@JexInfinite Getting your attention because I thought you'd be interested. I've taken this list to FNM and gone 3-1 at least three times, and 4-0 once. Never went worse than than 3-1 tho.

As for what I've played against: Junk, Jund, Grixis Twin, Grixis Control, Grixis Delver, Gr Tron, UW Tron, Grishoalbrand, Giselcannon (Fury of the Horde version), and 4-Color Control.

Let me know if you have any suggestions! =D

I'd probably put the 4 Lingering Souls mainboard. Run the full 4 Snaps, no exceptions.

Deprive is miserable in control. Run another Remand instead.

@JexInfinite

What would you cut for the Lingering Souls in the main? It's definitely worth testing.

As for the Snaps, they aren't as good in a deck w/o Lightning Bolt -- especially Esper. While Snapcaster may usually be a 3-mana spell in Jeskai due to Path and Bolt, it's a 4-6 mana one in Esper, so he fits much higher on my curve. In addition, since I have Logic Knot, Think Twice, and Lingering Souls in the 75, I don't want to have too many cards that interfere with my graveyard. Thus, I feel like 2-3 is the right number. I could definitely see adding a third, but four is too many in my opinion.

I agree that Deprive isn't the best -- ideally it'd be another Logic Knot, but the 3rd one would hurt more than it would help. I considered another Remand, even Mana Leak, but I honestly just want Counterspell. Deprive happens to be the second closest Modern card to Counterspell, behind Logic Knot actually. It's not good enough that I'd ever consider a second Deprive, but the one has been very clutch against a number of decks -- especially against Tron and Grishoalbrand (and its other variations).

The proactive Snappy plan is definitely not to be overlooked. Snapping back counterspells is necessary at most times, and sometimes using it an an Ambush Viper is the best mode.

Your list looks pretty good as well ;)

What do you think about Negate over Deprive?

Also, how has 2x White Sun's Zenith been? Is it too clunky or has it been pretty good?

@tclaw12 Thanks!

I like Deprive better than Negate since it hits much more. Deprive is key against Tron (for hitting literally all of their relevant spells), and great against griselcannon. Counterspell is just a good card all around =D.

2x White Sun's Zenith has been fine for me -- I actually have trouble drawing it a lot of the time. If anything feels clunky, it's actually Sphinx's Rev, since it is far more mana hungry than Zenith. Zenith for 2? Sure. Rev for 2? Eh, if I HAVE to.

@JexInfinite Sorry, I missed your last comment.

Snappy beats is actually far less real in this build, only really appearing against decks that have inevitability, like Tron and (to a lesser extent) GriselCannon. Otherwise, it's almost always correct to hold onto him rather than running him out. I played UWR for quite a while (a Clique/resto version, in fact), so I know that sometimes the beatdown plan is just the way to go. But Red really facilitates that, not Esper colors. Esper is by far more defensive -- especially draw-go. At least, that's my opinion.

Have you tried Supreme Verdict?

I mean 4x Supreme Verdict.

pinkhamster I've considered it, but I don't want that many dead cards against other decks in my mainboard. Thus, I have 2 Wraths in the side, allowing me to side into anywhere from 0-5 wrath effects with added Thrun protection.

Why 61 cards?

I feel like you might have enough removal to not worry about Negates "noncreature" clause. I also don't like that Deprive sets you back a land in a deck with Rev and Zenith, but Counterspell might be worth it.

I agree that 2x Rev is likely more clunky than 2x Zenith. If I switch back to a Zenith version, Ill try going up to 2 :)

I definitely agree with 2 snappy. I tried 4 to see if I could get away with it, but it felt way too clunky. Since we lack burn and we really can't race, snappy beats are rather unfrequent. I know people have had success with 3, but 4 is too many imo.

I run 61 cards by accident, actually. I played the deck with an unintentional 61st card (a second Go for the Throat) for a couple weeks until I noticed it in updating my T/O decklist. I don't pile shuffle, only bridge shuffle, so I never counted the cards. After some deliberation on what to cut to 60 cards, I I decided I really liked what the deck was doing so I left it the way it had been all along. No regrets! Honestly, though, each card is fairly central to the deck now, and there's no single card I'd want to cut.

I'm more comfortable with Deprive, since Negate is arguably bad vs. BGx, which is my second-to-worst matchup (at about 50-50 odds, too. Not bad.). About the land, if the tempo loss is too devastating, just don't cast Deprive. xD

2x Snapcaster Mage feels right to me too. Ideally, Snap's a 6-mana spell (Snap->Cryptic).

tclaw12
Oh, and on the Rev vs. Zenith topic, I run the 2:2 mix because I wanted a full 4 x-spell slots against BGx. In those matchups, X-spells win games.

For example, an opponent Thoughtseized my hand T1 and saw E.Charm, Snappy, Logic Knot, Remand, White Sun's, and some fetches -- he was essenially priced into taking Zenith, though, just because scaling spells are so important against them.

Another great thing about Esper -- it's really resilient to hand disruption.

Interesting. Id probably cut 1 Go for the Throat if it were me, but if it works for you I can't argue.

Negate can definitely be awkward in some matchups, so if it would be not so great in your meta that is understandable. I've always felt like BGx was a pretty easy matchup. The X spells are definitely at their best here though.

Being resilient to disruption is great. I played against 8-rack like I mentioned, and I managed to avoid his rack/affliction triggers through an active liliana. Drawing both copies of Rev definitely helped :)

@tclaw12 New updates: -2x Remand, -1x Drowned Catacomb --> +1x Detention Sphere, +1x Mystic Gate

sb: -1x Slay, +1x Jace, Architect of Thought

Also, I got 2nd at my LGS's modern event yesterday (playing with the above changes), despite facing all three of my worst matchups (Affinity, Bogles, and Burn). Here's how it went down:

Round One: Jund -- 2-1

Game one I was stuck on three land. Had a Supreme Verdict, too, which could have stabilized me if I could get that land. Game two, Jace on t5 or 6, backed up by many, many spirits dominated the game with card advantage even when he had resolved Lili. G3 was a similar deal to G1, but I had lands. Typical game: answers, lands, and eventually Souls and Revs. Yep.

Round 2: Affinity. 2-0

Game one, he kept a 0 lander after mulling to 6 (he forgot that he needed to have a land to cast his Springleaf Drum). Yeah. By the time he had enough lands, I had all the resources I needed -- Spell Snares for Cranial Platings, a Supreme Verdict for when necessary, some Cryptic Commands and Path to Exiles to pull ahead, and a White Sun's Zenith to win. Then G2 I landed T2 Stony Silence followed by a late Supreme Verdict. Game. Over.

Round 3: Bogles. 2-1

This was a very interesting and close round. Game one was the typical race, and I almost stabilized, but I couldn't deal with the last threat due to totem armor. Then, G2 and G3 were all about countering totem armor enchantments. I decided to leave in 2 Paths to deal with Kor Spiritdancer, which really tilted my opponent when I just straight up answered his voltroned Dryad Arbor late game 2 and Kor Spiritdancers throughout the whole match. With all 5 Wrath effects and counters+Esper Charm to keep Totem Armor enchants from ruining my plans, I was able to build lands, Rev into infinite Cryptic Commands and White Sun's for the kill in both g2 and 3.

Final Round: Burn. 1-2

At this point I was the only 3-0, but since my store only gives out store cred, things like splitting don't make a lot of sense. We played it out. So, G1 he mulled into 5 cards, and all of the relevant ones got countered. He scooped a little early, but it seemed like death for him. G2, he played T3 Blood Moon with a Grim Lavamancer out when all I had was one Island and some "mountains". My island allowed me to Spell Snare and Dispel some stuff and produce Snappy beats, but the Lavamancer killed me. G3 there was a fight, in which I played around a certain Moon, but in the end a Rev never came, and I folded. Interesting note: Esper Charm kills Eidolon of the Great Revel.

Glad the changes have been working for you :)

Any reason for dropping the Remands?

With Detention Sphere in your 75, what do you think about replacing Disenchant with Celestial Purge? Purge is great against BGx, Twin (even kills Keranos), and Burn.

On the Burn MU: How do you feel about Cryptic Command? I know our decks are a bit different, but the MU probably plays out the similarly. Cryptic feels a little slow on the draw, and they have access to Blood Moon which is a bit scary.

Remand was the weakest card in the 75, really. I'm on control, so delaying is nice, but Remand really isn't where you want to be against a lot of decks -- Grishoalbrand, Burn, Affinity, etc. Ironically, I cut Remand and then proceeded to face decks last night where Remand would have been absolutely miserable.

• Disenchant -- Hive Mind, Amulet of Vigor, Ghostly Prison, Courser of Kruphix, Batterskull, The Rack, Ensnaring Bridge, Lantern of Insight, Spellskite, Inkmoth Nexus and Blinkmoth Nexus, Cranial Plating, other affinity stuff, random Tron stuff, etc.
• Celestial Purge -- Liliana of the Veil, Tasigur, the Golden Fang, Siege Rhino, Dark Confidant (if he still sees any play), Huntmaster of the Fells  ^Flip, Keranos, God of Storms, Young Pyromancer, Monastery Swiftspear, Goblin Guide, etc.

It appears that Disenchant makes bad matchups more favorable (Affinity, Titan Bloom, Infect) and pads vs. fringe decks (Tezzerator, Lantern Control, Prison) while Purge tilts 50-50 matches a bit in our favor (BGx, Twin) with a some applications in other matchups.

In an unknown field, I want Disenchant, which means I almost always prefer Disenchant. However, in a known field with lots of Twin or BGx, I probably want Purge.

With regards to Cryptic, they aren't good if you're already dead. I like to have some for the late game, but definitely not all four. As for why I cut Think Twice and an Esper Charm -- we don't have time to cast these, so I'd rather just draw an interactive sideboard card. Leaving in some Charms hedges against Blood Moon and Eidolon of the Great Revel, while also giving you gas late game. Supreme Verdict is too slow. About Thoughtseize, I feel like losing 2 is better than losing 3/4 life -- and taking Moon or Goblin Guide or whatever is worth it.

Cutting Remand is understandable. Im still facing some BGx (even Sultai wtf) and a lot of blue, so Remand is quite good for me.

On Disenchant vs Celestial Purge: I think it's close, but it's probably a meta call like you said. Liliana of the Veil, Keranos, God of Storms, and Blood Moon have been big lately, so I favor Celestial Purge. I also have 2x Detention Sphere in the SB (thanks for the help btw), so resolved non-land permanents aren't always an issue.

Regarding the Burn MU: I'm not sure siding out Esper Charm is correct. In addition to killing Eidolon of the Great Revel and Blood Moon, instant-speed Mind Rot is also great against burn (assuming they aren't top-decking). Thoughtseize seems a bit risky. It's obviously bad when they are top-decking, and its a tempo loss. I've never actually tried it against burn though so I can't say for sure.I totally agree on the Cryptic Command part though. I felt like 4 was too slow/clunky, but I still wanted some for the lategame (assuming we get there).

You were right about the 2x Negate MB thing btw. Even in a heavy blue meta, I didn't like them in the main. 1 might have been ok, but 2 felt pretty bad. For now I'm back on Shadow of Doubt in the main, though I've been considering things like Detention Sphere or Vendilion Clique.

You're right about the Burn mu, and I'm actually considering cutting Thoughtseize now. Things I want to make room for are another Jace, Timely Reinforcements (any other good options against burn? maybe Kitchen Finks?), and a Gideon Jura for sure.

God I hate saying it, but I guess it's a meta call...

Personally, I've had great success with Thoughtseize as of late, but if you don't feel like you need it, it might be able to go. In an open metagame though, I think some form of hand-disruption is crucial post-board.

Against Burn specifically, Pulse of the Fields is good. I wouldn't play more than 1 copy though. Some people have had success with Baneslayer Angel, though I've never tried it. Out of my SB, I really like Condemn and Vendilion Clique. Timely Reinforcements and Kitchen Finks might not be bad. Personally, I'm not really a fan of them in general (I can explain why if you'd like), but they might work for you. They have some application against other decks too, so that's nice.

I'm not exactly sure how you set up your SB, but maybe something like -1x Lingering Souls -1x Wrath of God; +1 Jace, Architect of Thought +1 Gideon Jura.

I'm a huge fan of Timely Reinforcements and Blood Baron of Vizkopa in Esper Control lists. It's what I play in my SB.

@DrFunk27 Ooh, Blood Baron is a card I had forgotten about. But now the list of options is even longer... T_T

I would replace the Deprive and 2 Logic Knot for 3 Mana Leak. I'd also drop 1 Supreme Verdict, 1 Esper Charm, and 1 White Sun's Zenith for 3 mainboard Lingering Souls. They're a huge help to win for you and just cut them from the side entirely. In place I'd put 2 Leyline of Sanctity, 1 Baneslayer Angel, and 1 Murderous Cut. You have enough delve to make it pretty good for you and you mentioned you have problems with Affinity and Burn. Those are pretty good to defeat them.

@Lifa Mana Leak is very bad here, because I'm going to the really late game -- my opponents always have extra lands in play due to the length of the game and from my Path to Exiles (assuming they aren't Boggles or burn). Also, Logic Knot is actually very good, since it's live on T2 with a fetchland and live throughout the entire game after that too. I agree that Deprive isn't ideal, but it's the best of the other options I have available, such as a 3rd Logic Knot (too graveyard reliant), a Remand (not a hard counter), or a Mana Leak (explained above).

As for the Lingering Souls mainboard, I'm draw-go, and tapping out for it prevents me from holding up relevant interaction. Esper Charm is one of the best cards in the deck and should never be cut (it's one of the main reasons for playing black, right by Lingering Souls). I may be able to cut back on a Verdict and a White Sun's, however there isn't anything I really want to cut them for in the mainboard.

Sun Droplet and Sanctimony can help the burn match-ups. Engineered Explosives along with Spellskite can destroy boggles too, and Engineered Explosives is excellent against tokens and affinity. A one of Fracturing Gust is always fun.

I also want to let you know that you don't want Think Twice in modern. You want Serum Visions. Think Twice is a waste of mana that takes too long. Logic Knot is a worse Mana Leak. Remember, Mana Leak and Remand are the best early-mid game counterspells and are what stops the opponent from doing things so you can go into late game. Spell Snare should only ever be as a 2 of, any higher than that and you risk being shot out of situation.