[Deck] Togless Tog (Intuition Control)

[darkalucard]

Togless Tog

Intro:

Why does this deck deserve to be here?
First of all this deck is here in Established Decks because it has proven itself with Ten Top 8’s since April 08. Three of those Top 8’s were last month, one shy of being a deck to watch. Although this deck so far has only been specifically played by French players being a DTB in their country, I believe it has potential in America.

Why are you writing this?
Because it’s sad when a deck is almost a DTW and we don’t even have a thread on it. Also I believe this deck is very good and I’ve been playing a list inspired by this deck for a while now and have been getting very good results.

How was this deck created?
Essentially a Psychatog deck. Pierre Sommen created this version of Psychatog after the printing of Tarmogoyf and Tombstalker. Tarmogoyf sped up the format and was an obvious inclusion in the deck while Tombstalker replaces Psychatog. Hence the name “Togless Tog” His personal list has pretty much finished testing and has been well defined since June 2008.

History and Results:

Placed 6/32 April 19th 08 / http://www.deckcheck.net/deck.php?id=15339 by Pierre Sommen
Placed 1/42 May 10th 08 / http://www.deckcheck.net/deck.php?id=15954 by Pierre Sommen
Placed 2/40 June 1st 08 / http://www.deckcheck.net/deck.php?id=16759 by Pierre Sommen
Placed 7/49 June 6th 08 / http://www.deckcheck.net/deck.php?id=17587 by Thomas Epelbaum
Placed 1/27 June 15th 08 / http://www.deckcheck.net/deck.php?id=17614 by Pierre Sommen
Placed 1/48 August 9th 08 / http://www.deckcheck.net/deck.php?id=18786 by Pierre Sommen
Placed 6/44 October 12th 08 / http://www.deckcheck.net/deck.php?id=20249 by Jean-Michel Peirani
Placed 6/109 October 19th 08 / http://www.deckcheck.net/deck.php?id=20383 by Cyril Mahe
Placed 2/39 October 26th 08 / http://www.deckcheck.net/deck.php?id=20579 by Pierre Sommen
Placed 3/45 November 9th 08 / http://www.deckcheck.net/deck.php?id=20912 by Cyril Mahe

Decklist:

Base List: Pierre Sommen Maindeck Spells:

4 Force of Will
3 Spell Snare
4 Counterspell

4 Brainstorm
4 Accumulated Knowledge
3 Intuition
1 Life from the Loam

4 Tarmogoyf
2 Tombstalker

4 Pernicious Deed
1 Engineered Explosives

My Recommended Changes (With 23 Land most likely cutting Factories)

4 Force of Will
3 Spell Snare
3 Counterspell

4 Brainstorm
4 Accumulated Knowledge
3 Intuition
1 Life from the Loam
1-2 (Your Choice Intuition Targets)

4 Tarmogoyf
3 Tombstalker

3 Pernicious Deed
3 Engineered Explosives

Pierre Sommen Manabase: 26x Land

4 Polluted Delta
4 Flooded Strand
4 Tropical Island
4 Underground Sea
2 Island
1 Volrath's Stronghold
1 Academy Ruins
1 Wasteland
3 Mishra's Factory
2 Lonely Sandbar

Thomas Epelbaum Manabase: 25x Land

4 Polluted Delta
4 Flooded Strand
3 Tropical Island
3 Underground Sea
1 Bayou
2 Island
1 Swamp
1 Volrath's Stronghold
1 Academy Ruins
1 Wasteland
2 Mishra's Factory
2 Lonely Sandbar

My Recommended Manabase: 23x Land

4 Polluted Delta
4 Flooded Strand
3 Tropical Island
3 Underground Sea
1 Bayou
2 Island
1 Swamp
1 Volrath's Stronghold
1 Academy Ruins
1 Wasteland
1 Mishra's Factory
1 Lonely Sandbar

Sideboard:

5 Hydroblast / Blue Elemental Blast
3 Extirpate
3 Tormod's Crypt
2 Smother
1 Darkblast
1 Raven's Crime

Card Explanations:

Disruption:

4 Force of Will
Obvious inclusion in any blue deck. BTW This deck runs 22 blue cards which is fine although there shouldn’t be a problem cutting it down to 20. During sideboarding make sure you don’t have less than 16-17 blue cards in your deck or you will have problems casting Force of Will.
3-4 Spell Snare
Makes up for the lack of Daze. Stops turn two plays when you have had only one land drop. Very good against allot of the top cards in today’s metagame. This slot in the past used to be Stifle.
3-4 Counterspell
Obvious inclusion in any control deck.

Card Draw:

4 Brainstorm
No explanation needed.
4 Accumulated Knowledge
Most efficient card advantage in that you can pay for the draw effect in increments of two mana and can use it as early as turn two EOT when your opponent doesn’t play a Counterspell. Much easier cast and see results with than Fact or Fiction or Cunning Wish. This also enables Intuition to turn into a Fact or Fiction like card by getting 3x AK’s, in the right situation this could be the best play especially if for whatever reason you do not have green mana to cast Life from the Loam.
3-4 Intuition
Most flexible and powerful card engine in the game. There is no better engine than a Loam engine and it’s very powerful against allot of decks. Also it’s because of how flexible this card is, it’s practically an Instant tutor for three mana and can be used to get a beater or removal in the right situation.
1 Life from the Loam
Enables you to return land to use the abilities of Volrath's Stronghold, Academy Ruins, and Wasteland.

Threats:

4 Tarmogoyf
Best creature in the format. Even control decks need a clock and this is so much better than cards like Morphling since it can come down early against combo and late game you can pay two mana and still have mana open to play cards like Counterspell.
2-3 Tombstalker
In order for Psychatog to be good here we would need allot more support cards like Fact or Fiction and Cunning Wish. This deck already has a good enough late game and doesn’t need conditional expensive clunky cards that you can only cast when your already winning. Psychatog also cannot stand up to today’s creature very well since Wizards keeps printing better creatures with each new set. You would have to remove way to many cards to kill a Tarmogoyf. Tombstalker is allot faster than Psychatog and doesn’t need all the support for it. Tombstalker is more synergistic with the deck being immune to your Engineered Explosives and Pernicious Deeds. He is also very good in the format with the popularity of Engineered Explosives, Snuff Out, and Counterbalance. Also he is one of the only creatures than can compete with Tarmogoyf since he can actually shrink Tarmogoyf if needed and/or fly over it.

Removal:

3-4 Pernicious Deed
Best and most flexible removal card in the game. This card definitely secures your late game. It’s also one of the strengths of playing these colors.

1-3 Engineered Explosives
Essentially a mini-deed. This is played as a 1 of to recur with Academy Ruins.

Land: 21-26

Pierre Sommen; 26x Land Mana Base

4 Polluted Delta
4 Flooded Strand
4 Tropical Island
4 Underground Sea
3 Mishra's Factory
2 Island
2 Lonely Sandbar
1 Volrath's Stronghold
1 Academy Ruins
1 Wasteland

Other than because it’s a control deck the reason why this deck runs so many lands is because it plays so many colorless lands and it needs such a high blue count. I would also say that the 2x Lonely Sandbar doesn’t count as land as you will never use it for mana and will always cycle it. So that leaves 18x Blue Fetches/Lands 6x Colorless and 2x Lonely Sandbar. In any deck the mathematical correct amount to run of a card to consistently have one in your hand is 16. So we can cut 2x Blue Lands if we think the trade off is worth it. Other pilots of this deck have chosen to cut Blue-Sources and Mishra's Factory’s to fit in either more spells or 1x Bayou and/or 1x Swamp.

My Recommended Mana Base: 21-23

(20 Lands)
4 Polluted Delta
4 Flooded Strand
3 Tropical Island
3 Underground Sea
2 Island
1 Volrath's Stronghold
1 Academy Ruins
1 Wasteland
1 Lonely Sandbar

(Then Add 1-6 of These Lands with Extra Slots Being Spells)
+1 Swamp
+1 Bayou
+2-3 Mishra's Factory
+1 Lonely Sandbar
+2 Wasteland

Cards that can be Added if More Room is Made:

Thoughtseize
If you were to play Spell Snare and Thoughtseize and you have both in your hand on the play. A turn one Thoughtseize would be incorrect because it would be better to keep mana open and then counter their two drop and then play the discard next turn. If that even because you might need mana open for Counterspell. Most of the time when you play it, it will be for the sole purpose of making sure your opponent doesn’t counter a Deed/Intuition or to take Removal for your creature. The best reason to play this card would probably be for against combo. If room was made by cutting lands or non-blue cards you would have to decide if you would be playing too much disruption and would a threat or removal be a better choice.

Stifle
Besides fetchlands cards that cause problems for you that Stifle is good against would probably be Eternal Witness and well Goblins. I would say combo but it’s usefulness seems to have diminished with the printing of Ad Nauseam. As for the fetchlands you can use it as a form of land destruction tempo in which case it would probably be best to run wastelands also. More importantly it would be used to protect your mana-base against opposing wastelands since that is one of this decks weaknesses. The reason why this was cut was because Spell Snare > Stifle.

Smother, Diabolic Edict, Snuff Out or More EE's:
Instead of having these in the sideboard there could be room made for the maindeck. I think this could improve a few match ups by giving this deck a better early game.

Intuition Targets:

Stinkweed Imp (Recurring removal.)
Vedalken Shackles (Completely dominates late games.)
Raven’s Crime (Very powerful effect.)
Eternal Witness? (Not worth a slot?)
Darkblast? (Too weak?)

Cards that Cannot be in the Deck:

Counterbalance/Top
This is a personal choice of me and the decks creators. This deck will never play Counterbalance and please don't endlessly argue for it's inclusion. This is a deck for people who agree that it is better not to play Counterbalance. As for the reasons why it's not included... 1. It slows the deck down. 2. Anti-synergy with Pernicious Deed. 3. Bad in Multiples 4. Dead Card without Top 5. Bad Top-deck vs. Attacking creatures 6. Personal Choice. And I would have to say removing CB / Top and adding 2-3 Tombstalkers vastly speeds this deck up.

Cunning Wish
There is only so much room for cards that don't immediately have an effect on the game. The only way to make room for Cunning Wish would be to cut Intuition (since they play a similar role) which this deck cannot do. Also Cunning Wish murders your Sideboard and is really slow. In needing to make this deck less clunky, more straight forward and have a better early game, there is no place for this card in the deck.

Fact or Fiction
For allot of the same reasons to not to play Cunning Wish. We already have AK’s and Intuition. Our late-game is already better than our opponents thanks to the Loam Engine. In the long run a card like this that is only usually cast able when you winning and just ensures the win will not win you as many games as you will lose by having this be a dead card in your hand against a fast deck where you can’t afford to time walk yourself.

Psychatog
Out dated and slow. (See the Card Explanation for Tombstalker)

Matchup Analysis:

This is the type of deck that like Landstill can beat any deck in the format. Mostly this decks weakness is against really fast Aggro, Burn, and Land Destruction.

Bad Match-Ups:
Goblins

Tough Match-Ups:
Aggro-Loam
Dragon Stompy
Eva Green
Goyf Sligh
Burn

Good Match-Ups:
Just About Everything else.

(More in depth Matchup Analysis in will be posted here in the future…)

Additional Reading:

Original Togless Tog Thread in French: http://www.legacy-france.com/Togless-t1731.html
Translator: http://translate.google.com/ or http://babelfish.yahoo.com/

Discuss!