TPS players

[Guli]

As a TPS player and Fish player, I can say that I've never been very fond of Meddling Mage.  The reasons why have already been outlined, namely that it doesn't really do enough to disrupt TPS' plan to warrant the two mana.  Sometimes it's a bomb if you get lucky (they draw/are holding a bunch of Rituals), but oftentimes it does absolutely nothing as well.  Especially nowadays, I'd rather run something like Rootwater Thief.  Unless they're going to win the next turn, it's a horrifying thing to look at from TPS' perspective.  If you are "Fish"-ing properly, you should be able to slow them down enough most of the time to allow Thief to beat once or twice.  Not to mention it's great at removing Time Vaults, which really should be Fish's main concern right now anyway.

While you make valid points, I think you are placing Rootwater Thief unfairly over Meddling Mage.

I regularly use meddling mage when I redesign/tune mu fish piles and I always make him useful. Thing is, you kinda need other lock components active to make meddling stronger, or you need to draw into multiple meddling mages which is basically the same thing as the first part of this sentence.

I also would not underestimate the time Rootwater requires to actually damage the opponents game plan plus when we look at the match ups rootwater hits and compare it to meddling mage, in the end you will be better of with meddling mage. But your point was based on the TPS match up so in that context I do give you credit for what you stated.

[FlyFlySideOfFry]

As a TPS player and Fish player, I can say that I've never been very fond of Meddling Mage.  The reasons why have already been outlined, namely that it doesn't really do enough to disrupt TPS' plan to warrant the two mana.  Sometimes it's a bomb if you get lucky (they draw/are holding a bunch of Rituals), but oftentimes it does absolutely nothing as well.  Especially nowadays, I'd rather run something like Rootwater Thief.  Unless they're going to win the next turn, it's a horrifying thing to look at from TPS' perspective.  If you are "Fish"-ing properly, you should be able to slow them down enough most of the time to allow Thief to beat once or twice.  Not to mention it's great at removing Time Vaults, which really should be Fish's main concern right now anyway.

Well if I were running TPS I'd be infinitely more concerned with Meddling Mage with a good name on it compared to Rootwater Thief. It takes at least 2 connections with Thief to RFG most TPS deck's win conditions (assuming only Inkwell+1xTendrils) and basically it'll tie up your mana for 3 turns. I'd be extremely happy to see turn 1 Rootwater even if you were on the play. It gives me 2 turns to either cast Tinker, Win, or Tutor for Tendrils and have it sit in my hand until I'm ready to win. Unless I kept a seriously sub-par hand then that should be no problem. Not to mention the longer you wait to actually cast Rootwater, the longer I'll have had to either get removal or the gas I need to win. Mage requires a lot of skill in both deck building and actual play to use properly, but it definitely pays off big time. In Fish your spells either need to affect the game immediately or have some ridiculously powerful effect that makes it worth waiting a turn. I don't really consider a 1 mana borderline unplayed card (Extract) worth waiting an extra turn for.

That doesn't even count if I just happen to be holding Tendrils or Inkwell. I could probably tutor for Academy and hardcast Inkwell before you get another lock piece down unless you opened with Lotus or something. TPS is resilient enough to punch through wins if you waste time with it, and the only time Rootwater Thief should ever work is if you're already miles ahead.

[Diakonov]

Well if I were running TPS I'd be infinitely more concerned with Meddling Mage with a good name on it compared to Rootwater Thief. It takes at least 2 connections with Thief to RFG most TPS deck's win conditions (assuming only Inkwell+1xTendrils) and basically it'll tie up your mana for 3 turns. I'd be extremely happy to see turn 1 Rootwater even if you were on the play. It gives me 2 turns to either cast Tinker, Win, or Tutor for Tendrils and have it sit in my hand until I'm ready to win. Unless I kept a seriously sub-par hand then that should be no problem. Not to mention the longer you wait to actually cast Rootwater, the longer I'll have had to either get removal or the gas I need to win. Mage requires a lot of skill in both deck building and actual play to use properly, but it definitely pays off big time. In Fish your spells either need to affect the game immediately or have some ridiculously powerful effect that makes it worth waiting a turn. I don't really consider a 1 mana borderline unplayed card (Extract) worth waiting an extra turn for.

That doesn't even count if I just happen to be holding Tendrils or Inkwell. I could probably tutor for Academy and hardcast Inkwell before you get another lock piece down unless you opened with Lotus or something. TPS is resilient enough to punch through wins if you waste time with it, and the only time Rootwater Thief should ever work is if you're already miles ahead.

A creature that only needs to make two connections to win you the game is very good.  I'm not suggesting it's fail-safe and ALWAYS gets the job done, because yes your opponent can sometimes tutor for Tendrils to get it into hand.  First of all, if that does happen, it's very likely that the TPS player did not want to actually be forced to tutor for Tendrils at that time.  As for tutoring up Tinker and using it immediately, that's always been a problem for Fish independent of this discussion.  BTW, how is Extract not good against TPS?  Forcing a deck to abandon its entire main strategy for seems good to me.

If you are holding Tendrils early then it's probable that your hand is sub-par.  If you are holding Inkwell, that's just awful.  If I have set you on a path where your only option is to hardcast & resolve Inkwell, then I would feel my deck is doing what it's supposed to.

Like I said, Meddling Mage is clearly better against a TPS deck that happens to have the nuts.  I think that oftentimes they do not have the nuts, which is why it often feels like a semi-useless card.  As a TPS player I would have no problem letting the first Mage resolve (unless it was an unusual scenario), and often even the second.  They simply never felt threatening unless in large numbers.  Being cut off from Ritual temporarily is annoying sometimes but can be played around, and being cut off temporarily from any other single card in the deck really doesn't ever seem to matter.

I also would not underestimate the time Rootwater requires to actually damage the opponents game plan plus when we look at the match ups rootwater hits and compare it to meddling mage, in the end you will be better of with meddling mage. But your point was based on the TPS match up so in that context I do give you credit for what you stated.

I concede that Thief is a little bit slow when it comes to game impact, but the impact is that the game ends.  It probably adds a little bit of variance to your match-ups, which is unfortunate, but the "oops I win" factor it brings potentially pushes it over the edge. 

You have a good point as far as usefulness goes for the entire field.  Mage is certainly better than Thief against Oath, for example.  I'd have to analyze all the match-ups to be sure.

[Gekoratel]

If I was playing TPS I don't think I would be very afraid of getting hit by Extract, it doesn't make you lose the game and doesn't stop you from hitting your one big turn where you could Time Walk + Tinker, YawgWill->TW again etc.  The card doesn't restrict your mana or put you on any clock unless you consider future Extracts a clock which is reasonable I suppose.  Its also worth noting that if the TPS player is holding Inkwell when you cast Extract that they still have the ability to get it back in the deck with Brainstorm and then Tinker for it unless you were referring to Rootwater/Extract hitting twice on Tinker and Tendrils.

[Guli]

The effect on itself is powerful enough to worry combo. Hide/Seek for example is pretty solid right now for both parts.

Is all this on topic btw? Well we do talk about the fish match up of TPS so its ok i guess.

So what other things does TPS don't like when facing fish? What creatures DO worry TPS?

[hitman]

Aven Mindcensor.  It dissolves the glue that holds the deck together.  This card, in conjunction with mana denial, is hard to work around because it hits hard where the deck is soft.

Most other creatures are just cute.  Even cards like Gaddock Teeg and Ethersworn Canonist don't really prevent you from doing what you need to do to win.  They merely slow the game down to a point where the Fish player thinks he can race you with bears.  Creatures aren't that good in Vintage and the ones that are have effects like Sundering Titan. 

The cards that do the real work in a Vintage game are non-creature spells, cards like Duress/Thoughtseize, Chalice of the Void, Null Rod and so on.  What good would a creature be if it wasn't supported by a powerful spell?  A Fish player should keep this in mind.  A creature should be synergistic with and complimentary to the powerful spells the deck plays. 

[Stormanimagus]

I'm curious to know from the TPS players/ANT players a question I've had for a while. I used to be really into storm combo and I still have a very soft spot in my heart for Dark Rituals, but:

how in the HELL do we beat Mystic Remora?

I've had a couple ideas and I'd like to know (from people with some experience with that matchup) just which of these cards/plans Remora would fear the most either form the SB or MD:

a) an opposing Remora from the Storm Combo Player
b) Xantid Swarm
c) Chains Of Mephistopheles (I'd use this pretty much only in ANT but it seems like it could have a home in the SB there)
d) The Man Plan (Tarmogoyf comes to mind)
e) Extirpate

I'd like some input on this as I may take this deck to a tournament tomorrow. Thanks!

-Storm

[LordHomerCat]

I'm curious to know from the TPS players/ANT players a question I've had for a while. I used to be really into storm combo and I still have a very soft spot in my heart for Dark Rituals, but:

how in the HELL do we beat Mystic Remora?

I've had a couple ideas and I'd like to know (from people with some experience with that matchup) just which of these cards/plans Remora would fear the most either form the SB or MD:

a) an opposing Remora from the Storm Combo Player
b) Xantid Swarm
c) Chains Of Mephistopheles (I'd use this pretty much only in ANT but it seems like it could have a home in the SB there)
d) The Man Plan (Tarmogoyf comes to mind)
e) Extirpate

I'd like some input on this as I may take this deck to a tournament tomorrow. Thanks!

-Storm

My TPS plan against remora decks was as follows:

1. Did you sideboard Xantid Swarm?  I sure hope so.
2. If not 1, pray they don't draw remora or any many at all
3. If not 1 or 2, lose horribly.

That card is one of the main reasons I didn't play TPS at my last event: autolosing a matchup against a real deck is pretty bad.  And considering that I didn't actually have any anti-blue sideboard cards before, somehow finding room for 4 Swarms while still having room to deal with Fish, Shops, and Ichorid seemed very difficult as Shops are hard to beat even with a bunch of board cards and I couldn't afford to trim there, and Fish is not that hard but requires you commit the space to bounce and/or removal, and Ichorid pretty much steals half your board unless you are feeling really lucky.

[XxtSundaybxX]

Remora is going to be really hard to play around. The only benefit you have is they need to pay the upkeep costs on remora, so if you can go off in the first few turns drains will be useless as they will be tapped out. That leaves them with 4x Force of Will and you have 4 of your own force of wills and you also have duress/thoughtseize. Just make sure you win that turn.

[Stormanimagus]

I'm curious to know from the TPS players/ANT players a question I've had for a while. I used to be really into storm combo and I still have a very soft spot in my heart for Dark Rituals, but:

how in the HELL do we beat Mystic Remora?

I've had a couple ideas and I'd like to know (from people with some experience with that matchup) just which of these cards/plans Remora would fear the most either form the SB or MD:

a) an opposing Remora from the Storm Combo Player
b) Xantid Swarm
c) Chains Of Mephistopheles (I'd use this pretty much only in ANT but it seems like it could have a home in the SB there)
d) The Man Plan (Tarmogoyf comes to mind)
e) Extirpate

I'd like some input on this as I may take this deck to a tournament tomorrow. Thanks!

-Storm

My TPS plan against remora decks was as follows:

1. Did you sideboard Xantid Swarm?  I sure hope so.
2. If not 1, pray they don't draw remora or any many at all
3. If not 1 or 2, lose horribly.

That card is one of the main reasons I didn't play TPS at my last event: autolosing a matchup against a real deck is pretty bad.  And considering that I didn't actually have any anti-blue sideboard cards before, somehow finding room for 4 Swarms while still having room to deal with Fish, Shops, and Ichorid seemed very difficult as Shops are hard to beat even with a bunch of board cards and I couldn't afford to trim there, and Fish is not that hard but requires you commit the space to bounce and/or removal, and Ichorid pretty much steals half your board unless you are feeling really lucky.

What about my other suggestions? Chains? Man Plan? Extirpate?

[FlyFlySideOfFry]

Remora is going to be really hard to play around. The only benefit you have is they need to pay the upkeep costs on remora, so if you can go off in the first few turns drains will be useless as they will be tapped out. That leaves them with 4x Force of Will and you have 4 of your own force of wills and you also have duress/thoughtseize. Just make sure you win that turn.

They also have 4-6 Misdirections+Commandeers. Running into it is a terrible idea. Xantid Swarm is pretty much plans A, B, and C. I've never tested Chains of Meph but I'd be interested in hearing how it has worked out for other people. It seems like the kind of strategy that looks good on paper but doesn't work in a real tournament setting.

[Diakonov]

I don't think Chains is a real option.  It shuts down your own Brainstorm, Ancestral, Bargain, Timetwister, Memory Jar, and any other cards you use to draw.  I suppose you could just focus on Necro or Desire, but it doesn't seem worth it.

One strategy is to just wait and build up a hand until you decide to go off.  As long as they are only drawing cards off Remora on the turn where you're trying to win, they will get the least advantage possible out of it.  Kind of similar to dealing with Standstill in the past.  It's true that they will possibly draw into counters, but it's still probably the best strategy.  If you lead with a Duress effect and take a counter, then at least that generally leaves them to only hope that they draw well off Remora to stop you.  Even if they draw into one Force effect, if you have a broken hand before you go off then you probably can counter back or play another threat.

Hopefully you could time it so that you wouldn't need to worry about Drain, supposing they are tapping down to pay for Remora.

I'm not suggesting that Remora is by any means easy to get around, but that strategy at least minimizes its effectiveness.  Xantid Swarm is the only thing I can think of that would be good against it.  You could maybe bounce->Duress, but that's not too reliable.

EDIT: Maybe you could use Engineered Explosives.

[hitman]

I think that Dark Confidant may be the most feasible "solution" to Remora that we have.  If you run Xantid Swarm, you'll be forced to mainboard Bayou because you won't have room in the board for Bayou and Xantid Swarm and retain the slots needed for the harder matchups.  If you run Dark Confidant, you have the same likelihood of having it as your opponent's likelihood of having Remora.  If you can land a Confidant, your board state is superior.  They can keep the Remora on board but they'll be taking damage from your Confidant who is netting you more cards than the Remora. 

In the board, I'd use the two flex slots and one Ichorid slot.  For the fourth Confidant, I'd cut a card for a matchup I expect the least of at the tournament I'm attending.  If you're especially worried about Remora, you may want to try a different approach to combo than TPS.  A more mid-range combo deck with mainboard Confidants and a red splash may be the way to go.  You would have access to Red Blasts out of the board.  Force of Will would probably go in favor of Confidant.  Keep in mind that a red splash is especially good against Remora decks because your Red Blasts are usually going to be a two-for-one or three-for-one that can also spot remove a Remora.

[Diakonov]

If you're especially worried about Remora, you may want to try a different approach to combo than TPS.  A more mid-range combo deck with mainboard Confidants and a red splash may be the way to go.

Agreed.  This is one of the main reasons I have temporarily abandoned TPS.  Confidant based Tendrils is way hotter against Remora.  I've been considering testing GWSx for that reason.

[Stormanimagus]

If you're especially worried about Remora, you may want to try a different approach to combo than TPS.  A more mid-range combo deck with mainboard Confidants and a red splash may be the way to go.

Agreed.  This is one of the main reasons I have temporarily abandoned TPS.  Confidant based Tendrils is way hotter against Remora.  I've been considering testing GWSx for that reason.

Ad Nauseam Running Confidants can also be the sexy. Now that is a Storm combo deck that could effectively run Chains from the SB. Ad Nauseam is the biggest bomb the deck has as a 4-of and it is not effected by Chains. Hmmm. . . I sense possibilities?

[XxtSundaybxX]

Running a maindeck bayou to support SB xantid swarm is not a big deal. I played a maindedck bayou and a sideboard bayou for goyfs out of the board and not once had an issue with it. The bayou still taps for black which lets you play your rituals and black bombs.

Confiant/ADnaus is a really solid deck. It has an advantage in the tps matchup because of bob, and still has about as good of matchups against all the same decks that tps does.

[Stormanimagus]

Running a maindeck bayou to support SB xantid swarm is not a big deal. I played a maindedck bayou and a sideboard bayou for goyfs out of the board and not once had an issue with it. The bayou still taps for black which lets you play your rituals and black bombs.

Confiant/ADnaus is a really solid deck. It has an advantage in the tps matchup because of bob, and still has about as good of matchups against all the same decks that tps does.

I'm somewhat in agreement with you that the deck could support Xantid Swarm and that Xantid Swarm really may be the best card to combat Remora-Based Blue decks, but my question is: what do you side out to accommodate 4 Xantid + 1 Bayou? Clearly you want to keep the Confidant in there. And I also think maximum Duress effects is important. Hmmmm. . . Perhaps this?

-2 Cabal Ritual (they don't run spheres so 1 Cabal Ritual ought to be enough right?)
-1 Imperial Seal
-1 Ponder
-1 Hurkyl's Recall

+4 Xantid Swarm
+1 Bayou

These changes would be based on the following list:

Ad Nauseam

Land (12):
4 Polluted Delta
1 Bloodstained Mire
3 Underground Sea
2 Swamp
1 Bayou
1 Tropical Island

Artifacts (10):
1 Black Lotus
1 Lotus Petal
3 Chrome Mox
1 Mox Jet
1 Mox Sapphire
1 Mana Crypt
1 Mana Vault
1 Sol Ring

Creatures (4):
4 Dark Confidant

Enchantments (1):
1 Necropotence

Sorceries (13):
3 Duress
3 Thoughtsieze
1 Demonic Tutor
1 Yawgmoth’s Will
1 Imperial Seal
1 Ponder
3 Tendrils Of Agony

Instants (20):
4 Ad Nauseam
4 Dark Ritual
3 Cabal Ritual
3 Chain Of Vapor
1 Ancestral Recall
1 Brainstorm
1 Vampiric Tutor
1 Mystical Tutor
1 Demonic Consultation
1 Hurkyl’s Recall

SB
4 Xantid Swarm
1 Bayou
2 Hurkyl’s Recall
3 Yixlid Jailer
2 Extirpate
3 Slaughter Pact

[XxtSundaybxX]

I dont know that I would agree with sideboarding Hurkys out mostly because inkwell is everywhere. Cabal ritual is fine and so is Imp seal. with having bobs in there I dont think ponder is that crucial so I can agree with that as well. If your playing against a deck thats not denying  your mana then obviously you would board out a land(swamp). If you are playing against mana denial I would consider what kind you are playing against, for instance if its null rod and such then you could board out an artifact or two so they wont be dead draws. I also think that 3 chain of vapors is a little extreme, Im sure you could board out a chain or 2.

[Stormanimagus]

I dont know that I would agree with sideboarding Hurkys out mostly because inkwell is everywhere. Cabal ritual is fine and so is Imp seal. with having bobs in there I dont think ponder is that crucial so I can agree with that as well. If your playing against a deck thats not denying  your mana then obviously you would board out a land(swamp). If you are playing against mana denial I would consider what kind you are playing against, for instance if its null rod and such then you could board out an artifact or two so they wont be dead draws. I also think that 3 chain of vapors is a little extreme, Im sure you could board out a chain or 2.

Chain is HUGE for this deck and Menendian's old list used to run the full 4. It's a storm enabler, but, more importantly, against Remora it is a way to EOT bounce Remora and then go off unmolested on the following turn.

[Marske]

@Stormanimagus, XxtSundaybxX,
I was under de impression this topic was about The Perfect Storm, a deck which usually revolves around 4 FoW, 4 Duress and bombs, which has the ability to play the control rol to a certain degree. The deck you guys are talking about is more straight forward and certainly not capable of the stuff TPS is. Although the deck you guys are discussing is very interesting and I've done a lot of work on it in the past I didn't know this thread was about that deck...

Ok, back on topic now...

The biggest problem I've had with Remora is actually determining if you're even going to face the deck. I've played in NE a while back and I saw no Remora, I've played lots in europe and saw no remora.. My point with this is: Sure it's almost like an Autoloss but why prepare for it when the chances to face it are next to nil ? Certainly no Remora list has reached top 8 in recent events.

Now a bit more info about the matchup:
I've played against it a lot and I can honestly say some of the strategy already mentioned in this thread (sculpt your hand, wait, look for the correct moment to strike) actually works the best overall. Minds Desire and baiting a counter war (be carefull not to drop Necro / Bargain if you suspect Commandeer) and just upping storm untill you got 9 and then playing tendrils is the best plan you really have.

Sure Xantid swarm really shines in that matchup and if you don't expect Fish or Shops but you do expect lots of Remora (and you still want to play TPS for whatever reason) they are the best option. But in general fitting in a dual and 4 cards for a matchup you're not likely to be facing and by doing this weakening your other rough matchups (Fish, Shop maybe even ichorid) seems pretty bad in my book.

[Gekoratel]

It's not like the Xantid Swarms are dead in other matchups though they are also extremely strong against Tezzeret so why not board 3-4 Xantid. 

A sideboard of :
3 Xantid
1 Bayou
2-3 Mass Artifact Bounce
2 Basics
3-5 Dredge Hate

seems like a fine way to start a sideboard.

[FlyFlySideOfFry]

It's not like the Xantid Swarms are dead in other matchups though they are also extremely strong against Tezzeret so why not board 3-4 Xantid. 

A sideboard of :
3 Xantid
1 Bayou
2-3 Mass Artifact Bounce
2 Basics
3-5 Dredge Hate

seems like a fine way to start a sideboard.

Well the TPS maindeck should be designed with Tezzeret in mind so Xantid would really only be for Remora decks, which as marske said could end up being dead SB space. I've never really felt this way about any deck but in all honesty, I would take the punt against Remora or just not play TPS if I was expecting a lot of it around. Aside from it eating up your sideboard and not being heavily played, the matchup itself is often a massive headache if you're absolutely trying to bust out the win. It just isn't worth the stress+deck space in my experience. Something like Confidant Tendrils would be better if you just had to play Rituals against Remora. Also no, I don't think bringing Confidants from the SB is very viable because #1 the maindeck isn't tweaked to run them (or they would be maindeck) and #2 if you're eating up 4 SB slots just run Xantid as a better option.

[zeus-online]

Have anyone considered just using confidants and negators after board? The remora deck isn't exactly the fastest ever, and the meditates might backfire if there's a huge beater or a CA engine on the board.

[Gekoratel]

Well the TPS maindeck should be designed with Tezzeret in mind so Xantid would really only be for Remora decks, which as marske said could end up being dead SB space.

I've been reading through most of this thread and I haven't seen any drastic deviations from the base TPS list in order to make the main deck better against Tezzeret.  If I was really focusing on improving that matchup I feel the changes to the MD would make it noticeably weaker against the rest of the field.  So why not use the sideboard to help here.  From the testing I've done I feel like G1 is around 50/50 against Tezzeret and my list is pretty stock.  There are enough marginal cards in the MD that I could easily board out 3 to improve the Tezzeret matchup and Remora.  Maybe there's something here I'm just not getting but Xantid makes a lot of sense to me.

[FlyFlySideOfFry]

Well the TPS maindeck should be designed with Tezzeret in mind so Xantid would really only be for Remora decks, which as marske said could end up being dead SB space.

I've been reading through most of this thread and I haven't seen any drastic deviations from the base TPS list in order to make the main deck better against Tezzeret.  If I was really focusing on improving that matchup I feel the changes to the MD would make it noticeably weaker against the rest of the field.  So why not use the sideboard to help here.  From the testing I've done I feel like G1 is around 50/50 against Tezzeret and my list is pretty stock.  There are enough marginal cards in the MD that I could easily board out 3 to improve the Tezzeret matchup and Remora.  Maybe there's something here I'm just not getting but Xantid makes a lot of sense to me.

Oh well then certainly if you have room by all means I would run Xantid also. I personally haven't been able to make spare slots in my TPS list for a while now though and I do just fine against TPS without having to board. Easily 60/40.

[XxtSundaybxX]

Xantid swarm does make sense, and I also agree that its a solid solution to beating tezz and remora. Although Jeff, as you and I discussed yesterday, I dont feel that the disruption is what creates a problem for TPS. Its the fact that tezz's combo can be assembled easier than our combo can. Why not just playing something like Pithing Needle? Or Rack and Ruin, or Krosan Grip if your playing green. Needle helps Tezz and Dredge, although they can bounce it, it can buy you enough time to go off before they can answer it.

[Gekoratel]

I really hate being reactive in combo decks especially when I feel that your combo is faster than the "control decks" win condition.  This is why I've never liked cards like REB against Drain decks because it slows your deck down.  At least with a card like Pithing Needle it isn't being used as backup for protecting the win but rather gives you more time to assemble the win against them.  But I can only imagine if I was running Tezzeret that I would not be scared of my opponent casting Needle because they had one less threat, or protection to winning.  I think we just have a different opinion on what matters in the matchup but I think Needle seems reasonable since its so versatile.

[Marske]

Like mentioned before, Tezzeret isn't "really" that much faster then TPS is and you should be well equipped to deal with drain decks with your maindeck. Now I won't argue about the fact that drain decks have gotten a lot faster and they can kill you out of nowhere. But barring an insane hand Tezzeret isn't going to instantly kill you on turn 3 every game you play against them. (turn 3 is TPS's average kill turn for those of you wondering why I said turn 3) So most likely you'll be able to push trough before that.

I really liked Pithing needle and I've had a couple in my board for ages, they are really multi functional which is something you want from a sideboard card. I've brought them in against Staxx (Welder, Stripmine) against Ichorid (Bazaar) and against drain decks (Tezz, Vault, Welder, Grindstone) and it always felt like playing a time walk.

Regarding Xantid Swarm,
This card only helps you with going combo, it doesn't stop Tezz from going combo it doesn't delay them one bit...in a deck like GWSx which doesn't play FoW it makes perfect sense to run Swarm to protect your combo pieces. In TPS it doesn't make that much sense to me because you'll most likely be able to push your bombs trough with your 4 FoW, 4 Duress 1-2 Misdirection already. If you're having trouble forcing your bomb onto the field you're probably doing something else wrong (timing and knowing what's important is crucial) Now I know Swarm can be handy for the Remora matchup but I think I've already explained my points of view on that one already and I don't want to keep repeating myself.

[dark burn]

I always thought that if you were playing TPS, you were playing it because it beats drain based decks like tezz, and is flexible enough to beat fish and workshop decks after boarding.  If it is not beating the drain decks without sideboard help, why would you want to play it in the first place?  What are TPS's good matchups then?  Is it just like extended Rock, where it is about 50/50 against everything and just comes down to playskill?

@Marske. If you look up the results for the Philly Open 3, you will see the first place deck had remora and dark confidant in a tezz shell.  A few weeks later, at the Blue Bell event there were at least 3 people who included remora into their tezz lists.  Meditate/remora as a deck may not be too popular, but the card remora is seeing much more play now.

I play ad nauseam now, and I really like negators and dark confidants against remora.  Game 1 I either combo out turn 1 or 2 if they dont play remora.  If they do, I just hold onto all my cards and try to build up to go off all in 1 turn.  After boarding, I try to land an early negator and then just stop playing spells.  I dont have enough experience playing TPS to know if negators would work for it, I just know that negator is a beating against remora.

[Marske]

@Dark Burn,
The card Remora isn't as big a threat as the deck Remora, namely because Tezz decks running remora are only drawing into a maximum of 5-6 pitch spells and don't run commandeer (the card you fear most in the Remora matchup). They run 4 FoW and 1-2 Misdirection and Misdirection is textless against most of your bombs (Necro, Bargain, Jar, Minds Desire, Rituals, etc) which makes a huge difference.

I've had Negators in my board against Remora but I've recently cut them because I didn't face the matchup that much anymore. Negator fills a bunch of different rolls in that matchup an poses a real threat for a Remora player so it's one of your better bets if you don't like splashing another color.