Hi, Dan!
This is my entry for the Pauper Gauntlet Season 3.
General Tips (WIP)
This is Tilling Treefolk deck, so we will be using cards that profit from the Treefolk ability to get lands from the graveyard (like cards with Retrace, Flashback, or cards that require us to sac lands). We will also be using cards that can bring creatures, instants and sorceries back, so we can potentially have access to all cards we need during the game.
Satyr Wayfinder finds us more lands and puts other cards on the graveyard for us to get back.
Mulldrifter is a very important card since it keeps our game going and we have no problem evoking it because we will eventually have it back.
Blastoderm is our beater and our best defensive cards. I trade it with all Anglers I can and then I cast it again. I tried to include the 4th copy, but I couldn't because our list is really crowded.
Archaeomancer can loop with Death Denied/Grim Discovery, fetch removal spells and even fetch utility lands via Crop Rotation.
Talking about Crop Rotation, it is the perfect card for this deck, the main reason being the instant speed. Being able to fetch Quicksand after attackers are declared, or Bojuka Bog (when they try to use the graveyard), or Mortuary Mire at the end of their turn is great. You can even fetch the one Golgari Hot Farm to return the Bog or a Mire to your hand if you need. It can also fix your mana if you need a color (we usually need green mana earlier, but we need a lot of black mana for the retrace and double blue for Archaeomancer).
Edge of Autumn is not nearly as good, but it is a great play on turns 2 and 3 and it is nice later if we want to recast a land or just more fodder to be got by the Treefolks for the retrace.
Our first Retrace spell is Raven's Crime. Followed by a Treefolk, it can sometimes strip the opponent hands in 1-2 turns. The other one is Syphon Life, which isn't so good, but it can give an edge in races, keep us alive, or just be something for the opponent to worry about in board stalls.
Death Denied and Grim Discovery serve as extra copies of our creatures. Grim Discovery also fetches a land and it is very cheap, but Death Denied is much more powerful and the instant speed is great. Usually, getting 2 or 3 creature back is good enough, but there is no rule.
Finally, we play a bunch of removal spells. Disfigure is great in the early game or combined with blockers and/or quicksand. Chainer's Edict is good because of flashback and because it dodges Apostle's Blessing and pump spells. Drown in Filth is a terrible card, but sometimes we need an answer to a big creature or a flyer, and the side effect of milling our deck is usually nice.
This is a deck for the patient. In the early turns, we want to play the Satyr, Disfigure, Edge of Autumn and evoked Mulldrifters. The first Blastoderm usually comes down early too. Pay attention to your land development, especially about getting the second green early. The second blue can wait, but if you have the chance, get it too, unless you are preparing for a big Raven's Crime turn.
You wanna wait to get a creature back with Mortuary Mire, but don't worry if you haven't nothing better to do than play it without a target. If you have a Satyr as the only target, think about it because it can or cannot be a good idea depending on your hand or on the board.
There is also a Haunted Fengraf which is an alternative to getting back creatures. It is not as good as the Mire, but since it goes to the graveyard it is easier to be used again and getting them directly to your hand is sweet.
Keeping Hands
This deck wanted to play 25-26 lands, but we are down to 24 because it is hard to stabilize in Pauper without playing enough spells. You want 3 lands in your starting hand, but you will need to keep 2 lands hands more often than not. Most hands need green mana, but sometimes you can keep lands that do not have green if they are heavy on removal and you have black or if they have blue + Mulldrifter. We try to avoid playing Crop Rotation as mana fixing, but sometimes we need to.
Sequencing Lands
You usually need double green before double black or blue, but you want as many black sources as you can have for Raven's Crime. If I have to choose between turn 2 Satyr Wayfinder or Edge of Autumn, I usually go with the later since it ramps (but sometimes I will play the Satyr if I want a graveyard target or if a blocker is very important). On turn 3, evoked Mulldrifters or Tilling Treefolks with only one target are not bad because you just want more lands. Don't miss your land drops even if it looks bad (like playing Mortuary Mire or Bojuka Bog for no value, you have many ways to get value from them later).
Sideboard Plan (WIP)
I'm using the goldfish lists as a base for most of them. Usually, you find much more graveyard hate in the lobby than in the goldfish lists. If they cast an early Relic or Spellbomb, force them to blow it asap. In the late game, it can kill you.
++ Good matchup
+ Slightly favorable
+- Even
- Slightly disfavorable
-- Bad
Delver (--)
+1 Aerial Volley +2 Tragic Slip +1 Duress
-1 Syphon Life -1 Oona's Grace -1 Edge of Autumn -1 Archaeomancer
This is a terrible matchup. If you can resolve your removal early, you have a chance
Familiars (-)
+1 Aerial Volley +2 Faerie Macabre
-1 Oona's Grace -1 Syphon Life -1 Drown in Filth
Remember Crop Rotation can be an instant Bojuka Bog. If you think you can profit from Negate, take out 1 Drown in Filth and 1 Tilling Treefolk
DelverFiend (--)
+2 Brindle Boar +2 Negate +2 Tragic Slip +1 Spore Frog +1 Duress
-3 Edge of Autumn -1 Death Denied -1 Grim Discovery -1 Archaeomancer -1 Oona's Grace -1 Mulldrifter
This is another terrible matchup. Do whatever you can to stay alive and take it to the midgame.
MBC (+-)
+2 Faerie Macabre +1 Duress +2 Tragic Slip
-2 Crop Rotation -1 Edge of Autumn -2 Drown in Filth
Some of their draws we can't beat. Raven's Crime is very important. Bring Negate if Unearth is being a problem.
Stompy (+)
+2 Brindle Boar +1 Spore Frog +2 Tragic Slip
-1 Syphon Life -1 Oona's Grace -1 Edge of Autumn -1 Death Denied -1 Crop Rotation
If they are not playing many tricks, take out the Raven's Crimes. Just stay alive for a while and we can grind them out. But if we don't get any early board, we will die fast.
RW(u/b) Kitty (+)
+2 Naturalize +2 Tragic Slip +2 Brindle Boar +2 Negate
-3 Edge of Autumn -2 Drown in Filth -1 Tilling Treefolk -1 Crop Rotation -1 Quicksand
Naturalize is mainly for Journey/Oblivion Ring, but if you can blow an early Artifact Land, especially if they are trying to bounce it, go for it. We can deal with their creatures, but they have a lot of reach with burn.
RUG Tron (+)
+2 Negate +2 Tragic Slip (+1 Duress)
-2 Drown in Filth -2 Disfigure (-1 Crop Rotation)
I'm not sure about this matchup. You are the Tron guru, do what you think it's better. I think the main problem must be Rolling Thunders. We can basically deal with everything else they do.
Mono Green Tron (+)
+2 Tragic Slip +2 Brindle Boar
-1 Oona's Grace -1 Syphon Life -2 Disfigure
Same thing, but much easier. But of course, turn 2-4 Crusher is a thing.
Bogles (-)
+1 Spore Frog +2 Naturalize +2 Shrivel
-2 Drown in Filth -3 Disfigure
This is probably very bad.
Elves (+-)
+2 Shrivel +1 Spore Frog +2 Tragic Slip +2 Brindle Boar +2 Naturalize
-1 Oona's Grace -1 Syphon Life -2 Raven's Crime -1 Death Denied -3 Edge of Autumn -1 Archaeomancer
Kill everything, make room for Shrivel. If we deal with the first wave, it becomes easy. Naturalize is just for the Spidersilk Armor.
Burn (+-)
+2 Negate +2 Brindle Boar +1 Duress
-2 Drown in Filth -3 Disfigure
Some burn players side in creatures because they know you will move your removal out. But most of them will bring just Pyroblasts.
Boros Cyborg (++)
+2 Naturalize +2 Brindle Boar +2 Tragic Slip +1 Aerial Volley
-1 Oona's Grace -3 Edge of Autumn -1 Syphon Life -1 Crop Rotation
Kill the fliers, hold the ground.
Affinity (+-)
+2 Naturalize +2 Tragic Slip +2 Brindle Boar +2 Negate +1 Spore Frog
-3 Edge of Autumn -1 Oona's Grace -1 Syphon Life -1 Tilling Treefolk -1 Crop Rotation -1 Grim Discovery -1 Raven's Crime
Atog/Fling are the real villains. Surely they can aggro us, but we can stabilize.
Azorius Kitty (+)
+2 Naturalize +2 Negate
-1 Treefolk -1 Syphon Life -2 Drown in Filth
Bring back Drown in Filth if they play more creatures than usual.
Zoo (+)
+2 Boar +2 Tragic Slip (+2 Naturalize)
-1 Oona's Grace -1 Edge of Autumn -1 Syphon Life -1 Crop Rotation (-1 Treefolk -1 Crop Rotation)
The matchup is much worse if they play Mulldrifters. Naturalize if they play Journey/O-ring
Tortured Existence (+)
+2 Faerie Macabre +2 Naturalize +2 Tragic Slip
-3 Edge of Autumn -1 Oona's Grace -1 Syphon Life -1 Disfigure
As long as you keep looping creatures, their durdling won't push they ahead. If they play a late game Bojuka Bog, it can be bad for us
Teachings/other heavy control decks (+)+2 Negate +2 Faerie Macabre +1 Duress
-1 Oona's Grace -1 Syphon Life -3 Disfigure*
You want to bring those 5 cards in and you want to take out removal, but it depends on their creatures. If they play Delver you may want to keep Disfigure. If they play Crushers, Drown in Filth won't help, so you take it out. Raven's Crime is amazing here. If they try to Capsize your lands, use Crop Rotation or cycled Edge of Autumn to sacrifice their target. It will counter the spell and the buyback won't work. Keep in mind that we are weak to Curse of the Bloody Tome, so bring in Naturalize if they are playing it. Oona's Grace and Syphon Life are too slow, but you may keep them if the opponent is creatureless.
