All are powered on the back of Looting. (...) All would take a massive hit just by removing looting.
What a pile of nonsense, Looting is ok at best in GDS and when it reigned supreme, nobody even played a single copy.
I thought I saw the most recent GDS is now running it while they search for the best way to dig for their limited threats? I saw that on Twitter by at least 2 GDS players on the SCG/GP grind.
If I'm wrong, no worries.
EDIT: Next ban announcement is Monday. I highly doubt anything happens, but if nothing does, I'll check back in May with those 2 sets I guess.
If there is interest in actual discussion about Looting/Stirrings/Terminus/Opal, we could actually talk about those things.
I mean saying looting is fine is an interesting view.
GDS
Pyro
Hollow One
Dredge
Phoenix
All are powered on the back of Looting. All have at some point been the best deck in the format. All would take a massive hit just by removing looting.
I had this discussion about if Phoenix is a yard deck and obviously is. It's just Bloo or Blue Moon, tilted towards Looting to maximize Phoenix.
Anyway, I'd enjoy some actual discussion about those cards, but the article writers are cowards and won't address it.
I beg to differ that control has never been that, Jeskai at it's best has won a PT, a World Championship and several GPs and SCG Opens!
Indeed, some of the best periods of this format had UWR competing at or near the top. It now is a sub 50% win rate deck based on the last numbers I saw.
Banning KCI did literally nothing but remove a single drop in the ocean that was objectively 'the best'. You now have 2 flavours of 'the best' depending on what you subscribe to, or perhaps thats just hyperbole reflected in stats, pro opinions, grinders, and so on...
It never had enough of a meaningful meta share to reflect meaningfully in most of our daily/weekly/whatever play but was clearly the best so had to get the axe.
Meanwhile Burn, Affinity, Amulet, and flavors of Lantern are all on the rise. Do you ever not speak entirely in hyperbole?
Not really, most people dont read past a few lines these days.
Burn will always exist, Affinity (Scaled or Frenzy) will always exist, Amulet is up there with Shift, and Whir decks are indeed growing, but they are not at the level of the top 3, either in power (Burn) or meta share (the rest).
Believe whatever you want about the meta, as it probably doesnt reflect in your local (or mine, or FoodChains, or whoever) because people play what they have/want to. /shrug
All decks 'push out' other decks. That is the nature of a meta. Like lets be real, as I gaze over at my twitter and see pro's dropping 'tier lists' for fun.
If you are not on Dredge, GDS, or Phoenix, you are PROBABLY doing it wrong. Shift is probably in there too, but personally I think thats because Shift beats up on the plebs that are not playing those other 3.
Its unceasingly frustrating, seeing people talk about the format when there are truth's about power level that are easily missed because people dont play whats best. They play what they own, or what they like.
I kind of want to say more about Stoneforge Mystic, but there are at least 2 players at my LGS who don't believe Stoneforge Mystic will or should get unbanned. LO Freaking L.
You know...I can barely work up the desire to even care, but what is the actual argument against SFM? Literally someone spell it out for me because I dont get it.
I want to see the decklist of a SFM deck that would actually even dent this formats top players.
cfusionpm is right, fair decks can beat up hard on Phoenix, but...people dont play them in Modern because outside a narrow metagame, fair decks suck.
From my experience with way too many fair decks, it seems like the good matchups are only barely, marginally good, but the bad matchups are unbelievably bad.
We saw this first hand with the masterful deck design and play lines of Yuta Takahashi and UB Fae get roflstomped by land drops and top-decked green cards to get knocked out of the Top 8.
Thats the real kicker. A master of his craft, with true love and passion for his archetype, fights tooth and nail to top 32-16 over and over, meanwhile you can literally put Standard cards into your deck because you dont have the Modern equal's, and on the back of Phoenix, Looting, and Cantrips, do well.
Its why despite it being the deck I play, I wish I could play Blue Moon instead, but who chooses to lose? Not me, I've got better ways to waste my time.
Yeah, Phoenix is a totally beatable deck with real weaknesses, as much as GDS was. UWx Control decks, DS decks, Jund/Abzan decks + Burn + Tron, and also fast combo decks win vs Phoenix.
But, yet again, people were screaming for bans back in the days DS was invented.
I think you undersell phoenix, criminally.
cfusionpm is right, fair decks can beat up hard on Phoenix, but...people dont play them in Modern because outside a narrow metagame, fair decks suck.
HolyDiva used to say, in a race meta, Bloo was king, and Phoenix is just a shade on the more fair resilient side of Bloo, there is a reason its the deck of the event, again.
Could lead to some very monotone semis and finals. Imagine if they did it the way I listed on the last page? LOL. Would have been 3 mirrors and a lopsided, fingers-crossed race.
Yeah I mean, I still play Phoenix now and again, but people are fooling themselves if they think this just 'gets better'. Those articles linked months back, on Xerox vs Denial, are fundamental to Magic.
We have hit Xerox. Between Phoenix, and Shadow, we are there.
Denial is Rock, and Terminus, and if those get powered up?
Yuck.
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I thought I saw the most recent GDS is now running it while they search for the best way to dig for their limited threats? I saw that on Twitter by at least 2 GDS players on the SCG/GP grind.
If I'm wrong, no worries.
EDIT: Next ban announcement is Monday. I highly doubt anything happens, but if nothing does, I'll check back in May with those 2 sets I guess.
Enjoy.
Spirits
I mean saying looting is fine is an interesting view.
GDS
Pyro
Hollow One
Dredge
Phoenix
All are powered on the back of Looting. All have at some point been the best deck in the format. All would take a massive hit just by removing looting.
I had this discussion about if Phoenix is a yard deck and obviously is. It's just Bloo or Blue Moon, tilted towards Looting to maximize Phoenix.
Anyway, I'd enjoy some actual discussion about those cards, but the article writers are cowards and won't address it.
Spirits
Indeed, some of the best periods of this format had UWR competing at or near the top. It now is a sub 50% win rate deck based on the last numbers I saw.
Spirits
It never had enough of a meaningful meta share to reflect meaningfully in most of our daily/weekly/whatever play but was clearly the best so had to get the axe.
Spirits
Not really, most people dont read past a few lines these days.
Burn will always exist, Affinity (Scaled or Frenzy) will always exist, Amulet is up there with Shift, and Whir decks are indeed growing, but they are not at the level of the top 3, either in power (Burn) or meta share (the rest).
Believe whatever you want about the meta, as it probably doesnt reflect in your local (or mine, or FoodChains, or whoever) because people play what they have/want to. /shrug
Spirits
If you are not on Dredge, GDS, or Phoenix, you are PROBABLY doing it wrong. Shift is probably in there too, but personally I think thats because Shift beats up on the plebs that are not playing those other 3.
Its unceasingly frustrating, seeing people talk about the format when there are truth's about power level that are easily missed because people dont play whats best. They play what they own, or what they like.
Spirits
You know...I can barely work up the desire to even care, but what is the actual argument against SFM? Literally someone spell it out for me because I dont get it.
I want to see the decklist of a SFM deck that would actually even dent this formats top players.
Spirits
Rhetoric was in both my Spirits (Bant and UW) and Knightfall, and was great against plenty of current decks.
Very good underrated card.
As to the meta, I saw a good tweet. It's Phoenix, Dredge, and then everyone else. Outside GDS, next to zero stack interaction in the format.
And no, UW is not even good right now when it's RIP, Terminus or bust.
As to Jace? In 2019? Lol
Spirits
Thats the real kicker. A master of his craft, with true love and passion for his archetype, fights tooth and nail to top 32-16 over and over, meanwhile you can literally put Standard cards into your deck because you dont have the Modern equal's, and on the back of Phoenix, Looting, and Cantrips, do well.
Its why despite it being the deck I play, I wish I could play Blue Moon instead, but who chooses to lose? Not me, I've got better ways to waste my time.
Spirits
Spirits
I think you undersell phoenix, criminally.
cfusionpm is right, fair decks can beat up hard on Phoenix, but...people dont play them in Modern because outside a narrow metagame, fair decks suck.
HolyDiva used to say, in a race meta, Bloo was king, and Phoenix is just a shade on the more fair resilient side of Bloo, there is a reason its the deck of the event, again.
Spirits
Spirits
Yeah I have 3 abrades, 2 rejection, because Chalice is so obnoxious.
Spirits
Spirits
Yeah I mean, I still play Phoenix now and again, but people are fooling themselves if they think this just 'gets better'. Those articles linked months back, on Xerox vs Denial, are fundamental to Magic.
We have hit Xerox. Between Phoenix, and Shadow, we are there.
Denial is Rock, and Terminus, and if those get powered up?
Yuck.
Spirits