[Deck] RWU (American) Aggro

// Lands
1 [10E] Mountain (3)
3 [DIS] Hallowed Fountain
3 [GP] Steam Vents
3 [10E] Plains (1)
2 [10E] Island (1)
4 [RAV] Sacred Foundry
4 [ZEN] Arid Mesa
4 [ZEN] Scalding Tarn

// Creatures
4 [TSB] Lightning Angel
4 [M12] Grim Lavamancer
4 [WWK] Sejiri Merfolk
4 [LRW] Knight of Meadowgrain

// Spells
4 [M11] Lightning Bolt
4 [GP] Electrolyze
4 [RAV] Lightning Helix
4 [RAV] Char
4 [TSB] Psionic Blast

// Sideboard
SB: 4 [BOK] Threads of Disloyalty
SB: 3 [9E] Worship
SB: 3 [ARB] Meddling Mage
SB: 3 [EVE] Duergar Hedge-Mage
SB: 2 [ARB] Wall of Denial

A Lightning Angel aggro deck that I am testing.
Lightning Angel is the reason i put the deck togheter, because it is a strong creature mostly due the fact that is out of the bolt range. Its haste makes it not slow at all.
It works mostly like a burn deck. The lifelink creatures are there to compensate the lifeloss from lands and Psi Blast/Char (and because i have no better options in the colors), and they also work pretty well with lavamancer and eletrolyze because they have first strike.
The sideboard needs serious work.

Feel free to comment, and sorry for any possible flaw in my english.

Snapcaster mage looks pretty snazzy in that list.
Nice brew!

12 creatures seems pretty slim
Maybe make room for PtE

Delver is retarded. Snapcaster is anywhere from fine to amazing (depends). We have on color fetches for 2 of 3 colors (which makes the manabase inherently more stable than many other 3 color configurations in Modern).

// Lands - 20
3 Mountain
2 Island
2 Plains
1 Hallowed Fountain
1 Sacred Foundry
1 Steam Vents
4 Scalding Tarn
4 Arid Mesa
2 Misty Rainforest

// Creatures - 14
3 Grim Lavamancer
3 Snapcaster Mage
4 Goblin Guide
4 Delver of Secrets

// Burn - 14
4 Rift Bolt
4 Lightning Bolt
3 Magma Jet
3 Lightning Helix

// Other - 12
4 Spell Pierce
4 Path to Exile
4 Serum Visions

I've tried several Zoo variants out since Nacatl's ban. Zoo is still a great deck. Nacatl's banning opens up construction, and since Delver is arguably the best 1-drop after Nacatl at this point, RWU aggro is looking much better.


peace,
4eak

Gitaxian Probe over Serum Visions? I recognize the latter digs deeper, but Snapcasting Probe is still a fine play.

Would Meddling Mage make sense with Probe? What about Wee Dragonauts (probably a real stretch for this aggro deck).

Just some ideas from old Star-Spangled Slaughter.

Digging deep is important, but that isn't the main reason. Serum Visions is far better with Delver. You want to be able to setup Delver with consistency. Magma Jet and Visions are vital for this.

Visions is better with Snapcaster as well - when you are actually using Snapcaster on a Draw spell, it is because you are digging for an card which isn't in your graveyard (or another creature). Snapcaster is a midgame card. You shouldn't blow it early for something as weak as Probe.


peace,
4eak

Wow, it's scary to see how similar my deck is to one 4eak posted.

4 Scalding Tarn
4 Arid Mesa
4 Marsh Flats
3 Sacred Foundry
2 Hallowed Fountain
2 Steam Vents
1 Plains
1 Island
1 Mountain

4 Delver of Secrets
4 Goblin Guide
4 Steppe Lynx
4 Snapcaster Mage
2 Grim Lavamancer
2 Ranger of Eos

4 Path to Exile
4 Lightning Bolt
3 Lightning Helix
4 Magma Jet
2 Serum Visions
1 Proclamation of Rebirth


The proclamation is just a mise, testing it for now. I'm slightly worried about spell density for delver of secrets, but magma jets and serum visions do a fine job of flipping him. The former much more than the latter as the sorcery speed of serum visions is a big drawback.

@ hotbeefcakes

I agree with your spell density worry - I think your build is too creature heavy - You want to flip Delver with extreme consistency. I feel like I'm pushing it with 14 creatures, honestly. As to your build, Ranger is against the point of the deck. Steppe Lynx is juicy. I'll be trying him out. I'm worried about his color, but the dude hits like a truck.

@ everyone

Spell Pierce has been 'meh'. Spell Pierce isn't keeping me in the 'early game' as much as I'd like, instead it is really at its best in the midgame, which is not the role I'm looking to play as much (Snapcaster is exceptional in this case, as I have limited option for good sorceries/instants in this format). So, I've cut Spell Pierce, the build is now:

// Lands - 20
3 Mountain
2 Island
2 Plains
1 Hallowed Fountain
1 Sacred Foundry
1 Steam Vents
4 Scalding Tarn
4 Arid Mesa
2 Misty Rainforest

// Creatures - 14
3 Grim Lavamancer
3 Snapcaster Mage
4 Goblin Guide
4 Delver of Secrets

// Burn - 16
4 Rift Bolt
4 Lightning Bolt
4 Magma Jet
4 Lightning Helix

// Other - 10
4 Path to Exile
4 Serum Visions
2 Sleight of Hand

Differences: -4 Spell Pierce, +1 Helix, +1 Magma Jet, +2 Sleight of Hand.

The extra burn is excellent. I cannot say enough good things about Magma Jet. Red card manipulation with Burn attached is exactly what the doctor ordered. Helix let's us win damage races nicely, but I'm not ridiculously attached to it. I initially threw in Sleight of hand because I didn't know what else to put in (all the other options are much weaker than the other cards in the deck), although I was skeptical of it because I had tried the 4x Visions + 4x Sleight configuration, but found I was cutting into my tempo just to dig. 2 Sleight has worked out nicely.

I love the consistency and tempo of this deck. Too many decks in the format just suck in the first 3 turns. This deck takes advantage of that fact.


peace,
4eak

Is this a deck that could take full advantage of Mana Tithe, Aether Vial, and Serra Avenger?

I can only speak for my build. Serra is :w::w: (not great for this deck) and it is innately mid-game, coming down t3 or 4 earliest. My fundamental turn (the turn where I have good reasons to believe I've won or lost) comes before or just as Serra hits play. Serra is slow and difficult to cast.

Vial is terrible in a deck abusing Delver of Secrets. Vial is terrible in a deck with only 14 creatures. 18 is probably the minimum number of creatures for Vial (and perhaps higher if not all of the creatures are godly with Vial).

Mana Tithe is something I've tried. Turn 1 white mana is not what I'm looking to produce. I want UR up on turn 1. Mana Tithe also taxes your tempo too often, holding back for nothing. I'm disappointed by the card. Mana Tithe does well in decks that don't have many other turn 1 options, but that isn't this deck - which is either dropping a dude, cantripping, or burning (less common).


peace,
4eak

Probably a crap suggestion because i haven't played Modern (though i'm definitely playing this deck at a gpt in January) but is Remand worth trying maybe in the 2 Sleight of Hand slots? I have always liked Remand in this type of decks and it seems to me it is underplayed in the format. It probably has the same problem as Spell Pierce at not being good enough in the early game but perhaps it can buy you the last turn you need deal the last points of damage?

Also, since i'm new to the format i could use some help with the sideboard. This is my starting point:

3 Blood Moon
3 Mindbreak Trap
3 Spell Pierce
3 Hurkyl's Recall
3 Surgical Extraction

Very generic stuff... Any comments appreciated.

UPDATE: In case anyone cares about this deck, i sleeved up 4eak's list and won a GPT for GP Madrid beating MBC, Affinity, Jund and Burn. The deck runs very smoothly and, as 4eak explained, it takes advantage of the slowness of other decks in the early turns which took by surprise some of my opponents. The sideboard was:

4 Mindbreak Trap
4 Smash to Smithereens
3 Blood Moon
2 Ethersworn Canonist
2 Negate

A friend of mine is playing this deck. Jund was consistently beating it.

If you feel like the early game is not getting the job done often enough, one could consider adding Geist of saint Traft x3 and Elspeth, KI x3.

I'm also playing this deck with 3x Geist MD and 3x Mirran Crusader in SB only against Jund, and they're doing well :).

While not all that easy, I did not feel the matchup against Jund was particularly difficult. The early game is all yours since they do almost nothing, and by the time the middle game comes around they are only a few points of damage away from dying, and chances are you'll be topdecking into some burn. After SB, Blood Moon can be game if unexpected because they run very few (or none?) basics.

Having said that, i like the white based sideboard. I will probably be trying some combiantion of Geist, Elspeth and Crusader next time.