Help wanted for 5-proxy T1 Mask-Nought.

[AngryPheldagrif]

The deck:

[Pheldagrif's Janky Suicide-Mask 2k4]

Combo: (11)
4x Phyrexian Dreadnought
4x Illusionary Mask
3x Berserk

Tutors: (7)
4x Tainted Pact
1x Demonic Tutor
1x Vampiric Tutor
1x Demonic Consultation

Draw: (2)
1x Timetwister
1x Ancestral Recall (proxy #1)

Broken stuff: (2)
1x Time Walk (proxy #2)
1x Yawgmoth's Will

Suicide Stuff: (11)
4x Phyrexian Negator
4x Duress
3x Unmask

Mana Sources: (26)
3x Polluted Delta
1x Bloodstained Mire (I only have one apparently)
4x Underground Sea
2x Bayou
4x Dark Ritual
1x Mox Jet (Proxy #3)
1x Mox Sapphire (Proxy #4)
1x Black Lotus (Proxy #5)
1x Mana Crypt
4x Swamp
4x Snow-covered Swamp


Problems I need help with:
#1: I am at 59 cards. I realize this. Make sure you add a card if you make suggestions.
#2: I have no sideboard. I am terrible at building sideboards and anticipate a mixed, powered metagame.
#3: Having just built the deck for a tournament that is in a mere few days, I have gotten virtually no testing experience. If anyone has some experience with this deck (or Mask decks in gereral) let me know more specific match up info. I'm available on Apprentice (see my signature) if anyone would like to test it out.
#4: Without extensive playtesting (not a possiblility at this point unfortunately) I realize this is most likely not a perfected build. Any and all sugestions, comments, etc. are extremely appreciated.

I have access to pretty much any non-power nine card, with the exception of most Mirrodin and Darksteel cards.

Thanks in advance to all.
-AngryPheldagrif

[Justinsane]

correct me if im wrong, but isn't berserk restricted??[/quote]

[Razvan]

correct me if im wrong, but isn't berserk restricted?

Not for a while now. Berserk with Dreadnoughts is kinda funny... although adding green... meh. Interesting.

[AngryPheldagrif]

Not for a while now. Berserk with Dreadnoughts is kinda funny... although adding green... meh. Interesting.

Berserks make Dreadnoughts kill a turn faster (not my original idea) and in a pinch make for some seriously nasty Negators. With much artifact hate going around, many people will let Dreadnought hit once before they go off and/or kill it. Berserk is a nasty smash in the face. I like to think of them either as Dreadnoughts #5-7 or Time Walks #2-4.

In other news, I finally got a bit of testing in. 1-2 against Brown w/Memnarch due to some seriously crazy hands for him (with some sick top-decking thrown in) and I narrowly beat some sort of Endless Worm U/G comboish style thing (better than it sounds) after losing all my mana in a somewhat miscalculated double Berserk Negator gambit. Also was obliterated in the mirror match due to my mediocre hand versus his god draw.

I still would appreciate some help, especially on the sideboard.

[Razvan]

Everything's a Time Walk, remember?

It's true that they kill in one turn, which is good, I agree. And if I had masks, I would try this. Heck, if nothing else, it's another variation of Mask on the market that I will have to worry about. That's good too.

How did this work, anyhow? Do you have any match results worth sharing?

[Grand Inquisitor]

I would think that killing a turn faster wouldn't be worth your opponent responding and killing your dood.  might lightning greaves be better since it both makes your guys swing a turn faster, and protects them from spot removal?  It also allows you to drop green for a more stable mana base.

[AngryPheldagrif]

The big tourney's on Sunday, I'll post full match results. The only games I've managed so far were just a few, and nothing really noteworthy from the handful of test matches, aside from some terrible/god hands and a fun mirror match where he got a first turn Dreadnought vs. my first turn Negator and I topdecked and went Lotus, 3x Berserk for the win. As for the idea of Lightning Greaves,

1) I don't have any.
2) I can't go Swamp, Ritual, Mask, Dreadnought, Greave.
3) As per number 2, I'm almost never going to have enough mana to cast the Dreadnought and the Greaves in the same turn, and they most likely will just kill it in response.
4) I have no real mana base problems currently, and a 'G' costing instant that is played the next turn is a lot easier to manage than a '2' costing artifact that must be dropped before Dreadnought.
5) I actually like the third color because it makes sideboarding a heck of a lot easier (as black as little I'd wanna board).

To all: I still need suggestions, especially for the sideboard.

-Dan

[Moridar]

I'd suggest dropping:

1x Tainted Pact
1x Timetwister  (Don't give your opponent a new hand)
1x Unmask (Optional as you said it was 59 cards)

for

3x Brainstorm

Maybe drop a swamp for another Fetch.

I'll post my Dread deck later tonight before I take it to a T1 in Mississauga for comparision against your deck.

Wayne

Old deck from Ontario Vintage Championship.

2. Wayne Oickle
1 Ancestral Recall
1 Time Walk
1 Tinker
2 Intuition
2 Brainstorm
4 Goblin Welder
3 Duress
1 Demonic Tutor
1 Yawgmoth^Òs Will
4 Juggernaut
4 Phyrexian Dreadnought
4 Illusionary Mask
1 Triskellion
1 Duplicant
1 Platinum Angel
1 Solemn Simalcrum
1 Memory Jar
1 Sol Ring
1 Black Lotus
1 Mox Pearl
1 Mox Sapphire
1 Mox Ruby
1 Mox Jet
1 Mox Emerald
4 Mishra^Òs Workshop
2 Island
1 Swamp
1 Mountain
2 Polluted Delta
1 Bloodstain Mire
3 Volcanic Island
3 Underground Sea
2 Wasteland
1 Strip Mine

3 Overload
2 Rack and Ruin
2 Diabolic Edict
1 Darksteel Forge
2 Stifle
2 Misdirection
1 Gilded Drake
1 Fire/Ice
1 Viashino Heretic

[AngryPheldagrif]

Final version of the deck:

Combo:
4x Illusionary Mask
4x Phyrexian Dreadnought
4x Berserk

Tutors:
1x Demonic Consultation
2x Tainted Pact
1x Vampiric Tutor
1x Demonic Tutor

Obvious:
1x Yawgmoth's Will
1x Time Walk (Proxy #1)

Suicide Stuff:
3x Unmask
4x Duress
4x Phyrexian Negator

Draw:
1x Ancestral Recalll (Proxy #2)
1x Timetwister
1x Necropotence

Mana:
1x Black Lotus (Proxy #3)
1x Mox Sapphire (Proxy #4)
1x Mox Jet (Proxy #5)
3x Bloodstained Mire
1x Polluted Delta (I could only find one Delta)
4x Bayou
4x Underground Sea
1x Sol Ring
1x Mana Crypt
3x Wasteland
1x Strip Mine
1x Swamp
1x Snow-covered Swamp
4x Dark Ritual

[Moridar]

hey I posted a quick report.

http://www.themanadrain.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=16138

Wayne

[mtgmooner]

Have you looked at the dreadnought build involving Spoils of the Vault instead of Tainted PAct?  I think it is a turn faster, and is far more cinsistent.  Albeit, the chance of a straight up death increases compared to pact, but this is an aggro deck...i piloted it sans power to some pretty decent finsihes...

[AngryPheldagrif]

Have you looked at the dreadnought build involving Spoils of the Vault instead of Tainted PAct?  I think it is a turn faster, and is far more cinsistent.  Albeit, the chance of a straight up death increases compared to pact, but this is an aggro deck...i piloted it sans power to some pretty decent finsihes...

I played in the tournament today (see my tourny report in this forum). Out of the two times in the tournament I cast Demonic Consulation, I lost enough cards to kill me. Pact, on the other hand, only failed once out of 10-15 castings. Also, Spoils is in the new look, which offends me.

[ganandorf]

Have you looked at the dreadnought build involving Spoils of the Vault instead of Tainted PAct?  I think it is a turn faster, and is far more cinsistent.  Albeit, the chance of a straight up death increases compared to pact, but this is an aggro deck...i piloted it sans power to some pretty decent finsihes...

I played in the tournament today (see my tourny report in this forum). Out of the two times in the tournament I cast Demonic Consulation, I lost enough cards to kill me. Pact, on the other hand, only failed once out of 10-15 castings. Also, Spoils is in the new look, which offends me.

why are you playing competative T1 if you dont want to play a good card because its new look "offends you?"

EDIT: He isn't playing it because it offends him, but because it generally seems to lose him a lot of life, as referenced by the part where he mentions the life loss would have killed him.  The new look is obviously an ancillary thing.  Maybe if you posted a couple reasons to use spoils instead of what he has, then an actual discussion could occur.  - Dante

[AngryPheldagrif]

Have you looked at the dreadnought build involving Spoils of the Vault instead of Tainted PAct?  I think it is a turn faster, and is far more cinsistent.  Albeit, the chance of a straight up death increases compared to pact, but this is an aggro deck...i piloted it sans power to some pretty decent finsihes...

I played in the tournament today (see my tourny report in this forum). Out of the two times in the tournament I cast Demonic Consulation, I lost enough cards to kill me had I been playing Spoils[/i][/u]. Pact, on the other hand, only failed once out of 10-15 castings. Also, Spoils is in the new look, which offends me.

why are you playing competative T1 if you dont want to play a good card because its new look "offends you?"

*edited my quote to clarify why.

Also, please see my tournament report where I won the first major T1 tourney in Milwaukee in quite a while.

I'm not just going to dismiss a card based on the new look, when I can dismiss it for the following reasons.

A: see my clarified quote.
B: I don't own any and had already used up all 5 proxies, and have a Mox Emerald on the waiting list should the proxy space free up.
C: I honestly would rarely have 'gone off' any faster had I been playing more tutors. Often times I would sideboard out Vampiric, Pacts, and/or Consultation because I needed more threats/answers and less draw/search.
D: Pacts were great for me and only failed once, in a fun game I played post-tournament. And won anyways. Also, I've nothing to pull for them other than the other tutors, and I don't consider it any better than any that I'm already playing. Consultation was only in because stuff I tutored for was usually a 4-of, making the top six thing harmless, which I do believe is the only reason Spoils could be better. If I tutor, 9 out of 10 times it's for a Dreadnought or a Mask, not a restricted card. And I wouldn't Spoils for a restricted card if my left depended on it. Since it would.

And as for your random and off topic insult, I'm playing competitive Type 1 because I enjoy it. If I want to bring Channel+Fireball.dec, using all Alpha cards to a major T1 championship, then it's my choice. Just because I don't appreciate the new card face doesn't mean I'm an idiot or I'd never play them. If I had Oxidizes, I would've played them over Crumbles in a second.

I hate to sound immature and spiteful, but why are you posting on my thread if you have nothing constructive to add to the discussion over my deck?

[swawagon]

I saw Timetwister in your deck and wondered it's effectiveness. It seems if you are running unmask and duress that refilling an opponents hand would be counter-productive? Or did you have enough mana to cast it the turn you went off so to speak albeit Dreadnaught-Berserk? If so why would you cast it?

Also was 3 colors solid enough. I saw quite a few Wastelands and Stripmines all day (although they didn't harm my basic Plains much.) At least your main kills are from non-color specific artifacts, so maybe you have nothing to worry about.

I first questioned the Tainted packs too, but when I saw you play them in the finals I was shown first hand how effective they were at getting something important and carring no chance of killing yourself with them. Spoils of the Vault in that fairly high aggro environment could have been more hurt than help.

So actually I only question the Timetwister and if the blue splash itself is necessary vs all the nonbasic-Land hate and making the mana base more shakey. Your Thoughts.

[AngryPheldagrif]

I saw Timetwister in your deck and wondered it's effectiveness. It seems if you are running unmask and duress that refilling an opponents hand would be counter-productive? Or did you have enough mana to cast it the turn you went off so to speak albeit Dreadnaught-Berserk? If so why would you cast it?

Also was 3 colors solid enough. I saw quite a few Wastelands and Stripmines all day (although they didn't harm my basic Plains much.) At least your main kills are from non-color specific artifacts, so maybe you have nothing to worry about.

I first questioned the Tainted packs too, but when I saw you play them in the finals I was shown first hand how effective they were at getting something important and carring no chance of killing yourself with them. Spoils of the Vault in that fairly high aggro environment could have been more hurt than help.

So actually I only question the Timetwister and if the blue splash itself is necessary vs all the nonbasic-Land hate and making the mana base more shakey. Your Thoughts.

The blue splash just for Ancestral would be enough. Ancestral in this deck full of tutors and such wins games. But I also have Time Walk (which was seriously underdrawn) and the sideboard. The sideboard was mostly useless, but will be greatly improved for the next time. I just need blue for the brokeness and the sideboard stuff.

And frankly for it, I'm just fed up with hearing all about Vengeur Mask. I much prefer Suicide/Tainted Mask and just want to play some simpler beats. Look for some surprises next time, though;-)