I played a 4 Round modern event last night, went 2-1-1. Wins against RUG Twin and AdN/Unlife combo. Loss vs Merfolk. Tied vs Mono Blue Tron. Here's a basic, not very in-depth report:
Round 1: Lost to Merfolk 0-2. Game 1 he won the draw, and went Mutavault -> Aether Vial. He out advantaged me and I didn't see enough removal for lords. Game 2 I misplayed, and got blown out by a Vialed in Phantasmal Image copying my flipped Delver, then things went downhill from there.
Round 2: Beat AdN 2-1. Game 1 I won the draw and Probed him, seeing the combo. I kept blue open for SPierce and Mana Leaks the rest of the game. Flipped delver got me there. Game 2 he started the game with Leyline, and went first opening with 2 Lotus Bloom. I had him at 2 when I wasn't able to stop him from going off, and had 3 Lightning Bolts in hand. Game 3 he started with Leyline again, but Delver -> Goyf -> Blood Moon backed up with counters got me there.
Round 3: Tied 1-1 against Mono Blue Tron. He got mana screwed, assisted by my SPierce. Got there easy. Game 2 I was able to keep him off Tron, but he stalled to a point where he was able to drop Wurmcoil and I had issues with it. He finally got me after a long, *****ty game. Game 3 I Boomed his Tower. Game went to time very quickly because of the long game 2. He started Turn 1. I Blood Mooned. Had Delver and Goyf, he would've been dead had I drawn a bolt, Snapcaster, or had 1 more turn.
Round 4: Beat RUG Twin 2-0. He had no idea what I was playing, and unfortunately I knew what he was on. Game 1 I hid blue mana and blue spells from him for a bit. Dropped Mountain, Bolted his Goyf, Played a fetch into Stomping Ground for my own Goyf. He thought I was playing a bad Zoo or Gruul hand. Dropped Exarch end of my Turn 3 and went for the Twin on his turn 4, with no counter backup. I cracked Misty for a Steam Vents and he just started laughing and shaking his head. I Mana Leaked his Twin and got there. Game 2 was a little different, but blind flipped Delver and Goyf turn 2 was pretty solid. He eventually went for the combo, I had 3 mana left and went to Leak his Twin. He Remanded my Leak, thinking he had it, but then I won the counter war with SPierce on his Remand.
Hello everyone. I just started playing Modern about 2 Months ago, a week before our GPT:Rich. I started with Merfolk because I had all the cards from Legacy (didn't like having almost 0 interaction with opponents) and then moved to Big Zoo (most of the time I felt like I'd have rather been Little/1Drop Zoo). I play Patriot and RUG Delver in Legacy, and it seemed like a pretty solid choice for Modern as well.
Chaam, I'm going to be playing a list almost identical to yours and was hoping you'd be interested in writing up a sideboard strategy vs some of the more prominent decks?
Mainly, the 2 best Modern players in my area are a RG Tron and a Melira Pod. If possible, I'd also be interested in how you sideboard in others such as Big Zoo, Affinity, Twin variants (RUG is most common I've seen here), UWR Control, Storm, Hexproof, and Hatebears. I have pretty solid ideas on how, but you seem to be the most prevalent pilot of this deck here so I'd much appreciate the expertise.
In the main, I'm in general not a huge fan of Sleight of Hand so I run one more Probe and an extra Island. I also use 3 Snapcaster/1 Grim Lavamancer because Lavamancer is pretty great, and I only own 3 Snapcasters ha.
In the side, I'm a huge fan of the Boom targetting whatever and my fetch, retaining priority and cracking the fetch in response tech. I also wanted to fit a Blood Moon in somewhere (over negate I decided), and struggled with not using Huryl's Recall with blue against affinity. Also went with a split Tormod's Crypt/Relic, then an extra Firespout over Forked Bolt (might be a mistake).
While we already know about USea and Volcanics, Tropical is up about $17 on TCGplayer and Bayou up about $8. Tropical Island seems like the next dual to really jump in price and gain solid value.
While we already know about USea and Volcanics, Tropical is up about $17 on TCGplayer and Bayou up about $8. Tropical Island seems like the next dual to really jump in price and gain solid value.
Wow, how did I not even realize this was a thing. Sucks coming back to magic after not playing for 3-4 years. My first event was two weeks before the Born of the Gods prerelease. Bleh, thanks guys!
I recently purchased some cards off of a TCGPlayer vendor I believe to be fake. None of them are high value cards, but all share the same attributes that concern me.
The cards I purchased were:
2 Soldier of the Pantheon
4 Fabled Hero
4 Dryad Militant
3 Imposing Sovereign
3 Detention Sphere.
I had several of those cards already that I had opened in a pack and placed directly into a sleeve myself.
The attributes bothering me:
1. All of the cards are very glossy. They feel like the cards you get out of boxed sets that sometimes feel much different than those cracked in packs.
2. They are all uncentered, with the left border being smaller (wasn't sure how to phrase this, but all the art is set to the left basically)
3. The ink looks off. On the back, the 4 red/orange dots, the Magic, and Deckmaster are all different. On the front, coloring seems closer but the mana symbols have much more black ink. Also look at the paintbrush at the bottom left.
Linked are 600dpi scans of a Soldier of the Pantheon comparison to show the issues. My scanner isn't the best, but you should be able to notice. My pack version on left, card I'm concerned about on the right.
As a Legacy player that hasn't played in a while looking at trying to break into Modern, I'm not seeing how 4 Jund in the top 8 being healthy? Maybe it's because I haven't played in a while but half of the top 8 being essentially the same deck seems not great.
Let me first state that I love M:tG, and I've played off and on since Ice Age. Recently, I've started lurking on different forums, checking out tournament lists, etc. That said, I've been getting a weird feeling about starting to play again. This whole card speculation/Kelly Reid army group of people messing with card prices is one issue I've seen. Granted, some spikes are warranted, but some feel very artificial such as Birthing Pod being available for less than $20/set a week ago. Even trying to trade with people at card shops gives a weird vibe from people, like they're used car salesmen with bad personalities.
Another thing is this huge Chinese counterfeit situation. It shouldn't come as a surprise, and we've known about fakes for a long time, but it's such a shocker to see them printed on such a large scale. I get the feeling that eternal formats stand to be damaged the most due to the reserved list, and limitations of Wizards and international law. For example, look at Games Workshop and the frequency of their legal situations, and they haven't been able to stop Chinese fake miniatures that have been produced for years.
Like I said, everything this time around just feels off. Anyone else getting this? I think for now I'll stick to limited formats, and play EDH/Legacy with the cards I already have.
Got mine today. Heh, would've preferred 2 Cryptic Commands again instead but this looks pretty nice. Also came with full art Brave the Elements, Sign in Blood, Doom Blade, and yet another Volcanic Fallout.
Causal 1v1 is a bit different than casual multiplayer. In casual 1v1, sure someone playing a competitive, expensive tournament deck will be pretty lame, probably win, and not be very casual. However, in casual multiplayer even top tier 1v1 decks get crushed simply because of group politics. If a player in in your casual group is messing around with top tier decks for fun casual, he'll probably attract plenty of attention and get an around the table beat down.
One more point, certain decks just aren't meant for more than one opponent. If someone plays channel/fireball or AnT, they're probably going to kill maybe one person they don't like so much at your table. After that? they're done for.
Well, many casual players make large amounts of decks to play around a kitchen table with their friends. I have all my casual decks in that plastic case. My legacy and type 2 decks go into an ultra pro case. Generally when I go to a tourney i'll take a deck of each type with me, and put sleeves, dice, counters, etc in the extra pockets.
I had the same issue with storing and carrying all my casual decks. I did, however, find a pretty nifty container at Michaels. The cropper hopper blue photo case - 2000. It's technically a photo/scrapbooking case, but that doesn't matter. It is double sided, although one side is not very deep at all. I use it to store token cards. It was $30, but 40% off Michaels coupons are super easy to get ahold of (sign up for email coupons). You can order one off their website at www.cropperhopper.com My only issue with it is the handle is plastic, too, and it broke. Fortunately, making a new handle won't be hard.
Round 1: Lost to Merfolk 0-2. Game 1 he won the draw, and went Mutavault -> Aether Vial. He out advantaged me and I didn't see enough removal for lords. Game 2 I misplayed, and got blown out by a Vialed in Phantasmal Image copying my flipped Delver, then things went downhill from there.
Round 2: Beat AdN 2-1. Game 1 I won the draw and Probed him, seeing the combo. I kept blue open for SPierce and Mana Leaks the rest of the game. Flipped delver got me there. Game 2 he started the game with Leyline, and went first opening with 2 Lotus Bloom. I had him at 2 when I wasn't able to stop him from going off, and had 3 Lightning Bolts in hand. Game 3 he started with Leyline again, but Delver -> Goyf -> Blood Moon backed up with counters got me there.
Round 3: Tied 1-1 against Mono Blue Tron. He got mana screwed, assisted by my SPierce. Got there easy. Game 2 I was able to keep him off Tron, but he stalled to a point where he was able to drop Wurmcoil and I had issues with it. He finally got me after a long, *****ty game. Game 3 I Boomed his Tower. Game went to time very quickly because of the long game 2. He started Turn 1. I Blood Mooned. Had Delver and Goyf, he would've been dead had I drawn a bolt, Snapcaster, or had 1 more turn.
Round 4: Beat RUG Twin 2-0. He had no idea what I was playing, and unfortunately I knew what he was on. Game 1 I hid blue mana and blue spells from him for a bit. Dropped Mountain, Bolted his Goyf, Played a fetch into Stomping Ground for my own Goyf. He thought I was playing a bad Zoo or Gruul hand. Dropped Exarch end of my Turn 3 and went for the Twin on his turn 4, with no counter backup. I cracked Misty for a Steam Vents and he just started laughing and shaking his head. I Mana Leaked his Twin and got there. Game 2 was a little different, but blind flipped Delver and Goyf turn 2 was pretty solid. He eventually went for the combo, I had 3 mana left and went to Leak his Twin. He Remanded my Leak, thinking he had it, but then I won the counter war with SPierce on his Remand.
Ran this list:
[cards]
4 Delver of Secrets
3 Snapcaster Mage
4 Tarmogoyf
2 Vendilion Clique
1 Grim Lavamancer
Sorceries (11)
[cards]
4 Serum Visions
2 Gitaxian Probe
2 Sleight of Hand
2 Pillar of Flame
1 Forked Bolt
[cards]
4 Lightning Bolt
2 Vapor Snag
3 Spell Snare
2 Spell Pierce
3 Mana Leak
2 Remand
Lands (19)
[cards]
4 Misty Rainforest
4 Scalding Tarn
2 Steam Vents
2 Breeding Pool
1 Stomping Ground
4 Island
1 Forest
1 Mountain
[cards]
1 Pillar of Flame
1 Spell Pierce
2 Tormod's Crypt
1 Negate
1 Engineered Explosives
1 Flame Slash
2 Ancient Grudge
2 Firespout
1 Blood Moon
2 Combust
2 Boom // Bust
Chaam, I'm going to be playing a list almost identical to yours and was hoping you'd be interested in writing up a sideboard strategy vs some of the more prominent decks?
Mainly, the 2 best Modern players in my area are a RG Tron and a Melira Pod. If possible, I'd also be interested in how you sideboard in others such as Big Zoo, Affinity, Twin variants (RUG is most common I've seen here), UWR Control, Storm, Hexproof, and Hatebears. I have pretty solid ideas on how, but you seem to be the most prevalent pilot of this deck here so I'd much appreciate the expertise.
Here is my deck for reference:
[cards]
4 Delver of Secrets
3 Snapcaster Mage
4 Tarmogoyf
2 Vendilion Clique
1 Grim Lavamancer
Sorceries (10)
[cards]
4 Serum Visions
3 Gitaxian Probe
2 Pillar of Flame
1 Forked Bolt
[cards]
4 Lightning Bolt
2 Vapor Snag
3 Spell Snare
2 Spell Pierce
3 Mana Leak
2 Remand
Lands (20)
[cards]
4 Misty Rainforest
4 Scalding Tarn
2 Steam Vents
2 Breeding Pool
1 Stomping Ground
5 Island
1 Forest
1 Mountain
[cards]
1 Pillar of Flame
1 Spell Pierce
1 Tormod's Crypt
1 Relic of Progenitus
1 Engineered Explosives
1 Flame Slash
2 Ancient Grudge
2 Firespout
1 Blood Moon
2 Combust
2 Boom // Bust
In the main, I'm in general not a huge fan of Sleight of Hand so I run one more Probe and an extra Island. I also use 3 Snapcaster/1 Grim Lavamancer because Lavamancer is pretty great, and I only own 3 Snapcasters ha.
In the side, I'm a huge fan of the Boom targetting whatever and my fetch, retaining priority and cracking the fetch in response tech. I also wanted to fit a Blood Moon in somewhere (over negate I decided), and struggled with not using Huryl's Recall with blue against affinity. Also went with a split Tormod's Crypt/Relic, then an extra Firespout over Forked Bolt (might be a mistake).
Let me know what you think!
EDIT actually like 2 weeks ago, if that.
The cards I purchased were:
2 Soldier of the Pantheon
4 Fabled Hero
4 Dryad Militant
3 Imposing Sovereign
3 Detention Sphere.
I had several of those cards already that I had opened in a pack and placed directly into a sleeve myself.
The attributes bothering me:
1. All of the cards are very glossy. They feel like the cards you get out of boxed sets that sometimes feel much different than those cracked in packs.
2. They are all uncentered, with the left border being smaller (wasn't sure how to phrase this, but all the art is set to the left basically)
3. The ink looks off. On the back, the 4 red/orange dots, the Magic, and Deckmaster are all different. On the front, coloring seems closer but the mana symbols have much more black ink. Also look at the paintbrush at the bottom left.
Linked are 600dpi scans of a Soldier of the Pantheon comparison to show the issues. My scanner isn't the best, but you should be able to notice. My pack version on left, card I'm concerned about on the right.
Front
https://drive.google.com/file/d/0Bwv0GJp_PFSgd29PSmZuSDhpZHc/edit?usp=sharing
Back
https://drive.google.com/file/d/0Bwv0GJp_PFSgXzNPYVo1RjNIZ0E/edit?usp=sharing
Another thing is this huge Chinese counterfeit situation. It shouldn't come as a surprise, and we've known about fakes for a long time, but it's such a shocker to see them printed on such a large scale. I get the feeling that eternal formats stand to be damaged the most due to the reserved list, and limitations of Wizards and international law. For example, look at Games Workshop and the frequency of their legal situations, and they haven't been able to stop Chinese fake miniatures that have been produced for years.
Like I said, everything this time around just feels off. Anyone else getting this? I think for now I'll stick to limited formats, and play EDH/Legacy with the cards I already have.
One more point, certain decks just aren't meant for more than one opponent. If someone plays channel/fireball or AnT, they're probably going to kill maybe one person they don't like so much at your table. After that? they're done for.
Anyways, here are some pictures: