Almost Blue

[Ego_Sum]

I couldn't, if there is any, the thread for this archetype, and I think it deserved a place in this forums plus the new set (MBS) grants some new toys to improve it qualitatively.

First of all I present the deck:

"Almost Tinker"

Maindeck 60

2x Misty Rainforest
1x Polluted Delta
1x Scalding Tarn
1x Flooded Strand
4x Island
2x Underground sea
2x Tropical Island
1x Tolarian Academy
1x Library of Alexandria

5x Mox
1x Black Lotus
1x Sol Ring
1x Mana Crypt
1x Lotus Petal

1x Blightsteel Colossus

4x Gush
4x Force of Will
3x Mana Drain
3x Repeal
1x Misdirection
1x Mindbreak Trap
1x Tinker
1x Mystical Tutor
1x Merchant Scroll
1x Ancestral Recall
1x Time Walk
1x Timetwister
1x Mind's Desire
1x Gifst Ungiven
1x Ponder
1x Brainstorm
1x Chain of Vapor
1x Hurkyl's Recall

2x Brain Freeze

1x Demonic Tutor
1x Vampiric Tutor
1x Yawgmoth's Will

1x Fastbond
1x Regrowth

Sideboard 15

3x Duress
3x Tarmogoyf
2x Steel Sabotage
2x Hurkyl's Recall
2x Nihil Spellbomb
2x Yixlid Jailer
1x Pithin Needle

Most of you may already know this archetype. I want to know your opinion.

The addition of BSC I think is quite important since it gives a new win condition (non-dependant on your opponent's life like brainfreeze) that helps a lot against the aggro match ups, but also being a 1 turn clock makes it not as bad against control.

There's only one thing I miss in my maindeck and this is just because I couldn't find the place for it, so extra help needed in this, and this are the "Tromod's effect" originally Almost blue decks pack a couple of Tromod's crypt to back up the brainfreeze plan (and avoiding being Yawgmoth Willed to death), some contemporary build pack Nihil spellbonb instead, for its cantrip nature. But I had to cut those to add the tinker pack.

The sideboard is also very regular almost sideboard with some goyf to combat aggro (fish and mud), and has added the steel sabotage, this slot were Nature's claim before but I feel that sabotage will do a better job since not giving life to a MUD opponent could be very imprtant if you are racing with Goyfs.

The final question is, would you a dd a Myr battlesphere to the sideboard so I can swap it for colossus against Tangle Wire decks?

Greetings,

Thanks,

Iñaki.-

[Grand Inquisitor]

3x Mana Drain
3x Repeal
1x Misdirection
1x Mindbreak Trap

This seems to be where you'd Crypt/Spellbomb if you wanted.  Are these slots really sacred?

Also, I notice there's no Jace in here, is he too slow?

[Ego_Sum]

Repeal is a must in order to make storm, its great at what it does, also gives you the time you may need against aggro opponents, and can be used as a tempo tool bouncing one mox at the Eot of your opponent in order to make more difficult playing instants (specially useful if the mox you bounce is the sapphire), the counterspells I think are capital for the archetype since it is a combo control deck it needs the coutnermagic botha as protection and defense. it' s also important to keep the countermagic for the matches that you must be the control part (siding in goyfs, and siding out the combo package).  I ' m not sure about the misdirection or trap slot, while they are great in a given metagame, here in barcelona most of good players play combo control, so winning counterwar is relevant, but I may think about those 2 slots...


About Jace... I think he also deserve an slot or two but again I can't see how...

Greetings,

Iñaki.-

[beder]

Hum, if I had to play that build, I think i would do the following changes :

- library of alexandria (with gush and drain, I don't like library)
- mindbreak (never been a huge fan)
- misdirection (in today's meta, I feel like this is not so exciting)
- regrowth (without key/vault, in such a build, I don't know if this is so powerfull)

for

+ 1 mana vault (should be pretty good in this build)
+ 1 gift (with all the mana accelerator and drain, gift is pretty good)
+ 1 jace
+ 1 thrist

In the end, less protection/control and more bombs/draw.

And even perhaps -1 repeal for +1 rebuild, depending of the meta (more aggro or more shop).

[Marske]

@Ego_Sum,
Zieby's 3rd place report with Almost AKA Watskeburt
European Storm thread,
Tobi's Almost AKA Watskeburt Report

So there's enough to find out there if you really wanted to The decks awesome although I fear it has trouble dealing with Workshop effectively.

[Ego_Sum]

Hum, if I had to play that build, I think i would do the following changes :

- library of alexandria (with gush and drain, I don't like library)
- mindbreak (never been a huge fan)
- misdirection (in today's meta, I feel like this is not so exciting)
- regrowth (without key/vault, in such a build, I don't know if this is so powerfull)

for

+ 1 mana vault (should be pretty good in this build)
+ 1 gift (with all the mana accelerator and drain, gift is pretty good)
+ 1 jace
+ 1 thrist

In the end, less protection/control and more bombs/draw.

And even perhaps -1 repeal for +1 rebuild, depending of the meta (more aggro or more shop).

I have to say that I already play GU, it' s been only a typing mistake, solved.

I feel that Regrowth is very important in Gush bond in order to recur gush, it works pretty similar to merchant scroll once you are going off, if also can lead broken plays like multiple ancestrals or so. Thirst? sure? I mean the deck packs only 10 artifacts which is not that much, I ve tried it but have to cut it for that reason. I ve also tested the mana vault but I m playing very few high cost spells and this is why I cut it.

I may try to add a Jace/Nihil instead of Misdirection.

Greetings, and thanks,

Iñaki.-

[beder]

I have to say that I already play GU, it' s been only a typing mistake, solved.

I feel that Regrowth is very important in Gush bond in order to recur gush, it works pretty similar to merchant scroll once you are going off, if also can lead broken plays like multiple ancestrals or so. Thirst? sure? I mean the deck packs only 10 artifacts which is not that much, I ve tried it but have to cut it for that reason. I ve also tested the mana vault but I m playing very few high cost spells and this is why I cut it.

I may try to add a Jace/Nihil instead of Misdirection.

Greetings, and thanks,

Iñaki.-

With shop being such a threat, Mana vault is really good. It definitely helps reaching the amount of mana required in order to play that hurkyls or rebuild at end of turn.
Then, with mind's desire, yawmoth, tinker, twister, gift, jace, thirst, I think that mana vault can definitely be interesting. Do not forget that it can also sometimes be used to play gush, when you don't want your 2 lands back in hand. With repeal, it is also very good : bounce a tapped mana vault or use mana vault mana to play a repeal for a 2CC or 3CC permanent.

For thirst, if you add mana vault, you know have 11 artifact. With 3 repeals, it should be sufficent to make sure that you can use the full power of thirst (bouncing for instance an extra mox and discarding it to thirst). Finally, it is a way to shuffle back your new robot when unfortunatly stick in your hand.

Fo regrowth, sure it can be usefull, good or even excellent. But I feel like in this build, you could definitely find some other options which would be better than it.

[Ego_Sum]

Last Saturday's event (1st tournament of this year's LCV season), in Barcelona, 65 players, won by almost Blue. This is the list:


1st - Pau Cantero - Almost Blue

Maindeck:

3 Misty Rainforest
2 Polluted Delta
1 Flooded Strand
3 Island
2 Tropical Island
2 Underground Sea
1 Library of Alexandria
1 Tolarian Academy

1 Black Lotus
1 Lotus Petal
1 Mana Crypt
1 Mana Vault
1 Mox Emerald
1 Mox Jet
1 Mox Ruby
1 Mox Sapphire
1 Sol Ring

1 Nihil Spellbomb

1 Hurkyl's Recall
1 Rebuild

4 Force of Will
3 Mana Drain
3 Spell Pierce
1 Mindbreak Trap
1 Misdirection

2 Brain Freeze

4 Gush
1 Ancestral Recall
1 Ponder
1 Brainstorm
1 Time Walk

1 Timetwister
1 Jace, the Mind Sculptor
1 Gifts Ungiven
1 Mind's Desire

1 Merchant Scroll
1 Mystical Tutor

1 Regrowth
1 Fastbond

1 Demonic Tutor
1 Vampiric Tutor
1 Yawgmoth's Will

Sideboard:

4 Tarmogoyf
2 Nature's Claim
2 Pithing Needle
1 Forest
1 Inkwell Leviathan
1 Tinker
1 Darkblast
1 Hurkyl's Recall
1 Mindbreak Trap
1 Nihil Spellbomb

Link for reference: http://www.eternalcatala.com/viewtopic.php?f=30&t=648

Greetings,

Iñaki.-

[Tempus]

There's noone playing Workshops in your meta, isn't there?

Is it worth just to be STP/Duplicant-proof running Inkwell instead of Sphinx of the Steel Wind?

[Ego_Sum]

There are Workshops, this is why the side is oriented the way it is... I' m not sure about Inkwell, I' d have played Myr battlesphere over Leviathan.

Greetings,

Iñaki.-

[saspook]

I find the lack of Repeal in that list very interesting, as I love Repeal and am not European.

[Ego_Sum]

In a local forum a mate suggested to add grapshot to the main deck, while I know it may be a little off-topic in the almost blue thread, the base of the deck is more or less the same. The idea is to add red as 4th splash color for 2x Fire/Ice main deck and 1x Grapeshot, substituing them for regrowth, 1x Brain freeze (or may be both, but I lke freeze so much here) and another random card, making the Null Rod match a lot easier and having access to Chewr and pyroblast as side cards. What do you think?

Greetings,

Iñaki.-

[Tempus]

Grapeshot needs Storm 20 (say 19) to kill, Brainfreeze needs 17. Difference is not huge, but still. Also Brain Freeze is good against Ichorid (especially with a graveyard wiper).
You lose manabase stability to kill some dudes/artifacts easier. In matchups you wanna do that, your mana base will likely be attacked.

I don't see any real benefit from this...

[Ego_Sum]

I have some more Input for the thread...

The last few days I' ve been testing Almost blue quite a lot with MWS and arrived to 2 "final" lists that seem to be quite optimal, at least for my playstyle, one is more combo oriented (which is the one I feel more confortable since I 'm the kind of player that enjoys adding pressure) it's weaker in an aggro enviroment because it's not packing the tinker --> bot plan and have lesser disruption and no repeals, the latter is more controllish having more counter magic, the colossus, and some repeals to establish confortably on the board. I cannot say one list is better than the other, I' m afraid it depends of the metagame you'll face.

"Almost Blue"

Maindeck 60

2x Misty Rainforest
2x Polluted Delta
1x Scalding Tarn
1x Flooded Strand
3x Island
3x Underground sea
2x Tropical Island
1x Tolarian Academy

5x Mox
1x Black Lotus
1x Sol Ring
1x Mana Crypt
1x Lotus Petal
1x Nihil Spell bomb

2x Brain Freeze

4x Preordain
4x Gush
1x Ponder
1x Brainstorm
1x Ancestral Recall

1x Chain of Vapor
1x Hurkyl's Recall

4x Force of Will
3x Mana Drain

1x Mind's Desire
1x Future Sight
1x Jace, the Mind Sculptor
1x Gifts Ungiven
1x Timetwister
1x Time Walk

1x Mystical Tutor
1x Merchant Scroll

1x Demonic Tutor
1x Vampiric Tutor
1x Yawgmoth's Will

1x Fastbond
1x Regrowth

Sideboard 15

3x Duress
4x Tarmogoyf
2x Trygon Predator
2x Hurkyl's Recall
2x Nihil Spellbomb
1x Pithing Needle
1x Echoing Truth
1x Mindbreak Trap

"Almost Tinker"

Maindeck 60

2x Misty Rainforest
2x Polluted Delta
1x Scalding Tarn
1x Flooded Strand
3x Island
3x Underground sea
2x Tropical Island
1x Library of Alexandria

4x Mox (only 1 off-color)
1x Black Lotus
1x Sol Ring
1x Mana Crypt
1x Lotus Petal

1x Blightsteel Colossus

1x Brain Freeze

4x Preordain
4x Gush
1x Ponder
1x Brainstorm
1x Ancestral Recall

2x Repeal
1x Chain of Vapor
1x Hurkyl's Recall

4x Force of Will
3x Mana Drain
1x Misdirection
1x Mindbreak Trap

1x Jace, the Mind Sculptor
1x Gifts Ungiven
1x Tinker
1x Time Walk

1x Mystical Tutor
1x Merchant Scroll

1x Demonic Tutor
1x Vampiric Tutor
1x Yawgmoth's Will

1x Fastbond
1x Regrowth

Sideboard 15

3x Duress
4x Tarmogoyf
2x Trygon Predator
2x Hurkyl's Recall
3x Nihil Spellbomb
1x Pithing Needle
1x Echoing Truth

I know both may seem very similar but the game plan is very different, at least main deck. The sideboard is so similar because both have problems with the same kind of decks so this appeared to be quite optimal against those (Mud/Fish...).

Greetings,

Iñaki.-