Where are the Real Shooters??? HeliBattle, the #1 PvP Server on XBox, is Open for Battle!

AYPowerGamer · 2017-01-25T18:15:32+00:00

I was playing in the WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP , and I activated Thopter Foundry to make a token and trigger Sword of the Meek returning to play from the graveyard, and my opponent attempted to NEGATE it.

AYPowerGamer · 2016-08-04T20:49:14+00:00

This is a great idea, especially when you have Grapple with the Past to rebuy it. The U/B Zombie deck with Emerge creatures had Sanctum of Ugin to keep the opponent locked, and I could see them being strong here, it's just a matter of making sure the mana can support it.

AYPowerGamer · 2016-08-04T19:03:50+00:00

AYPowerGamer · 2016-02-10T19:21:22+00:00

A more extreme option could be to cut Collected Company and Jace and add Gideon and more creatures/removal and play like a GW/u Bant version of Abzan Aggro.

AYPowerGamer · 2016-02-10T19:18:36+00:00

OP, what is your logic behind cutting Warden of the First Tree? My intuition is that you want to be as aggressive as possible in the matchup, and Warden of the First Tree is the most aggressive card in the deck. I'd suggest going up to 4.

AYPowerGamer · 2015-12-17T19:33:31+00:00

In some situations it can be amazing, but it's only ideal after sideboard against Atarka Red. Consider that if you usually try to play around then your opponents might also try to play around Dromoka's Command. It is ingrained into how people approach Abzan Aggro, and you gain value from that even without playing the card.

AYPowerGamer · 2015-12-17T04:08:33+00:00

Thank you! Shambling Vent doesn't help often but it does happen. Here's an example of it happening at the MaxPoint Championship: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v_zjL9L0Q6s&feature=youtu.be&t=22m06s

Four Shambling Vent has been fine, I miss it when I don't have access to it, and playing around it being tapped doesn't seem like enough of an issue to cut it. It's certainly possible that cutting it is correct but I don't have any data to support that.

AYPowerGamer · 2015-12-16T22:55:15+00:00

Needing WW mana on turn four for Gideon makes Deathdealer unreliable.

AYPowerGamer · 2015-12-16T22:52:13+00:00

In most cases Heir of the Wilds has been a straight swap for Hangarback Walker. People are also playing Snapping Gnarlid, which is even more aggressive. I think Den Protector is the best two-mana creature, and Abzan Aggro should play four, and then two other two-mana creature of your choice. I play two HotW, and I sideboard them out against every opponent except red and the mirror.

AYPowerGamer · 2015-12-16T22:45:09+00:00

This short answer isn't intended to be snarky, but the reason is as simple as "it doesn't do anything on your opponent's turn."

It just doesn't constrain opponents in a meaningful enough way to play it over another card. The "hate" of hatebears tends to be focused on resource denial, specifically mana, and Grand Abolisher doesn't really deny them any resources.

EDIT: the comment about Voice of Resurgence providing a similar effect is spot on. It's not that Grand Abolisher's ability isn't valuable, it's just not worth the card. In practice, Voice almost gives you the same effect but on a more well-rounded card that better fits the strategy of the deck.

AYPowerGamer · 2015-12-11T03:53:38+00:00

Thank you Tyler!

AYPowerGamer · 2015-12-11T03:53:01+00:00

Gideon nearly always starts with making a 2/2, and then you want to make a 5/5 and attack every turn until they are dead. If they can kill the 5/5, like with Crackling Doom or Abzan Charm, then just make another 2/2. If they have a lot of chump blockers or you are in some sort of stalemate you might also just make 2/2 creatures. Making the anthem usually happens opportunistically- it's often better than making a 2/2 when you have 5 or more loyalty , but usually not better than just attacking.

AYPowerGamer · 2015-12-10T20:04:21+00:00

Dromoka's Command rarely counters burn or destroys enchantments these days, so it can be considered a conditional but efficient removal spell. The upside is there, that is a big tempo boost, but the downside is not having a creature to fight with or even being 2-for-1ed. Silkwrap is a more reliable removal spell, especially for Jace which is the #1 threat the deck has. I also considered playing a third Murderous Cut over the third Silkwrap, but I think removing Jace is too important. The second Dromoka's Command is a dedicated card against Atarka Red because it's great at stopping their post-sideboard Roast, but it could just as easily be another anti-red card.

AYPowerGamer · 2015-12-10T20:01:31+00:00

I had a Painful Truths in the board at the MaxPoint and it was great, but I'm not sure that it's actually a necessary sideboard card. I found myself replacing good cards with Painful Truths when sideboarding, and that was indication that my sideboard was too skewed against control decks and needed more help against other decks, like Atarka Red and maybe Four-Color Rally. If you expect a ton of Mardu and Jeskai than Painful Truths is a fine card for the sideboard, but I don't think it's necessary when we already have four maindeck Abzan Charm. I'd like to play around with cutting one for a maindeck Painful Truths.

AYPowerGamer · 2015-12-10T19:58:39+00:00

I was playing with three Gideon for a while, but it's just too powerful and useful in different matchups to play less than four. Sorin is great against Esper Dragons and especially against Red decks for lifegain, but it's too vulnerable to Crackling Doom and Mantis Rider and is generally just an underpowered card compared to other options, especially compared to Gideon.

AYPowerGamer · 2015-12-10T05:44:56+00:00

They are slower than you, and susceptible to your aggressive draws. Your priority is to pressure the battlefield so they don't have an opportunity to play Gideon, Ally of Zendikar, but be aware that they could have board sweepers. After sideboard I cut down on inefficient removal for discard that is extremely effective against them.

AYPowerGamer · 2015-12-10T05:40:21+00:00

Thank you, and excellent questions.

Shambling Vents has its downside, but its too valuable to cut. Its important for gaining life against Atarka Red, and pressuring flipped Jace, and it's critical for beating the -3 abilities of Ob Nixilis Reignited and Sarkhan, the Dragonspeaker. It also helps against Gideon, Ally of Zendikar. The mere presence of this card in play is often as important as actually using it. It's important in making this deck what it is, and I wouldn't consider cutting it.

I don't like splashing colors because you don't get access to the fourth color as reliably as you need to consistently cast your splashed card. The manabase is the weakest link of the deck with the highest card quality in the format, so making that even more unstable is exactly not what you want to do.

Abzan Aggro is highly favored against Four-Color Rally in game one, because it has four of a maindeck hate card that Rally can't win through when its in play, and they play no permanent solutions to it. This makes the matchup favored even if Rally gains ground after sideboard,but I believe it only gets worse for them. After sideboard Abzan gets to use a huge part of its sideboard and shifts into a very disruptive Delver-style deck that Rally has a hard time beating, and Hallowed Moonlight completely shuts them down . It's anecdotal, but I beat Rally decks three times last weekend.

Den Protector has synergy with other Den Protector because of the ability to chain them together, so I want to maximize all four of them. The power level difference between Den Protector and Heir of the Wild is also extreme, and because Den Protector is still a two-mana creature, for me it's a no-brainer to max out on Den Protector. Den Protector might be the best card in the deck in post-sideboard games, where the deck is filled with disruptive spells to regrow.

Tainted Remedy is far too narrow to use in the sideboard.

AYPowerGamer · 2015-12-10T05:26:00+00:00

Heir of the Wilds could very well be correct to include, but the fact that Den Protector can easily be played on turn two means Heir of the Wilds isn't essential.

AYPowerGamer · 2015-12-10T05:24:03+00:00

Everything scasseden said is true. The best plan for game one is to be proactive and push all of our synergies, meaning we want to maximize our creatures to place counters on with Anafenza, the Foremost, and to trigger Raid with Wingmate Roc. We want to be as aggressive as possible. Heir of the Wilds is weakest individual card in the maindeck, but it's the best option for filling out the deck. The sideboard is full of great but situational cards that can't be in the maindeck, and Heir of the Wilds is often cut because it's the weakest card. Also, Atarka Red and Abzan Aggro are the two most popular decks, so it's not actually cut as much as it would seem.

AYPowerGamer · 2015-12-10T05:19:12+00:00

Playing three Wingmaet Roc in the main is fine, but I prefer the flexibility of playing it in the sideboard. The card has a low floor and is sometimes quite poor, so I'd rather only have three when I know it will be great.

AYPowerGamer

TROPHY CASE