[Primer/Deck] Pox

[rlesko]

The tournament is July 18, 2015. The Legacy event is Starcitygames Chicago on July 19 (Sunday). I'll be bringing my trusty notebook for da details. Yes, of course I'll provide my tournament report. For now:

Sideboard:
2 Pithing Needle
2 (secret tech topdeck killer/the autoscooper)
3 Ensnaring Bridge
3 Engineered Plague
2 Extirpate
3 Relic of Progenitus

I've decided to return Crucible of Worlds to my maindeck and reduce my total *secret tech* cards to 2 instead of 3. That Crucible should help and I can remove my Night of Souls' Betrayal and 1-of main deck plague if my enemy is not trying to swarm me. Like RUG Threshold or Combo decks or Omni-show. My favorite learning experience with this deck is figuring out the Sideboarding.

Is the tech card from Tempest Block?

[OmniStrata]

Is the tech card from Tempest Block?

Even better, it's from the most overpowered block ever! Just give it two weeks, I'll have a tourney report asap. Since this is going to be a giant event, it'll probably be more annoyingly large if anything.

[jredelstein]

Even better, it's from the most overpowered block ever! Just give it two weeks, I'll have a tourney report asap. Since this is going to be a giant event, it'll probably be more annoyingly large if anything.

Annoyingly large? it is a 5k IQ not a GP

[rlesko]

Even better, it's from the most overpowered block ever! Just give it two weeks, I'll have a tourney report asap. Since this is going to be a giant event, it'll probably be more annoyingly large if anything.

Ah, I think I know the card ;)

[Maikhell]

Ah, I think I know the card ;)

Oh man, this guessing game is contaminating the thread... totally contaminating it. Am I right?

[beez]

Urza's was most powerful block.

Cantrip decks could find your tech rather Oppressive.

[Hardcore]

Thanks to Omnistrata for making me look at Urza block again.

Rain of Filth seem just outright better than Dark Ritual.
I will lose my lands but that may be what i want to do. For example when playing Delve effects like Empty the Pits.

[Maikhell]

Dark Ritual already is one of the worst cards in a control/midrange shell of pox. Rain of Filth is even worse. I don't think you would like to put all your eggs in a (fragile) basket called Empty the Pits.

[OmniStrata]

Annoyingly large? it is a 5k IQ not a GP

You'll have to excuse me if my sense of scale isn't as grand as yours...

Rain of Filth would be for that Empty the Pits combo finish, sorta, but I highly doubt developed decks would refuse to sideboard out GY hate for you. I still like the fact that Pox doesn't need to focus on GY to be effective.

Though cutting off the GY will lead to some minor injuries: no wasteland loops, no Nether Spirit usage, but unlike Dredge, Loam, etc., Pox won't become useless.

[jredelstein]

You'll have to excuse me if my sense of scale isn't as grand as yours...

I am glad you are so excited for the 5k! I have mostly been disappointed by them because it means I get to play less Legacy on a larger scale.

We are definitely spoiled in the North East with more large legacy events than anywhere in the world other than Europe. It just surprised me because SCGs new Open Schedule has reduced the number of good sized legacy events each year. 5k IQs are almost always smaller than the Legacy Opens that would happen weekly last year.

I would highly recommend travelly to a Legacy GP if you can afford the time and money. GPNJ last year and GPDC the year before were 2 of the most fun events I've been to (even if I had horrible luck at both). The North American Legacy GP this year is in Seattle in November I believe, I am doing what I can to fly out for that one. (that is my wife's birthday though so that makes it even harder)

[Hardcore]

Rain of filth would be a one ,or two, of cards.
Should i have it in hand when playing heavy spells then it's a bonus.
As for gy hate then that is getting rarer these days. Dredge is not a common encounter.

[rlesko]

Oh man, this guessing game is contaminating the thread... totally contaminating it. Am I right?

Nope ;)

[Hardcore]

i have occasionally been toying with the idea of running four each of Extirpate and Surgical Extraction, in main deck.
(I would use a [Dromars] discard shell for this, of course.) There is some community experience of running one or two occasionally. It seems these experiments show them flawed by not affecting the board state (and eventually being deleted from the list).
That is an important point to consider in deck building. otoh there are other cards with the same draw back, like all pure discard cards and mana boosts.
So, what would a barrage of exile spells do? I am not sure and welcome input.

[PirateKing]

There was a UB deck I saw in new & developmental that was just Surgical Extraction, Extirpate & Snapcaster Mage plus discard and counterspells. It was Poxy in the way it neutered your opponent so your 10 turn clock could get you there. Also seemed Poxy in that I'm sure it was absolutely no fun to play against. I haven't played with or against it personally, but it showed there are those who are.

[Claymore]

Secret tech is likely

Damping Engine
Noetic Scales
Oppression
Smokestack


Of those, I like Noetic Scales a lot (Goodbye Entreat and Marit Lage, but I think Pox wins with Lage anyway), but my guess is Smokestack to play fantastically alongside Crucible of Worlds. Some fringe Lands decks are playing Smokestack to troll the Miracles matchup. None of these really play that great against Omni besides Oppression, but I don't know the Pox-Omni matchup well enough to say one way or the other.

I don't think it's Damping Engine but it's a pretty lol card.

[Hardcore]

There was a UB deck I saw in new & developmental that was just Surgical Extraction, Extirpate & Snapcaster Mage plus discard and counterspells. It was Poxy in the way it neutered your opponent so your 10 turn clock could get you there. Also seemed Poxy in that I'm sure it was absolutely no fun to play against. I haven't played with or against it personally, but it showed there are those who are.

Thanks! I'll check it out for inspiration.

[Hardcore]

I am not afraid of life loss, and could play Death Wish. The question is: are there any potential SB targets worth wishing for?

[Toxboy]

Also curious, since I'm playing the loam version of pox and the match ups I find to be the hardest are really fast combo decks and maveric with Miracles being a tight matchup where you have the edge if you don't make mistakes or if they play the new mentor version.

what's the hard match-ups for the monoblack version? what do you have the most sideboard against? are there any match-ups you have just given up on?

[OmniStrata]

i have occasionally been toying with the idea of running four each of Extirpate and Surgical Extraction, in main deck.
(I would use a [Dromars] discard shell for this, of course.) There is some community experience of running one or two occasionally. It seems these experiments show them flawed by not affecting the board state (and eventually being deleted from the list).
That is an important point to consider in deck building. otoh there are other cards with the same draw back, like all pure discard cards and mana boosts.
So, what would a barrage of exile spells do? I am not sure and welcome input.

Multiple exiles spells help you overpower control decks that run less than 3 different win conditions. If a control deck is running like, 12+ different win conditions, something's amiss. It also lets you ruin tutor decks that smirk as they set their deck with their winning card on top, only to cry delicious tears after an Extirpate removes a fetchland from their yard and their 'game winner' is shuffled elsewhere.

It is true they are flawed in that they don't affect the board state, but if your opponent is running say, 8 win cards consisting of 4 "game winners" each, then 2 extirpates and blam, they can't win.

[OmniStrata]

Also curious, since I'm playing the loam version of pox and the match ups I find to be the hardest are really fast combo decks and maveric with Miracles being a tight matchup where you have the edge if you don't make mistakes or if they play the new mentor version.

what's the hard match-ups for the monoblack version? what do you have the most sideboard against? are there any match-ups you have just given up on?

NEVER GIVE UP!

Mono black traditionally can't deal with artifacts or enchantments. Some whip out the Powder Kegs and Ratchet Bombs to deal with problems or even Dystopia can help destroy those darn Detention Spheres and Leyline of Sanctities. In my case, my board is designed to deal with GY strategies and creatures. I love my Hymn to Tourachs. Ensnaring Bridge is awesome in that it stops Show and Tell to a degree, all tribals, and even Dredge.

Burn is a problem, but if you can prevent them from casting their spells, you should be fine. Initially, I ran Sun Drop in the anti-burn slot for my Sideboard, but then I realize, SB real estate is too valuable to place a card useful only against 1 deck.