Sunday, December 14, 2014

Featured Pauper Gauntlet Deck: Mono Black Land Destruction

A lot of interesting decks were submitted to the Pauper Gauntlet this year. In this series we will highlight some of the decks that we have the non-exclusive rights to publish here.

One of the early favorites of the Gauntlet turned out to be Mono Black Land Destruction by Negator. It is an excellent Land Destruction shell that can turn into a Mono Black Control deck against the deck lists that are not too vulnerable to Land Destruction (tradionally fast aggro decks run over LD decks).


The deck list

2 Barren Moor
20 Swamp

1 Basilica Screecher
4 Chittering Rats
1 Crypt Rats
4 Coumbajj Witches
4 Phyrexian Rager
1 Stinkweed Imp

4 Chainer's Edict
3 Choking Sands
4 Icequake
4 Rancid Earth
4 Sign in Blood
1 Disfigure
1 Grim Harvest
2 Tendrils of Corruption

Sideboard
1 Befoul
1 Crypt Rats
1 Distress
2 Duress
1 Font of Return
1 Gray Merchant of Asphodel
1 Nihil Spellbomb
1 Okiba-Gang Shinobi
1 Pristine Talisman
1 Read the Bones
1 Shrivel
1 Stinkweed Imp
1 Unmake
1 Victim of Night



General tips on playing the deck

Destroy Lands before attack phase, if they float mana go to the attack phase, they will have to use it up.

Destroy untapped lands first.

The deck takes the first mulligan well.

Cycle the Moor after you get 3 lands.

Stinkweed can be used to get Chainer's Edict and Grim Harvest to the graveyard,or better selection of creatures or Threshold.

If they miss a land drop, consider casting Chittering Rats before LD (Black Timewalk)

Blue causes lot of trouble, so I prefer to destroy blue producing mana if given a choice.

Destroy lands first, worry about threats later.

Sideboard Plan

Affinity
-3 Choking Sands, -4 Icequake, -4 Rancid Earth, -1 Grim Harvest, -1 Screecher
+2 Durress, +1 Distress +1 Okiba-Gang Shinobi, +1 Unmake, +1 Befoul, +1 Victim of Night, +1 Font of Return, +1 Gray Merchant, + 1 Read the Bones, +1 Talisman, +1 Imp, +1 Crypt Rats
If they are not playing Flayer Husk (or other 1 toughness creatures: - 1 Witches + 1 Spellbomb

AzoriusKitty
-1 Disfigure, -2 Tendrils of Corruption, - 3 Coumbajj Witches
+1 Okiba-Gang, +2 Duress, +1 Distress, +1 Font of Return, +1 Befoul

Burn (Worst Matchup)
-4 Edict, -3 Sign in Blood, -1 Grim Harvest, -1 Disfigure, -1 Stinkweed Imp
+1 Tallisman, +1 Gray Merchant, +2 Duress, +1 Distress, +1 Befoul, +1 Okiba-Gang Shinobi, +1 Read the Bones, +1 Spellbomb, +1 Crypt Rats

Elves
- 3 Choking Sands, -4 Icequake, -3 Rancid Earth
+1 Gray Merchant, +1 Shrivel, +1 Crypt Rats, +2 Duress (Armour, Melodies), +1 Distress, +1 Unmake, +1 Read the bones, +1 Talisman, + 1 Victim of Night

Delver
-3 Choking Sands, -4 Icequake, -4 Rancid Earth
+2 Durress, +1 Distress +1 Okiba-Gang Shinobi, +1 Unmake, +1 Shrivel, +1 Crypt Rats, +1 Victim of Night + 1 Font of Return, +1 Gray Merchant, +1 Stinkweed Imp

DelverFiend
-3 Choking Sands, -4 Icequake, -4 Rancid Earth
+2 Durress, +1 Distress +1 Shrivel, +1 Unmake, +1 Crypt Rats, +1 Victim of Night, +1 Font of Return, +1 Gray Merchant, +1 Talisman, +1 Read the bones

Exhume Control
-1 Disfigure, -2 Tendrils of Corruption, - 4 Coumbajj Witches
+1 Spellbomb, +2 Duress, +1 Befoul, +1 Distress, +1 Unmake, Victim of Night

Familiars
-1 Disfigure, -2 Tendrils, -1 Stinkweed Imp - 1 Grim Harvest,
+ 2 Durress, +1 Distress, +1 Befoul, +1 Read the bones, +1 Nihil Spellbomb

Goblins
-3 Choking Sands, -4 Icequake, -3 Rancid Earth (Goblin Caves)
+1 Gray Merchant, +1 Font of Return, +1 Shrivel, +1 Crypt Rats, +1 Victim of Night, +1 Okiba-Gang, +1 Spellbomb (Death Spark), +1 Duress, +1 Distress, +1 Talisman

Hexproof
-1Disfigure, -1 Grim Harvest, -3 Cuombajj Witches, -1 Tendrils
+1 Shrivel, +1 Crypt Rats, +2 Durress, +1 Befoul, +1 Imp

MBC
-2 Choking Sands (-3 Chokings Sands if you don't see non-basic lands in game 1), - 4 Cuombajj Witches, -1 Disfigure, -1 Stinkweed Imp
+1 Befoul, +2 Duress, +1 Distress, +1 Read the Bones,+1 Okiba-Gang Shinobi, +1 Font of Return, +1 Talisman

MUC
-1 Disfigure, -2 Tendrils of Corruption, - 3 Coumbajj Witches
+1 Okiba-Gang, +2 Duress, +1 Distress, +1 Font of Return, +1 Befoul

Resounding Thunder Treefolks
-4 Rancid Earth, -1 Disfigure, -1 Tendrils of Corruption, - 1 Coumbajj Witches
+1 Okiba-Gang, +1 Duress, +1 Distress, +1 Font of Return, +1 Befoul, +1 Spellbomb, +1 Read the Bones

Stompy
-3 Choking Sands, -4 Icequake, -4 Rancid Earth
+2 Durress, +1 Victim of Night +1 Shrivel, +1 Unmake, +1 Crypt Rats, +1 Victim of NIght, +1 Gray Merchant, +1 Talisman, +1 Distress, +1 Stinkweed Imp

UB Justice (Discard the Talisman)
-1 Disfigure, -4 Chainer's Edict, -1 Tendrils, - 3 Coumbajj Witches, -1 Stinkweed Imp
+1 Talisman, +1 Gray Merchant, +2 Duress, +1 Distress, +1 Befoul, +1 Okiba-Gang Shinobi, +1 Read the Bones, +1 Spellbomb, +1 Font of Return

TRON (RGU)
- 4 Witches, -1 Disfigure, -1 Crypt Rats, -1 Imp, -1 Tendrils -1 Screecher
+ 2 Durress, +1 Distress, +1 Befoul, +1 Read the bones, +1 Font of Return, +1 Tallisman, +1 Okiba-Gang, +1 Spellbomb

TRON (Mono Blue Faeries)
-2 Tendrils, -1 Stinkweed Imp, -1 Screecher, -1 Grim Harvest
+ 2 Durress, +1 Distress, +1 Befoul, +1 Read the bones, +1 Okiba-Gang

Zoo
-2 Witches, - 1 Disfigure -1 Screecher
+1 Crypt Rats, +1 Befoul, +1 Imp +1 Victim's Night

Aggro (Where LD is too slow)
-3 Choking Sands, -4 Icequake, -3 Rancid Earth
+1 Crypt Rats, +2 Durress, +1 Distress, +1 Okiba-Gang Shinobi, +1 Unmake, +1 Shrivel, +1 Victim of NIght, +1 Talisman, +1 Gray Merchant

Control
- 4 Cuombajj Witches, -1 Disfigure, -1 Tendrils, -1 Crypt Rats
+ 2 Durress, +1 Distress, +1 Befoul, +1 Read the bones +1 Font of Return, +1 Talisman


The Pauper Gauntlet
What is the Pauper Gauntlet? 
http://mtgolibrary.blogspot.com/2014/08/the-pauper-gauntlet.html

Full list of the 77 Pauper Gauntlet decks for the second season: 

6 comments:

  1. Hi,

    I ran this deck yesterday and it was pure gravy :). Although I did get trounced once by goblins but hey, you cant win them all.

    I wanted to know, instead of running 20 swamps, would the deck be helped by taking out the screecher and a swamps for 2 bokuja bogs?

    With treasure cruise running rampant, all they need is one island to possibly get back in it. Additionally, having that third land drop is crucial in not falling behind

    ReplyDelete
  2. Hi Neon,

    thanks for trying out the deck. The deck list above is quite dated, it was put together for the Pauper Gauntlet, which was before Treasure Cruise was around.

    Since them i have made following two changes:
    +1 Dark Ritual - 1 Screecher
    +1 Victim of Night - 1 Disfigure

    The Screecher was an experiment to help against Burn (Worst Matchup) and to combat Faeries, Squaks. Victim of Night was added to help the matchup vs Affinity which seems to be very popular these days.

    You hit a nail on the head with your comment: "With treasure cruise running rampant, all they need is one island to possibly get back in it." I have been experiencing the same thing, and this is the reason MBC is not #1 deck anymore. Maybe it will get banned, and we won't have to worry about it. I think the best answer to TC is Memory Lapse, but that's not Black. There are some cards that help like Duress, Distress, and Spellbomb, but I feel these are just not good enough.

    Try running the two Bogs and let me know if it helped. Take out the Screecher, but instead of the Swamp take out one Barren Moor.

    I feel Bogs are good in deck with Karoo lands, where you can play the Bog multiple times. In this deck I prefer Spellbomb.

    Also, the Prestine Talisman could be changed to something else in the sideboard. It was there for Burn, but I have pretty much given up on the matchup with Burn. I lose 8/10 times to it, and I am starting to think it's not worth dedicating any SB spots specifically for it.

    Good Luck, and have fun blowing up lands, expecially the Karoo ones.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Do you keep an updated list on the web somewhere for future videos?

      Thanks again for a fantastic brew, Mario!

      Delete
  3. Hi Dan,
    my new year resolution is to break my addiction to MTGO. I have been successful so far as I am yet to log on this year. The last change I made to the main deck is: +1 Dark Ritual - 1 Screecher, and
    +1 Victim of Night - 1 Disfigure.
    In the sideboard Pristine Talisman can be changed for something as well. I have been very impressed in how effective Oubliette is vs Stompy when I watched the Pauper's Gauntlet's match vs PowerTs BR deck.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. What do you think of the stupid brokenness of Treasure Cruise in the Delver and UR lists? That should really bad bad news for our beloved deck

      Delete
  4. The Delve mechanic in general is a problem for this deck. We are trying to deny our opponent lands so they can not cast spells, but when they can cast spells without having lands, that is a problem. And of course Treasure Cruise is the worst because they can just get into more lands.
    There was an excellent article by Alex U, how the TC has lead to the downfall of grindy decks like MBC and the rise of decks like Familiars that used to be kept in check by MBC. The good news about this is that in an environment full of Familiars this deck is good as it has a very good matchup vs Familars.
    I was sure that TC was going to be banned in Pauper, since it was recently banned in all the other formats, but that didn't happen in Pauper, I don't understand why.

    ReplyDelete