R/G/W Zoo Updated Thread
What is it?
R/G/W Zoo is just like it sounds, it is a savagely fast aggro deck that takes advantage of the most efficient and cost effective red/green/white spells in the game.
Why play Zoo? Isn’t Goblins the best aggro deck?
The deck is quite fast, but if you are going to play aggro, isn’t Goblins better? Yes and no. Zoo mulligans a lot less and has less dead draws. Usually after the initial onslaught Goblins is stuck drawing crappy 1/1 and 2/2 creatures, and bad Goblin Ringleaders can just lead to a loss. This is not the case with Zoo. Every creature you draw is a serious threat, especially with Jittes and Cursed Scroll in the deck. The worst creatures you can draw at and given time are Isamaru and Goblin Legionnaire/Figure of Destiny, which, are not all that bad themselves. In terms of speed, turn 3 kills are not possible like they are in Goblins. In Zoo, turn 4 kills happen around 20-35% of the time. Expect to win turns 5-6 usually, but this includes disruption from the opponent.
Why Red/Green/White? Are additional splashes necessary?
Zoo will always be R/G something. Because red has burn and green has cheap and large creatures like Tarmogoyf. But what about the third color? Why white? Until recently, R/G/B could have been just as good. With the printing of Wild Nacatl and Woolly Thoctar it send R/G/W into the optimal colors for Zoo. Nacatl is a 3/3 for G and Thoctar is a 5/4 for RGW. Also, white gives you access to Swords to Plowshares, Watchwolf, Lightning Helix, and Gaddock Teeg. You can play additional colors, having access to fetchlands enables you to play Domain Zoo if you want to, but the problem with playing 5 colors is that you are now very vulnerable to a single wasteland.
Manabase
Part of the reason this deck is so effective is that it is simple. Burn, big creatures, and a solid manabase. Only playing 3 colors enables the deck to run 1x of each basic, so you can fetch those out against decks that run Wasteland recursion. This is essential, basics play a large part of keeping the deck solid, especially against Moon effects and cards like Back to Basics. Basics also help in the burn matchups, just fetch them out to nullify Price of Progress. Horizon Canopy is another card that merits discussion. NEVER, play more than 2 in this deck. As long as you play 4x Wild Nactal and 4x Kird Ape do not run any more. Horizon Canopy is very good as a 1-of but playing anymore greatly hinders 8 of your creatures power level and makes the deck even more vulnerable to Wasteland. It is good when you are mana flooded or can’t find that green or white source, but should not be run as more than a 2 at all since it will mess with the consistency of the deck.
Decklist and card explanation
Here is a fully up-to-date list and SB of what a new R/G/W Zoo deck should look like followed by an explanation of each card:
4x Tarmogoyf
4x Kird Ape
4x Wild Nactal
4x Watchwolf
3x Isamaru, Hound of Konda
2x Goblin Legionnaire/Figure of Destiny
2x Woolly Thoctar
4x Swords to PlowShares
4x Lightning Helix
4x Lighting Bolt
2x Cursed Scroll
2x Jitte
4x Wooded Foothills
4x Windswept Heath
3x Taiga
3x Plateau
3x Savannah
1x Horizon Canopy
1x Mountain
1x Plains
1x Forest
Sideboard
3x Pithing Needle
3x Pyroclasm
3x Vexing Shusher
3x Ancient Grudge
3x Gaddock Teeg
Tarmogoyf - Needs no explanation, he is big, green, and wins games fast. Play no less than 4!
Kird Ape - The second best 1CC creature in the deck. R for a 2/3 creature is pretty good, a long time staple in RG aggro, this deck is no exception, he is still spectacular and still fast, play 4!
Wild Nactal – One of the main reasons to play white, it is G for a 3/3, spectacular creature, especially in the early game and in multiples! Play no less than 4!
Watchwolf – GW for a 3/3 is damn good. He is big and fast. A lot of people seem to disagree with Watcholf being any good in Legacy, but test it out, the card is the third most common counter target, right behind Swords and Goyf! Puts the opponent on a fast clock, play 4!
Isamaru, Hound of Konda – Easily the weakest creature in the deck, but W for a 2/2 is really good. If there was a bigger one drop creature without a drawback it would replace him, but as it stands, Isamaru is a damn good creature, but only play 3 since it is legendary!
Goblin Legionnaire/Figure of Destiny – These are the 2x open slots in the deck, and it really varies. I have played both and I remember one tournament in particular where I ran 2x Figure of Destiny, I lost one game since it was not Legionnaire, and I won another since I could make it a 4/4. It really depends, these creatures usually get sided out anyway and both suck against Goblins, but I prefer Goblin Legionnaire in this spot since he is both a creature and burn and is usually a 2 for 1 or a finisher with the opponent at 2 life! If there is a lot of Dredge or Aggro Loam played in your meta you could run Jotun Grunt in this spot as well.
Woolly Thoctar – This guy is a fucking monster! Because of his restrictive CC of RGW he should not be played a any more than a 2-of, and because he is the most expensive card in the deck! He does slow the deck down a little, but usually he is bigger than Goyf and at worst he trades with Goyf; usually he is immune to Counterbalance as well . He is a massive threat all his own and needs to be addressed immediately! Play no more than 2!
Swords to Plowshares – Most people seem to think that running StP is ignorant since giving the opponent life is very counter-productive to the plan of Zoo. This could not be farther from the truth. StP is a utility removal spell. When you have Goyf, Ape, Nacatl, and Isamaru on the board, you could care less that the opponent is about to gain 3-5 life from their Goyf since you are about to swing in for a lot more! StP deals with any troublesome blockers like Goyf, Tombstalker, Nantuko Shade, or most any big late game threat your opponent may play. It is also a maindeck answer to Phyrexian Dreadnought! Not only does StP clear the path for your attack, but it also keeps you alive against burn, and in certain dire situations, can save you against an inexperienced tendrils combo players! Play no less than 4!
Lightning Helix – Second best burn spell ever printed! This card single-handedly dominates the aggro mirror matches and ravages Goyf Sligh, play 4!
Lighting Bolt – The best burn spell ever printed …. play 4!
Cursed Scroll – This card is probably the most misunderstood in the deck. Most people won’t run it since it slows the deck down, much like the arguments against StP, the usefulness of Scroll trumps those arguments. Cursed Scroll dominates the Goblins matchup, one game I drew 6 lands in a row against Goblins and still won, since Scroll kills every single creature in their deck! Scroll also breaks Goyf standoffs and the general utility of a permanent burn spell is never useless in an aggro deck! R/G/W Zoo is a strange aggro deck, it is fast in the early game, but because the creatures are so effective it also has pretty good mid-late game! The card is just too valuable not to play, when the deck runs out of gas it is very nice to have a permanent 2 damage source that can’t be burned away or StPed! But everyone dismisses it based on goldfish speed, and it should absolutely be included in the deck! Play 2!
Umezawa’s Jitte – Ironically this card is a lot like Cursed Scroll, it fundamentally slows the deck down by 1-3 turns but is still commonly played since .. it is that good. No argument from me, Jitte is spectacular, it dominates random aggro, makes burn cry, and turns every creature in the deck into an even more imminent threat! Play 2!
Wooded Foothills – On color fetchlands, play 4!
Windswept Heath – Same as above, do not play Bloodstained Mire in RGW Zoo, you have access to G/W and R/G fetchlands, that fact that your fetchlands can get on color basics is very important!
Taiga/Plateau/Savannah – The deck has a very close ratio of R/G/W spells so just running 3 of each of these is the best plan!
Horizon Canopy – Already explained why to run just 1, but it is a very good 1-of. If you wanted to replace it with anything, put a Taiga in its spot! DO NOT play any color-less lands in this deck, it will really hurt the consistency and make the deck even more vulnerable to Wasteland!
Forest/Mountain/Plains – Already explained, 1 of each basic is very important!
The SB should vary from each meta but this is what I run, my meta has EVERYTHING, you might play against, Affinity, U/G Madness, Stiflenought, B/W Confidant, ANT combo, Thresh, Goblins, Belcher, Lands! etc. This SB is optimized to be effective against most of the Legacy metagame and has been thoroughly tested:
Pithing Needle – This card is vital and should be run in EVERY SB for Zoo! It should be at least as a 3-of! It helps against Maze of Ith, Vedalken Shackles, Engineered Explosives (this is key), Belcher, Putrid Imp, Survival of the Fittest, Sensei’s Diving Top (another key card), and numerous others! Play no less than 3!
Pyroclasm – Great for fending off Dredge’s zombie tokens, makes the Elf and Goblins matchups nearly a bye, and gets rid of Empty the Warrens tokens. Not essential to the board, but if you expect lots of Goblins or Belcher, certainly bring this! 3 is good enough, 4 is almost overkill, I would not run any more than 3!
Vexing Shusher – As Eric Foreman would say “YES YES”! Shusher is fucking amazing in every way, it answers the deck’s most problematic cards: Chalice of the Void and Counterbalance! Play no less than 3!
Ancient Grudge – Here is where the metagame starts kicking in, there are TONS of Vedalken Shackles and Dreadnoughts running around in my meta. I choose to not run any form of enchantment destruction because Enchantress is such a horrid matchup and in my meta there are no enchantments that I really need to kill. Needle and Shusher are all you need for the Counterbalance matchup IMOP. This could easily be Naturalize/Krosan Grip but I much prefer Ancient Grudge, since Dreadstill is so commonly played in my meta. Also, Grudge deals with 2x threats from Dragon Stompy which is always nice. Grudge is a very underplayed card, and if you don’t expect much Enchantress or Prison effects, certainly run them! Play 3!
Gaddock Teeg – If your meta has any form of combo your have to run this guy! He is the best form of combo hate that you can play in an aggro deck. He also stops Engineered Explosives, Force of Will, Belcher, and Wrath effects that Landstill may play! If you don’t have Teeg the next best creature to run is Ethersworn Canonist and after that Thorn of Amethyst. Those are the best forms of combo hate you can run. However, the combo matchup is not good anyway, but Teeg is run because of his dual role against stopping combo and his usefulness against EE and other cards.
Here is a list of the creatures that could be used in RGW Zoo, but just don't make the cut.
Mogg Fanatic - I've personally been a fan of Mogg since I started using him, but for Zoo, every one drop must have at least 2 power and 2 toughness. If you play this deck in a meta with lots of Dredge then look into Fanatic, otherwise don't worry about it. This deck is about speed, and Fanatic is great, BUT he is just an inferior card to draw during the mid-late game.
Savannah Lions - A good 2/1 for one, but in Zoo we personally want to maximize each card's power AND toughness, so the 1 toughness just doesn't cut it.
Jungle Lions - Same explanation as Savannah Lions, except for he can't even block.
Skyshroud Elite - He was tested early on and was either really hit or miss. I just hate casting him turn one and then your opponent dropping a forest and a Llanowar Elves or a island and Top. He just isn't that good anymore and since Nactal was printed, he got the boot.
Magus of the Moon - Absolutely terrible, turning all your lands into Mountains is bad for Zoo. I couldn't actually see him being used in the main or board for any Zoo deck. Turning your opponent’s lands into mountains is cute, but why do you want to do this when you can just win?
Magus of the Scroll – Why not just run Cursed Scroll???
Grim Lavamancer - There has been a lot of arguing between him and Cursed Scroll, but the dissynergy with Goyf and the fact that he can be removed off the board so easily makes him weak. He is good, but in a deck that’s all about quick, fast, efficient creatures, he just isn’t good. Plus we don't play enough actual spells like Goyf Sligh to utilize him properly.
Serra Avenger/White Knight/Silver Knight - All of these cards are really good, but costing WW in a 3 color deck without manafixers in a format that plays Wastleland is just bad.
Woolly Thoctars 3&4 - Having to fetch all duals is suicide sometimes. His casting cost can be tough because it costs both 3 and WGR and there will be times, where it will be stuck in your hand. In multiples it is terrible, but drawing one in the mid-late game … hot sauce!
Nimble Mongoose - Hitting Threshold is really tough in this deck and the opponent really should be dead by the time you would achieve Thresh or late game it can’t wear Jitte.
Troll Ascetic - Too mana intensive and slow. Damn good card … but not in a pure aggro deck.
Jotun Grunt - AMAZING card, and was used early on in testing, but the dissynergy with Goyf was just too much. Could possibly be used in the sideboard against Dredge and Aggro Loam. The problem is, he usually gets in 1 swing then dies, this deck just doesn’t play enough spells to maintain it.
Scab Clan Mauler - WAY too conditional. You want stuff late game that will still be 2/2 3/3 for 1 or 2.
Blade of the Sixth Pride - With a toughness of 1, and nothing special except it's cost, it isn't that good.
Silhana Ledgewalker - Shroud is good, really good, but his 1/1-ness makes him unplayable especially with no pump spells.
Matchup analysis:
Threshold - 60/40 in Zoo'z favor. Red Variants have bolts which hinder us. A lot of our creatures can trade/kill Mongoose fairly easy. But you know Thresh, it can just get nuts hands and counter everything relevant. Countertop is also bad news for us, Shusher in the board helps but only if you draw him. But this being a pure aggro deck sometimes it can just do its thing and go nuts. Be careful if they play Engineered Explosives to not overextend. SB really varies depending on which version you are playing against but usually go -3 Isamaru, -2 Goblin Legionnaire. Jitte can also be sided out but ONLY if they run Counterbalance; also against Counterbalance take out Lightning Bolts to make them work to counter your spells and every card in the deck a permanent threat.
Team America - TA has a problem dealing with multiple threats, and the fact that they run Snuff Out is great for us. They only run 8 threats and since StP is your friend this matchup is quite easy. This is essential, remember this, MULLIGAN into a hand that has a basic in it or duals, if your only lands are fetches, throw the hand away unless you are on the play to avoid Stifle and be weary of Daze, play the match slower. You don’t have to aggro them out as fast as you can, just take your time, the longer the game goes the better for you. You can chumps block Goyf all day and two burn spells, Cursed Scroll + burn spell, or Swords can handle Tombstalker. Overall it is about 75/25 in favor of Zoo. Just aim to keep a somewhat land heavy hand. No SB is necessary, but you could put in either Teeg or Shusher but they don’t play enough counters to justify Shusher and Teeg only shuts off Force and Snuff Out.
Goblins - This matchup is almost a joke. Every creature in this deck is better than theirs, and you have better removal. Pyroclasm from the board makes this matchup even more insane. 80/20 in my opinion from testing pre-board and 90-10 post. The only loss I have ever taken from Goblins is when I didn’t hit land number three until turn 13. Seriously, its that bad. Cursed Scroll shines here, it kills every creature in their deck again and again! SB like this: -2 Goblin Legionnaire, -1 Isamaru and +3 Pyroclasm.
Dreadstill - Dreadnaught is hard to deal with before sideboard, the only real answer to Dreadnought is Swords to Plowshares. Countertop once again is a pain, because it shuts off a LOT of the deck. Plus they have Engineered Explosives/Academy Ruins which "Ruins" our day. Wasteland can be bad news but it really depends. It also varies with the build you are playing against, the versions with Goyf are a lot easier. Pre-board it is about 65/35 in favor of Dreadstill. But things get a LOT better after the SB. Out of the 3 times in a tournament that I have ran into Dreadstill I have never lost the match, that is because Ancient Grudge OWNS that deck. If they don’t run Counterbalance you don’t need to bring in Shusher because playing to many bears can lead to Mishra’s Factory becoming a problem but based on the number of Counterspells SB accordingly. Usually SB something like this: -4 Lightning Bolt, -3 Isamaru, -2 Goblin Legionnaire, -2 Jitte, -1 Kird Ape and +3 Teeg, +3 Shusher, +3 Needle (EE, Top, Factory, Wasteland), +3 Ancient Grudge.
Ad Nausem Tendrils - Terrible matchup ... no main deck answers at all. Just hope they keep a terrible hand and you can aggro out on them or they go into Bolt range from AdN. Its probably something like 85/15 in favor of Ad Nauseam. SB like this: -2 Woolly Thoctar, -2 Jitte, -2 Goblin Legionnaire and +3 Teeg, +3 Ancient Grudge.
Survival- Recurring threats backed up by hand destruction can be bad. But the deck isn’t super fast and Zoo is, this is truly a race matchup it is a little in favor of Zoo, probably 55/45. SB like this: -2 Goblin Legionnaire, -1 Isamaru and +3 Pithing Needle.
Eva Green - They run Snuff Out, and their threats die to almost all of our removal. Discard and Wasteland are annoying, but we can play through it. Maindeck Seal of Primordium bad as well since Jitte and Scroll are great in this matchup. 60/40 in our favor. Especially if it goes late game, everything in this deck is a threat, and ours are a lot better than theirs. SB: -2 Isamaru and +2 Ancient Grudge (for their Jitte).
Dragon Stompy - Chalice of the Void, Trinisphere, and Blood Moon effects all ruin your day. Arc Slogger is scary since it can and will kill your threats rather easy. Just hope they keep a bad hand and aim to keep one with a basic in it. About a 70/30 matchup in their favor. SB like this: -2 Woolly Thoctar, -2 Cursed Scroll, -1 Goblin Legionnaire, -1 Isamaru and +3 Ancient Grudge and +3 Shusher.
Mono Blue Control - If the game goes too long they will just beat you. So kill them early or you pretty much have no hope. Countertop turn two sucks but the threats in this deck are so good it only takes a few to go a long way. If they don’t run Counterbalance it is very hard for them to win. Vexing Shushers just beat them though. Its really bad after SB, just mull into Shusher. SB like this: -2 Jitte and -1 Isamaru and +3 Shusher.
Belcher - If they Belch you then you lose, but if they happen to have to Empty the Warrens, you can come back with a lot of blockers and pinpoint removal, even then, it's still a nightmare. This deck can actually race (on the play) a turn 1 Empty for 10-12. But any more than that it’s bad. Since Belcher is a glass cannon its either going to win fast or lose gloriously. It’s about a 80/20 matchup in favor of Belcher. If they don’t win on turns 1-2 then Teeg will devastate them. SB like this: -2 Woolly Thoctar, -2 Jitte, -2 Cursed Scroll, -2 Goblin Legionnaire, -4 Swords to Plowshares and +3 Pithing Needle, +3 Teeg, +3 Pyroclasm, +3 Ancient Grudge.
A special thanks goes out to Loxodon Baileyarch for helping me write the primer and for just being awesome and playing Zoo!
