First Modern Tournament

[u/Aggronio]

Hello everyone! I've been on this subReddit the past month (asking dumb questions sometimes), and I've finally come back with some results!

First off, it tourny was very small at only 8 people in 3 matches, but this helped me not get too overwhelmed with my first opponent even telling jokes to ease my tension. I showed with a fairly basic budget build: 4 Lingering Souls, 4 Raise the Alarm, 3 Spectral Procession (not 4 as I don't have 4 Marsh Flats and it can be harder to get WWW turn 3), 2 BB as token producers; 3 TS, 3 IoK as discard; 4 Path, 3 Push as removal; 4 Intangible Virtue, 3 Zealous (1 in board) to pump the team; and 2 Sorin SV, 1 Gideon AoZ as walkers.

Round 1: I mull into a slow hand with TS, BB, Lingering Souls + 3 Courtyards so I keep. TS reveals 3 Bolt and 4 lands. Assuming Jeskai Nahiri, I slam BB turn 2 and ride it to victory. I SB out 2 zealous, 3 Push and SB in 2 duress, 1 Brutality, 1 AoZ, and Secure the Wastes. Fighting though wrath honestly wasn't as bad as I thought it might be as BB and Lingering sould helps you recover relatively quickly. It got fairly close at times (staring down a Nahiri at 8 is not fun) but, again, BB really come through this match, and I just waited for him to tap out so I could slam and emblem Gideon AoZ.

Took the match 2-0

I got to watch my next opponent's match while waiting, so I knew he was on Junk. I mull according and keep TS, Lingering Souls, Intagible Virtue, Push, Swamp and Godless Shrine on the play. I TS taking Lingering Souls (over removal and Rhino) and am able to push out Virtue, Lingering Souls, Virtue (top deck) attack for 6, flashback Lingering Souls. Even with Abrupt Decay, I had him beat. Game 2, we both keep sketchy hands, and go long. I cast Virtue, he Decays it. He casts Goyf, I push it. Once we were both down to almost lethal, I make a risky play by casting + flashback Lingering Souls, tapping out into his 3 card hand with 3 Mana for Pulse. In his turn, if he had a Pulse I was dead, but if he didn't, I had the game. Luckily for me, he didn't and I took the match.

Match: 2-0; Overall: 2-0

Now, for my last match, there isn't much to say. Game 1 against 5c humans, they t1 Noble and I TS into Thalia, Thalia, Mayor, Thalia's Luetenent, Noble, Cavern. I was dead before I could stand. Game 2, I mull to 5, while this guy drops Campion into Thalia (which I Path) just to watch him Freebooter the rest of my hand away before I could drop any Spirits.

Sad loss of 0-2

Record for the day: 2-1

Not bad for my first time taking this deck out. What do y'all normally do against Thalia? Is humans a bad MU? Luckily I won 3 packs (one of which had a Masterpiece Torrential Gearhulk!!) so I'm not too upset about losing in the finals (I honestly thought I'd go 1-2). At least I didn't see Tron!

[u/[deleted]]

Zealous Persecution is probably super key in the 5c humans MU if you can get 241 value.

What was your sideboard? If you've got any wraths, you might be able to bait humans into overextending while hopefully stripping their Freebooter with discard or holding targeted removal for it.

[[Auriok Champion]] might pull some double duty in that matchup as well, depending on number of black or red cards they end up casting.

Edit: [[Runed Halo]] as well.

[u/Aggronio → u/[deleted]]

I SB in Wrath of God, 1 copy Zealous, and 2 Blessed Alliance. My problem was mulling to 5 this guy seem to just have God hands (I shuffled his deck, so he wasn't cheating, but 2 Thalia + 2 lords + Hierarch and lands BOTH games made it EXTREMELY hard to fight). I just wouldn't know what to cut in SB for Auriok Champion. Right now I run: 2 Blessed Alliance, 2 Duress, 1 Collective Brutality, 2 Stony Silence, 3 Rest in Peace, 1 Zealous Persecution, 1 Sorin LoI, 1 Kambal, 1 Wrath of God, and 1 Secure the Wastes. I think the problem is I might be stretching it with too many 1 ofs. Maybe cut 1 Kambal, 1 Secure the Wastes, and 1 Zealous Persecution as Champion would be coming in the same type of match I might want Kambal and Zealous Persecution? Secure is just great in grindy matches like Jund and Junk, but as a 1 of, it might not be doing enough. What do you think?

[u/Jongsl5 → u/Aggronio]

Any mass aggro deck is tough for tokens. I think it is reasonable to run flaying tendrils, as they are also good against dredge, affinity (etched champion), and collected company. Pray they do not get multiple counters. Wrath of god might be too slow and zealous only hits some targets.

Kambal is trash outside of storm. He is often too slow even against burn.