Ponza #1 seed going into the top 8 of SCG Dallas! Boom Baby!!!! Three decks made day 2 as well. That's probably a decent chunk of the day 1 Ponza players. We should start seeing bigger numbers the more it's played.
Update is Ponza won against some of it’s worst matchups in Infect and Storm.
Just fyi, Damping Sphere should not impact Utopia Sprawl. It is a triggered ability that does not use the stack, it does not make the land itself tap for more mana.
Man I am completely wrong and apologize for any confusion.
While I echo the sentiment of 0 birds I disagree with the KWR statements it has ended games way quicker for me due to the trample part alone (have literally tapped it and 2 lands for no pumps but trample).
With the new spoilers out from Dominaria, there is a new card that we will have to fight against in Damping Sphere.
This is a 2 mana artifact that has “If a land is tapped for 2 or more mana, it produces <1 wingding mana> instead of any other type and amount. Each spell a player casts costs <1 colorless> more to cast for each other spell that player has cast this turn.”
Most people aren’t even talking about it being Ponza hate only Storm and Tron currently, but this affects us 2 ways. 1st is Utopia Sprawl lands would only tap for 1 wing ding mana which hamstrings us a ton if we are on the draw. 2nd is it’s interaction with BBE where the cascade spell would cost 1 mana to cast.
The part where this is a even bigger problem is the card is colorless so it can go in anything and will be very ubiquitous due to hating on 2 decks that are pillars of the format. It is only a matter of time before they realize that it works on us too. We have sb hate in Ancient Grudge, so that helps but we may have to board in AG in almost every matchup once the set is released. Just trying to stay ahead of the game and keep y’all up to speed.
Also FYI I will post some data on Monday from my play testing with the updated list.
I haven't updated my deck since the bloodbraid unban. I'm just wondering if there's too many mana dorks in the deck to make bloodbraid a good choice.
This is why both Noob King and I advocated removing the BOP and just running the Arbor Elf and Sprawl. Yeah I still hit them on occasion but both are much better to hit than a BOP.
I just got home from doing the Modern Classic at SCG Worcester. Ran ponza to a 18th place finish (7-2). I lost my win-and-in for top 8 but I'm okay with my placement. First ever huge event that I have ever did. Here's my list that a buddy of mine came up with and I ran with:
Well now that it has been spoiled that Blood Moon will be in M25 it is going to drop the cost of the deck down a considerable amount. That along with the new precon deck that has Chandra and Hazoret make it much more affordable. This means more people will become more interested in the deck so the primer may get a flood of questions from newer players. I’m not sure who is in charge of the primer but maybe we should have 2 parts (one being old Ponza and one with BBE) as they are 2 different decks now.
True. However, if the archetype starts to gain momentum then the price choke point will shift to the next fundamental piece of the deck; I'd expect a Utopia Sprawl or Tracker spike (assuming neither gets a reprint anytime soon), so if anyone is lurking and hasn't built the deck yet then they'll wanna jump on those two sooner than later.
Utopia Sprawl is also in the set now as well so it is just Tracker which has seen some increases over the last couple of weeks already.
Do we bring relic against Jund? Just for Goyf? (NOT interested in running my own Goyfs in ponza)
It really depends on if you are already running Scooze in the main or not. If you aren’t I would say go for it as BBE can cascade into it. Worst case scenario it will cycle itself. Also it is worth noting some Jund lists are running Lilliana the Last Hope which also uses the graveyard.
I Think hazoret and Tracker cant bem used together. One is for empty hand another to draw cards.
I like hazoret against jund, nothing Else.
I used them together just fine (3 Tracker and 2 Hazoret). There really isn’t any nonbo. Think about it, when you use Tracker more times than not you are looking for a finisher but if you already have Hazoret on board there is no need to keep looking for one. Also you can still have 1 card in hand and Hazoret be “online” meaning wait until the end of your opponents turn to crack the clue if you already had a card in hand. Lastly, together they absolutely wreck any deck trying to hide behind Ensnaring Bridge because the extra cards Tracker draws can be pitched by Hazoret to do more damage a turn.
Hazoret is a great finisher much like Stormbreath, but not as great as Stormbreath being pro white and having flying gives it the nod. It is by far the best blocker we have being indestructible.
Hazoret is the 2nd best creature behind Stormbreath which I feel both should be at least a 2 of. BBE is 3rd as it does have a high ceiling but can also bring in a ramp card.
As for the JTMS suggestion go check out Temur Moon. I think that is what you are looking for.
Interestingly enough, all the decks on the WoTC site are essentially the old deck with Bloodbraid Elf in place of alternate 4 drops like Hazoret, Huntmaster, Chandra. The builds are otherwise very old school (2 Titan, 2-3 Stormbreath Dragon, Monvwuli Acid-moss,
Not a fan of Acid Moss but can understand if someone wants to play it as a 1 of. What these decks are missing is Hazoret though and the list above is missing Chandra. I think everyone in this forum can agree that Chandra is probably the best card in the deck.
Old Ponza focused on ramp into big finishers which Acid Moss was apart of but because BBE can’t cascade into it we still need relevant land destruction targets and Molten Rain is the only other card to consider that is at 3CMC or under.
Well now that it has been spoiled that Blood Moon will be in M25 it is going to drop the cost of the deck down a considerable amount. That along with the new precon deck that has Chandra and Hazoret make it much more affordable. This means more people will become more interested in the deck so the primer may get a flood of questions from newer players. I’m not sure who is in charge of the primer but maybe we should have 2 parts (one being old Ponza and one with BBE) as they are 2 different decks now.
Ancient Grudge is better against the deck we need it the most, Affinity. They can deal with 1 spot removal. They have a tougher time against 2 on the same card. It is also better against Lantern Control. There aren’t really any enchantments we are worried about. Boggles can be somewhat annoying, but if you play Trinisphere and Stone Rain them you should be fine. Trinisphere and Fracturing Gust pretty much wins you the game. Keep in mind they can’t play Daybreak Cornet until turn 3. You can also Beast Within just that Enchantment and be fine as well.
Just for the SnGs I took it to play legacy last night. I went 2-1. Beat Lands, and Burn, lost to Dredge. I honestly didn’t expect to win any I just wanted more reps in with the deck and was pleasantly surprised.
Update is Ponza won against some of it’s worst matchups in Infect and Storm.
Man I am completely wrong and apologize for any confusion.
With the new spoilers out from Dominaria, there is a new card that we will have to fight against in Damping Sphere.
This is a 2 mana artifact that has “If a land is tapped for 2 or more mana, it produces <1 wingding mana> instead of any other type and amount. Each spell a player casts costs <1 colorless> more to cast for each other spell that player has cast this turn.”
Most people aren’t even talking about it being Ponza hate only Storm and Tron currently, but this affects us 2 ways. 1st is Utopia Sprawl lands would only tap for 1 wing ding mana which hamstrings us a ton if we are on the draw. 2nd is it’s interaction with BBE where the cascade spell would cost 1 mana to cast.
The part where this is a even bigger problem is the card is colorless so it can go in anything and will be very ubiquitous due to hating on 2 decks that are pillars of the format. It is only a matter of time before they realize that it works on us too. We have sb hate in Ancient Grudge, so that helps but we may have to board in AG in almost every matchup once the set is released. Just trying to stay ahead of the game and keep y’all up to speed.
Also FYI I will post some data on Monday from my play testing with the updated list.
This is why both Noob King and I advocated removing the BOP and just running the Arbor Elf and Sprawl. Yeah I still hit them on occasion but both are much better to hit than a BOP.
Congrats on the wins with an interesting list! I saw a list got top 16 and was like old Ponza without BBE which I think is hilarious.
Utopia Sprawl is also in the set now as well so it is just Tracker which has seen some increases over the last couple of weeks already.
I run 2 of each.
It really depends on if you are already running Scooze in the main or not. If you aren’t I would say go for it as BBE can cascade into it. Worst case scenario it will cycle itself. Also it is worth noting some Jund lists are running Lilliana the Last Hope which also uses the graveyard.
I used them together just fine (3 Tracker and 2 Hazoret). There really isn’t any nonbo. Think about it, when you use Tracker more times than not you are looking for a finisher but if you already have Hazoret on board there is no need to keep looking for one. Also you can still have 1 card in hand and Hazoret be “online” meaning wait until the end of your opponents turn to crack the clue if you already had a card in hand. Lastly, together they absolutely wreck any deck trying to hide behind Ensnaring Bridge because the extra cards Tracker draws can be pitched by Hazoret to do more damage a turn.
Hazoret is a great finisher much like Stormbreath, but not as great as Stormbreath being pro white and having flying gives it the nod. It is by far the best blocker we have being indestructible.
As for the JTMS suggestion go check out Temur Moon. I think that is what you are looking for.
Yep similar to that of the TCGPlayer as well. https://youtu.be/ODG7O0jw7xE
Not a fan of Acid Moss but can understand if someone wants to play it as a 1 of. What these decks are missing is Hazoret though and the list above is missing Chandra. I think everyone in this forum can agree that Chandra is probably the best card in the deck.
Old Ponza focused on ramp into big finishers which Acid Moss was apart of but because BBE can’t cascade into it we still need relevant land destruction targets and Molten Rain is the only other card to consider that is at 3CMC or under.