longtimegone's picture
By: longtimegone, That Guy
Sep 16 2014 12:00pm
0
Login to post comments
4438 views


One might be forgiven for thinking that the Pauper format doesn’t have room for your old school kill or counter everything control decks. After all, the well-known deck with control right in the name is really more midrange with control elements, and the deck most people would associate with counter spells plays more like a fast tempo deck. What then is left for the dedicated control player, those among us who are not happy unless they have less win conditions in a deck than fingers on one hand?

Let’s take a look at a couple of options.


First up, a personal favorite, UB Teachings Control. 

 

We have taken a look at another version of this deck before, but this seemed like the perfect time to look back in and see how it’s changed. In the main deck, this card runs a total of 4 cards that could kill the opponent, and everything else is a control player’s dream come true.  There is a certain unalloyed joy that comes with casting Accumulated Knowledge with 3 copies already in the yard.

The real fun though, comes from the Mystical Teachings package.  The deck is packed to the rim with all manner of useful instants, and you have the tools to go fetch them as needed. The deck runs plenty of cheap removal for early threats that came down before counter magic can be held at the ready, and once you have gotten your feet under you, the deck can take control of a game in a way that few others could hope to match. Once you have 6 or 7 lands, you will often be in a position to tutor up and cast exactly the right answer for any given threat if needed.  One of your 4 creatures has died? Go get Grim Harvest and use them again and again. Your aggro opponent has gotten you down to your last few points of life with scattered attacks here and there before creatures meet their inevitable end? Go tutor up Crypt Incursion, gain 30 or 40 life, and relax. 

In the past, this deck has really struggled vs Burn, but this seems to have been shored up very well with the inclusion of a white splash in the board for Circle of Protection: Red. This seems to have given the deck the extra bump it needed, as it had the consistency to allow obzen to place in the dailies with it all 3 days in a row. 


 

Mono Blue "No" by Etiens
 
Creatures
0 cards

Other Spells
3 Mind Sculpt
4 Preordain
4 Accumulated Knowledge
4 Countermand
4 Counterspell
2 Daze
1 Echoing Truth
3 Exclude
2 Gush
2 Logic Knot
2 Piracy Charm
4 Rune Snag
4 Think Twice
1 Unsummon
40 cards
Lands
16 Island
4 Quicksand
20 cards

Countermand

 

I ran in to this next deck in the MTGO daily winners while I was compiling meta data, and I just had to stop and marvel. This looks like a work of pure genius, the outpouring of a deep seated hatred of playing magic, and a desire to spread that feeling to all those they encounter. It’s hard to know where to even begin.

First off, this deck has no creatures. The deck has no spells that do direct damage, or kill creatures.  The only form of removal the deck has is 4 quicksand and couple of bounce spells, discounting the one mode on Piracy Charm.  Not so fast, this isn’t turbo fog, the deck runs no Fogs of any sort, and no Jace’s Erasure or Curse of the Bloody Tome.

So what could possibly be left? Well, how many ways can *you* say “Counter target spell” boys and girls? Well between the main deck and sideboard, this deck knows 8 different variations. From the classic Counterspell and Daze and on up to Exclude and Countermand, this deck knows how to say “No” in pretty much every dialect.  You say it sounds too slow to counter every spell your opponent casts until they run out of cards in their deck? Ok, fine, the deck makes room for 3 Mind Sculpt to speed the task along, just a bit. I think they would have liked to have left this out to prolong the misery, but the deck probably draws too many cards not to run out first without that little extra kick. 

On to the meta data!

 

I see some significant changes this week. First up, Delver and MBC are still fighting for the top spots, but Delver has been pushing ahead. CyclopsFiend and White Weenie came in with a strong showing, and Familiar Combo has crept back out of the woodwork to ruin some people’s day.  Be sure to keep up to date, those sideboard slots might need some adjustment this time.

The winner at this week’s PCT event was RollieTheGuar with what seems to be a fairly standard Delver deck.

Delver by RollieTheGuar
 
Creatures
4 Cloud of Faeries
4 Delver of Secrets
4 Ninja of the Deep Hours
4 Spellstutter Sprite
3 Spire Golem
1 Stormbound Geist
20 cards

Other Spells
2 Bonesplitter
4 Counterspell
2 Daze
2 Exclude
2 Gush
4 Ponder
4 Preordain
3 Snap
23 cards
Lands
17 Island
17 cards

Delver of Secrets

 

That’s it for this week, next time we will take a look at what Khans of Tarkir might bring to Pauper.

 

 

14 Comments

Teachings by obZen at Tue, 09/16/2014 - 13:41
obZen's picture

Thanks for the shout-out. That other control deck looks just as annoying as mine to play against, haha. If only we had manlands :(

"The outpouring of a deep by ScionOfJustice at Tue, 09/16/2014 - 16:43
ScionOfJustice's picture

"The outpouring of a deep seated hatred of playing magic, and a desire to spread that feeling to all those they encounter" -Great line

I wonder why Rollie prefers Preordain and Ponder to Brain Storm?

Brainstorm can be pretty bad by longtimegone at Tue, 09/16/2014 - 22:19
longtimegone's picture

Brainstorm can be pretty bad if you don't have a critical mass of shuffle effects. Going by the latest meta reports, it looks like less than 40% of delver decks are running it.

Aye, without the shuffle by Elbinac at Wed, 09/17/2014 - 00:06
Elbinac's picture

Aye, without the shuffle effects it just isn't as good as any of the other cantrip+filter options.
And has the added effect of lowering your moral in a game when you know your next two draws will be bad and you cannot do anything about it.
Which can potentially have a negative impact in the rest of your match.

imho if your deck can give by Paul Leicht at Wed, 09/17/2014 - 04:46
Paul Leicht's picture

imho if your deck can give you the kind of draws that lower your morale after seeing them, it needs to be rethunk and not because of brainstorm either. :)

These are the sorts that any by longtimegone at Wed, 09/17/2014 - 06:02
longtimegone's picture

These are the sorts that any deck can have. :)

Key example. I'll keep this mana short hand with a brainstorm, so I can go grab the land I need to get started rather than mulling. I see that there are no lands in the top 3, and get very sad indeed.

That sounds like a bad keep by Paul Leicht at Wed, 09/17/2014 - 06:35
Paul Leicht's picture

That sounds like a bad keep decision. Not to criticize because I have had my fair share of bad keeps, but that is a skill that only gets better when you consider what the downsides of island brainstorm + 5 other non castable cards are.

Yes, that's the point. It's by longtimegone at Wed, 09/17/2014 - 07:54
longtimegone's picture

Yes, that's the point. It's one of the common examples of why brainstorm can be a problem. It's a bad keep with brainstorm, but far more reasonable with Ponder or Preordain.

I disagree. I think its a bad by Paul Leicht at Wed, 09/17/2014 - 09:33
Paul Leicht's picture

I disagree. I think its a bad keep with any 1 drawer. Is Brainstorm slightly worse if you are already in a bad situation with no shuffle? Yes. Is it immensely better if you are in a neutral position? Yes. With a shuffler? Yes. Etc. The card has flaws and strengths and you build your deck accordingly. And you play it accordingly. Mulligan to X-1 is not always a bad decision. Being unwilling to do so is.

A frequent enough situation by Elbinac at Fri, 09/19/2014 - 01:08
Elbinac's picture

A frequent enough situation is finding three lands on top when you need *anything at all* that isn't a land.
Putting two back leaves you in the psychological state of being three turns behind.
The same 3 top cards for preordain and ponder are only a single turn, or less, of a hindrance.

There just aren't as many good free shuffle effects as one sees in other formats where Brainstorm IS that strong.

Even your "ideal" play or turn 1 Delver turn 2 upkeep Brainstorm isn't usually the kind of play you want to make.
As short of a Daze you have no response to "I'll just kill your delver now, before brainstorm resolves."
Which leaves you down on tempo.
A stronger play would be to leave up two mana for a counter.
Or, even better, cloud of faeries/snap to set up a spellstutter.
Which you would then use a ninja of deep hours on.

So, excluding the use on your upkeep, brainstorm does far less for you in manipulating your draws.
Without the shuffle effects it is just a cantrip index.

The only good reason to play by Psychobabble at Wed, 09/17/2014 - 09:40
Psychobabble's picture

The only good reason to play brainstorm in Pauper is if you want to flip delver at instant speed. If you aren't doing that, then you probably shouldn't be playing brainstorm.

flipping at instant speed? by Bartimäus at Wed, 09/17/2014 - 11:46
Bartimäus's picture

flipping at instant speed?

He means during your upkeep, by ScionOfJustice at Wed, 09/17/2014 - 13:37
ScionOfJustice's picture

He means during your upkeep, play brainstorm so you can control the top card of your library.

It's the most reliable way to by Psychobabble at Wed, 09/17/2014 - 18:08
Psychobabble's picture

It's the most reliable way to get a T2 flip. Only a strategy you want to do in quite an aggressive deck, because ponder/preordain are way better than brainstorm without fetches.