[OLD] UGb Threshold

I find it somewhat sad that there are 3 different threshold threads. Someone else had the sense to point that out to me...

I am testing this list at the moment:

Lands (19)
4 Delta
4 Strand
2 USea
2 Tundra
3 Tropical
1 Island
1 Scrubland
1 Plains
1 Swamp

Creatures (11)
4 Goyf
4 Confidant
3 Trygon Predator

Spells (30)
4 FoW
4 Daze
4 CB

4 Brainstorm
4 Sensei's Divining Top

4 Thoughtseize
4 Swords to Plowshares
2 Vindicate

As you see I do without Ponder. I played 2 before, but cuttet them for a land and the 4th Daze. I don't know, if you can really do that, but before you say that everyone just has to play 4 Ponder in this Deck I would like to point out what made me cut it:

You mostly look for a land with Ponder anyway, so I rather play more lands. That gives you more speed in the early game. I want to play a first turn Top or Thoughtseize and a second turn critter or CB. I don't want to cast Ponder in the first turns unless I'm looking for a land.

In this list you are able to draw cards with Confidant, so I feel there is no need for more card quality cards than 4 Brainstorm and 4 Top. We can already shuffle with 8 fetch lands which is enough I think. A deck full of so many cantrips is bad in the late game, because you have less solutions for problems and you have to spend time and mana to search for them. Often it would be so much better just to draw the solution right away in these slots you spend for Ponder.

I have no Mongoose that needs a full grave. Thoughtseize is the sorcery for Goyf.

Ponder is just so much worse than Brainstrom and Top. It doesn't really work with CB. You can't get bad cards out of your hand and shuffle them away or get them on top of your libary for CB.

Of course Ponder is a strong top deck in the middle and late game and better than a land then, but I think it makes the early game much weaker and more inconsistent, because you need one turn to cast it and then there is still a chance that you don't find the essential 2nd or 3rd land in your Ponder.

Maybe I am totally wrong on this, as I am not that experienced with this deck, so please give some advide on the Ponder issue.

From the last DTBF update:

Quote:

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A second important change involves how Threshold decks are counted; in the last year the archetype has evolved to the point that the old categorisation by their splash colour (or lack thereof) makes little sense.

Today, the one clear split is between decks packing the maindeck Counterbalance/Top combination and those favouring an aggressive, tempo-driver approach with Daze, Stifle, and Wasteland. The latter decks are quite well established, with only a few secondary choices being discussed (mostly additional threats such as Dreadnought or Alara Reborn creatures) and splashing exclusively either Red or Black.

Counterbalance decks, on the other side, exist in a continuum, from the classic Mongoose builds to the Chicago lists to those incorporating additional tricks (Survival, Natural Order, etc.); they also exist in pretty much every possible colour combination that includes Blue and Green, from two to four colours.
If some clear division in approaches emerges, this will eventually be adopted in both thread organisation and tournament tallies. For the time being, all CounterTop decks that do not fall into any established category, i.e. that follow the game plan of "establish the Balance soft-lock and play good creatures", will get dumped into one format-leading cauldron.

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In accordance with the above, this thread is being locked and will eventually be archived. You may continue your discussion in either the CounterTop thread or the Tempo Thresh thread, as appropriate.