parakkum and I hit the Shadowmoor Pre-Release yesterday, participating in both flights of individual sealed deck competition. With two booster packs and a sealed tournament pack the players are given time to make the best deck they can with the randomly cards they receive. Being able to do well in this format requires a degree of skill in recognizing how to compose a competitive deck, as well as a certain amount of luck.
For participating, we received a foil [Demigod of Revenge] with alternate art. The deck list as well as my matches are below in the extended.
First Flight
It's only in hindsight that I realize just how amazing my first card pool was, and perhaps if I had seen the possibilities earlier, I may have been able to put out a better record, but alas, this is what I played with, and it netted me a 1-2-1 (Wins, Losses, Draws) record.
Looking at the sideboard, one of the color considerations that I should have considered was going straight red-black; at the time when I was composing the deck, I felt that even though I had some large red creatures that with [Traitor's Roar] being common, that any large creatures could potentially hurt me pretty badly. Going blue should have meant more of a control build, but I didn't quite have what was necessary to support it. One of the changes I should have made after losing the first round should have been to sideboard in the red burn spells. Having two [Everlasting Torment]s meant that in nearly every game, I had it out, and could wither the opponents attackers out, merely by blocking. Unfortunately, my Sorcery/Enchantment heavy build meant that I was having trouble putting creatures out. Between the [Inkfathom Infiltrator] and the [Midnight Banshee] I could do quite a bit of damage, and while I always managed to get the mana out for the [Midnight Banshee], there were many ways in which she could be destroyed.
Flight 2:
I ended up building a deck, which centered on the black blue with a bit of white for splash and using the scarecrows to fill in the colored gaps. This was a mistake, as the scarecrows work best as a splash to augment the power of colored central decks. With two of the rares essentially unplayable in this format [Plague of Vermin] and [Counterbore], and [Spawnwrithe] just being rather weak, I decided to center my deck on card draw advantage and the use of [Thought Reflection]. While this deck did get me out my [Whimwader] and [Isleback Spawn], my opponents' decks utilized [Silkbind Faerie]s to essentially keep my heavy hitters from attacking or blocking. After two losses, I simply quit the flight and sat out the rest of the tournament.
| Lands 6 [Swamps] 6 [Islands] 3 [Mountain] 1 [Leechridden Swamp] | Creatures [Drowner Initiate] [Gravegill Axeshark] [Gravegill Duo] [Hollowsage] [Inkfathom Infiltrator] [Loch Korrigan] [Midnight Banshee] [Oona's Gatewarden] [Pili-Pala] [Prismwake Merrow] [Rattleblaze Scarecrow] [Sickle Ripper] [Smolder Initiate] 2 [Sootwalkers] [Wingrattle Scarecrow] | Other Spells 2 [Advice from the Fae] [Corrupt] 2 [Everlasting Torment] [Fists of the Demigod] [Splitting Headache] [Traitor's Roar] [Torture] | |
| Sideboard Black/Blue [Memory Plunder] [Scarscale Ritual] Blue [Briarberry Cohort] [Cerulean Wisps] [Ghastly Discovery] [Spell Syphon] | White [Goldenglow Moth] [Kithkin Rabble] [Last Breath] [Mine Excavation] [Niveous Wisps] [Rune-Cervin Rider] [Safehold Sentry] [Woeleecher] Blue/White [Barrenton Cragtreads] [Mistmeadow Witch] [Puresight Merrow] [Steel of the Godhead] | Red [Burn Trail] 2 [Ember Gale] [Inescapable Brute] [Jaws of Stone] [Power of Fire] [Pyre Charger] 2 [Puncture Bolt] [Smash to Smithereens] Red/Green [Guttural Response] [Loamdragger Giant] [Morselhoarder] [Tattermunge Duo] [Tattermunge Witch] | Green [Crabapple Cohort] [Devoted Druid] [Foxfire Oak] [Gloomwidow's Feast] [Juvenile Gloomwidow] [Howl of the Night Pack] [Hungry Spriggan] [Old Ghastbark] [Safehold Duo] [Spawnwrithe] Artifacts [Chainbreaker] [Elsewhere Flask] [Gnarled Effigy] [Heap Doll] [Scrapbasket] |
Once I opened the card pool for the second flight, I realized just how good the card pool for the first flight was in comparison. Nothing really stood out for me, and even looking at the cards now, it really does look like trying to build something workable out of garbage. Here's the card pool:
| Colorless [Blazethorn Scarecrow] [Lockjaw Snapper] [Pila-Pala] [Scrapbasket] [Scuttlemutt] [Tatterkite] [Thornwatch Scarecrow] [Umbral Mantle] [Watchwing Scarecrow] [Wicker Warcrawler] [Wingrattle Scarecrow] | Blue [Cerulean Wisps] [Counterbore] [Faerie Swarm] 2 [Ghastly Discovery] [Isleback Spawn] [Whimwader] [Put Away] [Thought Reflection] | Blue/Black [Gravegill Axeshark] [Helm of the Ghastlord] [Merrow Grimeblotter] [Oona's Gatewarden] [River's Grasp] [Sinking Feeling] [Spell Syphon] [Torpor Dust] | Black 2 [Aphotic Wisps] [Beseech the Queen] 2 [Faerie Macabre] [Gloomlance] [Plague of Vermin] [Rite of Consumption] |
| White [Inquisitor's Snare] [Mine Excavation] [Safehold Sentry] | White/Blue [Barrenton Cragtreads] [Curse of Chains] [Glamer Spinners] [Thistledown Duo] [Thistledown Liege] | Red [Ember Gale] [Power of Fire] [Puncture Bolt] 2 [Rustrazor Butcher] | Black/Red [Manaforge Cinder] [Sootstoker Kindler] 2 [Spiteflame Witch] [Smolder Initiate] [Traitor's Roar] |
| Green/White [Barkshell Blessing] [Medicine Runner] [Old Ghastbark] [Reknit] 2 [Safehold Duo] [Safewright Quest] | Green [Gloomwidow] [Gloomwidow's Feast] [Juvenile Gloomwidow] [Spawnwrithe] [Toil to Renown] [Raking Canopy] [Wildslayer Elves] | Red/Green [Firespout] [Fossil Find] [Manamorphose] [Rune of Deus] [Scuzzback Marauders] [Scuzzback Scrapper] |
While I can blame a certain amount on the card distribution (just 3 white cards, really?), I think a great deal can be contributed to my unfamiliarity with the cards and the lack of overally synergy in my deck construction.
So my roommate and i went to the LA prerelease. Playing in Wave E, we probably faced less impressive competition than the flights where you live. Still, we did all right, and spent a fair amount of the drive back up Sepulveda discussing the ins and outs of the format.
You definitely missed the boat on your Red burn spells in the first pool.
It seems like with the second deck, the GUw pool is the way to go. Spawnwrithe is not as bad as it looks at first blush-- we've all played Grey Ogres in Limited, and the ability is gravy, especially with the Giant Growth. Isleback Spawn is an out-and-out bomb, and you don't have a lot of mana search, but the Green build can stall for days.
Raking Canopy and Gloomwidow eat Silkbind Faeries for lunch. Even Cerulean Wisps are playable when backed by green fatties-- there are surprisingly few tricks that trump an untapping blocker.
Oona's Gatewarden
Medicine Runner
Pili Pala
Juvenile Gloomwidow
Gloomwidow
Scuttlemutt
Spawnwrithe
Thistledown Duo
Wildslayer Elves
Thistledown Liege
2 Safehold Duo
Barren Cragtreads
Glamer Spinners
Scuzzback Marauders
Old Ghastbark
Isleback Spawn
Safewright Quest
Barkshell Blessing
Manamorphose
Firespout (BOMB)
Cerulean Wisps
Curse of Chains
1 Plains
8 Forest
8 Island
Manabase might be all screwed up-- i didn't actually count mana symbols or consider early curve, though my gut says you may want go 9/7 in favor of Forests. I think the deck is also heavy a creature or due to cut the Safewright quest. The creature base here is all right, though you don't have a lot of persist-y bombs or ways to deal with counters.
Key sideboard cards
Put Away
Merrow Gloomblotter
Gloomwidow's Feast
Raking Canopy
Whimwader
In my experience, Traitor's Roar was not very good. I had it played targeting my 5/5 fattie, but it only works the turn he comes into play. (unless it has vigilance) Even with conspire, the second copy can't be used on the same creature.
For your first flight, you really should have gone Red/Green. Red removal, plus solid r/g and green creatures plus the bomb that is Howl of the Night Pack (especially since you have Elsewhere Flask).