Breaking Through – A Different Kind of Deck
Posted by Conley Woods
February 10, 2010 |
A Different Kind of Deck
The push and pull of technology as a tournament draws near always creates a strange time in which to be a player on the Pro Tour. You are flooded with information and decklists and are forced to weed out from amongst them that one perfect deck to play when the moment counts. In addition, as a writer, you try your hardest to bring readers the forefront of information regarding new decks or technology, but still need to prioritize your own success at the tournament, and thus usually have to leave some things left unsaid.
All of that, or so it at least appears, hits me even harder at times, as the expectation for rogue strategies is a bit different than traditional "mainstream" lists. Developing a rogue list that is appropriate for the internet is a little more demanding than tweaking a known and winning strategy, as the entire weight of that deck’s image and success lies squarely on your shoulders. This requires at least some level of testing and tweaking to understand exactly how the deck plays out and whether it is even semi-viable for the format it is intended for. Too little empirically derived data and you can end up on two opposite, but equally bad sides of the spectrum.
On one hand, you put out total crap. This may seem like a minor thing, but when your reputation is on the line, you generally wish to protect it for the most part. On the other hand, the deck can be absolutely insane and you let a perfect tournament choice slip through the cracks. This one is obviously better for the public than the former, but potentially worse for you, as you could be throwing away thousands of dollars worth of technology. This leads to a scenario where you typically aim to deliver lists that you have tried and that show promise, but are just not quite to the top of their potential just yet.
Taking this approach allows you to put forth ideas that have merit but aren’t in and of themselves insane as of yet. To reach this destination, the best method is to usually write about decks that you have explored and dedicated some amount of time to, but have, for one reason or another, fallen just short of being the prime selective. This can be because you have found something better for the given tournament, logistical reasons, or maybe there was just one small kink that could not be ironed out so you have decided to move on. Whatever the reason, this of course only applies before a tournament, as afterward, whatever your deck of choice happened to be can be shared without negative consequence most of the time.
Today’s deck was derived in just such a way and was held as an option for the upcoming Grand Prix Oakland (or the parallel PTQ season) until the last minute. Take this as you will, but I can tell you it was held as a top 3 or so option until the last 24 hours. Obviously this can be interpreted to mean there is indeed some flaw with the deck, which we will address shortly, but it can also be interpreted to mean there is some serious promise and potential here that should definitely be explored, particularly on Magic Online. Why Magic Online you may ask? Well, the list that follows is why and I can assure you it is no typo.
I know that is a lot to take in all at once, so we will break down the deck into sections based on the general function of the card. This should give the deck a little more character while also making it easier on the eyes. Lets begin with the various combo win pieces:
Win Conditions-Combo
4 Battle of Wits
4 Thopter Foundry
2 Sword of the Meek
1 Mindslaver
1 Open the Vaults
Now while it is certainly possible to win with creatures out of this deck (heck we even have Baneslayer Angel herself), generally you will be using these combo pieces not only as win conditions in and of themselves, but as bargaining tools to get crucial disruption spells at the right time. Gifts Ungiven is a hands-down bomb in this deck, better in this than any other deck in the format can claim, and these pieces are often the reason why. For example, any Gifts pile with a Battle of Wits is basically a 3-card Gifts pile (assuming immediate death is not on the table). This allows for more abusive and surgical Gifts piles, as you can now craft a 2 out of 3 situation. We literally have not even gotten into the teens yet and have a sick Gifts pile amongst the 12 cards shown. Assuming a neutral board state, a simple search for Sword, Thopter Foundry, Battle, and Open the Vaults is an essential win in all but the rarest of situations. These cards themselves are pretty simple though, and hinge heavily on Gifts or other card draw, so lets move on.
Creatures
4 Baneslayer Angel
4 Sakura Tribe Elder
4 Solemn Simulacrum
4 Eternal Witness
4 Vendilion Clique
These aren’t actually all of the creatures, but they are the ones who fit best into this category. Etched Oracle for example, is typically a draw spell so it is left off of here.
As for what is on here, we are trying to maximize the versatility of our spells which should be evident here. We typically want our deck to produce consistent draws and game plans, yet with a 250 card deck, that becomes much more difficult. To help in that area though, each individual card tries to be as powerful and versatile as it can be. Of course there are some cards aimed at certain matchups, but for the most part, each card serves multiple purposes.
For example, you may notice the distinctive lack of Tarmogoyfs from the above list. This is because Tarmogoyf is not consistently good enough in a deck that A) cannot produce it by turn 4 regularly, and B) cannot guarantee it will survive through our own removal, much less our opponent’s. Baneslayer Angel on the other hand, which for all intents and purposes is a vanilla creature in this deck, has a much more profound effect on the game if it survives a turn. In addition, it conveniently comes down after our mass removal has landed. Other than the Angel though, the rest of the creature pull double or triple duty, capped off by the jack of all trades in Vendilion Clique.
Planeswalkers
4 Tezzeret, the Seeker
4 Jace the Mind Sculptor
These once again just play off of that versatility theme. In any given matchup these can become tutors, draw spells, win conditions, or removal. Because of that their inclusion is pretty obvious, but it also explains the reason other planeswalkers were left off of the list. While Garruk and Elspeth are both excellent, their utility is pretty straightforward and can rarely be stretched to meet more than a few situations.
Draw Spells and Tutors
4 Gifts Ungiven
4 Idyllic Tutor
4 Brainspoil
4 Trinket Mage
4 Etched Oracle
4 Harmonize
4 Thirst for Knowledge
4 Phyrexian Arena
1 Life from the Loam
1 All Suns Dawn
These are the spells that make the deck function in a halfway consistent manner. With 34 spells that draw you extra cards or tutor for key pieces of your deck, you have the equivalent of 8 draw/tutor spells from a 60 card deck with nearly 14% of your deck space reserved for them. Idyllic Tutor and Brainspoil are the most restrictive of the tutor spells, as they are designed to primarily grab your Battle of Wits, but can grab a handful of other spells along the way, not to mention the natural versatility of Brainspoil by itself.
All Suns Dawn is possibly the most alarming of the above spells, but it makes for a pretty insane Gifts Ungiven target and even drawn naturally, will net you 3-4 cards without putting in any extra work. Etched Oracle is a spell that often gets left out of the Constructed circle, but usually for casting consistency concerns rather than power level concerns. Here it shines as a draw 3, or a 4/4 beater that also removes Bridges, or does other neat things along the way.
Counterspells
4 Cryptic Command
4 Condescend
4 Muddle the Mixture
4 Voidslime
1 Chalice of the Void
Again, we focus on counterspells that perform in a versatile manner. Voidslime happens to be one of the most under appreciated abilities in the format which makes its stock even higher in this particular deck. No one seems to play around Stifle type effects which can lead to the occasional blowout and even if they do, a counterspell is never dead.
Removal
4 Day of Judgment
4 Wrath of God
4 Damnation
4 Engineered Explosives
4 Crime//Punishment
4 Bant Charm
4 Maelstrom Pulse
1 Faiths Fetters
1 Executioners Capsule
4 Putrefy
1 Oblivion Ring
4 Path To Exile
2 Shriekmaw
1 Smother
1 Slaughter Pact
We have gathered the best removal of the format with a little twist when it comes to the singletons. Basically, any singleton has some way to be searched out by one or more tutors, and are designed to deal with annoying creatures like Gaddock Teeg. Twelve actual Wraths can be a bit awkward at times, but is pretty needed for the aggressive decks or even things like Dredge. With things like Jace and Thirst for Knowledge in the deck, drawing a "dead" card for a matchup is hardly a blank draw, which does allow us to get away with the more specific cards of the deck despite working with a mass of versatile ones for the most part.
Disruption
4 Relic of Progenitus
1 Tormods Crypt
4 Cranial Extraction
4 Shadow of Doubt
Here we have a collection of cards that traditional 60 card decks have difficulty fitting into the maindeck. These may look like they are specialized for specific matchups, but in reality, each one has uses across multiple matchups. Cranial Extraction for example, is lethal against Scapeshift while disrupting Thopter/Depths significantly and even pulling the duty of a slow Extirpate against Dredge. On of the benefits of running such a large deck lies within these gems, as you will never encounter a matchup where you have no game or answers. The trick then, is just finding those answers in a time sensitive manner.
Mana Sources
4 Coalition Relic
4 Azorius Signet
4 Dimir Signet
4 Simic Signet
4 Tolaria West
4 Horizon Canopy
1 Mikokoro, Center of the Sea
1 Academy Ruins
4 Ghost Quarter
2 Tectonic Edge
2 Bojuka Bog
4 Misty Rainforest
4 Marsh Flats
4 Verdant Catacombs
4 Watery Grave
4 Godless Shrine
4 Hallowed Fountain
4 Temple Garden
4 Overgrown Tomb
4 Breeding Pool
1 Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth
1 Seat of The Synod
1 Vault of Whispers
1 Ancient Den
1 Tree of Tales
2 Mystic Gate
2 Flooded Grove
2 Sunken Ruins
6 Island
4 Plains
4 Swamp
4 Forest
4 Terramorphic Expanse
A pretty extensive mana base with plenty of fixing and utility lands to limit the damage done from occasional flooding which can occur when you run over 100 mana sources despite it being a similar ratio of mana to non mana when compared to 60 card decks. 16 signet effects allow us to get a little boost in the early game which helps the deck keep up with the speed of the format. Beyond that, there isn’t much here that one wouldn’t expect.
Sideboard
2 Bojuka Bog
4 Extirpate
3 Tormod’s Crypt
1 Yixlid Jailer
1 Leyline of the Void
4 Aven Mindcensor
With a deck so large, your sideboard should really be aimed at solidifying 1 or 2 matchups since expecting to cover the entire gauntlet is unreasonable. With this particular sideboard, we increase our dredge hate two to three fold. In addition, we get to bring in some solid cards against the Thopter Depths matchup. Despite that matchup being pretty favorable in game one situations, increasing your chances against the best deck of the format is never a bad thing. Extirpate, Yixlid Jailor, and Aven Mindcensor are all quite good there. Aven Mindcensor even serves an extra role as it is excellent against Scapeshift as well.
In general, this deck is going to offer you a true control deck that literally has an answer to every situation you may encounter in a current Extended tournament. Testing had this performing pretty well against the majority of the field, save Hypergenesis and R/G Scapeshift which were both winnable, but required some unique circumstances to overcome. Unfortunately the issues with this deck do not come with the cards themselves, but in the size of the deck.
No matter how many tutors and draw spells a 250 card deck can contain, you are bound to lose a game at some point due to consistency issues. This will happen with 60 card decks as well, but less frequently. Beyond that however, the biggest obstacle for Battle of Wits comes with the shuffling and handling of the deck.
As the judges have gotten more uniform in their crackdown of slow play, and players have turned to enforcing the rules for their own games as opposed to relying on wandering judges, play a deck where shuffling can easily surpass the recommended time limit is risky. Most of the time your searches and shuffling will be fair and appropriate, but every once in a while, that one of land will be in the last pile you look at, or your shuffling will result in some backwards cards. In cases like these, a game loss is likely to result eventually, meaning you have given up games based strictly on your deck size. There is a solution however.
Magic Online has a streamlined shuffler and search method that makes playing this deck basically like playing any other. Of course the issue of price comes up when acquiring the cards for this beast, but most of these are Extended or Standard staples anyway, meaning you should have them lying around somewhere.
For those of you with the time to sleeve (for real or digitally) this up, I highly recommend messing with it, as you may be surprised, but as for me, I would rather avoid the hassle during a Grand Prix and have therefore recently scratched this off the list of options. One thing is for certain though, this is the one rogue deck where there is no surprise factor involved! Thanks for reading and I will see everyone in Oakland!
Conley Woods
About This Author
Conley Woods
Conley is known for his love of rogue decks, and his unconventional deckbuilding technique has resulted in numerous success stories. He won GP Orlando to kick off 2012, made Top 8 at Grand Prix Oakland 2010, was the Grand Prix Tampa 2009 finalist, and made top 4 of both Pro...
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