[Deck] Zoo

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Originally Posted by RaNDoMxGeSTuReS

What's your current sideboard look like?

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I don't actually have a current sideboard, as I'd shelved Zoo for a few months due to the combo explosion. I'm contemplating picking it back up now.

In Zoo, I think for me personally, if I were to start playing it again, my list would look like this:

4 Wooded Foothills
3 Arid Mesa
3 Windswept Heath
3 Taiga
2 Plateau
2 Savannah
1 Plains
1 Forest
1 Mountain
1 Wasteland

4 Grim Lavamancer
4 Wild Nacatl
4 Tarmogoyf
4 Qasali Pridemage
4 Knight of the Reliquary
1 Gaddock Teeg

4 Lightning Bolt
4 Mental Misstep
4 Path to Exile
4 Lightning Helix
2 Sylvan Library

SB:
4 Tormod's Crypt
4 Oblivion Ring
2 Null Rod
2 Gaddock Teeg
3 Red Elemental Blast

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Originally Posted by nLee

In a big zoo list though, I probably wouldn't run wastelands at all. That deck feels even more mana hungry and the increased curve makes me not want to be trading away my land drops for theirs.

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Wasteland is a better play in Big Zoo than normal Zoo for the following reasons:
1) Noble Hierarch gives you a tempo boost relative to your opponent, and allows you to play with more mana sources (usually 20 colored land sources + 4 Hierarchs + 2 Wastelands versus 18-20 colored land sources + 2 Wastelands), which makes the one-for-one trade with Wasteland more favorable.
2) Big Zoo tends to run more Knight of the Reliquary, and because of Noble Hierarch and the increased mana sources, it can drop KotR faster, which gives it increased synergy with Wasteland.
3) Big Zoo backloads its damage more than normal Zoo; that is, it doesn't deal damage nearly as quickly in the early game, but can often put out a lot of fatties by turns 3 or 4. Being able to "Time Walk" the opponent with Wasteland means more in the latter case than the former.

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Originally Posted by Tacosnape

I've been running Oblivion Ring in the sideboard of Zoo for quite some time. Specifically, ever since I realized almost every card I hate seeing with Zoo could be solved by Oblivion Ring. I don't think Beast Within is qualified to replace it.

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What matchups do you bring in O-Ring against, and what do you side out for it?

I really like Oblivion Ring's versatility, but I tend to prefer raw hate power over versatility in my sideboard card, and I feel O-Ring is a bit lacking with respect to the former (except against Show and Tell -> Emrakul). Still, if it's good enough in enough matchups, I'll have to make some space in my SB.

does anyone tried to put a piece of thrun in main deck? im just figuring out if it is good enough vs CB Deck unless they already played a humility =(

So I stumbled across a Fast Zoo deck that I'm in love with.... but it looks like opposing Mental Missteps will just wreck this deck. http://www.thecouncil.es/tcdecks/dec...1&iddeck=44249

Post-NPH, will Fast Zoo still be a deck worth playing?

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Originally Posted by Arsenal

So I stumbled across a Fast Zoo deck that I'm in love with.... but it looks like opposing Mental Missteps will just wreck this deck. http://www.thecouncil.es/tcdecks/dec...1&iddeck=44249

Post-NPH, will Fast Zoo still be a deck worth playing?

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I'll be playing it. So yes.

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Originally Posted by lordofthepit

What matchups do you bring in O-Ring against, and what do you side out for it?

I really like Oblivion Ring's versatility, but I tend to prefer raw hate power over versatility in my sideboard card, and I feel O-Ring is a bit lacking with respect to the former (except against Show and Tell -> Emrakul). Still, if it's good enough in enough matchups, I'll have to make some space in my SB.

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I board it in against anything packing significant amounts (Or a few significantly crippling) artifacts or enchantments (Ring makes Chalice Aggro matches SO much more smooth), anything with multiple large creatures, anytime I see Emrakuls, or any time I think it's flat out better than Path, Bolt, or Helix.

Against Junk, for example, I'll run it in place of burn spells. Oblivion Ring solves Goyf and Knight better, and is capable of hitting a Pernicious Deed they just dropped. Granted, Ring can get Vindicated, but chances are it won't. You run more scary creatures than they do, and every Vindicate aimed at your removal is one not aimed at your equally frightening creature base.

The thing about Oblivion Ring in the board to remember is this. Don't worry about it getting destroyed. It just doesn't happen hardly ever. And if you're taking out a blocker with it, even if it does get destroyed, chances are you got a full swing through in the process.

Another thing? Oblivion Ring's versatility is its best quality. It's never an "Oops, I win" card on its own, but it improves a lot of other tricky matches by just enough.

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Originally Posted by kabards

does anyone tried to put a piece of thrun in main deck? im just figuring out if it is good enough vs CB Deck unless they already played a humility =(

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Thrun isn't as good as other options here, if you're going to go so far as to run a 4-drop. I'd much rather stick an Elspeth (or even an Ajani Vengeant) in most cases.

For what it's worth, I've been testing Cat Sligh/Disruption Zoo lists against TA/Neo-Landstill and found out Sulfuric Vortex is pretty sweet against them. You run out all your weenies/burn, and then after they think they've stabilized at 8-10 life or so, BAM, repeatable damage that can't be MM/STP/Snared. Vortex wasn't terrible before MM as well.

The SCG Neo-landstill lists seem to be a decent matchup for the lists I've ran though tests. Team America is still not fun but winnable.

I can second this. Sulfuric Vortex in fast zoo is nut high. The deck needs consistent non-combat win-cons, Vortex fills this role well.

With Merfolk gaining popularity again, isn't Volcanic Fallout one of the better SB options?

I think Jitte serves the same purpose without blowing up our lynx, guides, pridemages, revokers and/or lavamen. It also can just randomly foil the merfolk player's Jitte out of the board.

That said, even with MM, merfolk hasn't gotten hard enough to the point where I am worrying. The splash damage from most people's boards(REB effects, Jitte, etc) should be enough against them without boarding anything specific.

how would stoneforge mystic work in zoo as a possible late game option? Maybe as a 2of?

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Originally Posted by AznSeal

how would stoneforge mystic work in zoo as a possible late game option? Maybe as a 2of?

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Already been done: http://sales.starcitygames.com//deck...p?DeckID=37566

Over the last six months, how many of you (us) Zoo players have been feeling about SB graveyard hate?

Personally, I'm scared to run anything less than three slots, Crypts or what have you. I'm curious to see how people build their sideboards for this particular deck.

a player named Rafael Garcia placed top8 in Bazaar of Moxen 5 a few days ago.
@ jandax
in my Zoo Deck i don't have any GY Hate in my list

My sideboard is:

4 Gaddock Teeg
4 Qasali Pridemage
3 Surgical Extraction
3 Pyrostatic Pillar
1 Bojuka Bog

So I'm packing 4 GY hate. But I've got a main deck that's pretty versatile and has pretty good game against anything aggro, control or aggro control. So I can afford to pack a lot of board for off the wall stuff.

Right now, I'm experimenting with Zoo again after a solid 6 years or so off. I've been running Bant aggro for the last 6 months, but it's not the strongest against TA now with Mental Misstep out there. They've gotten too good at shutting down my mana between Waste, Stifle and MM on Hierarch/GSZ->Arbor. I played half a dozen matches on Workstation yesterday and this morning, which isn't exactly quality testing, but I felt fairly confident about the deck. I think my build could use a little tweaking (but it's less than 24 hours old, so that's no shocker), but we'll see where after a few more days of playing with it. I wish I had the money to put this together for the SCG in Indy coming up, but I'll still be playing the Bant aggro there and just hoping to dodge early Missteps.

here's my Sideboard :

3 Mindbreak Trap
3 Krosan Grip
2 Pithing Needle
3 Ethersworn Canonist
3 Pyroblast
1 Price of Progress

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Originally Posted by kabards

here's my Sideboard :

3 Mindbreak Trap
3 Krosan Grip
2 Pithing Needle
3 Ethersworn Canonist
3 Pyroblast
1 Price of Progress

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Why are you playing Enlightened Tutor? Doesn't seem worth it for the two Pithing Needles. If you're set on using Enlightened Tutor, there are a bunch of other good fetchable cards you should be playing.

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Originally Posted by trivial_matters

Why are you playing Enlightened Tutor? Doesn't seem worth it for the two Pithing Needles. If you're set on using Enlightened Tutor, there are a bunch of other good fetchable cards you should be playing.

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What E. Tutor? He's playing Ethersworn Cannonist, if that's what you're talking about...

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Originally Posted by SpikeyMikey

What E. Tutor? He's playing Ethersworn Cannonist, if that's what you're talking about...

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Wow, I somehow mistook Cannonist for Enlightened Tutor. Must be because they both start with e... >_>

To contribute something useful: You should post your list, even if it's not completely finished. I'm interested in why there are no Qasali Pridemages main. Also, maybe you could explain the four Teegs and Surgical Extraction.