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Preparing for TCGPlayer Columbus
Kyle Boggemes
8/7/2012 9:50:00 AM So you think ya got what it takes to take down the trophy in the wild, wild midwest? The TCGplayer Open: Columbus is coming like a freight train and you better be ready. Sure, you got the talent, but you have to know the big picture in Standard; that's where I come in. Before I delve into the results from SCG DC, let's talk about the breakout deck from last weekend: Elves. There have been countless articles already discussing the power, but what type of impact would you expect going into an event the following weekend? I would expect a ton of Bonfire of the Damned and Gut Shot, but that's too obvious.  Last Friday, Craig Wescoe did a great job breaking down the pros and cons of Naya Pod as well as Bant Pod. While I think he was spot on regarding what he mentioned, a big piece was left out: Elves. After digesting the results from TCG Open: Providence and SCG Buffalo, I clearly had to figure out the new combo deck on the block. I ran my gauntlet (Bant Pod and Delver) against Stuart Parnes (PTQ ringer from Ann Arbor) who loves to play green accelerators. A side note on testing It may seem like an inconsequential detail, but it's important to find someone who loves the deck they play. The fact that Stu believes in Elfball decks makes him a great choice for playtesting this particular matchup. You might have one or two people who happen to be the best in your city to practice with, but they certainly can't master all of the different archetypes. It's worth your time to find players who are proficient in particular strategies. My playtest partner from the PTQ grinding days was Donald Kastner; he loved to play control decks as did I. As a result, I would often over-sideboard against combo because I wasn't comfortable with the matchups. Those types of decks are easy to beat if you jam a ton of hate in your board, but good practice will give you extra sideboard space. When we would play aggro or combo in testing, it was harder to keep a positive mindset while losing. On one side, the control player would be scrapping out of every situation, but a timely Wrath of God would send the aggro player packing because his heart just wasn't in it. I don't want to discount our testing because we came up with some great decks over the years- it just would have been better had we expanded our network. Stu works at Get Your Game On and has been playing less Magic lately, but still kicked my *** in testing; expand your horizons. If somebody from your area consistently plays combo, talk to them and see if they want to test some time - it will help your preparation for big events.
Back to Elves At first, ElfBall won every single game (about 6 in a row). The Bant Pod deck offered little resistance against the wave of elves; it was clearly a flawed matchup. My draws with Bant Pod were very good; I mulled once in four games and had the same curve (accelerator, Blade Splicer, Restoration Angel, Thragtusk) a majority of the time. The issue was that the elf deck was doing its thing unfettered each and every game. Their Restoration Angel would slow down my offense on the third turn which gave him time to cast a huge Genesis Wave and kill me. Versus Delver, the Elves matchup was closer, but I needed at least one Gut Shot to compete. Elves goes very big very fast which requires very early interaction. It was another case of Geist of Saint Traft plus Restoration Angel requiring all of your mana and elves doing their own thing. If you sit back and play control, Elvish Archdruid will eventually assemble enough mana to go big. Vapor Snag is your best weapon against the archdruid, but it's only a stalling card: you need pressure, too. What does this mean for the great debate? Bonfire of the Damned and Arc Trail are two of the best ways a creature deck can compete with Elf Ball. For this reason, I believe Naya Pod is the way to go for SCG DC. Bant Pod versus Elf Ball was reminiscent of a goblin deck fighting Storm despite it being a turn slower (or bringing a knife to a gunfight). Bant is a great option when the format is nothing but control, aggro, and midrange; combo changes the dynamic of Standard greatly. Everyone knows these little green men demand immediate attention if they want to take home a trophy so you can bet the hate will be turned up to eleven. This makes Pod decks of all shapes and sizes more of a gamble than in the past, but Naya will be better-positioned versus the current field. Enough pre-gaming, tell me the results! Okay already, sheesh... All you had to do is ask nicely. The breakdown for SCG DC: 7 UW Delver 2 Get ‘er Dungrove 1 BR Zombies 2 RG Aggro 2 Naya Pod 1 Frites 1 Wolf Run RUG The Pod versus Delver matchup is close because a lack of early Gut Shots means an explosive draw from Birthing Pod. I can see this being a possible answer for a smaller representation of Delver than the previous weekend (TCG: Providence and SCG: Buffalo where it was 10 out of 24 decks). My initial theory (which I wrote before the SCG event took place) was accurate; Elves did not dominate and Naya got a nod over Bant. Birthing Pod has had a huge surge in popularity recently and the increase in Bonfires and Gut Shots was the obvious answer. As a result of players shifting away from Bant, Elves had less room to play. Make no mistake, this is a very strong combo deck, but it was running into an Ambush at SCG DC. To get a better perspective, take a look at the winning decklist piloted by Reid Duke:
This deck was played by many of the east coast ringers last weekend, but didn't have an overly impressive result considering the number of pro points piloting the deck. After they regrouped, Reid managed to make some tweaks and take home the trophy. It has been a while since Ramp took something home other than a “last winner” trophy so expect a shakeup in the near future. Another Blast from the Past was Michael Wayne and his Frites deck:
It's not every week that we see this deck doing well so you need to ask yourself if it was a fluke or something to be learned. The increase in popularity of Birthing Pod likely made this deck a good choice which should be considered the next time we have a similar situation (probably in a month when mana dorks aren't under heavy fire). I was surprised to see Dungrove take two spots in the top 16:
Predator Ooze + Ulvenwald Tracker appears to be industry standard now. I don't mind the ooze when the number of bonfires is high. I would prefer to play RG Aggro considering Bonfire is just so strong, but don't underestimate the power of Revenge of the Hunted. Green had a great showing as two copies of RG also made it to the Top 16: (note: the Top 16 lists have RG Aggro listed as “Naya Aggro”)
Some interesting changes to the RG decks of yesteryear: - Maindeck Ancient Grudge seems much worse than a Viridian Corrupter considering you can search for it with Green Sun's Zenith. Although it kills two artifacts, you can't rely on a singleton in a deck that can't draw cards. - Gut Shot is getting the nod over Galvanic Blast and Pillar of Flame in order to ramp and disrupt in the early game. - Rancor is not getting any love because the swords are taking up the creature enhancement slots. - Thundermaw Hellkite is here to stay. I really like that card in combination with Gut Shot to beat green mirrors. - Sword of War and Peace is better with Gut Shot in any deck because you can kill Birds of Paradise and the rest of the popular flyers can't block an equipped birds. Zombies is also starting to play Gut Shot even though they can produce red mana. I think this is the start of a new trend as you want to curve out, but still kill mana dorks.
It's strange to only see a single Zombie deck in the top 16 given the large number of 1 toughness creatures. I can see Zombies actually falling to the wayside when it comes to dealing with mana dorks because white midrange decks have Blade Splicer and Thragtusk. The dynamic of the format is shifting because even a marginal draw from traditional pod decks can rip zombies apart. Perhaps Frites or Faithless Rites is the way to go considering Elesh Norn is great versus the Naya Pod decks. It's certainly worth noting that a chain of Phantasmal Images could be annoying out of Bant Pod (but they can't pod for them because mana dorks die immediately). Speaking of Pod...
As expected, the number of Bonfires keeps increasing beginning with Caleb Durward’s original list post M13 (he had 1 maindeck, 1 sideboard) that won SCG: St. Louis. It’s difficult to argue with a pod deck that plays so many bonfires compared to the bant version with a significantly lower amount of removal. My Naya Pod lists I have tested recently have cut Thalia, Guardian of Thraben because they were getting in the way of casting bonfire. The increasing amount of Gut Shots makes me hate the card even more. My big criticism for these two Naya Pod lists is the small number of Elvish Visionaries - that card has surpassed my already great expectations. I would cut Thalias for extra copies of visionary as it’s one of the better creatures to pod away and blink with Restoration Angel. Delver has undergone some changes since last weekend:
Hero of Bladehold made an appearance in the maindeck for the first time since Josh Utter-Leyton designed the Honor of the Pure list. Although Restoration Angel is very good, Hero gets around hate such as Plummet and Crushing Vines so beware. It’s also worth noting that this version does not play any equipment and I think there are too many lands considering the number of cheap spells. Double white might have been too difficult to pull off with only twenty lands. I would say this particular version was a metagame call for the Elves and Birthing Pod because of the large amount of phyrexian mana spells that screw up Birds of Paradise and Avacyn’s Pilgrim (4 Gut Shot 2 Mental Misstep). Ben Lundquist (Benny Beatdownz) made it to the top 4 with Geist and Augur:
When’s the last time you saw a Delver deck with only two Geist of Saint Traft? I love decks like this because it challenges your perception of what can and cannot be done. A sacred cow was to play four copies of geist or none at all; apparently Benny thinks otherwise. Ryan Phraner also cut a Geist of Saint Traft, but plays a different set of equipment:
Cool decklists that didn’t quite get there Tezzy + Trading Post=GG
My buddy, Lance played this deck at a local event. He was winning with it, but I don’t think the deck is quite there yet.
Monogreen Infect could take people by surprise:
I was thinking about RUG Pod because I want Bonfire of the Damned, but the blue creatures are the best with Birthing Pod (Phantasmal Image and Deceiver Exarch). I don’t want to steal the wind from Jackie’s sail since I assume she will also discuss this deck.
Another interesting approach to Birthing Pod was by PTQ ringer, Matt McCullough:
Matt went 5-2 last weekend at a PTQ in Detroit. He said the mana was fine and that was the only problem I could have seen arise. Clearly, the mana will be slightly worse by adding the fourth color, but if the increase in power outweighs the inconsistencies, it’s worth it. If you want to compensate for something, try out this deck:
or this:
Clearly there was a ton of innovation this week; Standard is anything but stagnant. Sometimes the fun stuff isn’t immediately at the surface, but just need to know where to look. UW Augur Update I’m excited to share a piece of technology with you this week - Twisted Image. That’s right; it’s still legal in Standard until October. Why would I possibly want this card? - Makes Augur of Bolas a 3/1 - Kills Birds of Paradise and Blood Artist - Saves Snapcaster Mage from Gut Shot (and nets you a 2 for 1) - Serves as a Gut Shot in the Restoration Angel fights. If you attack with an angel and they flash in their own copy, they can kill yours with a Gut Shot. When you don’t have a shot of your own, you’re left staring down a 3/4 flying without protection. The Twisted Image will serve as a way to make their angel a 4/3 with 3 damage on it. Gut Shot is worse since you keep your two life and draw a card in the process. - Shrinks Insectile Aberration, Gravecrawler, Geralf’s Messenger, Thragtusk, and Falkenrath Aristocrat. - Targets Phantasmal Image. - Clears Birds of Paradise out of the way for a Restoration Angel equipped with Sword of War and Peace. The major draw of Sword of Feast and Famine was the ability to attack through a Birds, but you now have more ways than ever to kill them. With the current metagame, war and peace attacks through all of the important flyers - Restoration Angel, Thundermaw Hellkite, spirit tokens, and Falkenrath Aristocrat. - Makes your deck more powerful overall while still being good against mana accelerators. Although it doesn’t kill Avacyn’s Pilgrim or Lanowar Elves, nearly every green creature deck (including Elves) plays Birds of Paradise. Initially, I wanted to play a third copy of Gut Shot, but it was a dead draw in too many situations. Mental Misstep was alright in the maindeck, but it was too awkward against Cavern of Souls naming human. When Twisted Image is dead (a rare occasion), you can cash it in for a card. - The fact that Twisted Image is an instant also keeps my options open for flashing it back at any time with Snapcaster Mage (he’s also a target). So I have been hyping up this card quite a bit, what are the risks? - This is the only cycler in consideration that requires a creature to be in play. For this reason, I don’t want too many copies because it’s bad at finding lands in the early game. - If you target a creature and it dies in response, you get blown out. - Opportunity Cost: I doubt you want to play a deck with 4 Ponder, 4 Gitaxian Probe, 4 Thought Scour, and at least one Twisted Image. This means you need to cut a cantrip, but which one to remove? UW Augur actually doesn’t use the graveyard very much so I like cutting two Thought Scours. One of the big criticisms of my deck was that it has too many cantrips that don’t help the overall game plan- until now. Thought Scour is typically at its best when you play Runechanter’s Pike and/or Delver of Secrets, but Ponder still offers a nice interaction (keep one or two cards and mill the garbage). I also still play a couple Moorland Haunts which means milling creatures is still relevant. -This card is under the radar, but will be more transparent if it picks up. Show me the decklist already! You guys are pushy today; here’s the list:
On a smaller note, I added the fourth Phantasmal Image to the maindeck over Runechanter’s Pike. I wanted another high-impact card, but the pike was too expensive; I would often find myself flooded with equipments. In many cases, I wanted to copy an Augur of Bolas or Snapcaster Mage, but needed to save the image for Restoration Angel. I also cut Rewind for Dissipate because you can cast the counter on turn 3 and Restoration Angel on turn four. Part of the reason I love Rewind is the ability to cast both on turn 4, but Dissipate gives you the same result in the average scenario. I also like countering Lingering Souls and Gravecrawler permanently. Tying everything together Once again, I threw a ton of knowledge your way; make sure to bring paper and pen next time. This week, I’ll give you a cheat sheet for what’s to come at TCG Columbus: - Elves is a powerful deck, but Bonfire of the Damned and Gut Shot scared them away for now. - Delver isn’t going anywhere and Hero of Bladehold is the new bomb to be ready to fight. Cards like Plummet and Crushing Vines are clearly weaker if this version is adopted in large amounts which makes Combust more powerful. I believe this deck will gain steam because Gerry Thompson, Josh Cho, and Charles Gindy played it. - Frites Top 8’ed which makes me think cheating an early Elesh Norn into play is a viable strategy to fight green decks. - Zombies and RG Aggro adopted Gut Shot and Delver played as many as four copies. This is your cue to evaluate your current deck and decide if it’s worth playing even if you can produce red mana. - RUG Ramp is a more consistent Primeval Titan deck than the traditional RG version and is also much more popular. It was previously okay if you left the ramp hate at home, but be ready for RUG. - I have seen many people at local events and streams playing Twisted Image already; don’t think you won't face it. - Have fun! Thanks for reading, Kyle |
  
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