Tournament Report: PMPMPMPM #8
We had 24 for our 8th premodern monthly, which absolutely destroys our previous record of 14 last month! More than likely we will be switching format again to 5 rounds Swiss + top 8 if we have 24+ again! Super grateful for the community we have here; really hope it continues to grow and thrive. We have a super varied and healthy meta, with lots of sick brews. Starting this month we’ll be submitting top decklists to tcdecks thanks to the work of @Caustek!
I am not a brewer, however…a tinkerer…at least until I get the confidence and ideas to try an original. I saw a mono green oath list splashing red for pyroclasm and blasts, and wanted to try it. Then francisco won the mtgo premodern challenge with a version playing bolt, stone rain, and earthquake, with a great sideboard. I wanted to play a version more like the first 60 after mulling it over, with only green in the MD…but accidentally ended up with a bolt in my deck…more on that soon.
4 terravore
4 oath of Druids
4 sylvan library
1 smokestack
4 sphere of resistance
1 Lightning bolt
4 winter’s grasp
4 thermokarst
2 naturalize
3 mox diamond
4 mishra’s factory
4 treetop village
4 wasteland
4 Rishadan port
4 wooded foothills
4 karplusan forest
1 mountain
1 forgotten cave
3 forest
Match 1 vs. Alec on Tradewind Survival
I drew my opening hand only to realize I had a lightning bolt in it that I hadn’t meant to play! It took out a bird around turn 3 and I never cast it again the rest of the day. I tend to keep a “maybeboard” in my deck boxes….maybe I should unsleeve them. I thought I had only one free slot, and it went to a fun-of Smokestack.
Game 1 was insanely grindy. For most of the endgame it was his active tradewind rider vs my growing terravore count. He finally got spike weaver online at 1 life with enough mana to activate it under my Sphere of Resistance(s) and rebuy it with Genesis. If that bolt were only a pyroclasm or a cursed scroll…
Game 2 I won very quickly, but time was called as we were drawing our opening hands for game 3.
In hindsight, I should have scooped game 1 sooner!
0-0-1
Round 2 vs. Ryan on GW threshold
@caustek told me today he never has a read on what I’m going to show up with, which I took as a compliment. Ryan not knowing my deck benefited me greatly in game 1, because I answered his turn 1 weathered wayfarer with a turn 1 oath. Game was over quick.
Game 2 my opener was a forest, two wastelands, two mox, oath, and something else. I put him on naturalize so I slow played the oath. It paid off when he Naturalized a mox diamond rather than the furnace with two creatures in play. I untapped and cast Oath, and he wasn’t able to find another Naturalize.
1-0-1
Round 3 vs. Marshall on 5c RecSur
This was a really sweet brew by Marshall. Multiple avalanche riders and tools. He’s even got living wish to pull tools from the sideboard. I don’t really remember the first two games super well but I think he got the first and I got the second.
I saw Yavimaya Granger so I sided out most of the 1-for-1 land destruction and my 1-ofs. I neglected to bring in Call of the Herd because it didn’t line up well vs. my opponent’s walls — in hindsight I wish I’d taken out the rest of the land destruction for them; wall of roots only has >3 toughness for so long…
especially as I stared down turn 2 yavimaya elder in game 3. I answered this with an Oath. Marshall untaps, plays a land, hits me for two and sacrifices the elder. I say, “just gotta cut it to anything but Naturalize!” He nods and smiles — I nearly cut twice but tap his deck. He draws Naturalize and is able to survive until he has a shit ton of land in play. He living wishes for Withered Wretch and is able to blank my terravores before they trample over him. This was probably the best game of the day.
1-1-1
Round 4 vs. Wes on zombies
Wes came along with Marshall as a premodern newcomer! He was super friendly and I’m stoked he’s in the mix. I knew he was on Zombies, and zombies can’t beat oath of Druids, so I cockily kept a 7-land opener in game 1, which included a cycle land, a wasteland, and two mishra’s factory. I drew only two nonland spells before getting killed by shadow creatures.
Games 2 I mulliganed into Oath of Druids but game 3 was pretty close. I did find the oath. activating Oath for a second terravore I was able to pump my first enough to trample over for just enough to win just in time.
2-1-1
Round 5 vs Brandon on Jund Survival
I was not happy to face another survival deck; the card advantage from survival/squee is a PITA and my phyrexian furnaces were not showing up on time. However, Brandon was a great opponent to play against. He had a sweet midrange toolbox deck; I expected combo.
I did not know how to sideboard here and ended up cutting some land destruction spells I should have left in. I tried to control his green mana with ports but he could just activate survival on upkeep. I was playing such grindy matchups all day that I think I stopped accurately tracking what was going on at this point. Game one was just at draw-go for like six turns, with an 8/8 terravore staring down two ravenous baloth while I ported his city of brass until he found the mana he needed to cast bone shredder. I barely won g3 on turn 3 after time was called.
3-1-1
All in all, I loved the deck…but I have some feelings about what I want to do next time, first and foremost sideboard mapping…but anyway I feel bolt is not the right card for this deck. Oath is the correct answer to early creatures, and I’d rather have pyroclasm as a 1-of. It can trade for lackey in a pinch and can often kill 2+ creatures. 3 mox diamond felt right. Francisco won a local tournament in LA the same day with a version almost identical to the one I settled on, with -1 smokestack -1 bolt +2 pyroclasm.
Maindecking 2 pyroclasm or going up to 2-3 smokestack also seems cool, and I’ll be trying that soon…but I might just cut one Winter’s Grasp, bolt, and smokestack for three cursed scroll. Today I found myself hellbent often, and with enough mana and time to have made use of multiples. They can help man-lands to push through and trade with walls and baloths, are great vs opposing factories, and provide a steady noncreature clock when my opponent’s mana access is locked out. Only more testing will tell! Very much looking forward to next month.