BOM5 - 5th with NO Bant, some hilights

Originally I've want to play Big Rubin Zoo, which I won a BOM trial with, but...

I've taken a Zoo and 4c Countertop cards to Annecy, as well as Noble Fish for Vintage part. So, as I already had the byes for Legacy event, I've registered for a Vintage trial on Friday (there's no Vintage scene in Russia, so I had no way to earn the byes, and we don't have enough players to inflate the ratings for rating byes), also intending to scout Legacy metagame as much as I could.

Went 6-1 in Vintage surprisingly (the deck was good), finishing 4th. And boy, I didn't really like what I've seen on Legacy tables. All sorts of deck that a Zoo is weak against, like Maverick, combo, Sneak'n'show, etc. And so I just had that idea of playing Bant, much like I did in Vintage, as it's generally a strong, 'safe' deck. I also wanted to beat the Maverick decks, so I thought, Natural Order, I'm going to play this.

My friends have helped me to build the deck in the late night, and adviced to run the Jittes, to shore up the tribal match ups. And so I did, registering this piece:


4 Tropical Island
2 Tundra
1 Savannah
4 Misty Rainforest
4 Windswept Heath
1 Forest
1 Plains
1 Island
1 Dryad Arbor

4 Noble Hierarch
4 Tarmogoyf
2 Qasali Pridemage
4 Vendilion Clique
1 Progenitus

4 Brainstorm
2 Ponder
3 Mental Misstep
4 Force of Will
4 Natural Order
3 Green Sun's Zenith
4 Swords to Plowshares
2 Umezawa's Jitte

Sideboard

3 Path to Exile
2 Llawan, Cephalid Empress
2 Enlightened Tutor
2 Null Rod
1 Tormod's Crypt
1 Wheel of Sun and Moon
1 Ethersworn Canonist
1 Krosan Grip
1 Loaming Shaman
1 Serenity


The deck really plays like a slow-roll combo with some protection. I've run 4 Cliques, and its been the MVP card the whole day. I've always wanted to have one. Clique just tears apart any combo deck or any blue deck (except merfolk). The information it provides you with is invaluable. Not to mention it won me a bunch of games on its own (+exalted). Turn 1 Accelerant - into turn2 Clique (stripping their outs) - into turn 3/4 Order is just that good.

There were a couple of Enchantress decks, but I don't think you even need Serenity for that match. There were a bunch of MUD decks as well, but none close to high tables. I don't remember seeing any Affinity at all. So I think I should've run Oblivion Rings and/or Phyrexian Metamorph in place of Grip and Serenity for Sneak & Show.

STP and Misstep are there to slow down opponent to ensure that they don't have a shot at racing Hydra Avatar.

Well, on to the tournament. I lost my notes, so I might mix up the order I've played the matches, and as I don't really remember much, I'll try to give you some highlights. Sorry for not posting the names, I don't remember em :)

Round 1&2: byes

Round 3. TES
Game 1. He tries to Thoughtseize me, which I Misstep, then goes all-in. I have a force and Goyf goes for a distance.
Game 2. I open a hand without FoWs but with some hate. He infernal tutors for Thoughtseize on turn 2, then tries to Thoughtseize me, but I hide my hate with a timely Brainstorm (Null Rod and Clique). On my turn I drop Null Rod, he Thoutseizes something irrelevant again, and then I drop Clique and see a nice hand of 3 Petals, 2 LEDs, Ritual and Infernal Tutor. I strip Ritual and bring the beats.

3-0

Round 4. Sneak & Show.
Game 1. He drops a turn 2 Hydra Avatar. I dig for Order with some Brainstorms, swords my own guy to get another turn, but I get nothing and die.
Game 2. I cast a turn 2 Clique, which reveals 3 FoWs, some mana and Show and Tell. No creatures, no cantrips. I let him keep and just beat down. That works, he never gets a creature.
Game 3. I open with Progenitus in hand, weee! He gets a top down. I cast Clique on my turn and see a hand of Daze, SnT, SnT, Blank. I have to take a Daze, since I'm holding a FoW and can't afford to get Dazed. I FoW his first SnT and beat with clique, casting some guys. Then he SnTs for Emrakul. I drop Progenitus. I bring him down to 3 with that attack ^_^ and I have 8 permanents. I win next turn.

4-0

Round 5. UR Painter
Game 1. We have some counter wars (my first Clique gets blasted), Goyf brings some beats. He gets a top and Grindstone down, on a turn before I go lethal I Clique him after draw step to get rid of Painter. He counters it with blast, but is tapped out and can't activate Grindstone the same turn. I order for Qasali Pridemage (lol) to clear the way.

Game. More or less the same happens, I get a couple of swords effects, a grip, and he just can't keep up with his counters. I finish the game with 2 extra swords effects.

5-0

Round 6. U/W Thopters.
Game 1. I get an early goyf and beat some, he gets a thopter/sword down quickly, but I order for a Progenitus, then drop a Hierarch, and he just can't keep up with my Hydra.
Game 2. He's stuck on two islands and I just beat with Goyf. I had a Null Rod anyway, and that card really gives Thopters troubles.

6-0

Round 7. U/B Merfolk
Game 1. I Zenith for Arbor on my first turn, and then he casts a Standstill. The Arbor brings the beats for 9 turns, I lay out the lands, and he's a bit screwed, discarding a lot of stuff. He finally gets a Wasteland, and I brainstorm EOT. He discards, then I offer a Goyf (FOW), another Goyf, which sticks and Jitte which wins the game.

Game 2. I have a nice Order hand with Clique. I cast Clique a see a hand of 3 Perish, 2 Snuff Out and a Lord. Guess that Order isn't THAT good now. I take the Lord and the game drags for a while. I get Perished 5 times (the 5th being a Portal perish), I STP/path a bunch of his guys, but he just outgrinds me, getting more creatures, while I'm stuck with two Orders in hand.

Game 3. We don't have a lot of time, and we finish with him at 4 life, and me having a Progenitus in play.

6-0-1

Round 8. G/W/B Maverick
Game 1. I curve out a perfect Natural Order hand, swordsing and missteping his drops. He can't race.
Game 2. I never see an order in a veeery long game, we play attrition games with topdeck wars for a while, and he finally gets me with a Thrun equipped with SOLs. I had some blank draws, while he had some timely Zeniths.
Game 3. I have a nice hand with StP, Clique and Order, but he has even a better one! I can't order in time due to Gaddock Teeg and Aven Mindcensor, he gets an active jitte to destroy my Order outlets, and the time is called. I still have 21 life, so he's short of winning it.

6-0-2

Round 9. Canadian Thresh
Game 1. We fight attrition fights for a while, and I come on top with a Jitte'd Goyf.
Game 2. I mulligan to 5, get wasted twice and just lose.
Game 3. Same as game1, Goyf does it. I guess Stp/Path are better than Bolt in dealing with Goyfs.

7-0-2

Weee, I'm in top16!!

Top 16. Merfolk
Game 1. I get an early jitte on goyf and it wins a game.
Game 2. He has a lot of early offense, but by Brainstorm brings me some Swords and a Goyf. That's enough to stabilize on 6 life, then I Order for Progenitus and beat in 3 turns.

Top8. UBG Landstill (eventual winner)
Game 1. I get an Early goyf, bring him down to 12, then he destroys it and casts a Standstill. I Clique in response, and that nets me a win.
Game 2. Landstill does what it does. I didn't side out the StPs, but have to FoW confidant for a clique, since I don't have StP. He just casts a second Confidant. I manage to lure out a FoW, then try to Order, but he topdecks another FoW off Standstill and I just lose to massive card advantage.
Game 3. I open with a hand of Island, Tundra, Fow, Fow, Goyf, Hierarch, Qasali. Meh. I mulligan into a hand of Plains, 5 other cards, I mulligan into no-lander, into another no-lander, into fetch, tropical, fow. He gets two Confidants down and I just lose. Meh. What a way to lose the match. I'm 5th and get a Mox Sapphire.

Sadly, the Sunday's Vintage event didn't go that well. I've started out with 4-1, but then just lost 3 matches in a row in a series of some insane, totally unfair vintage topdecks/plays (like Recall into Demonic into vampric into time walk into yawgmoth's win or losing to a first turn oath with orchard twice, with him also having counters for my outs). Well this is what this format's about, and who am I to complain, playing such a fair deck as Noble fish. It really needs to go first to have a good shot at winning matches, and I lost all the dice rolls. Finished 5-4 in a 92nd place.

What, no U/W Tempo? Jk, it wouldn't be a good idea with everyone testing Mental Misstep. Congrats on the finish!

Great report!
Isupov y are rly a robot:)

Congratulations on your finish!

There were many Canadian's Threshold decks at the event? (besides your last game, fighting for the top16)

Grats Tinefol, and your list will make standstill.dec a funny matchup with 4 Cliques :) (which you mentioned in your merfolk matchup lol).

Congrats! I was definitely hoping you'd play Rubin Zoo, but certainly can't argue with your results! =)

Quote:

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Originally Posted by kues

There were many Canadian's Threshold decks at the event? (besides your last game, fighting for the top16)

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I personally saw a lot of those at 5-2+ tables at trial, misstep put it back on the top.

It is and was always on the top, just noone played it except some players that (nearly) always get good results with it. DTB doens't always represent the best decks in the format, it's the most popular decks that get a lot of top 8's in a year.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Cenarius

It is and was always on the top, just noone played it except some players that (nearly) always get good results with it. DTB doens't always represent the best decks in the format, it's the most popular decks that get a lot of top 8's in a year.

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But now deck requires a bit less skill than usual, and a lot of players sleeve it back

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LUhz4zJmkmE
Video deck tech with the very me. Sorry for a horrible pronounciation.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Tinefol

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LUhz4zJmkmE
Video deck tech with the very me. Sorry for a horrible pronounciation.

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You did a good job with it.

Your English is infinitely better than the majority of The Source's Russian, no worries. Congrats on the finish and VERY nice looking deck by the way. Maybe Russian cards aren't as pimp in Russia, but I'm a huge fan.

Congrats !!!

And nice to see finally on youtube who you are :smile:

Quote:

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Originally Posted by VsTheWorld

Your English is infinitely better than the majority of The Source's English

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Fixed that for you.