Yeah i was pretty hyped about Opt but in GDS it's just better to stay with SV and Scour and if you go for the Sleight route, then you MIGHT want to cut those for Opt but it's not very clear really.
The only good thing about Opt is that it's and instant, apart from that it digs less than every other used cantrip in Modern. Maybe control, like Think Twice decks could want it. I think Serum Visions is plain better since it fixes our draws and dig deeper for what could be missing from our hand, being Lands,Threats or interaction. I lose plenty of games as Grixis Shadow because of not finding a threat or a second land in time. Cantrips are there to mitigate that and i'm afraid Opt is not better at that job than our previous options.
I think you should check other pros and players SB plan against ETron. Sleight doesn't seem to accomplish much cutting them since they smooth your deck and you already should bring some hate against Chalice.
Mixing it up with gm_jack and the YP talk, i tested it a bunch of games and it wasn't impressive at all, just ok. Following the premise of YP inclusion in GDS, i just think particualrly against Eldrazi it's just better to fight their hate with shatter effects and whatnot. By Force, Explosives, Rejection, have carried me more often than not. YP might be another angle of attack against everyones hate but it's fragile. Eldrzi will just run over him with Smasher and Endbringer, Walking Ballista, or they will just demolish your board with All is Dust.
Like most other matchups, they best route is Big Shadow after several Thoughtseizes. Also, removal has to be used in a purely proactive way, don't save Termiantes for big dumb fatties, clear the way for your threats to punch and get them low so they are constrained. Their late game is better than ours because of Tron lands and huge Ballistas. Those are my 2cents in regard of the Etron matchup.
To round up the YP discussion, i don't love the card but i could see it working just fine as a hedge in heavy Death's Shadow/BGx metas against Lotv. He is somewhat soft to Lili Last Hope though. My gut feeling is that it's better to play around hate with strong hands and tight play rather than playing threats that dodge GY hate. I will testing him a little more surely and whatever i extract from the experience i will report back here.
Esper is a pure trap since Red is actually the better SB color right now(at least for DS archetypes). You don't get RIP and a good sweeper plus Lingering Souls isn't really that good imo. It's an attrition mirror breaker but it's rather too slow in matchups DS struggles like Go wide aggro. I think the meta is being mean to you because Termiante and Kommand are very good cards in open metagames.
Eldrazi tron is a very hard matchup in my experience(which is a LOT of matches since my brother owns the deck and it's his only one). Chalice wrecks you hard. Matter Reshaper is annoying, their late game is better because of potential Ulamogs and Walking Ballistas, and MB Relics are a beating. Post board more Relics and Hangarback Walker make the matchup very skill intensive. I'm still looking for a good plan against them, TBR and shatter effects, Young Pyromancer, Rejection(this is a must anyways) and LOTV. I haven't found the best strategy this far, although a good plan for the matchup is playing aggro, drop Shadows fast after several Thoughtseizes and try to make them 6/6 ASAP. Post board the same apllies only that you have Ceremonious Rejection that if they don't have Cavern or Chalice out you will win backing it up with Snapcaster.
Yeah, i've been talking to some other GDS players in my community and they agree that cutting Stubborn Denial(even from the MB) is kind of crazy. This is obviosuly based on pure results. Denial has been a staple in every winning list and his Jundy list is more of a testing build(or at least he hasn't put any tangible result with it). Again, i like his premise but that doesn't make it right. I feel that Denial fills a role that might not be so crystal clear, but having the ability of playing protect the queen+defending against random nonsense is huge in this format. I always feels busted to me.
Ultimately, like most Modern decisions, it should be a pure metacall, i don't think cutting Denial entirely from the deck or even the MB is correct. If you expect a lot of Control, Mirrors and attrition based matchups then being more proactive could be better. Only testing can know.
The article is great. Although there are some things about his choices that i don´t particularly agree with. 3 Lilis in the MB seems too much since Liliana is actually bad against out hardest matchups(Go wide aggro in all its forms) and it's been pretty medium against Eldrazi in my experience(contrary to what he claims). Matter Reshaper is good against her and Reality Smasher/Walking Ballista are superb too.
I'm not sure i want to shave all Stubborn Denials from the MB since they have won me so many games i can't even count them. Having random protection against topdecked nonsense and whatnot has been excellent for me, and i think cutting Stubbys from the MB will make our combo matchup worse by a margin(not wide since cutting Denials comes with an uptick of IOK).
3 Snapcasters can work just fine since i often find 2 of them stranded in my hand or scrying them to the bottom. I don't mind having 3 or 4.
PVs premise seems coherent. You win more matchups by being Jundy instead of being Grixish(?). Being more proactive could be better. I think i will test his list and come back to report my learnings.
Has someone tested the +1 Sleight -1 Blood Crypt build? I have a couple of games with it and from a mana base standpoint i haven't had any issues yet, which certainly feels good since you flood less often.
From the Danny Jessup list at the SCG Open, i only have trouble with 2 Flaying Tendrils and 2 TBR in the SB. I'm very close to taking a similar list to his to the GP but i fear that being non conventional comes back to bite me after a lot of rounds.
List for reference: https://www.mtggoldfish.com/deck/723542#paper
E Tron looking bad huh? People talking about banning DS while Eldrazi Top 8s every tournament and nobody notices it.
At this point is clear that there's no clear best deck in Modern right? Death's Shadow is very good and a little pushed and so is Affinity and Eldrazi.
I prefer to stay this way and not start the banning spiral.
I'm Not sure where the Pact of Negation theories come from but Force and Pact have only in common their color.
Pact doesn't let you counter spells from T0 like Fow does.
Force certainly makes its way into fair decks too, which could make it more symetrical but still way better than Pact in all decks.
I think Force would make Combo better than it is now instead of keeping it in check. And that's where play FOW or busts. UR Storm particularly would be a huge home for FOW.
Remember that Legacy can play everything in the right time due to it's painless mana bases. Here in Modern, only Death's Shadow gets to do that, being hyper efficient without the atribbuted downside of dealing too much damage to yourself.
A couple of scenarios that i've seen many players and especially pro's like LSV,Manfield,etc differ.
1) Hand: Fetch,Thoughtseize,Serum Visions and non-Land randoms. Which do you play first and why? On the play and on the draw(assuming you don't hit land in first draw step).
2) Hand: 2 Fetch,Thoughtseize,Serum Visions and non Thought Scour randoms. On the play.
3) Hand: Lands,Serum Visions,Stubborn Denial,(W and W/O Fatal push) and non-discard randoms. On the play.
I'll start with that ones. I think this helps a lot because this deck is difficult to play around not getting blown out. Common scenario is going full suicide mode and Fetch Shocking Thoughtseize on T1 on the play, to find yourself against Burn. Feels bad. The goal is to discuss T1 plays on the dark.
Lol at Ross "I love Dredge" Merriam for his article premise. At this point it seems that professional players are nothing different from whiney biased players(much like us) who happen to have a bigger voice than some others, and start lobbying to see changes they want in the format for their personal preferences.
Dredge summer was a disgusting period of Modern. Poor Ross i think now he doesn't have a 90-10 matchup against the whole midrange/control spectrum of decks WHILE having the inability to lose a G1 against those, is making him unhappy. Give me a break.
I can only imagine in my darkest nightmares what Modern would be if Shadow gets banned and nothing else happens. Welcome to 2Ships Passing in the Night: The Gathereing.
The only form in my eyes that Jace comes out it's if every midrange house in the banlist comes out too(SFM,BBE too) so the "Midrange Polarization" problem gets mitigated. I'm not sure where the format stays from a brewing/diverse standpoint. I guess those cards add archetypes and supress some other, so it should be net win if the goal is a shorter banlist.
The problem with Jace's price gets mitigated by reprints in Modern Masters like Tarmogoyf. Even then, the price won't get much lower than $100-120. Liliana is near that price and Jace would be borderline as good as she is, with the increased bubble that would grow for hyping reasons(Ancestral Visions for example).
Now the real question is, do we want to play Legacy lite? I don't. I prefer to get warped by Standard rather than those cards.
So, how important do you think Surgical Extraction is in an open metagame like the GP?
I'm so conflicted in playing them. I don't have them in my SB right now, but i know my Storm,Nauseam,Dredge matchup should be worse by a margin(and the incidental Reanimator nonsense). I cutted them because i never found good use in them, opposite to decks like Grixis Control or UW where you actually NEED them to beat combo since you don't put pressure in their hands/battlefield whatsoever.
I think none. Walls are good vs Reshaper(which is a pain in the butt) and Leaks die against Tron's late game and Cavern but it still lets you live through quick Karns, Chalices and Cavernless Eldrazi monsters.
I'm cutting Serum Visions like BennyHillz. I'm not getting there against Tron although i was pointed out that i was playing the matchup poorly which could be true. I would still recommend using his SB guide as his Win% against Etron is absurd.
Definitely not my experience against Eldrazi Tron nor Burn.
Burn G1 is hard unless you are packing MB hate like Blessed Alliance.
Cavern of Souls does wreck me while playing UW. They have so many cards that cheese us like Chalice, Karn and All is Dust to name a few. Cavern turning off my Leaks and Cryptics is just a feel bad since I usually point my seas towards Temple and tron lands when they have two different ones. I will go as far as saying that the Etron matchup is as good as the number of Caverns they have.
The only good thing about Opt is that it's and instant, apart from that it digs less than every other used cantrip in Modern. Maybe control, like Think Twice decks could want it. I think Serum Visions is plain better since it fixes our draws and dig deeper for what could be missing from our hand, being Lands,Threats or interaction. I lose plenty of games as Grixis Shadow because of not finding a threat or a second land in time. Cantrips are there to mitigate that and i'm afraid Opt is not better at that job than our previous options.
Mixing it up with gm_jack and the YP talk, i tested it a bunch of games and it wasn't impressive at all, just ok. Following the premise of YP inclusion in GDS, i just think particualrly against Eldrazi it's just better to fight their hate with shatter effects and whatnot. By Force, Explosives, Rejection, have carried me more often than not. YP might be another angle of attack against everyones hate but it's fragile. Eldrzi will just run over him with Smasher and Endbringer, Walking Ballista, or they will just demolish your board with All is Dust.
Like most other matchups, they best route is Big Shadow after several Thoughtseizes. Also, removal has to be used in a purely proactive way, don't save Termiantes for big dumb fatties, clear the way for your threats to punch and get them low so they are constrained. Their late game is better than ours because of Tron lands and huge Ballistas. Those are my 2cents in regard of the Etron matchup.
To round up the YP discussion, i don't love the card but i could see it working just fine as a hedge in heavy Death's Shadow/BGx metas against Lotv. He is somewhat soft to Lili Last Hope though. My gut feeling is that it's better to play around hate with strong hands and tight play rather than playing threats that dodge GY hate. I will testing him a little more surely and whatever i extract from the experience i will report back here.
Eldrazi tron is a very hard matchup in my experience(which is a LOT of matches since my brother owns the deck and it's his only one). Chalice wrecks you hard. Matter Reshaper is annoying, their late game is better because of potential Ulamogs and Walking Ballistas, and MB Relics are a beating. Post board more Relics and Hangarback Walker make the matchup very skill intensive. I'm still looking for a good plan against them, TBR and shatter effects, Young Pyromancer, Rejection(this is a must anyways) and LOTV. I haven't found the best strategy this far, although a good plan for the matchup is playing aggro, drop Shadows fast after several Thoughtseizes and try to make them 6/6 ASAP. Post board the same apllies only that you have Ceremonious Rejection that if they don't have Cavern or Chalice out you will win backing it up with Snapcaster.
Ultimately, like most Modern decisions, it should be a pure metacall, i don't think cutting Denial entirely from the deck or even the MB is correct. If you expect a lot of Control, Mirrors and attrition based matchups then being more proactive could be better. Only testing can know.
I'm not sure i want to shave all Stubborn Denials from the MB since they have won me so many games i can't even count them. Having random protection against topdecked nonsense and whatnot has been excellent for me, and i think cutting Stubbys from the MB will make our combo matchup worse by a margin(not wide since cutting Denials comes with an uptick of IOK).
3 Snapcasters can work just fine since i often find 2 of them stranded in my hand or scrying them to the bottom. I don't mind having 3 or 4.
PVs premise seems coherent. You win more matchups by being Jundy instead of being Grixish(?). Being more proactive could be better. I think i will test his list and come back to report my learnings.
From the Danny Jessup list at the SCG Open, i only have trouble with 2 Flaying Tendrils and 2 TBR in the SB. I'm very close to taking a similar list to his to the GP but i fear that being non conventional comes back to bite me after a lot of rounds.
List for reference: https://www.mtggoldfish.com/deck/723542#paper
At this point is clear that there's no clear best deck in Modern right? Death's Shadow is very good and a little pushed and so is Affinity and Eldrazi.
I prefer to stay this way and not start the banning spiral.
Pact doesn't let you counter spells from T0 like Fow does.
Force certainly makes its way into fair decks too, which could make it more symetrical but still way better than Pact in all decks.
Remember that Legacy can play everything in the right time due to it's painless mana bases. Here in Modern, only Death's Shadow gets to do that, being hyper efficient without the atribbuted downside of dealing too much damage to yourself.
1) Hand: Fetch,Thoughtseize,Serum Visions and non-Land randoms. Which do you play first and why? On the play and on the draw(assuming you don't hit land in first draw step).
2) Hand: 2 Fetch,Thoughtseize,Serum Visions and non Thought Scour randoms. On the play.
3) Hand: Lands,Serum Visions,Stubborn Denial,(W and W/O Fatal push) and non-discard randoms. On the play.
I'll start with that ones. I think this helps a lot because this deck is difficult to play around not getting blown out. Common scenario is going full suicide mode and Fetch Shocking Thoughtseize on T1 on the play, to find yourself against Burn. Feels bad. The goal is to discuss T1 plays on the dark.
Dredge summer was a disgusting period of Modern. Poor Ross i think now he doesn't have a 90-10 matchup against the whole midrange/control spectrum of decks WHILE having the inability to lose a G1 against those, is making him unhappy. Give me a break.
I can only imagine in my darkest nightmares what Modern would be if Shadow gets banned and nothing else happens. Welcome to 2Ships Passing in the Night: The Gathereing.
The problem with Jace's price gets mitigated by reprints in Modern Masters like Tarmogoyf. Even then, the price won't get much lower than $100-120. Liliana is near that price and Jace would be borderline as good as she is, with the increased bubble that would grow for hyping reasons(Ancestral Visions for example).
Now the real question is, do we want to play Legacy lite? I don't. I prefer to get warped by Standard rather than those cards.
I'm so conflicted in playing them. I don't have them in my SB right now, but i know my Storm,Nauseam,Dredge matchup should be worse by a margin(and the incidental Reanimator nonsense). I cutted them because i never found good use in them, opposite to decks like Grixis Control or UW where you actually NEED them to beat combo since you don't put pressure in their hands/battlefield whatsoever.
I'm cutting Serum Visions like BennyHillz. I'm not getting there against Tron although i was pointed out that i was playing the matchup poorly which could be true. I would still recommend using his SB guide as his Win% against Etron is absurd.
Burn G1 is hard unless you are packing MB hate like Blessed Alliance.
Cavern of Souls does wreck me while playing UW. They have so many cards that cheese us like Chalice, Karn and All is Dust to name a few. Cavern turning off my Leaks and Cryptics is just a feel bad since I usually point my seas towards Temple and tron lands when they have two different ones. I will go as far as saying that the Etron matchup is as good as the number of Caverns they have.