Faithless Brewing MTG: Modern and Pioneer for the Spike Rogue

A Magic: the Gathering podcast for the spike rogue. Each week, we brew new decks in Modern and Pioneer. We put our creations to the test and share our findings on the air: what worked, what didn’t, and what can be improved for next time. Are you sick of going 0-5? We can help you go 3-2, in style! Created by Dan Schriever (@CavedanMTG), David Robertson (resident brew master), and Damon Alexander (brewer emeritus), and featuring Zach Ryl (@Manacymbal) & Emi Sagasti (@MordeToLight). Whether you’re a jank brewer, Day 2 warrior, FNM hero, or kitchen table end boss, our goal is to inspire your next great Magic deck. Take the Oath of Brewers and join our Discord community at patreon.com/faithlessbrewing, and visit our homepage FaithlessBrewing.com for all of our latest decklists.
Episodes
Episodes



Saturday Dec 17, 2022



Monday Dec 12, 2022
Don’t Change the Rules, Change the Culture: How to Save Tournament Magic
Monday Dec 12, 2022
Monday Dec 12, 2022



Friday Dec 09, 2022
Friday Dec 09, 2022
Season 16, Episode 12: Brewer’s Mailbag
David and Dan open up the Mailbag to field questions about the Faithless Looting ban, the future of Pioneer, and the most powerful cards not being played right now. They also take a look at some new brewing technology from around the multiverse.
Like our content? Support us on Patreon and join our brewing community!
Decklists for this episode can be viewed at FaithlessBrewing.com
Timestamps
[1:01] Mariah’s Christmas vs. Peanuts Christmas
[6:29] Housekeeping
[7:35] Our picks for next month’s card
[15:45] 2022 favorite card of the year
[19:58] The most impactful card from The Brothers’ War
[23:19] Updates to David’s 12 Pioneer deck lists
[26:27] The most powerful Pioneer cards not being played
[33:55] Legacy of the Faithless Looting ban
[39:02] Identifying areas for improvement in a new brew
[45:42] Pioneer after the RCQ season
[49:46] UW Half-Soldiers by zkiihne
[55:40] Vadrok Gifts Combo by IPlayBadDecks



Monday Dec 05, 2022
Combat Thresher: Double Your Pleasure, Double Your Fun
Monday Dec 05, 2022
Monday Dec 05, 2022
Season 16, Episode 11: Brew Session (Combat Thresher) + Flashback (Third Path Iconoclast)
All things are possible when you can draw a card on ETB. Combat Thresher looks unassuming, but it has the right skills for a host of different archetypes. For starters, it replaces itself immediately, and even encourages you to blink it or cheat it into play. The potential synergies are tremendous and the floor is always going to be a cantrip. That’s a good base line for playability in both Pioneer and Modern.
Today and Faithless Brewing David and Dan review six possible deck lists for Combat Thresher. From blinking it, to boosting it’s power, to bringing it back from the graveyard, there are many angles for this happy little war machine.
On the Flashback, the crew reviews their findings with Third Path Iconoclast. The card has a bright future in both Modern and Pioneer, but how far can we push the artifact token synergies? Tune in to find out!
Like our content? Support us on Patreon and join our brewing community!
Decklists for this episode can be viewed at FaithlessBrewing.com
Timestamps
[3:20] Houskeeping
[7:01] The future popularity of Pioneer
Brew Session: Combat Thresher
[15:37] Key questions
[22:52] Bant Teleportation Circle
[31:06] UW Tezzerator
[41:31] Orzhov Refurbish
[47:35] UW Charming Hatebears
[54:47] Mardu Transmogrant’s Crown
[1:03:25] Mono White Blink
Flashback: Third Path Iconoclast
[1:06:58] Izzet Third Path Galazeth
[1:18:27] Izzet Paradoxical Iconoclast
[1:21:43] Izzet Iconoclast by arbitraryarmor



Friday Dec 02, 2022
Diamonds in the Rough: 14 Delicious Cards to Brew in December
Friday Dec 02, 2022
Friday Dec 02, 2022
Season 16, Episode 10: Faithless Brewing x Serum Visions #5
It’s that time again! After a brief hiatus for the changing season, the Monthly Project returns to dive into the latest, greatest spice. We asked our patrons to nominate their most intriguing, preposterous cards, and as usual they delivered in spades. 14 cards are on the ballot for this month’s project. Some are quite crazy, some are quite good, and some may just be diamonds in the rough waiting for an enterprising brewer to unlock their potential.
We also share our findings with Jodah the Unifier, last month’s winning card. While 5c Jodah Humans had a brief flash of greatness (narrowly missing Top 8 in a Pioneer Challenge), finding additional homes for the rainbow legend proved challenging. The card did not excel when cheated into play, nor when used as a control finisher. But new legends are printed on a daily basis these days, so it’s only a matter of time before Jodah has his day.
Like our content? Support us on Patreon and join our brewing community!
Decklists for this episode can be viewed at FaithlessBrewing.com
Timestamps
Flashback: Jodah, the Unifier
[4:51] 5c Jodah Humans by KelMasterP
[8:41] Dan’s 5c Jodah to Light
[11:31] Emi’s Win-Jodah
[12:40] Concluding thoughts
Monthly Project Nominees
[18:01] Titania, Voice of Gaea
[23:55] Rivaz of the Claw
[30:19] Kaito Shizuki
[34:59] Chaotic Transformation
[41:33] One with the Multiverse
[47:27] Touch the Spirit Realm
[51:44] Tainted Adversary
[55:24] Sephara, Sky’s Blade
[1:01:10] Gix, Yawgmoth Praetor
[1:05:04] Surge Engine
[1:08:30] Blood Funnel
[1:14:32] Deathrite Shaman
[1:17:10] Urza, Lord Protector
[1:23:21] Mechanized Warfare



Tuesday Nov 29, 2022
Third Path Iconoclast: New Tricks for Old Pyromancers
Tuesday Nov 29, 2022
Tuesday Nov 29, 2022
Season 16, Episode 9: Brew Session (Third Path Iconoclast) + Flashback (Diabolic Intent)
Like our content? Support us on Patreon and join our brewing community!
Decklists for this episode can be viewed at FaithlessBrewing.com
Timestamps
Brew Session: Third Path Iconoclast
Flashback: Diabolic Intent
Picks of the Week



Friday Nov 25, 2022
Diabolic Intentions: Searching for the Next Great Combo Deck
Friday Nov 25, 2022
Friday Nov 25, 2022
Season 16, Episode 8: Brew Session (Diabolic Intent) + Flashback (Arcane Proxy)
Is there any card in The Brothers’ War more polarizing than Diabolic Intent? To some, this is the second coming of Demonic Tutor, a card so powerful and sought-after that it would be unthinkable to print in today’s formats. To others, sorcery speed tutors are relics of a bygone era, better suited to Commander tables than they are to the harsh tempo wars of Modern and Pioneer.
This week, the crew vows to get to the bottom of the issue. We take a look at 10 new decks for Diabolic Intent in Modern and Pioneer. Is the card more at home in midrange, aggro-combo, pure combo, or something else entirely? Our mission this week is to find out.
We also report on our testing results with Arcane Proxy in three different Pioneer decks.
Like our content? Support us on Patreon and join our brewing community!
Decklists for this episode can be viewed at FaithlessBrewing.com
Timestamps
Brew Session: Diabolic Intent
[3:16] Theorycrafting
[10:00] David’s Mardu Greasefang
[15:52] David’s Diabolic Sacdos
[20:34] David’s Dimir Ashnod Ramp
[27:25] BG Diabolic Citadel by Sam Rolph
[30:59] Diabolic Hammer by LCnightrider
[32:43] Rakdos Zombardment by NAMELESSYU
[35:46] Mono-Black ReSCAMinator by aspiringspike
[39:52] Rakdos Trash for Treasure by PieGonti
[44:38] Zach’s Esper Urza ThopterSword
[50:26] Zach’s Grixis Gyoza
Flashback: Arcane Proxy
[55:07] Dan’s Dimir Arcane Truth
[1:01:18] Zach’s Izzet Crackling Proxy
[1:07:20] Zachs’ Sultai Perennial Neoform
[1:12:16] Final thoughts on Arcane Proxy



Monday Nov 21, 2022
The Spice Must Flow: 10 New Decks That Impressed in Week 1
Monday Nov 21, 2022
Monday Nov 21, 2022
Season 16, Episode 7: Weekly Roundup
Week 1 delivered some delightful surprises in both Modern and Pioneer. David, Cavedan, and Manacymbal take a look at the impact of The Brothers’ War so far, digging into 10 of the spiciest new deck lists.
Also, check out these new articles from Cavedan and David, free to read at FaithlessBrewing.com:
The Most Important Cards from The Brothers’ War: Modern & Pioneer Week 1 Predictions
First Drafts: 12 Pioneer Brews to Get the Juices Flowing
Like our content? Support us on Patreon and join our brewing community!
Decklists for this episode can be viewed at FaithlessBrewing.com
Timestamps
[2:59] New articles at FaithlessBrewing.com
[4:26] Cards impacting the Pioneer meta
[15:23] Cards impacting the Modern meta
[20:45] UW Token Soldiers by johnsmith3373
[27:20] 5c Human Soldiers by Hollhis
[32:58] Fallaji Ascendancy by MrRaeb
[37:20] Mono White Kayla’s Reconstruction by cigarettesaftershrek
[42:26] Gruul Rootwire Fires by OnionResponsible
[47:04] Jund Mishra Meld by Takahashi Tarou
[51:55] Insect Tribal by CrusherBotBG
[58:07] Bitter Reunion Creativity by musasabi
[1:02:53] Izzet Iconoclast by aspiringspike
[1:06:46] Naya Awaken the Woods Ramp by Nitreglyze
[1:10:49] Closing thoughts
