Ponza.dec (Deckbuilding Primer)

Modern Competitive Land Destruction Primer RG (Gruul)

clayperce Moonbar

Land (23)

• 9x Forest
• 1x Kessig Wolf Run
• 2x Misty Rainforest
• 1x Mountain
• 3x Stomping Ground
• 3x Windswept Heath
• 4x Wooded Foothills

Utility (1)

• 1x Primal Command

Versatile Threats (12)

• 3x Carnage Tyrant
• 1x Chandra, Torch of Defiance
• 1x Inferno Titan
• 3x Stormbreath Dragon
• 4x Tireless Tracker

Removal (3)

• 3x Lightning Bolt

Mana Disruption (11)

• 4x Blood Moon
• 3x Mwonvuli Acid-Moss
• 4x Stone Rain

Ramp (10)

• 4x Arbor Elf
• 2x Birds of Paradise
• 4x Utopia Sprawl

---

Sideboard

Other (15)

• 2x Abrade
• 2x Anger of the Gods
• 1x Beast Within
• 1x Nissa, Vital Force
• 2x Obstinate Baloth
• 2x Relic of Progenitus
• 1x Ruric Thar, the Unbowed
• 2x Scavenging Ooze
• 1x Shatterstorm
• 1x Trinisphere

---

Maybeboard

Versatile Threats (48)

• 1x Ajani Vengeant
• 1x Arc-Slogger
• 1x Arlinn Kord  ^Flip
• 1x Batterskull
• 1x Chameleon Colossus
• 1x Chandra, Flamecaller
• 1x Chandra, Pyromaster
• 1x Combustible Gearhulk
• 2x Deus of Calamity
• 1x Dragonlord Atarka
• 1x Elspeth, Sun's Champion
• 1x Emrakul, the Aeons Torn
• 1x Furystoke Giant
• 1x Gaea's Revenge
• 1x Garruk, Primal Hunter
• 1x Garruk Wildspeaker
• 1x Glorybringer
• 1x Goblin Dark-Dwellers
• 1x Goblin Rabblemaster
• 1x Greenwarden of Murasa
• 1x Gruul Spellbreaker
• 1x Hazoret the Fervent
• 1x Hellkite Tyrant
• 1x Hornet Queen
• 1x Huntmaster of the Fells  ^Flip
• 1x Kitchen Finks
• 1x Knight of Autumn
• 1x Koth of the Hammer
• 1x Legion Warboss
• 1x Nahiri, the Harbinger
• 1x Nullhide Ferox
• 1x Pia and Kiran Nalaar
• 1x Platinum Emperion
• 1x Polukranos, World Eater
• 1x Rekindling Phoenix
• 1x Rishkar, Peema Renegade
• 1x Shalai, Voice of Plenty
• 1x Spellbreaker Behemoth
• 1x Steel Leaf Champion
• 1x Tarmogoyf
• 1x Thragtusk
• 1x Thrun, the Last Troll
• 1x Thundermaw Hellkite
• 1x Vivien Reid
• 1x Walking Ballista
• 1x Whisperwood Elemental
• 1x Wurmcoil Engine

Ramp (3)

• 1x Fertile Ground
• 1x Noble Hierarch
• 1x Simian Spirit Guide

Utility (46)

• 1x Acidic Slime
• 1x Amulet of Safekeeping
• 1x Blessed Alliance
• 1x Bloodbraid Elf
• 1x Bow of Nylea
• 1x Caldera Hellion
• 1x Chalice of the Void
• 1x Collective Defiance
• 1x Courser of Kruphix
• 1x Damping Matrix
• 1x Deathgorge Scavenger
• 1x Dragon's Claw
• 1x Eidolon of Rhetoric
• 1x Eldritch Evolution
• 1x Eternal Witness
• 1x Experimental Frenzy
• 1x Faithless Looting
• 1x Gaddock Teeg
• 1x Ghostly Prison
• 1x Grafdigger's Cage
• 1x Guttural Response
• 1x Heroic Intervention
• 1x Kolaghan's Command
• 1x Leyline of Sanctity
• 1x Life Goes On
• 1x Madcap Experiment
• 1x Merfolk Branchwalker
• 1x Nissa, Voice of Zendikar
• 1x Pithing Needle
• 1x Reclamation Sage
• 1x Repudiate / Replicate
• 1x Rest in Peace
• 1x Rhythm of the Wild
• 1x Risk Factor
• 1x Sarkhan, Fireblood
• 1x Silhana Wayfinder
• 1x Sorcerous Spyglass
• 1x Stony Silence
• 1x Surgical Extraction
• 1x Sword of Fire and Ice
• 1x Sword of Light and Shadow
• 1x Thalia, Heretic Cathar
• 1x Thrashing Brontodon
• 1x Tormod's Crypt
• 1x Witchbane Orb
• 1x Worship

Removal (27)

• 1x Ancient Grudge
• 1x Banefire
• 1x Bonfire of the Damned
• 1x Broken Bond
• 1x Cindervines
• 1x Creeping Corrosion
• 1x Destructive Revelry
• 1x Dismember
• 1x Engineered Explosives
• 1x Fiery Justice
• 1x Firespout
• 1x Forked Bolt
• 1x Fracturing Gust
• 1x Hour of Devastation
• 1x Kozilek's Return
• 1x Lava Coil
• 1x Magma Jet
• 1x Mizzium Mortars
• 1x Natural State
• 1x Pyroclasm
• 1x Ratchet Bomb
• 1x Roast
• 1x Shattering Spree
• 1x Slagstorm
• 1x Sudden Shock
• 1x Sweltering Suns
• 1x Vandalblast

Mana Disruption (15)

• 1x Avalanche Riders
• 1x Blood Sun
• 1x Boil
• 1x Boom / Bust
• 1x Choke
• 1x Crumble to Dust
• 1x Damping Sphere
• 1x Fulminator Mage
• 1x Magus of the Moon
• 1x Molten Rain
• 1x Plow Under
• 1x Roiling Terrain
• 1x Root Maze
• 1x Stampeding Serow
• 1x Thorn of Amethyst

Land (13)

• 1x Blood Crypt
• 1x Bloodstained Mire
• 1x Cinder Glade
• 1x Fire-Lit Thicket
• 1x Grove of the Burnwillows
• 1x Misty Rainforest
• 1x Overgrown Tomb
• 1x Plains
• 1x Sacred Foundry
• 1x Swamp
• 1x Temple Garden
• 1x Valakut, the Molten Pinnacle
• 1x Verdant Catacombs

---

WELCOME TO PONZA!

We're clayperce and Moonbar, the moderators of PonzaMTG on Reddit, and we'd like to welcome you to our Ponza deckbuilding primer.

First off, please understand this decklist is just a starting point ...

• The maindeck and sidedeck is simply the most recent top finisher from a large tournament ... it (obviously) worked great for the original pilot and their tournament meta, but it may not be a great deck for your playstyle, meta, or budget without tuning.
• Cards marked with an A are HIGHLY recommended ... according to MTGgoldfish they've been played in all of the recent competitive decks.
• The maybeboard includes EVERY card which has seen play in a competitive Ponza deck. If you know of any we missed, please let us know!

We look forward to your questions, comments, and suggestions!

---

Step 1: Pick a starting point

Option 1: Make a copy of this deck, as an untuned starting point

- The current mainboard and sideboard is based on Eli Brooks' deck (#2 of 137 players at the SCG Baltimore Classic). - There's a white 'Copy' button on the left side menu (or immediately under this description, if you're on mobile).

Option 2: Pick a recent deck, in the sub-archetype of your choice

CLASSIC PONZA, feat. "all the key ingredients to a Ponza Rotta: The cheese (burn), the meat (big creatures) and the sauce (the land destruction)".

• Andrew Wolbers' deck is our current "stock" list, though numerous variations exist, tailored for personal metas and playstyles, such as ...
• Old School Ponza, feat. 0x Bloodbraid Elf . E.g., Andrew Son's deck.
• Monster Ponza, feat. extra Creatures and very little Removal. E.g., Nishio Tomonori's deck
• 10-Rain (or more) Ponza, feat. extra Land Destruction. E.g., Dominik Danner's deck
• Big Ponza, feat. a higher top-end. E.g., Micah Baker's deck

NAYA PONZA, usually feat. more than just a splash of White. The deck exists in a wide variety of forms, such as ...

• Robot Naya, feat. Madcap Experiment + Platinum Emperion . E.g., robbit_hatman's deck
• Spaghetti Naya, feat. Emrakul, the Aeons Torn + Nahiri, the Harbinger . E.g., Lesli Stewart's deck
• Noble Moon Naya, feat. a very low curve and a very different playstyle. E.g., Abombdiggity's deck
• Splash Naya, feat. White sideboard cards. E.g., Crazy_Dingo38's deck

PRIMAL PONZA, feat. the Eternal Witness + Primal Command soft lock. E.g., James Dascine-Henry's deck or Michael Neilson's Mono-G version.

ROBOT PONZA (aka Platinum Ponza), feat. Madcap Experiment + Platinum Emperion . E.g., Ishino Takuya's deck

JUND PONZA, feat. a Black splash for Kolaghan's Command . E.g., Hshiroma's deck

GOLGARI PONZA, feat. Rain of Tears , plus a ton of GB Planeswalkers and removal. E.g., Bryan Dubois' deck

MONO-R PONZA, feat. a lower curve and more consistent mana. E.g., Eduardo Bairrinhos' deck

There are other Ponza sub-archetypes as well, but they have not proven successful in recent competitive play:

• ELDRITCH PONZA, feat. Eldritch Evolution and toolbox Creatures. E.g., Joshua Unthank's deck
• TRIBAL PONZA, feat. Dinosaurs, Dragons, Goblins, etc.
• FAST PONZA, feat. Hasty threats and a "1RR" mana- and dork-base

Option 3: Start with the most inexpensive competitive deck

• $222 for Garret Crowe's deck
• $256 for Shimotani Kazuki's deck
• $293 for Aaron Faircloth's deck

Option 4: Poke around these sites, until you find a deck you like

• Ponza on MTGdecks
• Ponza on MTGgoldfish
• Ponza on MTGtop8

Option 5: Pick a recent top finisher from a large tournament

• Eli Brooks' deck #16 at SCG Cincinnati Classic (239 players, 05/24/2019).
• Sato Takumi's deck: #14 at Hareruya's MMM Finals (210 players, 12/15/2018).
• Eli Brooks' deck: #2 at SCG Classic Baltimore (137 players, 12/2/2018).
• Braxton Leddon's deck: #1 at SCG Classic Charlotte (95 players, 10/28/2018)
• Jonathan Byrd's deck: #21 at SCG Open Charlotte (450 players, 10/27/2018)
• Isaak Contreras' deck: #10 at SCG Open Dallas-Fort Worth (683 players, 10/20/2018)
• Steven Brokmeier's deck: #5 at SCG Classic Indianapolis (231 players, 7/29/2018)
• Noah Kravitz' deck: #3 at SCG Regional Montclair (315 players, 6/2/2018)
• Matt Carlson's deck (spicy): #6 at SCG Regional Lexana (202 players, 6/2/2018)
• josetorr87's deck: #31 at MTGO PTQ (382 players, 5/28/2018)
• bigdunka's deck: #2 at MTGO Modern Challenge (102 players, 5/27/2018)
• Sven Groting's deck: Top 8 at MKM Hamburg (393 players, 5/19/2018)
• Niklas Scholten's Deck: #1 at Traderliga Dülmen (102 players, 4/18/2018)
• Andrew Wolbers' deck: #23 at GP Phoenix (1334 players, 3/18/2018)
• David Peretti's deck: #1 at MKM Rome (192 players, 3/17/2018)
• Andrew Wolbers' deck: #1 at SCG Dallas-Fort Worth (405 players, 3/11/2018)
• Drake Davis' deck: #25 at SCG Dallas-Fort Worth (405 players, 3/11/2018)
• Ryan Bourgoin's deck: #11 at SCG Classic Worcester (398 players, 3/4/2018)
• Jeremie DeWitt's deck: #18 at SCG Classic Worcester (398 players, 3/4/2018)
• Kasper Zijl's deck: #1 at Dutch Open (143 players, 2/24/2018)
• Michael Derczo's deck: #3 at SCG Team Constructed Philadelphia (329 players, 1/27/2018)
• TheSpellWeaver's deck: #2 at MTGO Modern MOCS (136 Players, 1/7/2018)
• Wolftap Boy's deck: #11 at MTGO PTQ (308 players, 12/11/2017)
• Cheshire Fasnacht's deck: #9 at SCG Classic Baltamore (197 players, 11/19/2017)
• Ryan Shaner's deck: #23 at SCG Open Cincinnati (773 players, 10/22/2017)
• Donald "DJ" West's deck: #7 at SCG Open Charlotte (537 players, 10/15/2017)
• Ryan Webster's deck: #25 at SCG Open Charlotte (537 players, 10/15/2017)
• Andrew Black's deck: #15 at SCG Open Richmond (454 players, 8/13/2017)
• Jon Elgan's deck: #6 at SCG Modern Classic Atlanta (151 players, 7/23/2017)
• Bernard Liberati's deck: #1 in Modern at SCG Invitational Roanake (547 players, 6/30/2017)
• Kato Akinori's deck: Top 8 at Modern God Challenger (332 players, 5/21/2017)
• Bret Miller's deck: Top 4 at State Championship IL (104 players, 5/3/2017)
• Gordon Clinard's deck: #9 at SCG Open Dallas-Ft Worth (857 players, 3/12/2017)
• Ryan Shaner's deck: #15 at SCG Open Indianapolis (904 players, 2/25/2017)
• Nicholas Kouri's deck: #1 at GP Vancouver Modern Confrontation (187 players, 2/19/2017)

Step 2: Get in some reps, especially if you're new to the deck

• At this point, it doesn't matter whether you use real cards, proxies, MTGO, the playtest feature here on Tapped Out, or some other method. All that matters is that you can get in some reps with the deck.
• We highly recommend checking out the resources in the sidebar of PonzaMTG on Reddit, espcially the Tips and Tricks and Matchup Monday posts.

Step 3: Tune the deck for your playstyle, meta, and budget

• There are a TON of flex slots in Ponza, so after some testing, please take advantage of them! Finding the perfect 75 for your playstyle, meta, and budget can be tough, but frankly all the cards here are (and hundreds of others which are potentially competitive) are valid choices.
• We highly recommend posting your deck in PonzaMTG on Reddit and the Modern Desk Help forum here on T/O, and asking for feedback. It may be helpful to include a short description of your expected meta (if you know it) and any budget constraints.
• If you post on the Advertise your Modern deck thread here on T/O please follow the rules and offer feedback on the deck posted immediately before yours.

Step 4: Play, learn, and share!

• You'll quickly learn what works for your playstyle and meta, and what doesn't. Please share what you learn with us, here in the comments or in PonzaMTG on Reddit!
• Then go back to Step 3 :-)

---

Shout-outs to ...

• Brian Kowal and Adrian Sullivan, who invented the original Ponza deck. And Michael Nielsen and Matt Mendoza, who first popularized the deck in Modern.
• Everyone at PonzaMTG on Reddit and PonzaMTG on Facebook.

Finally, please +1 Upvote this primer if you found it useful! :-)

Top Ranked	Achieved #1 position overall 6 years ago
Date added	6 years
Last updated	4 years
Key combos	Emrakul, the Aeons Torn + Nahiri, the Harbinger Madcap Experiment + Platinum Emperion Eternal Witness + Primal Command
Legality	This deck is Modern legal.
Rarity (main - side)	7 - 1 Mythic Rares 25 - 6 Rares 3 - 6 Uncommons 15 - 2 Commons
Cards	60
Avg. CMC	2.95
Tokens	Beast 3/3 G, Clue, Emblem Chandra, Torch of Defiance, Emblem Nissa, Vital Force
Folders	>> Active Modern <<, Modern Decks, Interesting Ideas, Stuff I like or intrested in, Cool Shit, Competitive Ponza, Modern Brews, Primers, Tutorials, and Format Staples, Decks, Favorable Fodder