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The Long & Winding Road – Lotus Notes

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Monday, June 8th – Last week, I discussed the potential advantages you can gain by playing a deck that, despite being a solid performer, is off the “radar” of the majority of players. This advantage can be magnified when you take the core of an existing deck and move it in a different direction, or create a new deck that other players haven’t seen before.

Last week, I discussed the potential advantages you can gain by playing a deck that, despite being a solid performer, is off the “radar” of the majority of players. This advantage can be magnified when you take the core of an existing deck and move it in a different direction, or create a new deck that other players haven’t seen before. This past weekend, I had a chance to play Legacy for a Beta Black Lotus in Bethlehem, PA, and I figured this be a good test run in for the SCG Boston $5K on 6/21. I recreated my deck from Grand Prix: Chicago, made some improvements, and headed out Sunday morning hoping to continue my quest for power.

Before I get to the tournament, I thought it might be useful to recap the creation and evolution of the deck, from casual Legacy to tournament-worthy. This deck actually started out as a “fun” mono-blue Legacy deck last November, which existed mainly so I could play with my Grindstones and Dreadnoughts. That list, which showed me that a Legacy deck with a core of Ancient Tomb, Top, Force of Will, Stifle, Dreadnought, Painter, Grindstone, and Counterbalance might actually be viable, led me to add red and start taking the deck seriously, and it slowly turned into the list I discussed here. Leading up to GP: Chicago, further practice and the Grand Prix Trial got me to the deck I ran at the Grand Prix, and my experiences in the actual Grand Prix and subsequent testing afterwards led to the list from Sunday, which you’ll find below.

As an aside, I have always found one of the most rewarding parts of playing Magic to be building and tuning a deck. Much of this comes from the time period in which I started playing, but to some extent it’s a trait that some players have more than others. For me, there is definitely a difference between winning (which is awesome) and winning with a deck of my own design (considerably more awesome). Once I determined that the core of the deck was viable, I wanted to see how many of the “Engines of Legacy”, which Stephen Menendian discussed here, I could successfully fit into one deck. The ones I targeted included Counterbalance / Top and Ancient Tomb, along with the combination of Dreadnought and Stifle from Dreadtill, and then eventually Fact or Fiction (which alternated with Intuition).

The mono-red Imperial Painter-type designs have limited appeal for me, because as strong as Blood Moon strategies are, they rarely win tournaments. Imperial Painter is a red deck that plays more like a blue deck (outside of the Blood Moons / Magus of the Moon) in that it relies on tutors (Imperial Recruiter) and Sensei’s Divining Top to find Painter’s Servant, and once Painter is active runs counterspells (REBs and Pyroblast) and a combo win condition. It has the back-up plan of running acceleration to power out a first-turn Blood Moon. Switching the deck from base-red to base-blue would require giving up the Blood Moon effects, but would provide the deck with actual (instead of conditional) counterspells and better filter / draw capabilities.

Also, I don’t own any Imperial Recruiters

*cough*

In any event, here’s what I wanted to keep from Imperial Painter:

Ancient Tomb — This is one of the most powerful accelerators in Legacy, especially as the format skews more toward control decks.

Sensei’s Divining Top — Card filter and card draw to help find and set up the combo kill.

Red Elemental Blast / Pyroblast — Any Painter strategy should run some number of these, as they become instant-speed, one-mana Vindicates / Counterspells once Painter’s Servant resolves.

Painter’s Servant and Grindstone — The combo kill and reason for the deck’s existence, this two-card, six-mana combo is usually an auto-win once it fires.

Mana Denial — This one took some work to figure out, but I realized that even without Blood Moon or Magus of the Moon, I wanted some sort of mana denial strategy because it is so effective at shoring up the deck’s weaker match-ups. Preventing your opponent from actually being able to play Magic is one of the easiest and surest paths to victory.

And more importantly, here’s what I wanted to add:

Trinket MageTrinket Mage is essentially my Recruiter in this deck, capable of finding Sensei’s Divining Top, Grindstone, Phyrexian Dreadnaught, and Engineered Explosives as well as Seat of the Synod and a number of sideboard cards. He also provides a shuffle effect to maximize the power of the Tops.

Brainstorm — Once you’re in blue (and playing combo, no less), this seems obvious. The synergy with Top, Trinket Mage, and the fetch-lands is one of the things that makes this deck viable.

Stifle and Phyrexian Dreadnought — This started out as just being a back-up win condition, but I realized that Stifle could form the core of my mana denial strategy, and I could use two Dreadnoughts and still find them reliably when I needed to do so. Stifle is one of the most versatile and powerful cards in Legacy, while Dreadnought can provide free wins and gives the deck an alternate (and very fast) win condition.

Daze and Force of WillForce of Will is an auto-include for me and is another reason to play Painter’s Servant in the first place. I sort of stumbled into Daze when the early results weren’t as good as I’d hoped; Daze is another card that shores up your game one against the field, and then can be sided out once the surprise factor is gone. One thing to keep in mind is that Painter decks aren’t “supposed” to run Daze, so at the Grand Prix I was continually blowing out my opponent’s Force of Wills with Daze.

Wasteland — My original build had 20 lands and 3 Chrome Mox, but I quickly realized this was too much mana. Chrome Mox can be very good, but without Thirst for Knowledge it felt unnecessary (although it’s great against Blood Moon decks). As I cut back the mana, I realized that I generally had few color issues with all of the card selection I had, so I included Wastelands. This was one of the changes that made the deck viable, as Wasteland with Stifle provides a method of mana denial against many decks.

Thirst for Knowledge / Intuition / Fact or Fiction — This was a tricky one to determine. Once I cut the number of Chrome Moxes, TFK became sub-optimal as the only card I usually wanted to discard would be an extra Top. I had limited time to decide between Fact or Intuition before GP: Chicago, and I ended up running Intuition for several reasons. I liked that it was capable of finding Painter’s Servant or Grindstone, as well as Force of Will, Stifle, and Top, and after sideboard would be able to find Counterbalance or REB. Having a flexible, instant-speed tutor seemed like the way to go, and in fact against aggro and combo decks, it is very good. That said, Legacy has been leaning more and more toward control decks, and although it is decent, Intuition isn’t really what I want in those match-ups. Further, my match-up against most aggro decks is already solid, and combo can be more or less addressed with the sideboard. The correct choice would have been to play Fact or Fiction, as the card draw and selection it provides is almost as good as a tutor, but allows the deck to keep up against control decks by having legitimate card draw. This is the direction I went in Sunday’s tournament.

Engineered Explosives — This started as Echoing Truth when the deck was mono-blue, but Explosives is superior in almost every way. It is able to remove Chalice of the Void, Pithing Needle, and Runed Halo (three of the typical cards that can stop Painter / Grindstone), and can be tutored with Trinket Mage and recurred with Academy Ruins. It also shines against aggro decks like Zoo. After playing against Merfolk during the Grand Prix Trial at GP: Chicago, I realized I wanted to run one land of a third color. I ended up choosing Tropical Island so that I could bluff Tarmogoyf and Krosan Grip. Interestingly, people often go after that Tropical Island with their Wastelands, so it is also a method of protecting an Ancient Tomb or Academy Ruins.

Counterbalance — Originally Counterbalance was in the main deck in place of Daze, but it just didn’t seem optimal. Daze was doing a much better job of allowing me to survive game one against the entire field (which is very large in Legacy), especially when I was on the draw. However, Counterbalance does have a place in the deck. It excels at countering other people’s sideboard cards (most creature and artifact removal is in the one through three slot) and its power is magnified when it is played as a surprise.

The final list I brought to Bethlehem looked like this:

Hybrid Painter by Matt Elias

4 Painter’s Servant
3 Grindstone
3 Sensei’s Divining Top
2 Engineered Explosives
2 Phyrexian Dreadnought
1 Relic of Progenitus
2 Red Elemental Blast
4 Stifle
4 Brainstorm
3 Daze
4 Trinket Mage
4 Force of Will
3 Fact or Fiction
4 Ancient Tomb
3 Wasteland
1 Academy Ruins
1 Tropical Island
1 Seat of the Synod
1 Island
4 Volcanic Island
3 Polluted Delta
3 Flooded Strand

Sideboard
2 Red Elemental Blast
1 Pyroblast
3 Chalice of the Void
2 Relic of Progenitus
1 Tormod’s Crypt
1 Echoing Truth
2 Pyroclasm
3 Counterbalance

My original sideboard before the tournament had -3 Chalice, +1 Tormod’s Crypt, +1 Echoing Truth, +1 Llawan, Cephalid Empress. However, I got nervous about Storm while speaking to some of the guys who played Legacy in NY the previous day, and included the Chalices. I’m still not sure what the right sideboard configuration is, but the 1 Echoing Truth seems a little out of place (although it did win me a game), and I think I’d probably want to run 2 Echoing Truth in the future. The changes from Chicago were to remove Llawan from the sideboard (who is more “cute” than good, but definitely helps the deck beat Merfolk, which was popular at Chicago), to swap Fact or Fiction in for Intuition, and to use my one floating slot to move a Relic of Progenitus main to help against Threshold and Dredge. In hindsight, this last change seems relatively unnecessary — that slot could be a 4th Top, Fact or Fiction, or Daze, or possibly just a different bullet (Pithing Needle is a good possibility) or the third Red Elemental Blast to free up a sideboard slot.

What makes this deck so powerful is that it can play almost every role, and can actually do so with some level of success. It isn’t really a combo deck, although it often functions as one and can kill as quickly as turn 2 with a perfect hand (you need Ancient Tomb, Ancient Tomb, Painter’s Servant, and Grindstone), with turn 3 being reasonable with almost any hand with an Ancient Tomb, and turn 4 or 5 expected when left unimpeded. Against other combo decks, being able to play Counterbalance / Top, Chalice on 0, Wasteland, Stifle, Daze, Force of Will, and REBs / Pyroblast actually lets it do a decent impression of a control deck. Against mid-range, having a combo win-condition paired with mana denial and permission allows it to race and effectively be the beatdown. Against other aggro decks, it is able to play a tempo game, living long enough to execute one of its quick win conditions when necessary, while other times it can just power out a turn-two Dreadnought or drop a quick Painter with Grindstone and still be the beatdown.

The tournament itself was hosted by The Portal at a firehouse, which was an excellent venue with food available on-site and close by, as well as functioning air conditioning (always a plus). There were 38 players, and as advertised we played 5 rounds of unsanctioned Legacy. With any luck this store will continue to run tournaments in Bethlehem, and hopefully in the future they’ll be sanctioned and by DCI regulations (as running unsanctioned, no proxy events is a little unusual). Despite those irregularities everything ran very smoothly and it was a fun event, with a typical Legacy crowd including PTQ and Vintage tournament regulars, as well as players who had never used a sideboard before.

Round 1 — Win 2-1 vs. Brian with Landstill (1-0)

My opponent was running a minute late while he double-checked his deck-list, so I got to watch some of the action around me. To my left, one player ran out first-turn Dark Ritual, Dark Ritual, Hymn to Tourach, Nantuko Shade, pump Shade, pass. Unfortunately for him, his opponent was playing Zoo, a deck on the rise and a bad match-up for Suicide Black. His turn one Kird Ape, turn two Nacatl looked to be problematic with the Sui-Black player, who was stuck on one Swamp. To my right, one player appeared to be running a mono-red Elementals deck from FNM. I’m pretty sure he won a game by sending a lethal Blaze at his opponent. How can you not love this format? Here are some of the decks I saw at the tournament: Goblins, Landstill, Eva Green, Merfolk, Belcher, Suicide Black, Zoo, CounterTop, Aluren, Faerie Stompy, Elementals, Ichorid, The Rock, Threshold, and Storm combo.

Game one started out well enough for me, as I resolved Trinket Mage, Top, and Grindstone. On turn four, Brian tried to cast Fact or Fiction using his four lands, except one was a Flooded Strand. I backed him up, then Stifled the fetch, and he used a Counterspell to prevent me from stunting his mana development. Then he untapped and we fought a counter war over his Fact or Fiction, which I won, and then I resolved my own. Unfortunately I was out of counters and Brian snuck in a Humility. I have few outs for this if it actually hits play, and by few, I mean I need to win by swinging with 1/1s. I managed to get him to nine on this plan, but eventually he got a Mishra’s Factory, and I couldn’t find a Wasteland. Rather than try to Grind him out the hard way before I lost, I scooped it up because I felt like I was heavily favored in games two and three. For a few turns I was grinding chaff off my own library to see more cards with Top, which was a little risky seeing as I had a Painter’s Servant in play. If he had bounced or destroyed his Humility in response, it would’ve been pretty funny. That game took just over thirty minutes.

Game two took about one minute. With the additional REBs and Pyroblast, I was able to resolve Painter and Grindstone and grinded Brian for the win on turn 4. Game three was a little bit longer, but still quick due to Brian being stuck on two lands for a few turns thanks to Wasteland and Stifle. I had a second Wasteland in play, which was tapped as I’d resolved Fact or Fiction the previous turn while stuck on three lands myself (Volcanic, Wasteland, Ancient Tomb). Brian had one basic and one non-basic in play. He hit his third land (a non-basic) and played Crucible of Worlds. I untapped, dropped the third Wasteland, sacrificed the two I had in play to destroy both his non-basics and played Echoing Truth on the Crucible. From there he wasn’t able to fight back and I won quickly.

Round 2 — Win 2-0 vs. Jeff Folinus with Probasco CounterTop (2-0)

I don’t have many specific notes on these games, although I know that this was the only round in this tournament where I was on the play in game 1. Jeff is a good player and I try to limit my note-taking in these situations, as my skills are weak enough without any unnecessary distractions. Game one, I won while on 14 life from 3 Ancient Tomb activations. Game two Jeff laid out a Needle on Grindstone, and actually threatened to beat me to death with a Trinket Mage, but I finally found and resolved a Painter’s Servant to block, assembled Counterbalance and Top to protect myself, and then finally resolved Grindstone and won. Jeff noted how awkward it is that Painter’s Servant completely ignores Shackles and Sowers.

At this point I felt pretty good, having defeated two control decks. Fact or Fiction was unquestionably clutch in both of these rounds – Jeff in particular made reasonable splits on the FoFs, but generally speaking Fact or Fiction is a terrific card made even better by opponents who exhibit poor judgment in the face of unknown variables.

Round 3 — Win 2-0 vs. Matt with The Rock (3-0)

We both took a mulligan in game one, and Matt’s hand was relatively aggressive but not really disruptive. I let him resolve Tarmogoyf and beat me to 7, but I’d assembled the combo and won. Game two has me on 18 and him on 17 when I won. I recall this being a very quick game — Matt brought in Choke and Krosan Grip against me to supplement his hand disruption, but had a limited window to bring it online if I drew well, which I did — I was able to keep him off his mana using Wasteland and Stifle.

Round 4 — ID (3-0-1)

Round 5 — ID (3-0-2)

I was the 3rd seed headed into the Top 8. I wasn’t able to determine the entire top 8, but I know six of the decks: B/U/G/W CounterTop, Probasco CounterTop, Goblins, Zoo, The Rock, and Hybrid Painter.

Quarterfinals — Win 2-1 vs. AJ Grasso with Goblins (4-0-2)

I had not only tested against Goblins with my deck for about an hour on Friday night, but I also play-tested with my Goblins against Jeff’s CounterTop deck before the tournament started. At the time, I told AJ that I thought Goblins was a terrible deck right now due to Zoo and Storm being popular. I had no idea that he had played the deck to a top 16 the day before in NY, and was again running it today. Awkward.

In game one, AJ’s opening hand did not have turn 1 Lackey, which put me way ahead. I won using Grindstone on turn 4.

Game two was a train wreck, as AJ couldn’t find any Goblins and I kept attacking his lands with Stifle and Wasteland. We traded blows back and forth, my Trinket Mage against his solitary Piledriver, until when he was at 6 he ripped a Warchief and knocked me to 5. I finally drew some gas, but it was too late as he had Threshold and a Barbarian Ring in play, so even if I used my combo (which would require Force of Will to counter his Pyrokinesis plus activating an Ancient Tomb, to put me at two), I’d die on his Upkeep to his Ring.

Game three finally saw me on the play, and I used Daze to counter one Lackey and Pyroclasm to sweep away a second. This bought me the time to win by combo at a comfortable 16 life.

Semi-Finals — Win 2-0 vs Matt with The Rock (5-0-2)

Game one I took a mulligan, and then Matt played Cabal Therapy and named Top, stripping it from what was a relatively risky keep on six (Force of Will, Daze, Painter’s Servant, Top, Wasteland, Ancient Tomb). I drew Grindstone, and played Ancient Tomb and then Painter’s Servant. He dropped a Sakura Tribe-Elder, and then flashed back Cabal Therapy, which I countered with Force of Will, pitching Daze. I drew Force of Will off the top, and played Grindstone with Force of Will back-up in case he had a removal spell for either piece (he didn’t).

Game two we both took a mulligan to six. His hand was solid but had no black mana, and he didn’t hit any. I won on turn four, again with Force of Will back-up. In all four games, I drew extremely well against Matt, but I suppose these are typical mid-range vs. combo games. Matt’s deck seemed like it would be very solid against a lot of the decks in the format, like CounterTop, Landstill, Merfolk, Burn, and Zoo, but soft against dedicated combo.

Finals — Split with Jeff Folinus with Probasco CounterTop

I had beaten Jeff in the Swiss rounds, and still feel like I owe him for the horrific beating he gave me in the top 8 in Princeton, NJ in April, so I (very) briefly considered playing it out in the event that we were both interested in the Lotus. However, the prize disparity (1st place — Beta Black Lotus, 2nd place — Box of Boosters) was too much, and Jeff already owns a Lotus, so we were able to work out a split that would be profitable to both of us.

After this tournament, I’m relatively certain I’ll be playing the deck again at the Boston $5K next month. If you’re looking for a Legacy deck that is solid against the field and a lot of fun to play, I definitely recommend giving this list a shot and seeing if it fits your style.

As a bonus, here’s Jeff’s list:

Probasco CounterTop by Jeff Folinus

3 Island
3 Snow-covered Island
3 Tropical Island
2 Volcanic Island
1 Underground Sea
2 Academy Ruins
4 Polluted Delta
4 Flooded Strand
4 Tarmogoyf
3 Trinket Mage
3 Sower of Temptation
2 Engineered Explosives
4 Sensei’s Divining Top
4 Brainstorm
3 Ponder
3 Spell Snare
4 Counterbalance
1 Firespout
3 Vedalken Shackles
4 Force of Will

Sideboard
1 Tormods Crypt
1 Pithing Needle
2 Krosan Grip
2 Ancient Grudge
3 Duress
1 Pyroclasm
1 Firespout
2 Blue Elemental Blast
2 Red Elemental Blast

Matt Elias
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Voltron00x on Xbox Live and SCG Forums