
1x Keranos, God of Storms
1x Gideon Jura
Round-by-round:
(Boarding plans where I have them written down)
R1 Infect 2-0. Matchup is incredibly favorable, pretty hard to mess up.
(1-0)
R2 RUG Twin 2-0. I also like the Twin matchup. Spell Snares were amazing in this matchup. The 2nd game came down to the wire, with me untapping at 3 life with Cryptic Command in hand and a V-Clique in play, and my opponent at 1. Opponent tried to bolt me, but that didn't work out for him.
(2-0)
R3 Jund 0-2. Opponent cast multiple Lilianas each game, and I could only counter so many. Had to fight hard to deal with the others, and they got entirely out of control. Discard and Lilianas are impossible for UWR Geist to beat. One Boros Charm may even be an ok solution here to deal with Liliana once she ticks up to 4. It can also contribute to the burn plan, and indestructible clause has uses as well. It could maybe replace a Lightning Helix. (I'm not impressed by Helix these days--it is still great against burn, but otherwise, there aren't quite as many targets. Burn can also now run Atarka's command + Skullcrack for even more anti-lifegain, so sequencing when to cast it can sometimes get a little tricky.)
(2-1)
R4 Abzan 2-0. Anytime you can Bolt or Helix a Goyf, it feels like the opponent did something terribly wrong. That should never happen, but when it does, it usually contributes to easy wins. Spell Snares were great also. I think I finished the game off with a Geist + Thundermaw. He made me sac one of the two with a Liliana, which wasn't enough.
(3-1)
R4 BW Tokens 2-1. Opponents lingering souls/spectra processions/bitterblossoms got out of control game 1. Game 2 was tough, but I kept him down to 2 attackers per turn with Bolts/Helixes/Electrolyze because he had 3 Windbrisk Heights in play. Opponent told me after the game that he had a Bitterblossom, Spectral Procession, and Intangible Virtue below those, which would have been rough. I bought enough time till I threw down an EE and then a Geist and killed him off with Geist + burn + Colonnade + Resto. Game 3 was a little easier with multiple EE's.
Sideboard: -4 Path, -2 Clique, -1 Helix, +2 EE, +2 Wear//Tear, +1 Negate, +1 Anger, +1 Celestial Purge
(4-1)
R6 Grixis control 0-2. I had a really tough time in this matchup. Game 1 was a mull to 6 with 1 land (Sulfur Falls), which I should have ditched. Opponent landed a turn 2 Gurmag Angler, and that was it. Game 2 was a little bit more interactive. Opponent cast dispel a couple times to counter my more expensive spells, which set me back a lot on tempo, and that was mostly enough. After the games, my opponent told me that he actually takes out Cryptics against other blue control decks because it gets trumped so easily by the 1-mana answer of Dispel. This makes a lot of sense, but I don't think I've seen anyone else do it. Pretty clever.
(4-2)
R7 Burn 2-1. Lost game 1 pretty handily. Game 2 was a lot better with all of the sideboard options coming in (2 Kor Firewalker, 2 Dispel, 1 Negate, 1 Purge) for some of the clunkier spells (3 Remand, 2 Electrolyze, 1 Thundermaw). I think V-Clique is fine in this matchup. It either eats a burn spell or a guy, unless they have Searing Blaze, which gets turned on at some point anyway. In this matchup, I targeted myself with V-Clique multiple times rather than my opponent. If you have any extra lands or any of the clunkier spells, it really helps to dig toward a Helix or Kor Firewalker. An interesting interaction I haven't seen before: Skullcrack (resolves) + Volcanic Fallout against a board of Kor Firewalker and Geist. Ouch. Game 3 wasn't fair since my opponent mulled to 5.
(5-2)
R8 Abzan 2-0. Each of these super grindy games came down to the wire. I stabilized at 2 life in game 1 and won with some combination of Colonnade/Geist/burn/Resto (can't remember). Game 2, I won with Keranos cast when both me and my opponent were at 9. He's pretty tough to beat at a healthy life total. I managed to keep the Lilianas in check (the key to this matchup) with a combination of counters, Celestial Purge, and Snapcasters.
Sideboard: -2 Geist, -2 V-Clique, -1 Helix, -1 Mana Leak; +1 Negate, +2 EE, +1 Purge, +1 Keranos, +1 Gideon
(6-2)
R9 Grixis Delver 2-1. Actually played Caleb Durward here, who is an amazing player and a really nice guy. Big fan of his CFB videos. Neither of us were in contention for top 8 at that point. I definitely had fun this match. Game 1, I mulled to 5, but I put up a little bit of a fight. He landed a Gurmag Angler, which was really bad for me. I cast a Clique to see his hand, which just looked unbeatable. It had a Tasigur, Dispel, 2 Bolts, and a Terminate. The Tasigur went to the bottom of his library. Clique got killed off immediately. My hand was garbage, just Snap & Bolt and some clunky stuff that wasn't going to help much while I was on however few lands I was on. My best route to victory was for him to mess up (which wasn't gonna happen). I'm at 11, so I can't really afford hits from Gurmag Angler. (Also relevant--no Paths in the yard.) I cast Bolt on the Angler (resolves), Snap (resolves), and flashback Bolt on Angler. Since he was awake, that didn't work. He Dispels the Bolt and Terminates the Snap. I'm dead the next turn. Game 2 was very interactive. Game 3, he mulled to 5, but it was still a real game due to Kolaghan's Command. (This card is amazing with Snaps.) It was either in game 2 or 3 where there was a fun counter war involving Snapcaster. On 4 mana, I spell snared Snap, which gets Dispeled, then Remanded the Spell Snare and recast it. Resolved Snaps are bad news. Geist + burn + Gideon + Colonnade finished the job in these games. (Gideon didn't do much, but he was good that game.) Electrolyze was great against Snap + Young Pyro. I didn't see Delvers, but I know he was playing those.
(7-2)
Felt pretty good about the tournament, but wish it went even better.
Tldr, general thoughts:
Favorable matchups: Infect is an amazing matchup, and Burn is pretty good. I also like the matchup vs Twin. Dodged Affinity, but I think that one's pretty decent also. BW tokens is a great matchup post-board with EE, Anger, and Wear // Tear coming in, but makes some of our cards look silly pre-board.
BGx--a pretty bad matchup, but it seemed ok today (2-1). I think the better pilots of those decks are still favored. I think Abzan's worse since the Path to Exiles are spread so much thinner. I hate Liliana.
Grixis control--matchup's a little hard, but do-able. It might be worth siding out Cryptics like my opponent did. I also don't know if it's right or wrong to keep in Geists. They only have 4-5 creatures that can block it and can't otherwise interact with it. Turn 2 Tasigur/Angler is just bad news if you're not holding a Path/Remand/Leak. (Even then, they could hold up a Dispel if they wait until turn 3 to play those threats.)
Grixis Delver--plays out similarly to Grixis control, but some of the threats can be dealt with a little more easily.
Bad matchups: Tron (dodged a bullet), Amulet Bloom (very few copies in the tournament), Grishoalbrand (haven't decided whether this is good or bad yet, but I think it's hard post-board with their control-hate)
Cards:
Spell Snare--this card is great. 2 is the right number for the meta. Counters so many relevant threats/counters/Snaps in the tier 1 decks.
Serum Visions--still don't think it's necessary, but I think it's a judgment call.
Lightning Helix--pretty bad outside of the Burn matchup.
Mana Leak--what a nonbo with the Path in the BGx matchups. It's at least good early, so still uncertain. Otherwise it's mediocre.
Tectonic Edge--I like this over Ghost Quarters. Keeps Leaks live later (see above).
Electrolyze--I like 3-of against the top tier decks. It helps the deck's consistency and burn plan as well.
Thundermaw--actually a solid mainboard threat even against decks not running tokens/Lingering Souls. It can be sided out for better lategame cards afterward, but it is fine in almost all matchups pre-board.
Vendilion Clique--love having 2 of these. Very few Lingering Souls around these days.
Restoration Angel--great to have 2, would feel a little clunkier to have have more. Did manage to pull ahead late game by Resto blinking Cliques, Snap + Dispel/Bolt/Snare (1-mana spells), or a creature targeted by removal (once in a while).
Remand--I find it's not just a Time Walk, but it just helps to hit early land drops and add to consistency. Having 3-of has been great.
Cryptic Command--2-of is great. I think others have decided this is the right number as well.
Eiganjo Castle--wow, Castle + Geist = gg in so many games.
Spellskite--this may be controversial, but I don't think we need it. It helps matchups we don't need much help in, though it has its uses in the Burn and Affinity matchups. It's unnecessary in Twin or Infect. Bogles is uncommon, and EE is fine there.
Engineered Explosives/Anger--these are the sweepers I want. Fantastic.
Dispel--amazing
Negate--solid
Targeted hate cards (Kor Firewalker, Stony Silence)--like having these since those matchups have pretty bad game 1's otherwise. Need to boost those win %'s post-board.
Late game wincons (Thundermaw, Keranos, Gideon Jura)--Thundermaw is great to have in the main. Keranos was fine to have. Gideon Jura was decent, but I'm not sold. I may go back to Batterskull there for the decks that don't run Kolaghan's Command since Geist + BSkull is OP. I have tried Sphinx's Rev, and it hardly ever felt great. It usually only gets cast for X=4, which isn't always quite enough when you're under pressure. Gideon is great for those situations when you're behind and also great when you're ahead.
The namesake (Geist)--I didn't want to go down to 3, but I think it's the right move. It sucks against BGx decks (Liliana + giant dudes) and gets bricked by Anglers/Tasigurs/Rhinos/Goyfs. It's not amazing vs. decks that gum up the ground. I think 3 is pretty decent to maintain the deck's aggressive elements.
Anyway, that was long. Hope it was somewhat informative. I think the deck's reasonable, though it's definitely not tier 1 or anything. With tight play, I think it can still be competitive, depending on your goals. (If you want to top 8 a GP, this thing isn't for you. But then you're unlikely to be on this site because you're busy playtesting with your team anyway. If you are happy with something that keeps you in most games and can put up solid results with tight play, then it's fantastic. Maybe it'll randomly top 8 a GP again someday.)
If anyone's interested in more details, I can pass along more info on my matchups.
3x Scalding Tarn
2x Arid Mesa
4x Celestial Colonnade
2x Tectonic Edge
1x Eiganjo Castle
2x Sulfur Falls
2x Steam Vents
1x Hallowed Fountain
1x Sacred Foundry
2x Island
1x Plains
1x Mountain
4x Geist of Saint Traft
1x Vendilion Clique
3x Restoration Angel
1x Thundermaw Hellkite
1x Forked Bolt
4x Lightning Bolt
4x Path to Exile
4x Lightning Helix
2x Electrolyze
2x Spell Snare
2x Mana Leak
3x Remand
2x Engineered Explosives
1x Anger of the Gods
1x Supreme Verdict
1x Stony Silence
1x Negate
2x Counterflux
2x Wear // Tear
1x Celestial Purge
1x Sower of Temptation
2x Kor Firewalker
1x Batterskull
I think the counterspell suite is great. Spell Snare hits hugely relevant targets in almost all matchups, and the extra hard counters (Mana Leak) are useful in fighting off Collected Company and aggro decks. (We're not going to out-tempo Collected Company with Remands if we can't get our Geists through.)
Potential cuts:
Thundermaw Hellkite--Lingering Souls isn't seeing as much play as a month ago
Forked Bolt--same reasoning--also tends to go dead late and in certain matchups such as Twin/Zoo with X/3+'s/Collected Company with Finks/Voice
Potential additions:
Vendilion Clique--does well against everything except Burn and Lingering Souls decks. It seems like Lingering Souls are on the decline.
Elspeth Knight Errant, Ajani Vengeant, Keranos, or Gideon--I can't figure out what to replace Thundermaw with. I end up boarding out T-Maw in almost all of my matchups, and something else would be useful. I have used Keranos in the past, but he can be really slow. I'd really only like to replace T-Maw, not Batterskull. I still like Batterskull against any deck not playing Kolaghan's Command (still a lot of the meta).
Timely Reinforcements--this might be a replacement for Kor Firewalkers. They could be more broadly useful, like against Affinity, Zoo, Merfolk, and Collected Company decks.
Graveyard hate? Could be useful against Collected Company decks running Eternal Witness?
I'd also prefer not to add Cryptic Commands. They feel a little slow, but maybe other people haven't had the same experience? GuardianJohn, have they been working out for you?
Thoughts?