As most of you by now know, Mike Flores had discussed this deck at length in his latest article for MagictheGathering.com. It was actually during a conversation with Mike that he proposed I write a tournament report, to help followers of the deck understand certain complexities such as how the deck realistically plays, how it sideboards, and which matchups are good and, er, not as good (I refuse to say this deck has a bad matchup!).
So, well... here I am!
I first saw the concept of a 4-color control deck emerge here on StarCityGames, in a thread on the Standard Forum. What caught my eye was that a very decorated and celebrated player, Shaheen Soorani (a.k.a. Rewind Master) presented it with good results. I decided I would take it and test it against what I held to be the best deck in the format: Izzetron. After getting approximately 60-40 results, I decided the deck was some good. I took it to the Dragon's Lair, a local card shop with some ex-pros and other great players, where I tested it in between draft rounds, and I was a bit underwhelmed by the aggro matchup. This led to many worries on my part, and I spent a nearly sleepless night trying to figure out what to do with the deck. No one could persuade me on anything, and in consequence we spent the majority of the time tuning our Ghost Dad deck.
I arrive on the tournament scene and race to finish my deck, which still needs a few Duals, Extractions, and Unhinged (a.k.a. “intimidation”) lands. I finish my deck with about 10 minutes before registration, and it looks pretty solid. It's the deck that Shaheen Soorani (licairo on the StarCityGames forums) presented card-for-card:
4 Sakura-Tribe Elder
4 Loxodon Hierarch
2 Meloku the Clouded Mirror
2 Farseek
4 Faith's Fetters
4 Phyrexian Arena
3 Mortify
2 Putrefy
1 Ink-Eyes, Servant of Oni
2 Keiga, the Tide Star
1 Simic Sky Swallower
4 Birds of Paradise
3 Persecute
2 Okiba-Gang Shinobi
4 Overgrown Tomb
2 Temple Garden
1 Watery Grave
1 Godless Shrine
1 Vitu-Ghazi, The City-Tree
1 Island
2 Plains
4 Swamp
6 Forest
Sideboard
2 Naturalize
3 Cranial Extraction
1 Okiba-Gang Shinobi
4 Last Gasp
2 Circle of Protection: Red
3 Bottled Cloister
The only changes I immediately made were based on Shaheen's suggestion of cutting Angel of Despair for Simic Sky Swallower, and on my own discretion I exchange a Putrefy with a Mortify, expecting Heartbeat to dominate. But as I take a walk around the room, I start to get nervous. I notice three very important things...
1) Approximately 70% of the decks are dedicated aggro.
2) Every other deck is packing Mana Leak.
3) Breeding Pool is the card in most demand.
I walk back to my seat with about five minutes left in registration, and reluctantly end up playing the following deck list:
The most notable changes are cutting the Okiba-Gang Shinobis for Wraths to help with the aggro matchup; most importantly to give me an answer to Plaxcaster Frogling, a card that I saw spread out on many a table.
Round 1: UBW Control
As we were shuffling up for the first round of the day, my opponent said to me that he cares much more about having fun than winning. When I asked him if he'd concede in that case, he said he would not. What a party pooper.
Right before we start, I catch sight of a Windreaver, and I get a sinking feeling in my chest. I had cut my 2 maindeck Okiba-Gang Shinobi for 2 Wrath of God, gambling off of the ridiculous amount of aggro present. I know that Condemn is great against me, and I'm deeply worried.
Game 1:
He wins the dice roll, and takes a mulligan on the play while I keep a hand with only Island and Watery Grave on the draw. We both end up short on mana, but he eventually gets an Azorius Signet he badly needed. Eventually we're both in the game, and we fight over Phyrexian Arenas. I Mortify his, he counters mine, and then Mortifies another. Eventually his sticks, and he plays a Tidings. I pretend to think every time he plays a spell and say “alright, resolves,” just to keep him on his feet. He connects a few times with an Angel of Despair before I slap Faith's Fetters on it, and then I Persecute the rest of his threats away naming Blue... but he still has an active Arena, two Wrath of God, and a Mortify. I play Meloku the Clouded Mirror with four mana open, and he surprisingly opts to Mortify it on the end step and Wrath of God the trail Meloku leaves behind. Next turn he plays his other Wrath of God to put my Simic Sky Swallower in the bin. I then take a hit from Keiga, the Tide Star before putting Faith's Fetters on that, too.
Eventually, many Tidings and Phyrexian Arena draws later, his deck is starting to look pleasantly small, but I know he still has Windreaver in there, and I finally realize why it's so good... I can't kill it! He has about 20 mana, making it easily lethal to my 15 life total when he finally casts it. I just throw Putrefy and Mortify at it on end steps to keep making him bounce it, but I know I can't deck him in time. I draw a Loxodon Hierarch eventually and I'm holding Faith's Fetters, so I tap out and play Hierarch (resolves), and Faith's Fetters on Windreaver (resolves). Before he can change his mind I yell “go!”
He says “return it on end step,” until I point out that he cannot. He really proves to me that he is playing for fun when he does not clutch his head and rip out his hair at this point, as I would most certainly have done. When 13 minutes left in the round are announced, he scoops before he can deck himself.
In between games, I craftily ask him why he opted not to run Repeal. He said he thought there were better options. Thanks to this information, I know I can run Bottled Cloister safely.
Sideboarding:
- 2 Wrath of God
- 4 Faith's Fetters
+ 3 Okiba-Gang Shinobi
+ 3 Bottled Cloister
My reasoning was we probably have the same finishers in Blue (Meloku the Clouded Mirror and Keiga, the Tide Star), so Faith's Fetters would suck. He can't handle Okiba-Gang Shinobi, and Bottled Cloister would be too much card advantage.
Game 2:
This game goes for me the way it should... I resolve a Phyrexian Arena, which sticks around for the whole game, and then I resolve a Bottled Cloister and a Loxodon Hierarch. I beat him down a bit until he puts Faith's Fetters on Loxodon Hierarch, and then I start attacking with Sakura-Tribe Elder, as all I am drawing is land. However, all that card draw gives me removal for his creatures, so I'm looking great. Eventually I use a Birds of Paradise and a Sakura-Tribe Elder to Ninjitsu in 2 Okiba-Gang Shinobis I draw off of Phyrexian Arena, clearing his hand, and he draws his card and scoops. I discuss my sideboarding with him, and he agrees it was correct. He was an excellent guy, and I think we both enjoyed the match.
2-0 (1-0)
Round 2: Hand in Hand
I wore a sleeveless shirt to Regionals to intimidate my opponents with my biceps, but I had nothing on this guy. He was h-u-g-e. I was wondering what he was doing playing Magic... It seemed to me he'd crush the cards in between his fingers. Turns out he's playing Hand in Hand, a fairly good matchup for me.
Game 1:
I win the roll and I start off with a painless draw (very surprising...), while he's stuck on three land. I Putrefy his Hand of Cruelty, and eventually Ninjitsu in Ink-Eyes, Servant of Oni to steal it. He plays another Hand of Cruelty and trades it with mine. Ink-Eyes wins shortly, as she shakes off Mortify with ease.
Sideboarding:
- 3 Persecute
- Simic Sky Swallower
- Phyrexian Arena
+ 4 Last Gasp
+ 3 Bottled Cloister
I figure Cloister will be better than Phyrexian Arena, as it is colorless and he has no way to remove it. It will also strand his Castigate and Shrieking Grotesque, should he play it.
Game 2:
There really isn't much to say about this game. He gets some early hits in, I play lots of Loxodon Hierarchs and Faith's Fetters, and eventually he's able to get a Hand of Honor to stick with an Umezawa's Jitte. I fight hard, but even Meloku can't handle an Umezawa's Jitte with nine counters on it. My Last Gasps and Mortify mock me in my hand.
Game 3:
The early game was all about removal, as I traded cards for creatures. Funny enough, he is stuck on one White source while I was getting flooded to no end. I am at 24 when he plays Hand of Cruelty, and for the next nine turns my only spells are Farseek and Sakura-Tribe Elder. When he finally gets his 2nd White source (remarking: “I was about to say... who do I have to blow around here to get some mana?”), he plays Paladin en-Vec, but I'm already hopeless. I draw my next card, an Island, and simply slam it on the table and just barely refrain from throwing my deck across the room. I shake his hand and count my lands... 14 of 24 are in play.
Oh well, it happens, and I try to shake it off, as the next round is about to start. 1-1 is not how I envisioned going into round 3...
3-2 (1-1)
Round 3: Rakdos Aggro
Game 1
I win the roll, which allows me to Putrefy a Dark Confidant for the meek price of two life. I Faith's Fetters his Rakdos Guildmage and Lord of the Undead (interesting choice; he is playing Nantuko Husk...), while he plays a Seal of Fire and Grave Pact before running out of a hand, as I persecute for Red, to which he responds with Char and holds onto a Cruel Edict. He uses the Seal to kill his Rakdos Guildmage and makes me sacrifice Loxodon Hierarch, but I keep playing more elephants and some Birds of Paradise in an effort to keep my Hierarchs. Eventually, I draw a Phyrexian Arena at 19 life (after being as low as 10), and from there Keiga, the Tide Star beats him down with an Elder for the win.
Sideboarding:
- 3 Persecute
- Simic Sky Swallower
- Ink-Eyes, Servant of Oni
+ 3 Last Gasp
+ 2 Circle of Protection: Red
I need the removal, and the Circle of Protection: Red is great. Ink-Eyes, Servant of Oni and the Simic Sky Swallower just seemed too slow, and Persecute is bad against a deck that tries to hit Hellbent, although that didn't seem to be his focus as much.
Game 2:
He gets stuck on only one Red source, while I gain a lot of life from back-to-back Loxodon Hierarchs after taking a hit from Nantuko Husk. The twin Elephants strike him down to eight, and from there he's forced to chump them while a Sakura-Tribe Elder gets through two turns in a row, putting him at six. Eventually he topdecks a Flashfires and scoops. Good thing the early game hadn't been closer, because that Flashfires took three land with it...
5-2 (2-1)
Round 4: UG Frog
The details of this game are the haziest of all my UG Frog matchups (foreshadowing!), but I think I remember the basics...
Game 1:
He gets an early Plaxcaster Frogling, which beats me down as I do not have an answer for it on the turn it appears. I simply fight to stay alive with Wrath of God, and I stabilize at 10. He's playing Assault Zeppelid, which I think is a terrible card, but regardless, he's still beating me. At a certain point, I drop two Phyrexian Arenas, figuring that's the only way I can win as neither of us have much at this point. They drop me to four, but from there I go up to eight, down to six, up to ten, down to eight, then six, then back up to ten, down to eight, six, and finally I play three Fetters on three of his lands to leap to eighteen and close it out with all those pretty elephants I had played along the way.
Sideboarding:
- 3 Persecute
- Simic Sky Swallower
+ 4 Last Gasp
Pretty straight-forward... I needed early removal for Frogs, and I figured my Okiba-Gang Shinobis would never connect.
Game 2:
This game is very similar to the first one. He gets a Plaxcaster Frogling that I can do nothing about, and proceeds to attack as all I can muster for an army are Birds of Paradise and Sakura-Tribe Elder. I fight with removal, but his Plaxcaster Frogling remains untouched, and every time I try to cast a creature to stop the massacre he has a Cytoshape, using his Plaxcaster Frogling as removal. Eventually I am at six, but am able to present a Loxodon Hierarch and follow with a Phyrexian Arena, apparently stabilizing at ten. After going down to eight, I am able to play another Loxodon Hierarch, going up to twelve, and a mass of Birds of Paradise and Sakura-Tribe Elders to make sure he can't force through any surprises. He goes down to eight before chump blocking my Loxodon Hierarch with his Plaxcaster Frogling, and he ends the game with too many counters in hand to be happy about.
7-2 (3-1)
Round 5: UG Tempo-Frog (different builds)
This guy is very pleasant and we talk a little as we shuffle up. The guy playing my friend, Nick, to my left, says that my opponent had not touched a Standard deck in years, which relaxes me a little. When I see the Breeding Pool, I expect another interesting matchup
Game 1:
I take two mulligans and finally keep a Birds of Paradise, Sakura-Tribe Elder, three-other-card hand on the draw. If I go down to four, I cannot win. However, if I draw a Green source, I have a chance. I do get a Temple Garden and a Plains for my next two draws, but I am simply overcome by back-to-back Plaxcaster Froglings. I just try to hold on for as long as possible, just to see what other finishers his deck features. I don't get a chance to see anything past his Coiling Oracle and two Plaxcaster Froglings.
Assuming this is the same deck I played last round, I board accordingly. Luckily, this loss was a blowout, so he has absolutely no idea how to sideboard or what to expect.
Game 2:
This game begins in a very similar fashion, as I have no immediate answer to his Plaxcaster Frogling (what an excellent card!), while he uses some Boomerangs and Eye of Nowheres to force me to discard and remain behind in tempo. I go down to eight before resolving a Loxodon Hierarch, which stops his creatures just long enough to give me some breathing room. He does, however, play an Assault Zeppelid and Grafts a counter onto it, which looks very bad for me, as I am on a three-turn clock. After much deliberation, I decide to play my Phyrexian Arena. I am at seven on my upkeep, but I draw removal for the Assault Zeppelid, and have enough mana left to Ninjitsu in my Ink-Eyes, Servant of Oni that I had ripped like a real pro. I take his Assault Zeppelid instead of the Plaxcaster Frogling, just in case he topdecks another flier. At this point the game is pretty much over, and he has nothing to do as he gets mana flooded to the very end. He says after the game “I was thinking about complaining, but then I remembered game 1...” He really was a great guy!
No sideboarding.
Game 3:
He has no turn 1 play, but he does Eye of Nowhere my Breeding Pool on his second turn, forcing me to discard. He starts to beat me down with a Coiling Oracle (who got him a land), and I Putrefy his Cytoplast Root-Kin on the end-step of his fourth turn. When the following turn comes around I find myself at sixteen before I can resolve a Loxodon Hierarch to his freshly-cast Plaxcaster Frogling, since he had two mana open and I could not remove it. He plays and equips an Umezawa's Jitte to his Plaxcaster Frogling, and attacks with it. I block with the Hierarch, and he uses a counter to get rid of my blocker post-combat. He re-equips to a Llanowar Elves he casts and passes the turn. I play another Loxodon Hierarch, going up to twenty-four, and lay down a Birds of Paradise. He passes the turn after playing a Plaxcaster Frogling and equipping it with Umezawa's Jitte. I attack with the Birds of Paradise, and Ninjitsu in Ink-Eyes, Servant of Oni I had ripped (again!) to take his Cytoplast Root-Kin. He plays another Umezawa's Jitte, and I ask for the judge, as he quickly puts it back into his hand and casts Plaxcaster Frogling instead, having tapped three mana. I know it's a mistake, but it is game 3, and I'm afraid that I will lose to that Umezawa's Jitte. I appeal to the head judge, but both of them said the same thing... The card had never left his hand, and he never announced it. Regardless, he Grafts a counter to make his other Plaxcaster Frogling a 4/4.
I draw a Faith's Fetters for the Umezawa's Jitte soon after, as fate would have it, and finish the game at 32 life. In retrospect, I believe that even with Umezawa's Jitte I simply had too many blockers that could sacrifice themselves (2 Hierarchs and eventually a Sakura-Tribe Elder), so I had that game in the bag regardless. Still, I sure do appreciate Karma!
He was a great guy, and I apologize both for his mana floods and for my behavior during game 3, but I explain the situation. He understands and says I'm the best sport he's played so far, and that the match was very entertaining. We wish each other luck and I head off to turn in the match slip.
I'm shocked that a single card in my deck had just won me that whole match. I make a metal note that Ink-Eyes is an absolute beast, and cringe at the thought of having wanted to cut her for Sensei's Divining Top or Kodama of the North Tree. Everyone who asks me why I play Birds of Paradise over Kodama's Reach or Farseek... That is why. Birds into Ink-Eyes is far too powerful a play, not to mention I have 3 more Ninjas in the side!
9-3 (4-1)
Round 6: UG Tempo-Frog (same exact deck; same team)
The guy I had just beaten and another one of his teammates stand behind my opponent early into the first game, so I know it's the same deck list and the same team, and how to sideboard accordingly. To my relief, a kid from my local card shop watches my opponent shuffle up and cringes; always a good sign! This guy looks professional, so I was a bit worried, but the look on my friend's face helped me a bit.
Game 1:
I win the dice roll and open with a second turn Sakura-Tribe Elder to his Llanowar Elves, and I opt not to sacrifice my Sakura-Tribe Elder on the end step. I untap, put a dual into play tapped, and play another Sakura-Tribe Elder. On his turn, he plays an Umezawa's Jitte and passes the turn. I keep both of my Snakes back just in case. I untap and play Phyrexian Arena, which resolves... Always a good sign when there is little pressure coming from the opposing deck. I Persecute for Blue a few uneventful turns later, to which he responds with 2 Boomerangs on my lands, as his Llanowar Elves have long ago been removed, and I only have land left at this point on my board. However, his naked Umezawa's Jitte does make me nervous. I eventually find Faith's Fetters for it, but he simply uses Eye of Nowhere on his main phase to bounce the Umezawa's Jitte and recast it. We continue to draw land and I continue to have removal for everything he plays, but I can't draw and resolve a threat. I beat him down with Sakura-Tribe Elder for three turns until I finally find Meloku the Clouded Mirror, while all he is able to muster is Coiling Oracle and Llanowar Elves. His deck can't survive the late game, but what does worry me is he keeps drawing Boomerang and Eye of Nowhere to shake Faith's Fetters off his Jitte by returning the pointy stick to his hand. I'm able to Putrefy it, but it does leave me worried entering game 2...
I sideboard the same as the previous two rounds.
Game 2:
He gets some early beats in with Llanowar Elves and Plaxcaster Frogling, dropping Umezawa's Jitte yet again along the way. However, I once again have Faith's Fetters for Jitte, but he continues to attack me regardless. I drop a Phyrexian Arena, and before I know it I'm already at eight, and I still haven't seen Green mana past Llanowar Wastes. I cast a Hierarch to go to eleven, and go down to six eventually, but cast another Hierarch to go to ten. The Elephants, working together with some Snake Shamans, finish the game in short order, as Arena supplies me with all the Last Gasps and Mortify I need to squeeze out a win before my own Arena kills me.
11-3 (5-1)
Round 7: Dark Zoo
I didn't recognize this guy as we sat down, but while conversing with him after the tournament I recall that he owns a store somewhere in Connecticut. He's a super-nice guy, but as we're talking he tells me he wants to win at all costs. I liked my first-round opponent better...
Game 1:
I win the dice roll, but he gets a very fast start of Savannah Lions, Watchwolf, Putrefy my Sakura-Tribe Elder, at which point I Wrath of God. However, he recoups with two more Watchwolf and Isamaru, Hound of Konda, and I find myself at six, almost unable to pull the game out even if his hand is dwindling. I stroke my deck (no, not like that!), and peak at my top card. I windmill my Wrath of God onto the table, having ripped my last one like a real pro. Man, I should be on the Pro Tour or something. From there, since burn is not a factor, I produce a Phyrexian Arena and eventually beat my opponent down with Keiga, the Tide Star. I apologize profusely, as I had been a complete lucksack to win that round. He doesn't seem to understand what happened, but when I explain it to him afterwards he laughs about how I hit both Wraths right when I needed them.
Sideboarding:
- 3 Persecute
- Simic Sky Swallower
- 3 Phyrexian Arena
+ 4 Last Gasp
+ 3 Bottled Cloister
Why did I sideboard in Bottled Cloister? Because I'm an idiot... I got so carried away with Shrieking Grotesque and Castigate that I completely forgot about Putrefy. Shame on me...
Game 2:
This game is a little different. I have Last Gasp for Dark Confidant, but he continues to pump out threats that I have a hard time dealing with. Eventually, with yours truly at ten life, he runs out of creatures, but still has three cards in his hand. I take the opening to cast a Bottled Cloister, which he promptly targets with Putrefy on the end step. I... am an idiot. There, I said it. He untaps and casts Loxodon Hierarch, which is a three-turn clock for me. I tap my deck a few times, and rip another Bottled Cloister! He attacks me down to six but does nothing else. I am able to draw Mortify for the Elephant, and then Faith's Fetters for a Shrieking Grotesque a few turns later. I close the game out with Meloku the Clouded Mirror...
Man, I am one lucky son of a...
13-3 (6-1)
Before the start of the next round, I'm deeply worried. I am ranked 18th, and have the worst tiebreakers out of all those with as many points as I (13, I believe?). I ask Mike Flores, with whom I had been conversing quite a bit that day, on advice as to how I should handle the situation; whether it is wiser to play or draw in the coming round. I make the mistake of saying that I will at least receive half a box for placing 9th-16th if drawing doesn't get me in the top 8, to which he replies...
“How much money did you spend on your deck? How long did it take you to make it, and test it? How long did you drive here? What's half a box worth, $40?”
This really inspired me to just give it all I have and earn my Top 8 spot. And of course he was right; half a box is nothing. An invite is everything. And plus, I felt I couldn't lose at this point. After all, my only match loss was to a mana flood...
As fate would have it, not only did Mike inspire me, but I also got paired against one of his creations!
Round 8: Flores (Jushi) Blue (splash Black)
As I'm walking over to my seat, I see my opponent approaching it too. For superstitious reasons, we both want the same seat, and we flip a coin to see who gets it. I win the flip and sit down in the same seat I won my last match in. We sit down at table 1 and all start talking about who should draw and who should play. Turns out we may have to be re-paired due to a match slip gone wrong, but eventually I do end up playing the guy directly across from me. That coin flip wasn't for nothing after all.
Game 1:
He wins the roll and goes first, opening with a Watery Grave. When I see a turn 2 Thought Courier, I'm ecstatic. This matchup is excellent for me! I proceed to cast every Hierarch in my deck, finally resolving one. In between turns where I don't have an Elephant, I go for Putrefy and Mortify on the end steps, targeting his lone Thought Courier. He goes through Mana Leak, Remand, Hinder, Disrupting Shoal, Rewind... Eventually, he's out of counters, and that is when that Loxodon Hierarch went through! I attack him down to twelve before it eats a Last Gasp and Quicksand, but I have resolved a Phyrexian Arena at this point and am beating him down with two Sakura-Tribe Elders. They bring him down from eleven to zero. Go Go Snake Shaman Beats!
Sideboarding:
- 2 Wrath of God
- Simic Sky Swallower
+ 3 Okiba-Gang Shinobi
Game 2:
My opponent decides to play, and his first action is a Remand on my turn 3 Loxodon Hierarch, after which he throws a Cranial Extraction at me naming (surprise surprise!) Loxodon Hierarch. He takes it out of my hand, but I have Meloku, the Clouded Mirror, Keiga, the Tide Star, Phyrexian Arena, Putrefy, and Mortify left in my hand, with only 1 Black mana available.
At this point, he turns around, throws up his hands, and cries, “how can I win?! He has twenty-two land, ten accelerators, and every other card in his deck I have to counter!” The guy sitting next to him says, “man, you can't...”
I rip another Black source and cast Phyrexian Arena, resolving it. He untaps and throws another Cranial Extraction at me, naming Meloku the Clouded Mirror. But at this point, the game looks like it's over. I have a Phyrexian Arena in play, which is my biggest threat against any control deck. He has to keep countering my Persecute, and after he casts a Jushi Apprentice he has to fight to keep it alive through my Putrefy and Mortify. He's able to draw a few cards with it, but eventually I successfully remove it and then cast a Keiga, the Tide Star, who wins the game in four turns.
I can't believe it... But I just made the Top 8! And honestly, mostly thanks to Mike Flores, who I thank profusely for both making Jushi Blue (an excellent matchup for me), and for giving me the little pep talk about what I should do in my 8th round. If it wasn't for Mike, I may have packed my bags early that day.
15-3 (7-1)
Top 8: Ghost Husk
I was never aware that at the Top 8 both players got to view each other's deck lists, which was very painful for me, as my deck relies on that “what the @#$% is that?” factor to win. However, and I mean no disrespect to my opponent, he was rather young and care-free, and it didn't look like he took too much advantage of seeing my list. I would have at least noted that the deck runs Ninjas (more foreshadowing!)
Game 1:
We both play our duals tapped on our respective first turns, and I have a Sakura-Tribe Elder on my second turn. My opponent untaps, lays down a land, and after some deliberation opens with Dark Confidant, which is great for me. I sacrifice my Sakura-Tribe Elder, put a land into play tapped, untap, play another land, and Persecute for Black. A turn 3 Persecute on the play... How nice! I strip him of five cards, one of which was Castigate. I can understand that he only had two land, but I would always Castigate a control deck on turn 2. Anyway, he flips over Promise of Bunrei and plays it, attacking me with Confidant. I play a Phyrexian Arena and it's his turn again. He draws another Promise of Bunrei, but I am not worried a bit. I eventually Ninjitsu in Ink-Eyes, Servant of Oni in place of a Birds of Paradise to take his Orzhov Pontiff that I had forced him to discard with that beautiful Persecute... which turns out to be a mistake, as I also had the option of taking Ghost Council of Orzhova. I use Pontiff's ability to take care of his tokens, but he gets more from his other Promise of Bunrei. He attacks with two of the tokens, and I block a token with Pontiff, haunting the other attacking token. This brings up a ruling question... Who controls the haunt, and who will control the effect? I was under the impression that I will control both, thus after I Mortify his token I can choose the -1/-1 to all his creatures ability. Turns out that I am mistaken and that he controls both the haunt and the trigger. Oh poopy.
Anyway, it makes no difference as I add a Loxodon Hierarch to my team and force him to chump Ink-Eyes, Servant of Oni for the rest of the game. Once he can no longer do so, he concedes.
Funny enough, we both got a warning from the judge watching our game, as neither of us realized that Promise of Bunrei had to trigger at a certain point. I thought that Promise was an optional trigger, which is why I let it go, so I only get a warning. The judge asks us to play slower, as I also tapped five land at one point to cast Hierarch and Birds of Paradise, but only tapped one Green source. Tapping lands individually is tech...
Sideboarding:
- 3 Persecute
- Simic Sky Swallower
- 3 Phyrexian Arena
+ 4 Last Gasp
+ 3 Bottled Cloister
Game 2:
This game is kind of disappointing, as I am forced to mulligan a hand that consists of a Birds of Paradise and six land into two Birds of Paradise, Phyrexian Arena, and three land. After he Castigates my Phyrexian Arena (isn't he a quick learner?), the game is over. I fight to kill him via his own two Dark Confidants, but he never goes below nine.
No sideboarding
Game 3:
He gets a start of Hand of Cruelty, while I had a turn 2 Farseek, which leaves him praying that I don't get a turn 3 Persecute again. I probably should have sided them in, but I thought I would need Bottled Cloister more. A third turn Loxodon Hierarch puts me at twenty-four life, but I don't have much of anything else. He attacks me with the Hand of Cruelty, putting me at twenty-two, before passing the turn. I put Faith's Fetters on an Isamaru, Hound of Konda, and he uses a Kami of Ancient Law to get rid of it. I go back up to twenty-six, but he simply attacks with Hand of Cruelty again, adding Nantuko Husk to his force, which I promptly Mortify on the end-step, as I had been getting an absurd amount of mana. With seven land in play I stoke my deck (in an appropriate way!), and it feeds me Ink-Eyes, Servant of Oni (or as I like to call her, MVP). I slouch in my chair, hesitate, and eventually turn my Loxodon Hierarch sideways, and utter a weak “take four?” His board position at this point is...
Hand of Cruelty (tapped)
Isamaru, Hound of Konda
Kami of Ancient Law
Obviously, this guy does not play poker. Or maybe my emotions were so genuine that he really did think I drew a land and was making a desperate attempt to salvage my invitation, but whatever the cause may have been, after a little hesitation, he does let it through, which allows me to Ninjitsu the MVP in. I take the same Nantuko Husk I had killed before, and pass the turn. He attacks me for nine damage total after playing a Pontiff, and I choose to take it, as I have that same Loxodon Hierarch in my hand. At fifteen, I replay it, going up to nineteen, and swing with Ink-Eyes, Servant of Oni. He chumps her with Pontiff, and I Last Gasp in response to the haunt, and on his turn he does nothing. I play another Loxodon Hierarch, and attack with Ink-Eyes, Servant of Oni again. He continues to chump block her, as he can do little else. At this point, I'm sitting at twenty-three, and I Last Gasp the Hand of Cruelty just to ensure victory. A few turns later my large men (and female Ninja) win the game and earn me my Nationals invitation!
17-4 (8-1), a box, and an invite!
...
I still can't believe that my single copy of Ink-Eyes had at this point won me not only five games and two matches, but also the opportunity to play at Nationals! I promised myself I'd be adding another copy the moment I got home!
So, to summarize, some may say that I simply got lucky. I metagamed to beat aggro, and sure enough seven of my nine matches were versus aggro. However, to those people I say that my round 1 and 8 opponents had dedicated control decks, and I didn't drop a game to them. The maindeck has random utility versus control, and the sideboard of three Okiba-Gang Shinobi is very, very strong in the control matchup.
People keep sending me messages asking what I would change about the deck, which is like asking a dad if he'd rather have had a son and not the daughter he did. Maybe he would, but he would never admit it. The same applies to this deck; on MTGO, I would stick with the Wrath of God to handle aggro, but if I were to take this deck to Nationals, I would replace the Wraths with Okiba-Gang Shinobi in the main, because pros generally lean more towards control decks for big events (sorry Mike!). However, the wisest thing you can do at such an event is scout around, and figure out what the clear majority is... aggro, or non-aggro. If aggro, Wrath it is. If control/combo, Okiba-Gang goes in. However, I would lean more towards keeping Wrath in because aggro can “just win” certain games against you, so you could randomly drop a game 2 or 3 to them, whereas control has to earn their win past your card advantage (Phyrexian Arena, Bottled Cloister), and disruption (Persecute, Cranial Extraction, Okiba-Gang Shinobi). If I had to suggest a list for a tournament I could not predict the meta for, I would say...
4 Sakura-Tribe Elder
4 Loxodon Hierarch
2 Meloku the Clouded Mirror
2 Farseek
4 Faith's Fetters
4 Phyrexian Arena
2 Mortify
3 Putrefy
2 Ink-Eyes, Servant of Oni
2 Keiga, the Tide Star
4 Birds of Paradise
3 Persecute
2 Wrath of God
4 Overgrown Tomb
2 Temple Garden
1 Watery Grave
1 Godless Shrine
1 Vitu-Ghazi, The City-Tree
1 Island
2 Plains
4 Swamp
6 Forest
Sideboard
2 Wrath of God
3 Cranial Extraction
3 Okiba-Gang Shinobi
4 Last Gasp
3 Bottled Cloister
You just have to gamble with the Heartbeat matchup... And even though I never sided in Cranial Extraction, it cannot be cut; no way, no how. You need some serious help against Wildfire, and it certainly aids your disruption for Heartbeat. If they don't transform, you nail their Early Harvest / Heartbeat, but if they do, Meloku is the right call. If Magnivore and Wildfire Tron do dominate the meta (as I assume they will), Sacred Ground will have to be added to the sideboard to compensate for that matchup. Maybe Circle of Protection: Red will find a way back in, but I doubt it's a good solution, as Vore does run bounce...
Good luck to all those who wish to play this deck, but there is one very important thing you need to understand before taking this deck to a serious tournament: there is room for improvement. No, I'm not just saying that... When I changed Shaheen's list approximately ten minutes prior to end of registration, I was a nervous wreck. After all, he had posted such great results... I must be ruining the deck! However, I could not see Vitu-Ghazi, as great of a card as it is, winning more games with, say, a Ninja, than losing due to a color screw. And Okiba-Gang Shinobi is horrid against aggro, so I took those out for Wrath of God. I would have loved to play Boseiju, Who Shelters All as a twenty-third land (and in consequence a spell), but I could not find anything to cut for it. Just remember: if you know the deck well enough, don't be afraid to make a change that seems rational given the context of your environment. This deck is not Vore, nor is it Husk. It rarely, if ever, “just wins.” You need to earn every win by having flexible resources and simply out-lasting your opponent. If you feel you can make a change to enable you to accomplish that with more consistency, then go for it! Your first instinct is most likely the right one...
See you at Nationals!
Anton Goldblatt
|
