Another 5-0 MTGO Competitive League

Hi All, on 3-12-19 I went 5-0 in another competitive modern league with BW Tokens. The list is nearly identical to the one I ran at SCG Syracuse earlier this month.

Here’s the decklist: SCG Syracuse Decklist

You can also check out my deck guide, prior league reports, and paper 2019 tournament reports below.

Round 1 – Tron – Mono Green – Win 2-1

I’m on a heater against Tron – while I went 3-2 overall in my prior league, I was 2-0 vs. Tron, bringing my record against it in the last 10 games (this league and last) to 3-0.  I got very lucky in game 3 of this match as my opponent was stuck on 2 lands with my stony silence preventing them from drawing cards.

My two prior games (league before) played out a bit differently.  In the first match, during game 2 my opponent mulled to 4 while I mulled to 5.  I attacked with Shambling Vent about seven times to win.  Game 3 they had infinity lands and I somehow faded any action.  In the second match of the last league, my opponent mulled to infinity games 1 and 3.

Tron is a horrible matchup and we need to get lucky to win, and sometimes we do.

In – 3 Stony Silence, 2 Disenchant, 2 Duress

Out – 4 Auriok Champion, 1 Bitterblossom, 2 Zealous Persecution

Round 2 – Mono-Red Phoenix – Win 2-1

Game 2 I unfortunately played right into Blood Moon, which is probably that deck’s primary win condition against BW Tokens. The match is just so horrifically bad for them that they need to get lucky to win.

In – 2 RIP, 2 Duress, 1 EE, 1 Burrenton, 1 Push, 1 Halo

Out – 3 Seize, 2 Bitterblossom, 2 Virtue, 1 Sorin

Some people have taken issue with my removing 1 Sorin, but I think it’s fine to do so.  Sorin is great, but drawing multiples early in the game is one way for Mono-Red Phoenix to steal a game by going under you.  This seems counterintuitive, but there have been several games where I’ve had two Sorins in hand early with little action and I’m generally not happy about it.  I think two is the perfect number after sideboard.

Round 3 – Dredge – Win 2-1

How I won game 2 is a still a mystery to me.  I mulled to 5 and was ready to concede when somehow on the back of one Auriok and two spirits, Sorin came down and helped me stabilize.  My opponent having all 4 Nature’s Claims in their yard was instrumental as Runed Halo and Stockpile put in work.  Game 3 I also got very lucky as my opponent was unable to trigger a Bloodghast on turn 2 and passed the turn with about 15 cards in the yard.  My turn 2 RIP won that game.

In – Runed Halo, 2 RIP, Burrenton, Lost Legacy

Out – 3 Seize, 2 IOK

Round 4 – Grixis Deaths’ Shadow – Win 2-1

Game 1 my opponent played two Temur Battle Rages, yes, two, the card they need to win the matchup.  Games 2 & 3 went a lot better for me.

In – Halo, Push, EE, Burrenton, Wrath

Out – 2 Zealous, 2 Sorin, 1 Seize

This is another situation where people may disagree with my removing Sorin.  Sorin is generally a win more card in this matchup.  First, it’s a prime target to get stubborn denied.  Sorin is best when you’re racing.  You’re not racing Shadow.  They’ll play one giant threat, which you will chump block forever (while fading Temur Battle Rage), and you’ll eventually overwhelm their board.  Sorin is clunky when you have multiples in hand, is easily countered, and wasting an entire turn doing nothing is not where you want to be in this matchup, which is already insane.

Round 5 – Humans – Win 2-1

After losing to Humans twice in my least league, I get my revenge.  A Runed Halo on Thalia’s Lt. (see below) along with a much needed Virtue nets me my second recent 5-0 with BW Tokens.

In – EE, Push, Wrath, Halo

Out – 3 Seize, 1 Auriok

Final Thoughts

Tokens continues to do just fine for me.  It’s not insane or broken, but it’s a great fair deck to play in the current meta.  It has game against all seven top decks on MTG Goldfish – Izzet Phoenix, Dredge, Burn, Hardened Scales, Tron, Humans, and Death’s Shadow.  It’s great against Izzet, Dredge, Burn, Scales, and Shadow, fine vs. Humans, and Tron, a horrible matchup, is still winnable, as evidenced by my recent success.

With the conclusion of this match, my total games played with BW Tokens on MTGO since Fall 2015, when I began preparing for GP Pitt, comes to 990.  When I hit 1,000 games, I will compile my results by matchup and by year and post them here.  Stay tuned.