Another PPTQ last weekend saw me again go 4-2 with Monkey Grow. I beat Jeskai Control, Affinity, and two Burn decks, dropping matches to Delirium Jund and Bant Eldrazi. The matches were interesting, but I’m wary of writing too exclusively for one niche. So I’ll spare you the tournament report and unveil a new brew: […]
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Ah, Triple Modern GP Weekend. Nothing compares. Chocolate and peanut butter falls short, metalcore music comes close, dominating unsuspecting children in a friendly game of chess in the local park almost beats it, but still: nothing beats Modern GP Weekend. Today, we’ve got a ton of information to go through, a mountain of decklists to […]
I often get asked, “How do I build a Modern deck cheaply?” Or “on a budget.” Or any of a plethora of other caveats that basically boil down to “less than retail.” Modern is something of a double-edged sword when it comes to the budget-conscious player. The upfront cost is substantial, and most people don’t have […]
Treasure Cruise Modern was easily my favorite Modern format of all time—and my addiction to Delver of Secrets is well-documented. Given this, a lot of people have asked me about Bedlam Reveler since it was spoiled. I think it’s important to be open to the potential viability of new cards, as being the first to discover […]
Triple Modern GP weekends are both exhilarating and intimidating for me. On the one hand it’s great seeing how the format is developing and growing. Watching strong players play my favorite format while the commentators (almost) understand what is happening are the only reasons I ever watch video coverage. The flip side is that the amount of […]
Goryo’s Vengeance combo has something of a checkered history in Modern. On the one hand it’s a long-time mainstay with the requisite die-hard enthusiasts (and occasional irrational price spikes). On the other hand it struggles to put up consistent results, despite access to a two-mana Yawgmoth’s Bargain and its potential for turn two kills. The archetype’s […]
My Eldrazi Stompy article from last week was relatively well-received, but some users had questions about my updated Monkey Grow deck from the week before. They’re in luck—I took the deck to a Face to Face PPTQ and went 4-2, loading up on insights along the way. This was my third PPTQ with the Bedlam Reveler-featuring Monkey […]
Today, I figured we’d take a break from brewing and get back to analyzing some pure tournament results. I’m still winning with Spell Queller, but high-level Modern events don’t come around often enough to ignore them completely. This past weekend, Modern got a lot of love in the form of the split-format Star City Games […]
Score one for the budget guys: Elves won the Star City Games Invitational in Somerset, NJ. While Liam Lonergan’s deck still retails for about $800, almost half of the price is in 4 Cavern of Souls and 3 Horizon Canopy. If you’re tight on cash (or waiting for a reprint, like me) you can get away with some […]
Without the need to grind after winning an early PPTQ, I’ve been free to brew and experiment. As always, some of these new ideas are good. Most are not. But you never find out unless you indulge your inner Mythbuster and proverbially throw your deck at the wall to see if it works. Never actually throw your […]
If you tuned into the Star City Games Invitational in New Jersey this weekend, you had the pleasure of seeing somewhat fringe contender Elves take down the Top 8. Elves is certainly not an unknown quantity, but it also doesn’t exactly make the list of decks Moderners expect to face at every tournament. Going into this weekend […]
One of my favorite things about Modern: the power level is high enough to allow us to play with Lightning Bolt, but low enough for Standard sets to consistently impact the format. Eldritch Moon injected some welcome lifeblood into my pettest deck, Monkey Grow, with Bedlam Reveler. The set also gave a boost to another of my […]
Since the release of Eldritch Moon a few weeks ago, I’ve been obsessed with Spell Queller in Modern. The versatility and unique power of the card, along with the potential for synergies in deckbuilding and the complex lines of play it can sponsor, have been too enticing to resist. For the past few weeks I’ve […]
