[Deck] Goblins

[GoblinTurkey]

So through my personal testing I have found that other than 4x Aether Vial we can get away with about 3-4x non goblin spells and still run optimally.

TLDR: Warping Wail is pretty solid, but still needs testing.

My current list splashes for white. My personal meta has lots of Burn, Dredge, and Storm. There are a couple Miracle, Shardless and Junk players.

Current List

4 Goblin Lackey
4 Goblin Matron
4 Goblin Ringleader
4 Goblin Warchief
3 Goblin Piledriver
2 Skirk Prospector
1 Kiki-Jiki, Mirror Breaker
1 Krenko, Mob Boss
1 Goblin Chieftain
1 TukTuk Scrapper
1 Goblin Sharpshooter
1 Stingscourger
1 Goblin Settler
1 Siege-Gang Commander

4 Aether Vial
1 Tarfire
3 Warping Wail

4 Mountain
4 Rishadan Port
4 Wasteland
4 Cavern of Souls
2 Plateau
4 Arid Mesa
1 Bloodstained Mire


Sideboard

4 Leyline of Sanctity
3 Chalice of the Void
2 Rest In Peace
2 Wear / Tear
2 Containment Priest
1 Boartusk Liege
1 Goblin Sharpshooter


I tested a bunch this past weekend against Miracles and Shardless Bug. I originally started with 2x Warping Wail, but after I exiled a Deathrite Shaman off of one and countered an Ancestral Visions, it was really evident how powerful the card was. (Also it counters Toxic Deluge and Maelstrom Pulse which is the only way Shardless can answer Krenko.)

In the Miracle matchups, I just stomped. Goblins is already really good against Miracles with our card advantage, tutors, shuffling and Cavern of Souls. But being able to counter a Terminus or Entreat felt awesome.

It is not a hard spell to cast due to running effectively 12x <> sources. Cavern of Souls actually becomes the most important land in the deck if you decide to run Warping Wail. The only time I found it a bad draw was when I was already losing (lots of removal and it shows up after the fact). But it felt about as bad as drawing a land or useless utility goblin in the matchup (you know who you are TukTuk Scrapper/Tin Street Hooligan). So I'll keep testing this weekend if I have the time.

[jrw1985]

@ jrw: thanks for the report. I like to ask you some questions about Warping Wail:

- You said it only came up once: do you mean you only got to draw it once? Or did you cast it just this one time?
- Do you think WW is worth the second slot for consistency?

I like the card, but am having trouble finding room in my 75 for even one. Hell, I haven't even decided what colour or colours to splash :smile:

I only drew Wail twice that tourney. I only cast it once. They second time I drew it I already had a hand stocked with Goblins and was way ahead.
Second slot? I don't know. I could see it replacing a Tarfire MD. GoblinTurkey seems pretty pleased with running three MD.

[GoblinTurkey]

Update on Warping Wail:

Tested more against Shardless this weekend.

Game 1: Goblins just does the goblin thing.
Turn 1 Lackey.
Turn 2 Lackey Swing and in comes Warchief and in comes a Port. Port down their land. They play DRS.
Turn 3 Draw Warping Wail. Play Piledriver and exile DRS using Warping Wail and swing in putting in Krenko. Next game

Game 2: Kept a solid hand with Vial, Lackey, Ringleader, and Tarfire with some Mountains and Cavern.
Turn 1 Vial. Gets countered
Turn 2 Lackey. They play DRS.
Turn 3 Play a chieftain and swing with both, DRS dies to Lackey. They shardless into a DRS
Turn 4 I tarfire the DRS and swing with Lackey. They respond with Abrupt Decay
Turn 5 I play matron and get Krenko. They manage to get Goyf, Shardless into Goyf.
I don't draw enough gas or blockers I lose.

Game 3: I get this game due to the opponent having minimal lands. But I managed to Warping Wail a Maelstrom Pulse which was pretty cool.

Overall I liked Warping Wail a lot more than Tarfire. But they are both important for their own reasons.

Hopefully I'll get some play in against storm next week and we shall see how it goes.

[jrw1985]

Update on Warping Wail: Tested more against Shardless this weekend. Game 1: Goblins just does the goblin thing. Turn 1 Lackey. Turn 2 Lackey Swing and in comes Warchief and in comes a Port. Port down their land. They play DRS. Turn 3 Draw Warping Wail. Play Piledriver and exile DRS using Warping Wail and swing in putting in Krenko. Next game Game 2: Kept a solid hand with Vial, Lackey, Ringleader, and Tarfire with some Mountains and Cavern. Turn 1 Vial. Gets countered Turn 2 Lackey. They play DRS. Turn 3 Play a chieftain and swing with both, DRS dies to Lackey. They shardless into a DRS Turn 4 I tarfire the DRS and swing with Lackey. They respond with Abrupt Decay Turn 5 I play matron and get Krenko. They manage to get Goyf, Shardless into Goyf. I don't draw enough gas or blockers I lose. Game 3: I get this game due to the opponent having minimal lands. But I managed to Warping Wail a Maelstrom Pulse which was pretty cool. Overall I liked Warping Wail a lot more than Tarfire. But they are both important for their own reasons. Hopefully I'll get some play in against storm next week and we shall see how it goes.
I wouldn't even bother testing against Storm. Against them WW is just a counterspell. It did just occur to me that Wail is pretty good against Belcher five years ago because it hits Wish AND kills Xantid Swarm! :) but onto what really matters: Wail gives you a T2 play against Storm that keeps them from winning. It plays perfectly off of T1 Lackey or Vial, just keeping Storm honest t2. T3 we can go back to mana denial and try to get the kill t4.

[jrw1985]

Alright kids, what's the correct number of Warping Wail to play? I'm thinking three. Here's why: I generally run six pieces of removal. WW can take up half those and still let me run a diversified removal package (in my case singletons of Tarfire, Gempalm and Stingscourger). So I will still have six pieces of removal for most of the format, plus three counterspells against combo. That will be a huge boon against combo while not costing me much except slightly less awesome Ringleaders. I could potentially run 4 also and just run 22 lands (last list was 23 lands). Potentially I could cut color splashes as well since I always felt B or W splashes were required to have a shot against combo. Well now we have a MD option against combo that is still strong against the rest of the field, so why splash B for Earwig Squad (especially since WW counters all Miracles)? My final reason for wanting to run three WWs is that there always seems to be three flex slots at the end of the day. WW fills those nicely.

What do you all think?

[Chatto]

I agree with cutting splash-colours, yet still like Green for Grip. Right now I'm testing two WW main. Still having doubt, and can see it going into my SB. So, still not sure about how many/ MD or SB...

[mrblueduck]

This is the list I played over at CFBs Quartely 2.5k. Ended up with a top 4 split. I don't think I would tweak anything in the main board right now, maybe change a SB card or two depending on what I was expecting.

7 Red Fetch
4 Cavern of Souls
4 Wasteland
3 Badlands
3 Mountains
2 Pendelhaven
4 Aether Vials
4 Tarfire
1 Warren Wierding
2 Pyrokinesis
4 Goblin Lackey
3 Mogg War Marshal
2 Warren Instigator
2 Gempalm Incinerator
1 Grenzo, Dungeon Warden
4 Goblin Matron
2 Goblin Chieftain
4 Goblin Ringleader
1 Tuktuk Scrapper
1 Krenko, the Boss Himself
1 Goblin Settler
1 Kiki-Jiki, Mirror Breaker


SB
3 Cabal Therapy
3 Relic of Progenitus
2 Magus of the Moon
1 Tuktuk Scrapper
1 Pyrokinesis
1 Thorn of Amethysth
1 Chains of Mephistopholes
1 Pyroblast
1 Goblin Sharpshooter
1 Jitte


Rd 1 Showed up late, Match Loss
Rd 2 Miracles 2-0, Very Favorable match-up.
Rd 3 BUG Delver 2-1 Slightly Favorable to Even match-up
Rd 4 12 Post 2-0 Very Favorable match-up
Rd 5 MUD 2-0 Favorable-up
Rd 6 Goblins 2-0 Favorable-up
Rd 7 Merfolk 2-0 Favorable to Slightly Favorable match-up
Rd 8 T8 4 Color Delver 2-0 Slightly Favorable match-up
Rd 4 T4 Burn Split Even to Slightly Unfavorable match-up

Not sure I would want to include warping wail. If you want to improve your storm match up that much you should dedicate a lot of SB slots for it, run Thalia in the main, move cabal therapy into the main, or just play Death and Taxes. Keeping two mana up is really hard against alot of combo decks. I have played blasts in the SB for years, and keeping one mana up can be challenging.

[GoboLord]

This is the list I played over at CFBs Quartely 2.5k. Ended up with a top 4 split. I don't think I would tweak anything in the main board right now, maybe change a SB card or two depending on what I was expecting.

7 Red Fetch
4 Cavern of Souls
4 Wasteland
3 Badlands
3 Mountains
2 Pendelhaven
4 Aether Vials
4 Tarfire
1 Warren Wierding
2 Pyrokinesis
4 Goblin Lackey
3 Mogg War Marshal
2 Warren Instigator
2 Gempalm Incinerator
1 Grenzo, Dungeon Warden
4 Goblin Matron
2 Goblin Chieftain
4 Goblin Ringleader
1 Tuktuk Scrapper
1 Krenko, the Boss Himself
1 Goblin Settler
1 Kiki-Jiki, Mirror Breaker


SB
3 Cabal Therapy
3 Relic of Progenitus
2 Magus of the Moon
1 Tuktuk Scrapper
1 Pyrokinesis
1 Thorn of Amethysth
1 Chains of Mephistopholes
1 Pyroblast
1 Goblin Sharpshooter
1 Jitte


Rd 1 Showed up late, Match Loss
Rd 2 Miracles 2-0, Very Favorable match-up.
Rd 3 BUG Delver 2-1 Slightly Favorable to Even match-up
Rd 4 12 Post 2-0 Very Favorable match-up
Rd 5 MUD 2-0 Favorable-up
Rd 6 Goblins 2-0 Favorable-up
Rd 7 Merfolk 2-0 Favorable to Slightly Favorable match-up
Rd 8 T8 4 Color Delver 2-0 Slightly Favorable match-up
Rd 4 T4 Burn Split Even to Slightly Unfavorable match-up

Not sure I would want to include warping wail. If you want to improve your storm match up that much you should dedicate a lot of SB slots for it, run Thalia in the main, move cabal therapy into the main, or just play Death and Taxes. Keeping two mana up is really hard against alot of combo decks. I have played blasts in the SB for years, and keeping one mana up can be challenging.

Very impressive run, sir. Thanks for sharing your list. I agree with you on WAILS usefuleness vs. Combodecks. ANT hardly has any Problem dealing with fast clock + free counter magic, so I dont see how a counterspell that basically only Hits Infernal Tutor and PiF could be problematic for them. Looking at SneakShow I dont mind the cast Show and Tell at all - it's Sneak Attack that I keep losing against.
However, rrunning WAIL seems like a good idea never the less , because it can improve at least 2 "fair" , unfavorable MUs: Elves and ShardlessBUG. Also being a hard removal spell for most creatures in the format there are really few downsides of playing that card in MD. For me the real deal would be to find out how Many Ports you need to run on top of your 4 Wasteland and 2 Pendelhaven in order to support WAIL.

[Stevestamopz]

Congrats mrblueduck, very nicely done sir.

Re Warping Wail, I get the feeling you are mis-interpreting how I and others feel about it. It is not that it's inclusion makes Goblins impervious to storm or show and tell or whatever. It's that it has uses against almost every deck in Legacy, whilst also allowing you to interact against decks we previously could not. Thalia is great against Storm, but it's shit against Elves and not very good against Sneak and Show or Reanimator. You could play Containment Priest which is good against the latter 3, but it's a hard to cast bear against Storm combo. You could play Ethersworn Canonist but it doesn't do anything against Sneak and Show or Reanimator, and then you can only play 1 dork at a time. If you play Thalia maindeck you always have to always fetch for a plateau unless you either have Vial or a 2nd fetch/Plateau already in hand, thus opening you up to Wasteland. I don't say these things to be condescending, obviously you have thought about Goblins far more than me, but rather to lay out what Goblins has done before. So you would end up playing a small mixture of both, which meant you couldn't consistently draw the one you wanted.

If you're playing Winstigator in your decklist then I agree, you don't want Warping Wail in your deck, given that holding up 1C doesn't really fit in with the game plan of "hit opponent with Warren Instigator until they're dead." The manabase also doesn't support it.

For the boys playing the classic lists though, Wail is a gift from on high. You have more colourless sources than red sources, so playing it in your deck is free. You're looking to play a longer game, so you're in no rush to tap out. You have fuck all 2 drops outside of Driver and War Marshal, so it fits nicely in fixing the curve of the deck. Most importantly however, it allows you to dedicate 4 slots to every combo deck, meaning the rest of your sideboard can be more specific. The fair decks have gotten much better over the years, so being able to fit a Krenko and 2 Magus in the sideboard for the fair matchups is refreshing. Before it was one or the other, now we can play both.

This has ended up being a much longer post than I intended, but I am loving Warping Wail right now and really think it could change Goblins viability in Legacy for the better.

[goblinpiledriver]

Agreed with Steve 100%

The card is great in the classic lists because of its versatility. I definitely understand not wanting to run it in winstigator lists due to mana constraints.

I'm definitely keeping my one copy in the main for now. I will consider a 2nd copy but the hardest part is finding a card to remove. They all seem so useful.

[jrw1985]

Agreed with Steve 100% The card is great in the classic lists because of its versatility. I definitely understand not wanting to run it in winstigator lists due to mana constraints. I'm definitely keeping my one copy in the main for now. I will consider a 2nd copy but the hardest part is finding a card to remove. They all seem so useful. Remove your removal! If you are running multiple Tarfires or Gempalms replace a few of those first. But don't replace all of them so you still have Matron targets. You are running Tarfires to deal with the DRS of the format. WW solved that and gives you outs against many many more decks. Just think of all the cards WW hoses in ADDITION TO DRS: Miracles, Reanimation spells, SnT, Wishes, Tutors, every spell in Elves, Toxic Deluge, Pyroclasm, and more and more.

[Chatto]

I'm still not sold, call me old-fashioned. I will be trying WW as a 3-of in my SB.

[GoblinTurkey]

I'm still not sold, call me old-fashioned. I will be trying WW as a 3-of in my SB.

You're better than most D&T players. At least you're willing to give the card a shot! :)

I have had great results! I hope you have some good ones with it in the SB.

[jrw1985]

You're better than most D&T players. At least you're willing to give the card a shot! :) I have had great results! I hope you have some good ones with it in the SB.

I don't see it as a sideboard card... It isn't overwhelming in any MU but it is extremely versatile. That's a G1 card if you ask me.

[Stevestamopz]

For those who played Goblins during the Mental Misstep period, how many MM's did you play main (if at all)?

[Chatto]

I don't see it as a sideboard card... It isn't overwhelming in any MU but it is extremely versatile. That's a G1 card if you ask me.

Allright, fair enough. I just can't seem to be able to find room for WW. Or, to put another way, I don't know what to cut. So, I present you my list with just one simple question: what shall be cut to make room for one single (preferable two) WW:

~ Goblins ~

Creatures (31)
1 Stingscourger
1 Goblin Chieftain
1 Tuktuk Scrapper/ Tin Street Hooligan
1 Skirk Prospector
1 Krenko, Mob Boss
1 Goblin Sharpshooter
1 Siege-Gang Commander
2 Gempalm Incinerator
2 Mogg War Marshal
4 Goblin Lackey
4 Goblin Matron
4 Goblin Piledriver
4 Goblin Ringleader
4 Goblin Warchief

Spells (6)
2 Tarfire
4 Aether Vial

Lands (23)
1 Taiga
3 Scalding Tarn
3 Arid Mesa
4 Cavern of Souls
4 Rishadan Port
4 Wasteland
4 Mountain

Sideboard (15)
1 Stingscourger
1 Tuktuk Scrapper/ Tin Street Hooligan
1 Goblin Sharpshooter
2 Krosan Grip
3 Pyrokinesis
3 Relic of Progenitus
4 Warping Wail


By all means, shoot :smile:

@ Steve: well, by the time I got used by the thought (and tested) MM in Goblins, it got banned... Makes you wonder why I have trouble with WW.

[Dan Pyre]

Allright, fair enough. I just can't seem to be able to find room for WW. Or, to put another way, I don't know what to cut. So, I present you my list with just one simple question: what shall be cut to make room for one single (preferable two) WW:

IMO, you should move the mainboard Tuktuk to the side and move in a Warping Wail. It's a pretty bad mainboard card even with the Matrons since there's no guarantee it will ever be relevant. I know the same could be said of Warping Wail but it can be played earlier in the game AND gives us an out to the busted sorceries in the Eternal cardpool. Having Two Tuktuks in the side allows you to bring them both in against matchups where Wail isn't going to be as good (MUD, Esperblade - though exiling Stoneforge is good, I guess?). The best decks right now are hurt far more from WW than they are from a Tuktuk. Having a Sharpshooter in the main makes this decision much easier as well as the equipment decks generally have a bad time against it.

Hell, WW even buys us some time versus equipment decks. Use the Eldrazi Scion mode to create a colorless blocker then sacrifice it to prevent any Jitte triggers, Fire/Ice from connecting or Batterskull lifelink in addition to being colorless to avoid a Mother of Runes activation. It's a super niche corner case but it's there. Obviously you'll want the Tuktuk in these situations but the WW is better than say, replacing Tuktuk with different removal spell which may not help against an attached equipment.

[GoblinTurkey]

By all means, shoot :smile:

@ Steve: well, by the time I got used by the thought (and tested) MM in Goblins, it got banned... Makes you wonder why I have trouble with WW.

I personally have taken out Mogg War Marshal and Gempalms out of my deck at this point. I've never had much success with them. Maybe replace the Gempalms with 2x Warping Wail.

[goblinpiledriver]

Chatto, I would consider dropping one MWM and/or a piledriver to fit a copy or two of WW. I don't think you want to lose your main board artifact hate because so many artifacts ruin our day. Any equipment is nearly lights out. Also, he hits shardless agent, baleful strix, aether vial (fish or D&T), mox diamond, any early/preemptive LEDs or lotus petals, tezzeretor pieces, imperial painter pieces, revokers, etc

[Chatto]

Thanks for the replies. All suggestions have crossed my mind already, but it's good to hear them from others. Regarding the suggestions:

- dropping Gempalm Incinerator: I like to have them around to burn out big critters. I can see me dropping one, but can't go to packing zero. Tarfire on the other hand is a solid Zburn spell as well. However, WW does the same.
- put Tutuk in the side: I love my toolbox, and I regard Tuktuk as a solid 1-of in my MB. There us always someone in my meta packing equipment.
- drop a Piley a/o MWM: so this option has giving me a headache for the last couple of days. I really like the aggresiveness Piley brings. On the other hand, it does nothing on it's own. MWM is a sweet card when playing control, chumping like a champ. It also fills the board, allowing me to overwhelm my opponent.

So, I thought about the following:

- drop a Tarfire: WW does the same.
- drop a Piledriver: I can keep my beloved toolbox, while still be able to alphastrike.

What do you guys think?

[GoblinTurkey]

Thanks for the replies. All suggestions have crossed my mind already, but it's good to hear them from others. Regarding the suggestions:

- dropping Gempalm Incinerator: I like to have them around to burn out big critters. I can see me dropping one, but can't go to packing zero. Tarfire on the other hand is a solid Zburn spell as well. However, WW does the same.
- put Tutuk in the side: I love my toolbox, and I regard Tuktuk as a solid 1-of in my MB. There us always someone in my meta packing equipment.
- drop a Piley a/o MWM: so this option has giving me a headache for the last couple of days. I really like the aggresiveness Piley brings. On the other hand, it does nothing on it's own. MWM is a sweet card when playing control, chumping like a champ. It also fills the board, allowing me to overwhelm my opponent.

So, I thought about the following:

- drop a Tarfire: WW does the same.
- drop a Piledriver: I can keep my beloved toolbox, while still be able to alphastrike.

What do you guys think?

Give it go!!

[Stevestamopz]

Lately I've been really unhappy with only 3 Drivers. Sure it's a do nothing card sometimes, but there are so many matches where you plink away for a while and then alpha strike them out in one turn because they weren't expecting a warchief -> 2x Driver line and they attacked with 2 Goyfs and only left one back on defense. When you play 3 you're probably going to be matroning for one, whereas with 4 you're more likely to be able to naturally draw one/ringlead into one, and then be able to matron for the 2nd, meaning that one will get blocked but the 2nd will get through. Also you rarely have the time to be matroning for driver against combo decks.

I would rather cut a Chieftain/Warchief than cut a maindeck Tin Street/Scrapper/Driver #4, there are just too many applications for the maindeck artifact removal. 5 lords maindeck has always felt a bit clunky to me, and if you're cutting in to the 2 drops to fit in Wails (which I know are 2CMC) then you curve of actual goblins might get blown way out.

[Chatto]

Why, Steve, why?? I finally got rid of the doubt in my head, and you just ram it back in there... (´･_･`)

All kidding aside: I understand your reasoning, but the presented list is pretty stock. The only other card I could cut MD (and didn't mentioned) would be Stingscourger.

[Stevestamopz]

Why, Steve, why?? I finally got rid of the doubt in my head, and you just ram it back in there... (´･_･`)

All kidding aside: I understand your reasoning, but the presented list is pretty stock. The only other card I could cut MD (and didn't mentioned) would be Stingscourger.

haha nooo! that wasn't my intention at all. :laugh:

If you want to keep kicking it oldschool, this is my current list

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

SB: 1 Ancient Grudge
SB: 1 Grafdigger's Cage
SB: 1 Krenko, Mob Boss
SB: 2 Magus of the Moon
SB: 2 Pyrokinesis
SB: 3 Relic of Progenitus
SB: 1 Stingscourger
SB: 1 Sudden Demise
SB: 1 Tin Street Hooligan
SB: 2 Warping Wail

[GoboLord]

@ Chatto: I wouldnt go below 4 Piledrivers, for reasons Steve listed (plus I have a Personal preference for more aggressive takes on this deck, so I my comments are always a little biased).
I would say goodbye to SGC and move Sharpshooter to the sideboard. The first feels redundant if you already have Krenko in your main 60s. Sharpshooter is more of a sideboard card and much better in multiples, rather than as a 1-off.
If you really dont want to touch your toolbox then I would cut 2 Tarfires, some you dont want to have too many non-business spells in your MD .

[goblinpiledriver]

[SOI Spoiler]

Eerie Interlude - 2W
Instant
Exile any number of target creatures you control. Return those cards to the battlefield under their owners control at the beginning of the next end step.


Can you imagine the plays this opens up? Will be testing. Notable improvement over ghostaway being we keep our tokens

[kombatkiwi]

[SOI Spoiler]

Eerie Interlude - 2W
Instant
Exile any number of target creatures you control. Return those cards to the battlefield under their owners control at the beginning of the next end step.


Can you imagine the plays this opens up? Will be testing. Notable improvement over ghostaway being we keep our tokens

Seems pretty win-more, I think it's probably still worse than resto...

[Chatto]

[SOI Spoiler]

Eerie Interlude - 2W
Instant
Exile any number of target creatures you control. Return those cards to the battlefield under their owners control at the beginning of the next

Now you're just pushing it :laugh: This card is cute at best.


@ Chatto: I wouldnt go below 4 Piledrivers, for reasons Steve listed (plus I have a Personal preference for more aggressive takes on this deck, so I my comments are always a little biased).
I would say goodbye to SGC and move Sharpshooter to the sideboard. The first feels redundant if you already have Krenko in your main 60s. Sharpshooter is more of a sideboard card and much better in multiples, rather than as a 1-off.
If you really dont want to touch your toolbox then I would cut 2 Tarfires, some you dont want to have too many non-business spells in your MD .

To me the problem is we need reliable removal, which I don't think WW is. I'm going with your first suggestion: cut SGC and move GS to the side (as a second one). Removal-package will be 2 Tarfire, 2 Incinerator, and 2 WW.

[GoblinTurkey]

Fingers crossed for some reprints of Goblin Matron in Eternal Masters. I want some foil Matrons :P

[Zombiesquisher]

Fingers crossed for some reprints of Goblin Matron in Eternal Masters. I want some foil Matrons :P

Same here man, I have my foils from 7th but would love a modern border and the Urza's Saga art in foil. Also hoping for the Goblin Ringleader art from Vintage Masters and modern borders on Prospector and Gempalm!

EDIT: Also a chance at foil Ports!

[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 (http://deckstats.net/decks/1117/2722-goblins/pt) http://deckstats.net/mana/m/r.gif

//Main
4 Goblin Warchief (http://www.mtg-forum.de/db/magiccard.php?lng=pt&card=Goblin+Warchief)
4 Goblin Lackey (http://www.mtg-forum.de/db/magiccard.php?lng=pt&card=Goblin+Lackey)
4 Goblin Ringleader (http://www.mtg-forum.de/db/magiccard.php?lng=pt&card=Goblin+Ringleader)
4 Goblin Matron (http://www.mtg-forum.de/db/magiccard.php?lng=pt&card=Goblin+Matron)
3 Goblin Piledriver (http://www.mtg-forum.de/db/magiccard.php?lng=pt&card=Goblin+Piledriver)
2 Mogg War Marshal (http://www.mtg-forum.de/db/magiccard.php?lng=pt&card=Mogg+War+Marshal)
2 Gempalm Incinerator (http://www.mtg-forum.de/db/magiccard.php?lng=pt&card=Gempalm+Incinerator)
1 Skirk Prospector (http://www.mtg-forum.de/db/magiccard.php?lng=pt&card=Skirk+Prospector)
1 Krenko, Mob Boss (http://www.mtg-forum.de/db/magiccard.php?lng=pt&card=Krenko%2C+Mob+Boss)
1 Goblin Chieftain (http://www.mtg-forum.de/db/magiccard.php?lng=pt&card=Goblin+Chieftain)
1 Goblin Sharpshooter (http://www.mtg-forum.de/db/magiccard.php?lng=pt&card=Goblin+Sharpshooter)
1 Tin Street Hooligan (http://www.mtg-forum.de/db/magiccard.php?lng=pt&card=Tin+Street+Hooligan)
1 Siege-Gang Commander (http://www.mtg-forum.de/db/magiccard.php?lng=pt&card=Siege-Gang+Commander)
1 Stingscourger (http://www.mtg-forum.de/db/magiccard.php?lng=pt&card=Stingscourger)
4 Æther Vial (http://www.mtg-forum.de/db/magiccard.php?lng=pt&card=%C6ther+Vial)
2 Tarfire (http://www.mtg-forum.de/db/magiccard.php?lng=pt&card=Tarfire)
1 Warping Wail (http://www.mtg-forum.de/db/magiccard.php?lng=pt&card=Warping+Wail)
4 Cavern of Souls (http://www.mtg-forum.de/db/magiccard.php?lng=pt&card=Cavern+of+Souls)
4 Wasteland (http://www.mtg-forum.de/db/magiccard.php?lng=pt&card=Wasteland)
4 Rishadan Port (http://www.mtg-forum.de/db/magiccard.php?lng=pt&card=Rishadan+Port)
4 Wooded Foothills (http://www.mtg-forum.de/db/magiccard.php?lng=pt&card=Wooded+Foothills)
2 Bloodstained Mire (http://www.mtg-forum.de/db/magiccard.php?lng=pt&card=Bloodstained+Mire)
1 Taiga (http://www.mtg-forum.de/db/magiccard.php?lng=pt&card=Taiga)
4 Mountain (http://www.mtg-forum.de/db/magiccard.php?lng=pt&card=Mountain)

//Sideboard
2 Krosan Grip (http://www.mtg-forum.de/db/magiccard.php?lng=pt&card=Krosan+Grip)
3 Pyrokinesis (http://www.mtg-forum.de/db/magiccard.php?lng=pt&card=Pyrokinesis)
3 Relic of Progenitus (http://www.mtg-forum.de/db/magiccard.php?lng=pt&card=Relic+of+Progenitus)
3 Chalice of the Void (http://www.mtg-forum.de/db/magiccard.php?lng=pt&card=Chalice+of+the+Void)
1 Stingscourger (http://www.mtg-forum.de/db/magiccard.php?lng=pt&card=Stingscourger)
1 Mindbreak Trap (http://www.mtg-forum.de/db/magiccard.php?lng=pt&card=Mindbreak+Trap)
1 Ashen Rider (http://www.mtg-forum.de/db/magiccard.php?lng=pt&card=Ashen+Rider)
1 Tin Street Hooligan (http://www.mtg-forum.de/db/magiccard.php?lng=pt&card=Tin+Street+Hooligan)

http://i.hbtronix.de/chart_pie.png Display deck statistics (http://deckstats.net/decks/1117/2722-goblins)

[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

http://magiccards.info/scans/en/tp/45.jpg
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.

http://magiccards.info/scans/de/cs/145.jpg
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.



http://magiccards.info/scans/en/od/89.jpg
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



http://magiccards.info/scans/de/pc2/104.jpg
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.




http://magiccards.info/scans/de/us/218.jpg
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.




http://magiccards.info/scans/de/nph/111.jpg
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! http://media.wizards.com/2016/images/daily/mXgXDp2e0D.png

[GoblinTurkey]

http://media.wizards.com/2016/images/daily/mXgXDp2e0D.png

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 :smile:

[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)


http://static.starcitygames.com/sales/cardscans/MTG/CNS/en/nonfoil/Smallpox.jpg
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

http://gatherer.wizards.com/Handlers/Image.ashx?multiverseid=386295&type=card
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

http://mythicspoiler.com/bfz/cards/retreattocoralhelm.jpg
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.

http://gatherer.wizards.com/Handlers/Image.ashx?multiverseid=15246&type=card
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 (http://www.starcitygames.com/article/32465_Goblins-And-Infect-At-SCGPHILLY.html)

[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).

[goblinpiledriver]

http://www.starcitygames.com/article/32475_The-Boss-VS-Todd-.html

Goblins vs Elves in today's versus video

Tom had some interesting lines and some unfortunate draws but overall fun to watch

I still disagree with him wanting to play less than 4 caverns, which he mentions at the end

[LeoCop 90]

I'm going to a small legacy event tomorrow, usually there is a 20-25 people attendance ..... the last time i played goblins was like two years ago because legacy almost died in my area and i also tried other decks the very few times i played. But goblins is OF COURSE still my favorite deck so i want to ask you guys for some advices.

I suspect that there will be a lot of eldrazi (i know that 2 people will play it, and there will be more i guess), and i can't decide whether to play a "classic list" with a black splash for cabal therapy and earwig squad, or to try to edge against eldrazi with a couple ancient tombs/chrome moxens and some moon effects maideck. I would be inclined to try the second options, but i'm afraid that tombs/moxens could not be that good, especially if i have to cut ports for them, and i'm not sure if moon effects are so crippling if they don't come down consistently on turn 1/2. Also is moon better than magus ? any advice will be appreciated, and of course i will write a small report after the event.

[Sandro95]

I'm going to a small legacy event tomorrow, usually there is a 20-25 people attendance ..... the last time i played goblins was like two years ago because legacy almost died in my area and i also tried other decks the very few times i played. But goblins is OF COURSE still my favorite deck so i want to ask you guys for some advices.

I suspect that there will be a lot of eldrazi (i know that 2 people will play it, and there will be more i guess), and i can't decide whether to play a "classic list" with a black splash for cabal therapy and earwig squad, or to try to edge against eldrazi with a couple ancient tombs/chrome moxens and some moon effects maideck. I would be inclined to try the second options, but i'm afraid that tombs/moxens could not be that good, especially if i have to cut ports for them, and i'm not sure if moon effects are so crippling if they don't come down consistently on turn 1/2. Also is moon better than magus ? any advice will be appreciated, and of course i will write a small report after the event.

Moon is good versus them, but I wouldn't go overboard with Ancient Tombs. Many of their creatures require colorless mana and will be uncastable under a Blood Moon. You should be able to beat them even if they stick a threat under it, although Thought-Knot Seer is a concern.

They don't have much removal, so I could see cards like Krenko being good against them. They sometimes have Jitte and Lodestone Golem, so Tin-Street Scrapper is propably still decent. Pithing Needle seems pretty good as even if they don't have Jitte you can name Endbringer or Ratchet Bomb, both of which I imagine are quite good against us as well.

Good luck tomorrow!

[ScatmanX]

@LeoCop: I agree on nit going overboard to fight the MU. Krenko is our best weapon, and once is active should win us the game.
If you're looking at Moons in a classic list, from my experience running 1 Mox and 1 Tomb is quite good. They're both cards you don't want to draw multiples, but are good togheter, helping you lock the game pretty quickly if drawn.
Then again, I don't see it as a unfavourable mu as of now.

[MattPruner]

So I missed the Legacy as I am currently on a trip to Japan. Good thing for me, TokyoMTG had their monthly Win-a-dual event on sunday. It was 6 rounds, and Managed to 4-2 for 14th place out of what I think was about 50. My phone isn't letting me login to planeswalkerpoints to check that number right now. This was only my second event in Japan, I went 2-1 in their weekly legacy event on tuesday with the same 75. What makes this intresting is that I speak basicly no Japanese. Fortunatley, most legacy players tend to know their cards well, and for the most part things have gone incredibly smoothly. The meta here is pretty intresting, people seem more willing to try out intresting card choices in their decks than in the US. Also Death & Taxes seems to be nonexsistent.
My list:
3 Warping Wail
1 Goblin Piledriver
4 Goblin Ringleader
4 Goblin Warchief
4 Goblin Lackey
3 Mogg War Marshal
2 Tarfire
1 Gempalm Incinerator
1 Goblin Sharpshooter
1 Stingscourger
1 Earwig Squad
1 Krenko, Mob Boss
1 Siege-Gang Commander
3 Badlands
3 Mountain
3 Wooded Foothills
3 Bloodstained Mire
4 Cavern of Souls
4 Wasteland
3 Rishadan Port
1 Kolaghan's Command
4 AEther Vial
1 Tuktuk Scrapper
4 Goblin Matron
SB: 1 Tuktuk Scrapper
SB: 2 Grafdigger's Cage
SB: 3 Pyrokinesis
SB: 1 Kolaghan's Command
SB: 1 Rakdos Charm
SB: 3 Relic of Progenitus
SB: 4 Cabal Therapy

Round 1
2-0 Omnitell
SInce the banning of Dig, i know lots of people have been trying out different ways to keep the Omnitell engine working. This guy had settled on a gifts unviven package, splashing UW for Unburial Rites and Lim-Dul's vault (those, Noxious revival, and Griselbrand were the only nonblue cards i assume it was still mostly mono blue). It was pretty cool. Game 1 is super close. My t1 lackey hits, but I only have medium pressure. My Rishadan ports force him to use his Gifts Ungiven at his upkeep, which was kind of awkward for him. His first gifts gets a his first Gifts got Show and Tell, Noxious Revival, Snapcaster, and Griselbrand. I let him have Snapcaster and Griselbrand. On my turn, my attack Brings him down to 8. He goes to 6 off ancient tomb to cast Show and Tell and turning off Griselbrand. I try to Warping Wail, and he casts Force of will pitching a draw spell going to 5. I put in Stingscourger hoping he put in a fatty, but it was Omniscience. I assume i am dead, but then he proceds to cast several draw spells and blank hard. A second gifts ungiven for Ponder, Preordain, Brainstorm, and Lim-Dul's Vault, I give him Vault and Brainstorm. He brings himself down to low enough with vault that i tarfire him in response to his following brainstorm, and somehow he has nothing. Defininly got pretty lucky that game.
Game 2 a turn 1 lackey hit, i Wastelanded his turn 1 Underground Sea, and Rishadan Port got there. Port did so much work today.
SB-
+4 Cabal Therapy
-1 Goblin Ringleader
-1 Goblin Sharpshooter
-1 Tuktuk Scrapper
-1 Kolaghan's Command

Round 2
2-1 UR Painter
Game 1 I lost on his turn 4 (my turn 3). I had a vial on 2 and cast matron, getting Piledriver without thinking so i could attack for 8 next turn. I think I should have gotten Stingscourger to bounce his Painter's Servant to break up his combo. I assumed with 2 artifact lands out he couldnt play grindstone and activate it thru port, but i forgot he had one in his graveyard+Goblin Welder, and he played an Ancient Tomb for his turn. I died. Game 2 I won easily. I had a decent clock, and Kolaghan's Command can be a complete blowout vs this deck. Warping Wail also exiled a Painter's Servant. Game 3 was super close. I bounce his painters servant to gain a turn, next turn he replays it. I am forced to attack with all my 1/1 creatures and try to make him not block with his 1/3 by representing tarfire. It worked, ports stop him from activating his grindstone, but he deploys a Goblin Welder to block which messes up my exact lethal math. Untap, draw a Gempalm Incenerator, attack him to 1. Incinerator stops his combo on his turn and I win.
This match also involved a pretty funny moment in which I needed oracle text on a card (I believe it was Transmute Artifact) but neither my opponent or any of the judges spoke english. The hilarious part was his Transmute artifact was in english to begin with.
SB-
+1 Tuktuk Scrapper
+1 Rakdos Charm
+1 Kolaghan's Command
-1 Goblin Sharpshooter
-1 Goblin Ringleader
-1 Earwig Squad
Round 3
1-2 Storm
My opponent this round was Kai Sawatari, who works at the shop and who t8 several legacy Grand Prix with storm last year. So I knew what I was getting into. Game 1 I die on his turn 3. Game 2 I win because warping wail, Goblin Lackey, and Cabal Therapy are good. I think I played this game poorly and didnt deserve to win it, but I was lucky. Game 3 I mulliganed to a lackluster hand and he killed me again (on turn 3? might have been 4).
SB-
+3 Relic
+4 Cabal therapy
-3 Ringleader
-1 Kolaghan's Command
-1 stingscourger
-1 scrapper
-1 incenerator
Round 4
0-2 Infect
Not really much to say here. Both games i had lethal next turn, but his disruption stopped my removal and berserk is good. Game two he killed me thru a something like 6 points of toughness on blocking. Wrecked. Berserk is really good. The highlight of this match was afterwards, we played some casual games against his UR Delver deck. My opponent, who spoke very little English, played a Grim Lavamancer against my field of 2/2s, points to it and says "a motherfucker". It was fantastic.
SB-
+3 Pyrokinesis
+1 Kolaghan's Command
-1 Tuktuk Scrapper
-1 Earwig Squad
-2 Goblin Ringleader
Round 5
2-1 Deathblade
Game 1 was really grindy. He plays t2 Stoneforge for Batterskull, which I Warping Wail. we grind for awhile, lingering souls tokens vs Mogg War-Marshall tokens and a Ringleader. He eventualy has a hardcast Batterskull, a Tasigur, and like a million souls lingering around vs me with 3 Lackey, 3 Warcheif, and a Mogg War-Marshall + token. He cant equip Batterskull to a spirit as he saw a Tarfire off an earlier Ringleader, but eventualy the lifegain off the Batterskull which I kept chumping + Spirit Beats got there. Game 2 I Wastelanded him like twice times and had a two Ports. I didnt have much going on but he couldnt do anything about it. My early Vials were joined by a third later, and when you topdeck Matron with vials on 3, 3, and 4 good things tend to happen. And they did. Game 3 he mulliganed to 5, kept the scry on top. my hand was abit slow, and he played True-Name Nemesis on turn 3 which was annoying, but that was all he did and I Pretty easily overwhelmed him with Krenko,.
game 1 exled sf with ww, lingering souls got there with tasigur. lost. g2 3 vials, wasteland is good topdeck matron for shitton of damage, g3 he mull to 5, almost got me with tnn alone, still wrecked
SB-
+1 K command
-1 EWS
Round 6-
2-1 Burn
My opponents deck had some weird choices, including maindeck Relic of Progenitus, Burst Lightning and Fiery Confluence (which it turns out is an ok way to wipe a goblins board in a pinch). Game 1 was super close, math is hard. With me at 6, he played a Eidolon of the Great Revel with a Sulfuric Vortex on the field, and I played Warping Wail in response to make a 1/1. I untap, do more math, and decide I am dead to fireblast regardless, vial in Warcheif, cast Mogg War-Marshall, go to 4, attack him to two, and pass. On the upkeep his 1 card in hand is a Burst Lightning, which he kicks in response to Vortex. Oh well. Game two I have vial, he played a turn 1 Goblin Guide. He then deals me some damage and I get to put in a lackey. He Searing blazes my lackey, and I cycle Gempalm Incinerator in response. Explaining that Goblin Guide is a goblin and so this deals 2 damage is intresting when your opponent only speaks Japanese. From there the rest of the match is pretty straightforward. The only remaining thing of note is that I later used Warping Wail to Counter a sorcery (twice) and to exile a Monaestary Swiftspear, which I believe is the first time that I was able to use all three modes in one match.
SB-
+1 K command
-1 EWS

Overall I was pretty happy with the event, aside from a few points I think I played pretty well. Everybody seemed to be excited that goblins was doing well, and I was pretty happy with my decklist. The only Problems I have with it were Rakdos Charm and Grafdiggers Cages out of the board, which are mostly due to me being tired of losing to reanimator in my local meta. Now that my loca meta is on the othe side of the world, I am going to try some other cards in the sideboard while here. Next week I may try -2 Grafdigger's Cage, +1 Goblin Piledriver +1 Umezawa's Jitte. 4-2 got me to 14th place. I think Miracles won, with Kai on Storm in second. Playing in Japan is fun. People do whatever they want when it comes to card choices here. I will be playing more weeklies while here, and playing in 1 more big monthly before I leave.

[goblinpiledriver]

Thanks for the report Matt

Two questions:
You mention earwig squad a few times, but I don't see it in your deck list. Am I blind?

You put your burn opponent to 2 in game 1, how was he able to kill you with burst lightning when he had an eidolon in play? Or did he trade eidolon with your warchief?

[MattPruner]

You mention earwig squad a few times, but I don't see it in your deck list. Am I blind?

Oops, I did the list from memory and it seems I messed it up. I will fix it. EWS was a 1 of, with only 2 tarfire.


You put your burn opponent to 2 in game 1, how was he able to kill you with burst lightning when he had an eidolon in play? Or did he trade eidolon with your warchief?
Yea, traded with warcheif in combat.

[Sandro95]

My list:
3 Warping Wail
1 Goblin Piledriver
4 Goblin Ringleader
4 Goblin Warchief
4 Goblin Lackey
3 Mogg War Marshal
2 Tarfire
1 Gempalm Incinerator
1 Goblin Sharpshooter
1 Stingscourger
1 Earwig Squad
1 Krenko, Mob Boss
1 Siege-Gang Commander
3 Badlands
3 Mountain
3 Wooded Foothills
3 Bloodstained Mire
4 Cavern of Souls
4 Wasteland
3 Rishadan Port
1 Kolaghan's Command
4 AEther Vial
1 Tuktuk Scrapper
4 Goblin Matron
SB: 1 Tuktuk Scrapper
SB: 2 Grafdigger's Cage
SB: 3 Pyrokinesis
SB: 1 Kolaghan's Command
SB: 1 Rakdos Charm
SB: 3 Relic of Progenitus
SB: 4 Cabal Therapy


Neat list, thanks for the report!

I noticed you kept Tarfire in the MD after SB against the combo decks. What is the reasoning behind this? I know it can be useful to finsih them off, but there are other cards in your list that I'd rather have against them (Ringleader & Kolaghan's Command vs Omnitell, Grafdigger's Cage vs Storm (unless they were on TES maybe?).

[MattPruner]

I have recently been trying a new approach to how I boarded. Up until recently I had taken tarfire out. Recently, however, I have been experimenting with sideboarding less. I definitely used to go... overboard (ba dumb tiss) and diluted my main strategy too much. So against combo I have been bringing in less hate than before, and trying to apply more pressure to back up the less hate. To apply the pressure is find myself cutting more expensive cards like ringleader or slower grindier things like k command. The tarfire just work better with that plan I think, and so far the plan has been working quite well.
As for grafdiggers cage vs storm, I really do think think it's all that good. I'm already bringing in 7 cards, which is already a lot, and cage is pretty easy for a good storm pilot to get around most of the time. That deck is damn resilient. I've acctualy just an hour or two ago taken the cages out of my deck and put them in my box of extra options, replaced them with a piledriver to better support the heavy pressure plan (I think it absolutely our best card in combo matchups where our opponent to is barely on the board and just sculpting/disrupting till they go off, it's just so bad in many other matchups) and an umezawa's jitte. Cage is great sometimes, but at least for me I found as a kind of mediocre card I could bring as extra, softer, hate at the cost of weakening my overall strategy. I will miss those occasional T1 wins over managers dredge guys tho...

[LeoCop 90]

Here's the report i promised.

Creatures:
-4 lackey
-4 matron
-4 ringleader
-3 war marshal
-3 warchief
-2 piledriver
-2 gempalm
-1 chieftain
-1 stingscourger
-1 krenko
-1 tuktuk
-1 siege-gang
-1 earwig squad

Artifacts:
-4 aether vial

Instant/sorcery:
- 3 cabal therapy
- 1 tarfire
- 1 warren weirding

Lands:
-4 waste
-4 cavern
-3 ports
-1 pendelhaven
-6 fetches
-3 mountain
-2 badlands

Sideboard:
- 2 pyrokinesis
- 2 thougthseize
- 2 blood moon
- 2 thorn of amethyst
- 2 relic of progenitus
- 1 pithing needle
- 1 surgical extraction
- 1 krenko
- 1 earwig squad
- 1 goblin sharpshooter


Round 1 Omnitell
Game 1 i lose the die roll and i stare at my turn 3 kill hand with lackey, piledriver, siege-gang and lands. He leads with island ponder and i hope he's miracles, but on his second turn he preordains so i know i'm in trouble. In fact he enters the infinite on turn 3 one turn before dying to my goblins.
Game 2 we both mull to 5 and i wreck him with cabal therapy.
Game 3 I still have the turn 3 win hand (pretty lucky), but no disruption. I keep and this time he wins on turn 2 .

Round 2 against Belcher
Game 1 he doesn't do anything for a couple turns than kills me with belcher. Game 2 i mull to 4, never find hate cards (or black mana when i have hate cards), and immediately die to belcher again.

Round 3 against Miracles.
I win 2-0, game 2 was particularly fun because on turn 3 he taps out for mentor, and on my turn i'm able to incinerate it and cast thoughtseize discarding another mentor. Then i proceed t cast two earwig squad leaving him with only one containment priest left as "win condition". He manages to draw the priest and i kill her with a second incinerator. He laughs a lot when he terminuses my board twice but knows he can't possibly win in any way.

Round 4 against Jund
I win game 1 and game 3, keeping both times a hand with no colored mana but vial, port, wasteland on the play. I get a bit lucky because once he doesn't have deathrite, and the other time he has him but i immediately draw fetch and kill him. Anyway i think our best bet against jund is to manascrew them relying on vial (i fondly remember max tietze winning a scg open beatng two consecutive jund players in the top 8, and vial was an all star in those games) .

Round 5 against Colorless Eldrazi.

Game 1 I am able to stabilize with mogg war marshal and slowly outgrind him while he doesn't have too much action.
Game 2 He steamrolls me.
Game 3 I keep this hand: badlands, thoughtseize, lackey, krenko, matron, pyrokinesis, vial. Basically my plan is to lead with lackey, pyrokinesis whatever blocker he produce, slam krenko and win from there. Unfortunately his turn on play is to warping wail my lackey, i never draw other lands and lose.

So in the end i had a 2-3 record, but winning my last game against eldrazi would have let me top 8 because i have the best tiebreakers (my omnitell and belcher opponents both top 8ed, belcher even won the event beating miracles shardless bug and merfolk, i don't know how he did and everyone was quite frustrated by this XD ). I'm quite satisfied with the deck, the main problem is that several times i had cabal therapy in my opener and no black mana to cast it. This thing cost me games against combo decks so i probably need to up the black sources at the expense of ports/pendelhaven... but at that point, i don't even know if playing therapy is worth it.

I also played some fun games against a friend who had colorless eldrazi, and, while the results were even, i'm pretty scared by that deck. It seems to me that their "nut hands" happen very frequently (basically they just need to draw thought-knot seers and reality smashers, because almost every land they have produces two mana), while our nut hand against them needs vial or lackey and land destruction and something good to cheat in, and this may not be enough on the draw. I could easily be wrong but the matchup does seem slightly in their favor in my eyes.

[Sandro95]

Someone mentioned in the Death & Taxes thread that Riders of Gavony might be a good card card to combat Eldrazi. I don't expect it to become stock, but it definitely has utility against us as well, and I certainly don't want to be caught off guard.

[goblinpiledriver]

Does riders of gavony stop tarfire?

Edit: never mind, I'm stupid. I'm so tired today :/

Gempalm though? It's a creature card but it's not a creature permanent when you use its ability

[jrw1985]

Protection from Goblins definitely does not protect from Gempalm cycling.

[Stevestamopz]

Protection from Goblins definitely does not protect from Gempalm cycling.

Are you sure? I'm pretty sure that because it's Gempalm's ability, pro-goblins does mean pro Gempalm.

[Olaf Forkbeard]

Are you sure? I'm pretty sure that because it's Gempalm's ability, pro-goblins does mean pro Gempalm.

The source (http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?multiverseid=393957) of the ability is a Goblin; protection would stop it.


10/4/2004 - The target of the ability can't be a creature with Protection from Creatures, with Protection from Goblins, or with Protection from Red.

[jrw1985]

The source (http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?multiverseid=393957) of the ability is a Goblin; protection would stop it.

I stand corrected! Sometimes you just need to read all the errata on a card to see what happens.

[Sandro95]

Hi! I gave Warping Wail a shot today, just to try it out. I played four copies maindeck because I wanted to get as much testing with them in as possible.
I went 2-2.
The Warping Wails were okay, but felt kinda mediocre.
They were great against Infect as additional removal (also pretty good against Necropede when you have Lacke in play).
On the other hand, the other MUs I played were Nic Fit, Aluren, and BUG Control, so it doesn't seem entirely fair to dismiss Warping Wail just yet.

Rishadan Port felt okay, but not impressive. There were a few games where it helped, but also a hand where I had to mulligan because of it.
I made a misplay versus Nic Fit when I tapped a Wasteland instead of a Mountain to cast Krenko. I knew I wanted to keep up Warping Wail, but didn't count the additional basic lands I would get of his Veteran Explorer, meaning I couldn't also port. My opponent therapied my Warping Wail and Deluged my board, using all his mana. Tapping correctly might very well have been good enough to win G2, to at least give me a shot to win the match in the third game.

Playing against Aluren is hilarious, since we too are so good at taking advantage of its namesake card. In G3 my opponent went of with the Imperial Recruiter chain, and in response to the Dream Stalker I played a Sharpshooter to sweep his board. He played a Minister of Pain in response to Sharpshooter tapping, but it didn't work out as well as he had hoped, as Sharpshooter untapped from the exploit ability...

I'll propably give Warping Wail another try sometime soon, but for now I'll stay away from it.

I'm pretty happy with the list I was on the week before, but I still have a lot of things that I need to try out, and then there's still some tweaking to do.

Thoughts and feedback are appreciated as always.

Peace.

[LeoCop 90]

So what do you think is the correct number of black sources to support 3 maindeck cabal therapy ?
As i said, with 8 sources i had several opening hands with cabal therapy but without the mana to cast it; on the other hand, gobolord also played 8 sources in the last event he wrote about, and he didn't seem to have any problem.
The thing is, i think cabal therapy is one of the best cards we can use against combo decks, against which we usually need to mull aggresively into hate cards; but if we need to mull also because we have our hate card but not the mana to cast it, that is too much, and it is better to just play red or colorless options.
Next time i play therapy i will for sure have 9 sources, the difference is minimal but it could be important.... unfortunately i will have to acquire another badlands ....

[GoblinSettler]

So what do you think is the correct number of black sources to support 3 maindeck cabal therapy ?
As i said, with 8 sources i had several opening hands with cabal therapy but without the mana to cast it; on the other hand, gobolord also played 8 sources in the last event he wrote about, and he didn't seem to have any problem.
The thing is, i think cabal therapy is one of the best cards we can use against combo decks, against which we usually need to mull aggresively into hate cards; but if we need to mull also because we have our hate card but not the mana to cast it, that is too much, and it is better to just play red or colorless options.
Next time i play therapy i will for sure have 9 sources, the difference is minimal but it could be important.... unfortunately i will have to acquire another badlands ....

There's a great article on number of colored sources and turns you can expect to have access to that color from Frank Karsten.
Article (http://www.channelfireball.com/articles/frank-analysis-how-many-colored-mana-sources-do-you-need-to-consistently-cast-your-spells/)

The high number of non-Caverns, black sources required for a consistent early Therapy has kept me off it as a sideboard plan. It really deserves a dedicated mana base, IMO.

Then again, take this with a grain of salt as I haven't tried it.

[GoboLord]

Ha! Very interesting article. I discussed this topic (manabase that supports Cabal Therapy/warping wail) with ScatmanX, Sandro95 and another long-term Goblinsplayer recently (like 3 weeks ago), and I also ended up writing a program that simulates the Desired Situations. The thing is , that the resulting %s are hard to Interpret if you dont have any comparison. I.e. you wouldn't know what your Desired probability is until you tested the Configuration and get an idea of what it actually means jn practice. For this article this means that you actually don't know what it means to have a 90% Chance of casting Thoughtseize on T1. 80% might be just right for you, or maybe even 50%. (Considering alternative plays that your decks offers)

There is a lot of theory behind it, but if someone is interested in reading about this approach specifocally taulored towards our deck, then I would be happy to summarize the results here and share the code (it's super easy to read and manipulate for your purposes.)

[LeoCop 90]

I would be very interested if you are willing to share your results.
As for the desired probability of casting cabal therapy on turn 1, I'd say it should be between 70%-80%, so that it is reliable against combo decks and when i can't cast it i at least have the possibility of going turn one lackey.

[GoboLord]

Of course I an willing to share my results. I'm the guy with the fancy apple-talk in his Signature.
Will write a summary soon, probably on the weekend.

[L10]

I don't think it is urgent to cast Cabal Therapy as quick as Turn 1. Most combo decks cantrips on their first two turns. It is better for us to use Cabal Therapy once the combo player has a more developed hand so we can more accurately predict their combo pieces. It is also more important for us to play threats on our first two turns, namely Lackey, Vial, and Piledriver, to present a clock. Playing Cabal Therapy on the back of MWM the same turn is also better. Against ANT, discard spells are really not that impressive when not coupled with grave hate like Relic of Progenitus, DRS, or Surgical Extraction.

Assuming no mulligan and on play:
With 8 black sources, it gives you a 65% chance on opening hand, and a 90% chance by turn 8.
With 9 black sources, it gives you a 70% chance on opening hand, and a 90% chance by turn 6.
With 10 black sources, it gives you a 74% chance on opening hand, and a 90% chance by turn 5.
With 11 black sources, it gives you a 78% chance on opening hand, and get a 90% chance by turn 4.
With 12 black sources, it gives you a 80% chance on opening hand, and get a 90% chance by turn 3.

This is why I like Warping Wail in the Classic List. We already have twelve colorless sources. I currently have three copies in the main, and contemplating having the 4th on my side. The card is so flexible. I also like that we have a more versatile hate in Warping Wail against combo than playing specific hate like REB, Ashen Rider, and Mindbreak Trap.

Another reason why I think Thalia has been a successful combo hate is because we normally have 15-16 cards to put it in play with (4 Vials, 4 CoS, 7-8 Plateau+Fetches), giving us more consistent early plays, and is also threat.

[deathdealer]

Hi all I been playing the starcity jund goblins list wondering if the mono red build is better to fight the eldrazi whats the opinion of the people on this thread?

[goblinpiledriver]

Hi all I been playing the starcity jund goblins list wondering if the mono red build is better to fight the eldrazi whats the opinion of the people on this thread?

Blood moon, magus of the moon, and Krenko are all really good against eldrazi. There's no reason why you couldn't run the moon effects in the jund build board against eldrazi (you don't really need your splash colors in that matchup unless you were also playing cabal therapy or something). The mono red build handles these cards a little better but ultimately it's only a slight difference and I'd go with the jund list with an updated sideboard (I assume you meant my list from the Atlanta classic/VS video) because it's more flexible against the rest of the field

[GoboLord]

Hey fellow Chieftains,

as promised, I’m dropping a few lines on the subject of manafixing.
GoblinSettler was so kind to post an article on this topic (reference (http://www.mtgthesource.com/forums/showthread.php?19931-Deck-Goblins&p=935663&viewfull=1#post935663)).

tl;dr (I recommend to read the article first)
The author states that, in order to cast Thoughtseize “reliably” (in this article, this is defined as a chance of 90%) on turn 1, you need 12 black manasources in a 60-cards deck.
Very recently I approached the topic myself (not knowing this article) in a similar way – only did I choose scenarios that are relevant to our deck. Before I explain my approach, let me address three points in which my approach differs from the one explained in the above article:

1.
The math and simulations behind that are based on certain assumptions, the most important being mulligan decisions. As the author approaches the topic from a general perspective (meaning: he wants to apply results to any format, any deck, any card, any manabase), the rules for taking mulligan he defines (quote: “We mulligan any 7-card hand with 0, 1, 6, or 7 lands, any 6-card hand with 0,1, 5, or 6 lands, any 5-card hand with 0 or 5 lands, and we keep all other hands” ) are obviously somewhat different from the rules we would define for our deck.

2.
His article focuses on the example of casting Thoughtseize on T1 – which is not 100% relevant for our deck. Sometimes we want to cast certain cards at some point between turn X and Y

3.
This is a minor one, but it makes sense to think of the results in “drawsteps”, not in “turns”. Example: Stating that I can cast Cabal Therapy with a 92% probability after 1 drawstep tells you that this is either: turn1 on the draw or turn2 on the play. Also, since part of the exercise is to find out how additional cards will increase your odds of casting a card by turn X, comparing results between number of cards drawn reveals the effectiveness of catnips, cycling and the like.

That being said, the article is great and interesting and it's core messages work for general deckbuilding. In fact, the results I present a little later down the road are not much different from the numbers you get out of the article. Still, I wanted to address these points upfront to show the difference between the approaches.

Okay, let’s start.
Recently I was wondering how different numbers of black manasources affect the likelihood of casting Cabal Therapy. To address this question I wrote a small script in Python that simulates the following steps:

1. Draw hand with 7 cards from a decklist (see below)
2. Check if it keeps the hand. The program keeps the hand if at least one of the following conditions is met:
a) Lackey in hand AND 2 or more lands in hand, one of which is red.
b) Vial in hand AND 1 or more lands in hand AND 1 or more Goblins in hand
c) Cabal Therapy in hand AND 1 or more B/R-manasources in hand AND 1 or more Goblins with manacost < 3 in hand.
3. If it doesn’t KEEP this hand, it takes mulligan and repeats steps 1 and 2 with -1 card in hand.
4. When it has drawn a hand that it KEEPs, it draws X cards (X= number of drawsteps you want to simulate)
5. It evaluates the hand and takes one of three decisions
a) Cabal Therapy was drawn and could be cast after X drawsteps
b) Cabal Therapy was drawn but could not be cast after X drawsteps
c) Cabal Therapy wasn’t drawn after X drawsteps

Decklist used for simulation
12 BR-Sources (Fetchlands, Badlands)
4 Cavern of Souls
1 Mountain
5 colorless Lands
4 Goblin Lackey
4 Aether Vial
3 Mogg War Marshal
4 Goblin Piledriver
2 Skirk Prospector
3 Cabal Therapy
17 other Goblins that are not relevant for this simulation

This whole process is repeated for an N amount of times. Results after N=100 runs with X=0 drawsteps could look like this:

Cabal Therapy was drawn and could be cast in 25 games
Cabal Therapy was drawn but could not be cast in 3 games
Cabal Therapy wasn’t drawn in 72 games

An example of how to interpret these results:
Cabal Therapy was castable in 25 games out of 28 (89,3%) where it was drawn at all.

This was just an example to demonstrates what number we are actually looking at, and which numbers can be manipulated to compare results. We could do the following:
- Run more than N=100 trials
- Repeat the simulation with more/less BR-sources (less is closer to reality though)
- repeat the simulation with more than X=0 drawsteps
- define different/more/less rules for taking mulligans.

In reality I did the following:
- simulate N=1,000,000 trials per cell (for each scenario
- repeat the simulation with 7,8,9…,12 BR sources (and 6,5,4,…,1 Mountains respectively)
- repeat the simulation with X=0,1,2,3,4 drawsteps

And here are the results (the % reflect games where Cabal Therapy was actually drawn)



0 drawsteps
1 drawstep
2 drawsteps
3 drawsteps
4 drawsteps
[/b]

12 BR sources
90%
92%
93%
95%
96%


11 BR sources
87%
89%
91%
93%
94%


10 BR sources
84%
86%
88%
90%
92%


9 BR sources
80%
82%
85%
87%
89%


8 BR sources
76%
78%
81%
83%
86%


7 BR sources
70%
73%
76%
79%
91%



As you can see, we can draw the same conclusion as the article that I cited in the beginning:
“In order to cast Cabal Therapy with a chance of 90% on turn 1, you need 12 black manasources in a 60-cards deck.”
I did not quote the word “reliably” here on purpose, because definitions may vary. While the article above needed to define what he meant by “reliable” for the sake of the article and its message, I want to invite you to find out yourself what “reliable” means in this context. It is obviously not healthy for the deck to run 8 fetches + 4 Badlands (or stated differently: only 1 basicland) only to support 3 Cabal Therapy in the maindeck. Also, we don’t want to cast Cabal Therapy in every match, and even less so on turn 1. This means that we can drop a few % and still call a manabase “reliable” in casting Cabal Therapy – but what that actually means is something you really need to find out for yourself. There are a lot of things to take into account when making decisions like this, included – but not limited to: matchups/meta-game, other B cards in your deck, alternative ways of casting the card, impact of the card at turn X in the game. The list is long and the matter is complex. I want to point out that you won’t find the right balance in mana just by looking at a crosstab. You need some experience, a point of reference and ultimately you need to interpret the results to embed them into your deckbuilding.

So, that is all I have to say for now. Questions and comments are – as always appreciated.

Additionally, I’m happy to
(1) share the Python script that does these simulations
and/or
(2) accept “commissions” – in case you want to know the numbers for some other scenarios, but don’t know how to work the script.

- GL

[GoblinTurkey]

So I have decided to get back to basics and run Mono Red Goblins. I did some testing this weekend against Eldrazi and Shardless BUG.

Notes on Eldrazi:
So this matchup is actually quite interesting. I found that Wasteland and Port are allstars here. Also it's fun having Lackey intimidate Thought-Knot Seer. Since the Eldrazi deck is super explosive and not very good in the long game, delaying them by Wasting their land sources every turn is more efficient than playing spells. I found that I would mulligan for Aether Vial, Port, and Wasteland. These three cards knock Eldrazi down.

My sideboard runs Ensnaring Bridge and Lightning Crafter Combo. So being able to drop a Ensnaring Bridge and empty my hand basically lets Goblins win the game. When you swing out with a bunch of 1/1's when they can't swing with their two or three big guys, it leads to super hurtful games.

Decklist:
Creatures
4x Goblin Lackey
4x Goblin Warchief
4x Goblin Matron
4x Goblin Ringleader
2x Skirk Prospector
2x Goblin Piledriver
2x Mogg War Marshal
1x Goblin Chieftain
1x Goblin Settler
1x Kiki-Jiki, Mirror Breaker
1x Goblin Sharpshooter
1x Siege-Gang Commander
1x Gempalm Incinerator
1x Stingscourger
1x Tuktuk Scrapper
1x Krenko, Mob Boss

Spells
4x Aether Vial
1x Tarfire
1x Warping Wail

Lands
4x Wasteland
3x Rishadan Port
3x Cavern of Souls
2x Ancient Tomb
4x Arid Mesa
1x Pendelhaven
6x Mountain


Sideboard:
1x Pithing Needle
1x Lightning Crafter
1x Gempalm Incinerator
2x Warping Wail
2x Ensnaring Bridge
2x Pyrokinesis
3x Chalice of the Void
3x Blood Moon


Notes on Deck:
Gempalm is very good right now. Lots of fair decks in the meta and Gempalm can kill Reality Smasher because huzzah activated abilities.

Lightning Crafter combo is really cute in the sideboard. If you are playing a long game where you are locking them out with Ensnaring Bridge, this just throws it over the wall.

Warping Wail is amazing. I countered Maelstrom Pulse targeting Krenko as well Toxic Deluge. It also isn't the worst card to play in the Burn matchup which is often terrible for us (I always end up against all the red decks in tournaments :rolleyes:). Exiling Mother of Runes is also really cool :cool:.

Ancient Tomb is strictly there for enabling quick sideboard games with turn 2 Blood Moon, Ensnaring Bridge and turn 1 Chalice. It also helps out by getting out 2x Vials on turn one (I lived the dream!). Also Goblin Matron turn 2, Goblin Ringleader turn 3, and Siege Gang turn 4 is also quite nice.

Pendelhaven is cute when you get it, but otherwise meh. It is fun to swing in with lackey and see DRS sweat.

In conclusion, Mono Red seems really good right now. The black splash, though very good, seems to take away from the deck and there aren't a lot of sideboard cards coming for splash from the lists I've seen.

[GoboLord]

I can confirm your impression of the Eldrazi MU.
Things I learned in yesterday's testing session:

1. Wasteland and Vial are your best cards in the MU. I'm not running any Ports but I'm positive that they will be excellent as well

2. The outcome of the match is heavily infnuences by who goes first.

3. Eldrazi has weak/shaky hands more often than we do.

4. The MU isn't very skill - intense or even exciting to play. It is usually very clear what they hold in their hand (you can read that from how much mana they have and what they cast last turn - also their Handsize is usually small). E.g. when they have 4 mana available (one of which is eye of ugin) and they are casting Endless One, it is pretty obvious that they dont have Thoughtknot Seer, nor Eldrazi Mimic in hand, because there is no reason not to cast these (instead).

I think this is a 50/50 MU. With Ports you will probably gain additional %s - I dont think that any SV card other than Blood Moon can significantly improve that (taking their SB cards into consideration as well)

[Chatto]

Played against Eldrazi a couple of weeks ago during a tournament (went 2-3, losing against 2 Combo decks and BUG Delver -he had it all-) , and can confirm the MU is 50/50:

G1: I waste him out the game.
G2: he waste me out of the game.
G3: I waste/ port him out of the game.

Also relevant: Pyrokinesis, which surprised me. Chump, play Knesis. Or just clear the path.

The MU feels heavely favorate towards the player who draws his/ her first disruption.

EDIT: I boarded Blood Moon, but he took it from my hand. It is a blow-out, that's for sure, if I just had the chance to cast it.

[Sandro95]

Weekly Tournament Report

Result: 3-1

List

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

3 Tarfire
2 Gempalm Incinerator
1 Warren Weirding

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

Sideboard (14)
4 Chalice of the Void
3 Cabal Therapy
2 Relic of Progenitus
1 Surgical Extraction
2 Blood Moon
1 Pithing Needle
1 Tuktuk Scrapper

*Disclaimer* I knew what all my opponents were playing, and I'm pretty sure they knew I was on Goblins. This of course affected my mulligan decisions.

R1 PoxLoam 2-0
G1 I keep a hand without a one drop because it has the curve of MWM>EWS. EWS strips my opponent of his Dark Depths, Nether Spirit, and Pernicious Deed, leaving him with very little action (only four Mishra's Factories left as wincons).
G2 I play a t3 Matron and have to decide between getting EWS or Ringleader. My hand at this point doesn't have much gas, making me want Ringleader. However, with EWS I can end the game very quickly (like G1). I also know he brought in E-Plague, which I likely wont beat in the long run, and therefore want to get rid of as soon as possible. I go with EWS since I also have removal (waste + gempalm) for his blockers. This forces my opponent to Toxic Deluge for one, clearing the board. He gets a Lily online, but other than that none of us do much. I have a Blood Moon in hand, but he has Deed. After a while I take out his Lily, he pops his deed. I deploy Blood Moon and draw a SE for his Nether Spirit.

R2 Grixis Reanimator 2-0
G1 my opponent reanimates Iona @red on t2. I have Karakas and he doesn't do anything else that game.
G2 he mulligans to four and I have Relic of Progenitus.

R3 Food Chain 2-1
G1 I play a t2 EWS off of Skirk Prospector. Looking through his library I see three green sources only. I gamble and exile them. The gamble pays off, and now his only source of green mana is DRS. Sadly however a Misthollow Griffin and a Vendilion Clique kill me one turn before I would have swung for lethal. There was a point this game where I had GI in hand vs my opponent's Griffin in play. I chose to cycle it EOT. With the way things played out, I might have won otherwise, as I would have had a removal for the Clique. Whether it was correct or not to cycle it obviously depends on a bunch of other factors, but I would still like to hear your general reasoning on the subject.
G2 I lead with Lackey and have double Tarfire for his two DRS:s. Lackey connects twice and I run away with the game.
G3 My opponent runs out of gas fairly quickly, and is beating me down with a Gurmag Angler and a 1/1. I have a lot of cards in hand, but lack the mana to cast them all in a timely fashion. I land a Warchief that is met by Decay, followed by a second Warchief on the following turn. Finally I incinerate the 1/1 and WW the Angler. A hand full of Matrons and Ringleaders in enough to run away with the game.

R4 AdNauseam Tendrils 0-2
G1 I keep a fast Lackey hand, and it isn't enough.
G2 I keep a hand with Lackey, Relic, some goblins and some lands. I could have mulliganed this for some disruption, but chose to keep. Would you K/M?
My t1 Lackey is delayed by a Chain of Vapor. On t2 I replay it alongside Relic. My opponent is digging furiously for the ToA, knowing full well I have EWS in my deck.
I finally get to EWS, and as expected my opponent has found the Tendrils. I figure out most of what's in his hand (Led, DR, CR, ToA, Tutor + 2 unknowns). I exile the remaining three Dark Rituals to prevent any tutor > DR shenanigans. On the following turn he plays tutor, revealing Dark Ritual and soon realize his mistake. However it doesn't matter as he drew the land for mana, and his two unknowns were Lotus Petal and Chain of Vapor, providing both mana and the storm count necessary to kill me.

[deathdealer]

Blood moon, magus of the moon, and Krenko are all really good against eldrazi. There's no reason why you couldn't run the moon effects in the jund build board against eldrazi (you don't really need your splash colors in that matchup unless you were also playing cabal therapy or something). The mono red build handles these cards a little better but ultimately it's only a slight difference and I'd go with the jund list with an updated sideboard (I assume you meant my list from the Atlanta classic/VS video) because it's more flexible against the rest of the field

Yes what would be the updates to the side board I played it in 3 smaller events so far around 20-30 people. With finishing 2nd in to and 9th in the most recent 2nd place was vs Eldrazi. Ware I did beat him game 2 with a pyrokanisis blow out

[GoboLord]

@Sandro
I would keep this Hand if a t4 kill is possible. My rule of thumb against combo ist that every piece of hate should delay them by 1 turn at least while your goal should be to kill them on turn 3. So with a piece of hate to hold them back until you can finish them on turn 4 this Hand is a keep.
Do you remember what exactly the other Goblins were and how Many lands you had in hand?

[Sandro95]

@Sandro
I would keep this Hand if a t4 kill is possible. My rule of thumb against combo ist that every piece of hate should delay them by 1 turn at least while your goal should be to kill them on turn 3. So with a piece of hate to hold them back until you can finish them on turn 4 this Hand is a keep.
Do you remember what exactly the other Goblins were and how Many lands you had in hand?

Can't remeber the rest of my hand.

[gfernandes]

Recently in my last events i have been struggling to win against Miracles. The only matches i lost in the last two events was against Miracles wich was supposed to be a good MU. Other than Miracles i'm enjoying the deck behavior.

Could you please check my list and post your suggestions how to sideboard and what to change. I added Pithing Neddle now wich is good to shut Divining Top. I'm also thinking in splashing white to add Thalia to SB and change Relic with RiP.


Deck: Goblins (http://deckstats.net/decks/1117/2722-goblins/pt) http://deckstats.net/mana/m/r.gif

//Main
4 Goblin Warchief (http://www.mtg-forum.de/db/magiccard.php?lng=pt&card=Goblin+Warchief)
4 Goblin Lackey (http://www.mtg-forum.de/db/magiccard.php?lng=pt&card=Goblin+Lackey)
4 Goblin Ringleader (http://www.mtg-forum.de/db/magiccard.php?lng=pt&card=Goblin+Ringleader)
4 Goblin Matron (http://www.mtg-forum.de/db/magiccard.php?lng=pt&card=Goblin+Matron)
3 Goblin Piledriver (http://www.mtg-forum.de/db/magiccard.php?lng=pt&card=Goblin+Piledriver)
2 Mogg War Marshal (http://www.mtg-forum.de/db/magiccard.php?lng=pt&card=Mogg+War+Marshal)
2 Gempalm Incinerator (http://www.mtg-forum.de/db/magiccard.php?lng=pt&card=Gempalm+Incinerator)
1 Skirk Prospector (http://www.mtg-forum.de/db/magiccard.php?lng=pt&card=Skirk+Prospector)
1 Krenko, Mob Boss (http://www.mtg-forum.de/db/magiccard.php?lng=pt&card=Krenko%2C+Mob+Boss)
1 Goblin Chieftain (http://www.mtg-forum.de/db/magiccard.php?lng=pt&card=Goblin+Chieftain)
1 Goblin Sharpshooter (http://www.mtg-forum.de/db/magiccard.php?lng=pt&card=Goblin+Sharpshooter)
1 Tin Street Hooligan (http://www.mtg-forum.de/db/magiccard.php?lng=pt&card=Tin+Street+Hooligan)
1 Siege-Gang Commander (http://www.mtg-forum.de/db/magiccard.php?lng=pt&card=Siege-Gang+Commander)
1 Stingscourger (http://www.mtg-forum.de/db/magiccard.php?lng=pt&card=Stingscourger)
4 Æther Vial (http://www.mtg-forum.de/db/magiccard.php?lng=pt&card=%C6ther+Vial)
3 Tarfire (http://www.mtg-forum.de/db/magiccard.php?lng=pt&card=Tarfire)
4 Cavern of Souls (http://www.mtg-forum.de/db/magiccard.php?lng=pt&card=Cavern+of+Souls)
4 Wasteland (http://www.mtg-forum.de/db/magiccard.php?lng=pt&card=Wasteland)
4 Rishadan Port (http://www.mtg-forum.de/db/magiccard.php?lng=pt&card=Rishadan+Port)
4 Wooded Foothills (http://www.mtg-forum.de/db/magiccard.php?lng=pt&card=Wooded+Foothills)
2 Bloodstained Mire (http://www.mtg-forum.de/db/magiccard.php?lng=pt&card=Bloodstained+Mire)
1 Pendelhaven (http://www.mtg-forum.de/db/magiccard.php?lng=pt&card=Pendelhaven)
1 Taiga (http://www.mtg-forum.de/db/magiccard.php?lng=pt&card=Taiga)
3 Mountain (http://www.mtg-forum.de/db/magiccard.php?lng=pt&card=Mountain)

//Sideboard
2 Krosan Grip (http://www.mtg-forum.de/db/magiccard.php?lng=pt&card=Krosan+Grip)
3 Pyrokinesis (http://www.mtg-forum.de/db/magiccard.php?lng=pt&card=Pyrokinesis)
3 Relic of Progenitus (http://www.mtg-forum.de/db/magiccard.php?lng=pt&card=Relic+of+Progenitus)
3 Chalice of the Void (http://www.mtg-forum.de/db/magiccard.php?lng=pt&card=Chalice+of+the+Void)
2 Blood Moon (http://www.mtg-forum.de/db/magiccard.php?lng=pt&card=Blood+Moon)
1 Pithing Needle (http://www.mtg-forum.de/db/magiccard.php?lng=pt&card=Pithing+Needle)
1 Tin Street Hooligan (http://www.mtg-forum.de/db/magiccard.php?lng=pt&card=Tin+Street+Hooligan)

http://i.hbtronix.de/chart_pie.png Display deck statistics (http://deckstats.net/decks/1117/2722-goblins)

[Sandro95]

Played a couple of games vs Storm (AnT/TES hybrid) & Dredge today.

Storm preboard: 0-3
Storm postboard: 5-2

Dredge preboard: 0-3
Dredge postboard: 4-1

Highlights

I got to Sharpshooter + Prospector combo the storm player to death from 9 life.
Surgical Extraction is pretty good against Lim Dûl's Vault.
I had a game where I connected with Lackey and had the decision between putting EWS into play and leaving mana open for Relic or casting Earwig Squad. Anyway I'd have exactly lethal on the following turn. I concluded that Relic was more important since storm count would be the most deciding factor on whether or not I would die next turn, and PiF is his best way to add storm count. I was rewarded on the following turn and won.
One interesting scenario consisted of my opponent playing his third land - a volcanic island and his first nonbasic - and then casting Ponder off of an Island. Here it was actually correct to wasteland him, as even though he could simply float mana he didn't have the necessary information required to know which mana (U or R) would benefit him the most, and wastelanding here forces him to gamble. I just hadn't come across this type of scenario before, and felt as though it broadened my understanding of the game.

Thoughts

I'm not sure how to sideboard vs dredge with my current list. CotV/Therapy/Needle all have applications on the play, and can steal games on their own, but lose a lot of value after t1. EWS doesn't work well since we are so often on the defensive. On the other hand, actually getting to exile three cards is great vs them.
Sharpshooter is just so good in this matchup, and the GY-hate can slow them down a lot, buying us the time we need to establish control. This might be reason enough to include EWS over CotV/CT/Needle, as once you pop relic, you often only have a turn or two to do something relevant, and taking away all their ichorids/narcomoebas/bridges,dread returns etc is certainly that.
This matchup is very skill intensive (my opponent is by far the best dredge player I know of). There is a whole bunch of triggers to keep track of with regards to their bridges, as our deck is so very capable of dealing with them by killing of our own creatures. This can force a good dredge player to slow dredge in order to keep us from blowing them out by exiling all their bridges as one.
Cabal Therapy is one of their best cards against us. Do not underestimate it.
You can often kill of their bridges by attacking with lackey, bluffing an important creature. You can also bluff a bluff attack, letting you put a creature into play. This creates an interesting subgame in which they either make a small sacrifice or risk losing a lot.

[Sandro95]

Recently in my last events i have been struggling to win against Miracles. The only matches i lost in the last two events was against Miracles wich was supposed to be a good MU. Other than Miracles i'm enjoying the deck behavior.

Could you please check my list and post your suggestions how to sideboard and what to change. I added Pithing Neddle now wich is good to shut Divining Top. I'm also thinking in splashing white to add Thalia to SB and change Relic with RiP.


Deck: Goblins (http://deckstats.net/decks/1117/2722-goblins/pt) http://deckstats.net/mana/m/r.gif

//Main
4 Goblin Warchief (http://www.mtg-forum.de/db/magiccard.php?lng=pt&card=Goblin+Warchief)
4 Goblin Lackey (http://www.mtg-forum.de/db/magiccard.php?lng=pt&card=Goblin+Lackey)
4 Goblin Ringleader (http://www.mtg-forum.de/db/magiccard.php?lng=pt&card=Goblin+Ringleader)
4 Goblin Matron (http://www.mtg-forum.de/db/magiccard.php?lng=pt&card=Goblin+Matron)
3 Goblin Piledriver (http://www.mtg-forum.de/db/magiccard.php?lng=pt&card=Goblin+Piledriver)
2 Mogg War Marshal (http://www.mtg-forum.de/db/magiccard.php?lng=pt&card=Mogg+War+Marshal)
2 Gempalm Incinerator (http://www.mtg-forum.de/db/magiccard.php?lng=pt&card=Gempalm+Incinerator)
1 Skirk Prospector (http://www.mtg-forum.de/db/magiccard.php?lng=pt&card=Skirk+Prospector)
1 Krenko, Mob Boss (http://www.mtg-forum.de/db/magiccard.php?lng=pt&card=Krenko%2C+Mob+Boss)
1 Goblin Chieftain (http://www.mtg-forum.de/db/magiccard.php?lng=pt&card=Goblin+Chieftain)
1 Goblin Sharpshooter (http://www.mtg-forum.de/db/magiccard.php?lng=pt&card=Goblin+Sharpshooter)
1 Tin Street Hooligan (http://www.mtg-forum.de/db/magiccard.php?lng=pt&card=Tin+Street+Hooligan)
1 Siege-Gang Commander (http://www.mtg-forum.de/db/magiccard.php?lng=pt&card=Siege-Gang+Commander)
1 Stingscourger (http://www.mtg-forum.de/db/magiccard.php?lng=pt&card=Stingscourger)
4 Æther Vial (http://www.mtg-forum.de/db/magiccard.php?lng=pt&card=%C6ther+Vial)
3 Tarfire (http://www.mtg-forum.de/db/magiccard.php?lng=pt&card=Tarfire)
4 Cavern of Souls (http://www.mtg-forum.de/db/magiccard.php?lng=pt&card=Cavern+of+Souls)
4 Wasteland (http://www.mtg-forum.de/db/magiccard.php?lng=pt&card=Wasteland)
4 Rishadan Port (http://www.mtg-forum.de/db/magiccard.php?lng=pt&card=Rishadan+Port)
4 Wooded Foothills (http://www.mtg-forum.de/db/magiccard.php?lng=pt&card=Wooded+Foothills)
2 Bloodstained Mire (http://www.mtg-forum.de/db/magiccard.php?lng=pt&card=Bloodstained+Mire)
1 Pendelhaven (http://www.mtg-forum.de/db/magiccard.php?lng=pt&card=Pendelhaven)
1 Taiga (http://www.mtg-forum.de/db/magiccard.php?lng=pt&card=Taiga)
3 Mountain (http://www.mtg-forum.de/db/magiccard.php?lng=pt&card=Mountain)

//Sideboard
2 Krosan Grip (http://www.mtg-forum.de/db/magiccard.php?lng=pt&card=Krosan+Grip)
3 Pyrokinesis (http://www.mtg-forum.de/db/magiccard.php?lng=pt&card=Pyrokinesis)
3 Relic of Progenitus (http://www.mtg-forum.de/db/magiccard.php?lng=pt&card=Relic+of+Progenitus)
3 Chalice of the Void (http://www.mtg-forum.de/db/magiccard.php?lng=pt&card=Chalice+of+the+Void)
2 Blood Moon (http://www.mtg-forum.de/db/magiccard.php?lng=pt&card=Blood+Moon)
1 Pithing Needle (http://www.mtg-forum.de/db/magiccard.php?lng=pt&card=Pithing+Needle)
1 Tin Street Hooligan (http://www.mtg-forum.de/db/magiccard.php?lng=pt&card=Tin+Street+Hooligan)

http://i.hbtronix.de/chart_pie.png Display deck statistics (http://deckstats.net/decks/1117/2722-goblins)

Which version(s) of Miracles are you referring to? Despite being lumped together as one deck they often operate quite differently, and are vulnerable to different angles of attack.

When you lose vs Miracles, why is that? For example, do you run out of gas? Get overrun by an early Mentor/Entreat etc.? Fold to hate cards such as Moat or Izzet Staticaster?

If you can answer these questions then we can work together to solve your problems.

[gfernandes]

Lost twice to the classic list with Monastery Mentor and once with the Sword of the Meek/Thopter Foundry list.

One of the matches (Monastery Mentor list) both games were very tight and he ended with 1 life.

Another match against Monastery Mentor list i lost to double Top + Monastery and control in both games.

Finally i lost the other one againt Sword of the Meek/Thopter Foundry to Humility and control.

In the end most matches were tight but all needed something extra. That's why i'm asking for some suggestions. It feels that i lack hate in the second/third games. I usually board in 3 Chalice, 2 Krosan Grip and the extra Tin Street. Since i added Neddle to SB i guess that's a board in too. Usually i side out 2 Wastelands, Stingscourge, Skirk and the rest depends on their version.

[GoboLord]

Since you are running Ports I want to point out what May be obvious: by default you should use Ports to tap for colorless mana instead of tapping opponents lands. Especially in this MU you should Focus on building up your boardposition first. Miracles is one of the few decks where we actually lose the lategame.
Second, and this might also be obvious: dont overextend. If you have 4-5 damage on the board you can leaning back and sandbag Ringleader and Matron for the post-combat mainphase of the turn when they cast Terminus.
Third, make sure that your Dudes are not countered. E.g. let's say you resolved Aether Vial on turn 1 put of a Mountain. Then on you next turn you play another Mountain and you hold Piledriver in your hand. In this situation you should not cast Piledriver but wait until next turn to put it into play off Vial. At some point when they fired off some cantrips and you are fairly certain that they just put that Force of Will back on top, you can start casting creatures again (by that time you have usually found at least one Caverns anyway).

Regardless of Miracles being a positive MU, iit still leaves room for misplays. Give it a few more Spins and you will ultimately get there and feel comfortable with the MU.

/Edit: I want to add that you list is equipped to beat Miracles, no need to change too much.

[gfernandes]

Thanks for the advices. I will keep that in mind.

What about the sideboard and the side in. 3 Chalices + 2 Krosan Grip + Pithing Needle seems ok, right?

[GoboLord]

Thanks for the advices. I will keep that in mind.

What about the sideboard and the side in. 3 Chalices + 2 Krosan Grip + Pithing Needle seems ok, right?
That seems a bit too much to be honest.
You have only 4 cards to board out: 3 Tarfire, 1 Stingscourger. The rest are creatures and creatures are better than non-creatures.
I would bring in 1 Needle and 3 Chalice. Maybe even 1 Needle , 2 Kgrip, 1 TSH if you expect to see Moat or thopter Foundry. But definitely dont board out your creatures.

[sampi]

This is what i'm currently on


4 Goblin Lackey
4 Goblin Piledriver
4 Goblin Matron
4 Goblin Ringleader
4 Goblin Warchief
3 Gempalm Incinerator
2 Mogg War Marshal
1 Skirk Prospector
1 Siege-Gang Commander
1 Kiki-Jiki, Mirror Breaker
1 Stingscourger
1 Tin Street Hooligan
1 Tarfire

4 Æther Vial
2 Warping Wail

4 Cavern of Souls
4 Wasteland
4 Rishadan Port
4 Mountain
3 Bloodstained Mire
3 Wooded Foothills
1 Taiga

SB

Sideboard
1 Sudden Demise
2 Pyrokinesis
2 Mindbreak Trap
2 Magus of the Moon
3 Relic of Progenitus
1 Tin Street Hooligan
1 Goblin Sharpshooter
1 Krenko, Mob Boss
2 Warping Wail

I think the SB needs a bit of fine tuning. I kind of want more artifact hate vs stoneblade decks.

[Sandro95]

Thanks for the advices. I will keep that in mind.

What about the sideboard and the side in. 3 Chalices + 2 Krosan Grip + Pithing Needle seems ok, right?

I agree with GoboLord that your list seems well equipped enough to deal with Miracles.

The Thopter + Sword combo, makes for a very different deck, so I'll focus on the three most common builds.

The classic build (entreat the angels)

+1 Needle, +2 Krosan Grip
-1 Stingscourger, -2 Tarfire

The mentor build (4 ponder, 2+ monastery mentor)

+1 Needle, +2 Krosan Grip, +3 CotV
-1 Stingscourger, -1 Skirk Prospector, -1 Tin-Street Hooligan, -1 Tarfire, -2 ???

The Joe Losset build (Clique, Venser, Snappy, Karakas, & CoS)

+1 Needle, +2 Krosan Grip
-1 Stingscourger, -1 Skirk Prospector, -1 Tin-Street Hooligan


With your list, this is how I would sideboard versus these builds, keeping in mind that you will get better results by adjusting your sideboarding to your opponent's individual list and playstyle.

The build I'm most uncertain how to board against is the mentor one. Wasteland can still be great to keep them off of Izzet Staticaster, and just to help you cast your spells. On the other hand, one of the few ways you lose is if they get a Monastery Mentor online, so I'd want to have answers for that, even if it means having dead cards at other times. If they don't have mentor I usually feel far enough ahead to win anyway. Therefore I'm inclined not to side out Tarfires. I haven't played with your list, so of course I don't have the same feel for it as I do my own. How do you feel about the way the Mentor Miracles MU plays out for you?
I'd be happy to hear other people chime in as well. :)

[gfernandes]

I always feel i'm not in the control of the match wich is natural i guess and i feel i lack something to keep the pressure and shut some of their control.

I'm thinking in making some changes to the deck.

In the main board i'm thinking in removing Pendelhaven and adding Badlands so i can add one or two Earwig Squad to main too.

In sideboard i thinking in adding the second Needle and remove 1 Tin Street Hooligan or 1 Pyrokinesis.

[Sandro95]

I always feel i'm not in the control of the match wich is natural i guess and i feel i lack something to keep the pressure and shut some of their control.

I'm thinking in making some changes to the deck.

In the main board i'm thinking in removing Pendelhaven and adding Badlands so i can add one or two Earwig Squad to main too.

In sideboard i thinking in adding the second Needle and remove 1 Tin Street Hooligan or 1 Pyrokinesis.

That's a great idea, Earwig Squad is perhaps our best card against them.

[GoboLord]

I can highly recommend goblin Chieftain. Im playing the full playset, because (I know, Im singing this same Song since more than 18 months now):
- it grows your lackey and let's you attack into untapped DRS and SFMs and the like
- it regularily Puts 5+ additional damage on the board (which is the same amount as Siege-Gang Commander does)
- it provides haste
- it helps you to not overextend against Miracles
- its usually a better topdeck and also better in multiples than warchief

[sampi]

I sometimes feel like siege gang is a dead draw. Maybe cutting it for chieftain would be better to help with lowering the curve and improving the aggro plan


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[GoblinTurkey]

Miracles Battleplan:

1) Play Goblin Lackey and swing. Put in a goblin. Punch them until they have to Terminus.

2) Play another goblin with Haste and continue.

I have played this MU more than any other matchup. My friend has played this deck for several years and that is the strategy that works best.

My list runs Fetchlands which are particularly good against them (Shuffling library is nice). Also the best way to deal with mentor is Sharpshooter and Pyrokinesis. It's almost worth having two sharpshooter in the main. As for matron targets, I find that Goblin Ringleader and Goblin Warchief are our best cards against them. Mogg War Marshal can also just shut them down by obnoxiously being the beater for multiple turns.

My SB for them is Warping Wail, Pithing Needle, Pyrokinesis, and Blood Moon (depending on the list).
- Warping Wail just shuts off Terminus or some of their cantrips. Also exiles Clique and Snapcaster.
- Pithing Needle (Karakas for the Joe Losett list, or Top in general)
- Blood Moon keeps them off their fetchlands. This is actually beyond important as they cannot alter or setup their deck if they cannot shuffle. (Also Joe Losett's list in very greedy compared to most Miracle builds)
- Pyrokinesis if you need it for Mentor builds.

Other notes:
-Wasting their fetchlands in response to them cracking their first one gives them less options and puts their life total down more. This can be very relevant later.
- Play one or two goblins at a time and beat. Start accumulating cards in your hand they can't beat you. Goblins can do card advantage better than Miracles.
- Aether Vial is great against them (duh...)
- Also Port is fun if they only have one white source or blue source.

Miracles can lead to some of the most interesting matches for Goblins. But it boils down to patience. Can you accumulate more cards than them in your hand and be relevant on the board. Obviously the faster we can move the better. But sometimes it doesn't fall into our favor.

I find playing the long game, can actually win you the game. I have had games where they cast all 4 Terminus and I cast a Goblin Ringleader 6 times. I won that game.

Hope this helps.

[GoblinTurkey]

I can highly recommend goblin Chieftain. Im playing the full playset, because (I know, Im singing this same Song since more than 18 months now):
- it grows your lackey and let's you attack into untapped DRS and SFMs and the like
- it regularily Puts 5+ additional damage on the board (which is the same amount as Siege-Gang Commander does)
- it provides haste
- it helps you to not overextend against Miracles
- its usually a better topdeck and also better in multiples than warchief

I like Chieftain as a 5th Lord. Sometimes he can also be a dud because he doesn't make your dudes cheaper to cast. But casting it with Goblin lackey out is super fun!

[Diotram]

Hey everyone, I played in a couple smaller tournaments in the last month playing the same build I used in the Super IQ.

The first tournament I played in had ~15 people in it, and I ended up winning it. I only lost one match to infect in the swiss rounds, but beat the same deck in the finals. I played: U/B Tezzeret, Storm, U/B Onmitell, Infect, and 12 Post. My final record was 5-1-1

The Second Tournament had ~20 people, and I lost in the finals to Grixis Delver. I lost to Infect in the swiss rounds, but beat it again in the top 8. I played against: Infect, Storm, Reanimator, 4 Color Loam, and Grixis. My final record was 5-2-1

Having pyrokinesis in the main deck has been amazing, and I plan to stick with this build. I would recommend trying it out. It makes our matches against creature based deck significantly better. Suddenly, deathrite shaman, stoneforge mystic, swiftspear, delver, and the whole elves deck, don't seem like such a huge hassle anymore. I haven't missed a top 8 in quite a while, with the exception of the Classic a few months ago, and I think that having pyro's main deck has been a contributing factor.

Also, has anyone else been playing with Legion Loyalist? The card has been amazing for me, and has gotten me multiple wins. One of the guys I played with described it as, "a Domri Rade emblem for 1 red mana, with natural haste," and I feel like this a pretty accurate description. Giving our piledrivers first strike and trample is pretty nuts, and not being block by tokens is huge (nice batterskull/elementals/thopters/angels/goblins/etc.) I am curious is others have been trying this out and seeing similar results.

Anyway. Here is my list again, if anyone is interested:

Creatures (30)
2 Gempalm Incinerator
4 Goblin Lackey
4 Goblin Matron
3 Goblin Piledriver
4 Goblin Ringleader
1 Goblin Sharpshooter
4 Goblin Warchief
1 Legion Loyalist
2 Mogg War Marshal
1 Siege-Gang Commander
1 Skirk Prospector
1 Stingscourger
1 Tuktuk Scrapper
1 Krenko, Mob Boss

Spells (8)

4 Aether Vial
2 Pyrokinesis
2 Tarfire

Lands (22)

4 Mountain
3 Arid Mesa
3 Bloodstained Mire
4 Cavern of Souls
1 Plateau
3 Rishadan Port
4 Wasteland

Sideboard
3 Chalice of the Void
2 Relic of Progenitus
1 Tuktuk Scrapper
1 Stingscourger
2 Magus of the Moon
2 Grafdigger's Cage
2 Pyrokinesis
2 Thalia, Guardian of Thraben

[Sandro95]

GPT Prague

2-3, drop

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

3 Tarfire
2 Gempalm Incinerator
1 Warren Weirding

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

Sideboard
4 Chalice of the Void
4 Cabal Therapy
2 Relic of Progenitus
1 Surgical Extraction
2 Blood Moon
1 Pithing Needle
1 Tuktuk Scrapper

I stayed up until 4 am playing Hearthstone the night before the tournament, and while I didn't feel tired I noticed I played very loose. In the future I should make sure to get enough sleep.

R1 - Mono Brown Stax. 1-2
G1 I start applying pressure. On the last turn of the game I matron for a Sharpshooter with Warchief, Prospector, and Lackey in play. I remove his blocker and win.
G2 I keep a slower hand, but one that will completely take over the game once it gets running. The plan is to land a t3 Warchief, and then start swarming the board. Well, my opponent has Port, then Lodestone Golem, then Sphere of Resistance, so my Warchief is a bit delayed. Warchief gets removed, and we reach a point where my opponent is hellbent with Golem + 2 Mishra's Factory in play. I have a bunch of cards, but little life to spare. I matron for Warren Weirding to deal with his Golem. I have 2 Wastelands for his factories, and matron can chump for a turn. My opponent draws for his turn, and it's a Wasteland of his own to take out one of mine, meaning I'm dead to golem on the following turn.
G3 I keep a fast lackey hand otp. My opponent plays t1 Ancient Tomb > Warping Wail. My other land is a Pendelhaven, and so my opponent was rewarded for removing lackey right away (I know a lot of people would have waited). I don't draw a third land. My opponent plays a Sphere and wastelands me. I concede shortly thereafter.

R2 - Esper Mentor. 2-0
I play the control role, knowing I'll likely win if I can keep him from going off with Mentor. An Earwig Squad takes out three Monastery Mentors from his deck, and Sharpshooter sweeps his board. G2 plays out similarly, only I get a Krenko online.

R3 - Shardless BUG. 2-1
G1 I wasteland him early. He brainstorms and only plays a waste as his second land. I almost EWS him here but remember I don't want to give him the free shuffle, and am rewarded for it as he bricks on lands.
G2 a Relic of Progenitus takes care of his Tarmogoyf, but I'm run over by the full set of Shardless Agents, as well as a pair of Strixes and Deathrite Shamans.
G3 is super tight. I have a bunch of cards but not too much life. Fairly late in the game I draw a Blood Moon. My opponent has Forest, Island, and a black dual or two, so he can still cast many of his spells. I choose to go with Blood Moon anyway, rather than dropping a goblin. My opponent draws a whole bunch of mountains, and I stabilize at four life.

R4 - Elves. 1-2
G1 my lackey trades with his 1-drop. I have EWS for his Hoof.
G2 I keep a six with Tarfire and Chalice. I tarfire his 1-drop, but don't draw a second land.
G3 I mulligan a hand of Matron, 2 sharpshooters, and lands, because I deem it too slow. I have a Vial and and a Needle for his DRS, and start playing ringleaders on t4. I'm on my way to set up Sharpshooter, but my opponent casts natural order before I get there. I would really like to rewatch this game to see if I could have prevented this somehow, since I don't remember exactly how it played out. Yet another drawback of playing while underslept.

R5 - BUG Show and Tell with Academy Rector. 1-2
We split the first two games, and so we're off to a G3. I start racing, and manage to get him down to four life. With a Karakas in play I feel pretty safe, as neither Emrakul nor Griselbrand does much to stop me now. My opponent plays Academy Rector and Phyrexian Tower, finding Form of the Dragon. Moat with upside is difficult to beat. This was the board when I scooped:
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/Cd6wv9bXIAAo6L5.jpg


Thoughts: Cabal Therapy is great, but I find that I no longer bring it in versus decks other than combo (read: storm and SnT). If that's the case, maybe I'd be better off playing something else in that slot. On the other hand, I'm happy with my configuration in most matchups, and don't feel I need any more sideboard cards. I would have liked to have Pyrokinesis today though, or something else that can clear the board vs Elves to buy me time to get Sharpshooter online.

The stax MU is just very swingy, and both G2 and G3 could have easily fallen in my favor. Form of the Dragon is a card I'm okay with being weak to, and I still felt as if I had the tools to fight the deck. I would like to revisit the Elves matchup though, to figure out how to approach it. Elves more widely adopting Cavern of Souls also makes CotV worse against them, which is something to take note of.

[L10]

If I lose to Form of the Dragon, I can't even be mad. To be honest, I'd be ecstatic. That's amazing. Would SGC have helped? Now that Moat is more common, especially in my meta as an Eldrazi hate card, I have two Krosan Grip and two SGC back vs. the UWx Control decks.

[MattPruner]

So I've decided that writing tournament reports is the cat's pajamas, so I'm going to start writing them more often. Up today, legacy at TokyoMTG. This week we got 10 players, 3 rounds. Of those 10, 3 were on enchantress...

Today's List
4x Goblin Lackey
4x Goblin Matron
4x Goblin Warchief
4x Goblin Ringleader
3x Mogg War Marshal
1x Gempalm Incinerator
1x Tuktuk Scrapper
1x Stingscourger
1x Goblin Chieftain
1x Krenko, Mob Boss
1x Goblin Sharpshooter
1x Goblin Piledriver
2x Tarfire
1x Warren Weirding
1x Kolaghan's Command
3x Warping Wail
4x Aether Vial
4x Wasteland
4x Cavern of Souls
3x Badlands
3x Mountain
3x Wooded Foothills
3x Bloodstained Mire
3x Rishadan Port
Sideboard
4x Cabal Therapy
3x Pyrokinesis
2x Relic of Progenitus
1x Kolaghan's Command
1x Umezawa's Jitte
1x Goblin Piledriver
1x Stingscourger
1x Earwig Squad
1x Tuktuk Scrapper
This week is my first week trying Chieftain over Siege-Gang Commander, not sure how it will work out. It was only relevant once tonight (it was good) but thats not enough to go on.

Round 1- G/W MudPost/loam WIN 2-1
This deck was... funky. It was Green Eldrazi/Mud, splashing white in the sideboard off Talisman of Unity and Brushland, with 12 post lands, and a life from the loam package. I think it did everything ever.
Game 1 (on the draw, opponent mulliganed to 6)
He plays a turn 1 cloudpost, I have t1 Vial. He untaps, plays a second cloudpost and a chalice on 1 a turn too late. I start to apply pressure, and all he has is wasteland loam to take out my lands. Vial is enough tho. I dont think he played a creature all game. Piledriver, Cheiftan, and Mogg War Marshal do alot of work.
Sideboard
-1 Goblin Sharpshooter
+1 Kolaghan's Command
I think it might have been right to take out Warping Wails here. There was not much they could hit.
Game 2 (on the draw)
I keep a slower hand with rishadan ports. I have two vials pretty early, but he plays containment priest in response to my first activation. He wastaland/Loams away most of my lands, and plays a lodestone golem to beat down. At 1 life with Vials on 3 and 4 and a full hand, i drew Kolaghan's Command, but couldnt cast it thru Lodestone. so close.
Game 3 (On the play, I mulliganed to 6)
Turn 1 lackey vs t1 cloudpost, i have 2 ports and he does nothing.

Round 2- Enchantress WIN 2-1
Well, it was 30% of the field, couldn't dodge it forever i guess...
Game 1 (on the draw, opponent mulliganed to 6)
I get a decently quick start, and he does nothing. He draws a few cards and dies.
-3 Warping Wail
-1 Tuktuk Scrapper
-1 Goblin Sharpshooter
+3 Cabal therapy (didnt want to bring in all, enchantress usually dumps all their good stuff out fast, but i wanted to be able to eat a Solitary confinement out of their hand right away if i could. I don't really have any other option to beat that card with this build)
+1 Earwig squad
+1 Goblin Piledriver
Game 2 (on the draw)
This matchup... i have t1 lackey connect. i warren weirding away his enchantress. he plays several wild growth/utopia sprawl, and then slams sphere of safety (at 5) my entire field is 1/1s and piledriver. I wind up drawing and hardcasting Earwig Squad and beating for a turn, but he quickly plays an enchantreses presence and goes from there. i sat it out to find out his win con, and he shows me both elesh norn and Sigil of the Empty Throne.
Game 3 (on the play, I mulliganed to 6)
T1 lackey puts in warchief, cast matron for Earwig Squad. He plays Mirri's Guile and some wild growths. Turn 3 cast Earwig Squad, Take Elesh Norn, Emrakul, and Sigil of the Empty Thorne, leaving him with no win conditions in his deck. He only has 2 cards in hand, so i was pretty sure i would be ok. he plays enchantress and solitary confinement. a few turns later, he casts sun titan, which i kill with Gempalm Incinerator. At this point there is only 1 card i dont know about, and the fact that he is still playing makes me nervous. A cabal therapy shows me his hand, and i now know for sure he cannot win. Turns out he forgot he sideboarded out his other win con, and was digging for something. His face when he fetched and realized was priceless.

Round 3- Esper Stoneblade WIN 2-1
This match was pretty standard. Nothing that intresting happened here, just good solid magic.
Game 1 (On the play)
I had a crazy fast start. he died on turn my turn 4, thru a thoughtseize and a stoneforge mystic.
Sideboard
-1 Krenko, Mob Boss
-1 Goblin Sharpshooter
-1 Goblin Piledriver
+1 Umezawa's Jitte
+1 Kolaghan's Command
+1 Tuktuk Scrapper
Game 2 (on the draw)
Slow and grindy, he has containment priest to turn off my 2 vials, i have 2 removal spells in hand but no red source. Eventualy draw it but its too late, i die to Vendillion Clique holding a jitte.
Game 3 (on the play, opponent mulliganed to 6)
T1 lackey, thoughtseize eats my warcheif but turns out a free Mogg War Marshall is pretty good too. The grind goes on for 10 mins with me coming out on top. He plays stoneforge and gets out jitte, but i have tuktuk scrapper.


Overall, Pretty good event. i feel like i played well, and it worked out. the big thing is enchantress is now 30% of our field. this matchup is garbage. Ive 2-1 the last two weeks, both of my losses to enchantress. How do you guys go about beating that deck? im considering something like Sudden Demise in the board to wipe out their enchantresses, or splashing green for Krosan Grip.

[LeoCop 90]

Well, if there there is such a big presence of enchantress in your meta, you can easily make extreme choices and play 4x back to nature in your sideboard, or 4x serenity that also deals with artifacts. You probably won't lose any game where you draw those cards.

[jrw1985]

Reverent Silence, bro.

[goblinpiledriver]

My main plan for enchantress has been earwig squad and chalice

Chalice doesn't shut them out, but it can slow them enough to get you a win

[GoboLord]

Hey Chieftains,

I'm busy writing a new chapter for the OP. The chapter will deal with matchups, how they play out, what are the keycards and so on. This is what I have until now:



In this section I will present my view on a number of relevant MUs as well as some suggestions how to play them right. I will try to update this regularly, but please keep in mind the date when I last edited the list. Also, this is but one view that is presented here, so please feel free to test the MUs yourself and work out strategies that are different from what I am presenting here.
For reasons of simplicity I have only 5 evaluations different of the MUs:
(1) favorable: most iterations of Goblins will have good chances of winning against most iterations of the deck in question. Usually you don’t need to reserve any SB cards for this MU.
(2) slightly favorable: your chances of winning range from even to good, depending on your version of the deck as well as some SB cards
(3) even: generally chances are evenly distributed. Sometimes this is MU by certain MD or SB cards that you or your opponent are playing. Also, skill and experience will be a relevant factor.
(4) slightly unfavorable: your list will need some specific tuning to win this MU. SB cards can turn the tides and drag the odds down to 50%. These MUs are usually what you need your SB cards for.
(5) unfavorable: most iterations of your opponents deck will have good chances of beating yours. In some cases you can dedicate a lot of SB cards to make this MU even, but sometimes it is better to accept that you can’t beat every deck.

Miracles – favorable
How the matchups works: You have everything that they don’t want to see: a fast clock, creatures that they can’t counter, cardadvantage. There are two ways they can beat you: (1) a well-timed Entreat the Angels and (2) Monastery Mentor getting out of reach before you can remove it. The longer the games the more favored they are – so try to make it quick. Your plan is to establish a boardposition that can deal a minimum of 4 damage a turn, while holding Matron or Ringleader in your hand. You will pressure your opponent to find a Terminus during your attack step and then refill your resources with Ringleader on the second mainphase of the same turn. Matron should usually find Ringleader. Make sure to not let it get countered. After G1 you want to keep as many creatures in our deck as possible. Ideally you keep one or two removal spells after G1.
Which version to pick: Both versions are equally well-equipped to beat Miracles. If you are playing the CLASSIC build, make sure not to overrate your Rishadan Ports but keep on casting creatures. When wielding the WINSTIGATOR list, make sure to resist temptation of overextending with Double-Strike triggers. Winstigator + Pendelhaven is a decent clock.
Cards that support this strategy: Aether Vial, Cavern of Souls, Goblin Matron, Goblin Ringleader, Goblin Piledriver, Goblin Chieftain

Storm Combo – unfavorable
How the matchups works: You can steal games by killing them on turn 3 or 4. However, yur lack of disruptive elements usually makes you an easy target. When you evaluate your opening hands you should aim for a kill on turn 3 or 4. Every piece of hate should delay your opponent by at least 1 turn. If it doesn’t then don’t play it. Accept the idea of being killed on turn 1 or 2 without any interaction.
Which version to pick: Neither version will have good times here. WINSTIGATOR lists are better equipped here as they are more likely to pull off turn-3 kills. Also, Chrome Mox helps casting hatepieces one turn earlier than usual.
Cards that support this strategy: Goblin Lackey, Warren Instigator, Goblin Piledriver, Chalice of the Void, Cabal Therapy, Ethersworn Canonist, Thalia, Guardian of Thraben, Thorn of Amethyst, Leyline of Sanctity

Eldrazi Stompy – slightly favorable
How the matchups works: In this MU your goal is to buy enough time until you can block their way with your hordes. Eldrazi Smasher and equipments stand in the way of that plan. Their major weakness is their manabase. Their best spells cost 4+ mana and demand colorless mana, so any form of manadisruption is effective. Try to read what cards they have in hand. You can read that from the amount of mana they have available and what cards they played last turn. Watch out for some interactions of their spells and lands. A few examples: Eye of Ugin doesn’t actually produce mana, but reduces the manacosts. So, no playing Jitte with Eye of Ugin. Make sure that they tap at least 1 colorless mana when casting their spells. Under a Bloodmoon they will usually not be able to cast any spell with <> in their manacosts. Over a course of several games you will be favored, as their manabase is shaky and their mulligan decisions are more difficult, as the deck is less consistent than yours.
Which version to pick: The CLASSIC build really shines here as it is able to run 8 manadenial lands. The WINSTIGATOR build is better in MUs where you want to win the early game – and Eldrazi Stompy is none of them, since their early game is much better than ours.
Cards that support this strategy: Aether Vial, Wasteland, Rishadan Port, Blood Moon, Mogg War Marshal, Pyrokinesis

Shardless BUG – even
How the matchups works: unlike most other deck, this creature-based deck has a cardadvantage engine that is as powerful as ours. Shardless Agent revealing Tarmogoyf or Ancestral Visions can put you in a very uncomfortable position. Additionally, early DRS blocking the way for Goblin Lackey, and Abrupt Decay destroying Aether Vial can steal your tempo and mana advantage. Our strength on the other turn is their weakness to Krenko, Mob Boss as they have only 1 or two cards in their 75 that can actually get rid of it. Also, in the absence of Tarmogoyf and Ancestral visions their boardstate is usually weak and we will have enough time to develop a favorable boardposition.
Which version to pick: The CLASSIC version is in a better here, as Mogg War Marshal supports the above strategy better. Also, running Chrome Mox makes Hymn to Tourarch hurt you more and Liliana can become a problem as well.
Cards that support this strategy: Krenko, Mob Boss, Mogg War Marshal, Aether Vial, Goblin Matron, Goblin Ringleader, Gempalm Incinerator


I would like to get some feedback on this. Any input on what I already wrote is appreciated, so are ideas and suggestions for writing more content. My plan would be to cover the DTBs at least, but other relevant decks can be covered as well. As I don't have extensive experience with every MU there is, I'm open to update the content when you think something is not correct.

Looking forwar to reading your comments.

[ScatmanX]

@gobbolord: thanks so much for your efforts again. This is a great idea. My experience is not new, but maybe can write some enchantress or Canadian mus. ..

[Amon Amarth]

I'm definitely liking MWM quite a bit recently and, in turn, it makes Gempalm even better so I'm running an extra in the MD. Of course, it makes Krenko better too. I agree with Gobolords assessment re: the BUG and Eldrazi matchups. Fog-on-a-stick is pretty sweet against those decks.

[GoboLord]

It's done. Would be happy to get some feedback on where you agree/disagree with my views on the respective MUs. Or what MUs you want me to write about next.

IV. Matchups & strategy (last update: 28/03/2016)

In this section I will present my view on a number of relevant MUs as well as some suggestions how to play them right. I will try to update this regularly, but please keep in mind the date when I last edited the list. Also, this is but one view that is presented here, so please feel free to test the MUs yourself and work out strategies that are different from what I am presenting here.
I am using the following five "ratings" for MUs.
(1) favorable: most iterations of Goblins will have good chances of winning against most iterations of the deck in question. Usually you don’t need to reserve any SB cards for this MU.
(2) slightly favorable: your chances of winning range from even to good, depending on your version of the deck as well as some SB cards
(3) even: generally chances are evenly distributed. Sometimes the outcome if this is MU decided by certain MD or SB cards that you or your opponent are playing. Also, skill and experience will be a relevant factor.
(4) slightly unfavorable: your list will need some specific tuning to win this MU. SB cards can turn the tides and drag the odds down to 50%. These MUs are usually what you need your SB cards for.
(5) unfavorable: most iterations of your opponents deck will have good chances of beating yours. In some cases you can dedicate a lot of SB cards to make this MU even, but sometimes it is better to accept that you can’t beat every deck.

Miracles – favorable
How the matchups works: You have everything that they don’t want to see: a fast clock, creatures that they can’t counter, cardadvantage. There are two ways they can beat you: (1) a well-timed Entreat the Angels and (2) Monastery Mentor getting out of reach before you can remove it. The longer the games the more favored they are – so try to make it quick. Your plan is to establish a boardposition that can deal a minimum of 4 damage a turn, while holding Matron or Ringleader in your hand. You will pressure your opponent to find a Terminus during your attack step and then refill your resources with Ringleader on the second mainphase of the same turn. Matron should usually find Ringleader. Make sure to not let it get countered. After G1 you want to keep as many creatures in our deck as possible. Ideally you keep one or two removal spells after G1.
Which version to pick: Both versions are equally well-equipped to beat Miracles. If you are playing the CLASSIC build, make sure not to overrate your Rishadan Ports but keep on casting creatures. When wielding the WINSTIGATOR list, make sure to resist temptation of overextending with Double-Strike triggers. Winstigator + Pendelhaven is a decent clock.
Cards that support this strategy: Aether Vial, Cavern of Souls, Goblin Matron, Goblin Ringleader, Goblin Piledriver, Goblin Chieftain
Meaninful SB cards: Earwig Squad, Pithing Needle

Storm Combo – unfavorable
How the matchups works: You can steal games by killing them on turn 3 or 4. However, your lack of disruptive elements usually makes you an easy target. When you evaluate your opening hands you should aim for a kill on turn 3 or 4. Every piece of hate should delay your opponent by at least 1 turn. If it doesn’t then don’t play it. Accept the idea of being killed on turn 1 or 2 without any interaction.
Which version to pick: Neither version will have good times here. WINSTIGATOR lists are better equipped here as they are more likely to pull off turn-3 kills. Also, Chrome Mox helps casting hatepieces one turn earlier than usual.
Cards that support this strategy: Goblin Lackey, Warren Instigator, Goblin Piledriver
Meaninful SB cards: Chalice of the Void, Cabal Therapy, Ethersworn Canonist, Thalia, Guardian of Thraben, Thorn of Amethyst, Leyline of Sanctity

Eldrazi Stompy – slightly favorable
How the matchups works: In this MU your goal is to buy enough time until you can block their way with your hordes. Eldrazi Smasher and equipments stand in the way of that plan. Their major weakness is their manabase. Their best spells cost 4+ mana and demand colorless mana, so any form of manadisruption is effective. Try to read what cards they have in hand. You can read that from the amount of mana they have available and what cards they played last turn. Watch out for some interactions of their spells and lands. A few examples: Eye of Ugin doesn’t actually produce mana, but reduces the manacosts. So, no playing Jitte with Eye of Ugin. Make sure that they tap at least 1 colorless mana when casting their spells. Under a Bloodmoon they will usually not be able to cast any spell with <> in their manacosts. Over a course of several games you will be favored, as their manabase is shaky and their mulligan decisions are more difficult - their deck is less consistent than yours.
Which version to pick: The CLASSIC build really shines here as it is able to run 8 manadenial lands. The WINSTIGATOR build is better in MUs where you want to win the early game – and Eldrazi Stompy is none of them, since their early game is much better than ours.
Cards that support this strategy: Aether Vial, Wasteland, Rishadan Port, Mogg War Marshal,
Meaninful SB cards: Blood Moon, Pyrokinesis, Tuktuk Scrapper

Shardless BUG – even
How the matchups works: unlike most other deck, this creature-based deck has a cardadvantage engine that is as powerful as ours. Shardless Agent revealing Tarmogoyf or Ancestral Visions can put you in a very uncomfortable position. Additionally, early DRS blocking the way for Goblin Lackey, and Abrupt Decay destroying Aether Vial can steal your tempo and mana advantage. Our strength on the other turn is their weakness to Krenko, Mob Boss as they have only 1 or two cards in their 75 that can actually get rid of it. Also, in the absence of Tarmogoyf and Ancestral visions their board is usually weak and we will have enough time to develop a favorable boardposition. One more thing that many people might not notice: Tuktuk Scrapper can usually destroy one of their creatures, since Shardless Agent and Baleful Strix both are artifacts.
Which version to pick: The CLASSIC version is in a better here, as Mogg War Marshal supports the above strategy better. Also, running Chrome Mox makes Hymn to Tourarch hurt you more and Liliana can become a problem as well when running Warren Instigator in the spot of Mogg War Marshal.
Cards that support this strategy: Krenko, Mob Boss, Mogg War Marshal, Aether Vial, Goblin Matron, Goblin Ringleader, Gempalm Incinerator
Meaningful SB cards: Relic of Progenitus, Rest in Peace, Perish

BUG Delver – even
How the matchups works: Delver of Secrets, Deathrite Shaman and True-Name Nemesis will try to deal unblockable damage to your lifepoints while Tarmogoyf, Hymn to Tourarch and Liliana of the Veil will try to eat your resources so that you can’t handle their damage output. The rest of their deck is largely irrelevant as you can usually ignore their countermagic. Also their deck is light on removal spells so, unless you need to throw your creatures into a Tarmogoyf or Liliana, every creature that hits the board, stay on the board. Your plan is to create a large-enough cardadvantage, while killing Delver and Deathrite Shaman as early as possible. As with other tempo-decks, try to avoid unfavorable trades. On the long run your deck has a better stamina. At the same time you need to close out games fast enough, because their unblockable damage can stack up really fast and put your lifetotal in lethal range.
Which version to pick: The CLASSIC version should have easier times surviving the early game. Just don’t focus too much on using your manadenial, but make sure to get some value on the board. The WINSTIGATOR list will be better at closing out games and switching from the control role to beatdown mode. However, as with Shardless BUG, Hymn to Tourarch and Liliana hit you harder when playing with Chrome Mox.
Cards that support this strategy: Mogg War Marshal, Tarfire, Aether Vial, Goblin Piledriver, Krenko, Mob Boss
Meaningful SB cards: Relic of Progenitus, Rest in Peace

Grixis Tempo – slightly favorable
How the matchups works: Very much like BUG Delver, this is another Tempo deck featuring the shell of Deathrite Shaman and Delver of Secrets, Force of Will, Daze and 8 cantrips. The most problematic card in this MU is Young Pyromancer, which can take over games from one turn to the next. Save a removal spell for this guy and you will be fine. With this MU you will have somewhat easier time getting ahead in early game as their creatures are initially very weak. Also, in comparison to BUG, Grixis usually doesn’t play any Abrupt Decays, which means that your Vial will stick on the board. In earlygame it is totally legit to trade your Lackey for Delver of Young Pyromancer. After G1 you will bring in some Pyrokinesis and/or Sharpshooter to counter their most effective wincondition, while they exchange some of their countermagic for more removal spells and probably discard.
Which version to pick: Their deck operates well with a small amount of mana. In addition to that, grinding out games is not necessary. For these reasons the two major strength of the CLASSIC version don’t carry weight. The WINSTIGATOR list should be your version of choice, as it brings a very strong early game.
Cards that support this strategy: Warren Instigator, Goblin Chieftain, Tarfire, Gempalm Incinerator
Meaningful SB cards: Pyrokinesis, Goblin Sharpshooter

Elves – slightly unfavorable
How the matchups works: In game 1 they are clearly favored. On the way of assembling one of their combokills they can block the board with a bunch of 1/1 creatures and gain value with untaps, mana-abilities and bouncing their own creatures (like Elvish Visionary). Their most effective enablers are Quirion Ranger, Wirewood Symbiote and Heritage Druid – so usually you should kill of these first. It is very rare that you can slowly build up an advantage that you can ride to victory. The MU comes down to whether or not you can wipe their board with clean with Pyrokinesis, Goblin Sharpshooter or Perish, so your strategy should support finding one of these. Note that Chalice of the Void seems effective on first sight but in practice they will often be able to play around that.
Which version to pick: The WINSTIGATOR list is the better choice as it support your plan of finding (and casting) boardsweepers better. Also, with Warren Instigator you have a doublestrike-creature that can engage in combat situations more easily.
Cards that support this strategy: Chrome Mox, Warren Instigator
Meaningful SB cards: Goblin Sharpshooter, Pyrokinesis, Perish, Pithing Needle, Cabal Therapy, Grafdigger’s Cage

UG Infect – even
How the matchups works: Your priority in this MU is to destroy their infect-creatures. Use your removal in your turn to make them use their pump-spells to protect their creatures, rather than killing you. They can kill you with only 2 pumpspells, but most often they will have to use 3. Due to their lack of removal and the very small amount of countermagic they play, build up a threatening boardposition is relatively easy for you. Other than that, there is not much to watch out for. Make sure to play safe and steady – don’t get greedy or do anything risky. The MU is already quite shaky.
Which version to pick: WINSTIGATOR is better by a mile. The fact that they can’t interact with you building up a boardposition makes them an easy prey for Lackey and Warren Instigator. Plus, running Chrome Moxen comes at basically no cost, as the card-disadvantage will not carry any weight.
Cards that support this strategy: Goblin Lackey, Warren Instigator, Tarfire, Gempalm Incinerator, Stingscourge
Meaningful SB cards: Goblin Sharpshooter, Pyrokinesis, Chalice of the Void, Pithing Needle, Blood Moon

Death & Taxes – favorable
How the matchups works: The worst thing that can happen is that they have an equipment at a moment when you can’t deal with it yet. This would be the case when they have Stoneforge Mystic on turn 2 and you can’t kill SFM before the equipment comes down. Try to grind them out, make favorable trades (or even one-for-ones). We have a cardadvantage engine, while Death & Taxes is only able to generate CA via equipments. Other potentially problematic cards in their deck are Mother of Runes and Phyrexian Revoker (which shuts down a range of valuable cards).
Which version to pick: Both versions will do equally well. The WINSTIGATOR version has easier times going into profitable combat situations, while the CLASSIC list is better at grinding out games until you get keycards on the table.
Cards that support this strategy: Tarfire, Krenko, Mob Boss, Mogg War Marshal
Meaningful SB cards: Tuktuk Scrapper, Pithing Needle, Goblin Sharpshooter, Pyrokinesis

RG Combo Lands – even
How the matchups works: It is relatively easy to keep them off their combo-kill with an untapped Wasteland. It takes them quite some effort and setup-time to still push it through your untapped Wasteland. Stingscourger is another valuable asset , which can save you even after Marit Lage hits the board. On the other hand they have very effective means of keeping from winning, including Grove of the Burnwillows + Punishing Fire, Maze of Ith and Tabernacle at Pendrell Vale. Looking at all of this, your plan is to kill them as fast as possible, while having a Wasteland untapped. The longer the games lasts, the more likely they are to gain the upper hand. After G2 things don’t look so much different in their deck, but you will usually have a few cards to bring in.
Which version to pick: The WINSTIGATOR list is the better choice, as it supports the plan of setting up a fast kill. Chrome MOX has no drawbacks in MUs where speed is your strongest asset. In addition to that Pendelhaven (which is more common in Winstigator builds) will mess with their Punishing Fire.
Cards that support this strategy: Wasteland, Chrome Mox, Goblin Lackey, Warren Instigator, Goblin Piledriver, Stingscourger Pendelhaven.
Meaningful SB cards: Blood Moon, Earwig Squad, Pithing Needle, Goblin Settler, Relic of Progenitus, Rest in Peace

Sneak Show – slightly favorable
How the matchups works: Get an Stingscourger or Goblin Matron on your hand as quickly as possible, as this will effectively shut down Show and Tell. The only card really left to care about is Sneak Attack. As with other combo decks, your plan is to kill they as fast as possible. Due to their lack of interaction with your setup (other than a little countermagic) you can usually go all-in. After Game 1 they will bring in some Pyroclasm and possibly Through the Breach (which work as additional copies of Sneak Attack). Your gameplan doesn’t change much though, only will you replace your spotremoval with some hatecards.
Which version to pick: I don’t have experience with fighting this deck with the traditional list, but I assume both versions are well equipped to win. WINSTIGATOR’s strength is to end the game in a timely fashion, while the classic list has additional manadenial to delay the mana-intense winconditions of Sneak Attack and Through the Breach.
Cards that support this strategy: Stingscourger, Goblin Matron, Chrome Mox, Goblin Lackey, Warren Instigator, Goblin Piledriver, Rishadan Port, Wasteland
Meaningful SB cards: Pithing Needle, Goblin Settler, Cabal Therapy

[Reanimator/TinFins – unfavorable
How the matchups works: They can easily reanimate scary creatures on turn 2. Contrary to Stormdecks, their combo will not kill you on the same turn, but “only” make it very likely that they win. In game 1 you can get lucky and have Stingscourger in your opponing hand and they didn’t reanimate a creature that you can’t bounce (Iona#Red or Sphinx of the Steel Wind). However, this scenario will only buy you some time and doesn’t mean that you win. For G2 you can bring in some graveyard hate and/or combohate, while they won’t get any more dangerous than they already are.
Which version to pick: If anything you can expect that the WINSTIGATOR list is better for this MU, but neither version will have good chances of winning.
Cards that support this strategy: Stingscourger, Warren Weirding, Chrome Mox, Goblin Lackey, Warren Instigator, Goblin Piledriver
Meaningful SB cards: any graveyard hate, Cabal Therapy, Chalice of the Void

[Olaf Forkbeard]

My comparisons:

Elves
I'd put Grafdigger's cage in front of Pithing Needle in the list, simply to keep them in order of relevance. I actually think it's probably a little better than Perish, and a lot worse than Pyrokinesis, so it fits right in there. You just get some time to breath. No broken tutors, comes down early.

U/G infect.
I run the classic list, and I feel this match-up is pretty favorable. I'm curious to know what we differ on that makes the match-up feel so different.

All of their creatures die to all of our removal. Just end of their turn kill their dudes. Unless they have the gold standard for getting in for lethal, they should be playing out like a delver deck with 1/1's, holding pump spells for removal. Their mana is also pretty fragile, Waste and Port do great work. Pyrokinesis and mana denial rock this match-up. Just respect the deck, count numbers and go with what's likely. Stop playing with "The Fear (http://static.starcitygames.com/www/images/article/TomRossInviToken.png)"

D&T
I think it's worth mentioning how much of a grind this match-up is, meaning experience will go very, very far in this match-up. Worth practicing.

Lands
I've always found this match-up to be noticeably negative, not even. I guess I'll playtest it more and come back here with more information.

Sneak & Show
"..Goblin Matron in your hand." not "on your hand."
I think it's worth noting, this is a match-up where the diminishing returns on Stingscourger are non-existent. More is just better. Also Containment Priest is pretty good here.

Reanimator
I've won this match-up far more than I've lost it. Since their win con does take multiple turns you have the time to set up. The nightmare scenario is pretty rare (Iona, Shield of Emeria on turn 1, while you don't have Stingscourger & Aether Vial). They are hit harder than most decks by mana denial. Perhaps this has something to do with my sideboard though. I generally run Containment Priest as a 2 of.

[1337erhosen]

The matchup analysis looks great, but I'd just make additions to the "relevant sideboard cards" sections. The major missing sideboard cards I see are Surgical Extraction, Grafdigger's Cage, Containment Priest, and Warping Wail.

[iatee]

Hmm, even or favorable vs every deck but 3 combo decks. You would think Goblins would have a little more success these days were that the case.

[ScatmanX]

Hmm, even or favorable vs every deck but 3 combo decks. You would think Goblins would have a little more success these days were that the case.
Even doesn't mean good. 50% chance is bad. Have you ever took a 50% deck against the field to a tournament? It ends 3-3.

Most importantly, if there is only 1 or 2 experienced goblin players in a room with 200+ people, even if the are favourable against most common decks, it is quite unlikely that lots of good results are achieved.

If your talking about smaller tournaments, then yes, goblins is having a very good run lately.

[iatee]

Tier 1 decks have even match-ups vs Tier 1 decks.

Anyway this is far from the first deck analysis on the internet that exaggerates the deck's win %s - it's a time honored tradition and can be found on the first page of almost every deck thread on the site.

[GoboLord]

Tier 1 decks have even match-ups vs Tier 1 decks.

Anyway this is far from the first deck analysis on the internet that exaggerates the deck's win %s - it's a time honored tradition and can be found on the first page of almost every deck thread on the site.
Thanks for your input.

[GoboLord]

My comparisons:

Elves
I'd put Grafdigger's cage in front of Pithing Needle in the list, simply to keep them in order of relevance. I actually think it's probably a little better than Perish, and a lot worse than Pyrokinesis, so it fits right in there. You just get some time to breath. No broken tutors, comes down early.

U/G infect.
I run the classic list, and I feel this match-up is pretty favorable. I'm curious to know what we differ on that makes the match-up feel so different.

All of their creatures die to all of our removal. Just end of their turn kill their dudes. Unless they have the gold standard for getting in for lethal, they should be playing out like a delver deck with 1/1's, holding pump spells for removal. Their mana is also pretty fragile, Waste and Port do great work. Pyrokinesis and mana denial rock this match-up. Just respect the deck, count numbers and go with what's likely. Stop playing with "The Fear (http://static.starcitygames.com/www/images/article/TomRossInviToken.png)"

D&T
I think it's worth mentioning how much of a grind this match-up is, meaning experience will go very, very far in this match-up. Worth practicing.

Lands
I've always found this match-up to be noticeably negative, not even. I guess I'll playtest it more and come back here with more information.

Sneak & Show
"..Goblin Matron in your hand." not "on your hand."
I think it's worth noting, this is a match-up where the diminishing returns on Stingscourger are non-existent. More is just better. Also Containment Priest is pretty good here.

Reanimator
I've won this match-up far more than I've lost it. Since their win con does take multiple turns you have the time to set up. The nightmare scenario is pretty rare (Iona, Shield of Emeria on turn 1, while you don't have Stingscourger & Aether Vial). They are hit harder than most decks by mana denial. Perhaps this has something to do with my sideboard though. I generally run Containment Priest as a 2 of.

Thank you for your comment - that was exactly the Kind of response I was hoping to receive.
Some comments:

Regarding Elves I agree with you on Cage vs. Needle. I was just not considering listing cards in order of importance. I will need to evaluate if that makes sense to do for all MUs.

Infect: I dont know what makes us perceive this MU so differently but I would love to change that. It could be that my lists are a little light on spotremoval lately. When playing winstigators I am usually running between 3 to 4 removal spells in my 75 (including Stingscourger) + 3-4 Sharpshooter (which I dont count as spotremoval).
What is your take?

D&T
True. Will add that. Note about grindiness.

Lands
Having played this MU with both lists I can only say that the difference in how the MU works is huge. (Same with Eldrazis, only in favor of the traditional list).

Sneak Show and Reanimator
Totally forgot that containment priest even existed. Thanks for the reminder. I need to test Reanimator a little more then, but in my experience so far is that I could only ever steal games when my opponent was doing something wrong.

What about the other MUs? Do we agree there more or less?

[MattPruner]

Infect: I dont know what makes us perceive this MU so differently but I would love to change that. It could be that my lists are a little light on spotremoval lately. When playing winstigators I am usually running between 3 to 4 removal spells in my 75 (including Stingscourger) + 3-4 Sharpshooter (which I dont count as spotremoval).
What is your take?

i feel quite favored on a classic list. i do have a bit more removal (3 warping wail, 1 Kolaghan's command, 1 gempalm, 2 tarfire, 1 stingscourger, 1 warren weirding, and 1 sharpshooter, with another k command, stingscourger, and some pyrokinesis in the board. ok, its a lot more removal.)
It seems like Lots of my games came down to being able to hold off inkmoth nexus with rishadan port. I take a super controlling approach to the matchup, and often only have 1 or 2 things on board the entire game. just holding up removal and keeping them off mana (they often seem to be quite land lite) until they are dead.

[GoblinTurkey]

It's done. Would be happy to get some feedback on where you agree/disagree with my views on the respective MUs. Or what MUs you want me to write about next.

IV. Matchups & strategy (last update: 28/03/2016)

Miracles – favorable
How the matchups works: You have everything that they don’t want to see: a fast clock, creatures that they can’t counter, cardadvantage. There are two ways they can beat you: (1) a well-timed Entreat the Angels and (2) Monastery Mentor getting out of reach before you can remove it. The longer the games the more favored they are – so try to make it quick. Your plan is to establish a boardposition that can deal a minimum of 4 damage a turn, while holding Matron or Ringleader in your hand. You will pressure your opponent to find a Terminus during your attack step and then refill your resources with Ringleader on the second mainphase of the same turn. Matron should usually find Ringleader. Make sure to not let it get countered. After G1 you want to keep as many creatures in our deck as possible. Ideally you keep one or two removal spells after G1.
Which version to pick: Both versions are equally well-equipped to beat Miracles. If you are playing the CLASSIC build, make sure not to overrate your Rishadan Ports but keep on casting creatures. When wielding the WINSTIGATOR list, make sure to resist temptation of overextending with Double-Strike triggers. Winstigator + Pendelhaven is a decent clock.
Cards that support this strategy: Aether Vial, Cavern of Souls, Goblin Matron, Goblin Ringleader, Goblin Piledriver, Goblin Chieftain
Meaninful SB cards: Earwig Squad, Pithing Needle

Eldrazi Stompy – slightly favorable
How the matchups works: In this MU your goal is to buy enough time until you can block their way with your hordes. Eldrazi Smasher and equipments stand in the way of that plan. Their major weakness is their manabase. Their best spells cost 4+ mana and demand colorless mana, so any form of manadisruption is effective. Try to read what cards they have in hand. You can read that from the amount of mana they have available and what cards they played last turn. Watch out for some interactions of their spells and lands. A few examples: Eye of Ugin doesn’t actually produce mana, but reduces the manacosts. So, no playing Jitte with Eye of Ugin. Make sure that they tap at least 1 colorless mana when casting their spells. Under a Bloodmoon they will usually not be able to cast any spell with <> in their manacosts. Over a course of several games you will be favored, as their manabase is shaky and their mulligan decisions are more difficult - their deck is less consistent than yours.
Which version to pick: The CLASSIC build really shines here as it is able to run 8 manadenial lands. The WINSTIGATOR build is better in MUs where you want to win the early game – and Eldrazi Stompy is none of them, since their early game is much better than ours.
Cards that support this strategy: Aether Vial, Wasteland, Rishadan Port, Mogg War Marshal,
Meaninful SB cards: Blood Moon, Pyrokinesis, Tuktuk Scrapper

Elves – slightly unfavorable
How the matchups works: In game 1 they are clearly favored. On the way of assembling one of their combokills they can block the board with a bunch of 1/1 creatures and gain value with untaps, mana-abilities and bouncing their own creatures (like Elvish Visionary). Their most effective enablers are Quirion Ranger, Wirewood Symbiote and Heritage Druid – so usually you should kill of these first. It is very rare that you can slowly build up an advantage that you can ride to victory. The MU comes down to whether or not you can wipe their board with clean with Pyrokinesis, Goblin Sharpshooter or Perish, so your strategy should support finding one of these. Note that Chalice of the Void seems effective on first sight but in practice they will often be able to play around that.
Which version to pick: The WINSTIGATOR list is the better choice as it support your plan of finding (and casting) boardsweepers better. Also, with Warren Instigator you have a doublestrike-creature that can engage in combat situations more easily.
Cards that support this strategy: Chrome Mox, Warren Instigator
Meaningful SB cards: Goblin Sharpshooter, Pyrokinesis, Perish, Pithing Needle, Cabal Therapy, Grafdigger’s Cage

Death & Taxes – favorable
How the matchups works: The worst thing that can happen is that they have an equipment at a moment when you can’t deal with it yet. This would be the case when they have Stoneforge Mystic on turn 2 and you can’t kill SFM before the equipment comes down. Try to grind them out, make favorable trades (or even one-for-ones). We have a cardadvantage engine, while Death & Taxes is only able to generate CA via equipments. Other potentially problematic cards in their deck are Mother of Runes and Phyrexian Revoker (which shuts down a range of valuable cards).
Which version to pick: Both versions will do equally well. The WINSTIGATOR version has easier times going into profitable combat situations, while the CLASSIC list is better at grinding out games until you get keycards on the table.
Cards that support this strategy: Tarfire, Krenko, Mob Boss, Mogg War Marshal
Meaningful SB cards: Tuktuk Scrapper, Pithing Needle, Goblin Sharpshooter, Pyrokinesis

Miracles:
- I would also say that Mogg War Marshall is very good in this match-up as it is a two for one that can put pressure on while you develop your hand.
- Warping Wail is really good in this matchup

Eldrazi Stompy:
- Ensnaring Bridge is also extremely good!! It may slow us down but it cripples eldrazi as they suffer D&T syndrome (can't draw well after their board is in a standstill). Also I personally run lightning crafter combo so it doesn't slow you down really.

Elves:
- Chalice of the Void is a good SB card as it prevents most of their deck from being cast.

D&T:
- Blood Moon is actually surprisingly good against them (unless it's Red & Taxes and even then). Over half of their land base is non basic.
- Warping Wail is very good here as well as it counters Cataclysm and Council's Judgement. It also exiles Mother of Runes and Flickerwisp (technically Thalia if there is no Karakas out).

That's my input from playing against these decks.

[Olaf Forkbeard]

@Gobolord

Yea, I did some playtesting with an infect player I know of, (mixed with the fact that I've never lost to it in sanctioned play) and we came to the conclusion that Goblins is just set up to defeat it. I ran a Classic list (http://essentialmagic.com/Decks/View.asp?ID=933296) for the duration of this testing. I should not that, though not as extensive, my less kill spell intensive builds still run a good number. My "low" count is 5 kill (2-3 Tarfire, 2-3 Gempalm Incinerator) and Sharpshooter.

The biggest roleplayer in this match-up is absolutely Rishadan Port in the classic list. MattPruner describes it nearly perfectly. Porting their mana makes them play like a bad delver deck. Their usual backup plan against most decks with any amount of removal is how hard Inkmoth Nexus is to interact with, and we can interact with it pretty easily. To go further because of this mana denial their Brainstorms are often just digging for mana sources instead of combo pieces. That mixes excellently with preventing yourself from getting combo killed all in one turn. Just take the hit, and don't worry about it so much.

Sudden Shock wins this match-up on it's own, in addition to being fine against Stoneblade. Okay SB card.

---

I find the match-up against Sneak & Show on the classic list is slightly negative, but I'm willing to admit a bias as I only seem to run into [cards]Pyroclasm[cards] post board, instead of the relatively more common Sudden Shock. I should note that I tend to die to Sneak Attack and Through the Breach post board. Show & Tell is never the issue.

[GoboLord]

Hello fellow Chieftains,

I played our monthly 6-round event on Monday (Easter holidays, yay!) and this is the short report. Unfortunately I threw away my match notes, so I might not remember the names of my opponents correctly. Also, I will only describes highlights of every game.

Result: 4-1-1 after 6 rounds, 30-something players

A word on the decklist: Because the last monthly event was won by Eldrazi and because Eldrazi Stompy is becoming more popular in general, I wanted to be prepared for that MU. Testing revealed that I needed Rishadan Ports to consistenly beat the deck. Additionally, I threw 2 Blood Moons and 2 Pyrokinesis in the MD as well, because they might as well catch some decks off guard (Lands, D&T, Delver decks). It stayed Mono Red because I don’t want to make Deathrite Shaman a good card (especially in the absence of Tarfire and Pendelhaven). The SB is the result of extensive analysis of the good and bad MUs – simulating exactly how many cards I want to side in and out in 7 what I would consider “relevant” MUs (e.g. Miracles is not a relevant MU, when I’m building my SB). Also, there is Goblin Settler, which I am playing because I had a slot left.

MANA (23)
4 Cavern of Souls
4 Wasteland
4 Rishadan Port
1 Snow-Covered Mountains
10 Mountain

4 Aether Vial
4 Goblin Lackey
4 Goblin Piledriver
4 Goblin Matron
4 Ringleader

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

2 Blood Moon
2 Pyrokinesis

Sideboard (15)
3 Pithing Needle
1 Blood Moon
3 Goblin Sharpshooter
1 Tuktuk Scrapper
1 Goblin Settler
3 Relic of Progenitus
2 Grafdigger’s Cage
1 Stingscourger

http://magiccards.info/scans/de/isd/51b.jpg
R1: Raimund with BUG Delver (1-1)
[on the draw]
G1: We both mull to 5. The game takes quite long as both of us are drawing only lands. We trade Aether Vial for Abrupt Decay, I have a Ringleader that gives me but 1 Skirk Prospector. At some point his board is Deathrite Shaman and Liliana, while I have him locked under a Blood Moon. Liliana never hits more that 4 counters as I am constantly drawing non-haste creatures that don’t give me any card advantage (so no Ringleaders, no Matron, no MWM. I am holding onto Pyrokinesis the whole time, while feeding Liliana with my lands.at some point Raimund plays a second DRS, removing one of my lands with his first one. At that point I’m blowing them both up with Pyrokinesis, and know that he is locked for good. After some more Liliana action I draw a Mogg War Marshal and Raimund concedes.

PUZZLE TIME #1: What would you board in/out and why?

G2: I don’t remember exactly how this game went, but I remember being too stubborn to concede when I actually was too far behind.

G3: Things looked pretty good for me when extra turns were announced. The game ended in a well-deserved draw.

http://magiccards.info/scans/de/bng/5.jpg
R2: Niklas (?) with Death & Taxes (2-1)
[on the play]
G1: Both of us start with Aether Vial on turn 1. Niklas has Mother of Runes and Stoneforge Mystic (Jitte) on the following turns, while I have a bunch of Goblins, including Skirk Prospector. Ultimately I collapse under Brimaz, Serra Avenger + Flicker Wisp (carrying Jitte).

-2 Blood Moon, -4 Piledriver, -1 Stingscougrer, + 3 Pithing Needle, + 3 Goblin Sharpshooter, +1 Tuktuk Scrapper

G2: I have Aether Vial and lock him down with 2 Rishadan Port (fueled by Skirk Prospector + Mog War Marshal. Niklas on the other hand has 2 Mother of Runes. I overwhelm him with…I don’t actually know exactly with what.

G3: I open with Aether Vial again, which Niklas shuts down with Pyrexian Revoker. My Lackey eats the Revoker and I am able to use my Aether Vial for half a turn, before Niklas has another Revoker + Mother of Runes. Some turns later I wipe his board woth Pyrokinesis and swing with Chieftain + a bunch of Krenko tokens for the win.

http://magiccards.info/scans/de/zen/116.jpg
R3: Very nice guy with Mono B (2-0)
[on the draw]
G1: We trade some creatures for removal spells. At some point I have a bunch of lands, draw Matron for Ringleader an Chieftain to alpha-strike him.

-2 Blood Moon, -1 Stingscourger, +2 Goblin Sharpshooter, +1 Tuktuk Scrapper

G2: I quickly overwhelm him (on turn 4 or 5).

http://magiccards.info/scans/de/avr/38.jpg
R4: Markus (?) with Miracles (2-0) (I’m really sorry, I’m bad with names)
[on the draw]
G1: The first game takes forever and my opponent casts 3 terminus in the first 5 or 6 turns. He fails to find Entreat the Angels, although he shuffles, Ponders, Predicts, spins his Top. Seriously, he must have seen 50+ cards of his deck

-2 Blood Moon, -2 Pyrokinesis, -1 Stingscourger, +3 Pithing Needle, -1 Tuktuk Scrapper, -1 Goblin Settler

G2: Just the usual Miracles vs. Goblin stuff. Also, he is short on lands.

http://magiccards.info/scans/de/6e/6.jpg
R5: Falk with bUrg Delver (aka 4c Delver) (2-0)
[on the play]
G1: I mull to 5. I don’t remember the details, but here are some situations: I resolve 2 Ringleaders; kill Delver + DRS with Pyrokinesis, fetch Mogg War Marshal with Matron to buy extra turns against Tarmogoyf. Ultimately I am at 3 life and I am waiting for his 4th and thus lethal Lightning Bolt, wihile I am in need of topdecking creatures that I can throw into Tarmogoyf. Fak himself is at 1 life at this point. The game ends when I draw a Ringleader which resolves and attack him for lethal.

-2 Blood Moon, -1 Goblin Piledriver, +3 Relic of Progenitus

G2: Falk starts with Ponder on his first turn and doesn’t have a removal spell for my attacking Lackey on turn 2. Lackey connects into Ringleader. And I cast Piledriver. At some ppint Falk pays a bunch of life to wipe my board with Fire Covenant. I kill him one or two turns later with Chieftain + Mogg War Marshal.

http://www.maplesyrup.net/assets/syrup.jpg
R6: Jona with Canadian Threshold (1-2)
[on the play]
G1: I keep my 7 with Vial and Lackey. Unfortunately Jona can handle both and I don’t draw a third land for the rest of the game. Big L here.
-2 Blood Moon, -1 Pyrokinesis, + 3 Relic of Progenitus
G2: I mull to 6 and my turn 1 Aether Vial sticks. Jona plays Winterorb, which I can disrespectfully ignore due to my mana-cheating artifact. I overwhelm him a few turns after.
G3: He opens with Winter Orb again, which turn out to be a real problem, as I don’t have any Aether Vial this time. I do have 2 Relic of Progenitus and a bunch of lands though, but ultimately Jona finishes me off with Delver of Secrets after 2 Nimble Mongeese have nibbled on my lifetotal already.

Conclusions
* it’s a little disappointing that I tuned my deck to beat Eldrazis and didn’t see a single colorless creature the whole day. Can’t say though if they were played at all and I just dodged them.
* I boarded out Blood Moon in every match – and I feel like I should have kept it in against BUG Delver.
* the deck felt awkward sometimes as I didn’t seem to draw enough business spells. This might be due to Pyrokinesis and Blood Moon, which are only conditionally useful. Also, Pyrokineis eats your business cards from time to time (you don’t always get to pitch Lackey or Moon).
* changes I am considering:
-1 Relic, +1 Cage;
moving 2 Moons to the SB, and 1 Tuktuk Scrapper to the MD, cut Goblin Settler from the SB and add something else to the MD (probably MWM #4 or Krenko #2).
Questions and comments are – as always – welcome.

[Stevestamopz]

How were the 4 ports for you?

As to the puzzle: How would you board against Bug Delver

-4 Lackey, +3 Relic + 1 Blood Moon.

[iatee]

If you're gonna maindeck Blood Moon, you might want to consider Magus of the Moon. Against matchups where it the Blood Moon effect is bad, at least it's a body. It can be killed, but they're gonna spend a lot of their early removal on your Lackeys etc. And it's very powerful with Cavern/Vial, especially against Delver decks where resolving a 3 mana spell can be hard.

[GoboLord]

How were the 4 ports for you?

As to the puzzle: How would you board against Bug Delver

-4 Lackey, +3 Relic + 1 Blood Moon.
Overall there was just 1 game where they were really good (G2 vs. D&T). That was also the only game where I chose to use Them although I could have cast creatures instead in all other games I used them only when I had some mana left that I would be able to use otherwise. There was 1 hand I mulled because Rishadan Port wasn't a Mountain, and one game where I wished it was a Pendelhaven.
The list can afford to run that many colorless sources though. As soon as splashcolor or more cards with RR in it's mana cost come in , I wouldn't feel comfortable keeping them.
About the SB plan: thanks for that. I ended up boarding Moons out in favor of relic of Progenitus. I feel like rhe stuff that takes me out is either an early delver, a Tarmogoyf that is too large to kill or a well-timed Hymn to Tourarch. I dont see how Blood Moon helps with that. Also I dont like trying to resolve a cmc3 spell when I'm behind on the board.
It might right to keep Moons in, since they might end the game right on the spot when you actually get to resolve them. Probably a question of who goes first in the game.

[GoblinTurkey]

There's a Legacy tournament in Syracuse, NY this Sunday at noon.

http://playthegamereadthestory.com/locations/

North Clinton St. Store

I'm bringing Goblins, hope to see some people there!

[sampi]

Unless your meta is infested with eldrazi I don't think main deck blood moon is needed. Especially considering we can't matron for it and it won't be hit off ringleader. Even a lot of greedy mana bases can play around it g1 with Drs etc. And if we resolve a blood moon t3 we have probably already been hit with Griselbrand by that point.



Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[GoblinTurkey]

So I have decided to get back to basics and run Mono Red Goblins. I did some testing this weekend against Eldrazi and Shardless BUG.

Decklist:
Creatures
4x Goblin Lackey
4x Goblin Warchief
4x Goblin Matron
4x Goblin Ringleader
2x Skirk Prospector
2x Goblin Piledriver
2x Mogg War Marshal
1x Goblin Chieftain
1x Goblin Settler
1x Kiki-Jiki, Mirror Breaker
1x Goblin Sharpshooter
1x Siege-Gang Commander
1x Gempalm Incinerator
1x Stingscourger
1x Tuktuk Scrapper
1x Krenko, Mob Boss

Spells
4x Aether Vial
1x Tarfire
1x Warping Wail

Lands
4x Wasteland
3x Rishadan Port
3x Cavern of Souls
2x Ancient Tomb
4x Arid Mesa
1x Pendelhaven
6x Mountain


Sideboard:
1x Pithing Needle
1x Lightning Crafter
1x Gempalm Incinerator
2x Warping Wail
2x Ensnaring Bridge
2x Pyrokinesis
3x Chalice of the Void
3x Blood Moon


I am planning on bringing this list to a tournament on Sunday. It is a GP Qualifier. Any suggestions?

[Sandro95]

http://magiccards.info/scans/de/isd/51b.jpg
R1: Raimund with BUG Delver (2-1)
[on the draw]
G1: We both mull to 5. The game takes quite long as both of us are drawing only lands. We trade Aether Vial for Abrupt Decay, I have a Ringleader that gives me but 1 Skirk Prospector. At some point his board is Deathrite Shaman and Liliana, while I have him locked under a Blood Moon. Liliana never hits more that 4 counters as I am constantly drawing non-haste creatures that don’t give me any card advantage (so no Ringleaders, no Matron, no MWM. I am holding onto Pyrokinesis the whole time, while feeding Liliana with my lands.at some point Raimund plays a second DRS, removing one of my lands with his first one. At that point I’m blowing them both up with Pyrokinesis, and know that he is locked for good. After some more Liliana action I draw a Mogg War Marshal and Raimund concedes.

PUZZLE TIME #1: What would you board in/out and why?



-4 Piledriver, +3 Relic, +1 Blood Moon probably.

I noticed you sided Blood Moon out a lot. I'd say it's pretty good against the delver decks, since they don't run any basics, and have very few red cards.

[jrw1985]

I am planning on bringing this list to a tournament on Sunday. It is a GP Qualifier. Any suggestions?

If you're running 2 Skirk + Kiki you should play Lightning Crafter too. You can cut SGC or the 23rd land for it.

[GoboLord]

-4 Piledriver, +3 Relic, +1 Blood Moon probably.

I noticed you sided Blood Moon out a lot. I'd say it's pretty good against the delver decks, since they don't run any basics, and have very few red cards.

Hmm, I still find that a little too many nnon-creature spells overall.
Imagine I had Tuktuk Scrapper and Settler in MD by default and 3 Moon in SB. Would you really bring in 6 cards (3 relic, 3 moon) for this MU?

I just realized that I originally reported the result of Round 1 as (2-1) whereas it actually was (1-1). That was Wish full thinking I guess :)

[GoblinTurkey]

If you're running 2 Skirk + Kiki you should play Lightning Crafter too. You can cut SGC or the 23rd land for it.

I run one in the sideboard. Do you think the main makes more sense?

[jrw1985]

I run one in the sideboard. Do you think the main makes more sense?

I would run it main. It's been a great G1 card for me since it beats common G1 Lock pieces (Chasm) while also being a really good card against Midrange decks (since it kills most creatures and also resets your ETB gobbos). The only thing it isn't good against is combo, but then nothing we play is good against combo so that's no reason not to maindeck it. Basically you can generally assume it will be decent against the field and bad against combo, so just maindeck it and side it out when you know it will be bad. In the words of Arrested Development, "That way you have it."

Just of the top of my head something like this seems decent...

4 Vial
4 Lackey
4 Marton
4 Warchief
4 Ringleader
2 Skirk
1 Kiki
1 Crafter
3 Pyrokinesis
2 Stingscourger
1 Tuktuk
1 Settler
3 Mogg War marshal
1 Gempalm
1 Sharpshooter
2 Krenko
22 Land

[GoboLord]

Glacial Chasm prevents any Kind of damage, so this is not a good example of a lock piece that Lightning Crafter can beat.

[jrw1985]

Glacial Chasm prevents any Kind of damage, so this is not a good example of a lock piece that Lightning Crafter can beat.
It is though because they have to let it die on their turn and recur it. That's when you kill with LC at instant speed.

[Ace/Homebrew]

It is though because they have to let it die on their turn and recur it. That's when you kill with LC at instant speed.
Unless they have Vesuva or Thespian's Stage (which they won't always have). But Wasteland deals with all of those. :wink:

[GoblinTurkey]

I went to a legacy tournament in Syracuse, NY this weekend top 8'd. Went 3-2, and then lost Shardless BUG, both with close matches.

Here's my list:

Decklist:
Creatures
4x Goblin Lackey
4x Goblin Warchief
4x Goblin Matron
4x Goblin Ringleader
2x Skirk Prospector
2x Goblin Piledriver
2x Mogg War Marshal
1x Goblin Chieftain
1x Goblin Settler
1x Kiki-Jiki, Mirror Breaker
1x Goblin Sharpshooter
1x Siege-Gang Commander
1x Gempalm Incinerator
1x Stingscourger
1x Tuktuk Scrapper
1x Krenko, Mob Boss
1x Lightning Crafter

Spells
4x Aether Vial
1x Tarfire
1x Warping Wail

Lands
4x Wasteland
3x Rishadan Port
3x Cavern of Souls
2x Ancient Tomb
4x Arid Mesa
1x Pendelhaven
5x Mountain


Sideboard:
1x Pithing Needle
1x Relic of Progenitus
1x Gempalm Incinerator
2x Warping Wail
2x Ensnaring Bridge
2x Pyrokinesis
3x Chalice of the Void
3x Blood Moon

BUG Delver 2-0
Game 1 - Got down Aether Vial turn 1. Proceeded to keep pressure on with Ports and Wasteland until he couldn't play anymore spells. Killed him with a Lightning Crafter.
Game 2 - Turn 1 Aether Vial. Second turn I played wasteland and immediately targeted his land. He stifled the trigger. Next turn, I wasted again this time successfully. Then I drew another wasteland and tarfire'd his DRS. I proceeded to keep him locked out the rest of the game and won.

Grixis Delver 0-2
Game 1 - Drew all my four drops and no lands
Game 2 - Drew all lands and no spells

Reanimator 0-2
Game 1 - He exhumes an Ashen Rider and beats me in the air. I did not draw the proper support to overwhelm the board.
Game 2 - I start strong with a Chalice on 1, and then play two or three goblins. He exhumes a Grave Titan and gets in with it.

(Note - Ensnaring Bridge might have been a good card to SB in, but I didn't think of it at the time.)

Burn 2-0 :laugh:
Game 1 - He starts with a Rift Bolt. I start with an Aether Vial. He goes turn 2 Eidolon of the Great Revel, I take 2 damage and play Mogg War Marshal. I vialed in a Lackey. He kept doming me while I was able to build a big enough board presence with double lackey and matron getting Warchief. I swing in and he takes Goblin Lackey damage which gets in a Sharpshooter and vialed in a Warchief which allowed me to kill off Eidolon. I then slammed down Skirk Prospector and won by sacrificing my board.
Game 2 - Long story short, he played Ensnaring Bridge and I won with Siege-Gang Commander throwing things over the wall to victory. He mana flooded and I was able to get a chalice on 1 which shut his game down. I also drew lots of mountains so Price of Progress didn't just kill me.

(Note: First time I have ever beat burn with this deck.)

Miracles 2-0
Game 1 - I love this matchup and the opponent has obviously not played against goblins. I end up keeping a hand with two Cavern of Souls and Aether Vial. I keep up pressure with a Vial on 4 and Tuktuk Scrapper threatening his top. I forced his terminus three times and eventually destroyed his top. I managed to corner him down to one life with many fetch lands being wasted so he had to use them. I then tarfire'd him as he could not Force of Will. Also Goblin Settler crushed dreams by blowing up his basic Plains.
Game 2 - Chalice on 1 turn two with no response. Eventually drew Cavern of Souls. It went all downhill for him from there. Clean sweep.

Top 8 - Shardless 0-2
Ended up playing my friend that I test with. They were grindy games, but he won first game with two Creeping Tar Pits. The second game I hilariously locked both of us out of the game with Ensnaring Bridge and Blood Moon. But he managed to get a Jitte and Engineered Plague. So in short I died.

Overall Goblins performed very well this weekend for me. I wish that my Grixis Delver match wasn't just a game of Go-Fish for my opponent, but it happens. I like this list, I may alter the sideboard a bit for more graveyard hate.

[Sandro95]

I went to a legacy tournament in Syracuse, NY this weekend top 8'd. Went 3-2, and then lost Shardless BUG, both with close matches.

Here's my list:

Decklist:
Creatures
4x Goblin Lackey
4x Goblin Warchief
4x Goblin Matron
4x Goblin Ringleader
2x Skirk Prospector
2x Goblin Piledriver
2x Mogg War Marshal
1x Goblin Chieftain
1x Goblin Settler
1x Kiki-Jiki, Mirror Breaker
1x Goblin Sharpshooter
1x Siege-Gang Commander
1x Gempalm Incinerator
1x Stingscourger
1x Tuktuk Scrapper
1x Krenko, Mob Boss
1x Lightning Crafter

Spells
4x Aether Vial
1x Tarfire
1x Warping Wail

Lands
4x Wasteland
3x Rishadan Port
3x Cavern of Souls
2x Ancient Tomb
4x Arid Mesa
1x Pendelhaven
5x Mountain


Sideboard:
1x Pithing Needle
1x Relic of Progenitus
1x Gempalm Incinerator
2x Warping Wail
2x Ensnaring Bridge
2x Pyrokinesis
3x Chalice of the Void
3x Blood Moon


Nice report! Sounds like you had an exciting run!
I have a couple of thoughts/questions with regards to your list, and would like to hear your thoughts on these matters as well.
* I don't think your mono red build need fetchlands, especially since you play Ancient Tomb, which puts a strain on your life total already. Not playing fetchlands also makes DRS weaker, which is otherwise pretty strong against your mana denial plan.
* Your list is quite low on removal. Since your late game is so strong already (making surviving the early turns a priority), and because Ancient Tomb makes you more vulnerable to aggressive decks, I think a couple more removals are justified. The argument of DRS being good against your mana denial plan applies here as well.

[GoblinTurkey]

* I don't think your mono red build need fetchlands, especially since you play Ancient Tomb, which puts a strain on your life total already. Not playing fetchlands also makes DRS weaker, which is otherwise pretty strong against your mana denial plan.

I find personally that fetchlands are useful. They help against the Miracles matchup and are useful to get mountains out of the deck when you're stuck. But I do agree about Ancient Tomb. I use it to enable turn 1 Chalice or turn 2 Blood Moon for the SB, but it does hurt early on. I might take one of the two out and run a 4th Cavern of Souls instead.


* Your list is quite low on removal. Since your late game is so strong already (making surviving the early turns a priority), and because Ancient Tomb makes you more vulnerable to aggressive decks, I think a couple more removals are justified. The argument of DRS being good against your mana denial plan applies here as well.

I put in Lightning Crafter as MB card for this tournament as removal. I think I may switch it back to SB and put in a MB Pyrokinesis. I have always mixed opinions on Pyrokinesis as every goblin in our deck is useful for most matchups in some shape or form. So pitching the card for it feels bad. Mana denial plan is fun, but I'm still working out the kinks.

[GoboLord]

Hello fellow Chieftains,

I played our monthly event yesterday and this is the short report.

Result: 4-1 after 5 rounds, 27 players

Changes to the decklist since my last event:
MD: -2 Blood Moon, + 2 Warping Wail (I boarded Blood Moon out every game and I still need to test Warping Wail)
SB: -1 Stingscourger, -1 Goblin Settler, -1 Relich of Progenitus, +2 Blood Moon, +1 Grafdigger’s Cage

MANA (23)
4 Cavern of Souls
4 Wasteland
4 Rishadan Port
1 Snow-Covered Mountains
10 Mountain

4 Aether Vial
4 Goblin Lackey
4 Goblin Piledriver
4 Goblin Matron
4 Ringleader

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

2 Warping Wail
2 Pyrokinesis

Sideboard (15)
3 Pithing Needle
3 Blood Moon
3 Goblin Sharpshooter
1 Tuktuk Scrapper
2 Relic of Progenitus
3 Grafdigger’s Cage

http://magiccards.info/scans/de/ogw/9.jpg
R1: Amadeus with Eldrazi (2-1)
[on the draw]

G1: Amadeus goes first with Thorn of Amethyst on T1. I drop a Mountain on my turn and pass back. My opponent plays Eye of Ugin and casts Thought-Knot Seer – I respond to the triggered ability by casting Pyrokinesis (pitching Stingscourger). He removes Goblin Piledriver, leaving me with only Aether Vial, Gempalm Incinerator and a few lands. On my turn I draw Krenko, cast Aether Vial and pass the turn. On the next turn I draw Lackey and use RIshadan Port in his upkeep. Amadeus drops Cavern of Souls and casts Endless One for X=3. At EOT I put Lackey into play with Vial. On my next turn I put Mogg War Marshal into play, cycle Gempalm Incinerator to destroy Endless One, attack with Lackey and put Krenko into play and the game is decided.
W

-2 Warping Wail, -2 Goblin Piledriver, +3 Blood Moon, +1 Tuktuk Scrapper

G2: I mull to 5 without any R manasource. Amadeus goes for Eldrazi Mimic on T1 and Reality Smasher on turn 3.
L

G3: In game 3 I lock him out with Rishadan Ports and Wasteland. Blood Moon was useless in this game as he had 5 Basic Wastes on the table. At some point I cast Ringleader, Piledriver and something else and let him have his 5 mana for the next turn. He uses this opportunity to cast Walker of the Wastes. Unfortunately Walker of the wastes dies to an attacking Piledriver + Gempalm Incinerator. The game is over on the next turn.
W

http://magiccards.info/scans/de/bfz/120.jpg
R2: Falk with bUrg Delver (aka 4c Delver) (2-1)
[on the draw]

G1: The first game is a real grindfest, where we deplete each other’s resources. It comes to a point where bioth of us are in topdeck mode, but Falk has Gurmag Angler attacking into chumpblockers. I lose the game when Falk resolves Painful Truths.
L

-2 Warping Wail, +2 Relic of Progenitus

G2: I open with Lackey, Falk plays Deathrite Shaman. I cast Relic of Progenitus on my turn 2 which he seems to dislike a lot. On my turn 3 I cast Chieftain, attack with both and connect into Ringleader. The game ends shortly thereafter.
W

G3: Falk Thoughtseizes me on T1 and discards Piledriver, seeing 2 Lackeys and Mogg War Marshal. Multiple Mogg War Marshals take over the game.
W

http://magiccards.info/scans/en/ia/367.jpg
R3:André with bUrg Delver (aka 4c Delver) (2-0)
[on the play]

G1: I take one hit from his 4/5 Goyf before I can hide behide my Mogg War Marshals. At some point I cast Pyrokinesis for 3 damage on Goyf and 1 damage on Delver of Secrets, then cycle Gempalm Incinerator for 2 damage. From that point onwards it goes downhill for André.
W

-2 Warping Wail, +2 Relic of Progenitus

G2: The next game is a close one. I build up a boardposition with 2 Mogg War Marshal, but instead of chumping, I use the openings that his Goyf gives me to attack him. I am at 10 life when André casts Fire Covenant for 6 life. At this point I still hold a Ringleader in hand, so I can quickly recover – stall the board and eventually overwhelm him.
W

http://magiccards.info/scans/de/avr/38.jpg
R4:Tobias with Miracles (0-2)
[on the play]

G1: Before the game starts I tell him that it’s about time for my loss against Miracles, just to keep the statistic just below the 90% winrate. I go first with Caverns, Lackey go (keeping Krenko, Vial and Gempalm and 2 lands in hand). On turn 2 Lackey connects into Krenko, I cast Vial and pass the turn. For the rest of the game I draw Chieftain and other than that only spells and lands. Entreat the Angels for 4 tokens was enough to beat that. During the game I tried to counter his Terminus with Warping Wail, but that just re-activated the otherwise dead Force of Will in his hand.
L

-2 Warping Wail, -2 Pyrokinesis, +1 Tuktuk Scrapper, +3 Pithing Needle

G2: We play the usual Goblin-vs.-Miracles game. At the relevant turn and @1 Life he finds Moat. At this point I have 3 Vials in play (@2,3 and 4 counter respectively) and a Matron in hand. I am about to concede, but instead I put Matron into play to search my library for a card that could still win me the game. I found Tuktuk Scrapper, but Tobias didn’t have an artifact in play, so instead I revealed another Matron and passed the turn. Now all I needed was an artifact that I could actually destroy. My opponent seemed to help me with my plan by casting Pithing Needle (naming Rishadan Port). At EOT I tapped Vial for Matron into Tuktuk Scrapper, then put Tuktuk Scrapper into play with Vial. Tobias responded by destroying his own Pithing Needle with Wear//Tear.
L

http://magiccards.info/scans/de/pc/114a.jpg
R5: Jona with Canadian Threshold (2-1)
[on the play]

G1: I don’t remember much from this game. I do remember though that Aether Vial sticks on turn 1 and MWM + Gempalm Incinerator take care of his Insectile Abberation. After that I don’t take any damage for the rest of the game, which speaks for the defensive potential of MWM.
W

-2 Warping Wail, +2 Relic of Progenitus

G2: I keep a hand with Lackey, Piledriver, Gempalm Incinerator and 4 lands. I draw another Piledriver and only lands for the rest of the game.
L

G3: The last game was quite intense. My turn 1 Vial sticks and my manadenial does some work. At some point Jona has 2 Nimble Mongoose, 2 Lands (Tropical Island + Volcanic, 6 cards un graveyard and is tapped out. I have 4 creatures in play (Ringleader, Lackey, Mogg War Marshal and a Goblin token) as well as 2 Mountains, 1 Wastelands and 1 Aether Vial (@4). 1 hold Skirk Prospector and Chieftain in my hand.

PUZZLE TIME: What would you do here?
W

Conclusions
* the best card on that day was Mogg War Marshal. The card is awesome against Delver decks. The biggest threat in their deck is whatever large creature they are playing (Tarmogoyf or Gurmag Angler) because we can’t trade 1:1 with these creatures so easily. Delver and Deathrite Shamen (and to some extent Nimble Mongoose) will draw your removal or die to blockers. Our best bet against these large creatures is thus buying time whith chumpblocks until we have gathered the resources we need to beat them (mana, mana, mana and creatures). MWM is a timewalk in the ace of Tarmogoyf and Angler, while its low manacosts make him castable even if your opponent attacks your manabase. In addition to that it activates Gempalm Incinerator really well, when you need to have 2 goblins on board (even taking their removal spells into account) to kill Insectile Aberration and DRS.
* second best card of the day was Goblin Chieftain. There were mor situation than I can clearly remember where it’s +/+ ability made the difference (Round 3, G2 is just one – pretty classic – example why I like him so much).
* just as last time, I got the feeling that the list had some pretty weak draws and was lacking gas. Maybe additional bombs, like Krenko, SGC or Kiki-Jiki can fix this.
* Rishadan Ports finally pulled weight by destroying Eldrazis basically on their own (this MU is exactly the reason why I am playing them in the first place). On the other hand, there were multiple situations where it’s drawback of not being a red manasource was relevant. I guess, as long as Eldrazi is around I need to stick to them. I will try to balance the number though – maybe 2 or 3 copies are enough.
* Warping Wail wasn’t performing well. Whenever I drew it it was either countered or it was irrelevant. Also I boarded it out in every game, and the only MU where I can imagine to not board it out is Infect. That’s too weak for a MD card.
* I am planning to make the following changes to the decklist:
MD: -2 Warping Wail, +1 MWM, +1 ??? (probably Tuktuk Scrapper) / -1 or 2 Rishadan Port +1 or 2 Mountain
SB: -1 ??? (probably Tuktuk Scrapper, +1 ???

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

[owerbart]

Hello fellow Chieftains,

I played our monthly event yesterday and this is the short report.

Result: 4-1 after 5 rounds, 27 players

Changes to the decklist since my last event:
MD: -2 Blood Moon, + 2 Warping Wail (I boarded Blood Moon out every game and I still need to test Warping Wail)
SB: -1 Stingscourger, -1 Goblin Settler, -1 Relich of Progenitus, +2 Blood Moon, +1 Grafdigger’s Cage

MANA (23)
4 Cavern of Souls
4 Wasteland
4 Rishadan Port
1 Snow-Covered Mountains
10 Mountain

4 Aether Vial
4 Goblin Lackey
4 Goblin Piledriver
4 Goblin Matron
4 Ringleader

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

2 Warping Wail
2 Pyrokinesis

Sideboard (15)
3 Pithing Needle
3 Blood Moon
3 Goblin Sharpshooter
1 Tuktuk Scrapper
2 Relic of Progenitus
3 Grafdigger’s Cage

http://magiccards.info/scans/de/ogw/9.jpg
R1: Amadeus with Eldrazi (2-1)
[on the draw]

G1: Amadeus goes first with Thorn of Amethyst on T1. I drop a Mountain on my turn and pass back. My opponent plays Eye of Ugin and casts Thought-Knot Seer – I respond to the triggered ability by casting Pyrokinesis (pitching Stingscourger). He removes Goblin Piledriver, leaving me with only Aether Vial, Gempalm Incinerator and a few lands. On my turn I draw Krenko, cast Aether Vial and pass the turn. On the next turn I draw Lackey and use RIshadan Port in his upkeep. Amadeus drops Cavern of Souls and casts Endless One for X=3. At EOT I put Lackey into play with Vial. On my next turn I put Mogg War Marshal into play, cycle Gempalm Incinerator to destroy Endless One, attack with Lackey and put Krenko into play and the game is decided.
W

-2 Warping Wail, -2 Goblin Piledriver, +3 Blood Moon, +1 Tuktuk Scrapper

G2: I mull to 5 without any R manasource. Amadeus goes for Eldrazi Mimic on T1 and Reality Smasher on turn 3.
L

G3: In game 3 I lock him out with Rishadan Ports and Wasteland. Blood Moon was useless in this game as he had 5 Basic Wastes on the table. At some point I cast Ringleader, Piledriver and something else and let him have his 5 mana for the next turn. He uses this opportunity to cast Walker of the Wastes. Unfortunately Walker of the wastes dies to an attacking Piledriver + Gempalm Incinerator. The game is over on the next turn.
W

http://magiccards.info/scans/de/bfz/120.jpg
R2: Falk with bUrg Delver (aka 4c Delver) (2-1)
[on the draw]

G1: The first game is a real grindfest, where we deplete each other’s resources. It comes to a point where bioth of us are in topdeck mode, but Falk has Gurmag Angler attacking into chumpblockers. I lose the game when Falk resolves Painful Truths.
L

-2 Warping Wail, +2 Relic of Progenitus

G2: I open with Lackey, Falk plays Deathrite Shaman. I cast Relic of Progenitus on my turn 2 which he seems to dislike a lot. On my turn 3 I cast Chieftain, attack with both and connect into Ringleader. The game ends shortly thereafter.
W

G3: Falk Thoughtseizes me on T1 and discards Piledriver, seeing 2 Lackeys and Mogg War Marshal. Multiple Mogg War Marshals take over the game.
W

http://magiccards.info/scans/en/ia/367.jpg
R3:André with bUrg Delver (aka 4c Delver) (2-0)
[on the play]

G1: I take one hit from his 4/5 Goyf before I can hide behide my Mogg War Marshals. At some point I cast Pyrokinesis for 3 damage on Goyf and 1 damage on Delver of Secrets, then cycle Gempalm Incinerator for 2 damage. From that point onwards it goes downhill for André.
W

-2 Warping Wail, +2 Relic of Progenitus

G2: The next game is a close one. I build up a boardposition with 2 Mogg War Marshal, but instead of chumping, I use the openings that his Goyf gives me to attack him. I am at 10 life when André casts Fire Covenant for 6 life. At this point I still hold a Ringleader in hand, so I can quickly recover – stall the board and eventually overwhelm him.
W

http://magiccards.info/scans/de/avr/38.jpg
R4:Tobias with Miracles (0-2)
[on the play]

G1: Before the game starts I tell him that it’s about time for my loss against Miracles, just to keep the statistic just below the 90% winrate. I go first with Caverns, Lackey go (keeping Krenko, Vial and Gempalm and 2 lands in hand). On turn 2 Lackey connects into Krenko, I cast Vial and pass the turn. For the rest of the game I draw Chieftain and other than that only spells and lands. Entreat the Angels for 4 tokens was enough to beat that. During the game I tried to counter his Terminus with Warping Wail, but that just re-activated the otherwise dead Force of Will in his hand.
L

-2 Warping Wail, -2 Pyrokinesis, +1 Tuktuk Scrapper, +3 Pithing Needle

G2: We play the usual Goblin-vs.-Miracles game. At the relevant turn and @1 Life he finds Moat. At this point I have 3 Vials in play (@2,3 and 4 counter respectively) and a Matron in hand. I am about to concede, but instead I put Matron into play to search my library for a card that could still win me the game. I found Tuktuk Scrapper, but Tobias didn’t have an artifact in play, so instead I revealed another Matron and passed the turn. Now all I needed was an artifact that I could actually destroy. My opponent seemed to help me with my plan by casting Pithing Needle (naming Rishadan Port). At EOT I tapped Vial for Matron into Tuktuk Scrapper, then put Tuktuk Scrapper into play with Vial. Tobias responded by destroying his own Pithing Needle with Wear//Tear.
L

http://magiccards.info/scans/de/pc/114a.jpg
R5: Jona with Canadian Threshold (2-1)
[on the play]

G1: I don’t remember much from this game. I do remember though that Aether Vial sticks on turn 1 and MWM + Gempalm Incinerator take care of his Insectile Abberation. After that I don’t take any damage for the rest of the game, which speaks for the defensive potential of MWM.
W

-2 Warping Wail, +2 Relic of Progenitus

G2: I keep a hand with Lackey, Piledriver, Gempalm Incinerator and 4 lands. I draw another Piledriver and only lands for the rest of the game.
L

G3: The last game was quite intense. My turn 1 Vial sticks and my manadenial does some work. At some point Jona has 2 Nimble Mongoose, 2 Lands (Tropical Island + Volcanic) and is tapped out. I have 4 creatures in play (Ringleader, Lackey, Mogg War Marshal and a Goblin token) as well as 2 Mountains, 1 Wastelands and 1 Aether Vial (@4).
PUZZLE TIME: What would you do here?
W

Conclusions
* the best card on that day was Mogg War Marshal. The card is awesome against Delver decks. The biggest threat in their deck is whatever large creature they are playing (Tarmogoyf or Gurmag Angler) because we can’t trade 1:1 with these creatures so easily. Delver and Deathrite Shamen (and to some extent Nimble Mongoose) will draw your removal or die to blockers. Our best bet against these large creatures is thus buying time whith chumpblocks until we have gathered the resources we need to beat them (mana, mana, mana and creatures). MWM is a timewalk in the ace of Tarmogoyf and Angler, while its low manacosts make him castable even if your opponent attacks your manabase. In addition to that it activates Gempalm Incinerator really well, when you need to have 2 goblins on board (even taking their removal spells into account) to kill Insectile Aberration and DRS.
* second best card of the day was Goblin Chieftain. There were mor situation than I can clearly remember where it’s +/+ ability made the difference (Round 3, G2 is just one – pretty classic – example why I like him so much).
* just as last time, I got the feeling that the list had some pretty weak draws and was lacking gas. Maybe additional bombs, like Krenko, SGC or Kiki-Jiki can fix this.
* Rishadan Ports finally pulled weight by destroying Eldrazis basically on their own (this MU is exactly the reason why I am playing them in the first place). On the other hand, there were multiple situations where it’s drawback of not being a red manasource was relevant. I guess, as long as Eldrazi is around I need to stick to them. I will try to balance the number though – maybe 2 or 3 copies are enough.
* Warping Wail wasn’t performing well. Whenever I drew it it was either countered or it was irrelevant. Also I boarded it out in every game, and the only MU where I can imagine to not board it out is Infect. That’s too weak for a MD card.
* I am planning to make the following changes to the decklist:
MD: -2 Warping Wail, +1 MWM, +1 ??? (probably Tuktuk Scrapper) / -1 or 2 Rishadan Port +1 or 2 Mountain
SB: -1 ??? (probably Tuktuk Scrapper, +1 ???

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

So happy to see you going for the Ports :)

I didn't like Moon a lot vs Eldrazi either because it's too slow for their explosive starts. Do you think having more Krenkos could be a better idea?

I think Warping Wail has to be a Meta call.

Congrats on your finish!!!

[GoboLord]

Hey guys,

Yesterday I tested the Infect MU with my latest list (which Features Ports). OlafForkbeard and MattPruner gave me the impression that the MU would be better than I thought it was , given that Im running Ports and more than 5 removal spells.
Unfortunately, my testing results were slightly more negative than those I had with my Winstigator list - meaning that Im losing more games than I'm winning.
Now, thinking about some situations that came up during testing, I was was wondering if I played them right. Would you like to give me your input on how to manage the following scenarios?

Scenario 1:
My opponent keeps his 7 and goes first with tropical island + Glisterner Elf. On my turn 1 I open with Caverns + lackey. I have the following cards in hand when I pass the turn: Aether Vial, Goblin Lackey, Goblin Piledriver, Gempalm Incinerator (drawn this turn), Wasteland, Mountain. On his turn my opponent drops a fetchland and attacks.
What would you do?

Scenario 2:
I go first with Mountain + Goblin Lackey. On his turn 1 my opponent cracks a fetchland for Tropical Island, plays Noble hierarch and passes. On my turn 2 I draw a card and my hand looks like this: Goblin Piledriver, Mogg War Marshal, Goblin Matron, Pyrokinesis, Mountain, Rishadan Port. I attack with Lackey , he Blocks with Hierarch and plays Invigorate.
What would you do?

Scenario 3:
My Situation: Vial @2 and 1 Rishadan port in play as my only Land. Mogg War Marshal, Piledriver, Chieftain and Pyrokinesis in hand. No creatures in the board.
It's my opponents turn and he has noble hierarch, pendelhaven, tropical island d and inkmoth nexus in play + 4 cards in hand. He activates nexus out of tropical, pumps it with Pendelhaven and attacks. I have no infect counters before his attack.
What would you do?

[ScatmanX]

This is interesting.
Scenario 1: I would not block and hope not to die. If he plays a blocker you can gempalm it t2 then drop piledriver as a blocker for his 2nd attack. If he doesn't, I'd try to kill the elf my t2.

Scenario 2: kinesis noble in response pitching mwm. Drop matron from the trigger getting a gempalm. Port him his t2.

Scenario 3: I'd take 3 infect. Kinesis only in response to pump removing mwm. Hit for 6 next turn and hope to race.

Those are not easy situations, and you could probably win or lose just depending on what he has on hand.

[Olaf Forkbeard]

Scenario 1:
I'd take it. Playing scared, read: over conservative, does not lead to victory. You can't meaningfully interact if you lose the lackey if only because it's serving as Goblin Count.

Scenario 2:
I'd Pyrokinesis it. exiling Goblin Piledriver. This game plan enables you're Rishadan Port to be effective later and leaves Mogg War Marshal for Glistener Elves. That's 2/3 threats covered, with Matron backup. Play control in this match-up. They are far better at racing.

Scenario 3:
I'd take it. If he moves to kill you respond by exiling Piledriver for the same reason's as mentioned above. Otherwise kill it during one of your main phase's. This way you can comeback with a vengeance with Token's / Chieftain OR fall back on Port / chump plan.

Scenario 2 was the hardest one for me to come to a conclusion as to what to do. I think it's not that far away in EV to block, forcing them to use a pump spell, so your kill spells are better later.

[jrw1985]

Hey guys,

Yesterday I tested the Infect MU with my latest list (which Features Ports). OlafForkbeard and MattPruner gave me the impression that the MU would be better than I thought it was , given that Im running Ports and more than 5 removal spells.
Unfortunately, my testing results were slightly more negative than those I had with my Winstigator list - meaning that Im losing more games than I'm winning.
Now, thinking about some situations that came up during testing, I was was wondering if I played them right. Would you like to give me your input on how to manage the following scenarios?

Scenario 1:
My opponent keeps his 7 and goes first with tropical island + Glisterner Elf. On my turn 1 I open with Caverns + lackey. I have the following cards in hand when I pass the turn: Aether Vial, Goblin Lackey, Goblin Piledriver, Gempalm Incinerator (drawn this turn), Wasteland, Mountain. On his turn my opponent drops a fetchland and attacks.
What would you do?

Scenario 2:
I go first with Mountain + Goblin Lackey. On his turn 1 my opponent cracks a fetchland for Tropical Island, plays Noble hierarch and passes. On my turn 2 I draw a card and my hand looks like this: Goblin Piledriver, Mogg War Marshal, Goblin Matron, Pyrokinesis, Mountain, Rishadan Port. I attack with Lackey , he Blocks with Hierarch and plays Invigorate.
What would you do?

Scenario 3:
My Situation: Vial @2 and 1 Rishadan port in play as my only Land. Mogg War Marshal, Piledriver, Chieftain and Pyrokinesis in hand. No creatures in the board.
It's my opponents turn and he has noble hierarch, pendelhaven, tropical island d and inkmoth nexus in play + 4 cards in hand. He activates nexus out of tropical, pumps it with Pendelhaven and attacks. I have no infect counters before his attack.
What would you do?

Scenario 1: If he's attacking he has pump spells OR he has another creature to play so he can still block/attack next turn. So you HAVE to block and get a 1:1 trade, even if it's just Lackey:Pump Spell. You can play Lackey+ Vial next turn anyway.

Scenario 2: Let Lackey die. Play a Piledriver T2, save Pyro and try to clear his board EOT2.

Scenario 3: Eat the attack. He's probably not killing you this turn, but if he tries to you can Pyro at that point since Inkmoth is 3/4. Basically, if you're dead this turn it doesn't matter what you do. If you waste your Pyro this turn and he just pumps in response you take the damage and don't kill the Nexus, so just wait a turn, let Port get online (if you draw a land) and save Pyro as your last line of defense. Put a clock on in the meanwhile.

[MattPruner]

Scenario 1:
My opponent keeps his 7 and goes first with tropical island + Glisterner Elf. On my turn 1 I open with Caverns + lackey. I have the following cards in hand when I pass the turn: Aether Vial, Goblin Lackey, Goblin Piledriver, Gempalm Incinerator (drawn this turn), Wasteland, Mountain. On his turn my opponent drops a fetchland and attacks.
What would you do?
I think i definitely block. If there is a trade, i am ok with that. if he uses a pump spell to save his guy, i am still ok with that. i would rather have him use the spells now than use them to get more poison in on me. it is extremely unlikely that he can kill thru a blocker on turn 2 (and if he does, whatever. sometimes that's just how infect rolls, and there is nothing that can be done by us). not blocking has the big plus of us being able to attack and connect with lackey the next turn and have an active gempalm, but i think in this matchup just sitting back and not taking risks is usually fine. and there is no guarantee that lackey will hit next turn, he could follow up with a second creature, and even with gempalm there is no guarantee that it will be able to make it thru.
if he does a defensive pump, you are left with no creature and he has an elf, that's fine, you have lots of ways to stall this creature from killing you. piledriver even beats the elf in combat forcing him to either have a berserk kill or use another pump spell to stay alive. I don't worry about racing with aggressive starts and lackey hits in this matchup at all. they are faster and always will be. I prefer sitting back and waiting it out, not dying. assembling a kill later is usually quite doable.


Scenario 2:
I go first with Mountain + Goblin Lackey. On his turn 1 my opponent cracks a fetchland for Tropical Island, plays Noble hierarch and passes. On my turn 2 I draw a card and my hand looks like this: Goblin Piledriver, Mogg War Marshal, Goblin Matron, Pyrokinesis, Mountain, Rishadan Port. I attack with Lackey , he Blocks with Hierarch and plays Invigorate.
What would you do?
Let lackey die. i am always glad when they use pump spells defensively like this because it means they are not killing me with them. i would rather use pyrokinesis on a creature that actually kills me, and hierarch is almost never that creature. Next turn play out MWM, with pyrokinesis pitching lackey ready to go. Its possible he needed the mana from hierarch, but more likely he wanted 1 for 1 lackey/invigorate. and if he does miss his next land drop or stumble somehow, you have port to hold him down and a field of hierarch vs 2 goblin tokens (+whatever he does next turn, but you also have pyrokinesis) which is def. an ok situation to be in.


Scenario 3:
My Situation: Vial @2 and 1 Rishadan port in play as my only Land. Mogg War Marshal, Piledriver, Chieftain and Pyrokinesis in hand. No creatures in the board.
It's my opponents turn and he has noble hierarch, pendelhaven, tropical island d and inkmoth nexus in play + 4 cards in hand. He activates nexus out of tropical, pumps it with Pendelhaven and attacks. I have no infect counters before his attack.
What would you do?
I take the three. Then EOT i would pyrokinesis. i cast my kill spells after damage a LOT in this matchup, and only shoot them off beforehand if i will die or have a very high poison count. he then he has to use a pump spell to keep it alive, and if he doesnt have one, thats even better. if you kill things while they attack you a pump spell (or a vines of vastwood vs something that directly kills) is such a blowout, and is a great window for them to get in even more poison. end of turn at least if they can save it you don't die.


hopefully that made sense. i'm tired and rambling.

[jonesypunk]

I think i definitely block. If there is a trade, i am ok with that. if he uses a pump spell to save his guy, i am still ok with that. i would rather have him use the spells now than use them to get more poison in on me. it is extremely unlikely that he can kill thru a blocker on turn 2 (and if he does, whatever. sometimes that's just how infect rolls, and there is nothing that can be done by us). not blocking has the big plus of us being able to attack and connect with lackey the next turn and have an active gempalm, but i think in this matchup just sitting back and not taking risks is usually fine. and there is no guarantee that lackey will hit next turn, he could follow up with a second creature, and even with gempalm there is no guarantee that it will be able to make it thru.
if he does a defensive pump, you are left with no creature and he has an elf, that's fine, you have lots of ways to stall this creature from killing you. piledriver even beats the elf in combat forcing him to either have a berserk kill or use another pump spell to stay alive. I don't worry about racing with aggressive starts and lackey hits in this matchup at all. they are faster and always will be. I prefer sitting back and waiting it out, not dying. assembling a kill later is usually quite doable.

Let lackey die. i am always glad when they use pump spells defensively like this because it means they are not killing me with them. i would rather use pyrokinesis on a creature that actually kills me, and hierarch is almost never that creature. Next turn play out MWM, with pyrokinesis pitching lackey ready to go. Its possible he needed the mana from hierarch, but more likely he wanted 1 for 1 lackey/invigorate. and if he does miss his next land drop or stumble somehow, you have port to hold him down and a field of hierarch vs 2 goblin tokens (+whatever he does next turn, but you also have pyrokinesis) which is def. an ok situation to be in.

I take the three. Then EOT i would pyrokinesis. i cast my kill spells after damage a LOT in this matchup, and only shoot them off beforehand if i will die or have a very high poison count. he then he has to use a pump spell to keep it alive, and if he doesnt have one, thats even better. if you kill things while they attack you a pump spell (or a vines of vastwood vs something that directly kills) is such a blowout, and is a great window for them to get in even more poison. end of turn at least if they can save it you don't die.


hopefully that made sense. i'm tired and rambling.

I totally agree, i would do the same choices as you did.

[jonesypunk]

Hello guys.

I've been away for a very long time (too long, unfortunately). I had to stop playing Goblins, the small group that i usually play, prepared all their decks to beat me and my friend that plays burn (that's the problem, of small tournaments, and have a TEAM of 6 players in it). So to beat that, i had to start playing Rogue decks to Win games and have fun, and left my Goblins on the shelf, to play Zombardment ( Very fun deck :laugh: ), High Tide (Spiral Tide and Reset Tide), Zombie Loam Token deck (not that Good for a deck, but did the job), and now playing MILL (Terrible deck, but definitely EXCELLENT to see their faces when they lose :laugh: and performing really well, after 4 weeks still go on top 4 of 8/12 players).
But now, in the next month there will be a big legacy tournament, and of course i'll play GOBLINS, since i won't have the problem of they knowing what i'm playing!

I'm preparing the deck, and after seeing the last good results of Goblins, i'm thinking in playing with this:

30 Creatures
4 Goblin Lackey
1 Skirk Prospector
3 Goblin Piledriver
1 Grenzo, Dungeon Warden
1 Stingscourger
4 Goblin Matron
1 Gempalm Incinerator
4 Goblin Warchief
2 Goblin Chieftain
1 Goblin Sharpshooter
1 Tuktuk Scrapper
4 Goblin Ringleador
2 Krenko, Mob Boss
1 Earwig Squad

7 Non-Creature
2 Tarfire
1 Warping Wail
4 Aether Vial

23 Lands
4 Cavern of Souls
4 Rishadan Port
4 Wasteland
1 Badland
1 Taiga
3 Wooded Foothills
2 Bloodstained Mire
4 Mountain

15 Sideboard
2 Chalice of the Void
2 Relic of Progenitus
1 Grafdiggers Cage
2 Pyrokinesis
2 Blood Moon
2 Mindbreak Trap
1 Tin Street Hooligan
1 Boartusk Liege
1 Ancient Grudge
1 Pyroblast
1 Thorn of Amethyst

What do you guys think?
I was thinking of placing 2 Mogg War Marshall main, but despite them being very good against ex. Goyf decks, since i'm planning of playing with 2 Krenko, maybe i'll leave them out.
Also, i'm not sure if i'll play with 4 or 3 Ports, because i have only 3.
I think that the deck is okay, but what do you think? and about sideboard? and what changes would you make?
I don't have a clue of what to expect, but i'm guessing: Miracles, Eldrazi, Ant, Elfs, Delver Decks (Bug, UR, ... every type of them), Burn, Infect and Lands, since these are the most common decks that i've been knowing of latest events near me.

Also, one of my biggest problems is sideboarding, i usually make a lot of poor choices when sideboarding. Could you give me hints of what to take out and place in against the match ups i'm expecting.

Thankx

[jrw1985]

DTB still needs to be updated for April, but here's what the meta looked like in March. What do you all think are the best cards for dealing with these top tier decks?

Miracle Control
Chalice of the Void does a better job of shutting down Miracles than any other card. Of course Earwig Squad is a house here too.

Eldrazi
My playtesting shows that you basically need to drag them into deep water. MWM is great here and Krenko just shuts them down.

Grixis Tempo/Delver (TCDecks: Grixis Pyromancer)
Again, Chalice is a bomb. Sharpshooter does work here too.

Ad Nauseam Tendrils
Chalice

U/G Infect (TCDecks: Berserk Stompy)
Chalice, Sharpshooter, removal

Shardless BUG (TCDecks: BUG Control)
Krenko

Elves!
Chalice, Pyrokinesis, Sharpshooter

Team America
Oh... Chalice?

So basically Chalice is great against everything and we should probably up the count. Maybe maindeck Chalice?

[GoblinTurkey]

DTB still needs to be updated for April, but here's what the meta looked like in March. What do you all think are the best cards for dealing with these top tier decks?

Miracle Control
Chalice of the Void does a better job of shutting down Miracles than any other card. Of course Earwig Squad is a house here too.

Eldrazi
My playtesting shows that you basically need to drag them into deep water. MWM is great here and Krenko just shuts them down.

Grixis Tempo/Delver (TCDecks: Grixis Pyromancer)
Again, Chalice is a bomb. Sharpshooter does work here too.

Ad Nauseam Tendrils
Chalice

U/G Infect (TCDecks: Berserk Stompy)
Chalice, Sharpshooter, removal

Shardless BUG (TCDecks: BUG Control)
Krenko

Elves!
Chalice, Pyrokinesis, Sharpshooter

Team America
Oh... Chalice?

So basically Chalice is great against everything and we should probably up the count. Maybe maindeck Chalice?

I've done builds with MB Chalice. It was really cool, but it does require Ancient Tomb, Lotus Petal, enablers to get it out turn 1. Also you want to run all 4 Cavern of Souls. I'm messing with my list a bit.

I'll post my list again soon after some testing.

[Olaf Forkbeard]

Pre-Tournament Match-up Analysis - 4/18/2016

SCG States IL (Legacy)

Before I go to every event that I wish to win I make a chart with match-up percentages, notes, and sideboard options for my build of the deck. I figured that instead of keeping this information to myself, perhaps you guys could use it.

My testing was done pretty much exclusively on this classic list:

Mainboard
4x Wasteland
4x Rishadan Port
4x Cavern of Souls
3x Wooded Foothills
3x Bloodstained Mire
3x Mountain
1x Taiga
1x Plateau

4x AEther Vial
4x Goblin Lackey
1x Skirk Prospector
4x Goblin Piledriver
3x Mogg War Marshal
1x Tin Street Hooligan
4x Goblin Matron
4x Goblin Warchief
4x Goblin Ringleader
1x Siege-Gang Commander

2x Tarfire
3x Gempalm Incinerator
1x Stingscourger
1x Goblin Sharpshooter

Sideboard
3x Pyrokinesis
3x Relic of Progenitus
3x Thalia, Guardian of Thraben
2x Containment Priest (C14)
2x Mindbreak Trap
1x Stingscourger
1x Tin Street Hooligan

The match-up's I tested were ones where I did not feel like my view of the match-up's had a discrepancy with this threads opening post, or ones where I felt I needed practice. All other data is previous experience with the format (I've been on Goblins for 4 years now).

I used Positives (+), Negatives (-), and Equal To (=) to represent my feelings towards a card or Match-up. A Question Mark (?) means little to no experience in the situation with a Slash (/) being null data. "Source" is the top post's opinion on the match-up if available, and "Self" is my opinion on the match-up. All decks below 2% were excluded from this list.

Match-up Analysis Overview


Deck
%
Source
Self
Pyrokinesis
Stingscourger
Tin Street Hooligan


Miracles
12
+
+
=
-
-


Eldrazi Aggro
11
+
+
+
+
+


Grixis Delver
7
+
+
+
-
-


Shardless BUG
6
=
-
+
=
+


BUG Delver
4
=
=
+
+
-


Show and Tell
4
+
-
-
=
-


Storm
4
/
-
-
-
+


Death and Taxes
3
+
+
+
-
+


Infect
3
=
+
+
=
-


Burn
3
/
-
+
=
=


Stoneblade
3
/
-
+
-
+


Lands
3
=
-
-
+
+


Reanimator
3
-
+
-
+
-


Elves
3
-
=
+
=
-


Bant
2
/
?
+
-
+


UR Delver
2
/
+
+
=
-


Merfolk
2
/
+
+
-
+


RUG Delver
2
/
+
+
=
-


Aggro Loam
2
/
?
=
+
+


Imperial Painter
2
/
?
+
-
+


Dredge
2
/
+
+
+
-


Percentage data found from www.mtgtop8.com on 4/18/2016 for Legacy, 2 Months

Note on Shardless BUG and BUG Delver numbers - MTGTop 8 didn't differentiate between Shardless and BUG Delver. I manually counted last 2 months of data for versions with Delver compared to versions without delver.
Total count of Bug Aggro / Midrange: 78
Count of decks without Delver: 48 (48/78*10% of meta) 6%
Count of decks with Delver: 30 (30/78*10% of meta) 4%

Conclusions

I'm, for the first time since 2012 happy about the deck's position in the meta again. We have positive match-ups against the top decks in the format, and spell based combo is at an all time low!

Pyrokinesis is very, very good right now. I'm going to move 2 to my main deck. That should up my percentages against Shardless BUG and BUG Delver and leave two open slots to deal with Show & Tell, and Storm.

I really like having access to 2 Tarfire and 2 Gempalm Incinerator and consider them core to the deck. I can move 1 Gempalm Incinerator out and 1 other card. Since Mogg War Marshal is good in the top match-up's that worry me and I'm not willing to not have a game 1 answer to Umezawa's Jitte in Tin Street Hooligan); I will probably be cutting Goblin Piledriver as the other card.

Mainboard
-1x Goblin Piledriver
-1x Gempalm Incinerator
+2x Pyrokinesis

These changes I'm not worried about, and just seem correct. I'll miss Goblin Piledriver against miracles, but that is our best match-up.

The sideboard has a couple of options. I can add 2 Chalice of the Void / Thorn of Amethyst or I can be narrow and hate on what I don't want to lose to specifically. Mindbreak Trap for spell based combo, and Stingscourger / Confusion in the Ranks for Show & Tell.

Sideboard
-2x Pyrokinesis
+2x Chalice of the Void

or

Sideboard
-2x Pyrokinesis
+1x Stingscourger / Containment Priest
+1x Mindbreak Trap

I actually like both of these routes a lot. The advantages to Chalice of the Void is theoretically shutting down several options your opponent's have all at once, but it comes down side of being able to be played around, at least comparatively to the other options which are sudden impact type of responses. I value the surprise effect very highly, as it often lets them make a sub-optimal decision because they don't have perfect information. I will do further testing in the coming week.


Thanks for reading, feedback is welcome.

[GoboLord]

Pre-Tournament Match-up Analysis - 4/18/2016

SCG States IL (Legacy)

Before I go to every event that I wish to win I make a chart with match-up percentages, notes, and sideboard options for my build of the deck. I figured that instead of keeping this information to myself, perhaps you guys could use it.

My testing was done pretty much exclusively on this classic list:

Mainboard
4x Wasteland
4x Rishadan Port
4x Cavern of Souls
3x Wooded Foothills
3x Bloodstained Mire
3x Mountain
1x Taiga
1x Plateau

4x AEther Vial
4x Goblin Lackey
1x Skirk Prospector
4x Goblin Piledriver
3x Mogg War Marshal
1x Tin Street Hooligan
4x Goblin Matron
4x Goblin Warchief
4x Goblin Ringleader
1x Siege-Gang Commander

2x Tarfire
3x Gempalm Incinerator
1x Stingscourger
1x Goblin Sharpshooter

Sideboard
3x Pyrokinesis
3x Relic of Progenitus
3x Thalia, Guardian of Thraben
2x Containment Priest (C14)
2x Mindbreak Trap
1x Stingscourger
1x Tin Street Hooligan

The match-up's I tested were ones where I did not feel like my view of the match-up's had a discrepancy with this threads opening post, or ones where I felt I needed practice. All other data is previous experience with the format (I've been on Goblins for 4 years now).

I used Positives (+), Negatives (-), and Equal To (=) to represent my feelings towards a card or Match-up. A Question Mark (?) means little to no experience in the situation with a Slash (/) being null data. "Source" is the top post's opinion on the match-up if available, and "Self" is my opinion on the match-up. All decks below 2% were excluded from this list.

Match-up Analysis Overview


Deck
%
Source
Self
Pyrokinesis
Stingscourger
Tin Street Hooligan


Miracles
12
+
+
=
-
-


Eldrazi Aggro
11
+
+
+
+
+


Grixis Delver
7
+
+
+
-
-


Shardless BUG
6
=
-
+
=
+


BUG Delver
4
=
=
+
+
-


Show and Tell
4
+
-
-
=
-


Storm
4
/
-
-
-
+


Death and Taxes
3
+
+
+
-
+


Infect
3
=
+
+
=
-


Burn
3
/
-
+
=
=


Stoneblade
3
/
-
+
-
+


Lands
3
=
-
-
+
+


Reanimator
3
-
+
-
+
-


Elves
3
-
=
+
=
-


Bant
2
/
?
+
-
+


UR Delver
2
/
+
+
=
-


Merfolk
2
/
+
+
-
+


RUG Delver
2
/
+
+
=
-


Aggro Loam
2
/
?
=
+
+


Imperial Painter
2
/
?
+
-
+


Dredge
2
/
+
+
+
-


Percentage data found from www.mtgtop8.com on 4/18/2016 for Legacy, 2 Months


Conclusions

I'm, for the first time since 2012 happy about the deck's position in the meta again. We have positive match-ups against the top decks in the format, and spell based combo is at an all time low!

Pyrokinesis is very, very good right now. I'm going to move 2 to my main deck. That should up my percentages against Shardless BUG and BUG Delver and leave two open slots to deal with Show & Tell, and Storm.

I really like having access to 2 Tarfire and 2 Gempalm Incinerator and consider them core to the deck. I can move 1 Gempalm Incinerator out and 1 other card. Since Mogg War Marshal is good in the top match-up's that worry me and I'm not willing to not have a game 1 answer to Umezawa's Jitte in Tin Street Hooligan); I will probably be cutting Goblin Piledriver as the other card.

Mainboard
-1x Goblin Piledriver
-1x Gempalm Incinerator
+2x Pyrokinesis

These changes I'm not worried about, and just seem correct. I'll miss Goblin Piledriver against miracles, but that is our best match-up.

The sideboard has a couple of options. I can add 2 Chalice of the Void / Thorn of Amethyst or I can be narrow and hate on what I don't want to lose to specifically. Mindbreak Trap for spell based combo, and Stingscourger / Confusion in the Ranks for Show & Tell.

Sideboard
-2x Pyrokinesis
+2x Chalice of the Void

or

Sideboard
-2x Pyrokinesis
+1x Stingscourger / Containment Priest
+1x Mindbreak Trap

I actually like both of these routes a lot. The advantages to Chalice of the Void is theoretically shutting down several options your opponent's have all at once, but it comes down side of being able to be played around, at least comparatively to the other options which are sudden impact type of responses. I value the surprise effect very highly, as it often lets them make a sub-optimal decision because they don't have perfect information. I will do further testing in the coming week.


Thanks for reading, feedback is welcome.

Wow.
Very good posting - very much appreciated, thank you!
Some feedback on the content.

First of all, I want to say that I prepare my lists for tournaments in a very structured way myself (listing DTBs, weigh the cards that are good/bad in these MU, make counts of cards that I can board out in these MU, eveluating my performance agains these MU etc...). Never actually considered to share that kind of information, since it seemed too detailed - but hey, if people are interested as much as I am interested in your write-up, then I'm happy to share that stuff as well.

Second, the OP does have information on the "Storm" MU - and I agree with you: it's negative.

Third, in response to ScatmanX summarizing the changes to the DTB section this morning, I wrote this:

Well, that's a goblin-friendly DTB section. Literally no bad MUs there.
I share your views on goblin's position in the current meta. In my oppinion goblins were in a good spot already last year at that time, but the meta now is even better with - as you said - a much smaller portion of spell-based combo decks.

Fourth, I totally agree with you on running exactly 2 copies of Pyrokinesis in the MD (see my last two tournament reports), but I don't think you should cut Mogg War Marshal. To me, MWM is one of the cards that make your life easy against Delver decks. I would cut Sharpshooter instead (which is way better in multiples anyways). Also, in some situations, Sharpshooter and Kinesis do the same job (each of them having their unique upside and downsides though).

Firth, a quoestion about your SB board: What is your view on Thalia vs. Ethersworn Canonist?

Last, I want to drop a couple of comments on your MU and card evaluations:
* I find that Stingscourger is a better card against S&T than Tin Street Hooligan is against Storm - you rated them = and + repsectively, my evaluation would be + and =. Why is that?
* I think your negative evaluation of the SHardless BUG MU has to do with your cardchoices. I'm running Chieftains over Warchiefs and Krenko over SGC - and I feel like these cards (Chieftain + Krenko) are among your strongest assets in this MU.
* I dont have as much experience fighting Sneak Show with a more classic list, but I can't imagine that it's negative. Your sideboard is lacking Pithing Needles though, which I find very strong in this MU, as it shuts down their only real wincondition (Sneak Attack). If you are taking OmniTell into account as well I can see this MU being negative with a classic list in hand
* agreed on: Burn, Stoneblade, UR Delver, Merfolk
* disagree on (my evaluation in parentheses): RUG Delver (=), Dredge (-)


Thank you again for your interesting post.

[Olaf Forkbeard]

Stingscourger is better than Tin Street Hooligan I wholly agree. That's a straight typo; I will fix that. They were inverted in location on my paper list. As for Tin Street Against storm you can call that a mistake. It's definable =.

I could see that. I agree that Krenko is very good in that match-up, but I don't actually think Siege-Gang is that much worse. As for the more probable reason is your base build supports Chieftain, where as I really, really value Warchief's cost reduction. I tend to board out Lackey in this match-up to make up for it.

I could try Pithing Needle against Sneak & Show. Literally just forgot it was a card. I am not a fan of the card, I have had poor experiences with it in the past, so I tend to dismiss it.

Don't know what to say about RUG delver that hasn't been explored. Careful play with 3 Relics and 2 Pyrokinesis is all I've ever needed against them. It's close, but I find I win it more than I lose it. Slightly Favorable.

My board just in general is excellent against dredge. I board in about 10-12 cards. Relic, Thalia, Containment, Pyrokinesis, Stingscourger.

[GoboLord]

Pithing Needle is great right now. Other than Sneak Show I bring it in against
* Lands (naming Thespian Stage or Molten Vortex)
* Death & Taxes (Mother of Runes, Stoneforge Mystic, Equipments)
* Miracles (Sensei's Divining Top)
* Infect (Inkmoth Nexus - although Im not sure if that is correct when playing so much manadenial, including Port, Wasteland and Blood Moon)

RUG Delver could be slightly favorable. I just have a lot of respect for the deck because it is so powerful. Also, most of my experience comes from times when they were playing the full playset of Fire//Ice - which seems to be a thing of the past now.

What are your thoughts on thalia vs. Ethersworn Canonist in the MUs you listed? Where would you bring the one or the other in? And which one do you feel is better in those MUs?

[sampi]

Canonist is huge vs storm. Especially if they aren't running decay in the side. It takes them two turns just to deal with it.

From memory my current SB is

1 krenko
3 pithing needle
2 magus of the moon
3 relic of progenitus
2 pyrokinesis
1 sudden demise
1 Goblin sharpshooter
1 stingscourger
1 Krosan grip

Considering moving sharpshooter and stingscourger to the main so I can put in some more combo hate. Not having positive results vs storm lately


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Olaf Forkbeard]

What are your thoughts on thalia vs. Ethersworn Canonist in the MUs you listed? Where would you bring the one or the other in? And which one do you feel is better in those MUs?

I think Thalia is more effective in both of the combo match-ups. Though I'd rather run the first Ethersworn before the fourth Thalia.

Edit: Additional note. I think Ethersworn is better against Omnitell by a noticeable chunk. But just ol' Sneak and Show Thalia does more.

[Sandro95]

Scenario 1:
My opponent keeps his 7 and goes first with tropical island + Glisterner Elf. On my turn 1 I open with Caverns + lackey. I have the following cards in hand when I pass the turn: Aether Vial, Goblin Lackey, Goblin Piledriver, Gempalm Incinerator (drawn this turn), Wasteland, Mountain. On his turn my opponent drops a fetchland and attacks.
What would you do?


I would block. I'd happily trade lackey for either the elf or a pump spell. On t2 (assuming they pump) I'd play Piledriver over vial/lackey/waste, as to enable a t3 lackey + gempalm.




Scenario 2:
I go first with Mountain + Goblin Lackey. On his turn 1 my opponent cracks a fetchland for Tropical Island, plays Noble hierarch and passes. On my turn 2 I draw a card and my hand looks like this: Goblin Piledriver, Mogg War Marshal, Goblin Matron, Pyrokinesis, Mountain, Rishadan Port. I attack with Lackey , he Blocks with Hierarch and plays Invigorate.
What would you do?



I would let lackey die, and then play MWM. I want to get as much value out of pyrokinesis, but more importantly I want to answer the cards that matter, i.e. the threats. MWM is a better blocker than piledriver, and I'd rather play the control role here. next turn they'll likely play a threat that you can pyrokinesis along with the hierarch. There's an argument for porting over MWM, to stop them from protecting a potential Blighted Agent with Vines of the Vastwood, but I don't think it's worth it.




Scenario 3:
My Situation: Vial @2 and 1 Rishadan port in play as my only Land. Mogg War Marshal, Piledriver, Chieftain and Pyrokinesis in hand. No creatures in the board.
It's my opponents turn and he has noble hierarch, pendelhaven, tropical island d and inkmoth nexus in play + 4 cards in hand. He activates nexus out of tropical, pumps it with Pendelhaven and attacks. I have no infect counters before his attack.
What would you do?

Definitely take it. There's no need to fear the three points of damage, and trying to kill the nexus here is a vey high risk, low reward play. Either they have a pump spell (likely), in which case you essentially wasted one of your best cards (killing hierarch only here doesn't count for much), or they don't (unlikely). The thing is, even if they don't have it, all you accomplished was a 2 for 2 with one of your best cards against them.
If they elect to use a pump spell (putting you dead to a second one) I would pyrokinesis the nexus. Assuming Pyrokinesis and Dismember are the two cards they might play around, they would already be safe from either once the first pump spell has resolved, so they would likely go for the kill (playing around double pyrokinesis/dismember doesn't seem very good here). If they don't pump it, I would try to kill it after combat. You don't get the hierarch this way, but they already have plenty of mana, and you need a way to deal with nexus. They will likely pump it in response, but I think that's about the best thing you can get out of your pyrokinesis at this point. Then you can vial in either MWM or Piledriver, + Chieftain on your turn and start racing. Hopefully you also draw a land for port, which would actually put you in a decent position to win the game.



Miracle Control
Chalice of the Void does a better job of shutting down Miracles than any other card. Of course Earwig Squad is a house here too.


If you're talking about the monastery mentor version, then chalice is definitely a great card against them. However, if they're on a more Lossetesque build, it's less impressive.
They'll often side in Wear // Tear or Disenchant against us anyway, and Chalice stops some of our own cards as well. If you're playing Pithing Needle or Surgical Extraction vs them, that's a bit of an issue, and Tarfire is actually quite adept at killing their creatures. More importantly however, that version is not as stacked with one-drops. If you can get chalice online before top it's great, but it can also be quite underwhelming, and few of our cards are actively bad against them (read: they're threats).
The reason I like EWS here is that it answers the cards we actually lose to, but that's another topic.



Grixis Tempo/Delver (TCDecks: Grixis Pyromancer)
Again, Chalice is a bomb. Sharpshooter does work here too.


I agree that both Chalice and Sharpshooter are great here, although both are a lot better against certain grixis builds (aggressive U/R builds splashing for therapy are very different from the four color grixis lists with DRS, Angler and Decay, for example.



Ad Nauseam Tendrils
Chalice


I agree that Chalice is great here. What I'd like to add is a bit of an explanation as to why. In short there are two types of hate cards against storm. The first are cards that slow them down, allowing us to race or lock them out. The second one are the cards that actually lock them out (EWS taking away their Tendrils is an example of this). CotV can fill both roles very well, is easy to cast, and excellent in multiple copies.

[Olaf Forkbeard]

Yep. Even after all this time playing the deck, I'm still down for ideas on how to board against Shardless. Played a lot of games last night trying all sorts of things for the sake of testing. I won 2/15 games (all testing was done post board). Contrary to the top post, I don't think this favors the classic shell. I don't feel like I can really affect them without Chieftain and Pendelhaven, and that goes contrary to the classic shell's game plan.

What I'm losing to:

Strong mana advantage from them, as they don't seem to miss land drops.

I can't keep more than 3 creatures in play. They run several kill spells post board sprinkled with pseudo board wipes (Golgari Charm, Toxic Deluge, Maelstrom Pulse). This translates to Goyf never dying unless I have a Relic, which his rough.

I'm being buried in card advantage post Hymn to Tourach. It usually makes me stumble until Visions to go off.

Lists I've seen run either Pithing Needle, or Null Rod, or both in their board. More ways to stop Vial is really bad for us. I did try several games via boarding out Vial, something I usually reserve for Pernicious Deed decks, but it seemed to help a little here. I'm not a fan of them having 5-6 ways to interact with it profitably.

What's keeping me in it or winning it:

Lackey hitting. This is kind of a "duh" though.

Chaining Ringleaders. This tends to occur in games where I don't get Hymn'd.


Don't get me wrong. I'm happy with 3/4 top decks being positive match-ups. I've just never been so conflicted on information I have versus information I'm being told. I just don't see how this match-up is even. I have memories of losing just as often on the Winstigator build. I have to be doing something wrong, as currently I'm more confident in my storm match-up. At least I know what to do there.

I'd like to note that I don't think I'd be so confused if others were in the same boat as me.


Mainboard
4x Wasteland
4x Rishadan Port
4x Cavern of Souls
3x Wooded Foothills
3x Bloodstained Mire
3x Mountain
1x Taiga
1x Plateau

4x AEther Vial
4x Goblin Lackey
1x Skirk Prospector
3x Goblin Piledriver
3x Mogg War Marshal
1x Tin Street Hooligan
4x Goblin Matron
4x Goblin Warchief
4x Goblin Ringleader
1x Siege-Gang Commander

2x Tarfire
2x Gempalm Incinerator
1x Stingscourger
1x Goblin Sharpshooter
2x Pyrokinesis

Sideboard
3x Relic of Progenitus
3x Thalia, Guardian of Thraben
2x Containment Priest
2x Mindbreak Trap
1x Stingscourger
1x Tin Street Hooligan
1x Pyrokinesis
1x Pithing Needle
1x Krenko, Mob Boss

How would you board? Play versus Draw?

[jrw1985]

Jim Davis streamed Goblins a while ago and had some really beautifully grindy games against Shardless. I can't find it right now but it would be a great resource to help you approach the MU.

Does anyone have a link to that video?

[GoboLord]

First of all, I would like to ask you why you feel running Chieftains over Warchief is Contrary to the game plan? I have full replace them years ago and never looked back. I didnt even wastes a thought on cutting Chieftains even when I put ports back in the deck recently. Looking at all these creature based decks and considering that hardly anyone is actually attacking our manabase (a Condition under which Warchief is sometimes better than Chieftain) Chieftain's value has increased a lot. I am regularily coming home From tournament State Ing that Chieftain was one of the MVPs.
My very positive Attitude towards that card aside, it helps you following one of your strategies against Shardless BUG (Connecting with Lackey). Also in this very resource-intense MU, there is a huge difference between cumpblocking Shardless Agent with your 1/1 matron and threatening to kill it. Chieftain makes this difference.

On your boarding question (both play and draw)
-1 Stingscourger
-1 Sharpshooter
+1 Tin Street Hooligan
+1 Krenko
If you were on a mono Red build I would consider -2 Kinesis, +2 Relic. Kinesis makes Hymn to Tourarch more effective and being hit by Hymn makes Kinesis less attractive as you are more limited in what to exile. Why I would bring in only in Mono red builds: here you have chances of actually stealing all lands in your opponents graveyard away to cancel DRSs manaramp. When you are using fetchlands yourself this is not a realistic goal.

[Olaf Forkbeard]

Chieftain enables a strong aggressive plan and a poor defensive one. I don't want my blocks to be dependent on him not getting taken out as well, otherwise I'm putting myself in a scenario to get two for one'd.

Warchief is a turn the corner card. It allows me to, more efficiently, drop my threats / blockers into play faster than my opponent can deal with them. It can play aggro, and control, I appreciate a turn the corner card. Straight from defense to aggression.

There is an argument to be made that making my creatures more efficient in size versus cost has the same effect. I admit I could be overvaluing the cost reduction, but Warchief has gotten me out of a lot of tight binds that I just don't think Chieftain could have done because my cards were cheaper.

All of that said, I will try it again on Thursday night and report my findings.


As for the boarding, why wouldn't you consider Relic?

[GoboLord]

As I said, Relic is much more effective in a mono red list, because in that case it affects 2 of their key cards (Goyf and DRS). When you are playing fetchlands yourself , the chances of eating all of your opponents and your own lands in early game (in order to cancel DRSs manaramping ability) are pretty low. I wouldnt bring in relic only for goyf alone. My plan here is to deal with the creatures left and right of Goyf, then develop a large-enough boardposition (e.g. with MWM or just landing Krenko for the win) and ultimately overwhelm my opponent.

[Olaf Forkbeard]

You were right on Pithing Needle- I was too fast on dismissing it. It basically solved the Show & Tell problems I was having. It's so important I would strongly suggest mentioning it's potency for that match-up in the primer. It changes the match up about 10% (assuming your opponent knows how to play against goblins).

[Stevestamopz]

You were right on Pithing Needle- I was too fast on dismissing it. It basically solved the Show & Tell problems I was having. It's so important I would strongly suggest mentioning it's potency in the primer. It changes the match up about 10% (assuming your opponent knows how to play against goblins).

Yah, I'm in the same boat. Put 2 in my sideboard and it's actually turned out to be pretty deece.

As for shardless, try Warping Wail. That solves both Hymn + Visions problems and it's pretty to take them down from there. It also counters deluge rather nicely.

[Morkus]

On my side I find Infect and Burn unfavorable with my classic build.
I speak about Burn because I've increase my win ratio against these decks after adding 2 Sudden Shock in my sideboard

Scenario 1:
I try to trade if possible so, I trade Elf and lackey (for eliminating a pump spell)

Scenario 2:
G> I attack with Lackey , he Blocks with Hierarch and plays Invigorate.
Sure I don't kill Hierarch with pyro in response to Invigorate.
The question is: Do I pyro Hierarch before attack to connect with lackey? I don't think so. I don't know what matroning more usefull than keep pyro.

Scenario 3:
You are dead if he has 2 invigorate
Eot MWM
New turn Vial@3 play Chieftain for 6 dmg
If you draw Red mana then question: play pilou for 14 dmg or keep pilou for Pyro (I keep)

[GoboLord]

Yesterday I tested some more games against Infect (this time against someone who only knows the deck from Modern and thus without any knowledge or experience in legacy.
The MU remains unfavorable for me. The Single most problematic card is Blightsteal Agent. I guess it is because I am running so few removal spells in MD (3 Gempalm, 2 Kinesis, 1 Stingscourger). So I had the same idea as Morkus: Sudden Shock. For the next event I am going to put 2 copies in my MD (in the slots that have formerly been occupied by 2 Blood Moon or 2 Warping Wail - I was looking for a replacement anyway).

[ScatmanX]

Posted our scenarios in the infect thread. Maybe they can give us some more feedback, since apparently we have quite a lit of different opinions. (Mines for one has chenged since the begining of the discussion...)

[MattPruner]

Yesterday I tested some more games against Infect (this time against someone who only knows the deck from Modern and thus without any knowledge or experience in legacy.
The MU remains unfavorable for me. The Single most problematic card is Blightsteal Agent. I guess it is because I am running so few removal spells in MD (3 Gempalm, 2 Kinesis, 1 Stingscourger). So I had the same idea as Morkus: Sudden Shock. For the next event I am going to put 2 copies in my MD (in the slots that have formerly been occupied by 2 Blood Moon or 2 Warping Wail - I was looking for a replacement anyway).
Warping Wail also quite nicely deals with blighted agent, as well as basically everything else in their deck. I think me having 3x wail maindeck really had helped the matchup. Ofc sudden shock will be super good in this particular matchup, but i'm not sure that the split second is worth it. Wail has much more carryover into other matchups.

[GoboLord]

Warping Wail also quite nicely deals with blighted agent, as well as basically everything else in their deck. I think me having 3x wail maindeck really had helped the matchup. Ofc sudden shock will be super good in this particular matchup, but i'm not sure that the split second is worth it. Wail has much more carryover into other matchups.

Maybe you are right about Wail vs. Sudden Shock. Warping Wail underperformed for me during testing, so I discarded that idea already.
It is possible that I am approaching the Infect MU the wrong way. Maybe it is correct not to use any removal spells on Glisterner Elf, since we have enough blockers for that. We have more manadenial than they have Inkmoth Nexus, so maybe I should not use my Wastelands on Tropical Island anymore. With that approach I could use all my removal spells on Blightsteel Agent (at least in theory. In practice there will be situations where using Pyokinesis for non-Agent-creatures and Wasteland for non-Inkmoth-lands is correct).

[Sandro95]

Hi everyone! I played a legacy tournament yesterday (6 rounds of swiss, 37 players)
I was on my usual list, only I cut Chalice of the Void in favor of an additional piece of discard, and to try out some other things.

R1 Food Chain 1-2
R2 Miracles (classic entreat) 2-0
R3 Miracles (classic entreat) 2-0
R4 UB Tezzeret 2-0
R5 Sneak & Show 1-2
R6 Belcher (with Dark Ritual) 0-2

I feel very confident with Miracles now, both with my odds of winning and with how to play the MU. Tezzeret was also much easier this time (remembering to bring in your GY-hate helps).
Food Chain is a very difficult MU, and Emrakul got me both of the games I lost. G2 was won by putting sufficient pressure on my opponent's life total. At one point I had quite a few tokens, a Prospector, and Krenko in play, with Boartusk Liege in hand. I chose to sacrifice some of my tokens to cast the liege, rather than wait until next turn to protect against a discard spell. I have no idea if my opponent had a discard spell or not (since I was hellbent), but he did have a needle for my Krenko, so either way I would not have been able to sacrifice any summoning sick tokens to play the Boartusk Liege. Next turn I drew a matron into Tarfire for one of his blockers and swung for lethal.

G2 versus Belcher was also an interesting one.
I played t1 Lackey, pass.
My opponent played Belcher, 2 LED, and activated, hitting me for... 4 damage.
I untapped with Matron in hand, but there was no play that would win me the game in that spot. Had I had Tin-Street Hooligan in my deck, or a Prospector/Scrapper in hand I could have destroyed the belcher and presumably won the game. It's obviously a very specific scenario, but I admit TSH would have been better here.

None of the new SB cards I tried (Jitte, Perish, and Boartusk Liege) did much to impress (although Boartusk won me one game versus Foof Chain, chieftain would have done the job just the same if not better). The other ones I didn't get a chance to try, although I suppose that says at least a little about them.

[Vandalize]

Sup guys, I haven't played Goblins for years, but I decided to sleeve up those Goblins that were rotting in my bin and I had a real blast.

My list (61 cards):

Mana Sources [22]
4 Wasteland
4 Cavern of Souls
4 Rishadan Port
6 Mountain
1 Ancient Tomb
3 Chrome Mox

Creatures [29]
4 Goblin Lackey
4 Goblin Matron
4 Goblin Ringleader
3 Goblin Warchief
3 Goblin Chieftain
3 Goblin Piledriver
3 Warren Instigator
2 Gempalm Incinerator
1 Krenko, Mob Boss
1 Siege-Gang Commander
1 Stingscourger

Spells [10]
4 AEther Vial
4 Blood Moon
2 Tarfire

Sideboard [15]
4 Chalice of the Void
3 Relic of Progenitus
3 Pyroblast
2 Pyrokinesis
2 Pithing Needle
1 Smash to Smithereens

I just jammed 4 Blood Moons maindeck because that card is simply amazing against every deck that's not Miracles. It just gets you free wins, its kind of unexpected in game 1, and it runs along with the mana denial plan. Every single competitive deck today can out grind Goblins, so we need to use every tool we can to net those free scoops.

Played in a local store Legacy FNM and went 3-1 in a 4 rounder:
2-0 Grixis Tempo (Cavern of Souls won me g1 and Blood Moon won me g2)
2-1 Sneak and Show (lost g1 to turn 2 Show and Tell, games 2 I had Pithing Needle +2 Pyroblasts, game 3 I had Chalice for 1 in the first turn followed by Warren Instigator and he didn't have the combo, nor could cantrip into it)
0-2 Eldrazi Stompy (this matchup is impossible, we don't run enough removal and their dudes are all 4/4+)
2-1 Shardless BUG (g3 I had a turn 1 Blood Moon on the play, lol)

I might drop 1 Rishadan Port for another Mountain, as I was color screwed in one of the games (couldn't produce RR).

[Dan Pyre]

Turn1Lackey's Goblin Stream (https://www.twitch.tv/turn1lackey)

Turn1lackey's stream up now B)

[GoboLord]

Hi everyone! I played a legacy tournament yesterday (6 rounds of swiss, 37 players)
I was on my usual list, only I cut Chalice of the Void in favor of an additional piece of discard, and to try out some other things.

R1 Food Chain 1-2
R2 Miracles (classic entreat) 2-0
R3 Miracles (classic entreat) 2-0
R4 UB Tezzeret 2-0
R5 Sneak & Show 1-2
R6 Belcher (with Dark Ritual) 0-2

I feel very confident with Miracles now, both with my odds of winning and with how to play the MU. Tezzeret was also much easier this time (remembering to bring in your GY-hate helps).
Food Chain is a very difficult MU, and Emrakul got me both of the games I lost. G2 was won by putting sufficient pressure on my opponent's life total. At one point I had quite a few tokens, a Prospector, and Krenko in play, with Boartusk Liege in hand. I chose to sacrifice some of my tokens to cast the liege, rather than wait until next turn to protect against a discard spell. I have no idea if my opponent had a discard spell or not (since I was hellbent), but he did have a needle for my Krenko, so either way I would not have been able to sacrifice any summoning sick tokens to play the Boartusk Liege. Next turn I drew a matron into Tarfire for one of his blockers and swung for lethal.

G2 versus Belcher was also an interesting one.
I played t1 Lackey, pass.
My opponent played Belcher, 2 LED, and activated, hitting me for... 4 damage.
I untapped with Matron in hand, but there was no play that would win me the game in that spot. Had I had Tin-Street Hooligan in my deck, or a Prospector/Scrapper in hand I could have destroyed the belcher and presumably won the game. It's obviously a very specific scenario, but I admit TSH would have been better here.

None of the new SB cards I tried (Jitte, Perish, and Boartusk Liege) did much to impress (although Boartusk won me one game versus Foof Chain, chieftain would have done the job just the same if not better). The other ones I didn't get a chance to try, although I suppose that says at least a little about them.


Thanks for the report, Sandro. This weekend I evaluated Perish's role in the current meta. I found that, depending on the deck, either relic or Pyrokinesis are more attractive since they cost less mana to cast/activate.
As for Jitte, I have considered the card several times but never really tested it. It seems too Clunky for what it is supposed to do. Some say it's a showstopper against burn, but I think that is only True when you can stay a live long enough to have a creature + equipment + the mana to attach it. Losing the creature to a burn spell at this point will most likely Set you back by a whole turn.

[GoboLord]

Turn1Lackey's Goblin Stream (https://www.twitch.tv/turn1lackey)

Turn1lackey's stream up now B)
Quoting this so it doesnt get lost as the last Post on the page

[Sandro95]

Every single competitive deck today can out grind Goblins

No, aside from Shardless BUG, they definitely can't.

Congrats on your 3-1 result! :)

[fluuu]

Where I can check for goblins stompy?

Similar to this list: http://tcdecks.net/deck.php?id=19956&iddeck=152001 Thanks

[Ace/Homebrew]

Where I can check for goblins stompy?

Here: Dragon Stompy (http://www.mtgthesource.com/forums/showthread.php?19745-Deck-Dragon-Stompy)

This is the most recent post: http://www.mtgthesource.com/forums/showthread.php?19745-Deck-Dragon-Stompy&p=946881&viewfull=1#post946881

[Bichon_Blitz]

So I missed the boat, haven't been in the loop for awhile. Is Goblin Settler w/ Kiki-Jiki a thing? Is it playable or too slow/win more?

[MattPruner]

Good result today, 5-1 in Hareruya's Saturday event, which was good for second place. I was playing a list drastically different from what i usually play, so this was quite a surprise.
Today's List
4x Goblin Lackey
4x Goblin Piledriver
4x Goblin Matron
4x Goblin warchief
4x Goblin Ringleader
3x Gempalm Incinerator
3x Mogg War Marshal
2x Legion Loyalist
1x Krenko, Mob Boss
1x Tuktuk Scrapper
1x Stingscourger
1x Goblin Chieftain
1x Tarfire
4x Aether Vial
4x Cavern of Souls
4x Wasteland
4x Rishadan Port
3x Wooded Foothills
3x Bloodstained Mire
3x Mountain
2x Badlands
Sideboard
3x Cabal Therapy
3x Relic of Progenitus
2x Engineered Plague
2x Pyrokinesis
1x Kolaghan's Command
1x Warping Wail
1x Stingscourger
1x Tuktuk Scrapper
1x Earwig Squad
This is way, way different from what i usually play. The Maindeck alone has 8 cards different from the last list i played. I have been playing one list with fairly few changes for quite some time now, and wanted to shake things up a bit. this week i will be playing in a LOT (maybe 5+) events, so I figured that i could use it to just experiment with stuff. I wanted to play legion loyalist today, and i really dont think that card is good in versions i usually play, so i went with a build influenced by older lists (specifically the 4x piledrivers from my friends list that was my first introduction to goblins a few years ago). Loyalist is insane with 4x piledriver.

Round 1- UR Delver LOSS 0-2
Game 1 (on the draw, i mulligan to 6)
I keep a 1 Lander with vial and lackey, both of which are quickly killed. by the time my second land comes down, he has 2 True Name Nemeses and I quickly die.
Game 2
Similar to game 1. This time the true names are replaced with delvers. I also have a second land, but he Stifled the fetch. Great start to the event.

Round 2- Sneak and Show WIN 2-0
Game 1 (on the play, both players mulligan to 6)
Turn 1 vial and I get off to a lightning fast start (this 4 piledriver version does that more often than i am used too, which is nice). on turn 3 he show and tells in a griselbrand, but legion loyalist + 2 Piledrivers + some other junk kills him anyway. trample is good.
Game 2
Another turn 1 vial. I start a decent clock, holding onto stingscourger, Cavern lets me push everything thru. On t4 or so he show and tells in a griselbrand, i bounce it, he dies. Nothing really exciting at all this match.

Round 3- UWr Stoneblade WIN 2-1
Game 1 (On the draw)
Game is shaping up to be pretty grindy, until he leaves nothing but a batterskull to hold back my piledriver and some guys. I have legion loyalist to sneak it by for exactly lethal.
Game 2
I start off fine, and even get to connect with 2 lackeys on turn 3. first one puts in Ringleader.... 4 lands. I have a warchief to put in, but i am out of gas. We have kind of a standstill for a few turns, he gets out batterskull and eventually TNN, i play a mogg war marshal and some lands. I Eventually draw a second ringleader.... 4 lands. oh well. I die to TNN+Batterskull.
Game 3
He starts slower, i have multiple piledrivers and multiple chieftains. cavern lets me get everything thru. True Name is good, But 2 Piledrivers is better :D

Round 4- Miracles WIN 2-1
Game 1 (on the Draw, Opponent mulligans to 5)
Standard goblins vs miracles, plus he was down 2 cards. Opponent played well and drew out as much of an advantage as he could, but i won easily.
Game 2 (Both players mulligan to 6)
I have a solid start, but not much card advantage. I play a ringleader... 4 lands again. Leaving me with nothing in hand but some lands. He terminuses away the field, dumps out 3 tops and an ensnaring bridge. I draw several more lands before getting to a ringleader... 4 lands. I eventually build up a field, but cant deal with the ensnaring bridge before his jace takes over the game.
Game 3
I resolve Earwig Squad, and find that he has quite a few ways to win. I take 2 Entreat and a Mentor, Leaving him with another mentor and a jace, + quite a few creatures (Cliques, Containment Priest, etc). He also still has an ensnaring bridge in the deck, and i am unhappy to see he was playing a full playset of supreme verdict. The game grinds on, i kill Bridge, and keep on pressure, but was slowed. When we get to turns, his life is getting quite low, but he has a jace ticking up. my hand is all fetchlands, so i keep shuffling what he puts on top (between the 3 games, he left 7 cards on top and only bottomed 2). On turn 4, he finds his mentor and makes a bazillion monks with his two tops. Turn 5 i have the field, but nothing to get thru... i topdeck a matron, search up legion loyalist and kill him. whew.

Round 5- 5 Colour (yes, 5 colour) Delver WIN 2-1
This deck was the greediest thing i ever saw. 5 colours and 4 wastelands. it was basically a regular 4 colour delver deck (grixis with deathrite) but also splashing lingering souls.
Game 1 (on the draw)
T1 lackey dies, and my hand is kind of slow. I have no way to stop 2 delvers from murdering me.
Game 2 (both players mulligan to 6)
Long. Engineered plague is annoying. we grind for awhile before it comes down, leaving me with a warchief and a ringleader with no cards in hand and him at 17 life. I basically draw mono ports, and keep porting him down. he bolts warchief, and plays a delver. I attack, and he makes the questionable trade of delver for a 1/1 ringleader. I then play a 4th port, and we pass for awhile. I manage to get vials on 3 and 4, with 3x war marshal in hand. and a 0/1 piledriver on the battlefield. he manages to cast and flashback lingering souls. I finally draw Chieftain, play out all the MWM, and kill him on the spot. beating engineered plague is annoying.

Round 6- Storm WIN 2-0
Game 1 (on the play)
I Play t1 Legion loyalist and start a slow clock. real slow. He tries to go off via Ad Nauseam on turn 2 and kills himself with some of the worst Ad Nauseam flips i could imagine. Sometimes better lucky than good (tho with all the missed ringleaders today, i was due. i think 4 ringleaders missed completely, and 2 more just got 1 card)
Game 2
He starts off with 2 gitaxian probes into basic island. I think he kept a no lander. I start with Cabal Therapy, Then slow him with a relic of progenitus. He has trouble hitting the second land, and another therapy lets me eat his hand. He tries to go off thru Relic and fails, instead eating my hand after i crack the relic in response to a cabal ritual (he has not enough mana, and knows my hand from a probe. he just searched up a therapy instead and took my action). It didn't matter as i had 3 lands in play to his island and a matron in hand to his nothing. i quickly draw out of it and he draws a few lands.


Overall this went quite well. Any time i place Second in an event that i missed 4 ringleaders in i know something went right. I be eventually returning to something closer to what i usually play, but this more aggressive version def has a lot of merit. The more removal heavy version with main deck wail and kolaghan's command fits my play style better, and i felt less comfortable in grinding situations than i usually do today. I am going to be experimenting with lots of different lists this week, as i have a crap ton of legacy to play. I leave japan this week, so i get to play one more at hareruya tomorrow, one at tokyomtg, then return to the US just in time for my LGS's weekly event, then me and some friends are going to GP New York for the legacy events this weekend. I think i will try this list again tomorrow tho (with a few sb tweaks).

[MattPruner]

So I missed the boat, haven't been in the loop for awhile. Is Goblin Settler w/ Kiki-Jiki a thing? Is it playable or too slow/win more?

I've always felt that it was a bit win more. I am not really a fan of either of those cards most of the time, as settler can be quite clunky and at 4 mana there are a lot of things i would rather do. Hitting it in off a lackey is sweet tho :smile:. Kiki jiki i also am not too fond of, but even in lists that he fits well in, there are already so many great things for him to copy with great effects. no need for a clunky stone rain guy for another one.

that being said, i do not have too much experience with kiki jiki lists, so someone else here who has more experience with those lists may give you a totally different answer.

[Bichon_Blitz]

I've always felt that it was a bit win more. I am not really a fan of either of those cards most of the time, as settler can be quite clunky and at 4 mana there are a lot of things i would rather do. Hitting it in off a lackey is sweet tho :smile:. Kiki jiki i also am not too fond of, but even in lists that he fits well in, there are already so many great things for him to copy with great effects. no need for a clunky stone rain guy for another one.

that being said, i do not have too much experience with kiki jiki lists, so someone else here who has more experience with those lists may give you a totally different answer.


I remember playing him, then Krenko was printed. No surprise there, really.

[servadac]

Deck list

It says you play 5 Chieftains... I assume the 1-of is supposed to be Warchief?

[MattPruner]

It says you play 5 Chieftains... I assume the 1-of is supposed to be Warchief?

Oops. 4 warchief, 1 chieftan. Fixing the list now.

[jrw1985]

turn1lackey has been streaming some hot goblin action on twitch. I've been enjoying it and he has lots of videos archived. Check it out if you need to get a goblin fix.

https://www.twitch.tv/turn1lackey/profile

[Sandro95]

Greetings everyone!
I went 4-0 with Goblins last wednesday, so here's the report!

I played my usual R/B list with triple EWS maindeck, with a slightly different sideboard.

R1 Infect 2-1
R2 Esper Mentor 2-1
R3 False Cure 2-0
R4 Grixis Delver 2-1

R1 Infect
G1 he has an unblockable creature early on that I don't have a removal spell for. Double pump does the trick and I'm dead.
G2 I have both Needle and Blood Moon for Inkmoth. My opponent has a hierarch that I in retrospect perhaps should have gotten rid of. I have Gempalm an Pyrokinesis in hand, but prefer to save my removal spells for their infect creatures. My opponent manages to BEB my Blood Moon, but I stabilize and win anyways.
G3 I'm at 7 poison when my opponent swings with an Inkmoth Nexus and invigorates it. I have Pyrokinesis in response and he doesn't have anything else. I win.

R2 Esper Mentor
G1 he has an early Mentor and runs me over.
G2 he misplays when he casts Toxic Deluge into my Pendelhaven, letting me save my Sharpshooter.
G3 I have a CotV @1. A few turns into the game I'm considering casting a second backup copy, but elect not to. He has the decay for my chalice a turn or so later, allowing him to cast a couple of one mana spells. But I have chalice back online next turn and win from there.

R3 False Cure
G1 I lead on lackey, and he goes fetch > GSZ > Arbor. I waste his arbor and connect with lackey. On his turn he plays bob. I try to kill it with Sharpshooter, but he invigorates in response. His confidant then flips a Skyshroud Cutter. His deck durdles around for a bit while I deploy some goblins and feel in control. On his last turn I'm at 25 life, and would have died if he'd drawn a fourth land. Because of the way False Cure is worded (you lose 2 life for each 1 life gained), two copies actually equals triple damage, not double, meaning 2 False Cure + 2 Skyshroud Cutter would cause you to lose 30 life.
G2 I go Skirk Prospector > Blood Moon. My opponent had lead on Swamp, Scrubland. Had he played any of his other duals (both of which were in his hand) he could've had decayed it. But he wanted to keep up Swords to Plowshares mana, and wasn't too keen on exposing his green sources to Wasteland, so he went with the Scrubland instead, only to realize right after he played it that he now didn't have mana for decay up.

R4 Grixis Delver
G1 my opponent dazes my t1 vial, and Delver goes all the way.
I don't remember G2, but I think my opponent mulliganed a bunch, and I didn't take any damage all game.
G3 was very tight. He got a bunch of creatures into play (2 Delver, 1 DRS, and 1 Gurmag Angler). I had a lot of removal from the start but no red mana to cast it with. At one point I was at 4 life and my opponent's DRS was untapped, meaning I was dead next turn (remember, I was still facing down double delver and an angler). I played Sharpshooter and attacked with a couple of creatures. My opponent took the bait and blocked, giving me a bunch of untap triggers and letting me clean his board in the process (chumping the zombie fish wasn't much of an issue from there on). At the end of my last turn he taps out to bolt me, putting me at one. Before his draw step I pyrokinesis away three of my goblins to deal lethal damage with Sharpshooter.

Questions and feedback are, as always, appreciated!

[l33twash0r]

Greetings everyone!
I went 4-0 with Goblins last wednesday, so here's the report!

I played my usual R/B list with triple EWS maindeck, with a slightly different sideboard.

R1 Infect 2-1
R2 Esper Mentor 2-1
R3 False Cure 2-0
R4 Grixis Delver 2-1

R1 Infect
G1 he has an unblockable creature early on that I don't have a removal spell for. Double pump does the trick and I'm dead.
G2 I have both Needle and Blood Moon for Inkmoth. My opponent has a hierarch that I in retrospect perhaps should have gotten rid of. I have Gempalm an Pyrokinesis in hand, but prefer to save my removal spells for their infect creatures. My opponent manages to BEB my Blood Moon, but I stabilize and win anyways.
G3 I'm at 7 poison when my opponent swings with an Inkmoth Nexus and invigorates it. I have Pyrokinesis in response and he doesn't have anything else. I win.

R2 Esper Mentor
G1 he has an early Mentor and runs me over.
G2 he misplays when he casts Toxic Deluge into my Pendelhaven, letting me save my Sharpshooter.
G3 I have a CotV @1. A few turns into the game I'm considering casting a second backup copy, but elect not to. He has the decay for my chalice a turn or so later, allowing him to cast a couple of one mana spells. But I have chalice back online next turn and win from there.

R3 False Cure
G1 I lead on lackey, and he goes fetch > GSZ > Arbor. I waste his arbor and connect with lackey. On his turn he plays bob. I try to kill it with Sharpshooter, but he invigorates in response. His confidant then flips a Skyshroud Cutter. His deck durdles around for a bit while I deploy some goblins and feel in control. On his last turn I'm at 25 life, and would have died if he'd drawn a fourth land. Because of the way False Cure is worded (you lose 2 life for each 1 life gained), two copies actually equals triple damage, not double, meaning 2 False Cure + 2 Skyshroud Cutter would cause you to lose 30 life.
G2 I go Skirk Prospector > Blood Moon. My opponent had lead on Swamp, Scrubland. Had he played any of his other duals (both of which were in his hand) he could've had decayed it. But he wanted to keep up Swords to Plowshares mana, and wasn't too keen on exposing his green sources to Wasteland, so he went with the Scrubland instead, only to realize right after he played it that he now didn't have mana for decay up.

R4 Grixis Delver
G1 my opponent dazes my t1 vial, and Delver goes all the way.
I don't remember G2, but I think my opponent mulliganed a bunch, and I didn't take any damage all game.
G3 was very tight. He got a bunch of creatures into play (2 Delver, 1 DRS, and 1 Gurmag Angler). I had a lot of removal from the start but no red mana to cast it with. At one point I was at 4 life and my opponent's DRS was untapped, meaning I was dead next turn (remember, I was still facing down double delver and an angler). I played Sharpshooter and attacked with a couple of creatures. My opponent took the bait and blocked, giving me a bunch of untap triggers and letting me clean his board in the process (chumping the zombie fish wasn't much of an issue from there on). At the end of my last turn he taps out to bolt me, putting me at one. Before his draw step I pyrokinesis away three of my goblins to deal lethal damage with Sharpshooter.

Questions and feedback are, as always, appreciated!

How do you sideboard with your build of your deck against D&T, Eldrazi, Miracles and Dredge for example?

[Sandro95]

How do you sideboard with your build of your deck against D&T, Eldrazi, Miracles and Dredge for example?

It's a bit difficult to say as my sideboard is in a bit of flux at the moment. It also would depend on whether I'm on the draw or on the play, as well as my opponent's individual list and playstyle.

Since my sideboard is under development at the moment, I wrote the following guide with this unfinished sideboard in mind:
Sideboard (13/15)
4 Chalice of the Void
2 Relic of Progenitus
1 Grafdigger's Cage
1 Surgical Extraction
2 Blood Moon
1 Pyrokinesis
1 Pithing Needle
1 Tuktuk Scrapper

D&T
-2 EWS, +1 Pithing Needle, + 1 Tuktuk Scrapper, +1 Pyrokinesis.

Eldrazi
-2 Sharpshooter, -1 Tarfire, +2 Blood Moon, +1 Pyrokinesis.
+1 Tuktuk Scrapper & +1 Pithing Needle if I expect Jitte.

Entreat (schoenneger) Miracles
-1 Warren Weirding, -3 Tarfire, +1 Pithing Needle, +1 Surgical Extraction, +2 Chalice of the Void.

Mentor Miracles
-1 Warren Weirding, -2 Skirk Prospector, +1 Pithing Needle, +2 Chalice of the Void.

Losset Miracles
-1 Warren Weirding, -1 Skirk Prospector, +1 Pithing Needle, +1 Surgical Extraction.

Dredge
-1 Earwig Squad, -4 Aether Vial, +2 Relic of Progenitus, +1 Grafdigger's Cage, +1 Surgical Extraction, +1 Pyrokinesis.

[GoboLord]

Hello fellow Chieftains,

it’s only four weeks until my personal highlight of the year (that is: within the realm of MtG - in real-life I’m getting married): The Legacy Grand Prix Prague.
I can’t express how much I’m looking forward to this event. Not only is the metagame very pleasant for goblins due to (1) the enormously positive MU against the popular Eldrazi tribe and (2) the fact that Eldrazis seem to push Storm combo out of the meta; but I also feel as secure with the deck as never before. In the past six months my list has undergone a transformation from a WInstigator list in its purest form to one that is closer to the stereotype of a mono red “classic” build than I’d like to admit. Despite my strong dislike against Rishadan Port (or more generally: the idea of using my lands for something else than casting spells), the time of glory has come for this card. The reason is: Eldrazi. When I first learned about the deck and playtested the MU, I had to learn that my Winstigator list was no match for the new tribe (unless I could dish out some early Blood Moons). The rising popularity of Eldrazi early this year (and some frustrating experiences with Hymn to Tourarch) made me exchange my Chrome Moxen for Mountains and Winstigators for Mogg War Marshals. After some more disappointing results, I figured out I would need Rishadan Ports to beat the new tribe – and a beating it was. In my first testing session I won 5 out of 5 matches and 10 out of 10 games – most of them on the back of Wastelands, Rishadan Port + Mogg War Marshal.
After some more weeks and positive results even in non-Eldrazi MU I had the core of the deck sorted out and I knew that this would be my list for Prague. With the kind help of ScatmanX, Sandro95, another Goblin dude whose TS-nickname I still don’t know and a bunch of comments from my fellow goblin horde I ended up with the following list which I brought to a GPT for Prague last Sunday, which is at the same time the last event I am able to attend before the big showdown in Czech-Repulic.

MANA (23)
4 Cavern of Souls
4 Wasteland
4 Rishadan Port
1 Snow-Covered Mountains
10 Mountain

4 Aether Vial
4 Goblin Lackey
4 Goblin Piledriver
4 Goblin Matron
4 Ringleader

4 Goblin Chieftain
4 Gempalm Incinerator
3 Mogg War Marshal
1 Stingscourger
1 Krenko, Mob Boss
1 Skirk Prospector
1 Tuktuk Scrapper
2 Pyrokinesis
Sideboard (15)
3 Pithing Needle
3 Blood Moon
3 Goblin Sharpshooter
2 Relic of Progenitus
4 Chalice of the Void

Changes to the decklist since my last event:
MD: -2 Warping Wail, +1 Gempalm Incinerator, +1 Tuktuk Scrapper
SB: -1 Tuktuk Scrapper, -3 Grafdigger’s Cage, +4 Chalice

http://magiccards.info/scans/de/rtr/208.jpg
R1: Hendrick with BUG-NicFit-Walker (2-0)
[on the draw]

G1: The match is almost over before I really know what he is on. His combination of colors make me think of Food Chain, but then he drops Veteran Explorer as a blocker and after that Vraska. Just fodder for my Piledriver though.
W

-2 Pyrokinesis, +2 Blood Moon

G2: Between the games I was thinking of boarding Pithing Needles, since I could smell the scent of Pernicious Deed somehow. I ignored that smell and boarded Blood Moon instead. I forced my way through 3 Pernicious Deed before I won. MVPs were Chieftain and Ringleader.
W

http://magiccards.info/scans/de/ogw/13.jpg
R2: Arjen with GW Eldrazis (2-0)
[on the play]

G1: I open with Lackey out of Caverns, holding Krenko, Stingscourger, Gempalm Incinerator, Pyrokinesis and a Mountain in my hand. Arjen plays City of Traitors on turn 1 and passes the turn. On my turn Lackey connects into Krenko and I pass back. Arjen plays a Thoughtknot Seer on his turn only to see that I can choose from 3 different ways to kill his guy next turn. A few turns later he concedes as he can’t handle Krenko.
W

-1 Stingscourger, -2 Piledriver, +3 Blood Moon

G2: Arjen plays Brushland and passes. I open with Aether Vial and pass back. On his turn, Arjen casts Eldrazi Displacer, which I can kill 2 turns later with Gempalm Incinerator (Lackey + MWM in play). The game is decided again, when I kill his Thought Knot Seer with my Pyrokinesis in response to its EtB-trigger. No blockers left and Lackey doing Lackey-stuff.
W

http://magiccards.info/scans/de/bfz/8.jpg
R3: Felix with Eldrazi (2-0)
[on the play]

G1: I keep a 2-Land hand with Lackey, Lackey, MWM, Matron and Ringleader. I open with Lackey, which gets Dismembered on Felix’s turn 1. On my next turn I cast MWM and pass. Felix on his turn casts his first Thoughtknot Seer, exiling Ringleader. On my next turn I pay the Echo for MWM, and miss my third land drop. Felix then casts his second Thoghtknot Seer, this time exiling Stingscourger. Two turns later, he has 2 Thoughtknot Seer on board, as well as 1 Endless One with X=6 counters and another with X=7 (cast this turn). I on the other hand have 2 Goblin Token and a Matron (which searched a Skirk Prospector) + 3 lands in play and 2 Gempalm Incinerator and a Skirk Prospector in my hand. Felix attacks me for 14 damage, which I take (since I need to keep up the Goblin-count for Gempalm Incinerator). On 6 Life, I untap, draw my fourth land, cast Skirk Prospector, cycling Gempalm Incinerator for Thoughtknot Seer, and draw 2 cards. I use the remaining mana to cast Lackey and pass the turn. Felix is scared of my Lackey and attacks with only one creature (which I chumpblock). On my next turn I continue cycling Gempalm for Thoughtknot Seer, drawing 2 extra cards again – it goes downhill from there for Felix.
W

-1 Stingscourger, -2 Piledriver, +3 Blood Moon

G2: Ports + Wasteland keep him in Check, while I drop Lackey off Vial. Lackey connects into Matron (searching Skirk Prospector AGAIN!). With Caverns and Rishadan Port in play, I don’t have red mana to cast Blood Moon – but luckily Skirk Prospector helps out. Felix puts 2 tiny Endless One in my way, but it’s way too late already.
W

http://magiccards.info/scans/de/c14/227.jpg
R4:Andreas with Elves (1-2)
[on the play]

G1: Andreas has a quite slow start and takes a hit from Chieftain + Piledriver before he goes off.
L

-1 Tuktuk Scrapper, -4 Ringleader, -1 Stingscourger, +1 Krenko, +3 Sharpshooter, +4 Chalice of the Void

G2: I have him soft-locked und a Chalice @1 and a Sharpshooter. He pushes some spells through with the help of Cavern of Souls, which I couldn’t destroy because Gaea’s Cradle lying next to a Wren’s Run Packmaster was the more urgent matter. I win the game ultimately with my softlock and some pressure.
W

G3: I mull to 5 with 4 lands and Chalice of the Void. Andreas casts his first creature on turn 1 out of Cavern of Souls and that’s all you need to know about this game.
L

http://magiccards.info/scans/de/cs/145.jpg
R5: Sascha with RGb Combo Lands (2-1)
[on the draw]

G1: I mull to 5 and open with Lackey. Sascha has Punishing Fire + Grove on turn 2 and the combo kill two turns later.
L

-2 Pyrokinesis, -4 Gempalm Incinerator, -1 Krenko,-1 Tuktuk Scrapper, +3 Pithing Needle, +3 Blood Moon, +2 Relic of Progenitus

G2: I have 2 Wasteland + Needle (naming Thespian Stage. As if that wasn’t enough I drop Blood Moon on turn 3 which seals the deal. Sascha Gambles for Krosan Grip which gets discarded.
W

G3: Blood Moon gets me there.
W

http://magiccards.info/scans/de/ogw/7.jpg
R6: Jan with Eldrazi (ID: we play it out anyways and I win 2-0)
[on the play]

G1: I shred him with Aether Vial on T1 and Wasteland + double-Port. Could only tell that he was on Eldrazi from the lands he played.
W

-1 Stingscourger, -2 Piledriver, +3 Blood Moon

G2: As he didn’t have a T1 play, (only Eldrazi Temple), I used my Wasteland as my turn 1 play, instead of casting Lackey. In this situation, he would most likely have Thoughtknot Seer as his T2 play, so shutting off his mana seemed like a reasonable move. On his next turn he played Eye of Ugin and Endless One for X=2. I wasted his land again and passed back. I took one hit From Endless One, before I dropped Lackey and made his only creature stand still. Jan doesn’t recover.
W

Prices were given out after swiss standings. Those that wanted to fight for the BYEs could stay to determine the winner. Many people didn’t have any interest in winning BYEs, so we ended up with four players: 2 Goblins, 1 Death & Taxes, 1 Hexmage Depths Combo.
I got paired against Death & Taxes, while another Goblin dude whose TS-nickname I still don’t know (let’s call him “Toby”, for the sake of simplicity), who was on a Rb Winstigator list with Earwig Squad and Cabal Therapy, played against the combo deck.

http://magiccards.info/scans/de/eve/6.jpg
Semifinals: Felix with Death & Taxes (2-1)
[on the play]

In G1 I have an overwhelming chain of Piledrivers and Chieftains. At the point when Felix lands Batterskull, he is already pretty far behind and I have developed to a degree where I can deal 9 net damage (13 – 4; taking Batterskulls’ lifelink into account). Two turns later I can swing for lethal thanks to Skirk Prospector sacrificing the creature blocked by the Germ.
W

-1 Stingscourger, -1 Krenko, -4 Piledriver, +3 Goblin Sharpshooter, +3 Pithing Needle

My Lackeys get converted into a lifepoint, while I shut down his Vial with Pithing Needle. I am under siege of 2 Flickerwisps when I tutor + cast a Goblin Sharpshooter, which gets turned to plowshares as well. Two turns later, Felix seals the deal with Cataclysm. Be aware of the interaction between their non-creature spells and Thalia. In the first two matches I had to remind my opponent of Thalia’s ability at least three times when he was casting his own spells (with a judge watching the whole match btw).
L

G3: I quickly run him over with 3 Chieftains + something else.
W

Meanwhile Toby lost to Hexmage Combo Depth, showing me that the deck was at the very least capable of defeating Goblins ins the hands of an experienced pilot.

http://magiccards.info/scans/de/zen/114.jpg
Finals: Markus with Hexmage Depths (2-0)
[on the draw]

G1: I can slowly raise my horde, while keeping two Wastelands untapped the whole time to prevent him from going off. It was tempting though to use one of my Wastelands, since Markus was stuck on 1 land on turn 2, but had 2 Deathrite Shaman in play (and 0 lands in any graveyard). Instead I concluded that it would be close to impossible to go off in time against two untapped Wastelands. Turns out my decision was correct.
W

-2 Pyrokinesis, -1 Krenko, -1 Tuktuk Scrapper, -2 Gempalm Incinerator, +3 Blood Moon, +3 Pithing Needle

G2: I had Aether Vial on turn 1 and Rishadan Port on turn 2, then Wasteland on turn 3 and another Port on turn 5 – which kept him pretty busy. He had his combo assembled with Living Wish, but needed to get rid of my Wasteland first. At my EOT he announced that he would now use Crop Rotation to search for his Wasteland, then destroy my Wasteland, on which I would respond with using my Wasteland to destroy Dark Depth, which he would then respond to with copying Dark Depth with Thespian Stage – leaving him as the winner. I had different plans though and tapped Thespian Stage in response to his Crop Rotation. When Crop Rotation resolved he got himself a Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth. On his next turn he cast Vampire Hexmage and + Sylvan Library and passed. On my turn I attack for some damage and pass the turn with the following lands untapped.
2 Mountain, 2 Rishadan Port, 1 Wasteland

On his turn, Markus draws 1 extra card with Sylvan Library and play Wasteland. His boardstate:
1 Wasteland, 1 Dark Depth (20 counters), 1 Thespian Stage, 1 Urborg, 1 Vampire Hexmage, 1 Deathrite Shaman.

PUZZLE TIME: Markus uses his Wasteland to destroy my Wasteland. What would you do here, knowing that he has another Crop Rotation in his hand?
W



Conclusions
Coming home with two BYEs felt great. This was the first time I earned BYEs for an event that I will actually attend. I have high hopes that they will help me breaking free from my cursed 6-3 result that I managed to score on every Legacy GP I attended so far.
Usually I am evaluating single cards or matchup in a rather short fashion at the conclusion of my tournament reports. However, this time I want to share with you my view on the deck’s position in the current metagame as well as my SB plans, which should help you if you are planning on picking up this exact decklist for any future event.
Looking at the current DTB section (which lists Miracles, Eldrazi, Infect, Death & Taxes and Grixis Delver) we see a lot of positive MU for Goblins. Miracles is a rather easy prey, as long as you don’t overextend, or they don’t have too many Monastery Mentor. My personal record is a 90% match-winrate against Miracles across all lists I have played in the past 1.5 years. 90% is clearly not the same as 100% - so be aware of the fact that things can go wrong here as well. However, we should feel positive about being paired against this popular deck.
I would argue that Miracles is our best MU among the DTBs, if it wasn’t for my extraordinary lucky win-streak against Eldrazi. Since picking up the recent decklist (read: Mono Red, Mogg War Marshal, 8 manadenial lands, Pyrokinesis in MD) my match-winrate against this deck is at a straight 100%. Admittedly, we are looking at a rather small samplesize here (5 matches in testing, 4 matches on sanctioned tournaments), but the fact that the only GAME I lost against Eldrazi was one where I took mulligan to 5 AND didn’t have a red manasource (here is my last month’s tournament report for reference (http://www.mtgthesource.com/forums/showthread.php?19931-Deck-Goblins&p=944177&viewfull=1#post944177[/url)), makes me optimistic about this MU as well. According to my understanding of how Eldrazi works, the deck has troubles with three things: many small creatures, single large creatures (like 4/5 Goyfs) and manadenial (especially Moon effects). Goblins is the only deck (well technically there is Red & Taxes, but still…) that combines multiple elements that threaten Eldrazi’s gameplan.
Taking into account that Eldrazi and Miracles are probably the most popular decks for the next weeks (and most definitely on GP Prague) , we have a deck in our hands that has excellent chances of beating the two top decks of the format. That’s what I call a meta-deck. Let’s look at the other MUs.
Despite of what people will tell you: having an equipment in your deck does not mean that you have positive MU against Goblins. This counts for Eldrazi just as much as much as it does for Death and Taxes. What is REALLY scary about Death & Taxes is that they occasionally run some number of larger creatures, like Brimaz, King of of Oreo (http://brasseriedesrapides.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/oreo-cookie-logo.jpg) or creatures with evasion, like Serra Avanger. Apart from that, the list gives you a wide range of very powerful cards (Pyrokinesis, Sharpshooter, Needle, Tuktuk Scrapper, Gempalm Incinerator) to beat Death and Taxes on a regular basis. Again: we are not talking about a 100% match-winrate here. My record of the past 1.5 years is at 70%.
Next on my list would be Infect. I would love to tell you that this is a positive matchup, but in my experience it isn’t. From a short exchange of ideas with you guys (reference ( http://www.mtgthesource.com/forums/showthread.php?19931-Deck-Goblins&p=944622&viewfull=1#post944622)) I learned that I am probably approaching the MU incorrectly and that I’m not running enough spot removal. Still, in my view Infect is very powerful even after taking mulligans and I wouldn’t really be comfortable in a metagame infested with Infect decks.
The last DTB I want to comment on would be Grixis Delver (or Grixis Tempo).This is the right time to discuss other, similar strategies as well, since our approaches to the respective incarnations of what I would summarize as “Delver decks” don’t differ too much from each other and are mostly defined by the creature-suite that we are up against. There is Grixis Delver, BUG Delver, Team America, Canadian Threshold, 4-color Delver, bUrg Delver, UR Delver, Patriot Delver…and you don’t even need to know what’s behind all of those different decknames. What’s really important for you to know when playing against someone wielding Delver of Secrets, is exactly what creatures and removal spells this person is playing, because this will determine how you evaluate your own spells and SB cards. It might seem obvious, but the more blue creatures your opponent plays, the better you should evaluate Goblin Piledriver. Some BUG decks for example play a creature suite of 4 Delver, 4 Deathrite Shaman, 2 True Name Nemesis, maybe some Snapcaster Mage or Vendillion Clique. In this scenario Piledriver poses a huge threat for your opponent as the only thing he can do about it is casting one of his removal spells. The developmental deck built around Thing in The Ice is another good example. On the flip side, when your opponent is on a list with burnspells, more green creatures or many blockers (such as tokens from Young Pyromancer) Piledriver loses a lot of its attractiveness. Funnily enough the opposite is true for Relic of Progenitus: the “greener” your opponent’s creature-ensemble, the better Relic becomes. Also, Relic can make the anti-synergy between Deathrite Shaman and other creatures using the graveyard (Goyf, Anglerfish, Mongoose, Grim Lavamancer, Scavenging Ooze) even worse. Besides Piledriver and Relic, Krenko is another card whose value depends on the kind of Delver deck you are facing. Lightning Bolt and Dismember make Krenko a lot worse as a wincondition and will sometimes let you spend 4 mana only to watch your creature being removed for 1 mana – all of this in a MU where mana and creatures are scarce and valuable resources. On the other hand, in the absence of a reasonable density of solutions for Krenko, he can be a Oops-I-Win button; as would be the case against most BUG Delver / Team America lists (and Shardless BUG for that matter). The take-home-message of this paragraph: the list provides you with all the tools you need to beat all Delver decks, you just need to evaluate them correctly. Keep in mind though, that Delver decks are versatile and will thus be in a similar position as you: they have the tools, they just need to know how to use them. You can beat Canadian Delver with Blood Moon, but it works better with Relic of Progenitus. You can open a beer bottle with hammer, but it works better screwdriver. Learning about the different Delver decks and figuring out the right tools for each job, is time well-spent as I believe in Prague all of these decks combined will have a reasonable share of the metagame.
Of course there are some popular decks that are not in the DTB section. I considered the following decks when tuning my decklist:
Elves (which I find a awfully hard matchup)
RG(b) Combo Lands (which is perfectly covered by Wasteland, Pithing Needle and Blood Moon)
Shardless BUG (Mogg War Marshal, Krenko + Relic or Blood Moon – depending on their creature-suite)

There are some more decks that I think are popular (some of them maybe only on GPs), but the MU too bad to fix. I just accept these as lost rounds if I face them:
Tendrils Storm Combo
Belcher/Oops all Spells/Spanish Inquisition
Burn
Reanimator

So much for my view on the deck and the metagame. If you are interested in my list of SB plans for the decks mentioned in this article (and some more, actually) write me a PM.

The bottom line of all this is: if you want to hunt down some popular top-tier decks, go pick up this list and have some fun. It’s hunting season.

Thank you for reading my article. Questions and comments are – and will always be – welcome.

-GL

[owerbart]

Thank you for reading my article. Questions and comments are – and will always be – welcome.

-GL

Good stuff Gobolord. Nice to finally see you running the 4 ports. Really surprised about how well you were doing vs Eldrazi. Do you think the Europe metagame will be filled with them?

[Olaf Forkbeard]

Come Monday or Tuesday I'll write up my 3rd place finish at SCGs Legacy Classic Open; watch for that. Mostly posting this to remind myself to write it.

[Stevestamopz]

Come Monday or Tuesday I'll write up my 3rd place finish at SCGs Legacy Classic Open.; watch for that. Mostly posting this to remind myself to write it.

Congrats dude!

Just when I was about to cut warchiefs and add chieftains along you come and sow the seeds of doubt! Looking forward to it.

@Gobolord - congrats on both getting married and your fine finish. I will be copying your list 75/75 for a tournament this week, I'm starting to agree with you on Chieftain and not bothering wasting time with colour splashes/fetches.

[Chatto]

Hello fellow Chieftains,

it’s only four weeks until my personal highlight of the year (that is: within the realm of MtG - in real-life I’m getting married): The Legacy Grand Prix Prague.

MANA (23)
4 Cavern of Souls
4 Wasteland
4 Rishadan Port
1 Snow-Covered Mountains
10 Mountain

4 Aether Vial
4 Goblin Lackey
4 Goblin Piledriver
4 Goblin Matron
4 Ringleader

4 Goblin Chieftain
4 Gempalm Incinerator
3 Mogg War Marshal
1 Stingscourger
1 Krenko, Mob Boss
1 Skirk Prospector
1 Tuktuk Scrapper
2 Pyrokinesis
Sideboard (15)
3 Pithing Needle
3 Blood Moon
3 Goblin Sharpshooter
2 Relic of Progenitus
4 Chalice of the Void

Changes to the decklist since my last event:
MD: -2 Warping Wail, +1 Gempalm Incinerator, +1 Tuktuk Scrapper
SB: -1 Tuktuk Scrapper, -3 Grafdigger’s Cage, +4 Chalice

(...)

The bottom line of all this is: if you want to hunt down some popular top-tier decks, go pick up this list and have some fun. It’s hunting season.

Thank you for reading my article. Questions and comments are – and will always be – welcome.

-GL

Congrats, Gobolord! Congrats on your win and your future wedding! It's a good list, and I'm again not sure what to play this GP, I'm going to giv your list a try. Can you Pm your strategies?


Good stuff Gobolord. Nice to finally see you running the 4 ports. Really surprised about how well you were doing vs Eldrazi. Do you think the Europe metagame will be filled with them?

I think so, it's a powerfull deck and Goblins is a bit fringethese days. I would say Goblins is in a good spot, but without a lot of pilots.


Come Monday or Tuesday I'll write up my 3rd place finish at SCGs Legacy Classic Open; watch for that. Mostly posting this to remind myself to write it.

Congrats! Looking forward to your report!

[Olaf Forkbeard]

As promised here it is.

Posted it on Reddit. (https://www.reddit.com/r/MTGLegacy/comments/4jng4q/indianapolis_scg_legacy_classic_3rd_on_goblins/)

[GoboLord]

Hey Olaf,
Congrats in your finish and thanks for the report.
I have a couple of questions:
(1) What's the reasoning behind your boarding in Round 1? I would leave as many MWMs in as possible to stop their early hastey beaters. My first thought was to side out TSH. I'm with you on Tarfire and Stinger though.

(2) I tend to agree with boarding Thalia against Infect, but want to hear your thoughts on boarding it over Blood Moon.

Not really a question but entertaining choice of words

I've played against Isaac before and he was on Storm. The problem is that I didn't remember this until we were about a quarter of the way through game 1.
Game 1
Died on his turn 3.

(3) a comment on this:

I draw a Tin Street Hooligan and cast it off of a Cavern, attempting to destroy the Petal. He cracks it and casts Entomb putting Griselbrand in his yard.*
If your opponents reacts to you casting the spell (nnot waiting for the Comes Into Play trigger to be announced) in this situation he would have made you destroy your own Aether Vial, as TSH ability is mandatory.


Lastly I agree with what you wrote on Chalice and Grafdiggers Cage in your conclusion. I forgot to mention exactly this in my last tournament report - Im exchanging 4 Chalice for 3 Cage + 1 Kknesis.

Overall: Very good and detailed report. Thanks again.

[Olaf Forkbeard]

Hey Olaf,
Congrats in your finish and thanks for the report.
I have a couple of questions:
(1) What's the reasoning behind your boarding in Round 1? I would leave as many MWMs in as possible to stop their early hastey beaters. My first thought was to side out TSH. I'm with you on Tarfire and Stinger though.

(2) I tend to agree with boarding Thalia against Infect, but want to hear your thoughts on boarding it over Blood Moon.

Not really a question but entertaining choice of words


(3) a comment on this:

If your opponents reacts to you casting the spell (nnot waiting for the Comes Into Play trigger to be announced) in this situation he would have made you destroy your own Aether Vial, as TSH ability is mandatory.


Lastly I agree with what you wrote on Chalice and Grafdiggers Cage in your conclusion. I forgot to mention exactly this in my last tournament report - Im exchanging 4 Chalice for 3 Cage + 1 Kknesis.

Overall: Very good and detailed report. Thanks again.

1) They are a really burn heavy list, and just like in my delver match-ups, playing Thalia into a kill spell is not worth risking getting Wastelanded off of my red sources. Especially with my 4 Tarfire list. As for leaving Tin Street in, I always do against Delver strategies unless I'm certain there is no Pithing Needle's in their board.

2) I didn't board in Blood Moon because I didn't want to overboard. At some point I've got to clock him back, and reasonably quickly too. I don't think there is too much harm if you wanted too, but I just don't think I wanted to board out any more of my retort.

3) Huh. Woops. We both missed it. The funny thing is I'm aware of this, and didn't notice. I just wanted to Stone Rain him so bad. He luckily cracked in response to target, not cast. Probably due to my wording: I was sure it was resolving because of Cavern, so I said "Tin Street targeting Lotus Petal." And he said "Sure, crack it in response."

[GoboLord]

How to beat Storm. (https://theweeklywars.wordpress.com/2016/05/16/how-to-beat-storm/)
Just read a very good article. Will appendices it to the deckprimer when I'm home and have some more Control over the formatting.

[B-rad]

Hey Olaf, I was the one also playing goblins at the classic on Sunday but to not as great of a result.

0-2 UB Omnitell
0-2 Shardless Bug
2-1 Shardless Bug
0-2 Reanimator
2-0 Miracles
2-1 UBRg Delver
2-0 Burn
2-1 Infect

As you can see I did not get the ideal matchups
early on and was feeling pretty bummed when I was 0-2 and 1-3. I decided to stick it out because I love playing the deck and love legacy in general. To finish 5-3 by winning 4 in a row really made me feel better about myself and the future playing this deck.

4 Aether Vial
3 Tarfire

4 Goblin Lackey
4 Goblin Warchief
4 Goblin Matron
4 Goblin Ringleader
3 Goblin Piledriver
3 Gempalm Incinerator
2 Mogg War Marshal
1 Tin Street Hooligan
1 Stingscourger
1 Skirk Prospector
1 Krenko, Mob Boss
1 Goblin Sharpshooter
1 Siege Gang Commander

4 Rishadan Port
4 Wasteland
4 Cavern of Souls
3 Bloodstained Mire
3 Wooded Foothills
1 Plateau
1 Taiga
3 Mountain

SB
3 Pyrokinesis
3 Thalia, Guardian of Thraben
3 Relic of Progenitus
2 Ashen Rider
2 Mindbreak Trap
2 Warping Wail

The main felt solid as usual with my only thought being to add 1 more MWM somewhere but I am unsure of what to cut.

Warping Wail was unimpressive as usual for me and probably won't be playing any in my 75 in the immediate future. I didn't play against any storm but I will probably leave 2 MBTs in the board for now. Might replace the Wails with 2 REBs as they would have been good in a variety of matchups I played.

Now to get ready for GP Columbus. Hope to meet some of you there!

[sampi]

2 - 0 to burn? I seriously can't win that MU. How did you do it?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[B-rad]

2 - 0 to burn? I seriously can't win that MU. How did you do it? Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Ya I had some pretty good draws both games and won the die roll. Had a Tarfire in both my opening hands for his first creature. My advice on how to give yourself the best chance to win is to drop your curve as low as possible postboard and play around Price of Progress to the best of your ability.

I went something like this:

+3 Pyrokinesis +3 Thalia -3 Ringleader -1 Krenko -1 Sharpshooter -1 Hooligan

Left SGC in to drop off Lackey or if by some miracle the game goes late to matron up. I agree matchup is very difficult but prioritize not letting their creatures do any damage if you can

[Olaf Forkbeard]

Glad you stuck to it.

How did you end up boarding against Shardless?


Edit:
Also on burn. Feel free to chump their 2/2's, even if you are not trading. Just buy time.

[Morkus]

Congratulations Gobolord !
I hope that your 2 byes will help you to reach the day 2 at Prague.
I'm happy to see you joining the classic goblins player group. It's near my feeling.
How can I follow your adventure?

For your PUZZLE (always interresting).
You need to use your wasteland in response at his wasteland. but we knew he could use hexmage in response.
So, in response to his wasteland I think you can use your ports to tap Thespian Stage (wait decision) port the darkdepth (wait decision)
Pray for a mistake with his hexmage or crop rotation where you replied with wasteland or finaly use your wasteland on darkdepth.
(Not impressive... I'm waiting your debrief)

[jrw1985]

2 - 0 to burn? I seriously can't win that MU. How did you do it?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

MWM + chumps for days
Chalice @ 1
Play around PoP if possible.
Keep running out Lackeys, Piledrivers, Krenko... whatever you have that they need to kill so bolts hit your creatures rather than your dome.

[B-rad]

Glad you stuck to it. How did you end up boarding against Shardless? Edit: Also on burn. Feel free to chump their 2/2's, even if you are not trading. Just buy time.

Against Shardless I go something like

On the Play: +3 Pyro +3 Relic -2 Vial -2 Lackey
-1 stingscourger -1 piledriver

Draw: +3 Pyro +3 Relic -4 Vial -1 stingscourger -1 piledriver

Just swap 2 lackeys for vials depending whether I am playing or drawing. Obviously vials are bad vs decay and such but I try to make their hymns as bad as possible because that's the scariest card imo

[Chatto]

As promised here it is.

Posted it on Reddit. (https://www.reddit.com/r/MTGLegacy/comments/4jng4q/indianapolis_scg_legacy_classic_3rd_on_goblins/)

Hi Olaf, just read your report, and just one question: in r5 g1 you kill two creatures with Knesis, but your list only show Knesis in your SB. I assume you mean Tarfire or Incinerator?

[Olaf Forkbeard]

Hi Olaf, just read your report, and just one question: in r5 g1 you kill two creatures with Knesis, but your list only show Knesis in your SB. I assume you mean Tarfire or Incinerator?

Didn't even notice, long day. I updated it to show it was double Tarfire, as that's the only thing that I could have cast there. I just felt so ahead it felt like game 2 I got the memories mixed up.

[Svyelunite]

[Video/Podcast] Legacy's Allure - Ep. 12, Goblins with Jim Davis

After putting up some results in the SCG Classics recently, we feel its appropriate to bring one of Legacy's original powerhouses in the spotlight. Goblins are back! Who better to talk about it than one of the early proponents of the strategy, Jim Davis!

Webcast: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TYbnisCh7pI
Podcast: http://shoutengine.com/LegacysAllure/goblins-with-jim-davis-19801

Podcast is also now available on iTunes!

[Olaf Forkbeard]

[Video/Podcast] Legacy's Allure - Ep. 12, Goblins with Jim Davis

That was awesome, thanks!

[Svyelunite]

That was awesome, thanks!

Thanks, glad you enjoyed it!

[MasterBlaster]

Thanks, glad you enjoyed it!

I also enjoyed it. Whats in store for the next episode?

[clashed]

I'm having trouble with beating TNN now. It seems all the fair blue decks online. That and the bunch of tarmogoyfs/gurmag/ fat creatures I feel, are the strongest cards in their deck (combined with removal makes for a hard match up). I've been liking goblin settler which helps with the lands match up, as a 1-of in the sideboard, along with having the ability to just combo win you the game with kiki-jiki. It's also pretty good against 12-post which may be problematic if they get a fast start with candelabra and primeval titan. I've been continually using frogtosser banneret and I think that it's super strong still, as per the last time I posted a couple of months ago. The combo matchup still feels miserable even with 4 chalice and 2 thalia in the sideboard because it's hard to take back a game even if we win game 2. I'm not sure goblins have the tools to deal with reanimator, storm, infect, burn, etc. on the draw game 3, which is always going to result in us losing without getting to really play.

Earwig squad has been over performing for me, and provides a big clock, and he has been able to steal game 1's from me for storm, maybe upping the count is correct here, I'm not sure. I've also been trying out one pyrokinesis in the main, which helps the creature matchups but still doesn't answer the combo matchups. I'm also not a fan of warping wail after extended testing, so I agree with the player above.

Overall, I feel the deck has an awful combo matchup, and only wins against fair matchups when either lackey connects, of a vial resolves and they don't have decay. Otherwise every fair creature matchup seems to tilt in favor of the other decks with plow snap plow combo, their more powerful and cheaper creatures (flipped delver + tarmogof/ gurmag backed with removal), or non-interactive TNN.

Our control matchups are as good as ever and I don't think they will ever be bad due to cavern of souls and lackey.

The problem is when we are losing to 2/3 of the field simply due to either not being fast enough, or not having a vial/ lackey cheating, it just feels demoralizing. Frogtosser banneret + goblin warchief do a good job in lowering our curve, but I'm still having trouble finding the speed to beat the opponent's removal/ combos. Any new insight would be helpful. I'm going to try an engineered plague in the sideboard for the TNN which has incindental splash damage against elves and DnT, but I'm not sure about my other concerns. Feel free to give me input, I need some fresh ideas.''

I guess I should also clarify that deathrite shaman needs to be answered because not only does he double as a blocker, but also gets them mana while we are trying to deny them. Tarfires seem like an ok answer, but sometimes they just get dazed or pierced, which gives cards like that utility when they would normally be dead against us, and gempalm is usually too slow.

[sampi]

I'm seriously considering running a couple of copies of sudden shock in the board to deal with annoying creatures and so I can't get dazed

[jrw1985]

I went 4-2 and had a great time at the Legacy Madness side event yesterday at GP Minneapolis. Entry was $50 and there was a very strong payout to the Prize Wall, so I walked with a From the Vault 20 box to complete my set of Jace, the Mind Sculptors. I haven't played Magic at all since January because I'm not spending money on anything right now except necessities and student loans, so I was definitely worried about being rusty and not having my head wrapped around the metagame. But big Legacy tournaments just don't happen that often in Minneapolis town so I decided to get back in the game for this one.

The list....

4 Vial
4 Lackey
4 Matron
4 Ringleader

3 Pilediver
3 Mogg War Marshal

2 Warchief
2 Chiefain

1 Skirk Prospector
1 Goblin Sharpshooter
1 Krenko Mob Boss

1 Tuktuk Scrapper
1 Earwig Squad

2 Gempalm
1 Stingscourger
1 Warren Weirding
2 Pyrokinesis

4 Cavern
4 Waste
4 Port
5 Fetch
3 Mountain
3 Badlands

Sideboard:
3 Blood Moon
1 Pyrokinesis
3 Relic of Progentius
4 Chalice of the Void
4 Leyline of the void

Card Choices:
Like I said earlier, I haven't been playing magic since I put myself on an austerity plan this winter, so I was going to be a bit rusty. I didn't have a good idea of what the metagame would look like. I had no clue how much Eldrazi had penetrated my local meta or what other decks might be popular. I spent a little time net-decking to see what goblin builds have been having success. Most decks were playing 22-23 lands and 7-10 pieces of removal. I was initially planning on playing 24 lands to help consistency but realized that it squeezed the maindeck too much, so I went with 23 lands which felt really good. I didn't have any mana troubles all tournament.

Since I didn't know what the meta would look like I decided not to worry about trying to squeeze in answers to every problem in the format. Instead I thought about what the four decks I'd like to beat would be. Miracles seemed obvious, as did Eldrazi. Shardless BUG has also been very popular and Death and Taxes is a local standard. With those decks in mind I selected my maindeck.

3 Piledriver - I ran 3 instead of 4 to make a little more room for other fun stuff in the MD. I think it's still a necessary card to bring the beats and an important part of our gameplan, but Legacy is no longer a Merfolk format.

3 Mogg War Marshal - This seemed like an obvious choice. It's great against Eldrazi and Goyf and really helps against DnT. You need something to buy you time while you turn the corner against those decks. MWM does that beautifully.

2 Warchief/2 Chieftain - I saw a few Goblin decks that only run 3 haste lords and I don't agree with that approach. I wouldn't run less than 4. Splitting between the two was meant to add more flexibility. Chieftain gives you more game against Eldrazi and Shardless, Warchief lets you play Matron into Piledriver for fast beats. Both have their upsides, but in netdecking I saw that the manabases and builds aren't that different between 4 Warchief and 4 Chieftain builds, so drawing one versus the other shouldn't be that difficult to formulate a gameplan around. Plus, having both gives you the chance of having the more appropriate benefit at the right time.

Skirk/Sharpshooter/Krenko - This is a very powerful combo and each piece on its own has many benefits. Plus Krenko is sort of an auto-win against decks that can't answer it immediately.

Tuktuk - Jitte is a thing, and he'll have some marginal upside.

Earwig Squad - Squad is obviously very strong against Miracles and also happens to be the only goblin that can actually help us beat combo decks. Running the black splash also opens up Warren Weirding as a removal option.

2 Gempalm - It can kill little guys, it can kill medium sized guys, and it's built in CA.
2 Pyrokinesis - Fast interaction, turn 0 card. Playing 2 Pyro and 2 Gempalm evens the deck out in the +1, -1 CA. Pyro is amazing against DnT and very good against Shardless and, from what I've read, it's decent against Eldrazi as well.
Stingscourger - Gets rid of the fatties
Warren Weirding - Answers stupid Reanimator strategies and other ridiculousness.

23 Lands - This just felt like the right number. I considered playing a lone Taiga instead of 3 Badlands but realized I didn't really want or need access to Green to beat the four decks I wanted to focus on.

Sideboard
1 Pyro - I knew there would be grindy matchups where Earwig Squad would be bad and a 3rd Pyro would be great.
3 Blood Moon - There are always Lands decks, whether it's Lands or 12 Post, and Moon is also a reasonable card against Eldrazi and Shardless when you're on the play.
3 Relic - Goyf format, also decent against Storm. But really Relic is there to keep Goyf and DRS honest.
4 Chalice - Self explanatory. Chalice is a workhorse and ought to be a 4-of in every Goblins board.
4 Leyline of the Void - I didn't feel like I needed more artifact hate and I wasn't going to run Green. I felt that it was likely that I could run into a crazy graveyard deck that Relic wouldn't be enough against. I had 4 slots left in the sideboard so I just jammed the Leylines.

R1 Shardless Bug
G1 I win the roll and lead with a Lackey. He suspends Visions. I Lackey in a lord and Waste him next turn and I have Pyro backup. THis game is over quickly.
G2 There is a downpour of Sharding. Sharding everywhere. I lose.
G3 is a huge grind. We go to time and I'm able to exactsies him thanks to Chieftain pumps. W

R2 Pox
G1 I win the roll but mull to 6. That's bad news for this MU. I keep a hand with Lackey, Warchief, Sharpshooter. I run into Cursed Scroll, Crucible of Worlds and Tabernacle. He had pretty much the best cards he could against me and I had the wrong cards against him. He killed me with manland beats.
G2 He runs out a T1 E Plague. I Vial in Matron for Chieftain and then play MWM and start the beats. I was actually very well positioned here. MWM is great against Smallpox. He plays a second Plague though and the game is over. L
I can't really be mad about this one since this match all came down to the cards we drew. He drew his best cards against me G1 while I had a slow hand better suited to a midrange matchup. G2 he had 2x E Plague. Pox is the only deck that can sideboard those and then he drew them. So it goes. Having Chieftain gave me more game here.

R3 Shardless
G1 - I played very poorly this round. I'll attribute it to being rusty. I got overly focused on getting a 2for2 with pyrokinesis rather than just killing the goyf while it was still small. Goyf eventually kills me.
G2 - Huge grind this game. Super grind. We go to turns and on T4 of turns I swing with everything with a Sharpshooter up. He has a 6/7 Goyf. I'm attacking with 3 Ringleaders and a Piledriver. I'm trying to get lethal damage through and that's all I really look at. Some trades are made, Sharpshooter goes to his dome. Goyf blocks Piledriver. The game ends with my opponent at 2 life and we scoop them up, at which point a friendly spectator says "Shouldn't Goyf have died?". Yep, 6/7 goyf blocked a 7/2 Piledriver. Goyf should have died, I should have had 1 more sharpshooter untap trigger which would have allowed me to do the 2 damage needed to kill my opponent. The match would have been a draw. We were both focusing entirely on how much damage was getting through to him that neither of us paid attention to damage on the goyf. Again, ring rust on my part. I lost his match which should have been a draw and which had all the potential to be win had I played better G1.

Being 1-2 often leads to dropping in big tourneys, but the prize payout was strong and definitely worth playing out since even going 3-3 would get your entry fee back in prize wall shit. Also, Magic is fun, and I wanted to play some fucking Magic.

R4 Brw Reanimator
G1 I had no idea what this deck was because it was a sweet brew. Dark ritual into Buried Alive put Grizzle, Massacre Wurm and Children of Korlish into his grave. What the hell? I managed to get Lackey in and was able to Prowl in Earwig. His deck had MD Tendrils and Burning Wishes, so I just took those to keep him from comboing me to death. He Exhumes Grizz and draws 7 but cannot draw any more. I have the Weirding for Grizz and miraculously steal G1.
G2 T0 Leyline + T1 Lackey. I also has Stingscourer in hand just in case he hardcast a brute, which his deck was set up to do. It didn't come to that though as I put on too much pressure for him and closed the game out quickly. W

R5 4 color Delver/Pyromancer
G1 He plays Tropical Island, Ponder, Gitaxian Probe T1. I play Lackey. T2 he plays Ponder, shuffles, plays Wasteland. I Waste his Trop and he never makes another land drop. I think he must be on Infect.
G2 He opens on Volcanic and I immediately realize its more Grixis with G splash for DRS life gain. I only sided in Pyro for this game and would have considered Chalice had I realized it was Grixis, not Infect. I killed an early Pyromancer then had to carefully keep him off R mana while building my manabase. An Angler hit the board and brought the beats. I had Krenko in hand but knew I couldn't play it until I could get rid of his Red mana. I finally get him down to just an Island and underground sea and play Krenko. Angler beats me to 4 life. Krenko goes hogwild and I win. My opponent shows me 2 Bolts in hand at the end of the game. Maybe I'm not quite as rust as I thought I was! W

R6 ANT
G1 I might have won had I drawn Warchief instead of Chieftain to get a cheap Earwig Prowled in. It was not to be.
G2 Chalice @ 0 + Chalice @ 1. Opponent has a brain fart and plays LED into Chalice. His only option after that is to Tendrils me with storm of 4. I swing back for 10 next turn. He scoops the following.
G3 I have Lackey and 2 Relics in my opening hand. I play Lackey first. My opponent is a gentleman and doesn't kill me T2. I topdeck a Chalice and play it @ 0 T2 plus Relic with mana up. I Lackey in a Tuktuk. His T3 is uneventful. I pop Relic since I have one in hand, drawing another Relic! I play both Relics next turn and LAckey a MWM into play. This is an awkward situation for my opponent as he has to Infernal for Cabal Ritual. He Decays the Chalice, but doesn't have any 0cc spells anyway. Lackey, Tuktuk and tokens beat down. I make sure to do the math to see whether paying MWM echo helps my clock. It's a 3 turn clock either way, so I don't pay echo and keep mana up for both Relics. Since his hand is Cabal Ritual dependent I win the game. This is best Relic has ever been for me against ANT. W

4-2

I had a fantastic time at this tournament and got to play against some cool people and catch up with other nerds from the local scene. I fought my way back to 14th place after a 1-2 start which was cool. I saw where I made mistakes after the fact in one match in particular but I felt I played very tightly the rest of the day. The Pox match was brutal, but that happens sometimes in Legacy and I'm not upset or worried about it. MWM and Vial are pretty amazing cards in the matchup, I just got unlucky in mulling and my opponent had really strong draws. So it goes. To recap: Magic is fun as hell.

[jrw1985]

A comment on the Shardless BUG matchup:
It is really very critical that we kill their Goyf early. If they have an active Goyf we can't profitably attack, and we need to build a critical mass of Goblins before they just Deluge our board. We can't profitably attack through a Goyf because Goyf can just eat any x/2s we send into combat, and DRS can eat any 1/1s, so we lose 2 creatures per turn attacking into a Goyf+DRS. But if we kill the Goyf then we can just hold our 1/1s back and just attack with x/2s. DRS has to die or they have to trade an x/2 with an x/2. Aside from Goyf every creature they run is an X/2. We can win a game of attrition when our Warchief, Piledrivers and Ringleaders trade with their DRS, Shardless agents and Baleful Stixessessss. No such luck when they have an active Goyf on the board.

[Stevestamopz]

A comment on the Shardless BUG matchup:
It is really very critical that we kill their Goyf early. If they have an active Goyf we can't profitably attack, and we need to build a critical mass of Goblins before they just Deluge our board. We can't profitably attack through a Goyf because Goyf can just eat any x/2s we send into combat, and DRS can eat any 1/1s, so we lose 2 creatures per turn attacking into a Goyf+DRS. But if we kill the Goyf then we can just hold our 1/1s back and just attack with x/2s. DRS has to die or they have to trade an x/2 with an x/2. Aside from Goyf every creature they run is an X/2. We can win a game of attrition when our Warchief, Piledrivers and Ringleaders trade with their DRS, Shardless agents and Baleful Stixessessss. No such luck when they have an active Goyf on the board.

100% agreed. I've been having a very similar thought process about this matchup.
Their decay's on our vials are such a beating and this is a matchup where we really need to be as grindy as possible.
So my sideboard plan is:
-4 Vial, -3 Lackey
+2 Sudden Demise, +3 Relic, +1 Stingscourger, +1 Pendelhaven.

This is an old Jim Davis idea from Extended Goblins:


I had a plan for every matchup, right down to the Pendelhaven in the sideboard. Many people questioned me about that after the event, but the plan against any attrition-based matchup was to board out all four Rite of Flames, which required another land. Pendelhaven did tons of work with all of the random 1/1 Goblins and made the most important part of any attrition-based matchup (blocking) so much easier.

As you rightly said Jon, the majority of the deck's creatures are x/2s, so Pendelhaven being able to help us punch through that seems mighty fine.

Wouldn't mind getting some feedback on this idea because it's easy to convince yourself something is clever and excellent, and another to convince someone who's not deep in the tank :laugh:. List for reference (http://www.mtgvault.com/steve2112rush/decks/classics/)

[jrw1985]

Yes, Pendelhaven seems good there. It should actually be decent in all the midrangy matchups. My only knock against it is I'm not too keen on Green right now.

Boarding out Vial and Lackey is an interesting approach. Vial is incredible in Grindy matchups and Shardless is the grindiest. But since they have so many good answers to Vial (Decay, Pulse, even Hymn) maybe it is best to side those out and keep up the goblin count postboard.

I'm still just looking for a consistent answer to Goyf. The only card coming to mind is Terminate. Strike that; Terminate is too mana intensive. A mono black spell like Deathmark would be better. Or Doom Blade. That seems so obvious. Has anyone tried it in the main or side?

[ScatmanX]

Since I'm not splashing, my answer is playing relic. Maybe we can try changing how we play it. I usually play it as soon as I can, but been thinking that holding in hand could be good to. So we can get to attack with some small goblins, they'll safely block, and we play and crack relic, killing goyf.
If I was splashing I'd go for some Perish instead of other removal.

Regarding siding out vial and lackey: I decided to side out Lackey on the draw. Indeed chances of him conecting are slim, and we need beefy goblins to catch up with bug starting. Siding out vial sounds very wrong though. Saying they have answers for it doesn't really cut it. It's one of our best weapons against them. Also, I'd rather they use 2 mana with decay or 3 mana with pulse, to destroy a 1cc card from us, then destroying our Warchief or Chieftain.
On the play I'm inclined to keep lackey though. They have few answers for it, and we can start working on their mana base ASAP.
Anyhow, my sb against them so far is 2 Blood Moon, 2 Relic, 2 kinesis, taking out either 4 lackeys, prospector and piled river, or a bunch of other random stuff.

[L10]

If you want a non-goblin target removal, just play StP. Deathmark is pretty narrow (doesn't kill Delver, Young Peezy, or Angler). Doom blade is expensive vs. DnT. White also gives you the best SB cards like Wear / Tear, RIP, Canonist, C. Priest, and Thalia.

[jrw1985]

If you want a non-goblin target removal, just play StP. Deathmark is pretty narrow (doesn't kill Delver, Young Peezy, or Angler). Doom blade is expensive vs. DnT. White also gives you the best SB cards like Wear / Tear, RIP, Canonist, C. Priest, and Thalia.
I see Doomblade having several advantages over StP. First and foremost is Earwig squad. While the white cards you listed are without a doubt excellent sideboard cards, none of them are maindeck-able. Earwig squad is, and it gives you a shot at winning G1 against combo and it makes the Miracles match a cakewalk. So black still looks like a stronger splash color than white right now. The format has too many fair decks. If unfair decks take over then white splash and maindeck Thalias can be a thing. At which point I would consider StP as sideboard spot removal. But for the time being black looks better than white.

My second thought is that Doomblade's cmc of 2 is actually a benefit since it plays through Chalice @ 1. That's important because Eldrazi will drop Chalice @ 1 to turn off spot removal. And We will drop chalice @ 1 against miracles and delver decks where Doomblade is still live.

[sampi]

Dismember is also a fine choice vs eldrazi too

[Chatto]

Hi guys, in two weeks i'll be attending GP Prague. I'm having trouble to decide which build I want to play. I have tested Gobolord's build, and must say it feels good. One thing does bother me: I sometimes miss Warchief for a fast explosive ending.

So, do I splash? I don't like Green nowadays. White has been good to me in the past. I never tried the Black splash all that much.

Now before you give your opinion: attending GP's in Europe mean expecting Combo. White seems the obvious choice, but reading the last couple of posts made me wonder: will Black also be good enough? @ Sampi: nice catch, you can even cast it under Blood Moon, which is huge. I'm considering to play Dismember, even without splashing.

Also Warchief vs Chieftain? Splashing Black would give Warchief a slight advantage.

Some feedback would be appreciated :-)

[jrw1985]

Hi guys, in two weeks i'll be attending GP Prague. I'm having trouble to decide which build I want to play. I have tested Gobolord's build, and must say it feels good. One thing does bother me: I sometimes miss Warchief for a fast explosive ending.

So, do I splash? I don't like Green nowadays. White has been good to me in the past. I never tried the Black splash all that much.

Now before you give your opinion: attending GP's in Europe mean expecting Combo. White seems the obvious choice, but reading the last couple of posts made me wonder: will Black also be good enough? @ Sampi: nice catch, you can even cast it under Blood Moon, which is huge. I'm considering to play Dismember, even without splashing.

Also Warchief vs Chieftain? Splashing Black would give Warchief a slight advantage.

Some feedback would be appreciated :-)

Hello Chatto,

I highly recommend the list I just ran this past weekend and wrote the report about on the previous page....

4 Vial
4 Lackey
4 Matron
4 Ringleader

3 Pilediver
3 Mogg War Marshal

2 Warchief
2 Chiefain

1 Skirk Prospector
1 Goblin Sharpshooter
1 Krenko Mob Boss

1 Tuktuk Scrapper
1 Earwig Squad

2 Gempalm
1 Stingscourger
1 Warren Weirding
2 Pyrokinesis

4 Cavern
4 Waste
4 Port
5 Fetch
3 Mountain
3 Badlands

Sideboard:
3 Blood Moon
1 Pyrokinesis
3 Relic of Progentius
4 Chalice of the Void
4 Leyline of the Void

This build did very well against combo over the weekend. You've got the Earwig squad main which gives you an Oops I Win card against combo G1 while also giving you a huge trump against Miracles. Post board you have Relic, Leyline and Chalice to interfere with combo decks.

I used to run 3 Thalias main back in the day, and I eventually came to the conclusion that I was losing more midrage matchups because of them than the combo matchups they were winning. Having a card you can only cast of Plateau is problematic, especially when your G1 is a grind. You don't have that problem with Earwig Squad, and you don't need to devote as many slots to it. Beyond Thalia W gives you RiP and Cannonist. Those are both incredible cards, but black gives you Leyline and you always have Chalice and Relic as well. Chalice and Relic are actually faster than the white cards you named, and you do not run any risk of having them stuck in hand because you drew Mountains and Wastelands instead of Fetches. Again, that's super important because you can still lose to combo by having any of those W cards in hand and not drawing the mana you need to cast it.

The Warchief/Chieftain split was relevant too. There are many MUs now where Chieftain is very strong, specifically against Shardless and Eldrazi. But Warchief is never a bad card. The cost reduction really helps you go all-out aggro for alpha strikes. I have zero regrets about running the split. The Haste bonus is the most important benefit anyway. Don't feel like you need to pick one over the other. Do some netdecking; you'll see that the lords are very interchangeable across otherwise similar builds.

Dismember is a great card, but there will be times when it doesn't kill a Goyf on its own. Pyrokinesis has the same problem though. Honestly, not having a reliable answer to Goyf is one of the factors keeping Goblins in check in the format. That's why I've been harping on about solutions that I haven't really seen reported on yet, including mono-black spot removal.

[dissy]

Hi JRW,

if your looking for an answer to kill goyf, snuf out may be a solution if you play badlands anyways.
And if give the opponent some more life is worth the removal you can remove goyf at instant speed without paying mana.
not sure if this is the answer your looking for but its better than splashing white and play stp;)
And it also a good asnwer vs a big KotR, or big creatures from eldrazi and such.


http://gatherer.wizards.com/Handlers/Image.ashx?multiverseid=19595&type=card

[Olaf Forkbeard]

I mean, if we are going to play a non-goblin kill spell to kill Goyf I'd splash white for Swords to Plowshares, as goblin players did back in 2008 for that very reason. If you are going to drop some synergy just run the best thing available. This is still Legacy.

Examples:

http://mtgtop8.com/event?e=267&d=116360&f=LE

http://mtgtop8.com/event?e=320&d=119790&f=LE

http://mtgtop8.com/event?e=152&d=111663&f=LE

etc.

I simply searched lists that contained Goblin Lackey and Swords to Plowshares.

That also gives us access to Seal of Cleansing // Wear // Tear and of course Thalia, Guardian of Thraben / Ethersworn Canonist.

[Chatto]

@ jrw: ive seen your list, and read your report! Pretty impressive run you had. Do you think maindecking Kinesis is a neccesary evil these days? I've seen the split between Warchief and Chieftain before, seems having best of both worlds given you more game-lines. I'll give it a shot.

Regarding spotremoval: StP in my opinion is the best. However, there are some others (not naming cards already mentioned):

http://gatherer.wizards.com/Handlers/Image.ashx?multiverseid=401828&type=card

One black, and one creature to sac...

http://gatherer.wizards.com/Handlers/Image.ashx?multiverseid=87917&type=card

Could get mana-intensive.

http://gatherer.wizards.com/Handlers/Image.ashx?multiverseid=270354&type=card

Terminate, and then some... Getting rid of PW is not a small thing.

http://gatherer.wizards.com/Handlers/Image.ashx?multiverseid=4455&type=card

Almost the same as Bone Splinters

http://gatherer.wizards.com/Handlers/Image.ashx?multiverseid=386613&type=card

At least you can clear your GY, and perhaps shrink the Goyf... One can hope :smile:

It occured to me that Black has the most spotremoval.

@ dissy: you do know it's you who will lose 4 life, right? Or do you mean giving up your life for free is like giving your opponent life? In that case, I understand.

@ Olaf: sure looks like a plan, and perhaps one of the more easier says to get rid of Goyf. Those example-list run some pretty greedy-manabases!

[GoboLord]

I don't really see the point of running that kind of non-goblin spotremoval. In my oppinion Relic + MWM is all you need to combat Goyfs. Keeping a 1/1 creature + 1 mana untapped keeps Goyf from doing anything. Relic has the additional upsides that you get a free carddraw (when you look at it as a cmc2 removal spell), you can eat your opponents graveyard (taking away cards that could be used for Gurmag Angler, DRS and such), it doesn't put any strain on your manabase plus it's useful in other (i.e. "non-Goyf") MUs as well.

On Kinesis: I'm maindecking 2 copies as well, because they are great against Eldrazi and basically any kind of Delver deck (they lose a little of their value when plaiyng against Hymn to Tourarch), as well as D&T and Elves.

[Olaf Forkbeard]

I don't really see the point of running that kind of non-goblin spotremoval...

I should have been clear, I totally agree with GoboLord here. I don't think the deck needs the STP at all. I was only saying that if you're going to continue this line of reasoning your options are basically STP and Dismember, as that's what the manabase can handle with least de-synergy.

[Chatto]

I should have been clear, I totally agree with GoboLord here. I don't think the deck needs the STP at all. I was only saying that if you're going to continue this line of reasoning your options are basically STP and Dismember, as that's what the manabase can handle with least de-synergy.

Agreed, but I just wanted to point out some other spotremoval which were not that stressing on the manabase.

[Stevestamopz]

I agree with Gobolord, extra removal just isn't what we need. It feels like you're playing to not lose rather than playing to win.

Remember, we live and die on the board. We can't play a RDW style game with Goblins, but we can win the attrition game and having a heap of snuff outs or plows stuck in our hands just seems bad. I've even cut Tarfire cos I'm sick of how bad it actually is.

FWIW I played Gobolord's list the other day and it was sweet. Would recommend/10.

[Chatto]

tl;dr: spot removal which is better suited for Goblins is usefull, but there is none. We don't have it, so we stick to what we have.

I respectfully disagree. I understand you can chump-block Goyf all day long. It's just that you are not solving the problem. Also, getting rid of Goyf with a combination of cards, say MWM and Relic, isn't the same as spot removal. I'm keeping other problematic big creatures out of the picture here. Chumping is not the same as removing the problem, rather stalling and hoping for the best.

I do agree with the notion that non-Goblin spot removal is suboptimal as well. Also, the design of the best spot removal for Goblins (ie, 'destroy target creature' or 'deal X damage to creature or player', is it a tribal-card etc etc) is open for debate... But not here. Right now we have to do with what we got.

[Olaf Forkbeard]

Another point for the goblin team. Good Job. (http://sales.starcitygames.com//deckdatabase/displaydeck.php?DeckID=103793)

[jrw1985]

JPR at it again! Oh shit, wadddddup?

[Dan Pyre]

Hello Chieftains!

I'll be attending GP Columbus this weekend with Goblins. Wanted to get some feedback on my current take on the list and sideboard, as well as commentary on matchups I'm concerned about.

First, the list:

Lands (23)
4x Cavern of Souls
4x Wasteland
3 - 4x Rishadan Port
0 - 1x Pendelhaven
11 Mountain

Artifacts (4)
4x AEther Vial

Instants (2)
2x Pyrokinesis

Creatures (31)
4x Goblin Lackey
4x Goblin Piledriver
4x Goblin Matron
4x Goblin Ringleader

4x Goblin Chieftain
4x Gempalm Incinerator
3x Mogg War Marshal
1x Skirk Prospector
1x Stingscourger
1x Tuktuk Scrapper
1x Krenko, Mob Boss

Sideboard (15)
2x Relic of Progenitus
4x Chalice of the Void
2x Thorn of Amethyst
2x Pithing Needle
2x Blood Moon
2x Goblin Sharpshooter
1x Siege-Gang Commander

So, I'd like to talk about my sideboard in relation to feared matchups. The 4x Chalice and 2x Thorn is there to combat Storm decks, which I am afraid will have no issues knocking me out of the competition! Understandably, splashing a 2nd color for additional disruption like Earwig Squad of Thalia would be helpful but I would like the deck to try to avoid using fetch or dual lands for the time being. I know that Relic of Progenitus is also helpful in the Storm matchup with Past in Flames so that is a whole 8 cards being brought in for the matchup. Obviously the Pyrokinesis and some number of Ringleaders (if not all of them?) are boarded out for the games, but what about Aether Vial as well? Is it necessary to try to get a mana advantage against a deck that will win through little disruption anyway? Additionally, is it a good idea to bring in a copy of Goblin Sharpshooter or two over Gempalms in case of Empty the Warrens? I know that Belcher does do this but I'm not 100 percent familiar with the Storm matchups to know if they bother anymore.

The Pithing Needles have been very helpful at improving the Sneak and Show and Lands matchups. I wonder if I could squeeze another one in but I'm not sure if another Relic of Progenitus is just better in its place. Relic will make Goyf/DRS and Reanimator a bit more tolerable. Also, is it worth bringing Pithing Needle in versus Reanimator? Naming Griselbrand is sweet but I feel like they're just going to get Iona or Elesh in the first place anyway so it seems like a waste of space.

In addition to trying to find room for more Relics versus Reanimator - I feel very naked with only 1 Stingscourger in the 75 now. I used to play a 2nd one in the sideboard but I just couldn't find the room in the new configuration. Obviously Siege-Gang Commander seems very out of place here BUT I couldn't find a spot for it in the maindeck anymore. The reason it is still in the board is to bring in versus Miracles. Many of them are running Moat in the sideboard now and I'd hate to lose a match against such a great matchup. Is there room in my mainboard to slot it back in? Cut a Piledriver, perhaps?

I'm also concerned with Death and Taxes. I hear that we have a relatively even, if not better matchup versus them but I've always found the exact opposite. Mother of Runes and Stoneforge Mystic make it nearly impossible for us to interact meaningfully if they have either of them in the early turns. I'm especially concerned considering I'm running no copies of Tarfire. The maindeck Pyrokinesis DOES seem fair versus D&T - but at the same time trying to get an X for 2 with it while a live Mother of Runes is on the battlefield is a nightmare. Also, Thalia is a huge liability during combat, making it so that Chieftains cannot even attack to provide pressure. Does anyone have any ideas to try here? Moving up to 4 Gempalm Incinerators should help win the CA race versus them but it is quite reliant on board presence.

I saw that GoboLord was bringing Blood Moons into the sideboard to fight Eldrazi and BUG as well as Lands matchup. I wanted to try to fit 3 along with 3 Relics but as above I feel like I just don't have enough spac ein

Anyway, regarding the maindeck, I figured it would be a good time to try the 4x Chieftain version again, albeit without the Warren Instigators. It seems that Eldrazi and BUG are going to be big players so getting the additional power and toughness alongside more copies of Mogg War Marshal will help in the grindy matchups. When playing against Eldrazi, how often are you guys finding that Pyrokinesis is getting pointed at TKS as opposed to a Mimic/Endless One board?

I also feel very naked without an extra shatter effect in the 75. Obviously Stoneblade and D&T are going to have important equipments for us to have to smash, but I honestly couldn't find another slot for a 2nd Tuktuk. Any suggestions?

Is four Gempalm Incinerator too many? Is not having any copies of Tarfire a poor idea? I like that having more copies of Mogg War Marshal makes the Gempalms quite a bit more effective, but it feels like we're going to be slow, especially on the draw to take out key creatures like DRS or Mother of Runes. Maybe a Singleton Tarfire is the way to go?

I only have access to 3 Rishadan Port at the moment and I'm trying a Pendelhaven in the fourth slot. Is it worth just trying this configuration to get surprise Lackeys through DRS on turn 2, or should I really be focusing on trying to hate out their mana sources? I don't know if I'll be able to acquire the fourth Port before the event but I will try.

Anyway, I've rambled for quite a bit. Just wanted to put my thoughts on paper before the event even if they've been discussed to death 1000 times. Thanks for your feedback, everyone! Hopefully I'll see some of you there in Columbus as well :) Good luck in Prague, too!

[qwertyly]

Maybe you try Trinisphere instead of tron? Trinisphere is good against Omni. If you play Skirk Prospector you must bring in main Goblin Sharpshooter. This combo is answer to Moat, pay attention to Lightning Crafter if you don't what to play shooter in main. What about art hate? 1 Tuktuk Scrapper isn't enough against DnT, I think splashing in greed provides you Krosan Grip and Tin-street Hooligan. Piledrivers isn't powerful in current meta, so you may cut 1-2 copies. Blood Moon is a chief againt BUG/RUG/Grixis delver deck.

[ScatmanX]

@Dan:
- If you're playing Ports and Wastelands, then keeping Vial is good since you can use those. Bringing a single Shooter is not a bad idea as well against any storm or belcher, since is low cost to have and once in a blue moon can win you the game.
- I don't like needle versus reanimator, but if you have really dead cards, brig it in.
- I also don't think Piledriver in great in this meta, and could see you cutting one for a sgc MD. 1 Sting should be enough though imo.
- You beat DnT CA with 3 Gempalms only, but going to 4 is good. It's a tricky MU, but I think we're slightly favourable. Practice more, and with 2-3 Kinesis and some Shooters, you should be fine.
- 3 Blood Moons seem standard now. Get a 3rd one.
- Chieftains have been better for me too instead of Warchiefs. MWM is a house nowadays too.
- Kinesis is good vs Eldrazi. Doesn't matter what it kills or help to kill. You'll grind them out, so free removal is good.
- 4 Gempalm is not too much. 1 Tarfire is debatable.
- 4th Rishadan Port is better than 1st Pendleheaven.

Just my thoughts. =]

[Dan Pyre]

Maybe you try Trinisphere instead of tron? Trinisphere is good against Omni. If you play Skirk Prospector you must bring in main Goblin Sharpshooter. This combo is answer to Moat, pay attention to Lightning Crafter if you don't what to play shooter in main. What about art hate? 1 Tuktuk Scrapper isn't enough against DnT, I think splashing in greed provides you Krosan Grip and Tin-street Hooligan. Piledrivers isn't powerful in current meta, so you may cut 1-2 copies. Blood Moon is a chief againt BUG/RUG/Grixis delver deck.
My issue with Trini is that it isn't going to come down quickly enough versus Storm to matter. Thorn effectively does the same thing for how fast our clock is versus a deck with no board presence. Is Omni really a big part of the metagame anymore? I have only played against it once since the DTT ban at an event.

I can probably cut a Piledriver for a Sharpshooter!

As I said in the big post, I'm trying not to splash a second color for this event to make sure the deck plays as stable as possible.

Thanks for the input!


@Dan:
- If you're playing Ports and Wastelands, then keeping Vial is good since you can use those. Bringing a single Shooter is not a bad idea as well against any storm or belcher, since is low cost to have and once in a blue moon can win you the game.
- I don't like needle versus reanimator, but if you have really dead cards, brig it in.
- I also don't think Piledriver in great in this meta, and could see you cutting one for a sgc MD. 1 Sting should be enough though imo.
- You beat DnT CA with 3 Gempalms only, but going to 4 is good. It's a tricky MU, but I think we're slightly favourable. Practice more, and with 2-3 Kinesis and some Shooters, you should be fine.
- 3 Blood Moons seem standard now. Get a 3rd one.
- Chieftains have been better for me too instead of Warchiefs. MWM is a house nowadays too.
- Kinesis is good vs Eldrazi. Doesn't matter what it kills or help to kill. You'll grind them out, so free removal is good.
- 4 Gempalm is not too much. 1 Tarfire is debatable.
- 4th Rishadan Port is better than 1st Pendleheaven.

Just my thoughts. =]
Agreed with your first points, I think I'll be dumping a Piledriver for a mainboard Shooter as qwerty mentioned above.

I have the 3rd Blood Moon - I think I'll bring it in over the SGC for now and see if I can cut another card for SGC in the main. Maybe the 2nd Piledriver, but that feels really bad...

I want the Chieftains to work, but they be thrown out immediately if I lose too many games on mana issues that Warchief could have solved :P

Alright, I'll have to pick up the last Port from vendors it seems then. Time to do some trade-ins!

Anyone have thoughts on how to slot in the 3rd Relic? Maybe just go 3x Chalice 3x Relic?

Thanks for the thoughts :)

[Chatto]

About Piledriver: he is gradually becoming 'removal' in my book, ie 'block or die'. Yes, he's easy to deal with (Lightning Bolt, StP, PuFi etc etc), but unchecked can wreck havoc out of nowhere (especially when paired with Warchief).

[Morkus]

Do you Know How many Goblins players reached the day2 at GP Prague ? Gobolord ? I saw one match on twitch but it was a lost


Envoyé de mon iPad en utilisant Tapatalk

[jrw1985]

Do you Know How many Goblins players reached the day2 at GP Prague ? Gobolord ? I saw one match on twitch but it was a lost


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No Gobbos day 2'd in Prague (well, maybe one in the 7 "Other" decks), but 2 Goblins decks made it to day 2 at the Columbus GP!
http://magic.wizards.com/en/events/coverage/gppra16/top-100-legacy-metagame-grand-prix-prague-2016-06-12
http://magic.wizards.com/en/events/coverage/gpcol16/day-2-metagame-breakdown-2016-06-12

[Sandro95]

No Gobbos day 2'd in Prague (well, maybe one in the 7 "Other" decks), but 2 Goblins decks made it to day 2 at the Columbus GP!
http://magic.wizards.com/en/events/coverage/gppra16/top-100-legacy-metagame-grand-prix-prague-2016-06-12
http://magic.wizards.com/en/events/coverage/gpcol16/day-2-metagame-breakdown-2016-06-12

The Prague one is top 100 only, so it doesn't show the entire day 2 metagame. I know at least Scatman made day 2.

[ScatmanX]

I think I was the only one to day 2 Prague. 7-2 day one, 3-2-1 day 2. Good enough for my first pro point, but losing round 15 was disappointing.
Will write report later.

[Sandro95]

I think I was the only one to day 2 Prague. 7-2 day one, 3-2-1 day 2. Good enough for my first pro point, but losing round 15 was disappointing.
Will write report later.

Excellent showing. I look forward to hearing all about it. Congratulations!

[kinda]

I think I was the only one to day 2 Prague. 7-2 day one, 3-2-1 day 2. Good enough for my first pro point, but losing round 15 was disappointing.
Will write report later.

Congrats! Looking forward to the report.

[owerbart]

Congrats Marcelo! well done.

looking forward to a report too :)

[ScatmanX]

Hello fellow warchiefs.

As some of you may know I attended to GP Prague this weekend. My first one, after having played only 2 small tournament this year, and a handful last one. Hence, haven't been much active here.
I went to Prague on the Thursday before the event to sightsee a bit, but that's boring. At night I was on a flat with 2 other goblin enthusiasts and 4 other players, all from Germany, including our beloved GobboLord, who I finally met. Other than him met Tobias, Chatto and Johnatan, so we had lots of goblin support over there.

Friday I joined a LCQ and played against Nic Fit. Games were awesome, me getting a bunch of basics and casting several cards a turn. He managed to beat me 2-0 though.
At night we brainstormed and play tested a bit, and made a few changes to our decks. The pile I played was this:

4 Cavern of Souls
4 Wasteland
4 Rishadan Port
11 Mountain

4 Goblin Lackey
4 Aether Vial
4 Mogg Warmarchall
4 Goblin Chieftain
4 Gempalm Incinerator
4 Goblin Matron
4 Goblin Ringleader

2 Pyrokinesis
1 Tarfire
1 Skirk Prospector
1 Goblin Piledriver
1 Tin-Street Hooligan
1 Krenko, Mob Boss
1 Siege-Gang Commander
1 Goblin Settler

SB
3 Blood Moon
3 Pithing Needle
2 Surgical Extraction
2 Relic of Progenitus
2 Pyrokinesis
1 Dismember
1 Stingscourger
1 Goblin Sharpshooter

Notable differences from a traditional build are:
Chieftain. Much better than Warchief here.
TSH. Tobias convinced me to run it over Tuktuk. It paid off.
Settler. Was a house during testing. Did nothing during the tournament.
1 Piledriver. It sucks against many decks. Mwm and Chieftains never let me shy out of win cons.
No combo hate. We all thought trying to dodge it would pay off more than having 7+ cards against it to maybe get a win.

So, gather the pile and went. 1477 players.

Round 1
Shardless Bug
G1
I mull and end the game with 7 lands, 2 lackeys and a Vial. Nice start.
G2
T1 Relic, T2 Port, T3 Moon. Nice comeback.
G3
Gets really grindy. I mull and he destroys my Vial. Fortunately I don't miss land drops, and cast 2 Ringleaders in a row, then Krenko. He's at 10 now, and Deluges, taking me to 13 with a Goyf. Down comes SGC. Zero cards in hand. He passes. Matron into Chieftain and swing. Decay Chieftain. He goes to 7. Time is called. He passes. I attack with tokens and he takes 4. He plays Goyf. SGC finishes him off T4 of extra turns. Phew. My opponent is a bit upset he lost to goblins.
1-0
SB on the play: 3 Moon, 2 Relic, 1 Dismember, for Settler, Piledriver, TSH, Gempalm, Prospector, Mwm.
SB on the draw: same cards in, 4 Lackey, Settler and Prospector out.
It changed a bit during the tournament, but that's the core SB.

R2
Affinity
G1
He gets 2 Ornithopter, mox, land and plating. I play lackey. He equips. I Kinesis. Ringleader comes down. I Gempalm his next play. Chieftain comes down. I Tarfire his blocker next turn and win.
G2
I get stuck on lands a bit, but Kinesis his board again. He gets tezzeret and Champion. I have Ringleader into play, with 4 lands and Chieftain, Matron and something else. Tezz at 3 counters. I make a wrong play and Matron for TSH. He ticks Tezz up and gets a 2nd Champion. I lose from ultimate next turn.
I should have played Chieftain and attacked Tezz. If he blocks Chieftain, Tezz dies. If he blocks Ringleader, I keep my board and Tezz goes to 1, giving me more breathing space.
G3
I lead with Needle on Tezz, having answers in hand for Plating. He starts a bit slower, but so did I, holding my removal for maximum value. It pays of. T5 I guess I matron for TSH and pass with 5 lands. He passes the turn with Ornithorper, Signal pest, the 1/1 lifelink, Etched Champion, CotV@1, Mox, 2 artifact land and 2 other lands. My turn I kill Champion and it was awesome.
Start by Kinesis 3 of his creatures. Double Wasteland his artifact lands. TSH his mox, Gempalm Champion. Oh my. He does not recover from that.
2-0
SB
2 Kinesis, 1 Dismember, 1 Shooter, 1 Sting, 2 Needle, for 4 Vial, Piledriver, Settler, Prospector.

Round 3
Miracles
G1
Play Vial, port him, then get TSH from vial and cast Chieftain to start the beats. He has top. I matron for krenko and play it. For some reason I don't activate it and swing, wich only takes him to 1. He has a fetchland and only 2 other lands. Terminus.
Mwm comes in and he only has 1 StP.
G2
Vial, then Needle. He E.E. them. I waste him twice, and have 2 Ports working on his lands now. With 7 lands I decide to do my play and Matron for and cast Ringleader, revealing only Krenko. He plays Mentor. I play Piledriver. He StP in response. I Gempalm in response. He StP in response. I Gempalm in response. Mentor dies, he gets some tokens, I get pilly and play Mwm. Lots of lands.he had cracked many fetches now, and I managed to swing a bit at the beginning of the game. He's at 10 now. He passes.
I play Krenko, Chieftain, activate and swing. He miracles entreat for 4. What a game.he blocks and kills all but 2 tokens, that take him to 6. All angels and 2 mentor tokens survive.
He swings with 3 angels, bringing me to 14. Lots of stp. I draw a matron. Play matron into matron into chieftain and attack with 5 2/2s he has only 3 blocks. 6 dmg in. Phew again... my opponent is really upset he lost to goblins.
3-0
SB
3 Needle for 2 Kinesis and a Gempalm.

Round 4
MUD
G1
I lead with vial. He chalices. I vial in Prospector and cast Mwm. He gets a Grim Monolith. I Chieftain. He gets the 3/5 dude. I Gempalm and Piledriver.
G2
He gets Lightning Greaves T1. I pass with Tarfire in hand to kill Metalworker. He casts Lodestone Golem instead. Take 5. I play vial. Take 5. Cycle Gempalm looking for something. Take 5.
Get Prospector down and Mwm. Got some breathing room. He plays and equips metalworker, acting another golem. I Kinesis the 1st one. He equips the 2nd. My turn I Tarfire Metalworker. His turn he just swings and I chump. By now he's at 13 from ancient tomb activations. He plays a 6/6 lifelink, equips and attack. I chump, sac blocker before dmg, Gempalm golem. My turn Chieftain and Mwm join the party, taking him to 3, leaving leaving a blocker behind. He passes, I attack with all except chieftain, sac the one he blocks, and he takes 4. Phew again. This was really tuff, and my opponent is really upset he lost to goblins.
SB
2 Kinesis, Dismember, Sting, for 4 Vial.

Round 5
Infect
G1
I lead with Vial, he plays Trop. I play Mwm. He dazes. Prospector comes in from vial to sacrifice himself for the cause. He plays Noble. I play Chieftain and Mwm. Win next turn.
G2
He leads with Noble. I Vial. He destroys my Vial with the 2/2 infect dude. I kinesis him and he save his infect dude with envigorate. I play vial. He gets the blue infect dude, swings for 2. Then gets hierarc,and swing for 3. I have a matron for SGC now. He attempts to Titanic growth one of his dudes. The delve card. I Tarfire in response. He Fows. I kinesis. He frowns. His last threat this game is an Inkmoth that Wasteland takes care of. Then SGC comes down and takes over.
5-0
SB
2 kinesis, Dismember, Shooter for TSH, Settler, Prospector, Ringleader.

Round 6
Storm
5-1

Round 7
Shardless
G1
Mull and get all 4 vials without matrons or ringleaders.
G2
Was grindy. He Deluges twice killing SGC and krenko. Jitte comes down and I lose to it and big Goyfs. He also had Plague, Chill, disfigures... very prepared here and deserved it.
5-2

Round 8
Merfolk
G1
Lackey comes in and trade with Cursecatcher. I have another one. He has a Lord. Pass. He has Silvergil. I play Chieftain. He Phantasmal Image the Lord. I draw kinesis and kill his 3 creatures, play krenko and win.
G2
I make the mistake of porting him when he has vial and I don't. TNN comes down and my removal kill his other creatures, nothing I could do against TNN.
G3
Vial start. He passes. I play Mwm. He plays Jitte. I TSH it. He plays TNN. I Chieftain. He plays TNN. I Piledriver. He plays TNN. I krenko and win. Phew. TNN makes this mu so much harder is not even funny.
6-2
SB
2 kinesis for Settler and Prospector.

Round 9
Painter
G1
I keep a slow vial hand and he kills me t5 I think. I made a mistake of kinesis Recruiter, Welder and Revoker, to then die to Painter next turn.
G2
Needle t1 naming Grindstone. 4 turns later he has the combo but cannot activate it. He Recruiter for artifact destruction, plays it, and I kinesis painter, then Surgical Extract it. Start to bring in the beats. He gets Bridge, bit has 2 cards in hand, so my army kills him. I worked a lot on his mana base here.
G3
He has 1 land, which I waste, then needle grindstone. I'm very slow too and he kinesis me twice. He gets a welder, a petal, then cracks it for the 2 mana tick bomb. I have both tarfire and kinesis now, and for some reason don't kill his welder, choosing to tsh the bomb. He welds back petal. I still don't kill welder, and he gets bomb back. I decided to stop punting, kill welder, get rid of his only land, and kill him. Weird game.
7-2
SB
2 kinesis, dismember, 3 needles, 2 surgical for 4 Vial, settler, prospector, sgc and ringleader.
I'm hindsight taking sgc and prospector out is bad because they're our out to bridge.

Back to the flat. Eat. Shower. Sleep.

Day 2
Round 10
Dredge
G1
He wins
G2
I play Relic, he plays PimP. I kinesis him. He discard ancient grudge, then ggt. I tap relic in response to him discarding ggt, and he tilts. A couple of minutes pass and he let's it resolve. I play prospector, let him dredge but crack relic due to narcomeba and therapy. He loots. Poledriver comes down and I waste him. He dredge. Chieftain. He dredge. Kinesis do some work and I win the next turn.
G3
He is still tilted about his misplay. He opens with pimp. I kinesis it. He discard the 5 mana dredger. I surgical it. He is possessed. The game goes quite long and he manages to dredge a lot, since I'm on 2 lands and can't play my cards. It comes to a point where he has 2 narcomeba into play and 2 bridges. He therapies me. I respond with kinesis, killing his 2nd creature and one of my tokens. We get and judge call to see how triggers resolve. It takes about 10 min, and the head judge appeal. He gets no tokens. This was wrong. He should have gotten 2. He was arguing he should get 4. Deal is counication was pretty poor and the judge did oversaw something. I should have known that too, but I'm more rusty than ever, otherwise would just have killed my own goblin.
Either way, he therapies me and hits about 2 times. I draw surgical again, and extract his ichorids. My board is 2 lands and 1 token still, and he has about 16 cards in his deck. I removed ichorids because thought he wouldn't be able to kill me anymore, and get chieftain out, taking him to 5 lifr. He managed to get 2 narcomeba, one hardcast topdecking his last land, then hardcasting the 2 mana dredger, getting iona into play with 2 cards in his deck. I'm at 14. If he attacks he dies, if he doesn't, he dies. Unfortunately it was time on the round. It ends up in a draw.
My opponent got really tilted there. He could have gone for a grizzelbrand, which would have won him the game, but didn't.
We signed the slip and talked for a bit. Then he went away and tried to concede to me, but it was too late since we were the last game. Good guy.
7-2-1
SB
4 grave hate, 2 kinesis, 1 sting, 1 needle for 4 vial, settler, tsh, 2 ringleader.

Round 11
Grixis
G1
He dazed me twice. I keep playing dudes and he dies. That's all I see.
G2
Keep 2 lands with blood moon and mwm. He daze mwm. I never draw a 3rd land.
G3
Keep 3 lands, 2 blood moon and kinesis. He wastes me, then therapies. I never get to 3 lands and lose. Tuff.
7-3-1
SB
3 moon, 1 kinesis for Settler, prospector, Piledriver and TSH.

Round 12
Miracles
Not much. Normal miracle games. Finish both games with 5 or 6 cards in hand.
8-3-1

Round 13
Shardless
G1 he mulls to 5 on the play, but starts with shaman, into Shardless decaying my vial, into Shardless revealing goys. Game on. Mwm, matron to krenko. Play it. He doesn't have removal. Play sgc. Activate krenko. Win next Turn.
G2
Mountain, port, moon.
9-3-1

Round 14
Bant maverick
G1
He is steamrolled.
G2
Can't remember what I lose to, but punt with a pyrokinesis forgetting hierarch triggers that probably costed me the game.
G3
Good old goblins vs maverick. Takes about 10 turns, but I eventually kill all his creatures and get my card advantage going.
10-3-1

1 more win for some money!

Round 15
Elves
G1
He goes off t4. I had no removal.
G2
No R in 7 cards. No R in 6 cards. No R in 5 cards. That's it.
10-4-1

For all my troubles got a sweet pro point to brag from.

I'm really tired now and really need to sleep, so this is gonna cut short, but feel free to ask any questions and I'll get them tomorrow.

Props for the German community that took me in and made my trip awesome. Was awesome meeting you guys.
Cheers

[Olaf Forkbeard]

Dodged spell based combo match-ups. Sweet stuff.

[owerbart]

Thanks for the report Scatman. Really nice to see you consistently beating Miracles and getting a strong start, thanks for representing the deck :)

What changes would you do moving forward?

[Stevestamopz]

Nice report Scatman, well done.

The only green source for Tincanman are Caverns? Your όρχεις are bigger than any I've ever seen :tongue:

[ScatmanX]

Thanks guys.
Yes, dodging combo was the plan, so only getting paired against one was crucial.
Caverns is the only source of G. It worked for me in this tournament. Might not work in others. But being able to cast tsh for 2 was much much better than tuktuk for 4 when not facing artefacts.

Changed would be -1 Settler, , +1 Tuktuk the Explorer. Seriously. Very good against eldrazi and Bug. Bug decks are all running 2 Deluges now, so tuktuk is a house. Granted, would need to test more, but guess would do that only.
Oh, an Shooter might be coming of the board for something else.

Other interesting things that happened in the tournament :
3 judge calls for Oracle on Gempalm, 2 on Ringleader, 2 on Pyrokinesis. All in Portuguese.
Porting W source of miracles on my draw step, so they Terminus and I can cast haste creatures and attack them.
Getting my opponent with top ask "upkeep?" And look at me during his turn just so I say "yes, you can draw now", and only por them in their draw phase.
All opponents in day 2 going: "goblins? I really didn't expect that" or having no idea of what the deck is or how to play or sb against it.

[Olaf Forkbeard]

Other interesting things that happened in the tournament :
3 judge calls for Oracle on Gempalm, 2 on Ringleader, 2 on Pyrokinesis. All in Portuguese.
Porting W source of miracles on my draw step, so they Terminus and I can cast haste creatures and attack them.
Getting my opponent with top ask "upkeep?" And look at me during his turn just so I say "yes, you can draw now", and only por them in their draw phase.
All opponents in day 2 going: "goblins? I really didn't expect that" or having no idea of what the deck is or how to play or sb against it.

As it's always been, the deck is misunderstood.

[Ace/Homebrew]

As it's always been, the deck is misunderstood.
Just because a thing has been a certain way since you've known about it does not mean it was always that way. :wink:
Goblins was one of the big 3 (others being Threshold and Solidarity) and was a DtB for so long there were cries to ban Lackey.

Congrats Marcello! Sorry about your luck in the last round.

[Olaf Forkbeard]

Just because a thing has been a certain way since you've known about it does not mean it was always that way. :wink:
Goblins was one of the big 3 (others being Threshold and Solidarity) and was a DtB for so long there were cries to ban Lackey.

Congrats Marcello! Sorry about your luck in the last round.

Fair, but let's be real; that was literally years ago. For the sake of my hyperbole I think the point is clear.

[L10]

Thanks for the report Scatman. Well done!


Just because a thing has been a certain way since you've known about it does not mean it was always that way. :wink:
Goblins was one of the big 3 (others being Threshold and Solidarity) and was a DtB for so long there were cries to ban Lackey.

Congrats Marcello! Sorry about your luck in the last round.
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