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By: DimeCollectoR, Jason Moore
Sep 26 2016 12:00pm
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Hi folks! 

Perhaps this is a called shot. 

Or perhaps Peregrine Drake has cheated Pauper death, and we're all in for at least a few more months of degenerate land untapping. 

I'm just saying. If Peregrine Drake has gotten the boot (and if not, when it does) there will be a number of things changing about the Classic Pauper format. This boils down to the fact that Izzet Drake invalidates a number of strategies and simultaneously forces others to recognize its presence in the metagame. 

To completely oversimplify things, the format has gotten faster and more degenerate during the P-Drake era, thereby pushing out slower, fair decks that so many of us have enjoyed playing over the years. Former staples like Mono Black Control, Kuldotha Jeskai and Temur Tron simply aren't winning all that much anymore. Answer cards are overstressed and made obsolete by the wide array of blitzing, proactive and often non-interactive strategies of today. 

So Drake gets banned and things are allowed to slow down a bit. Decks that want to steer things towards the late game end up having a place again. This prospect makes me very happy. 

Here are some of the decks I'll play once Drake is banned

Ruin Processor Decks! 

Ruin Processor was more or less discovered by Alex Ullman in this article, and is quite an underrated finisher. I've had a blast playing with the card, and even took it into a League at the tail end of last year. 

One aspect of the Eldrazi that we're able to easily abuse is its relationship with bounce effects and enchantments like Journey to Nowhere and Oblivion Ring. To clarify, Processor can in essence “free up” a Journey or Ring for future use, while at the same time gaining us 5 life and providing us with a huge board presence. 

This is what I'm hoping to sleeve up oh-so-very soon! 

UW Processor Control
By Jason Moore - 60 Cards Total
Creature
4 Mulldrifter
2 Ruin Processor
2 Stormbound Geist
8 cards

Instant
4 Accumulated Knowledge
1 Capsize
4 Counterspell
2 Dispel
1 Echoing Truth
1 Faerie Trickery
1 Gut Shot
2 Righteous Blow
16 cards

Sorcery
2 Deep Analysis
4 Preordain
1 Sunlance
7 cards

Enchantment
2 Oblivion Ring
4 Journey to Nowhere
  6 cards

Artifact
1 Serrated Arrows

Land
4 Azorius Guildgate
1 Evolving Wilds
8 Island
3 Plains
1 Mortuary Mire
1 Terramorphic Expanse
4 Tranquil Cove
22 cards
 

 

This list presumes that Mono Blue Delver will once again rise to power in a world without Peregrine Drake. Hence the cheap answers to Delver of Secrets in the form of Gut Shot, Righteous Blow and Sunlance in addition to midrange elements like Serrated Arrows and Stormbound Geist, which keep the rest of their air force at bay. 

The card draw suite is nothing short of robust, and could very well be the best array of draw I've ever assembled in a Pauper control deck! Believe me when I that say I've tried out many assortments in the past, and this one is highly effective. 

Fueling Processor's fire are Faerie Trickery, Journey to Nowhere and Oblivion Ring. If we need even more late game, Capsize can hypothetically provide us with an unending stream of creatures via Mortuary Mire

This is absolutely my kind of deck, and all it requires is my kind of metagame! 

Mardu Midrange! 

Another late game deck, but one that is far more creature dense. Have a look! 

Mardu Midrange
By Jason Moore - 60 Cards Total
Creature
2 Gurmag Angler
4 Kor Skyfisher
3 Phyrexian Rager
4 Thraben Inspector
13 cards

Instant
1 Grim Harvest
2 Tragic Slip
3 cards
Sorcery
3 Chainer's Edict
2 Duress
1 Evincar's Justice
4 Flame Slash
4 Night's Whisper
2 Unearth
16 cards

Artifact
2 Pristine Talisman
4 Prophetic Prism
  6 cards
Land
3 Bloodfell Caves
1 Mortuary Mire
4 Mountain
1 Orzhov Basilica
4 Plains
1 Rakdos Carnarium
4 Scoured Barrens
3 Swamp
1 Wind-Scarred Crag
22 cards
 

 

This was the first strategy I thought to brew around Night's Whisper, which entered Pauper earlier this year through Eternal Masters. It plays one of the format's best finishers in Gurmag Angler, one of the best value creatures in Kor Skyfisher and some of the best removal in Chainer's Edict and Flame Slash

There is a pretty much constant card flow provided by this deck thanks to all of the cantrips/cycling, and the ability to cast creatures that draw cards, then bounce them, Unearth them and Grim Harvest them repeatedly. This means that we can keep up with many other strategies in terms of velocity, and drive right past others. 

Mardu Midrange's endgame is nothing short of annoying. Kor Skyfisher and Mortuary Mire don't look like much, but are quite capable of putting in work. Grim Harvest just beats people with value (so long as we have open mana to protect it). Finally, Evincar's Justice paired with Pristine Talismans is a tried and true kill condition that hurts swarm decks that have limited toughness boosting. 

While it might not look all that insane, Mardu Midrange has loads of potential in my eyes. I've been pleased with it in testing, and can't wait to find areas for improvement! 

Mono White Metal!  

I talked about this deck in my last article, but since then we've had more commons from Kaladesh unveiled! Here's a new take that I'm calling “Vehicular Manslaughter.” 

Vehicular Manslaughter
By Jason Moore - 60 Cards Total
Creature
4 Ardent Recruit
4 Auriok Sunchaser
1 Bonded Construct
4 Court Homunculus
4 Thraben Inspector
1 Vault Skirge
18 cards

Instant
3 Built to Last
1 Mutagenic Growth
4 cards
Artifact
4 Bonesplitter
4 Cogworker's Puzzleknot
4 Flayer Husk
12 cards

Vehicle
3 Renegade Freighter
4 Sky Skiff
7 cards
Land
4 Ancient Den
4 Darksteel Citadel
10 Plains
1 Secluded Steppe
19 cards
 


If the metalcraft beaters fail, there's always the equipment. If they fail, there are vehicles! If they fail...well, they can't! We can't let them. We have to Built to Last and Mutagenic Growth them. We have to drive on! 

Aside from Tokens, there hasn't been a viable form of mono white aggression in Pauper for what feels like years. I'm hoping that these new entries into the world of metalcraft will have something to say about that. 

Are vehicles going to be the next big thing in (Classic Pauper)? This deck will be my starting point for answering that question. 

 

Izzet Control Without Peregrine Drake!

 

And now we come to perhaps my favorite archetype of all! Before the printing of Peregrine Drake, that is. 

Izzet Ravings Control
By Jason Moore - 60 Cards Total
Creature
1 Izzet Chronarch
3 Jeskai Sage
2 Whirlwind Adept
6 cards

Instant
4 Accumulated Knowledge
4 Counterspell
1 Deprive
3 Desperate Ravings
2 Dispel
1 Harvest Pyre
4 Lightning Bolt
19 cards
Sorcery
2 Deep Analysis
2 Firebolt
4 Flame Slash
4 Preordain
1 Rolling Thunder
13 cards
 
Land
1 Evolving Wilds
1 Haunted Fengraf
8 Island
4 Izzet Guildgate
3 Mountain
4 Swiftwater Cliffs
1 Terramorphic Expanse
22 cards
 


Now that's a 5 mana finisher! Whirlwind Adept can get massive in this list, and he's harder to kill than a measly Peregrine Drake

But guess what, you don't even have to play this version of Izzet Control if you don't want to. There's many variations you can choose from! 

For instance, I played a Delver of Secrets version in a League here, and before that a Trinket Mage and Galvanic Blast rendition called Kuldotha Control. I'm sure there are even more options out there. 

Dime's Up 

What are you going to play in a world without Peregrine Drake? Feel free to share.

 

You can also follow me on Twitter (@DimecollectorSC) for MTG-related updates and info! 

 

Bye for now! 

12 Comments

He shoots, he misses. The by AJ_Impy at Mon, 09/26/2016 - 12:50
AJ_Impy's picture

He shoots, he misses. The Drake yet lives for now. Intriguing thought exercise nonetheless. What if Delver gets the boot alongside Drake a few months hence?

what is the general vibe of by JXClaytor at Mon, 09/26/2016 - 13:59
JXClaytor's picture

what is the general vibe of this announcement on twitter, I've deactivated my account for a few days, and I reckon I picked a bad time to do so.

JXClaytor - I've yet to hear by DimeCollectoR at Mon, 09/26/2016 - 14:09
DimeCollectoR's picture

JXClaytor - I've yet to hear anyone commend the decision not to ban. Reddit in particular seems a bit depressed by the news.

yeah I am personally just not by JXClaytor at Mon, 09/26/2016 - 18:46
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yeah I am personally just not playing the format until it's gone. :/

Thanks for checking out the by DimeCollectoR at Mon, 09/26/2016 - 14:08
DimeCollectoR's picture

Thanks for checking out the article! I imagine there would be a degree of backlash from players if Delver received a ban. The card supports at least three higher tier strategies at the moment. Delver (the deck) keeps Burn in check to some extent, so it's possible that a Delver ban could make similarly stifled strategies more viable.

I should think Ghostly by Elbinac at Tue, 09/27/2016 - 06:05
Elbinac's picture

I should think Ghostly Flicker to be a bigger culprit than the drake.
Nix the Flicker and leave the derpy 2/3, no?

I am getting into pauper. Do by MindlessMarty at Tue, 09/27/2016 - 10:00
MindlessMarty's picture

I am getting into pauper. Do you guys feel burn has a good chance against drake? Nice article. Keep it up!

Elbinac - I'd say no for a by DimeCollectoR at Tue, 09/27/2016 - 10:33
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Elbinac - I'd say no for a few reasons. If you ban Ghostly Flikcer, you must also ban Displace. Flicker is a pet card that some players really enjoy (myself included), and it fits into other strategies in a role similar to Momentary Blink. Peregrine Drake only enables one kind of strategy (infinite mana combo as early as the turn you play it), and has been used for that singular purpose. The same cannot be said for Flicker, which has several (more honest) applications. There is a precedent for banning cards that untap lands (this has been done multiple times in Pauper), and there isn't one for banning bounce effects. Just my two cents. Good question!

Mindless Marty - Burn should have a decent chance, yes. Izzet can mostly interact via Burn with permission or an early combo kill. It doesn't have a Burn hoser card along the lines of some uber life gain or damage prevention spell. Other decks do, though. Burn's weakness tends to be lack of flexibility against the larger field, IMO.

Currently 2-1 by TheWolf at Wed, 09/28/2016 - 04:44
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I'm currently 2-1 with Burn in the League, and played vs 3 Drake decks.

Thanks for the feedback by MindlessMarty at Wed, 09/28/2016 - 05:22
MindlessMarty's picture

Thanks for the feedback everyone. Again, nice article

I don't mind drake. I find by deluxeicoff at Wed, 09/28/2016 - 14:15
deluxeicoff's picture

I don't mind drake. I find running Faerie Macabre + any removal is enough...I've beaten it in tourneys A LOT more than I lose to it...my tourney score with a lot of different decks so far is 2 losses, 8 wins...My only hesitation is that it is forcing (like you stated) some decks to not exist, and/or forcing brewers to have room for Macabre. Additionally, I don't see it that often either - as is a running joke on our live Twitch tourneys...maybe I'm just lucky.

MindlessMarty - Thanks again by DimeCollectoR at Wed, 09/28/2016 - 23:27
DimeCollectoR's picture

MindlessMarty - Thanks again for the kind words!

deluxeicoff - Ahoy! I've been pretty lucky lately too. Drake dodging FTW! Thanks for all of the insight!