Was looking through MTGgoldfish's meta game page and ran across this take on living end that I haven't seen before. Wanted to get some thoughts on it. It's sort of a weird Living End hybrid with Goblin Charbelcher as a backup win-con. I had all the pieces for it so I have been goldfishing it and I was really surprised at how consistent it could be. You have to mulligan pretty hard some hands but all in all it works well. As much as I love Goblin Charbelcher I wasn't sure it should be in the deck but it really works well! Anywho, thought I would share!
The deck does great when it can get turn two or three land destruction going but if not it's pretty hard to catch up. The biggest issue I had was draws.
Tweaks to make:
- Adding in 3-4x Oath of Nissa, aka the green ponder.
- Kitchen Finks didn't do anything for me really. Going to replace with Courser of Kruphix. Seems better as I can get lands off the top and gain a little life along the way.
- Not sure what to cut but I really want to make space for 2x Crumble to dust. Four mana on turn two or three is pretty common. This can take out a greedy mana base even faster. Might cut one of the Mwonvuli Acid-Moss but it really helped to have the extra ramp in some games.
- Acidic Slime is another option I'm thinking of trying.
For sideboard I don't really have a plan yet, still learning the local meta.
What are your thoughts on Dread Defiler? It's a 7 mana Eldrazi that can fling for 5-10 damage if you have a big Eldrazi in the graveyard.
I suppose Endbringer is better to untap with but I hear people want more 7 mana eldrazis.
Not thinking Dread Defiler will be that good as Relic hits our graveyard too and 4 mana is high. Endbringer though I think is amazing with eldrazi temple in play. Temple makes 2 colorless for any Eldrazi abilities aka, Tap temple and endbringer, draw a card. Just my two cents!
You are right, I didn't even think about the tron match-up and ghost quarter. Not too many in my meta play tron i guess, or at least I haven't had to play them yet.
I actually run 2x surgical extraction and it works great against anyone with a bunch of counter spells or that relies on lots of cantrips (a lot of my meta is RWU). Thinking of maybe going up to 3-4 of surgical extraction as it can hit non-basic lands that we can eat later with oblivion sower. Plus tapping out to play something, having them tap out to remand it or counter it and then paying 2 life to surgical extraction their remand or cryptic command is just so good. I cut an expedition map and a mind stone to fit them in. I like mind stone for the little bit of ramp it offers and the the ability to draw a card after you have taken some of your opponents lands. I personally like the expedition maps as I only run two of eye of ugin it helps with the consistency especially if you haven't hit your eye yet and have mana to spare. I have also been playing around with the addition of 2x tomb of the spirit dragon for life gain. I cut 2x ghost quarter for the 2x tomb of the spirit dragon. I was running 4 for some reason and they just didn't feel like they were working great for me. Actually, I'm thinking tectonic edge would be better than ghost quarter in this deck. Thoughts?
It has been a want of mine for a while to make a causal crate of decks for playing with inexperienced friends and to use as teaching tools for friends looking to learn the game. I would always dabble with what decks to put in and such but never really put much effort into getting this project off the ground. Well I feel it is time now. I have my modern decks where I want them and as much as I would like to play more I just don’t have the time to be at many FMN or modern events. I have a few buddies that want to learn but my modern decks are not very good teaching tools.
I saw a recent post in /r/pauper of someone’s pauper Battle Box and I think that’s the best way to go. (My bank account will be happy… sorta… haha). This said I have a hard time gauging if decks are in the same power level and if they will be good teaching tools. I think the teaching part of this is a big focus for me.
My idea is this. I want to make 25-27 decks representing all the combos of the MTG color pie. I would exclude 4-color combinations and I’m still not sure of including a 5-color deck or a totally colorless deck, but I can always decide that as I get into the project.
For each deck it will focus on that color or color combos main attributes. So far my list is this:
-Jund (GRB): Graveyard / Sacrifice / Direct Damage
-Naya (RGW): Zoo / Pump Spells
-Abzan (GWB): Endurance / Outlast?
-Jeski (RUW): Fast / Protection / Counters
-Sulti (BUG): Tricky / Delve / Graveyard as a Resource
-Mardu (BWR): Fast / Combat Tricks
-Temur (GUR): Big Creatures / Ramp / Direct Damage
Undecided
-Domain (GUWBR): Not Sure
-Colorless: Not Sure
I’m not very well versed in what all Bant, Esper, Grixis, Jund, and Naya want to do so help here is much appreciated.
If you have any deck lists I would love to look at them. Even if their not pauper I would be interested in looking and see how I could tweak them to be pauper.
Random Thoughts
- Has anyone else tried something like this? Is this a good way to approach it?
- I’m not sure I want to go true pauper. Might build them as such initially and then add uncommons as I tweak things. Would this just get too complicated or could it work?
Thanks for taking the time to look read this and offer advise. If this gets some good traction (and even if not) I will be trying to update my progress as I go.
So after looking at all the comments and ways to splash I was leaning towards the blue camp but I think the red camp is just a bit more in touch with what we are trying to do. That said I was playing around with the idea of going heavy on land destruction. BR has so many options, boom//bust, Molten Rain, crumble to dust, stone rain, sowing salt, and there are a few options in black, Rain of Tears, Fulminator Mage(BR). Could even add a one of Sundering Titan but then we start to look like bad tron I guess. Anyways, just a thought since we can exile and reuse the lands we destroy.
As previously mentioned, I think the splash is pretty much meta dependent. I'm really looking forward to the new set to round out the options for this deck. Kozilek's return seems like it would definitely push this deck into BR territory. Honestly, I'm having a lot of fun with the mono black version of this deck. Going heavy on the black I was thinking of giving heartless summoning a shot. Also as sideboard would dash hopes be of any use? Maybe I just like the idea of a sorta-counter in black. Loving all the ideas on this deck type, hope it sticks around!
I just built and played the mono black version of this deck. Love it and no one expects the when cast triggers. I do think it needs a splash of something. Personally, I'm leaning blue for delay for the fact you can counter a spell and potentially fully counter it if you process it. It does work like that correct not sure if the time counters matter?
My other thought, which might just be wishful thinking, is to add in 1-3 of archive trap. With all the greedy fetch land mana bases and the ability of ghost quarter to force a search it seems very likely you could usually cast it for 0. With all our graveyard hate it would be pretty easy to exile those cards then their 13 cards down and we have 13 cards of fuel to process or steal lands from. Sure it might get countered but then their wasting a counter on our 0 costed spell.
4 Chancellor of the Tangle
4 Deadshot Minotaur
3 Igneous Pouncer
4 Pale Recluse
4 Monstrous Carabid
4 Simian Spirit Guide
1 Twisted Abomination
4 Valley Rannet
4 Street Wraith
Spells (18)
3 Living End
4 Demonic Dread
3 Goblin Charbelcher
4 Search for Tomorrow
4 Violent Outburst
1 Blood Crypt
1 Forest
2 Mountain
1 Overgrown Tomb
4 Stomping Ground
1 Swamp
2 Faerie Macabre
3 Fulminator Mage
1 Goblin Charbelcher
3 Ingot Chewer
1 Krosan Grip
1 Ricochet Trap
3 Shriekmaw
Here's the link!
4 Arbor Elf
2 Birds of Paradise
4 Goblin Dark-Dwellers
3 Inferno Titan
2 Kitchen Finks
Spells (23)
2 Beast Within
3 Bonfire of the Damned
2 Boom // Bust
2 Chandra, the Firebrand
4 Molten Rain
2 Mwonvuli Acid-Moss
4 Stone Rain
4 Utopia Sprawl
1 Bloodstained Mire
8 Forest
3 Mountain
2 Stomping Ground
4 Windswept Heath
4 Wooded Foothills
The deck does great when it can get turn two or three land destruction going but if not it's pretty hard to catch up. The biggest issue I had was draws.
Tweaks to make:
- Adding in 3-4x Oath of Nissa, aka the green ponder.
- Kitchen Finks didn't do anything for me really. Going to replace with Courser of Kruphix. Seems better as I can get lands off the top and gain a little life along the way.
- Not sure what to cut but I really want to make space for 2x Crumble to dust. Four mana on turn two or three is pretty common. This can take out a greedy mana base even faster. Might cut one of the Mwonvuli Acid-Moss but it really helped to have the extra ramp in some games.
- Acidic Slime is another option I'm thinking of trying.
For sideboard I don't really have a plan yet, still learning the local meta.
Any feedback is appreciated!
2 Ranger of Eos
3 Mentor of the Meek
3 Soul Warden
4 Ajani's Pridemate
2 Abzan Falconer
3 Norin the Wary
4 Soul's Attendant
1 Legion Loyalist
4 Champion of the Parish
3 Impact Tremors
1 Assemble the Legion
4 Genesis Chamber
3 Promise of Bunrei
1 Manabarbs
Lands (22)
2 Sacred Foundry
3 Mountain
4 Clifftop Retreat
4 Battlefield Forge
9 Plains
The odd thing I'm trying, Promise of Bunrei is in there just for fun as it triggers Impact Tremors and Soul wardens. Really though, I feel the Promise of Bunrei spots as well as the spots for Manabarbs and Assemble the Legion are flex spots. I'm curious the amount of removal I need if the main plan is to kill them with Impact Tremors. I have seen things from path to exile and lightning bolt to Deflecting palm and Boros Charm All in all super fun to play, going to test it Tuesday at modern night.
Not thinking Dread Defiler will be that good as Relic hits our graveyard too and 4 mana is high. Endbringer though I think is amazing with eldrazi temple in play. Temple makes 2 colorless for any Eldrazi abilities aka, Tap temple and endbringer, draw a card. Just my two cents!
I saw a recent post in /r/pauper of someone’s pauper Battle Box and I think that’s the best way to go. (My bank account will be happy… sorta… haha). This said I have a hard time gauging if decks are in the same power level and if they will be good teaching tools. I think the teaching part of this is a big focus for me.
My idea is this. I want to make 25-27 decks representing all the combos of the MTG color pie. I would exclude 4-color combinations and I’m still not sure of including a 5-color deck or a totally colorless deck, but I can always decide that as I get into the project.
For each deck it will focus on that color or color combos main attributes. So far my list is this:
Mono Color
-Blue (U): Tap-Untap / Counters
-Black (B): Discard / Removal
-Red (R): Burn / Fast
-Green (G): Ramp / Stompy
-White (W): Tokens / Protection
Guilds
-Azorius (WB): Control / Defense
-Dimir (UB): Sneaky / Tricks
-Rakdos (BR): Fast / Direct Damage
-Gruul (GR): Burn / Stompy / Bloodrush?
-Selensya (GW): Tokens / Populate / Ramp
-Simic (UG): Evolve? / Counters / Flying
-Orzhov (WB): Control / Buff-Debuff
-Izzet (UR): Explosive / Tricks
-Golgori (GB): Graveyard / Sacrifice / Delve? – Dredge?
-Boros (RW): Protection / Strong Creatures / Battalion?
Clans
-Bant (GWU): Creature based Control /
-Esper (WUB): Spell based Control /
-Grixis (BUR): Resource Denial /
-Jund (GRB): Graveyard / Sacrifice / Direct Damage
-Naya (RGW): Zoo / Pump Spells
-Abzan (GWB): Endurance / Outlast?
-Jeski (RUW): Fast / Protection / Counters
-Sulti (BUG): Tricky / Delve / Graveyard as a Resource
-Mardu (BWR): Fast / Combat Tricks
-Temur (GUR): Big Creatures / Ramp / Direct Damage
Undecided
-Domain (GUWBR): Not Sure
-Colorless: Not Sure
I’m not very well versed in what all Bant, Esper, Grixis, Jund, and Naya want to do so help here is much appreciated.
If you have any deck lists I would love to look at them. Even if their not pauper I would be interested in looking and see how I could tweak them to be pauper.
Random Thoughts
- Has anyone else tried something like this? Is this a good way to approach it?
- I’m not sure I want to go true pauper. Might build them as such initially and then add uncommons as I tweak things. Would this just get too complicated or could it work?
Thanks for taking the time to look read this and offer advise. If this gets some good traction (and even if not) I will be trying to update my progress as I go.
All the best!
My other thought, which might just be wishful thinking, is to add in 1-3 of archive trap. With all the greedy fetch land mana bases and the ability of ghost quarter to force a search it seems very likely you could usually cast it for 0. With all our graveyard hate it would be pretty easy to exile those cards then their 13 cards down and we have 13 cards of fuel to process or steal lands from. Sure it might get countered but then their wasting a counter on our 0 costed spell.
Would love input on this. Thanks!