Can you explain the liquid metal coating combo to me because I can't seem to figure it out. I feel really stupid >.<
You tap Liquimetal Coating to make Saheeli Rai an artifact. Then use her -2 to make a copy of her, except she's an artifact. Bury the original Saheeli, use the -2 on the token that was made, and make another copy of the her. Rinse....repeat.
With Altar of the Brood, it sees each copy hit the field and mills them one. You can make infinite copies of Saheeli and mill them out this way.
I know I may be a little dense but I'm trying to see the purpose of Bottled Cloister when we already run Witchbane Orb in the sideboard. Is it for the extra draw or just to help against matchups that may run that mainboard hand disruption?
And then they print By Force, an XR sorcery that destroys X target artifacts. With this deck picking up popularity and the already-established Affinity, this will see board play in Modern. It has to as it's a cleaner answer in a lot of cases.
So we should start looking at an answer or counter-strategy. Counter and hand disruptions (which a lot of versions play) seem excellent but does lead credence to more of a look at Padeem, Consul of Innovation for protection (though he is unsearchable and a T3 drop, at best, in our deck) or more Welding Jars to be played?
@Tuberov31: I fully understand your discontent, im also not very happy with the Batterskull. The idea was beeing able to whir for a creature card, for emergeny blocks or for attacking planeswalker. Since the list doesnt run any creatures i wanted to avoid any artifact creature since they attract all the removal the opponent got stuck in his hand. So Batterskull was the perfect card, it's a very sticky and annoying threat against removalheavy decks, any removal on it is like a 0 for 1 since you can always bounce and replay it (massive mana sink ofc). It is also another whirable wincon in case they extract our combo and helps stabilize with lifelink.
BUT i agree with you, it didnt quite perform the way i wanted to. It's too expensive when trying to empty your hand, too often it cant attack because of Ensnaring Bridge or bigger creatures like Tarmogoyf or Tasigur, the golden fang. So i'm also thinking about cutting it, im just not sure yet for what. I think this deck doesnt need more win conditions so im probably adding another utility card or another silver bullet.
Edit: The other card that competed with this slot was Etched Champion. It is cheaper than Batterskull and has incredible protection and evasion. But i somehow got the feeling it would be as unsatisfactory as Batterskull and the deck simply doesnt need this kind of slot.
To be honest, I'm looking at a second Mox Opal or a second Sword of the Meek. Mox just seems like it wants more copies and Sword, well, if they have a way to strip it we lose a valuable win con. I do agree that Etched Champion (or really any creature, aside Spellskite) is worth this spot.
Another card I've been putting under consideration is Metallic Rebuke. I know it's a 3 drop Mana Leak and they get worse as the game tends to wear on. Also, I know this is more of a tap-out balls-to-the-wall style of deck where we want to squeeze them early but, especially in the "Turbo version", wouldn't it be nice to be able to go "Blue Source, Mox, Bauble" and be able to hold up counter mana for whatever they have in mind in G2 and G3? Get yourself all set up on turn 2 to get the combo on turn 3? You can hold up counter mana effectively to counter a Stony Silence or a Rest in Piece (two pieces we don't like to see). I know a number of us run discard, but personally, I tend to see my opponent topdeck the sideboard tech or answer just after I try to rip it from their hand, making counter seem a little more applicable than hand disruption. Thoughts?
@Terraxxion: Can you lay some insight as to why you have the singleton Batterskull in your list, aside being about Whir for it on T3 with a nuts-draw hand? So far in testing your list, I've never wanted to Whir for Batterskull and have groaned quite often seeing it. Usually, it's just stuck behind an Ensnaring Bridge as a 4/4 lifelinking wall for something that MAY be able to attack. I'm trying to stay away from the "Turbo" list (I really don't want to shell out a couple Benjamins for a playset of an uncommon) and I've found your's the most appealing, just the Batterskull has me scratching my head.
New to following this deck but I'm really loving the builds. I'm working on getting the expensive cards for Terraxxion's list, which I'm partial to so far. Something I wanted to interject here, would Expedition Map make a good addition to the deck, to get Academy Ruins or Ghost Quarter, maybe allowing us to shave a copy of Ghost Quarter for another source (maybe even going with a singleton Darksteel Citadel)?
Went 2-1 at Wednesday night's tournament at my LGS.
I only made one change to the deck from the previous list, taking out the one Vampiric Rites from the sideboard and replacing it with a Flaying Tendrils. BTW, isn't the FNM artwork they announced for Flaying Tendrils great? Anyways, here's the run down of the rounds and match-ups:
Round 1 - RG Tron *I always end up facing her and she passionately loves playing her Tron deck.
Game 1 - Opened with a hand holding Inquisition of Kozilek and Thoughtseize so I'm thinking that I'm good to be able to slow her down. Casting Inquisition reveals three ways to search for the missing Tron piece so that becomes moot. Thoughtseize, however, nails the payoff and keeps her from taking over with Tron voodoo. I get a Garruk Wildspeaker down and make a pair of beasts and go offense until she hits a Wurmcoil Engine. The tokens trade with the Engine, and Abrupt Decay takes care of the Lifelink token. I draw and play Kalitas, Traitor of Ghet and get a couple of swings in before she decides the trade is worth preventing the 6 point life swing that was occurring every turn. Ulamog, The Ceaseless Hunger hits just after and it's a quick trip to Scoop-City. Game 2 - I again start with Inquisition and see 3 pieces of Tron assimilating but at least she doesn't have a green source for Sylvan Scrying, so I take an Expedition Map and start praying to the Death Cloud gods. Turn 4, I top deck a Thoughtseize but get nothing of worth. I joke about how now she'll draw Karn and she obliges. Treetop Village does it's best to keep him down but I eventually have to scoop as she draws a second Karn Liberated to replace the one I had worked so hard to eliminate.
Lost 2-0
Round 2 - Skred *I haven't seen much of this deck so I wasn't sure what to expect.
Game 1 - I'm able to land a turn 3 Garruk Wildspeaker (thanks to Steve) before he gets a turn 3 Blood Moon, which kind of rains on my parade of the draw of double Thragtusk (no basic Forest). He lands Koth of the Hammer and gets it up to ultimate territory by the time I land a Forest. Thragtusks hit over the course of the next two turns as he plays Thundermaw Hellkite, Stormbreath Dragon, Stormbreath Dragon over the next sequence of turns. I land a Grave Titan over the course of those cards and the swing match-up is on, with me coming out on top since I had the extra 10 life from Thragtusks. Game 2 - This game isn't as exhilarating as he stumbles on mana from the gate. Early Treetop Village hits get him low early and it doesn't take much to finish him off before he can do much of note. I use a Death Cloud to finish him out of principle.
Won 2-0
Round 3 - Ad Nauseam
Game 1- 1 I keep an extremely weak hand with no green mana with the thinking I had little chance game one (on a mulligan to 6). He keeps a worse hand at 5, as I was about to find out. A turn 1 Inquisition of Koziek reveals he kept a no-lander, apparently conceding game one as well. I take his Serum Visions to hamper any chances of digging out if he gets running lands. He hits a couple running lands and plays Pentad Prism which meets a swift Abrupt Decay. He plays a Laboratory Maniac and I know he has Ad Nauseam in hand so I worry about him getting the last card he needs to get the Laboratory Maniac win. Death Cloud for 2 neuters this as well as his hand. He scoops on his next turn. Game 2 - I honestly don't remember too much about this game, I just remember getting greedy and going for a Creeping Corrosion to blow up his Prisms instead of casting Dark Petition for Surgical Extraction and getting rid of Angel's Grace. He combos off for the win. Game - 3 My case for a winning record for the night is helped by the fact that he can't seem to get an Ad Nauseam to save his life. I stay relatively on curve with threats and Death Cloud to keep him off cards in hand and mana needed. After his loss, he flips the top of his deck and it's the Ad Nauseam he'd been waiting for.
Overall Record: 2-1
Impressions: I felt the deck was powerful in every match-up except the Tron match-up. I have disruption and survivability but they have inevitability and I lack suitable disruption against them. I know, it's a problem we all face unless we devote about a third of our sideboards to the match-up and even then, it can be a crap shoot. Like many others, in the light of a larger meta (as far as online or larger events), I've forgone any sideboard tech specifically for this match-up. Just a little frustrating I seem to play her every week. I found it interesting and kind of funny that I added a card for the more aggro/token style match-ups and never faced one of those decks. Still, I feel confident about it and it's certainly better than the Vampiric Rites I tried jamming last week (I have my moments of non-clarity). Before the tournament, I was discussing with a friend possibly changing out Palace Siege for either Nath of the Gilt-Leaf or Painful Quandary. He felt Painful Quandary would be the more immediate effect over having to wait until my upkeep for Nath to trigger. Thoughts?
I used the night as a learning experience since I haven't been able to do much with the deck (Xmage's US server was down and being a single father, I haven't had too many opportunities to go out and play) and test sideboard cards. There are still certain matchups in the local meta that I seem to be having trouble with which I'll get to after the summation of the matches I played.
Round 1: Grixis Thopters
Game 1 ended with top-decking between both decks. We spent all game eliminating each other's advantage. His Academy Ruins kept putting Thopter Foundry on top of his library, forcing me to Dark Petition for Tectonic Edge to blow it up and put the game at a standstill (he commended the move after the match). Unfortunately, he drew a Wandering Fumarole to bring me down enough to Bolt me twice and kill me where I drew lands that only produced mana.
Game 2 was a game where he played land destruction but no way to get rid of Kitchen Finks, Eternal Witness (getting back a land), and eventually Thragtusk.
Game 3 was pretty similar to game 1, only I had less action as I drew mainly lands and he was able to burn/Thopter me out in relatively short order.
Lost 2-1
Round 2: Delver
Game 1......what is it with me drawing lands upon lands all night. Keep the board clean, get lucky with him not flipping Delvers when he has a pair out, but clump lands and eventually get burned out with the typical Bolt, Bolt, Snap, Bolt.
Game 2 is even quicker as I don't keep a hand with removal and never see any. Two flipped Delvers finish me off fast as I fail to apply any pressure through his counters and removal.
Lost 2-0
Round 3: Living End
Game 1 I keep a hand with Inquisition of Kozilek and Thoughtseize, drawing another Thoughtseize on my second turn. With his hand ripped apart (took all his action except a Simian Spirit Guide), he didn't have much of a chance as he fails to find a cascade card.
Game 2 has him cycling like crazy but hits Living End as part of those draws and not hitting them with cycles. Again, he can't apply pressure and he game ends pretty quick. A Primal Command forces him to scoop before taking the lethal attack.
Won 2-0
Round 4: RG Tron
Game 1 sees a relatively early Tron but I had already had ripped out the pay-off. However, Ulamog, The Ceaseless Hunger makes it's presence known and I scoop.
Game 2 sees it take a turn or two longer to get Tron lands but again, no payoff. Wurmcoil Engine eventually hits the field and I cast my first Death Cloud of the night. My pair of Thragtusks leave behind beasts as his Engine gives him two tokens, keeping things even. I hit my first Garruk Wildspeaker of the night and she lands a Karn Liberated and takes over as I seem to go back to drawing land clumps. Karn threatens to restart the game and I concede.
Lost 2-0
Notes:
So as some may have noticed, there's a sideboard card that I'm sure made readers do some double-takes and even hover the mouse pointer over it to see what the card does. Well, I theorized it as a card to use mainly against Living End. I figured I could apply pressure with two creatures with it on the board and force them to cascade. I could then use the Vampiric Rites to sac my creatures, get 1 life and a card, and get the creatures to come back on the board along with their's. I never drew it, though, so the theory is yet untested, but re-thinking it as I type this, may sound too cute. Earlier in the day, I had a pair of Scavenging Ooze in the sideboard for this matchup but had removed them while making changes. I'm thinking they may come back but I'd like a pair again, meaning I need to cut another sideboard card to make the room. I think the only other ways to interact with Living End is to either hope to hit one with targeted discard and and Surgical Extraction it or to use Relic of Progenitus. The deck already has Primal Command in the main to help with the matchup as well, but may be too slow.
Speaking of sideboarding, I'll readily admit that I'm horrible with it. It's one of my weaknesses as a player and one that I know needs work. I went into most of the matches unsure of many of the changes I was making besides obvious cards brought in for specific matches. I think a lot of this comes from my lack of play with this deck but also some comes from my lack of familiarity with other decks and what they may board.
I whole-heartedly enjoy playing the deck and have made it my main and I know with experience I will get better with it and the deck will feel better for me. This forum has been a pretty valuable tool in assisting with decisions I've made for the deck. Hopefully all of our knowledge and experience can get this deck a lot more recognition and have it see more play in the competitive world.
I lose the die roll and am on the draw. My opening seven is a no-lander, so I mull to six and get one Forest plus a Sakura-Tribe Elder, which I keep with reservations. My scry isn't a land and I don't draw one in time. I could scoop fast, but this doesn't seem like it'll go to time, so I make him kill me -- mostly to drag the game out and see more of his deck. I find another land, but the result is never in doubt. I'm curious to see what package of burn and countermagic to expect, so at least I get some information. (He has bolts, Counterflux and most of the usual Temur Delver odds and ends.) Starting with a loss is lousy. I really wish I could say more about keeping one-landers with a STE. To some extent it just depends on whether you're feeling lucky, but being on the draw definitely makes it easier.
Game two was just about perfect. I was on the play and Inquisitioned a Stormchaser Mage right off the bat, then Inquisitioned his second one a turn later. He always seemed one turn behind and couldn't get pressure going. Once I got a Kalitas down, he had to use his Izzet Staticaster to ping it and then play Shard Volley (saccing a Mountain) to finish it off at the end of my turn, an exchange I was perfectly fine with. A few turns later I had Lili and Garruk in hand, and he'd been keeping up mana every turn, so I ran the Lili into a counterspell so I could land a Garruk next turn. I started making beasts and ended up beating him with pressure instead of a Cloud (he still hadn't seen one and I didn't want to give it away if I didn't have to. I had one in hand but tried to make sure I won without it.) He clearly had a bad draw, but I think I could have beaten the nuts the way I was running.
Game three was quick. He went Island, Delver, then landed another Delver on the next turn but couldn't flip. I had a Maelstrom Pulse the whole time -- I really like having three maindeck -- and waited a few turns just in case he tapped out for something, but it was clear he was flooding, so I just Pulsed both Delvers and finished him off.
I'm the last person to critique a Delver list, but the creature base seemed a little off. Not sure what Staticaster was doing in there. I assume it came out of the board, but it's not like I was playing tokens.
ROUND TWO -- Death's Shadow Aggro
My lord, these were good games. I wish we'd been on coverage. The guy matched 74 cards of Sam Black's list -- he told me the difference, but I forget.
Game one started with my Thoughtseize turning up Monastery Swiftspear, Wooded Foothills, Temple Garden, Sacred Foundry, double Street Wraith and a Mishra's Bauble. If I'd done my homework or known the meta better I would have recognized this straight off, but I had noooo idea what he was up to. (Don't worry - I played it cool.) I thought for a second it was some exotic Living End variant, but that seemed unlikely. Anywho, he found another Swiftspear to start chipping at me while he was cycling Street Wraiths to get his life total down and draw some cards. He turned up a Wild Nacatl and I was on the back foot for a long time while he whaled away at my life total. Those two creatures alone got me down to four - I couldn't draw removal, although I was able to soak up damage with an STE for a turn - and then I drew a Death Cloud. I had more lands than the Almighty himself would know what to do with, including a Treetop Village, so I Clouded for two, bringing him down to two lands, no creatures and no hand -- and me at two life. He drew and said go. I topdecked a Finks, thought about it for a second, and decided I didn't want to die to bolt in case he had one, so I played it to go up to four life, then swung with the Treetop Village to get him down to six (he'd been suiciding himself like crazy). According to my life total sheet, which I'm looking at now, I went from 2 to 4 to 6 somehow - maybe he killed my Finks, but that doesn't sound right - and then down to three because he topdecked a bolt that would have killed me had I not drawn the Finks in time. Ultimately I got there on the strength of Finks plus Treetop Village and finished the game at three life.
Game two, if anything, was crazier.
At least I knew what he was up to, so I boarded in both Baloth, the Flaying Tendrils, the other Damnation and the Slaughter Pact (mostly for the Monastery Swiftspear). I hadn't seen an actual Death's Shadow, but I knew it was coming. He went Mountain, Swiftspear, attack for one. I responded with Tomb untapped for Disfigure to kill it before it could start getting prowess triggers. Disfigure was a late (re)addition to my IQ list, and I'm very glad I put it back in. Taking it out for Geth's Verdict was a little too cute. Note that I am firmly against Dismember in Death Cloud.
Anyway, once again I couldn't get pressure and ended up playing a long game of rope-a-dope. He had another Swiftspear on turn two -- nothing I can do about that -- and I had to block it with a Kalitas, which bit a Mutagenic Growth plus Temur Battle Rage but preserved my life total with his four toughness even though I didn't get the lifelink (double strike - yeck). He started suiciding until he got himself down to 11 and played his Death's Shadow, which he followed up with a Steppe Lynx to represent serious pressure.
Then I started topdecking like a motherf***ing champion.
With my life total at 7 and me needing chump blockers for his 7/7 Death's Shadow, I drew Obstinate Baloth into Finks into Thragtusk. Yeah, I don't know how I did it either. Each of them died horrible deaths, but Thrag managed to make up for a ton of damage and leave behind a beast (!). He slammed in to get me down to four and left back Swiftspear to block in case of emergency, since I had beast plus Treetop Village ready to respond. Luckily I'd been hanging onto an emergency Slaughter Pact for a few turns; I'd been thinking of using it the turn before, but I wanted to hold on to the last possible moment. I Pacted his Swiftspear, then hit him for six while he was at five life to finish the match. Doom Blade would have been just as good, but this was finesse, baby.
ROUND THREE -- UR Storm
This guy had been thrashing everyone at the top table for the first two rounds, and I was ready for a serious setback. Hilarious! The lowest my life total got in either game, as I look back on my sheet, was 20. The highest was 22. Game one was all about me having an Abrupt Decay for his Pyromancer's Ascension, which he knew about from a Gitaxian Probe but couldn't do anything about except hope to bait it out and then draw a second Ascension. Good old creatures killed him in game one, starting with a Scavenging Ooze that got him down to 12 and finally bit a bolt. I finished him off with Treetop Village plus a humble Sakura-Tribe Elder that I used for damage instead of a land. Against Storm, any pressure is good pressure.
Game two was a little more interesting. I drew a late Leyline of the Void and then looked at a Twilight Mire off the top from a Courser [i]without revealing it right away[/]. I picked it up, thinking to play it, but stupidly it wafted toward my hand and he called the judge. I put the Mire back on top face up, and the judge said that if my opponent had "significant doubt" about whether I'd put the right card back down, he'd do something about it. Thankfully I put it back very quickly and the Chapin Rule -- look it up - saved my bacon. Tighten up your play, folks.
Anyway, I punted here in a way that could have cost me the game if he'd topdecked the right card. I had five mana available and a Relic of Progenitus that I'd had since my opening hand. He had a graveyard full of stuff. What I should have done was played the Relic, then cracked it immediately to empty his graveyard, then played Leyline the turn after. Instead I played Leyline plus Relic and passed, leaving his graveyard intact for one turn. If he'd drawn a [card]Past in Flames[/] he probably would have had more than enough to get me -- tons of rituals plus Manamorphose to draw into his combo -- but, luckily, he didn't. On his last turn he drew Past in Flames with a nearly empty graveyard before I finished him off.
Note to others: Storm demands graveyard hate.
Rounds four and five were IDs all around at the top tables to guarantee top 8. I was on the fence about it and sort of wanted to play out, but apparently that's not the thing to do at this level. So I went and got lunch.
QUARTERFINALS -- Abzan Company
Game one was a complete washout. He mulled to six, kept a one-lander, played a Godless Shrine and scooped when I played a turn three Kalitas off a Sakura-Tribe Elder.
That should have been a clue! But I'd seen nothing of his deck, so I wasn't sure what he was on. Obviously "Orzhov Control" wasn't a real option, but I should have thought harder about the Kalitas scoop. I thought maybe it was Eldrazi & Taxes, and I didn't want to guess, so I didn't sideboard at all thinking I could always come back in game three if necessary. Boarding out the removal seemed pointless, and anyway, what was I boarding in?
Sure enough, game two he went turn one Viscera Seer into turn two Melira and went off for 80 million life pretty quickly. I scooped.
Game three was great. I started with a Leyline in hand and played it out right away, unsure what all he'd have to deal with it. (He hadn't seen it game two, that's for sure.) An early Inquisition turned up Chord of Calling, Anafenza, Kin-Tree Spirit, Eternal Witness, Kitchen Finks and Qasali Pridemage. Most Abzan Company decks play one Qasali Pridemage and not a whole lot else, so I took the Chord of Calling (exiled thanks to Leyline), then played my Relic of Progenitus and dared him to beat it. Holding it in hand and trying to bait him into trying to build his combo was definitely an option, but using my mana efficiently seemed better. He got down a Tidehollow Sculler to grab my Garruk, but I Pulsed it to get it back and start cranking out beasts with a Courser in play. If I could keep him off the combo I was feeling good.
He played his creatures, with his E Witness getting buffed from Anafenza, but I was a turn ahead at that point. I kept slamming in with beasts and one by one his creatures went down. He got down another Tidehollow Sculler to grab a Pulse, and then The Turn happened.
He blocked a beast with a persisted Finks, then blew up my Leyline with Pridemage before damage. I could tell something was up. The revealed top card of my library was a Death Cloud. His Finks went to the graveyard, and when it did, I tapped the Relic to exile it. In response he cast Path to Exile on my Sakura-Tribe Elder, which was a good play on his part -- maybe I sac and shuffle away the Death Cloud in response, or if I [i]don't[/i] sac it maybe I get a land off the Path trigger. I ignored both options, leaving the Death Cloud right where it was. This put the Path in his graveyard, which he exiled (instead of the Finks!) in response to the Relic trigger. Then I probably misplayed -- I popped the Relic right away to get rid of his Finks and nothing else, which was supposed to force me to draw a card, but [i]we both missed the trigger[/i]. The Death Cloud stayed where it was, on top of my library, and my opponent drew for the turn. Then he realized he had a Tidehollow Sculler in hand and would have been able to grab my Death Cloud had I drawn it, so he called a judge and we had to rewind back to where I popped the Relic so I could draw the Cloud and pass. Then he Scullered it on his ensuing "turn" and I was left with Garruk at 1 loyalty, two beasts and a Courser of Kruphix against two Scullers (Maelstrom Pulse and Death Cloud) and an Anafenza. I got a warning on my record for missing the card draw, so pay attention.
I minused Garruk to zero to make another beast -- no point in playing for an overrun effect with my opponent already on the back foot -- and swung again to get him down to five. He bricked and passed. Next turn I swung with three beasts and a Courser; he had to block with one of his Scullers to stay alive at one life. I got back the Maelstrom Pulse, finally, then used it to kill the other Sculler. I had enough land to get back the Death Cloud and play it for one to finish him off with his five lands tapped out.
SEMIFINALS -- Scapeshift
I wish I had more to add. The one lesson: In game one, I could have popped my Sakura-Tribe Elder for a land a lot sooner and then Clouded him for three (he was tapped out from Cryptic Commanding a Kitchen Finks) rather than chipping away for one at a time. Since I didn't do it, on turn five with five lands in play I had to think about whether to Cloud for two or run out a Liliana and try to grind him out. Cloud for two just seemed like delaying the inevitable -- I would have had no hand and no Treetop Village -- so I played the Lili, plused her to discard a Maelstrom Pulse and attacked for one with Steve. He comboed off two turns later on the strength of his own Steve.
Game two I just couldn't find action. It was fair beats. I didn't misplay, as far as I could tell. Scapeshift is hard to interact with; I had to leave bad cards in the deck because the sideboard didn't have better options. (I boarded out Tec Edge for Boseiju, but I never drew it.)
All day, I never drew Trinisphere until the last few turns of the last game. Needless to say, it wasn't enough.
Your questions are welcome.
If you dropped Leyline right from the start, how did your opponent have a persisted Finks in your quarterfinal matchup?
I didn't go to either GP, but Goofus and I are headed to an IQ this weekend. Anyone got the latest insights on side boarding? I keep debating a) Geth's Verdict for Bogles, Nahiri Emrakul, Geist Hexproof (which can be tough) and Infect; b) Slaughter Pact (currently out for a Memoricide); c) Choke; and d) Asceticism. I have three Maelstrom Pulse maindeck now. Went down to 22 lands and no Signet and STILL haven't had a problem. Three STE mean this is functionally a 25-land deck, which seems fine.
On another note, Adonnys Medrano, who top 8ed in Charlotte, plays Jund at one of my two local shops. The only time we faced each other I beat him 2-0. Take that, Jund.
I'm still a proponent of Grafdigger's Cage for Nahiri Jeskai, Melira Combo, Dredge, Goryo's Vengeance, and Chord decks. It also negates the effectiveness of Snapcaster Mage and only turns off our Kitchen Finks. I do like your idea of Geth's Verdict being seemingly diverse as a sideboard option and may test it here in the near future.
I boarded in Grafdigger's Cage against it online and stoned both Nahiri's ultimate and Snapcaster. They do board Wear/Tear, though, but shouldn't bring it in until game 3 unless they know enchantment/artifact hate is coming from our deck specifically.
In my online matchup he got Choke and Grafdigger's Cage off the board but after they had already done their damage. A top deck Supreme Verdict wiped my "all-in" board state but my top deck Death Cloud left him with two lands, no hand/board, and me with two Treetops and Tombs. It was a great back and forth game.
I did fail to mention in my original post that I had done some experimenting with Nihilith in the original deck i pieced together and he has shown value but can be "just meh" at times as well. He ended up getting the boot recently as he was just getting boarded out consistently for how slow he can be hitting the table.
3) I've become a skeptic of the graveyard interaction angle on the deck. I'd go -1 Eternal Witness and -1 Tasigur and use the slots any number of ways. We have a tendency to think, "Oh, what a full graveyard I'll have," but we're not really abusing it, just hoping to get some value out of it, and our other cards can be so much stronger than that.
Tasigur and Eternal Witness have proven pretty deserving of spots in my testing, giving my opponents headaches with recursion. I had run 2 Eternal Witnesses until recently but thought that the deck wouldn't suffer too much by losing one copy. I'm hard-pressed to give up getting a finisher back that bit the dust to a lucky top deck. However, if more testing proves they aren't carrying their weight, I will certainly be up to replacing them. For conversation's sake, though, what could you see run over these two cards that would net better value?
4) I dunno what your local meta is like, but I always like a bit more spot removal. There are a lot of weird decks running around. I don't know if you read about my exploits against that Jace's Phantasm deck I ran into, but without a healthy supply of Doom Blade I probably lose that match.
This gets to a thought I had about Doom Blade vs. Slaughter Pact and Murderous Cut. The latter two are bad in the early game and not much better in the late game, so why do people love them? At BEST, Murderous Cut saves you one mana and hits black targets (and how often is that relevant?) -- at worst, it sits in your hand while you wish you had a Doom Blade or Go For the Throat. I'll take the sure thing. Slaughter Pact is a nice trick against Infect and Affinity, but that's usually it, and you usually take your next turn off in order to play it, so it reeeeeally better be worth it. I think they're all fine cards, but I don't see the argument not to just run Doom Blade until there's a problem. I've never had one.
This was how the removal suite in the original deck that I based my version off of was drawn up. I feel Slaughter Pact is good as it allows us to kill off combo creatures (Melira is one deck of prevalence in my local meta) when tapped out as well as allowing us to play a finisher, tapping out, and being able to answer a problematic creature they play during their turn, paying for it on our upkeep after the pressure is already on. The Murderous Cut can be the same effect, costing one up front instead of zero. Also, it helps get rid of the chaff in the graveyard I don't want to get back with Tasigur. I'm up to adjusting it with reason, but honestly I would play Go For the Throat over Doom Blade as it's only useless against Affinity and Spellskite can suck it.
5) Our worst matchups are Tron and Ux control decks. Do you feel good about your sideboard?
Not really, but I haven't had many games against them to test. I have a UG Tron (might be changed to Gifts Tron), a Blue Tron, and at least one Blue Moon in my meta (possibly another UR Control build). I just haven't gotten to the shops to play against them much. Most of my testing is online. Originally, I didn't have Fulminators, Thrun, or Choke in the board but I put them in to help with those match-ups. Is it not enough?
Hey fellow Death Cloud players. I've been lurking around on this thread for a couple of weeks after I found it by happenstance trying to get better at playing the Death Cloud deck. I found it on the MTG Goldfish article and started playing it, adjusting to personal likes and budget but felt it could be better,that I was missing something. Reading what you guys have posted about this deck, the testing, and the results (though not meta-altering on an international level), have really helped me wrap my head around the deck as well as determine how it should be played.
I'm still feeling a little under where I should be with this deck, though, and was looking for some advice.
As a note, though, currently I am trying to get my hands on Verdant Catacombs and Fulminator Mages for this deck. This is just this the list I play online. Liliana of the Veil is out of my budget range for the foreseeable future, unless I hit the lottery or she takes a massive dive in price.
One thing I have been contemplating is adding a mixture of Sakura Tribe Elder and Traverse the Ulvenwald instead of straight running one or the other. Without running Sakura Tribe Elder, I feel the deck slows down some as you don't get that extra land on the field (Traverse puts it in your hand) any sooner than your opponent. However, it's a horrible late game draw whereas Traverse is terrific late game, or even mid game where you are looking for one of your finishers. It also ensures us land drops in the early game and isn't the worst thing in the world to get back with Tasigur's ability (provided you have delirium). I was contemplating a 3/2 Tribe Elder to Traverse split but I haven't moved to test it yet. Ideas?
Also, I briefly tried out a copy of Vraska the Unseen in the 75 but after a couple games with her and reading the arguments made on here about her, I'm just not convinced she's worthy of consideration in the 75. Essentially, as someone pointed out on here already, she's a Maelstrom Pulse that costs more. Her ultimately only means something if we hit a Damnation or Death Cloud as the tokens have nothing special besides "a player dealt combat damage by this loses the game". No deathtouch or evasion of any kind to make them fearful. I could always trade her in for one spot in the 3/2 split mentioned above but I'm not sure if there's something else I can cut to make that happen instead and have her spot be another finisher.
Lastly, a couple of cards I've thought of searching the Modern format and would like an opinion on.
Sheoldred, Whispering One - I understand a 7CMC creature that doesn't "immediately" affect the board isn't entirely what this deck is looking for, especially since we are on the Death Cloud strategy and set ourselves behind in being able to cast her reliably. However, she does effect the board on our opponent's turn, giving us value before sorcery-speed removal can take her. Admittedly, the opponent sacrificing their worst creature is never the best option but unless you are facing a token strategy, one less body on the board can be huge. If she makes it to your upkeep, well, you just get back your biggest threat in your graveyard (Grave Titan, Kalitas, Thragtusk, etc.), increasing our value on board with every upkeep we get. She also survives quite a few important removal spells in modern (Dismember, Doom Blade, Abrupt Decay, and Lightning Bolt).
Vorinclex, Voice of Hunger - I know, he just suggested a 7 drop that doesn't really seem to benefit this deck too much, now an 8 drop?! What is this guy on?! Well, I admit that it's pretty far-fetched that this card would be all that relevant the majority of the time. It kind of feels like a "win-more" card, honestly. But the possibilities do intrigue me, admittedly. Being able to essentially double our mana while hindering their's is truly powerful, especially when we are a running a theoretical, albeit symmetrical, fireball in Death Cloud. Also, hampering their mana supply so long as Vorinclex resolves is pretty huge as well. Again, this creature survives most of the removal that seems universal play (though it dies to Doom Blade unlike Sheoldred) and he has trample to boot, making light work of chump blockers and hitting our opponent in the face regardless. Also, Vorinclex doesn't combo well with Death Cloud, outside of the implications of amassing a huge Death Cloud to just fireball the opponent out. I feel we have enough lifegain in the deck to keep us on top in the face of this outcome, though it feels to be something that rarely presents itself.
Mirrorpool - So he's brought up two high-end CMC creatures that don't seem to benefit the deck much outside "win-more" circumstances, now a land that comes into play tapped and doesn't provide colors or have immediate utility?! I think, however, it's a card that could warrant a look. No, it doesn't immediately affect the board, nor does it provide G or B to us, but it does have utility that could provide use. Is it a possible pillar in the deck? No. But being able to copy an instant or sorcery (say, an Abrupt Decay, Maelstrom Pulse, Dark Petition, or even Primal Command) seems pretty useful. Also, getting another copy of Thragtusk or Grave Titan on the board at instant speed seems to be pretty useful as well. The only thing seemingly holding us back is inconsistency with getting C to power the Mirrorpool outside of Tectonic Edge/Ghost Quarter or Twilight Mire. Garruk's +1 could be used to tap the Mirrorpool and untap it to get the C we would need, which is possible though not the most efficient.
The cards listed above seem to all have their downfalls but also seem to have their benefits as well. I'm just not sure if any of them have enough play-ability to overcome their downfalls or not. Again, you guys have done a great job paving the way with this deck and helping out new-comers to play this deck. I look forward to being able to help out the conversation in the coming days and years.
Full-Art Tezzeret, Agent of Bolas
You tap Liquimetal Coating to make Saheeli Rai an artifact. Then use her -2 to make a copy of her, except she's an artifact. Bury the original Saheeli, use the -2 on the token that was made, and make another copy of the her. Rinse....repeat.
With Altar of the Brood, it sees each copy hit the field and mills them one. You can make infinite copies of Saheeli and mill them out this way.
Could someone explain the reasoning?
Decktech and Matches
So we should start looking at an answer or counter-strategy. Counter and hand disruptions (which a lot of versions play) seem excellent but does lead credence to more of a look at Padeem, Consul of Innovation for protection (though he is unsearchable and a T3 drop, at best, in our deck) or more Welding Jars to be played?
To be honest, I'm looking at a second Mox Opal or a second Sword of the Meek. Mox just seems like it wants more copies and Sword, well, if they have a way to strip it we lose a valuable win con. I do agree that Etched Champion (or really any creature, aside Spellskite) is worth this spot.
Another card I've been putting under consideration is Metallic Rebuke. I know it's a 3 drop Mana Leak and they get worse as the game tends to wear on. Also, I know this is more of a tap-out balls-to-the-wall style of deck where we want to squeeze them early but, especially in the "Turbo version", wouldn't it be nice to be able to go "Blue Source, Mox, Bauble" and be able to hold up counter mana for whatever they have in mind in G2 and G3? Get yourself all set up on turn 2 to get the combo on turn 3? You can hold up counter mana effectively to counter a Stony Silence or a Rest in Piece (two pieces we don't like to see). I know a number of us run discard, but personally, I tend to see my opponent topdeck the sideboard tech or answer just after I try to rip it from their hand, making counter seem a little more applicable than hand disruption. Thoughts?
I only made one change to the deck from the previous list, taking out the one Vampiric Rites from the sideboard and replacing it with a Flaying Tendrils. BTW, isn't the FNM artwork they announced for Flaying Tendrils great? Anyways, here's the run down of the rounds and match-ups:
Round 1 - RG Tron *I always end up facing her and she passionately loves playing her Tron deck.
Game 1 - Opened with a hand holding Inquisition of Kozilek and Thoughtseize so I'm thinking that I'm good to be able to slow her down. Casting Inquisition reveals three ways to search for the missing Tron piece so that becomes moot. Thoughtseize, however, nails the payoff and keeps her from taking over with Tron voodoo. I get a Garruk Wildspeaker down and make a pair of beasts and go offense until she hits a Wurmcoil Engine. The tokens trade with the Engine, and Abrupt Decay takes care of the Lifelink token. I draw and play Kalitas, Traitor of Ghet and get a couple of swings in before she decides the trade is worth preventing the 6 point life swing that was occurring every turn. Ulamog, The Ceaseless Hunger hits just after and it's a quick trip to Scoop-City.
Game 2 - I again start with Inquisition and see 3 pieces of Tron assimilating but at least she doesn't have a green source for Sylvan Scrying, so I take an Expedition Map and start praying to the Death Cloud gods. Turn 4, I top deck a Thoughtseize but get nothing of worth. I joke about how now she'll draw Karn and she obliges. Treetop Village does it's best to keep him down but I eventually have to scoop as she draws a second Karn Liberated to replace the one I had worked so hard to eliminate.
Lost 2-0
Round 2 - Skred *I haven't seen much of this deck so I wasn't sure what to expect.
Game 1 - I'm able to land a turn 3 Garruk Wildspeaker (thanks to Steve) before he gets a turn 3 Blood Moon, which kind of rains on my parade of the draw of double Thragtusk (no basic Forest). He lands Koth of the Hammer and gets it up to ultimate territory by the time I land a Forest. Thragtusks hit over the course of the next two turns as he plays Thundermaw Hellkite, Stormbreath Dragon, Stormbreath Dragon over the next sequence of turns. I land a Grave Titan over the course of those cards and the swing match-up is on, with me coming out on top since I had the extra 10 life from Thragtusks.
Game 2 - This game isn't as exhilarating as he stumbles on mana from the gate. Early Treetop Village hits get him low early and it doesn't take much to finish him off before he can do much of note. I use a Death Cloud to finish him out of principle.
Won 2-0
Round 3 - Ad Nauseam
Game 1- 1 I keep an extremely weak hand with no green mana with the thinking I had little chance game one (on a mulligan to 6). He keeps a worse hand at 5, as I was about to find out. A turn 1 Inquisition of Koziek reveals he kept a no-lander, apparently conceding game one as well. I take his Serum Visions to hamper any chances of digging out if he gets running lands. He hits a couple running lands and plays Pentad Prism which meets a swift Abrupt Decay. He plays a Laboratory Maniac and I know he has Ad Nauseam in hand so I worry about him getting the last card he needs to get the Laboratory Maniac win. Death Cloud for 2 neuters this as well as his hand. He scoops on his next turn.
Game 2 - I honestly don't remember too much about this game, I just remember getting greedy and going for a Creeping Corrosion to blow up his Prisms instead of casting Dark Petition for Surgical Extraction and getting rid of Angel's Grace. He combos off for the win.
Game - 3 My case for a winning record for the night is helped by the fact that he can't seem to get an Ad Nauseam to save his life. I stay relatively on curve with threats and Death Cloud to keep him off cards in hand and mana needed. After his loss, he flips the top of his deck and it's the Ad Nauseam he'd been waiting for.
Overall Record: 2-1
Impressions: I felt the deck was powerful in every match-up except the Tron match-up. I have disruption and survivability but they have inevitability and I lack suitable disruption against them. I know, it's a problem we all face unless we devote about a third of our sideboards to the match-up and even then, it can be a crap shoot. Like many others, in the light of a larger meta (as far as online or larger events), I've forgone any sideboard tech specifically for this match-up. Just a little frustrating I seem to play her every week. I found it interesting and kind of funny that I added a card for the more aggro/token style match-ups and never faced one of those decks. Still, I feel confident about it and it's certainly better than the Vampiric Rites I tried jamming last week (I have my moments of non-clarity). Before the tournament, I was discussing with a friend possibly changing out Palace Siege for either Nath of the Gilt-Leaf or Painful Quandary. He felt Painful Quandary would be the more immediate effect over having to wait until my upkeep for Nath to trigger. Thoughts?
3 Forest
3 Swamp
4 Overgrown Tomb
2 Twilight Mire
4 Verdant Catacombs
1 Wooded Foothills
3 Treetop Village
2 Temple of Malady
2 Tectonic Edge
Creatures:
1 Grave Titan
2 Thragtusk
1 Kalitas, Traitor of Ghet
1 Eternal Witness
3 Sakura-Tribe Elder
2 Courser of Kruphix
2 Kitchen Finks
3 Abrupt Decay
1 Murderous Cut
1 Slaughter Pact
Sorceries:
1 Damnation
1 Maelstrom Pulse
3 Inquisition of Kozilek
3 Thoughtseize
2 Traverse the Ulvenwald
3 Death Cloud
1 Primal Command
1 Dark Petition
Enchantments:
1 Palace Siege
Planeswalkers:
3 Garruk Wildspeaker
2 Curse of Death's Hold
2 Obstinate Baloth
2 Thrun, the Last Troll
1 Surgical Extraction
1 Maelstrom Pulse
1 Mind Shatter
1 Creeping Corrosion
1 Unravel the Æther
1 Boseiju, Who Shelters All
2 Grafdigger's Cage
1 Vampiric Rites
I used the night as a learning experience since I haven't been able to do much with the deck (Xmage's US server was down and being a single father, I haven't had too many opportunities to go out and play) and test sideboard cards. There are still certain matchups in the local meta that I seem to be having trouble with which I'll get to after the summation of the matches I played.
Round 1: Grixis Thopters
Game 1 ended with top-decking between both decks. We spent all game eliminating each other's advantage. His Academy Ruins kept putting Thopter Foundry on top of his library, forcing me to Dark Petition for Tectonic Edge to blow it up and put the game at a standstill (he commended the move after the match). Unfortunately, he drew a Wandering Fumarole to bring me down enough to Bolt me twice and kill me where I drew lands that only produced mana.
Game 2 was a game where he played land destruction but no way to get rid of Kitchen Finks, Eternal Witness (getting back a land), and eventually Thragtusk.
Game 3 was pretty similar to game 1, only I had less action as I drew mainly lands and he was able to burn/Thopter me out in relatively short order.
Lost 2-1
Round 2: Delver
Game 1......what is it with me drawing lands upon lands all night. Keep the board clean, get lucky with him not flipping Delvers when he has a pair out, but clump lands and eventually get burned out with the typical Bolt, Bolt, Snap, Bolt.
Game 2 is even quicker as I don't keep a hand with removal and never see any. Two flipped Delvers finish me off fast as I fail to apply any pressure through his counters and removal.
Lost 2-0
Round 3: Living End
Game 1 I keep a hand with Inquisition of Kozilek and Thoughtseize, drawing another Thoughtseize on my second turn. With his hand ripped apart (took all his action except a Simian Spirit Guide), he didn't have much of a chance as he fails to find a cascade card.
Game 2 has him cycling like crazy but hits Living End as part of those draws and not hitting them with cycles. Again, he can't apply pressure and he game ends pretty quick. A Primal Command forces him to scoop before taking the lethal attack.
Won 2-0
Round 4: RG Tron
Game 1 sees a relatively early Tron but I had already had ripped out the pay-off. However, Ulamog, The Ceaseless Hunger makes it's presence known and I scoop.
Game 2 sees it take a turn or two longer to get Tron lands but again, no payoff. Wurmcoil Engine eventually hits the field and I cast my first Death Cloud of the night. My pair of Thragtusks leave behind beasts as his Engine gives him two tokens, keeping things even. I hit my first Garruk Wildspeaker of the night and she lands a Karn Liberated and takes over as I seem to go back to drawing land clumps. Karn threatens to restart the game and I concede.
Lost 2-0
Notes:
So as some may have noticed, there's a sideboard card that I'm sure made readers do some double-takes and even hover the mouse pointer over it to see what the card does. Well, I theorized it as a card to use mainly against Living End. I figured I could apply pressure with two creatures with it on the board and force them to cascade. I could then use the Vampiric Rites to sac my creatures, get 1 life and a card, and get the creatures to come back on the board along with their's. I never drew it, though, so the theory is yet untested, but re-thinking it as I type this, may sound too cute. Earlier in the day, I had a pair of Scavenging Ooze in the sideboard for this matchup but had removed them while making changes. I'm thinking they may come back but I'd like a pair again, meaning I need to cut another sideboard card to make the room. I think the only other ways to interact with Living End is to either hope to hit one with targeted discard and and Surgical Extraction it or to use Relic of Progenitus. The deck already has Primal Command in the main to help with the matchup as well, but may be too slow.
Speaking of sideboarding, I'll readily admit that I'm horrible with it. It's one of my weaknesses as a player and one that I know needs work. I went into most of the matches unsure of many of the changes I was making besides obvious cards brought in for specific matches. I think a lot of this comes from my lack of play with this deck but also some comes from my lack of familiarity with other decks and what they may board.
I whole-heartedly enjoy playing the deck and have made it my main and I know with experience I will get better with it and the deck will feel better for me. This forum has been a pretty valuable tool in assisting with decisions I've made for the deck. Hopefully all of our knowledge and experience can get this deck a lot more recognition and have it see more play in the competitive world.
If you dropped Leyline right from the start, how did your opponent have a persisted Finks in your quarterfinal matchup?
I'm still a proponent of Grafdigger's Cage for Nahiri Jeskai, Melira Combo, Dredge, Goryo's Vengeance, and Chord decks. It also negates the effectiveness of Snapcaster Mage and only turns off our Kitchen Finks. I do like your idea of Geth's Verdict being seemingly diverse as a sideboard option and may test it here in the near future.
In my online matchup he got Choke and Grafdigger's Cage off the board but after they had already done their damage. A top deck Supreme Verdict wiped my "all-in" board state but my top deck Death Cloud left him with two lands, no hand/board, and me with two Treetops and Tombs. It was a great back and forth game.
As for your recommendations, a few thoughts:
Tasigur and Eternal Witness have proven pretty deserving of spots in my testing, giving my opponents headaches with recursion. I had run 2 Eternal Witnesses until recently but thought that the deck wouldn't suffer too much by losing one copy. I'm hard-pressed to give up getting a finisher back that bit the dust to a lucky top deck. However, if more testing proves they aren't carrying their weight, I will certainly be up to replacing them. For conversation's sake, though, what could you see run over these two cards that would net better value?
This was how the removal suite in the original deck that I based my version off of was drawn up. I feel Slaughter Pact is good as it allows us to kill off combo creatures (Melira is one deck of prevalence in my local meta) when tapped out as well as allowing us to play a finisher, tapping out, and being able to answer a problematic creature they play during their turn, paying for it on our upkeep after the pressure is already on. The Murderous Cut can be the same effect, costing one up front instead of zero. Also, it helps get rid of the chaff in the graveyard I don't want to get back with Tasigur. I'm up to adjusting it with reason, but honestly I would play Go For the Throat over Doom Blade as it's only useless against Affinity and Spellskite can suck it.
Not really, but I haven't had many games against them to test. I have a UG Tron (might be changed to Gifts Tron), a Blue Tron, and at least one Blue Moon in my meta (possibly another UR Control build). I just haven't gotten to the shops to play against them much. Most of my testing is online. Originally, I didn't have Fulminators, Thrun, or Choke in the board but I put them in to help with those match-ups. Is it not enough?
My other modern deck is a Bloodcrank deck.
Currently, I'm playing this:
3x Forest
4x Overgrown Tomb
3x Swamp
2x Tectonic Edge
2x Temple of Malady
4x Treetop Village
2x Twilight Mire
4x Verdant Catacombs
Creatures:
2x Courser of Kruphix
1x Eternal Witness
2x Kitchen Finks
1x Kalitas, Traitor of Ghet
2x Thragtusk
1x Grave Titan
1x Tasigur, the Golden Fang
3x Thoughtseize
3x Inquisition of Kozilek
4x Traverse the Ulvenwald
3x Death Cloud
1x Maelstrom Pulse
1x Damnation
1x Dark Petition
1x Primal Command
Instants:
3x Abrupt Decay
1x Slaughter Pact
1x Murderous Cut
Planeswalkers:
3x Garruk Wildspeaker
1x Vraska the Unseen
3x Fulminator Mage
1x Grafdigger's Cage
1x Nature's Claim
1x Choke
1x Thrun, the Last Troll
1x Gaze of Granite
2x Curse of Death's Hold
2x Obstinate Baloth
1x Creeping Corrosion
2x Scavenging Ooze
I'm still feeling a little under where I should be with this deck, though, and was looking for some advice.
One thing I have been contemplating is adding a mixture of Sakura Tribe Elder and Traverse the Ulvenwald instead of straight running one or the other. Without running Sakura Tribe Elder, I feel the deck slows down some as you don't get that extra land on the field (Traverse puts it in your hand) any sooner than your opponent. However, it's a horrible late game draw whereas Traverse is terrific late game, or even mid game where you are looking for one of your finishers. It also ensures us land drops in the early game and isn't the worst thing in the world to get back with Tasigur's ability (provided you have delirium). I was contemplating a 3/2 Tribe Elder to Traverse split but I haven't moved to test it yet. Ideas?
Also, I briefly tried out a copy of Vraska the Unseen in the 75 but after a couple games with her and reading the arguments made on here about her, I'm just not convinced she's worthy of consideration in the 75. Essentially, as someone pointed out on here already, she's a Maelstrom Pulse that costs more. Her ultimately only means something if we hit a Damnation or Death Cloud as the tokens have nothing special besides "a player dealt combat damage by this loses the game". No deathtouch or evasion of any kind to make them fearful. I could always trade her in for one spot in the 3/2 split mentioned above but I'm not sure if there's something else I can cut to make that happen instead and have her spot be another finisher.
Lastly, a couple of cards I've thought of searching the Modern format and would like an opinion on.
Sheoldred, Whispering One - I understand a 7CMC creature that doesn't "immediately" affect the board isn't entirely what this deck is looking for, especially since we are on the Death Cloud strategy and set ourselves behind in being able to cast her reliably. However, she does effect the board on our opponent's turn, giving us value before sorcery-speed removal can take her. Admittedly, the opponent sacrificing their worst creature is never the best option but unless you are facing a token strategy, one less body on the board can be huge. If she makes it to your upkeep, well, you just get back your biggest threat in your graveyard (Grave Titan, Kalitas, Thragtusk, etc.), increasing our value on board with every upkeep we get. She also survives quite a few important removal spells in modern (Dismember, Doom Blade, Abrupt Decay, and Lightning Bolt).
Vorinclex, Voice of Hunger - I know, he just suggested a 7 drop that doesn't really seem to benefit this deck too much, now an 8 drop?! What is this guy on?! Well, I admit that it's pretty far-fetched that this card would be all that relevant the majority of the time. It kind of feels like a "win-more" card, honestly. But the possibilities do intrigue me, admittedly. Being able to essentially double our mana while hindering their's is truly powerful, especially when we are a running a theoretical, albeit symmetrical, fireball in Death Cloud. Also, hampering their mana supply so long as Vorinclex resolves is pretty huge as well. Again, this creature survives most of the removal that seems universal play (though it dies to Doom Blade unlike Sheoldred) and he has trample to boot, making light work of chump blockers and hitting our opponent in the face regardless. Also, Vorinclex doesn't combo well with Death Cloud, outside of the implications of amassing a huge Death Cloud to just fireball the opponent out. I feel we have enough lifegain in the deck to keep us on top in the face of this outcome, though it feels to be something that rarely presents itself.
Mirrorpool - So he's brought up two high-end CMC creatures that don't seem to benefit the deck much outside "win-more" circumstances, now a land that comes into play tapped and doesn't provide colors or have immediate utility?! I think, however, it's a card that could warrant a look. No, it doesn't immediately affect the board, nor does it provide G or B to us, but it does have utility that could provide use. Is it a possible pillar in the deck? No. But being able to copy an instant or sorcery (say, an Abrupt Decay, Maelstrom Pulse, Dark Petition, or even Primal Command) seems pretty useful. Also, getting another copy of Thragtusk or Grave Titan on the board at instant speed seems to be pretty useful as well. The only thing seemingly holding us back is inconsistency with getting C to power the Mirrorpool outside of Tectonic Edge/Ghost Quarter or Twilight Mire. Garruk's +1 could be used to tap the Mirrorpool and untap it to get the C we would need, which is possible though not the most efficient.
The cards listed above seem to all have their downfalls but also seem to have their benefits as well. I'm just not sure if any of them have enough play-ability to overcome their downfalls or not. Again, you guys have done a great job paving the way with this deck and helping out new-comers to play this deck. I look forward to being able to help out the conversation in the coming days and years.