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It has become clear that it would be nice to have a tutorable Plague Engineer-killer vs Jund. Now that I'm not splashing anything and since I haven't fetched for a Basic Forest since League 10, I'm trying out Devout Lightcaster in the Shadow-bullet slot over Chameleon Colossus, and changing my one off-color fetch from Green to White to reflect the fact that I never ever fetch basic forest. This pushes Dryad Arbor closer to not making the deck, for the record.

I've also upgraded Ranger-Captain out of "close to being cut."

Changes: Mainboard -1 Misty Rainforest +1 Flooded Strand. Sideboard -1 Chameleon Colossus +1 Devout Lightcaster.

The cards closest to being cut are Devout Lightcaster, 2nd Forest, Dryad Arbor, 3rd Evolution, 3rd Path.

The cards that just barely didn't make the cut are Hushbringer, 3rd Thrun, 2nd Ballista, Chameleon Colossus, and 4th Horizon Canopy.

Results

3-2 (6-6). This is pretty bad matchup lottery but I stole one from UW and then won the reasonable matchups relatively easily.

The theme of the league was that I can't ever draw a Veil of Summer against a black deck, and also that Mystic Sanctuary is a big problem. My UW opponent was able to loop Cryptics every turn, and my Grixis opponent was playing Snap K Command and putting the K Commands back on top. Finally, Thrun got Terminused and Damnationed in the same league, so ... he's probably fired from the deck as soon as we can find a replacement.

OXO UW (T4, T18) (Lifetime 6-11 vs UW)

XX Shadow (Lifetime 1-8 vs Shadow)

XX Grixis Control (Lifetime 1-2 vs Grixis Control)

OO Death & Taxes (T5, T6) (Lifetime 1-0 vs Death & Taxes)

OXO UW Paradoxical Outcome (T3, T6) (Lifetime 2-1 vs Paradoxical)

On to the Rounds!

Round 1 on the play vs Broven on UW

UW is rough; I started out 2-10 against it in matches. My first 5-0 involved 4 Thrun as a way to go over the top of what they are doing. I've scaled it back quite a bit to only 2 Thrun, but it still means I have a realistic plan against them in postboard games, which feels great.

Win Game 1

If this Once Upon a Time is a land, then we have T3 Druid T4 Win with no protection. I think that's fine.

Deck is tempting me, but I'm taking the Forest.

End of my own T2, I Call for Druid while opponent is tapped off of Spell Snare.

T3 Druid gets a Mana Leak.

However, I hit a Lunge and all my land drops, so when opponent taps out T3 for Teferi against an empty board, I untap and murder them T4.

Actually just like we drew it up.

We plan for the game to go long (so -Vizier and - Once Upon a time) and we are playing against counters (so -Evolution):

+4 Veil, +2 Thrun, +1 Caterpillar, -3 Evolution, -2 Once Upon a Time, -2 Vizier

Lose Game 2

I think this is fine with the Noble.

Small note: Always fetch Temple Garden in this matchup; you need all 4 basics for all the Paths and Fields of Ruin.

My T2 Druid gets a Mana Leak. I hit Land 2 but not 3, so I'm planning to Call on their turn. They pass with 4 mana but not Cryptic up, so I could either go for Thrun or Vizier to try for the Lunge turn. I opt for the Thrun; I think this game is going long.

Opponent hits T5 blind Terminus off the top taking two Nobles and leaving me with 2 lands. Yikes.

T7 I am still on 2 lands; dead. Maybe it's not smart to keep 1landers for any reason vs UW.

Opponent saw a hand with 3 Lunges in it and I killed them with a Lunge G1, so I'm boarding out 2 Lunges for the Viziers.

Win Game 3

OK this one works. At least I'll hit 4 mana for Thrun.

T3 Thrun!

The problem is Thrun isn't great against a Terminus build, so let's see how it goes.

Thrun gets the Blind Terminus on T5. Why do they hit so many of those?

Mystic Sanctuary putting it on top is certainly one way to make it happen though! Opponent is doing it!

My T7 Ranger-Captain + Veil trades with Mana Leak + Force. I feel like I'm losing, but then opponent spends their Terminus on just a Noble, and then Surgicals my only Ranger-Captain in my draw step, so I'm back ahead on cards. Then they Snap Surgical my Veils!

I wonder if I will ever draw a 4th land. By T9 it feels like I should have drawn one by now.

I hit one T10, but each fetchland is a Terminus! Opponent has solved it. Thrun #2 gets Terminused T10, with opponent at 6.

My T9 Finale got a Cryptic. My T11 Finale gets a Cryptic. My T12 Finale gets a Cryptic.

This matchup is now officially a lot worse.

Thrun will be down to 1 from here on out.

Opponent can always redraw Cryptic or always draw Terminus at any time.

Twist ending:

On T16, opponent has a moment of weakness and casts a Cryptic for Counter, Draw instead of Counter, bounce Sanctuary and so I assemble infinite mana emptyhanded on T17.

Win T18. Lol.

Round 2 on the play vs suntoryken on Shadow

Shadow is my last truly unsolved matchup and has been affecting my sideboard the most lately. Chameleon Colossus would be the best bullet for the matchup but I downgraded it to Lightcaster to make the slot live against Jund too. Let's see how it goes.

Lose Game 1

Haha ok. This is pretty close to the ideal hand.

Opponent cycles a Street Wraith T1 and passes, so it's unlikely that this Druid is living, but I run it out anyway into the Dismember. Maybe I'm actually not supposed to? I don't know.

Opponent puts lethal on the table on their T3, and I play T4 Druid + Giver threatening lethal on my T4. Opponent's Legacy deck is just kinda too efficient for this kind of plan though. They just kill both my things AND me.

-3 Evolution -2 Vizier -2 Once Upon a Time -1 Lunge +3 Path +1 Lightcaster +4 Veil

I'm not sure we can really bring in 8 cards. That's like, pretty extreme.

Lose Game 2

I think I'm supposed to mulligan hands without Veil of Summer or Path but this is functional and threatening so I kept it.

Once Upon a Time offers me a Druid or a land, and I take the land. Stop tempting me, stupid deck.

T1 Inquisition takes 2nd Giver. T2 Dismember my Giver, and I T2 Call T3 Druid, which gets a Bolt and opponent drops a 3/3 Shadow.

My T4 sucks, so I fetch an Arbor (is this wrong?? Maybe; what if I draw Lightcaster? What if they just stone rain me?) and Finale for a Noble. Argh. We had kept the pressure up, but the pressure was released for an entire turn and now everything is doomed. It's possible I was supposed to Call for Lightcaster to demand a discard spell pre-shadow. It would be nice to draw a GODDAMN VEIL OF SUMMER AT SOME POINT as my Noble gets K Commanded for value.

I path a Death's Shadow and play a T6 Shalai to face off against a Gurmag Angler. It seems pretty unlikely that things will go well from here.

They Snap Dismember Shalai and play a Shadow as their turn.

Lol.

This matchup is so far away from being close. How do they draw so many spells? I guess this opponent cast one Serum Visions.

With UW and Shadow both being a disaster now that need 2+ slots to salvage, maybe it's time to give up on one of them.

I will probably -1 Thrun +1 Colossus at a very minimum.

Round 3 on the draw vs n8rs on Grixis Control

Opponent has Drown in the Loch and Mystic Sanctuary. I guess R&D really really wanted original Counterspell but easier to cast and with upside. Czech Pile is my least favorite kind of magic deck, which is why Veil of Summer is one of my top five favorite magic cards.

Lose Game 1

Yep.

T1 Giver gets a Bolt.

T2 Druid gets a Drown in the Loch. I guess I shouldn't have fetched to thin T1.

T3 opponent Cliques me taking my Ballista; I Call for a Shalai.

T4 opponent Thought Scours me and then Field of Ruins my Horizon Canopy (???) which I crack in response, fizzling. I feel like opponent is playing this poorly, but it doesn't matter unless I draw a Veil.

I play T5 Vizier to just try to trade for a card. It trades for half of a K Command, then opponent fetches to put K Command back on top.

T6 Shalai gets a Cryptic.

T7 Shalai also countered. GG I guess.

+4 Veil +2 Thrun +1 Lightcaster (I assume Plague Engineer would be in anyone's list who misses original Counterspell), -2 Noble -2 Vizier -3 Evolution

Lose Game 2

Nope, not close

Yikes, this is bad. Why never Veils? I bring in 4. Every time.

Bottom the Arbor. Draw a Once Upon a Time which could be either Backup Druid or 3rd Land. I took 3rd Land, assuming the combo isn't happening.

I wish opponent would cast a Stoneforge Mystic or something. Or we would draw a GODDAMN VEIL OF SUMMER THAT WOULD BE NICE

Instead we get Collective Brutality, losing Druid and Finale.

I draw a Noble Hierarch and literally just don't cast it, because it is probably best used as a discard to a K Command later.

Opponent plays a Tasigur, and so I call for and play a Devout Lightcaster because who knows anymore; at least it's sweet.

I'm so done with this league. It's the Veil of Summer Victory Tour and I'm just not able to find any.

Wait a minute; opponent just let my Finale for X = 4 resolve.

So I have a Thrun now.

Oh. Nevermind.

WHERE IS VEIL OF SUMMER

I have to Call for 2nd Thrun just to get through the Snapcaster in their hand. There is no Veil.

There has never been a Veil.

Never.

Round 4 on the draw vs KentusMaximo on Death & Taxes

I maintain that Death & Taxes is literally unplayable in Modern. But hey, sometimes it does things and you feel dumb saying stuff like that. Let's see.

Win Game 1

No.

This is sketchy. Like very sketchy. But I kept it.

Bottom the Lunge because we have so much protection.

T1 Noble, T2 hit second land and play Double Giver. Opponent has a T2 Thalia (?).

I play T3 Shalai. Double Giver + Shalai on T3 feels extremely good. Opponent spends 4 mana on a Sword of Light and Shadow. Hahaha ok this is more like it. I can't imagine that opponent's deck is any good against the decks I've been facing the rest of the league either, though.

T4 Evolve the Noble into a Druid.

T5 win.

+3 Path +1 Caterpillar -2 Lunge -1 Evolution -1 Call

Win Game 2

Noo

Hmm; considering cutting Arbor from the deck. This is a keep though.

Bottom the Arbor.

Opponent casts T2 Charming Prince which is even less threatening than a Stoneforge Mystic. Am I being too proud here? Am I dead?

T2 Druid. Opponent takes it with an On Thin Ice. I kill it in response, of course.

T3 Druid. A Flickerwisp punishes me, retaking it with the On Thin Ice.

T4 Druid. A second Flickerwisp takes it away, just for my turn.

T5 2 Druids. Opponent vials in a Stoneforge Mystic and forces me to chump with one, then kills the second one with the sword trigger. I go to 3 with an empty board.

Win T6.

Postmortem Lunge is a good card.

Round 5 on the draw vs Erpasd on Paradoxical Outcome

The right build of Paradoxical Outcome is basically a vintage deck. It's the reason I went up to 3 Ouphes for a little while, and still have 2.

Win Game 1

This hand is not a T4 win even if it draws a land. And if it doesn't draw a land, it's a disaster. Get it out of here.

This one's fine. Bottom the Twice Upon a Time:

Once hits a land, so we are headed for a T3. Unfortunately we lost the die roll, and opponent has a T2 Emry which is pretty threatening.

Whew, their T3 play is just Saheeli. Win T3.

Opponent showed a Plains instead of a Swamp, so I suspect more spot removal and fewer sweepers. So we keep all the protection.

+2 Ouphe +1 Caterpillar -2 Noble -1 Evolution? I really don't know how to board here.

Lose Game 2

Hmm, nolanders eh

With the Ballista we just need a source of Vizier to T3. But I looked at it and said "garbage" for some reason. In hindsight I think I would *definitely* keep this one, but I punted and mulliganed it.

Hm, another no-lander, but I guess we are keeping this one.

Bottom the Lunge and the Shalai and hope.

Once hits a Plains.... not ideal, but we'll take it.

Fingers crossed so hard for green land...

Miss the land on four straight draws (bottomed 2 nonlands with the mulligan and 4 nonlands with the once, too). Missing 4 draws at 17 hits out of 47 is actually pretty likely -- 16%.

Opponent does actual nothing until cracking a Witching Well on T4 and playing Sai T5. I assume opponent is going to kill me, but I hit the land and cast T5 Ouphe.

Opponent plays T6 Urza Opal Explosives and Nexus of Fate.

Whoa.

Aaaaanyway I land T7 Druid.

The critical turn is a turn 8 combat step where I try to get the Ouphe pathed so I can win with Druid.

It succeeds; the Ouphe gets pathed. But then opponent has another Path for my Druid. I kill it in response.

Then I can win with Lunge if I draw very non-painful land, but I don't hit it.

Crazy that we were in that game after casting nothing on turns 2-4.

I was right about keeping in all the protection. So keep the deck the same.

Win Game 3

Come on deck, we want a 3-2 and this is not it.

Next try: here we go again. Bottom the Vines. I never thought I would keep multiple 0-landers in one match, but here we are.

One of the lines of text here ↑ is probably not needed.

This hand needs a lot of help to be good. Maybe I should have bottomed the Lunge. Anyway I get the land and play Noble; opponent plays T1 Needle on Giver of Runes (!).

Apparently I needed that Vines.

T2 Call for Ouphe, T3 Ouphe + Giver. My T4 Once Upon a Time gets a Devoted Druid, but it seems unlikely that opponent has no removal with that Needle being on Giver.

Wait wait, opponent's T4 Needle is on Ballista. But I have an Ouphe out! It was already... I.. ok. No Ballistas. Definitely no Ballistas. No activating a Ballista.

T5 Druid, T6 Finale for 19 and put opponent to -122.

They gifted me that one.

The End

3-2.

Next time: -1 Thrun, +1 Chameleon Colossus.

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