Summer Deck Choices (Voice your Opinion)

[Outlaw]

Lets start out with a small introduction, im Outlaw from North Adams Mass.  Im definitely an avid type 1 player, know the format fairly well for the amount of time I have been playing (half a year or so).  Recently I hosted a tourney in Pittsfield Mass for a Jet (grats SexTiger) and will be assisting in a DualMox (July 24, Emerald + Ruby).

So you may ask, what is this post about?  This post is one for resolution on what you think the strongest deck for the summer is, I myself am in the process of building one of these 4 decks (the reason I will be talking of them)

4cc - Germbus
4c Hulk
Control Slaver
GAT

Lets start with Germbus, the deck that deals with everything in the format via wish targets and mainboard creature removal.  Germbus has been sneaking through the ranks and winning tourney after tourney (Kowal is a great example of this, congrats man), (Dr. Sylvan has made it aparent that in the past 6 major tourneys, 4cc has t8'ed 7 times).  It seems that Germbus is definitely one of the most solid decks in the format, with the introduction of red you gain even more wish targets and two great mainboard cards, monkey de` mox and fire/ice.  Angel is a solid introduction to an older look upon keeper, the deck has an insane amount of synergy, which we all know is what makes a good deck (take a look at fish).  Aggro-Control is a great archtype.

Hulk Smash, is in my opinion the most stable and consistant deck in the Vintage world right now.  4c Hulk has the ability to deal with nearly anything via CWish, red's introduction (as aparent in Germbus) is a solid welcome into the deck.  Hulk can either play two games, speed or control.  Speed as in it can goldfish on turns 3 and 4 very often.  The control game can be played as sitting back and draining things, then drawing a mass of cards while dropping 50cent himself.  Its seems it to me that Hulk is the one deck that you do not want to give a window to, as a small window to Hulk is a large game win.  Tog = br0k3n.

Control Slaver is by far the most annoying deck to play agaisnt.  When Slaver opens a window, they dont just open a window, they rip the side off your house and just waltz right in.  Slaver hands out game losses to any deck that runs mister 50cent himself, or any spells that reads Pay X Life.  Thirst of Knowledge is tech in the deck, feeding those little goblins that love artifacts.  Although all this is aparent, the deck has alot of bad stuff that can happen to it (we all know Slaver players writhe when a first turn ground seal or damping matrix hits the board).  Synopsis, Goblin Welder / Pentavus = br0k3n.

GAT is another type of aggro control, a very promising deck indeed.  It has a few archtypes such as IsoGat, DryadHate, and Supergro, but basic GAT has seen alot of play in the last months.  Mainboard misdirections are killer tech vs. Control (who hates having a recall misD'ed?!) The deck does absolutely stupid things with gush and fastbond main, Quirion Dryad gets mightly large at a quick rate.  GAT is also a deck that needs a small window to sneak in and go off, savage.

Overall, my summer deck choice will most likely be 4cHulk, with Germbus comming in a very close 2nd or tie with first.  But I ask everyone here to voice their opinion.

[TrixR4Kidz]

Well clearly the choice of the summer is 4 Color Grow, aka Big F'in Dryad, well not really.... but I do love it, haha

Right now I think hulk is the most stable deck as you said, I don't believe it consistantly gets turn 3-4 kills, maybe without an opponent, but it isn't a combo deck here.  GAT, I don't see a point in playing, when you can just play HULK? 4cC obviously is a killer deck, and I think rides 2nd to Hulk, due to the rather slow card drawing, and just slow tempo in general.  Control slaver is a pretty good choice, But like you said damping matrix, ground seal, can make it a pretty quick game.  This summer I think we will continue to see Hulk taking first at the majority of the tourny's and my opinion is 7/10 is going to make a strong push and get alot of wins, that deck is insanely good.  Also, look for the craziness of BFD

[Law]

Food Chain Goblin seams to becomeing more common in many places. Why FCG? Combo aggro seams like its going to be a winner as new decks pick up using that kind of plan for winning. Since FCG is the main deck of that type right now I think its going to pick up (plus its the easy to make without power).

Other wise my plan is to just watch and see witch one does win/become realy common.

[Outlaw]

Hulk is one of those weird decks that seems to walk the line between a few types.  It is definitely a Control deck, but it combos out, and has Aggro like symptoms.  Some forms of Hulk focus in around the combo side, and atempt to goldfish on turns 3-4, by throwing everything they have into dropping the tog ASAP.  7/10 is a great deck, it has answers to alot of things (mb Chalice? savage tech) and the 7/10 himself is a great creature.  I would advise keeping an eye out for it, and as for BFD I'll try and steer clear out of its way.

That is definitely true, I was speaking with teammates and I think it was valid to say that soon enough all simple formats (Control, Aggro, Combo) will be ruled out by mixes of all.  Aggro-Control, Aggro-Combo, Combo-Control.

[Sextiger]

With summer coming around and the big tourneys approaching, combo and workshop decks will be on the rise.  While all four of those decks are very good, two of those four are going to have a hard time adjusting to changes in the metagame.
 
 GAT has always had troubles with many of the staples of Workshop decks such as Smokestack, Tangle Wire, Trinisphere, and it's very large creatures. Tog's greater draw engine allows it to deal with those problems as they arise while GAT is already struggling trying to create a large Dryad instead of simply attacking for 20+damage. Workshop decks usually offer the chance for the other player to mana drain a large spell into a gamebreaking turn but GAT's drop of intution/deep analysis will often create a large influx of mana that simply can not be used.

 Combo will prove to be very troublesome to GAT as well since its draw engine will not allow them to leave mana open since it will be in the process of growing the dryad.  The less draw and very importantly, the loss of Gorilla Shaman will allow combo to feel less impeded then it would against Tog.


Though I am a very big fan of Control Slavery, its slow threats will have a hard time dealing with a combo deck such as Draw-7.  While a broken play may consist of casting a first turn goblin welder into a second turn thirst for knoweldge, a broken play by Draw-7 will leave the slavery player crippled and probably dead.  Mindslaver is too slow when games are decided by turn 1-2.  Slavery's only true protection is Force of Will.  The mana base will often not allow drain mana to be available.  

4c Control and Hulk are showing no true weakness to any deck's of the field and are proven to do very well against Combo.  Hulk's gorilla shaman, duress, great draw engine and counter magic will allow it to sustain the wall needed to block out combo.  4c Control shares
Hulk's strength of gorilla shaman and a great draw engine while demonstrating the power of Exalted Angel.  A few swings with the angel could put the control player out of range of tendrils damage

Out of those decks, 4c Control and Hulk will be the true winners.

[TrixR4Kidz]

Why out of all the times will combo all of a sudden be on the rise?  There hasn't been any good combo decks brought into the format for a little while now, Combo is inconsistant at times, and sometimes rely's on just getting good hands, the deck can just die out.  Slavery may be slow agasint combo, but getting a slaver off against a combo deck is game.  I don't really know what will be a good choice this summer really, you CANNOT go wrong with tog or 4cC, they are too good to stop.

about FCG, I just can't view this deck as being tier 1, It's really weird, and the basis of the deck is dropping a first turn lackey, it's not much of a thing after that, It should lose to control, or anything that runs a creature bigger then 1/1? It'll be around don't get me wrong, and it's a good deck, but I don't think FCG players will be seeing much power this year

[bebe]

Combo will continue to have a tough time as long as there is a trend to include FoWs, counters and Null Rods in half the decks you face. Of all the combo decks Dragon seems the best placed to buck the trend if control starts to become pervasive, ie, MaDragon variants with FoWs and Logics.

I seem to see a lot of Fish and 4c control lately and your deck has to be able to compete with these or it will not win the whole enchilada - it might top eight with favorable match ups at best.

Hulk defies classification - it can be control, it can be combo, it can be aggro. Up in the great white north though it cannot consistently even place in the top four.

I'm waiting to see Razor and Ralph Caron's new parfait build emerge as an outside contender - it's a blueberry parfait variant well designed to handle the current meta.

[jpmeyer]

Tog can't goldfish turn 3 anymore.  It needed Gush to be able to pull that off.  It still does have a pretty consistent turn 4 goldfish, though.

[Outlaw]

I've built Hulk, but I really wish to try Germbus.  Anyone voice their opinion on that?  Which deck do you think seems more promising as of right now, to me it seems that Germbus has more answers to things, but Tog is such a broken card.  Anyone?

[johnstown713]

Try out GermBus and you will be very pleased.  The results don't lie, it is a very solid deck that should be given more credit.  If you biult Hulk then you have to build this deck.  Even if you are unsure of its potential then throw it together and test some games.  It can't hurt and especially when you realize you round a winning deck.

Johnstown713

[twn_domn]

Summer means lots of proxy t1 tourna going on somewhere.  

If you have power/workshop:
4 Color Control
4 Color Tog
Trinstax

If you don't have power:
Gay Fish
Control Madness
Food Chain Goblin



Germbus <--- A useless, meaningless term no European or West coast players would care/appreciate.  Some people are giving themselves too much credit for something that's already known for the longest time.

[TrixR4Kidz]

Trinstax

Trinistax? I don't think so sir, there are certainly better deck choices in the format right now then trinistax, if your gonna go with a workshop deck, go with 7/10, the illest deck in the format right now.... I think seven ten is going to be seeing alot of power this summer

[Jacob Orlove]

This thread is so worthless. Closed.