[Tiny Leaders]Marath, Aggro Loam

[NilsH]

I've previously played Aggro Loam in Legacy, and wanted to build something similar for Tiny Leaders. Aggro Loam can be played in both Jund, Naya and Abzan colors; even Temur is an option. I chose to play Naya because I wanted to play green-red, and Marath, Will of the Wild seems the strongest commander to support those colors and strategy. In my view having a strong commander is more important then anything else, afterall you'll play the commander several times each game. My reasoning for playing red, over say Abzan, is that red has access to more sweepers and the powerful Punshing Fire engine. Here's the list I came up with:

Commander:

Marath, Will of the Wild


Deck:

Windswept Heath
Wooded Foothills
Arid Mesa
Verdant Catacombs
Bloodstained Mire
Taiga
Savannah
Plateau
Stomping Ground
Sacred Foundry
Forest
Mountain
Command Tower
Rugged Prairie
Fire-Lit Thicket
Horizon Canopy
Grove of the Burnwillows
Oran-Rief, the Vastwood
Nantuko Monastery
Wasteland
Blasted Landscape
Secluded Steppe
Tranquil Thicket
Forgotten Cave
Maze of Ith
Tarmogoyf
Jotun Grunt
Countryside Crusher
Knight of the Reliquary
Terravore
Loxodon Smither
Courser of Kruphix
Eternal Witness
Kitchen Finks
Mox Diamond
Chalice of the Void
Scroll Rack
Crucible of Worlds
Sylvan Library
Journey to Nowhere
Seismic Assault
Swords to Plowshares
Punishing Fire
Lightning Helix
Gamble
Life from the Loam
Devastating Dreams
Firespout
Council's Judgment


The ratio between lands, spells, creature's and cycling lands is very close to its Legacy counterpart.


Some notes about card choices:

The MVPs:
Life from the Loam
Devastating Dreams
Seismic Assault
Countryside Crusher
Knight of the Reliquary
Maze of Ith

Odd Inclusions:

Oran-Rief, the Vastwood combos with both Kitchen Finks and Marath. Both interaction has proven to be useful.

The upkeep cost of Jotun Grunt has some benefits. He works as graveyard hate against opposing decks in addition to refill your library with cards from my graveyard. When dredging Loam the graveyard gets filled quickly, usually I want some of the cards back in my library. Against mill strategies he is particulary good.

Courser of Kruphix was my latest addition. So far I've been happy with him. I can get extra value with him with Scroll Rack by playing lands from the top of my library instead of my hand. He might be exchanged for something that attacks harder in the future.

Journey to Nowhere is the last spot removal. It's ok, but not great. As I'm writing this I'm considering other options.


Odd Exclusions:

Lightning Bolt and Path to Exile are excluded because I want to set Chalice at 1. The deck has enough mana to play removal with cc2 or cc3.



Possible Inclusions:


Land's Edge
Winds of Change
Fiery Justice

[NilsH]

I took the above list to a local tournament. It was my first time playing the format in a competativ event. My sideboard was:

Engineered Explosives
Damping Matrix
Trinisphere
Kor Firewalker
Wear/Tear
Krosan Grip
Ethersworn Canonist
Choke
Wheel of Sun and Moon
Anger of the Gods



Round 1 Angus Mackenzie Turbo Fog / Mill

Game 1 I resolve an early Countryside Crusher. Crusher beats hard for two turns. When he is tapped out of blue mana I play Devastating Dreams for 5 killing all his lands. I win shortly after.

+EE, +Grip, +Wear/Tear, +Damping Matrix, +Canonist
-Maze, -Journey, -Firespout, -Swords, -? (Don't remember the last card)

Game 2 he has turn 2 Rest in Peace and The Tabernacle at Pendrel Vale turn 3 or 4. I attack him with a Kitchen Finks and Knight of the Reliquary each turn, but it's hard to get through. Eventually I get Grip which kills the Rest in Peace. Unfortunatly it doesn't do me much good at it turns on his Loam and Constant Mist. I slow him down with Canonist. With Canonist down he can no longer counter my spells and play fogson my turns. The game turns in my favor when I resolve Damping Matrix to shut of Temple Bell and some other artifacts he controls. A few turns later I cast Chalice for 2 after combat and he his basicly locked out.


Round 2 Anafenza, the Foremost Abzan Aggro

Game 1 he has some early pressure with both creatures and discard. I find my Loam and bury him in card advantage and stabilize in the midgame.

+EE, +Wear/Tear
-Chalice, -Journey
I might have board in an Anger of the Gods as well because he played a lot of dorks. Not sure what I could have cut for it.

Game 2 he has an early Rest in Peace and a lot of pressure with Stoneforge Mystic with an Sword of Feast and Famine. Luckily I draw a Maze of Ith and are able to hold him off with the Maze and Marath. I actively use Marath to kill all his 1- and 2- thoughness creatures. He plays a Pernicious Deed, so I avoid to overcommit to the board. The game stall until I draw aWear/Tear which I fuse targeting his Sword of Feast and Famine and his Deed. He decides to blow the Deed in response. I win shortly after as I have more and better cards then him.


Round 3 Anafenza, the Foremost Abzan Midrange

Game 1 he gets a lot of value with Hymn taking my spells. I stabilize with Loam and Seismic Assault during the midgame. He can't find an answer for Seismic and I win.

+EE, +Wear/Tear
-Chalice, -Journey

Game 2 he stumbles a bit on mana in the early turns. I don't have much either. We exchange threats 1 for 1 until he is left with a Fleeceman Lion with monstrous. I assemble Kitchen Finks with Oran-Rief so I can block it indefinitely. The game goes to time and ends in a draw.

Matches: 3-0
Games: 5-0-1

We were only 8 players, so we only play 3 rounds swiss. I ended at 1st.