[Primer] Elves!

[Dice_Box]

Lets look at the end of my first post in this little discussion, shall we?

Sure lets have a look at it. You are stating that you're looking at different builds for different matches. Something we do all the time. Looking for builds to suit our meta's. We have not tested all the possibilities no. No one ever will because the format is never stagnant. But we test against what we have locally or what we Proxy up and then make choices.

You should have a variety of configurations, yes, but those configurations should be applicable to different matchups/metagames. I.E. a variety of decklists are needed for a variety of expected matchups in order to have 'the best' chance of winning. So when people have differences in card choice, it better be to strengthen matchups they expect to be moire prevalent.

We do this as I said above. I do not understand why you are repeating the same statement that more or less says: "Different Meta's need different builds". This is not shocking news to anyone.

I.E. There are never flex spots, you either know exactly what cards are needed for specific metagames/matchups and in what numbers, or you don't. Simple Truth.

There is a CORE deck. A set of cards everyone agrees on. They do not change. Then after those cards you have the option to mix and match the other slots as you need to to suit specific metagames/matchups (Read meta). These are known as flex slots. This is simply the facts. You do not have to like them, hell do whatever you damn well please, but the facts are the facts. Those facts are that this deck, like all others does not have a 60 card core. It has less than 60 cards and people use the remaining slots to personalise the deck to suit them and their situation. Thus Flexible choices to suit local environmental needs.

[spetznaz]

Played Elves today in a tournament today organized by a local playgroup. 48 players is a petty good turnout for legacy in Stockholm. Meta I expected was more fair decks (RUG, BUG, Maverick, Death and Taxes etc) and less combo. Tried out the 4 Birchlore Rangers decklist with no Llanowar.

My decklist:
4 Birchlore Rangers
1 Craterhoof Behemoth
1 Regal Force
4 Deathrite Shaman
4 Elvish Visionary
4 Heritage Druid
4 Nettle Sentinel
3 Quirion Ranger
4 Wirewood Symbiote
1 Priest of Titiania

4 Glimpse Of Nature
4 Green Sun's Zenith
3 Natural Order

2 Bayou
1 Dryad Arbor
2 Forest
4 Gaea's Cradle
1 Savannah
9 Fetch

Sideboard:
4 Cabal Therapy
3 Abrupt Decay
1 Natural Order
1 Progenitus
1 Qasali Pridemage
1 Viridian Shaman
1 Dryad Arbor
1 Thorn of Ametyst
1 Scavenging Ooze
1 Gaddock Teeg


Round 1 against Shardless Bug
Game 1, Glimpse resolves turn 4, Hoof for the win
Game 2 was grindy and I lost to attrition
Game 3 was grindy as well and went to time. My Scavenging Ooze won me the game in extra turns
1-0 (2-1)

Round 2 against 4 color cascade
Game 1 was quick.
Game 2 NO --> Progenitus
2-0 (4-1)

Round 3 against Death and Taxes
Game 1, Turn 2 Glimpse sets up for turn 3 Hoof
Game 2, My guys get killed, my lands destroyed..
Game 3, My opponent mulligans to 5, I play NO --> Prog
3-0 (6-2)

Round 4 against RUG Delver
Game 1. Turn 2 NO resolves
Game 2. He had Delver that flipped, Daze for my turn 1 Deathrite and FOW to slow me down even more
Game 3. Opponent mulligans to 5. Scavenging Ooze wins me the match.
4-0 (8-3)

Round 5
Draw against UR Delver Pyromancer
4-0-1

Round 5
Draw against RUG or BUG, don't remember what he played
4-0-2

Top 8 and second seed!

Top 8 against Elves.
All 3 games are the same. The player that stars wins on turn 3.. Good for me because I was the top seed in my bracket. In game 3 I played blind Cabal Therapy and made him discard 2 Glimpse of Nature
5-0-2 (10-4)

Top 4 against Zoo
Game 1. Lost due to him having all answers to my important guys and a clock that is is Wild Nactal
Game 2. One of the most grindy games I have played with the deck. Eventually won on beatdown after he had to trade our 6/6 Ooze for eachother.
Game 3. Turn 4 NO-->Progenitus for the win!

After a good split in the finals I left the venue with a trophy, a spot in the end of year finals, a Savannah and an Underground Sea.



Some thoughts:
Never missed Llanowar Elves
Scavenging Ooze is a powerhouse in this deck
Boarded in every card except for my Thorn at least once so my board seems solid. On the other hand I dodged combo all day.
Boarding is harder when you don't have the Fyndhorn Elves to remove, that was one card I almost always boarded out.
3 Abrupt Decay feels good, you draw approximately one per game where you don't Glimpse like crazy

[nudon]

Just split top 4 at the MTGDeals legacy event today. After 6 swiss rounds and playing in the top 8, I'm pretty tired so I'll post a tournament report tomorrow. Bottom line: 4 birchlore + 4 NO is the real deal.

[jnosrati]

Hey what would you guys say is the best hate against you guys that isnt a boardwipe effect. I'm looking for sideboard cards for blue zoo against your decks, but all i have is submerge and forked bolt. Thanks!

[Lemnear]

Hey what would you guys say is the best hate against you guys that isnt a boardwipe effect. I'm looking for sideboard cards for blue zoo against your decks, but all i have is submerge and forked bolt. Thanks!

It's interresting that you ask in this thread what the most powerful hate is against the deck we push in development. Kinda cocky, but I like that.

Tbh, the problem is that blue Zoo is an aggressive Aggro deck like Elves but a lot slower and less flexible to switch roles due to it's nature. Ergo you need something that helps your bigger creatures. Forked Bolt is a start.

Damping Matrix is a backbreaker

[jnosrati]

It's interresting that you ask in this thread what the most powerful hate is against the deck we push in development. Kinda cocky, but I like that.


Damping Matrix is a backbreaker

sounds like me...haha. What do you think of suppression field? The strategy seems a little off, since you can still NO.

[Dice_Box]

Cursed Totem and CotV are two cards I hate when playing Elves. Not sure what I can say about Zoo.

Suppression field will not do much, take Totem over Field.

[igri_is_a_bk]

Suppression field will not do much, take Totem over Field.

Fetches, Quirion, Wirewood, Deathrite, and we have zero answers to it in our mb. It beat me the one time I played it.

Did anyone watch that game two with Chrandersen vs. OmniTell? He resolved NO, which was going to be nonlethal and still got Hoof instead of Teeg. He proceeded to lose next turn. I was all

[amppyou]

Hey what would you guys say is the best hate against you guys that isnt a boardwipe effect. I'm looking for sideboard cards for blue zoo against your decks, but all i have is submerge and forked bolt. Thanks!

I would agree with DiceBox - totem is the way to go. Also, i assume you run grafdigger's cage if you're on zoo. Side that in as well, as it shuts down GSZ for viridian shaman as an out to totem, blanking 7-8 cards in elves.

[Dice_Box]

True, but it will not stop us combing if we have the chance. If Suppression field is dropped early it can be a pain, but its not the same as simply saying, "You no longer have Heritage, Symbiote, Qurion..."

[Lemnear]

I agree with running Totem. Forgot there was a cheaper option to Damping Matrix. Suppresion Field isn't unreasonable because it has applications against other matchups too.

[Dice_Box]

Mono Green, 11 land elf deck on the stream right now. Who the hell runs 11 lands with 3 of them being Cradle and Drayd?

[Zombie]

This Round 5 thing?

[Tao]

Someone who scoops to Emrakul for no apparent reason. Or did I miss something?

[Zombie]

Didn't. Except that apparently you can make 4-0 in an Open with Leyline of Lifeforce in your board.

[igri_is_a_bk]

Didn't he have Visionary to at least see what else he could get? And if he had a Priest or Archdruid then he could have cast Hoof next turn thanks to Quirion.

Edit: I can't watch this shit. Seriously.

[Koby]

Didn't. Except that apparently you can make 4-0 in an Open with Leyline of Lifeforce in your board.

After playing with 18 lands yesterday, I could easily see playing only 11. He might also be running Land Grant. perhaps?

EDIT: Also, Emrakul with 2 Hoofs. I don't know what to think now.

[Dice_Box]

I want to see this deck list. Its a crazy deck.

Holy shit did you all see that?

[igri_is_a_bk]

I completely took back what I said and am so fucking happy I didn't turn it off. Hilarious.... that was just hilarious.

[Dzra]

Ban Show and Tell!



Oh... Hold on a sec....