What about Nimble Obstructionist recently spoiled?
I'm intrigued by it. I'm going to try it since I've always loved stifle-like card. Maybe it costs too much, but it's very versitile and a good beater. Single U in the cost makes it work under moon and flash is always welcome.
Are you considering it for the main or the side? Any ideas as to what matchups this card could improve?
My first take is that it costs at least 1 mana too much to cycle which in turn causes the stifle ability to be irrelevant by the time it comes online against too many decks in the current meta especially when playing on the draw. That said, an uncounterable stifle + card draw + a creature in the yard sounds promising in theory! The body is nothing to scoff at and it might make up for the times when the stifle ability is dead. I'm just not convinced that it will have practical applicability in the matchups that we currently struggle against.
The go-to comparison for me is Vendilion Clique which I think I would rather play despite UU in the cost because the body is the same but with greater utility. At any rate, I think it would be possible to see a single copy of Nimble Obstructionist somewhere in the 75 if the meta slows down even just a little further.
All of the "X's last x" cards are sorceries so we wont be getting a counter for blue. Best guess we get a card draw effect. Maybe 3 mana draw 3, dont untap next turn? Also very possible it's just a bounce effect though..
Where did you find this information? Based off of Wizard's history, a cycle of cards are not always a single card type. For an easy example take a looks the command cycles. Do you have a reference for the spells all being sorceries? If not, I'm still hopeful
I think I'm finally going to pick up this deck on paper. I've toyed with the commonly played proven core and I'm trying to decide what to do with the rest of the skeleton and the flex spots.
I used to play Ashton's Day's Undoing list before the probe ban and, at the time, Shoal was an all-star for me. With Curator entering the format, I'm feeling pretty inspired to try running a playset of Shoals with 1 or 2 Curator in the list to finally be able to counter 4 mana spells while tapped out! I'd appreciate help with a list running Shoal designed for the current meta. Has anyone been playtesting with that type of setup? is there any consensus on whether Shoal should be played? If possible, I'm hoping to make sure I can run 3 blood moon in the sideboard without issue in the main.
I'd also appreciate seeing some updated decklists now that the first half of Amonkhet has been spoiled and the modern announcement has occurred.
I like his interaction with Hieroglyphic Illumination, cycling it to replay later seems like a fair move. I'm not sure what kind of shell could utilize it at this point though, the format seems pretty low to the ground
If my opponent casts World Breaker and chooses to target my Island with the on-cast trigger, can I cast Deprive in response, targeting World Breaker, and return the Island back to my hand so it doesn't get exiled?
I'd like to run Blood Moon in my sideboards. Although I have lots of practice playing against this card, I have little practice actually using it. I have three questions about using this card:
How do you set up your mana to never be disadvantaged by your own blood moon?
(i.e., for dual and tri coloured decks running red)
What decks should it come in against and which ones should it not?
How many is the right number in the sideboard?
I would like to discuss these questions in regards to any r/x or r/x/x deck looking to run it as a sideboard option. As a common defence in any of my decks I never skimp on basics, but I've never had to try making a mana base that can balance using Blood Moon as a consistent option. From what I've played with, running it in the Affinity sideboard was great because that deck cares very little about having coloured lands so I could run 3 Blood Moon in the sideboard without much worry. I feel like Blood Moon shines against Tron, Infect, and greedy mana bases. I'm just not sure if it's always worth running Blood Moon just because you can.
The reason I'm so curious now is that I've been thinking about trying a new deck for an upcoming FNM but the meta is unkown to me. Here are two deck lists that I'm debating between playing. Feel free to suggest changes if you see large room for improvement. Could this deck be okay with Blood Moon in the sideboard as is? Or would a more focused U/R build be significantly more stable against its own Blood Moon?
Would a Flash deck like this next list even want something like Blood Moon in the sideboard? What changes could be made if I wanted to include it? I'm also wondering which of these two lists would be wiser to use. I'll take any advice on card choices too!
I like most of the unbans that ktkenshinx has listed but I'm not sure that chrome mox is a good idea. I'm worried that fast mana would become too consistent and difficult to interact with. Modern is currently without much turn 0 interaction (e.g., no force of will) and I don't know how out of hand something like Elves, Grishoalbrand, or any other combo deck could get with the introduction of another quick free mana source.
Otherwise things are looking good, I'm fearful of Jace and Stoneforge but I'm not yet convinced that they'll be oppressive, they appear to be contenders for a ban imho. I would also suggest taking a look at banning cards to make Twin and Pod decks less intense like, banning Deceiver Exarch for example? Those are just my two cents. I like this idea but I think a dedicated and unbiased team/council of elected members is essential to make a player-run banlist work.
Hey! I'm curious about Legacy and would like to find a deck that will interest me. I have so many questions about the meta! However, I'll try not to ask them here I'm looking for something that fits with my play style rather than what pieces I own, I don't mind buying into the format a little (but overlap with what I have would be nice!). I play Command a fair amount but I have mostly been playing Modern for quite some time now and the competitive decks that I've played (and still have some pieces of) are the following:
Could anyone please direct me towards a deck that has a blend of creatures and spells in a tempo/aggro-control fashion? I definitely like swinging in and I also like countering things. Something non-linear would be nice, combo is an option if it is perhaps akin to what Twin used to be like when it wasn't banned in modern (is that deck even played in this format?). I also really like fair decks but I have no idea what kind of viability strategies have here, any help would be great!
Thanks for the response wpgstevo! I knew I was going out on a limb with that suggestion and I can see that I was much further out than I thought I don't have much input at this point other than I think I have to agree with all of your points. I've tried Meddling Mage again (running 2 copies with traverse and o-command) and I'm now believing its merit, it's becoming more and more useful as I learn which spells to target against each deck. Learning the best targets during game 1 in preparation for game 2 is actually fairly rewarding in itself
With Gitaxian Probe gone, I don't feel as though Meddling Mage has retained her strength. Vendilion Clique serves us pretty well but their toughness and legendary supertype are a significant weakness. Just throwing out a thought here, what about a larger midrange build with more dorks for mana fixing? I haven't done any real testing at this point, but I think if any deck were to harness the power of Torrential Gearhulk it would be us. Recasting Cryptic Command is clearly a winner and we can get there faster than other decks that don't use mana dorks. Something like Azorius Charm could cause a heavy boardstate/life swing, we could also use instants of any casting cost or color which is an idea I haven't really looked into other than perhaps Fracturing Gust as a sideboard card. In placement of the Meddling Mage + Spell Queller combo, we could go with Simic Charm or Heroic Intervention as options to keep queller alive that have the ability to be recast from the graveyard. Has anyone been working much on Bant midrange since the most recent banning announcement?
True, Blessed Alliance is fantastic! I can see how that toolbox would give aggro decks and dredge especially a run for their money
How are you finding Tarmogoyf and Snapcaster Mage? In my experience, Bant has trouble making Tarmogoyf grow large. Other decks like Jund or Abzan can create a large goyf easily using discard and burn, but we lack those tools and don't run as many card types. Snapcaster Mage also lacks it's best friend lightning bolt, are you confident that running 4 is the right choice? From what I can tell, the ability to replay sideboard cards likely outweighs any drawback, I could see a copy being sideboard material or dropping to 3 copies in the main perhaps? It could eliminate drawing into too many copies, I'll have to do some testing of my own with your list but those are just my few cents on the topic!
Tarmogoyf grows just fine - we're always the same size as the opponent in the goyf mirror, but we have noble. So in any 'mirror' goyf matchup, our goyfs are actually better. Rare is the occasion where goyf isn't out of bolt range by turn 2 - we're playing serum visions which helps with that, and a 4/5 goyf is all we ever need. Snapcaster is great, but I could see 3 being the right number. So far there have not been many occasions where I drew too many, but it does happen occasionally. Conversely, I almost always want a snapcaster in hand when I don't have one.
Also, what is your opinion on running Noble Hierarch as an additional turn 1 play? It seems like the deck is currently committed to playing control in the early phases of the game, but I don't think that Hierarch would jeopardize that in any way. It could assist in speeding up the deck allowing a turn two 3-drop, or a 2-drop with a Spell Snare at the ready, or just better control options earlier in the game. It also gives us a play against slower decks like Tron or some of the control brews. I suppose I might be valuing a mana dork too highly here, could it be that Hierarch isn't worth the tempo commitment?
Noble was in the list, but I made a formatting error in the OP that kinda hid the card - fixed! Noble is integral to the deck imo.
That is excellent news!!
I'll try pulling a list together in paper and running a few tournaments!
Great primer! I like the Spell Queller + Meddling Mage synergy. I look forward to seeing some results from Bant midrange. I must admit I am rather skeptical due to the lack of success Bant midrange has had in the past, I fear that the current meta is too quick and dirty for such a solid fair strategy.
Thanks! My experience has been that the fastest decks are the best matchups. They don't benefit as much from the drawback on path to exile, and are usually super vulnerable to blessed alliance. Blessed alliance is a big part of why Bant Midrange can keep up. Even dredge isn't so scary with path, celestial purge and surgical extraction and full set of snappy to rebuy them. Rhox war monk is even unreasonably good at blocking Prized Amalgams.
True, Blessed Alliance is fantastic! I can see how that toolbox would give aggro decks and dredge especially a run for their money
How are you finding Tarmogoyf and Snapcaster Mage? In my experience, Bant has trouble making Tarmogoyf grow large. Other decks like Jund or Abzan can create a large goyf easily using discard and burn, but we lack those tools and don't run as many card types. Snapcaster Mage also lacks it's best friend lightning bolt, are you confident that running 4 is the right choice? From what I can tell, the ability to replay sideboard cards likely outweighs any drawback, I could see a copy being sideboard material or dropping to 3 copies in the main perhaps? It could eliminate drawing into too many copies, I'll have to do some testing of my own with your list but those are just my few cents on the topic!
Also, what is your opinion on running Noble Hierarch as an additional turn 1 play? It seems like the deck is currently committed to playing control in the early phases of the game, but I don't think that Hierarch would jeopardize that in any way. It could assist in speeding up the deck allowing a turn two 3-drop, or a 2-drop with a Spell Snare at the ready, or just better control options earlier in the game. It also gives us a play against slower decks like Tron or some of the control brews. I suppose I might be valuing a mana dork too highly here, could it be that Hierarch isn't worth the tempo commitment?
Sorcery
Each player reveals their hand.
You lose 2 life.
Draw a card.
My first take is that it costs at least 1 mana too much to cycle which in turn causes the stifle ability to be irrelevant by the time it comes online against too many decks in the current meta especially when playing on the draw. That said, an uncounterable stifle + card draw + a creature in the yard sounds promising in theory! The body is nothing to scoff at and it might make up for the times when the stifle ability is dead. I'm just not convinced that it will have practical applicability in the matchups that we currently struggle against.
The go-to comparison for me is Vendilion Clique which I think I would rather play despite UU in the cost because the body is the same but with greater utility. At any rate, I think it would be possible to see a single copy of Nimble Obstructionist somewhere in the 75 if the meta slows down even just a little further.
Edit: check out Jordan's brief opinion of the card (and others) here http://modernnexus.com/whats-time-hou-xln-first-impressions/
I used to play Ashton's Day's Undoing list before the probe ban and, at the time, Shoal was an all-star for me. With Curator entering the format, I'm feeling pretty inspired to try running a playset of Shoals with 1 or 2 Curator in the list to finally be able to counter 4 mana spells while tapped out! I'd appreciate help with a list running Shoal designed for the current meta. Has anyone been playtesting with that type of setup? is there any consensus on whether Shoal should be played? If possible, I'm hoping to make sure I can run 3 blood moon in the sideboard without issue in the main.
I'd also appreciate seeing some updated decklists now that the first half of Amonkhet has been spoiled and the modern announcement has occurred.
I thought so, just wanted to be sure
I would like to discuss these questions in regards to any r/x or r/x/x deck looking to run it as a sideboard option. As a common defence in any of my decks I never skimp on basics, but I've never had to try making a mana base that can balance using Blood Moon as a consistent option. From what I've played with, running it in the Affinity sideboard was great because that deck cares very little about having coloured lands so I could run 3 Blood Moon in the sideboard without much worry. I feel like Blood Moon shines against Tron, Infect, and greedy mana bases. I'm just not sure if it's always worth running Blood Moon just because you can.
The reason I'm so curious now is that I've been thinking about trying a new deck for an upcoming FNM but the meta is unkown to me. Here are two deck lists that I'm debating between playing. Feel free to suggest changes if you see large room for improvement. Could this deck be okay with Blood Moon in the sideboard as is? Or would a more focused U/R build be significantly more stable against its own Blood Moon?
1x Breeding Pool
1x Forest
2x Island
4x Misty Rainforest
1x Mountain
4x Scalding Tarn
2x Steam Vents
1x Stomping Ground
2x Wooded Foothills
Sorcery (8)
2x Flame Slash
4x Serum Visions
2x Sleight of Hand
2x Electrolyze
4x Lightning Bolt
2x Mana Leak
4x Remand
2x Spell Snare
2x Tarfire
2x Vapor Snag
Creature (16)
4x Delver of Secrets Flip
4x Goblin Guide
2x Snapcaster Mage
4x Tarmogoyf
2x Vendilion Clique
1x Ancient Grudge
3x Blood Moon
2x Destructive Revelry
2x Huntmaster of the Fells Flip
2x Hurkyl's Recall
2 Dispel
3x Negate
Would a Flash deck like this next list even want something like Blood Moon in the sideboard? What changes could be made if I wanted to include it? I'm also wondering which of these two lists would be wiser to use. I'll take any advice on card choices too!
4x Celestial Colonnade
4x Flooded Strand
1x Hallowed Fountain
1x Mystic Gate
4x Island
1x Mountain
2x Plains
1x Sacred Foundry
4x Scalding Tarn
2x Steam Vents
2x Cryptic Command
4x Lightning Bolt
2x Lightning Helix
2x Mana Leak
4x Path to Exile
4x Remand
2x Spell Snare
2x Restoration Angel
4x Snapcaster Mage
4x Spell Queller
2x Vendilion Clique
Sorcery (4)
4x Serum Visions
Otherwise things are looking good, I'm fearful of Jace and Stoneforge but I'm not yet convinced that they'll be oppressive, they appear to be contenders for a ban imho. I would also suggest taking a look at banning cards to make Twin and Pod decks less intense like, banning Deceiver Exarch for example? Those are just my two cents. I like this idea but I think a dedicated and unbiased team/council of elected members is essential to make a player-run banlist work.
Naya Zoo
U/R/B Affinity
U/R Storm
U/R Delver
Bant Midrange
Could anyone please direct me towards a deck that has a blend of creatures and spells in a tempo/aggro-control fashion? I definitely like swinging in and I also like countering things. Something non-linear would be nice, combo is an option if it is perhaps akin to what Twin used to be like when it wasn't banned in modern (is that deck even played in this format?). I also really like fair decks but I have no idea what kind of viability strategies have here, any help would be great!
Thanks!!!
Good luck with testing everyone!
2x Birds of Paradise
4x Noble Hierarch
2x Snapcaster Mage
4x Tarmogoyf
4x Spell Queller
2x Torrential Gearhulk
Instant (16)
4x Blessed Alliance
4x Cryptic Command
2x Heroic Intervention
4x Path to Exile
2x Spell Snare
4x Serum Visions
Land (22)
3x Botanical Sanctum
1x Breeding Pool
2x Flooded Strand
1x Forest
1x Hallowed Fountain
3x Island
4x Misty Rainforest
1x Mystic Gate
2x Plains
1x Tectonic Edge
1x Temple Garden
2x Windswept Heath
I'll try pulling a list together in paper and running a few tournaments!
How are you finding Tarmogoyf and Snapcaster Mage? In my experience, Bant has trouble making Tarmogoyf grow large. Other decks like Jund or Abzan can create a large goyf easily using discard and burn, but we lack those tools and don't run as many card types. Snapcaster Mage also lacks it's best friend lightning bolt, are you confident that running 4 is the right choice? From what I can tell, the ability to replay sideboard cards likely outweighs any drawback, I could see a copy being sideboard material or dropping to 3 copies in the main perhaps? It could eliminate drawing into too many copies, I'll have to do some testing of my own with your list but those are just my few cents on the topic!
Also, what is your opinion on running Noble Hierarch as an additional turn 1 play? It seems like the deck is currently committed to playing control in the early phases of the game, but I don't think that Hierarch would jeopardize that in any way. It could assist in speeding up the deck allowing a turn two 3-drop, or a 2-drop with a Spell Snare at the ready, or just better control options earlier in the game. It also gives us a play against slower decks like Tron or some of the control brews. I suppose I might be valuing a mana dork too highly here, could it be that Hierarch isn't worth the tempo commitment?