Pauper League Highlights – October 18

Posted byAlex UllmanPosted inPauperTags:, , ,

The league results went live a little later than usual

2 Prismatic Strands 2 Ancient Den 1 Great Furnace 2 Guardian of the Guildpact 4 Lightning Bolt 4 Squadron Hawk 3 Galvanic Blast 4 Kor Skyfisher 3 Brainstorm 4 Thraben Inspector 4 Sacred Cat 1 Navigator's Compass 2 Mountain 2 Dawnbringer Cleric 4 Experimental Synthesizer 4 Basilisk Gate 4 Citadel Gate 4 Cliffgate 1 Heap Gate 1 Sea Gate 2 Bitter Reunion 2 Plains Sideboard 3 Pyroblast 3 Dust to Dust 1 Red Elemental Blast 1 Electrickery 2 Hydroblast 1 Seal of Cleansing 1 Dawnbringer Cleric 2 Breath Weapon 1 Campfire

Let’s start off with this take on Jeskai Gates. This deck is wild and I worry it’s trying to do too much. While it has a ton of way to generate artifacts I worry it is not enough to support Galvanic Blast. I wonder if moving to an Ash Barrens mana base and moving some cards around could support Unholy Heat as a secondary removal spell. I also am not the biggest fan of Navigator’s Compass in general but I can see the utility in a heavy red metagame.

4 Ninja of the Deep Hours 4 Spellstutter Sprite 3 Mutagenic Growth 4 Snap 3 Faerie Seer 4 Faerie Miscreant 4 Of One Mind 3 Brinebarrow Intruder 18 Snow-Covered Island 1 Lose Focus 4 Counterspell 4 Moon-Circuit Hacker 2 Spell Pierce 2 Snaremaster Sprite Sideboard 1 Steel Sabotage 4 Blue Elemental Blast 1 Dispel 3 Jace's Phantasm 2 Hydroblast 4 Annul

There’s nothing special about this Faeries list but I want to talk about the sideboard. Jace’s Phantasm is an inspired choice as a way to fight against all the Tolarian Terror/Cryptic Serpent decks running around. An early Phantasm can get out of hand quickly. While this strategy might not work as well against Dimir and Izzet stripes, the Phantasm can apply real pressure to the mono-blue versions of the deck.

2 Swamp 8 Island 1 Dimir Aqueduct 2 Agony Warp 4 Snuff Out 2 Bojuka Bog 3 Preordain 1 Drown in Sorrow 4 Brainstorm 1 Chainer's Edict 2 Spell Pierce 2 Murmuring Mystic 4 Augur of Bolas 1 Suffocating Fumes 2 Cast Down 2 Thorn of the Black Rose 4 Counterspell 2 Ponder 2 Maestros Theater 3 Tolarian Terror 4 Contaminated Aquifer 4 Lorien Revealed Sideboard 2 Nihil Spellbomb 4 Blue Elemental Blast 1 Drown in Sorrow 2 Chainer's Edict 1 Murmuring Mystic 1 Hydroblast 1 Suffocating Fumes 2 Unexpected Fangs 1 Thorn of the Black Rose

I love what Beicodegeia is doing here. Slowing down the Dimir Terror shell to be a more true control deck, this list leans more into the removal available in black and the late game power of Murmuring Mystic and Thorn of the Black Rose to slam the door after biding time early. I do wonder if this deck has enough to stymie the red decks but the pilot here is one of the best Pauper players right now so I’m inclined to believe it’s a solid choice.

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Published by Alex Ullman

Alex Ullman has been playing Magic since 1994 (he thinks). Since 2005, he's spent most of his time playing and exploring Pauper. One of his proudest accomplishments was being on the winnings side of the 2009 Community Cup. He makes his home in Brooklyn, New York, where he was born and raised.

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