[Deck] Berserk Stompy

[Gui]

Hi there! First of all, welcome to MTS!

Glistener Elf hasn't been discussed in this specific thread because:
- Mixing infect guys with non-infect guys is bad, you can't switch his damage to non-infect, and so the damage won't stack with the other creatures.
- The Thread for "Infect Pump" decks is at "New and Developmental" session. You can discuss it freely there.

Besides that, don't use Land Grant. It's bad. And has been discussed Ad Nauseam.

[paeng4983]

Here is a proposed Decklist...

4x Land Grant
4x Elvish Spirit Guide
9x Forest

4x Nettle Sentinel
4x Quirion Ranger
4x Silhana Ledgewalker
4x Glistener Elf
4x Scryb Sprites
4x Blight Mamba

4x Rancor
4x Vines of Vastwood
4x Invigorate
4x Giant Growth
3x Might of Old Krosa

SB: 3x Scryb Ranger
SB: 3x Ichorclaw Myr
SB: 3x Gleeful Sabotage
SB: 3x Seedtime
SB: 3x Defense Grid

errrrr...
didn't mean to hurt you but i'd rather see
an infect deck rather with that mixed type
of creatures.

to tell you the truth, i've been waiting for months
for this 1cc infect dude. and now its here i can
shift from this taraditional stumpy to a modern one.
:) ahooo...

[Malchar]

How about Vault Skirge to replace Scryb Sprites? I don't play this deck but it seems like lifelink could be useful with all the pump effects, and it also dodges Mental Misstep.

[boneclub24]

How about Vault Skirge to replace Scryb Sprites? I don't play this deck but it seems like lifelink could be useful with all the pump effects, and it also dodges Mental Misstep.

Hell, I would be happy if Scribes eat a Mental Misstep rather than a Berserk.

[NihilObstat]

How about Vault Skirge to replace Scryb Sprites? I don't play this deck but it seems like lifelink could be useful with all the pump effects, and it also dodges Mental Misstep.

Sometimes wasting 2 lives could be too much, and Sprites untap Nettle. Lifelink doesn't really matter. Against slow decks we either rule or die anyway, and against fast decks 2 wasted lives is a risk.

[Gui]

How about Vault Skirge to replace Scryb Sprites? I don't play this deck but it seems like lifelink could be useful with all the pump effects, and it also dodges Mental Misstep.

I think it can replace. I didn't test, but doesn't seem bad. Although I realise that, if you are in need for life link, maybe spending two life in that case isn't good. But it can be tested. I'd switch my 2x Scryb in my list from previous page for 2x of it and see the results.

[neoryujin]

Has anyone also noticed a potential do-or-die game-ender with Immolating Souleater + Berserk (or even Rancor) ?

Quite risky, but Mental Misstep or Vines of Vastwood could perhaps offer protection ...

[Gui]

Has anyone also noticed a potential do-or-die game-ender with Immolating Souleater + Berserk (or even Rancor) ?

Quite risky, but Mental Misstep or Vines of Vastwood could perhaps offer protection ...

Hmmmm.... somehow I didn't notice that.

Looks good in theory, even without berserk, it's not uncommon to be ahead and able to spend like 16 life to put 9 dmg at a time... good finding, that's a test priority, IMO.

Problem is how to fit more 2cc to the deck. My list from a page ago is quite balanced, manabase sakes, I think I'll have to cut Sylvan Library for it?

[boneclub24]

I have the same issue with this guy as I do with Kiln Fiend in Sligh: I HATE relying on just one creature. If it eats removal, you are done.

@Gui: Have you gotten to testing Mental Misstep yet?

[neoryujin]

I have the same issue with this guy as I do with Kiln Fiend in Sligh: I HATE relying on just one creature. If it eats removal, you are done.

@Gui: Have you gotten to testing Mental Misstep yet?

It's risky, yes, but it's giving out more pressure than for example Jungle Lion or Nettle Sentinel.

For example, it's our turn 3, we are at 18 life & have 1/1 Skarrgan Pit-skulk & Immolating Souleater in play, standing against their 3/4 Tarmogoyf & 2 Noble Hierarch, opponent at 20 life.

We attack with both of our creatures, leaving the opponent wondering, as to why we haven't pumped Skarrgan Pit-skulk to make it unblockable as usual? If we pay 16 life to Immolating Souleater to deal 9 damage + Berserk, that would still be a total of 18 damage (and still reducable by using Tarmogoyf to block it), not enough to finish it. Unless we have a pumper in hand, which would make Immolating Souleater getting +3/+3, which (with paying 16 life & berserk) would accumulate to 24 trampling damage (even a blocking Tarmogoyf would not help). Perhaps the opponent has a removal in hand, but who knows if we have Mental Misstep or Vines of Vastwood in our hand?

So, it would make blocking decision more difficult for our opponent. And if we know that the creature is a removal magnet, we could also use this pressure to bluff our opponent. (for example, in the above example, we didn't have any Berserk, just a bunch of creatures, and we just wanted to get rid of Goyf. Then simply pay 6 life to kill the blocking Goyf, and dump all your creatures to the battlefield afterwards)

[paeng4983]

over the past weekend, i had the chance to play against
that new counter spell (MM), and i hate it!

most of our spell here is at ONE cc and them having FOW and MM
is like hell.

[Gui]

over the past weekend, i had the chance to play against
that new counter spell (MM), and i hate it!

most of our spell here is at ONE cc and them having FOW and MM
is like hell.

Wierd, because tempo decks usually have problems against us, they used to be good matches. Besides, we can always use Choke or River Boa again to bring them more problems... well...

[KBH]

and now its here i can
shift from this taraditional stumpy to a modern one

That's my issue. This deck feels like living in the past when a turn 4 win was good. It has exactly one card that can produce turn 3 wins (Berserk) and then not always (iffy withLedgewalker)

Infect is just too much faster, although I guess that Souleater is theoretically really fast as well.

[Gui]

That's my issue. This deck feels like living in the past when a turn 4 win was good. It has exactly one card that can produce turn 3 wins (Berserk) and then not always (iffy withLedgewalker)

Infect is just too much faster, although I guess that Souleater is theoretically really fast as well.

Infect has problems with controlish decks running counterspells and removals that we don't usually have (maybe misstep can halt us on that, but we usually can beat tempo decks better than infect, that relies on creatures with no protection and no beef)

Anyways, there's a thread for pump-infect already, what's the problem with discussing it there?

[KBH]

Infect has problems with controlish decks running counterspells and removals that we don't usually have (maybe misstep can halt us on that, but we usually can beat tempo decks better than infect, that relies on creatures with no protection and no beef)

Anyways, there's a thread for pump-infect already, what's the problem with discussing it there?

I was more discussing the question of whether this deck is obsolete.

[paeng4983]

I was more discussing the question of whether this deck is obsolete.

if it is, ohh this made me sad
:(
but in my opinion, it's not (i think).
in my view, the 1st version of the deck is still viable
and in fact, i'm still running an almost similar
build as that of caesar's (only with minimal tweaks just
to be that flexible with the meta that i'll be playing at)
which still gives me good results.

berserk-infect stompy is fun to play in whatever/ where-ever
legacy tournament you're playing.

[KBH]

I don't know. I've spent years hoping this deck could be good, deluding myself into thinking it was at least passable, and so on.

But what counts as "fun"? Going 2-3?

I agree this deck is good -- in Pauper, the all commons format. In Legacy though? Come on..its only appeal is that its "budget" but since you need Berserk thats not even true anymore.

[Gui]

I don't know. I've spent years hoping this deck could be good, deluding myself into thinking it was at least passable, and so on.

But what counts as "fun"? Going 2-3?

I agree this deck is good -- in Pauper, the all commons format. In Legacy though? Come on..its only appeal is that its "budget" but since you need Berserk thats not even true anymore.

You could post your problems, playtesting data and results, and try to solve its problems, instead of come to the thread to say you don't believe in the deck anymore... ><

Btw, not to ofend anyone, have you playtested it a lot lately to say so? Because if you had, you could post your findings, I'd be interested.

[KBH]

You could post your problems, playtesting data and results, and try to solve its problems, instead of come to the thread to say you don't believe in the deck anymore... ><

Btw, not to ofend anyone, have you playtested it a lot lately to say so? Because if you had, you could post your findings, I'd be interested.

I have playtested it, yes. Its not going to be terribly relevant though since New Phyrexia shakes things up a good bit. Firstly, due to Mental Misstep. Secondly, because Infect got that much relatively better.

But, I've played this deck on modo on and off. It was way too slow to beat Ad Naus before Mystical was banned. Admittedly I didn't play much vs the Survival decks.

I've also played Infect, including at the Star City event last weekend, and you just can't compare them. Infect has many paths to win on Turn 2.

I think what you're saying here highlights part of the problem. I've "lost faith" in the deck? The only thing keeping this deck going is exactly that -- a quasi-religious attachment on the part of its devotees.

[Gui]

Right. Part of the problem is that it doesn't get enough playtest. I'm interested in your list and what you lost against at SCG or whichever event you got the deck to. That would help tweaking it, and possibly see what we are doing wrong.

Unfortunately I don't have access to weekly tournaments, not even to weekly playtesting unless via mws, which tends to suck because players there usually don't want to play against Zerk or don't know how to play their decks. =/