Modern PTQs are well underway, and it’s time to talk about what you should be playing in these events. It always feels like better players end up winning the PTQs with older formats, so this is a great opportunity to get out there and find your way to the Pro Tour. Magic Candy is changing formats to bring you the best decks from Modern. Let’s get into it!
#1 RUG Delver
Creatures (17)
Lands (21)
Spells (22)
I know I have been talking about this deck for some time now, but that is only because I have been winning so much with it. The last time I felt this invincible playing Constructed was when MJ and I built RUG in Zendikar Block Constructed. That deck won me a MOCS and was one of the best decks at the Pro Tour that season. I feel this deck can also get players the titles they are looking for.
I won’t go into much detail about this one since I talked about it last week. The only changes I made to the deck are there to help out in the Jund and Splinter Twin matchups. These seem important, since they are the decks rising in popularity. Not much has changed since last week, so just go give my article a read if you already haven’t.
#2 Splinter Twin
Creatures (13)
Lands (24)
Spells (23)
Sideboard
Splinter Twin has been dominating the format and has proven to be the powerhouse of last week. I feel a back slide is about to happen however. This deck might be able to fight the format, but I would bet against it. This coming weekend will be the biggest test for Splinter Twin yet. More specific hate will show up, but it shouldn’t show up in large quantities, so the deck might crumble, or it might rise to the top, winning more PTQs. The only for sure thing about this deck is it won’t be able to beat all of the hate. Players will eventually run enough hate to beat the deck, but it could take a while to get to that point.
The advantage to playing Twin this weekend is that the hate will not be rampant. Dismember and Torpor Orb will start showing up but in small numbers. Make sure to be cautious in matches, and make sure you always have answers to the basic answers to the combo. They will be there.
Playing against this deck can be difficult for some decks. It is important to try to play around the combo when you can, but bluffing is also an important strategy. They usually will not run out the combo if they sense something is up. Holding up Terminate mana can be very effective in certain situations.
Do not bluff in bad spots though. If the chances of their going off are small, and you can increase your clock instead, you should. Playing draw-go will just give them time to find Dispels and win through your removal spell.
It is important to dedicate sideboard slots for this matchup if it’s a bad matchup. This deck will show up in high numbers, and you will have to beat it before winning the event.
#3 Affinity
Creatures (25)
- 4 Arcbound Ravager
- 4 Ornithopter
- 1 Steel Overseer
- 4 Memnite
- 4 Etched Champion
- 4 Signal Pest
- 4 Vault Skirge
Lands (15)
Spells (20)
Sideboard
This deck gets third on my list because of how powerful this deck seems to be in real-life tournaments. Magic Online is not a good place for this deck, since the “rogue” aspect is not there. People play tighter lists and hate against the popular decks on Magic Online. I feel that this deck is much better when in a real-life PTQ.
I like Ari Lax version of this deck because he is running all the cards that have a high impact on games. Etched Champion is a very slow card but steals games against the wrong hate cards. Being able to just attack through almost every creature helps this deck get the last couple of points. He also can beat Ancient Grudge, which is the best card against the deck.
#4 Boros
Creatures (23)
Lands (22)
Spells (15)
Sideboard
This deck has really picked up in popularity in the last couple days. I don’t know if it is the format shifting or what, but this deck is becoming a big powerhouse in the format. This is even the only deck I am afraid to play against with my beloved RUG deck.
This deck is fast and able to put on the pressure and can also control the combo decks, since they are creature-based. This is the aggressive deck of the format and should be picking up more and more. I feel that decks will have to adjust a bit to deal with small guys and burn spells. We have had a break from those for a couple weeks, but they eventually came back.
#5 Caw-Blade
Creatures (15)
Planeswalkers (2)
Lands (26)
Spells (17)
That’s right; the deck is back and trying to win some games. This deck premiered this weekend with back-to-back top 8 finishes by haiSOOOOdesu. I played about five matches against this deck with RUG. I lost the first two when I didn’t know the list and then won the last three. I didn’t know Shackles would be insane against them the first couple rounds.
That is the only real testing I got with this deck, but from what I can tell, it is very good against the aggressive decks of the format. I feel that this deck would have a tough time dealing with any combo deck, but the Damping Matrix should help against any creature combo deck.
I just have a feeling that this deck will be finding some pilots and should have some decent finishes because of how good it is at beating up the creature decks. I don’t know how much innovation there will be, so if you see a Squadron Hawk, there is probably a good chance that the other 71 will look like this.
#6 Mono-Blue Faeries
Creatures (17)
Lands (25)
Spells (18)
Stainerson is bringing this deck to the world all by himself it seems. He is the only person I see playing this deck, and he made back-to-back top 8s this weekend with it. This deck is not for everyone because I feel that this is the least pilot-friendly deck out there. One small mistake can cost this deck a win very easily.
The advantages of this deck are that it has the same advantages as old Faeries decks. Everything is instant speed; you will never know what they have in hand. Playing around specific cards can sometimes be difficult, since they will rarely give away free information.
The disadvantage of playing this deck is that it sometimes just can’t win games no matter what it draws. Not having many answers to permanents can cause easy losses on the draw.
I would only play this deck if I had a good grasp on my own metagame because it can be very good. Timing is on this deck’s side with so many people moving over to Splinter Twin right now.
#7 Jund
Creatures (16)
Planeswalkers (4)
Lands (24)
Spells (16)
Last week I talked about Jund not being a good choice in this format. This caused quite a backlash in the comments. I should probably go over this.
Jund was not on my radar after about 50 matches online. I didn’t even play the deck once. The Daily Events did not show many doing well. It was a very strange week because the deck hid from me.
I started to play against Jund more frequently after the article went up. The surprising thing I found was that RUG was not that bad against the deck. It was close to 50-50 or had maybe a slight advantage to Jund.
Anyway, Jund is in a decent spot right now because of how much Twin is picking up. Early guys and a ton of hand disruption is exactly what you want to have against a deck like Twin. I think Jund is not a bad choice right now, but there are a decent amount of better ones. I am sorry for doubting the Jund lovers of the world.
#8 Martyr
Creatures (18)
Planeswalkers (2)
Lands (23)
Spells (17)
I have never lost to this deck, but I always feel scared playing against it when playing RUG. I don’t think this makes this deck good, but it fights the aggressive decks in the format.
This deck feels like a higher variance Caw-Blade deck. It will crush anything aggressive and lose horribly to anything combo. This does not make it a bad choice if you have a good grasp on what will be played. I don’t think the Splinter Twin matchup is that bad, since you can run a decent amount of hate cards to make it very difficult for them to ever go off.
Being able to beat Splinter Twin and aggressive decks can make this a good call right now. Instead of having to get lucky a couple times in matches, you will need to run good on matchups. It also would be fun to play this deck against Zoo or Boros. I love casting Martyr and seeing my opponent want to concede on the spot.
I would not play any deck that is not on this list. I know some of you will argue with this statement, but that’s Magic. I think these are the best eight decks in the format, and I would love for you guys to prove me wrong. Except with RUG. That deck is insane and will win many events in the near future. Join Team Delver now before it is too late!