[Deck] UWb Esperblade

[Hanni]

Nihil believes that UWb Fish should remain its own thread, since Fish is fundamentally different from most of the other Stoneblade lists, and I'm willing to concede his point. Since UWb Esperblade is a different deck than both Blade Control and Patriot, I decided to start a new thread to discuss this deck.

This thread will be for any UWb aggro/control decklist running some number of Stoneforge Mystic and equipment. Lists with the Thopter Foundry/Sword of the Meek combo are welcome, for example. U/W/b lists that are more control than aggro/control likely belong in the Blade Control thread, but feel free to post those in here as well.

To start things off, here is my current list. It's more "fishy" than most Stoneblade lists, but it's been performing exceedingly well:

U/W/b Esperblade

// Lands (18)
4 [ON] Flooded Strand
4 [ON] Polluted Delta
4 [R] Tundra
2 [R] Underground Sea
2 [R] Scrubland
1 [UNH] Island
1 [UNH] Plains

// Creatures (17)
4 [UL] Mother of Runes
4 [WWK] Stoneforge Mystic
4 [RAV] Dark Confidant
4 [ALA] Tidehollow Sculler
1 [MOR] Vendilion Clique

// Spells (25)
4 [IA] Brainstorm
3 [LRW] Ponder
4 [NPH] Mental Misstep
4 [NE] Daze
4 [AL] Force of Will
4 [IA] Swords to Plowshares
1 [BOK] Umezawa's Jitte
1 [NPH] Batterskull

// Sideboard (15)
SB: 1 [BOK] Umezawa's Jitte
SB: 1 [DS] Sword of Fire and Ice
SB: 1 [MBS] Sword of Feast and Famine
SB: 4 [ZEN] Spell Pierce
SB: 2 [CFX] Path to Exile
SB: 2 [AP] Vindicate
SB: 2 [WL] Aura of Silence
SB: 2 [SOK] Pithing Needle

I'm not running any Jace, the Mind Sculptor, which is generally considered a staple to most for "Stoneblade" decks, but this deck is already chock-full of card advantage, and doesn't need an alternate win condition. I'd fit him in if I had the room, but there's nothing I'm willing to cut to do so... maybe a Ponder and a Clique for 2 Jace TMS or something, but I'm not sure that would overall be more effective. Lifeloss to Confidant is also relevant.

Other than that, this deck is pretty much everything I'd want from an aggro/control deck. Every single creature threat in this deck is more than just a creature - they all provide either virtual or actual card advantage. The deck runs more than enough means to stabilize into the midgame, where its little fishy creatures turn into serious threats in the redzone through support from Mother of Runes and Umezawa's Jitte.

An excerpt, taken from my U/W/b Fish thread:

The fundamental structure of the deck is obviously a blue-based aggro/control deck, but it differs greatly from the green splashed versions; rather than attacking with fat (Goyf, Knight, etc), it uses "Grizzly Bears" that offer incredibly powerful abilities. The fact that these bears are both bodies and abilities, that in and of itself is card advantage. However, the abilities themselves generate both virtual and actual card advantage directly, which sets this deck far apart from other aggro/control strategies.

The deck is fantastic at surviving the early game through a host of defensive means. 12 (free) countermagic spells, Sculler (Thoughtseize on a stick), Mother of Runes (protection from removal/wall against aggro), and Swords to Plowshares are all fantastic at getting me into the midgame. It's very conceivable to get to the midgame with the opponent having absolutely nothing on the table (besides land). Sure, Tarmogoyf is a monstrous wall against a swarm of 2/2's and smaller, but if Goyf never sticks, a few 2/2's on a clean board are an impressive clock.

Once I'm in the midgame, there are few decks that can survive the absurd amount of card advantage that this deck creates. Every single creature creates either virtual or actual card advantage, and when combined with equipment, can quickly close a game out, either immediately, or by being so far ahead of the opponent in board development that they can never come back. Mother of Runes and equipment dominate the red zone, and all of the card advantage and control elements prevent the opponent from recovering.

After playtesting, I'm convinced that this deck has the ability to be a force in the metagame. It obviously has a strong combo matchup, but it also has a strong control matchup, with solid matchups across the board. Aggro is by no means a bad matchup either; between Mother of Runes and equipment, this deck has plenty of tools for combatting aggro. Combined with discard/countermagic/removal keeping the board relatively clear, and card advantage to keep the control coming, I'm very pleased with this deck.

I also want to make it clear that I am not saying that this deck is instant Tier 1, the next DTB, and that it's going to dominate the format. All I'm saying is that rather than being an unplayable fringe deck, this deck is actually a very good deck and definitely has the potential to make Top 8 finishes. Considering that other "Stoneblade" decks have already done so, that statement should not be farfetched.

That above excerpt does not need to apply to every Stoneblade list that gets posted in this thread, but it's a good starting point for those going a more aggro/control approach like I am.

Enjoy.