Red Deck Wins

[John Galli]

Even though I'm the king of last minute waffling, I'm pretty sure I'm going to play kbr's winning list almost card for card (possibly 70 of his 75)-
www.wizards.com/Magic/Digital/MagicOnlineTourn.aspx?x=mtg/digital/magiconline/tourn/5264065

Even though land screw is a serious risk with these builds, they are so explosive. I tested bigger red builds online the last two days and while powerful in their own respects they give too much time to these bastard midrange and rites decks. This kbr build not only won a PTQ, but variations have won dailies and the few times I've played it its belched monstrous openings on the table. It has a lot of power; firefist striker is surprisingly insane, making centaur healers and augurs all of a sudden meaningless.

Brimstone Volley provides excellent reach, but I know on 20 lands it can be tough to cast at times from my experience. I may only run 3, unsure.

[John Galli]

Mono Red wins another PTQ-

4/22/13 (Evan C, Standard PTQ MTGO) (not sure how he beats Azorious Charm!)

Main Deck
60 cards

20 Mountain
20 lands

4 Ash Zealot
4 Boros Reckoner
4 Burning-Tree Emissary
4 Firefist Striker
2 Hellrider
1 Legion Loyalist
2 Lightning Mauler
2 Pyreheart Wolf
4 Rakdos Cackler
2 Stonewright
4 Stromkirk Noble
33 creatures

1 Brimstone Volley
3 Madcap Skills
3 Volcanic Strength
7 other spells

Sideboard
4 Curse of the Pierced Heart
2 Flames of the Firebrand
4 Pillar of Flame
1 Pyreheart Wolf
4 Skullcrack
15 sideboard cards

[John Galli]

Went 4-0 at the Win-a-box tonight, got 2nd on tie breaks although the store owner was nice and hooked me up with a little extra since it was just my OMW that did me in. Played the following:

4 Stromkirk Noble
4 Rakdos Cackler
2 Stonewright
4 Ash Zealot
3 Lightning Mauler
4 Pyreheart Wolf
4 Hellrider
2 Thundermaw Hellkite

3 Brimstone Volley
4 Searing Spear
4 Pillar of Flame

22 Mountain

Sideboard
4 Reckless Waif
3 Boros Reckoner
3 Skullcrack
3 Mizzium Mortars
2 Electrickery

Round 1 vs Paul with Bant Auras

Game 1 he had invisible stalker but got stuck on 2 lands. I had a very aggressive curve out draw. Sadly he had 3 rancor and killed me the turn before I could kill him with him at 2 life.

Game 2 I overloaded electrickery to kill his stalker and his voice of resurgence token and burned out all his pilgrims keeping him off the mana to do anything relevant. Game 3 I overloaded electrickery in response to him trying to spectral flight his stalker. I then control the tempo with a skullcrack and two searing spears. Electrickery is GOOD.

Round 2 vs Mike with Junk Tokens
Game 1 I battle through 2 sorins and 2 midnight hauntings but get overrun by a gavony townshiped lifelinking team of intangible virtued up tokens including a lingering souls + flashback. Game 2 I open aggressively, kill all his guys with the removal I boarded in, then drop a hellrider and a thundermaw on his head. Game 3 I can't really remember but I know I got ahead and I think I had burn spells to close it out.

Round 3 vs Michael with Azorious Aggro

As always we have a close match. Game 1 is a race but he has 2 early 2/1 birds and a geist followed up by 2 of the 3/1 detain birds. Game 2 I kill all his relevant guys, electrickery and mortars paving a path with an aggressive start and a large stromkirk + burn get there. Game 3 I kill a sublime archangel that I largely expected since I've played Michael so many times, and he floods a bit while I overload on guys.

Round 4 vs Jeff with GR Aggro

Game 1 we have a fantastic match, we both carefully play around each others cards, holding burn for certain expected plays. Probably one of the best aggro games I've had in a long time. Fortunately my second hellrider puts him down (finally won a game 1!). Game 2 an early burning-tree puts him ahead on board state and I can't do much to catch up even with burn spells and hellrider in hand. Game 3 I open very aggressively to his slower hand, with Reckoner and hellrider causing him to not be able to use his burn profitably. He plays a domri rade to try and dig for answers, whiffs twice and can't deal with Reckoner having to shock a land into play to put him at 3 life.

[John Galli]

Played again tonight in the standard tourney at I'm bored. Started off 3-0 (6-0 in games) and lost the last round in 3 games. Played same list as last night except I cut the reckless waifs in the board for a fourth Reckoner, a fourth mortars, a fourth skullcrack, and a third electrickery.

Round 1 vs Richard with Bant Flash
Can't remember a whole lot about this match, all three of my first rounds were done in 10 minutes or so. He had an augur, some verdicts, advent of the wurm, etc, but I curved out both times and had plenty of burn for his guys. Pyreheart was the allstar, surviving verdicts in both games and enabling lethal attacks.

Round 2 vs Dusty playing RDW splash white (my 75 that I sent him earlier in the week)

Typical hilarious no skill game 1. We both played one drops into ash zealot into searing spears into double hellrider. I was on the play and that's all that really mattered. Game 2 we boarded about exactly as expected. I brought in mortars and reckoners for my pyrehearts, 2 stonewrights and 2 cacklers. After we talked and we both considered electrickery but decided against it since most of the time post board a lot of one drops are sided out. He didn't have quite as many mortars as me in the board and his reckoners were main (since he has Boros charm) so he brought in a few volcanic strength and traitorous bloods which is what I would have done too. I searing speared an ash zealot when I correctly anticipated a volcanic strength and that pretty much sealed the deal on the match.

Round 3 vs Blaine Esper Aggro

Relatively new deck being talked about by Jackie Lee on TCG Player. Has all the exalted 2 drops, geist, spectral flight, etc. Unfortunately for him mono red is just a lot faster and I can burn out everybody but geist. Game 2 electrickery enabled me to have an extremely large tempo crush and I took it quickly with an ash zealot and a large stromkirk.

Round 4 vs Sean Junk Tokens

Game 1 was insane. I had everything you could want, tons of guys, tons of burn, double hellrider into thundermaw, you name it. He had double abrupt decay, double tragic slip, double putrefy, call of the conclave, and more and more guys. I think we both thought we were in the twilight zone. Got him down to 5 before he got me.

Game 2 I open with Kirk into zealot, double pillar two voice of resurgence, overload an electrickery to kill midnight haunting tokens that he flashed into combat, and then hellrider.

Game 3 I have a fairly mediocre hand but keepable with no one drop. He has a strong opening of virtue into call of the conclave into lingering souls and I flood out (9 lands).

[John Galli]

3-1 tonight at Mox, 5th out of about 25. Same list as Wednesday-

Round 1 vs Greg with BUG Evolve

This wasn't really a match, he's a young casual player and he didnt have much to play in the first three or four turns and I had double stromkirk both games plus burn. Won it handily 2-0.

Round 2 vs (new guy) with R/W Aggro

I overload with guys both games, curving out into hellrider. Also have burn for all his guys including silverblade paladin which was about the only real threat. Won 2-0.

Round 3 vs Mike T. with UWR Midrange

Game 1 I have early aggression with cackler into ash zealot into mauler, but am then slowed down by a Reckoner and burn even though I do him a chunk of damage and kill a Ralph zarek. I followup with pyrehearts, hellrider, and thundermaw but he has a boatload of removal, double restoration angel, and a thundermaw of his own to seal it. Game 2 I have a mediocre hand and he kills my early guys followed by geist into resto, into thundermaw and its over fast. Lost 0-2. We played 4-5 more sideboard games after and it was about 50-50. My board here was minimal, basically just bringing in skullcracks which probably needs to change. Mike went on to win the tournament.

Round 4 vs Mike with Junk Tokens

Game 1 I have typical curve out and he has a selesnya charm token into lingering souls into some more dudes. I am able to get him just barely before he can get me. Game 2 I have a nuts draw of Kirk into burn into pyreheart into hellrider into thundermaw. He doesn't have much but just enough to keep pace. I get him to 1 with an advent of the wurm token and me at 8 life. He then double Druid's deliverances and hits me for 15. Game 3 he misplays the wrong land on turn 2 holding may of the same cards as the previous game and I topdeck a thundermaw for lethal on turn 5. Won 2-1.

[Travis Lannoye]

Who's this Ralph Zarek? Any relation to this guy?

[John Galli]

My auto-correct decided to go fix it Felix on that one

Won Gameday yesterday, went 3-0, ID'd into top 8, then won my next 3 rounds to take it down. 16-2 overall this week with red deck in tournament play and 31 packs won, not bad for a little baby budget deck.

4 Stromkirk Noble
4 Rakdos Cackler
2 Stonewright
4 Ash Zealot
3 Rakdos Shredfreak
4 Pyreheart Wolf
4 Hellrider
2 Thundermaw Hellkite

3 Brimstone Volley
4 Searing Spear
4 Pillar of Flame

22 Mountain

Sideboard
4 Boros Reckoner
4 Mizzium Mortars
3 Electrickery
2 Skullcrack
2 Traitorous Blood

Round 1 vs Jack with Junk Rites

Game 1 I have a slow opener with stonewright, burn, no 2 drop, pyreheart and hellrider. He has a strong reanimator open using grisly salvage to enable a turn 4 or 5 unburial rites into angel of serenity. He adds some more guys to the fray and has a vault of the archangel out. It looks all but over and I'm almost ready to scoop but he's at five life so I stay patient. He swings in with too many guys, doesn't activate vault instead electing to play another creature, and forgets about the pyreheart trigger. I swing back for lethal. Game 2 he loads up the board quickly with voice of resurgence thragtusk and restoration angel against my otherwise aggressive start. I bonehead misplay and cast burn during his turn triggering voice to give him a free 5/5. Scoop from there. Game 3 I'm on the play and I kill him on turn 4 before he can get anything online.

Round 2 vs JR with Mono White Aggro

Both games I burn out all his guys and overrun him with zealots and hellriders. He also gets stuck on two lands game 1 which doesn't help an already backwards battle.

Round 3 vs PAT KENEALY with omniscience rites woo brew

Unfortunately Pat and I have to play, I can't remember the details too well. I think game 1 Pat you were able to get an omniscience into play but were hoping for something better like angel of serenity. Both games went by quickly, I think pat had some good cards in the yard in game 2 but was stuck on lands or something. We played a few more after and I won most of them but there was one fun game where Pat got triple angel of serenity in play and a dinova horror to bounce my land AND gave them all haste LOL. Yep I died in that one.

Round 4 vs Michael with Azorious Aggro

We ID'd, both of us have played each other a lot and there was no point in risking it with what can be a fairly close matchup (mostly due to geist).

Top 8

Semifinals vs Chris with Jund

Game 1 I'm stuck on 2 lands but I play 2-3 one drops and 2 two drops to apply immense beats. He has maybe one removal spell and finally a garruk primal hunter. He fails to draw a thragtusk off of it though and three searing spears put the nail in the coffin. Game 2 I curve out and he gets stuck on lands with I believe only a huntmaster to serve as a temporary roadblock.

Quarterfinals vs Michael with Azorious Aggro

I can't remember much of this match, I had plenty of burn for his guys both games and applied a lot of pressure. Won it pretty handily. He did have a silverglade paladin bond with a geist angel token which was a scary moment, but I had the win in hand on my turn.

Finals vs Jeff with RG Aggro

Game 1 I curve out and burn off his guys, and have a pyreheart wolf followed by a hellrider to ensure there will be no coming back.

Game 2 was interesting. I played removal on his first 3 creatures, and had guys attacking. He plays a fourth creature (I think his third flinthoof boar). I have a Reckoner, a Hellrider, and a Searing Spear in hand. I was at 10 life and he has 2 cards in hand. I elect to play hellrider and hit him for 10, putting him at 6 thinking that there's almost no way he has lethal unless he has the straight nuts (given what he'd already played) and would have to use any removal spells on hellrider. I probably should have speared his boar, as he punishes me with double ghor clan for the win. Game 3 I curve out into hellrider with thundermaw in hand and have burn for all his blockers.

Sideboarding is always a little bit based on what I see, but mostly it was like this-

RG Aggro/Mirror
-4 Pyreheart, -3 Shredfreak, -1 Cackler
+4 Boros Reckoner, +4 Mortars
(Not enough little guys here to justify electrickery especially post board and although pyreheart can be good I need to mind the curve and Reckoner is far superior. Post board having 15 removal spells really helps me control the tempo until I can get to hellrider and thundermaw)

Junk Rites
Usually - 1 Mountain and brimstones and/or shredfreaks
+3 Electrickery, +2 Traitorous blood
(Minimal boarding here. The key is killing mana dorks/lingering souls, speed, pyreheart wolf to push damage past thragtusk, and options for if you get angel of serenity'd. Tormod's crypt was a consideration to fight off he turn 4 unburial rites but if you draw it after they cast rites as opposed to traitorous blood which is always live)

Jund
Usually -some shredfreaks and stonewrights for traitorous blood and Reckoner
(Tragic slip and pillar are annonying here, but the plan is similar to what it is against junk rites with the exception that they don't have mana dorks)

UWR
Very dependent on their build, not a lot of good board options. Skullcrack (for sphinx's rev) and traitorous blood (for Reckoner/Aurelia) is usually the plan, but I'm still trying to figure this out. Boros Charm out of the board with the white lands might be an option as Andy has mentioned that card is very influential in this matchup.

Skullcracks are also for the random Turbo fog matchups and electrickery helps with tokens, bant auras, and naya blitz.

[John Galli]

Went 3-1 last night, finishing up a one-week run of 5 tournaments, 19-3 round record, and 36 Packs won. Wooooot

[JediCheese]

While doing research for John's article (sorry, still working on it), it seems that Voice of Resurgance isn't a may ability Rakdos Charm FTW!

I'm now going to stomp all over those Bant players

Is Reckoner SB still or have you put it in the main? I would think it's just too awesome to leave as SB material.

[John Galli]

@rakdos Charm - how are you creating enough tokens for value?

@bant Players - they lose handily most of the time. Pyreheart Wolf and Traitorous Blood ftw!

@reckoner - He's gone back and forth a fair amount, mostly I prefer Pyreheart Wolf. Pyreheart is significantly better in the Junk Reanimator, Bant, Naya, and Jund matchups where you want to curve into their Thragtusk and then just attack around it for the last few points of damage. Reckoner is able to get by Thragtusk but he doesn't enable your whole team to. In the less blitzkriegy version of RDW (essentially what I play and what almost no one else plays), you need the value more than the raw power / speed. He is also randomly awesome against Supreme Verdict if your opponent decided to ignore him with their earlier removal.

In the aggro matchups and several other ones Reckoner is just strictly way better. Especially against Junk Aristocrats where you want either him or him and the Act combo.

Chandra's Phoenix going forward will be in hot contention though with both of these cards.

My current list is in flux, I'm trying some things out. My pre-M14 list right now that I'm testing-

4 Stromkirk Noble
4 Rakdos Cackler
2 Stonewright
4 Ash Zealot
4 Rakdos Shredfreak
4 Pyreheart Wolf
4 Hellrider

4 Brimstone Volley
4 Searing Spear
4 Pillar of Flame

22 Mountain

Sideboard
4 Skullcrack
4 Mizzium Mortars
3 Traitorous Blood
2 Bonfire of the Damned
2 Electrickery

[JediCheese]

Go burn heavy. Skullcrack + Searing Spear end of their turn + Rakdos Charm during their upkeep = at least 10 damage if they only have a voice in play (unlikely if they are playing Voice, you'll likely do more like 12+ because they've played some other creatures). I view it like Grapeshot/storm, if you can blitz out a massive instant volley of damage.

You will have to finish them off that turn else you'll die to the attack.

[John Galli]

So I've been testing some off variants and having a variety of interesting games. Then this morning I see the following article which is right in line with what I was testing and shores up some of the issues I was having. I tested a few games (not a huge sample) and it already seems straight up awesome.

www.starcitygames.com/article/26513_Burning-Earth.html

Btw, Burning Earth is NUTSO. Every game I got this in play against any deck using a few colors was just a gigantic hose that they couldn't deal with.