Didn't mean to d-Naya the win. Needs input plz!
Standard
SCORE: 6 | 9 COMMENTS | 1937 VIEWS | IN 3 FOLDERS
First time out with this deck... —Oct. 18, 2016
It performed...bad...but still ok...I am not sure...
First match was against Jeskai infinite Thopters. The deck my opponent played seemed pretty fragile and I steamrolled him game 1. Game 2 he was able to get out 3 pieces of his combo, but not being able to find the second Decoction Module limited his thopter production and I was able to sit back for 2 turns, build a good creature state then Declaration in Stone all the thopters and swing in for the win. Took this one 2-0.
Next match was against Red/Green energy with Electrostatic Pummeler. This deck ate my lunch. He had me on the back foot the entire 2 matches. First game he managed to pull out back to back Lathnu Hellions and had the energy to keep them alive. Second game I got beat up by Longtusk Cub and Thriving Grubs. I managed to survive to the mid game long enough to stare down the aforementioned Cub and an Electrostatic Pummeler that were both huge. No good options for blocking were available as he cast Larger Than Life on the Cub and Built to Smash on the Pummeler. Trample damage closed out the game. I lost this match 0-2.
3rd round was against a semi-mirror deck...Naya Walkers. She was using Oath of Nissa for digging and Oath of Chandra for creature removal and damage to me. Game 1 she won with early drops like Thraben Inspector that I couldn't answer because I lacked the removal. Game 2 was a grindy match, but I pulled out the win by using a turn 4 Arlinn Kord Flip into a turn 5 hasted Gideon, Ally of Zendikar. Turn 8 was the winning play when I cast a 3 point Radiant Flames to clear my opponent's board then activated my Needle Spires which got a buff from Sylvan Advocate and Arlinn. Game 3 saw the planeswalkers come out in full force against me. Turn 4 Gideon into turn 5 Chandra into a turn 6 Nissa, Vital Force was too much to deal with. I lost this one 1-2.
Round 4 was against another R/G energy variant that used Bristling Hydra and Cultivator of Blades. Blossoming Defense basically blanked all of my removal and by the time I drew my sideboarded Radiant Flames his mobs were too big. I lost this one 0-2.
What did I take away from this? The deck needs to be faster. The lack of a 1 drop kinda hurts, and I only have 7 cards in the 2 drop slot so there are many games where I don't play anything until turn 3. All of my opponents mentioned that the deck should have performed better than it did, so it's possible that maybe my card choices are better suited to a midrange/control matchup? Perhaps that is why I struggled against the more aggressive R/G aggro decks? I kinda feel like I need to up the removal count to deal with early creatures so I can survive till the late game. The planeswalkers don't seem to have that large of an impact right now, and aside from the Naya Walkers deck I faced, I didn't really see any other planeswalkers. I think that Gideon, Nahiri and Chandra are going to get moved to the sideboard in favor of removal, and I plan on adding 4 copies of Thraben Inspector to try and help with early game aggression. Selfless Spirit is also slated to be included in this list as it acts like a mini Archangel Avacyn Flip. Thalia, Heretic Cathar is getting cut as is Duskwatch Recruiter Flip. I am going to make room for Sin Prodder for the card advantage it provides, and I am jammimg in a single copy of Combustible Gearhulk to try out. I will update the deck list in a day or two to reflect these new changes.
paulbmoore1980 says... #2
Possibly, but that will only be a viable play for a month or so. I don't plan on using Nahiri for her ultimate all that much. When rotation happens, Dromoka's Command goes with it, meaning that unless there is a card in this new set designed to replace it, people may feel more comfortable running mainboard enchantments. This is where I suspect Nahiri will shine.
September 8, 2016 3:46 p.m.
True, same goes for Battlefield Forge. Nahiri will go bonckers because of the artifacts (vehicles). Alternative for Atarka could be a big eldrazi. Thinking of World Breaker, Decimator of the Provinces or even Emra herself.
September 9, 2016 12:56 a.m.
paulbmoore1980 says... #4
Decimator of the Provinces loses its cast trigger so it doesn't buff your whole team but still, a 7/7 with trample and haste is nothing to shake a stick at. Bane of Bala Ged has a pseudo annihilator ability, and Ulamog, the Ceaseless Hunger exiles 20 cards from the library. Still need to wait and see what nasties this new set brings to find out of there are any viable alternatives.
September 9, 2016 7:32 a.m.
Any reason that you're not playing Hanweir Battlements? Your deck looks like it would want to play 25-26 lands anyway.
September 17, 2016 10:39 p.m.
paulbmoore1980 says... #6
Bolten711: I do have access to run 3 copies of Hanweir Battlements. My issue is that I will be converting my Naya humans deck to this after rotation happens. This current deck configuration has a total of 8 cards that require double white, and only 1 card that requires double red. I do understand the versatility of being able to give a creature haste, and the ability to meld the Garrison and Battlements can be a game changer/winner, but out of all the cards in this list I feel like the Garrison is the weakest. With this being more of a midrange shell, I feel like card advantage will help pull out more wins than sheer attacking power or board presence. I won't have a Thalia's Lieutenant to proc counters (either putting them on or getting put on her), and I am not running Hanweir Militia Captain Flip so having 4 creatures on the board isn't necessary to make her flip and provide additional tokens. I feel that those 2 things make the Garrison less impactful. With that being said, I feel like the Garrison will be the first creature to either get pulled or sideboarded out, which makes the Battlements less attractive. I am probably going to try out Sin Prodder in its place, to see how well the card advantage will work in the late game...
September 18, 2016 12:39 p.m.
beakedbard says... #7
+1 For the really bad pun. I like the deck as well.
September 19, 2016 7:31 a.m.
I think you're underestimating how game-breaking the combo of Hanweir Battlements + Hanweir Garrison is. The only reason it doesn't see competitive play is because the rest of the red cards in current Standard (pre-Kaladesh) aren't that great. You'll win 100% of games where you get to have a combat phase with Hanweir, the Writhing Township.
I'm not saying you should run play-sets of both though, 2-3 of each probably better.
October 1, 2016 4:30 a.m.
paulbmoore1980 says... #9
Bolten711: I actually played a casual game with my Naya humans deck and managed to pull off the turn 3 Garrison into a turn 4 Thalia's Lieutenant play and swing for decent damage. The Garrison stuck around till turn 5 at which point I paid 3RR to meld them. Did it end the game on the spot, no...but it might as well have. So, what I am trying to say is yes, I do understand how game breaking the combo is. Since the Battlefield Forges have now rotated I might just replace them with my Battlements. Besides, I can use it to give haste to something like a turn 6 Gisela. If I get the chance to meld them then it's just gravy. I still think, however, that the Sin Prodder will help with card advantage and I really want to fit him in. Right now he is just gonna chill in the sideboard until I play a few weeks of FNM's with this list to see if it will be worth dropping something, like say 1 Garrison, 1 Tracker and 1 whatever to fit it.
DieterD says... #1
Dragonlord Atarka as an extra target for Nahiri?
September 8, 2016 8:08 a.m.