Mtg arena open beta

[me_in_japan]

Here’s an idea for a deck:

4 lukka
A bunch of ramp (only 1 or 2 drops.)
Something to give haste (rhythm of the wild?)
4 Ulamog.
Some removal.

Ramp, ramp, rhythm, lukka, Use lukka to sac a 2 drop then dig for ulamog.

Win.

[me_in_japan]

By the way, I was wondering if you’d have any interest in playing Mtg with actual cards over Zoom or something, some evening or weekend or whatever. Arena is fine for most stuff, but I’ve got a hankering for playing commander recently, and I’ve just built a new deck I’d like to use (no Sen Triplets or anything of that nature, so not to worry ) Would you be interested in such a thing? Or would it be too mendokusai?

[Primarch]

Here’s an idea for a deck:

4 lukka
A bunch of ramp (only 1 or 2 drops.)
Something to give haste (rhythm of the wild?)
4 Ulamog.
Some removal.

Ramp, ramp, rhythm, lukka, Use lukka to sac a 2 drop then dig for ulamog.

Win.

Sounds like a lot of fun. Between that and Gates/Mazes End, the Historic meta will be amazing.
/Sarcasm

By the way, I was wondering if you’d have any interest in playing Mtg with actual cards over Zoom or something, some evening or weekend or whatever.

Interested? Yes. Capable? No, not really. There is no space near the PC (desktop) for laying out cards, so I'd need to do it all on my phone, (if Zoom even works on phones). It would be impossible to see everything you had on the board. Sorry.

[me_in_japan]

Hmmn, well, that’s put a crimp on an otherwise damn fine plan Ah well - maybe it’ll all blow over soon and we can all go back to whatever the new normal is going to be?

Maybe?

No?

*shrug*

But moving back to Historic, I’m not sure that Maze’s End will be such a pain in the ass. I mean, we already have Fields of the Dead to deal with, and it’s not exactly busting up the meta. Maze’s End comes in tapped and needs to tap to search for a gate and trigger the wincon, so there’s a window there for an Assassin’s Trophy, Field of Ruin or Ghost Quarter to make its presence felt. It’s the kind of deck that encourages Bo3 play, as it’s super easy to sideboard against. Ulamog, I’ve realised, isn’t the super-eaty one with Annihilate. The Ceaseless Hunger just mills the pajamas out of you, which while bad, isn’t immediately game ending (you get a whole couple turns to deal with him ). Plus, there’s always that 1drop “screw you, eldrazi” card that I forget the name of*. Nobody ever played it in standard due to the distinct lack of eldritch fiend based action. Now, however, another one for the sideboard, methinks.

*edit - Infernal Reckoning. I looked it up...

[Primarch]

Oh I'm sure Gates/Mazes End won't be a great deck, but that won't stop the unwashed masses from filling up the queues with it.

[Primarch]

@M_i_J - I was playing with Koji and he was trying to build a Bo1 Standard deck around Quartzwood Crasher. As a spot of fun, would you mind brewing something up, playing a few games to tweak it, and then post it here? I'll do the same and then we can compare notes, and maybe see what Koji has made himself.

[me_in_japan]

Just saw this message. Gomen - yesterday was a humdinger of a day, and not in a good way. Should all be ok now, though I’ll have a shotty at deckbashing this evening once I’m home I actually ordered a quartzwood Crasher irl the other day. No real purpose other than it looks like a good value card for any kinda gruul-y deck.

[me_in_japan]

Ok, so here's my entry to the Quartzwood Challenge. It sits on a rather lowly 40% win ratio right now, out of 10 games played. In my defence, though, what kind of monster plays Lukka Fires (with Yorion companion) in the frickin' Play queue? Have you no honour, sir? Pfah!

Anyway, here's the list. When it goes right, it goes hilariously right. I was chucking out 11 mana in turn 5 one game, which led to 4 planeswalkers in play at once, and all kinds of nasty tramply beasties doing things. But that was a bit of an edge case. More usually, it just throws increasingly large creatures at them until they run out of kill spells or the Crasher turns up. On which note, I only have 2 crashers, so you could defo optimise this if you had more.

Deck
2 Quartzwood Crasher (IKO) 201
1 Castle Embereth (ELD) 239
4 Mountain (MIR) 346
4 Gruul Spellbreaker (RNA) 179
2 Rhythm of the Wild (RNA) 201
2 Domri, Anarch of Bolas (WAR) 191
2 Thrash // Threat (RNA) 229
1 Temple of Abandon (THB) 244
4 Stomping Ground (RNA) 259
4 Paradise Druid (WAR) 171
1 Vivien, Monsters' Advocate (IKO) 175
2 Embercleave (ELD) 120
2 Questing Beast (ELD) 171
2 Vivien, Arkbow Ranger (M20) 199
14 Forest (ANA) 60
2 Gilded Goose (ELD) 160
3 Proud Wildbonder (IKO) 229
1 End-Raze Forerunners (RNA) 124
3 Nissa, Who Shakes the World (WAR) 169
3 Lava Coil (GRN) 108
1 Storm's Wrath (THB) 157

Sideboard
2 Torbran, Thane of Red Fell (ELD) 147
2 Opportunistic Dragon (ELD) 133
2 Bonecrusher Giant (ELD) 115
1 Ilharg, the Raze-Boar (WAR) 133
2 Kogla, the Titan Ape (IKO) 162
2 Thrashing Brontodon (M20) 197
2 Cavalier of Thorns (M20) 167
2 Shifting Ceratops (M20) 194


The sideboard is there for Viv, who digs in it every now and again.

Thoughts?

[Primarch]

That deck certainly has a lot of big threats in it, along with a fair amount of ramp. I did consider Questing Beast and Embercleave myself, but went for something a little more basic in the end. Sadly the Bo1 Play queue isn't that casual a place to play. Lukka Fires with Yorion and Agent of Treachery is to be expected unfortunately.

Anyhoo, here is my attempt.
Deck
2 Rhythm of the Wild (RNA) 201
4 Collision // Colossus (RNA) 223
3 Gruul Locket (RNA) 234
2 Stomping Ground (RNA) 259
2 Dreadhorde Arcanist (WAR) 125
4 Domri's Ambush (WAR) 192
3 Season of Growth (M20) 191
4 Setessan Training (THB) 201
2 Temple of Abandon (THB) 244
2 Adventurous Impulse (IKO) 142
4 Almighty Brushwagg (IKO) 143
4 Gemrazer (IKO) 155
4 Quartzwood Crasher (IKO) 201
10 Mountain (IKO) 271
10 Forest (IKO) 274

I'm surprised to say that it has a 57% win rate out of 14 games. Maybe I have just had lucky match ups, but I've done ok with it in most games where the opponent didn't run multiple board wipes.

[me_in_japan]

Interesting list. Looking at it, I should probably consider more enchantments like setessan training. Also, how’s the brushwag working out for you? I considered it but ultimately went for bigger beasties because I figured a questing beast may be 4 mana, but then it’s done. The brushwag will eat you mana turn after turn. But, maybe the mana is available anyway?

FWIW, I did find my ramp package was getting hosed pretty regularly. People really don’t like goose/druids hitting the table. They’ll maybe tolerate one, but if both come down then it’s board-wipes a-go-go. It may be worth changing them out for cards that just let you play extra lands or something.

Also, interestingly, I found myself casting the Threat half of thrash/threat far more often than the thrash half, which is highly unusual for me.