Been grinding leagues lately and my SB seems particularly stretched. I'm at 3x Rejection, 2x Stroke 2x Negate 3x Dispel 3x Relic and 1x Dismember (2 MB). Thinking about going to a 4th rejection or possible 3rd Negate or maybe a singleton flashfreeze but am unsure. THoughts?
10 counterspells seems like a lot, why do you think you need another?
also, in general, i'm not a big fan of a split between negate/stroke/unified will. i think it's best to pick one and run 3 or 4
All it proves is that the core of our deck is great no matter what we do with our flex slots. When your matchups line up with your list you have a great chance to do well if you know what you're doing. I personally think your odds of having things line up go down as the number of colors you play goes up.
won't keep me from playing around with green a little bit when the new set comes out but i don't expect it to outperform monoU
Yes. Forget tideshaper mystic. Sea's Claim is the best option to add more spreading seas effects. I often run 3 in the side. People have been known to run 4 spreading seas and 4 seas claim in the main as well. It can wreck face in the right meta. I've done it when there is a lot of tron and burn around.
phantasmal image can work with kira and kopala, because when it copes it doesn't target the creature it copies! (this means you can even copy a creature with shroud)
The same is true for smuggler's copter, the crew ability does not target.
In fact, i've always been a huge proponent of phantasmal image, even when there's no protection. Kill spells would kill any creature we own anyway, and phantasmal image can act as redundant copies of situational effects (like harbinger of the tides, which is good in some matchups and useless in others, i prefer to run only 3 copes of him and eventually one image), redundant copies of a lord, silvergill adept or of a master of waves, depending on the matchup!
BTW if you Echoing truth your own silvergill adepts, also the phantasmal image copying silvergill adept will bounce back to your hand. This can be useful when you run out of gas.
EDIT: by the way, here's a UW list that ended up 29th at Louisville's SCG open. this is how i think the white splash should be: 3 master of waves (because of seachrome coast), path in the main and then all the other spell are sideboard options. I'm not really sure Stony silence is enough against affinity, but if paired up with fragmentize and hurkyl's recall it might work, even if it shuts down vial. Maybe Kataki, war's wage could be better?
I like the list because it shows that the right way to splash a color (in my opinion) is the one that doesn't overturn the key elements of the deck, but only adds just enough to slightly shift some balances.
P.S. Obviously what's reported as harbinger of the hunt has to be harbinger of the tides! =)
That's not what i was talking about with Kira/Kopala and Phantasmal Image. I was referring to the fact that phantasmal image isnt protected by Kira but is protected by Kopala.
Wondering if I should cut Smugglers Copter from my list. Its so good to me everytime, but lots of sucesful lists arent using them
A lot of successful lists DO run them. I had them printed on my decklist but swapped them out for Dismembers at the last minute because there was a bunch of Company decks and Kiki-Chord decks in the room.
Question: When Ixalan comes out, are you guys going to try any copy of Kopala in main deck ?
i am going to be trying Kopala for sure. I have a feeling she is going to make Phantasmal Image playable again. Image is such a nonbo with Kira but synergizes great with our new Legend.
Played
R1 Blue Steel 2-1 Opponent was grumbling about having to play against "the merfolk guy" but I've found this matchup to be deceptively dangerous. they are capable of some very explosive stuff and a Grand Architect into a giant Walking Ballista can destroy you. I took game 1 barely. I was dead next turn, he was at 13 i swung for 12 and then vialed in a Master of Waves before damage politely explaining that "Mutavault is an Elemental too". G2 i punted... bounced a lodestone golem with a harbinger holding up U so i could ceremonious rejection when he tried to replay it, instead he played Trinket Mage got a Ballista and I was thinking "Sweet he's going to tap out with grand architect for a giant ballista and i'll counter that instead" instead he floated a ton of mana, and then cast the Golem. I brain farted... Thinking "crap now i can't counter the ballista" and heard myself say "OK"... should have countered it... He followed up with Ballista while i was staring at the rejection in my hand like an idiot. The tax was too much and i couldn't cast enough spells to live next turn even with a Reejerey in play. G3 went T2 lord, T3 lord, T4 reejerey, T5 reejerey. He played a ballista and trinket maged for a basilisk collar but was 1 mana short of being able to kill enough creatures to survive.
R2 Jeskai Control 2-0 Just played it out slow and steady, 2-3 creatures at a time chipping away both games. I never played into it but he never saw a Supreme Verdict either game.
R3 Mono-Red Burn 2-0 This guy must have been lucky in the first two rounds. He had a very sub-optimal burn deck full of Vexing Devil and Shard Volley. Pretty simple to navigate.
R4 Naya Burn 2-0 Much better burn player. He got stuck on 1 land for too long. I stabilized at 8 life (plenty) with a huge board. G2 a bunch of spreading seas showed up. i hit both his sacred foundrys and he had no more white sources to fetch for. Ended the game with a Path and 2 Boros Charms stuck in his hand.
R5 Counters Company 2-1 (my friend, he refused to draw with me because he knew the matchup and the store is very lopsided with their prize payouts. playing it out pretty much guaranteed one of us (him) would get the first-place-after-swiss purse of $300 but i beat him and got to brag about it) He took G1, i stole G2 on a misplay from him. He tapped out for a chord to grab the vizier but used all his land instead of tapping his last creature, when i sacrificed my cursecatcher he had to untap his devoted druid to pay for it and i gut shotted it to death in response.) G3 top decked a gut shot for his bird and slammed lords faster than he could combo.
R6 Draw (UW Control)
1st after Swiss won me $300
T8
QF: EldraziTron 0-2 The wheels fell off... I was running hot all day and then the extreme end of variance showed up to bring me back to earth. My draws were almost statistically impossible. I have never seen anything like it. G1 Mull to 4 without seeing a single land in any hand. Keep a 4 card no-lander, scry to bottom, 4 turns pass and draw 0 lands. Scoop in response to Thought-Knot Seer. Go to game 2 without my opponent having seen a single card. G2 Mull to 5 without seeing a single land. Keep a 5 card no-lander. scry a cavern to the top. Play cavern cursecatcher and that was the only spell i cast in the entire top 8...
I saw 1 land out of 45+ cards...
That looks like that was a pretty amazing game haha
lol
he pretty much went t1 tron land, t2 tron land, t3 tron land + wurmcoil, then another then another... it looked bad until twin masters hit the table
Oracle Text When Sentinel Totem enters the battlefield, scry 1.
t, Exile Sentinel Totem: Exile all cards from graveyards.
What do you guys think of this card?
I think, to begin with, a 'free' scry helps our deck. Also we don't have tons of mana in our deck, so not having to leave mana open to 'crack' seems a plus as well.
But is it better than Relic? Relic can 'eat' graveyards slowly without having to sacrifice it. And it 'replaces' itself with the card draw bonus. But... in many situations we already need to leave mana open to have an active counter spell or removal in hand (or to bluff it).
Tormod's Crypt is also something to look at. The crypt is 'free' to cast. But does not 'shut' down Tarmogoyf or Scavenging Ooze. It also does not have card draw nor scrying.
My conclusion: It has different application than Relic and Tormod, but enough impact to give it a serious try.
way worse than relic in my opinion. drawing a card is huge game in most of the matchups where we want this card.
New guy to this deck. Zero experience apart from playing against it.
Today, picked up the cards on a whim with some money from a commission (playset of altered valakuts if anyone's curious). Merfolk was pretty much the only modern deck I hadn't yet built.
So I've got this new deck and I have questions.
1) Copter. Necessary, or quirky choice? Seen it around quite a bit but not in every list.
2) reejerey; 3 or 4? I'm currently on 3 purely because I've seen it as a 3-of before. Willing to be shown different.
3) cavern of souls; seen this as a one-of but I always (presumably incorrectly?) thought the deck ran a full playset of caverns. Am I missing something?
Finally, shout out to all the merfolk players who crushed me over the years. I've often played decks that are soft to merfolk for one reason or another, so it's been a tricky deck to face. Today, my curiosity got the better of me and I decided I needed to play the deck to understand it a bit better.
Cheers!
1) Copter is very much a flex slot as far as i'm concerned. It has a place but is by no means a staple piece. feel free to try with and without it.
2) i prefer 3 reejereys but have also run the full playset before. they are insane in multiples so 4 is not a mistake as long as you keep your curve in mind. we don't want too many 3 drops so if you want 4 then you might consider cutting a maindeck kira or moving her to the side. i find her very useful in the maindeck in the current meta so i'm playing her with 3 reejereys.
3) Cavern of souls is a useful card in some matchups but is a liability. having too much brown mana can bite you if you can't cast blue spells. the more caverns you play the more often you will find yourself with a hand that can't make U for a spreading seas or a counterspell. it sucks to have a dispelor something rot in your hand because you have cavern, cavern, mutavault. we have vials to dodge counters already. 1 or 2 caverns is ok. you will start to notice it's a problem if you play more.
hahaha no way they going to reprint Cursecatcher now
Why not? It's ripe for it. An overpriced modern uncommon with an ability that they clearly don't believe is too powerful for standard (mausoleum wanderer is better) in a set that it fits in flavorwise? I think it's a definite possibility in this set or the next.
I think it's likely that all the good merfolk in this set will be green or U/G. there may be more incentive for the splash on the way. This guy alone doesn't do it but he might have a partner that makes G splash look much better.
Anyone else anticipating a cursecatcher reprint coming?
Sorry guys, but we can't talk about new cards here until Ixalan is fully spoiled. If you want to start a new thread in New Card Discussion, that's fine. Otherwise, you can only discuss cards rotating out. Thanks - hoser2
this crap is so petty and irritating...
getting sick of this place...
was just wondering how the deck will look like post rotation, any ideas?
you lose Kalitas (who's really there to brick wall the red decks which are pretty much dead after rotation anyway), and grasp, which hopefully will be replaced by a new removal spell.
also lose choked estuary and sunken hollow which are partially replaced by Drowned Catacombs.
10 counterspells seems like a lot, why do you think you need another?
also, in general, i'm not a big fan of a split between negate/stroke/unified will. i think it's best to pick one and run 3 or 4
won't keep me from playing around with green a little bit when the new set comes out but i don't expect it to outperform monoU
That's not what i was talking about with Kira/Kopala and Phantasmal Image. I was referring to the fact that phantasmal image isnt protected by Kira but is protected by Kopala.
A lot of successful lists DO run them. I had them printed on my decklist but swapped them out for Dismembers at the last minute because there was a bunch of Company decks and Kiki-Chord decks in the room.
i am going to be trying Kopala for sure. I have a feeling she is going to make Phantasmal Image playable again. Image is such a nonbo with Kira but synergizes great with our new Legend.
Finished first in the swiss at 5-0-1
Played
R1 Blue Steel 2-1 Opponent was grumbling about having to play against "the merfolk guy" but I've found this matchup to be deceptively dangerous. they are capable of some very explosive stuff and a Grand Architect into a giant Walking Ballista can destroy you. I took game 1 barely. I was dead next turn, he was at 13 i swung for 12 and then vialed in a Master of Waves before damage politely explaining that "Mutavault is an Elemental too". G2 i punted... bounced a lodestone golem with a harbinger holding up U so i could ceremonious rejection when he tried to replay it, instead he played Trinket Mage got a Ballista and I was thinking "Sweet he's going to tap out with grand architect for a giant ballista and i'll counter that instead" instead he floated a ton of mana, and then cast the Golem. I brain farted... Thinking "crap now i can't counter the ballista" and heard myself say "OK"... should have countered it... He followed up with Ballista while i was staring at the rejection in my hand like an idiot. The tax was too much and i couldn't cast enough spells to live next turn even with a Reejerey in play. G3 went T2 lord, T3 lord, T4 reejerey, T5 reejerey. He played a ballista and trinket maged for a basilisk collar but was 1 mana short of being able to kill enough creatures to survive.
R2 Jeskai Control 2-0 Just played it out slow and steady, 2-3 creatures at a time chipping away both games. I never played into it but he never saw a Supreme Verdict either game.
R3 Mono-Red Burn 2-0 This guy must have been lucky in the first two rounds. He had a very sub-optimal burn deck full of Vexing Devil and Shard Volley. Pretty simple to navigate.
R4 Naya Burn 2-0 Much better burn player. He got stuck on 1 land for too long. I stabilized at 8 life (plenty) with a huge board. G2 a bunch of spreading seas showed up. i hit both his sacred foundrys and he had no more white sources to fetch for. Ended the game with a Path and 2 Boros Charms stuck in his hand.
R5 Counters Company 2-1 (my friend, he refused to draw with me because he knew the matchup and the store is very lopsided with their prize payouts. playing it out pretty much guaranteed one of us (him) would get the first-place-after-swiss purse of $300 but i beat him and got to brag about it) He took G1, i stole G2 on a misplay from him. He tapped out for a chord to grab the vizier but used all his land instead of tapping his last creature, when i sacrificed my cursecatcher he had to untap his devoted druid to pay for it and i gut shotted it to death in response.) G3 top decked a gut shot for his bird and slammed lords faster than he could combo.
R6 Draw (UW Control)
1st after Swiss won me $300
T8
QF: EldraziTron 0-2 The wheels fell off... I was running hot all day and then the extreme end of variance showed up to bring me back to earth. My draws were almost statistically impossible. I have never seen anything like it. G1 Mull to 4 without seeing a single land in any hand. Keep a 4 card no-lander, scry to bottom, 4 turns pass and draw 0 lands. Scoop in response to Thought-Knot Seer. Go to game 2 without my opponent having seen a single card. G2 Mull to 5 without seeing a single land. Keep a 5 card no-lander. scry a cavern to the top. Play cavern cursecatcher and that was the only spell i cast in the entire top 8...
I saw 1 land out of 45+ cards...
List
4 Harbinger of the Tides
1 Kira, Great Glass-Spinner
4 Lord of Atlantis
4 Master of the Pearl Trident
4 Master of Waves
4 Merrow Reejerey
4 Silvergill Adept
1 Echoing Truth
4 Aether Vial
2 Dismember
4 Spreading Seas
9 Island
1 Minamo, School at Water's Edge
4 Mutavault
1 Oboro, Palace in the Clouds
3 Wanderwine Hub
2 Ceremonious Rejection
2 Dispel
1 Echoing Truth
3 Gut Shot
1 Kira, Great Glass-Spinner
3 Relic of Progenitus
3 Unified Will
lol
he pretty much went t1 tron land, t2 tron land, t3 tron land + wurmcoil, then another then another... it looked bad until twin masters hit the table
way worse than relic in my opinion. drawing a card is huge game in most of the matchups where we want this card.
1) Copter is very much a flex slot as far as i'm concerned. It has a place but is by no means a staple piece. feel free to try with and without it.
2) i prefer 3 reejereys but have also run the full playset before. they are insane in multiples so 4 is not a mistake as long as you keep your curve in mind. we don't want too many 3 drops so if you want 4 then you might consider cutting a maindeck kira or moving her to the side. i find her very useful in the maindeck in the current meta so i'm playing her with 3 reejereys.
3) Cavern of souls is a useful card in some matchups but is a liability. having too much brown mana can bite you if you can't cast blue spells. the more caverns you play the more often you will find yourself with a hand that can't make U for a spreading seas or a counterspell. it sucks to have a dispelor something rot in your hand because you have cavern, cavern, mutavault. we have vials to dodge counters already. 1 or 2 caverns is ok. you will start to notice it's a problem if you play more.
Why not? It's ripe for it. An overpriced modern uncommon with an ability that they clearly don't believe is too powerful for standard (mausoleum wanderer is better) in a set that it fits in flavorwise? I think it's a definite possibility in this set or the next.
Anyone else anticipating a cursecatcher reprint coming?
2 negate
4 strategic planning
4 grasp of darkness
2 yahenni's expertise
3 liliana, death's majesty
1 never//return
4 gifted aetherborn
4 champion of wits
2 kalitas, traitor of ghet
2 the scarab god
3 noxious gearhulk
4 fetid pools
4 sunken hollow
2 hostile desert
10 swamp
2 island
1 negate
1 summary dismissal
1 fatal push
2 transgress the mind
2 doomfall
1 bontu's last reckoning
2 gonti, lord of luxery
1 yahenni's expertise
1 ob nixilis, reignited
1 never//return
2 scrapheap scrounger
this crap is so petty and irritating...
getting sick of this place...
you lose Kalitas (who's really there to brick wall the red decks which are pretty much dead after rotation anyway), and grasp, which hopefully will be replaced by a new removal spell.
also lose choked estuary and sunken hollow which are partially replaced by Drowned Catacombs.