Top 10 ways to beat the Eldrazi!

Posted On // Leave a Comment

Well, it looks like the hype was real.

Coming into #SCGPHILLY, there was a lot of talk about how the Eldrazi were set to invade Legacy. With access to eight additional two-mana lands in City of Traitors and Ancient Tomb, the Legacy version of Eldrazi has 16 two-mana lands to work with, and many took advantage of it. Who was most successful with the deck? Gerry Thompson. His second-place finish at #SCGPHILLY not only proved that the Eldrazi are for real in Legacy, but that you can also get extremely creative with how you build the deck.

But second isn't first, you know, and the person who dispatched Thompson and his Eldrazi deck is no stranger to success in Legacy. Noah Walker hoisted his second SCG Tour trophy with Grixis Delver at #SCGPHILLY, though he had to beat some amazing people along the way. First, Walker overcame a terrible matchup (Lands) from one of the masters of the archetype (David Long). Then, he had to work his way past Tom Ross, the best Legacy Infect player in the world. After that he faced one of the most accomplished SCG Tour players in history in Thompson. Nevertheless, Walker found a way to beat all three and showed that when we have a Legacy main event on the SCG Tour, he isn't someone you want to be paired against.

The SCG Tour will go on hiatus for a few weeks as all hands are on deck to prepare for #GPDC. We're looking forward to bringing you an amazing event in the nation's capital, so be sure to gather your allies, get registered early, and prepare for what is going to be an epic weekend!

Cedric Phillips, Media Manager @CedricAPhillips

 

Results
Results

Noah Walker wins it all with Grixis Delver!

Results

Joshua Halmagyi collects title with Bant Company!

Results

Jonathan Delano takes top spot with Jund!

 

StarCityGames.com ® Open

 

Editor's Picks
Teach Your Kids To Play Magic

Chris Andersen has been playing Magic since 1993, but back when he started, he didn't know how much he would learn from War Mammoth and Fire Elemental. Fast forward two decades later, and now he can articulate what he learned then—Magic is a game that teaches so much.

 

How To Team Sealed

With #GPDC right around the corner, there's no time like the present to get prepared. Who better to learn from than Ari Lax, a player with two Team Sealed GP Top 4s? No one breaks down the basics better than Ari—and I should I know! I teamed with him at the last Team Sealed GP!

 

I Finally Solved Modern

Modern may be the land of the Eldrazi, but Mark Nestico believes he has broken the format. He found a new deck he calls "Battlebots," and it packs quite a one-two punch. So if you're tired of Thought-Knot Seer, Reality Smasher, and Endless One, give Mark's article a read!

 

Match of the Week

Legacy can lead to some pretty crazy games full of intense turns, and #SCGPHILLY certainly delivered both this past weekend! Check out this Round 15 win-and-in for Top 8 between Joe Lossett and Tom Ross. When two of the top Legacy players in the game face off, you know it's going to be good!

Match of the Week video

 

Announcements
Announcements

Check out the SCG.com Weekly Sale!

Announcements

Gather your allies for GP Washington DC!

Announcements

Preorder Shadows over Innistrad now!

 

What I'd Play At The Open Series

Many people are worried the Modern format is broken, but I say this is the hottest time to revisit old ideas. In years past, I had so many brews that couldn't beat Splinter Twin and weren't right for the metagame. I thought that they were generally just bad ideas. Now, however, I think these ideas might be great. I've been going through my binder, picking out cards I love, and realizing they have greater value in the new modern landscape.

In February, Chris Lansdell wrote a Top 10 list for beating the Eldrazi for this newsletter, and it inspired me to continue on that idea. He had some excellent picks, but I think a lot of them are sideboard cards. Here, I present my top 10 cards for beating Eldrazi that you can have in your main deck. Some of these may even allow you to brew completely new archetypes!

#10 Worship

Worship card preview

We have seen this card in the sideboard to break the Eldrazi mirror, and quite frankly, there are a lot of Modern decks that would flat out lose to this card game 1. I haven't seen a brew based on Worship, but maybe the time has come!

#9 Supreme Verdict

Supreme Verdict card preview

The Eldrazi deck, simply put, is a basic but efficient stompy deck. It doesn't have card advantage, it's light on interaction, and it wants to deploy multiple creatures to the board. Sweepers have not been popular in Modern, but I think it's time for a comeback. Living End also fits this idea.

#8 Elspeth, Sun's Champion

Elspeth, Sun's Champion card preview

We have seen a few people play this card as a one-of in various U/W/x control decks. Elspeth is expensive, but I am not sure there is a better card to cast against Eldrazi. Elspeth can answer their threats, build a board, and flat out kill them on her own.

#7 Æther Vial

Æther Vial card preview

This one goes hand-in-hand with No. 6. If you can have access to the same amount of mana as the Eldrazi menace, you're likely to have access to equally powerful plays. I wanted to highlight Æther Vial separately because it can be played in more diverse ways than the green creature-based acceleration like the next one up.

#6 Noble Hierarch

Noble Hierarch card preview

Much of Eldrazi's power lies in the fact that they get ahead on mana. Without this advantage, their cards aren't actually that powerful. Leatherback Baloth and Polukranos aren't great Modern cards, but if you play an accelerator on turn 1 they can beat a turn 2 Thought-Knot Seer and turn 3 Reality Smasher. Splinter Twin was extremely oppressive for anyone who wanted to play Noble Hierarch, Birds of Paradise, and Elvish Mystic, but now is the perfect time to sleeve those up.

#5 Master of the Pearl Trident

Master of the Pearl Trident card preview

In addition to creatures that have an engine component, you can look to cards that have tribal synergies. We've seen Merfolk and Elves keep pace and then overpower their Eldrazi opponents, but it could be time look at other tribes as well. What would Eldrazi do if you got a Captivating Vampire online?

#4 Kor Spiritdancer

Kor Spiritdancer card preview

I don't just want to highlight Bogles, but any deck that has an engine component is likely to surpass the power of Eldrazi. If they don't kill your creatures, punish them for it. Play the creatures that can do the most powerful things if left alive. Think of cards like Goblin Electromancer, Fauna Shaman, and Archangel of Thune.

#3 Kiki Jiki Mirror Breaker

Kiki Jiki Mirror Breaker card preview

Once again, the lack of removal is something on which you can capitalize. Jeff Hoogland has been tearing up Modern with his Kiki-Chord deck, and any kind of creature-based combo is something that should be revisited. This goes for Melira, Sylvok Outcast, and Anafenza, Kin-Tree Spirit, but there are some other forgotten combos if you look hard enough.

#2 Baneslayer Angel

Baneslayer Angel card preview

The Eldrazi deck is light on removal so there are certain cards through which they simply cannot attack. Baneslayer is my favorite to lock up the ground. It has the advantage of evasion and is nearly impossible to race. Glissa, the Traitor also locks the ground up quite nicely, and has done some sweet shenanigans in the past with cards like Ratchet Bomb.

#1 Knight Of The Reliquary

Knight Of The Reliquary card preview

Often a game will come down to who has the biggest creature. Knight of the Reliquary not only has the potential to keep pace with Thought-Knot Seer and Reality Smasher, but while it's playing defense you can use it to find cards like Tectonic Edge and Gavony Township with which you can attack their mana and trump their threats.

Andrew Boswell @KaolinTiger

 

SCG Tour Player of the Year Race

Things are getting tight atop the SCG Tour Player of the Year Leaderboard as the Season One point leaders look to claim one of the first three invites to the 2016 Players' Championship. With the results of #SCGPHILLY this past weekend, the top three players drew closer together while Gerry Thompson surged into fourth place, now trailing Andrew Tenjum by just six points. Thompson's second-place finish in the Philadelphia Legacy Open served as a quick reminder that one of the most decorated players in SCG Tour history is always in contention. Thompson climbed four spots and now is a threat to Jeff Hoogland, Joe Lossett, and Tenjum as just two Opens remain before the Columbus Invitational caps off Season One.

Lossett closed the gap between himself and Hoogland with a Top-16 finish, netting him 10 SCG Points, though Lossett was a game away from making Top 8 and an even bigger push. Tom Ross had his own plans as he clutched out one of the craziest games in SCG Tour history in Round 15 against Lossett, earning The Boss a spot in the Top 8 and a chance once again to walk away a Legacy Open champion.

SCG Tour Leaderboard

Fate had other plans, however, and Ross fell short of winning another trophy with Infect, losing to Noah Walker in the semifinals. He still received 20 SCG Points for his efforts and shot up the leaderboard from No. 22 to No. 11, giving him two byes for future Opens.

Walker had to defeat both Ross and Thompson in the Top 8 of #SCGPHILLY as he took down his second Legacy Open with Grixis Delver. The 30 points from the victory lands him in exactly 32nd place on the leaderboard, good for one bye at #SCGINDY. Walker has proven his proficiency with Grixis Delver, topping some of the strongest Legacy players on the SCG Tour, and can now pair his trophy in Philadelphia with his from Worcester in 2015. To even be in position to win the Open, Walker had to overcome a lopsided matchup against Lands in the quarterfinals at the hands of David Long — one of the archetype's strongest pilots.

Harlan Firer used a Top-8 finish at the Open to tie with his Next Ridge Games teammate, Bradley Carpenter, with 79 points. Both players piloted a Colorless Eldrazi build that had Firer reach the elimination rounds while Carpenter finished in the Top 16. Though they both trail Thompson by nine points, both players have shown they're capable of more strong finishes and are very live for one of the top three spots at the end of Season One.

The SCG Tour has a few weeks off before it returns with Standard Opens in Indianapolis and Baltimore and wraps up with the Season One Invitational in Columbus on April 15-17. Catch all the action on twitch.tv/scglive on March 19-20 for the Standard Open as the Player of the Year Race continues!

 

Game Night

 

Cardboard Crack

 

Invitational Qualifier announcement

 

Join the Conversation
StarCityGames.com Facebook Twitter Youtube

If you would like to unsubscribe and stop receiving these emails please click here.


Forward email


This email was sent to nguyenvu1187.love3@blogger.com by donotreply@starcitygames.com |  

StarCityGames.com | 5728 Williamson Road N.W | Roanoke | VA | 24012

0 comments:

Post a Comment