MTG Salvation

I guess while the mods are asking questions...

I've played Skred for a long time. Nearly 3 years, actually. I need to find something new. I've done very well with midrange decks that throw the opponent off balance for a few turns and then turn the corner into fast haymaker punches, but I want to expand past this. I've been looking at tempo or different styles of midrange/control and tempo for now. I've never been great with grindy midrange or tutor-heavy decks, but I'm willing to ease my way into them. I've never been fond of playing combo but could be convinced to play it. At this point I'm trying to decide between:

Literally any Delver variant
BUG Reclamation
Grixis Control/Midrange with Kess
Tempo Faeries

Obviously I can test all of these, but these are 4 very different decks. What should I start with, or lean towards given this information?

Regardless of how poorly positioned the decks I love are, I've been playing Skred for nearly 3 years straight. I love the deck and always will, but maybe it's time to finally branch out a bit. I'm only playing at FNM, so I really don't care about building a pile of garbage and running with it. I want something somewhat affordable, so below $1k is where I want to be at. I've made a list of archetypes I'd be down to build. What do you think I should go with?

GW Aggro (Think Watchwolfs and Dryad Militants)
Some KotR Loam pile
Death Cloud
Hierarchless Zoo

I'm kinda leaning towards KotR Loam or Death Cloud.

I need some help. Like, a lot of help. I love my current deck (Skred). I love it to pieces. It is my baby, and no one will ever tell me otherwise. But I cannot justify playing a deck that is no longer competitive. I consistently get crushed, and I feel like I can no longer compete at a reasonable level. On one hand, I want to play cards I like. I love Blood Moon, Sun Titan, Lingering Souls, and control decks in general (even though I am a garbage control pilot), I like MartyrProc and Sun & Moon, but I also want to be competitive. What should I play? Should I accept winning and just play a tiered deck? Do I follow my desire to be a real Modern prison player? HELP

Quote from 13055 »

Bump!


Hey, guys. Finally found a store I think I like near where I moved to, and wanted to see if there's something I can start playing to adapt to their meta. In the past I've jumped around a lot, so I'm comfortable playing pretty much any playstyle. I also have most of every Modern deck built; just need some advice on what to focus on.

The meta appears to have more Affinity players than any other deck, but I saw a smattering of pretty much everything tonight. I played against Affinity, Titanshift, Midrange Abzan, and Esper Draw-Go. I saw people playing Jeskai Ascendancy, RB Grislebrand Reanimator, and I'm pretty sure there were two Grixis DS players.

I played Bogles (my fully-foiled pet deck) to 2-2, losing to the grindy Liliana-casting Abzan player and the 4-maindeck-enchantment-removal Esper Draw-Go (I swear I'm not salty), but I feel there are probably more fitting (read: better) decks that I can approach the meta with.

Thanks, guys!

Because this one hasn't been answered yet, I guess I'll take it. It sounds like you could just play whatever you want because the meta is so diverse. There's a certain point where the field no longer had a weak spot, so I suggest just finding whatever you think is cool and play it. Personally, I would take Skred to that meta because it eats midrange/control decks while also having decent game against the aggro decks.

I'm also looking to build a second deck actually. I own Skred (my pet deck), along with Legacy Moggcatcher, so I have Chalices, Magus of the Moons, Trinispheres, and Ensnaring Bridges. Thus, I have a few options I'm considering. Sun & Moon looks like a lot of fun, and I've always loved Boros Prison decks. RG Ponza was a fun deck to play, and I already own a few pieces to begin building it myself. I've had my eyes on Merfolk for a while, and with all the reprints coming up I think it may be time to start acquiring pieces. Thoughts?

I need some serious help. I really like playing control (I may play it wrong most of the time, I may even be really bad, but I still love it) and I really want to play control in Modern. My collection is very narrow staples wise. 4x Windswept Heath, 3x Godless Shrine, 3x Path to Exile, 3x Blood moon, a Batterskull, and some misc. hand attack. I currently play Skred and love it, but the recent bans have me wondering about what else the format has to offer. I honestly do not have a lot of money, s this will be a slow project. I love playing blood Moon, but I'm willing to expand into more traditional control decks. I do really enjoy nontraditional control as well. So far, these are my considerations
Sun and Moon
U(W) Tron
Blue Moon
Esper Draw-Go (including Mystical Teachings variants)
MartyrProc

Looking at the list, a lot of these decks have slight prison elements, so maybe that's something I enjoy without really noticing it? This is only for FNM (albeit one that is exclusively tier one decks), so I'm perfectly fine with any of them!

I managed to get some extra cash (but not much) to spend on Magic, and right now I'm stuck between two decks. The first is 8Whack, because I really love mono red aggro despite being a control player. The second is a budget take on Bushwhacker Zoo. However, this would be a very budget take on the deck. My only fetches would be Windswept Heath, it wouldn't have Goblin Guides or Vexing Devil, and could potentially turn out being crappy. Either of these decks would be secondary to Skred Red, which cleans house at FNM but it would be nice to have something else to scratch my aggro itch (or relapse I suppose lol). Really this is a matter of Goblins vs. Wild Nacatl. Which should I go with?

If you want to win, keep Kiki around. If you're in it to have a fun, play what you want. Do you have to sell off the pieces to the other deck? If you don't you can just play whatever you want.

Playing Skred showed me that I love playing Blood Moon. Like, a lot. What kind of control/prison decks can I play with it? So far the biggest I've seen are Blue Moon and RG Ponza.

After looking into UW Control, I realized that it honestly looks boring. It just doesn't appeal to my style of playing something off the beaten path or at least trying something innovative. My search for control in Modern makes me feel like I'm going around in circles, from tiered and well-known to sweet but not competitive enough for my FNM scene, which is all tier 1 decks plus whatever the new hotness is in Modern. I can't decide between winning and having a great time at FNM (but I am thinking about branching out into SCG events), not to say that there isn't a way to do both. What else is out there? Here are my more expensive staples
4 Windswept Heath
4 Path
3 Thoughtseize
3 IoK
4 Bolt
4 Bitterblossom
A near complete BW Manabase (missing Marsh Flats).

Quote from Ayiluss »

I agree that Merfolk would be decent choice in this metagame. While Jund is favored (at least a bit) Merfolk has a shot at beating it. If you want to beat Jund you could try 8 Seas version (list with 4 Spreading Seas and 4 Sea's Claim) and this one certainly has a good Jund matchup but it's worse against faster, linear decks.

I'm still working with Merfolk and testing it, but I like having multiple options. Any suggestions for control decks?

Quote from SgtPepperjack »

I'm just kind of curious and in the mood to brew a bit; what are the most viable deck archetypes in straight UW? Are there any decks that could viably utilize Favorable Winds?

I'm sure you could throw it into spirits, but if you want to brew there's gotta be a UW or UB aggro/tempo fliers strategy that could use an anthem.

I'm looking for a control deck for FNM. I currently play Skred Red and love it but eventually people will hate out Blood Moon. I want something fun to play that doesn't break the bank but can also hang with the tier one decks, namely Jund. My general rule of thumb is avoiding cards priced at $50 or more a piece. Any suggestions?

EDIT: I'm also looking into Merfolk and Allies, because I love synergistic aggro. The problem is there is so much Jund that Allies is next to unplayable and Merfolk is fun but I certainly couldn't play it all the time.

Quote from NerahKero »

Hey and thanks in advance for the help. I'm a player who almost exclusively plays modern now and have 4 decks built: Bogles, Bushwacker Zoo(sans goblin guides), and Collected Elves. I have the majority of the fetches and shocks for those decks. I have a few modern staples here and there.

I'm looking for a deck that's less crazy fast and cutthroat as the decks I own. Maybe something more midrange and fun or even interactive. Im not against going out to buy some new land bases, but I'd like to incorporate what I have already as much as possible. I've also had an itch to play black lately. I'd like this deck to be able to do well at FNM and perhaps PTQ.

With that information I hope you guys have good ideas for me. Maybe an Abzan company or midrange deck. Or maybe even Loam Pox. Who knows. Thanks again

You may want to look into Wilted Abzan. No Goyfs or Liliana needed. BW Tokens is great if you're prioritizing fun, but it needs to be piloted well in order to get good results.

Speaking of Wilted Abzan, I'm a little stuck on what I should play next. My main considerations are Death and Taxes and Wilted Abzan. Wilted seems more like my playstyle but I own the majority of D&T's manabase because I play BW Tokens. My discard and removal, along with my fetches, do go into Wilted though. What's better for an FNM scene that has a very competitive metagame?

In my search for new decks, I want to try something cool but also a little rogue. I'm still strongly considering MartyrProc, but what else is there with a mostly complete BW manabase (No Marsh Flats but I have a full set of Windswept Heath) and some isolated UW lands?

I hate to be "that guy," but I wouldn't bring any of those. I would take BW Tokens. It's super powerful in that meta becauss all of those decks will 1 for 1 you. Tokens breaks that symmetry like none other.

BW Tokens is getting next to impossible to play at my LGS. I've scrubbed really hard the past few weeks and may need a change of pace. I've recently looked into mass lifegain strategies, specifically MartyrProc. It has fantastic matchups against the prominent decks of my metagame. I also love really long games, so that's a plus. Soul Sisters seems like a lot of fun because it's customizable for the metagame. What's best for FNM?