I can only imagine that mirror matches are going to be this odd land of who has the better draws.
I think it's going to come down to who can drop the first Herder or Sower (i.e. who can ramp into Ulamog the fastest). Though I am toying with the idea of some really corner case Sideboard tech, like Funeral Charm.
That's how it felt last night when I happened to run into mtgsalvation user Kevinsera on Cockatrice.
I know this is kind of pointless theorycrafting, but does anyone feel strongly about any of the spoiled Eldrazi from Oath? Endbringer has obvious power with pseudo-vigilance and 3 useful activated abilities, World Breaker being a bigass Acidic Slime, Obligator being great in Red builds. And Kozilek, of course.
Endbringer doesn't seem to be getting any love but to me it appears pretty good.
We've had a ton of mainboard discussion, but I'd like to talk about sideboards for a moment. I want to hear what you guys are playing and why. Here's my current board:
3 Timely Reinforcements - I keep increasing the number of this because I love it so much. I find myself putting it in against anything trying to play fairly. It creates very favorable trades or chump blockers, as well as providing a significant amount of life back. Sun Droplet formerly took this card's spot in my sideboard, but Reinforcements has proven to be much more versatile, being awesome in a variety of different matchups.
2 Languish - I play this over Damnation because it lets your creatures live and it can hit Etched Champion. I board this in against anything trying to play a bunch of creatures early.
2 Torpor Orb - I always advocate this card whenever possible. Since almost all our creatures trigger on cast, it can safely be played. Shuts down twin, snapcasters, a lot of abzan cards, sisters, and more.
1 Kozilek, Butcher of Truth - Amazing card for grindy matchups, makes a great target for Eye of Ugin that can keep your hand well stocked and provides a massive threat.
1 Aven Mindcensor - Puts in work against the combo decks we have trouble against: Tron, Bloom Titan, and Scapeshift. I might want to increase the count of this card.
2 Disenchant
2 Stony Silence - For Affinity and Lantern Control.
I'm thinking of adding Surgical Extraction to my board, or maybe to my main.
My current build is in my sig but here it is for reference. I will post the whole thing for purposes of comparison.
Sweepers are for aggro etc., Celestial Purge hits lots of random things in many decks, Disenchant and Stony Silence as noted above (I mainboard Surgical Extraction for Lantern Control, Tron, Twin etc.), Rest for the Weary for Burn and aggro, Skite for Burn and lots of other stuff.
Not so sure my board is optimized. I'm thinking about going with a 1-of of each of All is Dust, Damnation, and Engineered Explosives. I just got through playing the mirror with mtgsalvation user kevinsera on Cockatrice and neither of us was sure what best to board for that.
Damnation kills Etched Champion. But that card is very bad against us and I doubt it will see any play in G2.
This is true, but Celestial Purge and Disenchant can also take care of Moon, and we can get to a Plains we don't have yet through responding to Blood Moon by cracking a Ghost Quarter on our own land, or by using a fetch held in reserve under Urborg. (Blood Moon is another reason to run Expedition Map, too.)
EE seems like a better option against Infect, Elves, Affinity, and Bogles, and is just as good against opponent's tokens as Bomb is. Though it is also true that getting BW early can be pretty tough with this land package if we want X=2.
I think maybe the 4-of Urborgs and Eyes are best left to the Mono-B build. Path and Lingering Souls mean that we need white available early. But I agree that Liliana could make them work out much better in that shell.
Vault is so amazingly good with tokens that it makes me really want to find room for a one-of Expedition Map, but right now I don't have any Maps in my 75. It really feels like a tight list to me. I could take out my two MB Surgical Extractions and one Strangler for two Stonecloakers and one Map, maybe.
Crucible is amazing with Ghost Quarter, and your point about the timeliness of it is good, though it wouldn't stop Crumble to Dust either. (And I think Sacred Ground could work if it were played any time in the first few turns, in most games.) We would also need to be thinking about playing around the nonbo with Relic while we were waiting for Crucible to show up in hand.
It can be tough to spend more than $50 on sideboard cards like Crucible and Damnation, as well. (Are we supposed to avoid discussing card expense in these threads?)
I am liking this Stonecloaker idea a lot, but the list already feels super tight to me. I can see running a one-of instead of a Wasteland Strangler, especially because I cast that card too often without a target in exile to turn it on. Good idea, Ace1.
I'm looking forward to seeing the deck optimized over the next months, especially after Oath comes out.
I picked up a few copies of Sacred Ground for the side, in anticipation of land destruction strategies emerging against us. Thoughts? Crucible of Worlds is another option but costs $50+.
Overview of the Deck CBW Processors was originally inspired by a BR version, created and piloted by EternallyRamza, that 5-0'ed an MTGO event. The original deck strongly committed to Eye of Ugin and Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth in the land base, and to Relic of Progenitus and Scrabbling Claws maindeck, in order to quickly ramp into Blight Herder, Oblivion Sower, and finally Ulamog himself. Since then the build has changed significantly, losing the late-game inevitability package provided by Eye of Ugin and Ulamog, and modifying the curve, while eagerly adopting the best of the pushed Eldrazi from Oath of the Gatewatch.
Processors is a highly interactive, control-oriented, midrange deck. It is currently very low profile, despite having many favorable matchups, many close or even matchups, and only a few distinctly poor matchups. It uses abundant hand disruption and targeted removal to control the opponent’s game, while beating face mid-to-late game with large, powerful creatures and lots of 1/1 tokens. It attacks on many axes, including maindeck graveyard hate, manlands backed up by mainboard land destruction, and even interaction with the opponent’s exile zone (why hello there, Ancestral Vision!). Several lifegain sources offset the sometimes-painful land and spell mix.
Why to play this deck:
You like a grindy, fair deck that can occasionally play as if it was extremely unfair
You like direct interaction with many aspects of an opponent’s game plan
You like having some of the bigger creatures (and many of the smaller creatures) in the format on your side of the table
You want to fly under the radar playing a powerful but little-known deck with unusual lines of attack
You don’t mind playing defense early, turning the corner mid-to-late, and games going long sometimes
Why not to play this deck:
You prefer combo, linear decks, and/or T4-5 wins
You’re not attracted to the sometimes subtle art of hand disruption using Thoughtseize-type effects
You don’t like damaging your own life total, sometimes even to the point of game loss
You don't feel comfortable with a high curve on a tight manabase
Card Choices
Lands: A note about lands: There are 11 turn one sources for B, and by turn two there are 14 lands that can supply B, with 13 each for C and W. Having the right balance of mana sources is challenging and the manabase is very tight. When modifying, it is essential to carefully consider and fully playtest any changes to the color mix. Conversely, cards with double color requirements should be minimized wherever possible. A great article outlining proper color balance for casting spells on-time can be found here.
Caves of Koilos Our tri-land. Makes all the mana types we need. A mandatory 4-of but can really hurt a lot if it’s the only BW source you draw.
Eldrazi Temple Our Sol land, ramping into our fat creatures. Always run no less than the full four.
Marsh Flats Running these gives a workaround for Blood Moon effects as well as fixing our mana base. Run zero to three.
Godless Shrine The staple dual. Run at least two and as many as four.
Shambling Vent Lifelink is necessary in this build and the manland is a good way to get it. ETB tapped is not great but this card’s late game presence is extremely important. Run two to three.
Ghost Quarter This card is necessary (but not sufficient) for the challenging Tron matchup. It is invaluable against Gavony Township, Kessig Wolf Run, and opposing manlands in general. Having it main greatly improves the game one matchups against Infect and Affinity. Run a minimum of two.
Vault of the Archangel This gives important lifegain options mid-to-late game to help turn the corner. When combined with Lingering Souls, the threat of deathtouch can shut down the board until we draw a fatty or some other answer. Run one.
Westvale Abbey Flex-slot late game mana sink for token generation/possible massive beater. 0-1.
Bojuka Bog Bog is an additional option for graveyard hate. As with the other 1-ofs, this might be best played in a build with Expedition Map. 0-1.
Basics Run 3-4 for Path, Ghost Quarter, and Blood Moon. Most decks skew towards black because of the desire to be able to cast Thoughtseize on turn 1. A Wastes should be considered because the deck must have a way to generate C even under a Moon.
Creatures:
Wasteland Strangler Part of the deck’s Processor namesake. Acts as creature removal and can often two-for-one an opponent, by removing one of their creatures and then eating removal itself. Can three-for-one if it processes a suspended card. This is an early game play for us; run 2-4.
Blight Herder The other half of the namesake. One of two cards in the deck that can make four bodies by itself. It fixes mana for Seer and Smasher under Blood Moon and walls Tasigur, Kalitas, and Siege Rhino while also chumping the ground battle. Run 2-4.
Reality Smasher A hasty 5/5 trampler that is removal-resistant is amazing and we can (rarely) cast it as early as turn 3, more frequently turn 4. One of the major win conditions. Run at least two, and probably a playset is called for in most builds.
Thought-Knot Seer This card is unbelievable and is the main reason to play Eldrazi in Modern. Exile powers Strangler and Herder and even if it whiffs it is still a 4/4 body, though it also gives the opponent a card when it dies. Run four.
Eldrazi Displacer Flickers Seer and Strangler for value, is a great late game mana sink. Unlike most of the creatures it dies to Bolt and Abrupt Decay, and is removable with Inquisition. Competes with Strangler and Lingering Souls for the 3 CMC spot. Run 0-2.
Matter Reshaper Also competes at 3 CMC but replaces itself when it dies. Like Strangler it is vulnerable to sweepers like Pyroclasm. Run 0-2.
Lingering Souls This is absolutely one of the best cards in the format and a huge part of the reason the deck is so strong against Infect and Affinity. It gives permission decks and one-for-one removal fits, with its flashback and multiple bodies, and it chumps for days while we set up the late game fatties. Flyers push through clogged ground states. Mandatory four-of.
Thoughtseize/Inquisition of Kozilek Early hand disruption is important for many black builds and this is no exception. Run some mix, between 4-6 cards total.
Path to Exile The second most popular removal spell in the format, it turns on Strangler and Herder for one measly mana by removing just about any creature that sees play (well not Bogles, or Geist). Run four but be aware it is not a great T1-3 play in many cases.
Go for the Throat/Dismember/Doom Blade etc. Backup removal, run 1-3. Each card has strengths and weaknesses; players should consider their local meta and playstyle to identify the cards and quantities that work best for them. Don't forget that Wasteland Strangler is also removal for us, so don't go too deep here. Note that Go for the Throat cannot be redirected to Spellskite.
Anguished Unmaking/Oblivion Ring Exilers that target non-creatures as well as creatures. Run 0-1 mainboard and another 1-2 in the side.
Relic of Progenitus Powers Strangler and Herder. Maindecking graveyard hate is part of what sets this build apart and makes it so powerful. There are a large number of decks in Modern that are using the graveyard to a greater or lesser degree, and this card can ruin their day. Cantripping when needed is huge.
Scrabbling Claws Relics 5-6. Few decks run these anymore. Run 0-1 if you have room and a lot of graveyard decks at your LGS.
Mind Stone Eldrazi Temple 5-6. Ramps and cantrips. Gets colorless mana for TKS and Smasher. Run 0-2.
Expedition Map Makes sure we get to 5 Eldrazi mana in time. Tutors for tools like Ghost Quarter and Cavern of Souls. Run 0-2.
Sorin, Solemn Visitor We really want his +1 here but his other two abilities are, rarely, useful too. Makes Spirit tokens amazing. Run a singleton.
Axes of Interaction Lands: The land package is an important interactive axis for Processors. Fully a third of the land package can tamper with an opponent’s plans. Cavern of Souls wrecks the blue decks, Shambling Vent beats face while Ghost Quarter shuts down inconvenient opposing lands, and Vault swings late games, period. Sea Gate Wreckage and Westvale Abbey also do work in some builds. Playing utility lands as one of our “colors” is a major strength of this deck.
Graveyard: Graveyard hate is relevant against loads of builds. In the current meta it is powerful against BGx (Goyf, Scooze), URx (Snapcaster, Kolaghan’s Command, flashback in general), Abzan CoCo (can stop the combo if mana is up to activate Relic), Kiki Chord (stops Eternal Witness and Reveillark shenanigans), as well as more peripheral but still not uncommon decks like Dredge, Living End, Storm, Gifts Ungiven builds, UW Tron, Thopter/Sword, etc. It is important to note that in the current format, the maindeck Relics are good all by themselves; they are not there simply to power Strangler and Herder. They cantrip too so they are never completely dead.
Exile: Exile zone hate comes into play rarely but is always very satisfying when it does. There is nothing quite like the feeling of casting a T2 Strangler, processing a suspended Rift Bolt, killing a Goblin Guide, and then watching it eat a Bolt itself as a 3-for-1 play. Greatly improves the matchup against Ad Nauseam and any deck with Ancestral Vision while sometimes getting an early Search for Tomorrow or a suspended Living End. However, getting two cards into exile for Herder is not always possible, and sometimes Strangler needs to be played before he has a card to process or a target to hit.
Creatures: The large majority of the creatures are Bolt, Abrupt Decay, and Inquisition of Kozilek-proof. They also tend to be bigger and more numerous than most opponents’ big creatures. With lots of tokens as well, the deck plays both tall and wide, powerfully taxing opponents’ removal.
Hand Disruption: Thoughtseize/IoK/Thought-Knot Seer are a key aspect of the gameplan. Knowing when to cast these and what to take is a skill developed through lots of practice, and players will benefit from extensive knowledge of the format and opposing decks’ gameplans. A seminal article on the topic can be found here.
Card Advantage: Though not strictly interactive, CA is worth discussing. Blight Herder and Lingering Souls both create multiple bodies. Relic and Mind Stone cantrip. Reality Smasher requires discard to remove. Strangler can frequently be a 2-for-1 and sometimes even a 3-for-1. Reshaper replaces itself when it dies. There are several sweepers in the sideboard.
Matchups Note: The Modern meta is wide open right now with tons of decks around, some changing significantly, and new decks cropping up frequently. I have tried to cover the matchups I am familiar with. I encourage other players to contribute their matchup notes to the discussion in the comments and will update this section periodically when needed.
BGx builds: Processors is strongly favored. Relic takes care of Goyf and Scooze while Spirit tokens resist removal and push through damage. Lingering Souls discards to Liliana while our Eldrazi are as big or bigger than their creatures and are resistant to many forms of their removal. Ghost Quarter takes care of Raging Ravine and Stirring Wildwood.
URx/UWx builds: Processors is strongly favored. These decks’ generally slow gameplan allows us to develop our own resources with plenty of time--Shambling Vent shines in these matches. Relic nukes Snapcaster Mage, K Command, and flashback in general, while Lingering Souls and Blight Herder push tokens through counterspells. When they delve their graveyards away they turn on our processors for us. Landing a Cavern of Souls can be game over because resolved Eldrazi can be hard to remove for these decks. Ghost Quarter answers their main late-game manlands, Celestial Colonnade and Creeping Tar Pit. Watch out not to overextend into sweepers. Thoughtseize is always a live draw against these decks and clears the way for our actual threats.
Graveyard decks (Living End, Dredge, Storm etc.): Processors is strongly favored. Four maindeck Relics, plus some number of Surgical Extraction out of the side, means we are pre-boarded in G1 and then very strongly boarded in G2/3. Never tap out when Relic is on the table.
Ad Nauseam: Processors is strongly favored. Ad Nauseam is weak to us because they are slow and vulnerable to hand disruption, processing and Stony Silence. Prioritize taking their protective spells, Angel's Grace and Phyrexian Unlife. Surgical Extraction is great out of the side, as with combo matchups in general.
Affinity/Infect: Processors is favored. Though fast starts from these decks can be tough to handle, our Ghost Quarters are very good against Inkmoth Nexus, and our Spirit tokens defend us very effectively. Abundant targeted removal deals with their important creatures. Both matchups get even better in G2/3; bring in Pithing Needle for both, if you have it. The top removal targets in Affinity are Arcbound Ravager and Steel Overseer, as Etched Champion is very bad against us. While playing Infect you should prioritize removing Blighted Agent. Our deck makes Apostle's Blessing a near-dead draw for them.
Burn: Even matchup. Careful management of life is important and mulling for lifegain in G2/3 is not a bad idea if the opening seven has none and isn’t otherwise amazing (e.g., two Temples plus a Thought-Knot Seer and a Smasher). Side out pain cards like Thoughtseize and Unmaking in this match.
Abzan CoCo/Kiki Chord/Bant CoCo: Even matchup. Graveyard hate is relevant against all three decks and sweepers from the board improve G2/3. It is smart to sandbag a Path, if possible, to stop the combo plans of the first couple of decks. Pithing Needle can be very good in these matchups--name a combo enabler, Spellskite, or even a fetchland. Ghost Quarter is relevant for Gavony Township.
Bant Eldrazi/RG Eldrazi: I haven't played against these builds very much yet, but right now my sense is that they are roughly even--Damnation will be a big help post-board. Tokens are terrible against opposing Reality Smashers but we have a lot more hand disruption and our removal outperforms their limited (Bant's four Paths) or small-scale (RG's four Bolts) removal options.
Death and Taxes variants: Variable; if they get Vial T1 and a good mix of creatures this can be quite tough; on the other hand, if they miss their Vial drop and we get early hand disruption they are usually pretty easy to beat. Pithing Needle and Ratchet Bomb are stars here but it is probably not right to side in Stony Silence for Vial.
Tron Variants: Favorable to somewhat unfavorable for Processors. Mono-U and UW Tron are considerably easier because of their slowness and over-reliance on counterspells. RG Tron is very unfavorable G1 without a very fast clock and a good amount of hand disruption; Lingering Souls is very bad against RG Tron, though it's great against the blue Tron builds. Hand disruption is very good in all cases vs. Tron. In G2/3, Stony Silence, Surgical Extraction, Pithing Needle and Anguished Unmaking/O-Ring are all all-stars, and greatly improve all the Tron matchups. Important note: Ghost Quarter is not enough by itself! They are too consistent, and they can easily fight through one or even two removed Tron lands unless we can both strongly pressure their life total and keep Karn from resolving. However GQ into Extraction is backbreaking if you can put it together.
Elves/Merfolk/Zoo/BW Tokens: Variably close-to-slightly-unfavorable for Processors. Elves and Fish tend not to fill the graveyard, making Relic (and Herder and Strangler) much worse. Tokens neuters our targeted removal plans. All these matchups obviously get better with more sweeper effects in the board. Damnation is better than Flaying Tendrils for Fish and Zoo, but Tendrils can be better against Tokens and Elves. Damnation may be a surer bet, as a general rule. Ratchet Bomb and Zealous Persecution are great against all these decks, while Pithing Needle shines against Fish and against Ezuri, Renegade Leader, and may be useful against Naya Zoo builds (name a fetch land, Ooze, or possibly Grim Lavamancer). Hard G1s, and we are hoping to find our sweeper sideboard hate G2/3 in most cases.
Scapeshift and RG Titan/Land Ramp variants: Unfavorable for Processors. Save hand disruption for later to try for Primetime or Scapeshift itself. In G2/3, try to sandbag Ghost Quarter in case they play an early Valakut that you might be able to Extract. Scapeshift comes in several versions that require different approaches, and can be hard to disrupt when piloted well.
Lantern Control: Unfavorable for Processors. We need to remove their Ensnaring Bridge which is their main win con against us. Stony Silence, Ratchet Bomb (though a nonbo with Stony), Pithing Needle and Anguished Unmaking/O-Ring are strong out of the board, but you want them in your opening hand so they don’t get milled away. A little trick here is Pathing your own Thought-Knot Seer, making them draw so you can get a swing in under their Bridge with your Spirit and Scion tokens.
8-Whack: Unfavorable for Processors. They can be very fast and wide and are killing us while we are still setting up. Legion Loyalist is a nightmare for our chump-blocker plan and our sweepers can be too slow. Flaying Tendrils, Zealous Persecution, and Ratchet Bomb are much better than Damnation in this match.
Bogles: Strongly unfavorable for Processors. This match gets a lot better if you side a couple Spellskites and/or more Ratchet Bombs or even Engineered Explosives. Zealous Persecution can get a guy in response to an enchantment when we have the play. Best hope here is to Thoughtseize away their guy after winning the die roll.
RG Land Destruction/RW Prison: Strongly unfavorable for Processors. If these decks see play in your meta, consider Crucible of Worlds and/or Sacred Ground. But these cards are probably too narrow for a general meta.
Sideboarding Overview Sweepers: Sweepers to run include Damnation, Wrath of God, Flaying Tendrils, Ratchet Bomb, Declaration in Stone, and/or Zealous Persecution. Damnation and Wrath hit every creature, but leave behind Persist/Undying creatures, are slow, and cost WW or BB. Tendrils exiles, which is good, but misses important X/3+ creatures and also needs BB. Persecution is a nasty combat trick and is amazing both with and against tokens. Ratchet Bomb is slow, but can get Blood Moon and Ensnaring Bridge and is also very good against tokens and mana dorks. In this deck, Engineered Explosives can only get to 2 in most circumstances and should be avoided. Play 2-4 sweepers depending on meta expectations.
Artifact Hate:Stony Silence is invaluable against Affinity, Tron, Lantern Control, and Thopter Foundry builds. Like other white decks, we should play 2-3. Watch out for nerfing your own artifacts like Relic, Mind Stone, Ratchet Bomb, etc. Also see the "Utility" section below for more cards that deal with problem artifacts.
Lifegain:Timely Reinforcements can help against aggro, while both it and Rest for the Weary come in against Burn. Rest works better in a deck that runs fetch lands. Run at least three; early iterations of Processors had as many as five of these effects.
Combo Hate:Surgical Extraction is a good way to get key cards out of play altogether. Use with Ghost Quarter for Tron or Scapeshift, and with Thoughtseize for all combo decks. Run 2-4 in the 75.
Other sideboard options: Depending on local meta and personal play style, you may want to consider Ghostly Prison for metas with lots of aggro, or Spellskite for Bogles and/or lots of targeted removal (but this is not usually necessary, because Processors already taxes removal with lots of tokens and big creatures). More peripheral choices like Worship, Runed Halo, or Aven Mindcensor might make sense for some players. White has a ton of good SB options to tune the deck for small and/or unique local metagames.
1x Bojuka Bog
4x Eldrazi Temple
3x Eye of Ugin
3x Ghost Quarter
2x Godless Shrine
4x Marsh Flats
1x Plains
3x Swamp
2x Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth
1x Vault of the Archangel
Creature (13)
4x Blight Herder
4x Oblivion Sower
1x Ulamog, the Ceaseless Hunger
4x Wasteland Strangler
2x Doom Blade
4x Path to Exile
2x Surgical Extraction
Sorcery (9)
3x Inquisition of Kozilek
4x Lingering Souls
2x Thoughtseize
Artifact (6)
4x Relic of Progenitus
2x Scrabbling Claws
3x All Is Dust
2x Celestial Purge
2x Disenchant
3x Rest for the Weary
3x Spellskite
2x Stony Silence
Not so sure my board is optimized. I'm thinking about going with a 1-of of each of All is Dust, Damnation, and Engineered Explosives. I just got through playing the mirror with mtgsalvation user kevinsera on Cockatrice and neither of us was sure what best to board for that.
Damnation kills Etched Champion. But that card is very bad against us and I doubt it will see any play in G2.
EE seems like a better option against Infect, Elves, Affinity, and Bogles, and is just as good against opponent's tokens as Bomb is. Though it is also true that getting BW early can be pretty tough with this land package if we want X=2.
Vault is so amazingly good with tokens that it makes me really want to find room for a one-of Expedition Map, but right now I don't have any Maps in my 75. It really feels like a tight list to me. I could take out my two MB Surgical Extractions and one Strangler for two Stonecloakers and one Map, maybe.
It can be tough to spend more than $50 on sideboard cards like Crucible and Damnation, as well. (Are we supposed to avoid discussing card expense in these threads?)
I'm looking forward to seeing the deck optimized over the next months, especially after Oath comes out.
I picked up a few copies of Sacred Ground for the side, in anticipation of land destruction strategies emerging against us. Thoughts? Crucible of Worlds is another option but costs $50+.
Many thanks to Beautox and Master_Hades for the banner and the excellent original primer, which first sold me on this deck at the end of 2015.
CBW Processors was originally inspired by a BR version, created and piloted by EternallyRamza, that 5-0'ed an MTGO event. The original deck strongly committed to Eye of Ugin and Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth in the land base, and to Relic of Progenitus and Scrabbling Claws maindeck, in order to quickly ramp into Blight Herder, Oblivion Sower, and finally Ulamog himself. Since then the build has changed significantly, losing the late-game inevitability package provided by Eye of Ugin and Ulamog, and modifying the curve, while eagerly adopting the best of the pushed Eldrazi from Oath of the Gatewatch.
Processors is a highly interactive, control-oriented, midrange deck. It is currently very low profile, despite having many favorable matchups, many close or even matchups, and only a few distinctly poor matchups. It uses abundant hand disruption and targeted removal to control the opponent’s game, while beating face mid-to-late game with large, powerful creatures and lots of 1/1 tokens. It attacks on many axes, including maindeck graveyard hate, manlands backed up by mainboard land destruction, and even interaction with the opponent’s exile zone (why hello there, Ancestral Vision!). Several lifegain sources offset the sometimes-painful land and spell mix.
Why to play this deck:
Sample Decklist
1x Cavern of Souls
4x Caves of Koilos
4x Eldrazi Temple
3x Ghost Quarter
2x Godless Shrine
3x Marsh Flats
1x Plains
3x Shambling Vent
2x Swamp
1x Vault of the Archangel
Planeswalker (1)
1x Sorin, Solemn Visitor
3x Blight Herder
1x Matter Reshaper
4x Reality Smasher
4x Thought-Knot Seer
3x Wasteland Strangler
Instant (5)
1x Go for the Throat
4x Path to Exile
Sorcery (8)
4x Lingering Souls
4x Thoughtseize
Enchantment (1)
1x Oblivion Ring
Artifact (7)
2x Mind Stone
4x Relic of Progenitus
1x Anguished Unmaking
2x Damnation
1x Pithing Needle
2x Ratchet Bomb
2x Rest for the Weary
2x Stony Silence
3x Surgical Extraction
1x Timely Reinforcements
1x Zealous Persecution
Card Choices
Lands:
A note about lands: There are 11 turn one sources for B, and by turn two there are 14 lands that can supply B, with 13 each for C and W. Having the right balance of mana sources is challenging and the manabase is very tight. When modifying, it is essential to carefully consider and fully playtest any changes to the color mix. Conversely, cards with double color requirements should be minimized wherever possible. A great article outlining proper color balance for casting spells on-time can be found here.
Creatures:
Axes of Interaction
Lands: The land package is an important interactive axis for Processors. Fully a third of the land package can tamper with an opponent’s plans. Cavern of Souls wrecks the blue decks, Shambling Vent beats face while Ghost Quarter shuts down inconvenient opposing lands, and Vault swings late games, period. Sea Gate Wreckage and Westvale Abbey also do work in some builds. Playing utility lands as one of our “colors” is a major strength of this deck.
Graveyard: Graveyard hate is relevant against loads of builds. In the current meta it is powerful against BGx (Goyf, Scooze), URx (Snapcaster, Kolaghan’s Command, flashback in general), Abzan CoCo (can stop the combo if mana is up to activate Relic), Kiki Chord (stops Eternal Witness and Reveillark shenanigans), as well as more peripheral but still not uncommon decks like Dredge, Living End, Storm, Gifts Ungiven builds, UW Tron, Thopter/Sword, etc. It is important to note that in the current format, the maindeck Relics are good all by themselves; they are not there simply to power Strangler and Herder. They cantrip too so they are never completely dead.
Exile: Exile zone hate comes into play rarely but is always very satisfying when it does. There is nothing quite like the feeling of casting a T2 Strangler, processing a suspended Rift Bolt, killing a Goblin Guide, and then watching it eat a Bolt itself as a 3-for-1 play. Greatly improves the matchup against Ad Nauseam and any deck with Ancestral Vision while sometimes getting an early Search for Tomorrow or a suspended Living End. However, getting two cards into exile for Herder is not always possible, and sometimes Strangler needs to be played before he has a card to process or a target to hit.
Creatures: The large majority of the creatures are Bolt, Abrupt Decay, and Inquisition of Kozilek-proof. They also tend to be bigger and more numerous than most opponents’ big creatures. With lots of tokens as well, the deck plays both tall and wide, powerfully taxing opponents’ removal.
Hand Disruption: Thoughtseize/IoK/Thought-Knot Seer are a key aspect of the gameplan. Knowing when to cast these and what to take is a skill developed through lots of practice, and players will benefit from extensive knowledge of the format and opposing decks’ gameplans. A seminal article on the topic can be found here.
Card Advantage: Though not strictly interactive, CA is worth discussing. Blight Herder and Lingering Souls both create multiple bodies. Relic and Mind Stone cantrip. Reality Smasher requires discard to remove. Strangler can frequently be a 2-for-1 and sometimes even a 3-for-1. Reshaper replaces itself when it dies. There are several sweepers in the sideboard.
Guide to Playing the Deck
See this post for a general overview of what the deck is trying to do in the first several turns.
Matchups
Note: The Modern meta is wide open right now with tons of decks around, some changing significantly, and new decks cropping up frequently. I have tried to cover the matchups I am familiar with. I encourage other players to contribute their matchup notes to the discussion in the comments and will update this section periodically when needed.
BGx builds: Processors is strongly favored. Relic takes care of Goyf and Scooze while Spirit tokens resist removal and push through damage. Lingering Souls discards to Liliana while our Eldrazi are as big or bigger than their creatures and are resistant to many forms of their removal. Ghost Quarter takes care of Raging Ravine and Stirring Wildwood.
URx/UWx builds: Processors is strongly favored. These decks’ generally slow gameplan allows us to develop our own resources with plenty of time--Shambling Vent shines in these matches. Relic nukes Snapcaster Mage, K Command, and flashback in general, while Lingering Souls and Blight Herder push tokens through counterspells. When they delve their graveyards away they turn on our processors for us. Landing a Cavern of Souls can be game over because resolved Eldrazi can be hard to remove for these decks. Ghost Quarter answers their main late-game manlands, Celestial Colonnade and Creeping Tar Pit. Watch out not to overextend into sweepers. Thoughtseize is always a live draw against these decks and clears the way for our actual threats.
Graveyard decks (Living End, Dredge, Storm etc.): Processors is strongly favored. Four maindeck Relics, plus some number of Surgical Extraction out of the side, means we are pre-boarded in G1 and then very strongly boarded in G2/3. Never tap out when Relic is on the table.
Ad Nauseam: Processors is strongly favored. Ad Nauseam is weak to us because they are slow and vulnerable to hand disruption, processing and Stony Silence. Prioritize taking their protective spells, Angel's Grace and Phyrexian Unlife. Surgical Extraction is great out of the side, as with combo matchups in general.
Affinity/Infect: Processors is favored. Though fast starts from these decks can be tough to handle, our Ghost Quarters are very good against Inkmoth Nexus, and our Spirit tokens defend us very effectively. Abundant targeted removal deals with their important creatures. Both matchups get even better in G2/3; bring in Pithing Needle for both, if you have it. The top removal targets in Affinity are Arcbound Ravager and Steel Overseer, as Etched Champion is very bad against us. While playing Infect you should prioritize removing Blighted Agent. Our deck makes Apostle's Blessing a near-dead draw for them.
Burn: Even matchup. Careful management of life is important and mulling for lifegain in G2/3 is not a bad idea if the opening seven has none and isn’t otherwise amazing (e.g., two Temples plus a Thought-Knot Seer and a Smasher). Side out pain cards like Thoughtseize and Unmaking in this match.
Abzan CoCo/Kiki Chord/Bant CoCo: Even matchup. Graveyard hate is relevant against all three decks and sweepers from the board improve G2/3. It is smart to sandbag a Path, if possible, to stop the combo plans of the first couple of decks. Pithing Needle can be very good in these matchups--name a combo enabler, Spellskite, or even a fetchland. Ghost Quarter is relevant for Gavony Township.
Bant Eldrazi/RG Eldrazi: I haven't played against these builds very much yet, but right now my sense is that they are roughly even--Damnation will be a big help post-board. Tokens are terrible against opposing Reality Smashers but we have a lot more hand disruption and our removal outperforms their limited (Bant's four Paths) or small-scale (RG's four Bolts) removal options.
Death and Taxes variants: Variable; if they get Vial T1 and a good mix of creatures this can be quite tough; on the other hand, if they miss their Vial drop and we get early hand disruption they are usually pretty easy to beat. Pithing Needle and Ratchet Bomb are stars here but it is probably not right to side in Stony Silence for Vial.
Tron Variants: Favorable to somewhat unfavorable for Processors. Mono-U and UW Tron are considerably easier because of their slowness and over-reliance on counterspells. RG Tron is very unfavorable G1 without a very fast clock and a good amount of hand disruption; Lingering Souls is very bad against RG Tron, though it's great against the blue Tron builds. Hand disruption is very good in all cases vs. Tron. In G2/3, Stony Silence, Surgical Extraction, Pithing Needle and Anguished Unmaking/O-Ring are all all-stars, and greatly improve all the Tron matchups. Important note: Ghost Quarter is not enough by itself! They are too consistent, and they can easily fight through one or even two removed Tron lands unless we can both strongly pressure their life total and keep Karn from resolving. However GQ into Extraction is backbreaking if you can put it together.
Elves/Merfolk/Zoo/BW Tokens: Variably close-to-slightly-unfavorable for Processors. Elves and Fish tend not to fill the graveyard, making Relic (and Herder and Strangler) much worse. Tokens neuters our targeted removal plans. All these matchups obviously get better with more sweeper effects in the board. Damnation is better than Flaying Tendrils for Fish and Zoo, but Tendrils can be better against Tokens and Elves. Damnation may be a surer bet, as a general rule. Ratchet Bomb and Zealous Persecution are great against all these decks, while Pithing Needle shines against Fish and against Ezuri, Renegade Leader, and may be useful against Naya Zoo builds (name a fetch land, Ooze, or possibly Grim Lavamancer). Hard G1s, and we are hoping to find our sweeper sideboard hate G2/3 in most cases.
Scapeshift and RG Titan/Land Ramp variants: Unfavorable for Processors. Save hand disruption for later to try for Primetime or Scapeshift itself. In G2/3, try to sandbag Ghost Quarter in case they play an early Valakut that you might be able to Extract. Scapeshift comes in several versions that require different approaches, and can be hard to disrupt when piloted well.
Lantern Control: Unfavorable for Processors. We need to remove their Ensnaring Bridge which is their main win con against us. Stony Silence, Ratchet Bomb (though a nonbo with Stony), Pithing Needle and Anguished Unmaking/O-Ring are strong out of the board, but you want them in your opening hand so they don’t get milled away. A little trick here is Pathing your own Thought-Knot Seer, making them draw so you can get a swing in under their Bridge with your Spirit and Scion tokens.
8-Whack: Unfavorable for Processors. They can be very fast and wide and are killing us while we are still setting up. Legion Loyalist is a nightmare for our chump-blocker plan and our sweepers can be too slow. Flaying Tendrils, Zealous Persecution, and Ratchet Bomb are much better than Damnation in this match.
Bogles: Strongly unfavorable for Processors. This match gets a lot better if you side a couple Spellskites and/or more Ratchet Bombs or even Engineered Explosives. Zealous Persecution can get a guy in response to an enchantment when we have the play. Best hope here is to Thoughtseize away their guy after winning the die roll.
RG Land Destruction/RW Prison: Strongly unfavorable for Processors. If these decks see play in your meta, consider Crucible of Worlds and/or Sacred Ground. But these cards are probably too narrow for a general meta.
Sideboarding Overview
Sweepers: Sweepers to run include Damnation, Wrath of God, Flaying Tendrils, Ratchet Bomb, Declaration in Stone, and/or Zealous Persecution. Damnation and Wrath hit every creature, but leave behind Persist/Undying creatures, are slow, and cost WW or BB. Tendrils exiles, which is good, but misses important X/3+ creatures and also needs BB. Persecution is a nasty combat trick and is amazing both with and against tokens. Ratchet Bomb is slow, but can get Blood Moon and Ensnaring Bridge and is also very good against tokens and mana dorks. In this deck, Engineered Explosives can only get to 2 in most circumstances and should be avoided. Play 2-4 sweepers depending on meta expectations.
Artifact Hate: Stony Silence is invaluable against Affinity, Tron, Lantern Control, and Thopter Foundry builds. Like other white decks, we should play 2-3. Watch out for nerfing your own artifacts like Relic, Mind Stone, Ratchet Bomb, etc. Also see the "Utility" section below for more cards that deal with problem artifacts.
Lifegain: Timely Reinforcements can help against aggro, while both it and Rest for the Weary come in against Burn. Rest works better in a deck that runs fetch lands. Run at least three; early iterations of Processors had as many as five of these effects.
Combo Hate: Surgical Extraction is a good way to get key cards out of play altogether. Use with Ghost Quarter for Tron or Scapeshift, and with Thoughtseize for all combo decks. Run 2-4 in the 75.
Utility: Anguished Unmaking, Oblivion Ring, Disenchant, Celestial Purge, Pithing Needle, and Ratchet Bomb can all come in for a wide variety of catch-all reasons. Some mix of these cards should be present in the 75 in at least a quantity of 3-4.
Other sideboard options: Depending on local meta and personal play style, you may want to consider Ghostly Prison for metas with lots of aggro, or Spellskite for Bogles and/or lots of targeted removal (but this is not usually necessary, because Processors already taxes removal with lots of tokens and big creatures). More peripheral choices like Worship, Runed Halo, or Aven Mindcensor might make sense for some players. White has a ton of good SB options to tune the deck for small and/or unique local metagames.