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Thank you so very much for your wonderful suggestions! For this week's update, I carefully went through all of the comments posted under this topic as of October 15, 2012.

I have to say that I am very pleased with the advice given to me so far, offered so early on in the development of this deck. Without further ado, I would like to explain the changes incorporated into the creation of the second revision.

Thank you, maxrz and Askani28, so much for your amazing recommendation of incrementing the number of Reforge the Souls implemented in the deck. Despite my attempts to improve its performance during mid- and late-game (by dialing up the mana costs of certain components), I have often found myself running out of spells to play by turns 5-7. Thus, I have decided to replace one Mountain with another copy of Reforge the Soul for this week's update.

From the beginning, Cursed Totem stood out to me as a possibly better alternative to Pithing Needle. The only downside is the one extra mana and the impossibility of applying its effect to artifacts and enchantments. After mulling over the various weaknesses presented in Burn, however, I decided that weenie rush and its superior alternative, tribal rush, were two of the deck's worst enemies. To slow these approaches, Cursed Totem's power to stop mana abilities would prevent many of the acceleration tactics employed often by creature aggro strategies. Therefore, I replaced Pithing Needle with Cursed Totem.

Lastly, I replaced Chain Reaction with a slightly cheaper alternative, Slagstorm, and switched Nevinyrral's Disk for Apocalypse. After hours of contemplation, I weighted four opponent possibilities and determined my response to each one. The combination of Apocalypse and Slagstorm seemed the perfect duo to address all four scenarios, and thus I have decided to implement the two in this week's update.

Thank you, Bm102410, theeflaw, and and Askani28 for your wonderful suggestion of Vexing Devil! I have considered the creature since the deck's conception, and in response to your recommendation, I have added it to the deck's Maybeboard. Askani28's advice of using the creature to replace Keldon Marauders really got me thinking. This remains an extremely hard decision that I am still contemplating. However, as of now, I feel that Keldon Marauders serves as one of the most useful ways to pump counters on Quest for Pure Flame (it contributes up to four counters over the course of its two-turn lifetime), so for this week's update, I think I will keep Keldon Marauders in the decklist.

Thank you, erknye and maxrz, for your thoughtful recommendations of Rift Bolt! I have considered using it in favor of the more (price) expensive Chain Lightning and (CMC) expensive Thunderous Wrath, and more restrictive Lava Spike, but decided in the end that its Suspend requirement would probably slow the deck a little. For the second revision, I'm leaning towards keeping the single CMC burn spells as is. Nevertheless, thank you both so very much for your wonderful advice!

Finally, thank you m12fox, Human_Rogue_21, maxrz, and MonkeyMind for your wonderful suggestions of Tormod's Crypt, Chandra Ablaze, Hellrider, Inferno Titan, Pyromancer Ascension, and Shrine of Burning Rage respectively. I will keep all of these cards in mind for the next revision (I have already established Pyromancer Ascension on the maybeboard, and am considering the rest of the recommendations very carefully).

Following this post are my comments for this week's Card of the Week. Again, thank you all so very much for your thoughtful comments! I thank you for all of your valuable suggestions. As I am still relatively new to Magic the Gathering, I would indeed greatly appreciate any suggestions and/or constructive criticism that you may have to offer.

One of the most powerful removal spells of all time, this card serves as an important staple of the deck's defensive (sideboard) strategy.

As a full board removal, Apocalypse gives you a second chance to rush your opponent all over again, by essentially resetting the battlefield. If, for example, the game has progressed past mid-game, and your opponent has begun crowding the arena with Wurmcoil Engines, Primalcruxes, and Vigors, you can use the sorcery to not only get rid of his army, but clear his lands, enchantments, and artifacts as well to prevent him from bringing them back. Following that maneuver, you can proceed to burn rush him all over again. The best part is, by that time you'll have already finished half the job!

For a rush deck like this one, Apocalypse remains as one of the most effective spells for manipulating your opponent during mid- and late-game. Its most valuable attribute lies in its capability to keep your strategy relevant at any point of the match, making the sorcery a must-have in anyone's arsenal of burn.