Originally Posted by
Quitrex
I would also like to point out that smallpox is very valuable vs storm as it hits the two things they actually need to beat you: mana and card density. I recommend adding a couple of trinisphere or (if you can) nether voids to your board, potentially going as far as to also board some rituals, if you want to beat storm, as they have immense difficulty with both those cards, especially if you drop them on turns 1-3. I also would like to point out that chalice of the void on anything from 0-2 is relevant in the storm matchup, my preference being 0 if they don't have artifact mana down and 1 if they do, and that surgicaling infernal tutor or dark ritual usually makes their head explode. You can also try to surgical their tendrils if you get lucky enough to land one in the yard, then just live long enough to get a night of soul's betrayal down and watch them cry.
Shardless is a very close and intricate game in my experience, that basically boils down to winning the planeswalker fight (your veils vs their veils/sculptors) and not letting them pull too far ahead on cards. This is basically the matchup that I like chains for, and you were correct that attacking their mana is a very relevant stratagem. I always have three pithing needle in my board, and here they name sculptor and DRS (who is really inconvenient.) I don't much care for NoSB in this match since it doesn't kill anything, but crucible and cursed scroll have been very impressive , one for bringing back factories to pressure planeswalkers/protect your walkers from their dudes as well as wasteland lock them, one to pressure their walkers and keep the board clear of everything except goyf. I also don't hate bringing in surgical/extirpate here, as getting all their deathrites exiled means they are more susceptible to your mana denial, hitting ancestral/shardless/brainstorm greatly hinders their ability to pull ahead on cards, and if you can hit a walker you have just made the game very easy on yourself. Once again, smallpox is one of your most valuable cards as it hits their hand, limiting their ability to fight back at the rest of your plan, their board, which you've ideally been keeping down to one or so creatures anyways, and their mana, which lets them claw back out of the hole you're digging them. Also worth noting, if you go the blossom plan in your board, I like those in this matchup too, since they only have four decays and you have so damn many targets that threaten to run away with the game if they don't.
