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Author Topic: Sorin Grim Nemesis 'control' Deck, thoughts please!  (Read 558 times)

woody_aaron

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Sorin Grim Nemesis 'control' Deck, thoughts please!
« on: June 17, 2016, 11:59:16 am »
Hi Guys,

Been playing MTG for about a month and landed a Sorin, Grim Nemesis in a SOI booster! Beginners luck maybe...

So I've been trying to get him into a control deck. I've looked over some tips into putting it into a control type deck, wiping threats early in the game, drawing cards to gather my planeswalker and bombs ( Endbringer, Scuttling Doom Engine, Deathbringer Regent ) for the end phase.

Here it is in Deckbuilders:
http://deckstats.net/decks/67085/508055-sorin-grim-nemesis-control

I've found with a few games it sometimes plays this strategy, other times Im having to play more aggressively and don't really have the creatures to do this. Maybe my mana is too low also?

I've mostly SOI in my collection and cards I got with the 2015 Core  Deckbuilders (I don't know if it's possible to view people's collections on here) but have started to browse singles at my local stores to enhance this deck, so up for some relatively inexpensive card reccomendations!

Any tinkerings with duplicates or suggested cards to create more synergy would be really appreciated.... Or tips on how to draw Sorin earlier and really make that card deliver.

Thanks guys, really liking this site!

Yuwaki

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Re: Sorin, Grim Nemesis Control Deck - Comments
« Reply #1 on: June 17, 2016, 03:39:55 pm »
Welcome to Magic :)

First of all i would recommend to remove the Aura related stuff in your Deck and replace it with more card draw / removal options.
Also 20 Lands is kinda low for a control deck. I would suggest around 23~ atleast.

- Alive // Well
- Chaplain's Blessing
- Returned Centaur
+ Thraben Inspector (?) Give's you early investigate for more card draw
I would also suggest you try to get your hands on a mass-removal card like Languish against creature heavy Decks.
Another cheap options in your color are :
Biting Rain
Crux of Fate
End Hostilities
Merciless Eviction
Descend upon the Sinful
Those are usually kinda cheap to get and help your deck to get advantage and a clear board for your late game threats.

Another ideas from the SOI block might be :
Bound by Moonsilver
Bygone Bishop (if you want to keep your creatures in the Deck and go more midrange)
To the Slaughter
Anguished Unmaking
Magnifying Glass
Tamiyo’s Journal

Your normal early game removal like Doom Blade and Puncturing Light seems fine :)
Try to avoid cards that just give lifegain without any other benefit (for example Chaplain's Blessing).
Cards like Soul Warden are good though, because they trigger multiple times and give you a creature for poke/chump block on top.

Also Tutor Effects could help you get your Sorin (or any other card you need) if you want him more often.
Example : Diabolic Tutor , Beseech the Queen , Behold the Beyond (the last one got kinda high manacost but is from SOI)

I have to note though that most control Decks contain or splash blue for better draw options/counterspells ect

I hope i could help you a bit ~

woody_aaron

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Re: Sorin Grim Nemesis 'control' Deck, thoughts please!
« Reply #2 on: June 17, 2016, 04:08:20 pm »
Thanks Mikuyume!

I have some Biting Rain, Thraben Inspector, Bound by Moon Silver, Bygone Bishop, Tamiyo's Journal and an End Hostilities in my collection and will defiantly put your other mods on my shopping list to try out!

Is Chaplain's Blessing a bit of a copout or do is it just a poor one card play?

I'll have to update and let you know how it plays  :D




Yuwaki

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Re: Sorin Grim Nemesis 'control' Deck, thoughts please!
« Reply #3 on: June 17, 2016, 04:20:46 pm »
glad to see you have most of the cards already x)

The thing with pure-life gain cards is , that they put you down on card advantage. Think that way. Your opponent got a 2/2 creature and you got an empty board and no hand and youre topdecking. A removal spell would kill the creature , so it cant attack you anymore = no more lifeloss. A lifegain spell would only "block" a few additional attacks at -1 card advantage on your side and the creature is still there for your opponent to continue his attack / block.
Thats why cards like Lightning Helix are so powerful. They remove the creature AND help you survive in 1 card.

Would you rather draw a Thraben Inspector (1/2 creature to block/attack and a potential card draw) early/late or a Chaplain's blessing that just give's you 5 life at the cost of a card?

woody_aaron

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Re: Sorin Grim Nemesis 'control' Deck, thoughts please!
« Reply #4 on: June 17, 2016, 04:34:16 pm »
I see your point, and understand card advantage is one of the key tactics of control. Myself and a friend who recently started playing again recently both stocked up on Chaplain's Blessing after it came up in a game, both attracted to the 5 life for minimal spend! But I've managed to win against a loaded deck of them without it, so perhaps not so great!

I'm interested into getting more clues into the battlefield also, i had one or two cards before and they were useful in getting some lands onto the field in the mid game, so Thraben Inspector will be good for that.

KouriNick

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Re: Sorin Grim Nemesis 'control' Deck, thoughts please!
« Reply #5 on: June 17, 2016, 06:10:23 pm »
Hi! Welcome to the Forum and to Magic

Mikuyume has made some excellent suggestions and by making those simple changes, the deck should play much more consistently.

I did want to bring Endbringer to your attention. The Diamond symbol means it must be paid with colorless mana and not colored mana. As the deck stands, the only purely colorless source is Drownyard Temple, which means in order to play Endbringer, you have to have that land. The good news is, as Mikuyume said, you're going to need more like 23 land for a control deck, so you could add something like Warped Landscape or a couple Wastes (which you could find with Traveler's Amulet) to get the colorless count up.

Also, another cheap card that's great in control decks is Gurmag Angler. He lets you use your graveyard as a resource to and combos beautifully with Sorin, Grim Nemesis. However, since he requires so much delve to work, running more than 2 of them would be risky. Murderous Cut is equally cheap and follows the same Delve theme.

I hope you found this helpful. Good luck and Happy Hunting :)
When you do things right, people won't be sure you've done anything at all.

woody_aaron

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Re: Sorin Grim Nemesis 'control' Deck, thoughts please!
« Reply #6 on: June 17, 2016, 06:30:10 pm »
Thank kourinick, I hadn't spotted that, or knew about the minim colourless mana cost, i assumed it meant 'any mana'. Glad I didn't make that faux pas at a casual event!

I'm sure I have something similar to Warped Landscape i can use to bolster the chances of playing Endbringer.

German angler & Murderous Cut look ace too and will defiantly search for that on my next shopping trip, I don't particularly want to use the graveyard much in this strategy (in terms of recalling stuff) so that would be a good advantage for those cards.