Grand Prix New Jersey was the biggest Legacy Grand Prix of all-time, breaking the record by miles. We’re talking over 4000 players, which doesn’t count the
hundreds that dropped before playing, just to get the playmat and other swag.
Going into the event, Treasure Cruise and Dig Through Time were the talk of the community. Since Khans of Tarkir became legal, the format has been
literally half Cruise/Dig decks. Of course, that was four SCG Opens and the Legacy Championships ago. What did the largest Legacy tournament of all-time
actually look like with everyone knowing what to target beforehand?
Top 16 of GP NJ
7 decks with Treasure Cruise
5 decks with Dig Through Time
A bunch of combo decks
I’m not judging though. Legacy players just want to feel something sometimes. Maybe the blue delve cards are too good. Maybe they’re just new staples that
will be fixtures in the format from now on. This is Legacy we’re talking about. The format can take some pretty serious abuse. While I think Treasure
Cruise and Dig Through Time have revolutionized the format and aren’t the least dangerous cards in the format, they might just be par for the course.
Delver is definitely very popular right now, and Eternal formats can start to break down when a deck is consistently more than 20% of the field.
Delver has been 30%.
Of course, that’s taking some liberties, as there are actually half a dozen different Delver decks and they play out very differently. Yes, the format is
up to 80% blue decks, but Brainstorm was already legal. The format was already 75% blue decks. It takes a lot to truly break Legacy, and something being an
extremely popular staple has nothing to do with it getting banned.
The problem isn’t with a card being popular. The possible problems are:
1. The strategy is too fast. For Legacy, a tier 1 deck that consistently presents an unblockable kill on turn 2 is too fast. For Modern, turn 3 is the
line. For Vintage, turn 1 is the line. Yes, turn 1 kills happen in Vintage, but when a tier 1 deck actually kills consistently turn 1, things happen like
Flash getting banned despite some Vintage players saying it didn’t need to be.
2. The strategy is oppressive. Sometimes this is manifested as a single strategy being 33% of the format. Other times, this is a single family of
strategies completely dominating the tournament scene, such as Survival of the Fittest being just 16% of the format, since all Survival decks in all major
tournaments averaged over a 65% win percentage against the rest of the field, including positive win percentages against literally every single deck. The
format had 30 decks, 23 of which had losing records. The 7 with winning records were 4 Survival decks and 3 fringe decks that lose to Survival but are
great against the field.
Well, clearly Treasure Cruise and Dig Through Time are not violating number 1. Are they violating number 2? Dig Through Time certainly isn’t. Not even
close at the moment. Treasure Cruise? Obviously it’s at the top of the watch list, and if U/R pushes out the other Delver decks and maintains this
popularity for six months of players unable to beat it, well then maybe something would happen. That’s a pretty big “if” though.
I think Cruise and Dig are absolutely insane in Legacy, and I would sure as hell want to play them; however, I also feel the same way about Brainstorm. The
evidence just isn’t there to suggest that a single strategy is dominating. If the format was really nothing but Cruise and Dig, that would be a real
problem, but it’s not. Just take a look at metagame breakdown of the top 16 decks of Grand Prix New Jersey weighted by finish, and the most popular Legacy
decks to miss.
|
Archetype |
Grand Prix NJ |
Khans Meta |
Expected Meta |
|
Miracles |
19.1% |
7.9% |
10.7% |
|
Stoneblade |
17.0% |
5.6% |
8.5% |
|
Delver |
14.9% |
30.3% |
26.5% |
|
Infect |
10.6% |
3.0% |
4.9% |
|
Storm |
8.5% |
4.4% |
5.4% |
|
6.4% |
1.4% |
2.7% |
|
|
U/R Landstill |
6.4% |
0.0% |
1.6% |
|
Elves |
4.3% |
10.0% |
8.6% |
|
Sneak and Show |
4.3% |
4.2% |
4.2% |
|
Omni-Tell |
4.3% |
2.6% |
3.0% |
|
Grixis Control |
4.3% |
1.4% |
2.1% |
|
Maverick/Taxes |
0.0% |
6.5% |
4.9% |
|
Dredge |
0.0% |
5.1% |
3.8% |
|
Burn |
0.0% |
4.0% |
3.0% |
|
Reanimator |
0.0% |
3.3% |
2.5% |
|
Misc |
0.0% |
11.2% |
8.4% |
The Khans metagame data is based on all of the SCG Opens since Khans of Tarkir became legal and the Legacy championship. The expected metagame data is just
three parts existing metagame, one part Grand Prix New Jersey.
This is a very diverse mix of strategies, and this is despite merging the many different Delver decks into one archetype. If we’re keeping it clean and
breaking up the different Delver decks into their real sub-archetypes, the biggest risk is obviously U/R Delver, but now we’re talking about just 14% of
the field, which is really not that big a deal. While I think the format is being warped by the blue delve cards, I would be really surprised if they were
banned in January.
Let’s take a look at the top decks from this weekend. Up first, the champion:
Creatures (10)
Lands (18)
Spells (32)
“Stoneforge Mystic is the best creature in Magic.”
Whenever these conversations come up, it is crucial to differentiate between “real” creatures and “fake” ones. Griselbrand, Emrakul, Narcomoeba, Hermit
Druid, and Golgari Grave-Troll are all generally considered fake for these purposes.
Stoneforge Mystic has been a dominate force in Legacy since the printing of Batterskull, but honestly, the printing of Treasure Cruise and Dig Through Time
appears to have helped balance things a little. Yes, Stoneblade decks benefit from Cruise and/or Dig, but nowhere near as much as the tempo decks, the
Delver decks.
It’s worth noting that Young Pyromancer might be the card that has benefited the most from the printing of Treasure Cruise. Talk about two cards that play
together perfectly. The card has surged to the top of tier 1, and honestly, I think its popularity is going to increase. Young Pyromancer really is the red
piece of the Tarmogoyf-cycle, even if they messed up by making it an uncommon.
Just as the format reacted to True-Name Nemesis, so to will it react to Young Pyromancer. In fact, many of the best answers are even the same cards! Yeah,
Golgari Charm!
While Stoneblade decks have often been on the controlling end of the spectrum, the printing of Treasure Cruise has pushed them to be more aggro-control in
nature. When you draw cards this easily, you start really valuing one-mana reactive cards. Swords to Plowshares and Spell Pierce have often been popular,
but just look how many Lightning Bolts and Pyroblasts people play now.
Speaking of Pyroblast, talk about a misunderstood Magic card. There are so many people ragging on it, talking about not playing reactive cards. Are you
kidding? If you play Spell Pierce or Forked Bolt, you’re playing reactive cards. Maybe you don’t think it’s worth playing, but there is nothing wrong with
the card fundamentally. It’s incredibly efficient. The problem comes when you play too many reactive cards. Two Pyroblasts in place of a fourth Lightning
Bolt and a fourth Swords to Plowshares is just a tweaking of the reactive cards based on the metagame. If literally everyone played blue, of course we’d
play even more.
But we might not play eight.
On the maindeck Pyroblast tip, U/R Delver is actually an even better play for them, as it is the definition of a deck that benefits from good tempo plays.
Creatures (12)
Lands (16)
Spells (32)
While it is a little obnoxious that all of these U/R Delver decks are within two cards in their maindecks, without having all that much variety in the
sideboard, at least that makes them easy to test against. Rarely does a gauntlet deck give you such perfect practice for the tournament.
What’s new in this list? Two Pithing Needles! A third maindeck Forked Bolt! Crazy!
This is no knock against the Delver players. If it’s not broke, don’t fix it…
Or in their case, maybe if it is broken, don’t fix it!
While there are many types of Delver, the one that’s really tricky for classifying decks is Jeskai. Yes, it has Delver of Secrets and most of the same
cards as Delver decks, but this is Legacy. Lots of the best cards overlap between decks. This looks like a Delver deck, but it looks even more like a
Stoneblade deck that just happens to have Delvers.
Creatures (11)
Lands (20)
Spells (29)
So, who knows? What I do know is that once you start counting this deck as a Stoneblade deck instead of a Delver deck, the format starts looking even more
healthy. This is great! How often does Legacy get this spiced up without breaking something? Obviously, it’d be nice if more of the love was non-blue, but
maybe that’s just the nature of the beast in Legacy.
I like Huang’s sideboard plan, transforming into Counter-Top. It’s not just about boarding it in where it’s good. It’s also just a better package after
board once people’s decks are streamlined and more attrition-oriented. I also think the rise of Treasure Cruise and Dig Through Time has led to less Jace,
the Mind Sculptors, which means more blue decks are actually locked up by the combo (instead of having some four-drops that can sneak in and win the game).
While his popularity has fallen to half of what it once was, Jace has certainly not disappeared. For instance, here’s another Stoneblade deck, this time by
Jarvis Yu.
Creatures (9)
Planeswalkers (2)
Lands (22)
Spells (27)
It’s interesting seeing the ripples that result from using Dig Through Time instead of Treasure Cruise. Jace, the Mind Sculptor? Counterspell? Council’s
Judgment? Sideboard Baneslayer Angel and Elspeth, Knight-Errant? These are small changes, but they are important.
Of course, as controlling as Stoneblade decks can be at times, it’s nothing compared to the Miracles decks that have taken over the primary control role of
the format.
Creatures (3)
Planeswalkers (3)
Lands (21)
Spells (33)
Creatures (3)
Planeswalkers (3)
Lands (21)
Spells (33)
Why the recent resurgence of Miracles decks? The Counter-Top combo is well-positioned right now. The Treasure Cruise decks play so many 1-cost cards, and
Abrupt Decay is far less popular than it used to be. In fact, Miracles’ natural strength against blue delve cards is one of the biggest forces keeping them
in check. Not surprisingly, one of the biggest advantages Sultai Delver has over U/R Delver is its ability to fight Counter-Top.
In true Legacy fashion, some players have taken to hybridizing Stoneblade and Miracles, such as Phillip Braverman.
Creatures (4)
Planeswalkers (3)
Lands (22)
Spells (31)
With this many cards that overlap, it really isn’t that hard to pull off tricks like this. Different packages of cards shift different matchups, and it’s
really just a question of what you expect to face and your own personal style.
Some people like to argue that personal style is an illusion and that there is just a right way and all the wrong ways. The thing is, we aren’t omnipotent.
We are going to have areas we play less than perfect in (actually tons). Having a style isn’t just about enjoying a certain type of game. It’s also about
having a greater depth of experience or knowledge in a certain area. If your internal shortcuts tend to lead you towards a certain type of gamestate, cards
that are good in that gamestate can be “your style.” Likewise, if you thrive in certain types of games, having more experience with them, cards that get
you to those gamestates are “your style.”
While Miracles is the default control deck, it’s not the only one. There are so many great card draw engines, like Treasure Cruise, Dig Through Time, Jace,
the Mind Sculptor, and…
Creatures (3)
Planeswalkers (1)
Lands (24)
Spells (32)
I love the natural strength against Miracles (manlands to fight Counter-Top). We’ve also got some great ways to punish the low land count Treasure Cruise
decks that don’t have much option but to walk into a Standstill.
The main strike against this list is how underpowered it is compared to some of these other decks. It’s all fun and games when you play against other blue
decks, but what about when you face the random stuff?
Creatures (8)
Planeswalkers (2)
Lands (17)
Spells (33)
This is a fun one!
Dack Fayden over Jace? Okay, a 10/10 for style, but I’m skeptical. While Dack is about about stealing artifacts in Vintage, in Legacy he’s more about the
looting.
This is exactly the type of deck that really benefits from opponents not knowing what you’re up to. It uses lots of slightly obscure options while still
having a generally high card quality. I have no doubt that Eli has enough experience with it to just naturally have a few extra points in most mainstream
matchups due to familiarity (and his opponents’ lack of it in his direction).
There’s sweet stuff going on here, but I don’t expect this one to catch on.
Treasure Cruise and Dig Through Time are also having their impact on the combo decks, an impact I expect to grow as people figure out how to better
incorporate them (which is doable, even if not as natural as slotting them into control and aggro-control decks).
Creatures (12)
Lands (20)
Spells (28)
Tom Ross has been an absolute terror these past few months, and now he’s back on the Pro Tour. He’s well-known for playing Infect, so seeing this success
is no surprise. A single Treasure Cruise isn’t exactly the most delving, but notice the Become Immense…
Who sees that coming?
Dig Through Time is the more natural blue delve card to use in combo decks, as it obviously gives you a lot of selection. Omni-Tell and Sneak and Show are
two possible homes, but really, any blue combo deck trying to assemble two and three card combos would benefit from it.
Creatures (1)
Lands (19)
Spells (40)
Creatures (8)
Lands (19)
Spells (33)
There’s no question that Treasure Cruise and Dig Through Time have lived up to the hype in Legacy. The format has undergone a lot of dramatic changes as a
result, and there’s a lot more to figure out.
There’s also no question that Treasure Cruise and Dig Through Time are not even in the ballpark of warranting bans at the moment. The format has been
evolving to meet them and will probably evolve even further.
Probably.