4 Card Blind: The Silkster Seasons

[silkster]

Wow, y'all aimed low!

Reeplcheep: Leyline of Anticipation, Black Lotus, Black Lotus, Covetous Urge,
dte: Codie, Vociferous Codex, Leyline of the Guildpact, Coalition Victory, Saprazzan Cove,
FTW: Leyline of the Guildpact, Rushwood Grove, Upwelling, Coalition Victory,
Silkster: Darksteel Citadel, Shizo, Death's Storehouse, Blackmail, Corrupt Zendikon,
GoblinSmashmaster: Black Lotus, Black Lotus, Auriok Salvagers, Rise of the Hobgoblins,
Wrath of Pie: Icatian Store, Archangel Elspeth, Elspeth, Sun's Nemesis, Elspeth's Talent,


dte's clock I count to be 5 turns to play the Codex, then 8 turns to play the victory for 13 turns.
I think FTW misread Coalition Victory and didn't include a creature.
Archangel Elspeth hits for 3, 5, 5, 7 on the four turns after it comes down, so it wins on turn 10.

I think the toughest calculation is Silkster vs Elspeths. Blackmail hits the Archangel, otherwise it can block forever. Elspeth waits until turn 8 to make Sun's Nemesis with 2 charge counters remaining, then is able to make 4 blockers and buy enough time to play the Talent, which immediately takes over the game. WW for Elspeths.

It looks like Covetous Urge is lower of the two median decks. I had been thinking that I might need to veto a deck that often can't win, but it doesn't really matter that much. Your submission needs to 6-0 against turn 0 discard. That's definitely not hard to do, but it does put a heavy restriction on what's legal.

You sure you want the winner of a backbuild round to be something we have to lose to?

I think so. It'll be a challenge to build under such a low ceiling. I'm at least excited to see what comes of it.

[dte]

Congrats Reeplcheep!

Reeplcheep: Leyline of Anticipation, Black Lotus, Black Lotus, Covetous Urge, comment: Floor
2-2, fortunately my threat costs 3, not two
2

Just wondering, so this round was not legacy but starting next one it is, right?

dte: Codie, Vociferous Codex, Leyline of the Guildpact, Coalition Victory, Saprazzan Cove, comment:
Me, aggro book or rainbow victory.

FTW: Leyline of the Guildpact, Rushwood Grove, Upwelling, Coalition Victory, comment: Taste the rainbow
6-0, but maybe I just didn't understand your deck?
8

Silkster: Darksteel Citadel, Shizo, Death's Storehouse, Blackmail, Corrupt Zendikon, comment:
0-6. I had the right blocker for tour corrupted land, but blackmail :(
8

GoblinSmashmaster: Black Lotus, Black Lotus, Auriok Salvagers, Rise of the Hobgoblins, comment: Goblin smash!!!!
0-6. Goblins smash!!
8

Wrath of Pie: Icatian Store, Archangel Elspeth, Elspeth, Sun's Nemesis, Elspeth's Talent, comment: I look forward to the submit Elspeth round
0-6. I got raced.
8

Too low to be median :/

[FTW]

FTW: Leyline of the Guildpact, Rushwood Grove, Upwelling, Coalition Victory,

Started with Bloom Tender (which works) but got too cute trying Upwelling. A deck that do anything without Upwelling makes for an interesting floor/ceiling deck. Instead, I accidentally made a deck that can't win unless opponent donates a creature, and opponent could choose to do nothing.


Reeplcheep: Leyline of Anticipation, Black Lotus, Black Lotus, Covetous Urge,
Neither of us have a wincon. DD 2-2

dte: Codie, Vociferous Codex, Leyline of the Guildpact, Coalition Victory, Saprazzan Cove,
I appreciate that you also used this opportunity to force 4cb Coalition Victory. I can slow you down by not playing Upwelling! LL 0-6

Silkster: Darksteel Citadel, Shizo, Death's Storehouse, Blackmail, Corrupted Zendikon,
Even with a functional deck I can't win through Blackmail. I choose not to play Upwelling so you can't give the Zendikon fear!! LL 0-6

GoblinSmashmaster: Black Lotus, Black Lotus, Auriok Salvagers, Rise of the Hobgoblins,
I don't get to think about Upwelling, you smash with 100000000 goblins on turn 2. LL 0-6

Wrath of Pie: Icatian Store, Archangel Elspeth, Elspeth, Sun's Nemesis, Elspeth's Talent,
I decide to play Upwellling to save you time & math. LL 0-6

Total: 2 points (0 wins, 2 draw, 8 loss)

Congrats Reeplcheep on very strong decks last round!

[Reeplcheep]

Reeplcheep: Leyline of Anticipation, Black Lotus, Black Lotus, Covetous Urge,
I thought t0 steal would lead to interesting backbuild decks


dte: Codie, Vociferous Codex, Leyline of the Guildpact, Coalition Victory, Saprazzan Cove,
Steal Codie, can’t cast it. DD 2-2

FTW: Leyline of the Guildpact, Rushwood Grove, Upwelling, Coalition Victory,
No wincon DD 2-2
Silkster: Darksteel Citadel, Shizo, Death's Storehouse, Blackmail, Corrupt Zendikon,
Hey a threat I can pay for but no profitable targets. DD 2-2

GoblinSmashmaster: Black Lotus, Black Lotus, Auriok Salvagers, Rise of the Hobgoblins,
Beaten down by 1 lonely goblin LL 0-6

Wrath of Pie: Icatian Store, Archangel Elspeth, Elspeth, Sun's Nemesis, Elspeth's Talent,
2 expensive threats LL 0-6

0W 6D 4L for 6/30


I think this is my first time winning one of these, benefitted a lot from removing the lowest.

[GoblinSmashmaster]

GoblinSmashmaster Results for Round "Goblins smash!"

Reeplcheep: Leyline of Anticipation, Black Lotus, Black Lotus, Covetous Urge,
Goblin smash! 6-0

dte: Codie, Vociferous Codex, Leyline of the Guildpact, Coalition Victory, Saprazzan Cove,
Goblins smash! 6-0

FTW: Leyline of the Guildpact, Rushwood Grove, Upwelling, Coalition Victory,
Goblins smash! 6-0

Silkster: Darksteel Citadel, Shizo, Death's Storehouse, Blackmail, Corrupt Zendikon,
Discard :( 3-3

Wrath of Pie: Icatian Store, Archangel Elspeth, Elspeth, Sun's Nemesis, Elspeth's Talent,
Goblins smash! 6-0

27/30 goblin points

[Wrath of Pie]

Wrath of Pie: Icatian Store, Archangel Elspeth, Elspeth, Sun's Nemesis, Elspeth's Talent,

Reeplcheep: Leyline of Anticipation, Black Lotus, Black Lotus, Covetous Urge, - WW
dte: Codie, Vociferous Codex, Leyline of the Guildpact, Coalition Victory, Saprazzan Cove, - WW
FTW: Leyline of the Guildpact, Rushwood Grove, Upwelling, Coalition Victory, - WW
Silkster: Darksteel Citadel, Shizo, Death's Storehouse, Blackmail, Corrupt Zendikon, - WW
GoblinSmashmaster: Black Lotus, Black Lotus, Auriok Salvagers, Rise of the Hobgoblins, - LL

Elspeths need a plan for those Goblins.

Looks like the median is no one, somehow. (Even number of entries is evil.) A round of vanilla Backbuild then trying to lose to the most losing of said entries sounds hilarious, but I'm pretty sure that's not what silkster wanted.

[silkster]

Looks like the median is no one, somehow. (Even number of entries is evil.) A round of vanilla Backbuild then trying to lose to the most losing of said entries sounds hilarious, but I'm pretty sure that's not what silkster wanted.

I think it's in the fine print somewhere that the lower of the two median decks is to be chosen, which I mistakenly thought earlier was Covetous Urge, but I had a few matches wrong and it now looks like it's Codie.

[FTW]

8

Too low to be median :/

Think again! 2 of us had decks unable to beat 4x basic land, while 2 had near-sweeps, so there were only 2 real contenders for "middle".

[silkster]

Okay, the passage of a few days and FTW's confirmation is good enough for me. The first floor deck is Coalition Codie.

A quick reminder that we are in backbuild this round, so unleash the terrible. It is also legacy, and the same 7 cards banned last season are banned this season, though it probably matters much less this round.

I've already noticed that a few of my candidates decks were illegal, so check carefully, and I'll also try to check entries about 24-36 hours ahead of the Tuesday 11am EDT deadline to check for you.

Backbuild is notoriously messy and seasons can kind of get out of control, but if all goes smoothly I plan for this to be 10 rounds dropping the lowest 2 scores.

Happy building!

[silkster]

My entry: d0aa3d04e2c99de2b87b917b7410cbe7150b34cb65a5c04d1698aeb43cce4755

Taking a look now for legalities.

[silkster]

Floor/Ceiling Season - Floor 1

Tirrit: raugrin triome, sapphire charm, steel wall, millennium calendar, comment: Am I doing it right?
dte: Dark depths, Karakas, Contested War Zone, Rhystic Cave, comment: 2 good lands, 2 badlands, legal vs both floor decks
FTW: Sand Silos, Skittering Surveyor, Thoughtlace, Arnjlot's Ascent, comment: Copy Bat?
Wrath of Pie: Rhystic Cave, Rhystic Cave, Copper Tablet, Gremlin Mine, comment:
Reeplcheep: The Peregrine Dynamo, Ancient Tomb, City of Brass, Sungold Barrage, comment: Big Butts
Silkster: Subterranean Hangar, Deathlace, Inquisition, Junktroller, comment: hopefully unexpected
GoblinSmashmaster: Mercadian Bazaar, Goblin Medics, Siege of Towers, Veteran's Voice, comment: No smashing allowed :(

Google sheet for scores: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets...gid=1710229930

[dte]

Silkster, I am not sure how your deck works?
If you ever cast inquisition at sorcery speed, your opponent has victory in hand and you are tapped out. Then how do you cast deathlace during their turn?

I also don't see how WoP's deck is legal, it cannot win OTD vs the target deck.

[FTW]

FTW: Sand Silos, Skittering Surveyor, Thoughtlace, Arnjlot's Ascent, comment: Copy Bat?

Should have picked The Peregrine Dynamo. It was a toss-up whether a 1/2 or a bigger legend would have more answers. With Karakas and Sungold Barrage, the 1/5 dies more easily!

Math vs blockers:
19 cumulative upkeeps = 1UU + 190 blue (upkeeps) + 20 activations = 213 mana

T5 creature
T218 213 storage counters
T219 Arnjolt + activate + attack
T238 20th attack

If I need a 21st attack: 20 upkeeps = 1UU + 210 blue + 21 activations = 234 mana
T239 234 storage counters
T240 Arnjolt + activate + attack
T260 21st attack


Tirrit: raugrin triome, sapphire charm, steel wall, The Millennium calendar
Sapphire Charm forces me to do 21 attacks, but your clock is still slower than my 260 turn clock. WW 0-6

dte: Dark depths, Karakas, Contested War Zone, Rhystic Cave
Should have played around Karakas. I can steal your War Zone so you can't do anything. WW 0-6

Wrath of Pie: Rhystic Cave, Rhystic Cave, Copper Tablet, Gremlin Mine
Rhystic Cave is too powerful my storage land!! Gremlin Mine kills Surveyor before it can attack, then Tablet kills me. LL 6-0

Reeplcheep: The Peregrine Dynamo, Ancient Tomb, City of Brass, Sungold Barrage
You go to 17 to make T2 haste 1/5 vs my T5 1/2. OTP you get me to 17; OTD you get me to 16.
Eventually I can fly over but you counter attack. OTP I'm ahead in the race and can win. OTD I'm always 1 life behind, so I must hold back and draw. WD 1-4

Silkster: Subterranean Hangar, Deathlace, Inquisition, Junktroller
Nice deck! I picked the wrong color, so you have no wincon and I eventually fly over. WW 0-6

GoblinSmashmaster: Mercadian Bazaar, Goblin Medics, Siege of Towers, Veteran's Voice
Whoa there aggro deck! Your goblin smashes. LL 6-0

13 points (4 loss, 1 draw, 7 wins)

[FTW]

I also don't see how WoP's deck is legal, it cannot win OTD vs the target deck.

Gremlin Mine should work. 2 Rhystic Caves is hard to pay for!
WoP plays T1 Mine unopposed.
Whenever the 1/4 is played, WoP activates Mine on own turn (storage land is tapped) and WoP took no damage.

[dte]

Gremlin Mine should work. 2 Rhystic Caves is hard to pay for!
WoP plays T1 Mine unopposed.
Whenever the 1/4 is played, WoP activates Mine on own turn (storage land is tapped) and WoP took no damage.

Yes, but how can WoP kill? OTP, the target deck can always pay for one of the caves at each turn. Copper tablet costs 2.

[Wrath of Pie]

Yes, but how can WoP kill? OTP, the target deck can always pay for one of the caves at each turn. Copper tablet costs 2.

I fear you have the same issue I do.

[dte]

I fear you have the same issue I do.

Instant speed versus sorcery speed?

Trying to add a mana EoOT, if prevented doing it in my turn?

That's maybe why I noticed the problem with your hand, while checking my deck I saw it was possible to use rhystic cave only because of instant speed.

[Reeplcheep]

Reeplcheep: The Peregrine Dynamo, Ancient Tomb, City of Brass, Sungold Barrage, comment: Big Butts
In backbuild, removal for only big creatures seems weirdly good.

Tirrit: raugrin triome, sapphire charm, steel wall, millennium calendar, comment: Am I doing it right?
Barge your wall. WW
dte: Dark depths, Karakas, Contested War Zone, Rhystic Cave, comment: 2 good lands, 2 badlands, legal vs both floor decks
Just play karakas before war zone and you win.LL

FTW: Sand Silos, Skittering Surveyor, Thoughtlace, Arnjlot's Ascent, comment: Copy Bat?
Surveyors butt is too small. You can cast surveyor on t5. I get in for 1 on t2 but deal 3 to myself. So it’s DL

Wrath of Pie: Rhystic Cave, Rhystic Cave, Copper Tablet, Gremlin Mine, comment:
Peregrine’s Butt is too big. WW

Silkster: Subterranean Hangar, Deathlace, Inquisition, Junktroller, comment: hopefully unexpected
Junkytoller gets barraged. Very cool find. WW

GoblinSmashmaster: Mercadian Bazaar, Goblin Medics, Siege of Towers, Veteran's Voice, comment: No smashing allowed :(
I die to voice pings if I don’t race and lose the race if I do. LL

6W 1D 5L for 16/36

[Reeplcheep]

Can’t WoP cast tablet on t2, whereas the target deck can only make mana on t3?

[FTW]

Silkster, I am not sure how your deck works?
If you ever cast inquisition at sorcery speed, your opponent has victory in hand and you are tapped out. Then how do you cast deathlace during their turn?

Silkster just needs to Deathlace the creature between the creature cast & Victory cast. They must be cast over 2 separate turns, so sorcery speed is fast enough.

My deck works the same way. My 1/2 forces them to play the creature, then I Thoughtlace it to blue at sorcery speed before they can cast Coalition Victory.