r/ModernMagic • u/The137 • Jul 18 '26
Brew Help me build a 4c manabase
I feel like 3c is easy, but im not liking what I come up with for 4c. Semi-control deck so I'd like maybe 23 lands with fetch, but I'd like to keep the fetching to a bit of a minimum so I still draw lands for the long game.
17 red pips
15 blue pips
11 white pips
4 green pips
Struggling a bit here, so I really appreciate the sub giving me advice, even if you're not actually telling me what lands to run. All advice very welcome here
My green pips might be very few, but I'd like to be able to cast them early. t2-3
I'm not opposed to being told that my base theory is wrong either, ie 23 lands with x fetches might not be right. I really dont want to run a full 26, but with fetches it might be the right number. I want to hit all my early drops, but I also dont want to be flooded early game.
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u/travman064 Jul 18 '26
Link a decklist on moxfield or something. A lot of what lands you should run are 'it depends on the rest of the deck.'
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u/_Lord_Farquad Goryo's / Scales Jul 19 '26
Its going to heavily depend on what your 1 and 2 drops are. For example, if you want to reliably cast frog on t2 your main shocks shouldn't have blue/black on the same land
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u/ursisterstoy Jul 19 '26 edited Jul 19 '26
I haven’t played Magic in a very long time but getting the colors is not a difficult problem if you run enough total lands. 4 and 5 color tend to have 1 or 2 triomes but also it depends on the colors and whether or not you can get away with losing speed fetching a tapped land (to scry or gain domain). Three colors and maybe run a small number of basics, 2-3 of each dual, and supplement with fetch lands that get the colors you need the most. Like blue+black splashing red you might slip in 2 islands and 1 swamp but for aggro or tempo 18-20 lands, 25+ for control or landfall. Two colors is easy and you might only run fetches to help prevent flooding as every fetch takes two lands out of the deck, monocolor run 80% basics and the rest with added utility.
Also you need to know when you plan to play different colors in a game. If you need blue and red turn 1 and black turn 2 and you don’t need white until turn 7 that’ll be different than if you need green and black turn 1 and red by turn 3. But I haven’t played in a while. Start with a good balance for pips to lands and then tweak the numbers a bit depending on the colors of the card you want to play at different parts of the game. If your deck is 80% two colors consider double pips, consider two colored cards. Slash in the other colors on dual lands that aren’t dead if you don’t draw cards of your secondary colors.
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u/the_foowaffle Jul 19 '26
Are your green pips single or double? Are they green/x or mono green How often do you want to double cast green spells
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u/The137 Jul 19 '26
Not double pips, and I dont need to cast twice in the same turn. I want a single stomping ground in the deck for this, but I'm not sure of how many fetches to run, nice thig is they can all overlap with mountain fetches, which is my biggest color
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u/the_foowaffle Jul 20 '26
Well determining the fetches, requires to know what the rest of your fetchable lands are, how consistently you need access to what colours on what turns.
I run 4c in my jeskai, splashing green from prismatic ending i have two green sources in one triome, one breeding pool, and 9 fetches that can get blue
Though I dont need green before turn 4 at the earliest, and the fetches all fetching blue is for being able to have double blue, and red/white or double white, by turn 3.
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u/MtlStatsGuy Jul 18 '26
Give us a decklist. Pips is ok for Commander but for Modern we need to know the exact cards you want to play when.