Welcome to the primer for one of the oldest archtypes existing in modern, Red deck wins, also known as RDW or burn. If you love mountains and a fast clock, you're in the right place.
What does it mean to play Red deck wins? It basically means take your opponents head off as fast as you can with efficient red creatures and direct damage. The deck in the past has used small amounts of mana denial, but the main idea of the deck is a fast efficient red aggro/burn deck.
Although Red deck wins didn't receive the name until 2000 it has been around in one form or another practically since the start of magic. I'm going to show you what is probably the most important red deck of all time, Sligh. Most people already know the history of the deck, but for those who don't, it was first piloted to a second place finish by Paul Sligh (hence the name) at a PTQ held in 1996 at Atlanta. The deck was full of cards that had never seen tournament play and still managed to perform well. The reason this deck did so well was that it was the first deck ever built with the idea of a curve. Here's the list, it's great to think that Ironclaw Orcs played a big role in changing how the game was played.
Over the years the deck has changed a lot, people have been successful in making red decks for years built around the same fundamental ideas of sligh. I plan on coming back to this section and talking about red decks in past extended and standard from 8th up once I'm finished with the rest of the primer.
Top picks
Creatures
Grim Lavamancer -In my experience, when this card hits the table most people immediately try and take it out if they can. Why? It's a one drop that can sneak two damage past blockers, and it can gain you a lot of board control if you want or need it.
Hellspark Elemental - Paying 2 to deal 3 damage isn't exactly the greatest, but this deck can run out of steam fairly easily and this card is great for giving you those extra few points of damage when you start to run out of steam. It's also very good to have in your deck if you are running teetering peaks.
Goblin Guide - One of the best creatures in modern right now, the clock it creates is just too good to not run it.
Keldon Marauders - Two damage to your opponent at worst, at best 5 damage for 2 mana. Sounds good in my books.
Figure of Destiny - Another one drop that has the potential to do a lot of damage. It's incredibly versatile, and the thing I like most about it is that you can get it through bigger creatures by just having the mana open to pump it, without actually spending the mana.
Mogg Fanatic - I love this card, it got neutered when the combat damage rule changed, but it`s still a great card.
Searing Blaze - As long as there are a decent amount of aggro decks in the format this card will be a staple.
Rift Bolt - Three damage for one mana, it's slower than sorcery speed when suspended and can be a bad draw in situations but it's still incredibly good in an aggressive red deck.
Lava Spike - I've heard plenty of people say this card is only good in a straight out burn deck, but it's also a really good compliment to a creature heavy build. With people starting lower from fetches and shocks, three damage to the head hurts a lot more than it used to.
Shard Volley - I haven't found sacrificing a land to play this to be much of a problem in this deck yet, obviously as good of a play in the first three turns as other cards but it's still a pretty efficient burn spell.
Magma Jet - Two damage plus a fixed draw is just so good.
Second Picks
These are the cards that aren't necessarily an auto include in the deck. The choice of adding these cards is usually dependant on what you are going for with the deck and how well they suit your gameplan.
Creatures
1 cmc Tattermunge Maniac - Decent one-drop, there's so many other good cards to contend for it's spot though. Spark Elemental - Basically a bad Lava Spike. Magus of the Scroll - If you're missing Lavamancers this is an alternative, not a very good card though.
2 cmc Plated Geopede - Explosive, but vulnerable to removal and not very consistent with a deck that runs as little land as possible. Kargan Dragonlord - Solid two-drop Blood Knight - Behind the curve, but protection from white could be useful. Stormblood Berserker - Probably your best choice in red for this deck if you want a 2 cmc creature that will stick around.
3 cmc Ball Lightning - Classic red card and great if you're going for the fastest finish possible. I usually end up running Flames of the Blood Hand over it though. Chandra's Phoenix - This card offers reach against slower decks with stuff like Kitchen Finks and Lightning Helix. Hell's Thunder - Offers a little bit of reach and it's a little faster than Chandra's Phoenix. Countryside Crusher - Solid three-drop. Gathan Raiders - Can get big, but it's not really an optimal choice. Zo-zu the Punisher - I think this card is underrated, it punishes people for having fetches and it has good synergy with ghost quarter.
4 cmc Giant Solifuge - It's ok card, I personally don't think it's worth it for four mana. Avalanche Riders - If you're leaning towards a little bit of mana denial this card is a good option. It's seen play in Red deck wins for many years.
5 cmc Demigod of Revenge - I've only really seen this cards in lists with mana denial. It may be a little too slow in a normal list to compete with combo.
Spells
Flame Javelin - Good burn spell, my personal opinion is it's slow, but other people have used it successfully. Char - Just a bad Flame Javelin in RDW. Incinerate - Bad in comparison to Lightning bolt, but so is everything else. I usually fill out my last burn spots with this. Volcanic Hammer - Bad Incinerate. Gitaxian Probe - RDW needs to be consistent and a 56 card deck is more consistent than a 60 card deck. Needle Drop - Could be good in the right build. Browbeat - It never really gets you what you want, in situations it can be amazing though. Shrapnel Blast - Five damage for two mana is huge, unfortunately at this point we don't have artifact lands or much of anything to sac to it. Forked Bolt, Shock, Burst Lightning, Tarfire,Galvanic Blast, Magma Spray - Although they're all fast they all lack punch. Molten Rain - Good mana denial.
Land
Mountain Arid Mesa, Scalding Tarn - Fetches are really great to have, they're good fuel for Lavamancers and they're really nice to have in your deck to get the 3 damage out of Searing blaze on your opponents turn. Teetering Peaks - I wasn't a huge fan of this card at first, I normally avoid comes into play tapped lands. But after trying it out I liked it so much that it's pretty much an instant 4 of in all of my lists. Mutavault, Ghitu encampment - These are a little on the slow side, but could be useful in long games. Smoldering Spires - this card is very situational. Ghost Quarter - Nice to have, it helps against tron. The main reason I'd run this though is for affinity.
If there is a way for a deck to effectively splash green for Tarmogoyf, no doubt someone will do it here are the cards that see play in the green splash.
- usually a couple in the board. Bloodbraid Elf - not very common but some people use it. Seal of Primordium - Sometimes a few in the board, guessing it's only in lists to maximize the size of Goyf.
This is a pretty stock list for mono Red deck wins, this one in particular finished 5/8 at a PTQ in Roma Italy with 192 players.
I sometimes play with the mono list posted above but generally I prefer my own (posted below), there's a few changes but for the most part it's the same deck.
You want to always keep pressure on your opponent in one way or another, your late game isn't the greatest so you want to finish them as soon as possible. Play your creatures, lava spike and rift bolt before others. Save the more versatile burn for later, sometimes you'll need it to clear the way or take out a threat. The deck seems pretty straight forward but it can have some tough choices depending on what you're up against and the situation. The best thing you can do is get plenty of practice and get a really good feel for the deck.
Just started working on matchups I'll be adding them one by one as I get the chance to test against them.
Living end - I've never had this deck threaten me with anything faster than a 5th turn kill, it generally gives me 2-3 turns to lay a beatdown and then when it goes off it usually needs 2-3 attacks to get lethal damage in, most of the time I just burn them to zero before they get a chance to swing for lethal. As far as boarding goes, I usually throw some graveyard hate in, Earthquake is also very good in this matchup, they will also sometimes throw in Kitchen Finks, brindle boar or Ravenous Baloth post-board, so anti-lifegain/torpor orb can be pretty useful too.
Unburial gifts - I find this to be a really tough matchup. They have so many tools to slow us down, and to top it all off a possiible turn 4 Iona which completely shuts us down. Stormblood Berserker can really prove useful in this matchup to squeak some extra damage through after they get an iona out. Graveyard hate is important here, and you're more than likely going to see them board in timely reinforcements so definitely keep that in mind when you're boarding. Smash to Smithereens can sometimes help out post board as well, they usually run a fair amount of signets and Talismans, and you might even sometimes see them board in spellskite so it can be very helpful at times.
Affinity - I always feel that affinity has the advantage game one, they're usually faster and force us into playing defense, which is never good. I find Grim Lavamancer and Searing Blaze both really shine in this matchup. Post-board RDW has the advantage. Affinity usually doesn't have anything in their board to combat RDW, occasionally they'll have a couple spellskites or some discard but it's more common that they won't. With the amount of sweepers and artifact hate we have available along with Searing Blaze and Grim Lavamacer already in the MD our game against affinity post-board seems really good.
Boros - Boros is very similar to RDW, only they're more creature oriented and we're more burn oriented. Being more creature oriented kind of gives us more options for slowing them down. A well placed sweeper or even an ensnaring bridge can win the game against them. For the most part I don't bother burning out their creatures, but sometimes I'll take out one of their landfall creatures because they create too much pressure to keep up with.
Melira Pod - I expected this matchup to be a lot worse than it actually is. If they get a pod in play things can go bad pretty fast, but other than that it's not so bad. All of the persist creature can get really annoying, especially when you have a creature heavy hand. The key to beating pod is taking out their Melira and just grinding them down, they're pretty slow if they can't get their combo off so be patient. Some builds run as much as 4 Kitchen Finks in the main and 4 Obstinate Baloths in the SB so siding in something to help with that is usually a good idea, Torpor orb is probably your best choice here, it shuts down their life-gain and their combo all in one.
Here's the deck I'm currently in the process of building, I'm going to have some empty slots left-over though so any help on what else to add would be great. This is for casual play, so Strips, Wastelands, or Ports are not necessary adds to the manabase. The tempo of this deck is simply burn in support of small creatures beating, so the burn protects the creatures first before turning to the opponent. Another creature slot is available, as I would be open to 16 creatures in this deck.
Cards I have considered but do not want in this deck Cursed Scroll (had them in the ol' Ankh Sligh that is transitioning to this deck, but the card has gotten out-dated). Rift Bolt -- Doesn't fit the tempo of this deck IMO. Price of Progress -- Doesn't fit my casual meta well enough. Jackal Pup -- read explanation for the Scroll.
This is the Modern forum, not Legacy. Chain Lightning and Fireblast have not been printed in any Modern Legal sets and as such are not legal in the format despite their frame. Same for Cursed Scroll, Price of Progress, Jackal Pup, and Wheel of Fortune (which is banned in Legacy as well).
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Afro Dave, @st4rwind on Twitter
Level 2 Judge
Legacy Decks:
- Deadguy Ale WB
- Imperial Bloodwolf R
- Rifter RW
- Rockman WBG
- Burn R
- T.E.S. WUBRG
- Belcher RG
- 10 Land Stompy G
- Zoo (budget) RGW
This thread is very out of date, modern was still fairly new when I made it. I'm planning on updating it this week in case there's any interest.
If there is anything you want from the Standard RDW Primer, feel free to take it. The article section, if nothing else, would be just as useful here as it is there
Good luck with it!
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I write for Channel Fireball now! Read my CFB articles here. Read my Dies to Removal articles here. Read the definitive Red Deck Wins Primer here.
Want to see me in action? Check out my stream! Currently broadcasting Boros Burn in Standard. Full archive available.
Want to play better magic? Come join us at diestoremoval.com
I play a BR list on a regular bases for Local Store events. I also played it with some success at GP Toronto so it was well positioned in the meta that showed up and it did not that bad. I didnt do well x-4 but hey i am extemly new to Modern.
I play a BR list on a regular bases for Local Store events. I also played it with some success at GP Toronto so it was well positioned in the meta that showed up and it did not that bad. I didnt do well x-4 but hey i am extemly new to Modern.
It does seem to be a better choice nowadays, Kitchen Finks have practically disappeared from the current meta and I've been seeing less and less Martyr Life decks lately. Those were two big problems I used to run into with RDW.
It does seem to be a better choice nowadays, Kitchen Finks have practically disappeared from the current meta and I've been seeing less and less Martyr Life decks lately. Those were two big problems I used to run into with RDW.
Here is my list I need help with side board as I can't seem to build one.
The reason for the molten rains mb is because there is a lot of tron in my meta but generally I agree.
Why so many rain of gores in sb? And dragons claw for the mirror?
I appolagize I don't mean to come off rude. So please don't take offense
No worries. Unless you play against more than any other deck though, I'd still keep them in the SB. Remember, you want to build good habits for bigger tournaments too, where Tron will only be a small percentage of the field.
The decklist I used above was one I found online from the recent MODO success stories. I made a few quick changes to it before posting it, which is why there is an extra Searing Blaze. Personally, I'd probably play 3-4 Searing Blaze main, and none in the board. Unless the meta shifts, you almost always will have a target.
Dragon's Claw probably isn't necessary in real life, but online RDW is relatively popular, so being prepared for the mirror is important. I'm not sure what exactly I'd run for a SB in paper form, but it most likely would have less Dragon's Claws and Rain of Gores. Almost everyone has Rain of Gore though, so it must be important against Tron and other Batterskulls, not to mention opposing Deathrites.
@Draek: I do agree 18 lands is pretty light, 20 is probably a bit safer. A friend also suggested running a single Stomping Ground, which makes Deathrite much more powerful in the mirror, and allows you to run Naturalize in the board when necessary. But you definitely need 20 lands (all 8 fetches) to support the 3rd color. Not a huge fan of Magma Jet though.
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MODERN RGB Jund BGR WGB Junk/Abzan Company WGB
LEGACY RUGB Delver GURB
EDH UW Geist of Saint Traft Aggro-Control WU RUG Riku of Two Reflections Combo GUR BBB Skithiryx Control BB
The reason for the molten rains mb is because there is a lot of tron in my meta but generally I agree.
Why so many rain of gores in sb? And dragons claw for the mirror?
I appolagize I don't mean to come off rude. So please don't take offense
No worries. Unless you play against more than any other deck though, I'd still keep them in the SB. Remember, you want to build good habits for bigger tournaments too, where Tron will only be a small percentage of the field.
The decklist I used above was one I found online from the recent MODO success stories. I made a few quick changes to it before posting it, which is why there is an extra Searing Blaze. Personally, I'd probably play 3-4 Searing Blaze main, and none in the board. Unless the meta shifts, you almost always will have a target.
Dragon's Claw probably isn't necessary in real life, but online RDW is relatively popular, so being prepared for the mirror is important. I'm not sure what exactly I'd run for a SB in paper form, but it most likely would have less Dragon's Claws and Rain of Gores. Almost everyone has Rain of Gore though, so it must be important against Tron and other Batterskulls, not to mention opposing Deathrites.
@Draek: I do agree 18 lands is pretty light, 20 is probably a bit safer. A friend also suggested running a single Stomping Ground, which makes Deathrite much more powerful in the mirror, and allows you to run Naturalize in the board when necessary. But you definitely need 20 lands (all 8 fetches) to support the 3rd color. Not a huge fan of Magma Jet though.
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():
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
MODERN RGB Jund BGR WGB Junk/Abzan Company WGB
LEGACY RUGB Delver GURB
EDH UW Geist of Saint Traft Aggro-Control WU RUG Riku of Two Reflections Combo GUR BBB Skithiryx Control BB
Modern Red deck wins
Under Construction
Article on old red decks: http://www.wizards.com/Magic/Magazine/Article.aspx?x=mtgcom/daily/ash24
Old RDW primer: http://forums.mtgsalvation.com/showthread.php?t=350356
Legacy burn primer: http://forums.mtgsalvation.com/showthread.php?t=241878
Cards I have considered but do not want in this deck
Cursed Scroll (had them in the ol' Ankh Sligh that is transitioning to this deck, but the card has gotten out-dated).
Rift Bolt -- Doesn't fit the tempo of this deck IMO.
Price of Progress -- Doesn't fit my casual meta well enough.
Jackal Pup -- read explanation for the Scroll.
Any help would be appreciated.
Afro Dave, @st4rwind on Twitter
Level 2 Judge
Legacy Decks:
- Imperial Bloodwolf R
- Rifter RW
- Rockman WBG
- Burn R
- T.E.S. WUBRG
- Belcher RG
- 10 Land Stompy G
- Zoo (budget) RGW
6 Mountains
4 Arid Mesa
4 Scalding Tarn
4 Blackcleave Cliffs
2 Blood Crypt
Creatures
4 Goblin Guide
4 Dark Confidant
4 Hellspark Elemental
4 Keldon Marauders
4 Lightning Bolt
4 Lava Spike
4 Rift Bolt
4 Shard Volley
4 Bump in the Night
4 Searing Blaze
3 Blood Moon
3 Torpor Orb
3 Flames of the Blood Hand
3 Smash to Smithereens
3 Ratchet Bomb
Not sure about the SB yet. Ratchet Bombs are there for the Leyline of you can't burn me... not sure how else to deal with them. Thoughts?
EDIT: Will be replacing (probably) Keldon Marauders with Vexing Devil as a 4-of. That guy is going to be beast mode for our deck.
http://media-dominaria.cursecdn.com/attachments/96/779/635032497139352788.jpg
Second EDIT: What do you guys think about Thunderous Wrath as a 2-of? Can't go up to 3 or you'll see it in your opening hand too often, but seems pretty awesome to top-deck.
http://media-dominaria.cursecdn.com/attachments/96/670/635032497112832108.jpg
I look forward to seeing what you add.
If there is anything you want from the Standard RDW Primer, feel free to take it. The article section, if nothing else, would be just as useful here as it is there
Good luck with it!
Want to see me in action? Check out my stream! Currently broadcasting Boros Burn in Standard. Full archive available.
Want to play better magic? Come join us at diestoremoval.com
It does seem to be a better choice nowadays, Kitchen Finks have practically disappeared from the current meta and I've been seeing less and less Martyr Life decks lately. Those were two big problems I used to run into with RDW.
Any advice would be nice.
Here is my list I need help with side board as I can't seem to build one.
Any advise will help thank you
3 Blackcleave Cliffs
2 Blood Crypt
5 Mountain
2 Scalding Tarn
2 Teetering Peaks
4 Deathrite Shaman
4 Goblin Guide
3 Grim Lavamancer
3 Hellspark Elemental
4 Vexing Devil
2 Flames of the Blood Hand
4 Lava Spike
4 Lightning Bolt
4 Rift Bolt
4 Searing Blaze
2 Shard Volley
2 Dragon's Claw
3 Rain of Gore
3 Rakdos Charm
1 Searing Blaze
3 Smash to Smithereens
3 Sudden Shock
RGB Jund BGR
WGB Junk/Abzan Company WGB
LEGACY
RUGB Delver GURB
EDH
UW Geist of Saint Traft Aggro-Control WU
RUG Riku of Two Reflections Combo GUR
BBB Skithiryx Control BB
3 Blackcleave Cliffs
2 Blood Crypt
5 Mountain
2 Scalding Tarn
2 Teetering Peaks
4 Deathrite Shaman
4 Goblin Guide
3 Grim Lavamancer
3 Hellspark Elemental
4 Vexing Devil
2 Flames of the Blood Hand
4 Lava Spike
4 Lightning Bolt
4 Rift Bolt
4 Searing Blaze
2 Shard Volley
2 Dragon's Claw
3 Rain of Gore
3 Rakdos Charm
1 Searing Blaze
3 Smash to Smithereens
3 Sudden Shock
RGB Jund BGR
WGB Junk/Abzan Company WGB
LEGACY
RUGB Delver GURB
EDH
UW Geist of Saint Traft Aggro-Control WU
RUG Riku of Two Reflections Combo GUR
BBB Skithiryx Control BB
The reason for the molten rains mb is because there is a lot of tron in my meta but generally I agree.
Why so many rain of gores in sb? And dragons claw for the mirror?
I appolagize I don't mean to come off rude. So please don't take offense
The reason for the molten rains mb is because there is a lot of tron in my meta but generally I agree.
Why so many rain of gores in sb? And dragons claw for the mirror?
I appolagize I don't mean to come off rude. So please don't take offense
No worries. Unless you play against more than any other deck though, I'd still keep them in the SB. Remember, you want to build good habits for bigger tournaments too, where Tron will only be a small percentage of the field.
The decklist I used above was one I found online from the recent MODO success stories. I made a few quick changes to it before posting it, which is why there is an extra Searing Blaze. Personally, I'd probably play 3-4 Searing Blaze main, and none in the board. Unless the meta shifts, you almost always will have a target.
Dragon's Claw probably isn't necessary in real life, but online RDW is relatively popular, so being prepared for the mirror is important. I'm not sure what exactly I'd run for a SB in paper form, but it most likely would have less Dragon's Claws and Rain of Gores. Almost everyone has Rain of Gore though, so it must be important against Tron and other Batterskulls, not to mention opposing Deathrites.
@Draek: I do agree 18 lands is pretty light, 20 is probably a bit safer. A friend also suggested running a single Stomping Ground, which makes Deathrite much more powerful in the mirror, and allows you to run Naturalize in the board when necessary. But you definitely need 20 lands (all 8 fetches) to support the 3rd color. Not a huge fan of Magma Jet though.
RGB Jund BGR
WGB Junk/Abzan Company WGB
LEGACY
RUGB Delver GURB
EDH
UW Geist of Saint Traft Aggro-Control WU
RUG Riku of Two Reflections Combo GUR
BBB Skithiryx Control BB
No worries. Unless you play against more than any other deck though, I'd still keep them in the SB. Remember, you want to build good habits for bigger tournaments too, where Tron will only be a small percentage of the field.
The decklist I used above was one I found online from the recent MODO success stories. I made a few quick changes to it before posting it, which is why there is an extra Searing Blaze. Personally, I'd probably play 3-4 Searing Blaze main, and none in the board. Unless the meta shifts, you almost always will have a target.
Dragon's Claw probably isn't necessary in real life, but online RDW is relatively popular, so being prepared for the mirror is important. I'm not sure what exactly I'd run for a SB in paper form, but it most likely would have less Dragon's Claws and Rain of Gores. Almost everyone has Rain of Gore though, so it must be important against Tron and other Batterskulls, not to mention opposing Deathrites.
@Draek: I do agree 18 lands is pretty light, 20 is probably a bit safer. A friend also suggested running a single Stomping Ground, which makes Deathrite much more powerful in the mirror, and allows you to run Naturalize in the board when necessary. But you definitely need 20 lands (all 8 fetches) to support the 3rd color. Not a huge fan of Magma Jet though.
RGB Jund BGR
WGB Junk/Abzan Company WGB
LEGACY
RUGB Delver GURB
EDH
UW Geist of Saint Traft Aggro-Control WU
RUG Riku of Two Reflections Combo GUR
BBB Skithiryx Control BB
gain one life for 2/3 of the spells they cast, essentially negating their contribution to grapeshot. Make it a LOT harder for them to combo you off.
gain one life for 2/3 of the spells they cast, essentially negating their contribution to grapeshot. Make it a LOT harder for them to combo you off.