Last Saturday I played in a GP trial to try and win some byes for Utrecht, which I'm going to next week. I unfortunately haven't been able to get many points because, frankly, I haven't played that much magic this year. I guess maybe our definitions on the word "much" vary, but on to the tournie.
I sleeved up Living End for the third time. I have burn, but I really hate that deck. I played it for an entire season once in 2009 (maybe it was 2008?) at seven different PTQs and scrubbed at all of them. But then again, that was back in extended when a turn four goldfish just wasn't good enough. WELCOME TO MODERN, I guess.
Anyway, I know that you have Skullcrack and Atarka's Command, but I seriously just can't make myself play a deck that loses to Kitchen Finks.
Maybe it's contradictory that I always play some dumb red aggro deck in standard, but can't stand it in Modern? Perhaps.
The report:
Round 1: Bant Walkers
I didn't really get a chance to see much of my opponent's deck, he didn't really do anything and I only saw a couple of cards - Birds of Paradise, Caryatid, Kiora and a Sphinx's Revelation, but only because he dropped it. He didn't really seem to know what my deck did, and usually that's a death sentence for anyone playing against combo.
In Game 2 I played a Demonic Dread into like four open mana and it just resolved (I had a backup Demonic Dread, mind you) and I won. Hmm. Ok.
Round 2: Burn
oh, hey, this deck. This is my worst matchup by far.
Game 1: he's on the play and starts with Goblin Guide, but by third turn I'm literally at 5 life and I would have to shock myself to play a land to Violent Outburst so I just pack it in.
I mean, he had two cards in hand. Would you have played it out?
Game 2: I keep an average seven and again, I'm attacked for 2 on turn 1, this time finding a land. He attacks again and I remove a Spirit Guide to bring back my 3/3 artifact guy and a Faerie Macabre, which is pretty unexciting, but he has no follow-up. On his third turn he awkwardly has to play an Eidolon while I'm ahead in life total. I just don't play anymore spells except for a Brindle Boar. He eventually concedes as the Eidolon puts him to 2 life.
Game 3: He mulls to five but has a pretty decent hand. I find a brindle boar and between sac-ing it, and a violent outburst, I'm able to gain enough life to stay out of burn range and pummel him with guys.
Round 3: Infect
Game 1: I keep an alright hand (by which I mean bad) and he goes for it on turn 3, attacking with his unblockable guy and a nexus. I outburst and blow up another one of his lands. He thinks for awhile and concedes.
Game 2: I cycle a lot,but mostly find blanks. I have to beast within his unblockable guy to not take an additional 5 poison in one turn. It sucks because he has a nexus in play. I draw violent outburst the next turn. Sucks. Well, play to your outs I guess. I put exactly 20 power into play and he gets his unblockable guy back and then plays a Glistener Elf. I hope to draw Shriekmaw or another Violent Outburst orrrr Beast Within on my turn, but I just draw air. I attack, he chump blocks with the elf and then has Immense Growth for exactsies.
Game 3: My keep is just insane. There's no way he's beating this. 2x land, Minotaur, SSG, Shriekmaw, Street Wraith, Violent Outburst. I find another street wraith and when he attacks on turn two with his nexus, I remove my spirit guide to put nine power in play and put him on one land. Sometimes you just have the nutssss.
Round 4: Affinity
ID
Even though this is a good matchup, being an autolock for the top 8 is better. Don't get greedy now...
Round 5: Jund
This was misery! Both games my deck refused to cooperate and I died in unexciting ways. Game 1 an early thoughtseize took my only cascade spell and I couldn't find another one for several turns. This gave him time to get a Liliana in play and discard a creature to it. Gross. And then between a Lightning Bolt and Liliana most of my creatures died and I couldn't do anything.
Game 2 I had a ton of cyclers and even though I opened on two lands, I never drew a third. He even ran out a tarmogoyf on turn 2 and literally did nothing else for three turns. I sat there with 2 outburst and 2 demonic dread in hand and then turn 5 he has slaughter games. Guess I'm deaddddd. And the third land is on top. Obviously.
swiss 3-1-1
Top 8:
consisted of 2 Burn, 2 Affinity, Naya Zoo, Living End, Infect, Jund
Round 6 Affinity
I play against what I consider a pretty good matchup. Game 1 is pretty close and I have to beast-within his ravager but I stabilize at 5 life and living end for 20+ power, which is good enough.
Game 2: I open on 2x Ingot Chewer...this was a massacre
Round 7:
Game 1: He goes for it on turn 3 with 2x Glistener Elf and a might of old krosa but I Living End, even though it wasn't for very much but he doesnt have a follow up.
Game 2: I keep a strong seven. He mulls to 6 and then triple gitaxian probes me! ...and then fails to play a land. I bide my time for awhile and when he finally threw down a creature, I living end with mana up (he had shown Spell Pierce). My draws from the cyclers weren't that good honestly, but sometimes it's just about your opponent giving you time.
Round 8: Affinity
The other semifinals match when I was playing against infect was affinity vs. burn and I would have rather not faced burn. But I dodged it twice in the top 8. How lucky!
Game 1: He mulls to 4 on the play and I feel like I've got this locked because my hand has lands, cascade and a cycler. WELL, as it turns out, I never drew another cycler and have to living end for oneeeeee guy, which was just embarrassing. Anyway, thanks to cranial plating, my crappy commons weren't able to keep up and I eventually died.
Game 2: I started the game at 16 life (2x street wraith) and I'm cycling like crazy. On his first turn, He double galvanic blasts me and I fall to 8 life. I panic and go on the offensive with a somewhat early living end just to pressure him. He never draws any relevant fliers so my guys are able to get through.
Game 3: He has a very explosive start and I lead on ingot chewer blowing up his mox opal. I'm terrified of him getting to three mana, as he had hinted that he had Rule of Law so I demonic dread on my second turn to blow up most of his permanents. I only put two creatures in play but it takes him too long to rebuild and they get the job done.
6-1-1
and then byes to Utrecht
I find it interesting that no one actually plays graveyard hate anymore. I saw Slaughter Pact, Stain the Mind, Chalice of the Void and Ethersworn Canonist as hate cards, but nothing that actually messed with my graveyard.
I really like this deck sometimes. It has the ability to mulligain well since 1/3 of your deck is disposable. It has the ability to be explosive and have turn 2 (because of simian spirit guide) Living Ends. It also has the ability to be resilient towards hate because of Beast Within.
Honestly though, I think the deck's biggest problem is itself. Yeah, sometimes you mulligain great and basically for free, but I would say I had one Living End in my keeps 20-40% of the time. The worst feeling is mulling an opening 7 and seeing Living End in your six. No, you don't always mulligain hands that have LE, but you do end up mulling most of them. Sometimes you just draw rotten garbage with your cyclers, too many cascade spells or none. Sometimes you don't get critical mass and even if you resolve Living End, it's not good enough to win because you've given your opponent too much time. Sometimes the deck just deals too much damage to itself (I only run 3 shocklands and a couple fetches, but it's really the street wraiths that do the most damage to you). And sometimes, which HAS ACTUALLY HAPPENED, you just draw all four living ends and die. It happens.
Today's big loser was Fulminator Mage. I boarded it out the most.
Burn
-4 Fulminator
+4 Brindle Boar
Infect
-1 Fulminator
+1 Beast Within
Affinity
-4 Fulminator
-1 Faerie Macabre
+4 Ingot Chewer
+1 Beast Within
Jund
-1 Faerie Macabre
+1 Beast Within
So...I did not play against a large variety of decks, but that's alright. Of the seven rounds I played, five were against aggressive strategies, one against midrange and one against control.
I've questioned before whether the Format is too fast for fulminator. Burn/Affinity/Infect are always the decks to beat and while the walking-stone-rain is useful against (bl)inkmoth nexi, I usually find myself wanting to do something else. So, maybe another cycler? Maybe another beast within or shriekmaw? I drew a shriekmaw against affinity and got really mad. Having a singleton seems ok, it's mostly for scavenging ooze. Maybe i'll put a second in the sideboard.
This post has gotten out-of-control long and I think I'll save posting about another deck for a later day. Until next time, take it easy.
-t
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