Faithless Brewing MTG: Modern and Pioneer for the Spike Rogue

Lukka Legend, Tiger King

Ikoria, Episode 4: Lukka, Coppercoat Outcast
 
Somewhere in the Multiverse, there are grizzled veterans who played Polymorph before it was cool. Those players are bankrupt now, their tickets squandered, their play points long depleted. Finding Polymorph fodder when Emrakul can be your only creature will take you down strange and lonely deckbuilding paths (yes, we see you Dwarven Mine).
 
Enter Lukka, the newest addition to the roster of red planeswalkers. Lukka's -2 is a Polymorph with a twist: it only finds creatures of higher converted mana cost. Small change, massive upside. What if we could have our mana dorks, and eat our spaghetti monster too? What if we could graft a Polymorph  endgame onto an already functional ramp curve? Things just got very interesting.
 
This week we spin the wheel with Lukka, Coppercoat Outcast, in Modern, Pioneer, and even a touch of Standard. The best part about Lukka? He's not a Companion. The worst part about Lukka? Yeah, he's probably friends with Companions. But we're willing to forgive him if his critter pals deliver the goods. Happy brewing!
 
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Flashback: Yorion, Sky Nomad
 
Pioneer
Niv Fires 1.0 (Dan): 4-1 league
Niv Fires 1.1 (Dan): 3-2 league
Doom Foretold 1.0 (Damon): 2-3 league
Doom Foretold 1.1 (Damon): 5-0 league
GW Enchantress (Dan): 2-3 league
 
Modern
4c Yorion Blink (David): 5-5 leagues
 
 
Brew Session: Lukka, Coppercoat Outcast
 
 
Sketch 1: 4c Lukka Cat Combo (Modern)
 
Sketch 2: Gruul Lukka Ramp (Pioneer)
 
Sketch 3: Lukka Creativity (Pioneer)
 
Sketch 4: Treacherous Winota (Standard)
 
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Eighty Is the New Sixty

Ikoria, Episode 3: Yorion, Sky Nomad
 
It's Friday night at the game shop, and you are starting to get nervous. Your opponent just sat down across from you, and they're the best player in the store. You've seen that swagger, that easy confidence, that friendly-but-never-cocky vibe. They flash a smile and greet you warmly. Despite yourself, you smile back. There's no mistaking that aura. They reach into their backpack and you already know what's coming: a well endowed deck box, the envy of any Commander player, holding a thick stack that must be at least 90 cards high. They shuffle it smoothly and offer you a cut. No need, you reply. You know they would never cheat you. "High roll to see who starts?"
 
Ikoria has crash landed into Magic's competitive formats, and left players everywhere scrambling to sift through the wreckage of the Companion Apocalypse. In every deck, in every format, it's Lurrus all the way down for every archetype that can support it. And for everyone else, there's Yorion, with giant decks suddenly en vogue everywhere you look. "Life begins at forty"? More like "Eighty is the new sixty"!
 
This week we tackle Yorion, the friendly bird that asks just one simple question: does your brew have that Big Deck Energy, that no-effs-given swagger to scale up effortlessly to 80 cards? We explore possibilities for maximizing Yorion's trigger, and break down the nuts and bolts of crafting the perfect 95. After that, we open up the Brewer's Mailbag and field questions from listeners on the deckbuilder's craft, our picks from Ikoria, and much more.
 
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Brew Session: Yorion, Sky Nomad
 
Modern
 
Sketch 1: 4c Kiki-Chord
 
Sketch 2: Bant Blink
 
Pioneer
 
Sketch 3: Yorion's Monument
 
Sketch 4: Esper Doom Foretold
 
Sketch 5: Niv-Yorion Fires
 
 

Brewer's Guide to Ikoria, Part 2: The Best of the Rest

Ikoria, Episode 2: Brewer's Guide to Ikoria, Part 2
 
Well, that escalated quickly. Ikoria: Lair of Behemoths has been online for just three days and already the Companion mechanic is running rampant across all formats.
 
Luckily, we were able to record our second installment of our Brewer's Guide to Ikoria before the advent of our new cat overlords, when the world was still bright with possibility. And since we already covered the Companions in Part 1, this installment may provide some welcome reprieve from our new furry friends. There are miles of exciting designs from top to bottom in Ikoria: from powerful enchantment engines, to tricky cycling options, efficient legendary creatures, and some slick removal to boot. Let's go exploring!
 
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Timestamps
 
02:35 Triome Lands Enchantment Cycle08:56 Song of Creation16:49 Whirlwind of Thought19:11 Offspring's Revenge22:15 Death's Oasis25:28 Titan's Nest Ultimatum Cycle28:20 Eerie Ultimatum30:48 Emergent Ultimatum32:54 Ruinous Ultimatum34:28 Inspired Ultimatum36:48 Genesis Ultimatum Mythos Cycle38:44 Mythos of Nethroi42:07 Mythos of Vadrok46:15 Mythos of Brokkos47:45 Mythos of Snapdax49:20 Mythos of Illuna Cycling Matters53:41 Unpredictable Cyclone56:53 Escape Protocol58:55 Zenith Flare1:00:47 Valiant Rescuer, Flourishing Fox1:03:05 Yidaro, Wandering Monster1:07:32 Shark Typhoon1:09:54 Ominous Seas Useful Effects w/ Cycling1:13:51 Neutralize1:14:58 Wilt1:15:11 Boon of the Wish-Giver1:15:57 Migration Path1:17:39 Easy Prey1:19:00 Footfall Crater1:23:10 Reconnaissance Mission1:26:13 Barrier Breach1:28:29 Titanoth Rex1:30:26 Void Beckoner The Best of the Rest1:32:28 The Ozolith1:37:30 Luminous Broodmoth1:40:23 Labyrinth Raptor1:43:16 Call of the Death Dweller1:45:36 Colossification1:48:28 Sprite Dragon1:51:36 Rielle, the Everwise1:54:54 General Kudro of Drannith1:56:49 Lavabrink Venturer1:59:02 Winota, Joiner of Forces2:02:20 Fire Prophecy2:05:33 Kinnan, Bonder Prodigy2:09:32 Fiend Artisan2:15:29 Stormwild Capridor
 
 

Brewer's Guide to Ikoria, Part 1: Mutant Companions

Ikoria, Episode 1: Brewers' Guide to Ikoria, Part 1
 
Several months ago, an article from WotC R&D issued a cryptic warning. Standard set releases, they said, were going to be intentionally powered up. Throne of Eldraine was at "approximately the desired power level" — ominous words for a set whose headliners, Oko and Once Upon a Time, have since received the Gitaxian Probe treatment and are now banned in nearly all formats. Even beyond those outliers, efficient powerhouses like Mystic Sanctuary, Brazen Borrower, and Mystical Dispute have become format-defining cards, with additional cross-format staples up and down the spoiler.
 
Theros: Beyond Death had giant footsteps to fill, yet it broke loose even more forcefully. The top tier Pioneer metagame is almost entirely defined by Theros-powered decks, while Uro and Kroxa are running rampant in Modern, and the Legacy ban list gained a fine new addition in Underworld Breach.
 
So it is with great trepidation that we greet the arrival of Ikoria: Lair of Behemoths. Can a battlecruiser set full of casual Godzilla monsters really make an impact on Magic's eternal formats?
 
Yes, yes it can.
 
In this special double-header edition, we present our comprehensive Brewer's Guide to Ikoria, analyzing every card that we expect to have an impact on Modern and Pioneer. The set is so stuffed with power top to bottom that we couldn't even fit it all into one recording. Instead we are dividing this weeks' show into two parts, clocking in at more than four hours of content. Check back for Part 2 of our Brewer's Guide very soon!
 
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Part 1: Companions, Mutants, and Planeswalkers
 
 
Outline + Timestamps
 
The Companions
12:32 Kaheera, the Orphanguard17:24 Yorion, Sky Nomad22:15 Lurrus of the Dream-Den28:11 Obosh, the Preypiercer34:02 Jegantha, the Wellspring39:22 Zidri, the Dawnwaker44:03 Umori, the Collector47:57 Lutri, the Spellchaser55:02 Keruga, the Macrosage59:53 Gyruda, Doom of Depths The Planeswalkers
1:05:12 Lukka, Coppercoat Outcast1:09:54 Vivien, Monsters' Advocate1:15:16 Narset of the Ancient Way The Mutants
1:23:18 Snapdax, Apex Predator1:26:42 Brokkos, Apex of Forever1:30:31 Necroi, Apex of Death1:33:55 Vadrok, Apex of Thunder1:38:35 Illuna, Apex of Wishes1:41:41 Sea-Dasher Octopus1:45:37 Lore Drakkis1:48:25 Gemrazer1:51:25 Migratory Greathorn1:53:42 Everquill Phoenix1:56:16 Dirge Bat1:59:08 Parcelbeast2:03:06 Pollywog Symbiote2:06:22 Mysterious Egg
 
In Part 2, we will cover the wedge cycles, cycling, and the best of the rest. Stay tuned!
 
 
Contact Us
 
If you like our show, be sure to join our Patreon and leave us an Apple Podcasts review. Thank you for your support!
 
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/faithlessbrewing
 
Twitter: @FaithlessMTG
 
Email: faithless.brewing@gmail.com
 
Homepage: faithlessbrewing.podbean.com
 
 
 
 

The Wild Side of Modern (ft. Lawson Zandi)

Theros Beyond Death, Episode 13: Modern Brewing with Lawson Zandi
 
On April 16, Ikoria: Lair of Behemoths is poised to lay waste to Magic's eternal formats. The set is chock full of giant monsters, insane enchantment engines, and "if you dare" build-arounds. There has never been a better time to be a brewer. What better time, then, to pick the brain of one of Modern's most prolific brewers and streamers: the youngest old soul in Magic and certified mad scientist Lawson Zandi.
 
Our full Ikoria set review will be out next week, but in the meantime, we've got six eye-popping decks from Lawson that are among the wildest Modern brews you will see. Perhaps the craziest this about them is that Lawson has been winning with them, a lot. Also, on the Flashback: our testing results with Aristocrats strategies in Pioneer. Many of these proved to be Woeful, but we're taking it all in Stride. Come join us for a walk on the wild side!
 
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Where to find Lawson
 
Twitch: https://www.twitch.tv/zanman1414
Twitter: @LawsonZandi
StreamDecker: https://www.streamdecker.com/decks/zanman1414
The Hunter Burton Memorial Open
 
 
Brew Session: Lawson's Picks
 
 
Modern
 
#1: Bazaar TradeVine
 
#2: Soulherder-less Soulherder
 
#3: Walk This Way (Planeswalker Prison)
 
#4: Cat Combos with Everything
 
#5: Jeskai Possibility Storm
 
#6: Mad Science Niv
 
 
Flashback: Woe Strider
 
 
Pioneer
 
BW Angel Visitation (Damon): 2-3 league
 
Abzan Heliod Rally (David): 1-4 league
 
Rakdos Sacrifice (David): 4-1 league
 
Karn Aristocrats (Dan): 3-2 league
 
BG Aristocrats (Damon): 2-3 league
 
Modern
 
Jund Food by Kortero (Damon): 1-3 league
 
Pioneer
 
Jund Food (Dan): 2-3 league
 
 
 

The New Aristocrats: Brewing with Woe Strider

Theros Beyond Death, Episode 12: Woe Strider
 
Few things in Magic are more powerful than the ability to sacrifice your own permanents. Look no further than Krark-Clan Ironworks or the more recent Grinding Station Breach decks in Modern: if it doesn't cost mana, and you can do it repeatedly, the sky is the limit for sacrifice combo. On the creature side of things, sacrifice outlets have an equally distinguished pedigree. From the Standard Mardu Aristocrats deck that won Pro Tour Gatecrash, to Four-Color Rally the Ancestors, to Hogaak Bridgevine or Yawgmoth Undying combo, even stretching back as far as Zombie Bombardment in Legacy, it seems that every kind of sacrifice deck has found some competitive success.
 
Aristocrats as a strategy has been on a temporary hiatus, with contemporary design philosophy dictating that sacrifice should cost mana, or only happen at fixed moments in the turn. But Theros: Beyond Death has flipped the script, with the printing of Woe Strider putting sacrifice decks back on the menu in Pioneer and even Standard. Combined with the 2019 additions to the Modern card pool of Carrion Feeder, Altar of Dementia, and Yawgmoth, Thran Physician, there has never been a better time to start eating your own permanents for fun and profit. Let's get sacrificing!
 
 
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Flashback: Brew Review Testing
 
 
Modern
 
Dimir Trap Control (Dan): 1-4 league
Original List: Dimir Trap Control by Soren W
 
 
Soul Sisters (Damon): 3-2 league
Original list: Soul Sisters by Paimon
 
 
Pioneer
 
Grixis Kroxa (David): 3-2 league
Rakdos Kroxa (David): 4-1 league
Original list: Rakdos Kroxa by illsicknasty
 
 
Spaghetti Flash (Damon): 3-2 league
Original list: Spaghetti Flash by nonstripedzebra
 
Imminent Doom Control (Dan): 3-2 league
Original list: Here Comes the Doom by KilgoreTrout503
"DOOM!... DOOM!" by James Earl Jones
 
Brew Session: Woe Strider
 
 
Pioneer
 
Sketch 1: Golgari Company
Sketch 2: 4c Rally Strider
Sketch 3: Abzan Double Combo
Sketch 4: Bishop of Wings Combo
Sketch 5: Rakdos Sacrifice
 
 
Reference lists:
 
 
Pioneer
BG Gruesome Company (Baymax, 5-0 league)
4c Vannifar Combo (Kurusu, 5-0 league)
4c Rally (Jhang Jhengyu, PT Nagoya, record unknown)
Rakdos Sacrifice (Troels Munk, PT Brussels, 2-3)
Mono-B Devotion (gloomy5200, 5-0 league)
Abzan Rallistocrats (Uniq, 5-0 league x2)
 
 
Modern
Jund Aristocrats (kortero, 5-0 league)
 
 
Standard
Rakdos Aristocrats (Theros Beyond Death era)
Mardu Aristocrats (Tom Martell, ISD/RTR era)
 
Legacy
Zombie Bombardment (Legacy, Sam Black)
 
 
 

Brew Review: Theros Edition

Theros Beyond Death, Episode 11: Brew Review #2
 
We asked our listeners to send in their spiciest brews featuring cards from Theros: Beyond Death. As always, they delivered. In this edition of the Brew Review, we talk through a dozen slick new lists, spanning the full spectrum of rogue strategies in Modern and Pioneer. Archive Trap control? Check. Soulherder with Avalanche Riders? Check. Ayula's Influence Loam? You got it. Mono-red IMMINENT DOOM? Do you even have to ask?
 
Join us this week for a walk through the collected creativity of the Faithless Family, and be sure to check out the decklists and writeups in the notes below. Oh, and we also took our Narset Undoing to a 5-0 last week in Pioneer. The deck looked solid across five full leagues; we'll get you up to speed on all the details!
 
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Flashback: Narset, Parter of Veils
 
Pioneer
 
Narset Undoing: 16-9 (5 leagues)
(David’s match vs. Zan Syed can be viewed here)
 
Modern
 
Narset Turns: 1-4 league
 
Temur Turns (by Daniel Wong): 3-2 league
 
Narset Undoing: 0-3 league
 
 
Brew Review: Theros Edition
 
Modern
1. Dimir Trap Control (by Soren W.)
2. AyUro's Influence (by Drej)
3. Temur Urzo (by Zach aka ManaCymbal)
4. Soulrider (by Collin aka blak fishy)
5. Heliod Devotion (by Lanny Huang)
6. Soul Sisters (by Paimon)
7. Heliod Company (by Been395)
8. Scarlet Grinding Breach (by Josh aka Auralox)
Bonus: Green/Blue Control (by Peacharita)
 
Pioneer
9. Here Comes the Doom (by KilgoreTrout503)
10. Spaghetti Flash (by nonstripedzebra)
11. Rakdos Kroxa (by Illsicknasty)
Bonus: Scion of Whirza (by Brian M)
Bonus: Human Revolution (by nonstripedzebra)
Bonus: Red Fell Revolver (by KilgoreTrout503)
 
 
1. Dimir Trap Control by Soren W. (Modern)
 
Soren writes:
My deck is an evolution of a deck from your Vantress Gargoyle Episode that I just can’t seem to put down. It is the Trap control deck that you folks mentioned as potentially “Secretly Excellent.” I’ve been working on it now for quite sometime and I’ve changed the deck pretty heavily as I’ve learned it and addressed changes in the metagame. At this point I’ve played 175 games online with this and have gone 101-74 good for a 57.7% mwp. Enough to keep me from bleeding tickets, but maybe not amazing? I’m really happy with 65 of 75 cards but still feel like there is room for innovation. 
Game 1 the deck attempts to play multiple Ancestral Recalls in the form of Visions of Beyond that are enabled by Thoughtscours and Archive Traps. It's not a traditional Mill build that has a critical mass of library removal as fast as possible, but rather a control deck that aims to drag the game out to the point where you are drowning in card advantage and your opponents are drowning in your Drown in the Lochs. You get to almost completely blank their removal game one and in game two you pull a switcheroo, bringing in Things and Kalitis. 
The biggest change in the meta, was the introduction of the escape-elders, Kroxa and Uro. When these first became popular in the MTGO meta, I thought this deck was finished, I could not beat one G1 since I essentially always draw them for my opponent, and they turn off my Ancestral Recalls, IttS, and DitLs. I lost sooo many matches to those, until I discovered Cling to Dust. This has been a surprisingly amazing card, that has blanked Snapcasters and E-Wits, exiled shrunk Goyfs, turned off Delirium, all while cantripping! That doesn’t even cover the incidental lifegain and rebuying ability from the escape side. I’ve become a true believer in this card and wouldn’t be playing the deck without it. 
Good match-ups include: Control*, Hard Combo (Ad Nauseam, Goryos, Neo-Brand, Storm, Titanshift), Niv :) , Non-“Go-wide” Aggro (Burn, Infect, Red Prowess), Tron, Urza*. 
Average Match-Ups include: Death’s Shadow w/o Stubborn Denial, Druid Combo, E-Tron, Jund, UG Titan Ramp. 
Poor Match-ups include: CrabVine, “Go-Wide” Aggro (Elves, Goblins, Humans, Spirits, Zoo), Death’s Shadow with Stubbs, Mill, RG Klothys Moon. 
* How strong the deck feels, really depends on their build. The more Uros there are, generally the less good I feel even with C2D.
 
2. AyUro’s Influence by Drej (Modern)
Note: needs to be updated post-Once Upon a Time
 
Drej writes:
I've been playing pioneer gitrog and have had a blast playing it. One card I've wished I had access to is obviously Life from the Loam. As I was thinking about building a deck around the two, I stumbled upon Ayula's Influence aka Bear Vortex. 
So simple ideas: 1) ramp with lands 2) play gitrog 3) play Ayula's .... ????) Bear-pocalypse. So the play pattern is - play gitrog, discard land to Ayula's, draw a card off trigger, make lots of bears. Lots of bears. Dredging Liam and hitting lands also gives you a second draw. Lots of cute interactions.
Uro is the reason this deck is functional. Full stop. The black green version, I recently piloted and bombed with, can attest to this. So many things that he does, changes burn damage, puts lands on the board, churns through the deck. The game plan with uro isn't to escape him ASAP. It's more growth spiral with late game power. The feeling of getting into the late game top deck mode and having the option to play a 6/6 threat that needs specific removal is amazing. Also blue let's you get mystical dispute... so that's gotta stay. 
My thoughts on the deck - it's awesome. The nut draw of T1 Sakura, T2 influence, T3 gitrog, opponents end step make 10 bears is something that everyone needs to experience. The fundamental fear I have is that it's a "fairish" graveyard deck. It's not dredge, it's not hogaak, it won't blow people out of the water. 
Which is why I made it a land based deck - every card does something, no bad top decks (ish). I recently rediscovered blast zone and discovered the new Labyrinth card. The dream of removing a battle raged death shadow from combat keeps me up at night. Lastly- big shout out to Witch's Cottage - awesome card with Druid of the Willy Wonka Forest. 
Wrenn vs Loam - you can make more than one bear with loam.  Also it fills up your graveyard for uro, and crime and more loams and more of the functional lands. Also 4 color would be tougher, Uro is a must stay
 
3. Temur Urzo by Zach Ryl aka ManaCymbal (Modern)
 
Zach writes:
Here's mine from a few months back. If I were to update it for now I'd try to get some trackers into the main, and maybe switch out the rebukes for Archmage's Charms? but it really depends on how I feel about the meta at the moment.
The core concept was marrying my favorite card in modern, from then until now, Wrenn and Six, with the UG fair Urza midrange deck, another joy of mine. The crypts in the main and the EE are definintely debatable, and I'd be interested to know if you guys have any thoughts about how big each package should be. I'm not REALLY comfortable with wrenn and Six being paired with Less than 23 lands, but I wonder if I can go with closer to the 4c snow mana base with a pile of field of ruins, and a couple of cycle lands, instead of playing sanctuary, or if I want to do that too.
Uro is also an interesting thing to try to make work, I think 2 might be the right number. The artifact package's size is also an important design axis. 4 Emry really encourages a high density of cheap artifacts to get her on the board. Also a Saheeli has been nuts at some times.
 
4. Soulrider by Collin aka blak fishy (Modern)
 
Collin writes:
If you want to curve Goose into Soulherder into Avalanche Riders and kill 2 of your opponent's lands on turn 3 then this is the modern deck for you! With no conceivable bad matchups except Legacy Manaless Dredge you will be sure to clean up your modern leagues in no time. Warning, this deck may only be safe to play online: Tron players have been rumored to call a judge and ask if Riders is even legal then berate the opponent with such insults as "play a real deck."
 
5. Mono-White Devotion by Lanny Huang (Modern)
 
Lanny writes:
Here's a post theros update to Craig Wescoe's mono-white devo. I'm gonna take it for a spin and maybe update it to be more aggressive or more prison-y. Considering a lot of stuff for this, maybe a charming prince/wall of omens/thraben inspector package, maybe a benalish marshall, history of benalia theme package. For historical reference, here's Wescoe's original GP list: https://www.mtggoldfish.com/deck/1706917#online
My biggest concern is the 'land tax' effects are too durdly and there's no way to leverage them into an advantage. I think I'd want to cut them entirely for something more proactive but I'm also worried that takes too much away from the devotion package, having not tested yet.
 
6. Heliod Sisters by Paimon (Modern)
 
Paimon writes:
I stole a bunch of ideas from the last time you guys talked about white devotion in modern and made: I've played it all of once. Against mono-red prowess. The player was new to the deck, so it might not be as easy a match as it seemed. But then again, it seemed like if I drew my lands on time, I won. It feels greedy, but I want to put Archangel of Thune into the sideboard.
 
7. Heliod Company by Been395 (Modern)
 
8. Scarlet Grinding Breach by Josh aka Auralox (Modern)
 
Josh writes:
A mostly mono-red shell for the Grinding Station+Underworld Breach combo lines in Modern. Splashing black for its fine interaction and removal options. Open to input and suggestions!
Scrap trawler+sword in gy and zero drop gets the ball rolling with a grinding station in play Sword in graveyard and station and trawler in play. Memnite in hand. But you can get there other ways too
The goblin engineer can help set up the sword in the graveyard as well as retrieve needed bits later on. The fallback plan is to rebuy galv blast with breach, but we don’t need as much mana fixing since red is already our base color so I reduced the astrolabe to 2
The Pia Nalaar (which are strangely Legendary) are still in the sideboard from an with experiment where I ran 2 mox amber, but I found that just a bit more than I could fit in…
The last line to mention is the wishclaw talisman line, you can sac it to station before your opponent gets a chance to use it which always just feels great.
 
Bonus: Green/blue Control by Peacharita (Modern)
Note: needs to be updated post-Once Upon a Time
 
Peacharita writes:
Here’s my updated mono green control w/ blue splash since oko and lattice got banned. Deck feels lacking without something else like trinisphere to slow the game down that you can jam on t2. Using primal command to time walk the opponent and search up silver bullet creatures that can be looped with eternal witness and thassa is big game, and flickering coatl and acidic slime is sweet value. Just needs something to jam on t2 that impedes opponents gameplan similar to trinisphere or oko.
 
9. Here Comes the Doom by Jason (aka KilgoreTrout) (Pioneer)
 
Jason writes:
It needs tweaking for consistency, but man it is fun. When it goes off, sometimes youbjsut clear a board. T2 Soul-Scar, T2 Runaway Steam-Kin, T3 imminent, get a counter on steamkin, T4 cast 1cmc spell, 2cmc spell, attack with 4/4 steamkin, remove counters second mainphase to make 3 Mana for a 3cmc spell
Purphoros's Intervention is way better than I thought. A mainboard answer to a big dumb creature without casting multiple spells has been super useful. 
Not sure on Satyr's Cunning or Escape Velocity. I have played a league with them yet. Put them in here as a discussion point. They allow you to get imminent doom triggers from the GY. Escape Velocity can get you the 1 and 2 CMC trigger
 
10. Spaghetti Flash by nonstripedzebra (Pioneer)
 
11. Rakdos Kroxa by Illsicknasty (Pioneer)
 
Illsicknasty writes:
I haven’t played it against any top tier beside a my friends mono white, but if we in Portland get quarantined / school and work get shut down, It will finally give me a reason to learn MODO
 
Bonus: Scion of Whirza by Brian M (Pioneer)
(See Episode 46 for Dan's league play-through report of this deck)
 
Brian writes:
My hypothesis was that Karn, Scion of Urza is basically unplayable unless you want the Karnstructs as there are typically better CA engines available than Karn. The Karnstructs are a bit weak to opposing chump blockers, so when I saw Shadowspear it seemed like the missing piece to make the Karnstructs playable. The goal of the deck is to drag the game long and eventually win through a massive Karnstruct strapped up with a Shadowspear. Alternatively flooding the board with Thopters can be an avenue to a win. 
The area where the deck can suffer a bit is against other decks that can grind well. I've considered a splash into R for some additional interaction and ways to get a bit more aggro. I've also considered Green for Lifecraft Awakening and Uro, but that sort of pushes all in on the GY synergies whereas currently only Emry really cares about the yard.
 
Bonus: Human Revolution by nonstripedzebra (Pioneer)
 
Bonus: Red Fell Revolver by Jason aka Kilgore Trout (Pioneer)
 
Jason writes:
Would love some help optimizing the numbers here: I keep tweaking how many pingers vs spells. Not sure if I want card draw main or if I should play it like burn (no card draw, all gas) The card draw spells are more triggers, which is why I have it built the way it currently is.
Bedlam Reveler has gotten stuck in my hand a few times. Would love to replace it. Was shocks 7-8 originally and that was feeling pretty good in the league
 
 

Narset's Undoing

Theros Beyond Death, Episode 10: Narset, Parter of Veils
 
It's been a minute since Narset was a staple in Modern. Once mentioned frequently in the same breath as Karn and Teferi, the long and difficult months of 2019 gradually forced Narset to surrender her claim as a top-three planeswalker from War of the Spark. Without Arclight Phoenix decks to prey upon, Narset has taken a back seat to cards like Ashiok, Dream Render, Nissa, Who Shakes the World, and even the occasional Saheeli, Sublime Artificer.
 
It would be a mistake, however, to ignore Narset completely, even in today's metagame. Her static ability may not line up well against every opponent, but it does combine in spectacular ways with certain unique spells and effects. Those same pieces can be found off Narset's -2 activation, making this unassuming three-mana walker both a strong card advantage engine and a deadly prison enabler. Let's see what she can do!
 
Flashback: Setessan Champion
 
Pioneer
Selesnya Enchantress (Damon): 2-3 league
 
Sultai Enigmatic Enchantress (David): 2-3 league
 
Modern
Naya Land-chantress (Dan): 1-4 league
 
Brew Session: Narset, Parter of Veils
 
Pioneer
Dimir Undoing (Sketch)
Update: Damon took this version to a 5-0 after recording
 
Modern
Narset Turns (Sketch)
 
Reference: Temur Turns (Daniel Wong)