@Kyle - Regarding CA, I found the best way to generate it is, well, without standstills - they were simply lackluster about 70% of the time (and glorious 30%). The deck relies on trading life total for board sweeps, and 2-3 for 1's (unlike the general tempo plan of trading 1 for 1's. Burn is a problem, I'll admit that and if they have a good draw you just lose the game however, no one I know plays burn so I've ignored the deck completely. Albiet, playing tightly with a few Hydroblasts/Chills in the board plus proper hand disruption and saving counters (Liliana shines here) can win some really tough games.

Against Goblins your only chance of winning is with Night of Souls' Betrayal and Darkblast out of the board (or E-Plague if you just need time to stabilize) -- Saving and blowing deed on 3 will win you more games than anything else, the 'only' card you really have to worry about is ringleader.

RE: Cage vs. Spellbomb -- Our deck doesn't have a clock, let's be honest here -- we win the game at the pace of a paraplegic mountain-climbing (or hopefully our opponent scooping) and Cage *Has To* be answered before any graveyard deck wants to go off unlike spellbomb which has to be used (the +1 in CA is fairly irrelevant in something like a dredge matchup. Surgical's are saved for Cabal therapies and narcomebies before anything else. and Snapcasters deal with Ichorids, and lastly bridges (of course this depends on how their graveyard is showing up.

@Mike - Top is a fine card, I just never really found myself in a situation where you NEED TO FIND AN ANSWER ZOMG ASAP. Hold spells that matter, the deck can really, especially now with AD, deal with everything. Flipping a Jace or Force might hurt but... then you get to play a Jace... and you have a Force of will... That's pretty good last I heard.

Here's the list I'll be playing for the foreseeable future:



//Wam!
3 Liliana of the Veil
3 Jace, the Mind Sculptor
3 Snapcaster Mage

//Bam!
4 Force of Will
4 Brainstorm
3 Spell Pierce
2 Counterspell
1 Life from the Loam
1 Spell Snare

//Thank you Ma'am!
3 Innocent Blood
3 Pernicious Deed
2 Abrupt Decay
2 Ghastly Demise
3 Inquisition of Kozilek

//...lands
4 Polluted Delta
4 Underground Sea
3 Wasteland
2 Tropical Island
2 Bayou
3 Verdant Catacombs
1 Creeping Tar Pit
2 Mishra's Factory
1 Swamp
1 Island

//Sideboard - 15
2 Surgical Extraction
2 Vendilion Clique
1 Flusterstorm
1 Night of Souls' Betrayal
1 Darkblast
1 Perish
4 Dark Confidant
2 Grafdigger's Cage
1 Damnation



Sideboarding generally goes something like this:

Is your opponent playing creatures? Yes?
- 3 Snapcaster Mage
- x Force of Will (Mav -2, Can Thresh - 1, StoneBlade (NOT Miracles) -1)
+ NoSB,
+ Darkblast
+ Perish (if they're green)
+ Damnation
+ Confidants

Is your opponent playing combo?
- 3 Innocent Blood
- 2 Ghastly Demise
- 3 Pernicious Deed
+ 1 Flusterstorm
+ 4 Confidant
+ 2 Clique
+ 1/2 Surgical depending on their build

Is your opponent playing Miracles, like a jerk? -- I repeat, they cannot beat deed
- 3 Innocent Blood
- 2 Ghastly Demise
- 2 Force of Will
+ 4 Confidant
+ 2 Clique
+ 1 Flusterstorm

Graveyard Deck?
-2 Snapcaster Mage
-4 Deed/Decay/Removal/Etc Depending on the deck of course
+ 2 Graffdigger's Cage
+ 2 Surgical Extraction
+2 Clique (For a clock)

If there's anything I can be more specific about, please lemme know.

-Alex