Since Andrew Cuneo’s 6-0 run at Worlds, UW control hasn’t been getting a lot of press. This could be attributed to the deck’s matchup against Delver and Humans. However, with the resurgence of other strategies, most notably Wolf Run Ramp, UB control and Zombies, the deck is in a good position to “make the most of it.”
Buried Ruin - It gets the nod over Haunted Fengraf for two reasons: First, it is a part of your sideboard plan against UB Control. Second, it recycles your Ratchet Bombs for additional value. Ghost Quarter - Probably the best available tool to deal with utility lands like Kessig Wolf Run, Nephalia Drownyard, Moorland Haunt or Inkmoth Nexus. In a pinch, you can use it to fix your mana but hopefully it will never come to that.
Elesh Norn, Grand Cenobite - Lady GaGa does a wonderful Curse of Death's Hold imitation since it blanks a lot of the creatures you might run into. The buff she provides your team is cute but unnecessary since you really aren't running that many creatures to start with. Consecrated Sphinx - What's there to say about it that hasn't already been said? Only thing that comes to mind is that I regret not playing it my previous lists. Granted, there are a few ways to deal with it but most of the time they will trade it for a removal spell and you will still be up at least two cards. Snapcaster Mage - Practically standard issue at this point. It's good to have the ability to flashback some of your counters or mass removal in game one and it gets you additional value out of your sideboard cards. You might want to try out playing 3 of them but so far I myself never felt the need to do so.
Mana Leak - There has been some debate about it's inclusion in recent lists, on the basis that it doesn't do enough against some of the decks out there. Still, having a nearly unconditional counter in the early game can't be all bad as far as game one is concerned. Dissipate - A hard counter with the benefit of exileing the countered spell. The exile itself isn't often that important but it beats playing Cancel and there aren't that many two mana counters that you can reasonably maindeck.
More coming soon.
Matchups:
It’s a really tough one. On the draw you can counter some of their early threats but a pair of Delvers can still ruin your day. Ratchet Bomb is your mass removal spell of choice since it deals with transformed Delvers and tokens at a minimal cost. When and if you stabilize things get slightly better since your planeswalkers can now enter the fray, most important of which is Gideon Jura closely followed by Elspeth Tirel. After sideboaring, you have access to some life bumps in the form of Timely Reinforcements, the 4th Ratchet Bomb and Phyrexian Metamorph to deal with Geist of Saint Traft. The Metamorph gets the nod over Phantasmal Image because it can be returned via Buried Ruin which can be quite useful when you are facing multiple Geist copies. At the high end of your curve you can play Elesh Norn, Grand Cenobite to effectively wipe the board clean. Normally, you cut some of the counters from the deck after sideboarding (how many depends on who plays first) and Karn Liberated, who isn’t at his best in this game.
EDIT: With Elesh Norn now being a maindeck card you have a reasonable late game plan and a way to deal with just about any creature they can throw your way. Also, I've made the move toward Phantasmal Image over Metamorph on the basis that it is a more cost efficient card and that the whole recursion thing with the Metamorph just isn't fast enough.
Favourable. As long as you can keep then from getting to far ahead of you mana wise you've got it covered. One possible snag in that plan can be Inkmoth Nexus, since apart from Ghost Quarter you have very limited means of dealing with the infect kill even if they are pinging you for one a turn. Gideon Jura can take some of the pressure off but it is still something you need to watch out for. In game one one of the more interesting applications of Ponder is to stop a huntmaster transformation, so save those for when you really need them. After sideboarding your main problem becomes getting rid of Thrun, the Last Troll. Phyrexian Metamorph is quite good at that and is recurable. Also, you now have a semi-permanent solution to Inkmoth Nexus in the form of Elesh Norn, Grand Cenobite, just be careful not to lose her to a Beast Within. White Sun's Zenith can be a good choice if they have boarded out their mass removal spells which more often then not is exactly what they do.
EDIT: Once again, Elesh Norn proves to be a great answer to some of the threats that would have been harder to deal with otherwise (Inkmoth Nexus in particular). The same logic that applies to Geist in the Delver matchup applies to Thrun against ramp.
Coming soon
This one, on the other hand is quite favorable. They have a lot of dead cards against you in game one and run less counters then you do. Their only viable route to victory is Nephalia Drownyard, which can be handled with Ghost Quarter or Karn Liberated. Even so, the safer choice would be to make it as hard as possible for them to find it in the first place by countering Forbidden Alchemy, at least before you get an answer to at least one of them. If they don’t play Liliana of the Veil they don’t have any real means of punishing you for tapping out in the early stages of the game. After sideboarding you get to take out some of the excess mass removal for more relevant stuff like Elixir of Immortality (a trump to their milling plan), additional counters and more threats. White Sun’s Zenith isn’t that big of a surprise (they might keep some of their mass removal around for exactly this reason), but Hero of Bladehold might well be. If left unmolested it can finish a game in just a few turns. Her effectiveness is dependant on their sideboarding strategy (how much spot removal were they willing to take out to keep up with our counters) but she remains an interesting choice for the sideboard games. Depending on their win conditions Celestial Purge can also be a sound choice since it deals with Bloodline Keeper, Gave Titan and Liliana with little fuss.
EDIT: The "beatdown" plan has been abandoned in favor of more counters, so for the sideboard games you are stuck with "just" White Sun's Zenith, Elixir of Immortality and your planeswalkers. Consecrated Sphinx is another draw engine that doubles as a win condition. Getting even two cards from her is still pure gold, but if they somehow let you untap with it they might as well concede then and there.
Play your cards right, and this one shouldn't be much of a problem. The important thing to remember is that they don't have reach or any way to finish you off outside of combat. Don't be scared of the early Strangleroot Geist beats, you can take it. Their best shot at landing a Birthing Pod is to wait for you to cast Day of Judgement without counter backup so don't play into that. Same thing goes for Ratchet Bomb (which mostly deals with their one drop acceleration) if you are on the draw. After sideboarding Thrun becomes public enemy number one. When you are on the draw you need to be really strict about what opening hands you chose to keep since a Birthing Pod on turn two might just as well steal the game then and there. If the Pod sticks your backup plan is to try and keep the board clear of creatures by any means to keep your counters relevant.
EDIT: The deck now has a maindeck solution to a resolved Birthing Pod which makes things easier. Phantasmal Image comes in to battle Thrun and maybe copy useful comes into play effects. Elesh Norn is a decent maindeck inclusion, if only because she single handedly trumps about half of the creatures they tend to play.
In my dream, the world had suffered a terrible disaster. A black haze shut out the sun, and the darkness was alive with the moans and screams of wounded people. Suddenly, a small light glowed. A candle flickered into life, symbol of hope for millions. A single tiny candle, shining in the ugly dark. I laughed and blew it out.
Many thanks to HotP Studios. Special thanks to DNC for this great sig.
In life all we can do is try to make things better. Sitting lost in old ways and fearing change only makes us outdated and ignorant.
Peace cannot be kept by force. It can only be achieved by understanding.
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Millions of innocent men, women and children, since the introduction of Christianity, have been burnt, tortured, fined and imprisoned; yet we have not advanced one inch towards uniformity.
(Finally, we have a competitive UW/x Control thread, now I dont HAVE to search through standard deck creation pages)
So I have had this thought for a while that 'Ponder allows you to find answers you need to see within a timely basis', however I look at a sideboard of 1-ofs that seem more effective as at least 2-ofs and I have the concern that the sideboard Andrew Cuneo used promotes a dangerous stretch of that idea. the 1-of Dismember and Flashfreeze
(Maybe its just the 1-of flashfreeze and 1-of Phantasmal Image Im unsure of, but I never got the memo)
Furthermore, I think the White Sun's Zenith COULD be in the maindeck...angles to win with SEEM slightly lacking in all honesty. I mean, I learned basic Control mechanics with the tip "Damage comes Later", but matches are timed And I cant think of anything more upsetting than letting a game go too long and escape your grasp
Decks I have in my bag of tricks- Needless to say, someone who wants to play will probably have a deck UB/x Faeries UR Storm XURWB Affinity G Elves UW control
Cuneo's List seemed to be completely geared towards GW tokens, but I took the concept and broadened it. This list has been doing pretty amazing for me. The shear amount of counters will have your opponents down to topdeck mode in no time. Negate always wins counter wars and stops walkers when you're opponent thinks its safe from getting leaked. Ponder + Snapcaster has just been an all star in this deck. Lets you dig for answers or your finishers after you stabilize. Its also recurrable synergy with Sun Titans. Sun Titan Image combo is always just devastating and usually must be answered with a board wipe. Phantasmal image is such a flexible card. Kills legendary creatures for 2 mana, copies titans and wurmcoils, gives you multiple copies of your creatures, and you can play it without fear of removal. If it dies you can just recur it later. The only danger to it is getting dissipated. Tumble Magnets are amazing. They lock down Illusions as long as you can keep the lord off the board, they prevent Titans and Heros from getting those attack triggers, or tap inkmoth's and crusaders till you find an answer.
Sideboard:
Reinforcements and Wurmcoil against fast aggro. Elesh Norn is an allstar against tokens, and Ratchet bomb hurts. Spellskite shuts down Kessig and stops your titans from eating removal against UB. Purify the grave doesn't seem like much but it has really helped the UB matchup. Responding to a Snapcaster's trigger, makes it a vanilla 2/1 with flash. It has flashback so it can completely neuter solar flare. Play it twice to deal with unburial rites twice. You can argue for Surgical Extraction in this spot, but I prefer purify just because Drownyard is very relevant against UB. Jace is sort of like UB's drownyard. This deck can really draw some games out and having a singleton in the sb has actually won me quite a few games.
Weaknesses:
Surgical Extraction and Memoricide type effects. I haven't had it happen yet but surgical extracting the titans is just bad for us.
Karn really hasn't shone much in this deck, He usually ends up an overcosted O-ring. I'll test White Sun's Zenith in this spot. I ran that card last season and totally forgot about how strong it was.
My sideboard is geared more towards UB control and solar flare since that's 60% of my meta, but feel free to adjust towards your meta. Happy Brewing!
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Karn just takes over games if he sticks, he can pretty much protect himself by going to 10 loyalty the turn he comes down. If you have him with the Gidfather on the board the game is simply over.
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Type 2 UBControlBU UWDelverWU BWUSuperfriendsUWB
Type 2 in development WBUCounterless Solar FlareBWU
Type 2 Retired UBWControlBUW RBVampiresBR GRValakutGR GElves!G GBEldrazi GreenBG
I know it's a little strange, but I've had success with it. 4 DoJ, 3 Timely, and 2 Wurmcoil can be really tough on aggro decks. In my playtesting, I've found the only way I can beat WRR is to have enough counters to let nothing resolve. And it's worked. I ran 12 last night and I added 3 more to the SB that I will playtest. Timely and DoJ are both pretty bad in that matchup, because if they resolve a Titan, inkmoth will kill me. So I also need to side in Dismember or try to not let a Titan resolve and use Ghost Quarter on any inkmoths or wolf runs that they draw.
I've had a little trouble with RDW. I'm hoping Celestial Purge will make that matchup a little easier.
Yes, I realize mainboard mimic vat is crazy. But turn 3 vat to turn 4 DoJ isn't bad. And it's fun and unexpected.
UW Humans is a matchup I'm a little worried about. I haven't played it yet.
why does everyone take cuneo's list take out the good cards and replace them with creatures lol.
The whole idea is that you don't ran creatures that you care about dieing.
Right now if your not using ratchet bomb your doing something wrong.
also elpeth tirel is really good against thrun which you can't really answer effectively.
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In life all we can do is try to make things better. Sitting lost in old ways and fearing change only makes us outdated and ignorant.
Peace cannot be kept by force. It can only be achieved by understanding.
Albert Einstein
Millions of innocent men, women and children, since the introduction of Christianity, have been burnt, tortured, fined and imprisoned; yet we have not advanced one inch towards uniformity.
why does everyone take cuneo's list take out the good cards and replace them with creatures lol.
The whole idea is that you don't ran creatures that you care about dieing.
Right now if your not using ratchet bomb your doing something wrong.
also elpeth tirel is really good against thrun which you can't really answer effectively.
I can't agree with the Elspeth reference more. She is a win condition alone. She creates tokens to swing/block with, Gains you life, and is an extremely good board sweep.
In regards to creatures, I put 4 Snapcasters main. They're just too good not to run as a 4 of. Might just be a meta call since creature based decks are everywhere in my meta. So I need to be able to flashback DoJ all the time.
Illusions seems like a rough matchup cause they can land a T1 Delver of Secrets and sit on it. Gitaxian Probe can get annoying since they just about ALWAYS know whats in your hand.
How do you guys feel about Delver of Secrets main? With roughly 31 instant/sorcery spells, it will almost always flip T2 and we can just sit on counter back up. I'm just most people side out almost all removal since we run 2-4 creature. Maybe a 3-3 split with Delver and Snapcaster.
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I can't agree with the Elspeth reference more. She is a win condition alone. She creates tokens to swing/block with, Gains you life, and is an extremely good board sweep.
In regards to creatures, I put 4 Snapcasters main. They're just too good not to run as a 4 of. Might just be a meta call since creature based decks are everywhere in my meta. So I need to be able to flashback DoJ all the time.
Illusions seems like a rough matchup cause they can land a T1 Delver of Secrets and sit on it. Gitaxian Probe can get annoying since they just about ALWAYS know whats in your hand.
How do you guys feel about Delver of Secrets main? With roughly 31 instant/sorcery spells, it will almost always flip T2 and we can just sit on counter back up. I'm just most people side out almost all removal since we run 2-4 creature. Maybe a 3-3 split with Delver and Snapcaster.
My personal opinion...no. BECAUSE, it dilutes the control formula in essence. It does not promote seeking an answer like ponder does, so the sorcery speed is a slight drawback, and it is a potentially dead draw a lot of the time for decks such as ours. If you were personally geared toward a tempo-based decklist Id say yes, but with the average route of discussion Id have to advise against it
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Decks I have in my bag of tricks- Needless to say, someone who wants to play will probably have a deck UB/x Faeries UR Storm XURWB Affinity G Elves UW control
What do you guys think about Vapor Snag? I think it could help a bit more with aggro. I know we run 4 DoJ and 3 Ratchet Bomb, but Ratchet Bomb goes off for 2 on T4 and DoJ is on T4 at the earliest.
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Less creatures, more permission. I'm not sure if you've ever played with Blue Sun's Zenith, but it is a must in this deck. I'm guessing Timely is just a meta call. 4x Days would be good. Karn and Elspeth are really good in here. A lot of games I would be on the ropes, land a Karn, exile wincons, reset the game and win. I really like Karn in this deck. I'd suggest testing him out
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So, I need your opinions and wisdom guys. Is Elesh Norn or Karn better than Batterskull? My meta is heavy aggro, so I'm thinking 1 Sphinx might be enough.
Playing close to Neeman's list that he played at worlds, U/W/b splashing for doom blade mostly. White sun as a finisher is really strong, as well as consecrated sphinx still being one of the best creatures blue has.
Yeah, the lists are very similar. My changes were something like -1 Doom Blade -1 Elesh Norn -1 Dissipate -1 Land, + 2 GftT +1 Gideon +1 Batterskull. Well, that and the sideboards are completely different. I've been playing U/B for the past month and I love having an instant speed finisher. The mana's a little clunky, but not terrible, just a lot of lands coming in tapped.
I know it's a little strange, but I've had success with it. 4 DoJ, 3 Timely, and 2 Wurmcoil can be really tough on aggro decks. In my playtesting, I've found the only way I can beat WRR is to have enough counters to let nothing resolve. And it's worked. I ran 12 last night and I added 3 more to the SB that I will playtest. Timely and DoJ are both pretty bad in that matchup, because if they resolve a Titan, inkmoth will kill me. So I also need to side in Dismember or try to not let a Titan resolve and use Ghost Quarter on any inkmoths or wolf runs that they draw.
I've had a little trouble with RDW. I'm hoping Celestial Purge will make that matchup a little easier.
Yes, I realize mainboard mimic vat is crazy. But turn 3 vat to turn 4 DoJ isn't bad. And it's fun and unexpected.
UW Humans is a matchup I'm a little worried about. I haven't played it yet.
The hardest part about UW Humans is Grand Abolisher. That card wrecks us so hard. If they don't hit a turn 2 Grand Abolisher you're in good shape.
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This is my preferred version of the standard format UW Control.
Nevermoredoesn't needGitaxian Probe and is really useful against Mirran Crusaders, Lilianas, and Garruks. Sometimes I even use it to get rid of potential Oblivions and DOJs (only when my creatures are already established on the field). I think it's very effective against Solar Flare builds and UB Control, as my record against those decks is impressive. When fighting aggro, I switch Jace and other cards for removals on my sideboard......
Snapcaster Mage + Gitaxian Probe is a great combo. I have avoided many dissipates, mana leaks, DOJs, Black Sun's Zenith, and other frustrating spells by flashbacking the phyrexian mana sorcery......
I'm thinking of including phantasmal image, it's great to pair up with Sun Titan specially against those aggro decks......
In life all we can do is try to make things better. Sitting lost in old ways and fearing change only makes us outdated and ignorant.
Peace cannot be kept by force. It can only be achieved by understanding.
Albert Einstein
Millions of innocent men, women and children, since the introduction of Christianity, have been burnt, tortured, fined and imprisoned; yet we have not advanced one inch towards uniformity.
Depends on your build. Even in a list thats running oblivion rings and white sun's zeniths, snapcaster mage feels like the best card in the deck. It's incredibly versatile and, imo, needs to be a 3-4 of auto-include in decks right now. Some of the more planeswalker oriented lists might drop him alltogether or only run him as a 2-of, but the esper lists I've seen right now are the best fit for snapcaster outside of tempo lists.
What is your general sideboard plan with this deck?
Look up the deck tech on the mothership site. Like I said on my post this deck is strait from the worlds list that went undefeated. Its too bad AC did bad in draft and modern because he would have won out in the top 8 also baring bad luck.
Not running stupid titans and stuff makes your deck a lot better. Good old UW control circa 1996
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In life all we can do is try to make things better. Sitting lost in old ways and fearing change only makes us outdated and ignorant.
Peace cannot be kept by force. It can only be achieved by understanding.
Albert Einstein
Millions of innocent men, women and children, since the introduction of Christianity, have been burnt, tortured, fined and imprisoned; yet we have not advanced one inch towards uniformity.
Thomas Jefferson
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8 Island
4 Seachrome Coast
4 Glacial Fortress
2 Buried Ruin
3 Ghost Quarter
2 Snapcaster Mage
1 Consecrated Sphinx
1 Elesh Norn, Grand Cenobite
4 Ponder
4 Think Twice
2 Blue Sun's Zenith
4 Mana Leak
3 Dissipate
3 Ratchet Bomb
4 Day of Judgment
1 Oblivion Ring
1 Elspeth Tirel
2 Gideon Jura
1 Karn Liberated
1 Elixir of Immortality
1 Divine Offering
3 Negate
1 Ratchet Bomb
2 Phantasmal Image
1 White Sun's Zenith
3 Celestial Purge
3 Timely Reinforcements
Buried Ruin - It gets the nod over Haunted Fengraf for two reasons: First, it is a part of your sideboard plan against UB Control. Second, it recycles your Ratchet Bombs for additional value.
Ghost Quarter - Probably the best available tool to deal with utility lands like Kessig Wolf Run, Nephalia Drownyard, Moorland Haunt or Inkmoth Nexus. In a pinch, you can use it to fix your mana but hopefully it will never come to that.
Elesh Norn, Grand Cenobite - Lady GaGa does a wonderful Curse of Death's Hold imitation since it blanks a lot of the creatures you might run into. The buff she provides your team is cute but unnecessary since you really aren't running that many creatures to start with.
Consecrated Sphinx - What's there to say about it that hasn't already been said? Only thing that comes to mind is that I regret not playing it my previous lists. Granted, there are a few ways to deal with it but most of the time they will trade it for a removal spell and you will still be up at least two cards.
Snapcaster Mage - Practically standard issue at this point. It's good to have the ability to flashback some of your counters or mass removal in game one and it gets you additional value out of your sideboard cards. You might want to try out playing 3 of them but so far I myself never felt the need to do so.
Mana Leak - There has been some debate about it's inclusion in recent lists, on the basis that it doesn't do enough against some of the decks out there. Still, having a nearly unconditional counter in the early game can't be all bad as far as game one is concerned.
Dissipate - A hard counter with the benefit of exileing the countered spell. The exile itself isn't often that important but it beats playing Cancel and there aren't that many two mana counters that you can reasonably maindeck.
More coming soon.
Matchups:
EDIT: With Elesh Norn now being a maindeck card you have a reasonable late game plan and a way to deal with just about any creature they can throw your way. Also, I've made the move toward Phantasmal Image over Metamorph on the basis that it is a more cost efficient card and that the whole recursion thing with the Metamorph just isn't fast enough.
EDIT: Once again, Elesh Norn proves to be a great answer to some of the threats that would have been harder to deal with otherwise (Inkmoth Nexus in particular). The same logic that applies to Geist in the Delver matchup applies to Thrun against ramp.
EDIT: The "beatdown" plan has been abandoned in favor of more counters, so for the sideboard games you are stuck with "just" White Sun's Zenith, Elixir of Immortality and your planeswalkers. Consecrated Sphinx is another draw engine that doubles as a win condition. Getting even two cards from her is still pure gold, but if they somehow let you untap with it they might as well concede then and there.
EDIT: The deck now has a maindeck solution to a resolved Birthing Pod which makes things easier. Phantasmal Image comes in to battle Thrun and maybe copy useful comes into play effects. Elesh Norn is a decent maindeck inclusion, if only because she single handedly trumps about half of the creatures they tend to play.
Many thanks to HotP Studios. Special thanks to DNC for this great sig.
-Sene
BGStandard Green AggroGB
UWRGModern Saheeli CobraGRWU
UBRGLegacy StormGRBU
Wizards Certified Rules Advisor
2 snapcaster mage
[5 planeswalkers]
2 gideon jura
2 Karn Liberated
1 elspeth tirel
[26 other spells]
4 ponder
4 day of judgment
4 mana leak
4 think twice
3 disspiate
3 ratchet bomb
2 negate
2 blue sun's zenith
2 buried ruin
3 ghost quarter
4 seachrome coast
4 glacial fortess
8 island
6 plains
3 celestial purge
3 timely reinforcements
1 ratchet bomb
1 elixir of immortality
1 witchbane orb
1 negate
1 flashfreeze
1 dismember
1 white sun's zenith
1 elish norn
1 phantasmal image
I love the old school feel of this list.
Albert Einstein
Thomas Jefferson
So I have had this thought for a while that 'Ponder allows you to find answers you need to see within a timely basis', however I look at a sideboard of 1-ofs that seem more effective as at least 2-ofs and I have the concern that the sideboard Andrew Cuneo used promotes a dangerous stretch of that idea. the 1-of Dismember and Flashfreeze
(Maybe its just the 1-of flashfreeze and 1-of Phantasmal Image Im unsure of, but I never got the memo)
Furthermore, I think the White Sun's Zenith COULD be in the maindeck...angles to win with SEEM slightly lacking in all honesty. I mean, I learned basic Control mechanics with the tip "Damage comes Later", but matches are timed And I cant think of anything more upsetting than letting a game go too long and escape your grasp
UB/x Faeries
UR Storm
XURWB Affinity
G Elves
UW control
3 Sun Titan
3 Snapcaster Mage
3 Phantasmal Image
1 Consecrated Sphinx
Planeswalkers
2 Gideon Jura
1 Karn Liberated
Instant/Sorcery
3 Ponder
3 Day of Judgment
2 Dissipate
4 Mana Leak
3 Think Twice
2 Tumble Magnet
Enchantments
4 Oblivion Ring
Land
3 Ghost Quarter
3 Glacial Fortress
3 Seachrome Coast
7 Island
7 Plains
2 Timely Reinforcements
1 Divine Offering
2 Spellskite
3 Purify the Grave
1 Wurmcoil Engine
1 Elesh Norn, Grand Cenobite
1 Day of Judgment
1 Ratchet Bomb
2 Steel Sabotage
1 Jace, Memory Adept
Cuneo's List seemed to be completely geared towards GW tokens, but I took the concept and broadened it. This list has been doing pretty amazing for me. The shear amount of counters will have your opponents down to topdeck mode in no time. Negate always wins counter wars and stops walkers when you're opponent thinks its safe from getting leaked. Ponder + Snapcaster has just been an all star in this deck. Lets you dig for answers or your finishers after you stabilize. Its also recurrable synergy with Sun Titans. Sun Titan Image combo is always just devastating and usually must be answered with a board wipe. Phantasmal image is such a flexible card. Kills legendary creatures for 2 mana, copies titans and wurmcoils, gives you multiple copies of your creatures, and you can play it without fear of removal. If it dies you can just recur it later. The only danger to it is getting dissipated. Tumble Magnets are amazing. They lock down Illusions as long as you can keep the lord off the board, they prevent Titans and Heros from getting those attack triggers, or tap inkmoth's and crusaders till you find an answer.
Sideboard:
Reinforcements and Wurmcoil against fast aggro. Elesh Norn is an allstar against tokens, and Ratchet bomb hurts. Spellskite shuts down Kessig and stops your titans from eating removal against UB. Purify the grave doesn't seem like much but it has really helped the UB matchup. Responding to a Snapcaster's trigger, makes it a vanilla 2/1 with flash. It has flashback so it can completely neuter solar flare. Play it twice to deal with unburial rites twice. You can argue for Surgical Extraction in this spot, but I prefer purify just because Drownyard is very relevant against UB. Jace is sort of like UB's drownyard. This deck can really draw some games out and having a singleton in the sb has actually won me quite a few games.
Weaknesses:
Surgical Extraction and Memoricide type effects. I haven't had it happen yet but surgical extracting the titans is just bad for us.
Karn really hasn't shone much in this deck, He usually ends up an overcosted O-ring. I'll test White Sun's Zenith in this spot. I ran that card last season and totally forgot about how strong it was.
My sideboard is geared more towards UB control and solar flare since that's 60% of my meta, but feel free to adjust towards your meta. Happy Brewing!
Sig banner courtesy of Miraculous Recovery Signatures
UBControlBU
UWDelverWU
BWUSuperfriendsUWB
Type 2 in development
WBUCounterless Solar FlareBWU
Type 2 Retired
UBWControlBUW
RBVampiresBR
GRValakutGR
GElves!G
GBEldrazi GreenBG
Legacy
UWStonebladeWU
EDH
GWRhys the RedeemedWG
GWURafiq of the ManyUWG
GRWMayael the AnimaWRG
4 Seachrome Coast
4 Glacial Fortress
4 Ghost Quarter
1 Isolated Chapel
2 Drowned Catacomb
6 Island
5 Plains
Creatures (6)
2 Snapcaster Mage
2 Consecrated Sphinx
2 Wurmcoil Engine
2 Gideon Jura
1 Karn Liberated
Other Spells (25)
3 Think Twice
2 Forbidden Alchemy
4 Mana Leak
4 Dissipate
4 Day of Judgment
3 Oblivion Ring
3 Timely Reinforcements
2 Mimic Vat
4 Flashfreeze
3 Stoic Rebuttal
3 Dismember
3 Celestial Purge
1 Oblivion Ring
1 Timely Reinforcements
I know it's a little strange, but I've had success with it. 4 DoJ, 3 Timely, and 2 Wurmcoil can be really tough on aggro decks. In my playtesting, I've found the only way I can beat WRR is to have enough counters to let nothing resolve. And it's worked. I ran 12 last night and I added 3 more to the SB that I will playtest. Timely and DoJ are both pretty bad in that matchup, because if they resolve a Titan, inkmoth will kill me. So I also need to side in Dismember or try to not let a Titan resolve and use Ghost Quarter on any inkmoths or wolf runs that they draw.
I've had a little trouble with RDW. I'm hoping Celestial Purge will make that matchup a little easier.
Yes, I realize mainboard mimic vat is crazy. But turn 3 vat to turn 4 DoJ isn't bad. And it's fun and unexpected.
UW Humans is a matchup I'm a little worried about. I haven't played it yet.
1x Batterskull
Creatures
4x Snapcaster Mage
2x Frost Titan
Plainswalkers
2x Gideon Jura
1x Karn Liberated
Insants
4x Mana Leak
4x Think Twice
3x Dissipate
2x Negate
2x Vapor Snag
1x Disperse
2x Forbidden Alchemy
2x Oblivion Ring
Sorceries
3x Day of Judgment
Land
4x Seachrome Coast
4x Glacial Fortress
3x Ghost Quarter
2x Inkmoth Nexus
2x Drowned Catacombs
1x Isolated Chapel
6x Island
5x Plains
Frites
Naya Pod
The whole idea is that you don't ran creatures that you care about dieing.
Right now if your not using ratchet bomb your doing something wrong.
also elpeth tirel is really good against thrun which you can't really answer effectively.
Albert Einstein
Thomas Jefferson
I can't agree with the Elspeth reference more. She is a win condition alone. She creates tokens to swing/block with, Gains you life, and is an extremely good board sweep.
In regards to creatures, I put 4 Snapcasters main. They're just too good not to run as a 4 of. Might just be a meta call since creature based decks are everywhere in my meta. So I need to be able to flashback DoJ all the time.
Illusions seems like a rough matchup cause they can land a T1 Delver of Secrets and sit on it. Gitaxian Probe can get annoying since they just about ALWAYS know whats in your hand.
How do you guys feel about Delver of Secrets main? With roughly 31 instant/sorcery spells, it will almost always flip T2 and we can just sit on counter back up. I'm just most people side out almost all removal since we run 2-4 creature. Maybe a 3-3 split with Delver and Snapcaster.
Test your decks, avoid jerks, make friends!
My personal opinion...no. BECAUSE, it dilutes the control formula in essence. It does not promote seeking an answer like ponder does, so the sorcery speed is a slight drawback, and it is a potentially dead draw a lot of the time for decks such as ours. If you were personally geared toward a tempo-based decklist Id say yes, but with the average route of discussion Id have to advise against it
UB/x Faeries
UR Storm
XURWB Affinity
G Elves
UW control
Test your decks, avoid jerks, make friends!
4 Snapcaster Mage
3 Phantasmal Image
1 Consecrated Sphinx
1 Frost Titan
3 Sun Titan
INSTANT/SORCERY: 15
2 Day of Judgment
2 Dissipate
4 Mana Leak
1 Negate
4 Think Twice
2 Timely Reinforcements
3 Oblivion Ring
ARTIFACTS: 1
1 Batterskull
PLANESWALKERS: 3
3 Gideon Jura
LAND: 26
4 Ghost Quarter
4 Glacial Fortress
7 Island
7 Plains
4 Seachrome Coast
1 Day of Judgment
3 Dismember
3 Flashfreeze
2 Leonin Arbiter
1 Oblivion Ring
3 Ratchet Bomb
2 Timely Reinforcements
Please help!
Vorel of the Hull Clade
Reki, the History of Kamigawa (MTGO)
Lavinia of the Tenth (MTGO)
Less creatures, more permission. I'm not sure if you've ever played with Blue Sun's Zenith, but it is a must in this deck. I'm guessing Timely is just a meta call. 4x Days would be good. Karn and Elspeth are really good in here. A lot of games I would be on the ropes, land a Karn, exile wincons, reset the game and win. I really like Karn in this deck. I'd suggest testing him out
Test your decks, avoid jerks, make friends!
3 Snapcaster Mage
2 Consecrated Sphinx
Instants: 21
2 White Sun's Zenith
4 Think Twice
3 Doom Blade
2 Go for the Throat
4 Mana Leak
2 Dissipate
4 Forbidden Alchemy
Sorceries: 3
3 Day of Judgement
Planeswalkers: 2
2 Gideon Jura
2 Oblivion Ring
Artifacts: 1
1 Batterskull
4 Plains
4 Island
1 Swamp
3 Glacial Fortress
2 Drowned Catacomb
4 Seachrome Coast
3 Darkslick Shores
3 Ghost Quarter
2 Isolated Chapel
4 Timely Reinforcements
2 Hero of Bladehold
2 Blade Splicer
2 Negate
1 Oblivion Ring
1 Day of Judgement
1 Geist of Saint Traft
1 Grand Abolisher
1 Ratchet Bomb
So, I need your opinions and wisdom guys. Is Elesh Norn or Karn better than Batterskull? My meta is heavy aggro, so I'm thinking 1 Sphinx might be enough.
The hardest part about UW Humans is Grand Abolisher. That card wrecks us so hard. If they don't hit a turn 2 Grand Abolisher you're in good shape.
Test your decks, avoid jerks, make friends!
4 Seachrome Coast
4 Glacial Fortress
6 Island
10 Plains
Creatures:
2 Sun Titan
2 Wurmcoil Engine
2 Consecrated Sphinx
3 Snapcaster Mage
Spells:
4 Mana Leak
2 Nevermore
2 Jace, Memory Adept
2 Dissipate
4 Gitaxian Probe
2 Gideon Jura
3 Day Of Judgment
4 Oblivion Ring
4 Think Twice
Sideboard:
2 Wurmcoil Engine
1 Snapcaster Mage
2 Gideon Jura
1 Day of Judgment
4 Forbidden Alchemy
4 Dismember
1 Elspeth Tirel
This is my preferred version of the standard format UW Control.
Nevermore doesn't need Gitaxian Probe and is really useful against Mirran Crusaders, Lilianas, and Garruks. Sometimes I even use it to get rid of potential Oblivions and DOJs (only when my creatures are already established on the field). I think it's very effective against Solar Flare builds and UB Control, as my record against those decks is impressive. When fighting aggro, I switch Jace and other cards for removals on my sideboard......
Snapcaster Mage + Gitaxian Probe is a great combo. I have avoided many dissipates, mana leaks, DOJs, Black Sun's Zenith, and other frustrating spells by flashbacking the phyrexian mana sorcery......
I'm thinking of including phantasmal image, it's great to pair up with Sun Titan specially against those aggro decks......
2 snapcaster mage
[5 planeswalkers]
2 gideon jura
2 karn the liberated
1 elspeth tirel
[26 other spells]
4 ponder
4 day of judgment
4 mana leak
4 think twice
3 disspiate
3 ratchet bomb
2 negate
2 blue sun's zenith
2 buried ruin
3 ghost quarter
4 seachrome coast
4 glacial fortess
8 island
6 plains
3 celestial purge
3 timely reinforcements
1 ratchet bomb
1 elixir of immortality
1 witchbane orb
1 negate
1 flashfreeze
1 dismember
1 white sun's zenith
1 elish norn
1 phantasmal image
Albert Einstein
Thomas Jefferson
What is your general sideboard plan with this deck?
GRLiquimetal PhoenixRG
UUMonoblue DelverUU
ф сапт цпбёлстапб уоц.
Depends on your build. Even in a list thats running oblivion rings and white sun's zeniths, snapcaster mage feels like the best card in the deck. It's incredibly versatile and, imo, needs to be a 3-4 of auto-include in decks right now. Some of the more planeswalker oriented lists might drop him alltogether or only run him as a 2-of, but the esper lists I've seen right now are the best fit for snapcaster outside of tempo lists.
3 Snapcaster Mage
3 Phantasmal Image
1 Consecrated Sphinx
1 Frost Titan
2 Sun Titan
INSTANT/SORCERY: 16
3 Day of Judgment
2 Dissipate
4 Mana Leak
1 Negate
4 Think Twice
2 Blue Sun's Zenith
3 Oblivion Ring
ARTIFACTS: 1
1 Batterskull
PLANESWALKERS: 4
3 Gideon Jura
1 Karn Liberated
LAND: 26
4 Ghost Quarter
4 Glacial Fortress
7 Island
7 Plains
4 Seachrome Coast
3 Dismember
3 Flashfreeze
2 Leonin Arbiter
1 Oblivion Ring
3 Ratchet Bomb
3 Timely Reinforcements
Vorel of the Hull Clade
Reki, the History of Kamigawa (MTGO)
Lavinia of the Tenth (MTGO)
Look up the deck tech on the mothership site. Like I said on my post this deck is strait from the worlds list that went undefeated. Its too bad AC did bad in draft and modern because he would have won out in the top 8 also baring bad luck.
Not running stupid titans and stuff makes your deck a lot better. Good old UW control circa 1996
Albert Einstein
Thomas Jefferson