Hello everybody, and welcome to another edition of the Magic Show. This week we’re going to take a look at the GP: Seattle metagame, how Swans crushed in Barcelona, and how this new combo deck will be seen everywhere this weekend. Let’s go!
Cascading Into First
So this past weekend in Barcelona, Spain we saw the largest constructed event in history with 1,495 players showing up to battle in this awesome new Standard environment. And while the regular players were there, meaning decks with Spectral Procession, Kitchen Finks, Anathemancer and Cruel Ultimatum, the deck that had everyone talking was Cascade Swans.
Now this deck is basically the nut combo deck in the format, and you know what they say about combo… once the best combo deck is found, you should either play it or make damn sure you have excellent game against it. To give a quick rundown on how Cascade Swans works, it’s very simple: You play a cascade spell, such as Bloodbraid Elf or Captured Sunlight, and because there is nothing below four mana in your deck apart from Seismic Assault, that’s what you will always hit with your cascade spell. Once that happens, you play Swans of Bryn Argoll and go bonkers with it. Sure they could play Path to Exile on your Swans, but in response you simply throw another land at it, draw two more cards, and statistically you should be able to ‘go off’ while that Path to Exile is still on the stack. Even if it isn’t, at that point you’ll have drawn Primal Command to shuffle back your library and use Seismic Assault and the numerous lands in hand to either kill your opponent or wipe their board appropriately.
As we see virtually every time a new combo deck is found and the format is not prepared for it, Top 8s from last week’s PTQs show who was pouncing on this metagame decision and who were not. For example, in my neck of the woods, Nashville, Tennessee, you’ll see that the metagame there is almost purely B/W Tokens, taking a whopping six spots in the Top 8, with Turbofog featuring Rings of Freakin’ Brighthearth taking the top spot. So sick. However, if you look at the Kansas City results, it’s apparent what technology is happening there. Take a look at the first place finisher there for what I believe is the next generation of Swan combo decks:
Creatures (12)
Lands (39)
Spells (9)
Sideboard
Better yet, I believe the Cascade Swans deck evolved even more so, as you’ll now notice Deny Reality is a featured cascade spell in the first place deck, hitting Bloodbraid Elf, Swans of Bryn Argoll or Seismic Assault, and feast your eyes on another oft-forgotten monster in there as well: Hellllooo Countryside Crusher! This guy just pops up randomly in decklists these days, from the awesome Countryside Dreamcrusher deck that won Atlanta Regionals to this synergistic monster.
I love the synergy because you can look at it two ways: The first is you’ll play a Swans and kill them with the combo of lands into Swans and then lands to their face. But Crusher gives you a fantastic alternative: If you don’t draw enough lands to kill them, simply remove all their blockers and smash with a huge/huge Countryside Crusher. But it gets even better! Countryside Crusher’s ability ensures that not only will he stay monstrously huge, but he will make sure you draw one of your six nonland spells each turn in order to keep the beats going.
Deny Reality is also a much more efficient choice than Captured Sunlight because it deals with the problem of Pithing Needle. Swans players need to be wary of this powerful and incredibly potent artifact, and Deny Reality allows them to bounce the needle and go off or find that gargantuan Countryside Crusher in order to smush them despite having shut off Seismic Assault.
Another reason Deny Reality is such a fantastic choice for this deck is because it foils the ultimate technology created to stop it: Ethersworn Canonist. Yup, the ole two-drop does it again, allowing your opponent to play the cascade spell but not the spell that it flips over. Now this creature would be brilliant if it actually stopped the Deny Reality from happening, but I guess stopping the free Swans or Seismic Assault or whatever is okay too. Either way, I think it’s time for some G/W Haterade to show up and cool this combo down. The one-two punch of Ethersworn Canonist and Gaddock Teeg have stopped many a combo from going off in Extended, and this sort of wild metagame call may be necessary in order to win a tournament filled with Swans decks as I’m sure GP Seattle will be. However, both are easily killed by Seismic Assault, and Gaddock Teeg doesn’t even stop them from playing it, so that’s kind of annoying.
Another problem is, of course, that G/W Haterade will probably just fold to the other 800lb gorilla of the format, B/W Tokens. If you’re running Green and White you probably want Spectral Procession and Overrun, both spells that don’t really get along with the Kithkin Advisor. However, G/W Little Kid is here to save the day. Here is a PTQ Top 8 list that may help you get started:
Creatures (20)
Lands (23)
Spells (13)
This deck features a full complement of Shield of the Oversoul, a card that is crushing on pretty much anything that is Green and White, just as long as you’re sure they don’t have the Path to Exile to ruin your day. It’s also a little unfortunate that Ethersworn Canonist isn’t both Green and White, but that is both a blessing and a curse, as it is easier to cast but doesn’t respond well to your awesome enchantment.
So what to do now? Can Anathemancer really do enough damage before Swans takes control of the game? I don’t think so. Is G/W Little Kid the answer? I’m not sure about that one either. At this point it looks like Five-Color Control, whether that’s the sexy Patrick Chapin Bloodbraid Elf-infused version or the ‘vanilla’ Five-Color Control that packs such monsters as Nicol Bolas, Planeswalker, could be the answer. You have Cryptic Commands to stop their cascaded-into Seismic Assaults, along with Runed Halos to stop Countyside Crusher or Seismic Assault, and plenty of others are including Pithing Needle for even more Swans disruption.
When dealing with combo decks of any variety, whether they’re Elf or Storm based as they were in Extended, the issue is tricky. You can metagame your deck all you like and still lose, just like you metagame your deck all you like and then not play Swans once.
Another option is the Sam Black-piloted Faeries, the Deck That Doesn’t Die Ever No Matter How Much It’s Hated On, so if you enjoy the Turn 2 Bitterblossom, Turn 3 Jace action, I say go for it.
My suggestion for those heading to GP: Seattle is to play Cascade Swans. If you want to do well and have a shot at winning the tournament, play the best deck. Two weeks ago this was Black/White or Green/White tokens. This is no longer true. Swans of Bryn Argoll are here to stay–at least through July when Magic 2010 comes out and hopefully removes Seismic Assault from the format–and you need to be honing your skills to combat it. Make sure you have some sick mirror technology, sideboarding plans, and a little luck to make your way through a huge field of competitors looking to take home the title. I wish I could share what that sick mirror technology is, but I don’t have any idea what that is currently. Its up to you, dear Magic player, to figure this stuff out. My guess? Double Negative will finally see Constructed play in many sideboards.
All I know is, GP: Seattle will be a very diverse format, but I can assure you the deck most likely to take home the prize is the unfair combo deck. Be prepared for it or be prepared to hit side drafts by lunchtime.
So until next time Magic players, this is Evan Erwin. Tapping the cards… so you don’t have to.
Evan “misterorange” Erwin
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eerwin =at= gmail =dot= com
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