[Deck] UBGx Landstill

[theBloody]

BEB against goblins is just bad if you aren't playing Wasteland heavy build. You can't kill Piledriver, counter Ringleader/Matron. Some boardsweeper is better choice.

[Arianrhod]

BEB against goblins is just bad if you aren't playing Wasteland heavy build. You can't kill Piledriver, counter Ringleader/Matron. Some boardsweeper is better choice.

It's a 1-mana Destroy Target Lackey for a build without Innocent Blood.

[Chimera87]

The problem I don't think is how good BeB is, but what to take out of the board for it. The sideboard is very tight in its current form. It took us long enough to figure out what to take out for a single Perish. We now kind off want a second, but don't know what to cut... Only Pulse comes to mind, but it's sooo good versus opposing walkers. BeB is kind off niche in that it only really helps against Burn and Goblins, while providing some splash damage here and there. The typical slots that this deck runs are all broad answers to large portions of the decks out there.

[theBloody]

I can understand that you want BEB for multiple reasons and goblins are only one of them. I'm glad that it working for you. I don't know how valuable it is in other matchups, but from my goblin testing I observed that without Wasteland it is just weaker Disfigure.

[Chimera87]

And another top 4 and top 8 performance can be added to the list of top's. My mate went top 4 on a local tournament 2 weeks ago and I went top 8 yesterday on a somewhat larger tournament.
Matches for me were: TES 2-0, SnT 1-2, TES 2-0, Belcher 2-1, RUG 0-2 (mull to 5 twice, couldn't play around wasteland, he had two (and loam in game 2)), Esper Landstill 2-0 (buddy, we decide to not play and have the better player/deck go top 8). Quarter finals: EsperBlade 0-2 (game 1: draw 6 lands in a row after opponent resolves Jace and Batterskull, game 2: find nothing).

Deck I ran:

Land (25)
3x Flooded Strand
4x Polluted Delta
4x Tropical Island
4x Underground Sea
2x Island
1x Swamp
1x Creeping Tar Pit
4x Mishra's Factory
2x Wasteland

Instant (15)
3x Abrupt Decay
4x Brainstorm
2x Counterspell
4x Force of Will
2x Spell Pierce

Creature (9)
4x Baleful Strix
3x Snapcaster Mage
2x Vendilion Clique

Enchantment (8)
4x Pernicious Deed
4x Standstill

Planeswalker (3)
3x Jace, the Mind Sculptor


Sideboard (15)
4x Surgical Extraction
2x Flusterstorm
3x Thoughtseize
1x Life from the Loam
1x Golgari Charm
1x Vendilion Clique
1x Perish
1x Maelstrom Pulse
1x Krosan Grip


We cut a Liliana of the Veil for a second Vendilion Clique (clearing a slot in the board). We chose to do this because Liliana really isn't good in the deck without the two loams and Worm Harvest/Darkblast mainboard. A fourth Jace was also a consideration, but we don't feel like needing 4. The Golgari Charm was an experiment in the board and I loved it. It almost always comes in against pretty much everything and is a versatile answer to many cards.

[sdematt]

Do you ever feel the need for Disfigure to bridge to gap from AD to Deed?

-Matt

[Chimera87]

Not really. I feel like the Baleful Strix does the same job. You don't really need to answer everything turn 1 or 2.

[Dessyreqt]

A friend of mine didn't have a deck that he wanted to play at Jupiter's monthly duel for duals this past weekend. I've had my eye on BUGstill as a meta breaker for a while now, and I decided to brew him a list based off of Kiblast's. Here's what he played to a top 8 finish (lost to 12post in the top 8).

...

I've been playing pretty much the same list down here in TX, and I've done pretty damn good with it, but I've recently changed the 3 Spell Snare/2 Spell Pierce to 3 Spell Pierce/2 Teferi's Response, and I've really been enjoying it. Pierce just seems like a better card to have overall right now, and the Responses can provide quite a blowout when played at the right time. Any thoughts?

[Viridia]

Teferi's Response can be really good, but against any deck without land destruction it's just a dead draw.

In our next article we'll go more in-depth about creatures vs creatureless and explain our choices in there :)

[Arianrhod]

I've been playing pretty much the same list down here in TX, and I've done pretty damn good with it, but I've recently changed the 3 Spell Snare/2 Spell Pierce to 3 Spell Pierce/2 Teferi's Response, and I've really been enjoying it. Pierce just seems like a better card to have overall right now, and the Responses can provide quite a blowout when played at the right time. Any thoughts?

Wat.

Snare is absurdly good right now. I'm not saying that Pierce isn't good, but Snare hits Bob, Goyf, Hymn, Burning Wish, Snapcaster, Stoneforge, Jitte, and a variety of lesser used / more niche targets (like Standstill!). That's insane value -- especially considering that Snare is a hard counter. It's as good on turn 2 as on turn 20, which you can't say for Pierce.

[Dessyreqt]

Teferi's Response can be really good, but against any deck without land destruction it's just a dead draw.

In our next article we'll go more in-depth about creatures vs creatureless and explain our choices in there :)

When all of your creatures are lands, all of their creature destruction becomes land destruction. As an example, last night I used it to counter an activation of Goblin Bombardment, saving the land, destroying the Bombardment, and drawing two cards. Not a bad deal for 2 mana.

As far as Spell Snare being "absurdly good," it just hasn't been for me. It always seems like a wrong card at the wrong time and when it is the right time, the results aren't terribly exciting or backbreaking for the opponent. Yes, it hits a lot of stuff in the format. And I can't fault anyone for using it. I've just found it lackluster as of late. Maybe it's just my meta, maybe it's my play style. Who knows?

[kiblast]

Teferi's Response is cool, but how often would you want it above any Counterspell, if you already have two mana open? Counterspell has way broader applications.
Snare is very good right now, and is a playable topdeck even in late game where Pierce doesn't really shine. I'm all for the split 3 Snare 2 Pierce 1-2 Counterspell.

[kiblast]

Inspired by the greatly refined decklists proposed by Marc Tobiasch a while ago, I decided to give this abomination another try.

4C Caesar Salad.

Manabase:

3 Tundra
3 Tropical
3 Usea
1 Bayou
1 Savannah
3 Polluted
3 Misty
2 Flooded
1 Verdant Catacombs
1 Academy Ruins
1 Wasteland
1 Creeping Tar Pit
1 Island

planeswalkers:

3 Jace tms
1 Elspeth, K.E.

Removals:

4 Swords to PLowshares
2 Abrupt Decay
1 Pernicious Deed
1 Engineered Explosives

Disruption:

4 Force
2 Cabal Therapy
1 Inquisition
1 Thoughtseize
1 Duress
1 Raven's Crime
1 Counterspell
1 Vendilion Clique

Card quality,additional tools/ business:

4 Brainstorm
1 Life from the Loam
3 Lingering Souls
2 Snapcaster Mage
1 Batterskull
2 Intuition

This deck has some outstanding Intuition piles and an amazing late game. If you manage to survive the early. More thoughts to follow.

[Piceli89]

Inspired by the greatly refined decklists proposed by Marc Tobiasch a while ago, I decided to give this abomination another try.

4C Caesar Salad.

Manabase:

3 Tundra
3 Tropical
3 Usea
1 Bayou
1 Savannah
3 Polluted
3 Misty
2 Flooded
1 Verdant Catacombs
1 Academy Ruins
1 Wasteland
1 Creeping Tar Pit
1 Island

planeswalkers:

3 Jace tms
1 Elspeth, K.E.

Removals:

4 Swords to PLowshares
2 Abrupt Decay
1 Pernicious Deed
1 Engineered Explosives

Disruption:

4 Force
2 Cabal Therapy
1 Inquisition
1 Thoughtseize
1 Duress
1 Raven's Crime
1 Counterspell
1 Vendilion Clique

Card quality,additional tools/ business:

4 Brainstorm
1 Life from the Loam
3 Lingering Souls
2 Snapcaster Mage
1 Batterskull
2 Intuition

This deck has some outstanding Intuition piles and an amazing late game. If you manage to survive the early. More thoughts to follow.

The first thing that sticks to my eye is Elspeth being wrong in a UBG-based manabase as she requires double white and you can't really pull that out easily. Plus, is Savannah really necessary (especially if you were to cut Elspeth)?

[kiblast]

The first thing that sticks to my eye is Elspeth being wrong in a UBG-based manabase as she requires double white and you can't really pull that out easily. Plus, is Savannah really necessary (especially if you were to cut Elspeth)?

I know, trying to fit in Elspeth is probably putting too much stress to the manabase, but she breaks so many matchups... I'd be really sad to cut her. Sorin, Lord of innistrad is way less effective in that spot (even if when the guy is paired with a lingering souls provides a cool clock and the finisher is intriguing).

Savannah is there only for Elspeth, if I have to cut Elspeth I'd snap cut Savannah as well for another blue source/fetchland / another basic.

Edit: for some reason I overlooked Garruk Relentless as a possible manabase-friendly Planeswalker. Any info on how he's in a bug control shell? Is the 2nd liliana (or 4th jtms) just flat out better?

[sdematt]

Played this list yesterday to a first place, 3-1 finish:

4 Polluted Delta
4 Misty Rainforest
2 Creeping Tar Pit
2 Mishra's Factory
4 Underground Sea
4 Tropical Island
2 Island
1 Swamp
1 Cabal Pit

4 Baleful Strix
3 Snapcaster Mage

4 Force of Will
3 Counterspell
4 Standstill

4 Brainstorm
2 Thoughtseize
1 Inquisition of Kozilek
1 Life from the Loam
3 Pernicious Deed
2 Disfigure
3 Abrupt Decay
3 Jace, the Mind Sculptor

--BOARD--

2 Flusterstorm
3 Surgical Extraction
2 Engineered Plague
1 Darkblast
1 Thrun, the Last Troll
2 Golgari Charm
2 Chill
1 Perish
1 Can't remember

I beat Reanimator 2-1, I beat Affinity 2-1, I lost to Sneak and Show 0-2, and won against BUG Tempo 2-0. Overall the list felt great, but I need a basic Forest. The Cabal Pit was spicy, though.

-Matt

[Arianrhod]

....No Jaces? o_O

[RJM]

....No Jaces? o_O

I also only count 59 cards main deck. ;)

[sdematt]

Well, I'm awful. Let me edit that :P

-Matt

[Chimera87]

Looks like a nice list... However, I can't help buy think that running anything less than 4 Mishra's Factory is wrong. They are so synergistic together that I would always play 4.
My current list actually runs 4 Factories and 2 Tar Pits. That's been working great so far. We're also testing 2 Dimir Charms in the maindeck to be a flexible answer to both combo-pieces and creatures (any creature that it does not hit, gets hit by Baleful Strix...).

I like the Cabal Pit. I've been thinking about it for a while now and it might be a nice addition to the Loam versions of Landstill.

How's the maindecked discard working out for you?

Oh, and basic Forest is the worst.