G/R Devotion Isn't Dead!
Standard forum
Posted on March 17, 2014, 10:22 p.m. by InnerFlame
I was on the site earlier scrolling through forums when I cam upon someone asking if G/R was competitive in standard. As I scrolled through the comments I soon came upon one that said G/R Monsters was popular but G/R Devotion has fallen off the radar and isn't as good anymore. G/R ISN'T DEAD!!!!! This kind of angered me. I play a very successful G/R Devotion deck G/R Devotion(Possible Turn 3 and Turn 5 Win). It plays five drops on turn 3 and has gotten 32 mana available on turn 8 with 13 creatures, 2 Planeswalkers, and Polukranos a 18/18 on the battlefield. How is this dead?
Thoughts on G/R Devotion being dead?
InnerFlame says... #4
You don't have to Over extend yourself. It;s getting a big creature out fast. My games don't usually make it past turn 8. So they might not even have drawn it, might not have the mana, or may be in to big of a whole for it to matter. And you can still Monstrosity creatures. But it's still devotion at the core.
March 17, 2014 10:41 p.m.
InnerFlame says... #6
You can doomblade anything without hexproof and non black! Sorry...I hate that saying. That a risky bodes against monstrosity and for devotion since devotion gets out more creatures.
My real question here is why is G/R monsters chosen over G/R devotion. Or why people think it's dead.
March 17, 2014 11:43 p.m.
InnerFlame says... #7
And take out risky in that above comment..on my phone.
March 17, 2014 11:45 p.m.
Servo_Token says... #8
People think that it's dead because the pros have shifted from it.
It isn't favored over GR Monsters because it has no presence after a board wipe, and it relys too heavily on many things being out. With Bile Blight in the format, people got scared to play it. Monsters just puts up better threats.
March 17, 2014 11:46 p.m.
MattTheNinja says... #9
I completely agree with you Invisible_Stalker! I run a G/R deck at my LGS (The Beasts of Xenarruk) and regularly get 3rd place or better, and my meta is filled with U/W and Esper control with a few MRD and MBD decks. It is definitely not dead, but there are some more consistent decks around in standard right now and people just tend to flock to those because its something they see is doing good in competitive.
March 17, 2014 11:46 p.m.
Schuesseled says... #10
Your deck G/R Devotion(Possible Turn 3 and Turn 5 Win) looks like a G/R monsters deck to me. I'm not entirely sure what this topic is about.
March 18, 2014 6:59 a.m.
InnerFlame says... #11
Schuesseled: It has monsters in it yes, but it's a devotion deck at the core. It heavily relys on on using devotion for nykthos shrine. That's why I have 4 of them and 4 Voyaging Satyr . It also has burning tree which helps my devotion out a ton. And then Xenagos, God of Revels require devtion even though it's not needed. All that makes it a devotion deck, correct?
The topic is why are people saying monsters are so much better than G/R devotion. And even going as far to say G/R devotion is dead.
March 18, 2014 9:47 a.m.
Schuesseled says... #12
For the same reasons I suspect that you are using Polukranos, World Eater instead of Fanatic of Mogis , The devotion mechanic relies on over-extension, it's nice to have when the board state is in your favour, and essentially useless at any other time.
nykthos and xenagos, are great for either deck, as they both have value even if the devotion count is zero.
March 18, 2014 4:32 p.m.
ChrisHansonBiomancin says... #13
There's a pretty fine line between GR Monsters and Devotion, but the biggest difference is probably Burning-Tree Emissary -fueled starts for the Devotion decks. With Bile Blight and Drown in Sorrow being things now, BTE is way too risky to play (I replaced it with Courser of Kruphix in my GU deck once BNG came out for that very reason). But without BTE, the odds of a fast start for Devotion decks goes way down. Since Monsters has more high-value threats and thus can better recover from Supreme Verdict , it has become the preferred variation of GR. Devotion can still hang, but be careful about dumping all your BTE's at once.
March 18, 2014 4:43 p.m.
InnerFlame says... #14
Schuesseled: You bring up a good point. Outside of the first five turns I am over extending to try and keep up and boost my mana. I chose not to use Fanatic of Mogis though because I want to keep my devotion one sided so that I can produce more mana. In this case I am devoting to green, not red. If I was G/R devotion sided towards red then I would for sure have him in there! I just think I don't have enough red to make him worth it and if I add more red I won't be able to produce enough mana.
March 18, 2014 4:47 p.m.
InnerFlame says... #15
ChrisHansonBiomancin: Yeah black gives me fits. I can usually protect myself against blue and esper by not over extending. But Black gets rid of my ramps and devotion creatures like BTE so it slows my deck down a ton. Still working on that. I do have Courser of Kruphix ...well, had. I had two and took out 1 so I could add more planeswalkers so I can draw more. I still like taking the chances with Burning-Tree Emissary though since it essentially plays for 0 and gives me red if I don't have it by just playing it or tapping Nykthos, Shrine to Nyx . And if I get two in my opening hand with a Nykthos, Shrine to Nyx it could be over pretty quickly since I can essentially play anyhting I want to after that.
I guess another question I need to have answered to end my rant is, is my deck devotion or monsters? I rely on devotion heavily but have a lot of monsters.
March 18, 2014 4:54 p.m.
InnerFlame says... #17
Okay. I can accept that. That could be good..right? lol
Thinking about changing the name. Any suggestions guys? All I got is "Devote Yourself To Revelry."
March 18, 2014 5:03 p.m.
Rasta_Viking29 says... #18
Invisible_Stalker your deck is definitely G/R Devotion. The decks have a lot of similar cards but do play differently. Devotion runs off of synergy and Monsters has a higher power level. In a standard environment with Thoughtseize , Supreme Verdict , and Bile Blight strategies that rely on synergy can be easily disrupted. In the competitive tournaments you will see a higher density of these spells. Cards such as Burning-Tree Emissary and Voyaging Satyr are support cards with low power levels. If they are removed you will have a hard time putting threats on the board or if your threats are Thoughtsiezed you will have a hard time pressuring the opponent. Monsters devotes more of it's 75 to power cards and thus is more resilient to these common occurrences in the competitive meta and can pressure the opponent with less commitment to the board.
March 18, 2014 6:10 p.m.
InnerFlame says... #19
Rasta_Viking29 That makes a lot of sense. I guess I was taught synergy is important for a deck so I always hold it high.
March 18, 2014 6:42 p.m.
InnerFlame says... #20
Does Garruk, Caller of Beasts heel be out against things such as Supreme Verdict and Detention Sphere
Jay says... #2
Supreme Verdict
March 17, 2014 10:32 p.m.