Boros, Beats, Battlestar Galactica

[Khaospawn]

Grape them in the mouth!

[hamfactorial]

Did you see the way that Eidolon was dressed? He's totally asking for it.

[Khaospawn]

I tried to cast a 3 CMC spell and he spurned me by dealing 2 points of damage.


Faggot.

[hamfactorial]

Going to rename this to Spurn.dek

[Khaospawn]

[Khaospawn]

Eidolon of the Great Spurning

[Khaospawn]

You've lost that spurning feeeeling. Whoooah, that spurning feeeeeeling. You've lost that spurning feeling and now you've lost, lost, lost. Woooaaaaaah.

[hamfactorial]

Just a small town girl, spurning in a lonely world!

[Khaospawn]

I'm spurning, I'm spurning, I'm spurning for you!

[Khaospawn]

Gonna spurn the night away.

[hamfactorial]

This is how we celebrate a brew with 35 different configurations.

[Khaospawn]

With a massive spurn-fest.

[hamfactorial]

Stay Spurned

[NerdBoyWonder]

Got a couple games in with the deck but didn't play against anything major. Played against an Abzan Spore deck (da fuq) and against a mono green elf deck. I was able to see the power behind a lot of the cards. I'm missing 2 blade splicers so I have 2 rabblemaster in its place. Only played him once but with the lack of removal in the deck I can see how he is weak.

[NerdBoyWonder]

I played a handful of games with this list and thoroughly enjoyed myself -

[deck]Modern BBBSG v. 1.35[/deck]

I tested with
Elspeth and found her to be a bit lackluster. Ajani was much better in that spot, using him for removal or shutting off a land or a blocker was more valuable.

NBW's 3/1 Flamespeaker Chandra split works out beautifully, and it helps trim the 3 spot down a bit.

Auriok Champion means I can drop PtE and use burn for removal instead against Twin. Opens up space for Blood Moon in the SB, which hurts all the popular decks except RDW.

Any reason why Grim Lavamancers were dropped i. The new build?

[hamfactorial]

I dropped the Grims because I wasn't getting much value from them. It's hard to fill up the GY with only 8 fetches, and I tend to sandbag removal for critical turns. I'm still playing around with the right creature mix. I think having 2 Grims would be good but 4 was definitely too many. There's a lot of value competing for those spots, and I wanted to try out the PWs.

Chandra and Ajani both give me removal that can generally kill anything that Grim could.

[hamfactorial]

I've been playing around with Stoke the Flames and enjoying it a lot.

I have it as a 2-of to round out the 4 spot.

Great synergy with Brimaz, and occasionally I get to use it for free with a Restoration Angel blinking a red guy EOT. It encourages a strategy featuring more little guys, so I'm going to look at Mogg War Marshal again. I played him before to lukewarm results.

[Valdarith]

I think you want something more high impact than War Marshal. Don't play it just for Stoke.

[hamfactorial]

Yeah, I'm just spit balling here. The perfect 2 drop to play alongside Eidolon continues to elude me.

[hamfactorial]

Lord knows I can't keep defaulting to Spellskite. ( it though)

[hamfactorial]

I'm going to be so annoyed if the answer has been Wall of Omens the whole time.

@ Khaospawn in advance

[NerdBoyWonder]

I've been playing around with Stoke the Flames and enjoying it a lot.

I have it as a 2-of to round out the 4 spot.

Great synergy with Brimaz, and occasionally I get to use it for free with a Restoration Angel blinking a red guy EOT. It encourages a strategy featuring more little guys, so I'm going to look at Mogg War Marshal again. I played him before to lukewarm results.

Mogg War Marshal is a solid card but not for this deck. Since we are moving along a curve each creature we drop needs to be impactful or appear to be a threat. MWM is great in goblins because it helps create a critical mass of creatures and replaces itself. In this deck he would be little more than just creating a
chump blockers.

[deck]Creatures:
1 Figure of Destiny
3 Grim Lavamancer
3 Thalia, Guardian of Thraben
4 Eidolon of Great Revel
2 Blade Splicer
2 Brimaz, King of Oreskos
3 Prophetic Flamespeaker
4 Restoration Angel
2 Kiki-Jiki, Mirror Breaker

Removal:
4 Lightning Bolt
4 Path to Exile

Planeswalkers:
1 Chandra, Pyromaster
1 Ajani Vengeant

Artifacts:
1 Batterskull
1 Sword of Feast and Famine

Lands:
4 Arid Mesa
2 Marsh Flats
2 Scalding Tarn
4 Sacred Foundry
3 Clifftop Retreat
2 Battlefield Forge
3 Mountain
3 Plains
1 Slayer's Stronghold[/deck]

My sideboard is a WIP but it is aimed to beat Affinity, Scapeshift, Angel Pod, and Jund since they are the big decks locally:
[deck]1 Relic of Progenitus
2 Molten Rain
1 Combust
1 Shattering Spree
1 Dismember
2 Rest in Peace
2 Stony Silence
2 Bonfire of the Damned
2 Blood Moon
1 Grafdigger's Cage[/deck]

[hamfactorial]

NBW:

Did Blade Splicer not perform well for you?

[NerdBoyWonder]

I'm going to be so annoyed if the answer has been Wall of Omens the whole time.

@ Khaospawn in advance

Wall of Omens was decent when I was playing Kiki Control but does nothing when facing combo decks. HATED having it when I tested against scapeshift. It definitely fends off aggro a bit.

[NerdBoyWonder]

NBW:

Did Blade Splicer not perform well for you?

It's not that. I only have 2. Would definitely have 3 or 4 if I had 2 more dropping a Grim lavamancer or a Thalia or both. In the 2 games I managed to play they, along side Prophetic Flamespeaker with Slayer's Stronghold, over performed BUT they were against lesser decks (Mono Green Elf ramp and Abzan/Junk Spores). Hopefully get to play some games against some of the stronger decks locally.

[Khaospawn]

Something something Wall of Omens something something card draw

[hamfactorial]

[Valdarith]

It's either Wall of Omens, Thalia, or Spellskite. Maybe even a mix of the three.

[hamfactorial]

OK, here's a thought experiment for me (and anyone else who wants to contribute).

Is the possibility of card advantage from Prophetic Flamespeaker (multiplied with attached Sword of F&F) more valuable than guaranteed card draw from Wall of Omens (multiplied with Restoration Angel and Kiki)?

I keep coming back to Prophetic Flamespeaker being better, simply because he can attack and block and generate value in the absence of any support cards. I think it's a better card in a vacuum, hence I give it the nod over Wall of Omens.

Am I playing the wrong sword? Do I need Fire and Ice for turbo-lulz instead?

[Valdarith]

I think Fire and Ice is better. Not only does it protect against the most popular removal spell in the format, but it also provides more value and seems more useful than Light and Shadow.

[hamfactorial]

I have Feast and Famine and a Batterskull in there now. Tempted to try the Fire and Ice alongside those two, in place of... dunno, something

Most recent testing list -

[deck]Modern BBBSG v. 1.36[/deck]

I enjoyed the 3/1 Flamespeaker/Chandra split so much that I put a 3/
1 Brimaz/Hero of Bladehold split in to provide an extra one-turn Kiki kill.

[Valdarith]

I also don't know what Eidolon is really doing for you that Thalia can't do. I know you want Auriok Champion for burn, but how is she better than Kitchen Finks? And how is Blade Splicer better than Kitchen Finks? WW and RR into 1WW and 1RR just looks nasty. I know this is Modern and it isn't quite as hard to acheive that curve, but I'm willing to bet part of the problems you were having against burn was just how painful your mana was.

I think you have the right idea with the deck, you just have the wrong creatures filling the roles you want. If you replace Blade Splicer with Kitchen Finks you get similar value while hating on Burn and aggro decks, and you don't even need Auriok Champion anymore.

Here's a quick back-of-the-envelope sketch of what I'm thinking of:

[deck]
Creatures (21)
3 Wall of Omens
2 Thalia, Guardian of Thraben
1 Spellskite
2 Brimaz, King of Oreskos
3 Kitchen Finks
3 Prophetic
Flamespeaker
4 Restoration Angel
1 Hero of Bladehold
2 Kiki-Jiki, Mirror Breaker

Spells (15)
4 Lightning Bolt
3 Path to Exile
4 Lightning Helix
1 Sword of Fire and Ice
1 Ajani Vengeant
1 Chandra, Pyromaster
1 Batterskull

Lands (24)
4 Temple of Triumph
4 Marsh Flats
4 Arid Mesa
4 Sacred Foundry
2 Mountain
2 Plains
2 Rugged Prairie
1 Slayers' Stronghold
1 Blood Crypt
[/deck]

[hamfactorial]

Yeah, I tossed Auriok Champion out for Ember Hauler in favor of a redder creature base. It was a great hose against Twin, but sucked against everything else.

[hamfactorial]

I'll think about the Eidolon vs Thalia thing, that's an interesting question.

I found that she was lackluster in the Pod and Affinity matchups, and often gummed up my mana when I had more removal. Eidolon seems to punish both of those decks more effectively, while not punishing either half of my combo kill.

[Valdarith]

I think by adding Spellskite and Wall of Omens in the deck, the Affinity matchup becomes much better. That leaves Pod, and I think that matchup should be fine for you, no? You have enough instant speed removal to deal with their infinite combo and you shouldn't have to worry about getting out-valued by Redcap and Orzhov Pontiff. How can they possibly deal with your stuff even with Pod on the field?

[hamfactorial]

Yes, I think I could deal with Pod before and after SB without trouble.

The trouble with Affinity was never the ground, it was the Inkmoth Nexus or Vault Skirge beating on me with a Cranial Plating in the air. A lot can happen before I hit 4 mana for Restoration Angel.

I'll try out your scratch version out

[Valdarith]

Yes, I think I could deal with Pod before and after SB without trouble.

The trouble with Affinity was never the ground, it was the Inkmoth Nexus or Vault Skirge beating on me with a Cranial Plating in the air. A lot can happen before I hit 4 mana for Restoration Angel.

I'll try out your scratch version out

I think with 11 instant speed spells in my version you'll be able to deal with this a bit better.

I guess one thing Blade Splicer does have going for it is the token's ability to block Etched Champion.

[hamfactorial]

Yeah, I prefer Blade Splicer for the extra colorless body it brings along and its better Kiki synergy. My fastest goldfish wins involve Blade Splicer into Restoration Angel.

It's quite likely that I'm valuing creatures too highly at the expense of interaction, hence my love of stuff like Ember Hauler and Spikeshot Elder.

[NerdBoyWonder]

Eidolon of Great Revel VS Thalia:
I lean on the Eidolon. Thalia punishes us as much as she punishes our opponent. Eidolon on the other hand helps us with our beat down first, combo second strategy.

Wall of Omens:
Pushes the deck to be Combo First/Beat Down later. Wall of Omens fits better in decks that have multiple sources of card draw and removal while stalling into a win condition. Kiki Control or UWR Twin do all those things.

Finks vs Blade Splicer:
Both are good and I think are just dependent on what you plan on facing. I have no burn decks in my area and only see one person playing BroBots. Everyone else is on Control or Midrange strategies so Blade Splicer fits in what I need out of the deck.

We do have an issue with having/wanting/needing a 2nd two drop that is either powerful or has synergy with Resto Angel. Here are a couple I found:

Keldon Marauders
Pros: 3/3 for
2. Has ETB and LTB triggers that cause damage even if minimal
Cons: Can only attack for one combat.

Leonin Relic-Warder
Pros: Exiles Artifacts and Enchantments while he is on the board.
Cons: Dead when your opponent plays none of these.

Stingscourger
Pros: Bounces an opponents creature back to their hand.
Cons: Dead against creatureless combo decks. Echo cost.

[hamfactorial]

I played a few very rough versions of this deck with Kor Skyfisher and Temple of Triumph after my experience with the card in Pauper. It was ok, useful for rebuying Blade Splicer, getting an extra scry, or replaying a land if I didn't draw on curve.

The 2/3 body wasn't bad.

Squadron Hawk was decent CA as well, and carried a sword like stud.