Do take note: I ran Vindicate in place of Abrupt Decay before I figured out it was illegal in Modern. Thanks, Eternal Masters. You make Modern looking reprints and fool me into thinking I can add a really boss card to my deck. Whee.
That aside, if you don't know how Lantern Control works, you play Lantern of Insight so you can see your opponent's top card, and use Codex Shredder and Co. to mill them precisely one if you see something you don't like. Then probably drop a discard spell to peek at their hand so you know what's comming there, and definitely try to search their library (Surgical Extraction in this build) in round one so you know for a fact what they're playing, and sideboard in its kryptonite appropriately. So, anticipating their every move is the name of the game, and with a couple Shredders and the Lantern, you have the incredible talent of countering spells before they're played. Ensnaring Bridge keeps creatures off your ass, but burn you'll have to manage yourself with the combos provided. Also don't worry about the Hellbent on Infernal Tutor. If all goes according to plan, your hand is empty on turn 3 anyway. Can occasionally be a mulligan bomb, but I've never gone below a five card hand, and with Tutor and Bridge, this deck rocks an empty hand anyway. The rest of the deck is just built to piss in various plans, especially Pithing Needle and Spellskite. Furthermore, Academy Ruins and Codex Shredder's second ability can help you loop your deck so they don't beat you by having the bigger deck. Anywho, enjoy the salt. And the empty wallet. Suggestions welcome.
Update:
Traded a Thoughtseize for Karn Liberated. The game will probably drag on long enough to toss him out, and he works wonders for control. And, in case it all goes FUBAR, that ultimate.
Update 2:
Traded a Mox Opal for Tormod's Crypt. Nothing beats the satisfaction of exiling your opponent's entire deck. Also, added Ring of Evos Isle to the sideboard in place of a Welding Jar. Typically, you can recur Spellskite with Academy Ruins, but sometimes, exile happens. We came prepared for that.
Update 3:
Traded Inquisition of Kozilek for two Duress, a Boros Charm, and a Boom/Bust. Duress because it opens additional options, and the other two so you can blow up the enemy's lands for even more control.
Update 4:
Traded Abrupt Decay for Anguished Unmaking, because it helps in a pinch against bigger permanents, and Duress for more Thoughtseize, because stuff like Dragon Hatchling fucks Ensnaring Bridge straight over. Also, that big combo in Update 3? I adapted it to be deadlier, and less case sensitive. Boros Charm for Tainted Remedy, and Boom/Bust for Beacon of Immortality. How does this help? With the old combo, if you wanted Boros Charm out of hand because Bridge and/or Tutor, you hit them for 4 with it. However you'd later be forced to recurr it via Codex Shredder, which gets mana intensive. Tainted Remedy stays out of your hand with no recurr needed, AND provides BRUTAL control against healing decks, furthuring the deck's versatility. Boom/Bust left hand by casting Boom, costing a land and also demanding recurr. Beacon of Immortality skyrockets your life total, and doesn't require a recurr of any sort. So, outside of itself, the combo has far wider utility. But within? The old combo blew up all their lands. Mean? Yes. Can we do better? Well, read Tainted Remedy and Beacon of Immortality. Yeah. That says TARGET. Not YOU. They lose life...equal to their life total. BOOM. HEADSHOT. Congratulations, you just bootlegged Door to Nothingness. So it's better, more versatile, and goes straight from torture to execution. Icing on the cake? You can cast Beacon ad infinitum when you've no cards left if your opponent can't die to life loss. (Phyrexian Unlife, Platinum Emperion, ect.) Additional win conditions and you now have an additional outlet with which to create a bottomless library. Talk about an upgrade.
