Okay, I spent some time "on vacation" from this project trying out Tezz AoB and U/B Death's Shadow. It was fun, and Tezzeret is definitely my new control deck - but I am ready to hammer out some tournaments with the gate now. I have recently reconfigured and fine tuned my deck to again, try to make it more consistent. I will have another tournament report Sunday using the following list.
I am separating the cards to show some of the different roles cards are playing and the ration of cards dedicated to each.
Depending on the meta I am walking into, the 2x Duress in the SB will be 2x Crypt Incursion or 1x Damnation and 1x Bile Blight. Depends on Living End, Merfolk, and Control.
So far testing with Bubbling Cauldron has been amazing. It nets 3 life every turn with BB, removes percy, and allows value on targeted removal. I may go to 2 MB and try that but I think 1 is correct.
I also giving smallpox a try instead of gatekeepeer. This is the switch I made from my last list. I think this might work out better since it lowers the curve of the deck (gatekeeper is essentially a 3drop) and its easier to get 2 black than 3. It also has double the removal that gatekeeper does. I don't care about the creature or the discard on my end since its likely no creature or a token and im discarding a thoughtseize or something. The only possible issue I see here is removing the attacker in gatekeeper. Althought I normally use him to chump until i stabilize and usually win with BB tokens or percy anyway. I may be able to also switch out ghost quarter with mutavault as well, but that might be pushing it.
-3 Gatekeeper of Malakir
-1 Duress
+3 Smallpox
+1 Swamp
Legacy:B The Gate // B Pox Modern:RGB Dredge // RBG Goblins // B The Gate // UBR Tezz AoB Control // RBG Prison Pox EDH:RBU Thraximundar // R Norin the Wary // RWB Kaalia of the Vast // BUR Grixis Combos // BU Gisa and Geralf Tribal Tiny Leaders:BUW Sydri, Galvanic Genius // R Feldon of the Third Path
I got distracted with my burn deck and a terrible necrotic ooze deck heh... But, I actually cut bile blight for another card. nameless inversion is getting a chance. I actually had an awesome game against melira pod where the opponent had a elemental token from a voice (+1/+1 counter on it) and a finks out. Me a Percy. They swing assuming I do not have removal since Percy is still there and they are at -2 life. I block finks and kill Percy with nameless.
It can kill Percy in a pinch, as well as buffs him, just watch out for bolts. It also acts as removal against nacatals and the like. Just watch out for rampager bloodrush. (Kill before they attack).
I tried out two funeral charms, and went 3-1 winning one match because of it. Jund to boot. I discarded their top deck to swing in for lethal with Percy, the other, they blocked with a thundermaw hellkite, with two life left. Both of them were epic games but stupid close. I lost the first game to amazing discard/bob antics.
Lastly, I think I may be in love with phyrexian arena. It is a safer bob with a higher mana curve, and more difficult to remove. The issue is that it is not easily kill able should you be in a super long game like bob is. I love throwing bob in front of busses when I am low on health. My deck honestly just needs a way to recover life from bob and bb. pharika's cure is so close to perfect it hurts. If it were just three damage.
Edit: I just wanted to again say how awesome it was swinging into a thundermaw hellkite tampling for the win and getting rid of Percy in one swoop.
These are all reasons I originally said the same thing. Now I feel like it is worth a test just to find out what happens. I think this is what will happen - I will be getting a nastier 2 or even 3-for-1 and it is easier to cast. This does come at the cost of missing 3 beaters in the deck, but my experience thus far is gatekeeper rarely wins games like snapcaster mage does when attacking. Basically more aggressive disruption or 2-for-1 removal. So I am going to test this and see how much I screw myself - though I am confident the opponent is the one who will be more screwed. After all, we can turn blue in the face talking about how the deck should theoretically run, but someone needs to test these ideas.
When I was playing 8-rack I used to think playing bob and smallpox in one deck was silly. Then I saw a successful deck do just that and watched him play at a GP. Its all about timing. Sometimes smallpox isn't profitable so then you don't cast it. Save it as an answer to a threat or out for percy. Or just pitch it to lily if needed. We will see...
On ghost quarter - so far it has been necessary killing nykthos, tron lands, manlands, valakut, etc...
With smallpox I might be able to get away with mutavault now, it needs to be tested as well.
Legacy:B The Gate // B Pox Modern:RGB Dredge // RBG Goblins // B The Gate // UBR Tezz AoB Control // RBG Prison Pox EDH:RBU Thraximundar // R Norin the Wary // RWB Kaalia of the Vast // BUR Grixis Combos // BU Gisa and Geralf Tribal Tiny Leaders:BUW Sydri, Galvanic Genius // R Feldon of the Third Path
If your having trouble with your 1 drop removal slot I noticed you never mentioned engineered explosives
It can only hit 1 and 0 drops which may not make it worth using but I thought you may wanted to take a look at it
I tried out smallpox. I had a playset of bloodghast, and it still felt like it set me back about the same as my opponent without life from the loam. You should try it though. Try goldfishing with it too. I had 24 lands in mine back then and still hated getting stuck on 2-3 lands in this deck.
Edit: also, I agree completely on the timing thing. This deck is highly dependent on timing, knowledge of your opponents hand and deck. Just like the legacy version. I still think that smallpox has a nasty way of being a bad draw at most points during the game. I always ask myself when evaluating a card, when I would want to draw this card, and when I would not. Smallpox seems like a huge potential to be a wash, though even cards like thoughseize cane be terrible top decks late game. Let me know how you like it. Pox is my absolute favorite deck so I would be so ready if it does well at all.
Well i hammered out about 10 games against merfolf yesterday and i can say smallpox was awesome against the folk every time i drew it. Everytime i played it i weighed gatekeeper and smallpox in that situation and smallpox was better in that matchup. In my list i am not concerned if i am stuck on 2 mana for a while, as i can cast 90% of my deck at that point. Smallpox was faster than gatekeeper and more disruptive. My opponent moaned each time i cast it so that was an added bonus. Bloodghast and white lands are nice but not for this deck. Im not trying to make a smallpox deck, just evaluating gatekeeper and smallpox in different matchups.
I ended up 5-5 against merfolk in tesing without sideboard.
Also, against merfolk ghost quarter saved me many times either killing their mutavault or my land with spreading seas on it allowing me to block and fixing my mana. Im never unhappy to see mutiple ghost quarters in a game. Manlands...
Legacy:B The Gate // B Pox Modern:RGB Dredge // RBG Goblins // B The Gate // UBR Tezz AoB Control // RBG Prison Pox EDH:RBU Thraximundar // R Norin the Wary // RWB Kaalia of the Vast // BUR Grixis Combos // BU Gisa and Geralf Tribal Tiny Leaders:BUW Sydri, Galvanic Genius // R Feldon of the Third Path
Ghostquarters makes the RWU control deck just flop around sometimes. I mean, they will get a couple bolts here and there, but they do not really pack many kill cons, and getting that dang colonnade feels so good. I still can't decide if I want mutavault of the ghostquarters though. On paper smallpox feels rough, but let us know.
So I wen 2-1 today at the tournament. Small turnout because of my proximity to Richmond. About 5 people I know went to the GP this weekend.
Match 1 Splinter Twin (2-1) on the play Game 1 I kept him off of 4 mana and creatureless with 2x smallpox. Easy win. Game 2 he beat me to death with snapcaster mage and splinter twin on it - my top decks were bad and it was grindy. Game 3 I discarded everything and was able to draw off of bob. I drew 4 victim of night and used them all. I eventually won with Percy.
Match 2 vs G/W Aggro (2-0) on the draw Game 1 he almost whooped me with value creatures, and then Percy became a wall. I drew removal and came out on top. Game 2 I also drew the removal I needed (after siding in a bunch) and killed him with Percy again.
Match 3 vs R/G Tron (1-2) on the draw Game 1 he got really lucky drawing into two timely wurmcoil engines. Game 2 I beat him to death with Percy and discard. Game 3 was very strange. He drew 4 Oblivion Stones and ended up killing me with 2 wurm tokens. I never drew a ghost quarter or timely smallpox any game (strange). I feel like this was a winnable matchup, and don't really plan on changing up my gameplan any to increase my odds against this deck.
Smallpox was really good. Only twice I drew smallpox and didn't want it and it became lily fodder both times. Once was a one land hand I had to mull, and the second time was against tron when he had out a ton of non-tron lands to sac, no creatures, and no cards in hand. Every other time it was awesome and better than gatekeeper. I also used it as an out to percy in 2 games. One of the main reasons I like smallpox better than gatekeeper of malakir is because it is more disruptive and faster. It gives me a way to interact with the opponents mana, hand, and creatures all at once. I never had to discard something good (usually a land or discard spell) and never had to sac a creature I wanted to keep. 3-of seemed right. Smallpox was also nice to protect against flood a little.
Bubbling Cauldron was also really good, but I would keep it as a 1-of. Having a way to consistently gain life is pretty sweet and unlike Miren, the Moaning Well it only requires 1 mana to activate. I used it to out my percy once and got value out of a bunch of my opponents removal spells.
Bad Moon helped a lot against splinter twin, actually making my nighthawks bolt proof. Against other decks, it just increased my clock.
I am considering taking out 1 Victim of night for something else.
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Legacy:B The Gate // B Pox Modern:RGB Dredge // RBG Goblins // B The Gate // UBR Tezz AoB Control // RBG Prison Pox EDH:RBU Thraximundar // R Norin the Wary // RWB Kaalia of the Vast // BUR Grixis Combos // BU Gisa and Geralf Tribal Tiny Leaders:BUW Sydri, Galvanic Genius // R Feldon of the Third Path
I got distracted with my burn deck and a terrible necrotic ooze deck heh... But, I actually cut bile blight for another card. nameless inversion is getting a chance. I actually had an awesome game against melira pod where the opponent had a elemental token from a voice (+1/+1 counter on it) and a finks out. Me a Percy. They swing assuming I do not have removal since Percy is still there and they are at -2 life. I block finks and kill Percy with nameless.
It can kill Percy in a pinch, as well as buffs him, just watch out for bolts. It also acts as removal against nacatals and the like. Just watch out for rampager bloodrush. (Kill before they attack).
I tried out two funeral charms, and went 3-1 winning one match because of it. Jund to boot. I discarded their top deck to swing in for lethal with Percy, the other, they blocked with a thundermaw hellkite, with two life left. Both of them were epic games but stupid close. I lost the first game to amazing discard/bob antics.
Lastly, I think I may be in love with phyrexian arena. It is a safer bob with a higher mana curve, and more difficult to remove. The issue is that it is not easily kill able should you be in a super long game like bob is. I love throwing bob in front of busses when I am low on health. My deck honestly just needs a way to recover life from bob and bb. pharika's cure is so close to perfect it hurts. If it were just three damage.
Edit: I just wanted to again say how awesome it was swinging into a thundermaw hellkite tampling for the win and getting rid of Percy in one swoop.
I am not sure how Nameless Inversion is better than Bile Blight. In what you describe it does the same thing except occasionally pump a persecutor to be a 9/3. You can't use it on any other creature in your own deck, so it becomes a bile blight that instead of being able to possible 2-for-1 it can possible be a lightning bolt - which is probably much more difficult to do). I just think the benefits of inversion over blight are extremely situational, but maybe its just not my cup of tea. It is definitely playable if it's your thing. Also good against tribal decks.
I agree, Phyrexian Arena is safer with your curve.
Try out Bubbling Cauldron for life gain imo. Its a great engine effect with bitterblossom and percy. It is also good with Geralf's Messenger if you use him.
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Legacy:B The Gate // B Pox Modern:RGB Dredge // RBG Goblins // B The Gate // UBR Tezz AoB Control // RBG Prison Pox EDH:RBU Thraximundar // R Norin the Wary // RWB Kaalia of the Vast // BUR Grixis Combos // BU Gisa and Geralf Tribal Tiny Leaders:BUW Sydri, Galvanic Genius // R Feldon of the Third Path
I never said nameless inversion was better. I am just mentioning it as an option. I admit the two for one of bile blight is tempting, but I tested with it since it has been available and only had it happen once. that said, I do still think it is superior as removal. I was just looking for a more versatile removal spell. What I found is that with Percy it tends to be a win more card or an opportunity for a gross two for one. Against opponents creatures it doesn't have the effect of a fog like effect for creatures where the toughness is greater than three. So the bile blight time walk against splinter twin I dreamed of would now be impossible. (This matchup has never been even remotely close with all my discard so I thought I could sub bile blight out)
I took the deck to a 5 round chill tournament and went 2-3 yuck...
Living end just obliterated me. I never drew extirpate and most of my deck didn't matter until post living end. The match is winnable but unless you get a solid discard and hopefully extirpate it can be tough. Phyrexian arenarobably would have won me this matchup.
RWU control got me too, but it was just another, they top deck path the turn after I play Percy sorta thing. Idk why but even when they have no hand, they draw everything they need. :/ Ghostquarters was essential, but the games went long... I lost to bolts and snapcasters (I still don't think that bolts and casters are as bad as everyone else) lost a winnable game to merfolk which sucked. I misplayed and it cost me game one, game two they just were explosive.
I beat melira pod and 8 rack 2-0 first two rounds.
Just updated the OP for the thread and nominated us for the featured thread of the month! If there is anything I should add please let me know! I will include a section with different lists if people can post their current builds and success rate.
Legacy:B The Gate // B Pox Modern:RGB Dredge // RBG Goblins // B The Gate // UBR Tezz AoB Control // RBG Prison Pox EDH:RBU Thraximundar // R Norin the Wary // RWB Kaalia of the Vast // BUR Grixis Combos // BU Gisa and Geralf Tribal Tiny Leaders:BUW Sydri, Galvanic Genius // R Feldon of the Third Path
I couldn't do the 21 lands anymore. I also upped my discard a bit. I don't know why, but I have not been drawing turn one plays in my last few matchups at all. I haven't tested this new build yet, but I need more sac effects, and Smallpox just never let me cast Percy or get to four mana. Also testing nighthawk, though I am unconvinced. He does the same job as what I used geralf's messenger for, but he dies to top decked/extra bolts etc.. In legacy it seemed easier to escape removal honestly. lifegain is nice though. But again this is not quite done yet. Sideboard is also kinda thrown together so you'd be fine paying it less heed.
Took out ghost quarter for some more beaters, but I miss them. This isn't my final build, work has been crazy, but I wanna make room for either grafted wargear, sword of light and shadow or sword of feast and famine. I also need more sac outlets or removal to compensate for Percy. I think in this particular build I might be better off with phyrexian Obliterator and just change the manabase as such.
Also, nice update! We should go through and get a card by card analysis and such and maybe matchup info but this is a good start. We should consider cards like, dismember, surgical extraction, drown in sorrow at least as mentions.
I have been considering fulminator mage also. With smallpox, fulminator and tons of discard we could just equip a sword of x&y on a fairy, gatekeeper, or hawk and swing for huge profits while our opponent fiddles around trying to get back on mana. Might be a thing worth considering. Sword of light and shadow could recur fulminators and gatekeepers and sword of feast and famine could keep their hand down and capitalize on our shortened mana from smallpox. Seems epic in theory, though it would obviously need some testing. Maybe even bring in whip of erebos as a singleton. This is kinda a pox deck though at that point.
Yeah I definitely agree for the card additions - thanks for posting all of your updates here and I will add them asap to the OP. Most of those cards show up in the SB section.
Update -- added Parmaha's list (above) and suggestions, added Modern Transformation from legacy section. This is starting to look a lot like a primer lol
Legacy:B The Gate // B Pox Modern:RGB Dredge // RBG Goblins // B The Gate // UBR Tezz AoB Control // RBG Prison Pox EDH:RBU Thraximundar // R Norin the Wary // RWB Kaalia of the Vast // BUR Grixis Combos // BU Gisa and Geralf Tribal Tiny Leaders:BUW Sydri, Galvanic Genius // R Feldon of the Third Path
@ Ghorak - keep tuning and testing when you can. I am glad to see someone testing bloodghast and grafted wargear. Let us know when you have the most refined list you can conjure and I will add this variant to the OP.
Your list seems a little more aggressive than mine with both bad moon and grafted wargear, bad moon, and bloodghast. How does this work out since you are sacrificing some disruption and control elements? The more I see grafted wargear the more I like it - I assume you never have an issue equipping it to something since you have Bitterblossom and Bloodghast? I will probably try one in place of Bubbling Cauldron next time I play my deck.
Legacy:B The Gate // B Pox Modern:RGB Dredge // RBG Goblins // B The Gate // UBR Tezz AoB Control // RBG Prison Pox EDH:RBU Thraximundar // R Norin the Wary // RWB Kaalia of the Vast // BUR Grixis Combos // BU Gisa and Geralf Tribal Tiny Leaders:BUW Sydri, Galvanic Genius // R Feldon of the Third Path
Tomb of Urami is awesome!
It always taps for black mana if needed, and if you have Urborg out you don't even have to pay life to use it.
The second ability should be activated during late game, when our opponent is not likely to have an answer to a flying 5/5. It doesn't happen very often, but in my opinion having one is better than having none. It blocks Stormbreath dragons and Celestial Colonnades. If you have Bitterblossom out, you might as well sacrifice your lands against some matchups.
Also, it's very cheap, and it's nice to play some card from Kamigawa. Funnily enough, the only Kamigawa flavored cards that would see extensive play in Modern are banned (sensei's divining top and Umezawa's Jitte)
@ Ghorak your decklist actually looks a LOT like my old old list. I kinda miss that list. Grafter wargear on bloodghasts makes people make the dumbest decisions. Letting 5 through a turn while your opponent is wrecking your hand and your field is almost terrifying. Plus I love any excuse to play smallpox. I am thinking about trying out a build closer to my old one, maybe on the side. I think if I play smallpox I might go up in lands to 23-24. My current build seems to be moving more and more to a generic mbc/midrange list which isn't bad, it just defeats the purpose of cards like persecutor to some degree. Then again, after looking at all the mbc lists, they do have a lot of info to offer us.
Edit: also, ghostquarters is not just for tron. A ton of decks get hit hard by it, like collonades in uw control. I switched to mutavaults too but don't underestimate the quarters!
I wish raven's crime fit in with dakmor salvage. I love doing that for turns while beating down on an opponent. Unfortunately getting a fourth land drop really matters.
The main reason I do not run mutavault (and probably wouldn't in any meta) is the prevalence of man-lands in modern. We get the game to a topdeck mode and opposing manlands are hard to deal with. Against tron, the LD buys us a few turns before we have to worry about karn liberated or wurmcoil engine. Ghost quarter just fills such an important role in the deck.
Also, the ability to get rid of the "island" you have against merfolk (spreading seas) is very relevant and has won me a game or two in testing against that deck. Sometimes, you draw too many colorless mana and don't get that second or third swamp when you really need it - ghost quarter also is a soft fix for this issue as well.
Legacy:B The Gate // B Pox Modern:RGB Dredge // RBG Goblins // B The Gate // UBR Tezz AoB Control // RBG Prison Pox EDH:RBU Thraximundar // R Norin the Wary // RWB Kaalia of the Vast // BUR Grixis Combos // BU Gisa and Geralf Tribal Tiny Leaders:BUW Sydri, Galvanic Genius // R Feldon of the Third Path
Honestly, I haven't seen tron or scapeshift in a long time in my meta, but even against these decks it never bought me more than a turn, rarely two. If they are everywhere I would definitely play ghostquarters. The only other cards it has ever really gotten me is colonnades and ravines (one Treetop). I honestly think that ghostquarters might be better still, but if am giving mutavault a go. My control matchup is likely a lot less strong. Might just be a win more card but we will see.
Mutavault is a lot better than you give it credit. Hardly the worst man land. One mana activation is frequently significant especially if you consider the etb tapped man lands. Doesn't enter tapped also so can tap for colorless. When I get more sac effects in, it will also be cheaper fodder. It swings for two which is a big deal in a stalled board. Granted I don't run the bad moon. Wiping the board with mutavault ready is also amazing. Fresh start and you know you will likely get in two. Also, if you are playing smallpox, sacking two+ lands feels like an auto lose to me, but maybe I am too obsessive about my hitting all my land drops. Maybe this is due to me having a much higher curve. Plus, I like to play aggro on occasion and it feels good to be able to cast Percy then next turn they are looking at a 6/6 a 2/2 and something like a gatekeeper. Feels good. In a pinch it could even hold equipment. A 5/4 (grafted wargear for joke's sake) that dies at the end of turn is sweet occasionally.
Edit: my current build feels a LOT less controlly though. Idk how I feel about that yet. I miss my removal.
While it is nice to have access to a playable manland, Mutavault is outclassed by all other manlands in our deck which is why I would say "effectively" the worst manland. All by itself it earns its $35 pricetag, but in the gate it gets in for 2 damage here or there. Of course it is a meta call it more of an exception to the rule, rather than an equally viable option over a card such as ghost quarter.
As far as hitting land drops go, I am much less concerned about curving out. It happens often where I do not, but I can still cast multiple spells (or 2-for-1) effects that allow me to miss land drop 3 and 4 until later in the game. Depending on the hand, I will keep a 1-lander with access to 2-3 discard spells and a 1-2 good 2drops like bitterblossom or bob. If I can get your removal and stick the bob I wind up ahead rather than behind from the mulligan even if I miss a land here or there. Also, I try not to cast lily or percy unless the opponent is topdecking or has a really low hand count so it almost never comes down on curve unless its a god-hand kind of situation. Also, I will happily cast a smallpox saccing my third land (with no more in hand) in order to 2-for-1. I find I can do enough on 2 lands to make this worth while.
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Legacy:B The Gate // B Pox Modern:RGB Dredge // RBG Goblins // B The Gate // UBR Tezz AoB Control // RBG Prison Pox EDH:RBU Thraximundar // R Norin the Wary // RWB Kaalia of the Vast // BUR Grixis Combos // BU Gisa and Geralf Tribal Tiny Leaders:BUW Sydri, Galvanic Genius // R Feldon of the Third Path
I still don't understand how it is outclassed by any means, but I respect your opinion. Maybe I am not understanding what you mean, but I don't see any other manland that is better other than the raging ravine cycle, which obviously we don't have access to. Honestly for me, getting in for two here and there is how my deck thrives. Until they are out of cards and Percy can do work, we are really relying on little beaters. If we are at 3 lands for a large portion of the game I think I would be happy to get an extra two in. I could see an argument for evasiveness from blinkmoth but I wanted the two damage.
Also, I would never plop a Percy down with an opponent whose hand can deal with him. I know better than to let my win condition get pathed (or even let them be capable of developing a board state), but my point is that say we t2+ smallpox. We are getting great advantage from out opponent. They are not prepared for it while we are. Then you sac ghost quarter on top of it. You will effectively be at one-two lands. Yes bob is great, and yes we play for the long game, but I don't think many decks, ours included can survive sitting on one land. Obviously there is a lot of play time before using these cards, but cards like smallpox lose their potency in a long game. (Ghostquarters is still good don't get me wrong) I personally don't want to sit at two lands against RWU control while they slowly pick us apart with bolts etc with all their mana to protect themselves. We can get them to top deck mode but I don't want to go late game with control nearly as much as I do with x aggro (etc.) deck. Obviously my opinion, and I do respect yours. If smallpox and ghostquarters deal with your opponents board state enough to warrant the land issues, more power to you, but for me it was really just painful clearing their hand, controlling the board just to sit on two lands for turns while they top deck threats and recover. This deck can chill for a while without land, but not forever, as discard loses value when they top deck and play bigger cards.
Tl;dr ghostquarters is great, but in some matchups mutavault is better in my opinion.
About smallpox and ghost quarter - In my version of the deck, if I can stick a bitterblossom or a bob it doesn't matter so much how many lands I have early game because this is often enough to win the game with some backup disruption. At this point, all you need to do is keep the opponent fumbling with resource denial and discard to make them fall very far behind very quickly. Of course, I can still usually cast my three and four drops rather quickly with 22 lands in the deck. Don't use ghost quarter if you are low on lands - instead sac that land to smallpox saving your black source and preventing further mana issues on your side. Each situation warrants a different choice when it comes to using smallpox and GQ together - but its not that hard in practice.
I say that Mutavault is outclassed by other manlands because in a topdecking game, any other manland will do a better job at racing you and in that instance, ghost-quartering their manland is probably better (assuming mutavault isn't your only threat - and it shouldn't be). But, that is not the only reason Ghost Quarter is the better option in most matchups. Having the ability to kill utility lands as well makes this card much better in my deck.
Now, there is a place for mutavault in the gate for sure and that is in the more aggro versions of the deck (which it seems ghorak and parmaha are running more often). If your goal is to race the opponent, mutavault is better than ghost quarter in some situations - if you can manage to get around or ignore opposing manlands (victim of night does this well), or if your opponent doesn't run them. Even still though, your deck is sacrificing a strong removal card for a very weak beater - an option I still would not choose personally. Of course, if you have nothing else to do, getting in there for 2 a turn can be very good and even win the game. In my testing of mutavault I found this scenario to be very rare.
Below is a breakdown of the top modern decks representing the current metagame and which land I feel is better for the matchup. Of course some of these are debatable, and you should evaluate your choice based on the strengths and weaknesses of your particular deck when choosing ghost quarter or mutavault. I tried my best to be objective in classifying each deck as better for ghost quarter, mutavault, or tied.
Living End
They have no manlands or utility lands, so Mutavault is better - although it will be a target for removal with fulminator mage and avalanche riders. I would say that in this matchup that swamp is better than both helping you cast your black heavy spells in the face of their LD.
UWR Control
Ghost quarter kills their primary win condition Celestial Colonnade making it better hands down.
Merfolk
Ghost Quarter kills their mutavault, which is much better than out mutavault will ever be making ghost quarter better. They will likely nullify our mutavault with spreading seas. In the event that they do spreading seas a land of ours, we can use ghost quarter to get rid of it - allowing us to negate islandwalk.
Tron Variants
Ghost quarter keeps them off tron and kills eye of ugin (often the better target late game). Mutavault races them a little and dodges their removal, but that really what you want to be doing in this matchup.
Affinity
Mutavault and ghost quarter both have an equal place in this matchup IMO: Ghost quarter helps remove their inkmoth nexus and blinkmoth nexus which carry cranial plating. Both of these lands dodge our primary removal option which is sac effects. Mutavault blocks etched champion and helps race them a little. This matchup I would say is more of a personal choice which you should use based on your particular decklist.
UR Delver
Mutavault is probably better in this matchup as we have few good targets for ghost quarter - mainly their occasional mutavault.
JUND ad BG Rock Variants
Mutavault is going to do nothing against their manlands. Treetop village and Raging Ravine will out race us all day and ghost quarter kills them. Ghost quarter is the clear choice here.
UWR Midrange
Although less important to winning than in the control version, killing colonnade is still the better option.
Burn Decks
Mutavault is better because ghost quarter has no targets and doesnt help the race to win.
Scapeshift
Ghost quarter kills valakut, the molten pinnacle - simple.
Kiki-Pod and Melira-Pod
Killing Gavony Township with ghost quarter to prevent Kitchen Finks and friends from being re-used infinitely is better than having mutavault. Mutavault will likely never attack through their onslaught of creatures unless post board you damnation well. Even still you are likely only going to hit them once or twice and only if they are topdecking. A smart opponent will play around wipes.
Splinter Twin Decks
Mutavault is probably better in these matchups because they run few good targets for ghost quarter outside of Desolate Lighthouse in the UR variants.
Ghost Quarter is better: 7
Mutavault is better: 4
Tied (your choice): 1
Modern Boros
Why is this considered an established deck? Anyway - Mutavault is better, no targets for ghost quarter.
8-Rack
You need to out-attrition your opponent in this matchup. I am not sure which is better having played both decks for a long time. This is as close to a mirror match that we will ever see, and ensnaring bridge is a problem...
Death and Taxes
Mutavault is better, no targets for ghost quarter outside of their LD.
Azorius Midrange
Killing Celestial Colonnade wins
UB Faeries
Mutavault wins because it can attack, no targets for ghost quarter.
UR Storm
Mutavault is hands down better than ghost quarter here - it can attack and race.
Infect
Killing inkmoth nexus is really important since it dodges most of our removal. Ghost Quarter is better.
4C Gifts Control
Killing Celestial Colonnade and Creeping Tarpit is good, attacking is also good. I would say in this one its up to you.
Naya Midrange
Killing Kessig Wolf Run and Treetop Village is important, Mutavault will likely not get through their creatures.
Junk
Mutavault is better if they aren't running Stirring Wildwood which many of them do not.
RUG Delver
No targets for ghost quarter, mutavault all the way.
Mono U Tron
Ghost quarter slows down tron.
Soul Sisters
Killing Windbrisk Heights helps a bit, Mutavault is good at attacking through 1/1s. its up to you.
Dredgevine
Mutavault is better, GQ has no targets.
Goryo's Vengeance Reanimator
Mutavault is better, GQ has few targets
Ninja-Bear Delver
Mutavault is better, GQ has no targets.
Domain Zoo
Mutavault is better, GQ has few targets
Ad Nauseum Combo
Mutavault is better, GQ has no targets.
Mono Green Devotion
Ghost Quarter is better because it kills Nykthos, Shrine to Nyx - their main engine.
Esper Zur
Killing Creeping Tarpit is really good, I would say Ghost Qaurter is the way to go.
Restore Balance Combo
Ghost Quarter can target the few lands they have and disrupt them - this might be good, mutavault attacks which is probably better.
G/W Bogle Auras
Mutavault is better, GQ has no targets.
Ghost Quarter is better: 10
Mutavault is better: 15
Tied (your choice): 4
In conclusion - after looking at all of the possible matchups, I would say your choice boils down to answering the following questions for your deck since overall they are about 50-50 better or worse.
1. Does your deck want to race against other decks? Or do you focus more on controling the opponent while beating down?
My opinion--> The gate is not meant to be a deck that races, rather a deck that controls the opponent while beating them down with resiliant threats and creating as many 2-for-1 situations as possible.
2. Do you mind sacrificing the option to seriously cripple some decks for a weak 2/2 beater?
My opinion--> Absolutely not. Ghost Quarter helps us in some of our most difficult matchups and the ability to seriously cripple an opponent at little cost to me is not worth replacing with mutavault. It is a 2/2 with no ability, is easy to remove, and loses races against any other manland in the format.
3. What does your meta look like?
My opinion--> My meta is very diverse, changes dramatically each week because of good access to cards in my area, and represents the best of the above decks consistently. In this situation, Ghost Quarter is invaluable and helps me win more often than it does not.
Of course, each persons answers to these questions are going to be different, so mutavault might be appropriate in your particular situation, but in mine (and most people's I would argue) it is not better than ghost quarter.
Legacy:B The Gate // B Pox Modern:RGB Dredge // RBG Goblins // B The Gate // UBR Tezz AoB Control // RBG Prison Pox EDH:RBU Thraximundar // R Norin the Wary // RWB Kaalia of the Vast // BUR Grixis Combos // BU Gisa and Geralf Tribal Tiny Leaders:BUW Sydri, Galvanic Genius // R Feldon of the Third Path
I've been following this thread, and damn that's a good analysis.
Thanks! I hope it was helpful. I just wanted to thoroughly illustrate my point on the whole mutavault vs ghost quarter debate. My goal is to make the decision easier for someone new (or familiar with) the gate. I think these types of analyses help in addition to anecdotal evidence when evaluating card strengths and weaknesses within the greater modern meta. After all, magic decks don't exist in a void so we have to always keep that in mind. Looking at the two cards absent the meta makes the decision difficult and shortsighted. I'm not saying that anyone using Mutavault is missing the point, just to be clear. I just wanted to stress the complexity of the decision and variable outcomes based on unique situations.
Another thing I am always thinking about is success of the gate at a larger tournament - which would be tough if we never had these conversations about individual cards we use. Eventually I will write a specific matchup analysis for sideboarding and such. I welcome anyone else to do the same for their build! The more, the better.
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Legacy:B The Gate // B Pox Modern:RGB Dredge // RBG Goblins // B The Gate // UBR Tezz AoB Control // RBG Prison Pox EDH:RBU Thraximundar // R Norin the Wary // RWB Kaalia of the Vast // BUR Grixis Combos // BU Gisa and Geralf Tribal Tiny Leaders:BUW Sydri, Galvanic Genius // R Feldon of the Third Path
I play the gate in legacy and I am glad to see some people trying to make it modern playable. I have recently been playing a mono black devotion ishdeck in modern with as many similarities to my gate deck as possible.... I I am now trying to pull away from that and bring it closer to gate! I plan on still using gray merchant of asphodel because I want to be just as unfair as some of the top decks in modern. Landing him often just wins games. I hope to get some good ideas and feed back then I've gotten in other places... Anyway here is my list.
I am separating the cards to show some of the different roles cards are playing and the ration of cards dedicated to each.
4x Dark Confidant
4x Bitterblossom
4x Liliana of the Veil
1x Bubbling Cauldron
Removal & Disruption (17):
4x Inquisition of Kozilek
4x Thoughtseize
2x Funeral Charm
4x Victim of Night
3x Smallpox
3x Vampire Nighthawk
3x Abyssal Persecutor
2x Bad Moon
Resources (22):
2x Bojuka Bog
3x Ghost Quarter
3x Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth
1x Miren, the Moaning Well
13x Swamp
4x Extirpate
2x Damnation
2x Pithing Needle
2x Bile Blight
3x Deathmark
2x Duress
Depending on the meta I am walking into, the 2x Duress in the SB will be 2x Crypt Incursion or 1x Damnation and 1x Bile Blight. Depends on Living End, Merfolk, and Control.
So far testing with Bubbling Cauldron has been amazing. It nets 3 life every turn with BB, removes percy, and allows value on targeted removal. I may go to 2 MB and try that but I think 1 is correct.
I also giving smallpox a try instead of gatekeepeer. This is the switch I made from my last list. I think this might work out better since it lowers the curve of the deck (gatekeeper is essentially a 3drop) and its easier to get 2 black than 3. It also has double the removal that gatekeeper does. I don't care about the creature or the discard on my end since its likely no creature or a token and im discarding a thoughtseize or something. The only possible issue I see here is removing the attacker in gatekeeper. Althought I normally use him to chump until i stabilize and usually win with BB tokens or percy anyway. I may be able to also switch out ghost quarter with mutavault as well, but that might be pushing it.
-3 Gatekeeper of Malakir
-1 Duress
+3 Smallpox
+1 Swamp
Modern: RGB Dredge // RBG Goblins // B The Gate // UBR Tezz AoB Control // RBG Prison Pox
EDH: RBU Thraximundar // R Norin the Wary // RWB Kaalia of the Vast // BUR Grixis Combos // BU Gisa and Geralf Tribal
Tiny Leaders: BUW Sydri, Galvanic Genius // R Feldon of the Third Path
Projects:
Gisa and Geralf Extreme-Tribal EDH
Esper Eldrazi Processor Control
Brewing with Kuldotha Forgemaster
Primer: "The Gate" - Mono Black in Modern
Modern Prison Pox - building a better plague
It can kill Percy in a pinch, as well as buffs him, just watch out for bolts. It also acts as removal against nacatals and the like. Just watch out for rampager bloodrush. (Kill before they attack).
I tried out two funeral charms, and went 3-1 winning one match because of it. Jund to boot. I discarded their top deck to swing in for lethal with Percy, the other, they blocked with a thundermaw hellkite, with two life left. Both of them were epic games but stupid close. I lost the first game to amazing discard/bob antics.
Lastly, I think I may be in love with phyrexian arena. It is a safer bob with a higher mana curve, and more difficult to remove. The issue is that it is not easily kill able should you be in a super long game like bob is. I love throwing bob in front of busses when I am low on health. My deck honestly just needs a way to recover life from bob and bb. pharika's cure is so close to perfect it hurts. If it were just three damage.
Edit: I just wanted to again say how awesome it was swinging into a thundermaw hellkite tampling for the win and getting rid of Percy in one swoop.
When I was playing 8-rack I used to think playing bob and smallpox in one deck was silly. Then I saw a successful deck do just that and watched him play at a GP. Its all about timing. Sometimes smallpox isn't profitable so then you don't cast it. Save it as an answer to a threat or out for percy. Or just pitch it to lily if needed. We will see...
On ghost quarter - so far it has been necessary killing nykthos, tron lands, manlands, valakut, etc...
With smallpox I might be able to get away with mutavault now, it needs to be tested as well.
Modern: RGB Dredge // RBG Goblins // B The Gate // UBR Tezz AoB Control // RBG Prison Pox
EDH: RBU Thraximundar // R Norin the Wary // RWB Kaalia of the Vast // BUR Grixis Combos // BU Gisa and Geralf Tribal
Tiny Leaders: BUW Sydri, Galvanic Genius // R Feldon of the Third Path
Projects:
Gisa and Geralf Extreme-Tribal EDH
Esper Eldrazi Processor Control
Brewing with Kuldotha Forgemaster
Primer: "The Gate" - Mono Black in Modern
Modern Prison Pox - building a better plague
It can only hit 1 and 0 drops which may not make it worth using but I thought you may wanted to take a look at it
You could also try out Flagstones of Trokair and godless shrine with your tombs. It might cause some mana issues though.
Edit: also, I agree completely on the timing thing. This deck is highly dependent on timing, knowledge of your opponents hand and deck. Just like the legacy version. I still think that smallpox has a nasty way of being a bad draw at most points during the game. I always ask myself when evaluating a card, when I would want to draw this card, and when I would not. Smallpox seems like a huge potential to be a wash, though even cards like thoughseize cane be terrible top decks late game. Let me know how you like it. Pox is my absolute favorite deck so I would be so ready if it does well at all.
I ended up 5-5 against merfolk in tesing without sideboard.
Also, against merfolk ghost quarter saved me many times either killing their mutavault or my land with spreading seas on it allowing me to block and fixing my mana. Im never unhappy to see mutiple ghost quarters in a game. Manlands...
We will see how it works out tomorrow though
Modern: RGB Dredge // RBG Goblins // B The Gate // UBR Tezz AoB Control // RBG Prison Pox
EDH: RBU Thraximundar // R Norin the Wary // RWB Kaalia of the Vast // BUR Grixis Combos // BU Gisa and Geralf Tribal
Tiny Leaders: BUW Sydri, Galvanic Genius // R Feldon of the Third Path
Projects:
Gisa and Geralf Extreme-Tribal EDH
Esper Eldrazi Processor Control
Brewing with Kuldotha Forgemaster
Primer: "The Gate" - Mono Black in Modern
Modern Prison Pox - building a better plague
Match 1 Splinter Twin (2-1) on the play
Game 1 I kept him off of 4 mana and creatureless with 2x smallpox. Easy win. Game 2 he beat me to death with snapcaster mage and splinter twin on it - my top decks were bad and it was grindy. Game 3 I discarded everything and was able to draw off of bob. I drew 4 victim of night and used them all. I eventually won with Percy.
Match 2 vs G/W Aggro (2-0) on the draw
Game 1 he almost whooped me with value creatures, and then Percy became a wall. I drew removal and came out on top. Game 2 I also drew the removal I needed (after siding in a bunch) and killed him with Percy again.
Match 3 vs R/G Tron (1-2) on the draw
Game 1 he got really lucky drawing into two timely wurmcoil engines. Game 2 I beat him to death with Percy and discard. Game 3 was very strange. He drew 4 Oblivion Stones and ended up killing me with 2 wurm tokens. I never drew a ghost quarter or timely smallpox any game (strange). I feel like this was a winnable matchup, and don't really plan on changing up my gameplan any to increase my odds against this deck.
Smallpox was really good. Only twice I drew smallpox and didn't want it and it became lily fodder both times. Once was a one land hand I had to mull, and the second time was against tron when he had out a ton of non-tron lands to sac, no creatures, and no cards in hand. Every other time it was awesome and better than gatekeeper. I also used it as an out to percy in 2 games. One of the main reasons I like smallpox better than gatekeeper of malakir is because it is more disruptive and faster. It gives me a way to interact with the opponents mana, hand, and creatures all at once. I never had to discard something good (usually a land or discard spell) and never had to sac a creature I wanted to keep. 3-of seemed right. Smallpox was also nice to protect against flood a little.
Bubbling Cauldron was also really good, but I would keep it as a 1-of. Having a way to consistently gain life is pretty sweet and unlike Miren, the Moaning Well it only requires 1 mana to activate. I used it to out my percy once and got value out of a bunch of my opponents removal spells.
Bad Moon helped a lot against splinter twin, actually making my nighthawks bolt proof. Against other decks, it just increased my clock.
Abyssal Persecutor won me several games today.
I am considering taking out 1 Victim of night for something else.
Modern: RGB Dredge // RBG Goblins // B The Gate // UBR Tezz AoB Control // RBG Prison Pox
EDH: RBU Thraximundar // R Norin the Wary // RWB Kaalia of the Vast // BUR Grixis Combos // BU Gisa and Geralf Tribal
Tiny Leaders: BUW Sydri, Galvanic Genius // R Feldon of the Third Path
Projects:
Gisa and Geralf Extreme-Tribal EDH
Esper Eldrazi Processor Control
Brewing with Kuldotha Forgemaster
Primer: "The Gate" - Mono Black in Modern
Modern Prison Pox - building a better plague
I am not sure how Nameless Inversion is better than Bile Blight. In what you describe it does the same thing except occasionally pump a persecutor to be a 9/3. You can't use it on any other creature in your own deck, so it becomes a bile blight that instead of being able to possible 2-for-1 it can possible be a lightning bolt - which is probably much more difficult to do). I just think the benefits of inversion over blight are extremely situational, but maybe its just not my cup of tea. It is definitely playable if it's your thing. Also good against tribal decks.
I agree, Phyrexian Arena is safer with your curve.
Try out Bubbling Cauldron for life gain imo. Its a great engine effect with bitterblossom and percy. It is also good with Geralf's Messenger if you use him.
Modern: RGB Dredge // RBG Goblins // B The Gate // UBR Tezz AoB Control // RBG Prison Pox
EDH: RBU Thraximundar // R Norin the Wary // RWB Kaalia of the Vast // BUR Grixis Combos // BU Gisa and Geralf Tribal
Tiny Leaders: BUW Sydri, Galvanic Genius // R Feldon of the Third Path
Projects:
Gisa and Geralf Extreme-Tribal EDH
Esper Eldrazi Processor Control
Brewing with Kuldotha Forgemaster
Primer: "The Gate" - Mono Black in Modern
Modern Prison Pox - building a better plague
I took the deck to a 5 round chill tournament and went 2-3 yuck...
Living end just obliterated me. I never drew extirpate and most of my deck didn't matter until post living end. The match is winnable but unless you get a solid discard and hopefully extirpate it can be tough. Phyrexian arenarobably would have won me this matchup.
RWU control got me too, but it was just another, they top deck path the turn after I play Percy sorta thing. Idk why but even when they have no hand, they draw everything they need. :/ Ghostquarters was essential, but the games went long... I lost to bolts and snapcasters (I still don't think that bolts and casters are as bad as everyone else) lost a winnable game to merfolk which sucked. I misplayed and it cost me game one, game two they just were explosive.
I beat melira pod and 8 rack 2-0 first two rounds.
Featured Thread Application:
http://www.mtgsalvation.com/forums/the-game/modern/modern-deck-creation/528063-announcing-featured-threads?comment=32
Modern: RGB Dredge // RBG Goblins // B The Gate // UBR Tezz AoB Control // RBG Prison Pox
EDH: RBU Thraximundar // R Norin the Wary // RWB Kaalia of the Vast // BUR Grixis Combos // BU Gisa and Geralf Tribal
Tiny Leaders: BUW Sydri, Galvanic Genius // R Feldon of the Third Path
Projects:
Gisa and Geralf Extreme-Tribal EDH
Esper Eldrazi Processor Control
Brewing with Kuldotha Forgemaster
Primer: "The Gate" - Mono Black in Modern
Modern Prison Pox - building a better plague
4x Dark Confidant
4x Bitterblossom
4x Liliana of the Veil
Spells (17):
4x Inquisition of Kozilek
4x Thoughtseize
2x Funeral Charm
4x Victim of Night
3x Wrench Mind
3x Vampire Nighthawk
3x Abyssal Persecutor
3x Gatekeeper of Malakir
Mana (22):
3x Mutavault
3x Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth
1x Miren, the Moaning Well
15x Swamp
4x Extirpate
2x Damnation
2x Pithing Needle
2x Bile Blight
3x Deathmark
2x Torpor Orb
I couldn't do the 21 lands anymore. I also upped my discard a bit. I don't know why, but I have not been drawing turn one plays in my last few matchups at all. I haven't tested this new build yet, but I need more sac effects, and Smallpox just never let me cast Percy or get to four mana. Also testing nighthawk, though I am unconvinced. He does the same job as what I used geralf's messenger for, but he dies to top decked/extra bolts etc.. In legacy it seemed easier to escape removal honestly. lifegain is nice though. But again this is not quite done yet. Sideboard is also kinda thrown together so you'd be fine paying it less heed.
Took out ghost quarter for some more beaters, but I miss them. This isn't my final build, work has been crazy, but I wanna make room for either grafted wargear, sword of light and shadow or sword of feast and famine. I also need more sac outlets or removal to compensate for Percy. I think in this particular build I might be better off with phyrexian Obliterator and just change the manabase as such.
Also, nice update! We should go through and get a card by card analysis and such and maybe matchup info but this is a good start. We should consider cards like, dismember, surgical extraction, drown in sorrow at least as mentions.
I have been considering fulminator mage also. With smallpox, fulminator and tons of discard we could just equip a sword of x&y on a fairy, gatekeeper, or hawk and swing for huge profits while our opponent fiddles around trying to get back on mana. Might be a thing worth considering. Sword of light and shadow could recur fulminators and gatekeepers and sword of feast and famine could keep their hand down and capitalize on our shortened mana from smallpox. Seems epic in theory, though it would obviously need some testing. Maybe even bring in whip of erebos as a singleton. This is kinda a pox deck though at that point.
Update -- added Parmaha's list (above) and suggestions, added Modern Transformation from legacy section. This is starting to look a lot like a primer lol
Modern: RGB Dredge // RBG Goblins // B The Gate // UBR Tezz AoB Control // RBG Prison Pox
EDH: RBU Thraximundar // R Norin the Wary // RWB Kaalia of the Vast // BUR Grixis Combos // BU Gisa and Geralf Tribal
Tiny Leaders: BUW Sydri, Galvanic Genius // R Feldon of the Third Path
Projects:
Gisa and Geralf Extreme-Tribal EDH
Esper Eldrazi Processor Control
Brewing with Kuldotha Forgemaster
Primer: "The Gate" - Mono Black in Modern
Modern Prison Pox - building a better plague
Your list seems a little more aggressive than mine with both bad moon and grafted wargear, bad moon, and bloodghast. How does this work out since you are sacrificing some disruption and control elements? The more I see grafted wargear the more I like it - I assume you never have an issue equipping it to something since you have Bitterblossom and Bloodghast? I will probably try one in place of Bubbling Cauldron next time I play my deck.
How has tomb of urami been treating you?
Modern: RGB Dredge // RBG Goblins // B The Gate // UBR Tezz AoB Control // RBG Prison Pox
EDH: RBU Thraximundar // R Norin the Wary // RWB Kaalia of the Vast // BUR Grixis Combos // BU Gisa and Geralf Tribal
Tiny Leaders: BUW Sydri, Galvanic Genius // R Feldon of the Third Path
Projects:
Gisa and Geralf Extreme-Tribal EDH
Esper Eldrazi Processor Control
Brewing with Kuldotha Forgemaster
Primer: "The Gate" - Mono Black in Modern
Modern Prison Pox - building a better plague
Goryo's Vengeance and Ninja of the Deep Hours also see play, as do a whole host of other Kamigawa cards.
Storm Crow is strictly worse than Seacoast Drake.
Edit: also, ghostquarters is not just for tron. A ton of decks get hit hard by it, like collonades in uw control. I switched to mutavaults too but don't underestimate the quarters!
I wish raven's crime fit in with dakmor salvage. I love doing that for turns while beating down on an opponent. Unfortunately getting a fourth land drop really matters.
Also, the ability to get rid of the "island" you have against merfolk (spreading seas) is very relevant and has won me a game or two in testing against that deck. Sometimes, you draw too many colorless mana and don't get that second or third swamp when you really need it - ghost quarter also is a soft fix for this issue as well.
Against Scapeshift, you have an out for valakut, the molten pinnacle which is important as well.
Against junk decks and melira pod you can kill their utility lands: Vault of the archangel and gavony township.
Ghost quarter is invaluable to the deck - I don't know how you guys get away with mutavault (effectively the worst manland) in it's place.
On the upside - it does get pumps from your opponent's lord of atlantis in the merfolk matchup.
Spawning pool might be worth a test if you are stuck on having something that animates.
Modern: RGB Dredge // RBG Goblins // B The Gate // UBR Tezz AoB Control // RBG Prison Pox
EDH: RBU Thraximundar // R Norin the Wary // RWB Kaalia of the Vast // BUR Grixis Combos // BU Gisa and Geralf Tribal
Tiny Leaders: BUW Sydri, Galvanic Genius // R Feldon of the Third Path
Projects:
Gisa and Geralf Extreme-Tribal EDH
Esper Eldrazi Processor Control
Brewing with Kuldotha Forgemaster
Primer: "The Gate" - Mono Black in Modern
Modern Prison Pox - building a better plague
Mutavault is a lot better than you give it credit. Hardly the worst man land. One mana activation is frequently significant especially if you consider the etb tapped man lands. Doesn't enter tapped also so can tap for colorless. When I get more sac effects in, it will also be cheaper fodder. It swings for two which is a big deal in a stalled board. Granted I don't run the bad moon. Wiping the board with mutavault ready is also amazing. Fresh start and you know you will likely get in two. Also, if you are playing smallpox, sacking two+ lands feels like an auto lose to me, but maybe I am too obsessive about my hitting all my land drops. Maybe this is due to me having a much higher curve. Plus, I like to play aggro on occasion and it feels good to be able to cast Percy then next turn they are looking at a 6/6 a 2/2 and something like a gatekeeper. Feels good. In a pinch it could even hold equipment. A 5/4 (grafted wargear for joke's sake) that dies at the end of turn is sweet occasionally.
Edit: my current build feels a LOT less controlly though. Idk how I feel about that yet. I miss my removal.
As far as hitting land drops go, I am much less concerned about curving out. It happens often where I do not, but I can still cast multiple spells (or 2-for-1) effects that allow me to miss land drop 3 and 4 until later in the game. Depending on the hand, I will keep a 1-lander with access to 2-3 discard spells and a 1-2 good 2drops like bitterblossom or bob. If I can get your removal and stick the bob I wind up ahead rather than behind from the mulligan even if I miss a land here or there. Also, I try not to cast lily or percy unless the opponent is topdecking or has a really low hand count so it almost never comes down on curve unless its a god-hand kind of situation. Also, I will happily cast a smallpox saccing my third land (with no more in hand) in order to 2-for-1. I find I can do enough on 2 lands to make this worth while.
Modern: RGB Dredge // RBG Goblins // B The Gate // UBR Tezz AoB Control // RBG Prison Pox
EDH: RBU Thraximundar // R Norin the Wary // RWB Kaalia of the Vast // BUR Grixis Combos // BU Gisa and Geralf Tribal
Tiny Leaders: BUW Sydri, Galvanic Genius // R Feldon of the Third Path
Projects:
Gisa and Geralf Extreme-Tribal EDH
Esper Eldrazi Processor Control
Brewing with Kuldotha Forgemaster
Primer: "The Gate" - Mono Black in Modern
Modern Prison Pox - building a better plague
Also, I would never plop a Percy down with an opponent whose hand can deal with him. I know better than to let my win condition get pathed (or even let them be capable of developing a board state), but my point is that say we t2+ smallpox. We are getting great advantage from out opponent. They are not prepared for it while we are. Then you sac ghost quarter on top of it. You will effectively be at one-two lands. Yes bob is great, and yes we play for the long game, but I don't think many decks, ours included can survive sitting on one land. Obviously there is a lot of play time before using these cards, but cards like smallpox lose their potency in a long game. (Ghostquarters is still good don't get me wrong) I personally don't want to sit at two lands against RWU control while they slowly pick us apart with bolts etc with all their mana to protect themselves. We can get them to top deck mode but I don't want to go late game with control nearly as much as I do with x aggro (etc.) deck. Obviously my opinion, and I do respect yours. If smallpox and ghostquarters deal with your opponents board state enough to warrant the land issues, more power to you, but for me it was really just painful clearing their hand, controlling the board just to sit on two lands for turns while they top deck threats and recover. This deck can chill for a while without land, but not forever, as discard loses value when they top deck and play bigger cards.
Tl;dr ghostquarters is great, but in some matchups mutavault is better in my opinion.
About smallpox and ghost quarter - In my version of the deck, if I can stick a bitterblossom or a bob it doesn't matter so much how many lands I have early game because this is often enough to win the game with some backup disruption. At this point, all you need to do is keep the opponent fumbling with resource denial and discard to make them fall very far behind very quickly. Of course, I can still usually cast my three and four drops rather quickly with 22 lands in the deck. Don't use ghost quarter if you are low on lands - instead sac that land to smallpox saving your black source and preventing further mana issues on your side. Each situation warrants a different choice when it comes to using smallpox and GQ together - but its not that hard in practice.
I say that Mutavault is outclassed by other manlands because in a topdecking game, any other manland will do a better job at racing you and in that instance, ghost-quartering their manland is probably better (assuming mutavault isn't your only threat - and it shouldn't be). But, that is not the only reason Ghost Quarter is the better option in most matchups. Having the ability to kill utility lands as well makes this card much better in my deck.
Now, there is a place for mutavault in the gate for sure and that is in the more aggro versions of the deck (which it seems ghorak and parmaha are running more often). If your goal is to race the opponent, mutavault is better than ghost quarter in some situations - if you can manage to get around or ignore opposing manlands (victim of night does this well), or if your opponent doesn't run them. Even still though, your deck is sacrificing a strong removal card for a very weak beater - an option I still would not choose personally. Of course, if you have nothing else to do, getting in there for 2 a turn can be very good and even win the game. In my testing of mutavault I found this scenario to be very rare.
Below is a breakdown of the top modern decks representing the current metagame and which land I feel is better for the matchup. Of course some of these are debatable, and you should evaluate your choice based on the strengths and weaknesses of your particular deck when choosing ghost quarter or mutavault. I tried my best to be objective in classifying each deck as better for ghost quarter, mutavault, or tied.
They have no manlands or utility lands, so Mutavault is better - although it will be a target for removal with fulminator mage and avalanche riders. I would say that in this matchup that swamp is better than both helping you cast your black heavy spells in the face of their LD.
UWR Control
Ghost quarter kills their primary win condition Celestial Colonnade making it better hands down.
Merfolk
Ghost Quarter kills their mutavault, which is much better than out mutavault will ever be making ghost quarter better. They will likely nullify our mutavault with spreading seas. In the event that they do spreading seas a land of ours, we can use ghost quarter to get rid of it - allowing us to negate islandwalk.
Tron Variants
Ghost quarter keeps them off tron and kills eye of ugin (often the better target late game). Mutavault races them a little and dodges their removal, but that really what you want to be doing in this matchup.
Affinity
Mutavault and ghost quarter both have an equal place in this matchup IMO: Ghost quarter helps remove their inkmoth nexus and blinkmoth nexus which carry cranial plating. Both of these lands dodge our primary removal option which is sac effects. Mutavault blocks etched champion and helps race them a little. This matchup I would say is more of a personal choice which you should use based on your particular decklist.
UR Delver
Mutavault is probably better in this matchup as we have few good targets for ghost quarter - mainly their occasional mutavault.
JUND ad BG Rock Variants
Mutavault is going to do nothing against their manlands. Treetop village and Raging Ravine will out race us all day and ghost quarter kills them. Ghost quarter is the clear choice here.
UWR Midrange
Although less important to winning than in the control version, killing colonnade is still the better option.
Burn Decks
Mutavault is better because ghost quarter has no targets and doesnt help the race to win.
Scapeshift
Ghost quarter kills valakut, the molten pinnacle - simple.
Kiki-Pod and Melira-Pod
Killing Gavony Township with ghost quarter to prevent Kitchen Finks and friends from being re-used infinitely is better than having mutavault. Mutavault will likely never attack through their onslaught of creatures unless post board you damnation well. Even still you are likely only going to hit them once or twice and only if they are topdecking. A smart opponent will play around wipes.
Splinter Twin Decks
Mutavault is probably better in these matchups because they run few good targets for ghost quarter outside of Desolate Lighthouse in the UR variants.
Ghost Quarter is better: 7
Mutavault is better: 4
Tied (your choice): 1
Why is this considered an established deck? Anyway - Mutavault is better, no targets for ghost quarter.
GW Hatebears
They have good, but few targets for ghost quarter - mainly stirring wildwood, Eiganjo Castle, and Okina, Temple of the grandfathers. Mutavault is decent as a beater in this matchup. I would say that you could easily go with either here.
8-Rack
You need to out-attrition your opponent in this matchup. I am not sure which is better having played both decks for a long time. This is as close to a mirror match that we will ever see, and ensnaring bridge is a problem...
Cruel Control
Killing Creeping Tarpit is the way to go.
Amulet of Vigor Combo
Ghost Quarter kills their Karoo-style lands, easy choice.
Assault Loam
They usually only run 1 manland making mutavault better as a beater here.
Dega Midrange
Killing Lavaclaw Reaches and Vault of the Archangel is probably a higher priority than swinging in for 2 here or there.
Small Zoo
Mutavault is better because it attacks and blocks. Ghost quarter doesn't really have any targets.
BW Tokens
Killing Windbrisk Heights and Vault of the Archangel is more important. Mutavault will likely never attack through or block their tokens.
Death and Taxes
Mutavault is better, no targets for ghost quarter outside of their LD.
Azorius Midrange
Killing Celestial Colonnade wins
UB Faeries
Mutavault wins because it can attack, no targets for ghost quarter.
UR Storm
Mutavault is hands down better than ghost quarter here - it can attack and race.
Infect
Killing inkmoth nexus is really important since it dodges most of our removal. Ghost Quarter is better.
4C Gifts Control
Killing Celestial Colonnade and Creeping Tarpit is good, attacking is also good. I would say in this one its up to you.
Naya Midrange
Killing Kessig Wolf Run and Treetop Village is important, Mutavault will likely not get through their creatures.
Junk
Mutavault is better if they aren't running Stirring Wildwood which many of them do not.
RUG Delver
No targets for ghost quarter, mutavault all the way.
Mono U Tron
Ghost quarter slows down tron.
Soul Sisters
Killing Windbrisk Heights helps a bit, Mutavault is good at attacking through 1/1s. its up to you.
Dredgevine
Mutavault is better, GQ has no targets.
Goryo's Vengeance Reanimator
Mutavault is better, GQ has few targets
Ninja-Bear Delver
Mutavault is better, GQ has no targets.
Domain Zoo
Mutavault is better, GQ has few targets
Ad Nauseum Combo
Mutavault is better, GQ has no targets.
Mono Green Devotion
Ghost Quarter is better because it kills Nykthos, Shrine to Nyx - their main engine.
Esper Zur
Killing Creeping Tarpit is really good, I would say Ghost Qaurter is the way to go.
Restore Balance Combo
Ghost Quarter can target the few lands they have and disrupt them - this might be good, mutavault attacks which is probably better.
G/W Bogle Auras
Mutavault is better, GQ has no targets.
Ghost Quarter is better: 10
Mutavault is better: 15
Tied (your choice): 4
In conclusion - after looking at all of the possible matchups, I would say your choice boils down to answering the following questions for your deck since overall they are about 50-50 better or worse.
1. Does your deck want to race against other decks? Or do you focus more on controling the opponent while beating down?
My opinion--> The gate is not meant to be a deck that races, rather a deck that controls the opponent while beating them down with resiliant threats and creating as many 2-for-1 situations as possible.
2. Do you mind sacrificing the option to seriously cripple some decks for a weak 2/2 beater?
My opinion--> Absolutely not. Ghost Quarter helps us in some of our most difficult matchups and the ability to seriously cripple an opponent at little cost to me is not worth replacing with mutavault. It is a 2/2 with no ability, is easy to remove, and loses races against any other manland in the format.
3. What does your meta look like?
My opinion--> My meta is very diverse, changes dramatically each week because of good access to cards in my area, and represents the best of the above decks consistently. In this situation, Ghost Quarter is invaluable and helps me win more often than it does not.
Of course, each persons answers to these questions are going to be different, so mutavault might be appropriate in your particular situation, but in mine (and most people's I would argue) it is not better than ghost quarter.
Modern: RGB Dredge // RBG Goblins // B The Gate // UBR Tezz AoB Control // RBG Prison Pox
EDH: RBU Thraximundar // R Norin the Wary // RWB Kaalia of the Vast // BUR Grixis Combos // BU Gisa and Geralf Tribal
Tiny Leaders: BUW Sydri, Galvanic Genius // R Feldon of the Third Path
Projects:
Gisa and Geralf Extreme-Tribal EDH
Esper Eldrazi Processor Control
Brewing with Kuldotha Forgemaster
Primer: "The Gate" - Mono Black in Modern
Modern Prison Pox - building a better plague
Thanks! I hope it was helpful. I just wanted to thoroughly illustrate my point on the whole mutavault vs ghost quarter debate. My goal is to make the decision easier for someone new (or familiar with) the gate. I think these types of analyses help in addition to anecdotal evidence when evaluating card strengths and weaknesses within the greater modern meta. After all, magic decks don't exist in a void so we have to always keep that in mind. Looking at the two cards absent the meta makes the decision difficult and shortsighted. I'm not saying that anyone using Mutavault is missing the point, just to be clear. I just wanted to stress the complexity of the decision and variable outcomes based on unique situations.
Another thing I am always thinking about is success of the gate at a larger tournament - which would be tough if we never had these conversations about individual cards we use. Eventually I will write a specific matchup analysis for sideboarding and such. I welcome anyone else to do the same for their build! The more, the better.
Modern: RGB Dredge // RBG Goblins // B The Gate // UBR Tezz AoB Control // RBG Prison Pox
EDH: RBU Thraximundar // R Norin the Wary // RWB Kaalia of the Vast // BUR Grixis Combos // BU Gisa and Geralf Tribal
Tiny Leaders: BUW Sydri, Galvanic Genius // R Feldon of the Third Path
Projects:
Gisa and Geralf Extreme-Tribal EDH
Esper Eldrazi Processor Control
Brewing with Kuldotha Forgemaster
Primer: "The Gate" - Mono Black in Modern
Modern Prison Pox - building a better plague
2x nykthos, shrine to nyx
2x ghost quarter
1x bojuka
3x marsh flats
14x swamps
dudes =
3x gatekeeper of Malakir
3x phyrexian obliterator
2x gray merchant of asphodel
other =
4x inquisition of kozilek
4x thoughtseize
3x victim of night
3x Liliana of the veil
3x wrench
2x surgical extraction
2x bile blight
2x underworld connections
2x bitterblossom
2x disfigure
1x erebos god of the dead
3x ratchet bomb
3x grafdigger's cage
2x mutilate
2x geth's verdict
2x hero's downfall
2x surgical extraction
1x sadistic sacrament
N/A
Modern
Dredge vine
4 color gifts
Junk midrange
Daga control
Rb burn
Soul sisters
Legacy
The gate
Zombie bombardment
Burn