Previously, I explored some of the potential avenues of development for the up and coming Legacy Grand Prix. This time, I’m going to take a look at a more entrenched deck: R/G Beats. Let’s cut to the chase – here’s the build I put together:
Firestarter-X, by njx
Creatures (21)
Lands (23)
Spells (16)
Sideboard
Most would probably think my build is unorthodox, and for good reason. Many R/G Beats decks run Mogg Fanatic, Jackal Pup, and/or River Boa. After all, Matt Pietarinen’s (aka Peter Rotten) deck won 2nd place at Big Arse II, and my deck looks rather different; although he freely admits he made a poor choice when using Quirion Dryad in his deck. I’ll explain my choices in a bit, but I feel comfortable with the build that I’ve listed above because I think it suits my playstyle best. If you find that tweaking the list here and there serves you better, by all means please do so.
A relatively simple deck to play, R/G Beats is always about swift creatures and fast assaults followed up with a healthy dose of burn. Call it Firestarter, Frog in a Blender, Attack of the Apes – it generally plays the same. Legacy is no different, except that the caliber of available tools is much higher than anything currently available in Standard or Extended.
First, the addition of Taigas makes Kird Ape particularly strong. Fetchlands double the opportunity to put out a 2/3 Ape on the first turn. Chain Lightning is also a great burn spell, and Berserk can seal games unexpectedly. A Wild Mongrel is especially dangerous with a grip full of cards, and a Rancored Troll Ascetic also makes a solid sacrificial psycho-rage machine. (If you can’t seem to find Chain Lightnings, Magma Jets will do in a pinch. If you can’t get Berserks, try a pair of Fireblasts. But you’ll definitely need those Taigas.)
The rest should be self explanatory, although some Extended and Standard players may be wondering why Aether Vials aren’t in the deck. The basic answer is that I think they would be wasted slots. I know that seems counterintuitive, given that the majority of the creatures in the deck are the same mana cost; but the deck is already really fast, and a first turn Vial would basically prevent you from attacking on your second turn. This deck wants to be as fast as a razor-sharp guillotine – Ape; Mongrel + Rootwalla; Critter, Bolt, Rancor; Fires or Berserk; good game. Vial would slow down that momentum. Perhaps they would be good against counterspell decks, but I didn’t find them suitable enough to warrant their inclusion.
The same line of reasoning explains why I forego bomb equipment like Umezawa’s Jitte. I also would prefer to have an artifact-free deck so I could avoid the splash damage aimed at other aggro decks. Similarly, there are only three Trolls since the deck wants a very low mana curve, and I didn’t want more than five total three-mana spells. The three Trolls / two Fires seemed like the right split.
Fires of Yavimaya in particular was a nice way to end the game quickly. Turn 1 Kird Ape off of a Taiga, turn 2 Mongrel, turn 3 madness out double-Rootwalla + Fires, swing with four: that’s a baseline of 8 creature damage, plus a total of +8/+8 from Fires. For three mana, it seemed like a good inclusion to me.
The sideboard should also be straightforward, with the understanding that the 6 Blasts will be used to force through your plan. All in all, the only maindeck choice that I’m not totally clear about is the Barbarian Ring, which might not belong. I’ve found it useful, but it might be better as another basic Mountain.
Other than that, I would consider swapping the sideboarded Crypts for Drop of Honey, which is a particularly sweet answer against any opposing deck with small critters. (Pun intended.) Against Fish, for example, you may both have Mongrels out, but you certainly care less about pitching a card than they do; since they are trying maintain a counter wall. Your Rancors also make it easier for you to keep ahead in the critter-power race. If they want to keep pace, they will have to waste Jitte counters just to keep their creatures alive, and that can keep you ahead in many cases.
The deck I’ve outlined above is particularly straightforward, with little major variance or tech from the builds currently being touted by those that know the field. So then what’s the big deal, you ask? There is no big deal, other than the fact that most people aren’t really experts on the Legacy format, myself included. If any of us want to earn a spot at the Grand Prix, now is the time to start getting ourselves ready, by practicing and preparing with decks in the gauntlet.
Let’s talk about matchups. Most importantly, you must be prepared to play against anything. Legacy is a highly unexplored format, and could see all different types of decks show up in different versions. Thankfully, R/G has a solid selection of utility to it; burn, Naturalize, Artifact Mutation and Ground Seal if necessary, and the anti-countering Red Blast packages. Some players, however, will come with a bit more knowledge about the format and probably play one of the more established Legacy archetypes. Here’s a summary of what you might expect to come across at Grand Prix Philadelphia:
Fish
Tog / Grow
Landstill
Scepter-Chant
Goblins
Survival
Fish:
Fish comes in all flavors. Thankfully, I like Sushi. Simply put, Fish either runs a similar creature base or worse, backing it up with counters and possibly some spot removal, depending on the color combination. Fish is most likely to run some combination of Aether Vials and Equipment, so artifact removal is useful. If you are running Drop of Honey, I would side it in. Overall, should be favorable; just watch out for Misdirection.
Sideboarding: -2 Fires, -2 Berserk, -2 Chain Lightning; +3 FTK, +3 Naturalize / Drop of Honey if you run it. Occasionally, I’ll side in Pyroblasts against U/R or U/W Fish, but most often I found it was unnecessary. You’ve got too many efficient threats that they have to worry about.
Tog:
Tog comes in two major flavors, the aggro Gro and the control Hulk. This matchup tends to be slightly in your favor against Gro versions, less so game 1 against Hulk. They will almost certainly have Berserk somewhere, so play around it if possible. Although you may be tempted to bring in the Crypts; leave them in the board. Instead, bring in the 8-Blast plan and use it to shut down their draw engine and/or kill Togs. Quirion Dryad still needs to be dealt with in the Grow versions, but Hulk versions should be easily in reach.
Sideboarding: -2 Berserk, -2 Fires, -2 Gorilla Shaman; +3 REB, +3 Pyroblast. The same applies against non-Tog Grow variants.
Landstill:
Perennially claimed to be awful but still everywhere, Landstill is undoubtedly part of the Legacy metagame. Its major threats are Nevinyrral’s Disk and Swords to Plowshares, with Eternal Dragon and/or Exalted Angel as backup win conditions. The most important thing you can do in this matchup is counter Standstills and Fact or Fictions. If you don’t let them draw into mana and answers, they can’t overcome your mana efficient threats. Watch out for Powder Keg or Engineered Explosives, two things I’ve seen recently. You should win this matchup if you play it right. I tend to side out Chain Lightnings in this matchup, but that may not be the correct plan. Feedback in the forums would be good.
Sideboarding: -4 Chain Lightning; +2 REB, +2 Pyroblast.
Scepter-Chant:
Of all decks you will face, this will be one of the harder ones. Legacy has the advantage of providing full playsets of both Enlightened and Mystical Tutor, along with Force of Will and Swords to Plowshares. They won’t have too much difficulty getting themselves assembled, and in the meanwhile, they probably won’t care very much about what you’re doing. Sometimes, these decks also pack Solitary Confinement and Squee, Goblin Nabob; which is one of the reasons I opted to include Crypts over Honeycombs. I know it seems ridiculous, but I sideboard in almost my whole board for the matchup, since as long as you can get creatures in play and attack with them, you will win. Your most important assets are Trolls, which can’t be hit with Swords, and Grim Lavamancers, who can still deal damage underneath a Chant lock. Barbarian Ring can also get in under the gun, so if you expect to see this deck a lot, consider adding more of them. Gorilla Shamans are obviously good against Scepters as well.
Sideboarding: -2 Fires, -2 Chain Lighting, -2 Berserk, -2 Rancor, -1 Forest; +3 Naturalize, +3 REB, +3 Pyroblast. Against versions with Squee: another -2 Rancor, -1 Chain Lightning; +3 Crypt.
Goblins:
Goblins is the premiere aggro deck in Legacy, and with good reason: the deck is incredibly synergistic, and with the new printing of Goblin King and his recent errata, Goblins can now tutor and Lackey him out. Goblins can certainly race you in the beatdown department, so you must be prepared to assume the control role. Of all decks you will face, this will probably be the most common and the most difficult, so practice it a lot. If you have Drop of Honey in your board, this is an excellent time to bring it in, as most of their creatures have powers of 2 or less; and the effect can be rather game swinging. Naturalize will help against Vials.
Sideboarding: -4 Rancor, -2 Berserk; +3 Naturalize, +3 Flametounge Kavu. If you are running Drop of Honey, I would side as follows: -2 Fires, -2 Berserk, -2 Gorilla Shaman; +3 FTK, +3 Honeycombs.
In game one, you have to race them as fast as you possibly can. In sideboarded games, you should have the upper hand – just leave Red mana open and assault. Bluff your way if you have to.
Sideboarding: -2 Berserk, -2 Gorilla Shaman, -2 Fires; + 3 REB, +3 Pyroblast.
Survival:
Finally, we come to the reason I run Crypts in the board. Survival decks come in a variety of shapes and sizes, and many will have a toolbox approach that will aim to hit you with a specific card. Just run them over as hard as you can.
Sideboarding: -2 Gorilla Shaman, -1 Rancor; +3 Crypt. If they run a lot of Blue, consider siding out 2 Berserk for 2 REB, or even a second Rancor for a third REB.
Here’s where I think my Fires and Trolls tend to serve me well. This match is all about burn and combat, so just play it out. Be sure to pay attention to the ebb and flow of the game; sometimes you will be the beatdown, other times you will be playing control.
Sideboarding: -2 Berserk, -1 Rancor; +3 FtK. If you are running Drop of Honey, I don’t recommend you side it in for this match. That’s more of a gut feeling than anything else, so do what you think is best.
I’m sure you many Legacy experts (although many Legacy experts is an oxymoron) will throw out your critiques in the forums, and in fact, I encourage you to do so. Nobody will have a solid deck to bring if the comments remain behind closed doors; so open up and share your thoughts.
(Except those thoughts about making out with Ted and Oscar Tan. Those you can keep to yourself.)
Cheers!
-Nathan J
*Kudos to Jim "JimmyK" Katz for some info about the Legacy metagame, and mad props to my Pops for hooking me up with Drops of Honey. Sweet indeed.