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Thread: [Deck] BUG "Shardless" Control

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    [Deck] BUG "Shardless" Control

    BUG "Shardless" Control

    -------------

    I. Overview
    II. History
    III. Core List
    IV. Maindeck Card Choices

    V. General Strategy
    VI. Sideboard Card Choices
    VII. Match-ups
    ANT
    GWx Maverick and Death & Taxes
    Miracle Control
    Jund
    Sneak Attack
    Elves
    Team America
    RUG Delver
    UWR Delver
    Deathblade / Stoneblade
    OmniTell
    VII. Decklists

    -------------


    I. Overview

    BUG "Shardless" Control (a.k.a. BUG Cascade, a.k.a. Shardless BUG) is a spin off of BUG Team America Control and has taken some huge leaps forward lately. Surprisingly, something that started as a fun/gimmicky deck by Brian DeMars has cascaded (haha) into Top8s everywhere and is now a "Deck To Beat".

    This deck is built around abusing Shardless Agent's Cascade mechanic to cast Ancestral Vision for free, helping you to drown your opponent in card advantage. The Cascade mechanic can also be used to 1-for-2 into Hymn To Tourach, Tarmogoyf, and Abrupt Decay, creating an explosive board presence or overall decent board control.

    With the addition of Deathrite Shaman, you can be cascading into awesome as early as T2. Plus, the overall utility DrShaman brings to the table is astounding. Liliana of the Veil and Jace, the Mind Sculptor are also two important inclusions in the 75.

    -------------

    II. History

    In August 2012, Brian DeMars published this article, featuring a new list he put together, which is the basis of the Shardless BUG archetype.

    Here are some of the featured cards in his original list that are notably absent from more modern lists. Explanation later.

    Sensei's Divining Top
    Snapcaster Mage
    Vendilion Clique
    Ghastly Demise
    Pernicious Deed

    Out of these cards, Deed is probably the only one sometimes used in the 75, and most often in the sideboard as a sweeper. And as much as I love Deed, it requires A LOT of mana.

    -------------

    III. Core List

    The "Core" List features:


    //Creatures:
    4 Shardless Agent
    4 Tarmogoyf
    4 Deathrite Shaman

    //Sorceries:
    4 Ancestral Vision
    2-3 Hymn to Tourach
    2 Thoughtseize

    //Instants:
    4 Brainstorm
    3-4 Abrupt Decay

    //Planeswalkers:
    2-3 Jace, the Mind Sculptor

    //Lands:
    4 Verdant Catacombs
    4 Underground Sea
    2 Tropical Island
    2 Bayou
    3-4 Misty Rainforest
    2-3 Wasteland
    2-3 Polluted Delta


    -------------

    VI. Maindeck Card Choices

    Assuming you follow the above "Core List," you'll be left with some flex spots which are typically reserved for the following, tailored to your own meta.


    3-4 Force of Will
    1-2 Maelstrom Pulse
    2-4 Baleful Strix
    2-3 Liliana of the Veil
    1-2 Creeping Tar Pit


    ... or more loading up on business spells like:


    Hymn to Tourach
    Abrupt Decay
    Thoughtseize
    Jace, the Mind Sculptor


    You will no doubt notice that this manabase is considered "extremely greedy" and is particularly vulnerable to Wasteland. In the past, I would not have hesitated to run a few basics, typically in order of priority of Swamp, Forest, Island, but recently I have found this deck to be so resilient and reliable, especially in the Card Advantage area, that worrying too much about your manabase isn't necessary.

    -------------

    V. General Strategy

    I figure it's best to quickly discuss the general strategy and some basic "how to play the deck" guidelines before jumping into the Sideboard Options. Here goes...

    The First Rule of Shardless BUG is load up on business spells that are 2CMC or less

    Clarification: The deck is designed to abuse Shardless Agent's cascade ability, so make sure you're running heavy on really good spells and creatures that will be cast for free off the cascade. Hymn to Tourach is the first card that comes to mind, that is always an incredible joy to cascade into.

    The Second Rule of Shardless BUG is try to prime your cascades

    Clarification: You obviously want to draw 3 free cards from Ancestral Vision as soon as humanly possibly and as much as humanly possible, and in order to do this you often will need to stack the deck with the card you want to cascade into, using Brainstorm and Jace, the Mind Sculptor.

    The Third Rule of Shardless BUG is don't worry about gambling a little with your cascades

    Clarification: The 1 and 2 CMC choices in the deck are very rarely going to let you down if you cascade into them without preparing with a Brainstorm or Jace. Tarmogoyf and Baleful Strix can help establish board presence, Hymn to Tourach and Thoughtseize can help rip apart your opponent's hand, and Abrupt Decay can help to clear your opponent's board. The only cards that are a little "meh" that you can cascade into are Brainstorm and Deathrite Shaman, and these two cards are still good.

    Lastly:

    From amazing to great to good, the cards you want to cascade into are ranked in this order:


    Ancestral Vision
    Tarmogoyf
    Hymn to Tourach
    Abrupt Decay
    Baleful Strix
    Thoughtseize
    Brainstorm
    Deathrite Shaman


    ...with none of them being fair or bad.

    -------------

    VI. Sideboard Options

    With the general cascade strategy out of the way we can move on to some of the better sideboard choices and why and where they are helpful or necessary.

    Golgari Charm

    Awesome utility card: sweep away weenies or take out an Omniscience.

    Scavenging Ooze

    Not only is it a 2-drop that can be cascaded into, it is great at nulling DrShaman. This deck also has a weak spot against burn and Goblins, so Ooze can help you with some lifegain when if you need it.

    Nihil Spellbomb

    A must-sideboard graveyard hate card if you are playing Black. It cycles too upon activation.

    Vendilion Clique

    When you need more disruption against combo, plus a great beater, Clique's the winner.

    Whipflare

    Requires a greedier red splash, but is a potentially devastating sweeper against non-artifact creatures and can be cascaded into. Some lists run this card with a Badlands MD.

    Thoughseize

    Speaks for itself - it's great against combo, can rip an important T1 one-drop like Aether Vial, Goblin Lackey, or Mother of Runes out of your opponent's hand, and can also help in midgame to 'yard a Jace or Humility.

    Krosan Grip

    This deck can sometimes have problems with CounterTop, so you will need to nuke that Counterbalance. It's also great against MUD, Affinity, Goblins and Merfolk (for Vial), or any Batterskull-based deck.

    Umezawa's Jitte

    Jitte is the best equipment printed ever and works nicely with this deck, with its suite of quick n' dirty creatures. It helps as a pump to close out games, can nuke Delvers, Moms and Thalias, and against Burn it can help with getting back your seared away life total.

    Surgical Extraction or Extirpate

    Especially necessary against Dredge, Reanimator, Loam.dec, anything with Bloodghast, and very nice against RUG (used on their lands after nuking some with your Wastelands). It can help against combo to steal Burning Wishes and Show and Tells as well.

    Dismember

    More cheap spot removal - kills opposing 'goyfs and Knight of the Reliquaries, but it can't be cascaded into.

    Chill

    This deck has a problem against Burn and Goblins, hence [cards]Chill[/chill]. It's a blowout against both. Now that Goblins runs Cavern of Souls and BUG Shardless Control does a decent job of clearing away Aether Vials, Chill can be a necessity.

    Cursed Totem

    The ultimate hurt against Maverick and can provide a lot of help against Griselbrand. Keep in mind, however, that it will shut off your Deathrite Shamans.

    Force of Will

    Sometimes this card is relegated to the Sideboard, since Maindeck you are not running many blue cards to pitch to the Force, but often 3-4 is a necessary inclusion in the 75 for Combo hate.

    Liliana of the Veil

    If you are not running her MD then you better be in the SB. Discard, Board Control, and a great Ultimate. Yeah, she's the second-best Planeswalker around (behind Jace, of course).

    Baleful Strix

    Many lists are running 2 MD and 2 SB. Strix is so good against Swarm matchups that it is a great inclusion of 4 in the 75.

    Maelstrom Pulse

    Catch-all spot removal and has the added benefit of taking out tokens (Spirit, Angel, Goblin, or Soldier typically)

    Hymn to Tourach

    You probably want to have 4 in your 75, but 4 MD might be too much, hence a split between MD and SB. Great against Combo (and everything but Dredge, for that matter).

    Notion Thief

    Holy toledo bonkers amazing blowouts can come from this dude. Steal a Brainstorm, Griselbrand activation, or here's some fun: an Enter the Infinite draw.

    Disfigure

    Probably the best 1CMC black spot removal spell at the moment. Nukes Mom, Thalia, Gaddock Teeg, Deathrite Shaman, Stoneforge Mystic, Dark Confidant, Goblin Lackey, and Goblin Piledriver.

    Venser, Shaper Savant

    Versatile 4CMC flash creature: bounce a permanent or "counter" a spell. What he's probably best for is bouncing an Omniscience of a Show and Tell. Rage Quitting will ensue.

    Engineered Plague

    Very meta-dependent, but excellent against Goblins, Maverick, Death & Taxes, and Elves. Can act as a reactive board sweeper or just a soft-lock. Two of 'em can be gg in many cases.

    Submerge

    So good at clearing the board it's not even funny. So many people play green where Submerge is helpful: Maverick, Jund, BUG (duh). Can be a clincher spell at the right time, and is especially awesome when used on a creature in response to an opponent's fetchland activation.

    Ratchet Bomb

    Cascadeable mass removal, but can be slow.

    Life from the Loam

    This deck's manabase is pretty greedy, so LftL can be very helpful in Wasteland-heavy metas.

    Massacre

    Another possible oh-my-god-so-effing-good mass removal spell. HOSES weenie decks, especially when a that weenie deck is white. Some drawbacks: Gaddock Teeg nulls it and it takes out your own Deathrite Shamans, Shardless Agents, and Baleful Strixes. Sometimes swarm decks have to be taken down or they will run over you before you have a chance to set up your business spells.

    -------------

    VII. Matchups

    ANT

    Probably one of our toughest match-ups as they are going off on T2 or T3. Thoughtseize and Hymn are your best buddies here, as you aren't typically loading up on Force of Wills maindeck. In a combo-heavy meta, it helps to have 4 FoWs maindeck, though they are not nearly as powerful against a Storm Combo player as discard is. Also, Liliana can be an asset to help with keeping hands down. You need to proactively disrupt your opponent with discard so they have more trouble assembling their Kithkin Shotgun. Nevermind that reference.

    GWx Maverick and Death and Taxes

    Abrupt Decay all the way. Putting them in topdeck mode with discard is great, and FoW is a little weak because you are running few blue spells to pitch and they have so many threats. Thalia, Mother of Runes, and Mirran Crusader are big problems for you, so having board control and presence is the only way you'll stay alive. Discard route: T1 Thoughtseize, T2 Hymn, T3 Liliana or Shardless Agent. Board presence route: T1 Deathrite Shaman or suspended Ancestral Vision, T2 Shardless Agent or Tarmogoyf, T3 Jace.

    Miracle Control

    Very touch matchup as we don't have much of an answer to Sensei's Divining Top and Miracles typically runs 3-4 sweepers and 4 pieces of spot removal. But, there's one thing that Miracles has an enormously difficult time responding to: Liliana of the Veil. She can win you games against Miracles just by grinding their hand down. Yes, they can still often dig, but Top is durdly and doesn't always give the card quality they want unless they're digging into fetchlands. As a lover of Miracles myself, I know this firsthand. Grind their hand down and land a Lili and it's often very tough for them to come back. Watch out for Rest in Peace, which can nullify 8 of the bombs in your deck.

    Jund

    Their 6-8 maindecked removal can be tough, since it hits all of your bombs, but your card advantage and quicker cascader can put you one turn ahead, and a very big goal is to get cards as fast as you can with Ancestral Vision. Nihil Spellbomb as a sideboard card is helpful to nuke their 'yard. Jace can often be sided out, since all he's good for in this matchup is getting pitched to Force of Will. Bloodbraid Elf makes quick work of him. Be wary of Punishing Fire, as it can decimate most of your threats, namely Deathrite Shaman, Tarmogoyf, Baleful Strix, and Liliana, and save your Wastelands for their Grove of the Burnwillows. Pointed discard (Thoughtseize) is very helpful in this matchup to remove Bloodbraid, Abrupt Decay, and Red Elemental Blasts post-board. Lastly, take out their Dark Confidant as soon as you can, as he will bury you in CA before you can get your engine online.

    Sneak Attack

    Thoughtseize, Hymn, and Liliana are your holy trinity in this matchup, as you want to put them in topdeck mode, pronto. Often, a resolved Sneak Attack or Griselbrand spells GG so getting rid of him as fast as you can is the way to go. Force of Will is necessary postboard. Don't be discouraged, this is a tough matchup, but keeping discard heavy hands is the best way to beat them. Leyline of Sanctity post-board is a common board-in, which can often spell disaster. If you went with the discard plan and can resolve a Liliana and a Jace you can come out ahead. Fatesealing is very helpful.

    Elves

    You have 4 Abrupt Decay, which are very important to take out manadorks, Heritage Druid, and Wirewood Symbiote. You have 2-3 Force of Wills maindeck, which is very important. Save your Forces for Glimpse of Nature, Natural Order, or a big Green Sun's Zenith. Discard is helpful here (as with any combo matchup). Postboard more removal and/or sweepers -- Disfigure, Massacre, or Engineered Plague are necessary. You need to get your game on early because they can go off as early as T2 and typically on T3.

    Team America

    Deathrite Shaman is an all-star in this matchup to grind down their 'yard, and postboard Nihil Spellbomb is your friend. Hymn probably isn't as helpful in this matchup as in others, since it can help their own Deathrite Shamans, Tarmogoyfs, and the 5/5 "2-mana" flyer known as Tombstalker. This is very similar to a mirror match, except they run more counters, including Daze and Spell Pierce, which you will have to play around. Some lists also run Dark Confidant, which becomes a big target. Thoughtseize is very helpful to rip out hand-hate and know what's coming.

    RUG Delver

    Abrupt Decay is what breaks the tension in this deck, as they have absolutely no answer to it, except, maybe, Nimble Mongoose. That's where your maindeck graveyard hate in the form of DrShaman comes in. Post-board if your meta is infested with 'yard-based strategies, Nihil Spellbomb is the biggest help. They can stifle your cascades, so they lose some of their value. Baleful Strix is a big help in this matchup to block anything they throw at you. Also, Wasteland hurts you a lot since you aren't running any basics. Hopefully you can get an unswered Deathrite Shaman online early on.

    UWR Delver

    Their deck currently plays 7 or 8 pieces of maindeck removal, Stifle and Wasteland to disrupt your greedy manabase, and many of the newest decklists are packing the almost unanswerable Batterskull. So what's your primary strategy? Prevent them from casting anything, meaning pointed discard in the form of Thoughtseize and hand grinding in the form of Hymn to Tourach. A resolved Geist of Saint Traft can be tough to deal with, but thankfully you have Tarmogoyf to keep him from attacking you (hopefully). Everything else can be hit by Abrupt Decay and/or Disfigure. Also, UWR Delver dies a pitiful death to Massacre, so if you can prevent a Batterskull from sticking around and then Massacre the board, you're in good shape.

    DeathBlade / Stoneblade

    Stoneblade variants can be tough to deal with (see UWR above). Batterskull, if resolved and unanswered, can be a very tough threat. Also, there is now exists a "race-to-Jace," where your card advantage engine and mana acceleration becomes even more important. Your maindeck all-stars are Abrupt Decay, Baleful Strix, and Creeping Tar Pit (as a Jace assassin). Every creature in the deck is a threat if unanswered - Stoneforge Mystic, Deathrite Shaman, Dark Confidant, Geist of Saint Traft, and even Vendilion Clique. Post-board you should bring in more removal and if you're running Massacres, they can be a blowout, as it can nuke everything the've got except for B-skull.

    OmniTell

    Yet another tough matchup, but like other combo decks, your discard is your greatest ally, particularly in G1, as in G2 OmniTell players are playing Leyline of Sanctity more now, requiring you to board out some discard to prevent filling your hand with crap and getting terrible topdecks. T1 Thoughtseize, T2 Hymn can be your ticket to GG during G1 and if they don't have that Leyline. If they cast and resolve a Show and Tell into Omniscience or Dream Halls, you're doomed. Post-board you take out the Abrupt Decays and bring in Notion Thief and Venser, Shaper Savant, plus more Force of Wills. Notion Thief will probably draw you 46 cards off their Enter the infinite, so have fun and go nuts.

    -------------

    VII. Decklists

    Gerry Thompson
    - 1st Place at StarCityGames.com Invitational on 4/7/2013
    http://sales.starcitygames.com/deckd...p?DeckID=54793

    Andrew Tenjum - 8th Place at StarCityGames.com Legacy Open on 8/4/2013
    http://sales.starcitygames.com//deck...p?DeckID=58122
    Last edited by Kyle; 08-23-2013 at 01:04 PM. Reason: v.2 with Deathrite Shaman
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  2. #2

    Re: [Deck] BUG "Shardless" Control

    Snuff Out over Demise? It would increase the chance of getting the Visions off of Shardless Agent and it dodges situations where you might have to kill your own creature. Plus, free is good, and it means you don't have to wait for a decent sized graveyard. Also, no Tombstalker? He'd give some real beef to supplement Goyf.

  3. #3
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    Re: [Deck] BUG "Shardless" Control

    How would you change the list if Abrupt Decay were legal right now?

  4. #4

    Re: [Deck] BUG "Shardless" Control

    Well you can always choose not to cast off of a cascade so you never "have" to kill your own creature although you are losing value.

    What about this in UGr? Burn can always go to the face so your cascades are never complete blanks.
    ^Has bromance with Brainstorm

  5. #5
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    Re: [Deck] BUG "Shardless" Control

    @Greenpoe: Snuff Out could definitely work, but since you can opt not to cast the free spell off of cascade it's okay if you hit a Demise when there's nothing else on the board. It's definitely viable, and is great for early game when your life total is high.

    @danyul: It goes without saying that Abrupt Decay belongs in this deck. I think 2-3 of them can easily replace the Misdirections in the "tweaked" list. I also forgot to include in the primer that Maelstrom Pulse is a very helpful addition to the deck, specifically to take out cards like Humility and Jace.

    @Wirrsturm: A red splash would remove the core disruption and midrange qualities of the deck, I feel - it's very valuable to have Hymn to Tourach and Pernicious Deed. I agree that Lightning Bolt, Chain Lightning, and possibly Firespout could work as alternatives, but when you cascade you want to really drop a bomb.
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  6. #6

    Re: [Deck] BUG "Shardless" Control

    Isn't usually a core aspect of cascade managing the randomness? It seems like consistency is more valuable than splashyness.

    Cascading into discard mid-late game will often be pretty weak.

    Both cards you mentioned are obviously good but both are also clunky ways to get value in a deck thats is already mostly value. Don't get me wrong I've played a lot of hymn/deed in various bug shells and know they are sweet. The problem is something like hymn forces you to have double black when you're not cascading into it and is bad top deck. Deed is sweet but midrange decks tend to put lots of permanents in play making it very symetrical.

    I guess my question is: what about those two cards is so valuable to your game plan that it marries you to the bug shell?
    ^Has bromance with Brainstorm

  7. #7
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    Re: [Deck] BUG "Shardless" Control

    Quote Originally Posted by Wirrsturm View Post
    I guess my question is: what about those two cards is so valuable to your game plan that it marries you to the bug shell?
    I wouldn't say I'm necessarily married to the BUG shell - I just think Hymn is a lot more powerful than people give it credit for. I have been happy with topdecking it or cascading into it at least 90% of the time. I think the primary strategy of this deck is to grind down their hand and increase yours. On another note, the build I'm playing utilizes Baleful Strix as well, which requires Black. Strix has been awesome as a flying chump blocker and it cycles for two mana.

    Perhaps this is the wrong deck for Pernicious Deed since Deed prefers non- or low-creature builds of BUG, but it's been dynamite in my testing, especially with advantage of Ancestral Visions (i.e. clear the board, draw 3 or 4 cards, go to town). It's great against U/W Miracles, Dredge, Maverick, and RUG Thresh.

    If your goal is to have a more tempo deck that is decidedly less midrange and remove the goal of denying your opponent's strategy by putting them into topdeck mode, I definitely think Red would be worth testing to replace Black. I completely agree that it could help decrease Cascade variance by giving you (burn) spells that are always useful.

    Here are the cards I'd use to replace Hymn, Pernicious Deed, and Baleful Strix:

    Lightning Bolt
    Chain Lightning
    Rift Bolt

    Then you have a weird burn deck. Maybe I'm not taxing my imagination enough. Goblin Guide? Keldon Marauders?
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  8. #8

    Re: [Deck] BUG "Shardless" Control

    I think I like the idea of strix more than hymn if bug is the way to go. That card IS sweet and an extra body certainly is something desirable.

    You don't necessarily need infinite burn spells just because you're in red, and rift bolt with cmc of 3 for random burn is definitly out.

    Grim Lavamancer is an example of a good red card that isn't just focused around doing dmg to the dome. fire/ice is another nice utlity card cycling at worst if there are no other targets.

    Random/rough sample red list:

    [deck]
    16 Creatures
    4x Delver
    4x Goyf
    4x Shardless Agent
    1x Snapcaster
    2x Grim Lavamancer
    1x Clique

    16 Instants
    4x Force of Will
    4x Brainstorm
    4x Bolt
    2x Fire/ice
    2x Dismember

    7 Sorceries
    4x Ancestral Vision
    4x Ponder

    [/deck]

    19-20 Lands, with maybe 1x random flex slot for w/e

    25 cards to flip delver, more aggressive without being all out agro.

    All that being said perhaps black is just better in a midrangish deck especially if having Jace is a priority (And I do think unintuitively JTMS is the best argument for black because black more naturally lends itself to protecting him).

    Sylvan library also seems like a decent fit here, since its less mana intensive than top.
    ^Has bromance with Brainstorm

  9. #9
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    Re: [Deck] BUG "Shardless" Control

    The reason the list plays black is because the black cards assist greatly with the whole card advantage philosophy of the deck.

    Ideally with every cascade, you're getting a 3-for-1 or better (cascading into a 2-for-1 card or Ancestral Visions). Hymn to Tourach has always been one of the best 2-for-1 2 drop cards of all time. Needless to say, Hymn is also amazing vs Control and Combo. Snapcaster mage, while bad to cascade into early, is amazing in the late game, letting you reuse your Ghastly Demises.

    The "worst" cascades, Ghastly Demise / Brainstorm / Top, are still all very good when you cascade into them as well.

    Pernicious Deed is also very powerful in the deck. Most of the major threats in Legacy are 2 mana or less, especially creatures. A Deed for 2 is usually sufficient to clear the board of most threats. Even if you need to Deed for 3 and blow up your own Shardless Agent, you're just setting up your future 'goyfs to be +2/+2 larger (Artifact and Enchantment now in the yard). Because of the use of Deed, Sylvan Library becomes a much worse card since SDT saves itself when you pop your Deed.

  10. #10
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    Re: [Deck] BUG "Shardless" Control

    I will be adding some basic strategy for the deck to the primer that I found improves it's reliability, specifically that the Brainstorms and Tops are there to help you set up a strong cascade. It's really not that hard. The current criticism of the deck is of course the volatility of cascading but with a tight list, you can really take advantage of every cascade. I'm almost never unhappy with the cascade results.

    Keep in mind that this deck has a lot of great utility and that the Shardless Agent cascade isn't a requirement for the deck to run, but if you really work at it, it's worth it's weight in gold. Also, midgame when you have 4+ lands, the cascade works as a ridiculously helpful filter.
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  11. #11
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    Re: [Deck] BUG "Shardless" Control

    I'm trying to figure out how I want to make this meld together well.

    Deck Core:
    4x Shardless Agent
    4x Baleful Strix
    4x Master of Etherium

    4x Tezzeret, Agent of Bolas

    4x Hymn to Tourach
    4x Ancestral Visions

    2x Maelstrom Pulse
    4x Force of Will
    3x Snuff Out


    Strong support cards could include the Abyss, Intuition + Related Shenanigans, JTMS, and maybe Vrasra from RTR.
    Any thoughts?

  12. #12
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    Re: [Deck] BUG "Shardless" Control

    Why is Master of Etherium in the list?

    To make it even marginally useful, that guy requires you to play a bunch of artifact creatures. 4x Baleful Strix and 4x Shardless Agent just isn't enough.

    Tarmogoyfs are awesome in the deck because they get up to potentially 7/8 (fairly regularly 5/6).

  13. #13
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    Re: [Deck] BUG "Shardless" Control

    The reasoning was to buff Strix and Agent, along with maintaining my blue count for FoW and another target for Tezzeret. I was considering Ravager as well, as my Goyf replacement.
    Theorycrafting here, certainly not suggesting my list is amazing.

  14. #14
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    Re: [Deck] BUG "Shardless" Control

    No problem, but I think Master just takes too much work to make playable, even in Affinity.

    DeMars points out one reason he ended up playing SCM over Strix is that the 2 power of SCM really makes for a much faster clock than the 1 power of the Strix.

    On the Strix vs SCM debate for me, it's really about your early game vs your mid-late game. Strix is better early on whereas SCM gets much more value at mid/late game.

  15. #15

    Re: [Deck] BUG "Shardless" Control

    I've been goldfishing this build. So far, i'm diggin it a lot!

    4x Shardless Agent
    4x Baleful Strix

    3 Tezzeret, Agent of Bolas
    2x Jace, the Mind Sculptor
    2x Liliana of the Veil

    4x Brainstorm
    4x Force of Will
    4x Ancestral Vision
    4x Hymn to Tourach
    3x Abrupt Decay
    3x Pernicious Deed
    2x Sensei's Divinning top

    4x Polluted delta
    4x Misty Rainforest
    2x Verdant Catacomb
    3x Underground Sea
    3x Tropical Island
    2x Bayou
    1x Forest
    1x Island
    1x Swamp
    1x Academy Ruins

    Sideboard
    3x Thougthseize
    2x Vendillion Clique
    2x Scavenging Ooze
    2x Nihil Spellbomb
    1x Garruk Relentless
    1x Engineered Explosives
    2x Phyrexian Revoker
    2x Ensnaring bridge

    Seems pretty good. Obviously the artifact count is a bit low for Tezzeret +1, but I think that he deserves a spot for the -1 ability. Maybe I should add artifact land. Might also want to try a counterbalance transformation sideboard, but counterbalance + deed seems a bit poor. The inclusion of 7 walkers is a personnal thing. I just enjoy playing with my full alter walkers, so maybe its not the perfect build, You might prefer using a more aggro build with Tarmogoyf/Snapcaster/Dark Confidant and stuff...

  16. #16

    Re: [Deck] BUG "Shardless" Control

    Sorry for my lack of knowledge but how would snapcaster work with an ancestral vision in the graveyard? Could you cast it for 0 since it doesnt have a mana cost?

  17. #17

    Re: [Deck] BUG "Shardless" Control

    Red would also give acces to Bloodbraid Elf. This already used to be a pretty competitive deck.

  18. #18
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    Re: [Deck] BUG "Shardless" Control

    Bloodbraid + Shardless sounds pretty sexy, actually. You would definitely need to build the deck around the Cascade mechanic though. Situational spells like Abrupt Decay and Hymn to Tourach are going to be alot worse than always useful spells like Baleful Strix and Grim Lavamancer. Burn and cantrips are the only instants/sorceries I'd consider running, since they are never dead if you do Cascade into them.

    Very interested in seeing how this develops. I was never (ever) a fan of the Cascade combo deck, but Cascade aggro/control sounds like alot of fun.
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  19. #19
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    Re: [Deck] BUG "Shardless" Control

    Quote Originally Posted by silvanel View Post
    Sorry for my lack of knowledge but how would snapcaster work with an ancestral vision in the graveyard? Could you cast it for 0 since it doesnt have a mana cost?
    How awesome and thoroughly broken that would be. Unfortunately, the mana cost of Ancestral Visions is nonexistent, and therefore cannot be flashed back.

    Compare this to 0 mana cost spells like Slaughter Pact. They have an existent mana cost, and can therefore be flashed back with Snapcaster Mage. The Cascade mechanic says "You may cast it without paying its mana cost" which is how the AV exploit works.
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  20. #20

    Re: [Deck] BUG "Shardless" Control

    Quote Originally Posted by TraxDaMax View Post
    Red would also give acces to Bloodbraid Elf. This already used to be a pretty competitive deck.
    So are you saying to add Red in addition to BUG? Or replace Black with Red?

    I am afraid that if you replace black with red, then this deck just becomes an inferior RUG deck. Black gives us access to Pernicious Deed, Baleful Strix, Lilianna of the Veil, and a wealth of discard and removal. Red just gives us lightning bolt.

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