Sword of body and mind / Sword of fire and ice / Scryb Ranger?
Also beats v clique.
Originally Posted by emidln
1.) Depends. Against NO Rug/ Zoo, wait to play KoTR after you have two lands in the GY to get it out of bolt range. Otherwise, a t2 Knight is really good. If you have SFM in hand, I usuallyu play it as soon as I can (watch out for Daze here). In most matchups, fetching an equipment early is the best play. But, against some decks, you may need to play the KoTR first. Against combo, for example, KotR is necessary to try and get them in an early Wasteland-lock. Here, a t2 Knight is better than SFM. So, it just depends on your matchup, but I usually got for SFM first.
2.) Keep them off of their lords with Jitte and removal, fetch up a Ranger, and play Dueling Grounds. Blowing up their Vials helps to slow them down, especially alongside Choke.
3.) I don't see a reason to hold back, unless you're afraid of Daze. They only have 4 FoW's, and we have 4 Knights, 4 GSZ, 3-4 SFM, plus removal that they need to counter. We have too many must-counter bombs and they do not have nearly enough counters to keep up with us.
4.) I like fetching Jitte early against Folk/Gobbos, and sometimes against NO Rug (if they have a bunch of Arbors and Hierarchs out). Batterskull is good when the 4/4 germie token will be the biggest creature on the battlefield (exalted triggers help here). I also search for Jitte if you know your opponent has removal for your SFM. 5 mana takes a while to get to without SFM to put it into play. Jitte can be casted and equipped without SFM, though.
5.) Depends. In most games, I tend to get out my mana accelerators out as soon as possible, take a few blows to my life, then stabilize with bigger and better creatures than my opponent, and hold onto my removal. Be patient, you do not always need to be the beatdown at all times. Just try and build a good foundation, stabilize, then start dropping all of your bombs. This deck is so loaded with good cards that win the game that once you start applying the pressure, your opponent will not be able to keep up.
With that in mind, sometimes it is correct to just run out an early KotR.
For all of these points, it completely depends on your playstyle and your matchups. Just continue to practice with the deck, and you'll slowly learn when to do what with the deck.
Regarding the Folk matchup, landing an early Mother of Runes is really helpful for chump blocking. Also, get SFM out as soon as you can, and if it's early, fetch up a Jitte. IMO, Jitte is much better against Folk than Batterskull is early on. Once you get out exalted dudes, though, and your Batterskull can survive attacking into blockers, then Batterskull will probably win you the game.
After boarding, Dueling Grounds destroys them. I also side in Path to Exiles for extra removal on their lords.
Going turn one Hierach (or GSZ-->Dryad Arbor) is really important in this matchup. This allows t2 SFM with daze mana open, or t2 Knight, which will usually be the biggest creature on the board. If they do Daze here, though, then it is ok because then they are 2 lands back (we have an extra mana accelerator and they returned the land to their hand with Daze).
Good luck and keep praacticing. Hope this helped.
First of all: how many games did you lose to mana problems? I always play 22 Mana lands and 20 is very little. With only 12 ways to produce G on turn 1 you will already be forced to Mulligan 20% of your 7 card hands only due to the lack of Green Mana. One strength of Maverick should be to almost never mulligan.
I would recommend to try - 2 Mindcensor (or whichever other card you like least) and + 2 Horizon Canopy.
Other than that your list should have a good matchup against Merfolk. With 4 MoR, Scryb Ranger and 4 SFM you already have the best Anti Merfolk setup.
I almost never destroy Aether Vial. I just let them have it unless it is obvious that they need it or if I have a Pridemage and nothing else to do. But most of the games their Vial lives to the end. It doesn't do anything scary, GW can't counter anyway and the Tempo gain by Vial is not that relevant. By destroying Vial with Pridemage you also lose a lot of Tempo and don't get a card out of it.
Your questions depend very much on how the actual game looks, the board, your opponent and your hand.
As an easy example: if you played Hierarch T1 and you have SFM and KotR against Merfolk you have to consider Daze and FoW. If you have a lot of gas in hand and went first then run out KotR, if he Dazes he has no lands if play and that is very good for you. If he forces that is even better because you spent your Mana better and now your SFM will resolve. On the other hand if your hand is something like "2 Land, Mindcensor, KotR, SFM" then just play around Daze fo the rest of the game.
The multiple Lord draw is usually their only way to beat you. You have to try to control it with Mother of Runes, Scryb Ranger and Swords on their important Lords (Reejerey, Sovereign, Coralhelm if you don't have Scryb).
RE Merfolk -
Sometimes getting SoFI is better than Jitte. This will depend on how big your creatures are, and what their life total is. With the version that run Dismember, just getting the evasion online is sometimes better.
West side
Find me on MTGO as Koby or rukcus -- @MTGKoby on Twitter
* Maverick is dead. Long live Maverick!
My Legacy stream
My MTG Blog - Work in progress
Guys what do you board in against ubg control, stoneblade or uxx landstill ?
Currently i only run 3 choke but it seems its not that good when it hit the board, unless you can catch them tapped out, but if not you have to hold that choke in your hand and wait for the right moment to cast it. While you wait the more chances they could discard it or load on countermagics.
@tao
a very interesting note on the land count.., can you post your land configuration., currently im also running 21 lands (arbor included) and at times i feel i need to add more lands.
@apprentice
how do you find the 4 gsz against merfs.., do you sometimes ask yourself if this gsz was a creature card and not gsz.. i would love to hear your thoughts about it..
as for the merfs matchup.., why are you using solas main over sofi ?? is black a big part of your meta ?, the 3 default equips im using are: jitte, sofi and batterskull.
Since I'm at work, some quick notes:
-) I run 22 lands, and my current configuration is ultra smooth.
-) Boarding against control: Usually Teegs and Grip (Grip against UGB Deedstill depending on skill level of op.). I cut Choke cause it didn't do enough.
-) SoLaS + Scryb Ranger: Really strong config against control. It's the reason I run SoLaS over any other Sword (next to Jitte and Batterskull).
-) My current streak over the last 3 tourneys is 14-0-1, drawing against Blade Control (couldn't even finish G1 in time, he was short 3 cards of library out).
Maybe you can post your deck build and Sb ?
Thanks
@TossUsToLions
I tried adding extra removals and it really improves my matchup, regarding early ramp sometimes he dismembers the hierarch if he has a lot of lords in hand, then tries to build up his army. The extra removals really help in those scenarios.
@Tao
I have had several times where I had problems with mana when getting early arbor,maze,cradle which stalls me for a turn. Ill try play testing with 2 more mana lands, still not sure which to cut though. Regarding the merfolk MU, extra removals really helps, Id probably add 2-3 paths in sb.
@ruckus
I actually have SoFI in my sb, Whenever I play with my friends we dont use our SB, I guess we should start using them if we plan to play competitively. I put SoFI in SB only since I have a feeling our meta have more mavericks and combo(hivemind)
@erbs
My friend(merfolk deck) prefers to counters GSZ if sryb isnt in play yet, to prevent sryb from entering and at the same time lessening the consistency of my deck, he also runs dismember to kill off kotr(early game),sfm,batterskull token. Sometimes I fetch arbor with GSZ if I need to ramp/have mana problems, GSZ sometimes gets countered by missteps(when I play GSZ for 0). GSZ also gets countered if I dont have any threats in board yet.
regarding having solas over sofi, our meta are mostly mirrors(maverick) and combo(hivemind). I kinda prefer solas also since it protects my creatures from staple removals like stp and black removals. although I have sofi in sb just incase I need it
Thank you for the feedbacks!
I have a question regarding show and tell, If the opponent plays show and tell, since it requires both players to put something on board, if lets say he puts in emrakul/hivemind can I play Oblivion Ring to exile either of the two?
Yes. If it's game 1, you put knight of the reliquary into play instead, then fetch for karakas and bounce emrakul.
// Lands
4 [R] Savannah
3 [TE] Wasteland
3 [FUT] Horizon Canopy
2 [SHM] Forest (4)
1 [PT] Plains (1)
1 [FUT] Dryad Arbor
1 [US] Gaea's Cradle
4 [ON] Windswept Heath
3 [ON] Wooded Foothills
// Creatures
1 [FD] Eternal Witness
3 [FUT] Aven Mindcensor
4 [WWK] Stoneforge Mystic
2 [TSP] Scryb Ranger
4 [UL] Mother of Runes
1 [OD] Terravore
1 [COM] Scavenging Ooze
4 [CFX] Knight of the Reliquary
3 [ARB] Qasali Pridemage
4 [CFX] Noble Hierarch
// Spells
1 [NPH] Batterskull
1 [BOK] Umezawa's Jitte
1 [DS] Sword of Light and Shadow
4 [MBS] Green Sun's Zenith
4 [R] Swords to Plowshares
// Sideboard
SB: 1 [WWK] Bojuka Bog
SB: 3 [TSB] Tormod's Crypt
SB: 3 [TSP] Krosan Grip
SB: 2 [LRW] Gaddock Teeg
SB: 3 [CFX] Path to Exile
Leaving me with 3 Flex slots in the SB. So far I haven't been able to test Edric yet :/
@apprentice: that works against the spaghetti monster, but if he drops hivemind he will respond with pacts to your o-ring trigger and you will still get your copies of them...poor world ;)
I don't understand how people are coming to the assumption that Choke is not good enough. I can't count the number of games that my opponent just says "I don't have an answer to that" and scoops. The only other card in this deck that has ever gotten that same reaction is Thrun. May I ask what matchups you side it in against? It isn't very good in the Folk matchup (but not bad), but it is amazing vs. Stoneblade and Landstill and other blue control decks. It is also pretty good, sometimes really good against NO Rug and Team America.
Agreed. The point to keep in mind when playing with Choke is that it's all about timing.
Nothing is better than casting Choke against a Turn 4 Jace 8)
West side
Find me on MTGO as Koby or rukcus -- @MTGKoby on Twitter
* Maverick is dead. Long live Maverick!
My Legacy stream
My MTG Blog - Work in progress
What do you guys think of Mana Tithe? I play with 3 Mental Missteps and 3 Mana Tithe and this card is shocking on G1. Nobody expects it and it keeps your opponent of their toes for G2 and G3. Tithe is extremely satisfying when it counters Hymn and FoW. Being able to interact with the stack while playing GW is strangely powerful. Alongside MM, GSZ, Teeg, Enlightened Tutor, and Canonist, my combo matchup is quite good.
Do you know what assuming does? It makes an ass out of you and me.
Get it...? Ass, u, me?
... ffs I was trying to be funny...
Where did you find the room for all that? The real question you should ask yourself is whether it's better than what you cut, both in terms of raw power and reliability (MM and tithe especially are pretty conditional).
Mana Tithe is powerful in G1 because it will counter something. It becomes a great option to side out for G2 and it is probably the only card that will have an effect on your opponent despite being sided out. I initially removed 3 Goyfs for 3 Tithes because Goyfs have been such a bad early play for me, are overshadowed by Knights, and never seem to grow fast enough. Between having 3 more threats on top of my 20+ or having 3 white conditional counterspells that give me that mind game edge, I prefer the latter. The look on people's faces when they get countered is priceless...
Here is my list for reference:
Creature (19)
1 Birds of Paradise
4 Noble Hierarch
3 Qasali Pridemage
4 Knight of the Reliquary
4 Stoneforge Mystic
1 Scavenging Ooze
1 Tarmogoyf
1 Terravore
Instant (10)
3 Mental Misstep
3 Mana Tithe
4 Swords to Plowshares
Sorcery (4)
4 Green Sun's Zenith
Enchantment (2)
2 Sylvan Library
Artifact (3)
1 Umezawa's Jitte
1 Sword of Fire and Ice
1 Batterskull
Land (22)
4 Wasteland
2 Horizon Canopy
2 Forest
1 Plains
1 Karakas
1 Dryad Arbor
3 Savannah
4 Windswept Heath
4 Verdant Catacombs
Sideboard (15)
2 Krosan Grip
2 Path to Exile
2 Enlightened Tutor
1 Tormod's Crypt
1 Pithing Needle
1 Thorn of Amethyst
1 Ethersworn Canonist
1 Gaddock Teeg
1 Wheel of Sun and Moon
1 Choke
1 Dueling Grounds
1 Bojuka Bog
Do you know what assuming does? It makes an ass out of you and me.
Get it...? Ass, u, me?
... ffs I was trying to be funny...
No brainstorms = mana Tithe = bad draw in turn 4 and so long, lose of consistent = mot worth unless Hive Mind Infected meta.
Got 7th at SCG Richmond with Maverick. My only loses were to the eventual winner. If I had played a little bit better in the top 8 matches I might of been able to take it. It's a rough match up though.
Deck felt very strong. There wasn't very much hivemind so the angel's graces were dead. I was really wishing they were a pithing needle and 2 o-rings. SoFaF was great. I didn't miss SoFaI.
The posted my list incorrectly. There was 1 null rod and 3 paths.
Congratz on your finish. What did you play against, and what would you change about your list (apart from SB Angel Grace)?
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