Has someone played against podless pod? in my meta some players are testing it with great results and it seems very difficult to beat for us
My friend plays Podless Pod/"Wilted"/Little Kid Abzan and it's hard to beat. I haven't actually played it with Abzan Midrange a but with my Jund Midrange list it's super hard to beat.
Multiple copies of Lingering Souls , lots of value creatures that stress our 1 for 1 removal and extreme resilience to discard .
As part of our new forum update, we really want threads to be more focused on their main deck. Currently, we have three threads for three different BGx decks: Jund, Junk, and BG Rock. In the past, we have been pretty lenient about allowing BG Rock and Junk discussion to cross-populate the threads, especially when the deck was only splashing for 3-4 copies of something like Souls. But now that Rhino is around, we are seeing a lot of decks with 8+ white cards in the maindeck and very few instances of "pure" BG Rock. This can be confusing for new players who don't know where to go for information about a deck, or where to discuss ideas for their version of BGx midrange.
Going ahead, how do you guys want to deal with this? Do you think we should ban all white splash discussion from this thread and keep that in Junk? Should we set a cutoff for how many white cards are allowed to be included in a deck to be Junk vs. BG Rock? Or should we maybe merge the threads into one giant BG and BGW mega discussion? Something else entirely? All of those ideas have different pros and cons and staff is curious to hear what you all think about them.
Let us know!
I think B/G , Jund and Junk should all have seperate threads .
I played against G/B Constellation , BUG Control , Jeskai Tempo and two irrelevant decks.
Against G/B I took game 1 easily controlled the board , kept Whip off the board , etc. , Game 2 I had a decent opening hand but drew into 3 straight dig through times then abunch of land at the beginning of the game so he got to jump ahead and never look back . Game 3 went to time and we drew. I had him almost milled out with Ashiok(he had 9 cards left in his deck at the end of turns) , he killed my first Elspeth and my Sorin and I couldn't draw into another win con to end it fast enough .
Against BUG Control it was a grind fest . He got some damage in with Courser and it came down to whoever resolved a wealker first won . Game 1 I couldn't answer Kiora before she Ultimated . Game 2 I had Elspeth and Sorin down to win the game quickly . Game 3 was super grindy and we went to time and drew .
Against Jeskai Aggro He took Game 1 he burned me out fast . I took Game 2 , he tried to burn me out and I resolved Resolute Archangel and took over . Game 3 I mull to 5 keep two temples a Sorin , Dissolve and a Bile Blight. And just didn't get there .
The two irrelevant decks were B/R Minotaur and some janky U/R aggro deck .
I had zero practice with the deck before FNM so I'm sure with some practice and working on match ups I can perform better . The deck felt good overall , the mana was alittle shakey but I only had issues one game . I'm unsure about Ashiok , against G/B and Sidisi and such exiling their Hornet queens and whips is nice but do I really want to be casting him for that ? I feel like an extra Sorin or two might be better . Resolute Archangel is a house in some match ups , she can win games just by dropping her down .
The goblin tokens are red so they can tap for red mana.
Anywho... I'm preparing for an Premier IQ this weekend in Philadelphia, I'm expecting there to be at least over 100 people being that it's at the convention center. I'm expecting 3 decks to make a big showing. RDW, Jeskai Heroic combo, and GB Constellation. Of course there will be abzan and jeskai, but I think the decks I mentioned before will make up about 40 percent of the meta at least.
Yesterday I played two Jeskai Heroic Ascendancy combo decks and got completely stomped. Even if they don't combo off, the aggro ability of the deck is still very strong.
So does anyone have any good sideboard suggestions for aggro in general. I know anger is the obvious choice, but jeskai does play god's willing and ajani's presence. I was thinking that based on their ability to play multiple cards per turn that Eidolon of rhetoric might not be a bad idea. It's pretty much a combo killer. Jeskai ascendancy doesn't play any removal either.
I gotta run right now. But I have alot more to add so I might add alot to this post later to discuss sideboards and stuff if anyone cares.
I'm going to the same event , I'm worried about G/B Constellation being a thing . Not sure how I'm going to adjust the deck just yet .
Seeker is my main gun. If they choose to aggro against him instead of of just removing him, you can wreck their day with turn 3 removal into 6 point life swing and tempo swap. Works even better on the draw, actually. Obvious stuff, of course.
I like the burst build, but the black control build has been working really well for me lately. Blights certainly come out against abzan, but that's cool. Plenty of sideboard slots for that match. Taking out an elf game one is always great, and I feel so much safer having easy outs to rabblemaster, mantis rider and mirror goblins. Plus random jank like mono black, etc.
Both builds work good just slightly different directions .
Here's my 75 so far I'd like an extra Chandra(possibly one Mainboard)
I play a totally different build with no outburst, but heros downfall, thoughtseize, mardu charm and bile blight in the main. Mardu Charm is great, I'm surprised there aren't more folks warming up to it.
I started out with a deck but trying to run Brimaz , Hero's Downfall and Crackling Doom made the deck's mana base really shaky . Bile Blight is good against Mono Red and Jeskai but with so much "big" Abzan I wouldn't main board it in my meta.
Mardu Charm always feels underwhelming to me .
I love Thoughtseize and Hero's Downfall they are my "go to" cards but right now I think the more aggressive approach is better for Mardu. Playing R/W with a splash of black cleans up the mana base alot , Chained to the Rocks is an awesome removal spell(one mana mind you) , Seeker of the Way can win games or pull you ahead if left un-checked and Outburst let's you go wider than most decks while also working perfectly with Seeker/Sorin/Butcher.
but any supplement for my sorins at the moment? Only card Im lacking
I am having to wait a tad bit until I can pick up my few.
I have thought about running Ajani Steadfast and maybe some raise the alarm, to keep the lifegain there and also tokens for Butcher
I know these are no sorins, just looking for some effective replacements for my weekend tournament.
EDIT: I have looked at chandra as a filler for the 4 PW slot. As she can be effective for swinging through and even card advantage for the grindy moments
I'm a fan of Chandra , she's a 1 of in my main deck currently and I never regret boarding in another against certain matchups . Going Rabblemaster into Chandra feels great . Plus she "draws" cards to you could use her until you get Sorin's.
Seeker of the Way gives us a solid two drop who can gain life , get bigger , block early attacks , get in some damage etc . There's games where he is a major force where I ride him and pull ahead and there's games where he draws out removal .
When I played the Brimaz lists if I didn't draw a discard spell into Lightning Strike I was just saying land go and not putting anything on the battlefield until Turn 3 which felt really bad . Having Seeker as an early play as well as a cleaner mana base thanks to running Chain to the Rocks and Outburst makes this version of Mardu must smoother than the clunky 3 drop heavy , shaky mana older versions .
What's everyone's opinion on Chandra, Pyromaster in the main deck . Right now I have her as a one of and I'm liking it . Late game she draws cards , early game she pings and helps get Seeker/Rabblemaster in .
Dropping Brimaz/Hero's Downfall/Thoughtseize for Seeker of the way , Chained to the Rocks and Hordeling Outburst really changed this deck . I have been having local success with Seeker of the way lists similar to Brad Nelson's .
The previous lists with Brimaz/Hero's Downfall had shaky mana and felt clunky . Either I would hope I drew the right creatures and curve out or hoped I drew Thoughtseize into removal and play more control . The new list feels great , Seeker is a great card in the early game , Chained to the Rocks is 1 mana removal against anything not named Stormbreath and Outburst putting 3 guys on the table gives you options . Only issue I see so far is that Planeswalkers can be hard to deal with but that's what the sideboard is for .
I went 0-4 drop . Got beat up by 2 Brave Naya and two Monsters decks . It was really frustrating the deck felt clunky last night . I'm going to give Jund a rest and play Junk ,or go back to Mono Black or U/W/x Control for now .
Decided to change my deck up a bit and looking for another round of opinions , now it looks more like my previous build from Born of the Gods that performed well . I went to 4/3/3 Downfall/Mortar/Decay which hits mostly everything . I decided to take out Thoughtseize it just seemed like the right choice , Rakdos's Return is a good finisher and something I feel the deck can really use , I plan on boarding in Thoughtseize . With 3 Thoughtseize out of the main I put 2 Golgari Charm and 1 Chandra, Pyromaster(like Jub77) . Chandra is another way to draw cards plus she can ping , Golgari Charm is obvious .
I like Xenagos, The Reveler but have gave Vraska a thought any opinions ? I'm seeing very little control and more Midrange and aggressive strategies so Xenagos making alittle extra mana helps keep spell mana open and they 2/2's are nice for extra damage or blockers . Any thoughts appreciated
Nice list. Can I ask a few questions?
- Why only 1 slaughter games? I love that card, i try to play 3 copies.
- Why no Sire of Insanity? I guess maybe he's more for shock value than anything else?
- It looks like Desecration Demon is in the slot where you could also have Reaper of the Wilds. Did you put DD in there for the 4 drop curve or just feels it's a better card overall?
- I noticed Dreadbore isn't in there. Do you just feel it's inferior at the moment, or is it more of a meta call?
- I had devour flesh in there for Blood Baron, and I see you are just running Mizzium Mortars instead. I think I like that idea since when it's overloaded it can hit hexproof, and with Devour you can't always count on them getting rid of the card you want them to get rid of.
I've been brewing up a Jund list and my questions are more or less the differences between the decks. Just curious to understand another person's thought process, it's a great way to learn.
-I only have 1 copy of Slaughter Games on me (lend my other one out) I would run two most likely .
-I didn't really want to change my sideboard to fit sire in right now .
-Reaper isn't bad but Demon works better . A 6/6 flyer comming down on turn 3 or 4 is great while alot of times Reaper is a 4/5 on the ground and feels like a 6-drop because you want to take advantage of his hexproof ability .
-I had two dreadbore but it felt underwhelming , it can't hit Blood Baron and the overload isn't a bad bonus tacked on.
-No Devour flesh which is a meta call.
Decided to change my deck up a bit and looking for another round of opinions , now it looks more like my previous build from Born of the Gods that performed well . I went to 4/3/3 Downfall/Mortar/Decay which hits mostly everything . I decided to take out Thoughtseize it just seemed like the right choice , Rakdos's Return is a good finisher and something I feel the deck can really use , I plan on boarding in Thoughtseize . With 3 Thoughtseize out of the main I put 2 Golgari Charm and 1 Chandra, Pyromaster(like Jub77) . Chandra is another way to draw cards plus she can ping , Golgari Charm is obvious .
I like Xenagos, The Reveler but have gave Vraska a thought any opinions ? I'm seeing very little control and more Midrange and aggressive strategies so Xenagos making alittle extra mana helps keep spell mana open and they 2/2's are nice for extra damage or blockers . Any thoughts appreciated
My friend plays Podless Pod/"Wilted"/Little Kid Abzan and it's hard to beat. I haven't actually played it with Abzan Midrange a but with my Jund Midrange list it's super hard to beat.
Multiple copies of Lingering Souls , lots of value creatures that stress our 1 for 1 removal and extreme resilience to discard .
I think B/G , Jund and Junk should all have seperate threads .
Would BGW be a better choice for the meta by chance ?
I played against G/B Constellation , BUG Control , Jeskai Tempo and two irrelevant decks.
Against G/B I took game 1 easily controlled the board , kept Whip off the board , etc. , Game 2 I had a decent opening hand but drew into 3 straight dig through times then abunch of land at the beginning of the game so he got to jump ahead and never look back . Game 3 went to time and we drew. I had him almost milled out with Ashiok(he had 9 cards left in his deck at the end of turns) , he killed my first Elspeth and my Sorin and I couldn't draw into another win con to end it fast enough .
Against BUG Control it was a grind fest . He got some damage in with Courser and it came down to whoever resolved a wealker first won . Game 1 I couldn't answer Kiora before she Ultimated . Game 2 I had Elspeth and Sorin down to win the game quickly . Game 3 was super grindy and we went to time and drew .
Against Jeskai Aggro He took Game 1 he burned me out fast . I took Game 2 , he tried to burn me out and I resolved Resolute Archangel and took over . Game 3 I mull to 5 keep two temples a Sorin , Dissolve and a Bile Blight. And just didn't get there .
The two irrelevant decks were B/R Minotaur and some janky U/R aggro deck .
I had zero practice with the deck before FNM so I'm sure with some practice and working on match ups I can perform better . The deck felt good overall , the mana was alittle shakey but I only had issues one game . I'm unsure about Ashiok , against G/B and Sidisi and such exiling their Hornet queens and whips is nice but do I really want to be casting him for that ? I feel like an extra Sorin or two might be better . Resolute Archangel is a house in some match ups , she can win games just by dropping her down .
I'm going to the same event , I'm worried about G/B Constellation being a thing . Not sure how I'm going to adjust the deck just yet .
Both builds work good just slightly different directions .
Here's my 75 so far I'd like an extra Chandra(possibly one Mainboard)
3x [[Seeker of the Way]]
4x [[Goblin Rabblemaster]]
4x [[Butcher of the Horde]]
3x [[Stormbreath Dragon]]
Spells
3x [[Chained to the Rocks]]
4x [[Lightning Strike]]
4x [[Crackling Doom]]
4x [[Hordeling Outburst]]
1x [[Murderous Cut]]
Land
4x [[Nomad Outpost]]
4x [[Bloodstained Mire]]
6x [[Mountain]]
1x [[Swamp]]
2x [[Battlefield Forge]]
2x [[Caves of Koilos]]
1x [[Mana Confluence]]
4x [[Temple of Triumph]]
1x [[Temple of Silence]]
1x [[Chandra, Pyromaster]]
2x [[Elspeth, Sun's Champion]]
2x [[End Hostilities]]
2x [[Glare of Heresy]]
3x [[Read The Bones]]
2x [[Utter End]]
I started out with a deck but trying to run Brimaz , Hero's Downfall and Crackling Doom made the deck's mana base really shaky . Bile Blight is good against Mono Red and Jeskai but with so much "big" Abzan I wouldn't main board it in my meta.
Mardu Charm always feels underwhelming to me .
I love Thoughtseize and Hero's Downfall they are my "go to" cards but right now I think the more aggressive approach is better for Mardu. Playing R/W with a splash of black cleans up the mana base alot , Chained to the Rocks is an awesome removal spell(one mana mind you) , Seeker of the Way can win games or pull you ahead if left un-checked and Outburst let's you go wider than most decks while also working perfectly with Seeker/Sorin/Butcher.
I'm a fan of Chandra , she's a 1 of in my main deck currently and I never regret boarding in another against certain matchups . Going Rabblemaster into Chandra feels great . Plus she "draws" cards to you could use her until you get Sorin's.
When I played the Brimaz lists if I didn't draw a discard spell into Lightning Strike I was just saying land go and not putting anything on the battlefield until Turn 3 which felt really bad . Having Seeker as an early play as well as a cleaner mana base thanks to running Chain to the Rocks and Outburst makes this version of Mardu must smoother than the clunky 3 drop heavy , shaky mana older versions .
What's everyone's opinion on Chandra, Pyromaster in the main deck . Right now I have her as a one of and I'm liking it . Late game she draws cards , early game she pings and helps get Seeker/Rabblemaster in .
The previous lists with Brimaz/Hero's Downfall had shaky mana and felt clunky . Either I would hope I drew the right creatures and curve out or hoped I drew Thoughtseize into removal and play more control . The new list feels great , Seeker is a great card in the early game , Chained to the Rocks is 1 mana removal against anything not named Stormbreath and Outburst putting 3 guys on the table gives you options . Only issue I see so far is that Planeswalkers can be hard to deal with but that's what the sideboard is for .
-I only have 1 copy of Slaughter Games on me (lend my other one out) I would run two most likely .
-I didn't really want to change my sideboard to fit sire in right now .
-Reaper isn't bad but Demon works better . A 6/6 flyer comming down on turn 3 or 4 is great while alot of times Reaper is a 4/5 on the ground and feels like a 6-drop because you want to take advantage of his hexproof ability .
-I had two dreadbore but it felt underwhelming , it can't hit Blood Baron and the overload isn't a bad bonus tacked on.
-No Devour flesh which is a meta call.
I like Xenagos, The Reveler but have gave Vraska a thought any opinions ? I'm seeing very little control and more Midrange and aggressive strategies so Xenagos making alittle extra mana helps keep spell mana open and they 2/2's are nice for extra damage or blockers . Any thoughts appreciated
4x Blood Crypt
4x Overgrown Tomb
4x Stomping Ground
3x Temple of Malady
3x Temple of Abandon
2x Temple of Malice
3x Swamp
2x Forest
Creatures
4x Sylvan Caryatid
2x Scavenging Ooze
4x Courser of Kruphix
2x Desecration Demon
4x Stormbreath Dragon
1x Chandra, Pyromaster
Spells
2x Underworld Connections
4x Hero's Downfall
3x Mizzium Mortars
3x Abrupt Decay
2x Rakdos's Return
2x Golgari Charm
4x Thoughtseize
3x Mistcutter Hydra
2x Lifebane Zombie
2x Drown in Sorrow
1x Underworld Connections
1x Slaughter Games
2x Doom Blade