Friday Sep 18, 2020
In Goyf's Shadow: Brewing Scourge of the Skyclaves
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.
Listen on:
Episodes
Episodes
Friday Sep 11, 2020
Friday Sep 11, 2020
Zendikar Rising, Episode 2: Zendikar Rising Full Set Review
Even more card analysis can be found in the extended show notes, available to all of our Patreon members. Sign up at patreon.com/faithlessbrewing for bonus content, Discord access, and more!
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Decklists for this episode can be viewed at FaithlessBrewing.com
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Timestamps
5:45 Heuristics for Evaluating MDFCs
11:32 Turntimber Symbiosis // Turntimber, Serpentine Wood
15:22 Shatterskull Smashing // Shatterskull, the Hammer Pass
17:38 Emeria's Call // Emeria, Shattered Skyclave
18:41 Agadeem's Awakening // Agadeem, the Undercrypt
21:18 Tangled Florahedron // Tangled Vale
23:29 Silundi Vision // Silundi Isle
24:52 Jwari Disruption // Jwari Ruins
27:42 Hagra Mauling // Hagra Broodpit
32:20 Akoum Hellhound + Brushfire Elemental
35:23 Wayward Guidebeast
40:30 Skyclave Pick-Axe
43:35 Valakut Exploration
47:20 Kazandu Mammoth // Kazandu Valley
48:10 Scute Swarm
50:43 Felidar Retreat
56:00 Feed the Swarm
56:43 Skyclave Shade
59:54 Thwart the Grave
1:02:51 Tajuru Paragon
1:06:02 Zagras, Thief of Heartbeats
1:08:50 Luminarch Aspirant
1:10:21 Nullpriest of Oblivion
1:12:14 Resolute Strike
1:13:03 Kor Blademaster + Fireblade Charger
1:14:02 Thieving Skydiver
1:16:53 Shatterskull Charger
1:19:28 Nighthawk Scavenger
1:23:06 Soaring Thought-Thief
1:25:59 Anticognition
1:29:07 Blackbloom Rogue // Blackbloom Bog
1:30:15 Sea Gate Stormcaller
1:33:16 Magmatic Channeler
1:36:21 Scourge of the Skyclaves
1:41:08 Cleansing Wildfire
1:43:14 Yasharn, Implacable Earth
1:46:13 Wrap-Up: Our Top Picks for Modern and Pioneer
Friday Sep 04, 2020
Friday Sep 04, 2020
Zendikar Rising, Episode 1: Zendikar Rising First Look
Extended show notes, tokens, playmats and more are available via our Patreon. Join the Faithless Family at patreon.com/faithlessbrewing to support the podcast, get bonus content, and fly your brewer's colors!
Where to find Urchin
Hipsters of the Coast: https://www.hipstersofthecoast.com/author/ucolley/
Twitter: @hahyeahno
Portland paper: twitch.tv/portlandpaper
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Decklists for this episode can be viewed at FaithlessBrewing.com
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Zendikar First Look
21:47 Spell lands
26:17 Pathway lands
29:04 Omnath, Locus of Creation
32:31 Lotus Cobra
34:11 Nissa of Shadowed Boughs
38:20 Ruin Crab
40:41 Coveted Prize
46:50 Archpriest of Iona
48:48 Acquisitions Expert
51:17 Zareth San
55:14 Nahiri, Heir of the Ancients
1:00:48 Jace, Mirror Mage
1:06:35 Bloodchief's Thirst
1:10:10 Confounding Conundrum
1:13:58 Skyclave Apparition
1:18:00 Legion Angel
Brew Review: M21 Edition
1:21:25 4c Kinnan Emry by Jiggywiggy [Modern]
1:28:54 Blue Karn by Grixisism [Modern]
1:33:33 Thran Rock by Been 395 [Pioneer]
Additional decklists
Mardu Kroxacopter by Simon DS [Modern]
Temur Fevered Fog by Redsocks [Pioneer]
Mono-Black Lurrus Vampires by Auralox [Modern]
A Bone to Pick by KilgoreTrout503 [Modern]
Bant Kinnan Urzablade by illsicknasty [Modern]
8675309 Lives by KilgoreTrout503 [Modern]
Temur Terror by Alex K [Pioneer]
Grixis Taters by redsocks [Standard]
URTransmogrify by BromatCourier [Standard]
Monday Aug 31, 2020
Monday Aug 31, 2020
Core Set 2021, Episode 11: Community League Recap #1
Brian Madden, aka Untwisted, joins Dan and Damon to talk through some of the coolest decks to come out of the Faithless Brewing Community League.
Signups for Community League #3 are currently underway in our Discord channel! Join the Faithless Family at patreon.com/faithlessbrewing and come show off your deckbuilding chops. Happy brewing!
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Decklists for this episode can be viewed at FaithlessBrewing.com
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Decklists
Hunted Sundial by Judge Rob
Dark Arias by Bromatcourier
Song of Storms by Raytheon
Narset Cannon by Been 395
Touch the Magic Dragon by KilgoreTrout
Grixis Pile by Illsicknasty
Kinnan Devotion by redtrexx
Friday Aug 28, 2020
Friday Aug 28, 2020
Core Set 2021, Episode 10: Brewer's Guide to Historic, Part 1
You've heard the rumors. You've felt the buzz. Your Twitter feeds are littered with images of colorful squares of art hovering over an attractive battlefield, with screenshots of Mythic rank achievements. Historic is in the air. It's the next Mythic Invitational format, it just received yet another influx of cards from Amonkhet (and yet another banning in Field of the Dead), and it seems to loom large in WotC's plans for the future. Historic. So hot right now. Historic.
We are not a Historic podcast, but then again, there was a time when we were not a Pioneer podcast either. Is change inevitable? Or is the gulf between Arena and the MTGO and paper formats simply too large to bridge? There's a lot to sort through when parsing out the very basic questions of What is Historic and what does it mean for us? Is the format fun? Is it accessible? What's the metagame like, and is there room to brew? What is Historic exactly, and what are the key pillars of its tier archetypes and card pool? And perhaps more to the point -- should we play it? We tackle all of that and more this week, with the aid of some great questions from our listeners. Let's dive in!
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Decklists for this episode can be viewed at FaithlessBrewing.com
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Flashback: M21 Potpourri
Jeskai Transmogrify: 2-3 league
Izzet See the Truth: 3-2 league, 2-2 league
Lotus Discontinuity: 2-3 league
Friday Aug 21, 2020
Friday Aug 21, 2020
Core Set 2021, Episode 9: Transmogrify, See the Truth, Discontinuity
By all accounts, 2020 has been a Very Long Year. It keeps twisting and dragging us into unexpected places, each more disturbing than the last. And somehow, it is only August.
So it can't really be called surprising when, for inexplicable reasons, a Modern deck called "Titan Vial" is somehow causing the price of Elvish Reclaimer to spike on Magic Online, while in Pioneer noted hall of famers are earnestly debating the proper build of a deck that contains a playset of Bolas's Citadel. Who can explain it? Does it even need to be explained? It's just been that kind of year.
Late August can sometimes be the doldrums of competitive Magic, as Standard awaits rotation and the summer Core Set has mostly played itself out. We are lucky, at least, that M21 is a set with a very long tail: plenty of interesting cards can still spark the brewer's imagination for at least a decklist or two, if not quite rising to the level of commanding a full episode deep dive. We tackle some intriguing ones this week as we probe the far reaches of the M21 spoiler: Transmogrify, See the Truth, and Discontinuity. What will we discover? Only the leagues will tell!
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Decklists for this episode can be viewed at FaithlessBrewing.com
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Titan Vial by fpawluszmtg
Flashback: The White Episode
Soul Speakers: 3-2 league
Basri Bots: unplayable
Mardu Nine Lives: 3-2 league
Chonky Capridor: 3-2 league
Brew Session: M21 Potpourri
Jeskai Inspiring Transmogrify
Izzet See the Truth
Bant Lotus Discontinuity
Friday Aug 14, 2020
Friday Aug 14, 2020
Core Set 2021, Episode 8: The White Episode
Blue is not the loneliest color. In Magic at least, that hasn't been true for a while now, if it was ever true to begin with. Blue cards tend to bring along several more friends when you cast them. The same is true for Green, and Black, and even Red. One good card leads to another, all thanks to the magic of card advantage.
White, on the other hand... now there's a lonely color. With white cards, you tend to get exactly what you pay for, and nothing more than that. No undercosted rate monsters, no snowballing effects that run away with the game, no recursive threats or big mana engines. If your opponent removes your White card, it's usually just gone: my card for your card, the fairest possible trade. Imagine trying to win a game of Modern or Pioneer that way in 2020!
We haven't featured a White card on Faithless Brewing in a very long time. The options tend to be narrow and on the lower end of the power spectrum. Maybe they can spawn a deck or two each, but they're not likely to even be the best cards in their respective archetypes. If we're going to find success brewing around a White card, we'll need to take a more proactive approach and chuck the whole bag of darts at the dartboard. That's right, this week features no less than 7 new white cards from M21, with a frew brew for each: Speaker of the Heavens, Containment Priest, Griffin Aerie, Angelic Ascension, Nine Lives, Basri Ket, and Stormwild Capridor.
Will any of these cards have what it takes to make a splash in competitive play? You know the drill: let's find out in the queues!
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Decklists for this episode can be viewed at FaithlessBrewing.com
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Flashback: Second Chance Pioneer
Narset's Undoing: 4-1 league, 2-3 league
Tome Diviner: 4-1 league
GW Oath Enchantress: 2-3 league
Reference lists:
Narset's Undoing (by SrTortinha, 6-3 Pioneer Challenge)
RG Dinos (by Voltzwagon, 5-0 Pioneer league)
Brew Session: Seven Dubious White Cards
Sketch 1: Soul Speakers
Sketch 2: Priest and Taxes
Sketch 3: Griffin Aerie
Sketch 4: Jeskai Lukka Ascension
Sketch 5: Mardu Nine Lives
Sketch 6: Basri Bots
Sketch 7: Chonky Capridor
Reference lists:
Soul Speakers (by Gabriel Nassif, 5-0 Modern league)
Jeskai Lukka Fires (by FestiFan, 7-2 Pioneer Challenge)
Friday Aug 07, 2020
Friday Aug 07, 2020
Core Set 2021, Episode 7: Surprise Pioneer B&R ft. Evart Moughon
Life has a funny way of giving you second chances. One week, you're flunking out of season 24 of The Bachelor, roseless and rejected. The next week you're the darling of Bachelor in Paradise, delighting audiences with your antics as you revel in another shot at romance. So, too, in Magic: one week your format is a ghost town, with near-empty tournament queues and a "healthy and balanced" metagame of four combo decks, each with strengths and weaknesses against each other. The next week, practically the entire Tier 1 metagame is banned, and we are suddenly presented with a second chance at love in a wide open Pioneer.
This week we welcome special guest Evart Moughon, aka Aspiringspike, to survey the new Pioneer landscape after the long shadows of Theros combo decks have been lifted. We tackle a bit of post-Astrolabe Modern as well, and wind down with some questions for Evart from the Brewers' Mailbag. Is this the dawn of a new era of brewing? What new decks and strategies might rise to the top? Which pre-Theros strategies are poised for a resurgence? The one thing we know for sure: if Aspiringspike has anything to say about it, it's going to involve a lot of Shark Typhoons. Happy brewing!
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Decklists for this episode can be viewed at FaithlessBrewing.com
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Where to find Evart:
https://twitter.com/MoughonEvart
http://twitch.tv/aspiringspike
Flashback: Jolrael, Mwonvuli Recluse
Temur One-Mind Jolrael
BG Jolrael Enchantress
Sultai Jolrael Delirium
Brew Session: A Second Chance at Love in Pioneer
UB Narset's Undoing
UB Tome Diviner
UG Sublime Sharks
Jeskai Lukka Sharks
Mono-G Karn
Friday Jul 31, 2020
Friday Jul 31, 2020
Core Set 2021, Episode 6: Jolrael, Mwonvuli Recluse
What happens when you take a mechanic based on drawing extra cards, and move it out of Izzet colors and into Green? Does it somehow get a whole lot better? Jolrael thinks so, and we are inclined to agree. The empress of the Jamuraan jungles has gotten a lot leaner, fiercer, and more cat-friendly since we last saw her all the way back in Prophecy. As a splashable two-mana legend that generates tempo and card advantage every turn, Jolrael seems to have all the right moves for both Modern and Pioneer, so let's see what she can do!
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Decklists for this episode can be viewed at FaithlessBrewing.com
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Roundup: Brewers' Mailbag ft. ManaCymbal
Where to find Zach: https://www.twitch.com/manacymbal
Links to Zachs' YouTube, Twitter, etc. can be found here
Flashback: Mazemind Tome
Blue Moon (Damon): 4-1 league
Eldrazi Tron: 5-4 ManaTraders Qualifiers
Classic Dice Factory (by Hampuse1): 2-3 league
Saheeli Dice Factory (by Brian M): 3-2 league
Blue Tron (by Lordofthelobsters): 3-0 league
UB Tome Diviner (David, Zach): 4-1 league, 3-2 league
Mazemind Niv (by Grixisism)
Esper Maze-Seize (by Spotred)
Brew Session: Jolrael, Mwonvuli Recluse
Modern
Sketch: Jolrael's Shadow
Sketch: Bant Jolrael
Sketch: Temur Tokens
Sketch: Jolrael GW Taxes
Sketch: Jolrael UG Kinnan
Pioneer
Sketch: Jolrael Delirium
Sketch: Bant Cycling
Sketch: Jundrael Enchantress
