1. Introduction
Slivers are the hive. They have a unique ability of hitting the ground and creating strength in numbers. Each sliver is a lord in that it adds abilities and power to all others on the board. With the printing of several new cards, namely the last few printings of slivers and Collected Company, slivers have hit a big power spike. Although typically reserved as the bane of kitchen tables... with these recent power spikes the hive has emerged onto the competitive scene with flexibility not available to other decks. There is no wrong way to build slivers.
Why play Slivers?
Slivers are a fluid deck. They can be tailored to any modern meta to put up a fight. They can play out quick and overwhelm, out-value the opponent with the value of each creature, or play silver bullets that can thwart many various decks. The flexibility of slivers can't be matched.
2. Card Choices LANDS
Good includes
Sliver Hive - For many of the decks that run 4+ color lists, this is an auto 4-of include.
Mutavault - Great in any tribal aggro list. Gets some great boosts and plays a very similar role that it plays in Merfolk.
Cavern of Souls - Great in a list where majority of cards you have are creature based. Not as great if you include many spells.
City of Brass - Probably not the best land, but if you choose to stretch to include a few more colors, this could do the job.
Gemstone Mine - The deck doesn't combo out, after 3 taps you'll be down a land so if you're stretching for colors this is an option, but more of a last include.
Ancient Ziggurat - With lists moving towards including several utility spells, this could be a dead card more often than you would want. If you are running an on flavour purely creature build, this could be an include.
Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth - Some lists may run this for sedge and black support. Can aid with casting some spells off of Mutavault or Sliver Hive.
Darkheart Sliver - Sacrifice: Gain 3 life Ghostflame Sliver - All slivers are colorless Necrotic Sliver - 3 & Sacrifice: Destroy target permanent Harmonic Sliver - When ETB, destroy target artifact or enchantment. Firewake Sliver - Haste, 1 & Sacrifice: Target sliver gets +2/+2 until EoT Frenetic Sliver - 0: Flip a coin. If you win the flip exile this permanent until EoT. If you lose, sacrifice. Opaline Sliver - When this becomes a target of a spell or ability an opponent controls, draw a card. Sliver Legion - +1/+1 for each other sliver on the battlefield. Sliver Hivelord - Slivers you control gain indestructible.
SUPPORT CARDS
Phantasmal Image - Clone another lord or stack another ability for 1 Mirror Entity - Boost the base of your slivers for an alpha strike or big defend. SpellSkite - The catch all for anti-Twin, anti-spot removal.
Collected Company - A huge power spike as it can get 3 creatures at instant speed to secure a win or for pure value. Hive Stirrings - Dumps a few basic 1/1 slivers onto the battlefield. Could have merit in some lists. Path to Exile - Premier Modern-format removal spell Lightning Bolt - Great removal for those pesky early game critters, finishes off that last bit of damage you're needing. Lightning Helix - Removal/Direct Damage. With the greedy manabase these decks might run, the lifegain could be helpful! Boros Charm - Little extra reach as well as protection from board wipes. Abrupt Decay - Versatile spot removal.
Descendant's Path - Better in an all-out aggro plan. It could have a place.
Aether Vial - I would say an auto include in EVERY sliver list that is seeking to be competitive. Adaptive Automaton - Another basic +1/+1 lord. Great in the blitz list. Coat of Arms - Quite the bomb when it hits the battlefield, but it helps opponents tribal as well. Sliver Legion is a better option. Door of Destinies - Potentially a little slow for what you want, but it helps boost all your slivers. Grafdigger's Cage - Anti tutor and graveyard based sideboard card.
Domri Rade - Great in Gruul aggro lists in general, BANT (probably the best option for Modern slivers) would support him just fine. Sarkhan Vol - Go for an alpha strike, or finish the game with his -2 taking their necessary blocker.
Yes, that would need to be included! The reason I hadn't listed it in my list is because I think that Slivers would perform better as a tempo deck and Descendant's Path really only shines when you have more expensive creatures in your tribal deck (I feel). Added (:
Private Mod Note
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Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Current Decks:
Modern
Modern Warp / UR Control / UR Storm / Naya Breachshift / ElectroBalance
Legacy
Solidarity / Lands / Sneak and Show / Grixis Delver / Reanimator / Belcher / Storm / Dredge
Tempo could work, but slivers work best in combinations, path possibly gives you a free sliver per turn, making their abilities stack like crazy.
Plus the new slivers coming seem to be rather costly...
Its like they're scared that Slivers are going to take control of Modern or Standard if they were to print old school powerhouses like those in Tempest. I personally don't see them becoming potent meta-changers, but I think it could make for a fun deck to switch to every now and then when you play FNM at your LGS.
Private Mod Note
():
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Current Decks:
Modern
Modern Warp / UR Control / UR Storm / Naya Breachshift / ElectroBalance
Legacy
Solidarity / Lands / Sneak and Show / Grixis Delver / Reanimator / Belcher / Storm / Dredge
Not sure if it's an essential or even core card, but I'd personally want to include mirror entity in a sliver list, as an aggressive finisher once you reach a critical mass of supped up creatures.
Just realized I don't have a blue source to cast Shadow Sliver which is part of the reason I didn't want to run Sliver Legion. I will make some adjustments and fit the fore mentioned cards in somewhere.
Some lands
Some card draw
tons of removal
your sideboard is more slivers (there's one that destroys target artifact or enchantment when etb, spinneret sliver, etc)
This is only 3c because I really don't think right now B and U have enough to offer except for sliver legion but that could very well be enough by itself. This will be far slower than modern zoo or affinity but could be a decent midrangey deck. Pulmonic Sliver could be decently bomby but I don't like the idea of having bomby slivers. Keep the mana cost low keep the cards coming (what modern card draw does wrg have?) and be able to deal with opponents threats and this could be a fringey rogue deck at best probably.
I think Boros charm will help because we want a critical mass and it protects from sweepers. We'll probably need utility cards like burn and path in a naya build. I hope they have a functional reprint of winged sliver.
I browsed through a list of all the modern slivers looking for other possible sliver synergies, and it really looks like a naya zoo style list is going to be the most effective.
However, we do have another contender, if the right support cards can be assembled: a RUG Opposition style list using -
It seems to me that the best way to play slivers is as a kind of 'merfolk' strategy, where we can stick a few lords (especially with aether vial) and protect them with countermagic or other disruption. One of the things that slivers gives over something like merfolk in modern is much more versatility in terms of the lords that get played as well as the potential for more reach against removal-heavy decks. For example, here is the list I'm going to start tinkering with:
Of note in this build is very few four-ofs, since drawing multiples of most slivers is pretty underwhelming. Also, this deck wants to be able to hold up mana to protect our slivers from removal, so I think aether vial is a must, and thirst for knowledge makes huge gains in mitigating how awful it is to draw multiple vials, as well as being instant-speed draw so we can hold up countermagic or other disruption. I'm not running many (any) mutavaults or caverns because of the fairly tricky non-creature color requirements, though the mana base isn't tuned at all, so I could definitely see adding in those lands at some point, and probably going up to 21-22 lands. There's no green in this build because the extra color is really tough to support, especially in terms of it's gameplan, and green really only gives access to predatory sliver, harmonic sliver, and lead the stampede, which I also think could be absurd in a deck like this, much in the same way that goblin ringleader is really good in legacy goblins.
I would almost certainly not cut blue for green though, because opaline sliver is a major deterrent against targeted removal. I could even see adding the fourth one because this is an ability that does stack with multiple copies, unlike the keyword ones.
I browsed through a list of all the modern slivers looking for other possible sliver synergies, and it really looks like a naya zoo style list is going to be the most effective.
However, we do have another contender, if the right support cards can be assembled: a RUG Opposition style list using -
I can only underline Darksequence's post.
As much as i love Slivers, as long as they don't get anything playable, low costed besides pumping, they seem too much of a casual tribe to me.
They need hexproof / shroud to not be fragile at least.
I have tried some combinations so far this is what my thoughts on modern slivers is:
Two-Headed Sliver is a perfect compensation for the missing Winged Sliver. BUT he forces you to go into red.
Having 8 Pump Slivers in modern now, too,is really nice.
Sliver Legion i really love, and in Modern i think going for the full mana circle should be easy to achieve. The question here is if anyone would want to play Gemhide Slivers, which, quite frankly, are very slow. Gotta sort out, if you are going 4 Color "anyways", then you could take the leap to going into 5ccLegion.
I much much rather would go for Mirror Entity. The synergy of having your slivers raising to 3/3 or 4/4 and then getting all the bonuses (lets just say +2/+2 (having sinew and the new muscle) and cant be blocked by only 1 (Two-Headed) is a real statement regarding your opponents life points.
But then again, let's sort out a realistic game modern slivers might be playing:
T1 - Vial (?)
T2 - switch Vial to 1, play a pump sliver
T3 - switch Vial to 2 and put in Two-Headed Sliver some time, play Mirror Entity
T4 - Vial in another PumpSliver, Pump all slivers to 4/4, then get the bonuses to be 6/6 and attack with 3 6/6 that can only be blocked by 2 or more creatures. Not tooo shabby
Well, that's not really overwhelming neither. In this scenario, Slivers act as a mid-range Aggro.
If we look at jund - it will destroy this.
If we look at NayaZoo / GruulBlitz - it might not be a one-sided game, but still they play the aggro way faster and harder. Take a turn to destroy some threat of theirs and you are at Turn 4 for attacking with 3 6/6s -> That is not enough considering that this was a goldfish scenario (not the best maybe, but a realistic one)
Also i dislike how you cannot curve with slivers. The pumpers cost 2, Entity 3, and well... i dont see anything else so far. There is a serious lack for a good cmc1 sliver. Maybe vial somewhat fixes this, but Vial is slow...
So trying to make Slivers go most likely midrange seems to be determined, though i don't like it.
Interesting enough, we have that new token generator - Hive Stirrings. It gives you 2 1/1 Bodies that say hi to your other part of the swarm and leech on their givings.
Badly enough, there is only this one token generator, and at cmc3 it is not really the best deal (on a sidenote: Why did WotC not make this cost only 2? Make it cost {gw} and its perfectly fine). Looking at other cmc3 token generators (Lingering Souls / Spectral Procession) and keeping in mind how easy it is to pump tokens in general (hi Elspeth and alikes) i dont really see where this would be of any good to be played.
That new double Strike sliver might be interesting, but then again having a cmc4 2/2 Double Striker makes me reconsider the fact, that slivers are WAY too dependant to swarm the board.
Phantasmal Image should be an auto-include, maybe as a 3-off.
Maybe you would also like to include the new cmc1 First Strike Sliver (Striking Sliver), just to have something to vial in / be played for 1 and to be able to have more swarming capacities.
This makes up for 41 Slots beeing filled so far, keeping in mind that most likely another 10 to 14 lands will be needed, leaving a total of just 5 to 9 slots open in this sketch that feels like a natural list one would come up with.
As you can see, i have already like half a deck, but the real question is: what else would one play and is what is in this list really efficient? Also note, that we are at 4 colors allready, but i think that's just the way slivers would have to go in modern.
What really bothers me, and this is indicated by the many 3-offs, is that most slivers you just don't want to draw in multiples. It's not like naya drawing another Goyf or KotR or Blitz having another Rancor or whatever... you get the point (please dont hang on the examples, add in whatever suits you, the idea is that multiples of the same card seem to be worse in Slivers than in any random aggro deck).
So most likely, the direction that seems obvious is: protecting your own stuff while playing a bit control'ish - somewhat like in AK47/CounterSlivers has been done in legacy in ye' olde times. Here we kinda lack low costed good counters and library manipulation. No force, no brainstorm, no crystalline.
Crystalline Sliver, hands down, is what made Slivers competitive back then. I doubt anyone could argue with this. In modern we don't have that either.
It nullified most removal and made sure that your slivers would only die if you had no answer in form of some counter to a maybe showing massremoval.
So maybe slivers should be embedded into something else.
I don't really see a fast and hard aggro, since there is no real good 1 drop (did i miss some?).
In general, i dislike the sac-slivers (Necrotic and Cautery) because when would you want to sac a lord?
So maybe we could go more into a "bigger" direction and try to get mana via Gemhide Slivers and include Sliver Legion? I don't know, as i already let blink through, if this is not too much of a casual attempt.
Think about whether you can really make slivers happen in modern or you are just trying really hard (which i am also doing at this point). I would be stoked unleashing the swarm, but then again i think we just have to hope for something over the top to be spoiled to have a justified cause (besides the fun factor) to try this out at the next small local tournament.
isn't gemhide sliver kinda needed in a 5c sliver deck. Seems more reliable than Vial when your cmc's are spread out like this. Also, is there some kind of cloudstone curio shenanigan that you could integrate in the deck? I can't stand Slivers personally, but those were the thoughts that came to me.
Last updated 10/16/15
Contents
1. Introduction
2. Card Choices
3. Tournament Results
4. Articles
1. Introduction
Slivers are the hive. They have a unique ability of hitting the ground and creating strength in numbers. Each sliver is a lord in that it adds abilities and power to all others on the board. With the printing of several new cards, namely the last few printings of slivers and Collected Company, slivers have hit a big power spike. Although typically reserved as the bane of kitchen tables... with these recent power spikes the hive has emerged onto the competitive scene with flexibility not available to other decks. There is no wrong way to build slivers.
Why play Slivers?
Slivers are a fluid deck. They can be tailored to any modern meta to put up a fight. They can play out quick and overwhelm, out-value the opponent with the value of each creature, or play silver bullets that can thwart many various decks. The flexibility of slivers can't be matched.
2. Card Choices
LANDS
Good includes
Fetch Lands: (Fetch lands are a fantastic include if you end up running 3+ colors in your deck.)
Scalding Tarn
Arid Mesa
Marsh Flats
Verdant Catacombs
Misty Rainforest
Flooded Strand
Polluted Delta
Bloodstained Mire
Wooded Foothills
Windswept Heath
Shock Lands: (Shock lands are a fantastic include if you end up running 3+ colors in your deck, but would be decent at 2 as well)
Hallowed Fountain
Sacred Foundry
Watery Grave
Overgrown Tomb
Stomping Ground
Steam Vents
Godless Shrine
Blood Crypt
Temple Garden
Breeding Pool
Check Lands: (These are a decent include if you're running 2-3 colors. Anymore than that, and they may be simple gates in your hand. The one note I will add in here is that if you run Sedge Sliver, you may not want to include check lands)
Glacial Fortress
Drowned Catacomb
Dragonskull Summit
Rootbound Crag
Sunpetal Grove
Clifftop Retreat
Isolated Chapel
Woodland Cemetery
Hinterland Harbor
Sulfur Falls
Scars Lands: (Decent in a more budget build, but I would personally go for fetches if you're running enough to warrant including them)
Seachrome Coast
Darkslick Shores
Blackcleave Cliffs
Copperline Gorge
Razorverge Thicket
Other options
SLIVERS
Sidewinder Sliver - Flanking
Sinew Sliver - +1/+1
Sentinel Sliver - Vigilance
Essence Sliver - Lifelink
Bonescythe Sliver - Double-Strike
Virulent Sliver - Virulent 1
Predatory Sliver - +1/+1
Gemhide Sliver - Tap: Add any color mana
Manaweft Sliver - Tap: Add any color mana
Venom Sliver - Deathtouch
Striking Sliver - First Strike
Two-Headed Sliver - Slivers gain menace.
Sedge Sliver - +1/+1 as long as you control a swamp & B: Regenerate
Homing Sliver - Slivercyling 3
Blur Sliver - Haste
Thorncaster Sliver - Whenever this creature attacks, it deals 1 damage to target creature/player.
Galerider Sliver - Flying
Diffusion Slivers - If a sliver becomes the target of a spell or ability, counter that unless the controller pays 2.
Shadow Sliver - Slivers gain shadow
Telekinetic Sliver - Tap: Tap target permanent
Leeching Sliver - Whenever a sliver attacks, defending player loses 1 life.
Syphon Sliver - Lifelink
Darkheart Sliver - Sacrifice: Gain 3 life
Ghostflame Sliver - All slivers are colorless
Necrotic Sliver - 3 & Sacrifice: Destroy target permanent
Harmonic Sliver - When ETB, destroy target artifact or enchantment.
Firewake Sliver - Haste, 1 & Sacrifice: Target sliver gets +2/+2 until EoT
Frenetic Sliver - 0: Flip a coin. If you win the flip exile this permanent until EoT. If you lose, sacrifice.
Opaline Sliver - When this becomes a target of a spell or ability an opponent controls, draw a card.
Sliver Legion - +1/+1 for each other sliver on the battlefield.
Sliver Hivelord - Slivers you control gain indestructible.
SUPPORT CARDS
Phantasmal Image - Clone another lord or stack another ability for 1
Mirror Entity - Boost the base of your slivers for an alpha strike or big defend.
SpellSkite - The catch all for anti-Twin, anti-spot removal.
Collected Company - A huge power spike as it can get 3 creatures at instant speed to secure a win or for pure value.
Hive Stirrings - Dumps a few basic 1/1 slivers onto the battlefield. Could have merit in some lists.
Path to Exile - Premier Modern-format removal spell
Lightning Bolt - Great removal for those pesky early game critters, finishes off that last bit of damage you're needing.
Lightning Helix - Removal/Direct Damage. With the greedy manabase these decks might run, the lifegain could be helpful!
Boros Charm - Little extra reach as well as protection from board wipes.
Abrupt Decay - Versatile spot removal.
Descendant's Path - Better in an all-out aggro plan. It could have a place.
Aether Vial - I would say an auto include in EVERY sliver list that is seeking to be competitive.
Adaptive Automaton - Another basic +1/+1 lord. Great in the blitz list.
Coat of Arms - Quite the bomb when it hits the battlefield, but it helps opponents tribal as well. Sliver Legion is a better option.
Door of Destinies - Potentially a little slow for what you want, but it helps boost all your slivers.
Grafdigger's Cage - Anti tutor and graveyard based sideboard card.
Domri Rade - Great in Gruul aggro lists in general, BANT (probably the best option for Modern slivers) would support him just fine.
Sarkhan Vol - Go for an alpha strike, or finish the game with his -2 taking their necessary blocker.
3. Tournament Placings
1 Blood Crypt
1 Forest
1 Godless Shrine
1 Overgrown Tomb
1 Swamp
4 Cavern of Souls
4 Mutavault
4 Sliver Hive
4 Verdant Catacombs
Creatures (31)
1 Darkheart Sliver
1 Frenetic Sliver
1 Harmonic Sliver
1 Homing Sliver
3 Manaweft Sliver
4 Galerider Sliver
4 Necrotic Sliver
4 Predatory Sliver
4 Sedge Sliver
4 Sinew Sliver
4 Virulent Sliver
4 Aether Vial
2 Beast Within
2 Dismember
4 Leyline of Vitality
4 Leyline of the Void
2 Sundering Vitae
1 Harmonic Sliver
1 Darkheart Sliver
1 Frenetic Sliver
1 Homing Sliver
1 Rolling Spoil
1 Blood Crypt
1 Forest
1 Godless Shrine
1 Overgrown Tomb
1 Swamp
4 Cavern of Souls
4 Mutavault
4 Sliver Hive
4 Verdant Catacombs
Creatures (35)
1 Darkheart Sliver
1 Frenetic Sliver
1 Harmonic Sliver
4 Galerider Sliver
4 Homing Sliver
4 Manaweft Sliver
4 Necrotic Sliver
4 Predatory Sliver
4 Sedge Sliver
4 Sinew Sliver
4 Virulent Sliver
4 Aether Vial
1 Darkheart Sliver
1 Frenetic Sliver
1 Ghostflame Sliver
1 Harmonic Sliver
4 Leyline of the Void
4 Leyline of Vitality
1 Quilled Sliver
1 Sliver Hivelord
1 Venom Sliver
1 Forest
1 Marsh Flats
1 Overgrown Tomb
1 Plains
1 Swamp
1 Verdant Catacombs
4 Cavern of Souls
4 Mutavault
4 Reflecting Pool
4 Sliver Hive
Creatures (32)
1 Bonesplitter Sliver
1 Darkheart Sliver
1 Essence Sliver
1 Frenetic Sliver
1 Mirror Entity
1 Necrotic Sliver
1 Sedge Sliver
1 Sentinel Sliver
1 Sliver Hivelord
1 Sliver Legion
1 Syphon Sliver
1 Venom Sliver
2 Diffusion Sliver
3 Homing Sliver
3 Manaweft Sliver
4 Galerider Sliver
4 Predatory Sliver
4 Sinew Sliver
2 Collected Company
4 Aether Vial
2 Chalice of the Void
2 Spellskite
1 Harmonic Sliver
2 Choke
2 Leyline of Sanctity
2 Stony Silence
1 Worship
2 Devour Flesh
1 Slaughter Pact
1 City of Brass
1 Godless Shrine
1 Overgrown Tomb
2 Mana Confluence
2 Swamp
3 Bloodstained Mire
3 Reflecting Pool
4 Cavern of Souls
4 Sliver Hive
Creatures (33)
1 Sliver Legion
2 Necrotic Sliver
2 Sentinel Sliver
4 Galerider Sliver
4 Leeching Sliver
4 Manaweft Sliver
4 Predatory Sliver
4 Sedge Sliver
4 Sinew Sliver
4 Striking Sliver
2 Collected Company
4 Aether Vial
2 Rest in Peace
2 Venom Sliver
2 Syphon Sliver
3 Torpor Orb
3 Harmonic Sliver
3 Diffusion Sliver
1 Godless Shrine
1 Overgrown Tomb
1 Temple Garden
2 Reflecting Pool
2 Swamp
3 Mana Confluence
3 Verdant Catacombs
4 Cavern of Souls
4 Sliver Hive
Creatures (30)
1 Darkheart Sliver
1 Frenetic Sliver
1 Mirror Entity
1 Sliver Legion
2 Homing Sliver
3 Leeching Sliver
3 Manaweft Sliver
3 Necrotic Sliver
3 Sedge Sliver
4 Galerider Sliver
4 Predatory Sliver
4 Sinew Sliver
1 Beast Within
2 Abrupt Decay
2 Collected Company
4 Aether Vial
4 Leyline of the Void
3 Harmonic Sliver
2 Diffusion Sliver
2 Venom Sliver
2 Syphon Sliver
2 Path to Exile
1 Breeding Pool
1 Forest
1 Temple Garden
3 Sliver Hive
4 Cavern of Souls
4 Mutavault
4 Overgrown Tomb
4 Windswept Heath
Creatures (28)
2 Darkheart Sliver
3 Diffusion Sliver
3 Necrotic Sliver
4 Galerider Sliver
4 Manaweft Sliver
4 Predatory Sliver
4 Sedge Sliver
4 Sinew Sliver
4 Aether Vial
3 Collected Company
3 Path to Exile
3 Swan Song
2 Harmonic Sliver
4 Fulminator Mage
2 Rest in Peace
3 Thoughtseize
1 Darkheart Sliver
1 Blood Crypt
1 Breeding Pool
1 Forest
1 Wooded Foothills
2 Overgrown Tomb
2 Windswept Heath
4 Cavern of Souls
4 Mutavault
4 Sliver Hive
Creatures (30)
1 Darkheart Sliver
1 Syphon Sliver
2 Blur Sliver
2 Necrotic Sliver
2 Sentinel Sliver
3 Diffusion Sliver
3 Sedge Sliver
4 Galerider Sliver
4 Manaweft Sliver
4 Predatory Sliver
4 Sinew Sliver
2 Abrupt Decay
4 Collected Company
4 Aether Vial
2 Bonescythe Sliver
1 Darkheart Sliver
3 Harmonic Sliver
1 Shadow Sliver
2 Syphon Sliver
2 Telekinetic Sliver
2 Abrupt Decay
2 Sliver Hivelord
1 Blood Crypt
1 Breeding Pool
1 Forest
1 Swamp
1 Temple Garden
2 Overgrown Tomb
3 Cavern of Souls
3 Verdant Catacombs
4 Mutavault
4 Sliver Hive
Creatures (31)
1 Darkheart Sliver
1 Harmonic Sliver
1 Syphon Sliver
2 Blur Sliver
2 Necrotic Sliver
2 Sentinel Sliver
3 Diffusion Sliver
3 Sedge Sliver
4 Galerider Sliver
4 Manaweft Sliver
4 Predatory Sliver
4 Sinew Sliver
4 Aether Vial
4 Collected Company
1 Grafdigger's Cage
3 Spellskite
2 Darkheart Sliver
1 Harmonic Sliver
1 Opaline Sliver
2 Syphon Sliver
2 Abrupt Decay
1 Sliver Hivelord
2 Slaughter Games
4. Articles
Modern Warp / UR Control / UR Storm / Naya Breachshift / ElectroBalance
Solidarity / Lands / Sneak and Show / Grixis Delver / Reanimator / Belcher / Storm / Dredge
"When you get your opponent down to 0 sanity, you win the game!"
Yes, that would need to be included! The reason I hadn't listed it in my list is because I think that Slivers would perform better as a tempo deck and Descendant's Path really only shines when you have more expensive creatures in your tribal deck (I feel). Added (:
Modern Warp / UR Control / UR Storm / Naya Breachshift / ElectroBalance
Solidarity / Lands / Sneak and Show / Grixis Delver / Reanimator / Belcher / Storm / Dredge
Plus the new slivers coming seem to be rather costly...
"When you get your opponent down to 0 sanity, you win the game!"
Its like they're scared that Slivers are going to take control of Modern or Standard if they were to print old school powerhouses like those in Tempest. I personally don't see them becoming potent meta-changers, but I think it could make for a fun deck to switch to every now and then when you play FNM at your LGS.
Modern Warp / UR Control / UR Storm / Naya Breachshift / ElectroBalance
Solidarity / Lands / Sneak and Show / Grixis Delver / Reanimator / Belcher / Storm / Dredge
Oh, of course! Added.
Modern Warp / UR Control / UR Storm / Naya Breachshift / ElectroBalance
Solidarity / Lands / Sneak and Show / Grixis Delver / Reanimator / Belcher / Storm / Dredge
"Personally I love high-riak, low-reqars gambles. Life's best with a decent amount of riak. And f*** reqars."
Could be a good win condition if you can overwhelm your opponent.
I've seen Infect sliver decks, but they're just so subpar and slower than typical infect that it isn't really viable.
Modern Warp / UR Control / UR Storm / Naya Breachshift / ElectroBalance
Solidarity / Lands / Sneak and Show / Grixis Delver / Reanimator / Belcher / Storm / Dredge
Modern Warp / UR Control / UR Storm / Naya Breachshift / ElectroBalance
Solidarity / Lands / Sneak and Show / Grixis Delver / Reanimator / Belcher / Storm / Dredge
http://supervillainous.spiderforest.com
4 Homing Sliver
4 Sinew Sliver
4 Predatory Sliver
3 Sedge Sliver
1 Harmonic Sliver
1 Necrotic Sliver
1 Quilled Sliver
1 Shadow Sliver
1 Bonescythe Sliver
1 Sentinel Sliver
1 Firewake Sliver
1 Striking Sliver
4 AEther Vial
4 Lightning Bolt
3 Lightning Helix
2 Path to Exile
1 Crib Swap
Land: 23
4 Arid Mesa
2 Verdant Catacombs
2 Temple Garden
2 Stomping Ground
2 Sacred Foundry
2 Mutavault
1 Godless Shrine
1 Overgrown Tomb
1 Blood Crypt
1 Raging Ravine
1 Gavony Township
1 Plains
1 Forest
1 Mountain
1 Swamp
In case you didn't know, I like toolbox decks.
FREE BLOODBRAID ELF
calling liberals loons=not okay
The standard to which the forum moderators apply the rules here.
FREE BLOODBRAID ELF
Some lands
Some card draw
tons of removal
your sideboard is more slivers (there's one that destroys target artifact or enchantment when etb, spinneret sliver, etc)
This is only 3c because I really don't think right now B and U have enough to offer except for sliver legion but that could very well be enough by itself. This will be far slower than modern zoo or affinity but could be a decent midrangey deck. Pulmonic Sliver could be decently bomby but I don't like the idea of having bomby slivers. Keep the mana cost low keep the cards coming (what modern card draw does wrg have?) and be able to deal with opponents threats and this could be a fringey rogue deck at best probably.
4 Sidewinder Sliver
4 Striking Sliver
4 Sinew Sliver
4 Predatory Sliver
4 Cautery Sliver
4 Adaptive Automaton
2 Firewake Sliver
2 Homing Sliver
4 Lightning Bolt
3 Path to Exile
Planeswalkers
3 Domri Rade
22 Lands
Domri would love slivers. He digs for them, and good lord fighting with them will be fantastic once a few lords hit the table.
calling liberals loons=not okay
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Cockatrice: shadowkill
Rules Adviser
However, we do have another contender, if the right support cards can be assembled: a RUG Opposition style list using -
4 Dormant Sliver
4 Gemhide Sliver
4 Mesmeric Sliver
4 Telekenetic Sliver
4 Homing Sliver
4 Blur Sliver
3 Intruder Alarm
Spells
1 Grapeshot
It can function as both a control/lockdown list OR as a storm list. Might be terrible, but it's an option.
4x Aether Vial
Creatures:
2x Sidewinder Sliver
4x Sinew Sliver
2x Sentinel Sliver
3x Two-headed Sliver
3x Opaline Sliver
3x Blur Sliver
4x Adaptive Automaton
2x Bonescythe Sliver
1x Bonesplitter Sliver
2x Path to Exile
3x Remand
1x Mana Leak
3x Thirst for Knowledge
2x Boros Charm
1x Legion's Initiative
Lands:
2x Island
2x Plains
1x Mountain
3x Sacred Foundry
2x Hallowed Fountain
3x Steam Vents
3x Arid Mesa
4x Scalding Tarn
Of note in this build is very few four-ofs, since drawing multiples of most slivers is pretty underwhelming. Also, this deck wants to be able to hold up mana to protect our slivers from removal, so I think aether vial is a must, and thirst for knowledge makes huge gains in mitigating how awful it is to draw multiple vials, as well as being instant-speed draw so we can hold up countermagic or other disruption. I'm not running many (any) mutavaults or caverns because of the fairly tricky non-creature color requirements, though the mana base isn't tuned at all, so I could definitely see adding in those lands at some point, and probably going up to 21-22 lands. There's no green in this build because the extra color is really tough to support, especially in terms of it's gameplan, and green really only gives access to predatory sliver, harmonic sliver, and lead the stampede, which I also think could be absurd in a deck like this, much in the same way that goblin ringleader is really good in legacy goblins.
I would almost certainly not cut blue for green though, because opaline sliver is a major deterrent against targeted removal. I could even see adding the fourth one because this is an ability that does stack with multiple copies, unlike the keyword ones.
Wouldn't Banefire be a better finisher? I'd also look at Psionic Sliver, which could finish an opponent when enough come down.
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As much as i love Slivers, as long as they don't get anything playable, low costed besides pumping, they seem too much of a casual tribe to me.
They need hexproof / shroud to not be fragile at least.
I have tried some combinations so far this is what my thoughts on modern slivers is:
Two-Headed Sliver is a perfect compensation for the missing Winged Sliver. BUT he forces you to go into red.
Having 8 Pump Slivers in modern now, too,is really nice.
Sliver Legion i really love, and in Modern i think going for the full mana circle should be easy to achieve. The question here is if anyone would want to play Gemhide Slivers, which, quite frankly, are very slow. Gotta sort out, if you are going 4 Color "anyways", then you could take the leap to going into 5ccLegion.
I much much rather would go for Mirror Entity. The synergy of having your slivers raising to 3/3 or 4/4 and then getting all the bonuses (lets just say +2/+2 (having sinew and the new muscle) and cant be blocked by only 1 (Two-Headed) is a real statement regarding your opponents life points.
But then again, let's sort out a realistic game modern slivers might be playing:
T1 - Vial (?)
T2 - switch Vial to 1, play a pump sliver
T3 - switch Vial to 2 and put in Two-Headed Sliver some time, play Mirror Entity
T4 - Vial in another PumpSliver, Pump all slivers to 4/4, then get the bonuses to be 6/6 and attack with 3 6/6 that can only be blocked by 2 or more creatures. Not tooo shabby
Well, that's not really overwhelming neither. In this scenario, Slivers act as a mid-range Aggro.
If we look at jund - it will destroy this.
If we look at NayaZoo / GruulBlitz - it might not be a one-sided game, but still they play the aggro way faster and harder. Take a turn to destroy some threat of theirs and you are at Turn 4 for attacking with 3 6/6s -> That is not enough considering that this was a goldfish scenario (not the best maybe, but a realistic one)
Also i dislike how you cannot curve with slivers. The pumpers cost 2, Entity 3, and well... i dont see anything else so far. There is a serious lack for a good cmc1 sliver. Maybe vial somewhat fixes this, but Vial is slow...
So trying to make Slivers go most likely midrange seems to be determined, though i don't like it.
Interesting enough, we have that new token generator - Hive Stirrings. It gives you 2 1/1 Bodies that say hi to your other part of the swarm and leech on their givings.
Badly enough, there is only this one token generator, and at cmc3 it is not really the best deal (on a sidenote: Why did WotC not make this cost only 2? Make it cost {gw} and its perfectly fine). Looking at other cmc3 token generators (Lingering Souls / Spectral Procession) and keeping in mind how easy it is to pump tokens in general (hi Elspeth and alikes) i dont really see where this would be of any good to be played.
That new double Strike sliver might be interesting, but then again having a cmc4 2/2 Double Striker makes me reconsider the fact, that slivers are WAY too dependant to swarm the board.
Phantasmal Image should be an auto-include, maybe as a 3-off.
Maybe you would also like to include the new cmc1 First Strike Sliver (Striking Sliver), just to have something to vial in / be played for 1 and to be able to have more swarming capacities.
So far, the sketch would look something like:
4 Sinew Sliver
4 Predatory Sliver (New Muscle Sliver)
4 Phantasmal Image
3 Striking Slivers
3 Two-Headed Sliver
3 Mirror Entity
4 Aether Vial
4 Path to Exile
4 Mutavault
4 Cavern of Souls
This makes up for 41 Slots beeing filled so far, keeping in mind that most likely another 10 to 14 lands will be needed, leaving a total of just 5 to 9 slots open in this sketch that feels like a natural list one would come up with.
As you can see, i have already like half a deck, but the real question is: what else would one play and is what is in this list really efficient? Also note, that we are at 4 colors allready, but i think that's just the way slivers would have to go in modern.
What really bothers me, and this is indicated by the many 3-offs, is that most slivers you just don't want to draw in multiples. It's not like naya drawing another Goyf or KotR or Blitz having another Rancor or whatever... you get the point (please dont hang on the examples, add in whatever suits you, the idea is that multiples of the same card seem to be worse in Slivers than in any random aggro deck).
So most likely, the direction that seems obvious is: protecting your own stuff while playing a bit control'ish - somewhat like in AK47/CounterSlivers has been done in legacy in ye' olde times. Here we kinda lack low costed good counters and library manipulation. No force, no brainstorm, no crystalline.
Crystalline Sliver, hands down, is what made Slivers competitive back then. I doubt anyone could argue with this. In modern we don't have that either.
It nullified most removal and made sure that your slivers would only die if you had no answer in form of some counter to a maybe showing massremoval.
So maybe slivers should be embedded into something else.
I don't really see a fast and hard aggro, since there is no real good 1 drop (did i miss some?).
In general, i dislike the sac-slivers (Necrotic and Cautery) because when would you want to sac a lord?
So maybe we could go more into a "bigger" direction and try to get mana via Gemhide Slivers and include Sliver Legion? I don't know, as i already let blink through, if this is not too much of a casual attempt.
Think about whether you can really make slivers happen in modern or you are just trying really hard (which i am also doing at this point). I would be stoked unleashing the swarm, but then again i think we just have to hope for something over the top to be spoiled to have a justified cause (besides the fun factor) to try this out at the next small local tournament.
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