Covering the Modern 10k at SCG Con Baltimore MTG Highlights

Recapping the Modern 10k Tournament at SCG Con Baltimore

Dive into our recap of the Modern 10k Tournament at SCG Con Baltimore. Get insights on top decks, key matches, and standout players from this MTG event!

We recently received word that Wizards did not plan on banning Nadu before the next scheduled B&R on August 26th. Some of us hoped that we would be able to start the Modern RCQ season knowing exactly what decks weren't going to be allowed in the format. Some want Grief to be banned, as well as The One Ring. The no-ban announcement left the door wide open for SCG Con to be littered with a heavy Nadu Meta. This ended up being my first modern tournament, and first time playing it in paper, and it went about as well as I expected it to. I ended up dropping out after round five after falling to a two and three record, but I'm not the star of the article this time! I'll go over a little bit of my experiences in the article today, and I'll go over a deck that I believe is incredibly well-positioned. I'll save you a Google Search, and it was no surprise that things went this way. The top 5 decks of the tournament were Nadu decks. Half of the top 16 were Nadu decks. It continues to illustrate the point made by Magic players all over the world that appears to be falling on deaf ears: Nadu has to be banned. Ideally, we wish for it to happen before the Modern RCQ Season starts in early August, but it appears there will be at least three weeks of Nadu tearing up Modern Events until the next B&R. Anyhow, let's go over some other noteworthy parts of the tournament that should hopefully show some good signs to come for the Modern Format.

Total Cards:

Reanimator combos are fun in any format - and they're especially fun when we can play them in a competitive environment. The Goryo's Vengeance Deck in Modern accomplishes that, and it makes great use of three of the five elemental creatures. Also, it reanimates Griselbrand, and who doesn't love that?

Key Combo Cards

Right off the bat, this already good deck gained a new friend when MH3 came out. We have a creature that gets big as we discard cards, and we already want to discard cards to reanimate powerful creatures. What's not to like here? If we end up with stuff in our graveyard that we do not need to reanimate, we can also give the frog flying so that it has built-in evasion. I like to think that this card is a great early gameplan for the deck that allows it to be aggressive before and during the assembly of the combo.

This is really what makes the deck work incredibly early in the game. We now have access to surveil lands, and this can allow us to get a creature reanimated onto the battlefield as early as turn two. If you want to wait until turn three so you can blink it and get around the exile trigger, you can do that too, but the deck can really pop off quickly. The fact that this spell is only two mana is beyond broken. Creatures in the format have such powerful enter the battlefield effects and attack triggers these days. Even if you don't benefit from the attack, there are multiple creatures in the deck that have lifelink, and since Goryo gives them haste, we are talking about massive lifegain very early in the game. If you can make the creature stick without it being removed, you are pummeling the opponent very early.

This is our way to get around the fact that we have to exile the creature at the end step. It is also extra relevant because most of the creatures in the deck have a very strong ability just from entering the battlefield. Since Ephemerate also has rebound, we are talking about grabbing up to 15 cards with an Atraxa, or taking up to three cards from an opponent's hand with Grief. Also, Subtlety is another one that can get pretty ridiculous with this ability. Since it can continually place cards on top of the opponent's library, there is a way to effectively timewalk the opponent for a few turns, which effectively locks them out of the game while we take over the board and win.

Key Creatures in the Deck

When I first heard that this deck can play Griselbrand and it's actually good, I immediately wanted to try it. The fact that you can give the creature haste to attack and gain 7 life, then draw seven cards with the free life you just gained is phenomenal. It basically allows you to mulligan to 3 or 4 cards and not care. Really powerful early game abilities.

Atraxa is known in every format as a bomb of a card. It's no surprise here that it's an easy target for Goryo in this deck. The enter the battlefield effect is too good to leave out. Because of the deck wanting to be able to run a mana base that allows for it to hard cast Atraxa, it even lights up one of the best removal cards in Magic: Leyline Binding. Even if Atraxa isn't going to be able to attack, or it gets removed after entering, we are still going to grab five cards. Even if you only get to do that, you effectively looked at ten cards and hand-picked three to five of them to put in your hand. That is the case, and it's hard for it to be bad that way.

We all know that this card is also facing a possible ban. Many players are calling for it, saying that it interrupts the play experience, and that getting Grief Scammed on turn one makes it really hard to win the game after that. This deck absolutely wants to play it, and it wants to blink the creature as much as possible. There is no better feeling than reanimating a ton of creatures without having to worry about any interaction, and then working towards winning the game.

Although this deck doesn't play Subtlety, there are a lot of the Goryo decks that do. It really creates a difficult situation for the opponent as they are forced to choose what cards they want to be able to keep on top of their deck, but it never really gives them a good choice. This is where the styles of the deck can vary. It appears the list from this past weekend focuses more on simply removing threats, which is also fine. I think the reason for that is because there are a lot of Eldrazi spells that have cast triggers. You don't want to let an opponent cast a card that has a strong cast effect, and then put it right back on top of their deck and let them get that same effect again the next turn. There are situations where Subtlety can lock out the game, but also situations where it could be bad. This deck opting to use Solitude definitely makes sense, but any of the element within the Esper Colors are strong in the build in their own way.Now this deck is undoubtedly strong, but it's unfortunate that it didn't have a slightly better performance over the weekend. Although it had a good win rate at 6-3, it really leaves us to wonder if it would have done a bit better without Nadu being so prevalent. Who knows, if Nadu gets banned, the Goryo's Vengeance on turn two or three could make this the fastest deck in the format!

Rate this article

I am a Magic The Gathering competitive player, and streamer. I specialize in homebrew decks. My favorite formats are: Standard, Pioneer (Explorer on Arena), and EDH. I first started playing MTG in 2001, and have played on and off since then.

numb_skull_

Check out more content by Numbskull

Explore a Magic: The Gathering deck using Monument to Endurance for cleanup step triggers. Enhance your strategy in Standard's competitive scene.

I See a Monument and I want it Painted Black

It's been a few weeks since Aetherdrift came out, and we are starting to see the cards that are standing out in the meta. We didn't expect the set to change things too much with regard to what we have been seeing. What we did get from it is a nice supplement to many other decks. Although we did not get a ton of format-shaping cards, we have seen a couple that have lit up fringe archetypes. What I've brewed for today plays off of a familiar archetype, and it was one that we kind of already had, but it allows us to pivot in a certain way and get additional value from it that we may not have gotten in the past. One of the biggest things that our deck can do is have plenty of action on the end step/cleanup step. It's an interesting scenario because usually when we think of the cleanup step at the end of each turn, we remove damage, and we discard to hand size. Usually discarding to hand size is pretty much the final step, and there aren't any triggers... until now. We will be using Monument to Endurance to have triggers when we discard to hand size, and get additional value from it. Now we don't care if we end the turn with nine or ten cards in hand, because we are going to benefit from it. This will help us possibly get in some finishing damage against our opponent, or get extra value. It is worth noting that this will cause triggered abilities on the cleanup step, and this is something that our opponents can respond to. This has historically been a point in the turn where no player can respond to actions. We'll take a look at the relevant cards in the deck, and then I'll detail a few fun combos that we may see during gameplay. Relevant Cards

We've had a Couple of Weeks to Try Achievements on MTG Arena, and I have Opinions

The economy on MTG Arena has always been a pain point, and a grand debate over how far a digital version of a card game should go to ensure players feel as if they are getting proper value for their time. Wizards has two different versions of its beloved game on the internet, and they both seem to have their benefits and drawbacks. On February 11, Arena launched the Achievement System to reward players for hitting milestones in-game, and completing specific tasks. While it is always fun to do these kinds of things in each game, something that gamers always do is assess whether the reward for doing so in-game is worth putting forth the extra effort for the task. While there are some things in the achievement tab that I believe to be kind of fun, and certain things that I know people will want, I view the entire thing as largely a waste of time. Today we will look at why the new feature on Arena simply isn't enough for what the game should have, and what it could be. The Good and The Bad There are plenty of things that we love about Arena, with how it is the easiest way to play our favorite decks from Standard, and not spend thousands of dollars in doing so. It is probably the most efficient way to try out decks. We also love the wildcard system. Although it is not the easiest to obtain them, it is great that a rare/mythic wildcard could buy a rare/mythic card that is of any value and it still just costs one wildcard. This was especially helpful in getting a play set of Sheoldred, the Apocalypse. I still don't have a play set in paper simply because I don't want to spend that much money on it, but on Arena it was easy. I had the wildcards to do what I needed. The only part where this may be lacking is the economy itself. What if we could earn wildcards for hitting certain achievements (I.E. the achievement tab giving us wildcards instead of sleeves, etc.)? I believe that the rewards from this new feature being solely cosmetic underscores the ongoing issue of the economy on Arena simply not being enough for us.

Recapping the Pro Tour and Examining the Deck that ALMOST Obliterated Us All!

Pro Tour Aetherdrift has concluded, and it was no surprise that Domain is still the best deck in the format. It is too powerful, and the high amount of mana availability simply provides too much value for other decks to consistently have a chance against it. Matt Nass was able to secure the win in the mirror match, as Domain Overlords were the most popular deck in the top 8. Since we have a new set that just came out, that calls for innovation and some overall spice. The deck that we will examine today isn't exactly a new concept in the meta, but it certainly is something that nobody previously has had the stones to enter as a list in a Pro Tour Event. There were a couple of well-known pro players with this list, including Javier Dominguez, who has been known for having some unique decks in the competitive circuit. Although Javier didn't do as well as we normally see this past weekend, Christoffer Larsen nearly made the top 8 with this list. The deck went 9-1 in Constructed, and it's safe to say that it was one of the top performers on that side of things. Had Larsen maybe won one more match in Limited, he would likely have been in the top 8. It goes without saying that this deck has a spot in the current meta, and probably has some legs in Standard. It was something that was rather unexpected in the event, sure, but the high roll of the combo within the deck is undeniable. Even without the combo that the deck has, outside of that, it is simply a Golgari Midrange Shell. Those decks always carry a competitive win rate, so everyone has to keep it on the radar either way. We will take a look at the deck, and then I'll go over the combo, then see if we can figure out why the deck is seeing a resurgence. Obliterator is an incredibly fun card. Everyone wants it to have a home in some format, because there are few things more satisfying than watching your opponent sit there trying to figure out which land(s) they are going to keep, or deciding if they want to keep playing after they were just forced to sacrifice all of their permanents. We historically think of this interaction happening during combat. What makes this deck fun is that it can happen during combat, or with a simple one - mana fight spell. Something else that is noteworthy is the fact that this deck plays only 23 lands. My best explanation for it is that the spell that allows you to fight for one mana also allows you to get any basic land from the deck for the same price. I think that this almost treats it as having 27 lands, and in turn helps figure out what cards to remove in order to squeeze in the extra spell. Let's take a look at the relevant cards, then we will see why it's back and better than before.

Examining the Aetherdrift Mechanics, and Rating them for Limited or Constructed

Every time a new set comes out, there always seems to be a mechanic we are excited for, but maybe it doesn't pan out to be as powerful as we thought. Sometimes we think it will be good in constructed, and it ends up only being good in draft. There are other times when it is a sleeper, and we may have overlooked it when we were predicting what might be good. When we examine set design, sometimes we can also see the clear intent for the mechanics to be good in both the limited and constructed environments, and there are cards with power levels for each different environment. One might be watered down a bit to be more limited-friendly, and another might be that overpowered card that you need to be a bomb in constructed. There are a few ways to go about it, and we do what we can to identify which mechanics we should be mindful of in constructed, particularly in Standard, where the new cards affect the format more than other constructed formats. What we will do today is look at the mechanics that are prevalent with the new cards. There are some that are familiar mechanics, and I will still go over those. There are a couple of new ones that I think are quite interesting, and I have opinions on. Let's check out these mechanics, and give them some ratings! Exhaust You guys can tell that I am pretty excited about this one. The deck that I made for exhaust seems like it will run pretty smoothly. I believe that Exhaust is a mechanic that has cards that are intended for limited, and cards that are intended for constructed, and that the mechanic will be useful in both environments. One of the reasons that I believe it can be so good in draft is that you can almost consider the ability to act as another card later on in the game. You could have no cards in hand, but if you have two exhaust creatures, it is almost like you have two cards in hand that can make something happen. I'm excited for the mechanic, and I'm excited to draft the set and see if I can get a good bit of Exhaust cards going. I think it will be relevant in constructed because of the crazy value that you can get from some of the rares, and because there is one that allows for graveyard recursion.

Zombies are Coming back from the Dead with Aetherdrift

Whenever I see the word "Zombie" in a new set, I always like to revisit the archetype a bit in order to see if anything could be good. I decided to raise these zombies from the dead due to some cards that I saw from Aetherdrift, and I thought that we could at least make a deck that is fun, and who knows, it may be competitive too. We have received decent support lately with cards like Gisa, The Hellraiser. Although she isn't a zombie herself, she creates them every turn, and acts as a lord for them. Not to mention, the ward cost on her makes it so that she adequately fills out the top end of our list. She will help us immensely with swarming the board with skeletons, and efficiently rebuilding after board wipes. There are also going to be some ways to play our zombies from the graveyard, whether it be re-casting or embalming. Since we have the opportunity to raise our dead, we have to give it a shot. There is too much flavor that entices me. This will be my mono black list for the new set, as I think this is the best mono black deck to showcase as many new cards as possible. Any other mono black deck would likely just be adding one or two cards into an already good mono black deck, so I wanted to give you as much as I can with the new cards showcase. Without further ado, let's check out the deck! As you can see, we have plenty of lords in the deck. We are going to make these vanilla zombies huge, both to use as infinite blockers, and to have a threatening attack. We also brought back Unstoppable Slasher for some extra fun, and to guarantee that we have alternate win conditions when needed. In typical zombie fashion, we also don't mind getting rid of some of our creatures if it produces extra value for us. We can get rid of one of our zombies to deal with any problematic creature with Final Vengeance. I chose this over Eaten Alive because it allows us to sacrifice enchantments too, and there are some useful enchantments that support our zombies, so that could prove useful too. There are new cards in the deck, so let's take a look at those. Aetherdrift Zombie Support Cards

This Deck is Sure to be EXHAUSTING to Play Against

Gruul is an archetype that is usually reserved for the aggro decks in Standard. I'm sure that you guys have had enough of that, so I will spare you another Gruul Aggro list that you only play because the deck is good. We are trying something new with this one, and we are taking advantage of the Exhaust mechanic from the new set. It is something that remains to be seen if it is a constructed-playable mechanic, or something that is better suited for limited. I believe that I am pushing the limits of its capabilities here, and that we can do some pretty cool stuff with the deck. One thing that I am excited about is that the deck features a TON of new cards. It will be really difficult for anyone in Early Access to say that this deck didn't showcase any new cards - the creatures and vehicles are almost all exclusively new! We are looking to reduce the activated costs of abilities within the deck, and then get crazy value from it that overwhelms the board. If we play our cards right, we can do some activated abilities for next to nothing, and gain a strong advantage from it. We can possibly also have a Fireball finish if we play our cards right. This deck does a little bit of everything, and I am excited to try it out. Allow me to present to you: Gruul Exhaust! There are some staple cards that we include when we have activated abilities of creatures. One card that forces its way into the deck is Agatha's Soul Cauldron. It is too powerful not to include. We have a couple of ways to mill our cards, and the meta is pretty removal-heavy. We should have enough ways to get things into our graveyard, and if we don't we simply add one or two more Hedge Shredders to mill more cards. With the Exhaust ability, you sadly can only activate it once, BUT we are going to put multiple instances of said abilities on one creature, thus making it much more palatable. We also will reduce the cost of all exhaust abilities with one of the new cards to be shown later, and with Agatha of the Vile Cauldron. I was surprised to see this card - I did not know that it came out with the Soul Cauldron itself. We have seen the Cauldron so much, but we haven't seen a ton of the actual Agatha Creature. The deck has a few removal spells, but some of our vehicles also have a way to do direct damage, so we don't need to include as many as we normally would. We kept it pretty simple on the lands due to the demanding mana values in some of our cards, and because the deck is a little faster. There are multiple cards that have two pips of each of the colors represented, so we do not want to stall when it comes to having the right mana. Although I have a bunch of new cards from the set in this deck, I will showcase to you five of the ones I think are the most impactful. Relevant New Cards

I See a Monument and I want it Painted Black