I know you swear by it, but I don't even play Suppression Field in my version of this deck. Here's my list as it stands right now:
5 Snow-Covered Plains
4 Cavern of Souls
4 Ancient Tomb
3 City of Traitors
2 Karakas
4 Chrome Mox
4 Chalice of the Void
4 Winter Orb
4 Ballyrush Banneret
4 Preeminent Captain
4 Thalia, Guardian of Thraben
4 Enlistment Officer
3 Daru Warchief
3 Captain of the Watch
3 Porcelain Legionnaire
2 Veteran Swordsmith
2 Loxodon Gatekeeper
1 Gustcloak Savior
SB:
4 Phyrexian Revoker
4 Rest in Peace
4 Intrepid Hero
3 Damping Matrix
- Damping Matrix is an underplayed card in this format vs. stuff like Stoneblade and Death n Taxes. I used to play Cursed Totem, but Matrix does more vs the popular decks while still being decent vs Elves and the like.
- I feel as if Winter Orb does more to affect opponent's tempo than Field does. It's only bad for me when I play vs. Vial decks or combo that doesn't care about mana (Dredge, Belcher,etc) and then I board it out and/or bring in Revoker and Matrix. Winter Orb when it's non-symmetrical is really great and this deck has many ways to make it non-symmetrical - Sol-Lands, Chrome Mox, Preeminent Captain putting stuff in for free, and Ballyrush Banneret/Daru Warchief cost-reduction effects.
- I like to get the most value I can get out of my mana-base. I feel as if Tomb/City is one of the stronger aspects of the deck so I play more of that and play more soldiers that can take advantage of it (with more colorless mana in their cost).
- I was playing Brimaz off and on but I'm testing Gatekeeper in his slot for his synergy with Winter Orb.
Some of my observations on your suggestions.Originally Posted by MGB
-Field is directly responsible for over 75% of my wins. Winter Orb would not have ever been comparable to in in any of those matches. Not being able to activate Top, Jace, Lilianna, Fetch lands, Wasteland, Port, Vial, Mom, Knight are all key to winnings. Playing them main allow me to have better SB options.
-I never have issues with my mana base, I have tried toilet man and have been very disappointing in how he did.
-The single best card on my sideboard is Armageddon, I feel you should try it out.
Soldier Stompy
I don't know why I even still carry Oblivion Rings with me. Absolutely the right choice.
Tusk up.
(Not so) Current Decks: GB Elves, GW Maverick, GWb Maverick, LED Dredge, ANT, TES, Jund Storm.
We've had completely different results testing this deck. Weird.
- Field for me has been a boom or bust card. Sometimes you get it on turn 1 against a someone with a hand full of fetchlands and you win by default. But more than 70% of the time, I find myself casting Field at some point after T1, he cracks his fetch(s) in response, and then I sunk 1W and a card into something that sits there while he mostly plays around it. I.e. - if he plays Stoneforge mystic, he just taps 2 extra to play his batterskull and it slows him down a little bit but not much. If he places Jace, he gladly taps 2 to use his ability and still owns me with card advantage. If he plays Deathrite shaman, yes, it's hosed but then I still die to Goyfs and Lilis (that he gladly pays 2 for). It's just too easy to play around Field because it only forces a small tax on important activations. All those planeswalkers and pernicious deeds and stoneforge mystics are still there live and active, just a little bit slower. Yes, it blows out the all-fetchland hand but that doesn't happen as often in testing as it obviously has for you.
- I tried Armageddon for a while and was just shocked by how bad it was. Paying 3W for a sorcery in a deck that wants to lands Thalia as often as possible is just really miserable. And it isn't as easy to make asymmetrical as Winter Orb. I don't get Chrome Mox in every game and when I blow away ALL of my land I really hamper my game plan just as much as my opponent's. However, with Winter Orb, I still have access to one untapped land, and if I have Tomb or City in play, it's 2 mana whereas my opponent is only getting 1 mana. You should try Winter Orb - it's like an Armageddon for 2 mana instead that lets you exploit the symmetry with your 2 mana producing lands.
- Going back to Orb vs. Field - against control decks that play Sensei's Top I've found that Orb is actually more effective than Field. Because again, the later in the game it is, the easier it is for him to find 2 mana to activate a top or a jace or whatever else. Whereas the Orb forces a game state that is like turns 1-3 at every point in the game. When you lay down an Orb on a tapped out opponent, he has only access to 1 mana. Whenever he spends his mana, he is back to 1 mana again. And with Chalice and Thalia, that 1 mana is more constricted and less useful. If he is trying to twiddle his top with Orb in play, he can do little else. Whereas with Field, an opponent can have like 5-6 lands mid-game and happily pay 2 for a single fetchland activation and then he has a full grip of mana once again. And once he gets access to 5+ lands, the Field doesn't do much to affect his Sensei's Divining Top because he still has access to 3 more mana beyond that, and that keeps increasing as the game goes on all while he is digging with his Top.
Going to an IQ this weekend and taking the list with me. Hope to crush, Wish me luck.
Soldier Stompy
Hi,
@Jon: Good Luk!
@MGB:
- Armageddon: I don't still tried the card, but I think the same. I can't find the utility except for Miracle MU, and as it's a good MU for me, I don't think I need this.
- Winter Orb: I tried a little the Orb but I don't like it. It's useful for control.deck like Miracle yes, but vs Shaman.deck I didn't find it useful. Opponents still have 2-3 untapped manas (shaman+land+new land) and so control me as there is no Orb, except that the Orb slow me.
- Field: I agree that we surely can find better than Suppression Field. I'm trying some cards like Thorn of amethyst.
- Thorn of amethyst: It seems better, and my tests (not finished) actually show me that Midrange.deck MUs are a little better or similar but Combo.deck MUs are more favorable. I surely play them in tournament if I don't find better.
Good luck Jon, I hope you rep this underrated deck well and help us Soldier players gain some respect in this format :)
BTW Try out Loxodon Gatekeeper. I've been testing him recently and just realized how useful he can be vs. alot of stuff in this format. He shuts down Sneak Attack completely! He holds back LEDs and Lotus Petals on a Storm turn... and he slows down Elves. Not to mention - Suppression Field + Gatekeeper in play is murder on people with Fetchlands.
I have some doubts about Loxodon Gatekeeper. Yes its ability seems good vs combo.deck and vs Fetchland, but:
VS Storm/Elves: It's difficult to imagine that you put Loxodon before they start combo (LED works even LED is tapped). But maybe with Chalice/Thalia (and Thorn?) we can gain enough time to put it. So the card is useless if you don't have a T1 Chalice/Thalia.
VS Sneak Attack: Becareful, this ability doesn't stop Sneak Attack (always tried with Blind Obedience), because "Sacrifice the creature at the beginning of the next end step", so opponents activate Sneak Attack's ability at the end of your turn and untap his creature during his turn and so can attack.
If we have to add him MD, it will probably replace Commander Eesha, but I don't think that Loxodon is better than Eesha.
Wow, I didn't realize that they could activate Sneak Attack during my end step and still make use of it. That sucks.
Still, I always feel as if disruption is more important on a creature than most other attributes. I was playing Brimaz in this slot who is obviously a bigger body and has a combat ability, but Gatekeeper is immune to Abrupt Decay, only has -1/-1, and also disrupts opponent. Only after first combat step does Brimaz really generate value, whereas Gatekeeper disrupts the second he enters play.
Yes (u_u), I didn't realized it before a pro player explain to me.
I understand your point. It's not difficult to get a Gatekeeper so if it's really efficient, I will use it.
I'm using Commander Eesha in order to enhance our fly army (because fly units are a weakness of the deck) and Eesha is Decay/Bolt proof (StP proof with Karakas).
Moreover, Eesha can protect us from Tarmo/Grisel/... and can go kill easily a dangerous planeswalker like Liliana without fear about any defense.
Playing Gatekeeper instead of Brimaz is not too dangerous for your mana curve ?
2WW is more annoying, no doubt. That is the downside and it remains to be seen if he makes the curve too heavy.
BTW Eesha in my testing has just been very average. It is too defensive a card for this deck. How useful is its protection ability on the attack? Not very. If you are sitting back with a 2WW creature hoping to simply stalemate a Tarmogoyf, then I don't know if you are playing this deck correctly.
Stalemate a Tarmogoyf is just a + but not the goal of this card.
We can see it as our TNN: unblockable and can't be managed by the opponent (or with many difficulty). Moreover we can upgrade its power to deal more damage.
For me, the most important with this card is to go kill easily Liliana.
4-2, good for 12th, lost to Elves. Report sometime when I am not exhausted.
Soldier Stompy
Not too bad. I know Elves is a really tough matchup despite Chalice @ 1 hosing their whole deck. All it takes is a Viridian Shaman in their hand or one of their 4 GSZ to find him and then you're toast. AND they can still cast Natural Order even if you do manage to stick Chalice @ 1 for a while. If you want to improve the Elves matchup you basically have to play 3-4 Cursed Totem in the sideboard and even then it's still kind of rough.
I'm eagerly awaiting your report.
Still being lazy, report hopefully will be done by the weekend or something.
Soldier Stompy
So here we go. The event I attended was a Star City Games IQ located in Dalton, Georgia. We had a total of 36? people show. In my group there was Brian (alphstrykr) on UWr Miracles, Anthony on UR Delverstill, Darrin on RUG Delver, Piper on Burn, Shaffer on Deathblade, and there were scattered others we knew. The room was very diverse, Jund, Belcher, Esperblade, Storm, Belcher, and even some moron on Soldiers.
The list I settled on is the following.
4 Ballyrush Banneret
4 Thalia, Guardian of Thraben
4 Field Marshal
4 Preeminent Captain
1 Brimaz, King of Orekos
4 Daru Warchief
4 Enlistment Officer
3 Captain of the Watch
1 Commander Esha
1 Gustcloak Savior
4 Suppression Field
4 Chalice of the Void
3 Chrome Mox
4 Cavern of Souls
4 Ancient Tomb
2 Karakas
10 Plains
SB
4 Holy Light
2 Oblivion Ring
2 Abolish
4 Banishing Light
3 Rest in Peace
Here are my matches I faced:
Round one, I sat down across from a familiar face. Jessie Butler is a grinder from somewhere in my area and his finishes speak for themselves. http://sales.starcitygames.com/deckd...&p_last=Butler
He was on Esperblade and I won the roll.
Game 1. I landed an early Chalice, into Field, and just rolled him the rest of the way. I felt like my deck functioned exactly as it was. There was no point in the game where he had a chance to turn the tide.
Game 2. Kept a heavy Chalice / Field hand. He lead on DRS so I played Field. He played a fetch and cast a DRS. I played another Field. He beat me with those 2 DRS from 16-0. Too much hate, too little pressure.
Game 3. Mull to 4. Lose.
0-1
Round two, Derrick is another grinder from Alabama and he was on Esperblade as well.
Game 1. Won the roll and kept a no lander. Chrome Mox x2, Captain of the Watch x2, Chalice, Thalia, Suppression Field. Yeah we got that one easy.
Game 2. He was able to get the DRS into SFM into Batterjunk and I died.
Game 3. Was long and "grindy" where he had a clique with a Jitte and I had an army of soldiers. Cards like Enlistment Officer were key to this victory.
1-1
Round three, John, Seemed to be fairly unfamiliar with Legacy due to the fact his area does not have a large community. Here is where I got salt. Elves.
Game 1/2 Chalice on 1, Buncha dudes, HERP DERP CRATERHOOF SO GOOD AT MAGIC.
1-2
Round four, Aaron, Seemed to not know legacy format, probably on a borrowed deck. Show and Derp.
Game 1. Chalice on 1, Suppression Field, and Preeminent Captain. We went to class and I dropped in a Captain of the Watch and he Emrakul'd. I killed him on the swing in.
Game 2. 6 Oblivion Rings off board. No chance.
2-2
Round five, Shaffer, I got paired down so he gave me the win. He is a local and a friend. Another Deathblade match.
Game 1/2 Suppression Field.
3-2
Round six, Piper, Burn, Local Friend.
Game 1/2 Chalice into Thalia into concession.
4-2
Overall the list was correct. Not sure how to improve the elves match. Hagan suggested just jam 4 Hushwing Gryff or Mindcensor off board to shut down GSZ / NO. I will be taking the same list to the SCG Open in Atlanta next week.
Soldier Stompy
I would rank Suppression Field as the most valuable card against Elves. The deck runs a million fetchlands and has slim chances if you slam down a Turn 1 Suppression Field. Even a Turn 2 Field is potent. Elves flounders a lot as a deck if it can't generate its initial mana. In the same realm as Suppression Field is Leonin Arbiter. Elves doesn't run creature removal Game 1 and only has a couple Abrupt Decays postboard (assuming those haven't been supplanted by Reclamation Sage), so Leonin Arbiter can put Elves in a deep freeze before they get started. If they can't fetch, they can play spells, and if they can't play spells, their Gaea's Cradles are worthless. Thalia is decent as an attacker or as a blocker, and she works in concert with the tax plan, which is the main way I see you winning this matchup.
Aven Mindcensor is quite good due to all the tutoring Elves needs to do. If you have Mindcensor, Umezawa's Jitte is excellent because Elves has no fliers, although it's a bit awkward with Suppression Field. Chalice is great on the play and can be a blowout Game 1, but it isn't impressive on the draw, and it will be weaker postboard. Its best attribute is shutting off Glimpse of Nature, but that won't necessarily be in the deck after the first game. I depends on how the Elves player boards, since this isn't a common matchup by any means. I know you're running Rest in Peace in the sideboard, but you might experiment with Grafdigger's Cage, which would shut off Green Sun's Zenith and Natural Order. You could either sub them for Chalices or just play the nonbo.
Other things you could try:
Ghostly Prison: Basically turns off Craterhoof Behemoth due to requiring so much extra mana for an alpha strike. Complements the tax plan.
Windborn Muse: Same as Ghostly Prison, but it's also a good attacker and blocker. Probably too hard to get out early.
Cursed Totem: Turns off all their tricks and mana generation (minus Cradle) but doesn't stop Natural Order.
Linvala, Keeper of Silence: A brutal one-sided hoser. Slightly high CMC.
Blind Obedience: Turns off Craterhoof Behemoth and has the fringe benefit of the Extort mechanic.
Imposing Sovereign: Similar to Blind Obedience but is a dude.
Nevermore: Name Natural Order or Glimpse or whatever.
Suture Priest: This drains them whenever they play a creature, which is great if you make it to the midgame. It also makes Glimpse lines much riskier for them.
Ethersworn Canonist: Turns off Glimpse and Symbiote advantage.
I run 3 Damping Matrix in the sideboard primarily for Stoneblade and Death n Taxes, but also for Elves. It doesn't shut down their mana producers like a Cursed Totem would, but it still manages to slow them down by turning off Wirewood Symbiote and the like. And it's better against DnT than Cursed Totem.
I think the ideal sideboard hate for Elves would probably involve something that turns off deck-searching, which would stop GSZ and Natural Order. As ESG said above,Grafdigger's Cage in the sideboard might be worth exploring. It can't really be played with Chalice @ 1 but it does an admirable job of killing both GSZ and NO, and it is a great piece of hate vs Dredge and Reanimator as well. If only there was a soldier Aven Mindcensor that we could maindeck...
I think I am just gonna jam mindcensors in the SB for testing.
Soldier Stompy
Try testing Loxodon Gatekeeper too. It can really slow them down if they have to wait a turn to make use of any elves they play.
Gatekeeper is pretty golden alongside Suppression Field vs. most decks too.
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