Tag: mtg

Episode 023 — Alternate Universes

This week we talk about decks we might have played in alternate universes where Legacy bannings actually happened. We also present a brand new list for you to take to battle in THIS universe: MentorBlade, AKA “Bring the Hammer.” Check it out below.

MentorBlade
4 Brainstorm
4 Ponder
4 Sensei’s Divining Top
4 Swords to Plowshares
4 Counterbalance
4 Force of Will
4 Terminus

4 Stoneforge Mystic
2 Snapcaster Mage
4 Monastery Mentor

1 Umezawa’s Jitte
1 Batterskull

4 Island
2 Plains
2 Tundra
2 Volcanic Island
4 Flooded Strand
4 Scalding Tarn
2 Arid Mesa

SB:
1 Mountain
3 Pyroblast
2 Wear/Tear
2 Blood Moon
1 Vendilion Clique
2 Surgical Extraction
3 Flusterstorm
1 Sword of Feast and Famine
————————————
U/W/R Punishing Mentor
4 Brainstorm
4 Ponder
4 Sensei’s Divining Top
4 Swords to Plowshares
4 Punishing Fire
4 Counterbalance
2 Snapcaster Mage
4 Monastery Mentor
2 Jace, the Mind Sculptor
4 Force of Will
2 Engineered Explosives

2 Island
1 Plains
1 Mountain
2 Tundra
2 Volcanic Island
4 Flooded Strand
4 Scalding Tarn
1 Arid Mesa
1 Cascade Bluffs
4 Grove of the Burnwillows

SB
3 Flusterstorm
2 Surgical Extraction
2 Vendilion Clique
3 Pyroblast
2 Pyroclasm
1 Path to Exile
2 Wear / Tear

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Episode 022 — Miracles-Slayer Delver

Welcome back to The Brainstorm Show, listeners! This week we take the ceaseless chatter about Miracles bans head on by showing you how you can take a common archetype and rethink it to be more competitive against the “best deck in the format.” We built a BUG tempo deck, and in this episode we walk through the card choices and some of the popular matchups. Take a look at the list below and the sideboard plan for the common decks in the current metagame. Enjoy!

Maindeck
4 Delver of Secrets
4 Deathrite Shaman
4 Nimble Mongoose
2 Vendilion Clique
4 Brainstorm
4 Ponder
4 Daze
4 Force of Will
4 Stifle
4 Abrupt Decay
2 Dismember
2 Spell Pierce
4 Wasteland
3 Underground Sea
3 Tropical Island
4 Polluted Delta
4 Verdant Catacombs

SB
2 Disfigure
2 Go for the Throat
2 Painful Truths
2 Winter Orb
1 Pithing Needle
1 Flusterstorm
3 Surgical Extraction
2 Thoughtseize

Sideboarding Guide
Miracles:
-2 Dismember, -2 Wasteland, -2 Daze
+2 Winter Orb, +1 Pithing Needle, +1 Flusterstorm, +2 Painful Truths

Shardless BUG:
-4 Force of Will, -2 Spell Pierce
+2 Go for the Throat, +2 Painful Truths, +2 Disfigure

Delver:
-4 Force of Will, -2 Spell Pierce
+2 Go for the Throat, +2 Painful Truths, +2 Disfigure

Eldrazi:
-4 Stifle
+2 Go for the Throat, +2 Thoughtseize

Storm:
-4 Abrupt Decay, -2 Dismember
+3 Surgical Extraction, +2 Thoughtseize, +1 Flusterstorm

Lands:
-4 Daze, -2 Dismember
+3 Surgical Extraction, +2 Winter Orb, +1 Pithing Needle

Death and Taxes:
-4 Stifle, -2 Pierce, -1 FoW
+2 Disfigure, +2 Go for the Throat, +2 Thoughtseize, +1 Pithing Needle

Sneak and Show:
-2 Abrupt Decay, -2 Dismember
+1 Flusterstorm, +2 Thoughtseize, +1 Pithing Needle

Infect:
-4 Force of Will, -2 Spell Pierce
+2 Go for the Throat, +2 Disfigure, +1 Pithing Needle, +1 Flusterstorm

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Episode 021 — Shardless BUG Deck Tech

Welcome back to the show. This week we do a full 2-hour episode on Shardless BUG, running through all the popular matchups from both sides of the table. The list is below, along with a complete sideboarding guide. Enjoy!

The Brainstorm Show’s Shardless BUG:

Main deck (60)
Spells (23)
4 Brainstorm
4 Ancestral Vision
4 Abrupt Decay
4 Force of Will
2 Hymn to Tourach
2 Liliana of the Veil
2 Maelstrom Pulse
1 Umezawa’s Jitte

Creatures (16)
4 Deathrite Shaman
4 Baleful Strix
4 Tarmogoyf
4 Shardless Agent

Lands (21)
1 Swamp
1 Forest
3 Underground Sea
2 Tropical Island
2 Bayou
4 Verdant Catacombs
3 Polluted Delta
2 Misty Rainforest
2 Creeping Tar Pit
1 Wasteland

SB (15):
4 Leyline of the Void
2 Disfigure
2 Hymn to Tourach
2 Toxic Deluge
2 Duress
1 Pithing Needle
1 Murderous Cut
1 Garruk Relentless

Sideboarding Guide:

Eldrazi Stompy
+2 Toxic Deluge, +1 Murderous Cut
-2 Hymn to Tourach, -1 Ancestral Vision

Grixis Delver
+2 Disfigure, +2 Toxic Deluge, +1 Murderous Cut, +1 Garruk Relentless
-4 Force of Will, -2 Hymn to Tourach

Mirror
+2 Disfigure, +2 Hymn to Tourach, +1 Murderous Cut, +1 Garruk Relentless
-4 Force of Will, -2 Abrupt Decay

Death & Taxes
+2 Disfigure, +2 Toxic Deluge, +1 Pithing Needle, +1 Murderous Cut
-4 Force of Will, -2 Hymn to Tourach

Miracles
+2 Hymn to Tourach, +1 Pithing Needle, +1 Garruk Relentless
-4 Baleful Strix

Maverick
+2 Disfigure, +2 Toxic Deluge, +1 Pithing Needle, +1 Murderous Cut
-4 Force of Will, -2 Hymn to Tourach

Aggro Loam
+4 Leyline of the Void, +2 Disfigure, +1 Murderous Cut
-4 Force of Will, -2 Hymn to Tourach, -1 Umezawa’s Jitte

U/G Infect
+2 Disfigure, +2 Toxic Deluge, +1 Murderous Cut, +1 Pithing Needle
-4 Ancestral Vision, -2 Hymn to Tourach

BUG Delver
+2 Disfigure, +2 Toxic Deluge, +1 Murderous Cut, +1 Garruk Relentless
-4 Force of Will, -2 Hymn to Tourach

Elves
+2 Disfigure, +2 Toxic Deluge, +1 Murderous Cut. +1 Pithing Needle
-2 Liliana of the Veil, -2 Hymn to Tourach, -2 Baleful Strix

DeathBlade
+2 Hymn, +2 Toxic Deluge, +1 Pithing Needle, +1 Garruk Relentless
-4 Force of Will, -2 Baleful Strix

Dredge
+4 Leyline of the Void, +2 Duress
-2 Liliana of the Veil, -2 Hymn to Tourach, -2 Ancestral Vision

UR Delver
+2 Disfigure, +2 Hymn to Tourach
-2 Maelstrom Pulse, -2 Liliana of the Veil

ANT
+4 Leyline of the Void, +2 Hymn to Tourach, +2 Duress
-4 Abrupt Decay, -4 Baleful Strix

TES
+2 Hymn to Tourach, +2 Duress, +2 Toxic Deluge
-4 Abrupt Decay, -2 Baleful Strix

Lands
+4 Leyline of the Void, +1 Pithing Needle
-1 Umezawa’s Jitte, -2 Hymn to Tourach, -2 Liliana of the Veil

RUG Delver
+2 Disfigure, +1 Murderous Cut
-2 Hymn to Tourach, -1 Maelstrom Pulse

Reanimator
+4 Leyline of the Void, +2 Hymn to Tourach, +2 Duress
-2 Maelstrom Pulse, -4 Abrupt Decay, -2 Baleful Strix

Sneak and Show
+2 Duress, +2 Hymn to Tourach, +1 Pithing Needle
-4 Abrupt Decay, -1 Baleful Strix

Burn
+2 Hymn to Tourach, +2 Duress, +2 Disfigure
-2 Maelstrom Pulse, -4 Ancestral Vision

Jund
+2 Disfigure, +2 Toxic Deluge, +1 Murderous Cut, +1 Garruk Relentless
-4 Force of Will, -2 Abrupt Decay

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Episode 020 — GP Columbus: Top 8 with Miracles

Welcome back to the Brainstorm Show! This episode is a bit self-indulgent, but I’m sure our listeners will allow us to recompose ourselves after Wilson Hunter grabbed his 2nd Legacy GP Top 8. Next episode we look forward to coming back with a deck tech on Shardless BUG. Stay on the lookout.

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Episode 019 — GP Columbus Through a Miraculous Lens

Miracles players rejoice! The Brainstorm Show is back on the deck and this week we are providing you with a lengthy discussion about our approach to building the deck in anticipation of GP Columbus. Wilson and Phillip have worked to produce the leanest, most flexible list they could while still taking advantage of the heavy hitters in many Miracles builds. This is a list designed with the wide-open GP field in mind. We hope you enjoy the analysis and find our sideboarding map useful.

The Miracles discussion starts at about 24:00. Below you will find the decklist, as well as a detailed sideboarding guide:

The Brainstorm Show’s GP Columbus Miracles List
Spells (34)
4 Brainstorm
4 Ponder
1 Preordain
2 Predict
4 Sensei’s Divining Top
4 Swords to Plowshares
4 Terminus
1 Counterspell
4 Counterbalance
4 Force of Will
2 Engineered Explosives

Creatures (7)
4 Monastery Mentor
3 Snapcaster Mage

Lands (19)
4 Island
2 Plains
2 Tundra
2 Volcanic Island
4 Flooded Strand
4 Scalding Tarn
1 Arid Mesa

SB
1 Mountain
4 Pyroblast
2 Disenchant
2 Blood Moon
1 Entreat the Angels
1 Vendilion Clique
1 Surgical Extraction
2 Flusterstorm
1 Spell Pierce

Sideboard Map

Mirror:
+1 Mountain
+4 Pyroblast
+2 Flusterstorm
+1 Spell Pierce
+1 Vendilion Clique
-4 Swords to Plowshares
-4 Terminus
-1 Plains

Grixis/RUG Delver:
+1 Mountain
+4 Pyroblast
-4 Force of Will
-1 Counterspell

BUG Delver:
+2 Flusterstorm
+1 Spell Pierce
+1 Vendilion Clique
-4 Force of Will

Death & Taxes:
+2 Disenchant
+1 Entreat the Angels
+1 Vendilion Clique
-4 Counterbalance
(On the play, board in Spell Pierce over single Counterspell)

Eldrazi:
+2 Blood Moon
+2 Disenchant
+1 Spell Pierce
-4 Counterbalance
-1 Counterspell

Storm:
+2 Flusterstorm
+1 Spell Pierce
+1 Surgical Extraction
+4 Pyroblast
+1 Vendilion Clique
+1 Mountain
-4 Swords to Plowshares
-4 Terminus
-2 Plains

Sneak and Show:
+4 Pyroblast
+2 Flusterstorm
+1 Spell Pierce
+2 Disenchant
+1 Vendilion Clique
+1 Mountain
-4 Swords to Plowshares
-4 Terminus
-2 Engineered Explosives
-1 Plains

Lands:
+2 Blood Moon
+1 Vendilion Clique
+1 Surgical Extraction
+1 Entreat the Angels
+2 Disenchant
-4 Terminus
-1 Counterspell
-2 Predict

Elves:
+2 Disenchant
+2 Flusterstorm
+1 Entreat the Angels
-4 Force of Will
-1 Counterspell
(Judgment call here: might keep Force of Will vs. an inexperienced opponent because they could go all in the Natural Order plan)

Shardless BUG:
+4 Pyroblast
+1 Spell Pierce
+2 Blood Moon
+1 Entreat the Angels
+1 Vendilion Clique
+1 Mountain
-4 Force of Will
-4 Counterbalance
-2 Engineered Explosives

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Episode 018 — Lists and the 4-of Test

In this episode, Paul, Wilson, and Phil talk about some lists they have been testing on MODO before exploring the “4-of” rule, a logical exercise to help you make better deckbuilding choices.

0:00~16:00 Intro & Current State of ANT
16:01~26:50: TES discussion
26:51~36:00: Dark Belcher discussion
36:01~52:00 Predict Miracles
52:01~1:03:00 Response to CounterTop DeMentor criticisms/praise
1:03:01~END 4-of rule thought experiment discussion

The Brainstorm Show’s ANT List:

1 Bloodstained Mire
4 Brainstorm
4 Cabal Ritual
3 Cabal Therapy
4 Dark Ritual
4 Duress
1 Empty the Warrens
4 Flooded Strand
4 Gitaxian Probe
2 Grim Tutor
4 Infernal Tutor
2 Island
4 Lion’s Eye Diamond
4 Lotus Petal
2 Past in Flames
4 Polluted Delta
4 Ponder
1 Swamp
1 Tendrils of Agony
2 Underground Sea
1 Volcanic Island

3 Abrupt Decay
1 Ad nauseam
2 Chain of Vapor
1 Ill-Gotten Gains
1 Inquisition of Kozilek
2 Massacre
1 Thoughtseize
1 Tropical Island
3 Xantid Swarm

The Brainstorm Show’s Dark Belcher List:

4 Dark Ritual
4 Cabal Ritual
4 Rite of Flame
4 Desperate Ritual
1 Pyretic Ritual
3 Seething Song
4 Simian Spirit Guide
4 Elvish Spirit Guide
4 Manamorphose
4 Land Grant
4 Lotus Petal
4 Lion’s Eye Diamond
2 Chrome Mox
1 Bayou
1 Taiga

4 Empty the Warrens
4 Infernal Tutor
4 Goblin Charbelcher

SB
3 Cabal Therapy
1 Ill-gotten Gains
1 Tendrils of Agony
3 Dark Petition
1 Seething Song
2 Past in Flames
2 Reverent Silence
2 Pyretic Ritual

The Brainstorm Show’s Predict Miracles:

4 Sensei’s Divining Top
4 Brainstorm
4 Ponder
1 Preordain
4 Swords to Plowshares
2 Counterspell
3 Snapcaster Mage
4 Counterbalance
3 Predict
4 Monastery Mentor
4 Force of Will
4 Terminus

2 Tundra
2 Volcanic Island
4 Flooded Strand
4 Scalding Tarn
1 Arid Mesa
2 Plains
4 Island

SB
1 Mountain
4 Pyroblast
2 Wear // Tear
1 Pyroclasm
2 Surgical
1 Vendilion Clique
2 Flusterstorm
2 Blood Moon

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Episode 017 — I, for One, Welcome Our Eldrazi Overlords! Plus a New Brew: ShardStill

In this episode, we:

1) Catch up with listener questions
2) Talk about Wilson’s SCG Philly experience and the Eldrazi metagame
3) Discuss the DeMentor deck and lessons learned from testing
4) Unveil our newest creation: ShardStill. Decklist below:

Creatures (18)
4 Deathrite Shaman
4 Tarmogoyf
4 Baleful Strix
4 Shardless Agent
2 Vendilion Clique

Spells (18)
4 Brainstorm
4 Abrupt Decay
4 Standstill
4 Force of Will
2 Umezawa’s Jitte

Lands (24)
4 Mishra’s Factory
1 Mutavault
2 Creeping Tar Pit
3 Underground Sea
3 Tropical Island
1 Bayou
1 Scrubland
4 Verdant Catacombs
4 Polluted Delta
1 Misty Rainforest

Sideboard (15)
4 Meddling Mage
2 Thoughtseize
3 Leyline of the Void
2 Murderous Cut
2 Disfigure
2 Toxic Deluge

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Episode 016 — Eldrazi Aggro is coming to Philly

In this episode, the cast talks Phil’s pro tour success, Eternal Masters, and the newest Tier 1 deck in Legacy, Eldrazi Aggro.

Feast your eyes on this beauty and tune in to SCG this weekend to see it in action in Philly.

Creatures (22)
4 Eldrazi Mimic
4 Phyrexian Revoker
4 Endless One
4 Thought-Knot Seer
4 Reality Smasher
2 Endbringer

Spells (14)
4 Chalice of the Void
2 Trinisphere
3 Warping Wail
2 Dismember
2 Umezawa’s Jitte
1 Sword of Fire and Ice

Lands (24)
4 Ancient Tomb
3 City of Traitors
4 Eldrazi Temple
3 Eye of Ugin
4 Cavern of Souls
4 Wasteland
2 Mishra’s Factory

SB (15)
1 Dismember
3 Spatial Contortion
2 Ratchet Bomb
3 Winter Orb
4 Leyline of the Void
2 Mindbreak Trap

Small warning: Wilson’s microphone was doing strange things in this episode, so please pardon any sound issues on his end.

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Brief Brainstorm 004 — Update on CounterTop DeMentor

Wilson brings our listeners a fresh look at the CounterTop DeMentor deck that we discussed in Episode 015. The current list is found below:

4 Deathrite Shaman
2 Snapcaster Mage
4 Monastery Mentor
1 Vendilion Clique

1 Jace, the Mind Sculptor

4 Sensei’s Divining Top
4 Brainstorm
2 Ponder
4 Swords to Plowshares
4 Counterbalance
2 Counterspell
4 Force of Will
1 Dimir Charm
1 Vindicate
1 Painful Truths

2 Underground Sea
2 Tundra
1 Scrubland
1 Tropical Island
2 Island
1 Plains
1 Swamp
4 Flooded Strand
4 Polluted Delta
2 Marsh Flats
1 Creeping Tar Pit

SB
3 Thoughtseize
1 Duress
1 Meddling Mage
1 Surgical Extraction
2 Abrupt Decay
1 Disenchant
1 Painful Truths
2 Zealous Persecution
2 Disfigure
1 Path to Exile

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Episode 015 — CounterTop Dementor Deck Tech

The Brainstorm Show introduces its latest project: CounterTop DeMentor. The decklist can be found below. An updated sideboard is also provided.

CounterTop DeMentor

Maindeck (60):

Creatures (11):
4 Deathrite Shaman
4 Monastery Mentor
2 Snapcaster Mage
1 Vendilion Clique

Planeswalkers (2):
2 Jace, the Mind Sculptor

Spells (26):
4 Brainstorm
2 Ponder
4 Sensei’s Divining Top
4 Counterbalance
4 Swords to Plowshares
2 Counterspell
1 Dimir Charm
1 Vindicate
4 Force of Will

Lands (21):
2 Island
1 Plains
1 Swamp
2 Underground Sea
2 Tundra
1 Scrubland
1 Tropical Island
4 Polluted Delta
4 Flooded Strand
2 Marsh Flats
1 Creeping Tar Pit

Sideboard (15):
2 Duress
2 Thoughtseize
1 Meddling Mage
2 Surgical Extraction
1 Painful Truths
1 Notion Thief
1 Disenchant
2 Zealous Persecution
2 Disfigure
1 Path to Exile

Updated Sideboard (as of 1/30/15)
2 Surgical Extraction
3 Thoughtseize
1 Duress
1 Meddling Mage
2 Painful Truths
2 Abrupt Decay
1 Disenchant
2 Zealous Persecution
1 Path to Exile

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