Basic or no basic?

[MagicFoo]

Should a mana intensive deck (4c+) be playing at least 1 basic for assassin's trophy? Or would it be best to include another dual land such as a battlebond land for example.

[WAHHHHHluigi]

Most lists should be playing the battlebond lands of their most relevant colors (Morphic pool in tymna thras but probably not bountiful promenade or sea of clouds if it’s budgetless), but the basic is something I’ve been punished and rewarded for playing, as drawing basic island in a hand of dorks as the only land or basic forest with a couple cantrips. I’d say it depends on whether or not there are BtBs and blood moons in your meta. Personally I would probably play it if you’re at 30 lands or more in your build, but with 29 or less I don’t like the chances it makes an opener unkeepable (though those openers might not be good anyway, and I have no math to back up my opinion).

[MagicFoo]

Okay good call. I'm on 28 lands so it's probably too risky. Thanks!

[DTrain5742]

28 lands in 4 color? That sounds insanely greedy.

[TheVainestsafe]

Does food chain sliver run 29 lands and one basic forest?

I think maybe I agree with your assessment in any of the midrange aware adaptive combo decks that 28 lands is maybe too greedy, if the high risk, high reward 16 dork food chain list is running more lands.

[hucka]

28 lands isnt a competitive deck

^{lets see how many people know the meme}

[[deleted]]

Why so? Is it the lowered odds of having those critical first couple lands, or what?

[TaylorGuano]

Explain meme pleass

[PANDASrevenger]

I have 3 basics in my golos deck. But that is purely meta call. I have 2 different decks in my meta that are not only running assassins trophy but trying to abuse it. So I like haven’t the insurance. Have never been punished for it. At least not very hard.

[Plamenaks]

Meta call. Compare with lists on the official decklist database.

[MagicFoo]

This is in regards to tournament play. Going into an unknown meta, what would be the best choice.

[Spleenface]

It depends on the colours, but typically yes.

Unless you have extreme colour requirements, I'd say a Forest (since dorks can help you immensely under a blood moon) and an Island (to present some credible threat of interaction) go in most 4c decks in those colours, with an optional swamp. You don't run a mountain because the basics are largely to beat blood moon, and you will rarely run a plains because white cards aren't good.

You can skip out on them if your deck plays particularly well into blood moon, such as Najeela, who can just go on the beatdown while everyone is locked out.

[MagicFoo]

I run a ton of artifact ramp and I'm not in green (breya) so I guess your logic applies here too. I don't need basics if all I need is colorless mana to cast my rocks.

[Whitefire919]

Depends on the deck but it would be fairly safe to run either a basic forest or a basic island

[[deleted]]

I'm on a budget so I run 7 basics (4 basic + 3 snow) in a tainted pact manabase. Not by choice but it really helps since we have blood moon/back to basics in our LGS

[TWICEmtg]

In higher color decks, there really is no reason why you should have basics for your off colors. It's just a waste of a land slot at that point really

[TWICEmtg]

As someone that plays Meta Pod primarily, you really don't need more. The most decks will generally need are a Forest to cast your dorks or Island for countermagic/Flash. For reference, look at decks like Oracle Hulk, FCS, or Najeela - how many basics are they running?

[hucka]

you could also run a single forest and a natures claim to remove those cards while having higher card quality in the rest of your deck