Hexproof Videos: Sealed Deck Challenge: Decisions, Decisions

[Encaen]

Sealed Deck Challenge: Decisions, Decisions

[poll=35769]

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Join me, Josh Vanderwall, as I crack some packs, build some decks, and prepare to duel other players in the Return to Ravnica League here at The Escapist!

First, check out the video, then take your pick for which deck I play in the League. You'll also want to keep an eye out for the next installment, where you'll get to see how the most popular build performs against the others around the office. Voting ends on Friday, November 2 at 12pm!

Music courtesy of Kara-Turian Nights [http://ocremix.org]

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[fanklok]

Can we actually see you entire pool because I have the feeling your going to be making silly decisions from wanting to stay in one archtype in limited.

 

[Encaen]

Can we actually see you entire pool because I have the feeling your going to be making silly decisions from wanting to stay in one archtype in limited.

You can check out the sealed pool here [http://tappedout.net/mtg-decks/hexproof-rtr-league-sealed-pool/].

That said, don't worry, I'm not going to try to assemble a traditional control deck out of a sealed pool or anything like that, I just wanted to present the options in an easy-to-understand way for people to choose from. The control deck will naturally have some other tendencies, just like the aggro deck will be running all the removal available in those colors.

 

[Kross]

Hey, I need to beat up these decks, vote 5 color no creature deck!

 

[fanklok]

Hey, I need to beat up these decks, vote 5 color no creature deck!

RWU is your best option and I highly recommend running those Rakdos Guildgates in it for Stab Wound and Dead Reveler.

 

[Kross]

Hey, I need to beat up these decks, vote 5 color no creature deck!

RWU is your best option and I highly recommend running those Rakdos Guildgates in it for Stab Wound and Dead Reveler.

Yes, RWU with Stab Wounds! This is the best!

 

[fanklok]

Hey, I need to beat up these decks, vote 5 color no creature deck!

RWU is your best option and I highly recommend running those Rakdos Guildgates in it for Stab Wound and Dead Reveler.

Yes, RWU with Stab Wounds! This is the best!

I now realize I quoted the wrong person, that was advice for Josh.

 

[vxicepickxv]

I'm a pretty big fan of UW tempo. The ability to control how fast the game goes, without bogging it down is a good thing.

Of course, just because it's my favorite, doesn't mean anyone else wants to see it.

 

[if_then_else]

Dude, dat boosters... Niv Mizzet, Detention Spehere, Ash Zealot, the B/W Shaman... I'd wish I was that lucky.

Honestly? I would go with R/U with a splash of Black. You have some really nice cards on those colors, and I'm not really a fan of White in combination with Blue, it's too slow and I find it boring, not to mention anoying when I play against it.

 

[rees263]

RWU just seems so strong, plus I know I couldn't pass up both Chemister and Niv-Mizzet. Not to mention that seems like a lot of removal for a sealed deck.

Seems like you got a nice set of rares overall. I hope you keep us updated with the deck's performance.

 

[Abbot of Beregost]

No R/B/U option? early creatures to distract while you whittle and harass away? Also, that Ash Warrior is the unsung hero of whatever deck you build.

 

[brunothepig]

It's gotta be the RWU. It looks like it could be a pretty respectable deck, plus how can you say no to Niv-Mizzet? I managed to get him in a booster just a couple of days ago. Was very happy. Only now I need to try and build an Izzet deck... Anyway, RWU easily seems the best option to me. You get almost all your best cards in there, shame to say no to the Deathrite Shaman, but you've got your Detention Sphere, Lyev Skynight, Arrest, Ash Zealot, an Azorius Charm and Keyrune. That all seems pretty decent. I don't think you opened anything particularly exciting in black or green, the Shaman is great, especially with Grisly Salvage, but beyond that I don't see anything too special. Common Bond is nice as well actually.

Oh yeah, and Chemister too? You'll have all the card advantage. And holy shit man, how did you get so many great things?

 

[KefkaCultist]

When you get Niv + Detention Sphere with enough stuff to support it, there is no question about going America control. With the inclusion of a Chemister as well, then that's just nasty.

RWU is your best option and I highly recommend running those Rakdos Guildgates in it for Stab Wound and Dead Reveler.

I don't think I'd use Dead Reveler, but Stab Wound is a pretty good idea. I'd put those two Rakdos Guildgates in America control just for the Stab Wound.

EDIT: If I had room, I'd also splash in that Rakdos Charm. It's really powerful against populate decks. I found that out in a draft I did last week.

EDIT2: After looking through the pool completely, I wish that my sealed pools were as good as that, but nooooo, I get freaking stuff like Search the City, Conjured Currency, and other stupid rares in mine usually. >_>

 

[Kapol]

EDIT2: After looking through the pool completely, I wish that my sealed pools were as good as that, but nooooo, I get freaking stuff like Search the City, Conjured Currency, and other stupid rares in mine usually. >_>

To be fair, he DID get a Conjured Currency. Which I don't think is all that bad in limited. You can use it to steal an opponents bomb if you don't have anything else good on the field. That said, that's a last resort card.

Personally, I'd go R/U/b. You have Guttersnipe, which would be helped more by black. Ultimate Price, Cremate, Rakdos Charm, Thrill-Kill, Roustabout, Daggerdome, and Deathrite all seem like they could be useful. Maybe even just R/B. But with the Chemister and the Dracogenius, it's kind of hard to turn down blue if you go red at all for me.

Also, idea: for the next one (if you do another like this), get the sealed pool and allow the community to build a few decks. You can pick the top X (where X is the number you choose) and have a poll to decide which you play.

 

[A. Smith]

R/U/w is probably the best choice. Mercurial Chemister and Niv-Mizzet are insane bombs, and the rest of the pool seems decent.

One thing I noticed, though... You seem to have included Judge's Familiar in both the fliers and the control deck... I'm really not a fan of the card. The body is too tiny to be relevant and the ability is really not that good in limited, where creature spells are the name of the game. I would almost never play the card.

Also, splashing a fourth colour in black for stab wound should be easy enough with two rakdos guildgates, and the card is insane. I mean, it depends on other considerations (your curve, as well as how good you feel your 23rd card is), but still.

 

[Slycne]

Also, splashing a fourth colour in black for stab wound should be easy enough with two rakdos guildgates, and the card is insane. I mean, it depends on other considerations (your curve, as well as how good you feel your 23rd card is), but still.

Shhh, the less Stab Wounds I have to face down the better. Someone else is already running two of them, found out that in a fun way while I had [mtg_card=Concordia Pegasus] out. Oh boy, a 0/1 that's bleeding me to death.

 

[Drew Lindell]

You could go the other way with your red, white, and blue plan and make the deck really aggressive? With your 2x Rakdos Shred-Freak, Ash Zealot, and Lyev Skyknight you have some low cost creatures that pack a punch. Then you back up those creatures with some of the combat tricks that you got like the 2x Swift Justice, Dynacharge, and Azorius Charm for some tempo. Throw in Guttersnipe to deal some noncombat damage while you are casting tricks and removal and for late/mid game put in Niv-Mizzet, Mercurial Chemister, and Knightly Valor if your creatures don't get there and need a little boost.

...So yeah those are my thoughts.

 

[UM536]

This is awesome by the way. Be sure to post your progress. As for my 2 cent I'll back up what the other commenters said. RUW seems to be your best bet but don't throw the shred freaks out with the bath water, your pretty strong in black.

 

[RJ 17]

Voted for Black, Red, and Green. In sealed deck tournaments or drafts, I always try to go fast aggro.

Though one of my favorite sealed decks came out of M11. I called it the "Stall for the Fish" deck. It centered around the Stormtide Leviathan, the rest of the deck was built to buy time until I could get him out. It had 3 Wall of Frost's, 2 Sleeps, 2 Mind Controls, a couple Harbor Serpents, and some other stuff that helped to buy time. It got me to 2nd place, lost to a guy that managed to get Jace AND Chandra.