FNM - First Time Playing Modern
Modern Deck Help forum
Posted on April 18, 2023, 9:04 p.m. by lespaul977
Hi everyone!
My friend asked me to come along with him to Friday Night Magic this week, and the LGS is running Modern as the format. I’ve never played Modern before and am a little nervous since I know it is very competitive (I normally play casual kitchen table Magic).
Since I think it is my best deck, I’ll be running A Goblin, a Giant, and a Dwarf Walk into a Bar, which is a modified Mono Red Aggro Challenger deck. Since I’ve only ever played casually, I’ve never built a sideboard before. I tried putting one together, but I’m not sure if it’s any good and I still have one slot open.
Any and all advice on deck changes that would help it fit the format better would be much appreciated. Also, if anyone has any experiences or advice about playing FNM that you’d like to share, I’d appreciate that as well. I’ve only played a Standard format FNM once about 10 years ago in a different city and am not entirely sure what to expect.
Thank you in advance for your help! Cheers!
lespaul977 says... #3
FormOverFunction, thank you so much for sharing your experience with me. I’ll be sure to report back once everything is said and done.
April 18, 2023 9:42 p.m.
wallisface says... #4
Something to be aware of, is that Modern is a format where being able to pilot a deck well matters more than the deck you’re actually running. Expect to lose quite a lot of games until you get a handle on how to not-only pilot your chosen deck to the best of its ability, but also be able to accurately threat-assess what your opponents are doing and be able to most effectively disrupt their plans.
As far as the deck itself, it seems mostly fine, and shouldn’t perform too poorly. If you’re hoping to upgrade it over time to a more modern-competitive build, it most closely resembles Mono-Red Obosh Midrange, so i’d suggest making changes to get your list slowly more in-line with that deck (that deck-list also has a really high win ratio, fwiw).
April 18, 2023 10:03 p.m.
lespaul977 says... #5
wallisface, thank you for the advice. I’ve played this deck quite a few times with my friends, but strictly in a casual setting. I’m sure the more I play in the format, I’ll be able to better judge my opponent and whatever situation is in front of me.
Also, that deck looks really cool. Thank you for sharing!
April 18, 2023 10:13 p.m.
Squee_Spirit_Guide says... #6
I haven't played competitively in a while, but when I did I got a lot of mileage out of Damping Sphere and Crumble to Dust out of the board. Granted, I was playing Scapeshift and kept coming up against tron... But both are cheap and hopefully pretty easy to pick up if they match the meta!
April 18, 2023 10:35 p.m.
lespaul977 says... #7
Squee_Spirit_Guide, those look like some cool cards. I’m not sure what the local meta looks like, but I’ll see if I can pick them up ahead of the game. Thank you!
April 18, 2023 10:50 p.m.
As someone who plays modern at FNM every week, and used to be a newbie, expect to lose. After losing, ask for advice on how you played, and what you lines your opponent thinks you had to win.
April 19, 2023 11:21 a.m.
psionictemplar says... #9
I would like to start by saying that by I am guessing you are not intending to participate in these settings very often. With that consideration in mind I am also guessing that you probably do not intend to spend a considerable amount of money to acquire upgrades, so I will attempt to keep my suggestions relatively cheap but useful. First upgrade I will suggest is removing all the creatures you currently have in the sideboard since I don't really think they give you any noticable benefit over what you currently run. In their place I will suggest a couple copies of Akroma, Angel of Fury as a late game beater against the white removal decks and decks with counterspells. My 2nd quality of life suggestion is changing the copy of stone rain to Molten Rain since the mana cost isn't an issue and it gives you an additional source of damage (4 if you count torbran). I recommend upping the count on these to 3 so that you are more likely to draw one when it is more relevant, using the slots no longer being used by the sb creatures. My final suggestion would be to increase the copies of abrade in the side to either 3 or 4 and add a couple Pithing Needle by cutting the copies of thundering rebuke/soul sear for them.
April 19, 2023 11:22 a.m.
lespaul977 says... #10
Thank you psionictemplar for the great suggestions! Some of these cards should be easy enough for me to get from my LGS. I appreciate you taking the time to look at my sideboard! Cheers!
April 19, 2023 12:19 p.m.
lespaul977 says... #11
Epidilius, thank you for the advice. I fully expect to have my rear end handed to me on a silver platter, and I hope my opponents and other attendees will be willing to share constructive feedback with me. Thank you very much!
April 19, 2023 12:24 p.m.
This thread was moved to a more appropriate forum (auto-generated comment)
April 19, 2023 2:04 p.m.
lespaul977 says... #13
Hey everyone! Just wanted to give you all an update on how things went at FNM. I lost all of my games against my first two opponents (the first played a Necrotic Ooze infinite combo deck, and the other played an Izzy aggro deck). However, most of those games were very close. I ended up winning two out of three against my last opponent (who was playing a Boros aggro) and was able to chalk up a win.
Everyone was really friendly and had excellent suggestions for improving. One of the main critiques I got was that mono-red aggro decks need to have all their spells cost less than 3, and Torbran, Thane of Red Fell plays too slow for Modern. I got some good card recommendations, and I had so much fun I might go back for more!
Thank you all for your suggestions and advice! It was a big help, and I’m grateful that you all helped prep me for the event. Cheers!
April 21, 2023 11:28 p.m.
Squee_Spirit_Guide says... #14
That's fantastic! I'm so glad to hear you had fun and got some great suggestions!
FormOverFunction says... #2
My experience with FNM is extremely limited, as I was exclusively a kitchen table player as well (pre-EDH). When I did play I went a similar aggro red route (or RG) and had a lot of fun. I piloted the deck a lot, as it was simple, and didn’t bother with a sideboard. If your kitchen table experience is only with two or three specific people then it might be challenging (potentially) but in general I think you’re going to have a good time. Let us know though, and we can do a full debrief!!
April 18, 2023 9:12 p.m.