If we take for example the most recent lists that have been posted here and on there, some URb Moon decks are clearly overlapping with Grixis Control. Disallowing their discussion over there seems counter-productive to me. I think I'd rather see us merged in a thread named smtg like «URx/Grixis Control» [note: not Ultimatum].
At the end of the day, Moon and Shackles are just cards. The general strategy of UR Moon, Temur Moon (splash Goyf) and Grixis Control (splash black Goyf) are similar. Metagame calls can and will lead players to put aside Blood Moon or Vedalken Shackles for a time period but these decks are all still going to play a URx Control game. No?
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MODERN Blue Lantern, UBx Tezzerator. OLD SCHOOL 93/94 «The Pain Train» Black Sligh, Esper «Machine Gun» Artifacts, Jund «Psycho» Ponza-Disko.
I'm thinking that the two threads might be best. Straight UR Moon hasn't been doing much, so splitting it into three threads is likely to kill off the UR Moon thread.
Granted that running two may choke up the threads too much where people are discussing past each other. There are definitely merits to 2 or 3 threads.
Radouf also raises some good points. I'm definitely in agreement with him.
I'm surprised that he only played two Moons over three, but I can see it. I might have to give his list a whirl this week.
Edit: Also, the Thoughtseizes are interesting. I'm not sure if I'd play 4 Thoughtseize over a 2-2 Inquisition split. The damage, especially with a three color manabase, can stack up pretty quick.
I've been talking with the creator on twitter, the Thoughtsieze was a typo by SCG, they're supposed to be Thoughtscour
So Sam Pardee just put up a set of videos on Channel Fireball about the Moon version of this deck, which can be found here.
Quite honestly, I was very frustrated while watching them. He was extremely sloppy with basically everything he did and several times didn't take the correct line of play (such as playing a Moon, double blocking and then using his Cryptics that were scried to the top to keep the opponent locked down).
It's nice seeing the deck get more attention, but the quality of that particular set was not up to snuff.
On another note, Danny Jessup (note: I have a link to his list in the OP from an SCG IQ last month) was running a Grixis Control deck at the SCG Invitational this weekend. I wasn't able to catch game 1 to see if he was on the Moon deck, but post board he looked pretty similar to the builds floating around here.
Some thoughts: GFabs himself switched from Sultai to Grixis (which is pretty crazy, considering he rarely plays anything but Sultai). He played a pretty stock URb Moon list.
There's actually a 2-2 split of Moon lists (only one running Shackles, Fabiano seemed to forgo it) and more tempo oriented lists with Young Pyromancer (featuring Think Twice!?) and one list on 19 lands with maindeck Liliana of the Veil and Deprive. It looks almost like a Delver list, but seemed to cut the Delvers for Snaps and more instants.
OP has been updated with these lists.
Also, since we haven't gotten a final word yet from ktk (unless I'm a dork and missed it), I'm going to update the primer in a couple days to reflect both the Moon lists and the tempo/Pyromancer oriented lists.
The Young Pyromancer builds tend to feel like more midrangey/tempo decks, though they can definitely turn into more controlling lists post board. The lists with Tasigur/Angler and Keranos tend to play more on the control side.
Having played both, the Pyromancer version is probably best to start out with if you've been playing Delver. It plays somewhat the same, but with a better ability to grind the long game. Both are definitely fun, however.
I've been running something similar to the Fabiano list for a while and it's straight bonkers. I DEFINITELY think this deck is tier 1.5 and can definitely roll with the best of them and I would imagine we start to see many more people midrange out their delver lists (he's not great in a lightning bolt heavy format, which ironically delver coming back has caused). It's strange to me that Cruel Control continues to sit in the developing category and Blue Moon in tier 2 when all three decks are VERY close to one another but oh well.
As far as the lists go, I think cutting out artifacts of any kind is probably a safe bet based on the meta. Getting 2-1'd off of K commands feels REALLY awful.
Blue Moon went to developing and Cruel stays there because it's bad (in my humble opinion). It's much slower (running manlands and other such things) than us and tries to resolve things like Cruel Ultimatum, which is a terrible game plan.
Cutting Shackles from the main is probably a good idea, I agree. I don't mind them in the board for matchups where you don't have to worry about Kommand, though. Shackles is fantastic in any creature matchup (like Merfolk, for example), and Batterskull is great for the grindy games (though it is becoming less good with more Tasigurs and Rhinos running around).
It looks pretty good. I think I'd cut a land (twenty is usually fine in this type of list), probably the Tar Pit and turn the 2 Anticipates into Serum Visions so you have the full 4. I would also recommend moving one Remand or Inquisition into the 4th Thought Scour.
Im very surprised you're dismissing Tar pit just like that. IMO its a fantastic card, very powerful finisher once you've established control. And the tempo loss between 2 & 3 mana is often negligible, especially if you're in the control seat (-- unlike Delver). The ability to repetedly bolt face isnt however, and with countermagic, this thing is hard to interact with. Its even easier to include it now that we're leaning less on Shackles.
There's a list that ran 3x at the IQ, IIRW. I like 2x here, to start with. Agreed, a second one might have to be put in a spell slot tho. Its still a killer card imo, and shouldnt be dismissed like that. This is the deck for it.
So this may seem like a bit of an odd one but do people have any thoughts on Bitterblossom? In my post MM2 state I'm looking for a home for Bitterblossom and Cryptic which is not a Faeries deck (i.e. not bad atm) and I stumbled across this old article from last febuary.
I like the idea of tapping out on turn 2 for a powerful threat and then playing the grindy control game from there. Thoughts?
I've been playing Cruel Control in Modern as my "fun deck" for awhile now, but jumped over to Grixis Twin and then Grixis Delver when they started to shine in the post-DTT/TC/pod meta. I love these colors and what they give access to and can see this streamlined Grixis Control being a powerhouse in the midrange heavy meta that seems to be on the horizon.
After playtesting with Anticipate over Visions, I really liked the added instant speed interaction of Anticipate to dig for an answer EOT or during the opponent's main. Sometimes you just need that Terminate/Bolt/Leak/whatever right now and next draw step isn't going to cut it if it's 2-3 cards deep. One strategy that I think shines in these builds is the "return target creature from the BF to your hand" of cards like Kommand and Rise //Fall. With Jund on the rise and more terminates out there, it feels really powerful to go EOT Kommand, shock your Bob/you discard, take back my previously-removed Tasigur and replay him next turn. This won a tight game against Affinity where I went Anticipate, find Kommand 3rd card deep, blow up your Cranial Plating on a pest, take back Tasigur and drop him again next turn.
I guess my question is: Is one mana and the added .5 card of CA on Visions truly better than being able to dig deeper for the answers we need at instant speed? It doesn't feel like it to me in this build.
Im very surprised you're dismissing Tar pit just like that.
I'm very down on any land that dies to Lightning Bolt. It's alright in the BGx matchups, granted, but any match with Red makes it basically a guildgate.
As for Anticipate, I played a version with 4 Anticipates and no Visions, and it did have some upsides. You didn't have to worry about playing an untapped land on turn 1, which can actually be a big deal. However, after playing some more, I just like Visions a bit more. Having 1 mana cantrips really helps smooth out your draws.
Having 1 mana cantrips really helps smooth out your draws.
I agree with this, but I also feel like it can lead to some awkward situations with shocking yourself T1 or liking both scry cards and then being forced to make a decision on whether or not to crack a fetch T2 to answer something, or preserve the second scried card. It's definitely a powerful card, but I feel like it has it's drawbacks as well. Just trying to make sure that we're exploring all options in this new archetype and not relying on muscle memory from the various delver variants (where Visions obviously has more synergy with the flagship threat).
So, is this going to be the official thread for this archetype or is there a plan to blend with with the Grixis Moon thread? Would non-main deck Blood Moon variants of Grixis Control fit in here as well?
Visions also has more synergy with Young Pyromancer as well. If you're playing the Pyromancer style list, I would recommend Visions over Anticipate. The deck where I played Anticipate was the Moon Style deck, which generally gives you a bit more time to settle in. I still think I like Visions in the Moon style deck a bit more, but if you plan on running a bit slower of a list, then Anticipate is the way to go.
So, is this going to be the official thread for this archetype or is there a plan to blend with with the Grixis Moon thread? Would non-main deck Blood Moon variants of Grixis Control fit in here as well?
I haven't heard anything officially yet, so I'm going to assume that any style of Grixis Control (whether Moon, Pyromancer or a more traditional tempo/control deck) can fit in here until I hear otherwise.
Given that, I'm going to update the primer with all three styles of decks (along with changing around the list that's currently there to fit in with more recent lists). Possibly today, though likely tomorrow
I figured I'd throw my 1st draft list out there that I'm going to be sleeving up and testing once the Kolaghan's Commands come in from Pucatrade. Hopefully this can generate some discussion. This is definitely a rough outline and I feel like there are at least two flex spots that I've been playing around with.
At this point, the build is more of the YoungPeezy Control variant as it forgoes the Blood Moons in favor of a more tempo game early. I like the Pyro's a lot and I feel that they're really powerful in this shell both in early game defense and swarming offense later, but that being said, part of me wants to ditch them in favor of more business spells to control and rely on the delve and flash dudes as the wincons. Damnation feels out of place but also needed. I also really like the checklands here.
Other things I've kicked around are adding Teferi, Mage of Zhalfir with a very light Mystical Teachings package. I also would like to try a single Grave Titan as the top end, but it feels winmore over Angler and Tasigur.
If you're going to run 5 Delve spells, you'll need more than 2 Thought Scours. I'd recommend the full 4, as it also plays nicely with Young Pyromancer. I also think that Visions is better than Anticipate if you're playing a more tempo route with Young Pyromancer. The more cheap spells, the better.
So I went to a Modern tournament tonight with the Blood Moon version of this deck and went 3-1.
Note that my sideboarding decisions are approximations, as I didn't write down what went in and out.
Round 1, UWR Control/Gifts
I was on the play and down on lands the entire time. I opened up with two and took several turns to draw the next, while my opponent kept making land drops. Some burn and Colonnade hits took me down.
Out: 2 Mana Leaks, 1 Deprive, 2 Thought Scour
In: 1 Blood Moon, 2 Dispel, 1 Negate, 1 Olivia Voldaren
Note that I removed the Thoughtseize out of fear of their burn spells (which was fairly justified, as I ended one game at 8 life with him having 6 points of burn in hand) and the Mana Leaks because I saw 3 Spell Snares game 1, on top of him continually making land drops.
This game was much more grindy. I fought through a counter to land an early Tasigur, after which I protected it with everything that I had. He tapped out for an Elesh Norn, which let me drop a Blood Moon then Terminate Elesh Norn before combat. It didn't last much longer after that.
Game 3 went much the same, with us ending up in turns while I beat down with a Tasigur and Snapcaster. I ended the game on turn 5 with a couple Lightning Bolts.
2-1
Round 2: UB Mill
I actually won game 1 through landing an early Tasigur (thanks for the help milling!) and beating him down. Not much to say besides Archive Trap is a mean card.
I ended up making some land drops and landing an Olivia Voldaren on around turn 5, which he responded to by playing 2 Mesmeric Orbs. Ouch. I ended up getting milled out mostly by those with him at 4. Feels bad, man.
Game 3 I got rolled. I Dispelled an Archive Trap on turn 1 only to get hit with a second one, followed by a couple Mind Funerals. Another Mesmeric Orb landed with me unable to draw any Kolaghan's Commands. I wasn't able to find any threats (especially with my Tasigurs getting Extracted), and ended up losing with him at a high life total.
1-2.
Round 3: Merfolk
He led off with a Cavern->Curse Catcher into Silvergill Adept, the latter of which ate a Bolt. He played out a Master of the Pearl Trident and hit me with the Curse Catcher and the Mutavault. I then bolted his Master and played a Blood Moon.
What, Blood Moon against Merfolk?
Well, at this time he had only a Cavern of Souls and 2 Mutavaults with no Aether Vial, which meant that he was completely locked from the game. I dropped a Tasigur after that and beat down.
Out: 1 Inquisition, 1 Thoughtseize (hand empties fairly quick, and I'd rather just kill things on the board), 2 Blood Moon, 1 Deprive, 1 Mana Leak
In: 2 Anger of the Gods, 1 Olivia Voldaren, 1 Engineered Explosives, 1 Kolaghan's Command, 1 Murderous Cut
My opponent had to mulligan to five on the play That's never fun for anybody. He led off with a Vial into a Vial while I made some land drops. He then dropped a Silvergill Adept EOT with his Vial into a Master of the Pearl Trident and Curse Catcher the next turn and hit me the Adept and a Mutavault. He Spell Pierced my Kolaghan's Command on the Vial and Adept, then passed the turn.
I made my fourth land drop and Angered, using said land to pay for the Curse Catcher.
It took him a bit to rebuild after that, during which I Snapcastered back my Kommand and dropped a Tasigur and started beating down. It ended pretty quick after that.
2-0
Round 4: Loam
My opponent led on a Faithless Looting, but didn't seem to find what she wanted, and ended up dumping 2 Loams into the yard (which is a really obvious clue to what you're playing). We both ended up durdling for a couple turns. She attempted to play a Zombie Infestation, which I Snared because no, then followed up with a Blood Moon, which essentially locked her from the game. I landed a Tasigur and beat down with it.
I had a feeling that she'd be playing Lingering Souls, and it turned out that she was, making my Olivia bonkers. I landed an early Shackles, which I used to make a Bloodghast Trade for a souls token, then followed it up with Olivia, who started shooting things from the sky. It didn't take long before the vampire queen took my opponent down.
2-0
Overall 3-1. Felt pretty good.
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Modern URW Control WBG Abzan GRW Burn
EDH GR Rosheen Meanderer
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If we take for example the most recent lists that have been posted here and on there, some URb Moon decks are clearly overlapping with Grixis Control. Disallowing their discussion over there seems counter-productive to me. I think I'd rather see us merged in a thread named smtg like «URx/Grixis Control» [note: not Ultimatum].
At the end of the day, Moon and Shackles are just cards. The general strategy of UR Moon, Temur Moon (splash Goyf) and Grixis Control (splash black Goyf) are similar. Metagame calls can and will lead players to put aside Blood Moon or Vedalken Shackles for a time period but these decks are all still going to play a URx Control game. No?
OLD SCHOOL 93/94 «The Pain Train» Black Sligh, Esper «Machine Gun» Artifacts, Jund «Psycho» Ponza-Disko.
Granted that running two may choke up the threads too much where people are discussing past each other. There are definitely merits to 2 or 3 threads.
Radouf also raises some good points. I'm definitely in agreement with him.
URW Control
WBG Abzan
GRW Burn
EDH
GR Rosheen Meanderer
I've been talking with the creator on twitter, the Thoughtsieze was a typo by SCG, they're supposed to be Thoughtscour
Currently playing:
- URx Twin in Modern
#RIPTwinhttp://www.twitch.tv/trei_gamer
URW Control
WBG Abzan
GRW Burn
EDH
GR Rosheen Meanderer
Quite honestly, I was very frustrated while watching them. He was extremely sloppy with basically everything he did and several times didn't take the correct line of play (such as playing a Moon, double blocking and then using his Cryptics that were scried to the top to keep the opponent locked down).
It's nice seeing the deck get more attention, but the quality of that particular set was not up to snuff.
On another note, Danny Jessup (note: I have a link to his list in the OP from an SCG IQ last month) was running a Grixis Control deck at the SCG Invitational this weekend. I wasn't able to catch game 1 to see if he was on the Moon deck, but post board he looked pretty similar to the builds floating around here.
URW Control
WBG Abzan
GRW Burn
EDH
GR Rosheen Meanderer
Some thoughts: GFabs himself switched from Sultai to Grixis (which is pretty crazy, considering he rarely plays anything but Sultai). He played a pretty stock URb Moon list.
There's actually a 2-2 split of Moon lists (only one running Shackles, Fabiano seemed to forgo it) and more tempo oriented lists with Young Pyromancer (featuring Think Twice!?) and one list on 19 lands with maindeck Liliana of the Veil and Deprive. It looks almost like a Delver list, but seemed to cut the Delvers for Snaps and more instants.
OP has been updated with these lists.
Also, since we haven't gotten a final word yet from ktk (unless I'm a dork and missed it), I'm going to update the primer in a couple days to reflect both the Moon lists and the tempo/Pyromancer oriented lists.
URW Control
WBG Abzan
GRW Burn
EDH
GR Rosheen Meanderer
Having played both, the Pyromancer version is probably best to start out with if you've been playing Delver. It plays somewhat the same, but with a better ability to grind the long game. Both are definitely fun, however.
URW Control
WBG Abzan
GRW Burn
EDH
GR Rosheen Meanderer
As far as the lists go, I think cutting out artifacts of any kind is probably a safe bet based on the meta. Getting 2-1'd off of K commands feels REALLY awful.
Cutting Shackles from the main is probably a good idea, I agree. I don't mind them in the board for matchups where you don't have to worry about Kommand, though. Shackles is fantastic in any creature matchup (like Merfolk, for example), and Batterskull is great for the grindy games (though it is becoming less good with more Tasigurs and Rhinos running around).
URW Control
WBG Abzan
GRW Burn
EDH
GR Rosheen Meanderer
URW Control
WBG Abzan
GRW Burn
EDH
GR Rosheen Meanderer
There's a list that ran 3x at the IQ, IIRW. I like 2x here, to start with. Agreed, a second one might have to be put in a spell slot tho. Its still a killer card imo, and shouldnt be dismissed like that. This is the deck for it.
OLD SCHOOL 93/94 «The Pain Train» Black Sligh, Esper «Machine Gun» Artifacts, Jund «Psycho» Ponza-Disko.
I like the idea of tapping out on turn 2 for a powerful threat and then playing the grindy control game from there. Thoughts?
Honestly I'm never going to be able to afford/justify Snaps and Cryptics barring some crazy price crash.
BWR THE ARISTAHCRATZ!
Link: http://www.reddit.com/r/spikes/comments/3950vx/modern_sleek_slim_grixis_control/
2 Rise // Fall
3 Terminate
3 Inquisition of Kozilek
1 Thoughtseize
4 Serum Visions
2 Olivia Voldaren
3 Snapcaster Mage
2 Tasigur, the Golden Fang
2 Blood Moon
2 Kolaghan's Command
2 Deprive
3 Mana Leak
1 Gurmag Angler
2 Thought Scour
3 Scalding Tarn
2 Bloodstained Mire
3 Island
2 Swamp
2 Creeping Tar Pit
1 Watery Grave
2 Steam Vents
1 Blood Crypt
1 Spell Snare
1 Blackcleave Cliffs
1 Darkslick Shores
1 Cryptic Command
1 Soul Manipulation
3 Spellskite
2 Izzet Staticaster
3 Anger of the Gods
1 Kolaghan's Command
1 Blood Moon
1 Glen Elendra Archmage
1 Dispel
1 Duress
1 Slaughter Games
OLD SCHOOL 93/94 «The Pain Train» Black Sligh, Esper «Machine Gun» Artifacts, Jund «Psycho» Ponza-Disko.
After playtesting with Anticipate over Visions, I really liked the added instant speed interaction of Anticipate to dig for an answer EOT or during the opponent's main. Sometimes you just need that Terminate/Bolt/Leak/whatever right now and next draw step isn't going to cut it if it's 2-3 cards deep. One strategy that I think shines in these builds is the "return target creature from the BF to your hand" of cards like Kommand and Rise //Fall. With Jund on the rise and more terminates out there, it feels really powerful to go EOT Kommand, shock your Bob/you discard, take back my previously-removed Tasigur and replay him next turn. This won a tight game against Affinity where I went Anticipate, find Kommand 3rd card deep, blow up your Cranial Plating on a pest, take back Tasigur and drop him again next turn.
I guess my question is: Is one mana and the added .5 card of CA on Visions truly better than being able to dig deeper for the answers we need at instant speed? It doesn't feel like it to me in this build.
I'm very down on any land that dies to Lightning Bolt. It's alright in the BGx matchups, granted, but any match with Red makes it basically a guildgate.
As for Anticipate, I played a version with 4 Anticipates and no Visions, and it did have some upsides. You didn't have to worry about playing an untapped land on turn 1, which can actually be a big deal. However, after playing some more, I just like Visions a bit more. Having 1 mana cantrips really helps smooth out your draws.
URW Control
WBG Abzan
GRW Burn
EDH
GR Rosheen Meanderer
I agree with this, but I also feel like it can lead to some awkward situations with shocking yourself T1 or liking both scry cards and then being forced to make a decision on whether or not to crack a fetch T2 to answer something, or preserve the second scried card. It's definitely a powerful card, but I feel like it has it's drawbacks as well. Just trying to make sure that we're exploring all options in this new archetype and not relying on muscle memory from the various delver variants (where Visions obviously has more synergy with the flagship threat).
So, is this going to be the official thread for this archetype or is there a plan to blend with with the Grixis Moon thread? Would non-main deck Blood Moon variants of Grixis Control fit in here as well?
I haven't heard anything officially yet, so I'm going to assume that any style of Grixis Control (whether Moon, Pyromancer or a more traditional tempo/control deck) can fit in here until I hear otherwise.
Given that, I'm going to update the primer with all three styles of decks (along with changing around the list that's currently there to fit in with more recent lists). Possibly today, though likely tomorrow
URW Control
WBG Abzan
GRW Burn
EDH
GR Rosheen Meanderer
2x Steam Vents
1x Watery Grave
1x Blood Crypt
1x Bloodstained Mire
4x Polluted Delta
3x Scalding Tarn
1x Cascade Bluffs
1x Creeping Tar Pit
2x Sulfur Falls
1x Drowned Catacomb
3x Island
1x Mountain
1x Swamp
2x Cryptic Command
3x Mana Leak
2x Spell Snare
1x Remand
2x Electrolyze
4x Lightning Bolt
2x Terminate
1x Murderous Cut
2x Kolaghan's Command
4x Anticipate
2x Thought Scour
1x Damnation
3x Snapcaster Mage
3x Tasigur, the Golden Fang
1x Gurmag Angler
2x Vendilion Clique
3x Young Pyromancer
At this point, the build is more of the YoungPeezy Control variant as it forgoes the Blood Moons in favor of a more tempo game early. I like the Pyro's a lot and I feel that they're really powerful in this shell both in early game defense and swarming offense later, but that being said, part of me wants to ditch them in favor of more business spells to control and rely on the delve and flash dudes as the wincons. Damnation feels out of place but also needed. I also really like the checklands here.
Other things I've kicked around are adding Teferi, Mage of Zhalfir with a very light Mystical Teachings package. I also would like to try a single Grave Titan as the top end, but it feels winmore over Angler and Tasigur.
So I went to a Modern tournament tonight with the Blood Moon version of this deck and went 3-1.
This was my deck:
6 Islands
1 Mountain
1 Swamp
2 Steam Vents
1 Watery Grave
4 Polluted Delta
3 Scalding Tarn
2 Bloodstained Mire
1 Flooded Strand
1 Desolate Lighthouse
Creatures (7)
4 Snapcaster Mage
3 Tasigur, the Golden Fang
Enchantments (3)
1 Keranos, God of Storms
2 Blood Moon
2 Vedalken Shackles
Sorceries (6)
4 Serum Visions
1 Thoughtseize
1 Inquisition of Kozilek
Instants (20)
1 Dispel
2 Spell Snare
3 Thought Scour
2 Deprive
2 Mana Leak
1 Cryptic Command
4 Lightning Bolt
1 Dismember
2 Terminate
2 Kolaghan's Command
2 Dispel
1 Negate
2 Anger of the Gods
1 Shatterstorm
1 Murderous Cut
1 Kolaghan's Command
2 Counterflux
1 Electrolyze
1 Engineered Explosives
1 Blood Moon
1 Ashiok, Nightmare Weaver
1 Olivia Voldaren
Note that my sideboarding decisions are approximations, as I didn't write down what went in and out.
Round 1, UWR Control/Gifts
I was on the play and down on lands the entire time. I opened up with two and took several turns to draw the next, while my opponent kept making land drops. Some burn and Colonnade hits took me down.
Out: 2 Mana Leaks, 1 Deprive, 2 Thought Scour
In: 1 Blood Moon, 2 Dispel, 1 Negate, 1 Olivia Voldaren
Note that I removed the Thoughtseize out of fear of their burn spells (which was fairly justified, as I ended one game at 8 life with him having 6 points of burn in hand) and the Mana Leaks because I saw 3 Spell Snares game 1, on top of him continually making land drops.
This game was much more grindy. I fought through a counter to land an early Tasigur, after which I protected it with everything that I had. He tapped out for an Elesh Norn, which let me drop a Blood Moon then Terminate Elesh Norn before combat. It didn't last much longer after that.
Game 3 went much the same, with us ending up in turns while I beat down with a Tasigur and Snapcaster. I ended the game on turn 5 with a couple Lightning Bolts.
2-1
Round 2: UB Mill
I actually won game 1 through landing an early Tasigur (thanks for the help milling!) and beating him down. Not much to say besides Archive Trap is a mean card.
Out: 1 Dismember, 3 Thought Scours, 2 Vedalken Shackles
In: 2 Dispel, 1 Negate, 1 Counterflux, 1 Olivia Voldaren, 1 Kolaghan's Command
I ended up making some land drops and landing an Olivia Voldaren on around turn 5, which he responded to by playing 2 Mesmeric Orbs. Ouch. I ended up getting milled out mostly by those with him at 4. Feels bad, man.
Game 3 I got rolled. I Dispelled an Archive Trap on turn 1 only to get hit with a second one, followed by a couple Mind Funerals. Another Mesmeric Orb landed with me unable to draw any Kolaghan's Commands. I wasn't able to find any threats (especially with my Tasigurs getting Extracted), and ended up losing with him at a high life total.
1-2.
Round 3: Merfolk
He led off with a Cavern->Curse Catcher into Silvergill Adept, the latter of which ate a Bolt. He played out a Master of the Pearl Trident and hit me with the Curse Catcher and the Mutavault. I then bolted his Master and played a Blood Moon.
What, Blood Moon against Merfolk?
Well, at this time he had only a Cavern of Souls and 2 Mutavaults with no Aether Vial, which meant that he was completely locked from the game. I dropped a Tasigur after that and beat down.
Out: 1 Inquisition, 1 Thoughtseize (hand empties fairly quick, and I'd rather just kill things on the board), 2 Blood Moon, 1 Deprive, 1 Mana Leak
In: 2 Anger of the Gods, 1 Olivia Voldaren, 1 Engineered Explosives, 1 Kolaghan's Command, 1 Murderous Cut
My opponent had to mulligan to five on the play That's never fun for anybody. He led off with a Vial into a Vial while I made some land drops. He then dropped a Silvergill Adept EOT with his Vial into a Master of the Pearl Trident and Curse Catcher the next turn and hit me the Adept and a Mutavault. He Spell Pierced my Kolaghan's Command on the Vial and Adept, then passed the turn.
I made my fourth land drop and Angered, using said land to pay for the Curse Catcher.
It took him a bit to rebuild after that, during which I Snapcastered back my Kommand and dropped a Tasigur and started beating down. It ended pretty quick after that.
2-0
Round 4: Loam
My opponent led on a Faithless Looting, but didn't seem to find what she wanted, and ended up dumping 2 Loams into the yard (which is a really obvious clue to what you're playing). We both ended up durdling for a couple turns. She attempted to play a Zombie Infestation, which I Snared because no, then followed up with a Blood Moon, which essentially locked her from the game. I landed a Tasigur and beat down with it.
Out: 1 Thoughtseize, 1 Inquisition, 1 Dispel
In: 1 Blood Moon, 1 Kommand, 1 Olivia Voldaren
I had a feeling that she'd be playing Lingering Souls, and it turned out that she was, making my Olivia bonkers. I landed an early Shackles, which I used to make a Bloodghast Trade for a souls token, then followed it up with Olivia, who started shooting things from the sky. It didn't take long before the vampire queen took my opponent down.
2-0
Overall 3-1. Felt pretty good.
URW Control
WBG Abzan
GRW Burn
EDH
GR Rosheen Meanderer