[Deck] Canadian Thresh (a.k.a. RUG Tempo, Tempo Thresh)

[ac3eb]

Why didn't he just sack the pridemage to destroy mind harness?

On that note, mind harness has been testing pretty well. It's definitely solid vs. zoo. On that note, has anyone tried playing engineered plague as a 3-4 of? I find that goblins and merfolk are quite the matchups and I'm guessing those are going to be fairly popular these days (particularly folk). Goblins is an impossible matchup (at least in my experience) without it, goblin ringleader is a beating.

[Oddball]

Why didn't he just sack the pridemage to destroy mind harness?

On that note, mind harness has been testing pretty well. It's definitely solid vs. zoo. On that note, has anyone tried playing engineered plague as a 3-4 of? I find that goblins and merfolk are quite the matchups and I'm guessing those are going to be fairly popular these days (particularly folk). Goblins is an impossible matchup (at least in my experience) without it, goblin ringleader is a beating.

You should be able to improve that matchup without any deckchanges.
My personal score in tournament games (not rounds!) from september to november is 16:3.
Maybe you should try to use mulligans more aggressive.

[Cenarius]

Why didn't he just sack the pridemage to destroy mind harness?

On that note, mind harness has been testing pretty well. It's definitely solid vs. zoo. On that note, has anyone tried playing engineered plague as a 3-4 of? I find that goblins and merfolk are quite the matchups and I'm guessing those are going to be fairly popular these days (particularly folk). Goblins is an impossible matchup (at least in my experience) without it, goblin ringleader is a beating.

You are perfectly right. I was certain about a game where I 4 for 1'd the Zoo player, but did not remember what creature he used for the action. Probably it was a Wild Nacatl.

Engineered Plague is not good in my opinion for costing 3 mana. I'm glad when I reach two mana, especially against Goblins and Merfolk (they're running Wasteland's (and sometimes Port's) aswell). Three mana is just too much for this deck.
Second, 12 lords negate the plagues easily.
Third, all my goblin players do tend to play good goblin lists with 4 Goblin Chieftain and some Boartusk Lieges negating Plague-effects aswell.

Goblins and Merfolk are pretty good matchups postboard when u board:

+3 Phyrexian Dreadnought
+3 Disfigure
+2 Pithing Needle

A fast Dark Confidant, a medium to fast Dreadnought or a couple of Tarmogoyf's is usually how games end in my favorite. If you want some extra advise, feel free to pm me.

I don't advise mulliganning aggresively, because I believe that nearly every hand can win games. Those hands do not include Wasteland and 6 spells or hands with 5 lands (even with brainstorm). Furthermore, I advise you playing neat during the entire game. Stay sharp. Use your brainstorms and Ponder's only when u have to use them. I almost never brainstorm in response of a spell unless I'm certain that countering the spell is vital for the gamestate. I never play EOT brainstorms, because that's just horrible.
Furthermore, I believe that Tempo Threshold is a deck that requires non-magic related skills aswell. The way you actually play the deck can give you advantages over your opponent. Let them fear your stifle, let them fear your endless counters. Let them fear Dark Confidant. I enjoy myself when I see the miserable faces of my opponents when just 2 spells resolve in an entire game. I also tend to look on faces when they draw cards (especially on openinghands). I can tell when people (usually the inexperienced or nervous players, yet even experienced players) want to mulligan or when they have shacky hands. I actually persuaded someone to mulligan somewhere in the last tournament, just because I saw some hesitation about his starting hand. He showed me this by using unintentionally nonverbal communication.
I'm pretty much concentrated during the whole match. I also tend to force my gamespeed during the entire match. According to a friend and teammate of mine, I'm playing rather slowly. Maybe that has to do with me thinking about what plays my opponent could have. About me thinking twice about my choices for Brainstorm and Ponder, even when I want to counter something. I try to see patterns in my starting hands, etc. Or maybe it has just something to do with me, as a person. Maybe it's even the combination.

The combination of all of this, and the fact that every matchup is nerve-racking, makes this deck incredibly fun to play.

[Oddball]

Well, you need to answere the lackey. So you wouldn't keep a hand without either Force, Mongoose, Ghastly Demise (or even Stifle+Goyf) or postboard disfigure/beb.

[Jim Higginbottom]

do you guys side out fow against zoo?

[Scordata]

@lebron jim
It depends on if I'm on the play or draw.
Against zoo on the draw, I would side out the dazes, but on the play I would side out the FOWs.
I just bring in more removal and watch them cry.

[Scordata]

Hey guys, new tournament report up here:

14th place at Jupiter Games, record was 5-2

http://www.mtgthesource.com/forums/s...hresh&p=516890

[Heresy]

So?

[ac3eb]

Seems surprisingly good? Could replace diabolic edict/ smother in most lists. However, affinity is catching on somewhat lately, so those ravagers could be a problem?

[Scordata]

I was thinking about Go for The Throat, but I honestly think Smother is better.
Unless I'm mistaken, Smother misses Siege Gang commander and Goblin Ringleader, but hits Phyrexian Dreadnought and all the Affinity dudes.
I honestly don't know if its inclusion is worth the trade. Also smother says "Can't be regenerated." That might be relevant in some matchups.
I could be brain farting though, and not realize that there are a million playable non-artifact creatures with cmc > 3 in legacy...

[Dalton]

Don't forget Tombstalker and Sower of Temptation.
The good removal suite depends on your metagame IMHO.

[Cthuloo]

Don't forget Tombstalker and Sower of Temptation.
The good removal suite depends on your metagame IMHO.

If you're also playing ghastly demise alongside smother, the only relevant target that escapes your removal package is Tombstalker. I would choose GFTT only if you expect a huge amount of eva green and team america in your meta. In an unknown meta, I would still choose smother, since, should things go the wrong way, you can still try to race a stalker, but not a dreadnought.

[Cthuloo]

Upping the thread since I should finally take the deck to a tournament, and would like to hear some thoughts about the boarding plans and the sideboard in general. For reference, this is my maindeck (on which I am 99.99% sold):

//Protection\Disruption:
4 Force of Will
4 Daze
4 Stifle
2 Spell Pierce
3 Spell Snare
4 Ghastly Demise
2 Smother


//Cantrips:
4 Brainstorm
3 Ponder

//Creatures:
4 Dark Confidant
4 Tarmogoyf
4 Nimble Moongoose

//Lands:
3 Underground Sea
3 Tropical Island
1 Bayou
3 Polluted Delta
1 Misty Rainforest
3 Verdant Catacombs
4 Wasteland


And this is the (tentative) sideboard:

3 Extirpate
3 Phyrexian Dreadnought
3 Pithing Needle
2 Krosan Grip
1 Trygon Predator
1 Mind Harness
2 Submerge

My boarding plan for the most popular decks is roughly the following:
- Goblins: -2 Pierce -3 Snare -2 Daze +3 Dreadnought +3 Needle +1 Mind Harness
- Merfolk: on the draw: -4 Daze -2 Pierce +3 Dreadnought +3 Needle, on the play -4 Force -2 Pierce +3 Dreadnought +3 Needle (not really sure about what to side out, any help?)
- Dredge: -4 Demise -2 Smother +3 Dreadnougt +3 Etirpate
- ANT/TES: -3 Demise +3 Extirpate (do you think it's better to board out all removal to board in also the 'noughts? Faster clock vs. vulnerability to swarm and confidant)
- Countertop: depends on the version. Thopter: --4 Demise -2 Smother + 3 Needle +3 Extirpate, Bant: - 2 Demise, -2 Pierce, +2 Submerge, +2 Krosan Grip. 4C: not really sure, out can go some removal for grips, trygon and needles (?)
- Zoo: depends on the build. Mininal boarding - 2 Pierce -1 Confidant +2 Submerge +1 Mind harness. In some cases needles and/or grips can come in for the other confidants
- The Rock/Junk: here I'm not quite sure... I want to bring in Submerge and Mind Harness, plus possibly the needles, but don't know what to side out. Maybe ghastly demise? It looks rather weak vs goyf, knight and confidant. Any suggestion?

Any other deck you think I should prepare for? Any help is very appreciated!

[practical joke]

you are forgetting dredge.

Also smother beats the one thing I'm more affraid of than tombstalker and sower:


Phyrexian dreadnought!
lately we've been testing disfigure's and actually they do their job quite nicely against a lot of decks.

[Scordata]

Disfigure is awesome.
Why are you running a bayou? That's like canadian thresh running a taiga. It makes your dazes less good.
Team america runs a bayou because it needs double black. This deck does not.

First off, don't side out spell snares against goblins. Piledrivers and warren wierdings will wreck you.
3 pithing needles is too much. Dreadnaught is also lame here. Id opt for more removal.

Against merfolk, spell pierces are the nuts. Don't take em out. Again, here is another place where I would recommend disfigure over dreadnaught.

Extirpate is a really bad card. Against dredge just counter their discard outlets. Faerie macabre is better here.

Ant and tes is on point, id rather have duresses to be honest.

You should straight beat 4c cbtop anyway, so I wouldn't sweat the boarding. 3c is more difficult. Kgrips and save your forces for jace and counterbalance.

Zoo is where engineered explosives really shines, look into that.

The rock will beat you no matter what you do.

[Jim Higginbottom]

dreadnought is pretty nuts against goblins...

[mchainmail]

Disfigure is awesome.
Why are you running a bayou? That's like canadian thresh running a taiga. It makes your dazes less good.
Team america runs a bayou because it needs double black. This deck does not.

So... you like losing to Wasteland, Extirpate on a dual?

[NecroYawgmoth]

Which relevant deck runs Extirpate main, or would board it in agains this deck?

[Cthuloo]

Thanks for the answers! On the different topics:

• Bayou: the main reason to run it is to fecth it as third land with Trop and U. Sea already on board, so you can't be cut off a color by a wasteland. I also prevents you from losing to random extirpates or chokes. In my testing I never regretted playing it, though I can understand it's a debatable choice.
• Extirpate: I wanted some generic grave hate, and Extirpate is slightly more versatile than the other choices, messing with LDV, top, and dealing more effectively with Thopters and Loam.
• Merfolk: If I am to keep the pierces in, what do you suggest to side out instead?
• Goblins: I'm not really afraid of Piledriver, since I can simply remove it (or stifle the ability + block). Weirding can be a problem, and it's one of the reasons why I'm keeping in the FoWs (Weirding, Ringleader and the occasional random blood moon, to be precise). To be honest, Daze isn't awesome too, so I can see me boarding out all the 4 dazes and keeping in 2 snares
• The Rock: no awesome tech to crush it (or at least make the matchup winnable...)?

[Scordata]

It is apparent that we have different playstyles.

As for merfolk though, I usually board out my ponders and board in disfigures.