UR Tempo - Comments

[Comment Bot]

UR Tempo

[Ahnung]

Cheers Sven,

i've been watching your list develop over the last couple of years and noticed that the small tweaks we make are always moving in similar directions. Happy to see that you are also such an enthusiastic proponent of UR tempo; frankly, I think the core of the deck is the best you can be playing in this format.. I like splashing green for increased threat-density, but that's besides the point. I was wondering why you have opted NOT to play the following cards (just out of curiosity & understanding your thought process):

Dismember
Urza's Bauble
Bomat Courier
(Memory Lapse)

These cards have been performing super well for me in the last years, and I haven't seen them in your version.


Keep it up!

[svenproud]

hey, yeah Im a huge UR fan, playing it in all formats like Legacy, Modern, even Phoenix in Pioneer so UR for Highlander felt naturally for me playing. Its true that RUG has better threats overall while UR is much stronger in mana denial and free wins through Moon, B2B and PoP. RUG makes a bunch of MUs like 4c midrange/aggro more consistent with its better threats but its more likely to loose against something like go wide strategies like Scapeshift ore big ramp stuff. UR shuts those shells down way better in deploying threats earlier and playing a Moon. In a vacuum Id say W6 + Oko are still a little better than PoP + Moon but its quite marginal imho. To the cards you mentioned:

1. Dismember -> I played it the entire time until I replaced it with Mine Collapse like 3 months ago. Mine Collapse doesnt cost life and also targets planeswalker, this had been huge!

2. Urzas Bauble -> the story here is the same argument for not playing Peek, you do not manipulate your draw (!) which makes it only a replace itself card. Mishras Bauble does cantrip when you combine it with a fetchland or T Scour /M Note effect, thats the difference. I could see including Urzas Bauble now with the new Iconoclast also but I dont have the space atm.

3. Bomat Courier -> doesnt have much impact if its not in the starting hand. I try to be as close to Legacy/Modern as possible with those list and Bomat Courier is most of the time a bad topdeck unless you cast it turn 1 otp. The effect is also not that great when you redraw Gush, DTT, ExIt so its kinda optimal to find them under Bomat Courier, otherwise you mess up optimal draws.

4. Memory Lapse -> in UR you need to really deal with the cards youre facing permanently unlike Grixis or Jeskai which have actual ways of dealing with x/4 or planeswalker once resolved. So unless you go Memory Lapse into Moon/B2B the card isnt where I wanna be in the deck. The tempo is rather marginal.

Key in Highlander is to thrive consistency so I try to minimize "atm" cards and rather go for all time stars being good in multiple situations. Thats why I did cut Flusterstorm and Gut Shot also, they had huge impact in specific matchups but werent good over a long period of time in various matchups. I replaced them with an other threat and Mana Leak.

[Ahnung]

Yeah I mean Urza's Bauble has a ton of synergy with other mechanics such as (pseudo)prowess, delirium, delve, threshold - so I think its worth it just for the velocity boost even if it doesn't fix your draws. But I just saw that you also included it.

I like Memory Lapse (and Subtlety, for that matter.. really helps against the pesky white cards such as Palace Jailer, Skyclave Apparition, White Plume Adventurer and Solitude that play around your Negate effects) because it is a pseudo hardcounter, particularly for removal. Getting one additional attack step can often make a meaningful difference, not to mention that you often timewalk your opponent and deprive them of fresh answers. But perhaps these two shine more in RUG, because your threats are hitting harder on average. I have dropped Miscalculation, Lose Focus or Izzet Charm a while ago because cards got much cheaper, rendering them irrelevant much sooner.

Totally forgot about Mine Collapse. Indeed a great option for Izzet. Your explanation makes sense, but I still think you should find a slot for Dismember

On the topic of Bomat Courier - let me just say that you shouldn't overrate the cards beneath it. He is also contributing to achieving delirium, has haste (which is so huge against initiative and monarch) and worst case he cycles for two mana. I think he does more on average than Soul-Scar MAge or Monastery Swiftspear, which both force you in a particular direction, and his ceiling is through the roof. You can play a multifaceted game with him, as he also does something in terms of deck velocity, which I rate very highly on my creatures (see Ledger Shredder or Dreadhorde Arcanist). I encourage you to try him out (again)!!

I also agree that we need to minimize situational cards and need to be aware of broader shifts such as more and more ETB creatures entering the format, thus replacing spell-based removal gradually. I cut the same cards you mentioned over the last months. I guess what's most important for URx tempo is to lower the lows, meaning to improve your average starting hand so that you always have at least an early threat and some card selection. The deck can already do so much unfair stuff, especially on the play. I mean, in my RUG list I am able to play 10 (TEN!!!) cards which are banned in legacy and can back them up with free counterspells, with a relatively low failrate because it packs all the cantrips.. Anyways, I guess that's why you also love the deck. Cheers!

[svenproud]

- With Urzas Bauble I feel like you were right, especially since I want to be more aggressive than RUG with this build so Bauble with 8 creatures naturally benefiting of it is the way to go!

- My problem with Bomat Courier is that its a horrible top deck post turn 3 or 4 unlike Swiftspear, which can get multiple triggers still in one attack. With Soul Scar Mage I liked the -1/-1 effect with burn spells leading to some very cute tricks, but I did cut it already for Swiftspear which tested to be suprisingly strong. But I will test Bomat Courier again and see where its at.

- I did play Memory Lapse for some time but it was always underwhelming, especially when floating turn 2 or 3 without a threat. Miscalculation is actually SICK, getting to either counter or cycle is huge and fills many gaps in which you wouldnt have used your mana. Miscalculation would be the last card for me to cut t

[Ahnung]

Cheers,

Recently I tried out merchant scroll and thran portal. The land is very good and the scroll likely better than some other cards that are still in the deck.

I am also again considering dress down, since people are beginning to figure out how busted the initiative is.

Once you get the chance to test them, I would be happy to gather your perspective.

Have a good one!

[svenproud]

hey, I did play Merchant Scroll a lot in Blue Moon. The main cards to get have always been DTT, Gush and FoW with it. You either played an aggressive Merchant Scroll turn 2 on FoW to curve out Moon or B2B t3 or you used it later to make card advantage with either DTT or Gush. I did the same with Personal Tutor on Ruination and Treasure Cruise (when it was legal). For Tempo its probably not where I want to be right now since every single card should have an immediate impact, but as more midrange the deck becomes the more likely it is to play Merchant Scroll imho. Id say you can try it for a slower build but I tried it once in pure Tempo as it is right now and wasnt a fan of it.
Thran Portal I didnt even know, do we actually need the card? Im still unsure about City of Brass or Mana Confluence in the deck since I want to be more operative under Blood Moon and B2B but the way I sometimes have a basic Island with a red one drop in hand it might be time to play them...