In case your wondering, I have lots of slow grind cards in the board because of match ups like Junk and Jund becoming popular. The metagame is shifting to midrange grind battles and I want to be prepared for it. Let me know which (2) of these (3) cards I should run in my sideboard. Jace, Architect of Thought, Sphinx's Revelation, or Keranos, God of Storms. Or, if you have a better midrange grind card in mind, also let me know. I might make room for 3 of these types of cards but I'm not sure yet.
I've played similar lists before. Remand is nice, but I the last time I played a list like this I ended up cutting it down to 2 or 3 - aginst low mana curve decks it just does nothing, and there are a few of those floating around. It's huge against tasigur, but lackluster against lightning bolt. Moreover, you're unlikely to want to hold up remand mana on turns 2-3 when remanding that tasigur is super key.
3 Vapor snag might be overkill. Rug Delver is trying simic charm as a much more flexible alternative. I wonder if you would be benefited by trying that card. Either way, 3 seems like too much for the maindeck.
Misty is better than flooded, so max misty before including a single flooded strand. Manabase could stand to be a bit more greedy, you could try 2-3 of tectonic edge, ghostly quarter or gavony township. Probably trade them for 1 fetch, 1 forest and 1 island.
Having nothing to do turn 1 in this format, where your plan is to race, is recipe for disaster. Some serum visions, gitaxian probe, spell snare or spell pierce could be a reason not to play some birds of paradise to increase your odds of hitting the turn 1 dork (4 is 40%, 6 is ~50% IIRC, 7 ~54%, 8 ~ 58%).
Anyways, there are a few comments to keep that brewing spicy. Cheers!
I really like remand, I think its good everywhere except maybe Burn Affinity Infect.
I'm not sure snap caster has a place here? I don't think I have enough spells, and I rather smash face than hold of snap caster path or something.
I think I will try 2 Vapor Snag 1 Simic Charm, but I think it is important to have that tempo play available because I like riding Geists to victory. My deck is aggressive enough where the bounce spells actually make sense.
I probably will add those lands.
I was thinking about 4 Hierarch 2-3 Birds. But I wasn't sure. I think it'd be worth it.
Also, what about a couple KotR. With Knight I can include those lands as 1 of's, as well as Okina (the green legendary creature land). I was also thinking Brimaz might be an inclusion, doesn't die to bolt, and with exalted or Okina, he can attack through Tasigurs and Goyfs
From what I've learned the past few weeks about modern is, you just want to be the aggressor. The creatures in this format are better than the spells for the most part, and it is easier to play from ahead than behind. Sometimes were on the draw and sometimes we don't have our Path to Exile on time, and in a format full of 2 Mana 4/5s, that's just bad. While lightning bolt is a great magic card right now, I believe Tarmogoyf is simply better. Here is the beginnig idea O had for BANT GEIST! I like where this list is headed, it might be what I play at GP Charlotte, so please suggest changes and gove opinnions.
Just imagine, T1 Noble Hierarch, T2 Geist. T3 Swing 7. Basically we're giving up Bolt and Helix for all of these powerful ground creatures, which justt feels much more proactive to me. The raw power in this deck feels much higher than UWR Geist. Please give me suggestions and comments, as this is just a prototype. I especially need help with the sideboard.
This is what I posted on the UWR Midrange thread. I am thinking about playing this at GP Charlotte so I need help and suggestions from people who have played Bant in Modern before. I actually made this list before seeing any other lists and I think it is a good start that my list was similar to lists already played.
Looks like a nice list. I've never played anything like it so I can't help there but I would recommend Sundering Growth over Disenchant. It is a little more constraining at the mana but it's the same CMC and instant and it can provide value with Geist of Saint Traft and Voice of Resurgence tokens.
Oh forgot all about that card. Thanks, good suggestion. It's cool that I can make a 4/4 Angel that stays.
From what I've learned the past few weeks about modern is, you just want to be the aggressor. The creatures in this format are better than the spells for the most part, and it is easier to play from ahead than behind. Sometimes were on the draw and sometimes we don't have our Path to Exile on time, and in a format full of 2 Mana 4/5s, that's just bad. While lightning bolt is a great magic card right now, I believe Tarmogoyf is simply better. Here is the beginnig idea O had for BANT GEIST! I like where this list is headed, it might be what I play at GP Charlotte, so please suggest changes and gove opinnions.
Just imagine, T1 Noble Hierarch, T2 Geist. T3 Swing 7. Basically we're giving up Bolt and Helix for all of these powerful ground creatures, which justt feels much more proactive to me. The raw power in this deck feels much higher than UWR Geist. Please give me suggestions and comments, as this is just a prototype. I especially need help with the sideboard.
This is what I posted on the UWR Midrange thread. I am thinking about playing this at GP Charlotte so I need help and suggestions from people who have played Bant in Modern before. I actually made this list before seeing any other lists and I think it is a good start that my list was similar to lists already played.
I'm messing around with the sideboard. Is it better to have Fulminator Mage or Molten Rain for this deck? Mainly for Tron but for other matchups as well.
My inclination is that Molten Rain is better, since your generally getting the damage as well as the fact that it can be flashed back with a Snapcaster.
Is Stone Rain legal? We might just want the single red mana cost.
What is the appropriate number of Vendilion Clique, 0, 1, 2, 3, or 4?
Depends on the meta you're bringing UWr to. Based on the New Top Ten Decks in Modern I'd say 0 is the right number for a large tournament. Based on those decks, here's my take on UWr's best 75:
Explanations for choices:
Two damage goes far in the current meta. Grim Lavamancer has 5+ creature targets in every deck and can always go to the face.
Restoration Angel has no creatures that can block it profitably and is only removed by Maelstrom Pulse, Terminate, Path to Exile, and Galvanic Blast. It also blocks very well against most of the decks, and for these reasons, I'm running a full playset.
There are only three copies of Path to Exile in the top 10 decks, all in Abzan. Kolaghan's Command is very popular so I think the best choice for 5 drops is Thundermaw over Stormbreath Dragon or Batterskull.
Some spells, such as Collected Company, are better off being answered permanently, so I'm running a 3:2 split of Remand and Mana Leak. Spell Snare has plenty of targets in every deck so I think it's time to get back on a couple copies of it. Forked Bolt is huge right now, so huge that I'd almost consider a second copy. Turn 1 kill Noble Hierarch, Birds of Paradise, Goblin Guide, Monastery Swiftspear, Glistener Elf, Delver of Secrets, Affinity creatures, and anything Elves, is just amazing. It's relevant later in the game and goes to the face when you can't find a target. Also works great with Snapcaster, something that Electrolyze has more trouble with.
Many decks have under 20 lands, making Tectonic Edge useless. There are enough manlands that I think Ghost Quarter is still necessary, so I'm sticking with 2.
Every sideboard choice is useful against more than one of these top 10 decks, but I'm sure more testing is needed to get a perfect 15.
I think Burst Lightning is better than Forked Bolt. Instant speed is useful against Swiftspear and Goblin Guide. Plus, you can do it for 4 late game if it comes to that, possibly killing tarmogoyfs Loxodon Smiters, Celestial Colonnades, etc. Also, I think Stormbreath Dragon is still better than Thundermaw becaue of the late game option of monstrosity. A lot of matchups end up getting grindy.
I registered just to post my two cents on the black splash.
I've been playing the UWRb control list that did well at SCG Baltimore for a little. But recently I switched to midrange because Geist seems amazing against the most popular decks in my meta which are Twin, Grixis delver, and Burn. GBx is also quite popular and I think the black splash helps there. My build has 2x Tasigur and 4x lingering souls. Tasigur is an insane magic card, and lingering souls is great as a threat and as a defensive card. The meta may be shifting, and the souls might be getting worse as GBx players switch back to jund for the collected company matchup #angerofthegods. As far as other black cards go, creeping tarpit is a good option.
I'm having trouble sideboarding with this strategy. Tonight, I found myself boarding out remands on the draw, but struggling to make further cuts. Obviously there are some matchups where electrolize or other burn spells aren't as good, but what are the other cards are you cutting for silver bullets? In the few matches I played the remands tended to come out even if i was on the play in game three?? (3 out of 5 rounds). Also, when are you guys (if ever) siding out Geist? I've taken him out against GBx. He seems like he gets blocked by goyfs all day. Has anyone tested the Collected company matchup (elves? Zoo? Merflok?). Any idea how that we can board for that?
Right now I have a 3/2 split on Mana Leak/Remand respectivly. Mana Leak is a card I like more right now because of must counters like Co-Co, Twin, etc. Mana Leak is still even good where Remand was best - GB decks. Remand was one of our best cards in Abzan and Jund matchups, but Mana Leak still does a good job, so we aren't hurting too bad. Remand is poor against decks like: Affinity, Burn, Infect, and it even isn't too great vs. Zoo. I think Mana Leak is currently the counter spell we want to play the most. At least for now. That being said, a couple Remands are still good to have, we just don't really want 4 because they come out in so many matchups, and aren't very good at playing from behind.
I registered just to post my two cents on the black splash.
I've been playing the UWRb control list that did well at SCG Baltimore for a little. But recently I switched to midrange because Geist seems amazing against the most popular decks in my meta which are Twin, Grixis delver, and Burn. GBx is also quite popular and I think the black splash helps there. My build has 2x Tasigur and 4x lingering souls. Tasigur is an insane magic card, and lingering souls is great as a threat and as a defensive card. The meta may be shifting, and the souls might be getting worse as GBx players switch back to jund for the collected company matchup #angerofthegods. As far as other black cards go, creeping tarpit is a good option.
I'm having trouble sideboarding with this strategy. Tonight, I found myself boarding out remands on the draw, but struggling to make further cuts. Obviously there are some matchups where electrolize or other burn spells aren't as good, but what are the other cards are you cutting for silver bullets? In the few matches I played the remands tended to come out even if i was on the play in game three?? (3 out of 5 rounds). Also, when are you guys (if ever) siding out Geist? I've taken him out against GBx. He seems like he gets blocked by goyfs all day. Has anyone tested the Collected company matchup (elves? Zoo? Merflok?). Any idea how that we can board for that?
Right now I have a 3/2 split on Remand/Mana Leak. Mana Leak is a card I like more right now because of must counters like Co-Co, Twin, etc. Mana Leak is still even good where Remand was best - GB decks. Remand was one of our best cards in Abzan and Jund matchups, but Mana Leak still does a good job, so we aren't hurting too bad. Remand is poor against decks like: Affinity, Burn, Infect, and it even isn't too great vs. Zoo. I think Mana Leak is currently the counter spell we want to play the most. At least for now. That being said, a couple Remands are still good to have, we just don't really want 4 because they come out in so many matchups, and aren't very good at playing from behind.
I'm having trouble sideboarding with this strategy. Tonight, I found myself boarding out remands on the draw, but struggling to make further cuts. Obviously there are some matchups where electrolize or other burn spells aren't as good, but what are the other cards are you cutting for silver bullets? In the few matches I played the remands tended to come out even if i was on the play in game three?? (3 out of 5 rounds). Also, when are you guys (if ever) siding out Geist? I've taken him out against GBx. He seems like he gets blocked by goyfs all day. Has anyone tested the Collected company matchup (elves? Zoo? Merflok?). Any idea how that we can board for that?
There is the Team Geist sideboard guide which is not yet complete but has a description of the cuts for almost every matchup , so I think we can start from there and make small adjustments for the black splash.
I haven't tested the CoCo matchup (though probably going to face it tommorrow) but I don't think it's bad , we have a lot of cheap removal and counters. Anger is pretty good against the elves and the anafenza version but not very useful vs. zoo and merfolk , I think Verdict might be a consideration if you are worried about the bigger decks.
In my experience with elves, taking out geist, bringing in Engineered Explosives and some Supreme Verdicts is a good strategy. The game plan is to kill everything they play and clean up with Angels Cliques and Colonnades. With the black splash we get Tasigur who can actually block the big dumb green guys. Lingering Souls is good at blocking. If we play a tight game, saving our counters for their Chords and Co-Cos, have enough removal, and just don't do anything too stupid, the matchup seems favorable to me.
Going into a 4th color also makes us more vulnerable to Blood Moon.
This is true, but who is playing Blood Moon right now? Just Twin I believe. We are already bringing in enchantment hate against them, and our matchup is pretty good vs Twin, AND they only have 2-3 Blood Moons.
4 Celestial Colonnade
2 Hallowed Fountain
1 Steam Vents
1 Sacred Foundry
4 Scalding Tarn
4 Flooded Strand
2 Island
1 Plains
1 Mountain
2 Ghost Quarter
1 Tectonic Edge
2 Sulfer Falls
4 Geist of Saint Traft
4 Snapcaster Mage
1 Vendilion Clique
1 Brimaz, King of Oreskos
2 Grim Lavamancer
3 Restoration Angel
Spells
4 Lightning Bolt
4 Lightning Helix
4 Path to Exile
4 Remand
2 Electrolyze
2 Spell Snare
2 Spellskite
1 Engineered Explosives
1 Wrath of God
1 Negate
2 Counterflux
1 Dispel
1 Jace, Architect of Thought
1 Sphinx's Revelation
2 Kor Firewalker
1 Supreme Verdict
2 Wear / Tear
In case your wondering, I have lots of slow grind cards in the board because of match ups like Junk and Jund becoming popular. The metagame is shifting to midrange grind battles and I want to be prepared for it. Let me know which (2) of these (3) cards I should run in my sideboard. Jace, Architect of Thought, Sphinx's Revelation, or Keranos, God of Storms. Or, if you have a better midrange grind card in mind, also let me know. I might make room for 3 of these types of cards but I'm not sure yet.
Referring to the list I posted a couple posts back. Its on this same page.
I really like remand, I think its good everywhere except maybe Burn Affinity Infect.
I'm not sure snap caster has a place here? I don't think I have enough spells, and I rather smash face than hold of snap caster path or something.
I think I will try 2 Vapor Snag 1 Simic Charm, but I think it is important to have that tempo play available because I like riding Geists to victory. My deck is aggressive enough where the bounce spells actually make sense.
I probably will add those lands.
I was thinking about 4 Hierarch 2-3 Birds. But I wasn't sure. I think it'd be worth it.
Also, what about a couple KotR. With Knight I can include those lands as 1 of's, as well as Okina (the green legendary creature land). I was also thinking Brimaz might be an inclusion, doesn't die to bolt, and with exalted or Okina, he can attack through Tasigurs and Goyfs
Oh forgot all about that card. Thanks, good suggestion. It's cool that I can make a 4/4 Angel that stays.
2 Raging Wildwood
2 Celestial Colonnade
4 Windswept Heath
3 Misty Rainforest
2 Flooded Strand
2 Temple Garden
1 Breeding Pool
1 Hallowed Fountain
3 Forest
1 Plains
2 Island
4 Noble Hierarch
4 Tarmogoyf
3 Voice of Resurgence
2 Scavenging Ooze
4 Geist of Saint Traft
4 Loxodon Smiter
3 Restoration Angel
Spells
4 Path to Exile
4 Remand
3 Vapor Snag
1 Dromoka's Command
1 Elspeth, Knight Errant
2 Negate
2 Dispel
2 Kor firewalker
1 Jace, Architect of Thought
2 Disenchant
2 Creeping Corrosion
2 Valorous Stance
2 Rhox War Monk
Just imagine, T1 Noble Hierarch, T2 Geist. T3 Swing 7. Basically we're giving up Bolt and Helix for all of these powerful ground creatures, which justt feels much more proactive to me. The raw power in this deck feels much higher than UWR Geist. Please give me suggestions and comments, as this is just a prototype. I especially need help with the sideboard.
This is what I posted on the UWR Midrange thread. I am thinking about playing this at GP Charlotte so I need help and suggestions from people who have played Bant in Modern before. I actually made this list before seeing any other lists and I think it is a good start that my list was similar to lists already played.
Is Stone Rain legal? We might just want the single red mana cost.
Sometimes you gotta do what you gotta do. Maybe 3 Remands 2 Mana Leaks? I don't know.
Right now I have a 3/2 split on Mana Leak/Remand respectivly. Mana Leak is a card I like more right now because of must counters like Co-Co, Twin, etc. Mana Leak is still even good where Remand was best - GB decks. Remand was one of our best cards in Abzan and Jund matchups, but Mana Leak still does a good job, so we aren't hurting too bad. Remand is poor against decks like: Affinity, Burn, Infect, and it even isn't too great vs. Zoo. I think Mana Leak is currently the counter spell we want to play the most. At least for now. That being said, a couple Remands are still good to have, we just don't really want 4 because they come out in so many matchups, and aren't very good at playing from behind.
Right now I have a 3/2 split on Remand/Mana Leak. Mana Leak is a card I like more right now because of must counters like Co-Co, Twin, etc. Mana Leak is still even good where Remand was best - GB decks. Remand was one of our best cards in Abzan and Jund matchups, but Mana Leak still does a good job, so we aren't hurting too bad. Remand is poor against decks like: Affinity, Burn, Infect, and it even isn't too great vs. Zoo. I think Mana Leak is currently the counter spell we want to play the most. At least for now. That being said, a couple Remands are still good to have, we just don't really want 4 because they come out in so many matchups, and aren't very good at playing from behind.
In my experience with elves, taking out geist, bringing in Engineered Explosives and some Supreme Verdicts is a good strategy. The game plan is to kill everything they play and clean up with Angels Cliques and Colonnades. With the black splash we get Tasigur who can actually block the big dumb green guys. Lingering Souls is good at blocking. If we play a tight game, saving our counters for their Chords and Co-Cos, have enough removal, and just don't do anything too stupid, the matchup seems favorable to me.
This is true, but who is playing Blood Moon right now? Just Twin I believe. We are already bringing in enchantment hate against them, and our matchup is pretty good vs Twin, AND they only have 2-3 Blood Moons.