[Deck] Goblins

[Chatto]

Eldrazi: do we sorry or just don't care? Right now my SB looks like this:

1 Stingscourger
2 Goblin Sharpshooter
2 Warping Wail
2 Krosan Grip
2 Pyrokinesis
3 Relic of Progenitus
3 Thalia, Guardian of Thraben

Is it enough or should I cut one Stingscourger and sharpshooter for two Magus of the Moon?

[GoblinTurkey]

Eldrazi: do we sorry or just don't care? Right now my SB looks like this:

1 Stingscourger
2 Goblin Sharpshooter
2 Warping Wail
2 Krosan Grip
2 Pyrokinesis
3 Relic of Progenitus
3 Thalia, Guardian of Thraben

Is it enough or should I cut one Stingscourger and sharpshooter for two Magus of the Moon?

I think Krosan Grip isn't as good anymore, I'd rather Wear//Tear or Blood Moons

We run Cavern of Souls so Chalice is useless against us. Also people who control Chalices sometimes forget triggers quite quickly.
- Stingscourger is good as a combat trick
- Pyrokinesis is good as well as Sharpshooter for Mimics
- Just slam down Krenko and SGC and that should overwhelm them pretty quickly.
- Blood Moon is better because they have a harder time removing it.

The goal is to be scarier when you connect than when they connect. Nothing feels better than Goblin Lackey staring down Goyf, Lodestone Golem, or an Eldrazi because they cannot risk you putting in a free card.

I am also starting mess around with Trinisphere, Ensnaring Bridge, and Break through the Line for a mono red build.

[gfernandes]

Hello,

I want to add a second Warping Wail to the main deck but i don't know what to cut. Any suggestions?

Deck: Goblins

//Main
4 Goblin Warchief
4 Goblin Lackey
4 Goblin Ringleader
4 Goblin Matron
3 Goblin Piledriver
2 Mogg War Marshal
2 Gempalm Incinerator
1 Skirk Prospector
1 Krenko, Mob Boss
1 Goblin Chieftain
1 Goblin Sharpshooter
1 Tin Street Hooligan
1 Siege-Gang Commander
1 Stingscourger
4 Æther Vial
2 Tarfire
1 Warping Wail
4 Cavern of Souls
4 Wasteland
4 Rishadan Port
4 Wooded Foothills
2 Bloodstained Mire
1 Taiga
4 Mountain

//Sideboard
2 Krosan Grip
3 Pyrokinesis
3 Relic of Progenitus
3 Chalice of the Void
1 Stingscourger
1 Mindbreak Trap
1 Ashen Rider
1 Tin Street Hooligan

Display deck statistics

[jrw1985]

Gfernandes:

Cut a Gempalm! You'll be replacing what is essentially a 2cc removal piece with another. Only WW is stronger T2 generally.

[Olaf Forkbeard]

So.. Jim Davis streamed for the first time the other night!

http://www.twitch.tv/jimdavismtg/v/47386883

Unfortunately the audio got cut at random bits due to music, but he was on goblins all night.

Peruse at your leisure.

[GoboLord]

Hey there fellow Chieftains,

this is a short summary of my last event I played on Sunday.

Result: 4-2 after 6 rounds, 40 players

The decklist (changes compared to last tournament: -1 Grenzo, +1 Wasteland; -1 Sharpshooter, -1 Boartusk Liege, +2 Pyrokinesis)

MANA (23)
4 Cavern of Souls
2 Pendelhaven
3 Wasteland
1 Snow-Covered Mountains
5 Mountain
2 Badlands
6 R-Fetches
4 Aether Vial
4 Goblin Lackey
4 Goblin Piledriver
4 Goblin Matron
4 Ringleader

4 Goblin Chieftain
3 Gempalm Incinerator
1 Stingscourger
1 Krenko, Mob Boss
1 Earwig Squad
1 Skirk Prospector
3 Cabal Therapy
3 Mogg War Marshal

Sideboard (15)
3 Pithing Needle
3 Blood Moon
3 Goblin Sharpshooter
2 Pyrokinesis
1 Tuktuk Scrapper
1 Goblin Settler
2 Earwig Squad


R1: Daniel with Reanimator (2-1)
[on the draw]
G1: I take mulligan to 6, with Cabal Therapy as T1 play and Piledriver on T2. Daniel goes first, plays Polluted Delta and passes. I cast Cabal Therapy and wait for him to respond. He makes it really easy for me by casting Entomb in response (for Griselbrand). I name “Reanimate” and see that he holds Animate Dead instead. On his turn he animates, Griselbrand, on the next he attacks, draws 7 cards and reanimates Iona.

-2 Gempalm Incinerator, -4 Ringleader, +3 Blood Moon, +2 Earwig Squad, +1 Goblin Settler

G2: I open with Lackey, Daniel Ponders on his turn. On my turn 2 I attack with Lackey, connect into Chieftain, cast Cabal Therapy naming…

PUZZLE TIME #1: What would you name in this situation and why?

I cast Aether Vial and pass. At some point Daniels gets Iona @ RED on the board. I am still able to finish him off with 2 EWS and 1 Stingscourger.

G3: I don’t remember his T1 play, but I opened with Lackey. On his T2 he casts Sickening Dreams for X=2, discarding Elesh Norn and Grizzleboy. I have no T2 play and pass back. He Exhumes Elesh Norn – his lands are Underground Sea and Island. At that point my hand is: Blood Moon, Krenko, Goblin Settler, Piledriver, and 2 lands. On my turn I drop land#3 cast Blood Moon and pass back. On his turn I take an attack dropping to 14 life. It’s my turn 4 now and I cast Goblin Settler to destroy his Island. On his turn 5 I take 4 again, dropping to 10. On my next turn I drop land #5, cast Krenko and an Aether Vial. On his turn ! take the beats, dropping to 6 life. Ony my turn 6 I cast STingscourger, bounce his Elesh Norn, cast Piledriver and pass back. Daniel can’t cast any spells in the face of Blood Moon and just passes back. At EOT I tap Krenko for 2 Token. I attack him for 7 damage and pass back. Daniel draws his last card for the game and concedes.


R2: Sascha with Lands (1-2)
[on the play]
G1: The first game is very intense and long. My aggressive start gets stopped by Punishing Fire + Grove. He forces his combo for the first time, which I can answer with Wasteland + Stingscourger. I can’t close the game though and he gets his stuff back with Life from the Loam and ultimately wins.

-3 Gempalm, -3 Cabal Therapy,-3 Mogg War Marshal, +2 Earwig Squad, +3 Pithing Needle, +3 Blood Moon, +1 Goblin Settler

G2: I get a fast start and an early kill, which involves Earwig Squad, Piledriver, Lackey, Chieftain and Pithing Needle.

G3: We start with 4 minutes on the clock and I take mulligan to 5 to find and aggressive hand. I keep a hand with Vial, Blood Moon, Settler, Mogg War Marshal and 1 Land. I should have probably mulliganed to 4 cards, but I didn’t. Sascha has an Awsome Start with 2 Mox Diamond and a land. On T1. On T3 he plays Dark Depth, another Mox and has Crop Rotation at my EOT to grab Thespian Stage, which kills me on his turn 4.




R3: David with UWB Wizards (2-0)
[on the play]
G1: Turns out he plays a Vial-based tempo-control deck that can’t block Piledriver.

-3 Cabal Therapy, -1 Earwig Squad, -1 Mogg War Marshal, + 3 Sharpshooter, +2 Pyrokinesis

G2: G2 takes a little longer, as he counters my T1 Vial. Ultimately he collapses under 2 Sharpshooters




R4: Knut with Shardless BUG (2-1)
[on the draw]
G1: I don’t remember much from G1, but this is a grindy one. It ultimately comes to a point where I have 3 lands in play, a hand full of 3- and 4 mana creatures and I am under siege of a 4/5 Goyf and 2 DRS going -2/+2 life on my/his sides. I lose the game when I calculate his Goyf’s P/T incorrectly and double-block with Piledriver and Chieftain, losing both creatures, killing none.

-3 Therapy, +2 Pyrokinesis, +1 Tuktuk Scrapper

G2 and G3 are very similar in that I get Krenko online that he can’t answer.





R5: David with Sneak Show (2-0)
[on the play]
G1: I go first with Lackey, connect into Piledriver on T2, drop another Piledriver and pass back, holding Stingscourger in my hand. He doesn’t find Sneak Attack and that is that.

-3 Gempalm Incinerator, -3 Ringleader, +3 Pithing Needle, +2 Earwig Squad, +1 Goblin Settler

G2: I open with Lackey, cast Cabal Therapy on T2 naming Sneak attack, seeing Through the Breach, mana and Emma instead. I connect with Lackey, drop some stuff, flashback Therapy to strip his cheaty spell and pass back. He pulls the reset-trigger with Pyroclasm (when he is on 9 life). Mogg War Marshal pops a token which then finishes him off.





R6: Markus with Infect (0-2)
[on the draw]
G1: I mull to 5 and get infected 1 turn before I could deal lethal damage.

-4 Ringleader, -4 Piledriver, -3 Mogg War Marshal, -1 Earwig Squad, -1 Krenko, +3 Blood Moon, +3 Pithing needle, +3 Sharpshooter, +2 Pyrokinesis, +1 Goblin Settler

G2 I keep my 7 with 2 Lands, 1 Chieftain, 1 Pyrokinesis, 1 Sharpshooter and 2 Cabal Therapy. He drops Spellskite on T2 and I use Kinesis in response to kill his Infect elf, which wasn’t a god idea at all. On my turn I drop Sharpshooter and pass. Markus plays Inkmoth Nexus and passes back. On my turn I drop a Wasteland, cast Cabal Therapy naming…

PUZZLE TIME #2: What would you name in this situation and why?

I lose the game shortly thereafter.

Conclusions
* Cabal Therapy keeps being awesome. Without it I just wouldn’t have stood a chance against Reanimator – neither would I have won G2 vs. Sneakshow. The card is such a good fit for the deck, especially when played alongside some Mogg War Marshals.
* another excellent card that day (if not THE MVP) way Stingscourger. It won games vs Reanimator and SneakShow and bought time vs. Lands and Shardless BUG. If Eldrazis will rise in popularity (an Eldrazi deck won the event undefeated, btw.) we should consider running multiple Stingscourgers in MD. (as a beautiful sideeffect it works so well in combination with Cabal Therapy).
* Prior to the tournament I discussed Warping Wail a lot with ScatmanX, Sandro95 and another long-time goblins player (of which I don’t know if he is actually registered on TS). After the discussion (and some simulation done by a small program that I wrote) I came to the conclusion that, in order to support multiple Wails in MD, I would have to commit to a lot of colorless manasources (10+). This was not an option for me, since having a rocksolid manabase has a very high priority for me, so I decided to play Cabal Therapies instead (since this can be supported by R/B-manasources, while there are no R/<>-manasources that I would be willing to play).
* I am considering playing a #2 Skirk Prospector instead of Mountain #5 next time

Thank you for reading my report. Questions and comments are – as always – appreciated.

[jrw1985]

Puzzle 1 is tough... They Pondered so they're missing something, or maybe they're just looking for land. But you have chieftain in play to flash CT back as well... safest line might be name FoW. Then, with the coast clear and knowledge of his hand, name whatever combo piece he has by flashing back CT.

Puzzle 2... Vines of Fastwood gets named so he can't combo kill through Waste. Then feel free to flash back CT off Shooter since he's worthless now that you let the robot live.

[Sandro95]

Hey there fellow Chieftains,

this is a short summary of my last event I played on Sunday.

Result: 4-2 after 6 rounds, 40 players

The decklist (changes compared to last tournament: -1 Grenzo, +1 Wasteland; -1 Sharpshooter, -1 Boartusk Liege, +2 Pyrokinesis)

MANA (23)
4 Cavern of Souls
2 Pendelhaven
3 Wasteland
1 Snow-Covered Mountains
5 Mountain
2 Badlands
6 R-Fetches
4 Aether Vial
4 Goblin Lackey
4 Goblin Piledriver
4 Goblin Matron
4 Ringleader

4 Goblin Chieftain
3 Gempalm Incinerator
1 Stingscourger
1 Krenko, Mob Boss
1 Earwig Squad
1 Skirk Prospector
3 Cabal Therapy

Sideboard (15)
3 Pithing Needle
3 Blood Moon
3 Goblin Sharpshooter
2 Pyrokinesis
1 Tuktuk Scrapper
1 Goblin Settler
2 Earwig Squad


Conclusions
* Cabal Therapy keeps being awesome. Without it I just wouldn’t have stood a chance against Reanimator – neither would I have won G2 vs. Sneakshow. The card is such a good fit for the deck, especially when played alongside some Mogg War Marshals.
* another excellent card that day (if not THE MVP) way Stingscourger. It won games vs Reanimator and SneakShow and bought time vs. Lands and Shardless BUG. If Eldrazis will rise in popularity (an Eldrazi deck won the event undefeated, btw.) we should consider running multiple Stingscourgers in MD. (as a beautiful sideeffect it works so well in combination with Cabal Therapy).
* Prior to the tournament I discussed Warping Wail a lot with ScatmanX, Sandro95 and another long-time goblins player (of which I don’t know if he is actually registered on TS). After the discussion (and some simulation done by a small program that I wrote) I came to the conclusion that, in order to support multiple Wails in MD, I would have to commit to a lot of colorless manasources (10+). This was not an option for me, since having a rocksolid manabase has a very high priority for me, so I decided to play Cabal Therapies instead (since this can be supported by R/B-manasources, while there are no R/<>-manasources that I would be willing to play).
* I am considering playing a #2 Skirk Prospector instead of Mountain #5 next time

Thank you for reading my report. Questions and comments are – as always – appreciated.

That game three against Reanimator was just beautiful. Wow.

What is your opinion on Krenko now, considering your match against Shardless?

Could you elaborate more on what makes Stingscourger good/how it works in other matchups (i.e not Show and Tell/Reanimator). As someone who has very rarely played the card, I'm hesitant because of the card disadvantage. What do you consider the main advantages/disadvantages of it compared to Warren Weirding?

In non-combo matchups, what are your thoughts on Cabal Therapy vs. Earwig Squad? I'm asking because, as you know, I'm currently on a 3 EWS maindeck build in an effort to combat combo decks while keeping my goblin count high for ringleader and saving up sideboard space.

How has the second Pendelhaven been working out? You totally have me convinced on the merits of the first one (it's been amazing for me so far), but I dread being stuck with a second copy of a legendary land.

What are your thoughts on Warchief/Chieftain? I have found that one of the problems with this deck is when we run out of heavy hitters and are left with a bunch of 1/1s and 2/2s, and I can definitely see Chieftain being excellent here.

The second Prospector has been great for me thus far, but on the other hand I play my Sharpshooters maindeck, as well as 3 EWS, and Prospector enables a lot of sweet plays with both cards (t2 EWS or t2 Matron > t3 EWS, as well as untapping Sharpshooter)

I feel as if I employ a much less aggressive strategy compared to other goblin pilots, and I want to master all aspects of this deck. I watched Jim Davis on stream the other day, in part to get a feel for his play style. I know you are an excellent pilot who favors a more aggressive approach, and am asking for your (as well as anyone else's) advice on how to become a better player.

Thanks for sharing your results with us. Awesome report as always.

Peace.

[Sandro95]

Hey, look what I found!

[GoblinTurkey]

FNM Promo for May.

[GoboLord]

What is your opinion on Krenko now, considering your match against Shardless?

I still think Krenko is a necessary evil that we have to play. We win most MUs without him, but at some MUs he is our best bet.

Could you elaborate more on what makes Stingscourger good/how it works in other matchups (i.e not Show and Tell/Reanimator). As someone who has very rarely played the card, I'm hesitant because of the card disadvantage. What do you consider the main advantages/disadvantages of it compared to Warren Weirding?

Let's just go through some relevant MUs:
- Storm Combo: here it is obviously irrelevant, so is Warren Weirding
- Death & Taxes: generally Stingscourger is not good against decks with Vial, unless you find some targets that your opp is unlikley to put back into play through Vial. In this MU I would want 1 copy to tempo-play Stoneforges or clear the way from Batterskull. Warren Weirding is not very usefull either as they usually wont sacrifice the creature that you want them to sacrifice. I prfer Stinger here, as his ability is targeted, and because Taxing effects can make it really difficult to cast Weirding.
- Elves: in the super rare scenario where you go first and connect with Lackey on T2 Stingscourger is good - other than that it is rarely of any help. Same with Weirding.
- Lands: I think all the interaction with his combo needs to be at instant speed. This usually means that we have to keep Wasteland open. Stingscourger + Vial @2 increases your chances of interacting with this deck.
- Shardless BUG: maybe the whole point of this MU is getting Krenko online. So any removal spells helps to buy you extra turns - STingscourger is attractive here as he can be cast through Caverns and Vial (Thus being uncounterable). On the other hand does Shardless BUG not have much countermagic, so Weirding might just be flat out better since it permanenty destroys one of his only 12-16 creatures.
- Infect: they usually have some Noble Hierarch lying aroung, so Weirding doesn't really hit the creature you want. Bouncing a cmc1 creature with Stingscourger on the other hand is not the best play either.
- generic Delver decks: bouncing Delvers is a huge tempo gain - also being uncounterable is a huge plus for Stingscourger.

In non-combo matchups, what are your thoughts on Cabal Therapy vs. Earwig Squad? I'm asking because, as you know, I'm currently on a 3 EWS maindeck build in an effort to combat combo decks while keeping my goblin count high for ringleader and saving up sideboard space.

I have only recently started playing Earwig Squad in MD, and only as a 1-off. So far it was good, but never overwhelming. Also it costs 3 mana after all. Cabal Therapy is a different story: in the few tournaments I played this card it kept amazing me. It has synergies with a lot of cards in the deck, it is very cheap and mana-efficient. I am really feeling stupid for not having tried that card earlier.

How has the second Pendelhaven been working out? You totally have me convinced on the merits of the first one (it's been amazing for me so far), but I dread being stuck with a second copy of a legendary land.

I'm playing 2 copies for more than a year now and there was only 1 situation I can remember where I drew both Pendelhavens AND where it was a problem. I have never ever thought about this being a problem - the chances are very low. I believe D&T plays up to 3 Karakas in MD - can't tell if thats a problem for them though.

What are your thoughts on Warchief/Chieftain? I have found that one of the problems with this deck is when we run out of heavy hitters and are left with a bunch of 1/1s and 2/2s, and I can definitely see Chieftain being excellent here.

I am clearly in favor of Chieftain. As you already said, having some, 1/1 creatures is not very threatening. Chieftain usually adds 4-5 power to your current boardposition - which is literally on the same power-level as Siege-Gang commander. In addition to that (and I know I keep repeating this chant) it brings your 1/1s past 1/2 creatures, such as DRS and SFM - which is the same reason I play Pendelhaven in the first place. So, yeah, Chieftain is an enabler and a wincondition at the same time - not to mention that he saves your ass against Nausea-like cards.

The second Prospector has been great for me thus far, but on the other hand I play my Sharpshooters maindeck, as well as 3 EWS, and Prospector enables a lot of sweet plays with both cards (t2 EWS or t2 Matron > t3 EWS, as well as untapping Sharpshooter)

Thanks for that!

[Chatto]

(...) I am clearly in favor of Chieftain. As you already said, having some, 1/1 creatures is not very threatening. Chieftain usually adds 4-5 power to your current boardposition - which is literally on the same power-level as Siege-Gang commander. In addition to that (and I know I keep repeating this chant) it brings your 1/1s past 1/2 creatures, such as DRS and SFM - which is the same reason I play Pendelhaven in the first place. So, yeah, Chieftain is an enabler and a wincondition at the same time - not to mention that he saves your ass against Nausea-like cards.

Last saturday I played a small tournament, but it didn't go that well so I won't brother you guys with a report. However, I had this constant feeling that I missed this extra punch, over and over again. Removal isn't enough, and I came to the conclusion that Chieftain is becoming more and more relevant nowadays. Your quote, Gobolord, strenghtens this believe. I do have to remark that this can be a pure meta-call, but in the last three tournaments in the Nrtherlands I feel this can be the right change for me.

I also packed one Pendelhaven. I drew, and played it once, and it was more than perfect

[Sandro95]

- Death & Taxes: generally Stingscourger is not good against decks with Vial, unless you find some targets that your opp is unlikley to put back into play through Vial. In this MU I would want 1 copy to tempo-play Stoneforges or clear the way from Batterskull. Warren Weirding is not very usefull either as they usually wont sacrifice the creature that you want them to sacrifice. I prfer Stinger here, as his ability is targeted, and because Taxing effects can make it really difficult to cast Weirding.

I think this summarizes the differences between our approaches pretty well. I usually try to keep their board clear of creatures, or set up for a big Krenko/Sharpshooter turn, and WW is much better in that plan.
I have found that, aside from Jitte and SoFI, their best cards against us are the heavy hitters; Brimaz and Serra Avenger, and WW helps a lot here. I do have a slot left in my list though, so I'll try a single Stingscourger and see how it fits. :)

- Elves: in the super rare scenario where you go first and connect with Lackey on T2 Stingscourger is good - other than that it is rarely of any help. Same with Weirding.

WW can be quite good on t2, just to slow them down a turn before you set up Sharpshooter. It's also an answer to NO, especially if they're on the Progenitus plan. I can see Stingscourger being quite strong if they go for the glimpse combo, in which case they may only be attacking with a single (albeit very large) creature that you can bounce in combat. But that assumes you have Vial in play, and I'm not sure we even want to keep Vial in post board.

- Lands: I think all the interaction with his combo needs to be at instant speed. This usually means that we have to keep Wasteland open. Stingscourger + Vial @2 increases your chances of interacting with this deck.

Yeah, Stingscourger seems much better here.

- Shardless BUG: maybe the whole point of this MU is getting Krenko online. So any removal spells helps to buy you extra turns - STingscourger is attractive here as he can be cast through Caverns and Vial (Thus being uncounterable). On the other hand does Shardless BUG not have much countermagic, so Weirding might just be flat out better since it permanenty destroys one of his only 12-16 creatures.

I haven't found their counter magic to be much of an issue. Aside from dedicated sideboard cards though, Tarmogoyf is their best card against us, and I like WW as a permanent answer to that, although you have to keep the rest of their board clear for that to work.

- generic Delver decks: bouncing Delvers is a huge tempo gain - also being uncounterable is a huge plus for Stingscourger.

I agree, the uncounterabiliy seems huge here. I do like that WW takes care of their other threats though. I suppose it also depends on how many Tarfires you're running. I know you have been cutting them recently, which could make Stingscourger better compared to WW.

I have only recently started playing Earwig Squad in MD, and only as a 1-off. So far it was good, but never overwhelming. Also it costs 3 mana after all. Cabal Therapy is a different story: in the few tournaments I played this card it kept amazing me. It has synergies with a lot of cards in the deck, it is very cheap and mana-efficient. I am really feeling stupid for not having tried that card earlier.

Man, I do miss Cabal Therapy. I still need some more time to figure out this version, but it'd be sweet to pick it up again!

I'm playing 2 copies for more than a year now and there was only 1 situation I can remember where I drew both Pendelhavens AND where it was a problem. I have never ever thought about this being a problem - the chances are very low. I believe D&T plays up to 3 Karakas in MD - can't tell if thats a problem for them though.

Thanks for that!

Sounds like two is fine then! I'll stay on one for now because I'm also running a Karakas. I don't think 3 Karakas is a problem for D&T, but their curve is also much lower than ours.

Thanks!

[Sandro95]

4-0ed the first tournament of season 3 of our local legacy league. Earwig Squad was, without hesitation, my MVP during the night.

This is the list I played:

R/B Goblins

Permanents (37)
4 Aether Vial
4 Goblin Lackey
2 Skirk Prospector
3 Mogg War Marshal
4 Goblin Warchief
3 Earwig Squad
2 Goblin Sharpshooter
4 Goblin Matron
4 Goblin Ringleader
1 Krenko, Mob Boss

removal (6)
3 Tarfire
2 Gempalm Incinerator
1 Warren Weirding

lands (23)
4 Wasteland
4 Cavern of Souls
4 Snow-Covered Mountain
3 Badlands
3 Arid Mesa
1 Bloodstained Mire
2 Wooded Foothills
1 Pendelhaven
1 Karakas

Sideboard (15)
4 Chalice of the Void
3 Cabal Therapy
2 Relic of Progenitus
1 Surgical Extraction
2 Blood Moon
1 Pithing Needle
1 Tuktuk Scrapper
1 Stingscourger (flex slot)



R1 I was paired against Loam Pox. Things were looking grim G1 when my opponent had Life from the Loam going and I was beating down with a pair of tokens. Then I topdecked Earwig Squad, which exiled his one and only Dark Depths, his one Nether Spirit, and his one board sweeper in Pernicious Deed. From there on EWS finished the game pretty quickly.

+2 Relic of Progenitus
+1 Surgical Extraction
+2 Blood Moon
+1 Stingscourger

(on the draw)
-1 Warren Weirding
-2 Tarfire
-1 Gempalm Incinerator
-2 Goblin Lackey

(on the play)
-2 Tarfire
-2 Gempalm Incinerator
-1 Warren Weirding
-1 Goblin Sharpshooter


R2 my opponent was on Miracles.
G1 I resolved two Earwig Squads and stripped his best cards. At one point I played Matron > GI to preemptively deal with Entreat the Angels (his list had two plains, I knew he had BS in hand and I hadn't seen any Entreats while searching his library). On the following turn he entreated for three. One token traded with EWS, another was incinerated, and the third one didn't even come close to stabilizing.
At one point during G2 I had four mana in play, and attacked with a token to enable prowl for my EWS. My opponent played a Snapcaster Mage, targeting Plow, but I had the Surgical Extraction to blow him out, as well as the Tarfire needed to clear the way. I had actually matroned for it the turn before to deal with Containment Priest, but luckily my opponent swung with it, not expecting the SE.

+1 Pithing Needle
+1 Surgical Extraction
-1 Skirk Prospector
-1 Warren Weirding


R3 Brave Sir Robin
Once again I had an early EWS, this time removing three copies of KotR. My opponent played a Sigarda, Host of Herons, which would normally have been next to impossible for me to deal with. But here is where EWS's 5 power really shined, as a block would mean trading with Sigarda. My opponent however did not block, and so I followed it up with a second EWS, this time removing 3/4 Swords to Plowshares.
G2 he lead with Dryad Arbor and I with Vial. On t2 we both made our land drops and passed. T3 he put a KotR into play. I vialed in MWM, incinerated the Dryad Arbor, and Wasted a Tundra. There was a few turns later where I was afraid I was going to get comboed out, but I got Krenko online, and he had already played his one Sejiri Steppe, meaning I could survive even through Kessig Wolf-Run.

No sideboard.


R4 MUD
G1 I played lackey on t1, and my opponent deployed a CotV @1.
T2 I played a MWM and put a Sharpshooter into play.
The next turn I payed for MWM and put Prospector into play. I finished the game via Sharpshooter + Prospector combo after attacking with three creatures, saccing the Lackey that was blocked by Wurmcoil Engine. Double Ancient Tomb hurts a lot, especially when I wasteland his third land.
G2 I had a slow hand, going MWM > Blood Moon. After that I played Warchief and started beating down. On my last turn I search up a Stingscourger to bounce his Kuldotha Forgemaster and swing for lethal, although another MWM would have been lethal here as well.

+2 Blood Moon
+1 Pithing Needle
+1 Tuktuk Scrapper
+1 Stingscourger

-1 Mogg War Marshal
-1 Skirk Prospector
-1 Goblin Sharpshooter
-2 Aether Vial


Ending Thoughts:
The list as a whole felt super solid. Having a second copy of Prospector and Sharpshooter means so much when you don't have to tutor for them. When you only have one you will have to be very careful not to lose it in some matchups, and might even elect not to play it in order to protect it.
EWS is absolutely great. So many decks rely on library manipulation to find a few key cards that will often beat you otherwise. EWS takes care of all of these and brings five power to the board. It's at its best against Miracles, Dark Depths and Storm, but is often quite good in other matchups as well.
Surgical has worked out very well so far as the third piece of GY hate. I'm really happy with my new boarding strategy against Miracles, although it would obviously look a lot different if they were on a creature light build.

[Chatto]

Congrats! Beautiful list. EWS has done some heavy lifting!

[Sandro95]

Hey everyone, Tom Ross wrote about us on SCG, check it out!
Goblins And Infect At #SCGPHILLY

[jrw1985]

Tl;dr?

[goblinpiledriver]

Tl;dr?

Tom says he prefers mono red goblins because it plays around wasteland, stifle, and price of progress better. His sample list:


Creatures (30)


1 Gempalm Incinerator
1 Goblin Chieftain
4 Goblin Lackey
4 Goblin Matron
1 Goblin Piledriver
4 Goblin Ringleader
1 Goblin Sharpshooter
4 Goblin Warchief
2 Mogg War Marshal
2 Siege-Gang Commander
2 Skirk Prospector
2 Stingscourger
1 Tuktuk Scrapper
1 Krenko, Mob Boss

Lands (22)

11 Mountain
3 Cavern of Souls
3 Rishadan Port
4 Wasteland
1 Pendelhaven

Spells (8)

4 Aether Vial
4 Tarfire

Sideboard

2 Chalice of the Void
1 Pithing Needle
2 Relic of Progenitus
1 Tormod's Crypt
2 Gempalm Incinerator
1 goblin sharpshooter
1 tuktuk scrapper
1 pyroblast
4 pyrokinesis

[GoboLord]

Puzzle 1 is tough... They Pondered so they're missing something, or maybe they're just looking for land. But you have chieftain in play to flash CT back as well... safest line might be name FoW. Then, with the coast clear and knowledge of his hand, name whatever combo piece he has by flashing back CT.

Puzzle 2... Vines of Fastwood gets named so he can't combo kill through Waste. Then feel free to flash back CT off Shooter since he's worthless now that you let the robot live.

Thanks for the input!
Puzzle 1 is tough indeed. I called Reanimate in the end but had Force if Will in mind as well. I didnt Name FoW because the very first play he made in G1 (Entomb in response to a blind cabal therapy) Gave me the impression that he was very protective and safety oriented (and not up for much bluffing). So I think that, if he would have been able to cast FoW there he would have done so.
So why did I name Reanimate? Because, as you said. He seemed to be looking for something and i just got the feeling that this something was either a land or a way to put creature in the graveyard. Turned out he Held Exhume, Sickening dreams, a land, Iona and other stuff. I named Reanimate > Exhume here, because it would be much easier for him to Gather 2 mana by turn 2 for things like Entomb + Reanimate than 3 mana for Entomb/Lotus Petal + Exhume. Also, with the ability to get on of my creatures in the graveyard with Cabal Therapies Flashback, Exhume would at least give that creature back.

For Puzzle 2 you are right. I did Name Vines of Vastwood, but then didnt keep Waste land open which was just plain wrong. He Killed m next turn because of that.

[Sandro95]

So why did I name Reanimate? Because, as you said. He seemed to be looking for something and i just got the feeling that this something was either a land or a way to put creature in the graveyard.

Yeah, I would have named Reanimate here as well, as it's by far the card likeliest to enable them to go off on their next turn. If they didn't shuffle with Ponder, that indicates they found what they were looking for, and as they would likely have cast Careful Study/Entomb over Ponder on t1, what they were looking for was propably a way to get a creature in the graveyard. In that case they have the option to hide it on top, making going after the reanimate-spells more attractive. If they can't reanimate on their next turn, that means you get an extra turn, which means more time to find disruption, and while your list doesn't pack any GY-hate, you still have Stingscourger & Blood Moon.

I think you made the right call, despite how things turned out (although I can't say for sure, as there are so many potential variables/tells that I don't have any info on).