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Decklist 1 (note: this is an "old" pre-Planar Chaos decklist): Spoiler: Show By trunks123 This deck plays typical Rock cards, such as Birds of Paradise, Sakura-Tribe Elder, Eternal Witness, Cabal Therapy, and of course Pernicious Deed. Green-Black Rock control decks are as old as the format itself, and this deck builds on that archetype. But Gifts Rock adds something extra. As the name might suggest, it runs blue for Gifts Ungiven. A typical Gifts setups is Genesis, Eternal Witness, Cabal Therapy, and another card, for example Pernicious Deed. The best thing your opponent can do is usually to put Genesis and Cabal Therapy in your hand. After all, if he chooses to put Genesis in the graveyard, he has put it right where you want it to be. Nevertheless, you can still get Genesis in the graveyard by sacrificing him to flashback Cabal Therapy. Then, you can return Eternal Witness, which in turn gets Pernicious Deed back. You blow up the board, including Eternal Witness, which is then in the graveyard once again, ready to be recurred by Genesis once more. This is only one of the many Gifts setups you can do with this deck. You can also select 4 lands if you’re mana light. I can’t cover all the options, since there are so many.4 x Birds of Paradise 4 x Cabal Therapy 1 x Duress 1 x Engineered Explosives 3 x Eternal Witness 3 x Forest 1 x Genesis 4 x Gifts Ungiven 1 x Global Ruin 1 x Godless Shrine 2 x Golgari Rot Farm 1 x Island 3 x Living Wish 3 x Loxodon Hierarch 3 x Overgrown Tomb 3 x Pernicious Deed 1 x Plains 1 x Plow Under 2 x Polluted Delta 2 x Putrefy 1 x Ravenous Baloth 4 x Sakura-Tribe Elder 1 x Smother 1 x Swamp 1 x Temple Garden 1 x Vindicate 1 x Watery Grave 4 x Windswept Heath 1 x Breeding Pool 1 x Hallowed Fountain Sideboard 1 x Cranial Extraction 2 x Duress 1 x Engineered Plague 1 x Eternal Witness 1 x Golgari Rot Farm 1 x Kataki, War's Wage 1 x Loxodon Hierarch 1 x Meloku the Clouded Mirror 1 x Plow Under 2 x Tormod's Crypt 1 x Withered Wretch 1 x Harmonic Sliver 1 x Krosan Grip The sideboard of a rock deck traditionally changes a lot acording to the metagame and right now trunks123's board holds crazy stuff such as Engineered Plague (against Goblins) or Harmonic Sliver (against Sulfuric Vortex or artifacts). This above list is based on fob's list (luis scot vargas), so a lot of credit goes to him. But I’ll let him do the talking. He has written a good article about the deck, which I have copy/pasted here. Niv is a member of clan UMK. His article is in these spoiler tags: Spoiler: Show Gifts Rock in Extended / Niv Shmueli (trunks123) Lately I've been playing a lot of extended on Magic Online as a lot of people may have noticed. I've tested a couple of decks but mainly 2 decks: Gifts Rock and Aggro Loam. First I started playing Aggro Loam, but I wasn't really happy about the deck even though I do think it's very strong. So then I started playing Gifts Rock and at first I didn't do really well, but I knew some of it had to be attributed to bad play cause I was only getting familiar with the deck. This is the list I started off with: Gifts Rock Suggested by Luis Scott-Vargas as a potential deck for Extended Maindeck: 1 Sensei's Divining Top 4 Birds Of Paradise 3 Eternal Witness 1 Genesis 3 Loxodon Hierarch 1 Ravenous Baloth 4 Sakura-tribe Elder 4 Leyline Of The Void 2 Pernicious Deed 4 Gifts Ungiven 1 Putrefy 4 Cabal Therapy 1 Deep Analysis 3 Living Wish 1 Plow Under 1 Vindicate 3 Forest 1 Island 1 Plains 1 Swamp 1 Breeding Pool 1 Godless Shrine 2 Golgari Rot Farm 4 Overgrown Tomb 2 Polluted Delta 1 Temple Garden 1 Watery Grave 4 Windswept Heath Sideboard: 2 Carven Caryatid 1 Eternal Witness 1 Loxodon Hierarch 1 Withered Wretch 1 Naturalize 1 Smother 1 Kataki, War's Wage 1 Meloku The Clouded Mirror 1 Cranial Extraction 2 Duress 1 Global Ruin 1 Haunting Echoes 1 Golgari Rot Farm As you may see, it's Luis-Scott Vargas's list (lsv\fob\domino23 on Magic Online), as I got it from him and I owe him a big thanks. The deck looked very good on paper so I went off and started testing it. I'll talk in my article here about specific matchups, and the most important thing in this deck - the "gifts piles" you should get in each matchup. I'll also talk about Cabal Therapy and what you should name in each match up. But what I'm about to say here obviously isn't always correct because it depends a lot on the board and game position. After a lot of testing I changed my list a number of times and this is the most updated list, the list I play today: 4-Gifts Ungiven 4-Cabal Therapy 1-Duress 1-Engineered Explosives 1-Global Ruin 1-Plow Under 1-Smother 4-Birds of Paradise 3-Eternal Witness 1-Genesis 3-Living wish 1-Ravenous Baloth 4-Sakura Tribe Elder 3-Loxodon Hierarch 3-Pernicious Deed 2-Putrefy 1-Vindicate 1-Godless Shrine 2-Golgari Rot-Farm 3-Overgrown Tomb 2-Polluted Delta 1-Temple Garden 1-Watery Grave 4-Windswept Heath 1-Breeding Pool 1-Hallowed Fountain 3-Forest 1-Swamp 1-Plains 1-Island Sideboard: 1-Eternal Witness 1-Kataki,War's Wage 1-Loxodon Hierarch 1-Withered Wretch 1-Krosan Grip 1-Golgari Rot-Farm 1-Meloku the Clouded Mirror 1-Cranial Extraction 2-Duress 1-Engineered Plague 1-Plow Under 1-Harmonic Sliver 2-Tormod's Crypt This list is designed for the Online metagame so if you play this at your local PTQ, you might want to change it a bit (for example, take out the crypts in the sideboard if you don't expect graveyard decks). Ok so let's get down to the match ups: Boros Every game you'll play against Boros looks pretty much the same. You need to keep playing your Hierarchs and wipe the board with Deed. In this matchup, the most important card is Sakura-tribe Elder. This guy accelerates you into a fast Hierarch before they even get a chance to play Molten Rain and it also prevents 2 damage in their attack phase. Birds of Paradise are fine here but usually die. This matchup is in your favor since their only way to stop your Hierarchs game one is the land destruction. A good card that I see most people don't value in this matchup is Plow Under. Even though this card is quit expensive as it costs 5 mana, most of the games vs Boros go down to topdecking the last burn they need to finish you off, so Plow Under totally stops them and gives you enough time to stabilize with your life gain cards. Sideboard: -1 Global Ruin -1 Cabal Therapy +1 Duress +1 Krosan Grip The Krosan Grip is against their Sulfuric Vortex and sometimes against Pithing Needle which some people will side in against you, or even against the new Dutch list that plays Armadillo Cloak. The usual gifts pile in this match up is- Hierarch, Baloth, Living Wish, Witness. Sometimes u can replace the wish with deed if u need to sweep the board fast Turn 1 Therapy should almost always say Goblin Legionnaire. If u have Golgari Rot Farm then I would probably name Molten Rain. In the late game you should name Lightning Helix, Sudden Shock or Char, even though not all lists play Char these days. Affinity This match up is quite easy as you have cards that totally destroy them - Pernicious Deed and the 1 Kataki in your sideboard. You also have cards like Hierarch, Putrefy and Vindicate that are also great against Affinity. Acceleration is very important in this matchup. Sideboard: -1 Plow Under -1 Duress +1 Loxodon Hierarch +1 Krosan Grip The gifts pile here is Pernicious Deed, Living Wish, Eternal Witness and a removal spell like Putrefy or Vindicate. Don't forget though that if they gather a lot of counters on Blinkmoth Nexus then Plow under can remove that and deal with it very nicely. There are 2 threats that you should name with therapy and they are Cranial Plating and Arcbound Ravager. Sometimes I see them lacking a color so if they are missing blue name Thoughtcast and if they are missing red then name Shrapnel Blast. If you have Deed then you can name Mystic Enforcer or Somber Hoverguard even though most lists play enforcer. Uw\Ur Tron I find this match up to be the worst matchup for this deck although you do have the tools to beat it. The most important card in this match up is global ruin. The other cards that you need are: Cabal Therapy, Plow Under and Vindicate. Pernicious deed can be useful against their Decree of Justice. The gifts pile here is - global ruin, plow under, cabal therapy and eternal witness. Sometimes u can replace therapy for Vindicate if you need to destroy their tron fast. Sideboard: +1 Cranial Extraction +2 Duress +1 Krosan Grip +1 Plow Under -1 Engineered Explosives -1 Birds of Paradise -1 Smother -1 Pernicious Deed -1 Loxodon Hierarch The reason I take the Bird out is because the game usually tends to be a long game so acceleration isn't needed as much. Cabal Therapy- turn 1 I'd name 1 of their counters which are Remand, Memory Lapse, Condescend. On turns 2-5 name Fact or Fiction\Thirst For knowledge, later in the game you need to start ripping their win conditions which are Decree of Justice, Exalted Angel, Eternal Dragon, and the one that hurts you the most is Mindslaver so I would usually name Mindslaver. Tooth and Nail This match up is almost the same as the tron control match up only the difference is that tooth and nail doesn't play counters so on one side this is good for you but on the other side tooth and nail can be very fast. I like this match a lot more then the ur\uw tron match up for the reason I mentioned that they don't play counters, so if you manage to play global ruin, you can easily win from there. Sideboard: -1 Smother -1 Engineered Explosives -3 Pernicious Deed +2 Duress +1 Cranial Extraction +1 Plow Under +1 Krosan Grip Cabal therapy- ALWAYS if you're on the play on turn 1 name sensei's diving top as that's their best card against you because it means your discard spells don't do much. If you are on the draw then name sylvan scrying, then reap and sow on turn 3 or if they don't have 4 lands. After that always name tooth and nail. The gifts pile here is exactly the same as the gifts pile against tron decks only u can replace therapy with vindicate if u discarded their hand already. Ichorid This match up is hard pre sideboard but post sideboard it's a lot better. Game 1 try to get an early wish for wretch then basically they can only win with Psychatog and Zombie Infestation which u have answers for in smother+putrefy+deed+vindicate for the tog and vindicate+deed or wish for harmonic sliver for the infestation. Sideboard: -1 Global Ruin -1 Plow under -1 Duress -2 Cabal Therapy +1 Loxodon Hierarch +2 Tormod's Crypt +1 Cranial Extraction +1 Engineered Plague Therapy should name turn 1 Zombie Infestation, and from there it's usually useless. With the engineered plague you name horror against their ichorids. Cranial extraction should usually name Ichorid even though naming Psychatog is also ok if you fear it more. The usual gifts pile here is Living wish (gets you withered wretch) Eternal Witness, Deed, Hierarch. Post sideboard, if they don't have infestation onilne, then instead of bringing Deed and Hierarch with Gifts, bring tormod's crypt+ cranial extraction. If they do have infestation online then keep the deed but still replace the hierarch with crypt\cranial, depends on the position. Aggro Loam/C.A.L I place these decks together for the reason that they are very similar. I think both of these matchups are hard because you're only out for Life From the Loam is Living Wish for Withered Wretch. Post sideboard it gets better though. Sideboard against Aggro Loam: -1 Global Ruin -1 Plow Under -1 Duress -1 Cabal Therapy +2 Tormod's Crypt +1 Krosan Grip +1 Cranial Extraction The Aggro loam version has 2 threats which are Burning wish and Devastating Dreams. So you should usually aim your therapies at those 2 even though you can name Seismic Assault if you don't have an answer for it. The gifts pile here gets a bit tricky because there are two possible piles - if they are on the aggro plan with werebears, wild mongrels and terravores then get Deed, Witness, Baloth, Hierarch but if they are on the "combo" plan of life from the loam and seismic assault then get Witness, Living wish, Deed and a vindicate. Post sideboard replace the vindicate and the deed (in the gifts pile) with Tormod's Cyrpt and Cranial extraction unless they already have a assault on board. Sideboard against C.A.L: -1 Global Ruin -1 Plow Under -1 Engineered Explosives -1 Smother -2 Putrefy +2 Tormod's Crypt +1 Cranial Extraction +2 Duress +1 Krosan Grip Cabal Therapy - if it's your first turn and you're on the play then name sensei's diving top but from that point forward, the 2 main threats are Burning Wish+ Seismic Assault. The usual gifts pile here is exactly like aggro cal only you don't need the aggro pile because they don't have an aggro plan at all. Mirror Match The mirror comes down to 1 plan - start recurring creatures of yours with genesis and destroying their genesis chain. Sideboard: -1 Smother -1 Explosives -1 Birds of paradise -1 Pernicious Deed -1 Loxodon Hierarch +2 Duress +1 Tormod's Crypt +1 Cranial Extraction +1 Plow under The reason I added only 1 crypt is that you don't need it so fast because the game goes so long that you will have enough chances to gifts for it or just draw it. I removed the bird for the same reason as only 1 crypt added that the game goes very long so your not in a hurry so don't need that much acceleration, and taking the bird out also makes your deck more resilient to deed. There is no standard gifts pile in this match up because the game goes so long that you'll be able to cast gifts multiple times. But for the first gifts I think Wish, Witness, Plow under and Genesis can be good. Cabal Therapy - if they have 4 mana open name Gifts but naming Witness or Wish is good also and are the common things you should name. TEPS (Desire) This match up is good for you. The most important card here is cabal therapy. Don't forget that putrefy+ deed destroy their Lotus Bloom on upkeep after it comes into play. Global Ruin also shines if u get that late in the game because most lists have 0 basic lands. Sideboard: -1 Smother -1 Explosives -1 Deed -2 Putrefy -1 Loxodon Hierarch +2 Tormod's Crypt +2 Duress +1 Plow under +1 Cranial extraction Cabal Therapy - if you're on the play then name lotus bloom other then that the usual call is Burning Wish. Gifts pile -Therapy, Duress, Witness, global ruin\plow under. After sideboard take out the global ruin\plow under and add cranial extraction. Goblins (Dirty Kitty + Mono Red) This is probably your best match up as the combination of deed+ hierarchs totally wreck them. Unlike boros which has LD to stop you, goblins can only get explosive hands to stop you, but you have therapy to stop that. Sideboard: +1 engineered Plague -1Global ruin If it's the version with fecundity (dirty kitty) then also take out Duress for Krosan grip. Cabal Therapy - against mono red usually name Goblin warchief but if it's the green version then you can name Empty the Warrens Gifts pile - Explosives, Deed, Witness, Hierarch after sideboard if your not on low life you can replace hierarch with plague. Scepter Chant The new chant list makes this match up worse because of teferi+ scepter chant lock, but I still think this match up is in your favor. You really want a fast deed on the board because then it makes them first cunning wish for disenchant\stifle and only then can they wish for chant and put it on the stick. Sideboard: +2 duress +1 cranial +1 krosan grip -1 Birds of Paradise -1 explosives -1 smother -1 global ruin Again I took out 1 bird here because like the mirror, this game also lasts long. Their plan is to get their combo online fast because if you get to the late game where u start recurring witness using genesis they usually lose. Gifts Pile - Therapy Duress Witness Deed. Trinket Counterbalance This match can get a bit tricky because they have good tools against you like Pithing Needle and Stifle. I still think this match is good for you because their counterbalance doesn't hurt you at all because most of your spells cost 4+ and they don't have spells in those costs (sometimes I see lightning angel but that's very rare and is played in 1-2 copies). The meddling mages aren't that good against you because unlike normal rock, your removal is different and more verstalie, be it putrefy, smother or vindicate. Sideboard: +1 krosan grip +1 duress -1 plow under -1 global ruin Cabal therapy - usually name meddling mage or trinket mage on the first couple of turns. Gifts Pile - Deed Explosives Hierarch Putrefy\Vindicate\Smother (depends on the meddling mage). A few more things you should keep in mind when playing this deck are: 1) The color Combination you need is GGBWU but sometimes you'll want double black. Getting dual or basic depends on the match up - against aggro you should get basic to keep your life total high and against control where the life total isn't important then you should get a dual usually. 2) You can play Gifts Ungiven for less then 4 cards, like getting only 2 cards, for example Therapy and Genesis, in case you need to flashback therapy and have only 4 mana or get genesis fast into your graveyard. 3) You can target yourself with therapy discarding your genesis instead of playing the slow dude for 5mana. Also flashbacking therapy sacrificing Genesis is "the standard play" of almost every rock. I really think that if you practice a lot with this deck then you'll see better performance at the end because this deck has the tools to beat every deck in the format and is very strong. I think u have the edge in every match up if you play well except maybe the uw\ur trons and the life from the loam decks, those 2 matchups are difficult. If anyone has any questions or comments about the article I'll be happy to answer, just contact me online. Niv Shmuely Trunks123 on MTGO And lastly, a relatively new (August 2007) decklist: Spoiler: Show By Krystyna z gazowni
4 x Birds of Paradise 4 x Cabal Therapy 3 x Eternal Witness 3 x Forest 1 x Genesis 4 x Gifts Ungiven 1 x Godless Shrine 1 x Golgari Rot Farm 1 x Island 3 x Living Wish 3 x Loxodon Hierarch 3 x Overgrown Tomb 3 x Pernicious Deed 1 x Plains 1 x Plow Under 2 x Polluted Delta 1 x Putrefy 1 x Ravenous Baloth 4 x Sakura-Tribe Elder 2 x Smother 1 x Swamp 2 x Temple Garden 1 x Tormod's Crypt 1 x Vindicate 1 x Watery Grave 4 x Windswept Heath 1 x Breeding Pool 1 x Damnation 1 x Extirpate 1 x Hallowed Fountain Sideboard 1 x Eternal Witness 1 x Global Ruin 1 x Golgari Rot Farm 1 x Haunting Echoes 1 x Kataki, War's Wage 1 x Loxodon Hierarch 1 x Meddling Mage 1 x Meloku the Clouded Mirror 1 x Withered Wretch 1 x Worship 3 x Extirpate 1 x Harmonic Sliver 1 x Krosan Grip
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Decklist:Spoiler: Show Raphael Levy, GP Singapore 07
2 x Flooded Strand 4 x Wooded Foothills 2 x Bloodstained Mire 4 x Windswept Heath 2 x Stomping Ground 1 x Sacred Foundry 1 x Temple Garden 1 x Steam Vents 1 x Godless Shrine 1 x Mountain 1 x Breeding Pool 4 x Grim Lavamancer 1 x Savannah Lions 3 x Isamaru, Hound of Konda 2 x Jotun Grunt 4 x Watchwolf 2 x Wild Mongrel 4 x Kird Ape 4 x Boros Swiftblade 1 x Brute Force 4 x Gaea's Might 1 x Lightning Helix 1 x Firebolt 4 x Tribal Flames 3 x Sudden Shock 1 x Umezawa's Jitte 1 x Armadillo Cloak SIDEBOARD 1 x Loxodon Hierarch 3 x Engineered Plague 3 x Meddling Mage 3 x Kataki, War's Wage 1 x Armadillo Cloak 1 x Umezawa's Jitte 2 x Krosan Grip 1 x Jotun Grunt This deck runs the best cheap white/red/green creatures in the format, like Kird Ape and Watchwolf. They're highly aggressive and very mana effecient. But an important aspect of this deck are the domain cards; Gaea's Might and Tribal Flames. Thanks to the interaction between the saclands (Windswept Heath, etc.) and dual lands (Stomping Ground, etc.) it's very easy to get one of each basic land type in play, at which point the domain cards are awesome. Gaea's Might on Boros Swiftblade is back-breaking and 5 damage for 2 mana is nothing to sneeze at either.
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Decklist:Spoiler: Show Hunter Burton, GP Dallas 07
4 x Archaeological Dig 4 x Gemstone Mine 2 x Abandoned Outpost 4 x Geothermal Crevice 4 x Tinder Farm 4 x Ancient Spring 4 x Sulfur Vent 2 x Terravore 4 x Anurid Brushhopper 4 x Orim's Chant 3 x Enduring Ideal 4 x Lotus Bloom 4 x Burning Wish 2 x Obliterate 3 x Insidious Dreams 3 x Balancing Act 2 x Form of the Dragon 1 x Dovescape 1 x Night of Souls' Betrayal 1 x Solitary Confinement SIDEBOARD 1 x Morningtide 3 x Ancient Grudge 3 x Porphyry Nodes 1 x Rough // Tumble 1 x Enduring Ideal 1 x Obliterate 1 x Balancing Act 1 x Life from the Loam 1 x Overmaster 1 x Dovescape 1 x Solitary Confinement This deck combines two strategies. One the one hand you have the Invasion saclands plus Balancing Act or Obliterate, which resets the board completely. Obliterate is easy to cast off of 4 saclands, and those saclands also conveniently make sure you have no permanents left in play for Balancing Act. You can then kill with Terravore, or Anurid Brushhopper (which you can conveniently phase out when you blow up the world). The second strategy that is also interweaved in the deck is based on Enduring Ideal. It's easily castable off of the saclands and/or Lotus Bloom. The plan is first to go for Dovescape, effectively shutting down a lot of the popular strategies plus potential answers to your enchantments, then the turn after Solitary Confinement to protect you even more, and afterwards 2 Form of the Dragon, which should kill the opponent before you are unable to pay Confinement's upkeep. Orim's Chant protects your game-defining sorceries from countermagic. Burning Wish searches for them.
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Decklist (note: this is an "old" pre-Planar Chaos decklist):Spoiler: Show Katsuhiro Mori, 4-1-1 Extended -- 2006 World Championships
2 x Vault of Whispers 4 x Seat of the Synod 1 x Steam Vents 1 x Underground River 1 x Oboro, Palace in the Clouds 1 x Cephalid Coliseum 1 x Watery Grave 1 x Flooded Strand 4 x Polluted Delta 1 x Snow-Covered Swamp 5 x Snow-Covered Island 1 x Desert 4 x Psychatog 1 x Wonder 1 x Smother 1 x Echoing Decay 1 x Ghastly Demise 1 x Chrome Mox 2 x Cunning Wish 4 x Duress 4 x Thirst for Knowledge 4 x Circular Logic 3 x Force Spike 2 x Fact or Fiction 2 x Counterspell 3 x Opt 3 x Spell Snare 1 x Deep Analysis SIDEBOARD 1 x Commandeer 1 x Psychotic Fury 1 x Bottle Gnomes 1 x Engineered Plague 2 x Ghastly Demise 2 x Tormod's Crypt 1 x Darkblast 1 x Echoing Truth 1 x Meloku the Clouded Mirror 1 x Gifts Ungiven 2 x Phyrexian Ironfoot 1 x Teferi, Mage of Zhalfir This deck runs like a good old Psychatog deck; countermagic, card drawing, and a huge Psychatog as a finisher.
FORMAT: Extended
Decklist 1:Spoiler: Show John Pelcak, GP Dallas 07 4 x * Great Furnace 4 x * Seat of the Synod 4 x * Vault of Whispers 4 x * Blinkmoth Nexus 2 x * Darksteel Citadel 1 x * City of Brass 1 x * Glimmervoid 4 x * Arcbound Worker 3 x * Ornithopter 4 x * Frogmite 4 x * Myr Enforcer 4 x * Arcbound Ravager 4 x * Chromatic Star 4 x * Pithing Needle 4 x * Cranial Plating 4 x * Shrapnel Blast 4 x * Thoughtcast 1 x * Fire // Ice SIDEBOARD 4 x * Tormod's Crypt 3 x * Stifle 4 x * Cabal Therapy 3 x * Darkblast 1 x * Fire // Ice Decklist 2: Spoiler: Show By nonsugar 2 x Darksteel Citadel 4 x Great Furnace 4 x Seat of the Synod 4 x Vault of Whispers 4 x Blinkmoth Nexus 2 x Glimmervoid - 3 x Ornithopter 4 x Arcbound Worker 4 x Arcbound Ravager 4 x Frogmite 4 x Myr Enforcer - 4 x Chromatic Star 4 x Pyrite Spellbomb 4 x Cranial Plating 4 x Shrapnel Blast 1 x Fire/Ice 4 x Thoughtcast Sideboard 3 x Tormod's Crypt 4 x Cabal Therapy 4 x Pyrostatic Pillar 4 x Welding Jar I don’t think this deck needs an introduction, since the synergy between Arcbound Ravager, Frogmite, and artifact lands has been around since Mirrodin Block. I like to play at least 48 artifacts in an Affinity deck, in order to maximize my Arcbound Ravagers and Cranial Platings. However, the above version (I mean decklist 1; the other one is a recent one from modo) made it to the Top 8 of GP Dallas and Pelcak is no slouch. The sideboard can change a lot and should be viewed as flexbile. For example, if you expect no TEPS Desire and a lot of Goblins, you should include Engineered Plague over Stifle. The arch nemesis of this deck is Kataki, War’s Wage, although Affinity has Darkblast out of the sideboard to kill it. Affinity is consistent and powerful as ever.
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Decklist (note: this is an "old" pre-Planar Chaos decklist):Spoiler: Show By Adam Poole, 4th Place -PTQ Pennsylvania - Philadelphia - 1/6 7 x Forest 4 x Llanowar Wastes 4 x Overgrown Tomb 7 x Swamp 4 x Llanowar Elves 3 x Ravenous Baloth 4 x Troll Ascetic 4 x Wild Mongrel 2 x Withered Wretch 3 x Wretched Anurid 3 x Cabal Therapy 2 x Call of the Herd 3 x Duress 2 x Putrefy 4 x Smother 2 x Sword of Fire and Ice 2 x Umezawa's Jitte SIDEBOARD 3 x Braids, Cabal Minion 3 x Engineered Plague 1 x Putrefy 1 x Cranial Extraction 1 x Withered Wretch 1 x Duress 3 x Pernicious Deed 2 x Krosan Grip This deck aims to play turn 2 Troll Ascetic with the help of Llanowar Elves, or to beat a Life from the Loam deck with Withered Wretch. It disrupts the opponent with Cabal Therapy, and beefs up its critters with huge equipment, thereby making an aggressive stance.
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Decklist (note: this is an "old" pre-Planar Chaos decklist):Spoiler: Show Ryan Brown, 4th Place PTQ Minnesota - Minneapolis - 1/6 Daniel Weingarten (dvine), the creator of the original version of the deck, told me the following (paraphrased):1 x * Overgrown Tomb 7 x * Forest 5 x * Swamp 4 x * Bloodstained Mire 4 x * Wooded Foothills 2 x * Mountain 4 x * Sakura-Tribe Elder 1 x * Genesis 4 x * Ravenous Baloth 4 x * Eternal Witness 4 x * Birds of Paradise 1 x * Haunting Echoes 2 x * Chainer's Edict 3 x * Sensei's Divining Top 3 x * Destructive Flow 3 x * Putrefy 4 x * Pernicious Deed 4 x * Cabal Therapy 2 x * Artifact Mutation SIDEBOARD 1 x * Duress 2 x * Dark Confidant 3 x * Leyline of the Void 2 x * Darkblast 3 x * Infest 2 x * Artifact Mutation 2 x * Cranial Extraction “I had used Destructive Flow 2 years ago as a sideboard card for my Rock deck. That was when everybody was playing Tooth and Nail or Affinity. The Tooth matchup was bad, so I sideboarded Flows. Since then the format changed, and Destructive Flow became an incredibly good maindeck card. There are just so many matchups where an early Flow is an autowin. The resurgence of Urzatron decks lately makes the card even better. I break the symmetry of Destructive Flow by keeping only basic lands in play. I use saclands to fix my mana, while not giving up my ability to have only basics in play. The saclands also have good synergy with Sensei’s Divining Top. The singleton Genesis and Haunting Echos are in there because I only need both of them in matchups that take very long anyway, such as Gifts Rock, Psychatog, etc, so one is enough. The deck is very very good at "not losing", but not so good at actually winning games. I don’t have many win conditions, only 3 Ravenous Baloth as big creatures, so games are bound to take long. It's not that much of a problem; Destructive Flow keeps my opponent from playing anything."
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Decklist (note: this is an "old" pre-Planar Chaos decklist):Spoiler: Show By mikeman29 4 x Barbarian Ring 3 x Bloodstained Mire 3 x Windswept Heath 4 x Wooded Foothills 2 x Snow-Covered Forest 3 x Snow-Covered Mountain 4 x Stomping Ground 4 x Call of the Herd 2 x Char 4 x Firebolt 4 x Grim Lavamancer 4 x Kird Ape 4 x Llanowar Elves 3 x Troll Ascetic 4 x Violent Eruption 4 x Wild Mongrel 4 x Sudden Shock Sideboard 3 x Dwarven Blastminer 4 x Molten Rain 4 x Shattering Spree 4 x Umezawa's Jitte This deck is straightforward, there's not much more too it than play little green or red creatures and SMASH! Voilent Eruption or Firebolt can deal the last couple points of damage to your opponent. It's pretty much the same strategy as a Boros deck, with the added bonus that this RG deck has a solid matchup against Boros. Thanks to Call of the Herd and friends, your creatures are simply bigger and that's a huge advantage.
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Decklist (note: this is an "old" pre-Planar Chaos decklist):Spoiler: Show Andres Bosile, Extended Paris PTQ Finalist 4 x Snow-Covered Island 1 x Swamp 5 x Island 7 x Forest 5 x Snow-Covered Forest 4 x Sakura-Tribe Elder 1 x Mystical Teachings 3 x Moment's Peace 1 x Brain Freeze 4 x Gifts Ungiven 4 x Search for Tomorrow 3 x Fact or Fiction 4 x Cunning Wish 1 x Revive 1 x Deep Analysis 3 x Nostalgic Dreams 2 x Mind's Desire 4 x Heartbeat of Spring 3 x Early Harvest SIDEBOARD 1 x Seedtime 1 x Hunting Pack 1 x Voidslime 3 x Gigadrowse 1 x Fact or Fiction 3 x Brain Freeze 1 x Moment's Peace 1 x Mana Short 1 x Wipe Away 1 x Krosan Grip 1 x Early Harvest This combo deck attempts to get a lot of lands in play quickly with Sakura-Tribe Elder and Search for Tomorrow. It then stalls the opponent for a turn with Moment's Peace until it is time to go off. You start with Heartbeat of Spring, then use Early Harvest to untap your lands, giving you a lot of mana at your disposal. You then work through your deck with Gifts Ungiven and Fact or Fiction, untap your lands once again with Early Harvest (also fetchable via Cunning Wish, or recurrable via Nostalgic Dreams), and repeat. You eventually work towards a big Mind's Desire, and finish the game with a Brain Freeze for your opponent's deck.
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Decklist (note: this is an "old" pre-Planar Chaos decklist):Spoiler: Show Dan DArgenio, 2nd Place PTQ Pennsylvania - Philadelphia - 1/6
5 x Forest 1 x Temple Garden 1 x Tranquil Thicket 4 x Urza's Mine 4 x Urza's Power Plant 4 x Urza's Tower 2 x Windswept Heath 2 x Wooded Foothills 3 x Eternal Witness 1 x Kiki-Jiki, Mirror Breaker 1 x Mephidross Vampire 4 x Sakura-Tribe Elder 1 x Sundering Titan 1 x Triskelion 4 x Wall of Roots 1 x Sky Hussar 2 x Mindslaver 3 x Moment's Peace 4 x Reap and Sow 4 x Sensei's Divining Top 4 x Sylvan Scrying 4 x Tooth and Nail SIDEBOARD 1 x Kataki, War's Wage 3 x Gilded Light 3 x Plow Under 1 x Oxidize 1 x Krosan Grip 1 x Naturalize 1 x Boseiju, Who Shelters All 1 x Blinkmoth Well 1 x Mindslaver 1 x Sundering Titan 1 x Moment's Peace Sensei's Divining Top digs for Tooth and Nail, and Sylvan Scrying digs for the lands. On top of that, the deck includes as well as Eternal Witness which gladly returns a Sylvan Scrying for another use.
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Decklist (note: this is an "old" pre-Planar Chaos decklist):Spoiler: Show Billy Moreno - 2006 Magic World Championship This deck takes much of the normal Goblin core and adds a combo frosting that gives it the ability to pull off some truly phenomenal plays with the flexibility to break through table positions that would have more traditional goblin decks conceding rather than defeating. It includes Empty the Warrens and "ritual" type card, with an interesting green splash for Fecundity. With Fecundity and a Skirk Prospector out, every goblin sacrifice means a card draw and a red mana. In that world, Mogg War Marshal becomes Ancestral Recall and Black Lotus. Combined with the cost reduction of Goblin Warchief to help things along plus the brute power of Empty the Warrens, plus all the red rituals, once in this mode a player can potentially draw the whole deck up if needed once Fecundity is out. For a detailed explanation of the deck, click here.
4 x Bloodstained Mire 4 x Wooded Foothills 4 x Stomping Ground 1 x Blood Crypt 6 x Mountain 4 x Skirk Prospector 4 x Goblin Piledriver 4 x Goblin Warchief 4 x Goblin Matron 1 x Goblin Sharpshooter 1 x Goblin Sledder 4 x Mogg War Marshal 4 x Seething Song 4 x Rite of Flame 2 x Brightstone Ritual 4 x Empty the Warrens 4 x Fecundity 1 x Grapeshot SIDEBOARD 4 x Clickslither 4 x Cabal Therapy 2 x Pyroclasm 2 x Krosan Grip 2 x Ancient Grudge 1 x Goblin King
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Decklist (note: this is an "old" pre-Planar Chaos decklist): Spoiler: Show By Rorix_For_Teh_Win 4 x Bloodstained Mire 4 x Wooded Foothills 1 x Overgrown Tomb 7 x Swamp 3 x Forest 3 x Chrome Mox 3 x Umezawa's Jitte 2 x Sword of Fire and Ice 3 x Putrefy 4 x Rotlung Reanimator 2 x Hypnotic spector 4 x Sakura-Tribe Elder 4 x Dark Confidant 3 x Solemn Simulacrum 3 x Night's Whisper 4 x Death Cloud 2 x Call of the Herd 4 x Cabal Therapy Sideboard 3 x Pithing Needle 2 x Duress 2 x Phyrexian Totem 2 x Nether Traitor 3 x Pernicious Deed 2 x Dreedship Reef This deck includes an aggro element in Solemn Simulacrum, Rotlung Reanimator, and Dark Confidant, as well as a control element with Deathcloud to blow up the world. You are less affected by the card, as Solemn Simulacrum and Rotlung Reanimator leave you with some game afterwards. Night's Whisper, Chrome Mox, Swamps, and some other cards typically round out the deck.
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Decklist (note: this is an "old" pre-Planar Chaos decklist): withhold by request This red/black storm deck generates a high storm count with Rite of Flame, Seething Song, Lotus Bloom, Chrome Mox, Pentad Prism and Cabal Ritual, then fires out Dragonstorm. You proceed to search Kokusho, the Evening Star and/or Kokusho, the Evening Star out of your deck to end it. It's pretty similar to TEPS - it even plays the Invasion saclands - just instead of Mind's Desire and Sins of the Past you have Dragonstorm and dragons.
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Decklist (note: this is an "old" pre-Planar Chaos decklist):Spoiler: Show By Kendall Bright, 3rd Place - PTQ Oklahoma City - 1/13 4 x Tranquil Thicket 4 x Forgotten Cave 2 x Barren Moor 4 x Wooded Foothills 3 x Bloodstained Mire 2 x Forest 1 x Mountain 1 x Swamp 1 x Sacred Foundry 1 x Godless Shrine 1 x Stomping Ground 1 x Blood Crypt 1 x Overgrown Tomb 4 x Birds of Paradise 3 x Dark Confidant 4 x Wall of Roots 1 x Genesis 3 x Eternal Witness 3 x Life from the Loam 3 x Solitary Confinement 2 x Seismic Assault 4 x Burning Wish 2 x Duress 2 x Putrefy 3 x Cabal Therapy SIDEBOARD 4 x Loxodon Hierarch 1 x Putrefy 2 x Duress 1 x Vindicate 1 x Morningtide 1 x Global Ruin 1 x Cabal Therapy 1 x Life from the Loam 1 x Devastating Dreams 1 x Hull Breach 1 x Cranial Extraction This deck abuses Life from the Loam in tandem with Seismic Assault (deal 20 damage quickly) and Solitary Confinement (lock the opponent, as you can keep on paying the upkeep with Loam recursion). Against combo and control decks, it holds an assortment of Duress and Cabal Therapy, along with Eternal Witness to dig them back and Dark Confidant to draw into them.
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Decklist (note: this is an "old" pre-Planar Chaos decklist):Spoiler: Show By noobs_lord
4 x Blinkmoth Nexus 10 x Forest 6 x Snow-Covered Forest 1 x Okina, Temple to the Grandfathers 2 x Chrome Mox 4 x Birds of Paradise 4 x Llanowar Elves 4 x Troll Ascetic 2 x Call of the Herd 2 x Loaming Shaman 3 x Ohran Viper 3 x Iwamori of the Open Fist 4 x Phantom Centaur 2 x Elephant Guide 2 x Sword of Fire and Ice 2 x Umezawa's Jitte 2 x Scrabbling Claws 3 x Chalice of the Void Sideboard 4 x Leyline of Lifeforce 4 x Oxidize 3 x Pithing Needle 2 x Plow Under 2 x Loaming Shaman The above list is an old one, made in the time that Aggro Loam was dominant. This deck aims to beat Aggro Loam by attacking its namesake card, Life from the Loam. Without Life from the Loam, Aggro Loam will have a hard time winning. Loaming Shaman and Scrabbling Claws empty the graveyard and a Chalice of the Void set on two prevents Aggro Loam from casting Life from the Loam altogether (or Burning Wish, Wild Mongrel, or Werebear, for that matter). Mono Green Aggro plays almost no 2-casting cost cards, which means that you are not hurt by a Chalice on two at all. The deck actually tries to skip the 2-drop completely by using Llanowar Elves, Birds of Paradise and Chrome Mox. The deck aims to accelerate into fat green creatures quickly. Turn 1 Llanowar Elves/Birds of Paradise, turn 2 Troll Ascetic/Call of the Herd, turn 3 Phantom Centaur/Iwamori of the Open Fist is an awesome start, especially if you follow it up with an equipment to beef up your guys. It’s a simple and straightforward plan, but early green monsters will put on a lot of pressure.
Format: STANDARD
Decklist:Spoiler: Show Rob Wagner, 2nd Place - England - High Wycombe Regionals Lands 1 x Urza's Factory 3 x Dimir Aqueduct 3 x Desert 4 x Dreadship Reef 14 x Island Creatures 2 x Willbender 2 x Fathom Seer 4 x Vesuvan Shapeshifter 1 x Brine Elemental 3 x Teferi, Mage of Zhalfir Spells 4 x Spell Snare 4 x Remand 4 x Cancel 4 x Mana Leak 2 x Repeal 2 x Think Twice 3 x Mystical Teachings SIDEBOARD 4 x Rewind 1 x Repeal 2 x Shadow of Doubt 1 x Draining Whelk 4 x Bottle Gnomes 3 x Yixlid Jailer The goal of a Pickles deck – I blame the deck’s creator Brian David-Marshall for coming up with such a stupid name – is to deprive your opponent of untap steps with Brine Elemental and Vesuvan Shapeshifter. The Shapeshifter will also gladly unmorph into Fathom Seer or Willbender and take their beneficial effects. Some versions run Mystical Teachings, which works well to fetch creatures out of your deck at will with Teferi. In the sideboard we find most importantly Rewind for control battles and Bottle Gnomes against aggro decks.
Format: STANDARD
Decklist:Spoiler: Show Andres Miguel, 1st Place - Florida - Miami area Regionals
Lands 1 x Pendelhaven 20 x Swamp Creatures 4 x Dark Confidant 4 x Ravenous Rats 4 x Withered Wretch 3 x Garza's Assassin 3 x Yixlid Jailer 3 x Plagued Rusalka Spells 4 x The Rack 4 x Smallpox 4 x Cry of Contrition 3 x Stupor 2 x Slaughter Pact 1 x Phyrexian Arena SIDEBOARD 4 x Blackmail 3 x Leyline of the Void 3 x Deathmark 3 x Last Gasp 2 x Extirpate This deck is made to get maximum damage out of The Rack. Using Cry of Contrition, Stupor, Ravenous Rats, and Smallpox, the deck tries to rip the opponent's hand apart. While the opponent is "empty handed", the deck sneaks in some damage with black weenies.
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Decklist (note: this is an "old" pre-Planar Chaos decklist):Spoiler: Show steve Locke, 2nd Place - Minnesota - Minneapolis - 1/6 This deck looks like a regular Blue-White control deck, but it runs the Cloudpost/Vesuva engine instead of the Urza lands. This particular version also includes the Trinket Mage package (silver bullets Engineered Explosives, Tormod's Crypt, and Chalice of the Void are ready to be picked up by the 2/2), but not every U/W Post does that.
3 x Flooded Strand 1 x Ancient Den 1 x Seat of the Synod 4 x Hallowed Fountain 3 x Island 3 x Adarkar Wastes 4 x Cloudpost 4 x Vesuva 1 x Academy Ruins 3 x Trinket Mage 2 x Sundering Titan 4 x Spell Snare 4 x Talisman of Progress 1 x Azorius Signet 3 x Counterspell 4 x Wrath of God 3 x Thirst for Knowledge 4 x Fact or Fiction 2 x Mindslaver 3 x Decree of Justice 1 x Engineered Explosives 1 x Tormod's Crypt 1 x Chalice of the Void SIDEBOARD 1 x Pithing Needle 1 x Tormod's Crypt 1 x Engineered Plague 3 x Faith's Fetters 3 x Chalice of the Void 3 x Disenchant 2 x Rule of Law 1 x Arcane Laboratory
(note: this is an "old" pre-Planar Chaos archetype)
Played by AngryPheldagrif, this deck looked like your average U/W control deck, but included such gems as Locket of Yesterdays and Grand Arbiter Augustin IV, which were exploited to reduce the cost of Whispers of the Muse, Tidesprout Tyrant, and Spell Burst. I don't have a decklist, but it was a fairly interesting concept for sure.
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Decklist (note: this is an "old" pre-Planar Chaos decklist):Spoiler: Show by Simon Ault (Freakmonger) 4 x Plagued Rusalka 4 x Savannah Lions 4 x Dark Confidant 4 x Nether Traitor 3 x Teysa, Orzhov Scion 2 x Orzhov Pontiff 4 x Nantuko Husk 3 x Ghost Council of Orzhova 4 x Castigate 4 x Temporal Isolation 4 x Caves of Koilos 3 x Godless Shrine 4 x Orzhov Basilica 1 x Flagstones of Trokair 5 x Plains 7 x Swamp Sideboard: 4 x Sudden Death 4 x Withered Wretch 4 x Dodecapod 2 x Mindslicer 1 x Orzhov Pontiff This W/B Aggro variant was built in an effort to make an aggro deck that can shrug off Wrath of God. It exploits the synergies between Nether Traitor, Teysa, and the sac outlets, alongside traditional Orzhov aggro cards like Dark Confidant, Castigate, and Savannah Lions. Sacrificing Nether Traitor to Ghost Council of Orzhova, getting a token with Teysa, Orzhov Scion, then getting back Nether Traitor when another creature hits the grave, finally using Orzhov Pontiff on your Teysa tokens...it's good synergy for sure  Temporal Isolation is a good removal spell on its own, but in this deck it can also be used to allow a Husk or Ghost Council to get through a clogged board. Isolate your own creature, go all-in, then sac the creature to itself with damage on the stack (after shadow lets it get through unblocked). Note: Lately Online, GrosseBank has been succesful with a version of his, which is somewhat different from the above deck. He incorporates Epochrasite, for nice nice synergetic combos with Ghost Council of Orzhova. I also saw Phyrexian Arena and Soul Warden.
Format: STANDARD
Decklist (note: this is an "old" pre-Planar Chaos decklist):Spoiler: Show By Jocked 4 x Birds of Paradise 3 x Elves of deep shadow 2 x Shadow guildmage 1 x Magus of the scroll 3 x Sedge sliver 4 x Dark confidant 4 x Call of the herd 4 x Kird ape 4 x Rift bolt 4 x Seal of fire 3 x Sudden shock 2 x Demonfire 4 x Overgrown Tomb 4 x Blood Crypt 4 x Stomping Grounds 1 x Swamp 5 x Mountain 4 x Forest SIDEBOARD Contains Deathmark, Rise/Fall, Shadow of doubt, Darkblast. The deck is great against green decks but loses to dragonstorm. All the good stuff in these colors, turn 2 Sedge Sliver, fast starts and burn, looks like a solid deck to me!
Format: STANDARD
Decklist:Spoiler: Show By Paul Cheon
3 x Azorius Signet 3 x Boros Signet 4 x Firemane Angel 4 x Martyr Of Sands 3 x Faith's Fetters 2 x Searing Meditation 3 x Careful Consideration 4 x Lightning Helix 4 x Compulsive Research 3 x Proclamation Of Rebirth 4 x Wrath Of God 3 x Plains 2 x Adarkar Wastes 2 x Boros Garrison 3 x Hallowed Fountain 2 x Izzet Boilerworks 2 x Sacred Foundry 2 x Shivan Reef 3 x Steam Vents 1 x Urza's Factory 1 x Flagstones Of Trokair Sideboard: 4 x Lightning Angel 2 x Circle Of Protection: Red 2 x Zur's Weirding 4 x Cancel 3 x Return To Dust
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Decklist (note: this is an "old" pre-Planar Chaos decklist):Spoiler: Show Carl Hendrix, 2nd Place - PTQ Oklahoma City - 1/13 1 x Pendelhaven 10 x Forest 4 x Breeding Pool 3 x Wooded Foothills 2 x Windswept Heath 4 x Llanowar Elves 4 x Birds of Paradise 4 x Wirewood Symbiote 4 x Coiling Oracle 2 x Scryb Ranger 4 x Wood Elves 2 x Eternal Witness 3 x Spectral Force 3 x Umezawa's Jitte 3 x Static Orb 4 x Beacon of Creation 3 x Opposition SIDEBOARD 3 x Spell Snare 3 x Krosan Grip 4 x Stifle 3 x Tormod's Crypt 2 x Voidslime The Opposition/Static Orb combo is back, powered by Beacon of Creation, and also by the untappers Wirewood Symbiote and Scryb Ranger. With a bunch of acceleration and mana elves, this deck can also go for the aggro route. Turn 3 Spectral Force or Umezawa's Jitte active is tough to beat for some decks. Surely an interesting cool deck to watch out for, and KBright has been playing it to decent (average) results in the Premier Events so far.
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Decklist (note: this is an "old" pre-Planar Chaos decklist):Spoiler: Show Trevor Jones, 1st Place PTQ Minnesota - Minneapolis - 1/6 4 x Plains 8 x Forest 2 x Vitu-Ghazi, the City-Tree 4 x Windswept Heath 4 x Temple Garden 4 x Llanowar Elves 4 x Boreal Druid 4 x Troll Ascetic 4 x Loxodon Hierarch 4 x Exalted Angel 4 x Eternal Dragon 2 x Orim's Chant 4 x Call of the Herd 3 x Worship 3 x Umezawa's Jitte 2 x Sword of Fire and Ice SIDEBOARD 1 x Worship 1 x Orim's Chant 3 x Tormod's Crypt 3 x Rule of Law 3 x Krosan Grip 4 x Plow Under Mike Flores' new creation does not fail to impress as the hateful answer to the metagame. With Orim's Chant and sideboard Rule of Law it should beat TEPS Desire, and with Exalted Angel and Worship it should beat Boros Deck Wins.
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Decklist (note: this is an "old" pre-Planar Chaos decklist):Spoiler: Show By Chris Nighbor, 6th Place PTQ Minnesota - Minneapolis - 1/6
1 x Godless Shrine 4 x Secluded Steppe 4 x Tranquil Thicket 4 x Barren Moor 4 x Windswept Heath 2 x Nantuko Monastery 2 x Temple Garden 2 x Overgrown Tomb 1 x Forest 1 x Plains 1 x Swamp 3 x Loxodon Hierarch 3 x Eternal Witness 4 x Vindicate 4 x Scrabbling Claws 3 x Pernicious Deed 2 x Astral Slide 4 x Duress 4 x Gerrard's Verdict 4 x Living Wish 3 x Life from the Loam SIDEBOARD 1 x Withered Wretch 1 x Viridian Shaman 1 x Blinkmoth Well 1 x Genesis 1 x Eternal Witness 2 x Krosan Grip 3 x Cranial Extraction 1 x Darkblast 1 x Loxodon Hierarch 2 x Putrefy 1 x Kataki, War's Wage
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Decklist:Spoiler: Show Josh Sandler, 1st Place - New York - New York - 3/10 This is a relatively old version; most recent versions have added Tarmogoyf.4 x Wooded Foothills 3 x Bloodstained Mire 1 x Overgrown Tomb 1 x Stomping Ground 1 x Blood Crypt 6 x Forest 2 x Swamp 1 x Mountain 4 x Troll Ascetic 4 x Dark Confidant 2 x Elves of Deep Shadow 4 x Birds of Paradise 3 x Ravenous Baloth 2 x Eternal Witness 3 x Umezawa's Jitte 3 x Cabal Therapy 3 x Duress 4 x Destructive Flow 2 x Sword of Fire and Ice 2 x Call of the Herd 2 x Putrefy 3 x Chrome Mox SIDEBOARD 1 x Dwarven Blastminer 1 x Krosan Grip 2 x Engineered Explosives 3 x Leyline of the Void 3 x Ancient Grudge 2 x Engineered Plague 1 x Putrefy 1 x Duress 1 x Smother This deck is a hybrid between an Aggro Rock deck and a Destructive Flow control deck. Offering the ability to attack on turn 3 with a Jitte-equipped Troll Ascetic, or locking your opponent out of the game with Destructive Flow, disrupting your combo opponent with discard spells, this deck is all over the place, but solidly slides everything together.
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Decklist:Spoiler: Show By _Swistak_
6 x Island 4 x Urza's Mine 4 x Urza's Power Plant 4 x Urza's Tower 2 x Academy Ruins 2 x Tolaria West - 2 x Triskelion 1 x Sundering Titan - 2 x Delay 3 x Chrome Mox 3 x Condescend 1 x Crucible of Worlds 2 x Fact or Fiction 3 x Fire/Ice 2 x Gifts Ungiven 3 x Izzet Signet 3 x Mindslaver 4 x Remand 3 x Repeal 2 x Repulse 4 x Thirst for Knowledge Sideboard 4 x Annul 1 x Sundering Titan 4 x Threads of Disloyalty 2 x Tormod's Crypt 3 x Trinisphere 1 x Triskelion I would expect a Mono Blue version of this archetype to play some Counterspells (usually not in multicolors Tron decks because of the double blue color requirements, but in mono blue this is easier), and Vedalken Shackles, but apparently those cards were not good enough. The deck can cast the red part of Fire/Ice with Izzet Signets.
Format: STANDARD
Decklist:Spoiler: Show By uuu21 4 x Birds of Paradise 3 x Elves of Deep Shadow 4 x Greenseeker 4 x Delirium Skeins 4 x Stinkeweed Imp 4 x Dread Return 2 x Nightmare Void 4 x Golgari Grave-Troll 2 x Akroma, Angel of Wrath 2 x Bogardan Hellkite 3 x Life from the Loam 4 x Fa'adyah seer 6 x Forest 2 x Ghost Quarter 2 x Golgari Rot Farm 4 x Overgrown Tomb 3 x Svogthos 3 x Swamp Sideboard 4 x darkblast 4 x shadow of doubt 4 x firemane angel 3 x ancient grudge Bennie Smith would be proud. The goal of this deck is fairly obvious: use Greenseeker or Delerium Skeins to discard a card with dredge, then dredge your graveyard full of goodies, and finish with a fat Golgari Grave-Troll or Svogthos, the Restless Tomb. Dread Return on Akroma, Angel of Wrath also works well. Llanowar Elves and Birds of Paradise have a dual purpose in this deck, acting as many accelerants and beefing up Golgari Grave-Troll later on. The card choices seem smart in the current metagame. Stinkweed Imp is not a blank with dredge 5; it is actually really good against Mono Green Aggro. Facing a Silhana Ledgewalker with Moldervine Cloak and Blanchwood Armor? No problem for Big Stinks. Darkblasting a Scryb Ranger in response to a pump spell is likewise hot. Furthermore, Svogthos the Restless Tomb seems insane against Dralnu du Louvre. They can hold all the Rewinds in the world, but that won’t stop the land from attacking. Recurring Nightmare Voids also tend to work well against counterspell strategies. Current versions with Planar Chaos often include blue for Magus of the Bazaar, which combines very well with the dredge cards. uuu21's version you see above has Fa'adyah seer, another nice one.
Format: Extended
Decklist (note: this is an "old" pre-Planar Chaos decklist):Spoiler: Show Preston Garcia, 6th Place - PTQ Texas - San Antonio - 1/13
2 x Caves of Koilos 2 x Eiganjo Castle 4 x Bloodstained Mire 4 x Windswept Heath 1 x Flooded Strand 4 x Godless Shrine 2 x Swamp 3 x Plains 4 x Savannah Lions 3 x Paladin en-Vec 4 x Dark Confidant 3 x Soltari Priest 4 x Silver Knight 3 x Isamaru, Hound of Konda 3 x Chainer's Edict 2 x Funeral Charm 3 x Umezawa's Jitte 1 x Terror 3 x Duress 1 x Gerrard's Verdict 2 x Vindicate 1 x Mortify 1 x Castigate SIDEBOARD 4 x Cabal Therapy 3 x Tormod's Crypt 2 x Tivadar of Thorn 1 x Paladin en-Vec 2 x Rancid Earth 2 x Disenchant 1 x Umezawa's Jitte
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Decklist:Spoiler: Show Tomoharu Saito, GP Singapore 07 4 x Urza's Tower 4 x Urza's Power Plant 4 x Urza's Mine 4 x Hallowed Fountain 2 x Skycloud Expanse 2 x Flooded Strand 1 x Petrified Field 1 x Academy Ruins 1 x Plains 1 x Sundering Titan 1 x Platinum Angel 3 x Gifts Ungiven 4 x Remand 4 x Condescend 4 x Thirst for Knowledge 4 x Wrath of God 2 x Decree of Justice 2 x Repeal 3 x Azorius Signet 3 x Chalice of the Void 2 x Chrome Mox 1 x Tormod's Crypt 1 x Crucible of Worlds 1 x Mindslaver 1 x Engineered Explosives SIDEBOARD 1 x Gifts Ungiven 3 x Exalted Angel 2 x Mindslaver 2 x Engineered Explosives 2 x Tormod's Crypt 1 x Akroma's Vengeance 1 x Disenchant 1 x Ghost Quarter 1 x Academy Ruins 1 x Dismantling Blow I wrote an entire article devoted to my version of this deck archetype here, so check that out if you're interested in this deck.
Format: STANDARD
Decklist (note: this is an "old" pre-Planar Chaos decklist):Spoiler: Show By rodolfosc
19 x Mountain 1 x Pendelhaven 4 x Frenzied Goblin 4 x Goblin King 4 x Empty the Warrens 4 x Magus of the Scroll 4 x Mogg War Marshal 4 x Rift Bolt 4 x Rite of Flame 4 x Seal of Fire 4 x Seething Song 4 x Mishra's Bauble SIDEBOARD 4 x Blood Moon 4 x Ignite Memories 3 x Ignorant Bliss 4 x Defense Grid
Format: STANDARD
Decklist (note: this is an "old" pre-Planar Chaos decklist):Spoiler: Show By Meu nome é Baia 4 x Birds of Paradise 4 x Brushland 4 x Giant Solifuge 2 x Glare of Subdual 2 x Karplusan Forest 4 x Llanowar Elves 4 x Loxodon Hierarch 1 x Pendelhaven 2 x Plains 4 x Selesnya Guildmage 3 x Selesnya Sanctuary 4 x Stomping Ground 4 x Temple Garden 2 x Vitu-Ghazi, the City-Tree 4 x Watchwolf 2 x Demonfire 4 x Ohran Viper 3 x Thelonite Hermit 3 x Yavimaya Dryad Sideboard 1 x Debtors' Knell 2 x Faith's Fetters 2 x Glare of Subdual 3 x Naturalize 3 x Stormbind 4 x Worship At the core, this is a typical GhaziGlare deck splashing red for burn.
Format: STANDARD
Decklist (note: this is an "old" pre-Planar Chaos decklist):Spoiler: Show By Rorix_For_Teh_Win
4 x Firemane Angel 3 x Loxodon Hierarch 2 x Magnivore 4 x Wrath of God 4 x Lightning Helix 4 x Stone Rain 4 x Cryoclasm 3 x Demonfire 3 x Wildfire 3 x Farseek 2 x Savage Twister 3 x Plains 4 x Vitu-Ghazi, City Tree 2 x Boros Garrison 1 x Selesnya Sanctuary 2 x Brushland 2 x Battlefield Forge 4 x Sacred Foundry 4 x Temple Garden 2 x Stomping Ground Sideboard 3 x Faith's Fetters 1 x Sacred Mesa 2 x Condemn 2 x Krosan Grip 4 x Giant Solifuge 3 x Call of the Herd
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Decklist (note: this is an "old" pre-Planar Chaos decklist):Spoiler: Show By Frank Karsten 3 x Flooded Strand 1 x Seat of the Synod 4 x Hallowed Fountain 1 x Island 2 x Adarkar Wastes 4 x Urza's Power Plant 4 x Urza's Tower 4 x Urza's Mine 1 x Academy Ruins 3 x Trinket Mage 2 x Sundering Titan 4 x Spell Snare 4 x Talisman of Progress 1 x Azorius Signet 3 x Counterspell 4 x Wrath of God 3 x Thirst for Knowledge 4 x Fact or Fiction 2 x Mindslaver 3 x Decree of Justice 1 x Engineered Explosives 1 x Tormod's Crypt 1 x Chalice of the Void SIDEBOARD 1 x Pithing Needle 1 x Tormod's Crypt 1 x Engineered Plague 3 x Faith's Fetters 3 x Chalice of the Void 3 x Disenchant 2 x Rule of Law 1 x Arcane Laboratory This deck was made by extrapolating from Steve Locke's 2nd Place deck @ PTQ Minnesota - Minneapolis (on 1/6), by substituting the Cloudpost/Vesuva lands for Urza lands.
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Decklist:Spoiler: Show By Kyle Sanchez, GP Dallas 07 Taken from the GP Dallas coverage:4 x Polluted Delta 4 x Windswept Heath 3 x Overgrown Tomb 1 x Temple Garden 1 x Godless Shrine 1 x Hallowed Fountain 1 x Ancient Den 1 x Swamp 1 x Plains 1 x Forest 1 x Breeding Pool 1 x Watery Grave 4 x Birds of Paradise 3 x Llanowar Elves 4 x Trinket Mage 4 x Troll Ascetic 4 x Loxodon Hierarch 4 x Cabal Therapy 2 x Vindicate 3 x Call of the Herd 2 x Chrome Mox 1 x Sensei's Divining Top 1 x Pithing Needle 1 x Tormod's Crypt 1 x Chalice of the Void 1 x Engineered Explosives 3 x Armadillo Cloak 2 x Umezawa's Jitte SIDEBOARD 3 x Duress 2 x Putrefy 1 x Pithing Needle 2 x Chalice of the Void 3 x Condemn 3 x Kataki, War's Wage 1 x Tromp the Domains Extended is filled to the brim with decks that use a veritable toolbox of cards to adapt to any situation they could face. Consequently, it makes sense that this Extended season has seen the newest incarnations of the toolbox deck, and there are many different avenues from which to choose, including Gifts Rock, which uses a Gifts Ungiven engine powered by Eternal Witness and Genesis; the new Trinket Psychatog deck, which uses Trinket Mages and an arsenal of cheap artifacts to handle problems; and King in the Castle. King in the Castle at first glance seems like a typical beatdown deck. It has the cheap efficient creatures like Call of the Herd and Troll Ascetic. It has the Umezawa's Jittes. It even has Armadillo Cloak. But that's where the similarities end. Besides the beatdown element, the deck has enough disruption to solidify the matchup against the control decks, and enough control to pave the way against the aggressive decks. Kyle Sanchez, the deck's designer, says that the deck can go any way you need it to go. Its Trinket Mage engine gives the deck the utility it needs to disrupt any opposing deck just enough that the beaters are able to get their job done. Pithing Needle stops Pernicious Deed and Seismic Assault. Tormod's Crypt ruins Life from the Loam and Genesis. Chalice of the Void and Engineered Explosives just wreak havoc on most aggressive decks. According to Kyle, the deck has favorable matchups against the most popular decks in today's field. "Tog is almost impossible to lose. U/W Tron is a little harder. You can wreck their hand early, but they have so many big cards that it may not matter in the long run. Loam is dependant on the player. If they're good it's close, but if their not that great, this deck crushes them." The deck's versatility allows it to handle most situations, but the glue that holds it all together is the aggressive core. You can have all the fancy tricks in the world, but sometimes, you just win games by turning men sideways.
Format: STANDARD
Decklist:Spoiler: Show Naoki Shimizu, GP Kyoto 2007 - Top 8 4 x Urza's Tower 4 x Urza's Mine 4 x Urza's Power Plant 4 x Breeding Pool 4 x Yavimaya Coast 1 x Island 1 x Forest 1 x Simic Growth Chamber 4 x Wall of Roots 1 x Mystic Snake 1 x Brine Elemental 1 x Deadwood Treefolk 2 x Vesuvan Shapeshifter 3 x Thelonite Hermit 1 x Willbender 1 x Silklash Spider 4 x Simic Signet 4 x Compulsive Research 2 x Harmonize 3 x Chord of Calling 4 x Remand 2 x Mana Leak 4 x Repeal SIDEBOARD 4 x Serrated Arrows 4 x Spike Feeder 2 x Rewind 2 x Annex 1 x Willbender 1 x Teferi, Mage of Zhalfir 1 x Muse Vessel The deck appears to resolve around Vesuvan Shapeshifter, in combination with Thelonite Hermit and Brine Elemental. Chord of Calling can search for the combo pieces, as well as a surprise Mystic Snake or Deadwood Treefolk if needed. The deck is rounded out with Wall of Roots and Remand for the early game. Harmonize from Planar Chaos is a great addition.
Format: EXTENDED
Decklist 1 :Spoiler: Show Ryo Ogura, GP Singapore 07 4 x Polluted Delta 2 x Flooded Strand 2 x Bloodstained Mire 2 x Watery Grave 1 x Steam Vents 1 x Breeding Pool 1 x Oboro, Palace in the Clouds 1 x Academy Ruins 4 x Island 1 x Swamp 1 x Blood Crypt 4 x Dark Confidant 3 x Psychatog 1 x Meloku the Clouded Mirror 2 x Engineered Explosives 4 x Sensei's Divining Top 4 x Counterbalance 4 x Counterspell 4 x Thirst for Knowledge 3 x Smother 3 x Spell Snare 2 x Damnation 2 x Fact or Fiction 4 x Chrome Mox SIDEBOARD 2 x Tormod's Crypt 4 x Duress 3 x Dwarven Blastminer 3 x Ancient Grudge 3 x Ghastly Demise Decklist 2: Spoiler: Show By Mamut Mamutowicz 2 x Cephalid Coliseum 2 x Flooded Strand 1 x Godless Shrine 4 x Island 4 x Polluted Delta 2 x Seat of the Synod 1 x Swamp 3 x Watery Grave 1 x Academy Ruins 1 x Hallowed Fountain - 4 x Dark Confidant 4 x Psychatog - 3 x Chrome Mox 4 x Counterspell 1 x Engineered Explosives 2 x Fact or Fiction 4 x Remand 4 x Sensei's Divining Top 3 x Smother 4 x Thirst for Knowledge 3 x Counterbalance 3 x Spell Snare Sideboard 4 x Duress 3 x Ghastly Demise 4 x Kataki, War's Wage 4 x Leyline of the Void Decklist 3: Spoiler: Show Robert Thatcher, Gen Con Extended $1000 Top 8 1 x Vault of Whispers 1 x Academy Ruins 4 x Watery Grave 1 x Flooded Strand 4 x Polluted Delta 5 x Island 1 x Steam Vents 1 x Hallowed Fountain 2 x Swamp 3 x Seat of the Synod 1 x Mountain - 3 x Psychatog 2 x Trinket Mage 4 x Dark Confidant 1 x Meloku the Clouded Mirror - 3 x Sensei's Divining Top 3 x Counterbalance 3 x Damnation 2 x Fact or Fiction 3 x Smother 4 x Thirst for Knowledge 2 x Spell Snare 4 x Counterspell 1 x Engineered Explosives 1 x Tormod's Crypt 1 x Pithing Needle Sideboard 4 x Duress 3 x Ghastly Demise 4 x Kataki, War's Wage 3 x Dwarven Blastminer 1 x Spell Snare Decklist 4: Spoiler: Show gelgep 3 x Flooded Strand 1 x Godless Shrine 3 x Island 4 x Polluted Delta 1 x Riptide Laboratory 1 x Swamp 1 x Tree of Tales 1 x Vault of Whispers 1 x Watery Grave 1 x Academy Ruins 1 x Breeding Pool - 4 x Dark Confidant 4 x Trinket Mage 4 x Tarmogoyf 2 x Venser, Shaper Savant - 4 x Chrome Mox 2 x Duress 1 x Engineered Explosives 1 x Pithing Needle 3 x Sensei's Divining Top 2 x Thirst for Knowledge 2 x Threads of Disloyalty 1 x Tormod's Crypt 2 x Umezawa's Jitte 2 x Vindicate 4 x Counterbalance 3 x Spell Snare Sideboard 2 x Duress 1 x Engineered Explosives 2 x Loxodon Hierarch 3 x Meddling Mage 3 x Smother 1 x Threads of Disloyalty 2 x Tormod's Crypt The deck has a very good matchup vs. aggro decks because of the Counterbalance plus Sensei's Divining Top combo and a huge Psychatog holding the fort. Damnation and Engineered Explosives also help to sweep the board. Dark Confidant gives an awesome advantage in control matchups. Some versions of this deck often play Trinket Mage, but I like Ogura's list without them. A 2/2 for three mana is rather clunky after all.
Format: STANDARD
Decklist:Spoiler: Show By GrosseBank 1 x Pendelhaven 5 x Snow-Covered Mountain 6 x Snow-Covered Swamp 4 x Sulfurous Springs 2 x Rakdos Carnarium 1 x Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth 1 x Kher Keep 4 x Blood Crypt 2 x Loxodon Warhammer 3 x Phyrexian Arena 4 x Plagued Rusalka 3 x Rukh Egg 3 x Seal of Fire 2 x Demonfire 4 x Greater Gargadon 3 x Hit/Run 4 x Keldon Marauders 4 x Mogg War Marshal 4 x Nether Traitor SIDEBOARD 4 x Cruel Edict 4 x Defense Grid 3 x Shadow of Doubt 1 x Hit/Run 3 x Word of Seizing I like how this deck exploits Greater Gargadon and Nether Traitor in tandem. Imagine you have a Mogg War Marshall and a Nether Traitor in play, along with a suspended Gargadon. First, you sacrifice Nether Traitor to remove a counter, and then you sacrifice Mogg War Marshall to remove another counter. Nether Traitor pops up from the dead, and Mogg War Marshall gives you a fresh new token. If you keep on going like that, it won’t be long until you will have a 9/7 monster in play. Planar Chaos has brought an important card to the mix for this deck: Keldon Marauders. In a vacuum, it’s five damage for two mana. Unless your opponent blocks or kills it, but that’s usually also fine. But in this deck, Keldon Marauders also removes a counter from Greater Gargadon and brings back Nether Traitor from the graveyard when it is on its way out. Now that turns the card into an awesome deal. This deck may not be truly competitive yet, but it surely seems like a lot of fun to play. Perhaps Nantuko Husk would prove to be an important solid addition.
Format: STANDARD
Decklist:Spoiler: Show Kazuya Mitamura, GP Kyoto 2007 - Day 1, 8-0-1 4 x Hallowed Fountain 4 x Watery Grave 4 x Godless Shrine 4 x Adarkar Wastes 4 x Underground River 4 x Caves of Koilos 4 x Azorius Chancery 4 x Dimir Aqueduct 4 x Orzhov Basilica 4 x Calciform Pools 4 x Dreadship Reef 4 x Flagstones of Trokair 4 x Gemstone Mine 4 x Vesuva 4 x Ghost Quarter 4 x Desert 13 x Snow-Covered Island 9 x Snow-Covered Swamp 6 x Snow-Covered Plains 1 x Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth 4 x Willbender 4 x Court Hussar 4 x Shadowmage Infiltrator 4 x Vesuvan Shapeshifter 4 x Teferi, Mage of Zhalfir 4 x Skeletal Vampire 4 x Angel of Despair 4 x Spell Snare 4 x Mana Tithe 4 x Remand 4 x Mana Leak 4 x Remove Soul 4 x Cancel 4 x Rewind 4 x Dismal Failure 4 x Compulsive Research 4 x Sift 4 x Careful Consideration 4 x Tidings 4 x Mystical Teachings 4 x Clutch of the Undercity 4 x Brainspoil 4 x Demonic Collusion 4 x Condemn 4 x Mortify 4 x Faith's Fetters 4 x Wrath of God 4 x Damnation 4 x Persecute 4 x Battle of Wits 1 x Darkblast 1 x Sudden Death 1 x Seize the Soul 1 x Diabolic Tutor 1 x Haunting Hymn 1 x Soul Spike 1 x Commandeer 4 x Azorius Signet 4 x Dimir Signet 4 x Simic Signet 4 x Izzet Signet 4 x Orzhov Signet 4 x Fellwar Stone SIDEBOARD 4 x Disenchant 4 x Orzhov Pontiff 4 x Bottle Gnomes 3 x Darkblast Why does this deck hold so many cards? Battle of Wits of course! Brainspoil and Demonic Collusion can search for it and you even have some clumsy ways to find one, like Mystical Teachings into Clutch of the Undercity into Diabolic Tutor. Anyhow, if you can plop down a Battle you win. Other than that, the deck is filled with typical U/B/W Control cards.
Format: STANDARD
Decklist:Spoiler: Show Jun Ishihara, GP Kyoto Trial Winner
3 x Breeding Pool 2 x Hallowed Fountain 2 x Temple Garden 2 x Vitu-Ghazi, the City-Tree 4 x Brushland 3 x Adarkar Wastes 2 x Yavimaya Coast 2 x Plains 3 x Forest 1 x Island 3 x Saffi Eriksdotter 4 x Calciderm 3 x Brine Elemental 4 x Vesuvan Shapeshifter 4 x Birds of Paradise 4 x Wall of Roots 4 x Thelonite Hermit 2 x Glare of Subdual 4 x Remand 4 x Harmonize SIDEBOARD 4 x Loxodon Hierarch 4 x Seal of Primordium 2 x Stonecloaker 1 x Glare of Subdual 4 x Giant Solifuge This deck abuses Vesuvan Shapeshifter in tandem with Thelonite Hermit and Brine Elemental. It has Harmonize to find the lock and aggressive elements with Calciderm to keep the opponent busy. Saffi Eriksdotter is protection against Wrath of God and of course the obligatory Birds of Paradise and Wall of Roots are included for acceleration purposes.
Format: STANDARD
Decklist:Spoiler: Show By first_1st 4 x Desert 3 x Dimir Aqueduct 7 x Island 1 x Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth 3 x Underground River 4 x Watery Grave 2 x Dreadship Reef 2 x Vesuvan Shapeshifter 2 x Brine Elemental 2 x Teferi, Mage of Zhalfir 1 x Skeletal Vampire 1 x Dralnu, Lich Lord 4 x Remand 4 x Rune Snag 2 x Spell Snare 2 x Rewind 4 x Mystical Teachings 4 x Think Twice 3 x Repeal 2 x Damnation 1 x Commandeer 1 x Extirpate 1 x Sudden Death SIDEBOARD 4 x Bottle Gnomes 1 x Darkblast 2 x Persecute 2 x Shadow of Doubt 3 x Deathmark 2 x Extirpate 1 x Trickbind The base of this deck should be familiar for anyone who has played Standard in the last months. Around twenty-five lands, around 14 counterspells, a couple Think Twice and Mystical Teachings (which you will happily play at the end of your opponent’s turn in case he didn’t play anything counter-worthy), a bunch of creature removal cards in case anything slips through the countermagic, and a few win conditions including frontrunner Teferi, Mage of Zhalfir. The major Planar Chaos update is the inclusion of Damnation. The addition of Extirpate can also change how certain matchups are played out. The above deck is not your everyday Dralnu, though. It bears some similarities to the Mono Blue Pickles deck, as it includes the Vesuvan Shapeshifter plus Brine Elemental lockdown (a.k.a. Pickles).
Format: STANDARD
This deck looked like a regular Boros Deck, but it had a completely different creature base. Sidewinder Sliver, Bonesplitter Sliver, Sinew Sliver, even Cautery Sliver. The entire Sliver family was present, and hence there was a lot of interrelated boosting going on.
Format: STANDARD
Decklist:Spoiler: Show By kairan 1 x dimir aqueduct 1 x shivan reef 1 x steam vents 4 x underground river 4 x watery grave 4 x urza's power plant 4 x urza's mine 4 x urza's tower 1 x urza's factory 4 x dimir signet 3 x izzet signet 4 x mana leak 4 x remand 4 x compulsive research 1 x careful consideration 3 x damnation 2 x mystical teachings 2 x tidings 1 x teferi, mage of zhalfir 2 x skeletal vampire 2 x repeal 2 x demonfire 2 x spell burst Sideboard 2 x annex 3 x bottle gnomes 1 x extirpate 2 x persecute 2 x detritivore 1 x teferi, mage of zhalfir 3 x last gasp 1 x shadow of doubt First, we had U/R Tron and U/W Tron. Now we suddenly get U/B/R Tron. Why black? Most importantly, Damnation. Most Tron decks already played some black for the flashback of Mystical Teachings, so that conveniently works out color-wise. Demonfire is the kill card of choice (good enough to run red for), but Skeletal Vampire is a black option that can also do the job. No Bogardan Hellkite because red is just a splash. In fact, most current versions don't even play red at all anymore!!
Format: EXTENDED
Decklist:Spoiler: Show Olivier Ruel, GP Singapore 07
4 x Archaeological Dig 1 x Vesuva 4 x Ancient Spring 4 x Irrigation Ditch 4 x Tinder Farm 4 x Sulfur Vent 4 x Geothermal Crevice 2 x Anurid Brushhopper 2 x Terravore 4 x Lotus Bloom 1 x Sensei's Divining Top 4 x Terrarion 4 x Chromatic Star 3 x Orim's Chant 2 x Quicken 3 x Fire // Ice 4 x Insidious Dreams 4 x Balancing Act 2 x Obliterate SIDEBOARD 4 x Leyline of the Void 1 x Obliterate 2 x Krosan Grip 2 x Engineered Plague 2 x Moment's Peace 1 x Swamp 1 x Vesuva 1 x Draco 1 x Erratic Explosion Olivier Ruel's version from the GP Singapore Top 8 is very strong. I have seen it in action, and even though it is incredibly difficult to play correctly (it took Olivier two weeks to understand the deck), it may be the best deck in the format, potential-wise. I saw a game where Olivier's opponent played end-of-turn Fact or Fiction. Before his opponent got his turn, Olivier sacrificed all of his lands and then his Terrarion to get the correct colors of mana. With the Terrarion card draw trigger on the stack, he then played Insidious Dreams for four, putting Quicken, Balancing Act, Lotus Bloom, and Terravore (in that order) on top of his deck. He drew Quicken into Act to leave the board and both player's hands at 0, while a deadly Lotus Bloom and Terravore were still lurking at the top of his deck. A deck that can pull of crazy wins like that should not be underestimated.
Format: EXTENDED
Decklist:Spoiler: Show Alex Ledbetter, GP Dallas 07
1 x Academy Ruins 2 x Flooded Strand 1 x Bloodstained Mire 3 x Steam Vents 3 x Hallowed Fountain 2 x Plains 1 x Mountain 2 x Island 2 x Sacred Foundry 3 x Polluted Delta 2 x Seat of the Synod 4 x Lightning Angel 4 x Meddling Mage 3 x Lightning Helix 4 x Fire // Ice 4 x Sensei's Divining Top 3 x Orim's Chant 3 x Cunning Wish 3 x Counterbalance 4 x Thirst for Knowledge 4 x Isochron Scepter 2 x Chrome Mox SIDEBOARD 4 x Dwarven Blastminer 1 x Trickbind 1 x Orim's Chant 1 x Lightning Helix 1 x Condemn 1 x Counterspell 4 x Porphyry Nodes 1 x Gigadrowse 1 x Disenchant JN: Did you build this deck yourself? What inspired you to pick up the No-Stick deck and turn it into a more aggressive deck? I did build it myself. I liked the old No-Stick deck, but it seemed like nowadays people are too prepared for the Scepter-Chant lock. That's why I put in the Counterbalances and Tops; it really helps against cards like Ancient Grudge whereas the old version with Counterspells needed a lot more mana and more cards to deal with that card. Meddling Mage of course also helps here. I put in the creatures because most players are very comfortable in taking a lot of points off their lands when they play against Scepter/Chant, and if you draw something like a Lightning Angel and Helix you can just punish them for that. JN: How do the aggressive elements in the deck combine with the more controlling elements? It's only a little bit aggressive, it's not really focused around the creatures. It's just a way to win the game if your draw happens to come out that way. It's also good to have a couple of four-mana spells for Counterbalance, and Lightning Angel is the best four-mana creature for the deck. I considered just playing Teferi, but people know how to play around it, and I think most of the time the lock is too slow anyway. JN: What would you say is the biggest problem of the deck? Its worst matchup is the UW Tron deck because there are no more hard counters in the deck, and Counterbalance doesn't do so much against their business spells. That's why there are four Dwarven Blastminers in the sideboard, just to try and fix that matchup. I'm not too confidant in the Agro CAL matchup either, since it's hard for the deck to deal with their threats if they come out early. You still have Counterbalance/Top though, so that always gives you a decent shot. JN: What about its biggest strength? It's very hard to lose against TEPS and other combo decks, since the deck plays 4 maindeck Meddling Mage and the Scepter/Chant lock. It's quite good against aggressive decks too, like Boros and Affinity, because of the Lightning Helixes and Angels. JN: Would you play it again? If so, would you make any changes? I'm not sure I'd play it again, Trinket Tog might be just better. But I do like playing my own decks, so that might cause me to play it again. The sideboard is pretty tight because of the Cunning Wishes, but I do think you want something against the Loam deck, perhaps splashing Extirpate as a Wish target is good enough. But it's hard to say what you want to focus your deck on, because of the large variety of decks you could encounter.
Format: EXTENDED
Decklist:Spoiler: Show Conlay Woods, GP Dallas 07
4 x Cloudpost 4 x Vesuva 4 x Steam Vents 4 x Shivan Reef 2 x Great Furnace 2 x Seat of the Synod 2 x Mountain 1 x Island 1 x Academy Ruins 3 x Sundering Titan 4 x Izzet Signet 2 x Chrome Mox 4 x Remand 4 x Thirst for Knowledge 2 x Fact or Fiction 4 x Trash for Treasure 4 x Wildfire 2 x Demonfire 3 x Mindslaver 2 x Oblivion Stone 2 x Crucible of Worlds SIDEBOARD 3 x Detritivore 4 x Chalice of the Void 3 x Silent Arbiter 3 x Platinum Angel 2 x Engineered Explosives
Format: EXTENDED
Decklist:Spoiler: Show Kirk Dalton, GP Dallas 07
2 x Bloodstained Mire 3 x Godless Shrine 2 x Flooded Strand 3 x Swamp 3 x Plains 2 x Polluted Delta 3 x Windswept Heath 1 x Tomb of Urami 3 x Isamaru, Hound of Konda 4 x Spectral Lynx 1 x Savannah Lions 3 x Descendant of Kiyomaro 4 x Jotun Grunt 4 x Dark Confidant 3 x Duress 2 x Pithing Needle 4 x Cabal Therapy 3 x Chrome Mox 2 x Phyrexian Arena 3 x Vindicate 2 x Gerrard's Verdict 3 x Umezawa's Jitte SIDEBOARD 3 x Extirpate 3 x Darkblast 3 x Kataki, War's Wage 3 x Disenchant 1 x Pithing Needle 1 x Duress 1 x ???
Format: EXTENDED
Decklist:Spoiler: Show Niko Skartvedt, 1st Place - British Columbia - Vancouver - 3/11 This deck is built around the Stuffy doll plus Guilty Conscience combo. Stuffy Doll pings himself, dealing one damage to the opponent, pinging himself, etc. Infinite damage! The rest of the deck is filled with typical control cards like Wrath of God.
6 x Mountain 1 x Snow-Covered Plains 4 x Flagstones of Trokair 4 x Sacred Foundry 2 x Hallowed Fountain 1 x Blood Crypt 1 x Flooded Strand 1 x Polluted Delta 1 x Battlefield Forge 1 x Academy Ruins 4 x Stuffy Doll 2 x Eternal Dragon 4 x Guilty Conscience 4 x Lightning Helix 4 x Magma Jet 1 x Hide // Seek 2 x Demonfire 1 x Boom // Bust 3 x Wrath of God 1 x Engineered Explosives 1 x Oblivion Stone 3 x Boros Signet 1 x Orim's Chant 2 x Pyroclasm 2 x Odds // Ends 3 x Isochron Scepter SIDEBOARD 2 x Desert 1 x Hide // Seek 2 x Shattering Spree 3 x Jotun Grunt 2 x Ivory Mask 3 x Blood Moon 1 x Char 1 x Pyroclasm
Format: EXTENDED
Decklist:Spoiler: Show Chris Jordan, 1st Place - Virginia - Roanoke - 3/10
2 x Ghost Quarter 1 x Godless Shrine 1 x Overgrown Tomb 1 x Plains 2 x Swamp 4 x Forest 4 x Windswept Heath 2 x Bloodstained Mire 4 x Barren Moor 4 x Tranquil Thicket 4 x Birds of Paradise 4 x Sakura-Tribe Elder 4 x Loxodon Hierarch 4 x Eternal Witness 1 x Genesis 1 x Spiritmonger 2 x Cabal Therapy 3 x Duress 2 x Putrefy 4 x Life from the Loam 4 x Pernicious Deed 2 x Death Cloud SIDEBOARD 2 x Ravenous Baloth 2 x Smother 1 x Cabal Therapy 3 x Tormod's Crypt 1 x Haunting Echoes 2 x Krosan Grip 1 x Mountain 3 x Destructive Flow
Format: STANDARD
Decklist:Spoiler: Show Approximate version based on watching replays The above list is taken from MM. This deck is a rogue variation on the storm theme. The plan is to create a high storm count with Lotus Bloom, Rite of Flame, and Seething Song, but the finisher is not Dragonstorm but Empty the Warrens or Ignite Memories. Making 12 goblins or doing 6 Ignite Memories copies should do the trick as well, and you don't have to worry about finding enough mana for your 9 mana sorcery.
4 x Wild Cantor 4 x Mogg War Marshall 4 x Greater Gargadon 4 x Lotus Bloom 4 x Rite of Flame 4 x Grapeshot 4 x Rift Bolt 4 x Seething Song 4 x Empty the Warrens 4 x Ignite Memories 4 x Molten Slagheap 16 x Mountain
Format: Time Spiral Block Constructed
The most common version: Luis Scott-Vargas and Cheontourage, winner GP San Francisco 3 x Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth 1 x Academy Ruins 4 x Tolaria West 4 x River of Tears 4 x Terramorphic Expanse 2 x Molten Slagheap 2 x Urza's Factory 3 x Island 1 x Mountain 1 x Plains 1 x Swamp 3 x Shadowmage Infiltrator 1 x Bogardan Hellkite 1 x Detritivore 1 x Teferi, Mage of Zhalfir 1 x Triskelavus 4 x Damnation 2 x Void 2 x Tendrils of Corruption 1 x Slaughter Pact 1 x Strangling Soot 3 x Mystical Teachings 3 x Careful Consideration 2 x Foresee 1 x Haunting Hymn 1 x Pact of Negation 3 x Coalition Relic 4 x Prismatic Lens Sideboard 2 x Detritivore 2 x Pull from Eternity 2 x Spell Burst 2 x Slaughter Pact 1 x Imp's Mischief 1 x Ancient Grudge 1 x Return to Dust 1 x Extirpate 1 x Pact of Negation 1 x Void 1 x Strangling Soot Other versions can be found here (many decklists!): Spoiler: Show Yaso's decklist:Spoiler:
Show
Shouta Yasooka, GP Montreal 07 Top 8 2 x Swamp 4 x Terramorphic Expanse 4 x River of Tears 1 x Plains 1 x Urza's Factory 4 x Dreadship Reef 2 x Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth 7 x Island 2 x Teferi, Mage of Zhalfir 3 x Aeon Chronicler 2 x Venser, Shaper Savant 2 x Tombstalker 1 x Slaughter Pact 4 x Cancel 2 x Delay 3 x Careful Consideration 2 x Mystical Teachings 4 x Damnation 4 x Prismatic Lens 1 x Strangling Soot 1 x Pull from Eternity 2 x Take Possession 2 x Coalition Relic SIDEBOARD 2 x Willbender 2 x Spell Burst 1 x Draining Whelk 1 x Slaughter Pact 2 x Brine Elemental 1 x Pull from Eternity 1 x Strangling Soot 3 x Vesuvan Shapeshifter 1 x Take Possession 1 x Extirpate My decklist from GP Montreal:Spoiler: Show By Frank Karsten, GP Montreal 25th
6 x Island 1 x Plains 1 x Swamp 1 x Academy Ruins 4 x Dreadship Reef 3 x River of Tears 4 x Terramorphic Expanse 1 x Tolaria West 4 x Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth 1 x Urza's Factory 4 x Shadowmage Infiltrator 2 x Aeon Chronicler 1 x Teferi, Mage of Zhalfir 1 x Triskelavus 4 x Cancel 3 x Careful Consideration 1 x Coalition Relic 4 x Damnation 2 x Mystical Teachings 4 x Prismatic Lens 2 x Slaughter Pact 2 x Take Possession 1 x Temporal Isolation 3 x Tendrils of Corruption SIDEBOARD 1 x Disenchant 1 x Aeon Chronicler 2 x Aven Riftwatcher 1 x Haunting Hymn 1 x Imp's Mischief 1 x Pull from Eternity 1 x Slaughter Pact 1 x Spell Burst 1 x Strangling Soot 1 x Tendrils of Corruption 1 x Venser, Shaper Savant 3 x Vesuvan Shapeshifter GerryT's decklist:Spoiler: Show Gerry Thompson, 1st Place - PTQ Indiana - Indianapolis - 6/30 2 x Urza's Factory 4 x Tolaria West 4 x River of Tears 4 x Terramorphic Expanse 3 x Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth 1 x Molten Slagheap 1 x Dreadship Reef 1 x Calciform Pools 1 x Swamp 1 x Plains 5 x Island 4 x Shadowmage Infiltrator 1 x Bogardan Hellkite 4 x Coalition Relic 4 x Prismatic Lens 4 x Damnation 4 x Careful Consideration 3 x Mystical Teachings 3 x Take Possession 2 x Tendrils of Corruption 1 x Pact of Negation 1 x Slaughter Pact 1 x Temporal Isolation 1 x Haunting Hymn SIDEBOARD 3 x Temporal Isolation 2 x Boom // Bust 1 x Disenchant 1 x Return to Dust 1 x Imp's Mischief 1 x Ancient Grudge 1 x Pull from Eternity 1 x Strangling Soot 1 x Haunting Hymn 1 x Tendrils of Corruption 1 x Spell Burst 1 x Slaughter Pact Sullivan's decklist:Spoiler: Show PTQ Chicago – Adrian Sullivan 4 x Careful Consideration 4 x Mystical Teachings 3 x Gaea's Blessing 4 x Damnation 1 x Sudden Death 2 x Tendrils of Corruption 1 x Slaughter Pact 1 x Draining Whelk 1 x Pact of Negation 1 x Spell Burst 1 x Venser, Shaper Savant 1 x Haunting Hymn 1 x Brine Elemental 2 x Teferi, Mage of Zhalfir 2 x Vesuvan Shapeshifter 4 x Prismatic Lens 4 x Terramorphic Expanse 2 x Tolaria West 2 x Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth 1 x Urza's Factory 3 x Dreadship Reef 3 x River of Tears 8 x Island 1 x Forest 1 x Plains 2 x Swamp Sideboard 2 x Draining Whelk 1 x Krosan Grip 2 x Pact of Negation 4 x Porphyry Nodes 1 x Slaughter Pact 2 x Take Possession 1 x Tendrils of Corruption 1 x Venser, Shaper Savant 1 x Vesuvan Shapeshifter Scheel's decklist: Spoiler: Show Brandon Scheel, PTQ 1st Place - Nebraska - Lincoln - 7/21 4 x Island 1 x Plains 1 x Mountain 1 x Swamp 3 x Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth 3 x Tolaria West 4 x River of Tears 4 x Terramorphic Expanse 2 x Urza's Factory 1 x Vesuva 1 x Dreadship Reef 1 x Calciform Pools 1 x Bogardan Hellkite 4 x Shadowmage Infiltrator 4 x Prismatic Lens 4 x Coalition Relic 1 x Temporal Isolation 1 x Haunting Hymn 4 x Damnation 2 x Tendrils of Corruption 1 x Slaughter Pact 1 x Spell Burst 1 x Pact of Negation 3 x Mystical Teachings 3 x Take Possession 4 x Careful Consideration Sideboard 2 x Imp's Mischief 2 x Strangling Soot 1 x Pull from Eternity 1 x Return to Dust 2 x Ancient Grudge 1 x Tendrils of Corruption 2 x Temporal Isolation 1 x Spell Burst 3 x Detritivore Davis' decklist:Spoiler: Show Jim Davis, PTQ 1st Place - Pennsylvania - Philadelphia - 7/21 3 x Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth 3 x River of Tears 4 x Dreadship Reef 2 x Tolaria West 5 x Island 1 x Plains 2 x Swamp 4 x Terramorphic Expanse 1 x Academy Ruins 1 x Urza's Factory 3 x Shadowmage Infiltrator 1 x Teferi, Mage of Zhalfir 3 x Vesuvan Shapeshifter 1 x Venser, Shaper Savant 2 x Triskelavus 2 x Aeon Chronicler 4 x Prismatic Lens 4 x Cancel 4 x Damnation 3 x Mystical Teachings 2 x Careful Consideration 2 x Tendrils of Corruption 1 x Temporal Isolation 1 x Strangling Soot 1 x Slaughter Pact Sideboard 1 x Spin into Myth 1 x Vesuva 1 x Imp's Mischief 2 x Spell Burst 1 x Pact of Negation 2 x Tendrils of Corruption 1 x Disenchant 2 x Slaughter Pact 1 x Pull from Eternity 1 x Sudden Death 1 x Extirpate 1 x Venser, Shaper Savant Kagawa's decklist:Spoiler: Show Mido Kagawa, GP Florence 2007 Top 8 2 x Swamp 4 x Terramorphic Expanse 2 x River of Tears 1 x Plains 1 x Urza's Factory 4 x Dreadship Reef 2 x Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth 4 x Island 1 x Academy Ruins 2 x Tolaria West 4 x Aeon Chronicler 2 x Teferi, Mage of Zhalfir 1 x Triskelavus 2 x Venser, Shaper Savant 1 x Slaughter Pact 4 x Cancel 2 x Delay 3 x Careful Consideration 3 x Mystical Teachings 4 x Damnation 4 x Prismatic Lens 1 x Strangling Soot 1 x Pull from Eternity 2 x Take Possession 2 x Coalition Relic 1 x Haunting Hymn Sideboard 1 x Mountain 3 x Void 3 x Vesuvan Shapeshifter 2 x Spell Burst 1 x Strangling Soot 1 x Pull from Eternity 1 x Extirpate 1 x Imp's Mischief 1 x Slaughter Pact 1 x Ancient Grudge
Format: Time Spiral Block Constructed
Decklist:Spoiler: Show Kenji Tsumura, GP Montreal 07 Top 8
18 x Island 4 x Dreadship Reef 4 x Desert 2 x Urza's Factory 4 x Riftwing Cloudskate 4 x Vesuvan Shapeshifter 3 x Brine Elemental 2 x Willbender 1 x Fathom Seer 2 x Venser, Shaper Savant 3 x Teferi, Mage of Zhalfir 4 x Ancestral Vision 4 x Delay 3 x Cancel 2 x Serrated Arrows SIDEBOARD 2 x Willbender 1 x Brine Elemental 1 x Venser, Shaper Savant 3 x Aeon Chronicler 2 x Snapback 1 x Cancel 2 x Serrated Arrows 2 x Take Possession 1 x Fathom Seer
Format: Time Spiral Block Constructed
Decklist:Spoiler: Show Greg Bell, PTQ 6th Place - Alberta - Edmonton - 7/21
1 x Flagstones of Trokair 21 x Plains 4 x Knight of Sursi 4 x Shade of Trokair 4 x Blade of the Sixth Pride 4 x Knight of the Holy Nimbus 3 x Stonecloaker 4 x Calciderm 2 x Celestial Crusader 2 x Saltblast 4 x Mana Tithe 4 x Temporal Isolation 3 x Griffin Guide Sideboard 3 x Amrou Seekers 3 x Duskrider Peregrine 1 x Magus of the Moat 2 x Sacred Mesa 2 x Thunder Totem 2 x Sunlance 1 x Feldon's Cane 1 x Tormod's Crypt
Format: Time Spiral Block Constructed
Decklist:Spoiler: Show David Gleicher, PTQ 4th Place - Kentucky - Louisville - 7/22
2 x Keldon Megaliths 2 x Pendelhaven 2 x Fungal Reaches 15 x Mountain 2 x Vesuva 4 x Mogg War Marshal 4 x Greater Gargadon 4 x Keldon Marauders 4 x Magus of the Scroll 3 x Gathan Raiders 3 x Tarox Bladewing 4 x Fiery Temper 4 x Rift Bolt 4 x Disintegrate 3 x Dead // Gone Sideboard 2 x Word of Seizing 3 x Fury Charm 3 x Aether Membrane 3 x Molten Disaster 4 x Avalanche Riders
Format: Time Spiral Block Constructed
Decklist:Spoiler: Show Jay Stringer, 1st Place PTQ - Virginia - Roanoke - 6/23
4 x Dreadship Reef 4 x Terramorphic Expanse 6 x Island 3 x Swamp 1 x Urza's Factory 2 x Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth 3 x Desert 3 x River of Tears 4 x Vesuvan Shapeshifter 4 x Brine Elemental 3 x Teferi, Mage of Zhalfir 4 x Shadowmage Infiltrator 2 x Aeon Chronicler 4 x Damnation 4 x Cancel 4 x Delay 4 x Tendrils of Corruption 1 x Foresee SIDEBOARD 4 x Slaughter Pact 3 x Extirpate 1 x Take Possession 3 x Willbender 3 x Trickbind 1 x Spell Burst
Format:Time Spiral Block Constructed
Decklist (note: this deck is a pre-Future Sight deck; it's outdated and rarely played anymore):Spoiler: Show Tomoharu Saito, Pro Tour-Yokohama Top 8 15 x Mountain 4 x Terramorphic Expanse 4 x Forest 2 x Pendelhaven 4 x Magus of the Scroll 4 x Blood Knight 4 x Mogg War Marshal 4 x Sulfur Elemental 4 x Timbermare 4 x Fiery Temper 4 x Rift Bolt 4 x Stormbind 3 x Assault // Battery Sideboard 4 x Wildfire Emissary 4 x Browbeat 4 x Dead // Gone 3 x Utopia Vow Current versions of course play Tarmogoyf and the like.
Format: Time Spiral Block Constructed
Decklist: Spoiler: Show Hunter Burton, PTQ 6th Place - Texas - Houston - 6/23
4 x Island 3 x Grove of the Burnwillows 8 x Forest 2 x Mountain 2 x Urza's Factory 4 x Terramorphic Expanse 3 x Spectral Force 3 x Vesuvan Shapeshifter 4 x Wall of Roots 2 x Intet, the Dreamer 3 x Aeon Chronicler 4 x Search for Tomorrow 3 x Harmonize 3 x Dead // Gone 2 x Prismatic Lens 2 x Foresee 4 x Call of the Herd 4 x Mwonvuli Acid-Moss SIDEBOARD 3 x Take Possession 4 x Avalanche Riders 1 x Dead // Gone 1 x Willbender 4 x Spike Feeder 2 x Detritivore Other versions might play other big mana spells like Bogardan Hellkite or Disintegrate, or even splash black for Void.
Format: Time Spiral Block Constructed
Decklist (note: this deck is a pre-Future Sight deck; it's outdated and rarely played anymore):Spoiler: Show Paulo Carvalho, Pro Tour-Yokohama Top 8
9 x Forest 8 x Mountain 1 x Pendelhaven 2 x Terramorphic Expanse 2 x Fungal Reaches 4 x Wall of Roots 3 x Radha, Heir to Keld 4 x Spectral Force 3 x Scryb Ranger 4 x Bogardan Hellkite 2 x Akroma, Angel of Fury 4 x Search for Tomorrow 4 x Lotus Bloom 4 x Mwonvuli Acid-Moss 3 x Harmonize 3 x Stormbind Sideboard 2 x Ancient Grudge 4 x Sulfur Elemental 4 x Serrated Arrows 3 x Fortune Thief 2 x Krosan Grip
Format: Time Spiral Block Constructed
Decklist:Spoiler: Show By Simon Görtzen
3 x Slaughter Pact 4 x Prismatic Lens 4 x Coalition Relic 1 x Phyrexian Totem 4 x Damnation 3 x Foresee 3 x Void 3 x Aeon Chronicler 3 x Haunting Hymn 3 x Take Possession 3 x Akroma, Angel of Fury 2 x Disintegrate 1 x Island 2 x Mountain 1 x Plains 1 x Swamp 4 x Dreadship Ref 4 x Graven Cairns 2 x Molten Slagheap 3 x River of Tears 4 x Terramorphic Expanse 2 x Urza's Factory Sideboard: 3 x Dead // Gone 2 x Strangling Soot 4 x Aven Riftwatcher 3 x Detritivore 3 x Imp's Mischief
Format: Time Spiral Block Constructed
Decklist:Spoiler: Show Jon Stocks, UG Shifter Control, Top 8 GP San Francisco
4 x Terramorphic Expanse 1 x Urza's Factory 4 x Llanowar Reborn 1 x Horizon Canopy 2 x Forest 12 x Island 2 x Venser, Shaper Savant 4 x Vesuvan Shapeshifter 3 x Fathom Seer 4 x Riftwing Cloudskate 2 x Aeon Chronicler 3 x Wall of Roots 4 x Tarmogoyf 4 x Mystic Snake 4 x Ancestral Vision 4 x Cancel 2 x Serrated Arrows Sideboard 1 x Draining Whelk 2 x Spell Burst 4 x Riftsweeper 3 x Seal of Primordium 3 x Thornweald Archer 2 x Serrated Arrows
Format: STANDARD
Decklist:Spoiler: Show Nathan Kelly, 1st Place - Nova Scotia - Halifax Regionals 4 x Shivan Reef 4 x Steam Vents 8 x Snow-Covered Island 4 x Seething Song 4 x Rite of Flame 4 x Lotus Bloom 4 x Perilous Research 4 x Hatching Plans 4 x Remand 4 x Empty the Warrens 3 x Ignite Memories 3 x Repeal 3 x Chromatic Star 3 x Claws of Gix 4 x Sleight of Hand SIDEBOARD 4 x Martyr of Ashes 3 x Magus of the Moon 3 x Ignorant Bliss 2 x Quicken 1 x Word of Seizing 1 x Ignite Memories 1 x Grapeshot This deck has Hatching Plans and Perilous Research. Obviously a nice combo that will get you closer to the Rite of Flames you need for a high storm count. Perilous Research also works well with Chromatic Star (sacrifice it to draw a card). Hatching Plans also works well with Claws of Gix (as it gives you another sac outlet). It's a lot of nice little synergies. All of these cards have very low mana costs, so they can easily jack up the storm count for a huge Empty the Warrens. The above list runs just 16 lands, which seems a bit on the low side, and I have my doubts about the consistency of the deck. At some point you will get draws where you get infinite Hatching Plans without a way to sacrifice it, or you have to start sacrificing lands to Perilous Research. But I admit that if it works, you can get insanely big and fun turns, and you can easily make 10 Ignite Memories copies in one turn. The advantage of this deck over Dragonstorm is that it's better versus the hate; instead of having to go all-in on one big turn you can distribute your key cards over various turns. Turn-four Empty the Warrens for four, turn-five Ignite Memories for a couple, then turn six another Empty the Warrens is not an uncommon sight with the amount of card draw in this deck.
Format: STANDARD
Decklist:Spoiler: Show By Frank Karsten
Lands 6 x Island 1 x Svogthos, the Restless Tomb 2 x Underground River 4 x Watery Grave 4 x Breeding Pool 3 x Gemstone Caverns 2 x Horizon Canopy Creatures 4 x Drowned Rusalka 2 x Flame-Kin Zealot 4 x Golgari Grave-Troll 4 x Stinkweed Imp 4 x Thought Courier 2 x Bonded Fetch 4 x Magus of the Bazaar 4 x Narcomoeba Spells 2 x Life from the Loam 4 x Bridge from Below 4 x Dread Return SIDEBOARD 2 x Blazing Archon 2 x Darkblast 4 x Leyline of the Void 2 x Shadow of Doubt 1 x Svogthos, the Restless Tomb 4 x Krosan Grip This deck pretty much guarantees a turn-four kill (sometimes turn-five) if played and mulliganned correctly, disregarding opposing disruption. A sample draw: Turn zero: Mulligan the opening hand because it did not contain two lands, a discard enabler creature, and either a dredge card or another discard enabler creature. Keep the six-card hand because it has lands, a Thought Courier, and a Stinkweed Imp. Don't be afraid to mulligan down to three or four cards; you can net a turn-four kill with a hand consisting of Magus of the Bazaar, Island, and Golgari Grave-Troll. Turn one: Watery Grave, go. Turn two: Island, Thought Courier. Turn three: Activate Thought Courier in the upkeep, discarding Stinkweed Imp. You do this in your upkeep, because now you can dredge the Stinkweed Imp in your draw step. Then you play another Thought Courier and a land. Turn four: In your upkeep, activate both Thought Couriers. You have found a Golgari Grave-Troll for more efficient dredging by now, and mill one Narcomoeba and one Bridge from Below. Dredge the Troll in your draw step as well. In your main phase, you sacrifice all your creatures to Dread Return a Drowned Rusalka. Bridge from Below nets you three Zombies, which you all sacrifice to Drowned Rusalka one by one in order to dig even further in your deck. After doing this—and milling a couple Narcomoebas and Bridge from Belows in the process—your library will now only consist of nine cards. You should have found all the pieces by now, so sacrifice your Drowned Rusalka and two Narcomoebas to Dread Return a Flame-Kin Zealot (giving you lots of zombie tokens), and attack for the kill with lots of hasty zombie tokens. I discussed this deck in more detail here.
Format: STANDARD
Decklist:Spoiler: Show By subliminal man2 23 x Swamp 4 x Dark Confidant 3 x Stromgald Crusader 4 x Withered Wretch 4 x Hypnotic Specter 4 x Korlash, Heir to Blackblade 3 x Last Gasp 4 x Phyrexian Arena 3 x Persecute 4 x Shadow of Doubt 4 x Soul Spike SIDEBOARD 4 x Deathmark 2 x Darkblast 3 x Bottle Gnomes 2 x Damnation 4 x Tendrils of Corruption This deck is built around Korlash (with a 23 Swamp mana base it's pretty strong) and card advantage in Dark Confidant and Phyrexian Arena, along with mid-range elements in cheap creatures. The version above is a deck geared towards a specific metagame; it has maindeck Shadow of Doubt vs Dragonstorm, maindeck Soul Spike vs Gruul aggro, and maindeck Withered Wretch vs NarcoBridge.
Format: STANDARD
Decklist:Spoiler: Show Christopher Adams, 1st Place - Pennsylvania - Pittsburgh Regionals
Lands 3 x Forest 2 x Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth 1 x Horizon Canopy 2 x Temple Garden 3 x Swamp 4 x Overgrown Tomb 2 x Plains 4 x Godless Shrine 2 x Vitu-Ghazi, the City-Tree Creatures 4 x Wall of Roots 3 x Loxodon Hierarch 2 x Teneb, the Harvester Spells 3 x Farseek 3 x Crime // Punishment 4 x Glittering Wish 3 x Sudden Death 3 x Persecute 2 x Mortify 2 x Wrath of God 2 x Damnation 3 x Castigate 3 x Phyrexian Arena SIDEBOARD 4 x Leyline of the Void 1 x Crime // Punishment 1 x Debtors' Knell 1 x Loxodon Hierarch 1 x Teneb, the Harvester 1 x Harmonic Sliver 1 x Mortify 1 x Grave-Shell Scarab 4 x Circle of Protection: Black The core of this deck is creature control in Wrath of God/Mortify. It has card advantage in Phyrexian Arena and offsets its life loss with Loxodon Hierarch. It has discard elements in Castigate and Persecute to deal with combo and control. An important element of the deck is Glittering Wish; the sideboard holds answers against any permanent, as well as big win conditions.
Format: STANDARD
Decklist:Spoiler: Show By Patrick Chapin, 1st Place - Michigan - Detroit Regionals Lands 4 x Watery Grave 4 x Blood Crypt 3 x Graven Cairns 2 x Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth 1 x Snow-Covered Island 9 x Snow-Covered Swamp 1 x Urza's Factory Creatures 4 x Korlash, Heir to Blackblade 3 x Dimir House Guard 4 x Aeon Chronicler 1 x Detritivore Spells 4 x Rise // Fall 4 x Damnation 3 x Tendrils of Corruption 1 x Persecute 4 x Compulsive Research 1 x Foresee 4 x Dimir Signet 2 x Prismatic Lens 1 x Last Gasp SIDEBOARD 3 x Last Gasp 3 x Extirpate 2 x Detritivore 2 x Volcanic Hammer 1 x Tendrils of Corruption 1 x Shadow of Doubt 1 x Leyline of the Void 1 x Persecute 1 x Nightmare Void This deck is pretty awesome, I like it. All the important spells in the deck cost 4 mana, so Dimir House Guard can tutor for them. Furthermore, it has the typical card draw (i.e., Compulsive Research), creature control (i.e., Damnation), mana acceleration (i.e., Dimir Signet), and big win conditions (i.e., Korlash) that you would expect from any good control deck. If you want to learn more, you can read Chapin's articles here and here.
Format: STANDARD
Decklist:Spoiler: Show William Wong, 1st Place - Ontario - Scarborough Regionals
3 x Keldon Megaliths 1 x Pendelhaven 3 x Stomping Ground 14 x Mountain 3 x Gathan Raiders 4 x Keldon Marauders 4 x Emberwilde Augur 4 x Scorched Rusalka 4 x Martyr of Ashes 4 x Rift Bolt 4 x Seal of Fire 4 x Char 4 x Browbeat 4 x Fiery Temper SIDEBOARD 2 x Giant Solifuge 4 x Cryoclasm 3 x Magus of the Moon 2 x Krosan Grip 4 x Sulfur Elemental
Format: STANDARD
Decklist:Spoiler: Show Aaron Harleman, 3rd Place - Oregon - Portland Regionals
4 x Caves of Koilos 2 x Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth 4 x Godless Shrine 2 x Orzhov Basilica 5 x Plains 6 x Swamp 3 x Stonecloaker 2 x Calciderm 3 x Ghost Council of Orzhova 4 x Shrieking Grotesque 4 x Dark Confidant 4 x Ravenous Rats 4 x Withered Wretch 2 x Phyrexian Arena 3 x Darkblast 4 x Mortify 4 x Castigate SIDEBOARD 3 x Damnation 2 x Seize the Soul 1 x Wrath of God 2 x Aven Mindcensor 2 x Jotun Grunt 1 x Tombstalker 2 x Persecute 2 x Deathmark
Format: STANDARD
Decklist: Spoiler: Show Chris Ripple, 2nd Place - Pennsylvania - Pittsburgh Regionals
12 x Swamp 4 x Llanowar Wastes 4 x Overgrown Tomb 1 x Pendelhaven 1 x Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth 4 x Augur of Skulls 4 x Tarmogoyf 4 x Dark Confidant 3 x Withered Wretch 3 x Ravenous Rats 4 x The Rack 4 x Cry of Contrition 4 x Smallpox 4 x Funeral Charm 2 x Call of the Herd 2 x Putrefy SIDEBOARD 4 x Extirpate 4 x Deathmark 2 x Quagnoth 1 x Withered Wretch 1 x Call of the Herd 2 x Phyrexian Arena 1 x Leyline of the Void
Format: EXTENDED Decklist:Spoiler: Show Thanks to Wolfgang Rockenschaub 4 x Windswept Heath 2 x Wooded Foothills 4 x Plains 2 x Forest 2 x Mountain 1 x Swamp 1 x Temple Garden 1 x Sacred Foundry 1 x Breeding Pool 1 x Stomping Ground 1 x Overgrown Tomb 2 x Mikokoro, Center of the Sea 4 x Sakura-Tribe Elder |