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by Valdarith
Sat Jun 06, 2015 2:23 am
Forum: Developing
Topic: Mardu Tokens
Replies: 53
Views: 22838

Mardu Tokens

I think 4 Lightning Helix is too much and you can afford to go to one Figure.
by Valdarith
Fri Jun 05, 2015 8:48 pm
Forum: Developing
Topic: Mardu Tokens
Replies: 53
Views: 22838

Mardu Tokens

That looks better. I'd probably move Olivia to the main deck though. I think 3 Liliana is best but I played two before and it was great.
by Valdarith
Fri Jun 05, 2015 1:35 am
Forum: Developing
Topic: Mardu Tokens
Replies: 53
Views: 22838

Mardu Tokens

I like the direction you've taken the deck. With Kolaghan's Command being a card now, I think a more creature - based build is best. You'll basically be playing Jund except you trade Goyf and Abrupt Decay for Brimaz and Lightning Helix. Some comments:

1) Pack Rat seems like an obvious choice in a Kolaghan's Command/Dark Confidant deck. I don't know many decks that can beat Rat in the long game.

2) As much of a pet card Figure of Destiny is of mine, I think there are better creatures to be running. See #1.

3) You need to be running Liliana. She's too good not to run. Crackling Doom is a decent card but it by itself won't cut it.

4) I've found at least six turn 1 discard spells to be necessary. I like a 3/3 split of Thoughtseize and Inquisition. Thoughtseize is kinda rough against Burn but against everything else it's money.

5) You should be running 4 Blackcleave Cliffs. It helps to cast turn 1 Lavamancer or discard and saves life vs aggro. I know you're trying to cast Blood Moon out of the board, but Jund does the same thing with similar mana.

6) Consider working on your sideboard. I like having flexible cards that can come in against multiple matchups rather than narrow hate cards like Rest in Peace and Stony Silence. Look at my sideboard for what I mean. For instance, Zealous Persecution can come in against Affinity, CoCo Elves, and Lingering Souls decks. Rakdos Charm comes in against Affinity, graveyard decks, Tron, and sometimes Twin.
by Valdarith
Wed Feb 18, 2015 1:34 pm
Forum: Developing
Topic: Mardu Tokens
Replies: 53
Views: 22838

There isn't one, but you could skew your list to more resilient threats like Pack Rat and Brimaz.
by Valdarith
Fri Feb 13, 2015 7:36 am
Forum: Developing
Topic: Mardu Tokens
Replies: 53
Views: 22838

I don't know what Molten Rain is for. We're already pretty good against Tron I feel like and Molten Rain is very average against Amulet Bloom. I also feel like with access to so many flexible spells in Mardu colors that Thoughtseize out of the board is a lot worse than in other decks. I don't feel like Slaughter Games is necessary against the decks you'd bring them in for (Scapeshift, maybe Twin) and it's also really slow.

Look at my sideboard for what I mean. It's full of flexible answers that serve duty in multiple matchups.
by Valdarith
Fri Feb 13, 2015 3:36 am
Forum: Developing
Topic: Mardu Tokens
Replies: 53
Views: 22838

Your sideboard needs a lot of work. I also feel like you're running one too many lands and you overvalue Lavaclaw Reaches (that card is borderline unplayable).
by Valdarith
Sat Jan 31, 2015 5:41 pm
Forum: Developing
Topic: Mardu Tokens
Replies: 53
Views: 22838

I just had a realization this morning that the Shatterstorms should be Wrath of Gods.
by Valdarith
Sat Jan 31, 2015 5:40 pm
Forum: Developing
Topic: Mardu Tokens
Replies: 53
Views: 22838

It wasn't necessarily terrible, there were just far more times where Disfigure was more relevant, like hitting an early Goblin Guide or shrinking down a creature more significantly during combat.
by Valdarith
Sat Jan 31, 2015 7:54 am
Forum: Developing
Topic: Mardu Tokens
Replies: 53
Views: 22838

[deck]
Creatures (9)
4 Young Pyromancer
1 Pack Rat
4 Goblin Rabblemaster

Spells (28)
1 Slaughter Pact
1 Darkblast
4 Thoughtseize
2 Inquisition of Kozilek
4 Lightning Bolt
4 Lightning Helix
1 Zealous Persecution
2 Dismember
2 Liliana of the Veil
4 Lingering Souls
2 Sorin, Solemn Visitor
1 Batterskull

Lands (23)
4 Bloodstained Mire
3 Arid Mesa
1 Marsh Flats
3 Blood Crypt
3 Sacred Foundry
2 Godless Shrine
1 Dragonskull Summit
1 Isolated Chapel
2 Tectonic Edge
1 Swamp
1 Plains
1 Mountain

Sideboard (15)
2 Wear / Tear
1 Celestial Purge
1 Combust
1 Rakdos Charm
2 Spellskite
1 Zealous Persecution
3 Kor Firewalker
2 Crackling Doom
2 Shatterstorm
[/deck]

Final list for tomorrow's Modern tournament.
Ran this list with -1 Pack Rat, +1 Brimaz to a 5-0 record at Modern FNM tonight. Beat UB Mill 2-0, 5-color Slivers 2-1, RW Burn 2-1, UWR Control 2-1, and UW Tempo 2-0. The deck was humming and I got a feel for what I liked and what I didn't. Let's just say there was very little I didn't like.

Overperformers:

1) Sorin, Lord of Innistrad - the all-star of the night. He won me the first game against the Slivers deck when I was at 3 life. I was stuck on three lands most of the game but was stingy in blocking with my tokens. He had out the lifegain, flanking, deathtouch, and first strike Slivers and had been swinging out with them to widdle me down. I had basically resolved to hitting my fourth land to play him, and I finally did it which allowed me to crack back for a ton with lifelink and basically secure the game as I had a couple of blockers to leave back and a removal spell in hand. He was also amazing against UWR control and UW Tempo as expected. I never got to see him against Burn but I imagine he'd be pretty good there too.

2) Dismember - this card was money, and sometimes I wondered if I should have been running three. Kills everything.

3) Slaughter Pact - also money. I like the one-of.

4) Goblin Rabblemaster - if you thought this card would be good with Thoughtseize and Inquisition backup, try playing it alongside Spellskite postboard. :D It's just not fair. Despite Bolt being such a common piece of removal, I was able to play around it enough to make this guy do a lot of work. I do think four is too many and would like to go down to three in place of a second Brimaz.

5) Brimaz, King of Oreskos - as above, I should have been playing two.

6) Liliana of the Veil - I made this switch the day before the FNM and I'm glad I did. She was even better than I thought she'd be. You all know how good she is so I'll just leave it at that.

Underperformers:

1) Darkblast - let Ham talk me into playing it instead of Disfigure. That was wrong. There were so many times where this card was in my hand and I wished it was Disfigure. I think the correct course of action is moving this back to the board for Disfigure and taking out the Zealous Persecution in the board. Alternatively I could play a third Dismember, but that seems like overkill.

2) Zealous Persecution - a lot of this had to do with the decks I played against, so I won't be too harsh on the rating. Unlike Darkblast, it actually put in some good work for a couple of games, but it's effectiveness was so swingy. It ranged from an overpriced Darkblast to a 4-damage burn spell to a total blowout. I'm okay with keeping one in the maindeck, but I think one in the 75 is sufficient.

3) The fourth Thoughtseize - I think I should be running a 3-3 split of Thoughtseize to Inquisition. There was exactly one point where I cast Thoughtseize that it actually nabbed a 4-cmc spell, but otherwise I felt like the fourth one was a little greedy and reduced my percentages against aggro and burn decks.

The underperformer list is quite small as you can see. I think the deck is REALLY good and I'm surprised I got the list hammered so closely before testing. I do think I could afford to try to slide in more powerful cards though. I should also think about other sideboard options to broaden the deck against the field. The Kor Firewalkers won me my match against Burn (had one in opener both games) and that matchup seems so abysmal I feel like I should either be running four of them or another card that they cannot beat that isn't named Leyline of Sanctity. Also, after being paired up against a Living End player in the top 4 before we decided to split, I realized I had absolutely nothing for him beyond the Rakdos Charm, so I should probably consider Relic of Progenitus as an answer to it as well as Dredge and Snapcaster decks. I don't think it's actually necessary vs Goyf decks, but I could be wrong. Maybe I should try a second Rakdos Charm first?

I also need to playtest the Affinity matchup to see if the Shatterstorms are even necessary. They may be overkill as I feel this match is already very favorable for me. It was more of a local meta consideration than anything since there are so many Affinity players here.
by Valdarith
Fri Jan 30, 2015 3:37 am
Forum: Developing
Topic: Mardu Tokens
Replies: 53
Views: 22838

[deck]
Creatures (9)
4 Young Pyromancer
1 Pack Rat
4 Goblin Rabblemaster

Spells (28)
1 Slaughter Pact
1 Darkblast
4 Thoughtseize
2 Inquisition of Kozilek
4 Lightning Bolt
4 Lightning Helix
1 Zealous Persecution
2 Dismember
2 Liliana of the Veil
4 Lingering Souls
2 Sorin, Solemn Visitor
1 Batterskull

Lands (23)
4 Bloodstained Mire
3 Arid Mesa
1 Marsh Flats
3 Blood Crypt
3 Sacred Foundry
2 Godless Shrine
1 Dragonskull Summit
1 Isolated Chapel
2 Tectonic Edge
1 Swamp
1 Plains
1 Mountain

Sideboard (15)
2 Wear / Tear
1 Celestial Purge
1 Combust
1 Rakdos Charm
2 Spellskite
1 Zealous Persecution
3 Kor Firewalker
2 Crackling Doom
2 Shatterstorm
[/deck]

Final list for tomorrow's Modern tournament.
by Valdarith
Thu Jan 29, 2015 6:48 pm
Forum: Developing
Topic: Mardu Tokens
Replies: 53
Views: 22838

Definitely more versatile.
by Valdarith
Thu Jan 29, 2015 6:46 pm
Forum: Developing
Topic: Mardu Tokens
Replies: 53
Views: 22838

Then again, so does Deflecting Palm
by Valdarith
Thu Jan 29, 2015 6:46 pm
Forum: Developing
Topic: Mardu Tokens
Replies: 53
Views: 22838

It's a surprisingly good card in Modern. Makes Boggles players cry.
by Valdarith
Thu Jan 29, 2015 6:07 pm
Forum: Developing
Topic: Mardu Tokens
Replies: 53
Views: 22838

You're convincing me. Frees up room for another card like Crackling Doom for rouge builds.
by Valdarith
Thu Jan 29, 2015 5:01 pm
Forum: Developing
Topic: Mardu Tokens
Replies: 53
Views: 22838

Darkblast is in the board. I think the -2/-2 will be relevant, but I'll await testing to confirm.
by Valdarith
Thu Jan 29, 2015 1:44 pm
Forum: Developing
Topic: Mardu Tokens
Replies: 53
Views: 22838

FWIW, I think Blood Baron is a fair bit better than batterskull. Brimaz is alright. Why are you playing Disfigure? I'd encourage you to try Mardu Charm.
I needed more 1 cmc interaction and Disfigure was my answer. I'm just testing a lot of different cards to see what I like.

I really don't like Mardu Charm considering the flexibility of all my other spells, particularly postboard. I feel like efficiency is the key for this deck and Mardu Charm does not perform in that area.
by Valdarith
Thu Jan 29, 2015 4:01 am
Forum: Developing
Topic: Mardu Tokens
Replies: 53
Views: 22838

I'm going to play this list at my LGS Friday with a few adaptations:

1) No Mentors or Rat. Bring in two Brimaz and a single Batterskull.
2) Two Liliana maindeck, no Crackling Doom or Slaughter Pact.
by Valdarith
Sat Jan 24, 2015 4:52 am
Forum: Developing
Topic: Mardu Tokens
Replies: 53
Views: 22838

[deck]
Creatures (11)
4 Young Pyromancer
1 Pack Rat
4 Goblin Rabblemaster
2 Monastery Mentor

Spells (26)
1 Slaughter Pact
1 Disfigure
4 Thoughtseize
2 Inquisition of Kozilek
4 Lightning Bolt
4 Lightning Helix
1 Zealous Persecution
2 Dismember
1 Crackling Doom
4 Lingering Souls
2 Sorin, Solemn Visitor

Lands (23)
4 Bloodstained Mire
3 Arid Mesa
1 Marsh Flats
3 Blood Crypt
3 Sacred Foundry
2 Godless Shrine
1 Dragonskull Summit
1 Isolated Chapel
2 Tectonic Edge
1 Swamp
1 Plains
1 Mountain

Sideboard (15)
1 Darkblast
2 Wear / Tear
1 Celestial Purge
1 Combust
1 Rakdos Charm
2 Spellskite
1 Zealous Persecution
3 Kor Firewalker
1 Crackling Doom
2 Shatterstorm
[/deck]

Now complete with sideboard! My only hangup is whether or not I should be running Liliana.
by Valdarith
Fri Jan 23, 2015 12:37 am
Forum: Developing
Topic: Mardu Tokens
Replies: 53
Views: 22838

So Junk Tokens is poised to take over as the premier Midrange deck of Modern (and already 4-0s dailies w/ Pod, Cruise, and Dig still legal on MODO).

I notice many parallels between Junk Tokens and Mardu Tokens.

My first question is, what makes this deck not a worse version of Junk Tokens?

My second question is, why rely on 4-cc Planeswalkers when Bitterblossom is legal? Addendum (since Sorin offers emblems/team pump), why not both?

My final question is, how does Monastery Mentor play in this deck in others' experience? It seems the quality of Mentor hinges on throwing out spells as often as possible, but the spells in this deck aren't the chain of cantrips you'd find in your typical UR Delver, so I would imagine that making a board of tokens is less likely or imposing than it would be w/ UR without sandbagging a bunch of burn and trying to combo your opponent out (which seems awkward since I imagine the burn's primary role is removal).

Interesting deck and idea. Apologies that the first question is awkward and sounds more aggressive than its meant to be.
Not at all. I think they are good questions to ask. I have yet to test this deck or even play Modern since the bannings, so take my responses at that value.
My first question is, what makes this deck not a worse version of Junk Tokens?
I haven't seen the Junk Tokens list you're mentioning, unless you're talking about the builds with maindeck Lingering Souls. The key differences between Mardu and Junk are:

1) The removal suite. Jund gets Maelstrom Pulse and Abrupt Decay. Mardu gets Lightning Bolt, Lightning Helix, and Terminate. Abrupt Decay will arguably be the best removal spell in the format now, but the reach from Lightning Bolt and Lightning Helix in a deck running so many token producers cannot be overstated. Bolt and Helix get even better the more Thoughtseize and three- or four-color decks we see in the format.

2) Power vs finesse. Junk gets Anafenza, Goyf, Ooze, and Rhino, while we play value creatures that tax decks with one-for-one removal. In a head-to-head matchup, I see Mardu pulling ahead since it tends to be favored in matchups of attrition.

3) Tempo. By playing cheaper creatures and spells, Mardu can more easily dictate the pace of the game. Junk is more about playing the most powerful card on curve.
My second question is, why rely on 4-cc Planeswalkers when Bitterblossom is legal? Addendum (since Sorin offers emblems/team pump), why not both?
Bitterblossom may be too greedy in a three-color deck playing Thoughtseize and Dismember, but it may be worth testing. Sorin on his own is immune to Abrupt Decay and allows for large lifeswings the turn he comes into play. Bitterblossom on the other hand is quite slow in developing an advantage.
My final question is, how does Monastery Mentor play in this deck in others' experience? It seems the quality of Mentor hinges on throwing out spells as often as possible, but the spells in this deck aren't the chain of cantrips you'd find in your typical UR Delver, so I would imagine that making a board of tokens is less likely or imposing than it would be w/ UR without sandbagging a bunch of burn and trying to combo your opponent out (which seems awkward since I imagine the burn's primary role is removal).
This deck will be more about clearing the way with Thoughtseize and Inquisition in order to protect a threat, unlike UR Delver which backed up threats with countermagic. Playing Pyromancer, Mentor, and Rabblemaster all together provides a sufficient amount of threats that must be answered immediately before they create an overwhelming advantage.
by Valdarith
Thu Jan 22, 2015 5:08 am
Forum: Developing
Topic: Mardu Tokens
Replies: 53
Views: 22838

Doesn't this deck kinda get wrecked by bloodmoon? I always was cautious to fetch a basic so I could wear / tear because I feared blood moon.

Slaughter pack seems sexy with YP$ / Mentor though. Would like to see Bob up in there. Not sure if persecution is still good post banlist.
In game one, sure, but the mana is pretty good in this deck so it's pretty easy to play around it. There are no RR, BB, or WW spells in the 60 (Dismember doesn't count obviously).

Before having Mentor I would have played Bob, but it has a couple of things going against it now:

1) It doesn't attack well.
2) The life loss can be pretty devastating in a deck playing Thoughtseize, 8 fetches, 7 shocks, and Dismember.

I like having access to Dismember in a YP$/Mentor deck. Slaughter Pact is also just amazing. Getting Twin pilots with that card must feel amazing.
by Valdarith
Thu Jan 22, 2015 4:43 am
Forum: Developing
Topic: Mardu Tokens
Replies: 53
Views: 22838

I'm considering moving into Mardu myself. Here's my first draft:

[deck]
Creatures (11)
4 Young Pyromancer
4 Goblin Rabblemaster
3 Monastery Mentor

Spells (26)
1 Slaughter Pact
3 Thoughtseize
3 Inquisition of Kozilek
4 Lightning Bolt
4 Lightning Helix
2 Zealous Persecution
1 Terminate
2 Dismember
4 Lingering Souls
2 Sorin, Solemn Visitor

Lands (23)
4 Bloodstained Mire
3 Arid Mesa
1 Marsh Flats
3 Blood Crypt
3 Sacred Foundry
1 Godless Shrine
1 Blackcleave Cliffs
2 Isolated Chapel
1 Vault of the Archangel
2 Swamp
1 Plains
1 Mountain
[/deck]

Haven't figured out a sideboard yet, but Wear/Tear and Kor Firewalker are auto includes for me. This deck could also easily support Blood Moon.

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