Return to Ravnica Bloc #4 - Tithe Drinker Boros

  Pack 1 pick 1:

  My Pick:

I could take Far//Away and do that dance again, but this is my opportunity to take a power common, cut a Gatecrash guild, and see if I can make that work. I choose Tithe Drinker over Beetleform Mage because duh. This draft may have gone better with the Far//Away, but I don't care.

  Pack 1 pick 2:

  My Pick:

Tithe Drinker #2 passing no other great Orzhov cards? Yes please.

  Pack 1 pick 3:

  My Pick:

The choice here is Snare Squad or Fatal Fumes, but I just don't like Fumes. It's a combat trick not removal and it is too expensive for that.

  Pack 1 pick 4:

  My Pick:


Ooohh! A late Firstblade, but if I'm going aggro Orzhov (and I hope I am) that Boros mana on turn 3 will be tough. Safer to take the one-color bear.

  Pack 1 pick 5:

  My Pick:

Fumes, Roc, or Profit//Loss? Aggro Orzhov seems like it would be the best for the fuse card, so that it is.

  Pack 1 pick 6:

  My Pick:

Easy Roc. Late Mossdog, but that isn't for me.

  Pack 1 pick 7:

  My Pick:

Really late Firstblade. I could take a second Roc, but I haven't seen much Orzhov and my white cards will all go in Boros splash black, so I hedge here and take it as a strong signal.

  Pack 1 pick 8:

  My Pick:

Second Snare Squad? Don't mind if I do.

  Pack 1 pick 9:

  My Pick:

There is not much here this late. Either Morgue Burst (underwhelming with all my 2-power dudes) or maybe I get lucky on gates and play the gatekeeper. Probably not.

  Pack 1 pick 10:

  My Pick:

I'll play Toil alone if need be.

  Pack 1 pick 11:

  My Pick:

Black & White & Red Aggro? Sounds terrible. This may have been better as Maze Rusher.

  Pack 1 pick 12:

  My Pick:

Could help a red or black splash with my white.

  Pack 1 pick 13:

  My Pick:

Who knows?

  Pack 1 pick 14:

  My Pick:

Maybe...

  Pack 1 pick 15:

  My Pick:

First pack results

  Pack 2 pick 1:

  My Pick:

Oof. No Orzhov cards and a certified Boros bomb.

  Pack 2 pick 2:

  My Pick:

Again, nothing worth taking in Orzhov. Now we have two Tithe Drinkers, a Toil, and the start of a Boros deck.

  Pack 2 pick 3:

  My Pick:

Decision time. Or not. I could have cemented Boros with the Warmind, but I go for the first gate I've seen in my three possible colors. This may have been grasping at straws.

  Pack 2 pick 4:

  My Pick:

The first pack with an Orzhov card (Screecher). I could take prism and try three-color. I have another chance to go straight Boros with the Halberdiers, but I take the safe route with white Denizen. I figure I'm definitely in white and I already have a bunch of white creatures. This is a scared pick in an effort to stay open and take what's coming. If I'm going three-color, I should take prism. If I's ditching black, I should take the two-drop.

  Pack 2 pick 5:

  My Pick:

Here I finally decide Boros is more open.

  Pack 2 pick 6:

  My Pick:

I like Bomber Corps worse than others and I like Court Street better than others.

  Pack 2 pick 7:

  My Pick:

Court Street #3 gives me 5 tappers that only work on offense. This may have been better as Infantry, but each white creature makes the other Denizens better, right?

  Pack 2 pick 8:

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  Pack 2 pick 15:

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Going into pack 3, I need two-drops, because four of my current twos have black in their cost and the plan is to minimize black if possible.

  Pack 3 pick 1:

  My Pick:

Nice. Supreme Verdict is only like 1.2 tix.

  Pack 3 pick 2:

  My Pick:

Smiter is only 1 tix also.

  Pack 3 pick 3:

  My Pick:

This pack is going well so far.

  Pack 3 pick 4:

  My Pick:

Very well.

  Pack 3 pick 5:

  My Pick:

I don't think I want Shred-Freak. Rogues Passage maybe?

  Pack 3 pick 6:

  My Pick:

Arrester? or big burn? Arrester may have been better.

  Pack 3 pick 7:

  My Pick:


  Pack 3 pick 8:

  My Pick:

I've given up on black.

  Pack 3 pick 9:

  My Pick:

The trick is better with the cheap guys. Cobble brute is better with the tappers and Rogue's Passage.

  Pack 3 pick 10:

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  Pack 3 pick 11:

  My Pick:

Nice.

  Pack 3 pick 12:

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  Pack 3 pick 15:

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I lay out the pool and I don't really like the Boros build or the black splash.

Which would you rather?

Triple two-drop on the splash seems bad

Let's go with straight Boros

There are some weak cards here, but at least we have a plan and consistency on our side, right?

I said consistency. Mull.

At least I can cast some spells. Better than five. Keep, I guess. 

 I lose pretty hard to a turn two Murmuring Phantasm. Then there were some 2/2 deathtouch scorpions and other middling green creatures.

Game two, I side into the black version because I feel like the white didn't have enough punch. I win with a bunch of tappers and don't draw a swamp or a black spell.

Game three, I almost pull it off, but don't. All three games against my aggro deck he plays the 0/5 on turn two. An inauspicious start, but I didn't draw Firemane Avenger, Firstblade, Skynight, Annihilating Fire, Splatter Thug, or Explosive Impact in any of the three games. I think I can do better.

Round 2 seems to be the mirror.

This may have gone better with a different land/spell balance, but his isn't great either. I lose this one on turn 17.

Game two, I side into black again and slow my deck down to better deal with his rush. Vanilla 2/4 and Morgue Bursts should win in an attrition battle. Here is the problem with this plan:

Not a keep

I keep a swamp, mountain hand and don't draw a plains for a while. But everything goes according to plan and I take it in a squeaker.

Game three the 3-color monstrosity works like a charm with turn 2 Tithe Drinker followed up by control elements.

Sideboarded to perfection. Note he has no hand and I have two removal spells.

I get a great compliment from Villain on the way out:

His name has not been changed to protect the guilty.

Round three, I face red-blue-green and I get a nutty draw in game one. I present my turn 5:

Nasty. He's about to take 9 and lose his three-drop.

Surprisingly, he kills the angel in short order and makes a game out of this one, but I win on the back of the tapper.

Game two ends in spectacular fashion as I steal his Incursion Specialist with 3 +1/+1 counters, and Swift Justice it for my second spell of the turn to make it unblockable, then get in for the win.

So I go 2-1, winning the losers' bracket.

Takeaway Lesson:

Commit to either all three colors or one guild earlier. I think the three-color plan was better than the streamlined, weaker main deck, even though all the black cards were two-drops. And it could have been even stronger if I commit a little earlier.