I P1P1 Matter Reshaper, picked up the Red lands on spec. I crushed it in my first 2 games, and got stone cold mana screwed in each of my next 4 games. Magic! (Match 2 after 2 quick losses we played 3 more, I won the first 2, and was behind in a 3rd).
The ironic thing was that in my first 3 games I played the colorless cards! (Cutting Swamp/Forest/Vines and I think Flayer Drone). But it was clear that I didn't need them and wanted more consistency. I would have cut the red altogether but I refused to play Harvester Troll (or Leopard) and while the T. Baloth is fine, I did NOT need another 5. I guess I maybe it's just better than Kozilek's Translator given that I don't want colorless.
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"Everything looks good when your opponent passes 4 turns in a row" -- rstnme "Something that does not look good when your opponent does nothing is not a thing" -- me
I'm not really sure that playing matter reshaper is a good idea, card seems so underwelming in limited,at least on paper, I agree changing the manabase for it is wrong. The deck does look pretty good.
Flayer Drone looks like it should be replaced by something. Probably Baloth, since there seem to be no other options. Maybe Reshaper, mostly as a support target, but that makes your mana worse instead of better. So yes, Baloth.
BTW, I heard something about GW support doing good at the pro tour. Did you play against one of those?
Flayer Drone was clearly the last card given 4 red sources. But eh.
I crushed UR prowess, I lost to BW (although beat him games 3-4) and lost to UG on a mull to 5 and because I kept a no forest hand and drew only green spells.
The BW games were the most interesting, against the best player (who managed to come in 3rd despite being cut from black and white). He had like 4 Vampire Envoys and He drained someone for 18 with Defiant Bloodlord and Blighted Steppe. Also Pathway arrows on a vampire envoy is annoying.
I think support WG, GR or even RW is fine, but you have to run 6-7 2-drops. Most of the cards are support 2 at cmc 4, you can't take T2 off. That's why you can play red, Zada's Commando wears support very well, plus the surge menace guy is great with 2 drops. You need either Relief Captians or Saddleback Legacs. I guess the sorcery card is OK too? But I'd rather chain Legacs.
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"Everything looks good when your opponent passes 4 turns in a row" -- rstnme "Something that does not look good when your opponent does nothing is not a thing" -- me
I originally built the deck as BG cutting the Colorless altogether. But I only had 13 creatures I wanted to play. I counted my mana I realized I could squeeze in matter reshaper and warden. But I think this was incorrect because the red splash (although meh) was basically free with the 3 duals and evolving wilds.
I would have literally played any green or black 3 drop creature over Flayer (well, maybe not Voracious Null... but maybe)
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"Everything looks good when your opponent passes 4 turns in a row" -- rstnme "Something that does not look good when your opponent does nothing is not a thing" -- me
Man it's probably just weird variance but I am noticing an abnormal number of "non games" in this format.
This deck above had 4/6 non-magic games and I had another UR deck (9-8-1 mana base) that me or my opponent had mana or curve issues in 5/7 games (7/7 if you count "mull to 5" as an issue). The 3 games I played where someone mull'd to 5 were the BETTER games.
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"Everything looks good when your opponent passes 4 turns in a row" -- rstnme "Something that does not look good when your opponent does nothing is not a thing" -- me
"Everything looks good when your opponent passes 4 turns in a row" -- rstnme "Something that does not look good when your opponent does nothing is not a thing" -- me
1 x Spawning Bed 8 x Forest 8 x Plains SB: 1 Sparkmage's Gambit SB: 2 Akoum Flameseeker SB: 2 Kozilek's Pathfinder SB: 1 Chitinous Cloak SB: 1 Warden of Geometries SB: 1 Boulder Salvo SB: 1 Maw of Kozilek SB: 1 Kazuul's Toll Collector SB: 1 Natural State SB: 1 Forest SB: 1 Plains SB: 1 Holdout Settlement SB: 2 Vestige of Emrakul SB: 1 Skyrider Elf SB: 1 Reclaiming Vines SB: 1 Searing Light SB: 1 Kor Scythemaster
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"Everything looks good when your opponent passes 4 turns in a row" -- rstnme "Something that does not look good when your opponent does nothing is not a thing" -- me
After the first two packs, I was almost mono black, with only two playable red cards, Devour and Immobilizer. So when pack three offered up some very good blue cards, I tried to switch. And then ... pick five Vile Aggregate; pick ten Forerunner of Slaughter; pick 15 Sure Strike.
The deck I played has a few issues too. First, Bane of Bala Ged, while a great finisher, is just too expensive. Other than that, my curve tops at five. I should have played either Tar Snare, Witness the End, Mire's Malice, or even Goblin War Paint over it, depending on matchup. I always boarded out the Bane. Maybe go to 16 lands, play two of those. And speaking of lands, I had a single land capable of producing colorless mana! Never mind that it was a bomb, this deck would function a whole level better with, say, three colorless lands. There were two Walker of the Wastes in sideboard, for example. And both Drone and Shrieker get a lot better with (threat of) activation.
Matches
Nothing much to say there. There usually isn't, with an aggro build. I rolled somebody whose curve started at three (I seem to remember attacking for five on turn three, and then for seven on four, with no blocks.), had a close win against UG, and a very close loss against GW (they were at one life in the decider when they topdecked the winning removal spell). The most interesting was probably a race against a turn four Embodiment of Fury, which I enchanted with Visions of Brutality. He got the land trigger four turns in a row, but not much in the way of blockers, so I was able to race.
Conclusion
Board stall? What board stall. Just smash them clerics
Fired my first OGW draft at FNM on Friday. First pack had a Deceiver of Form, which was by no means great so I searched the rest of the pack for a competent P1P1, and found no such card, so I took the Deceiver, expecting it to be exactly what it turned out to be: an 8/8 for 7 that gave me an effective "Scry 1" before each of my attack phases (including the turn it was played).
Picks 2 thru 5 included Kozilek's Pathfinder and 3 colorless mana producers - I hadn't committed to a color yet but knew I'd be playing some big creatures and require colorless, so I was sucking up colorless lands and ramp. Eventually a pack couldn't help me on that front so I took a decent green card (can't even remember which one now) and I was set to play green-colorless ramp. Then a green-useless pack comes and I take a Maw of Kozilek, thinking I may do red-green-colorless. Next pack is a Relentless Hunter and I figure, why not? Deck fills out with more ramp (Stalking Drone, Hedron Crawler, a second Seer's Lantern...
In the second pack, Hedron Alignment in the rare slot, nah - I take a second Relentless Hunter. Shortly after get passed a Sylvan Advocate and Reality Hemorrhage and Boulder Salvo and Timber Gorge, and my deck is coming together. I take some more colorless mana production too (By the end of pack 2 I have 3 Seer's Lanterns, Crumbling Vestige, Holdout Settlement, Wastes, Unknown Shores, Warden of Geometries...)
Wound up piloting the deck to an undefeated 2-0-1, though my final opponent (who I drew) was ahead of me on tiebreak so he claimed the #1 place. I opened the final match with a triple mulligan (one land, zero land, zero land, followed by keeping the 4-card one-lander)... and it took 30 minutes to play out but I won that game! My opponent didn't mull his 2-land hand and didn't see his third til about five turns in, while I actually drew the land I needed.
This is less of an aggro deck, a bit more midrange, but it definitely can deliver the beats, and it wants to end games quickly. A lot of the power is in the five-mana slot, but the curve is very solid overall. And the green burn spell was an all-star. It fits the deck, removes blockers, enables surge, and flashing it back with Dwellers was usually game.
Pack 1 pick 3: Kozilek's Pathfinder Spawnbinder Mage Goblin Freerunner Witness the End Canopy Gorger Kozilek's Translator Ancient Crab Expedite Searing Light Make a Stand --> Relentless Hunter Zendikar Resurgent Island
--: Scion Summoner
--: Reckless Bushwhacker
Pack 1 pick 4: Scion Summoner Wastes Pulse of Murasa Zulaport Chainmage Consuming Sinkhole Searing Light Negate Maw of Kozilek --> Reckless Bushwhacker Harvester Troll Call the Gatewatch Forest
--: Saddleback Lagac
--: Saddleback Lagac
Pack 1 pick 5: Kor Sky Climber Wastes Vines of the Recluse Zulaport Chainmage --> Saddleback Lagac Sparkmage's Gambit Shoulder to Shoulder Slip Through Space Meandering River Bonds of Mortality Swamp
Pack 3 pick 3: Seek the Wilds Oracle of Dust Scour from Existence --> Tajuru Beastmaster Wave-Wing Elemental Silent Skimmer Rush of Ice Belligerent Whiptail Angelic Gift Roil's Retribution Void Attendant Jaddi Offshoot Island
Pack one went Goblin Dark-Dwellers, Boulder Salvo, Relentless Hunter, Reckless Bushwhacker, Elemental Uprising, ... . Full draft file is in the spoiler. Not a very hard seat to draft this time, pretty easy picks, with great payoff in the landfall beaters in pack three. Deck building was quite easy too, the only real dilemma being Baloth over Hulk. In the end, Hulk power level is so much greater I decided to go with the seven drop.
Deck in action I was hoping to look at some replays, but I got disconnected and only round three is available. So, from memory:
Match one, game one, on the draw.
Opponent: Island, go. Me: Forest, go O2: Mountain, go. M2: Forest, Gnarlid, go. O3: Wastes, go. M3: Forest, attack them to 17, Predator, go. O4: Island, go. M4: Well, he's got all his colors, four mana available, full grip of cards; either he's going to counter something, or kill something. But hey, that's life. Forest, Saddleback, attack for 9. They go to 9. Go.
After that shock (I mean, talk about goldfishing!) I can't really remember how the game ended, but I guess it could have been a turn five Elemental Uprising to kill a blocker and drop them to one. There was a game like that, and it probably was this one.
In general, I was the agresor, and the deck was made to punish opponents who had to tap out to deploy blockers. There were two games where I was unable to deal enough damage early and I lost, but mostly it worked. With good draws, and a bit of luck, I managed to win the draft. Sideboarding was Baloth and Sparkmage's Gambit, for Pulse of Murasa and Hulk, not necessarily both or in that order. Pulse is a great card, for a bit slower deck. Also, I never drew it, so it might have been great, since Saddlebacks usually die.
Conclusion
Board stall? What board stall. Hulk smash Or Gnarlid, really.
Snapping Gnarlid was great, as was the Valakut Predator. I expected a bit more from Nissa's Judgement, and it's solid, but not quite bomb level. Press into Service, on the other hand, wins games out of nowhere. And Elemental Uprising is first-pickable. I know it has a lot of surprise value right now, but then, what are you going to do? Not play a blocker, and take damage from landfall beaters? Or play that 3/3, and have it die to an animated land? I guess the answer is, take damage early and keep back a lot of blockers, and I'm sure there is a BW deck that can do just that, but there's a lot of competition for that one right now.
The deck I played has a few issues too. First, Bane of Bala Ged, while a great finisher, is just too expensive.
Yeah, I hate the 7 drop in your deck! Tar Snare is really good! Especially when someone will try to haplessly block you.
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"Everything looks good when your opponent passes 4 turns in a row" -- rstnme "Something that does not look good when your opponent does nothing is not a thing" -- me
And Elemental Uprising is first-pickable. I know it has a lot of surprise value right now, but then, what are you going to do? Not play a blocker, and take damage from landfall beaters?
Interesting, because that card I don't like. I guess a 2 mana lava axe is still something? Aside from that, I like both Scion Summoner (very good with Legac) and Tajuru Beastmaster over Birthing Hulk @ 7. I would maybe cut Pulse of Murasa, which is probably only good in a race.
As for board stalls --- this format seems very bimodal. You can bring the beats (both your decks) but there are some good stalling cards as well, especially if your starting hand does't have a 2 drop (you are only running 4).
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"Everything looks good when your opponent passes 4 turns in a row" -- rstnme "Something that does not look good when your opponent does nothing is not a thing" -- me
Interesting, because that card I don't like. I guess a 2 mana lava axe is still something?
The one I ran on Friday was anything but a 2-mana Lava Axe. It was creature removal. In early game (t3 or t4) it forces the creature they just played (that they thought was big enough to keep your earlier smaller drops at bay) to block when it doesn't want to, while your other creatures hit unopposed. Late in the game it still forces a blocker, so when you play it in something like a 2-fatties-vs-2-fatties stalemate it forces one of their fatties to block your hasty land while one of your fatties now goes unblocked for the win.
It was a real all-star for me, taking down T3 Kozilek's Shriekers and Kor Sky Climbers and Vampire Envoys and the like by forcing them to block the turn after they land - acting as a makeshift Cradle to Grave (in that it generaly takes down their most-recently-played creature because it's their only untapped creature and thus must block). I'm not quite so sure it's first-pickable, but it's a solid early-mid-pack at least and should be a lock to make the 23.
Just to clarify, I don't have any GOOD reason for disliking the card... in fact, I am probably just wrong. I just find the thing kind of baroque and tricky to play.
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"Everything looks good when your opponent passes 4 turns in a row" -- rstnme "Something that does not look good when your opponent does nothing is not a thing" -- me
It's a good card in aggro, where it acts as removal. Mark described that perfectly. The only thing I would add is that in the early game, they are also likely to be tapped out from playing the blocker, so it's very low-risk play. It could be a surprise blocker, but that is riskier. Not that risky, since at worst you will trade a card and a land for their trick, but less reliable. And at worst, it's a 4/4 with haste for two mana. That can win races.
Joined: Sep 23, 2013 Posts: 5218 Location: California
After about 30 drafts, my conclusion is to draft aggro. The support cards are just too good. I think Saddleback Lagac is possibly the best common in the set.
In a completely different story, I tried to force a 5-color deck by taking all the uncommons and rare duallands and somehow ended up drafting mono-blue.
After about 30 drafts, my conclusion is to draft aggro. The support cards are just too good. I think Saddleback Lagac is possibly the best common in the set.
I think this is pretty close to correct. I actually think the format is reasonably balanced. Support is very good but there are so few bears that there is alot of competition. It's not Origins.
It's probably the best common CREATURE in the set. RBC aggro is also pretty solid with zero support cards. It's also true that white (and to some extent black) are highly overdrafted so once you rule THAT out it's pretty clear that you want to be playing some form of aggro/green support.
I took a P2P3 Stalking Drone over Birthing Hulk yesterday.
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"Everything looks good when your opponent passes 4 turns in a row" -- rstnme "Something that does not look good when your opponent does nothing is not a thing" -- me
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