UPDATE: 1/24/2011 Hope I'm not treading on any advertising rules here, but, after eight long years of operation, TDC is at long last closing shop for the foreseeable future...to reopen where I've been hired over at Tcgplayer's standard forums.
I wouldn't rule out ever returning here, but if folks are looking for some clinic-advice from me, that's where you can find it until further notice.
Take care guys!
Tapatim's Type 2 Deck Clinic - Est. 2003
Hello, everyone. This is a deck clinic where you can post your decklists for advice from deck doctors and other users. First established in 2003 by the illustrious Tapatim, I've been handling the day to day operation since a few months after he founded it and kept the torch burning ever since. We welcome rogues, archetypes, random piles of cards, budget concerns, new set updates: anything which you could use a hand on.
We're always looking for new volunteers to become deck doctors, so if you're interested, don't hesitate to jump in and/or drop me a line about signing on.
A scattered few of you may also know me as a feature writer at brainburst/tcgplayer (Greg McCleery), or as Azrael from Mtgsalvation. I've been playing continuously since 1995, with a tendency to find homes for neglected orphans like Stonehewer Giant, Pillory of the Sleepless, Hurricane, Tower Above, and Genju of the Fields. I've also accomplished a little on the PTQ and PT circuits. Building and tweaking decks is what I enjoy most about the game, so I'm always happy to wrack my brain to help you find worthwhile advice and collaborate on ideas.
Current Deck Doctors: Wx
Backup/Retired Docs- John Mathias, Ner'Zuhl Lord of Darkness/Illidan Stormage, Tapatim, Weapon X, Xukko the Unholy, Broken Wings, Universal Snip, WrathofChris, Volrath Outside the Door, Capashen Dawn, Crimson Lancer, Nolaw, Pandman64, Vodka7up, Antilles, MagicMaster, Krowzy, Clam I Am, Jenius, Oracle VIII, Green Mycon, Doodlebird, Kavu Lancer, and many others.
Senior Deck Doctor at Tapatim's Deck Clinic: the oldest, most respected deck clinic on the boards. (est. Dec 2003)
Simply post your deck list in the thread above, and we'll help you troubleshoot it, tech it, and help analyze problem matchups. Rogues, archetypes, and random piles of cards are all welcome.
Current Deck Doctors: Wx
Backup/Retired Docs- John Mathias, Ner'Zuhl Lord of Darkness/Illidan Stormage, Tapatim, Weapon X, Xukko the Unholy, Broken Wings, Universal Snip, WrathofChris, Volrath Outside the Door, Capashen Dawn, Crimson Lancer, Nolaw, Pandman64, Vodka7up, Antilles, MagicMaster, Krowzy, Clam I Am, Jenius, Oracle VIII, Green Mycon, Doodlebird, Kavu Lancer, and many others who volunteered over the years.
decklist as follows is currently 23w 9L, im not sure if this is good or bad.
It is kinda budget- no figures or demigods or thoughtsiezes and the like for me =-/.
4 blightning
4 lightning bolt
4 flame javelin
4 volcanic fallout
4 hellspark elemental
4 anathemancer
4 goblin assault
2 magma spray
2 banefire
1 hell's thunder
2 chandra nalaar
5 swamps
10 mountains
5 trilands (r/b)
1 veinfire borderpost
SB:
3 infest
4 deathmark
3 doomblade
1 gutteral response
2 manabarbs
2 magmaspray
I welcome any advice or suggestions. The deck seems to have the hardest time with kith or elfball (STRICTLY on the merit of mark of asylum and Forgetender being so brutal.)
It seems to do well vs faries by making bitterblossum kill them often, and against controlish decks by overrunning them with the tokens. Baneslayer and larks can be nasty first game, but g2 sb with deathmarks and the other 2 magma sprays pretty much end that problem.
I wish there were more RFG effects i could add, as finks/glenmage/unearthing critters, makeshift, are still seeing alot of play.
The sideboard does not feel perfect either. and i'm still on the fence about chandra (originally i had 3 hell's thunder but was swayed by the point of runed halo being able to cut me off at the knees without more diveristy in my threats.
I am both selfish and instinctive. I value growth and community, as long as they favour my own objectives; I enjoy nature, and I particularly enjoy watching parts of nature die. At best, I am resilient and tenacious; at worst, I'm uncontrollable and destructive.
nature does not hurry, yet everything is accomplished.
I know about sigs. When viewing a thread (like this one) look in the top left-hand corner of the page. There's a button called Preferences. In there, you have the option to make a sig.
I would be glad to help critique decks if you need people.
I am both selfish and instinctive. I value growth and community, as long as they favour my own objectives; I enjoy nature, and I particularly enjoy watching parts of nature die. At best, I am resilient and tenacious; at worst, I'm uncontrollable and destructive.
nature does not hurry, yet everything is accomplished.
decklist as follows is currently 23w 9L, im not sure if this is good or bad.
It is kinda budget- no figures or demigods or thoughtsiezes and the like for me =-/.
No problem, we can work with that. If we had access to a little cash, I'd definitely opt for an Auntie's Hovel package and work in Boggart Ram Gang, Sign in Blood, possibly even Graveborn Muse. As is, a little more challenging.
First time I looked at the list, I wanted to cut from the bottom. Magma Spray, Chandra, Hell's Thunder, Banefire, Goblin Assault. But there's good reasoning behind small numbers of each. You need Spray to RFG, Chandra gives you late-game potential, as does Thunder and Banefire. And Goblin Assault is your finishing power; sorely needed without Demigod around. But, perhaps not as consistent as it needs to be.
So. That being the case, which slots can wiggle?
We get a fair amount of long-game potential thanks to Anathemancer; especially if we bump up to 22 land for consistency. That may solve some long-term damage problems, if we can make sure you wipe the board well.
Dragonskull Summit should be a good investment for you. We're working on a budget here, but getting at least a couple of those should help you over the long haul.
I think the Goblin Assault has to go. Most decks in the format should be able to deal with it fairly easily. Between Maelstrom Pulse, Esper Charm, and blockers, I suspect it's going to be too inconsistent. And 20 three drops is too many.
If we weren't so close to the rotation, I'd say get ahold of some Sygg, River Cutthroat. Hmm.
Perhaps Colfenor's Plans *strokes chin* One-shot Necro, without the pain. It'd be better still if we could find a way to sac it, but perhaps if you simply run multiples of it, or alternative card-drawing sources, or unearth cards... Ah ha! Hell's Thunder, you may actually do us some good now.
The major risk of Plans is that after your 7 card burst, you run out of gas. But with B/R, the game shouldn't last all that long anyways. 7 extra cards will usually be enough to finish them if you time it correctly, and adding unearth cards into the mix only increases your staying power. Also, you can go Plans into Plans from time to time, with 4 in the deck. Better still, once it resolves there's not much they can do about it. Cruel Ultimatum can't make you discard your plan-cards. If they blow it up or bounce it, you're thrilled. That may be some very, very interesting tech for you.
Also, drawing seven cards at once ought to give you a good shot at drawing enough lands to bring back Anathemancers for a 2nd round of action, or make Banefire lethal.
And if Kithkin is a problem, Ignite Disorder and Chaotic Backlash should definitely help.
Suggested List:
3 magma spray
4 lightning bolt
4 hellspark elemental
4 flame javelin
4 blightning
4 anathemancer
4 volcanic fallout
3 Hell's Thunder
4 Colfenor's Plans
2 banefire
2 chandra nalaar
22 Land
5 swamps
8 mountains
3 Dragonskull Summit (or veinfire borderposts, in the meantime)
5 trilands (r/b)
1 veinfire borderpost (or D. Summit)
SB:
3 infest
4 deathmark
4 Ignite Disorder
2 manabarbs
2 Chaotic Backlash
I'd give that a shot. The major problem with B/R is being able to refuel and avoid running out of gas. With 4 Plans and a good, solid, 12-card unearth package, you have a good chance of gaining back-breaking card advantage and finishing your opponents before you run out of cards again.
Senior Deck Doctor at Tapatim's Deck Clinic: the oldest, most respected deck clinic on the boards. (est. Dec 2003)
Simply post your deck list in the thread above, and we'll help you troubleshoot it, tech it, and help analyze problem matchups. Rogues, archetypes, and random piles of cards are all welcome.
Current Deck Doctors: Wx
Backup/Retired Docs- John Mathias, Ner'Zuhl Lord of Darkness/Illidan Stormage, Tapatim, Weapon X, Xukko the Unholy, Broken Wings, Universal Snip, WrathofChris, Volrath Outside the Door, Capashen Dawn, Crimson Lancer, Nolaw, Pandman64, Vodka7up, Antilles, MagicMaster, Krowzy, Clam I Am, Jenius, Oracle VIII, Green Mycon, Doodlebird, Kavu Lancer, and many others who volunteered over the years.
just got done with a daily event 4 round. lost 1st to kithin, my deck matchup. My sb was 75% kith hate, and i STILL got totally run into the dirt by that matchup. (4deathmark3doomblade 3 infest!!!) and i STILL lost.
BFT, cloudgoats, and honor of the pure negating my sweepers.. i just don't see a way r/b can beat kith ever, period, sb or no.
next 2 matches, faries, u/b varient, won in 2.
baneslayer control, i drew double blightning in match 1, no contest. I magma sprayed a newly cast glen mage. twice. Game over.
my final match for 6 packs (and my first actual prize win potentially) was against u/b faries again.
First match i with damage to face, and hellsparks.
2 nd match i saw a 2nd turn bitterblossums and drew no fallout. ever.
match 3? good mana, good cards, turn 3 bb, and again, not one. fhajshkjasd fallout. 3 games, and not one fallout.
I had the games if not for the evil cards. Both game 2 and 3, i had the fae player severely burned, and flame javed to response to mistbinds a few times.
the colfers plans is an interesting idea. the deck is supposed to be winning turn 8 or so anyhow.
gobo assault is getting removed alot. Esper charms, pridemages, acidic slimes, one oring... but i think like bitterblossums, its a remove this or die card.
I'm going to go bash my head into a street lamp now untill the pain subsides.
Am I correct in thinking that this is U/B Zombies? Because if so, your manabase looks a little shaky. A playset of Drowned Catacombs would be nice for it, if you can afford them. I would remove the Infectious Horror's and put them in the SB. They really are only going to be useful in Multiplayer, because in duel 2 life doesn't really matter. And they also get killed by a ton of removal spells. I also don't really like Fatestitcher in there. He doesn't really seem to fit, as untapping one creature and tapping another doesn't seem like a good option.
Maybe some counterspells to be put in? If you're looking for this to be legal after the rotation, Countersquall could be nice.
Also, because they're commons, Moonglove Changeling would be a splendid addition. Getting all the benefits from your pumpers, as well as being able to gain deathtouch is nice.
Cairn Wanderer is amazingly cheap, gains a ton of abilities and is a fatty, a possible addition.
Mothdust Changeling is really nice, gaining flying by tapping a creature is a bonus if it gets really big from Death Baron's and the like.
Also, because I didn't notice it previously, you have no Nameless Inversion! A kill spell that counts as a zombie? I like it!
Hmm. I'll assume we're going this way just for the sheer joy of untargetable dudes; because in terms of efficiency, we could do much better than a team that rolls over to Volcanic Fallout/Pyroclasm (or more efficient enemy attackers!), as you mentioned.
If we wanted to shore that weakness up pre-rotation, I'd say Burrenton Forge-tender, but you also mentioned you wanted to keep this post-rotation.
So. In that case, let's see what kind of room we can clear:
1. We need to cut the life-gain, the Sylvan Bounty. Pure lifegain is excellent in multi-player, but very poor in 1v1 formats.
2. Rampant Growth-If we want your Gifts of the Gargantuan package to pay off, and if we want you to have enough action spells in your deck to actually win, we'll need to change this into something that affects the board, such as Borderland Ranger.
3. Elvish Visionary's 1/1 body is pretty unimpressive. You may not have a lot of early-game options, but just about anything's better than that. Deadly Recluse, if we simply must.
4. Overrun is good. But it's not good here. Your game-plan to make it work is to wait until you cast a 7 mana spell: a tough opponent will often kill you before that happens, or counter it. You'll want something that you can cast consistently to make sure you stay alive long enough to play Behemoth.
5. Howl of the Night Pack- 7 casting costs spells in aggro decks is highly unusual, and usually a bad idea. Here, we've got 8, and one of them is pretty easily answered by Volcanic Fallout and by Maelstrom Pulse. Let's cut that number in half instead, down to just 4, and keep your ridiculous untargetable guy. And that way, we can...
6. Now that we've cleared some space, let's add that support color. But let's not mess around with just G/R ; the removal's not good enough. You need to be able to stop Baneslayer Angels from simply raping you; and maybe give you some hand disruption to knock out opponents' answers to BIG SHROUD GUY. That pushes us towards black. Plus, with the extra removal, you can help your Algae grow. Hmm. It's a shame Shriekmaw will be rotating...that would have been good for you.
7. If we're going black, we're cutting Gifts of the Gargantuan for something better.
8. Other Additions: Putrid Leech. One of the best combat guys in the format. And with most of the team slacking in the combat department, you could definitely use him.
Creatures (24):
4x Llanowar Elves
4x Mist Leopard
4x Algae Gharial
4x Kalonian Behemoth
4x Borderland Ranger
4x Putrid Leech
Planeswalkers (2):
2x Garruk, Wildspeaker
Spells (10):
4x Doomblade 4x Duress
Land (24): 8x Swamp 12x Forest 4x Terramorphic Expanse
Senior Deck Doctor at Tapatim's Deck Clinic: the oldest, most respected deck clinic on the boards. (est. Dec 2003)
Simply post your deck list in the thread above, and we'll help you troubleshoot it, tech it, and help analyze problem matchups. Rogues, archetypes, and random piles of cards are all welcome.
Current Deck Doctors: Wx
Backup/Retired Docs- John Mathias, Ner'Zuhl Lord of Darkness/Illidan Stormage, Tapatim, Weapon X, Xukko the Unholy, Broken Wings, Universal Snip, WrathofChris, Volrath Outside the Door, Capashen Dawn, Crimson Lancer, Nolaw, Pandman64, Vodka7up, Antilles, MagicMaster, Krowzy, Clam I Am, Jenius, Oracle VIII, Green Mycon, Doodlebird, Kavu Lancer, and many others who volunteered over the years.
Mage-Blade
