Can someone help me rationalize the Master of Etherium tech? There are so many games I get him out and he only pumps one other card in play, while being a pretty mediocre 3CMC to show for it.
I didn't catch him saying the 16+ cyclers were for consistently getting to his 6th land drop on curve, but that's also the reason I went that route. You lose games when you're playing clunky Standard-costed spells like Fumigate and Disallow when you're not always booting up your mana.
However I will still dispute the likes of Essence Scatter forever and always. It is simply ineffective unless you're fighting for parity or already ahead, so it has the same problems against aggro that discard spells do, except it's much more narrow in application. I don't want to be topdecking a dead 3-of when it's meant to answer something that I still need to find an answer for
That said, I'm confused by his board plan. It seems like a reach to have to muck up your 75 for one shell, and most of what he has going on doesn't really bridge his 75 into itself too well (he had problems keeping in dead cards instead of rotating all his dead cards from the main for good cards out of the board)
Ergo, I feel this is just a spitball decklist but it has some upside. I highly doubt he'd sleeve this up for a PT as is.
Kefnet is awful in the maindeck. If you have to mulligan, and draw a copy of Kefnet while facing off against a threat-heavy build, you're pretty much dead on the spot.
I took down FNM last night, and split a box and a half with the other finalist. I handily beat him in pools, so I only intentionally drew to get home early. I was very confident against an unknown field with the variant I put together. This is the second consecutive week playing UW Control into a position tied for first, and I've been quite happy with the switch over from UB/Esper control shells. The list:
I like the split between finishers and Pull from Tomorrows. Triple Torrential would be fine if you wanted to take out the maindeck Forsake the Worldly, but I honestly dread having two 6CMC+ spells rotting in my hand in the early turns. I got better use out of casting Pull as early as turn four or five, just to fix my hand to be better suited for the late game. I've noticed UR Control variants which have a 4-1 split between Torrential/Pull suffer from not being able to fix their hand as often, early on. Electing to trim my top end makes it easier to jockey for the upper hand in a counter war.
Another design choice is that I prefer the singleton Sphinx main, considering you need a little more beef than just a few Gearhulks. Though a bit slow, it does work all across the board. It's a finisher that helps to stabilize versus aggro if they're on the 'kind-of-put-a-board presence-out-then-remove-the-one-blocker' plan. I can't stress how many times Gearhulk has gotten nixed by the likes of Stasis Snare or Unlicensed Disintegration when I've tried to use it as a combat trick. Having a blocker with built-in protection can be extremely crucial for that reason. On the other hand, Sphinx simply houses control mirrors, so I figure I'd hedge my pre-boarded games with it.
Another point of consideration for my 75 is how I'll transition into the next metagame. Until HoD, Forsakes are now a little more of a flex spot than before, with Marvel's banning going into effect. After HoD, I might toy with an Approach of the Second Sun plan, as the new instant 'Supreme Will' lets you dig four deep after you resolve the Approach the first time, while doing a decent Mana Leak impression. Hard to say if I'll cut Disallow to one or two copies to make room for a set of Supreme Will in such a shell.
The last point of consideration is the anti-aggro plan. This deck seems well suited to fight that battle, but if your metagame is very fast, it can be correct to load the sideboard with a set of Thing in the Ice (removing Regal Caracal, Forsake, and a Spontaneous Mutation to make room.) I'm still not set on the configuration against a heavy Human/Zombie field, but I seem to have fared decently well against them so far, so I'll have to get more data to conclude whether a change is needed.
Looking forward to seeing if we get any other tools in the next set! Any C&C is appreciated. n___n
Synergy with Sun Titan is just cute, and Liliana coming down on turn 3 and not making us edict a guy is silly, anyway. Especially since you have Squadron Hawk and can land it before Liliana sticks just to punish them. We didn't need Cast Out for Twin, since we had plenty of spot removal (if there's a black splash). Instant speed is just a much better upgrade than sorcery speed. What do you do against Chord of Calling decks with your Oblivion Ring or Banishing Light when they tutor the half of their combo that they were missing end of turn? Other than lose because you wanted some trivial synergy.
Why aren't you playing Cast Out instead of the O-Ring / B-Light split???? If anything, I was dying for instant speed non-creature removal when I jammed this deck, and Cast Out can still give you an extra card for action if it's dead. It should be a shoe-in at 2 or 3 of.
Has the development of the meta and pro-tour dominance shifted anyone towards particular builds or colour combinations? Are there any "must have" cards yet for the meta?
I feel strongly about Flaying Tendrils and Archfiend of Ifnir now more than before. Zombies are already showing up to my LGS and both of those options can dispatch them. I don't like Esper vs Zombies because of the lack of cheap consistent removal that two colors provide.
Hey Keenwa1, no worries man. I enjoy building crazy decks and refining them as much as any of us. I really think this one has potential to take off and do very, very well.
As for the Sages, I would try more but I actually only own one. I played it over the 4th bird the other night and it was pretty good. I suppose it would be a tad better with fetchlands? But I don't exactly want to spend the life if I don't have to. Not sure yet what's optimal. I did have one game where I kept a one-lander (21 total in deck), played Sage turn 1, and saw 4 none lands. That was... really bad lol.
I'm guessing the white splash has been good to you? It means we can't run Shackles, which i think is fine as we handle creature decks well anyways. Fragmentize seems real good. Unsure if I'd play Thalia over Thorn tho...
Hey Zac. We met briefly, I'm friends with Kid and happened across your table at Madness late 2015 while you were going through the motions with your Uw Emeria Midrange. You showed me a Tezzeretor brew afterward as well iirc
At any rate, I really like the shell you developed in the reddit post. I made a few changes based on my testing with Architect lists of the past, and so I figured I'd chime in with some results:
I'll admit I don't have too much reliable data for the changes but maybe spitballing can lead to some tech being found. I've been on Ghost Quarter + Darksteel Citadel as it helps to turn on the Inventors' Fair, shuffle away the chaffe from what Sage of Epityr reveals, gives you a land you can tutor with Trinket Mage if you need to curve out, and thins your deck to reduce dead draws later. They also open up the possibility to use repeating activations of Ghost Quarter against midrange/control if you land a Crucible out of the board.
I opted to play the Sword instead of Shackles as it gives protection from Death's Shadow and I felt the Shackles were redundant against creature decks where Ballista machine guns them down. It also nets cards that we dump to Copter and can help enable Ballista to go face and get thrown back into play to provide better reach. Goes well with our counterspell creatures for additional insurance against spells. In general I just felt it would mesh well as it gives us action and most of the creatures are anemic without Architect hitting the board. It also helps to give us the inevitability we seek with Academy Ruins without time walking ourselves.
Without Shackles, we can also explore additional land options that give us game if we go longer, and I thought it would be mostly helpful to play Abbey as another payoff option as the deck can sometimes fail to apply pressure. It's also nice vs sweepers or just a solid way to add to the board in a stalemate. As we usually try to go hellbent anyway, I figured Wreckage wouldn't hurt to shoehorn into the manabase. Inventors' Fair rounds it out and helps vs burn or as an additional tutor in a pinch for things Trinket Mage fails to find.
Out of the board, I felt Chalice would only hurt our own plan. I could be wrong in thinking that the Lodestones slow combo-oriented strategies enough as it is, but I would rather not have to deal with playing 12 dead 1CC critters if I'm using this at its usual Sunburst count.
I threw in Hibernation without much data in this shell because with my aggro-oriented Architect build, it was usually crucial vs Elves and other decks going wide.
Curiosity is there to help against decks that attrition. At worst, we attract the opponent's removal to the creatures which matter least and keep our important piece(s) out. At best, we can protect whatever carries it by taxing the opponent and using Spellskite as a vitamin, then efficiently drown them in cards to make up for all their 2-for-1s (sweepers, K Comm, etc) Being 1CC helps us hit the ground running early to prepare for the grind of the mid-to-late game.
It can definitely be wrong to leave out Wurmcoil from the main and Chalice from the side but I think these options add a lot of play that can help to push the boundaries of the deck to really capitalize more often when things simply don't fall into place. I'd like to hear what you make of the choices, or if you have any data to make an assertion about them one way or the other.
As an aside, I've been lowkey tweaking my aggro build to include some newer options. I want to see if I can do anything to hedge my weaker matchups, but I'm open to any C&C that involves keeping the shell intact
Jund and Mardu have usually given me a hard time (K Comm while picking apart my hand mostly) so I've come to the point that I know I can only bend my options so far before I play a completely different deck trying to not lose to them lol. Scrounger definitely helps build resiliency though, and hopefully I can jam some more games with Curiosity to see how well it can perform in spite of the combination of Bolt/Push or Path/Push (shrug)
As far as the Approach of the Second Sun combo, to get around Sphinx the best options are edict effects since they aren't dead against aggro.
That being said, the deck relies on New Perspectives to resolve. If you can counter their ramp or keep up, and then use a Gearhulk to counter the enchantment, you'll be on pace to close them out with ease. If you can't employ your finisher while keeping up, I would focus on countering their enchantment and their Traverses, picking apart their other creatures, then using an edict effect on Sphinx. UB Control has access to Blighted Fen, Esper can use Fumigate, and both lists can play To the Slaughter.
Priority = Perspectives > Sphinx > Approach
Look for an out to the Sphinx (make sure to give yourself one before heading into the tournament) but focus on slowing down their interactions since Perspectives is what makes the deck run smooth, then simply counter Approach when they are helpless to follow it up with anything. The matchup seems fine on paper. If it ever becomes a primary target for any U/b/x control, just jam discard spells or Lost Legacy in the board and have at it lol
so first time standard player since abzan midrange was good. Question. Is running incendiary flow over magma spray worth the extra mana so you can get more aggressive with your torrential gearhulk? I often find myself with not enough to flash back on an empty board and the decision to just keep waiting or flash in my gearhulk for beats rather than for value.
I think the latter half of Commit // Memory is very underrated. Memory has usually won me games in all but one situation when I am poised to successfully resolve it and deal with the "slow turn" if I am hardcasting it from the graveyard. Otherwise, it is smooth sailing if cast by a Torrential Gearhulk during their end of turn. 4 of 5 games so far have been won when I string it into a Pull from Tomorrow and recuperate from a disadvantageous board state, and I'm like 8-10 or 9-11 overall casting it if I have the luxury of casting it instant speed.
It is just very versatile and can help to pull the game in your favor. I never really consider putting it on the stack if they aren't behind by many lands, but once I am ahead by a few it never hurts having a free Wheel of Fortune that refreshes your options from when you traded resources early game, and gives you TONS of gas heading into the late game. And if you are the only one using Pull from Tomorrows, you have the advantage of getting ahead and keeping your foot on the throttle once you untap on your next turn.
I am super giddy to see how my list stacks against any Ux Control coming out of the PT but as of now I can confirm that I prefer it over any other midrange answer to walkers.
EDIT: Make that 10 for 12, see attachment. I'm tellin yall, Memory puts in work...
Also, just noticed... Voodoo, are you not feeling the need for Never // Return? Do you just not have a lot of resolved walkers around?
As another "I just noticed" - why are we not considering Kefnet? It's another way to turn on Revolt for Fatal Push...
In the matchups where Kefnet the Mindful is a net positive, Fatal Push is a bad card (and vice versa). You don't want your finisher to stumble against aggro. If you had to mulligan once or twice, and then struggle to hit lands or have to pick apart your opponent's board, you won't have the leeway to let Keftnet be relevant in the matchup, because it will take too many turns to enable him. A good control finisher versus aggro should be able to block and seal the game once it is played, as all the mana you spend in the early game needs to pay off immediately, pretty much.
I am still toying with the tech I'll use moving ahead in the thick of the format. Getting information from the PT will be a big help, but honestly I want something consistent that might lose to fringe tech but play solid against the bread and butter of Standard. Playing a single Dispossess in my board for as long as I did helped me to look back on my philosophy as less focused toward a guarantee success vs unexpected tech in the format and more focused on gathering data. If walkers become an issue, I think Never // Return will be a fine solution to them.
That being said, blue decks play with a certain edge now that the threat of Censor lingers in everyone's mind. I am not too scared of losing to a planeswalker playing draw-go, especially if I'm loaded to the teeth with counterspells. A good answer outside of Commit // Memory ought to be helpful, certainly, but the 75 will have to morph alongside that need and push out other tech (from the main or board) that will allow for it. In this standard, I'm not seeing too many walkers that are threatening with their incremental advantage, outside of Gideon and maybe Chandra. Them growing their board presence can hopefully be mitigated with Archfiend, and if not a swarm of creatures worrying me, I wouldn't want to burden myself when I could just move to UW for Cast Out. Ultimates just aren't scary with Disallow hanging around.
Whatever tech will be useful as a catch-all in UB, it needs to consolidate the effort to also thwart artifacts, because Tower and Marvel are both still scary if they stick (to that end, though, we have to see if these decks will be problems moving forward before trying to answer them). Confiscation Coup comes to mind, but doesn't hit walkers, so maybe a 2-2 split of Commit/Confiscation Coup will be adequate? Something's gotta give eventually, and I'll figure it out, but there are ways to address each Standard environment blue control players may face, so I'm not too worried about much.
You thinking of playing the Kalitas, Traitor of Ghet as well as Archfiend of Ifnir, or instead of? I am also trying to build a list that involves the Archfiend, though I am increasingly finding it difficult outside of a more traditional discard based deck. Are you finding it powerful enough even with the very few cycle based cards you use? I imagine even with all that draw you're not dropping hand=size often enough to make end of turn discard a thing?
Having tried to put this deck together I kept coming back to Esper. Mostly because I just can't get away from needing an alternative win-con in either Kalitas or Ifnir, and then finding I miss either the counter magic or control of Blue/White too much to drop either colour.
A pair of Kalitas would be coming out of the sideboard to fight aggro. So yes, it would be played alongside the Archfiend in the boarded games vs aggro. I use 17 cyclers/discard outlets to fuel a single Archfiend, and it jumps to 19 if I'm fighting against graveyard strategies, while relying on Archfiend to neuter the opponent's board (Mono black Zombies or aggro lists runing Scrounger, etc). That's plenty, especially since each cycler helps dig to find another.
Esper is a fine choice, but you have to be aware of the win% of the metagame. I think without a copious number of early game draw spells Temur Tower afforded a control player to hit their land drops, (Pull for 2 isn't really what I would recommend to smooth over your early game) mana screw can definitely become an issue when navigating a fast-paced environment, especially so in three color lists. This is something to consider when lists are behooved to jam the set of Pull from Tomorrow and play less than a handful of additional pure draw spells (Glimmer of Genius or Illumination)
I don't quite understand your last point. You don't think you can reach a balance between win conditions and control cards, but feel a splash is necessary? As good as Cast Out and Fumigate are, there are benefits to being able to comfortably jam 4x Fatal Push. Conversely, as good as the cheap black removal can be, having the versatility to cash in a removal spell to dig one card deeper in your deck makes Cast Out worth UW. I see Esper as the deck that tries to eat its cake too, when it could simply let go of the greedy splashes and still rely on the absurdity of Pull from Tomorrow to dominate the format. It all boils down to the metagame, though...
Game two he mulligans and doesn't see too much early action, so it is more of the same.
2-0
Round 2 vs Wr Humans
Opponent has quite a few early game beats (albeit with creatures on low toughness) and gets me to under 5. I resolve Archfiend and nuke his board in response to the double removal he pointed at it. A second Archfiend comes down, and I play draw-go against his topdecks to finish the game.
In game two, I pick apart his board and Commit // Memory away a Gideon's Intervention which had originally named Pull from Tomorrow, then stuck an Archfiend. He draws dead and I play a second Archfiend to bait him into re-naming with Intervention, and he does. I have plenty of countermagic, cyclers, and a Westvale Abbey in tow, so it was to my benefit. I eventually stick a Pull from Tomorrow to put the game away once a few tokens and my Archfiends turned into a Ormendahl, Profane Prince.
2-0
Round 3 vs Abzan Midrange
In game one, an early Glint-Sleeve Siphoner netted the opponent a few cards while knocking me down to 12. I let a Sylvan Advocate stick before stonewalling it with a Gearhulk to re-cast my Illumination and draw two. The game then spirals into a draw go standoff and I pack my grip with choice answers for his potential lines. Eventually, I pick apart his board and whatever he does end up sticking to it is met with my two Blighted Fen. A second Gearhulk was needed to clock my opponent after the first was killed, but in the end I took it down due to chaining Pull from Tomorrows for 5+.
In game two, I had much more breathing room as the opponent didn't run out too many early threats. My opponent's lines end up letting me pick my poison, and I was able to counter planeswalkers and then letting him use Traverse the Ulvenwald when he didn't have the tempo to force me into saving my Pulls. I end up letting some 4cc+ creatures stick before casting Pull for 8, then pick apart his board eventually. While playing draw-go, I was able to get there with Westvale Abbey tokens.
2-0
Round 4 vs Mardu Vehicles
Game one the opponent was on the play and my mana was off a turn. A few Aethergeode Miner and a Heart of Kiran put me away in short order.
In game two, I was fortunate to not be faced against the nut draw, and was able to get my mana on board effectively and on curve. I chained multiple Hieroglyphic Illumination copies en route to picking my opponent's board apart, and had to let two separate win cons hit the bin as my opponent had a few kills spells waiting to see action. I eventually get there after a Scarab Feast nukes two Scrapheap Scrounger and a Censor on his Ribbons for lethal lets me stabilize in time for Archfiend to bring it home.
Game three was a nail-biter that went to time and had my opponent choked on two lands for 3 turns to start the game off. I play very A-B-C style Magic as my lines are crystal clear and never really open for discussion. Everything sort of fell in my lap, and when I cast the first Pull from Tomorrow, it was when my opponent had no action to really worry about leaving mana up. The opponent has Cut // Ribbons waiting for my Archfiend and I have to draw a counter to it before he could find a second black source, as he was choked on just the one. In that time, I managed to sift through a land pocket and find some answers to keep me alive, before he creeps back into the game with double Scrounger. A final Pull from Tomorrow with UBB open for the potential Flaying Tendrils yielded a bunch of land and an Essence Scatter. Tendrils was 2nd from the top and just out of reach to help me stabilize.
1-2
Total rounds - 3:1
In hindsight, I wasn't terribly dissatisfied with the list, but if I'm to keep at it with UB I believe I might have to toy with Gifted Aetherborn, and see if I can make it work out of the board. The lack of lifegain can hurt but so too will dumbing the deck down to include more 1-for-1 interactions. I will try to ratchet up the value and impact of the sideboard options and am satisfied with the Grasp for Darkness/Negate switcheroo. Those numbers really depend on your metagame, and mine is chock full of Ux Control so I think I'll stick with 3x Negate main for now.
To nobody's surprise, really, Westvale Abbey put in some work. Might think of bumping it up to two copies, but I like the 2-1 split with multiple Blighted Fens, since they aren't redundant in multiples.
Dispossess was a knee-jerk reaction out of fear for losing to Tower, but I feel like it might as well be another Scarab Feast as that thing at least cycles. I don't see Tower being extremely threatening in this format, and with a potential shift to Esper I won't really need to freak out to find tech for it.
As an aside, it was brought to my attention that you can cast Memory out of Commit // Memory with your Gearhulk. It seems like a really sweet choice when you run out of a grip and need to stock up, especially if you're ahead on lands and the opponent is mostly tapped out. Just making sure everyone else is as caught up as I had to be today lol
However I will still dispute the likes of Essence Scatter forever and always. It is simply ineffective unless you're fighting for parity or already ahead, so it has the same problems against aggro that discard spells do, except it's much more narrow in application. I don't want to be topdecking a dead 3-of when it's meant to answer something that I still need to find an answer for
That said, I'm confused by his board plan. It seems like a reach to have to muck up your 75 for one shell, and most of what he has going on doesn't really bridge his 75 into itself too well (he had problems keeping in dead cards instead of rotating all his dead cards from the main for good cards out of the board)
Ergo, I feel this is just a spitball decklist but it has some upside. I highly doubt he'd sleeve this up for a PT as is.
2 Torrential Gearhulk
4 Cast Out
1 Stasis Snare
2 Blessed Alliance
3 Immolating Glare
3 Fumigate
1 Forsake the Worldly
4 Censor
4 Disallow
2 Negate
4 Hieroglyphic Illumination
3 Pull from Tomorrow
4 Irrigated Farmland
3 Prairie Stream
2 Westvale Abbey
1 Blighted Cataract
7 Island
5 Plains
2 Kefnet the Mindful
2 Regal Caracal
3 Spontaneous Mutation
1 Blessed Alliance
3 Dispel
1 Negate
1 Skywhaler's Shot
1 Forsake the Worldly
1 Descend upon the Sinful
I like the split between finishers and Pull from Tomorrows. Triple Torrential would be fine if you wanted to take out the maindeck Forsake the Worldly, but I honestly dread having two 6CMC+ spells rotting in my hand in the early turns. I got better use out of casting Pull as early as turn four or five, just to fix my hand to be better suited for the late game. I've noticed UR Control variants which have a 4-1 split between Torrential/Pull suffer from not being able to fix their hand as often, early on. Electing to trim my top end makes it easier to jockey for the upper hand in a counter war.
Another design choice is that I prefer the singleton Sphinx main, considering you need a little more beef than just a few Gearhulks. Though a bit slow, it does work all across the board. It's a finisher that helps to stabilize versus aggro if they're on the 'kind-of-put-a-board presence-out-then-remove-the-one-blocker' plan. I can't stress how many times Gearhulk has gotten nixed by the likes of Stasis Snare or Unlicensed Disintegration when I've tried to use it as a combat trick. Having a blocker with built-in protection can be extremely crucial for that reason. On the other hand, Sphinx simply houses control mirrors, so I figure I'd hedge my pre-boarded games with it.
Another point of consideration for my 75 is how I'll transition into the next metagame. Until HoD, Forsakes are now a little more of a flex spot than before, with Marvel's banning going into effect. After HoD, I might toy with an Approach of the Second Sun plan, as the new instant 'Supreme Will' lets you dig four deep after you resolve the Approach the first time, while doing a decent Mana Leak impression. Hard to say if I'll cut Disallow to one or two copies to make room for a set of Supreme Will in such a shell.
The last point of consideration is the anti-aggro plan. This deck seems well suited to fight that battle, but if your metagame is very fast, it can be correct to load the sideboard with a set of Thing in the Ice (removing Regal Caracal, Forsake, and a Spontaneous Mutation to make room.) I'm still not set on the configuration against a heavy Human/Zombie field, but I seem to have fared decently well against them so far, so I'll have to get more data to conclude whether a change is needed.
Looking forward to seeing if we get any other tools in the next set! Any C&C is appreciated. n___n
I feel strongly about Flaying Tendrils and Archfiend of Ifnir now more than before. Zombies are already showing up to my LGS and both of those options can dispatch them. I don't like Esper vs Zombies because of the lack of cheap consistent removal that two colors provide.
Hey Zac. We met briefly, I'm friends with Kid and happened across your table at Madness late 2015 while you were going through the motions with your Uw Emeria Midrange. You showed me a Tezzeretor brew afterward as well iirc
At any rate, I really like the shell you developed in the reddit post. I made a few changes based on my testing with Architect lists of the past, and so I figured I'd chime in with some results:
4 Grand Architect
4 Judge's Familiar
4 Lodestone Golem
4 Mausoleum Wanderer
4 Sage of Epityr
3 Trinket Mage
4 Walking Ballista
1 Hangarback Walker
1 Basilisk Collar
1 Sword of Light and Shadow
4 Darksteel Citadel
4 Ghost Quarter
1 Inventors' Fair
1 Sea Gate Wreckage
1 Westvale Abbey
11 Island
1 Crucible of Worlds
1 Grafdigger's Cage
1 Pithing Needle
2 Relic of Progenitus
2 Spellskite
2 Vendilion Clique
2 Curiosity
2 Hibernation
2 Unified Will
I'll admit I don't have too much reliable data for the changes but maybe spitballing can lead to some tech being found. I've been on Ghost Quarter + Darksteel Citadel as it helps to turn on the Inventors' Fair, shuffle away the chaffe from what Sage of Epityr reveals, gives you a land you can tutor with Trinket Mage if you need to curve out, and thins your deck to reduce dead draws later. They also open up the possibility to use repeating activations of Ghost Quarter against midrange/control if you land a Crucible out of the board.
I opted to play the Sword instead of Shackles as it gives protection from Death's Shadow and I felt the Shackles were redundant against creature decks where Ballista machine guns them down. It also nets cards that we dump to Copter and can help enable Ballista to go face and get thrown back into play to provide better reach. Goes well with our counterspell creatures for additional insurance against spells. In general I just felt it would mesh well as it gives us action and most of the creatures are anemic without Architect hitting the board. It also helps to give us the inevitability we seek with Academy Ruins without time walking ourselves.
Without Shackles, we can also explore additional land options that give us game if we go longer, and I thought it would be mostly helpful to play Abbey as another payoff option as the deck can sometimes fail to apply pressure. It's also nice vs sweepers or just a solid way to add to the board in a stalemate. As we usually try to go hellbent anyway, I figured Wreckage wouldn't hurt to shoehorn into the manabase. Inventors' Fair rounds it out and helps vs burn or as an additional tutor in a pinch for things Trinket Mage fails to find.
Out of the board, I felt Chalice would only hurt our own plan. I could be wrong in thinking that the Lodestones slow combo-oriented strategies enough as it is, but I would rather not have to deal with playing 12 dead 1CC critters if I'm using this at its usual Sunburst count.
I threw in Hibernation without much data in this shell because with my aggro-oriented Architect build, it was usually crucial vs Elves and other decks going wide.
Curiosity is there to help against decks that attrition. At worst, we attract the opponent's removal to the creatures which matter least and keep our important piece(s) out. At best, we can protect whatever carries it by taxing the opponent and using Spellskite as a vitamin, then efficiently drown them in cards to make up for all their 2-for-1s (sweepers, K Comm, etc) Being 1CC helps us hit the ground running early to prepare for the grind of the mid-to-late game.
It can definitely be wrong to leave out Wurmcoil from the main and Chalice from the side but I think these options add a lot of play that can help to push the boundaries of the deck to really capitalize more often when things simply don't fall into place. I'd like to hear what you make of the choices, or if you have any data to make an assertion about them one way or the other.
As an aside, I've been lowkey tweaking my aggro build to include some newer options. I want to see if I can do anything to hedge my weaker matchups, but I'm open to any C&C that involves keeping the shell intact
4 Chief Engineer
4 Grand Architect
4 Scrapheap Scrounger
4 Myr Superion
4 Lupine Prototype
4 Glint-Nest Crane
4 Smuggler's Copter
4 Aether Spellbomb
2 Tezzeret, Agent of Bolas
4 Ghost Quarter
4 Darkslick Shores
4 Underground River
4 Island
1 Swamp
1 Sea Gate Wreckage
3 Nihil Spellbomb
3 Ratchet Bomb
1 Pithing Needle
2 Curiosity
2 Warping Wail
1 Unsubstantiate
1 Sword of Feast and Famine
1 Crucible of Worlds
1 Trinisphere
Jund and Mardu have usually given me a hard time (K Comm while picking apart my hand mostly) so I've come to the point that I know I can only bend my options so far before I play a completely different deck trying to not lose to them lol. Scrounger definitely helps build resiliency though, and hopefully I can jam some more games with Curiosity to see how well it can perform in spite of the combination of Bolt/Push or Path/Push (shrug)
That being said, the deck relies on New Perspectives to resolve. If you can counter their ramp or keep up, and then use a Gearhulk to counter the enchantment, you'll be on pace to close them out with ease. If you can't employ your finisher while keeping up, I would focus on countering their enchantment and their Traverses, picking apart their other creatures, then using an edict effect on Sphinx. UB Control has access to Blighted Fen, Esper can use Fumigate, and both lists can play To the Slaughter.
Priority = Perspectives > Sphinx > Approach
Look for an out to the Sphinx (make sure to give yourself one before heading into the tournament) but focus on slowing down their interactions since Perspectives is what makes the deck run smooth, then simply counter Approach when they are helpless to follow it up with anything. The matchup seems fine on paper. If it ever becomes a primary target for any U/b/x control, just jam discard spells or Lost Legacy in the board and have at it lol
Gearhulk only flashes back Instants
It is just very versatile and can help to pull the game in your favor. I never really consider putting it on the stack if they aren't behind by many lands, but once I am ahead by a few it never hurts having a free Wheel of Fortune that refreshes your options from when you traded resources early game, and gives you TONS of gas heading into the late game. And if you are the only one using Pull from Tomorrows, you have the advantage of getting ahead and keeping your foot on the throttle once you untap on your next turn.
I am super giddy to see how my list stacks against any Ux Control coming out of the PT but as of now I can confirm that I prefer it over any other midrange answer to walkers.
EDIT: Make that 10 for 12, see attachment. I'm tellin yall, Memory puts in work...
In the matchups where Kefnet the Mindful is a net positive, Fatal Push is a bad card (and vice versa). You don't want your finisher to stumble against aggro. If you had to mulligan once or twice, and then struggle to hit lands or have to pick apart your opponent's board, you won't have the leeway to let Keftnet be relevant in the matchup, because it will take too many turns to enable him. A good control finisher versus aggro should be able to block and seal the game once it is played, as all the mana you spend in the early game needs to pay off immediately, pretty much.
I am still toying with the tech I'll use moving ahead in the thick of the format. Getting information from the PT will be a big help, but honestly I want something consistent that might lose to fringe tech but play solid against the bread and butter of Standard. Playing a single Dispossess in my board for as long as I did helped me to look back on my philosophy as less focused toward a guarantee success vs unexpected tech in the format and more focused on gathering data. If walkers become an issue, I think Never // Return will be a fine solution to them.
That being said, blue decks play with a certain edge now that the threat of Censor lingers in everyone's mind. I am not too scared of losing to a planeswalker playing draw-go, especially if I'm loaded to the teeth with counterspells. A good answer outside of Commit // Memory ought to be helpful, certainly, but the 75 will have to morph alongside that need and push out other tech (from the main or board) that will allow for it. In this standard, I'm not seeing too many walkers that are threatening with their incremental advantage, outside of Gideon and maybe Chandra. Them growing their board presence can hopefully be mitigated with Archfiend, and if not a swarm of creatures worrying me, I wouldn't want to burden myself when I could just move to UW for Cast Out. Ultimates just aren't scary with Disallow hanging around.
Whatever tech will be useful as a catch-all in UB, it needs to consolidate the effort to also thwart artifacts, because Tower and Marvel are both still scary if they stick (to that end, though, we have to see if these decks will be problems moving forward before trying to answer them). Confiscation Coup comes to mind, but doesn't hit walkers, so maybe a 2-2 split of Commit/Confiscation Coup will be adequate? Something's gotta give eventually, and I'll figure it out, but there are ways to address each Standard environment blue control players may face, so I'm not too worried about much.
A pair of Kalitas would be coming out of the sideboard to fight aggro. So yes, it would be played alongside the Archfiend in the boarded games vs aggro. I use 17 cyclers/discard outlets to fuel a single Archfiend, and it jumps to 19 if I'm fighting against graveyard strategies, while relying on Archfiend to neuter the opponent's board (Mono black Zombies or aggro lists runing Scrounger, etc). That's plenty, especially since each cycler helps dig to find another.
Esper is a fine choice, but you have to be aware of the win% of the metagame. I think without a copious number of early game draw spells Temur Tower afforded a control player to hit their land drops, (Pull for 2 isn't really what I would recommend to smooth over your early game) mana screw can definitely become an issue when navigating a fast-paced environment, especially so in three color lists. This is something to consider when lists are behooved to jam the set of Pull from Tomorrow and play less than a handful of additional pure draw spells (Glimmer of Genius or Illumination)
I don't quite understand your last point. You don't think you can reach a balance between win conditions and control cards, but feel a splash is necessary? As good as Cast Out and Fumigate are, there are benefits to being able to comfortably jam 4x Fatal Push. Conversely, as good as the cheap black removal can be, having the versatility to cash in a removal spell to dig one card deeper in your deck makes Cast Out worth UW. I see Esper as the deck that tries to eat its cake too, when it could simply let go of the greedy splashes and still rely on the absurdity of Pull from Tomorrow to dominate the format. It all boils down to the metagame, though...
2 Torrential Gearhulk
4 Censor
3 Disallow
3 Negate
1 Essence Scatter
4 Pull from Tomorrow
3 Hieroglyphic Illumination
4 Fatal Push
3 Grasp of Darkness
2 Murder
2 Commit // Memory
1 Westvale Abbey
4 Choked Estuary
3 Sunken Hollow
4 Fetid Pools
2 Evolving Wilds
5 Island
5 Swamp
2 Sphinx of the Final Word
1 Confirm Suspicions
1 Negate
3 Dispel
1 Ob Nixilis Reignited
3 Flaying Tendrils
1 Scarab Feast
1 Dispossess
1 Grasp of Darkness
1 Essence Extraction
Round 1 vs Rb Aggro
Opponent was running Bloodrage Brawler and Hazoret the Fervent to pitch Scrapheap Scrounger and Fiery Temper for value. I do control-ey things and choke him out of resources before committing an Archfiend of Ifnir to the board and closing it out.
Game two he mulligans and doesn't see too much early action, so it is more of the same.
2-0
Round 2 vs Wr Humans
Opponent has quite a few early game beats (albeit with creatures on low toughness) and gets me to under 5. I resolve Archfiend and nuke his board in response to the double removal he pointed at it. A second Archfiend comes down, and I play draw-go against his topdecks to finish the game.
In game two, I pick apart his board and Commit // Memory away a Gideon's Intervention which had originally named Pull from Tomorrow, then stuck an Archfiend. He draws dead and I play a second Archfiend to bait him into re-naming with Intervention, and he does. I have plenty of countermagic, cyclers, and a Westvale Abbey in tow, so it was to my benefit. I eventually stick a Pull from Tomorrow to put the game away once a few tokens and my Archfiends turned into a Ormendahl, Profane Prince.
2-0
Round 3 vs Abzan Midrange
In game one, an early Glint-Sleeve Siphoner netted the opponent a few cards while knocking me down to 12. I let a Sylvan Advocate stick before stonewalling it with a Gearhulk to re-cast my Illumination and draw two. The game then spirals into a draw go standoff and I pack my grip with choice answers for his potential lines. Eventually, I pick apart his board and whatever he does end up sticking to it is met with my two Blighted Fen. A second Gearhulk was needed to clock my opponent after the first was killed, but in the end I took it down due to chaining Pull from Tomorrows for 5+.
In game two, I had much more breathing room as the opponent didn't run out too many early threats. My opponent's lines end up letting me pick my poison, and I was able to counter planeswalkers and then letting him use Traverse the Ulvenwald when he didn't have the tempo to force me into saving my Pulls. I end up letting some 4cc+ creatures stick before casting Pull for 8, then pick apart his board eventually. While playing draw-go, I was able to get there with Westvale Abbey tokens.
2-0
Round 4 vs Mardu Vehicles
Game one the opponent was on the play and my mana was off a turn. A few Aethergeode Miner and a Heart of Kiran put me away in short order.
In game two, I was fortunate to not be faced against the nut draw, and was able to get my mana on board effectively and on curve. I chained multiple Hieroglyphic Illumination copies en route to picking my opponent's board apart, and had to let two separate win cons hit the bin as my opponent had a few kills spells waiting to see action. I eventually get there after a Scarab Feast nukes two Scrapheap Scrounger and a Censor on his Ribbons for lethal lets me stabilize in time for Archfiend to bring it home.
Game three was a nail-biter that went to time and had my opponent choked on two lands for 3 turns to start the game off. I play very A-B-C style Magic as my lines are crystal clear and never really open for discussion. Everything sort of fell in my lap, and when I cast the first Pull from Tomorrow, it was when my opponent had no action to really worry about leaving mana up. The opponent has Cut // Ribbons waiting for my Archfiend and I have to draw a counter to it before he could find a second black source, as he was choked on just the one. In that time, I managed to sift through a land pocket and find some answers to keep me alive, before he creeps back into the game with double Scrounger. A final Pull from Tomorrow with UBB open for the potential Flaying Tendrils yielded a bunch of land and an Essence Scatter. Tendrils was 2nd from the top and just out of reach to help me stabilize.
1-2
Total rounds - 3:1
In hindsight, I wasn't terribly dissatisfied with the list, but if I'm to keep at it with UB I believe I might have to toy with Gifted Aetherborn, and see if I can make it work out of the board. The lack of lifegain can hurt but so too will dumbing the deck down to include more 1-for-1 interactions. I will try to ratchet up the value and impact of the sideboard options and am satisfied with the Grasp for Darkness/Negate switcheroo. Those numbers really depend on your metagame, and mine is chock full of Ux Control so I think I'll stick with 3x Negate main for now.
To nobody's surprise, really, Westvale Abbey put in some work. Might think of bumping it up to two copies, but I like the 2-1 split with multiple Blighted Fens, since they aren't redundant in multiples.
Dispossess was a knee-jerk reaction out of fear for losing to Tower, but I feel like it might as well be another Scarab Feast as that thing at least cycles. I don't see Tower being extremely threatening in this format, and with a potential shift to Esper I won't really need to freak out to find tech for it.
As an aside, it was brought to my attention that you can cast Memory out of Commit // Memory with your Gearhulk. It seems like a really sweet choice when you run out of a grip and need to stock up, especially if you're ahead on lands and the opponent is mostly tapped out. Just making sure everyone else is as caught up as I had to be today lol
EDIT 1:
Updated list:
2 Torrential Gearhulk
4 Censor
3 Disallow
3 Negate
1 Essence Scatter
4 Pull from Tomorrow
3 Hieroglyphic Illumination
4 Fatal Push
3 Grasp of Darkness
2 Murder
2 Commit // Memory
1 Westvale Abbey
4 Choked Estuary
3 Sunken Hollow
4 Fetid Pools
2 Evolving Wilds
5 Island
5 Swamp
1 Sphinx of the Final Word
1 Confirm Suspicions
1 Negate
3 Dispel
1 Ob Nixilis Reignited
3 Flaying Tendrils
2 Scarab Feast
1 Essence Extraction
2 Kalitas, Traitor of Ghet