Magic the Gathering: Arena

[richleader]

Had fun watching Ashlizzle winning lots of packs. I thought about joining in with her Rakdos but I don't think I'd have the patience in standard to deal with giant board stalls vs. green or Gandalf Gandalfing.

Hadn't played in a few days so when I jumped in to ranked today, I got paired against Eldrazi and immediately despaired. Especially being on the draw.

They somehow left an opening for me to get damage through in game 1, mostly because they were a planeswalker gamer. Game 2 was their typical nonsense where they got away with playing extra lands like Sanctum of Ugin.

Then game 3:

I drop a turn 2 Jarsyl that has no spell to cast. They decide to turn off Goyfs with a Torpor Orb... Which lets me Swiftspear haste a Kroxa. Immediate scoop. Felt awesome. Still 10 spots short of top 250 but not bad for taking the entire weekend off from Magic.

 

[richleader]

I had a few games stall out last week (cost me two drafts) and after Arena crashed, loading back in would result in an instant crash too, requiring a restart. I had thought it was getting a new video card or a driver update but now whenever I go to a deck screen of any sort, the "waiting on server" message triggers an immediate crash. Dunno now. But Arena is cooked for me. Maybe for the best based on this thread...

 

[richleader]

Good news: reinstalling arena made arena work again. Bad news: using the Installed Apps tab to remove arena has somehow ruined my installed apps tab and it crashes as soon as it's opened. WTF. Don't have to time to reinstall windows in-place now.

Despite worrying that a bug/crash could stop Arena in its tracks, I fell to the temptation of the historic metagame challenge.

I've still never gone all the way. Lost to freaking Samwise Gamgee in the final round after a mull to five in game 3.

On Jund Goyf. Beat:

Wizards
UB Garbage
Val Combo
Wizards
Val Combo
Boros Energy

 

[richleader]

Won about 40 packs over the weekend but my first run was still the best.

Friday: lots of decks that didn't belong
Saturday: I wanna do the thing decks ("I just want to play Karn and fetch Liquidmetal coating and blow up all your lands because I'm a wacky doodle and everyone at my FGLS loves me!")
Sunday: only try-hards left, was facing Eldrazi as soon as I got my first win

My one run with Mardu Auras went relatively poorly because a bad mulligan can destroy you and other top decks can sideboard better against you than you can against them; Valakut had several copies of Back to Nature along with Haywire Mites.

Better luck with Jund Goyfs but I lost in match 4 of my final run to the mirror, a stupid build that tried to pair Anex with that Changeling that makes a mutavault for extra demons (and counts as a goyf for pyro), plus lots of 1-ofs. Maybe there's something there. It is less weak to hardcore graveyard hate. But my opponent despite their self-deprecating name -- always the clever teeheers you have to worry about -- used 5 minutes of play time for every 1 minute that I used and I couldn't even keep focus on the game after alt-tabbing back and forth. I just wanted out and at the first bit of bad luck I mentally checked out.

 

[richleader]

https://magic.wizards.com/en/news/announcements/banned-and-restricted-february-9-2026

Only fake magic card formats got hit.

And they seem really concerned about Bo1 for the first time, really.


View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NAwQSu2YSXE


The one thing I worry about is that the changes make Gandalf's day easier. It doesn't take much to convince Teferi players that a 40% win rate is more exciting than a 35% win rate so they should play their favorite deck more.

 

[richleader]

Jund Mirrors are the future of Historic. Psychic Frog players continue to be annoying though, given how many fake Magic cards to which they also have access. Lotus Field is probably still the best deck despite losing crop rotation but you have to be a psychopath to play it casually.

 

[richleader]

Played against my two least favorite opponents today.

Ran into #2 (as in #2 on the ladder) TWICE, Jund mirror match both times where they were both exceedingly lucky in game 1. User name is Hindi for "my family used Jim Crow like laws against my neighbors for 2000 years and all I got was good at Magic."

The other opponent also has a name after some town in India. They've been playing Eldrazi at a super slow rate of play for over a year now. Now that their deck is terrible, they'll stall after every turn that entirely involves manually tapping. Yaarg...

I wish more than 10 people played this game.

 

[richleader]

Got a close victory over #1 on the ladder today so I'm finally entitled to talk about Psychic Frog: The Format Historic Bo3.

While there are handful of people trying to make Boros Energy work post Ajani banning, leaning into the Mobilize mechanic as bad builds used to do, it's really Jund vs. Dimir.

* They both have terrible mirror matches leading to lots of buttcrack energy: while I used to rag on Jund players with lots of 1-ofs, a 5-mana play like Minsc, the fact that everyone is Surgical Extracting everyone's win-cons, means the streamlined decks you needed to try to race Eldrazi are a thing of the past. Losing the Jund mirror to a top 15 player that Shifting Woodlanded a Barrowgoyf turn after turn while we were in a top deck war made me include one, too. Everyone's lists are getting worse in the same way that Eldrazi vs. Eldrazi led to more annoying lists all around.

* As a Jund player, I used to love/hate Frog players since they tended to be really bad. So I'm not sure if the decks got better or if good players are now on Frog (as #1 was in the above screen). The biggest buff vs. Jund is Harbinger of the Seas. Even if you get an Ignoble Hierarch down on turn 1, they'll tend to have bounce spells as well as removal.

There are three builds:

1. Basic with Baleful Strix, draw cards, use them for Force of Negation (#1 was on this)

2. Greedlord: Abhorrent Occulus + reanimation spells

3. Blink + Bounce: Quantum Riddler pairs well with Psychic Frog as you can discard down to 1 at will to get the maximum draw with Riddler and having blink to double dip isn't bad.

* The other main archetype I'm seeing (beyond the low percentage players going full Gandalf) is the High Noon deck with a variety of flash creatures to just tempo and be annoying for as long as possible. A lot of people on other decks have moved to four copies of Snuff Out across their 75 to attempt to have enough reactionary plays.

What I want banned?:

All the Lord of the Rings cyclers just to kill the cycling cycle: Lorien Revealed, Troll of Khazad Dum have been annoying far too long and they're basically asking for 56 card decks as auto-includes, even if you're not doing much with them. Troll has been an annoying secondary Persist target for too long, even if it's not winning tournaments, but Lorien comboing with Hydroponics Architect is really annoying when the High Noon deck uses it for persistent card advantage, being even better than Tamiyo. These cards are kind of flavor fails turned into a cycle as disparate in power as the original boons (Healing Salve vs. etc.), and it's just my bias but I hate seeing them everywhere outside of multicolor decks.

 

[richleader]

Up to Top 500 (470ish) with Jund.

Spoiler

Companion
1 Jegantha, the Wellspring (IKO) 222

Deck
1 Swiftspear's Teachings (Y25) 14
4 Barrowgoyf (M3C) 102
1 Crucias, Titan of the Waves (Y23) 18
3 Jarsyl, Dark Age Scion (Y23) 20
4 Pyrogoyf (M3C) 111
4 Fatal Push (KLR) 84
1 Abrupt Decay (OTP) 34
2 Inquisition of Kozilek (STA) 31
2 Thoughtseize (AKR) 127
4 Malevolent Rumble (MH3) 161
1 Grist, the Hunger Tide (MH2) 202
1 Forest (WAR) 262
1 Swamp (WAR) 257
1 Mountain (WAR) 260
2 Blood Crypt (RNA) 245
2 Stomping Ground (RNA) 259
2 Overgrown Tomb (GRN) 253
2 Blackcleave Cliffs (ONE) 248
2 Blooming Marsh (KLR) 280
4 Prismatic Vista (SPG) 38
1 Boseiju, Who Endures (NEO) 266
1 Takenuma, Abandoned Mire (NEO) 278
4 Starting Town (FIN) 289
4 Ignoble Hierarch (MH2) 166
1 Detective's Phoenix (MH3) 116
1 Kroxa, Titan of Death's Hunger (MUL) 114
1 Formidable Speaker (ECL) 176
1 Fable of the Mirror-Breaker (NEO) 141
1 A-Minsc & Boo, Timeless Heroes (HBG) 243
1 Shifting Woodland (MH3) 228

Sideboard
3 Surgical Extraction (OTP) 19
2 Thoughtseize (AKR) 127
2 Snuff Out (DDD) 53
1 Dark Confidant (FIN) 94
2 Culling Ritual (STX) 172
1 Jegantha, the Wellspring (IKO) 222
3 Abrupt Decay (OTP) 34
1 Hexing Squelcher (ECL) 145

My list has verged into Crokeyz territory with the 1-ofs. /facepalm.

I used to play a bunch of Mardu Auras as well but both Jund and Dimir have too much removal to make it viable, especially now that both of them are using more instants to fight Azorius High Noon decks. There might be a good red deck in the format but even Wizards has a rough time vs. Barrowgoyf.

 

[richleader]

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A_-ZqGeG9bk


Just a reminder that a year ago the CEO dooder said they were testing a commander client that could obsolete Arena...

 

[richleader]

Decks for Historic metagame challenge:

Spoiler: Jund

Companion
1 Jegantha, the Wellspring (IKO) 222

Deck
1 Swiftspear's Teachings (Y25) 14
4 Barrowgoyf (M3C) 102
1 Crucias, Titan of the Waves (Y23) 18
3 Jarsyl, Dark Age Scion (Y23) 20
4 Pyrogoyf (M3C) 111
4 Fatal Push (KLR) 84
1 Abrupt Decay (OTP) 34
2 Inquisition of Kozilek (STA) 31
2 Thoughtseize (AKR) 127
4 Malevolent Rumble (MH3) 161
1 Grist, the Hunger Tide (MH2) 202
2 Forest (WAR) 262
2 Swamp (WAR) 257
2 Mountain (WAR) 260
2 Blood Crypt (RNA) 245
2 Stomping Ground (RNA) 259
2 Overgrown Tomb (GRN) 253
2 Blooming Marsh (KLR) 280
4 Prismatic Vista (SPG) 38
1 Boseiju, Who Endures (NEO) 266
4 Starting Town (FIN) 289
4 Ignoble Hierarch (MH2) 166
1 Detective's Phoenix (MH3) 116
1 Kroxa, Titan of Death's Hunger (MUL) 114
1 Formidable Speaker (ECL) 176
1 Fable of the Mirror-Breaker (NEO) 141
1 A-Minsc & Boo, Timeless Heroes (HBG) 243
1 Shifting Woodland (MH3) 228

Sideboard
3 Surgical Extraction (OTP) 19
1 Thoughtseize (AKR) 127
2 Snuff Out (DDD) 53
1 Dark Confidant (FIN) 94
2 Culling Ritual (STX) 172
1 Jegantha, the Wellspring (IKO) 222
2 Abrupt Decay (OTP) 34
1 Hexing Squelcher (ECL) 145
2 Meltdown (MH3) 282

Pros: good at beating jank (Meltdown and Culling ritual in the board), all around great deck
Cons: can be weak to combo protected by leylines (some of the foodchain decks are using that), no one surrenders even when you have the edge over them

Spoiler: Quantum Dimir

Deck
4 Tamiyo, Inquisitive Student (MH3) 242
4 Psychic Frog (MH3) 199
2 Snapcaster Mage (SIS) 23
2 Baleful Strix (BLC) 86
3 Quantum Riddler (EOE) 72
1 Cling to Dust (THB) 87
4 Fatal Push (KLR) 84
2 Spell Snare (ECL) 71
4 Counterspell (STA) 15
1 Sheoldred's Edict (ONE) 108
1 Shoot the Sheriff (OTJ) 106
1 Dismember (SPG) 41
2 Force of Negation (MH1) 52
1 Force of Negation (TLE) 13
2 Sink into Stupor (MH3) 241
3 Thoughtseize (AKR) 127
4 Lórien Revealed (LTR) 60
1 Kaito, Bane of Nightmares (DSK) 220
4 Island (WAR) 255
2 Swamp (WAR) 257
4 Watery Grave (GRN) 259
2 Darkslick Shores (ONE) 250
1 Creeping Tar Pit (WWK) 134
4 Prismatic Vista (SPG) 38
1 Otawara, Soaring City (NEO) 271

Sideboard
2 Spell Pierce (XLN) 81
2 Stern Scolding (LTR) 71
1 Surgical Extraction (OTP) 19
2 Barrowgoyf (M3C) 102
2 Harbinger of the Seas (MH3) 63
3 Mystical Dispute (ELD) 58
3 Toxic Deluge (MH3) 277

Pros: All around good deck. Can lucksack a win via Harbinger of the Seas.
Cons: you're going to have to grind out most wins

Spoiler: Food Chain Humans

Deck
4 Esper Sentinel (MH2) 12
4 Noble Hierarch (CONF) 87
4 Avacyn's Pilgrim (SIS) 48
4 Juggernaut Peddler (Y23) 23
4 Sigardian Evangel (Y22) 9
1 Imodane's Recruiter (WOE) 229
2 Extraction Specialist (SNC) 12
4 Recruiter of the Guard (MH3) 266
1 Witch Enchanter (MH3) 239
1 Tajic, Legion's Valor (Y24) 28
4 Birthing Ritual (MH3) 146
4 Food Chain (TMC) 133
2 Forest (WAR) 262
2 Plains (WAR) 250
4 Cavern of Souls (LCI) 269
4 Mana Confluence (JOU) 163
4 Prismatic Vista (SPG) 38
3 Echoing Cavern (Y26) 30
4 Starting Town (FIN) 289

Sideboard
2 A-Haywire Mite (BRO) 199
1 Dauntless Dismantler (LCI) 8
3 Jirina, Dauntless General (MAT) 32
1 Faerie Macabre (SPG) 0
4 Brutal Cathar (MID) 7
4 Seam Rip (EOE) 34

Pros: can go infinite on turn 3. This list is fairer than most, less all in on the combo.
Cons: opponents will make you click through the combo in this event just because it's one and out

Spoiler: Boros Auras

Companion
1 Lurrus of the Dream-Den (IKO) 226

Deck
4 Esper Sentinel (MH2) 12
4 Kor Spiritdancer (JMP) 116
4 Doorkeeper Thrull (MKM) 13
4 Light-Paws, Emperor's Voice (NEO) 25
4 Thought Partition (Y25) 4
1 Sentinel's Eyes (THB) 36
4 Shardmage's Rescue (DSK) 29
4 Ethereal Armor (DSK) 7
1 Gryff's Boon (SIR) 31
1 Hammerhand (DMU) 129
4 Sheltered by Ghosts (DSK) 30
4 Demonic Ruckus (OTJ) 120
1 Mountain (WAR) 260
3 Plains (WAR) 250
4 Inspiring Vantage (KLR) 283
4 Sunbaked Canyon (MH1) 247
4 Prismatic Vista (SPG) 38
1 Battlefield Forge (BRO) 257
4 Sacred Foundry (GRN) 254

Sideboard
4 Adanto Vanguard (XLN) 1
2 Pithing Needle (MID) 257
4 Seam Rip (EOE) 34
4 Rest in Peace (OMB) 6

Pros: can win really quickly if you just wanna jam spacebar and hope to win some cards
Cons: a bad mulligan can end your journey easily

Spoiler: Food Chain Goblins

Deck
1 Skirk Prospector (DAR) 144
1 Mountain (WAR) 260
4 Ignoble Hierarch (MH2) 166
4 Copperline Gorge (ONE) 249
2 Battle Cry Goblin (HBG) 175
3 Rundvelt Hordemaster (DMU) 142
4 Conspicuous Snoop (M21) 139
2 Goblin Anarchomancer (MH2) 200
2 Boggart Trawler (MH3) 243
4 Stomping Ground (RNA) 259
4 Goblin Matron (MH1) 129
4 Goblin Warchief (DAR) 130
4 Food Chain (TMC) 133
4 Goblin Ringleader (M20) 143
1 Krenko, Mob Boss (FDN) 204
4 Muxus, Goblin Grandee (JMP) 24
4 Karplusan Forest (DMU) 250
4 Cavern of Souls (LCI) 269
4 Echoing Cavern (Y26) 30

Sideboard
2 Shove Aside (Y24) 16
3 Tarfire (LRW) 194
3 Ghost Vacuum (DSK) 248
1 Nameless Inversion (ECL) 113
2 Munitions Expert (MH1) 209
1 Hexing Squelcher (ECL) 145
1 Squee, the Immortal (DAR) 146
1 Chomping Changeling (ECL) 172
1 Goblin Trashmaster (ANB) 72

Pros: if you run into Gandalf, he's effed, even if beating him will still suck. You won't really have to click through a combo win and if you do, it's a lot of fun, unlike with humans. A top decked Muxus can win out of nowhere.
Cons: a lot of matches vs. Jund/Dimir are 50/50 at best and it'll feel like they're getting the better of you most often, even if you still have that muxus chance in hell

 

[richleader]

Did it! Boros Auras. Got lucky in that I had one person playing food chain for the first time who missed they could use it at instant speed with evoke creatures. And in the final match vs. Jund where I was a dog. I recognized two opponent names from actual Bo3 Historic play.

Had a 10 pack win earlier with Jund but this is my first time ever getting past six wins which is usually my hurdle. In the 30 packs, only one was Modern Masters 3. Got lots of early Arena packs though from when it was easy to collect everything because there weren't seven sets a year so that's just a pittance in gems. Still feels fantastic though.

 

[richleader]

I forgot I had started one final Metagame run yesterday, trying out a Mardu Goyf list (basically one of those old Sorin decks with Phelia that got nerfed) that has good game vs. both Jund/Dimir but is less effective vs. jank.

Opened Arena during lunch and decided to resume: beat someone on mono white lifegain and then I ran into someone obviously Italian. On Wizards without the Wizards because you wouldn't want to close out games in less than forty minutes, especially if it makes removal dead in game 1. Decided during game 2 that I had errands to run and no time to play at Italian pace. We really need to sever internet connections with that country for turn based games.

 

[richleader]

Did a turtles draft: sultai, low power rares, decent synergy otherwise. Went 3-0, got put into hell queue, got blasted by mythics, lose two, Arena searches for 3 minutes to find me a bad enough opponent, get placed vs. someone three entire ranks above me (bronze vs. plat) who has both Leo Sewer Samurai and Triceraton Commander (who gets played out, sneaks, and played out again for maximum unblockable dinos).

I hate limited. It's stupid. It's terrible that Magic card creation/sales is dominated by the two things I hate most, limited and commander.

 

[richleader]

Ran CGB's Raphael deck for WNM, no one was really ready for 22 points of damage.

Still in the top 500 but only barely. I'm playing Alth's Mardu Scam deck when I need to re-up in rank. I keep forgetting that while Doorkeeper stops artifacts from drawing cards, it's Hushbringer that stops Arcbound Ravager. (People really want to play Krang decks.)


View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NUwh5QgVxRw

 

[richleader]

Food Chain is banned in Historic. I'm ok with this because most of the builds that didn't involve Goblins took too long to combo out. OTOH, I enjoyed beating them with the above Scam deck and catching people playing Affinity with splash damage.

I don't particularly enjoy Jund vs. Dimir (or Dimir vs. Dimir or Jund vs. Jund) so I'm kinda sad to see all the Chain decks leave the format. And Auras isn't great vs. Jund OR Dimir.

I've seen a lot of people playing Bant Badgermole where they copy it, clone it with Mockingbird, tutor for additional ones, and then draw a million cards with Plagon.

How is this a real Magic card and not some Spongebob Universes Beyond nonsense? Imagine that in 1993 when they managed to make Dandan look menacing.

Did my second Turtles draft:

Going first with Sneak is really good. Big surprise. It was worth splashing the green for Mikey and Don -- despite the three mulligans I had to take, I averaged about eight cards per cast. Final boss was Does Machines + Krang and I got in enough early damage that they were chumping with free 3/3s and the Party Planners outvalued them. Even when I go 7-X, I still think limited is dumb.

 

[richleader]

I thought that I kinda like Mardu Goyf over Jund and Dimir but I'm not so sure; there are so many components to make the blink engine happen that it makes it harder to sideboard than with Jund. I don't currently like Dimir because while it's better vs. combo, it's got a rougher matchup vs. Affinity and other stuff that people really enjoy playing.

Got a win vs. 125 today to stay in the top 400 (although only went up like 10 ranks, although not bad for only playing two matches this week):

They were on 5 color legends: Kethis without Kethis. I had a really good grip in game 3.

The list I stole

Spoiler: mardu goyf

Deck
4 Esper Sentinel (MH2) 12
2 Dedicated Dollmaker (Y24) 2
1 Emperor of Bones (MH3) 90
3 Juggernaut Peddler (Y23) 23
4 Phelia, Exuberant Shepherd (MH3) 40
4 Barrowgoyf (M3C) 102
1 Boggart Trawler (MH3) 243
4 Pyrogoyf (M3C) 111
1 Witch Enchanter (MH3) 239
4 Overlord of the Balemurk (DSK) 113
4 Fatal Push (KLR) 84
1 Fragment Reality (Y22) 4
2 Bitter Triumph (LCI) 91
4 Thoughtseize (AKR) 127
1 Plains (WAR) 250
2 Swamp (WAR) 257
1 Mountain (WAR) 260
1 Blood Crypt (RNA) 245
1 Sacred Foundry (GRN) 254
2 Concealed Courtyard (KLR) 282
2 Inspiring Vantage (KLR) 283
4 Prismatic Vista (SPG) 38
2 Silent Clearing (MH1) 246
1 Eiganjo, Seat of the Empire (NEO) 268
4 Starting Town (FIN) 289

Sideboard
2 Alpine Moon (M19) 128
2 Curse of Silence (MID) 15
1 Duress (FDN) 606
2 Requiting Hex (ECL) 116
1 Surgical Extraction (OTP) 19
2 Damping Sphere (DAR) 213
1 Dismember (SPG) 41
4 Divine Purge (Y22) 4

Is fairly conservative although it might want a few more basics. I've seen people playing like 4x Witch Enchanter/3x Boggart Trawler acting like Magus of the Moon/Fish Moon Guy don't exist.

 

[richleader]

If I wasn't saturated with turtles in Magic, I probably would have gone "oh cool" over these wrestling shoes. Nostalgia has definitely hit a tipping point for me.

Standard actually looks funnish provided you're not doing control mirrors all day. Or trying to buy a deck in real life...

 

[Starbuck79]

@richleader If someone were to get back into Arena after years away, likely with some packs and coins still saved, where would you suggest they start with fun but not necessarily super competitive modes?

Turns out that I have the following:

2,100 Gold
2100 Gems
186 Common Wildcards
230 Uncommon Wildcards
89 Rare Wildcards
37 Mythic Wildcards

Suggestions for decks that would be fairly simply to play?

 

[richleader]

I find every kind of Magic on Arena to be equally frustrating in its own way so you might as well choose the methods that pay back the most: that means getting good at either limited or metagame challenges (where the buy in is low and the payout is reasonable).

* You might have close to a Pioneer deck already. The format doesn't change as frequently as Historic/Timeless does and the cards that they get are often close to impossible to open from packs. The format is basically dead from WOTC's end though so you don't get frequent influxes of pro decklists to copy.

https://mtgdecks.net/Pioneer/decklists

* Other people in this thread, if they're checking in, can help you out with Brawl far better than I could ever do but that's also an increasingly expensive format and would probably drain your stockpiles immediately just to get the new staples that have been added over the past year or two.

* I still prefer Bo3 Historic as the least frustrating format but not everyone is into sideboarding or setting aside a block of time for a full match even if most are over fairly quickly (unless you let a control mage bully you instead of conceding to them).


View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rs63EpY2yV0


For me, I'll generally pick up a new deck that someone spanks me with and makes me go "I want to try that!" Since that's not a possibility for you, you'd probably have to watch some sort of video and see if anything sparks your interest vicariously.

For a lot of people, getting Izzet lands will let them play Prowess in Pioneer and Wizards in Historic with some amount of overlap and let you both do dailies as well as try your hand at metagame challenges.

 

[richleader]

Won 20 packs in the pioneer metagame challenge running:

Spoiler: Dimir Scam

Deck
2 Sheoldred, the Apocalypse (DMU) 107
4 Phyrexian Fleshgorger (BRO) 121
4 Quantum Riddler (EOE) 72
2 Kavaero, Mind-Bitten (OM1) 140
4 Deceit (ECL) 212
4 Fatal Push (KLR) 84
2 Go for the Throat (J25) 447
4 Essence Flux (JMP) 151
1 Sheoldred's Edict (ONE) 108
1 Bitter Triumph (LCI) 91
4 Thoughtseize (AKR) 127
4 Unholy Annex // Ritual Chamber (DSK) 118
3 Swamp (WAR) 257
1 Underground River (BRO) 267
4 Watery Grave (GRN) 259
4 Mutavault (M14) 228
1 Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth (PIO) 118
3 Darkslick Shores (ONE) 250
2 Clearwater Pathway (ZNR) 260
1 Otawara, Soaring City (NEO) 271
1 Takenuma, Abandoned Mire (NEO) 278
4 Gloomlake Verge (DSK) 260

Sideboard
2 Damping Sphere (DAR) 213
1 Virulent Plague (DTK) 125
1 Unmoored Ego (GRN) 212
1 Brazen Borrower (ELD) 39
1 Mystical Dispute (ELD) 58
1 Kaervek, the Spiteful (M21) 106
1 Shadows' Verdict (ZNR) 124
2 Go Blank (STX) 72
2 The Meathook Massacre (MID) 112
2 Unlicensed Hearse (SNC) 246
1 Anoint with Affliction (ONE) 81

I had to buy 3x Deceit to play it so I probably lost value overall (only one pack of pioneer masters in rewards) which is hysterical because I spent a ton of gold on mythic Lorwyn packs because of the frequency I expected to get cards from the elemental cycle but I somehow whiffed and got everything else instead. Another bad decision.

I lost game 2 + 3 vs. combo greasefang (as opposed to aggro builds) in the final due to hands that did nothing after getting thought-seized and them having turn 3 combo in game 3. Felt bad.

What felt worse was the game before it when I ran into hardcore Gandalf who was content to spend 45 minutes playing games 1 + 2 only for them to do nothing and die game 3. Winning still felt like a waste of time but I definitely didn't want packs going to such a fartknocker:

I had tried a run with Izzet Prowess prior to this and lost the first match vs. someone who was trying to loop all their lands to deplete their library to win with Thassa's Oracle. They won game 2 + 3 with seven minute turns. Did they really want to spend their entire weekend like that just to win 30 packs that were mostly useless to them? Or worse, do all of that and scrub out at five packs? This game is definitely for losers...

At any rate, I mostly like Dimir Scam, the sideboard makes sense, it has proactive plays, but if you don't have turn 3 Riddler + blink or Unholy Anex, you're probably losing since it's a fairly tough meta. The Deceits were consistantly the least helpful of the creatures and Kavaero was a bit too cute, although it did make people overside in graveyard hate even though that's not something this deck even cares about.

 

[necklessone]

I'm still checking in (and playing a bunch of Brawl).

The biggest issue with Brawl is really the lands - they are just a large wildcard hungry barrier to entry. That's eased with a 1 or 2 color commander, but it was intimidating when I started.

In general Brawl has been a pretty chill place to play some magic. I almost never encounter ropers and rarely encounter rage quits.

There should be a free metagame event opening up late today for Brawl that is All Access (aka don't actually need the cards). It's part of the testing their doing for a more competitive Brawl format so the queue may be a little rougher but it could be a way to tip one's toe in without committing wild cards.

 

[richleader]

I'm done with Pioneer.

Only weirdos play it. Like Alchemy, where you're as likely to get someone in Mythic as Bronze as an opponent, things are fairly variant. But even more so because it's for weirdos. I'm a bit of a weirdo in that I hate fake cards to a certain extent and Pioneer is the format for real cards. But everyone there is weirder than me.

I just faced #4 in Mythic on day 3 of the month. Does this person do anything but play Arena? Probably not. I play too much Magic and I'm still in Platinum like a normal person. And when you get matched vs. Gold Player (aka someone who didn't get to Mythic last month), they're probably on mono-white control with infinite wraths plus Ugin, which your meta-deck doesn't stand a chance against. Finally, UW Control is more competitive there than in Historic so when Gandalf is looking to waste an entire HOUR of someone's time in a Bo3, I usually have to autoconcede because my time is more valuable than theirs.

It's sad that WOTC killed Pioneer. But it kinda has it coming.

 

[richleader]

Spoiler

4 Sandsteppe Citadel
4 Plains
2 Overgrown Tomb
2 Restless Fortress
2 Swamp
2 Fountainport
2 Bleachbone Verge
1 Demolition Field
1 Hidden Courtyard
1 Forest
1 Restless Cottage
1 Fabled Passage
4 Skullcap Snail
4 Getaway Glamer
3 Fortress Kin-Guard
3 Splitskin Doll
3 Fortune, Loyal Steed
2 Ruthless Lawbringer
2 Parting Gust
2 Gaius van Baelsar
2 Disruptive Stormbrood
2 Ketramose, the New Dawn
1 Syr Vondam, Sunstar Exemplar
1 Strategic Betrayal
1 Elspeth, Storm Slayer
1 Fell Horseman
1 Anticausal Vestige
1 Reclamation Sage
1 Dream Beavers
1 The End
1 Karai, Future of the Foot
1 Season of the Burrow

4 Soul-Guide Lantern
4 Malicious Eclipse
3 Reclamation Sage
2 Expel the Interlopers
2 Kraul Whipcracker

Saw that interesting list and tried the standard metagame challenge.

I stole a game but unless you want to spend your easter weekend bashing your head between Badgermole players and Jeskai Control freaks, I wouldn't recommend it. It might be a diverse meta but it's an expensive one to participate in where even the mono red deck is nothing but rares -- rares that won't make the cut for Pioneer.

 

[richleader]

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qptdSN2eZOc


I'm 4-0 with his list:

The point of Mardu Goyf was to have good game vs. both Jund and Dimir. The problem was that unless you had an opener with Overlord, your hand really didn't do anything bonkers.

Overlord and Quantum Riddler are the two hardest cards (or at least 2-mana plays) to remove in the format. But the Ketramose here is what really seals the deal. Ketramose + Frog + Riddler (even a warped version that can't attack) = grow your frog arbitrarily large and frog lets you keep your hand size regulated to get the full number of cards from Riddler. While Dimir can take advantage of that, Ketramose lets you turn cards in your graveyard into cards in hand and can block an opposing barrowgoyf all day long, forcing them to overextend.

Parallax wave is often awkward and a puzzle (and you can't always live the dream of resetting it with Phelia) but using it to draw cards or blink your own Overlord or Riddler when it's about to expire anyway, makes it worth it.

 

[richleader]

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sIuYcclHrPQ


That's fun if you're sick of badgers and otters...

 

[richleader]

Managed to dodge Jund/Dimir playing Auras in Historic BO3. Got to Diamond finally.

Saw


View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S_jCKQjF1s8


And decided to try it out...

Lost to TWO players in a row (first was mythic top 150 the other was rank floor of diamond) on Demilich/Arclight Phoenix decks that seemed to be identical so maybe someone else is hyping that somewhere. Crokeyz list had zero graveyard interaction.

 

[richleader]

Tried playing during lunch, one top 50 mythic opponent after the next on Demilich. I guess it's the thing. It's not impossible to beat but I don't like the gameplay of waiting for someone to cycle through their entire library one turn after the next. And I always thought Treasure Cruise was a bad idea for historic even if it wasn't currently busted.

 

[richleader]

https://jitsegoutbeek.substack.com/p/historic-demilich-deck-guide

Here's how the demilich thing happened. I've been playing Boros Auras with Rest in Peace because of it, although you'll probably want more than that as hate because their Deem Inferior can hit it and lead to a big turn.

It seems like Noxious Revival is the current Big Card in Historic though in that it can counter a Surgical Extraction, be an extra spell to get a phoenix out of a graveyard (even on turn 2 you can play three one drops now to make it happen), or let you go nuts (as in Crokeyz' video above) with Intensify spells.


View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8dSh_Jbm7DI


I spent a few wildcards to give this a try. Even with 4x maindeck graveyard hate decks, it's rare that I've beaten demilich with it though.

 

[richleader]

I finally tried Demilich myself and am immediately matched vs. someone on a purposeful hate deck of boros burn (boros charm/lightning helix/bolts) paired with Eidolon of the Great Revel. Kinda karma I guess.

OTOH, had two different Italian players rope me when I was on Verdant Ritual this morning.

 

[richleader]

OK, I hate this Demilich deck myself but I wanted to learn it and people are going absolutely nuts:

ran into a name I recognize and they roped me out

Despite being on some sort of Fliers/Collected Company type deck that's basically build around countering the low total deck threat-density of Demi/Phoenix (only 9 threats maindeck and sideboard) via exile effects. Yeah, being on a hard counter and still losing sucks, but whoah, seeing old timers turn into sad ropers is wild.

Demilich has always been a thing. The combo of Manamorphose/Noxious Revival is what broke it. But Treasure Cruise is really the glue that makes the deck work.

 

[richleader]

Now there are two annoying Izzet decks to play against (demilich and underworld breach storm): I'm just trying to get some dailies done and I get matched vs. some tryhard who wants to take 10 minute turns with Underworld Breach where they Brainfreeze themselves and then you. This Jeska's Will (I modified the cost via Thought Partition) is especially annoying because it's a Dark Ritual once they bounce all your stuff back to your hand since bouncing creatures is now more useful than killing them in practically every format...

I don't think there's a format that I don't hate, currently. But I'm just trying on a casual level today and I don't want to auto-lose if I don't have Rest in Peace in my opening hand. And I don't want to wait for someone to spin their wheels for 10 minutes just because they're a sweaty swampbutt who blew 12 mythic wildcards the first 15 minutes the set went online.

Magic is a terrible game and even though it's "best incarnation" is supposedly commander, I don't know if that's because it's good or if it's just an excuse for people to get high on sugar and ganja. Because I'm sure the average person isn't role playing a character with wide eyed excitement like the youtube influencers are when they play "kitchen table magic" together with their influencer friends. Because playing mana rock after mana rock really isn't that interesting.

 

[necklessone]

Have you ever considered that you might just it be having fun and it’s time to stop?

Honestly, I’d participate more in this thread but the way you talk about your experiences and opponents makes me not want to be a part of it.

 

[richleader]

That's fair! I don't have a problem admitting that I have a problem, that even though I'm not thrilled with the game, they absolutely have my number when it comes to the FOMO and OCD implementations they use: if I step away for even two months, that's like -80 packs and if I ever do come back, I'll be that much further behind all the other try-hards.

I'll definitely try to tone it down here and blog less -- but I do hope the rest of you pick it up in my absence!

 

[necklessone]

Going back to your previous post (sorry for the delay), I don't think Magic is terrible game. But its quality is heavily impacted by the curation of the various formats. I haven't been following the various constructed formats as closely as I used to but it felt like almost all of them were reaching breaking points in power and speed. And to me that makes the variance built into the game more of a factor then it should be since the games don't last long enough for it to level out.

Commander is absolutely not the "best incarnation" of Magic. It's effectively its own thing and is heavily reliant on social compromise to create interesting games. That's fine if you have a dedicated group you play with or people who communicate well, but it can be a challenge in pick up games.

Spoiler: Quick example from last weekend

I played two games last weekend at my LGS. Both were aiming for Bracket 2, specifically precons with some upgrades. Two newer players and then one experienced player other than myself. Game one was great - the other experienced player took a massive lead, the table worked together to trim him back, and in the end he barely lost due to a small misplay. Fun times.

Game two he swapped to a deck that was a significant upgrade to an already powerful precon. The two newer players didn't recognize the threat of him winning out of nowhere and he eventually made me use all my interaction and snuck through a win. Just an unsatisfying pub stomp because he was annoyed he threw game one and the two newer players didn't realize they had to stop their game plan because of instant win threats

The entire Commander mechanic is so broken that even a toned down version in regular Magic had to be power level eratta'd. This is actually what makes Brawl a terrible competitive format - these days I'm praying for a Brawl ranked queue if only to try and get the people who are playing to abuse the mechanic elsewhere so I can go back to having fun with silly legends.

 

[richleader]

There's a free phantom draft (not WNM) on Arena for cosmetics for the "international day of play"

I'm going to try to stay positive so I'm not going to talk about the union busting for Arena employees or AI stuff or more marvel than you can shake a stick at (although at least our spider cards are going to be traded in for actual marvel skins so they make sense).

* Historic Bo3: since everyone is terrified of losing to combo on turn 2 or never getting to cast a spell at sorcery speed due to High Noon Tempo (which is more annoying since they don't actually counter spells or draw cards, meaning all these rares they've printed to stop such shenanigans don't work to stop them!), it means that basically everyone's entire sideboard is spoken for, meaning that actual games that play out are fairly interactive. I've been switching between Esper Ketramose (the worlds version, not Alth's) and Alth's Green Devotion/Fight Rigging deck.

Managed to knock off #2 during lunch to claim #302 for myself (not a big jump which is why I don't believe your opponent's rank matters contrary to what all the popular creators say).

#2 was actually on a very fast landfall deck that could probably race some combo while going under control to a certain extent (especially since lands can't be targeted by certain removal spells even when creatures). OTOH, the format being "good" is also a reflection of how bad it is (since everyone is trying to hate out the best decks as much as possible) and how stuff like Ral or Belcher are being underplayed just because people are bored with it, even if their win/loss rate suffers on other decks.

Pioneer Bo3: Cori-Steel Cutter being banned is an improvement but I'll never be happy in a format where 1 mana bounce > 2 mana removal. It's also hard to feel smart if you're not playing something like Lumra decks (which I hate because they have five minute final turns as they cycle through their entire library over and over again to get every land in play) because your Golgari or Dimir deck can just lose to mono-black which does the same thing as your deck but strictly worse, just due to variance.

Lastly, while I like that there are now infinite ways to build Greasefang, they're not really Greasefang decks anymore, they're Monument to Endurance decks and just from Standard alone, I HATE Monument because it has everything in common with Cori-Steel Cutter: unless you have Annul, you're going to lose value just by destroying it in most cases.