Anyone following Starcity Eternal articles has probably seen the UGB list championed by Brian Demars. If you haven't - it's a Dark Confidant deck that has hand disruption, a lot of soft counters, and tempo spells. Recently, at an Invitational Qualifier, this deck popped up, asking the question "Is it safe to play Dreadnought again?"
Not Quite Team America | The Rusty Machete
13 Creatures:
4 Tarmogoyf
3 Phyrexian Dreadnought
2 Vendilion Clique
4 Dark Confidant
27 Spells:
4 Force of Will
2 Spell Snare
3 Ponder
4 Brainstorm
1 Daze
3 Ghastly Demise
4 Stifle
2 Diabolic Edict
3 Spell Pierce
1 Trickbind
4 Tarmogoyf
3 Phyrexian Dreadnought
2 Vendilion Clique
4 Dark Confidant
27 Spells:
4 Force of Will
2 Spell Snare
3 Ponder
4 Brainstorm
1 Daze
3 Ghastly Demise
4 Stifle
2 Diabolic Edict
3 Spell Pierce
1 Trickbind
20 Lands:
1 Island
4 Polluted Delta
4 Wasteland
3 Tropical Island
1 Bayou
3 Underground Sea
4 Misty Rainforest
1 Island
4 Polluted Delta
4 Wasteland
3 Tropical Island
1 Bayou
3 Underground Sea
4 Misty Rainforest
15 Sideboard:
1 Maelstrom Pulse
1 Trygon Predator
1 Mind Harness
1 Go for the Throat
2 Phyrexian Revoker
3 Extirpate
1 Consuming Vapors
2 Krosan Grip
1 Llawan, Cephalid Empress
2 Blue Elemental Blast
1 Maelstrom Pulse
1 Trygon Predator
1 Mind Harness
1 Go for the Throat
2 Phyrexian Revoker
3 Extirpate
1 Consuming Vapors
2 Krosan Grip
1 Llawan, Cephalid Empress
2 Blue Elemental Blast
My gut feeling says that it's actually safe; and I, in fact, might even encourage you to play one. But now you're thinking, "Why are you telling me to play a card that dies to Pridemage when people have even more access to Pridemage with Green Sun's Zenith?"
It's actually because of Green Sun's Zenith that I think it's safe to play again. Consider this:
- Your opponents are running less actual copies of Qasali Pridemage. This lowers any incidental damage that may randomly pop up.
- Green Sun Zenith to get Pridemage costs 3 mana. Under the duress of Stifles, Wastelands, and Spell Pierces; barring Noble Hierarch, this should actually be somewhat difficult for opponents.
- You can Stifle Qasali Pridemage. Just a reminder.
So why this deck? Dark Confidant is awesome, Dreadnought provides the fast clock against combo decks that keep popping up, and Stifle is pretty neat if people are intending on casting bigger spells.
I hope to get a chance to test this one soon, since I like pretty much all the cards in it. Hats off to you James Higginbottem, here's a Force of Will deck that I'd actually want to play.
-G
No comments:
Post a Comment