Monthly Archives: November 2017

Cryptic Command is Good in All of the Spots

Cryptic Command
Every card in your deck has purpose some of the time; Cryptic Command is the card that is the best, the most.

Welcome Back to Modern, Cryptic Command!

One of the most successful [new-ish] decks in Modern is Jeskai Control.

This archetype, featuring Search for Azcanta from Ixalan has reinvigorated pure control in the format.

Seminal to this strategy is the power of Search for Azcanta to flip into Azcanta, the Sunken Ruin. In its mana-mode, this card implies the availability of four mana. You can leave up four, and threaten Cryptic Command. If you don’t have to use the Cryptic Command, you have four lands to go find it.

Former US National Champion Ali Aintrazi played a version at a recent StarCityGames event, moving up to Nahiri, the Harbinger and Torrential Gearhulk as his late game heavy-handed threats.

Nahiri is particularly exciting in this archetype. She can discard cards to help flip Search for Azcanta, and will dig you to a big Torrential Gearhulk.

Also decks WITHOUT Cryptic Command

In the spirit of gearing Mike up for the upcoming #SCGInvi in Roanoke, Virigina, our intrepid duo goes over all kinds of decks beyond the soaring Jeskai Control…

  • Storm Combo – ever thought about playing Runed Halo on “Gifts Ungiven”?
  • Humans – now featuring “colorless” spells like Dismember!
  • Grixis Death’s Shadow – including all the one-ofs, spice, and strategies
  • Jund – with Hazoret the Fervent!
  • (and lots more)

When do you play FOUR copies of Cryptic Command?

  • Whenever it’s right!
  • … and half the time, when it’s not 😉

Check out this meditation on Modern now!

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Tetzimoc, Primal Death and the Rivals of Ixalan

Tetzimoc, Primal Death
Tetzimoc, Primal Death is a Legendary Creature – Elder Dinosaur

“God I hope this isn’t a Standard format where this isn’t good.”
-Patrick

Tetzimoc, Primal Death Invalidates “real” cards

This Legendary Creature – Elder Dinosaur almost doesn’t seem real.

Will there be efficient ways to get rid of prey counters? If not, Tetzimoc is going to act as a Plague Wind — a one-way Wrath of God — quite often.

What is the low end of Tetzimoc’s performance? Double Nekrataal? Just a couple of life points off of Noxious Gearhulk? It seems really powerful either way.

In any case, Tetzimoc leaves a large body with deathtouch on the battlefield. It provides not just a high potential for card advantage, but advances your board at the same time.

It is conceivable, unfortunately, that Tetzimoc will not be good. How could that be?

This creature is great against regular creatures, if even very good, efficient, or huge versions. It would be much less effective in a format based on Energy 187 creatures like Rogue Refiner, nothing but haste, or combo decks.

Tetzimoc is not the only Elder Dinosaur…

Ghalta, Primal Hunger
If you are unsure of the most broken thing you can possibly do with Ghalta, Primal Hunger, what about just starting on a Regisaur Alpha? That costs five mana and puts seven power in play. Seven down leaves Ghalta eminently cast-able.

Imagine this with haste!

On the one hand, Ghalta, Primal Hunger is an exceptional reason for Dinosaurs to finally graduate to Tier One in Standard.

But not for nothing… Decks based around the Primal Hunger are going to get their lunch eaten by decks based on the Primal Death, if you grok.

But Wait, There’s More!

This week we hit all five currently spoiled Rivals of Ixalan cards, not just the Dinosaurs.

Ever wanted to learn about the nuances between personal Mana Flare and personal Howling Mine? Check out “Tetzimoc, Primal Death and the Rivals of Ixalan” right now!

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Very Cryptic Command

Did you see this earlier this week?

Our #mtgunstable Exclusive Preview will drop Friday. Double casts this week, etc

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If you did — this podcast will be the realization of all you’ve been waiting for!

If you didn’t… Why aren’t you following the Top Level Podcast Instagram yet? Go ahead. We’ll wait up.

Back?

It’s time for our…

Exclusive Preview: Very Cryptic Command!

Very Cryptic Command

It’s Kind of Like a Cryptic Command

The “Very” variety is reminiscent of the classic in many ways.

  • It is a Command (and in fact, a “Cryptic” one).
  • As such, it has several modes, and asks you to choose two of them.
  • And of course, there is the UUU1 in the top-right corner

But in terms of game play? This is a whole other instant!

Well that’s one way to do it…

Isn’t it weird that an Un-set card — ostensibly built for fun rather than Spikes — is primarily geared towards making:

  • Infinite mana, and
  • Infinite storm count

Isn’t it?

Right?

If you have two copies of Gilded Lotus and two copies of this instant you can tap for UUUUUU, cast Very Cryptic Command to untap the artifacts and re-buy your other Very Cryptic Command.

Then you can do this all you want, over and over again.

Welcome to having as much mana as you want! Eventually, you can use one of the other modes to do anything else, move ahead (and presumably take advantage of your limitless mana and storm count).

Fun… For you, at least!

Our thoughts on this most Unstable of Unstable cards in “Very Cryptic Command”

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Masterfully Metagaming Sand Strangler

Sand Strangler
Sand Strangler Graduates to Main Deck!
Stephen King said it.

William Faulkner said it first.

Kill. Your. Darlings.

Which darlings, you ask.

How about the automatic three-of (if not four-of) at the Ramunap Red four? Hazoret the Fervent.

Cut Hazoret? Are you crazy?

Hazoret the Fervent versus Whirler Virtuoso

As a red mage, have you ever faced off against Whirler Virtuoso? If you haven’t, it sucks. It’s just really hard to bust through, even though you have one of the best offensive threats in the format.

Now imagine — assuming sufficient Desert power — Sand Strangler against Whirler Virtuoso.

Smoosh, right? Smoosh.

When essentially half of the format is Energy decks, Sand Strangler over Hazoret main deck starts to make more sense.

Pro Tour Hall of Famer Ben Stark executed on exactly this plan, finishing in the finals of Grand Prix Atlanta with a new look at Ramunap Ruins.

For reference: Desert Red, by Ben Stark

Wait a minute! Don’t I just suck in the mirror now?

While cutting Hazoret — one of the most important cards in the mirror match — certainly costs you percentage in the mirror, Ben counterbalanced with the duo of Sand Strangler and Glorybringer.

Remember: Sand Strangler and Glorybringer are two of the most frequently sided in cards in Red Deck mirrors.

So while you lose some Hazoret points, you get back some “free” sideboard creature points.

… And it’s not like Ben’s deck can’t side in a bunch of Hazorets after boards.

But mathematically? There is more Energy than Red right now. Ben’s metagaming was simply masterful.

New Decks Aplenty

Desert Red was cool, but it wasn’t alone.

This week Patrick and Mike tackle such instant classics as:

  • Esper Approach of the Second Sun
  • U/G Electrostatic Pummeler (with four copies of Bristling Hydra, for Mike)
  • Grixis builds aplenty

Check out “Masterfully Metagaming Sand Strangler” and you too may just become a metagame master:

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Energizing River’s Rebuke

River's Rebuke

Meet River’s Rebuke: Mirror-Breaker

Have you ever played the Temur Energy mirror match? And by “Temur” Energy we would include Four-color Energy and its cousins. The archetype is so good at brick walling itself.

Everyone has plenty of material. Attune with Aether, Rogue Refiner, and Planeswalkers can help develop resources. The Scarab God gives you something to do with your long-term land. It can bust through opposing defenses over time, and from multiple directions. Glorybringer — especially in multiples — combines evasion with card advantage. And Planeswalker-slaying!

But yet, Whirler Virtuoso is so good at keeping damage at bay!

How are you supposed to bust through?

May we suggest River’s Rebuke?

River’s Rebuke: Next Level Sideboarding

Here’s the thing about River’s Rebuke.

It’s a sorcery.

Who sides in Negate against Temur Energy? You know, the deck with 21-25 creatures? Would you side in Negate? What do you plan to Negate? A giant Vehicle? You’ve already got Abrade for that.

Whatever Negate!

It sits in your sideboard.

Meanwhile, you and your opponent accumulate more and more material, brick walling one another until…

Somebody Casts River’s Rebuke

Here’s the other thing about River’s Rebuke. It’s one-sided. Many times when you cast it, the game will be over that turn. You know all that Whirler Virtuoso brick walling? Ain’t no one home to defend. Even The Scarab God is going to fail in the face of River’s Rebuke.

Two members of the Pro Tour Ixalan Top 8 — Christian Hauk and Piotr Glogowski — ran it last weekend.

Temur Wasn’t Even the “Good” Energy Deck

Sultai Energy in the hands of former World Champion Seth Manfield reigned supreme. The trickiest of the Energy decks, Sultai has a two-card combo of Hostage Taker and Blossoming Defense that few decks want to tussle with.

Learn more about Temur, Sultai, and the entire PT Ixalan Top 8 in “Energizing River’s Rebuke” now!

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Approach of the Second Sun at Pro Tour Ixalan

Approach of the Second Sun

Approach of the Second Sun

Patrick is coming to us straight from Pro Tour Ixalan this week! He played a new take on R/W Approach of the Second Sun with Sunbird’s Invocation, but more mana and fewer expensive spells.

The Pro Tour is lousy with Temur Energy (and Four-color Energy, and Sultai Energy)… But that just gives it structure to attack! Patrick’s approach to Approach seems thought-provoking now, and sounds like it will be influential moving forward. Most opponents have many “dead” cards in Game One. Imagine the B/U Control opponent who cycles through his entire deck with Search for Azcanta only to find… There is nothing to find.

Or the Energy deck (or any deck, really) that doesn’t kill you fast enough… Can they stop you from playing your Approaches?

Well… Sometimes 🙂

Give it a listen:

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