There was at least 6-7 Stax and 6-8 Dredge.

The rest of the Meta mainly consisted of aggro deck, some combo deck (ANT / Long), Tezz.

73 players played in the 5th CVQ final for the following prize structure:

1st: 380$
2nd: 220$
3rd-4th: 140$ each
5th-8th: 100$ each
Door Prizes: 160$

Total prizes: 1440$

Ugo Rivard (Tezz with Confidant) and Joey Smith (Iona Oath) splits the final. Here is the top8 decklists:



Top2 SPlit
Ugo Rivard

4 Force of WIll
3 Mana Drain
3 Mana Leak
1 Hurkyl's Recall
2 Fire/Ice
1 PLatinum Angel
1 Triskelion
1 Voltaic Key
1 Sensei's Divining Top
1 Time Vault
1 Tezzeret, the Seeker
1 Tinker
1 Merchant Scroll
1 Mystical Tutor
1 Fact or Fiction
1 Thirst for Knowledge
1 Ancestral Recall
1 Time Walk
1 Brainstorm
1 Gorilla Shaman
1 Blood Moon
1 Demonic Tutor
1 Vampiric Tutor
1 Imperial Seal
1 Yawgmoth'S Will
3 Dark Confidant
1 Mox Sapphire
1 Mox Pearl
1 Mox Emerald
1 Mox Jet
1 Mox Ruby
1 Black Lotus
1 Mana Crypt
1 Sol Ring
1 Library of Alexandria
1 Tolarian Academy
1 Strip Mine
2 POlluted Delta
1 Flooded Strand
1 Scalding Tarn
1 Misty Rainforest
3 Underground Sea
2 Island
3 Volcanic Island

Sideboard
4 Leyline of the Void
3 Ignot Chewer
2 Blood Moon
2 Red Elemental Blast
1 Pyroblast
1 Pyroclasm
1 Duplicant
1 Firespout


Joey Smith

4 Forbidden Orchard
3 Underground Sea
1 Tropical Island
1 Tolarian Academy
1 Strip Mine
4 Misty Rainforest
1 Library of Alexandria
1 Island
1 Forest
1 Voltaic Key
1 Time Vault
1 Sol Ring
1 Sensei's Divining Top
1 Mox Sapphire
1 Mox Pearl
1 Mox Emerald
1 Mox Jet
1 Mox Ruby
1 Black Lotus
1 Mana Crypt
1 Lotus Petal
4 Oath of Druids
1 Yawgmoth's Will
1 Timetwister
1 Time Walk
1 Thoughseize
1 Regrowth
1 Ponder
1 Merchant Scroll
1 Demonic Tutor
1 Vampiric Tutor
1 Thirst for knowledge
4 Spell Pierce
1 Rebuild
1 Mystical Tutor
1 Krosan Reclamation
1 Gifts Ungiven
4 Force of WIll
1 Flash of Insight
1 Brainstorm
1 Ancient Grudge
1 Ancestral Recall
1 Iona, Shield of Emeria

Sideboard
1 Tezzeret the Seeker
1 Tormod'S Crypt
2 Sadistic Sacrement
1 Rebuild
1 Pernicious Deed
1 Balance
1 Slaughter Pact
2 Ravenous Trap
1 Oxidize
2 Extirpate
1 Sphinx of the Steel Wind
1 Tinker



Top4 Nelson Guilbert

2 Polluted Delta
1 Flooded Strand
1 Scalding Tarn
1 Misty Rainforest
3 Underground Sea
2 Tropical Island
1 Snow-Covered Island
1 Library of Alexandria
1 Mox Sapphire
1 Mox Pearl
1 Mox Emerald
1 Mox Jet
1 Mox Ruby
1 Black Lotus
1 Mana Crypt
1 Sol Ring
1 Sensei's Divining Top
1 Voltaic Key
1 Time Vault
1 Sphinx of the Steel Wind
1 Sower of Temptation
2 Thoughseize
1 Demonic Tutor
1 Yawgmoth's Will
1 Ponder
1 Time Walk
1 Regrowth
1 Tinker
1 Merchant Scroll
4 Force of Will
4 Mana Drain
2 Impulse
1 Gifts Ungiven
1 Vampiric Tutor
1 Brainstorm
1 Fact or Fiction
1 Misdirection
1 Ancestral Recall
1 Mystical Tutor
1 Thirst for Knowledge
1 Echoing Truth
1 Repeal

Sideboard
2 Hurkyl's Recall
2 Duress
3 Yixlid Jailer
2 Raveanous Trap
4 Oath of Druids
1 Iona, Shield of Emeria
1 Gaea's Blessing


Yan Lampron

4 Dark Confidant
4 Force of Will
4 Daze
4 Tarmogoyf
1 Brainstorm
2 Trygon Predator
1 Vendillion Clique
1 Diabolic Edict
1 Darkblast
1 Demonic Tutor
3 Null Rod
1 Demonic Tutor
3 Stiffle
1 Time Walk
4 Thoughseize
1 Ancestral Recall
1 Mox Sapphire
1 Mox Emerald
1 Mox Jet
1 Black Lotus
4 Wasteland
1 Bayou
1 Swamp
1 Forest
3 Tropical Island
3 Underground Sea
3 Polluted Delta
3 Misty Rainforest
1 Strip Mine

Sideboard
4 Leyline of the Void
3 Energy Flux
2 Threads of Disloyalty
2 Krosan Grip
1 Engenered Plague
1 Thada Adel Aquisitor
1 Life from the Loam
1 Diabolic Edict





Top8:
Maxime Ouellette

4 Badland
3 Bloodstained MIre
2 Scalding Tarn
2 Wooded Foothill
1 Strip Mine
4 Wasteland
2 Volcanix Island
1 Mountain
1 Mox Sapphire
1 Mox Emerald
1 Mox Jet
1 Mox Ruby
1 Black Lotus
1 Mana Crypt
1 Lotus Petal
4 Goblin Lackey
4 Goblin Vandal
2 Mogg Fanatic
4 Earning Squad
4 Goblin Matron
4 Goblin Piledriver
3 Vexing Shusher
1 Worth, Boggart Auntie
1 Time Walk
3 Warren Werding
1 Ancestral Recall
1 Brainstorm
1 Demonic Consultation
1 Demonic Tutor

Sideboard
1 Goblin Sharpshooter
1 Gempalm Incinerator
1 Vampiric Tutor
1 Tormod'S Crypt
1 Relic of Progenitus
1 Pulverize
2 Ravenous Trap
2 Energy Flux
4 Ligthning Bolt
1 Bitter Ordeal



Nathaniel Boutin

1 Tolarian Academy
1 Island
1 Hellkite Overlord
1 Akroma, Angel of Wrath
1 Imperial Seal
1 Demonic Tutor
1 Vampiric Tutor
4 Oath of Druids
1 Regrowth
1 Krosan Reclamation
2 Ancient Grudge
1 Burning Wish
1 Mox Sapphire
1 Mox Pearl
1 Mox Emerald
1 Mox Jet
1 Mox Ruby
1 Black Lotus
1 Sol Ring
1 Mana Crypt
1 Voltaic Key
1 Time Vault
1 Spell Pierce
1 Thirst for Knowledge
1 Rebuild
1 Brainstorm
1 Fact or Fiction
1 Tinker
1 Mechant Scroll
1 Mystical Tutor
1 Time Walk
1 Ponder
1 Ancestral Recall
3 Mana Drain
4 Force of Will
4 Forbidden Orchard
3 Scalding Tarn
2 Misty Rainforest
1 Volcanic Island
2 Underground Sea
1 Yawgmoth's Will

Sideboard
4 Leyline of the Void
2 Spell Pierce
2 Ravenous Trap
3 Nature's Claim
1 Inkwell Leviatan
1 Sundering Titan
1 Tentril's of Agony
1 Deep Analysis



Ian Sauvé

2 Island
3 Volcanic Island
3 Underground Sea
4 Polluted Delta
1 Strip Mine
1 Tolarian Academy
1 library of Alexandria
1 Sol Ring
1 Mana Crypt
1 Mox Sapphire
1 Mox Pearl
1 Mox Emerald
1 Mox Jet
1 Mox Ruby
1 Black Lotus
1 Brainstorm
1 Ancestral Recall
1 Mystical Tutor
1 Vampiric Tutor
1 Imperial Seal
1 Gorilla Shaman
1 Sensei's Divining Top
1 Voltaic Key
3 Dark Confidant
1 Demonic Tutor
2 Fire/Ice
1 Merchant Scroll
1 TimeWalk
1 Hurkyl's Recall
3 Mana Leak
3 Mana Drain
1 Time Vault
1 Yawgmoth's Will
1 Thirst for Knowledge
1 Tinker
1 Blood Moon
1 Fact or Fiction
4 Force of Will
1 Tezzeret the Seeker
1 Triskelion
1 PLatinum Angel

Sideboard
4 Leyline of the Void
2 Blood Moon
2 Ignot Chewer
2 Red Elemental Blast
1 Pyroblast
1 Duplicant
2 Pyroclasm


Michel Ducarme

1 Black Lotus
1 Ancestral Recall
1 POlluted Delta
2 Flooded Strand
1 Scalding Tarn
1 Tolarian Academy
2 Underground Sea
1 Tropical Island
1 Volcanic Island
4 Wasteland
1 Island
1 Snow-Covered Island
1 Mox Sapphire
1 Mox Pearl
1 Mox Emerald
1 Mox Jet
1 Mox Ruby
1 Black Lotus
1 Sol Ring
1 Mana Crypt
1 Library of Alexandria
1 Cruccible of Worlds
1 Tiem Walk
1 Sower of Temptation
1 Sundering Titan
1 Strip Mine
1 Brainstorm
1 Pernicious Deed
4 Force of Will
2 Mana Drain
4 Spell Pierce
1 Ancient Grudge
1 Tinker
1 Misdirection
1 Gorilla Shaman
1 Demonic Tutor
1 Vampiric Tutor
1 Thirst for Knowledge
1 Merchant Scroll
1 Fact or Fiction
1 Gifts Ungiven
1 Mindtwist
1 Yawgmoth's Will
1 Regrowth
1 Ponder
1 Fire/Ice

Sideboard
4 Leyline of the Void
1 Helm of Obedience
1 Sower of Temptation
1 Balance
1 Sphinx of the Steel Wind
1 Red Elemental Blast
1 Pyroblast
1 Trinisphere
1 Diabolic Edict
2 Greater Gargadon
1 Hurkyl's Recall

The missing cards were:
5 Island
4 Null Rod

4 Bridge from Below

1 Yawgmoth's Bargain


Well, I am Martin. I didn't take notes, so there won't be a tournament report from me. What I can say is that I went 3-0, then ID the last 2 rounds. I beat a Workshop Aggro deck, a R-G Beatz and ANT in the swiss, then TPS and B-G Suicide in the top8.

This is the 2nd time I play this deck in a tournament, last time was in a small tourney (12 players). I went 4-0 then lost in top4 (The tourney was 4 rounds + top4).

The deck is good and is a pleasure to play! If I play this deck again in a tournament, I will take some notes to make a report! 

31 Players played this time. 5 rounds +Top8. Here is the top8:

Jonathan Gauvin Richard (Dredge) vs Bruno Dumontier (RemoraTezz)
Jean-Philippe Gagné (Workshop Aggro) vs Karl Linteau (ANT)
Francois Xavier Bélanger (TPS) vs Martin Bonneville (La Bulle à Bonvil)
Christian Bordeleau ( G-B Suicide ) vs Simon Lalancette ( Dredge )

Top 4:
Martin Bonneville (La Bulle à Bonvil) vs Christian Bordeleau ( G-B Suicide )
Jean-Philippe Gagné (Workshop Aggro) vs Jonathan Gauvin Richard (Dredge)

Finale (Prize splitt)
Martin Bonneville (La Bulle à Bonvil) vs Jean-Philippe Gagné (Workshop Aggro)


Here is to top8 decklists:

Jean-Philippe Gagné
Deck: Workshop Aggro

1 Mox Jet
1 Mox Sapphire
1 Mox Pearl
1 Mox Ruby
1 Mox Emerald
1 Sol Ring
1 Mana Crypt
1 Black Lotus
1 Ancestral Recall
1 Time Walk
5 Island
4 Null Rod
2 Razormane Masticore
4 Force of Will
4 Mishra's Workshop
2 Cruccible of Worlds
1 Tinker
4 Wasteland
1 Strip Mine
2 Polluted Delta
4 Tangle Wire
3 Juggernaut
3 Thorn of Amethyst
4 Master of Etherium
1 Lotus Petal
4 Esperzoa
1 Trinisphere
1 Duplicant

Sideboard
3 Echoing Truth
3 Pithing Needle
3 Thormod's Crypt
3 Propaganda
3 Hydroblast


Martin Bonneville
Deck: La bulle à Bonvil

3 Polluted Delta
2 Flooded Strand
2 Volcanic Island
2 Underground Sea
3 Island
1 Tolarian Academy
1 Library of Alexandria
1 Black Lotus
1 Mox Ruby
1 Mox Jet
1 Mox Sapphire
1 Mox Emerald
1 Mox Pearl
1 Sol Ring
1 Mana Crypt
4 Mishra's Bauble
4 Urza's Bauble
1 Darksteel Colossus
1 Empty The Warrens
1 Yawgmoth's Will
1 Demonic Tutor
1 Vampiric Tutor
1 Voltaic Key
1 Time Vault
1 Tinker
1 Time Walk
4 Force Of Will
1 Misdirection
4 Thirst For Knowledge
1 Chain Of Vapor
4 Arcane Denial
4 Mana Drain
1 Ancestral Recall
1 Brainstorm
1 Mystical Tutor

sideboard
1 Tormod's Crypt
1 Chain of Vapor
1 Echoing Truth
2 Hurkyl's Recall
2 Yixlid Jailer
2 Extirpate
2 Pyroclasm
1 Relic of Proteginus
1 Platinium Angel
1 Rack and Ruins
1 Inkwell Leviathan


Christian Bordeleau
deck: Suicide G-B

2 Bloodstained Mire
4 Wasteland
1 Strip Mine
4 Bayou
4 Polluted Delta
4 Swamp
2 Withered Wretch
4 Dark Confidant
4 Tarmogoylf
4 Hypnotic Specter
1 Mox Emerald
1 Black Lotus
1 Mox Jet
3 Duress
4 Null Rod
4 Dark Ritual
1 Demonic Tutor
1 Yawgmoth's Will
2 Thoughtseize
4 Hymn to Tourach
3 Diabolic Edict
1 Demonic Consultation
1 Extirpate

Sideboard
4 Leyline of the Void
2 Umezawa's Jitte
2 Extirpate
3 Seal of Primordium
2 Pernicious Deed
2 Smother


Jonathan Gauvin Richard
Deck: Dredge

4 Bazaar of Bagdad
4 Ichorid
4 Cabal Therapy
2 Dread Return
1 Angel of Despair
1 Flame-kin Zealot
4 Narcomoeba
4 Unmask
4 Wasteland
1 Strip Mine
4 Serum Powder
4 Bridge from Below
4 Golgary Grave-Troll
4 Stinkweed Imp
2 City of Brass
2 Drakblast
4 Chalice of the Void
4 Leyline of the Void
3 Golgary Thug

Sideboard
2 City of Brass
4 Chain of Vapor
4 Emerald Charm
1 Wispemare
1 Darksteel Colosus
3 Gemstone Mine


Simon Lalncette
Deck: Dredge

4 Chalice of the Void
4 Dread Return
4 Bridge from Below
4 Golgary Grave-Troll
4 Leyline of the Void
4 Cabal Therapy
4 Bazaar of Bagdad
1 Cephalid Sage
4 Serum Powder
4 Dryad Arbor
4 Stinkweed Imp
4 Golgary Thug
4 Ichorid
2 Angel of Despair
4 Unmask
4 Narcomoeba
2 Flame-Kin Zealot

Sideboard
2 Bayou
4 Reverant Silence
4 Oxidize
3 Contagion
2 Shickening Shoal


Karl Linteau
Deck: ANT

4 Add Nauseam
1 Ancestral Recall
1 Brainstorm
3 Cabal Ritual
3 Chain of Vapor
4 Dark Ritual
1 Demonic Consultation
1 Hurkyl's Recall
1 Mystical Tutor
4 Pact of Negation
1 Vampiric Tutor
1 Demonic Tutor
4 Duress
1 Merchant Scroll
1 Ponder
3 Tendril's of Agony
1 Thoughtseize
1 Yawgmoth's Will
1 Necropotence
1 Black Lotus
4 Chrome Mox
1 Lotus Petal
1 Mana Crypt
1 Mana Vault
1 Mox Jet
1 Mox Sapphire
1 Sol Ring
1 Bayou
2 Bloodstained Mire
1 Island
3 Polluted Delta
2 Swamp
3 Underground Sea

Sideboard
4 Xantid Swarm
2 Yxlid Jailer
2 Extirpate
2 Tormod's Crypt
1 Slaugher Pact
2 Hurkyl's Recall
2 Engineered Explosives


Bruno Dumontier
Deck: RemoraTezz

2 Goblin Welder
1 Inkwell Leviathan
1 Tezzeret the Seeker
1 Ancestral Recall
1 Fire/Ice
1 Vampiric Tutor
1 Mystical Tutor
1 Brainstorm
1 Fact or Fiction
1 Gift Ungiven
1 Misdirection
1 Rack and Ruin
1 Red Elemental Blast
4 Thirst of Knowledge
4 Mana Drain
4 Force of Will
3 Mystic Remora
1 Demonic Tutor
1 Time Walk
1 Merchant Scroll
1 Tinker
1 Yawgmoth's Will
1 Black Lotus
1 Mana Vault
1 Sensei's Divining Top
1 Sol Ring
1 Mana Crypt
1 Mox Sapphire
1 Mox Emerald
1 Mox Ruby
1 Mox Pearl
1 Mox Jet
1 Time Vault
1 Voltaic Key
1 Library of Alexandria
1 Tolarian Academy
2 Flooded Strand
3 Polluted Delta
3 Island
2 Underground Sea
3 Volcanic Island

Sideboard
1 Sundering Titan
1 Rack and Ruin
2 Ignot Chewer
2 Tormod's Crypt
2 Extirpate
2 Thoughtseize
1 Duress
1 Darkblast
2 Threads of Disloyalty
1 Gaea's Blessing


Francois-Xavier Bélanger
Deck: TPS

1 Yawgmoth's Bargain
1 Darksteel Colossus
1 Cabal Ritual
4 Duress
1 Brainstorm
2 Grim Tutor
4 Force of Will
1 Memory Jar
1 Hurkyl's Recall
1 Chain of Vapor
4 Dark Ritual
1 Time Walk
1 Demonic Tutor
1 Necropotence
1 Vampiric Tutor
1 Ancestral Recall
1 Tinker
2 Tendrils of Agony
1 Mox Jet
1 Black Lotus
1 Lotus Petal
1 Mox Pearl
1 Mox Emerald
1 Mana Vault
1 Mox Sapphire
1 Mox Ruby
3 Underground Sea
2 Swamp
1 Tolarian Academy
4 Polluted Delta
1 Flooded Strand
2 Island
1 Mana Crypt
1 Imperial Seal
1 Time Spiral
1 Mystical Tutor
1 Yawgmoth's Will
1 Gift Ungiven
1 Mind's Desire
1 Sol Ring
1 Timetwister
1 Ponder

Sideboard
1 Tormod's Crypt
2 Pithing Needle
3 Yxlid Jailer
2 Engineered Plage
2 Hymn to Tourach
3 Phyrexian Negator
2 Misdirection


As always, a very diverse metagame and a diverse Top8.

Hum... Not sure. Will they really lets you add an absurd amount of mana in your pool to extirpate the Oona when you target her with your annimated dead!? If so... You can cast/Flashback Deep Analysis, Intuition, Read the Runes to fin another Animate Dead (If you didn't have another one in hand!) and make a draw. Extirpte the Dragon is the way to go, no!?
By the way... Who plays Extirpate maindeck !?!?

I find it a bad substitute... It doesn't have a big body to animate it and win. It doesn't makes useless all your opponent's TopTutor...


Well... I played only a few matchups (one 19 players tourney, so 4 rounds + 2 more rounds (Top8 and Top4)), Not sure if I sideboard the right way... But well, That's what I did:

- If I think they have too much graveyard hate (Extirpate + Leyline):
- 4 Worldgorger Dragon
- 5/6/7 Annimate effect
+ Tinker
+ 3 Transmute Artifact
+ 3 Voltaic Key
+ Time Vault
+ Sundering Titan
+ Bounces (if needed)

I sideboarded this way sometimes too:
- 2 Worldgorger Dragon
- 1 Oona
- 3/4 Annimate effect
- 1 Deep Analysis
- 2/3 Duress/Read the Runes (Depending of the matchup)
+ Tinker
+ 3 Transmute Artifact
+ 3 Voltaic Key
+ Time Vault
+ Sundering Titan
+ Bounces (if needed)

That way, I can win with infinit Turns or Intuition for Dragons to combo out.

Cast Oona/Sundering Titan and win with them... If you can't attack (lets say they have Akroma out and Darksteel Colossus), deck them with Oona. You can easily deck them 5+ cards per turn tou take.

I understand how to win with witness... But I don't see how it's better than Oona. Unless there is a Needle in play.
Yes, Witness can make animate dead become a regrowth which can sometimes be usefull. But Oona's make animate dead a winning condition, which is sometime really usefull! And Witness doesn't pitch to FoW...

By the way... It's not really more difficult to cast Oona's than Witness with a Lotus 
In fact, if there is some hate (The game last for some turns...), it's not hard to cast a Oona and win with her.

I played 1 Oona and 1 Mulldrifter before. I Find that 2 Oona's is better. Oona gave me at least 1-2 games per tournament. It's good to reanimate, for sur, but it's not that hard to hardcast it.
I like to be able to pitch a Oona's in a FoW with the ability to still combo out, that's a nice bonus.
By the way... What is the real advantage of Witness!? It's hard to cast and most of the time, I prefer to annimated Oona's than Witness.

It was good. Gave me at least a game.

No, No Null Rod. I didn't expect to see a lot of Null Rod in that meta and I was right. Against Rod, Oah sideboard is probably better!
That said... People was a little surprised game 2 and 3, becaue they know that I usually play Oath in the sideboard. I won with Time Vault with Leyline in play and won with Dragon with CotV at 1 and 2 (Shutting down time vault combo). People have to keep both graveyard hate and artifact hate post-sideboard because they don't know how you will win... I find it interresting!

As for Inkwell, could be in the sideboard for sur...

I'm doing great with Worldgorger Dragon decks since... at least 3-4 months, it's a viable deck for sure...
I played the oath in the sideboard, but last weekend I wanted to try the Time Vault Combo. I was happy with the turnout (I split the final. That was a small tourney (19 players), but still...). I found it interresting that you can sideout 1-2 Worldgorger dragon and can combo post-side with Time Vault or the Dragon!  Here is the list I played. The Needle side should have been a Platinium Angel...  I wasn't able to make two decks (For me and a friend) 


Martin Bonneville
Deck: From the Vault: Dragons

4 Worldgorger Dragon
2 Oona, Queen of Fae
4 Necromancy
3 Annimate Dead
1 Dance of the Death
4 Force of Will
3 Duress
4 Intuition
4 Deep Analysis
3 Read the Runes
4 Bazaar of Bagdad
1 Vampiric Tutor
1 Demonic Tutor
1 Mystical Tutor
1 Ancestral Recall
4 Polluted Delta
4 Underground Sea
2 Island
1 Swamp
1 Black Lotus
1 Mox Sapphire
1 Mox Ruby
1 Mox Emerald
1 Mox Jet
1 Mox Pearl
1 Mana Crypt
1 Sol Ring
1 Mana Vault

Sideboard
1 Tinker
3 Transmute Artifact
1 Time Vault
3 Voltaic Key
2 Chains of Vapors
1 Echoing Truth
1 Sundering Titan
1 Tormod's Crypt
1 Relic of Proteginus
1 Pithing Needle

I doubt... When comboing, that's pretty useless. And what if you have a hand with your win condition and a Serum Powder!? You won't be able to use the Powder... Not really good...

Which deck will more likekly be able to cast CotV at 2 before you combo? Workshop decks. What you side-in against them!? Shattering Sprees and Ancient Grudges. Like 5 in total.
By the way... I'm fine if you kept all those removal in your deck to only stop 1 single card (alternate strategy) of a combo deck.


Why the game is finished!? Why!? You couldn't have FoW!? Fabricate!? You couldn't wait some turns to draw a Lich's Mirror/Fabricate!?
That's like saying: He casted Recall turn 1. There is no way the opponent can win this game. That's absurd. That gives him an edge, for sure, but that's by no mean GG!


The general negativity comes from people who don't want this deck to be good. You come and say us: You loose to that, you can't win if your opponent do that, which are greatly exagerated.

1- Yes, I did play it in two different metagame.
2- Yes, In a 35-40 players tournament (I can't remember how exactly, that was in November). And I made top4 in that tournament.  (By the way, it takes 32 players to play 6 rounds of swiss).
And by the way, the tournament I splitted (24 players), there was lot of really good players in. There was at least 6 players that did top8ed in at least 1 SGP9 tournament before, those tournament aren't that easy to win.

Doomsday is a lot more affected to hate than this deck I think. They need to tutor/find an anti-hate card for Chalice of the Void/Null Rod/Canonist/Mindcensor, while this deck can combo through them.

If they FoW my Personal Tutor, I'll be happy, really... You have to realize that you have 9 Channel in the deck, so countering the tutor isn't that good most of the time. And by the way, you can protect your Tutor with PoN if you have a draw effect in the table (Top or the Star) and with that same turn.

As a french guy, I find the use of "In lieu" innappropriate! 
That said, Street Wrait isn't good really in this deck I think. Unlike other combo deck, 2 lifes is sometime very important, that could be the difference between being able to cas Lich's MIrror with Channel or not. But you have already draw effets to draw the tutored card right now (Which you don't want to draw now if you're turn 1, unless you have Black Lotus, which is rare...). When comboing, Star is supperior to Wraith.


I really doubt... Sorry!
You understand that Phyrexian Portal Lets the opponent to make two face-down pile?? And you remove one of those without knowning what's in it? What happen if you remove your Karveck's Torch from the game!?

Son of Serra, I like how your deck works well against Sphere (It can even win turn 1, even though there was a 1st turn Trinisphere!!).
I like the 8 Spirit Guide Idea, especialy with Manamorphose and the Portal. That said, I have some concerns:
1- Isn't your deck more vulnerable to aggro decks!? You need 17 lifes to combo out half the time (when you have the portal and no Mirror) (ok, you can use Spirit guide, but still... If you lost already 5-6 lifes (from Fetch and creatures), the Portal becomes almost useless pre-combo and you will have more difficulties to combo.
2- Why no Imperial Seal!?
3- I simply don't like the Regrowth and Banfire... But I already talked about those.
4- Why 3 forests!? isn't 2 forest enough!? The 3rd forest should be something else (a Fetch or Bayou).

Well... That's it... What your sideboard looks like!?
I will at least goldfish your build. Very different, but interresting! 

Quote for truth!

There is always a better deck, unless you play the best deck, no? So... We should all play the best deck, no matter what!? If everyone play this "best deck" except for one player, playing a "sub-par" deck having a 80% chance of winning against the "best deck", who is most likely to win the tournament!?
Like it or not (you probalby don't like it...), this deck is competitive. My decklist may not be the best one for this deck, maybe, but this deck is competitive. You add really nothing to the discussion.

LIke I said, Scroll Rack needs to be tested.

Street Wraith: I would prefer having a Chromatic Sphere instead. When you combo, Street Wraith is: Pay  and draw a card. Chromatic Sphere is: pay  , add  or  or  to your mana pool and draw a card. Which one is better!?

I think it's a really bad idea. CIP Tapped means that you wins at lleast 1 turn later. Add to that that you want to have  or  to find Channel, so I don't think those are a good Idea.

I have to agree with you. The pilot makes a big difference. I've seen Lany and Kristofer playing this deck and I can tell you they don't play it optimally. The deck doesn't play itself as easily as Dredge for exemple. You have obvious hands where you should Top tutor 1st turn, other hands where you shouldn't (and some where you should/shouldn't depending of the deck you face).

Sometimes, you need to be really creative with this deck too. I remember a situation where I had a Mirror into play and I didn't have Channel... I killed myself with 2 draws (Star) in the stack with the trigger from City of brass. I was able to toptutor a Channel the same turn and won the very next turn with double backup.

You have a sideboard for that reason... Shattering spree is easily tutorable and can be really good...


Ok, let's see...
He's on the play.

Turn1:
Him: Drop Dreadnaught or colossus.
You: Land, Personnal Tutor (Channel)

Turn 2:
Him: Attack for 12 (You're at 8)
You: Land, Channel + Lich's Mirror. (You're at 3, meaing you can still play FoW, Top... And you can have Pact to protect you too)

Hum... No, I don't automaticaly loose to a 1st turn Dreadnought or Colossus. Sorry.

That's funny that I played 3 tournaments (21 rounds in total!) and had good results with the deck... I'm lucky enough that most of my opponent didn't played cards!!

I don't say this deck can't loose. Obviously, it can loose, like any other deck. But, I can tell you for sure that this deck can win far more than you think (which is near to 0%...).
 
By the way... Cutting a Top of a sphere is worng in my opinion, since Top is really good in this deck. And you say that this deck is vulnerable to Waste effect and cut a land from the deck? Really??

Mox Diamond have been tested before (as a one of). WHile it's good when comboing, that's pretty much always useless before comboing. Remember that you play only 15 lands.
Chrome Mox was better than Mox Diamond, it allows you to thin your deck while comboing. Unfortunatly, Chrome Mox won't gives you  to cast Channel (unless you play Manamorphose).

I didn't knew Goblin Cannon. That's interresting.
As for Scroll Rack, I never though about it... Thanks for sharing this! 

I doubt... Have you seen what happen when they saw that I top8ed with "Le 5e Élément"  in last year CVQ final?   It seems that for some person, if this deck isn't played where they play (or it was not reavealed by some deckduilder), they will bash it, no matter what... I find it bad.


Well... I play Channel, then, I get lot of Mana, draw lot of cards and win more than 95% of the time. That is not explosive enough!?

Memory Jar is not a good play against control deck. Against the other decks, that's almost better than a Lich's Mirror, since it let you draw 7 card and it lets you remove useless cards from your hand. You usually will find your Torch before actually killing with the Jar...


Brainfreeze isn't tutorable as easily as the Torch. Brainfreeze requires you to sometimes, have a storm count of 18 to kill the opponent and you don't always have that storm count when you win.
By t he way, the best thing to accelerate the storm is with two Top I think...

You faced it online? really? You never faced me for sure, as I don't play online, nor my teamate. Maybe someone build something simillar, but probably not as good as this deck and/or was not playing the deck correctly. Like it or not, this deck isn't slow... I have some tournaments results to backup what I say. Here are some decks I won against in tournaments:
- Tezzeret
- Remora-Meditade-Commander deck
- Dredge
- R-G beatz
- Ad Nauseam
- Stax
- Workshop aggro
- Tyran Oath
Etc...
If I always manage to make top8 with this deck, and won against those deck, why this deck would be the most horrifyingly slow deck imaginable!?
And by the way... I read everywhere that people have problem with people playing online... There a lot of scrubs there that don't know the rules. This deck required some rules knowledge to work well (see my tricks), so I doubt he wasn't playing the deck perfectly. Give it a try, this isn't as slow as you pretend.

Merchant Scroll clearly shows that you never face our deck, since we never include this card (It don't tutor anywthing good except Recall, FoW or Pact) and is very slow. It may surprise some people, but I found that tutoring for Recall in this deck isn't a good play most of the time. With that kind of hand, we would have to mulligan (unless he already mulligan down to 5...). That said, he shouldn't play Merchant Scroll, that's garbage in this deck.

He clearly misplayed that game... He tried to combo 2nd turn without protection while you had  open and playing some counters... Not a good play at all... Every players that played combo (or faced combo) know that, no!?
By the way, if he would have cast Channel with 2 Pact of Negation (Or Pact and FoW), would you still say that this deck si still the most horrifyingly slow deck imaginable!?

Which questionable cards!? Tell me which cards shouldn't be in t hat deck. I can tell you there isn't that much. Every card are there for a reason and, togeter, they make a good deck, like it or not. I know that you have prejudices against the deck, but be a little more open-minded ... This decklist (while played correctly) works very well and compete with any deck currently played. Like it or not, that's the truth.

Your argument clearly proves nothing, since your only player had a bad decklist and played poorly. You even fail to identify which card shouldn't be in the deck. I don't tell I have all the truth, this deck could probably be better (Maybe I forgot 1-2 card that could be very good in this deck...), but I have 3 tournaments played myself with this deck (and some others from other players) and I see myself (and other) winning with this deck. Prove me that I'm wrong (with good arguments this time!).

I explained why those aren't in the deck... What Grim Monolith and Mana Vault would do in this deck anyway!? Channel  gives you all the colorless you need, no!?    And what would a 1st turn Mana Vault accelerate into!? A 2nd turn Lich's Mirror!? Is that really good to have a 2nd turn Mirror without Channel!? I don't think so...
This deck can go for speed, but it can take his time and setup his combo too... Trying to always to a 1st turn Top Tutor and a 2nd turn Channel Without protection is not the way to play this deck...


I find it funny that you say me that and policehq said that:
I think you don't understand fully how to play the deck... Did you read all my mini-primer!? Especially my Tips & Tricks? At least , go read tricks #2, #3 and #4.

John Jones, you owe me .60 cents because I wasted 5 minutes of my time to tell you that you are wrong (and probably playing the deck pretty baddly...)

I'm sorry, but I don't see why it would even be good in this deck... This deck has 19 mana sources, so you won't always have 3 lands by turn 3. Muddle the Mixture is at least 2 turns slower and it doesn't even find your win condition (Karveck's Torch) when comboing out (Most of the time, you finish by Top tutor your Torch, than draw a card with Star/Top/Recall/Brainstorm, etc...).
The only good thing about Muddle the Mixture is that you can't counter it, but I prefer to see my Personal tutor (especially FoW turn 1...) than my Channel. It's much worst to have channel in your graveyard than in your library!

You understand that this is only one (ok, two with Timetwister) methods of finding a play after a Lich's Mirror!? You understand that against blue based deck, this is the last thing you will try to do (ie, you will do it only if you have no other possible option!?). Being uncounterable is almost irrelevant, since most of the time, your opponent will have tried to counter the Channel and won't draw any cards after Channel resolved.
And by the way... If you activate Jar against blue decks, you play 8 counterspells to protect your play... And maybe he will try to counter a Lich's Mirror you played before the Torch.

Yes, Regrowth was played in our first version. Regrowth doesn't no anything when comboing (Since you shuffle your grave). Regrowth usually don't do anything before you cast Channel. Regrowth is a dead card that is there only if the opponent counter your Channel.
Regrowth was cut to play Timetwister. That's far supperior in this deck. It allows you another draw7 when comboing. It allows you a draw7 before comboing (If you have a crappy hand). It allows you to reshuffle your Channel and, most of the time, gives you a Channel in your 7 cards (Remember that you play like 9 Channel with your tutors). Timetwister pitch itself in Force of Will.

I've never played this deck... But to me, that's a completly different deck! To me, it's almost like comparing Aggro-Workshop and Stax.
If you play carfully the deck, it's hard to fizzle when comboing (It happened to me maybe 3 times in 3 tournaments!). Ad Nauseam can fizzle only by casting Ad Nauseam, it doesn't mean that it's unplayable!  Oh, by the way, there is more than the percentage of times you will fizzle when comboing out when comparing decks. This deck plays Force of Will and can protect you from a broken 1st turn, your deck don't. There is the speed of the deck. The resistance to hate. I don't say mine is strickly better (I can't say that without playing your deck to be sure), but I can say for sure that mine is competitive (That said, your's is probably too).

In those extra turns, you can search with Devining Top for lands, fabricate a Lotus, etc... And be able to cast a Lich's Mirror, juste in case. It happens once that I lowered my opponent to 8 with Platinium angel, my Angel gets killed. The next turn, I tutored up the Torch and Torch for 8 (Thanks to that Frabricated Lotus!).
Anyway, I have to go with the Planinum plan rarely... And against some matchup, I sided it out. But like you said, I think that's better than Colossus.

That's exactly what I think! Anyway, in whcih case the opponent will still have his counterspell when we play our lethal Karveck's Torch!? He will probably have tried to counter our Channel (or Lich's Mirror) with his counterspell. But, if he only have a Misdirection in hand, he would have let resolve the channel and Lich's Mirror and the first target for his Misdirection would probably be Karveck's Torch. Add the fact that you can cast a little Tarveck's Torch (For kiling a Magnus of the Moon for exemple), and I think that shows that Karveck's Torch is supperior to Banefire.

Speaking of Meditate-Remora, I played against this deck once... You have to remember that, thanks to channel, you can pretty much always pay 4 colorless when comboing to not let the opponent draw cards 


I agree. There should be at least one (or more) Pyroclasm to deal with Magnus of the Moon and wennies. As for Blood Moon, I don't know what to bring in... I won the only time someone played me a Blood Moon, but I had the Sapphire and I Fabricated a Black Lotus to combo out, normally it would be harder agains Blood Moon... Any suggestions!?

Elvish Spirit Guide have not been tested at all, but Manamorphose did. I don't like the Spirit guide that much, because he only produce . I don't know what to cut to include them (probably the 3 Tropicals), but while it would be good when your comboing out (Spirit guide remove themself from your deck), in setting the combo it's worst. A first turn Personal Tutor is a really common play. If you have only 2 mana sources in your opening hand (which happens often, since only 19 mana sources...), you won't be able to do 1st turn Personal (For channel), then 2nd turn Channel with the following combination of mana:
2 Spirit Guide
1 Spirit Guide + 1 Lotus Petal
1 Spirit Guide + Black Lotus

Not that good... With my mana base, you could always to it with only 2 mana source. 
The Spirit guide could help you for a first turn Channel, but you need Channel, Spirit Guide, another Mana source and Lich's Mirror in your opening hand, that's pretty marginal.

As for the Metamorphose, I just prefer Chromatic Star. The deck usually play 1st turn tutor, 2nd turn Channel. With that setup, your Manamorphose in your opening hand is useless unless you have 3 mana source (one being a Spirit Guide). Chromatic Star can be use right away, activate for a  and, possibly, allowing a 2nd turn kill with Fabricate which Manamorphose wouldn't be able to do.
The other thing I don't like about Manamorphose is it's casting cost... It required you to always have in your pool when comboing. Let's say you have only 3 lands, you cast Channel and Mirror. Before dying, you add a mana in your pool. You have no choice to take a  , since you need to have colored mana. In your other 7 cards, you don't have Manamorphe, nor Mirror, but you have a Fabricate... Too bad, you just crapped out because you play Manamorphose...
(You can take instead of in the example above, saying you will have a Spirit Guide and a Manamorphose, but I don't think That's the best decision).


And... Against deck that play Null Rod, you have some times to setup your combo. If there is a 2nd turn Null Rod, I usually don't expect to be killed before turn 5. That lets you time to find lands, and try to combo off with (and preferably with some ) that your lands will give you.  And if they put too much pressure / too much hate, go with plan B (Tinker-Platinum).

If there is a lot of Null Rod in your meta, you can always put a Shattering Spree Maindeck, but I don't find it usefull enough...

That's the kind of reply I  though people will have...

That's more resistant to hate and probably, more consistent. I never played Belcher, so I can't talk that much about the comparaison... But I saw this deck comboing with Aven Minsencor and Null Rod into play, pretty impressive.
That said, I only crap out 1 game (not match, one game) in each of my tournament. It don't occur that much if you play the deck carfully (See my tricks). And 2 out of 3 times I crapped out in comboing, I win 2-4 turns later. It's not impossible to try to combo off again (but it requires you to have 2 lands in play normally, so it takes at least 2 turns...)

Anyway, I don't claim this is the best in type1. It's probably not. But that's a really good deck that can win tourney for sure.

With Shards of Alara, I saw (like many others), one card with big potential for a new type1 archtype Lich's Miror:


Yeah, you know this card and you know that it combo well with Channel, because Channel gives you the opportunity (until end of turn) of paying 1 life to have one colorless mana. I saw it in Doomsday, but I never saw a deck completely resolving around the Lich's Mirror. I wanted to build one, so me (with the help of one of my teamate) tried some builds and I have good results with the build I'm playing Right now. I wrote an article before, but I wanted to share this pretty fun deck with all of you!
(Sorry, that's in french!!)

We wanted to build a deck resolving entirely around Lich's Mirror. We wanted our deck to play like this:

1- Tutor Channel (because it's restrict...)
2- Play Channel.
3- Play Lich's Mirror (With Channel's colorless)
4- Kill yourself by adding lot of colorless in your mana pool (Thanks to Channel!!)
5- Doing steps 3 and 4 the number of times needed.
6- Killing the opponent with the absurd number of colorless.

With that game plan, we lookedwhat could be put into our deck. The most important thing is to find Channel, so some tutors are welcome:
Demonic Tutor
Vampiric Tutor
Imperial Seal
Mystical Tutor
Those are auto-included... But with the last unrestriction, we can now play with:
4 Personal Tutor.

All those card are pretty good at fiding Channel. Channel is really the key card of this deck, so it's important to have it the more times possible in the deck. Here, we have 9 Channel (8 tutors and Channel), so that's what makes the deck works.


With Channel in hand, we need Lich's Mirror.
4 Lich's Mirror
That's obviously auto-included! With only 4 Lich's Mirror, the deck doesn't work properly... We need to increased the number of Lich's MIrror. Yes, we have the black tutors that can tutor Lich's Mirror too, but that wasn't enough. So we add:
4 Fabricate

Yes, 4 Fabricate. With fabricate, that's easy to combo out. You need    mana in play.   for Channel, 2 lives and for Fabricate (And 5 lives for Lich's Mirror. Not too bad! With 4 Fabricate (And black tutors), we had enough Lich's Mirror in our deck.

Before talking about the kill card, we have be sure that we will be able to do the step 5 of our gameplan: Replay Lich's Mirror enough times to have enough mana to kill the opponent (or to draw our kill card). That's not that much easy to do it constantly with only 4 Lich's Mirror in our deck (You have only 40% of chance to have a Lich's Mirror when you draw 7 cards from Lich's Mirror). Sure, we have some tutor, but when comboing out turn 2 or 3, we don't have access to too much colored mana to play lots of tutors. The next card we add to the deck is:
4 Seinsei's Divining Top

The Top is really good to replay the Lich's Mirror again and again. First, it's an artifact, so we can cast easily Top with the colorless from Channel. We can look at the top 3 card (and draw one of those) with Top, so it makes you look at the top 10 cards (instead of top 7) of your Library to find another Lich's Mirror, which let you replay Lich's Mirror a lot easier. We found that the Top, played turn one, can help you a lot to build your combo and that's not bad at all! A very good card in the deck.

I talked about the colored mana being an issue when comboing turn 2-3. So we wanted some fixing to be able to replay constently our tutors (Which makes you able to replay Lich's MIrror again and again...) So we add:
4 Chromatic Star

The star helps you to fix your mana (The stars cost you 2 colorless to have one mana of the color of your choose, not a bad trade!!) and it lets you draw 1 card. That's important when comboing out too! The star were really good in the deck! The star are a lot better than Chromatic Sphere in the deck, we will talk about it later...

To have more tutor, we tried:
Planar Portal.

It costs a lot of mana, but when comboing, it's paying 12 lives to tutor a Lich's Mirror and 5 lives to play the Mirror. So, we have +3 colorless and another Lich's Mirror's iteration. It helps us to find the kill condition a lot more easier too! That seems interesting to us at the first look. Unfortunately, that wasn't good enough. That's a totally dead card before comboing. This card was in the firsts builds we made, but was the first card to be cut from the deck.

Before talking about win condition, we have to talk about protection. That's good to have a combo, but if you always loose to one Force of will or Mana Drain, the deck won't probably be good. For the protection, those cards seems obvious for us:
4 Pact of Negation
4 Force of Will

Pact is an auto-include... Pact protect so well your combo, since you don't care that mush about your next upkeep! Force of Will is good in the deck too, with Fabricates, Personal Tutors, Mystical Tutors, there is enough blue cards in the deck to play Force of Will.

The first version had another random disruption maindeck:
1 Duress

Yes, the Duress was random (one of). It was random good! We had one random duress, because we can tutor it with Personal Tutor, but we just never tutor for it, so it doesn't make the deck now.


OK, now we need a win condition! With lot of colorless mana, we can kill probably be able to kill the opponent... Let's see what we can play:

Magman Mine
That's a kill condition using only colorless mana, which is good! Unfortunately, killing a player with 20 lives required 81 manas! That's possible to make 81 manas with the deck (We have generally access to 25-50 manas when we win), but 81 manas required more Lich's Mirror's iteration. That takes more times and is more risky (each time you draw 7 with Lich'S Mirror you have a chance of crapping out, drawing 7 lands for example...). This card is probably not the best kill condition.

Tendril's of Agony
Here we have an unconterable win condition!! Since we cast lot of spells when comboing out, the 10 spells played requirement should be not to hard to have. Unfortunately, this card required to cast. Having two colored mana is a big downside for this deck. This was an ok kill condition, but we though we can have a better one.

Rolling Earthquake
With Lich's Mirror in play, we don't care that much to do 20 damages to everyone! This card requires only one to play, which is good! This card can deal with annoying creatures (Canonists, Aven Mindsensor, Platinum angel, etc), so it's a good card! But it requires to have both Lich's MIrror in play and Rolling Earthquake to kill the opponent.

Karveck's Torch
Only one colored mana required, can kill the opposing creature too (Canonists, Aven Mindsensor, Platinum angel, etc), really good. And it takes to colorless to target Karveck's Torch? A good added value against Misdirection. That's the best kill condition we think.

Memory Jar
Yes, that's a win condition!! With Lich's Mirror, we reshuffle our hand in our deck, but the opponent doesn't, so if we activate Memory Jar again and again, our opponent will be decked. One advantage of Memory Jar is that's an artifact, making you able to combo with a canonist on the table (Your only non-artifact spell played this turn being Channel!!). What makes Memory Jar good too is that it thin your deck. You will set aside your useless cards (like your lands...), so each time you draw 7 with Lich's Mirror you have more chance of getting another Lich'S Mirror / Memory Jar. You can Tinker Memory Jar if needed too! Memory Jar is a good card in the deck. But one downside of Memory Jar is that it let your opponent draw cards, so he can "topdeck" a Force of Will to (maybe) stop you. But all in all, that's a good card in the deck!!

There is a possibility to play an alternate kill (in the case you care too much hated). The better one in my opinion is:
Tinker
Platinum Angel

Tinker allow you to search for a Lich's Mirror too, which is not bad at all! With the Angel into play, you can cast your Pact of Negation without paying , which is a good added bonus. But play the Angel wisely: With the Angel into play, you won't be able to combo out, since the Angel prevent you from dying. That sayd, having a Platinum Angel and a Lich's Mirror both into play isn't that bad, the opponent will have to kill the Angel, and if he does, Lich's MIrror lets you "restart the game".


To complete the deck, some draw would be welcome, so we add those good cards:
Ancestral Recall
Brainstom
Ponder
Timetwister

Timetwister need an explication I think. If our Channel is being countered (or discarted), it's harder to win... Twister allows us to reshuffle our Channel. Twister is better than Regrowth in this deck, since Regrowth does nothing when you combo out and Twister let's you draw another 7 cards (if needed). So Twister is better than Regrowth.

Well, we need some mana sources... We always want to be able to cast Channel. So we always want to have access to on turn 2, but we want either or  on the first turn to cast Personal / Mystical / Seal / Vampiric / Demonic Tutor... So, let's go with a 5 colors mana base:
4 City of Brass
4 Gemstone Mine
4 Forbidden Orchard

We need more lands... And some power!! 
3 Tropical Island
Mox Emerald
Mox Sapphire
Black Lotus
Lotus Petal

Not all mox are played in this deck! This deck required lots of colored mana and not that much colorless... And we have all the colorless mana we want with Channel! There is only 19 mana source in the deck, 19 seems to be the good number for the deck to run smoothly, but if your mana is full of Stax and Aggro hate (playing Waste and Null Rod), playing a 4th Tropical Island is a good choice.

After some playtesing, here is my current build: (Sorry, the deck name is in french!!  )
 



I made 3 tournaments with this deck so far. I wanted to play this deck to have fun, since that's a lot of pleasure to play it! The more I play this deck, the more I see that's a good deck that's far more resistant to hate that we can think of. Before saying this deck is a crap deck, please play it (of play against it). That's a completely diffrent deck that we see normally, it's really hard to see how it really works without seeing it in action!
I made a top4 in a small 16 person tourney, a top4 in a 40 players tourney and a final split in a 25 players tourney yesterday (January 24th). The deck is really constent (if you can play it well). There is a lot of "tricks" you need to know when playing this deck that can makes you win a lot of games...

Here is some tricks for you:

Trick 1: Tutor a card with Mystical or Vampiric Tutor with Chromatic Star

You have no colored mana available in play other than a Chromatic Star with Mystical Tutor or Vampiric Tutor.
Action: Activate the Star to have the desired mana. The triggered ability of drawing goes on the stack (Which is why Chromatic Star is far more better than Chromatic Sphere in this deck!). In response to drawing, play the Mystical/Vampiric.
Effect: You will draw immediately the tutored card.


Trick 2: Comboing with Sensei's Divining Top and Chromatic Star

Channel was played this turn and you have both Lich's Mirror and the Top into play.
Action: If you have a lot of mana, activate the Top to look of you have someting good on top of your Library (like a Lich's Mirror). If so, draw the Lich's Mirror and do the trick 4 (see below). If nothing good is on top, do the following:
1- Put all draw effect you have on the stack (Sensei's Divining top / Chromatic Star)
2- Pay  in response of all draw to look at the top 3 cards with the Top (To draw the card you want)
3- In response, kill yourself (by getting colorless mana with Channel).

Effect: You will draw 7 from Lich's Mirror, and then, look at the top three and draw 1 from them. You will see at least 10 cards (instead of 7), so you will be able more easily to continue to combo off.


Trick 3: Comboing with the Right manas with Chromatic Star.

Action: Add the mana in your pool in that order:    (That's better to have  or  ), then  (only 1 required) and then  .
Effect: You will be able to cast fabricate/Personal Tutor more easily. Fabricate allow you to draw another "free" 7 cards if needed. Personal Tutor can tutor Fabricate (if needed) or you win condition (Karvck's Torch). There is only 3 black cards in the deck, so having a black mana is not that much important.


Trick 4: Killing yourself with a spell on the stack

You have Lich's Mirror in play (With channel played this turn), and you have another spell that let's you have another Lich's Mirror's iteration (2nd Lich's Mirror, Fabricate, Demonic Tutor, etc.)
Action: Play that spell and, in response, kill yourself (By taking mana in your pool)
Effect: You will draw 7 from Lich's MIrror, then your spell will resolve.
IMPORTANT: Your spell stay in the stack when you reshuffle with Lich's Mirror. That's really easy to forget it and reshuffle the spell in your deck.


Trick 5: Killing yourself in mana source

You have Lich'S Mirror into play (with channel played this turn) and an opponent plays a spell/effect that you don't like (Ex: Extirpate on a Chromatic Star, Tormod's Crypt, Krosan Grip the Lich's Mirror, etc...)
Action: kill yourself (By taking mana in your pool)
Effect: You will reshuffle all cards and the spell/ability will stay on the stack... Extirpate and Krosan Grip will be countered on resolution (since no target) and Tormod's Crypt won't bother you (since no graveyard at all!).  Remember that killing yourself by taking Colorless mana from Channel is a mana source... You don't give priority when taking mana source!!  (Oh, and remember that you can always use mana source when someone plays a split second card!!  )


Trick 6: Play a spell/ability by having just enough mana/life to do it.

You have Lich's Mirror into play with channel played this turn. You want, for example, play a Chromatic Star with 1 life and 0 mana in your pool.
Action: Declare that you will play the Chromatic Star and then, pay 1 life to play the Star.
Effect: The rules allow you to declare the spell/ability you want to play and then, pay the cost for it. So, here, You will reshuffle every thing with Lich's MIrror with the Chromatic Star. Note that you will "die" immediately after playing the Chromatic star in stated-based effect, so you won't be able to do anything else before "dying" (you won't be able to do trick 2 if you have a Top into play for example).


Trick 7: "Dying" with Orchard tokens into play

You "die" with Lich's Mirror into play and you gave Token With Orchard at your opponent.
Effect: You will "reshuffle" the tokens in your deck, so the won't be into play anymore. The tokens you gives at your opponents are permanents you "own".
NB: If you "die" with Orchard's Tokens from your opponent's Orchard, you will keep them (Since your opponent "owns" them).


There is some advice I want to gives you to play the deck too...
- Usually, it's bad to kill yourself with a "top tutor" in the stack (Ex: Personal Tutor). You have a good chance to draw a draw effect in your 7 cards from the Mirror (Top or Chromatic Star), but it's not always the case... If you don't draw a draw effect, you just used a  for nothing. Keep in mind that the colored mana are really important, don't waste them.

- If you don't have a Top into play, kill yourself with the Chromatic Star in the stack rather than with the draw of the Star in the stack. That's better for 2 reasons: 1- You will be able to choose the color of mana you need with your next "hand", 2- It allows you to have a draw effect. This is important if you have a "top tutor" in your next "hand" (like personal tutor). You will be able to personal tutor (for Karveck's Torch for example) and activate the Star to draw the Torch (and have the  to cast it).

- Don't play channel too fast. Unless really needed, don't play channel with only a Sensei's Divining Top as your only business card in hand after the Channel.

- Don't forget that Fabricate can tutor Black Lotus for some colored manas.

- Don't Sideboard too much cards in (unless you sideboard out the Pacts of Negation), since you will weaken too much your combo.


Well, talking about sideboard... The sideboard I have now is:
1 Chain of Vapor
1 Balance
3 Ancient Grudge
2 Shattering Spree
4 Xantid Swarm (They will probably be cut...)
1 Aether Spellbomb (Against Canosit mainly)
3 Extirpate

The sideboard could be better probably, but it worded well (outside of Xantid Swarm, which are not so good...)


Mirroire Magique is a good deck and really cool to play! There is lots of weird play that happens! Here is some I did in tournaments:
- 1st turn "old school" kill With: Land + Black Lotus + Channel + Karveck's Torch (backed with 1 Pact of Negation!)
- Killing myself with balance in the stack, clearing my opponent's board and keeping my best 3 cards (out of 8). I won the same turn since I had a good hand, but it will have be better if I crapped out.
- Seeing the mirror match up... That's pretty stupid! One game, both gets FoW their channel and died 2 times each with Lich's MIrror in play (With Orchards token and City of Brass).

There is probably other funny things I don't remember of... Anyway, this deck is real pleasure, give it a try! The deck is far more consistent and competitive that it may look on paper!


I want to thanks my teamate, Simon Guérette, for his help in the deckbuilding and playtesting this deck with me.


PS: The deck's name come from Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. Yes, that the name of the Mirror in it.

46 players played for the 2 english Mana Drains and 3 invitations for the CVQ's final.

Prize structure:
1st: 2 Mana Drain English + 20$
2nd: 120$
3rd-4th: 60$ each
5th-8th: 30$ each

Metagame Breakdown:
Combo ( 6 = 13.0% )
1 Belcher
1 High Tide
3 Long
1 Dragon

Workshop ( 6 = 13.0% )
3 Workshop Aggro
2 Stax
1 Workshop Control (with Mana Drain, aka Veilleux Style!!)

Control/Aggro/Combo ( 4 = 8.7% )
4 Bomberman

Control/Combo ( 5 = 10.9% )
1 Belcher severance (with 2 Psychatog)
4 Painters

Control ( 5 = 10.9% )
1 Mono Bleu
1 Oath of Druids
1 Landstill
1 Parfait
1 Control Slaver

Aggro/Control (11 = 23.9% )
1 Loam Control Vintage: This deck doesn't play P9 cards
1 Trinket-Dreadnought
2 Briseur de rêve
6 Suidice (1 Gray, 3 Mono Black, 2 B-G)
1 Merfolk

Agrro ( 9 = 19.6% )
2 Goblin
1 FCG
1 R-G Beats
3 Other
1 Dredge
1 Sligh


Top8:
Ugo Rivard (Painter) vs Naéva Royer (Workshop Aggro)
Alexandre Legoff (Grim Long) vs Martin Bonneville (Dragon)
Ian Sauvé (Control Slaver) vs Jonathan Gauvin (Suicide Gray)
Jean-Philippe Gagné (Painter) vs Philippe Gareau (Loam Control Vintage: This deck doesn't play P9 cards)

Top4:
Ugo Rivard (Painter) vs Martin Bonneville (Dragon)
Jonathan Gauvin (Suicide Gray) vs Jean-Philippe Gagné (Painter)

Final:
Ugo Rivard (Painter) vs Jean-Philippe Gagné (Painter)


Top8 decklists:

1st Place:  Ugo Rivard
4 Force of Will
4 Mana Drain
3 Misdirection
1 Echoing truth
1 Brainstorm
1 Ancestral Recall
1 Time Walk
4 Thirst for Knowledge
1 Mystical Tutor
1 Merchant Scroll
1 Tinker
1 Demonic Tutor
1 Merchant Scroll
1 Tinker
1 Demonic Tutor
1 Vampiric Tutor
1 Imperial Seal
1 Yawgmoth's Will
2 Red Elemental Blast
1 Pyroblast
4 Painter's Servant
3 Grindstone
1 Darkstell Colossus
1 Mana Crypt
1 Sol Ring
1 Black Lotus
1 Mox Sapphire
1 Mox Jet
1 Mox Ruby
1 Mox Emerald
1 Mox Pearl
1 Library of Alexandria
1 Tolarian Academy
3 Polluted Delta
2 Flooded Strand
3 Volcanic Island
2 Underground Sea
3 Island

Sideboard
4 Leyline of the Void
3 Ignot Chewer
3 Blood Moon
2 Pyroclasm
2 Threads of Disloyalty
1 Platinium Angel


2nd place: Jean-Philippe Gagné
2 Grindstone
3 Painter's Servant
1 Brainstorm
3 Dark Confidant
4 Force of Will
1 Yawgmoth's Will
1 Vampiric tutor
1 Dmeonic Tutor
3 Mana Drain
1 Seinsei's Divining Top
3 Red Elemental Blast
3 Thirst for Knowledge
1 Sol Ring
1 Tinker
1 Tormod's Crypt
1 Mox Emerald
1 Mox Jet
1 Mox Sapphire
1 Mox Ruby
1 Mox Pearl
3 Trinket Mage
1 Time Walk
1 Ancestral Recall
1 Mana Crypt
1 Mystical Tutor
1 Darksteel Colossus
1 Black Lotus
1 Engineered Explosives
1 Merchant Scroll
3 Underground Sea
3 Volcanic Island
1 Academy's Ruins
4 Polluted Delta
1 Flooded Strand

Sideboard
3 Thorn of Amethyst
2 Tormod's Crypt
1 Gaea's Blessing
2 Rack and Ruins
2 Dark Blast
1 Extirpate
1 Echoing Truth
2 Duress
1 Engineered Plague


3rd Place: Martin Bonneville
4 Worldgorger Dragon
1 Oona, Queen of the Fae
2 Mulldrifter
4 Necromancy
3 Annimated Dead
1 Dance of the Dead
4 Intuition
4 Deep Analysis
4 Force of Will
3 Duress
1 Ancestrall Recall
3 Read the Runes
1 Demonic Tutor
4 Bazaar of Baghdad
1 Mox Pearl
1 Mox Sapphire
1 Mox Jet
1 Mox Emerald
1 Mox Ruby
1 Mana Crypt
1 Mana Vault
1 Black Lotus
1 Sol Ring
2 Ancien Tomb
3 Polluted Delta
2 Flooded Strand
1 Island
4 Underground Sea

Sideboard
1 Tropical Island
2 Chain of Vapor
1 Echoing Truth
4 Oath of Druids
4 Fobidden Orchard
3 Bogardan Hellkite


4th Place: Jopnathan Gauvin Richard
4 Scrubland
4 Polluted Delta
4 Swamp
2 Bloodstained Mire
4 Wasteland
1 Strip Mine
1 Cabal Pit
1 Mox Pearl
1 Mox Jet
1 Black Lotus
4 Dark Ritual
2 Nantuko Shade
4 Dark Confidant
4 Hypnotic Specter
3 Withered Wretch
4 Duress
4 Hymn to Tourach
3 Swords to Plowshares
3 Vindicate
3 Null Rod
1 Demonic Tutor
1 Demonic Consultation
1 Yawgmoth's Will

Sideboard
4 Leyline of the Void
3 Aven Mindcensor
1 Echoing Decay
1 Swords to Plowshares
2 Darkblast
1 Kataki, War's Rage
3 Seal of Cleansing


5th Place: Philippe Gareau
2 Terravor
1 Eternal Witness
1 Shirekmaw
1 Ingot Chewer
4 Life from the Loam
4 Gamble
3 Duress
3 Thoughtseize
2 Exploration
2 Engineered Explosives
2 Seisemic Assault
2 Devastating Dreams
1 Entomb
1 Crop Rotation
1 Demonic Tutor
1 Fastbond
1 Raven's Crime
1 Worm Harvest
3 Wooded Foothills
3 Bloodstained Mire
3 Trankil thicket
3 Forgotten Cave
4 taiga
2 Bayou
2 Badland
2 Forest
2 Wasteland
1 Strip Mine
1 Barbarian Ring
1 Volrath's Stronghold
1 Maze of Ith

Sideboard
4 Tarmogoyf
3 Krosean Grip
2 Greater Gargadon
3 Tormod's Crypt
1 Glacial Chasm
1 Devastating Dreams
1 Engineered Explosives


6th Place: Ian Sauvé
4 Force of Will
4 Mana Drain
3 Misdirection
1 Echoing Truth
1 Gorrilla Shaman
3 Goblin Welder
1 Triskelion
1 Platinium Angel
1 Mindslaver
1 Cruccible of Worlds
1 Gifts Ungiven
1 Merchant Scroll
1 Mystical Tutor
1 Vampiric Tutor
1 Demonic Tutor
1 Imperial Seal
1 Yawgmoth's Will
1 Ancestral Recall
1 Time Walk
1 Brainstorm
1 Tinker
1 Fire/Ice
4 Thirst For Knowledge
1 Black Lotus
1 Mox Sapphire
1 Mox Jet
1 Mox Ruby
1 Mox Pearl
1 Mox Emerald
1 Library of Alexandria
1 Seat of the Synod
1 Strip Mine
3 Flooded Strand
3 Volcanic Island
2 Underground Sea
2 Island
1 Sol Ring
1 Mana Crypt

Sideboard
4 Leyline of the Void
2 Threads of Disloyalty
1 Pyroclasm
2 Red Elemental Blast
1 Pyroblast
2 Blood Moon
3 Ignot Chewer


7th Place: Alexandre Legoff
2 Underground Sea
2 Swamp
4 Polluted Delta
2 Island
1 Bloodstained Mire
1 Sol Ring
1 Mox Sapphire
1 Mox Ruby
1 Mox Emerald
1 Mox Jet
1 Mox Pearl
1 Memory Jar
1 Mana Vault
1 Mana Crypt
1 Lotus Petal
1 Black Lotus
1 Yawgmoth's Will
1 Yawgmoth's Bargain
1 Necropotence
1 Tinker
1 Timetwister
1 Time Walk
2 Tendrils of Agony
1 Ponder
1 Merchant Scroll
2 Grim Tutor
4 Duress
1 Demonic Tutor
1 Imperial Seal
1 Vampiric Tutor
1 Mystical Tutor
1 Hurkyl's Recall
1 Gifts Ungiven
4 Force of Will
1 Fact or Fiction
4 Dark Ritual
2 Chain of Vapor
1 Brainstorm
1 Ancestral Recall
1 Darkstell Colossus

Sideboard
4 Yixlid Jailer
3 Phyrexian Negator
2 Hurkyl's Recall
1 Rebuild
2 Mindtwist
1 Massacre
2 Tormoid's Crypt


8th Place: Naéva Royer
1 Mox Ruby
1 Mox Emerald
1 Black Lotus
1 Mox Sapphire
1 Mox Pearl
1 Mox Jet
4 Mishra's Workshop
4 Magnus of the Moon
4 Solem Simulacrum
4 Thorn of Amethyst
4 Sphere of Resistance
4 Juggernaut
4 Goblin Welder
3 Swords of Fire and Ice
2 Gorrilla Shaman
2 Umezawa's Jitte
2 Triskelion
1 Trinisphere
1 Mana Vault
1 Mana Crypt
1 Sol Ring
1 Tolarian Academy
1 Strip Mine
4 Wasteland
7 Mountains

Sideboard
3 Shattering Spree
2 Duplicant
3 Red Elemental Blast
2 Razormane Masticore
Gaea's Blessing
4 Leyline of the Void

Thanks for the report mike! I wish I could have played in that tourney...

Nice top8! It's been a long time since I played Bomberman in a tourney, it's fun to see it doing weel, but... Only 1 Thirst? Seem weird, but it looks like it worked well...

Was there enough chairs at the Wizards Tower!? Or is it the new tech for playing Magic!?  (talking about Rene Villeneuve and James Benningin the quarterfinals)

It's 4 Leyline of course! I Edit the decklist.

And yes it's a fun place to play! We prefer having these kind of metagame breakdown than something like this:
10 GAT
10 Flash
9 Dredge
9 Superlong

In my opinion, it's not normal to have only 4 different deck in a 25+ players tournament! There is far more than 4 good deck in the format...

42 players came and played to win a Workshop.

The prize structure was:
1st: Workshop + 50$ + CVQ invitation
2nd: 100$ + CVQ invitation
3rd: 50$ + CVQ invitation
4th: 50$
5th-8th: 30$ each

Here is the top8 decklists:

Prize-Split: Simon Guérette

4 Accumulated Knowledge
4 Force of Will
4 Mana Drain
4 Chalice of the Void
4 Thirst for Knowledge
3 Goblin Welder
2 Intuition
2 Merchant Scroll
1 Time Walk
1 Ancestral Recall
1 Tinker
1 Mystical Tutor
1 Mind Slaver
1 Triskelavus
1 Sundering Tintan
1 Platinum Angel
1 Echoing Truth

1 Mox Ruby
1 Mox Jet
1 Mox Emmerald
1 Mox Sapphire
1 Mox Pearl
1 Black Lotus
1 Mana Crypt
1 Sol Ring
1 Library of Alexandria
1 Tolarian Academy
4 Volcanic Island
3 Flooded Strand
2 Polluted Delta
3 Snow-Covered Island
2 Island


Side:

3 Blood Moon
2 Red Elemental Blast
4 Leyline of the Void
3 Thread of Disloyalty
2 Ingot Chewer
1 Duplicant


Prize-Split: Pascal Maynard

4 Brainstorm
4 Pact of Negation
4 Merchant Scroll
4 Protean Hulk
4 Virulent Sliver
1 Heart Sliver
1 Elvish Spirit Guide
1 Demonic tutor
1 Mox Ruby
1 Imperial Seal
4 Flash
1 Mox Emerald
1 Vampiric Tutor
1 Mox Pearl
2 Thoughtseize
4 Force of Will
1 Mox Jet
1 Ancestral Recall
2 Summoner's Pact
1 Mox Sapphire
1 Mystical tutor
1 Misdirection
1 Black Lotus
1 Chain of Vapor
1 Lotus Petal
4 Polluted Delta
3 Flooded Strand
2 Tropical Island
2 Underground Sea
1 Snow-Covered Island


Sideboard:
Body Snatcher
1 Mogg Fanatic
1 Body Double
1 Carrion Feeder
2 Reverent Silence
2 Thoughtseize
4 Leyline of the Void
1 Chain of Vapor
1 Echoing Truth


3rd: Annie-Claude Morin

4 Bazaar of Baghdad
4 Wasteland
1 Strip Mine
2 City of Brass
4 Golgary Grave-Troll
4 Stinkweed Imp
3 Golgary Thug
2 Darkblast
4 Chalice of the Void
4 Leyline fo the Void
4 Unmask
4 Cabal Therapy
4 Bridge from Below
4 Serum Powder
4 Narcomoeba
4 Ichorid
2 Flame-kin Zealot
2 Dread Return

Sideboard:
2 City of Brass
3 Gemstone Mine
4 Chain of Vapor
4 Emerald Charm
2 Demistify

4th: Lany Chabot-Laroche

4 Land Tax
1 Tormod's Crypt
1 Abeyance
4 Orim's Chant
1 Oblivion Ring
1 Thoughtseize
4 Duress
4 Dark Confidant
1 Balance
1 Enleightened tutor
3 Isochron Scepter
4 Swords to Plowshares
1 Chain of Mephistopheles
4 Scroll Rack
2 Serra Avenger
1 Swamp
2 Scrubland
2 Bloodestained Mire
1 Polluted Delta
1 Strip Mine
2 Wasteland
5 Plains
1 Mox Ruby
1 Mox Pearl
1 Mox Jet
1 Mox Sapphire
1 Mox Emerald
1 Mox Diamond
1 Sol Ring
1 Black Lotus

Sideboard:
1 Abeyance
1 Chains of Mephistopheles
2 Extirpate
1 Snuff out
1 Pithing Needle
3 Planar Void
1 Yixlid Jailer
1 Moat
2 Seal of Cleansing
2 Disenchant


5th: Jonathan Gauvin-Richard

3 Windswept Heath
3 Bloodestained Mire
4 Taiga
2 Forest
1 Mountain
1 Strip Mine
2 Wasteland
1 Mox Emerald
1 Mox Ruby
1 Black Lotus
1 Lotus Petal
4 Mogg Fanatic
4 Kird Ape
4 Skyshroud Elite
4 Tarmogoylf
3 Magnus of the Moon
4 Tin Street Hooligan
2 Stinkscourger
3 Skullclamp
4 Seal of Fire
4 Tarfire
4 Aether Vial

Sideboard:
1 Stinkscourger
3 Pyroclasm
3 Ancient Grudge
4 Red Elemental Blast
4 Seal of Primordium


6th: Patrick Chabot

1 Seat of the Synod
2 Flooded Strand
3 Island
3 Polluted Delta
3 Volcanic Island
2 Underground Sea
1 Tolarian Academy
1 Triskelion
1 Platinium Angel
1 Gorrilla Shaman
3 Goblin Welder
1 Mox Ruby
1 Mox Jet
1 Black Lotus
1 Mox Pearl
1 Mox Emerald
1 Sol Ring
1 Mox Sapphire
1 Mana Crypt
4 Thirst for Knowledge
4 Mana Drain
4 Force of Will
1 Ancestral Recall
1 Mindslaver
1 Demonic Tutor
1 Yawgmoth's Will
1 Tinker
1 Time Wlak
1 Mystical Tutor
2 Merchant Scroll
2 Mana Leak
4 Barinstorm
1 Gifts Ungiven
1 Echoing Truth
1 Mana Vault
1 Vampiric Tutor

Sideboard:
2 Blood Moon
1 Jester's Cap
2 Lava Dart
2 Red Elemental Blast
1 Pyroblast
2 Pyroclasm
4 Leyline of the Void
1 Vedalken Chackles


7th: Bruno Dumontier

2 Underground Sea
4 Polluted Delta
3 Flooded Strand
2 Tropical Island
1 Island
4 Protean Hulk
1 Carrion Feeder
1 Elvish Spirit Guide
1 Mogg Fanatic
1 Reveillark
1 Body Snatcher
1 Body Double
1 Mystical Tutor
1 Lotus Petal
1 Mox jet
1 Mox Sapphire
1 Mox Ruby
1 Mo0x Emerald
1 Vampiric Tutor
1 Demonic Tutor
1 Chain of Vapor
1 Merchant Scroll
1 Ancestrall Recall
1 Black Lotus
4 Brainstorm
4 Force of Will
4 Pact of Negation
2 Summoner's Pact
4 Flash
2 Thoughtseize
1 Imperial Seal

Sideboard:
2 Duress
1 Chain of Vapor
4 Leyline of the Void
1 Echoing Truth
1 Platinium Angel
1 Tinker
2 Oxidize
2 Trickbind
1 Stiffle


8th: Maxime Ouellette

4 Mishra's Factory
3 Faerie Conclave
4 Volcanic Island
2 Island
3 Polluted Delta
2 Flooded Strand
4 Wasteland
1 Strip Mine
1 Library of Alexandria
1 Mox Sapphire
1 Black Lotus
4 Force of Will
4 Mana Drain
3 Spell Snare
3 Misdirection
4 Stiffle
4 Fire/Ice
4 Standstill
3 Echoing Truth
3 Null Rod
1 Cruccible of Worlds
1 Ancestral Recall
1 Time Walk

Sideboard:
4 Leylinf of the Void
1 Pithing Needle
2 Pyroclasm
2 Rack and Ruin
1 Shattering Spree
2 Control Magic
1 Pyroblast
2 Red Elemental Blast



Metagame breakdown:
3 R-G Beatz
3 Flash
2 Control Slaver
1 Parfait
1 Dredge
1 Landstill
1 Doomdays
3 Suicide Black
1 Dawn of the Dead
1 Scepter Control
1 Briseur de rêves
3 B-R Agro-disruption
3 GAT
1 Trix
2 MUD
1 Belcher
1 Bomberman
3 Oath
1 G-W aggro
1 Rector-Flash
2 U-B aggro
1 Worshop-U aggro
1 Superlong
1 Tyran Bleu
1 Elf
1 Goblins

If someone only post a decklist like this one in, let's say, the Vintage Open Forum whitout explanation, I can understand that it's going to get attacked. Here it's a tournament result, there isn't explanation on each decklists in a tournament result post.
Asking for explanation about the deck like MoxLotus did is fine! Saying on the spot that this deck can't win against good decks played by component players is bad and really narrow-minded. It's fine to be surprised by a result like this (I was really surprised to see a R-G Beat deck winning a SCG P9), but if this deck made top8 in an invitational championship that says by itself that this deck should be not as bad as it looks.

Anyway... As for Deepfire Elemental, he's good against Moxen and Mishra's Factory too. If put into play with Soulstoke, you can swing for 5 and eat 2 Moxen for  . Not bad, especialy when you have Thorn into play. The first Elemental that should go out in my opinion is Horde of Notion. He's really hard to cast (You need a smokebraider!) and while he's really good when you have it out it's not worth it. I don't think I will play the Horde again.

As for black Tutors, it should be tested, but I don't like Vampiric/I. Seal... You loose already too much life by your own (Fetchs, Ancient Tomb, Thoughtseize, Mana Crypt). The best tutor for this deck should be, in my opinion, Demonic Consultation. You play lots of 4 off, it put the card directly into your hand for only  . Sure you can't search for recall or Walk unless really necessary, but you can still search for Duress/Thorn/Soulstoke/Smokebraider/Nova Chaser or even harbrigner if you are looking for a 1 of Elemental. I will test Consultation for sure.