The last SCG Invitational was one of the best tournaments I’ve ever played in. The SCG Invitational is always a great chance to earn a ton of money while playing Magic, but the Legacy portion has always steered me away from them. I skipped one of the SCG Invitationals to play in a SCG Standard Open, another one I dropped at 2-1-1 before Legacy started, and the one before last I didn’t play a deck that I could pilot correctly. Baltimore, however, was a much different story in terms of my Legacy and general tournament success.
I had to beg my coworkers to cover my classes because I am near the limit of days I can take off for work for my Magic excursions. I was ready to give up on making it to the Invitational because I was missing one kind-hearted soul to cover my last class of the day, and then at the last minute one of our veteran teachers decided to sacrifice her pre-weekend relaxation period to enable me to go do battle in Baltimore!
However, I wasn’t overly excited due to the fact I’ve never been able to quite grasp the Legacy format in my years of playing the game.
Even with my classes being covered, I honestly considered skipping the event due to my lack of knowledge and talent in the older format. The last time I did well at a Legacy event was when it was called Type 1.5. I played Temple of the False God/Exalted Angel/Decree of Justice/Cunning Wish U/W Control and split in the finals of a Mox tournament with David Gearhart. Since then, I’ve splashed around with a round or two then dropped from event to event in Legacy, shouting to the world my dislike for the format.
In an article I wrote a while back, I explained why I dislike Legacy: the fact that building a solid control deck isn’t possible anymore. The format is just way too fast and combo oriented to play a control deck that’s slower and depends on the late game. I understood that BUG Control and other decks similar were out there, but the success rate of those compared to the Stoneblade and Maverick decks was much lower in the grand scheme of things.
That got me thinking that maybe the reason for the reduced success is the fact that less people play these harder-to-play Legacy control decks. While playing against Caleb Durward in the Top 8, I confessed to him that if I’d have known the field would be this predictable in terms of what people played then I could’ve easily crafted a control deck to sweep through all the pesky Nimble Mongoose and Knight of the Reliquary decks. After losing to Nick Spagnolo in the Top 4, I realized that decks like his are just as powerful as the rest.
The twist to this yearning to always play control is that I did go 8-2 overall in Legacy at the SCG Invitational with an aggro-control deck. Winning is always nice! I feel that I played the only deck in the format that forgave me for misplays at the start of the tournament, and as I gradually improved my play I was rewarded with crushing victories later on. So what motivation is there to switch to a control deck after winning so much money with Esper Stoneblade? You all know me well enough to know the answer to that question…because control is always better! With enough time to prepare, I should be able to craft a good control list; it might not be in time for the Indianapolis Invitational, but it will be ready for a few SCG Legacy Opens in the near future.
Did I wake up at the Invitational as some Legacy master? Not even close. The Stoneblade deck is just "too good" from my limited experience with it. The first two rounds I crushed Maverick while playing like a fool. I had out Tower of the Magistrate and watched my opponent crack me with a Batterskull twice before I knew what my own card did. I got the deck the morning of the tournament and didn’t play a game with it, so with many of the cards I didn’t know the full interaction opportunities that would present themselves throughout the tournament. The biggest mistakes I made in the early rounds were the Batterskull fiasco and many mis-fetches that resulted in my losing to Wasteland or the inability to play spells.
Somehow I still managed to win those matches due to the power level of the deck and more specifically Lingering Souls. That card had a dominant performance all weekend and usually paved the way for an easy Jitte equip/win. That leads me to my only stroke of genius in Legacy, and that is playing a second Jitte in the main. Since I just got the deck the morning of I didn’t have the ability to tweak it much, but I knew that if I was going to face the mirror I wanted to have a second Jitte in the maindeck. It turns out that I only played the mirror one time, against my buddy Harry, and it was a huge reason for my victory game 1. The second Jitte won me a few other games after the first one was taken out by a Qasali Pridemage or an enemy Jitte legend rule.
My one biggest mistake was against Nick Spagnolo in the semifinals, where I gave the match away in one quick attack. The board state was my Batterskull, Sword of Feast and Famine, and a Stoneforge Mystic against his Dread of Night. I put the Sword of Feast and Famine on my Stoneforge Mystic and crashed in with that and the Germ token; he promptly blocked my Stoneforge with his Mishra’s factory, pumped it, and I lost my Stoneforge. Two turns later he landed a Liliana and made me sack my Germ token.
If I hadn’t have made that horrific attack, he wouldn’t have been able to recuperate. This mistake was an unusual one for me to say the least, because my understanding and knowledge of the cards in Standard, Modern and Limited are quite up to date. I honestly didn’t think that the Factory could pump itself, even though it may seem like common knowledge to most. Not saying that I would’ve won the whole tournament, but without this mistake I would’ve advanced to the finals.
During the eight rounds of Legacy, I found out the true power of my deck choice. The decks I battled against during the Swiss were Maverick (three times), RUG Delver (piloted by David Shiels), Mono Red, Dredge, Hive Mind, and the mirror. My one loss during the Swiss was to one of the Maverick players, and that loss was helped by the mis-fetches I mentioned earlier. I was told that some of these matches are rough for Esper Stoneblade, but in the end the deck is so resilient that bad matchups seemed to be 50/50 at worst. I recommend this deck to anyone out there who wants to get into Legacy or for those who consider themselves Legacy masters, but I would make a few key changes.
We need help against the -1/-1 hate!
I did make a grave play error as I mentioned above against BUG Control, but if my sideboard was more prepared then I feel that a simple mistake wouldn’t have eliminated me from the game. At first I thought more enchantment hate was necessary, but after thinking about the dynamic of the deck I feel that a more proactive solution would suffice. A card like Intangible Virtue would ensure that Lingering Souls would never be Zealously Persecuted or fall to any one- or four-mana enchantment that makes the Spirits weaker than their original size. I think that proactive solutions are better in Legacy, because even when drawn earlier they can act as simple Crusades to kill your opponent faster.
I definitely would add a few to my sideboard instead of running extra Disenchants to help hate out the upcoming answers that black decks will run in every sideboard. The only thing that scares me with this solution is Pernicious Deed, but Nick and other BUG players I’ve spoken to board that card out against our deck because they too want to resolve and stick their own negative Crusade. Not only does Intangible Virtue hate out the BUG players, but it completely negates Sulfur Elemental. Instead of them Wrathing you, they help you form an army of 3/1 flyers. There are many more examples of how Intangible Virtue can win you games, but in the end I feel that Legacy answers to hate are best when they can also dominate if that hate is never drawn.
While mulling over the vast benefits of Intangible Virtue in Legacy, it got me thinking about my Esper Control Standard deck. I do feel that me giving answers to the potential mirror match in this article seems a bit counterproductive, but on the other hand I’m giving an edge to those who take the time to read my content. Curse of Death’s Hold is a godsend and a beating. The card is an amazing three-of that has led me to many victories in many tournaments, but it also can defeat you if you aren’t ready for it. Intangible Virtue out of the board is the best answer for Curse in the mirror match for many of the same reasons it’s great for Legacy.
It’s proactive and allows you to always have an edge over your opponent with a two-mana answer to a five-mana threat. I used to bring in three Celestial Purge for the mirror, but I think two and two Intangible Virtue would do the job better. It works well with more than just Lingering Souls, like with Batterskull, Mortarpod, and Sorin, Lord of Innistrad.
The only way to justify this as a card to bring in is if your area has potential mirror matches or decks that play Curse of Death’s Hold. If you don’t see that at all then it’s not a necessary component, just something to consider. Joey Pasco made a comment on Twitter pointing out the irony of me falling to Curse effects when I was the first to popularize Curse of Death’s Hold in Standard. Now it’s time to undo the damage that I’ve done with a saucy little two-mana dagger for the mirror match.
So where do we find the room in the board?
Kick Geist to the curb!
Geist of Saint Traft has dropped drastically in its ability to steal games from the control mirror. If you’re on the play and if you resolve it and if they don’t have a Tribute to Hunger, Liliana of the Veil, or Lingering Souls, then you might win. Before, when Geist was introduced, there were no mirror matches, Grixis Control got wrecked by it, and U/B had less Tribute effects in the main, so he was a superstar.
We’re in a different world now where a late game Geist is unimpressive and an early game one needs a lot of help to steal the game. I suggest adding maybe a Revoke Existence and two Intangible Virtue to the board in place of them, but it’s your call. Based on your area’s metagame, you might want three more cards for the Delver matchup or keep all three for control hate. Some other cards to consider are:
Lingering Souls is a very good card.
Sometimes I have to admit when I’m wrong (no, this is not an apology for Preordain). Lingering Souls is the best card Control has been handed in a very long time. Not only does it serve as an endgame evasive win condition, but more importantly it stalls/protects planeswalkers early on. I started with two at the SCG Open Series where I first played the deck and that wasn’t enough. Ever since then, I’ve played three copies of the broken flyer maker; I’ve just come to the realization that a fourth one is mandatory.
Pat Cox and Orrin Beasley always like to rag on me for my deckbuilding theories, but once in a while they use a few of my ideas. Both of those gentlemen have told me that the Lingering Souls count needs to be four, and it will officially remain at that number unless the metagame changes drastically. The only deck where I don’t want four Lingering Souls in my 75 is against Wolf Run.
Against all other decks I’ve played against in the format, I want to draw some Spirits, flash it back, and play another one down the road after turn 3. It gives the ability to not only kill undying creatures then Wrath, but also the chance to survive until we can cast our powerful and expensive sorcery speed win conditions. In previous articles I’ve explained why Lingering Souls is so good in Standard, and I hate to be super repetitive so I’ll leave it at that… But a word of advice from someone who had to learn the hard way: leave it at four.
I learned a lot from the Invitational weekend.
I still feel that Legacy has a bit more variance than other formats, but that feeling has been toned down to a small percentile. Legacy is as healthy as I’ve ever seen it, and what more can you ask from a format that hosts so many decks that all yield some level of success? You have the Hatfields winning here and there with High Tide, you have a complete noobie like me going into the semifinals with a known powerhouse in Esper Blade, Brian Kibler/other great players never giving up on the Knight of the Reliquary and crushing, and players like Nick Spagnolo that always do well in Legacy with a control brew. That’s a healthy format even with the brokenness of Delver, Stoneforge Mystic, and Lingering Souls.
My preconceived notion about Legacy also included other colorful metaphors, but after this Invitational it has changed for the better. Does it mean I love Legacy? Absolutely not. But I do respect it as a format much more than I did before. And besides, if I start playing Legacy on Sundays, then how can I win more Draft Opens?! I’ll leave Legacy to the pros and battle in it when necessary.
Standard is a bit unhealthy at this juncture. I mean…I love Standard and am finding wins easier than I have in other formats, but the average player is finding that it’s between Delver and Delver to use to win their local tournaments. Like any Standard format you’ll see Zombies, green decks, and control variants, but for the most part the format is as Delver infested as Affinity was in its time period. The Invitational Top 8 contained six Delver variants, one Esper Control, and one Naya Pod deck. Even though the Top 8 wasn’t a Standard playoff, the vast majority of skilled players had four Delver of Secrets in their maindeck.
As I prefaced at the start, I don’t mind Delver being everywhere and playing it every round. I played against delver five times out of six rounds during the Swiss, and I play it every two or three rounds on Magic Online. I’ve become accustomed to their style of play, what baits their countermagic, and their inevitable doom when I land a Curse of Death’s Hold. I always want my readers to play decks that I brew up and have success with, but if too many play Esper Control we might be seeing more maindeck enchantment hate from the Delver crowd. It wouldn’t be unreasonable for these Delver decks to slam one maindeck Revoke Existence to have an out to a Curse, because if they think that Geist will save them they are mistaken…big time.
StarCityGames.com gives out a lot of money at the Invitational. The tournament is just too high value to skip, and I’m very upset that the World Cup Qualifier in Baltimore is the same weekend as SCG Opens Series: Indianapolis featuring the Invitational. There are so many opportunities to qualify for the Invitational at your local stores, but the amount of prize money didn’t really hit me until I got close that Saturday. As I was grinding toward Top 8, I realized that first place was the equvalent of winning almost three GPs.
Not only do you have that much money as stake, but you also have a ton of rounds to help battle against variance and come back from some unfortunate or unlucky loses. I lost three matches Day 1, and in most tournaments I would’ve had to win out to make a Top 8 appearance. I do feel that there were a bit too many rounds in this tournament (sixteen rounds with less than 150 people), but on the other hand, with that many rounds you are bound to get some real quality players in the Top 16. For those who PTQ but skip out on qualifying for the Invitational, I suggest giving it a shot due to the sheer cash backing that an Invitational gets.
Sometimes a joke becomes a stroke of genius.
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At the Invitational, I was joking with a buddy of mine about the use of Mortarpod in Esper Control. I had no idea at the time that the joke card had amazing synergy with every card in the deck. The versatility of Mortarpod is outstanding with the ability to re-kill Thalia threats, finish off opponents post-attack in the late game with Lingering Souls, Sorin tokens and/or Snapcasters, and the ability to shoot down Mirran Crusaders or any planeswalker that is nearly impossible to kill otherwise. I could go on and on about how good Mortarpod is, but there are so many scenarios that I think you all can imagine most of them. The card is going to replace Tragic Slip, which does carry a few negatives.
The biggest two negatives are the lack of instant speed and the inability to kill a Thalia until turn 3. Luckily, those two negatives don’t come close to outweighing the vast positives of the switch. I had a week’s worth of playing Mortarpod to accurately assess its success beyond the realm of theory, and the verdict is insane. The card has gotten me out of many close calls and has stolen a win or two in many different matchups…not to mention its power against Delver variants.
Control is all about card advantage and reusability with flashback or planeswalkers, and Mortarpod is a reusable answer to many of the low toughness threats that our deck has to deal with on a regular basis. I find that Mortarpod is lackluster against Wolf Run, but I ended up boarding out Tragic Slip against that matchup as well. There are always pros and cons to running one card over another, but in this case Mortarpod’s reach allows for an easy replacement in the maindeck.
In closing…
Here are the decklists that I would run in both Standard and Legacy at this point.
Creatures (4)
Planeswalkers (7)
Lands (26)
Spells (23)
Creatures (8)
Planeswalkers (3)
Lands (22)
Spells (27)
When the next set comes out, I’ll dedicate an article to Limited. I finished 29th at GP Nashville and have absolutely loved Innistrad Limited, but the format is about to change. I’ll make sure to get you all the secret info on which card will be the next Bump in the Night. Standard and Legacy shouldn’t change too much for the tournaments coming up, but I’ll be sure to give updates when changes are warranted. I highly recommend playing this Esper Control deck in its current form. Usually it takes months of deck progression for me to feel fully comfortable with the build, and this 75 is the most finely tuned version as of yet.
I suggest looking back to my old article to see my matchup analysis with the deck because it hasn’t changed much since then, but the deck has become much more efficient. The ability to use the fourth Lingering Souls and Mortarpod to survive to the planeswalker and Sphinx late game gives the deck an edge on most in the format.
As for Legacy, if you aren’t comfortable with the format or if you’re a pro with Stoneforge Mystic then Esper Stoneblade is the clear choice. The deck is fairly easy to pilot and has tremendous power especially with the Intangible Virtue sideboard plan against the hate. Since my audience isn’t the biggest in the world, I feel that you’ll be able to steal a tournament before your tech is in the public view. I wish you all good luck in future events, have fun at the Prereleases, and qualify for the next Invitational so we can do battle!
Until next time,
Shaheen
@shaheenmtg – Twitter
[email protected] – email