The big guns were out last Thursday night for an all-out war between aggro and blinkdrifter. Blinkdrifter was the most played deck (5), but it’s the 12 aggressive decks that filled most of the metagame with nearly half the field of 26 players playing aggro.
White Winnies deck is on fire. It won both events this week and it just keeps on beating blinkdrifter. I think it’s fair to say that the new deck to beat is WW, and like the rest of the field, blinkdrifter backers will have to make adjustments.
In last week’s event (SPDC 4.04) krosanbeast went undefeated in the swiss (3-0), but a pairing mistake cut him off the playoff rounds. He took it exceptionally well, despite being very frustrated, and took his rage out on his opponents this week at SPDC 4.05. He again went undefeated in the whole event, but this time all the way up to the finals, beating a whooping 3 blinkdrifter decks in the process.
Is this the end of blinkdrifter? WW is quite popular and is gaining in popularity. If the tendency continues, blinkdrifter will have a hard time beating the odds. Perhaps we will start seeing more control decks focused on WW. It is usually the case when an aggro deck dominates a format.
Event Thread
The metagame
SPDC 4.05 Metagame is also available in the forums.
Metagame
– First place
– Second place
– Top 4
– Top 8
Midrange (9)
Bulldog333 -> Blinkdrifter
pj2yyy2 -> Blinkdrifter
bluedragon123 -> Blinkdrifter
icarodx -> Blinkdrifter –
subliminal man2 -> Blinkdrifter –
RobE -> Grimdrifter
Hurriboy -> Stick N’ Stones –
Me5794 -> Stick N’ Stones
Evu -> Black madness
Aggro (12)
Krosanbeast9359 -> WW –
RaiserUK -> WW
serra_monk -> WW –
jtamaro -> RW Aggro
LostSymphonies -> RW Aggro (WWr)
GravespwnGoddess -> RDW
seymourws -> RDW
gabrielrega -> RDW
Carinon -> Buffeting Boggarts (BR Goblins) –
Dubious Honor -> Blue winnies w/white
Shadezz0fHades -> UR Aggro
hokusai22 -> GWu Slivers
Control (3)
HWolverine83 -> Dreamspore Rock
boin -> New Tricks (Bru Control) –
Iberian Wolf -> Uber Teachings
Aggro-Combo (2)
plainstrider -> R Firestorm –
pyro420deadman -> UR Storm
Playoffs
TOP 8:
——————————–
(1) Carinon (Buffeting Boggarts)
(8) Subliminal Man (Blinkdrifter)
——————————–
(5) Serra Monk (WW)
(4) Plainstrider (Firestorm)
——————————–
(3) Krosanbeast (WW)
(6 Icarodx (Blinkdrifter)
——————————–
(7) Hurriboy (Stick N’ Stones)
(2) Boin (New Tricks)
——————————–
TOP 4:
——————————–
(8) Subliminal Man (Blinkdrifter)
(4) Plainstrider (Firestorm)
——————————–
(3) Krosanbeast (WW)
(7) Hurriboy (Stick N’ Stones)
——————————–
Final:
——————————–
(8) Subliminal Man (Blinkdrifter)
(3) Krosanbeast (WW)
——————————–
Metagame Breakdown
You can always access the standard Top 8 metagame at the PoP’s Forums.
Standard Top 8 Metagame
Includes all Standard (SPDC and MPDC) events to date.
As noted previously, I believe we are witnessing a slight shift in the meta. The deck to beat has been blinkdrifter since the beginning of the season, but WW has proven able to beat it. It just took some time before people realized it was the real deal. It is getting a lot more popular lately and the results aren’t lying. We have a new #1 deck.
The fact of the matter is that not only is WW at an advantage vs Blinkdrifter, it also doesn’t have bad match ups. The extremely low mana curve combined with the big number of evasive threats it can lay down quickly makes it a very tough deck to stop.
Power Rankings
Here’s how the power ratings are calculated:
Each event, players gain points depending on the final standings:
1st – 10 points
2nd – 7 points
T4 – 4 points
T8 – 2 points
Other – 0 point
The power rating of a player is the point average for the current season. (By adding all points accumulated and dividing it by the number of event participations, we get the average/power rating)
Players who play in less than 40% (2/5) of the events will suffer a small penalty.
—
There are 30 ranked players out of 73 players. To be ranked, you need a power rating above 0.
The number of events played serve as first tie breakers, followed by the best finishes.
Format:
Rank. Player name (Power Rating) – (Last week’s Rank)
Thanks to Eegag for the top 5 Icons
01. 
Subliminal man (4.75) – (04) –
02. 
Krosanbeast (4.40) – (12) –
03. 
Cecilia Jupe (4.17) – (01) –
03. 
Eegag (4.17) – (01) –
03. 
Karakusk (4.17) – (01) –
06. Kingritz (3.33) – (08) –
07. Baron Sengir (3.25) – (09) –
08. Icarodx (3.00) – (10) –
09. Khirareq (2.91) – (06) –
09. Robe (2.91) – (07) –
11. Evu
12. Kehmesis
13. Death Knight
14. Hurriboy
15. Cadaeic
16. Kaityson
16. Plainstrider
18. LostSymphonies
19. StillIRise
20. Jtamaro
20. Rancorous Fool
20. ZechMaples
23. Brokn990
23. Redleg
23. Boin
23. Serra Monk
27. WoCoNation
28. Jamuraa
28. Lysandar
30. Carinon
Most Events Played: Krosanbeast, Carinon (6)
Most Playoffs: Baron Sengir, Icarodx (4)
Most wins: Cecilia Jupe, Eegag, Karakusk, Subliminal Man, Kingritz, Krosanbeast (1)
Most Points: Krosanbeast (22)
Decklist
1st place deck – White Winnies – Piloted by Krosanbeast
19 Plains
4 Amrou Scout
2 Amrou Seekers
2 Augur il-Vec
4 Benalish Cavalry
2 Blade of the Sixth Pride
2 Fortify
4 Goldmeadow Harrier
1 Ivory Giant
4 Knight of Sursi
4 Mana Tithe
4 Shade of Trokair
4 Sidewinder Sliver
4 Sinew Sliver
Sideboard
4 Aven Riftwatcher
2 Cloudchaser Kestrel
1 Ivory Giant
4 Martyr of Sands
4 Sunlance
—
There is a lot of hype for this deck lately, and the optimal build is still being debated. What’s noticeable in the beast’s WW is the 2 blade of the sixth pride, which some consider ineffective due to its lack of evasion, and the 2 fortify that some consider a bit slow.
Seeing fortify in action is always quite exciting, however, and it gives WW the reach it needs to end up games quickly. Some even use 4 of them. Another quite notable difference is the use of 2 Augur Il-vec. It’s quite inefficient, beating for 1 for 2 mana. But it trades with blinkdrifter’s infiltrator Il-kor and might save you from RDW pre-sideboard.
There is also 4 martyr of sands in the sideboard, which many consider a must-have in a meta with lots of RDW decks.
Top 4 – Mono-red Firestrom (RDW + storm) – Piloted by Plainstrider
18 Mountain
1 Flamekin brawler
2 Needle Drop
4 Rite of Flame
2 shock
2 tarfire
3 goblin skycutter
4 Grapeshot
4 Keldon Marauders
1 Mogg War Marshal
4 Rift Bolt
4 Coal Stoker
4 Empty the Warrens
3 Keldon Halberdiers
4 Gathan Raiders
Sideboard:
2 Mountain
2 Shock
2 Stingscourger
1 Fury Charm
2 Spitting Earth
2 Ghostfire
2 Orcish Cannonade
1 Caterwauling Boggart
1 Keldon Halberdier
—
It’s basically RDW with the possibility to “go off”. It’s a concept that’s been done lots of times before, and here’s the first Lorwyn season’s version.
The thing I like most about this deck is that it really does have a lot of ways to combo, but almost all the cards are playable on their own as a straight up aggro deck. The card disadvantage of rite of flame hurts when it doesn’t boost storm, but otherwise the deck fits quite nicely together even without storm cards.
Top 8 – Buffeting Boggarts – Piloted by Carinon
4 Facevaulter
4 Festering Goblin
2 Karpulsan Wolverine
4 Adder-Staff Boggar
2 Emberwilde Augur
2 Pit Keeper
4 Mudbutton Torchrunner
2 Warren Pilferers
4 Lash Out
4 Tarfire
2 Incinerate
3 Boggart Birthright
1 Footbottom Feast
10 Mountain
10 Swamp
2 Terramorphic Expanse
Sideboard:
2 Incinerate
2 Mogg War Marshall
3 Brute Force
4 Goblin Skycutter
4 Martyr of Ashes
—
Now, this is my 2 thumbs up for this week. What a great deck! It beat both WW and Blinkdrifter in the swiss, giving the deck lots of credibility, but it’s not until you actually see it played out that you realize how cool a deck it is.
At first glance, it looks like a bunch of janky goblins. But in reality, it’s a perfectly well crafted gem. I think it could use a few tune ups, as with any deck, but this deck has some real potential. It can be aggressive or controllish and it has a hell lot of reach.
MPDC 1.01
If anyone would like to write for MPDC, please contact Polyjak. If you would like to have any data I have gathered or my article templates, contact me. (You can PM us in the forums)
Last Monday was MPDC 1.06 and RaiserUK won with White Winnies
Here’s the Metagame
And the Event Thread
Will WW keep its streak running? Will Blinkdrifter make a comeback? Will we see innovating new ideas? We’ll see next week!
Kehm.
Great article, kehmesis! Its always refreshing to see some new decks in action. That boggart deck piloted by Carinon looks especially scary for white weenie. I’ll have to do some testing against it. Keep up the good work! =)
no love for sticks-n-stones? i see how it is. good article even if your a hater.
nice win krosan, after the slip up last time you deserved it man.
To be honest, I don’t really “get” stick n’ stones.
I think Sticks = Treefolk, and Stones = Land Destruction (in honor of the late Stone Rain).
I get the name, I don’t get the deck
I think it uses the treefolk to deal damage to the opponent while using the land destruction spells to stop the enemy from casting any spells that can stop the treefolk assault.
lol yeah p-jak go the name breakdown right. the treefolk hold the ground and provide some beats. the LD/mannaaccel put me several “turns” ahead of my opponent, making the cows and ladybugs wicked hard to deal with. WW isa pain, but i went 3-4 in games vs them this week, so its far from a hopeless battle.