Modern has at times been described as a format hostile to Spike, the player demographic in search of winning at any cost. Indeed, “spiking” tournaments as players do in other constructed formats—by playing the best deck and understanding the mirror—isn’t a reliable path to success in Modern. Rather, this format rewards players for picking a […]

I knew when I wrote Colorless Eldrazi Stompy Mini-Primer: Play Tips that I was leaving out plenty of juicy information. Not on purpose, of course; there’s just only so much I can fit in one article, or that comes to me at one time. It’s been recently pointed out to me by spectators that I […]

Dominaria leaks are well underway, and one recent card that’s grabbed my attention is Zhalfirin Void. Unlike the clunky and frivolous Karn, Scion of Urza, Void looks to be a snap-include for Colorless Eldrazi Stompy in some number. We do have a few things to consider before sleeving it up, though: what the card does […]

Last weekend, I took down the 400-player SCG Classic in Worcester with my tried-and-true Colorless Eldrazi Stompy deck, losing only four games over 12 rounds. I’ve long championed the deck as a sleeper behemoth in the format, but haven’t had much time over the last year to show it off in tournament settings. My previous […]

I’ve long considered myself a Delver die-hard when it comes to Modern. But I haven’t been on much Delver at all since the Gitaxian Probe ban. Rather, the deck I’ve come to be known for in Boston is Colorless Eldrazi Stompy. In past weeks, I’ve reacted to local and online enthusiasm for the deck by […]

A couple weeks ago, I wrote a strategic guide to mulliganing with Colorless Eldrazi Stompy, a deck I’ve championed on Modern Nexus for almost two years now. Today’s follow-up piece focuses on the deck’s second-most-challenging (and important) aspect: sideboarding. This article covers build variations and possible sideboard includes before jumping into the matchup guide. But […]

I’ve written that the average Magic player is too afraid of taking mulligans. That goes double for Modern, where card advantage matters less than in other formats, and triple for Colorless Eldrazi Stompy, which is built to mulligan aggressively into lean, powerful openers. Whether it’s because of my own results with the deck, the attention it’s […]

I’ve been singing Modern’s praises for, well, ever. At one time, I thought I was either the format’s single biggest proponent or just some kind of insane zealot. But as time goes on and Modern steadily grows in popularity, articles like PVDDR’s “The Problem with Modern” start looking hopelessly dated, and are met with a […]

Last weekend, I attended the SCG Season 1 Invitational in Roanoke, VA. The tournament was a blast, and I learned a lot: Zombies is a worse Monument, speeding in Virginia is a criminal offense, and most of all, people love Modern! Most of my Invitational opponents (and the tournament’s winner) were Modern fanatics, and the […]

Preparation means something unique to everyone, and each player has their own pre-tournament ritual. Mine tends to vary depending on how invested I am in the format, and what other stuff I have going on. The SCG Roanoke Invitational will be underway by the time this piece goes public. In this article, I’ll describe how […]

GP Las Vegas has come and gone, but excitement surrounding Modern still pulses through the community. Vegas saw some very interesting decks make the Top 8, and not only are Hour of Devastation spoilers providing plenty to discuss, but Ixalan’s contraversial rare sheet leak has given format aficionados an unprecedented amount of new information to […]

After finishing 4th in an SCG Regionals tournament with Eldrazi Stompy, I’ve been excited to take the deck to more competitive events. I had that opportunity last weekend, and cracked Top 8 at a monthly TJ Collectibles Modern tournament. My only loss of the day was to the dreaded Bant Spirits, which landed turn-three Geist of Saint Traft into […]

A couple months ago, I took Counter-Cat to an RPTQ and had my ass handed to me on a silver Shriekhorn. The lesson I learned: bring only a deck you’re intimately familiar with to an event you want to do well in. While I’ve put in plenty of games with Counter-Cat during my Modern career, I […]