The Rakdos Guide

I have been asked a couple times about a longer, more specific guide for Rakdos vs The
Format or Rakdos vs Specific Archetypes, so this guide is going to be more indepth and a lot
more nuanced than normal. The plan for this is to introduce theory, then apply the theory to
specific matchups and finally provide specific cards for each matchup I go over. I also want to
go over play sequences and talk about certain board states to set up and how they lead to
winning consistently. This is my first time trying to provide this kind of article, so I can’t promise it
will be exactly the most coherent at some points, but as always, if you have questions just let
me know.

The midrange concept

Archetypically, midrange is meant to be in the middle of the spectrum of magic

archetypes, hence the name, midrange. Rakdos is the epitome of this idea, efficient removal,
powerful midgame with the ability to close out games fast. For decks that don’t care about what
rakdos is doing (the bad Matchups, more or less) we have thoughtseize. Although Thoughtseize
isn’t a fix, it is a good helping hand that provides percentage points to our win %. Rakdos has all
the tools to beat every deck in the format, which I believe makes it the best choice for Pioneer,
the toughest part is always deciding what specifically you want to beat or target for a specific
event.
Note: The list I post at the end of this guide is different from the list I posted above and I have
another Pioneer Challenge top four with said list at the bottom of this guide. I think the most
recent list is best, but the changes in lists doesn’t invalidate any info I provide below, if anything
it shows that the best way to have success is to change your choices with more info as you go
on.

This is the list I have been playing recently, and I am happy with. I always believe the flex slots
can be changed based on local metas, but for what I am trying to target I think this is the best
build.

Specific cards and their uses

I am going to go over why each card is in the deck, what decks they are good against, and
when they should be cut, or not used as much.

Bloodtithe Harvester.

This card is the Glue of the deck. Its 3/2 stat line is very important for the format, as it
allows you to be aggressive while also trading up in combat. The sacrifice ability to kill creatures
is also very important, so there is no diminishing returns on having more than 1.To add to all of
this, he also brings a very important blood token, to loot away your cards later. Harvester being
a doomblade and insectile aberration makes it one of the best creatures in the deck.

I always want blood tithe on two, it is a card I would never cut, in any matchup. If I could
play more, I would.

Kroxa, Death’s Hunger

Kroxa is an interesting one, at face value it is a powerful card. It always is a 1 for 1 with
the ability to be a two or a three for one, as long as you meet the requirements, and, realistically
you should be able to do so. With the addition of blood tokens and Fable in the deck, kroxa
being a surprise 6/6 for 4 sometimes is also very potent against decks like Blue White Control
(Discard the Kroxa to one of those effects, escape it after). Because of Kroxa’s high power, the
cost of using Kroxa to its full ability is also very high, which makes it easy to interact with. I
personally like having 2 in the deck, but I can see some circumstances where 1 is correct, but
that is mostly to respect greasefang as a deck, not because I think it is low power. I have had
some people mention that they think kroxa is bad vs aggro also, which I disagree with very
heavily. Not many decks can deal with a 6/6, in combat or outside of it, plus, aggro decks are
very reliant on their resources. Having mono R discard a card is like gaining some amount of
life, having Mono W discard a card late game could be dealing with a brave the elements, and
you get a 6/6 body.

The only spots I currently want to cut kroxa is against Greasefang, even to the point
where if I expect a lot of grease, I would play a hearse or two over kroxa in the main, but this is
a big hedge.

Tenacious Underdog

Underdog is also an interesting one, as its powerlevel is much lower than kroxa, but the
role it holds is more important. Having a 5th 3/2 body allows the deck to be more aggressive, or
at least apply more pressure in certain matchups. Of course cards like thoughtseize and push
are good at slowing a deck down, but if you can’t actually finish the game thoughtseizing the
opponent or killing their creatures doesn’t actually matter, they will draw more cards. To help
prevent this, the addition of having a 3/2 body is something needed out of BR. As I mentioned
above, I wish I could have more bloodtithes, but Underdog is the best replacement. Often, there
is a bit of an issue with drawing the aggressive creature later in the game, but dash changes
that also with the ability to not only give it haste, but draw a card after. This has the most
potency against UW, as you can set up turns where they wrath you with underdog and play, and
then you don’t lose the impact of your board presence, and it’s repeatable to pressure
planeswalkers and keep up with their card advantage. If there aren’t many control/ go big
midrange decks (Niv, creativity, Enigmatic) around, underdog is worse than just a removal spell,
which would have more applicability against the aggro decks of the format, which is why I only
have 1, alongside the idea that I have a lot of removal already. Ultimately, this goes back to the
Midrange Problem, do we have a 3/2 recurring body to respect the go over the top decks, or do
we play more removal to respect the aggro decks, or should we play a hate piece to hit the
combo and bad matchups? Personally, I think underdog will play that role the best, as it does
pressure the opponent and thoughtseize cleans up some of those other percentage points.

In the aggro matchups Underdog is very medium. If it trades for a creature on t2 it is

good, but you are never dashing it and a 3/2 after turn 4 is awful. Against Grease fang I like
having underdog in the deck, but it isn’t super potent, it just fills the role of needing to pressure
the opponent while you play the appropriate removal. Underdog isn’t a needed piece, but if it is
going to be cut I think there should be a good reason and it should be replaced with a good hate
piece like hearse.
Bonecrusher Giant

Bonecrusher is one of the Few potential 2 for ones in the deck, and very powerful
because of this. Bonecrusher having the ability to be a removal spell is very powerful against
the aggro decks, while its 4/3 body is very good at playing the beatdown role, against both
bigger and small decks. Bonecrusher loses its power when there are not that many killable
creatures in the format. x/3’s being prolific would lower bonecrushers power of course, which is
why sometimes it is awkward in the mirror when opponent doesn’t have a 3/2 on 2 and instead
plays Trespasser, to have you needing to jam a bone to keep parity on the board if you have no
other plays, but often that isn’t the case and that is not a reason to trim on them, I think you
always want at least 3, where 4 is for consistency and that slot can be filled with another
random removal spell or silver bullet against other decks (think Abrade for Grease, etc). Even
against the Matchups with no or close to no creatures, bonecrusher has a role. Against UW you
can use it to finish off a Wandering Emperor, pressure teferi, etc. Bone is the worst against Niv
and Enigmatic, as there are no things to kill, but it is still probably better than Trespasser most of
the times in those matchups. If you can curve a 3/2 into Bone crusher on the play, it is hard to
get out from under than without a wrath, and if the opponent is wrathing, they are not spending
that time to do their combo, so it’s a good role filler there. Bone isn’t ever really bad, it is just
sortve medium, which is fine, but when you want to target a deck, if bonecrusher isn’t in that
game plan, you can safely cut them. That meta will probably only look like mono Lotus and
Grease fang, which is near impossible, so I am confident in keeping 4 for now.

Graveyard Trespasser

Trespasser has been one of the most polarizing cards in the deck recently. I have talked
about this before, but I see trespasser as a card that fills a lot of rolls well, but for each roll it fills
there are better cards for that exact spot. For example, if you want anti graveyard cards, hearse
is better. If you want creatures, you can play better stat line cards. If you want a threat, often
Liliana or sorin are better for that. If you want a card that dodges removal well, kroxa and
underdog or other planeswalkers also do that better. The reason to play trespasser is because it
does all these things, even if not the best. I only really side it out vs gMono G, against the other
ends of the meta (control/ go big decks and aggro decks) Trespasser is important. For aggro, it
compliments your removal to gain life and be a speed bump, specifically against Mono W it is
great against extraction specialists, one of their better cards against you. For control it is less
powerful, but it is hard to kill with it’s ward so the pressure it brings is relevant. Of course there
are better cards against the control decks, but without completely reshaping the archetype (you
could do that, but we need to try to beat the format not just 3 decks) there isn't a better card to
cover everything Trespasser does. If you want to beat just controlish decks, Liliana is better. If
you want to beat just graveyard decks, hearse is better. I am not saying trespasser is
uncuttable, but I really like 4 because of the wide range of decks in the format.
Kalitas, Traitor of Ghet

I currently have two kalitas in the main, but I think kalitas is one of the easiest cards to
cut. It does not do much for a four drop by itself, so it isn’t inherently powerful. Sorin at least
finds a card or makes a creature even if it immediately dies, which is good for four mana,
especially when you need your cards to do something specific (specific is creating card
advantage for this circumstance). There are many spots where Kalitas doesn’t really do
anything when you need it to, making a 4 drop ¾ bad enough that you’re basically mulliganing
for and paying 4 mana to do so at one point. These matchups are usually the UW control and
the yorion go big decks (enigmatic, niv). On the other end of the spectrum, Kalitas is one of the
best cards vs the aggro decks. Mono W has a tough time dealing with it, Mono R can’t attack
through it and if you have any removal against either of those decks the extra 2/2 body is
impactful. In the middle of all of this, Kalitas is also very good vs mono G, as most of their
creatures have die triggers, but the requirement to need removal spells is still super important. I
think with the cyclical nature of Pioneer, you need kalitas to fight the aggro decks, as it’s the
best card against aggro as an archetype, and it’s hard to expect there to be no aggro in a room.
If there is an expectation for there to be a lot of UW, cutting kalitas from the main is fine, but the
trade off is still a hard choice, as there are many good ‘grindy cards’ to fill that role, sorin, bank
buster etc, but I feel UW is such a good Matchup that losing so many % points vs aggro isnt
worth the small amount of % you gain vs UW by cutting kalitas.

Sheoldred, the Apocalypse

I like sheoldred, but I understand why it has polarizing responses about it. On paper,
Sheoldred isn’t that much different from Chandra, torch of Defiance, but in play carries a lot
more weight and has a much deeper impact across the format. Although Sheoldred is easier to
deal with than Chandra, it is specifically better against some of RB’s bad matchups which allows
the deck to side step the main game plans of siad decks. For example, Sheoldred’s stat line of ⅘
is very important against Greasefang and Mono G. Before, if you beat greasefangs main game
plan and dealt with the graveyard effectively, or if they had a grinder draw with Chariot, you
would just lose to chariot. Now with sheoldred, Chariot is covered and you don’t need to attack
to win the game alone. I am not saying Sheoldred is busted, but it is a decent upgrade that fills
some percentage points, enough to make it an add to the deck. At first I cut kalitas and had just
some sheoldred in the deck, but sheoldred is not very good against the aggro decks. I do think it
is better than Chandra or sorin, but much worse than kalitas. Finding additional small edges is
important for RB as a midrange deck, so I think Sheoldred is an inclusion, despite it not living up
to the hype (mostly cause the hype was too high).
Thoughtseize

You cant really ever cut this card, even if you expect to play against like Mono R every
round. If anything, I would like to add more to the deck if I could. I don’t think duress covers the
format enough to add duress, but it could be possible? Either way, Thoughtseize good.

Dreadbore

Dreadbore is the best removal in the deck, but I don’t like playing 4 mostly because I
don’t want too much removal, and the removal I do want needs to be at least some % of
specific. For example, having an abrade in the main is good for the amount of Skysovereign and
Greasefang decks around, but you dont want a lot of removal because there are matchups
where you draw too much of it and it is a dead draw. You can always loot them away, but the 4th
dreadbore isn’t really needed where the 1st abrade is in my opinion. So why not cut another
card? I think that is a reasonable possibility, but currently I think the 4th dreadbore is the most
flexible slot for consistency reasons (rather than cutting another threat for example).

Fatal Push

Similar to thoughtseize it can’t really be cut, even if you expect to play against UW or Niv
all day.

Fable of the Mirror Breaker

Fable is the best card in the deck, and what really brings the deck together. Fable
enables a couple cards through the graveyard, but mostly is a usual 2 for 1. I would only
consider cutting fable against the aggro decks, but it being such a powerful card it is hard to cut.
Mono W has thalia on 2, so fable is at its worst there, but realistically I do not want to cut it.

The Mana Base

For the most part, the lands are straight forward. 4 animate lands is correct I think, 2 of
each. I like one Sulphurous springs, I dont think you need more. The one point of contention is
the 25th land being a castle, and having 2 swamps compared to 3 swamps and not a takenuma
when I have 2 castles. I had a build with 3 swamps, no takenuma and two castles and I found
the castles didnt affect the curve that much, so I went back to two swamp. 3 swamp, no
takenuma is more consistent, but I am not sure it is worth the risk and I like the takenuma.
Liliana of the Veil

Liliana was one of the most hyped up cards from DMU, to the point where Sheoldred
really flew under the radar because of Lili. I currently don’t believe Lili is worth the hype, but as
always that is subject to change. I was worried when lili first was spoiled that play patterns
would be bad, or inbred or too repetitive, whoever played Lili on curve had control, but it seems
to have had the opposite effect. In the aggro Matchups, the cards lili takes are redundant, often
the creature or spell is already in play or done it’s effect, so paying three mana for lili that doesnt
always impact the board or doesnt always have equal exchange of resources, is a bad effect to
have. For example, if I am discarding lands to lili and my opponent is also discard lands, we are
at parity, but if my opponents card that is three mana (I paid three for lili, they in theory have a
play) is either a two for one, a must kill threat, or creates a better board presence, lili is low
impact. This also doesnt cover the times where decks play more potent threats before t3 or
when they use their 3 mana to make more potent plays in the form of double spelling or simply
cast divination. Also, Lili on 3 mana on say, t5 is a liability. It’s not confirmed you will always get
a creature out of her sacrifice ability, nor will you always get a good creature. Against UW,
where people think Lili is best, it is an awkward dance. If you play lili on 4 or 5 and they play one
of their planeswalkers, lili is out classed very fast. Alternatively, if you play a creature, at least it
can pressure the UW players plays. This has a lot more to do with how UW approaches their
deck building and what threats they use, but there is a reason they do use those threats, lili just
also happens to be weak against those threats. Simply put, Liliana is at her basic level, resource
denial. If your deck is built well, and we hope it should be based on the info you have, often
trading your resources for your opponents at a basic 1/1 basis, with no room for nuances, is a
losing proposition because your resources are needed for specific circumstances, you can’t just
throw them away. Liliana is most powerful when opponents' resources on average are worth
more than yours, and that really only exists in one matchup in the format, which is Mono G. Not
only does lili do a good job at stripping their cards from hand, but is a repeatable way to deal
with board presence, one spot where Mono G really excels over RB. Of course, Lili can’t solo
Mono G, but lili on curve with a good followup is the best draw you can have vs Mono G, and
one of the only reasons I still consider playing with her. Otherwise lili lacks power against the
aggro decks in the format and isnt potent enough against the other go big decks, often it would
be better to have a more specific, effective card to fill whatever role you want liliana for.

Sideboard and sideboarding associates

I like my sideboard, but there are many cards I think about and shift based on what I
expect. My sideboard is built for what I see online, but I will go over each card, its use, and all
the potential cards I could see being used, I have used, or what other people have asked about.
Duress

Duress has come to be the best sideboard card in the format in my opinion, and I think I
am coming around on the idea of bringing it in vs Mono G, where before I was not. I also think
that the go bigger decks are some of the worst Matchups, and those decks usually play a lot of
uninteractive spells like Enigmatic, Bring to light, teferi, counterspells, etc. duress functioning as
thoughtseizes 5-7 is very important for those MUs, as the rest of BR should be built to commit to
the board and finish the game fast before they draw out. I don’t think this is always a winning
proposition, but it is the best based on my experience.

Rending Volley

Often against the aggro decks you need one mana removal or else you will be overrun.
Volley is the worst against Mono R, but the best vs Humans and Spirits. The reason 1 mana
removal is the best is because it allows you to double spell reliably. It doesnt matter if you have
20 bone crushers against a bunch of x/2s if you cant cast those bone crushers. Volley is also
the best against x/4s, where a lot of removal doesnt cover and is instant speed, where Strangle
and Bloodchief’s aren't.

Abrade

The abrade in the side and the main are mostly for Greasefang, as abrade is the best
removal for that matchup. It also covers the rakdos sacrifice matchup which can be rough also,
where some removal only covers one or the other, not both. There are other artifact removal
spells, mainly K command, that also covers both of those matchups (what I want to target, two
bad ish matchups), but the mana cost is a liability, even though k command is more powerful. If
grease was a 4 mana spell I would just play K command and lose the % abrade gives vs the
aggro decks. I currently have a split of 1 K command 1 abrade, but I could go 2/0 for either if I
felt there was more Sac or more grease, as those are the two decks moving the needle for the
numbers of this card, currently.

Reckoner Bankbuster

Buster is one of the better cards I’ve found for the deck, and I think it is very powerful for
the stereotypical ‘grindy matchups’. Originally it was used to pressure Lili in the RB mirrors,
bank on two made it impossible for lili to be jammed on 3 out of the opponent without losing a
creature to block or their lili to be on the board, and spending 3 mana to do nothing in the mirror
was really bad. Buster also is great vs the go bigger decks, as its a creature that draws cards
that is hard to interact with. I like two copies but three is a lot I think , but, if you plan to play the
mirror or UW a lot 3 is good for that.
Unlicensed Hearse

Hearse is a card that you have to play, and I won’t say its bad, but it’s not really good, it’s
just very good at being anti graveyard. Alternatively, Leyline of the void is a choice, but the
amount of leylines you have to play (4) really takes up sb slots and its still polarizing the times
where its effective (usually only in the opener). The Graveyard Matchups aren't so bad that you
need to have polarizing cards to beat them, just a proactive game plan with good removal. On
whether you should play it in the main is more personal preference. I dont think the Grease MU
is swung so much with adding Abrade and Hearse to the main, so realistically you should be
looking to beat them post board anyways, and hearse main is poor against 80% of the format.
Hearse is better than trespasser at dealing with the graveyard, but poor at everything other
aspects that trespasser covers. The impact of hearse is very high, but it isn’t what I would say is
busted.

Hidetsugu Consumes All

I have liked this card more and more as time has gone on, but that has more to do with
the amount of decks that gt hit by it rather than Consumes all’s power level, which I think is
medium, but more does something unique a lot of cards don’t do. The main reason I like
Consumes all is because of the Mono W Matchup. Of course, the 1 drops are annoying, but the
bigger reason is because consumes all deals with Wedding announcements effectively, even
after a couple turns. There aren’t many 2 for ones you can get vs mono W, along side some of
our removal is damage based, so the creatures can out grow it, or they have brave the
elements, and consumes all covers all of that effectively, while also being good against Rakdos
sacrifice, Elves, etc.

Kolaghan’s command

I have also come around on K command, which mostly has to do with the reappearance
of Skysovereign and Bank buster. K command also has some incidental value against
greasefang, it is one of the better answers against a hard cast chariot. It is also good vs Liliana
in the mirror and also UW, some of their removal is artifact based, and 2 for ones are just good
against them. I am wary that k command isn’t good enough, as it is three mana and if it is just a
destroy artifact effect, abrade is better. The extra percentage points you get against non
Greasefang decks isnt worth the amount you lose vs Grease, but I dont think the abrade is
needed for that reason.
Extinction event

The biggest reason to have extinction event in the sideboard is for the Mono G matchup.
There are better wraths for other matchups, path of peril, ritual of soot, meathook massacre,
whatever, the important part of event is it exiles, with an added benefit of all the good cards in
mono G being Odd mana costs. I like 3, but 4 is good vs G if you’re also fine with playing no
other mono G cards in the board. You could play 2, because I think thats all you really need vs
the non G decks, but I would also suggest having more anti G cards like,Grasp or epic downfall
etc.

Sorin the Mirthless

Sorin is really only to respect the mirror while also respecting UW control and the other
Go big decks. I think Sorin isn;t amazing, I just think it;s one of the only cards that is good vs the
mirror and UW, outside of Bankbuster. There are other cards that fit this slot, and I think Sorin is
more of a slot filler than a card you need.

Skysovereign, Consul Flagship

Skysovereign is good in the mirror, but I am not sure where else really. When I had one
in my board, I didnt bring it in against the aggro decks as I felt the aggro decks could present a
board position where Skysov didnt matter on 5 mana. I also think, if bankbuster becomes as
popular as I think it should be, people should in turn bring abrade type effects. Of course, this
makes boat at min a 2-1, but I think you want more out of your sideboard cards, especially ones
that are only really good in one MU. I think if you expect a lot of RB, boat is very good, but I dont
like it in many other spots, so you have to be willing to have a solo sb slot for boat alone.

Go Blank

I also played this card before, as there was a lot of UR Pheonix around and some
Narset/ days undoing decks. I ultimately think there are more potent cards against both of those
decks, mainly duress, but also the other random matches it covered weren’t affected as much
as I would like. Its a okay card to bring in in some matchups, but never really great in my
opinion, so I cut it.
Witchs vengeance

This card is really only good if you’re expecting a lot of elves or goblins, humans can
usually out grow the vengeance or thalia makes it so casting it for 4 isnt very good. I prefer
extinction event because it is very good vs mono g, and the wrath spot is filled with event
already.

Noxious grasp

I like Grasp as my anti mono G doomblade, as it hits kiora and is also good vs mono W
while also is good vs Greasefang. The reason I like abrade is because it also hits bank and
boat, but I could also see playing grasp too.

Fry

Not really great, only really good vs narset or six mana UR niv, wouldnt suggest it
anywhere else.

Lifebane Zombie

Zombie is interesting, as it CAN be really good, but often it is just a little too bad. The
main plan of against G (which Ill go over later) is to deal with the the mana early and pressure
the board after. Zombie is good for this plan, but not the best for this plan and is awful if the plan
doesn’t work. Zombie on any turn other than t3 is really bad, and its place against other decks
isnt super impactful so its only really for Mono G, where it isnt amazing. I dont think it is a big
mistake to play it, but I think there are better cards.

Alpine moon

Fine against lotus but also a liability, as it turns their lotus’ into coloured mana sources.
They also have main deck answers in boseju and ottawa, so the moon is ineffective usually,
plus they can bring in other cards. Moon also isnt super effective against mono G, as the deck is
less good with Nykthos, but they can still beat you handily especially if you are wasting a card
for moon.
Damping Sphere

Similar to Moon, Sphere is really only good vs lotus,and has some implication vs G but
it’s not good enough.

Weathered runestone

Runestone is fine vs greasefang, but they also have a series of good answers to it, but
unlike hearse it isnt a creature sometimes so it is worse at closing the game. It also covers
specifically Storm the festivals, but there are still so many other good threats in the deck that it
usually isnt good enough.

Cling to dust

Cling is an alternative for Greasefang, which is the one place where it doesn’t interfere
with kroxa multiple times, but that is about the only spot its good. It can be a grindy card in the
mirror but there are better cards, and there arent many other decks that care about the
graveyard where cling is good often enough

Bile Blight

This card is trash.don’t know why it ever ended up in the sideboard. There is no packrat
in this format, don’t play this card. Ever.

The Meathook Massacre

An alternate wrath effect, although one of the worse ones over all. It is better against
rakdos sacrifice, but often worse off against Humans, elves. The one place it does shine is
against Greasefang I think, as it cleans up their secondary game plan and gains the life back,
but I also dont think it is worth the wrath spot over all because it really is only good against Sac,
where something like Consumes all is better.

Goblin Dark Dwellers

I am very low on this card, as I feel it costs a lot to be effective. At best, it flashes back a
spell and that spell does something effective, which, obviously that is good, but you have to
have cast said card, have the dark dwellers flash it back, and have the spell be effective again
ALL while dodging interaction from graveyard removal etc. The best place I can see it being
good is against Mono G where you want to reuse a go blank or thoughtseize or dreadbore, but
then the 5 mana 4/4 also has to matter, where when your opp is playing a G cavalier and youre
playing a 4/4, it doesnt matter if you get to recast the dreadbore really. So, I think in order for
GDD to be good, or at least worth a sideboard slot, you have to want to cast the spell twice, the
4/4 for 5 body has to matter, and it has to be good even if you dodge graveyard interaction. I
think not only does DGG not fill those roles well, it’s not even good when you flash the spells
back, but there are too many variables to make the card consistently good and not just a 4/4for
5 (which is really really bad). If you want a grindy 5 drop, play boat or invoke.

Invoke Despair

I think invoke is fine if the game revolves around going bast 5 mana, but realistically this
card is not great for 5 mana. Bank buster is better as it pressures the board, draws cards, and
actually attacks the opponent. Although Despair deals with Enchantments, often the
enchantments has done it’s thing (Enigmatic) or trading 5 mana for whatever the enchantment is
is not worth it (fable costs 3, etc). I\ll go over this later more, but the mirror is less about just
slamming big things and hoping you win but rather casting your spells in an effective manner,
whereas Invoke isnt super effective.

Leyline of the void

Leyline is very effective at it’s goal, exiling opponents graveyard, but it is extremely
polarizing in it’s results. it’s only really good in your opener, and numbers you draw after the first
are basically dead draws. To add to this, Leyline doesnt end the game on the spot, there isnt
dredge in the format. Grease can still just play chariot (really good against us) and Pheonix can
still cast their creatures (good against us if we dont have enough cards to deal with them, which
we might not cause we put a leyline into play). The polarizing results is the reason I dont like
this card. If you are just looking to spike the grease matchup, with some additional cards for
chariot etc, this card can do that the best, but you will be sacrificing 4 sb slots for that game
plan, so I hope you play against a lot of grease.

Chandra, torch of defiance

This card is pretty bad I think, even before DMU, but I think people werent willing to
change much and the minus 4 was mildly relevant in the format, where now it also is not. Often,
a 4 mana deal 4 is pretty bad, although is fine as a floor, the plus one deoesnt really make up
for it. Chandra never draws lands, which is a big thing you want in this deck, and the trade off of
dealing 2 isnt really worth it. There are many better 4 drops, and chandra is reasy enough to
deal with so playing her is fragile.
Epic Downfall

I think downfall is good for exactly mono G, and not much else. The creatures are very
important for Mono G’s nykthos turns, so interacting with them is helpful to the game plan of
mana denial. I think going one for one vs G is a losing battle, but if you want a lot of cards
against Mono G, Downfall is a good one to have in your board.

Kaervek, the spiteful

This card is garbage, I am not sure how it made it into sideboards. It does nothing
against mono w, and when you have it with your creatures it also makes your board worse. It
costs four mana so even against Grease you might just be dead, there are so many better
cards. The body is bad, 3/2 for four is terrible. Dont play this card.

Jaya, Fiery Negotiator

Jaya is pretty good vs UW, but not much else. Making extra creatures while also having
a card advantage engine is great, but she doesnt do much against the other grindy MUs. You
dont actually draw the card, the creatures arent very effective in a short game, she doesnt kill
anything like chandra, overall against the format she seems not good in my opinion.

Path of peril

Pretty good vs Mono W and Elves on the draw, but terrible after t3, and the best cards
out of mono W cost 3 (adeliene, Wedding announcement, extraction specialist) so playing this
card is a risk, especially when it isnt really good in other MUs. There will be times when you can
cleave it, but it might be too late at that point.

Matchups and their play patterns

I am going to go over each Matchup from the RB side, how to beat each deck, what to
look out for, how to position yourself to win, when the appropriate time to play your spells are,
and how to close the game effectively. There will be a lot of nuances and specifics, the most
important thing to know is that most circumstances are unique, and leaning on heuristics can be
dangerous, so it is important to not fall into a rabbit hole for certain MUs. If you have a good
plan, it is possible that MU will have a counter for you, and you must be aware of that.

Note: the lists I provide are generalizations, just what I found on Goldfish, maybe you play
against something different in that archetype (there are technically like 4 different versions of
Mono G for example). Use your best judgment with the info I’ve provided, this is just my
perspective and me providing info, nothing is absolute.

Mono G Devotion

Cards to look out for: All of them. Unironically.

https://www.mtggoldfish.com/archetype/pioneer-nykthos-ramp#paper

The mono G Matchup is tough, but it is not unwinnable, and I think many people think it
is much worse than it actually is, and a lot of that has to do with how Mono G wins, which is
usually a hard to interact with combo from the RB or big dumb critter that beat your face in,
where traditional removal isn’t effective. On Curve, Mono G’s plays are just better than RB’s. it
does not matter if you go one for one against them on curve, because 60% of their cards are
just more powerful. If you add in that some % of the time they play those spells before curve,
the MU is impossible. So how do you win? In short, you realistically have to get lucky, but, I
have found the most effective way to approach this MU is to attack their mana as well as you
can and pressure them while they hopefully stumble.

In practice, this looks like: killing elf, thoughtseizing the Wolfwillow haven or kiora, and
playing creatures afterwards to back up the pressure when they inevitably draw out of it. You
have to interact early, if you allow an elf to stick and play an old growth troll, you can no longer
deal with a karn effectively, even if you dreadbore, for example. Commons play patterns are
Mono G trying to set up their early mana advantage, so they can cast their more powerful spells
early. If they play elf on 1, and you kill it, their game plan is slowed down immensely.
Considering Moono G doesn’t have good plays, so you have a turn or two to control the board.
Playing a creature is on turn 2 after killing the elf on 1 is the best way to do this, as they cant
commit to the board until t3 now (even though there t3 play on average is better than ours, this
is the best). This also allows you to not pressure the board on t3 so you can set up for the late
game. Following up from killing the elf and playing a two drop creature, there are a lot of good
lines that lead to victory. All of the three drop plays out of RB are now good, pre or post board,
as you can continue your board control. Unfortunately, mono G does have a series of draws that
allows them to get out of this position, although they are less likely the more you interact.

For example, if they lead elf and you kill it, they can haven into Kiora + Troll in one turn.
Now you have a PW you cant kill, a ramp spell if you kill the creature and an extra card to deal
with. If you count the 4 lands, elf, haven, kiora and Troll, on t3 this is hard to achieve, and of
course the best way to interact is by killing the mana. Like I mentioned, RB still has to get lucky
to dodge, but it is possible.

As the game goes on and you establish board control, the ultimate goal is to interact
while also killing the opponent. You have to assume they will do the best thing they can with
their mana, even if you interact. Without going over every single circumstance of what could
happen, the best way to beat mono G is to invalidate their cards. If you have a bunch of power
in play karn has less potency, if you have good removal you can attack through the big
creatures even if they net some value, and if you have board control just swarming the board
will eventually push some damage though with the animate lands. If they have a bunch of
creatures, you have some extinction events. If they top deck Storm, as long as you have board
control it cuts off their outs.

If you mix in some thoughtseizes into these draws, you can have more control over the
game, especially if you also can kill elf plus have board control. I do not think you need
thoughtseize, which is also one of the reasons why I am not sure duress should be brought in. I
think the best way to deal with the Mono G MU is to deal with the elf and commit to the board,
that doesnt mean though thoughtseize isnt very helpful, especially if you dont have an answer
for elf on one.

I do think you should mull to elf removal, but it is a funny dance to have with Mono G’s
range. On the play I think Push or Stomp is good enough, where as on the draw I will say push
or thoughtseize is something you need to raise your win %. Alternatively, Mono G will keep
hands without Elf on one if they have Haven, which you cant interact with unless you have
Thoughtseize. If you keep push and they dont have elf, your push does almost nothing.
Sometimes you can kill a creature later, and with a kalitas that is good, but often you’re
mulliganing anyways because you have a dead push, so I think you need to also be wary of
keeping only push and removal hands, because you still need to pressure them. I think thats
why if you don’t have push or thoughtseize, it’s not always a mull, but you have to have cards
that interact otherwise, and, if you’re on the draw without a 1 mana removal spell, you are
probably going to lose. The cards I am willing to keep if I dont have push are: dreadbore,
Extinction event, Kalitas, Sheoldred, fable all with the addition of having a two drop. Ultimately,
you need to interact early, and not doing so will probably lower your win %.
 With all this being said, there are other ways to invalidate the mana and their cards, also.
With Noxious grasp you can target the Kiora and with Epic downfall you can exile the big
creatures and pressure the planeswalkers with your creatures, but you have to have those
specific cards for those spots.

To put this in a step by step process:

1: kill elf/ deal with early mana

2: commit to the board to pressure PW and end the game
3: try to invalidate their bigger plays, whether with making them less powerful (kill karn with
creatures, kill bigger creatures and attack, pressure board so when they storm they need to hit a
high % to beat you etc)
4: Continue to swarm the board, sometimes abyss your creatures so sink damage or hold
Extinction event to wrath the board and attack for lethal.

Mono Blue Spirits

Cards to look out for: Rattlechains first, Counterspells if you’re in a bad position on
board.

https://www.mtggoldfish.com/archetype/pioneer-mono-blue-spirits#paper

Mono U is relatively easy in my opinion, minus the times where they nut draw you, and
even then you can have a good response and control over the game. On paper, over all the RB
cards are more powerful than the Mono U cards on curve, plus we can directly interact with the
Mono U creatures more effectively. Of course, the Mono U deck is designed to make it so you
cant interact well, so there is a fail rate on that, but I think RB is the best deck to answer the
Mono U deck.

A lot of mono U’s sequences are based on early creatures with a Card draw
enchantment follow up, so there is a huge risk that those creatures get out of control if you can’t
kill them. Alternatively, if there isnt a 1 drop or an enchantment, Mono U’s back up plan can be
to overwhelm the board, so you must answer the threats presented. Obviously, the best way to
do this is to just kill their creatures, so as a perfect counter, Rattlechains is the biggest issue.
Not only does it blank the removal, it also is a creature and gives all other spirits flash so mono
U doesnt have to cast the rest of the creatures at sorcery speed. With this in mind, the only card
you really care about consistently is Rattle chains, so you have to actively play around it. If the
opponent doesnt play anything on 2 mana at sorcery speed, you should probably hold stomp or
instant speed removal for the rattle chains if they jam, or hold your removal unless you have a
thoughtseize first. One of the reasons I think you should jam your spells into potential rattle
chains is if they have a creature with a card draw enhancement. This creates the issue of:

They do the thing their decks does

You try to interact
They rattle chains you

So, the MU can be loseable, but I dont think this happens that often AND I think if you try really
hard to play around rattlechains you will be successful in the matchup.

There are other game plans, if you answer their stuff and they keep playing, where you
can just play your creatures and attack. Our creatures are bigger on average on curve and an
alternative way to blank their creatures is to just race them.

I think you want to keep your deck as lean as possible, and not have any cards that have
possibilities of fail rates post board because you can be punished for them. For example, I think
duress is bad in the MU, partially because if you miss it is very bad, but also it doesnt deal with
the most important card, rattlechains. I also think cards like kalitas andSheoldred arent very
good because they arent very good threat for four mana. Kalitas can be decent, so if you
wanted to leave that in it would be fine, but I dont think kalitas is good in the MU, and I think
there are better alternatives overall. Witch's vengeance is good here, but not great against other
decks so I tend to not want it in the board, but if you want to beat mono U, that is a great card.

Bant Spirits

Cards to look out for: Rattlechains, Katilda, Collected Company, Spell Queller, Extraction
Specialist post board.

https://www.mtggoldfish.com/archetype/pioneer-bant-spirits#paper

The bant spirits deck is similar to Mono U, but functions differently in game play, even
though some of the concerns are the same. Bant spirits is also about a turn or two slower, so
the threat is not as immediate. The matchup is slightly worse because even if you go one for
one with them effectively, they can always Coco out of it, when you add in the other troublesome
cards, there are more difficult variables to beat. Although it is more difficult, I still feel this is a
good MU for RB, as you are a deck full of removal and more powerful creatures against a
creature based synergy deck.
 The play pattern for Bant is a bit slower than traditional creature decks, so the need for
removal on t1 is lessened. I do think you will need removal, specifically instant speed removal,
for success against Bant, but because their deck is slower you can afford to not need it so early
or not need to fire it off so aggressively. Without the immediate need to kill the creatures, the
impact of rattlechains is lower, because there are less times where it blows you out because you
arent pressured as often to cast the removal to kill the random creatures. On the other end of
that spectrum, Spirits best draw looks like 1 drop into rattle chains, into Spell queller, into coco,
and even then that draw is beatable. I think the best way to win this matchup is to hold your
removal for the problematic cards as long as you can. Rattlechains isnt as effective if you kill it
immediately, Spell Queller is worse if you can double spell and kill the queller after they cast it,
and coco is manageable because most of their hits aren’t super relevant, and, if they don;t have
a good curve, your board is probably just better. Ultimately, RB’s cards are better on curve, Bant
has the privilege to tempo RB out though, so RB cant cast their spells. It is important to set up
the game so you can cast your spells, the best way is to double spell as often as possible while
trying to play a round Chains and Queller.

Post-board the bant deck tries to go more grindy, and while having the opportunity to be
a flash deck, it can put RB in a tough position to effectively beat what the Bant player actually
has as their range is rather wide. Extinction event covers most of their range rather well, as the
problem cards once they are in play are 3 drops, Specifically Katilda. The game plan is similar
to G1 though, if you can cast your spells and try to play around the two problem cards on the
stack, you are likely to win. It is still important to be cognisant that Bant can bring in more katilda
and Extraction specialist, to try to blank our removal, so holding trespasser to hit creature in the
bin or holding event if you dont need to cast it for katilda is a serious consideration.

Abzan Greasefang

Cards to look out for: Chariot, Boat, The combo (greasefang + a vehicle)

https://www.mtggoldfish.com/archetype/pioneer-abzan-greasefang#paper

The main Greasefang game plan of Put grease into play with a vehicle is hard to beat,
non of our removal that is instant speed can answer the greasefang except for Fatal push, and it
is very hard to turn on revolt for push. If you do find a way to turn on revolt for push (bloodtithe
token or Fable treasure token), there is always the possibility they can just combo you later in
the game, with either another greasefang or a cant stay away. The grease deck is fairly
consistent at doing the combo, but it is possible they do brick on t3, but, unfortunately their
backup plan is to just cast chariot on t4. Chariot is very hard to deal with, as all of our creatures
are smaller than it, it creates two creatures which is hard to race, and if we ever kill the Chariot,
they can get it back with greasefang eventually. Overall, the Greasefang deck is just good
against RB, so I can’t say I have a good, consistent way to approach the greasefang matchup,
but I will go over the few ways I think you can attack the deck to raise your win % the most.

Like most bad matchups, the most important thing is to interact meaningfully on curve.
This looks different than how you interact vs Mono G, but the result is similar, put them in a
position so when they finally achieve their combo, it is ineffective.

The early turns of the game for them are about setting up the t3+ opportunity to combo,
often with a Satyr wayfinder or a grisly salvage. The most basic way to deal with this is to kill the
greasefang, but they can always try to recombo, or simply cast chariot. The best way to beat
them game 1 is to frankly get lucky. It is best if you are on the play, but you need to be able to
pressure the board early, Bloodtithe is best. Trespasser on 3 is always good, but is only really
backbreaking if they satyr into one vehicle on their t2. Otherwise, if they have grisly, they will just
do it on your end step, so there isnt much you can do. Although if they hit it is probably game
over, the chance of that happening is low. In a perfect world, You need Thoughtseizes, pushes
with a way to trigger revolt, them not to have a way to combo you on three. And not have a
chariot ever.

The post board games are where you have to get your wins. The game plan is the same
as before, but we have more tools to do so. Abrade, Eliminate, K command, Noxious grasp etc
are all good answers to Greasefang, which is step one, while some are also good against
Chariot, which is step two. We also have better ways to interact with the Graveyard more
proactively with Hearse. I have started bringing in Consumes all as it cleans up tokens and
deals with the graveyard, even if a little late. It is not a perfect science, but if you mix all of those
options together, over 5-7 cards, I think you can definitely make the matchup closer post board.
I can’t ever say I think it will be favorable, just because they are a deck with a draw we can’t
beat, but I do think the deck is very manageable.

An alternative to this is to simply have 4 leyline of the void in your board. I personally
dislike this sideboard plan, as I think it isnt potent enough and rather high variance, but the
times where you hit Leyline you do get to play a better game, so there is some consideration
there for powerlevel alone, but I do not think it is a good choice.
Mono W humans

Cards to look out for: Thalia, Adeline, Thalia’s lieutenant, Extraction Specialist, Brave the
Elements

https://www.mtggoldfish.com/archetype/pioneer-mono-white-humans#paper

Despite the Mono W players thinking RB is a good MU for them, I think RB is fairly
favoured. Rb’s deck is full of better creatures, good removal, and more powerful cards in a
vacuum. Like all decks that are competitive in the format against RB, that doesn’t mean the MU
is a bye. Mono W is the most efficient deck at committing and controlling the board early, as
their cards snowball really well together, and even if you kill the creatures on curve, Specialist
can just bring those cards back. When you add in Thalia, it slows down your removal, and with
adeline being a very hard to kill threat, you have to be aware about how you cast your removal.
On turn 2, you always have to be wary of thalia, but also wary of Extraction specialist after, while
also not being run over. You dont have the privilege to play around everything, so role
assessment is very important, and sometimes you have to just kill their creatures and take the
risk. Bloodtithe harvester is also the most important ‘removal spell’ in the deck as it allows you to
filter while also being a removal spell that doesnt become taxed by thalia.

Post board the Mono W deck leans on Wedding announcement a lot, which isn;t the
worst thing for RB, but allows the mono W deck to continue their game plan(s) against you,
swarm the board with many creatures AND make each creature individually problematic so they
must be answered. I personally like bringing in consumes all for this reason alone, but it is also
good vs the other 1 drops in the deck. Of course, that does allow for the removal you have to
not hit the other good cards in their deck, so it can create back spots, but I think it is a good way
to respect Wedding announcement. Alternatively, You can play witch’s vengeance, which does a
similar thing against Mono W, in a slightly better way, even though there are some fail rates. I
like consumes all more because I want it to cover the other decks in the format where Witchs
vengeance doesnt cover, Greasefang, Rakdos sac, etc.

Like I pointed out before, the play pattern of Mono W is to pressure the board and
followup with must kills later. So, if you’re on the draw, your win % is lower, as Mono W has the
privilege to make you react to their plays first. Even if you are on the play, if mono W has a good
one drop with a Thalia plus adeleine or Specialist followup, your win % lowers. The positive to
this is that there is a lot of pressure for them to have these cards on curve, as your spells are
better in the late game. This dance you have to do is tough, because often the RB draws are
squeezed by thalia but you can be punished for killing Thalia, especially if you are low on
removal or your removal is too specific (stomp doesn't kill Adeline, Dreadbore in sorcery speed,
Push needs revolt to kill adeline, etc). The hardest part is navigating this, and takes time to
figure out the best way to do so. I want to end this by saying that there are a lot of draw where
the RB cards just line up well and the Mono W player can’t do anything, so do not be afraid to
continue a game plan, just be aware of what the Opponent could have that could be very good
against you.

Blue White control

Cards to look out for : The wandering Emperor, Teferi Hero of Dominaria

https://www.mtggoldfish.com/archetype/pioneer-azorius-control#paper

I have a pretty deep personal bias towards UW, as I think the deck is unplayable, it just
wins against players that don’t know how to play against UW and badly build decks. The UW
deck is rather slow, and the only cards that are problematic are the Planeswalkers, which makes
the game really just revolves around those cards. I think the UW deck knows this, so their deck
is built around protecting these PWs, so you still have to be aware of those play patterns.

Like I mentioned, the UW deck is slow, so you have the opportunity to get to the board
early. If you have a good 2 drop, you can pressure their life total while also pressuring their PWs
that will come down later.Your game plan should be to present creatures to the board so you
can pressure both their life totals and the PWs eventually, but you also have to do so while
playing around a wrath effect. There are a lot of incidental ways to play around wraths in the
form of animate lands, Kroxa, underdog and fable, but you should be holding creatures if you
dont need to play them. Not needing to play them usually looks like 1 or 2 creatures on board
already, that will close the game if they go unchecked. Once they are answered, you can
present more threats, as long as you continue to not get blown out by a wrath effect. Holding
Thoughtseize against UW is important, as you are trying not to over extend into specific cards or
sequences out of them, and casting thoughtseize before they can cast those specific things
you’re playing around is the best way to beat those things, over all. For example, on t3, they can
only cast one spell. If you have the opportunity to thoughtseize, they are pressured to counter,
and you can stick a follow up. If they let the TS resolve, and have two counters, you can always
take the threat or other card in their hand and just try to bait them into using the counters. If you
simply only try to TS the moment you have it, you wont be able to double spell and UW will have
more opportunity to counter your stuff. For example, if UW has 2 absorb and 1 veto, on t3 they
can only cast one spell, t4 only one spell, and t5 two, if they saved the veto. If you go jam on t3,
into counter, jam on t4 into counter, it no longer matters on t5 what really happens because
realistically their resources as the game goes longer are better than yours, and you have no
pressure. If you hold some spells to not allow the Uw opponent to 1 for 1 you with counters
every turn, they now have to beat the cards in play (hard for them) and beat the inevitable cards
in your hand. If you strand the counters in their hand by not casting one spell a turn, on the turn
they wrath you can cast the rest of your hand and opp is stuck with counters in hand still.
Thoughtseize makes this game plan more effective, as it costs one mana and their counters
cost 2 and 3, it allows you to have perfect info so you can choose when to extend, and it hits the
threats that we care about before they gain value, ultimately giving us time.

Post board you should probably cut a lot of your removal, but be prepared to interact
with some problematic perminanats still. UW has been known to bring in Lyra and Bane slayer,
sometimes 6 mana elspeth. Terferi and wandering emperor are still the main problems, so You
will need all of your dreadbores. With lili being in the format, many UW players have cut Dream
Trawler, but I could see it coming back with the numbers of Lili going down, so be aware of that.
There will be spots where push is good, shark tokens and Hall of the storm giants are the big
two, but I dont think you want to have push for those reasons. I only leave in dreadbore post
board, and if I dont have enough cards to take out, I will leave in some push.

Finally, when trying to approach the UW mu, the hardest cards for UW to beat are the
perminants they cant interact with well. PWs, Artifacts, enchantments are all more difficult than
creatures, so if you’re looking to beat UW handily, diversifying your threat suite is important. If
you only add good creatures you will get blown out by wraths, etc. As I mentioned before, you
have time to play around UWs threats because their deck is so slow, so the pressure to end the
game isn’t as high as say when you’re playing against combo. If you play methodically, think
about how to stick your spells and how to exploit the poor deck building of UW, you should be
very favored in the MU.

Blue Red Arclight Phoenix

Card to Look out for: Treasure cruise, Temporal Trespass, Ledger shredder

https://www.mtggoldfish.com/archetype/izzet-phoenix-57eb17e3-2b71-4301-99a6-45002ffcfadb
#paper

This deck used to be a lot more prevalent, and has recently dropped off. I had felt for
awhile that the Phoenix deck was a little clunky, but I was unsure if that was just a result of the
RB vs Phoenix Dynamic. I think Rb is favoured, but I often have people confused as to why I
think that. I think that Pheonix functions as a very grindy deck, with the opportunity to play any
other sort of game they want, sometimes phoenix is the control deck, sometimes the aggro
deck, sometimes something in between in the form of a tempo deck. I also think that this makes
phoenix have a bit of an identity crisis, it is hard to have so many different synergies while
staying consistent with each one, especially if you can interact, and RB can.
 Phoenix tends to not have a lot of threats, so removal is very strong against them. I see
most people think Removal is bad because they can just ‘flashback’ the pheonixs, but
realistically, their deck isnt that smooth to do that, and they cant flash back the ledger shredders
and Thing in the ices in their deck. If the phoenix player plays a Shredder on t2, you are
basically forced to kill it immediately. Like I mentioned above, Phoenix is a synergy deck, and
Ledger is the best way for them to make their synergy run well. If you can kill the card that
makes the synergy more consistent, they have a harder time doing their powerful things.

Another reason you want to kill the two drop is because phoenix has a hard time
maintaining board control. Of course they have multiple R removal spells, but they themselves
have a hard time sticking their creatures while also having the removal.Forcing them to kill your
creatures while also trying to make their own board control is often too difficult for them. If their
best play on t2 is a shredder, their best play on t3 is a pieces, which dont get me wrong, is good,
but it is exploitable. Phoenix spends a lot of turns and time spinning its wheels, allowing you to
set your game plan up: presenting a bunch of threads that are hard for phoenix to answer while
they also try to set up their game plans. Unfortunately, Phoenix's game plan is more powerful
than ours, either cruise or trespass are two of the most powerful spells in the format.
Fortunately, we do have many good ways to make those game plans bad, as long as you can
recognize how to do that.

After turn 3, The RB deck is in the pressured position, we have to end the game before
the opponent can cast all of their really powerful spells. Often this happens in the form of a
treasure cruise, or flashing back a few pheonixs, or both along side of trespasser to take an
extra turn. So what is the best way to beat this? Like most MUs where you need to interact,
Thoughtseize carries a lot of weight. Phoenix has very few ‘good cards’ you actually care about,
if you can thoughtseize one of them and get full info on their hand you are in a good position.
Follow that up with a 2 drop, and you can continue the game plan of interact and pressure early
to force opponent to interact rather than set up. If they do interact ny killing their two drop, you
can follow up by playing any three drop THAT IS NOT TRESPASSER ON THREE. Bonecrusher
giant isnt amazing in this MU, so just having a 4/3 in play forces opponent to answer the giant or
else they will die if they just spin their wheels. This isnt a perfect science, but you consistently
want to force your opponent to have specific cards while also forcing them to find a way to
synergize, so that when they fail on either fronts they lose.

The reason I highlighted to NOT PLAY TRESPASSER BARE ON T3 is because it

enables their draws with little to no effect. If you can eat a phoenix in the graveyard, I would
always jam. If you’re worried about Treasure cruise that they revealed off of pieces, I would
consider playing it also. But, if you just jam Trespasser on t3 into an empty board your opponent
can kill it, discard a phoenix and flash it back leaving you with next to no way to deal with the
phoenix. I know holding the trespasser is weird, but because it is such a good card in the MU, I
dont want to waste the ability, and before t5ish, if you present a threat pheonix has to answer it
anyways, why throw away your best one?
 Post board they often bring in Young Pyro to diversify threats, so you shouldnt cut all the
bone crushers, but it is the worst creature in your deck I think. I also think Kalitas is rather bad in
the MU, even though many people think it is really good. Phoenix isnt a burn deck, nor are you
in many positions where you have the opportunity to play kalitas plus removal. On the other end
of this spectrum, I think Kroxa is very good where I have seen many people say they think
Kroxa is bad cause opp will just discard the phoenix, which I think is really a misevaluation of
the MU. Like I mentioned above, phoenix is a synergy based deck, it is not often they have all
the moving pieces they need and often they need all of their resources. They can’t kill a kroxa
well and it getting two cards is very important. I added more duress to respect this MU, and
hitting the pay offs in the deck is one of the best ways to beat them, so hold them if you can to
set up your plays for the best outcomes.

Mono Red Aggro

Cards to look out for: Depends on the version, But 3 mana Chandra, Eidolon,
Ferocidon are all problematic cards

https://www.mtggoldfish.com/archetype/pioneer-mono-red-aggro#paper

The mono R MU is one of the original reasons I liked playing RB. You have efficient
removal, incidental life gain, and just more powerful spells overall. You do have to be careful to
not let mono R get out of control, but I thik RB is very favoured in this MU, to the point where I
dont have much commentary to add. Try to keep your life total high, try to be efficient with your
spells and mana, try to play around their roasts or lava coils, and if you can save dreadbores for
harder to kill threats.

Mostly you want better removal and less thoughtseizes post board, but you can always
play more anti red cards if you want, any sortve deal x gain x is good, march of the wretched
sorrow is the first one that comes to mind. I also like bringing in extinction event to respect
hazoret or the Obosh versions. Also, Consumes all is good vs the obosh versions or most
versions that are trying to lean on the 1 drops more. Outside of that, I think you should not have
issues vs Mono R.
Lotus Field

Cards to look out for: Lotus. That’s about it

https://www.mtggoldfish.com/archetype/pioneer-hidden-strings#paper

Just like UW control, I think this deck is very bad. It really is only good vs RB, and even then RB
has a chance to just beat Lotus on t4 or 5, especially if you run interference. Sheoldred is very
powerful against them in the late game, while any discard is good in the early game. You want
to try to pressure the board as much as possible, just so you can attack for a lot of damage.
Unlike some other MUs, I do think you should thoughtseize early to hit the cards that search for
Lotus. Although you cant actually take lotus, if they dont have a lotus and only a search effect,
their deck is pretty bad.

I think having sideboard slots for just lotus is throwing away % points overall. I think
Lotus is bad vs every other deck in the format, so I dont expect it much at events, and the cards
you can have for lotus are not the most impactful. I think Alpine moon and Damping sphere dont
do enough and the lotus duck has many different ways to interact. Duress and Go blank are
both good and cover other MUs, so I like those a lot more.

5c Fires of invention (I think Goldfish means this is Enigmatic Incarnation)

https://www.mtggoldfish.com/archetype/pioneer-5c-fires-of-invention#paper

Cards to look out for: Enigmatic Incarnation, post board Archon of Sun’s grace

I also think this deck is pretty bad, but good against RB. If you take a look at the deck, it
is very inconsistent, from the manabase to the actual threat suite. This makes the most
important card in the deck at any point Enigmatic. If you can thoughtseize that and they dont
draw another one, you will probably win everytime. The times they do have enigmatic we are in
danger so I dont feel there is much to say for nuances. You have to hope they dont have good
enchantments to search with, or you have such a demanding board control enigmatic doesnt
take over the game. After that, you have to hope they dont draw their top end if the game goes
long.

A lot of beating this deck is just thoughtseizing and putting a bunch of threat into play to
end the game. Our sideboard plan works accordingly, Bank buster and duress are the two best
things. Of course you can play Go blanks, and other aggro cards to end the game, but if you
dont deal with enigmatic it doesnt always really matter, so I wouldnt say having cards just for
this mu is a good idea, where as duress and bankbuster cover other matches etc. With this in
mind Ashiok, dream render I think is good vs them, but I havent actually played it myself.

Post board I do think you have to leave in some Dreadbore for Archon, because it turns
all of the enchantments into a value card. If both players identify that enigmatic is the most
important card and has to be answered, the Enigmatic deck will try to sidestep that, I think
archon is the best for that. Sometimes the enigmatic deck also leans on Koma, which is also
beatable, and I think the best way to do some is to bring in some Extinction events. I am not
sure you want all three even, but just be aware that that is a way to beat their threat suite post
board.

Red White Heroic

https://www.mtggoldfish.com/archetype/pioneer-boros-aggro-4d7c58e7-2a25-4e97-a267-90e0fa
75fb74#paper

Cards to look out for: gods willing, sejiri Shelter, Showdown of the skalds

I think this deck is fine, just not amazing vs RB, so it’s meta share is very low. I do think it
is very good vs Mono G, so there is always a possibility it is the aggro deck of choice for the
weekend of some people. It is consistent, can be powerful, and definitely has many ways to win.
The approach to this deck is simple, kill their creatures, play your threats. You do really need to
play around the Protection spells as much as possible so you dont get blown out and lose
because of it. The best way to do this is to have multiple removal spells, and using the sorcery
versions of the removal first, so when they cast the protectin spell you have the instead speed
removal. Alternatively, you can just chump block with your creatures to force, the use of spells.
For example, if opponent attacks with a ½ swiftspear, there is a good ance you just block with
anything because it wastes their mana, your creatures are mostly replaceable, and if they use a
protection spell you can likely untap and kill their creature.

Post board the RW decks try to grind more, with more of our favorite card Wedding
Announcement. Sometimes they also have Showdown of the Skalds, or Hazoret the Fervent.
We want Extinction events because they are non targeting removal that exiles, which is very
good against all the things I mentioned above. You can also play Consumes all, but it doesnt hit
the good creatures in the MU so I am less high on that card. There are also many other wraths
you can play, path of peril, ritual of soot etc, but I think with the amount of spot removal we have
we dont need those, the ‘destroy’ aspect kinda sucks, and they arent very good in other MUs.
Gruul Aggro

https://www.mtggoldfish.com/archetype/pioneer-gruul-aggro#paper

Cards to look out for: Atarka’s Command

This deck is a very low to the ground aggro deck that functions around pressuring the
board early to kill you before you can do anything. Although I think this MU is good for RB, they
have a high end draw where you will just die. The best way to deal with this deck is to have
early removal. Rb sufferers from a similar problem here as we do against other decks, Fatal
push is the best removal, but sometimes we have to use other removal to save the good
removal for the better creatures. If you are being pressured the first priority is just not die, but
you should be conscious of how you are casting your removal. For example, yes phoenix chick
is annoying, but over three turns it only does three damage. If you kill the chick with only 1
removal spell, and opponent follows up with a kari zev, you're in danger. The first fix is to have
more removal, but realistically we can also ignore some of the opponents cards so we don’t
have to fire off the removal immediately.

Post board is very similar to most other aggro decks. YOu want more removal and life
gain if you have it. One thing I thin that is different vs Gruul is that I think Kroxa should come out
here and Sheoldred should stay in. Some lists have answers to Sheoldred, which is rough, but
Kroxa’s flashback is a little slow and the game doesnt always revolve around card advantage.

The biggest thing is to just be wary of your life total and use it as a resource. I think you
have a pretty good MU so you have to get unlucky to lose, but its still important to maximize the
defense you have vs their busted draws.

Rakdos Sacrifice

https://www.mtggoldfish.com/archetype/pioneer-rakdos-sacrifice#paper

Cards to look out for: Witch’s oven, Mayhem Devil, Claim the first born.

Add this to the list of ‘Decks that I think arent great but are good vs RB’. Sacrifice being a
synergy deck is it’s greatest strength and is biggest weakness, and that is normally where you
will find your success, by exploiting that. Sac’s cards by themselves are significantly less
powerful, the issue is it is hard for RB to interact well enough to disrupt. Witch’s oven make it
hard to kill the problem creature without Sac getting some value, and is an engine with Cat and
Devil. Devil turns their deck into a fireball effect without needing to go to combat and does
enough damage even if you kill it immediately. Claim the first born works as a lightning bolt that
kills a creature and deals three damage to your face. So how do you beat the deck that has so
many good cards against our deck while fueling their synergy?

The biggest enabler is Witch’s oven. Of course they have other sacrifice effects, but
Oven if the best. If you deal with Oven, It makes devil worse, it makes Claim worse, it makes our
removal better, but it is very hard to deal with G1. Some versions of RB play 1 abrade main, but
it probably isnt enough. Thoughtseizing it is your best chance to deal with it early, and allows
you to play around their threats/ answers/ synergies. If you cant deal with Oven, Kalitas and
sheoldred are two hard to deal with Perminants that can close the game fast. Other than that,
Sac has a tough time dealing with non Creature permanents, so PWs are good etc.

Consumes all is mainly in the board for this MU, as it deals with all the small perminants
while dealing with the GY a turn later, which isnt irrelevant. Artifact removal is also good.
Abrade, K command are the two best. Abrade deals with Oven and Devil, while k command is
good at getting back one of the good 4 drops if they die. Abrade is better, but both have different
reasons across other decks, so I dont think there is a default best answer. You can also play
cards like By Force, but I dont think it is effective enough and bad against other MUs. I bring in
hearse, but I think it can be pretty bad. Dealing with a cat or stopping the cat from doing the
thing can be important, but realistically if it was another abrade it would be better in this MU. If
you do bring in Hearse, be aware of Kari Zev’s Expertise which hits vehicles, too. I dont expect
much Sac around as the deck is bad vs mono G and is still a synergy deck so even in better
MUs it requires a lot of moving pieces to be consistently good. If consumes all, abrade and k
command didnt hit other MUs I am unsure if I would have them in the board, I dont think
respecting Sac is that important.

Niv to Light

https://www.mtggoldfish.com/archetype/niv-to-light#paper

Cards to look out for: their wraths, dont know all the names, just dont over extend
into the wraths.

I also think Niv sucks, but I dont think its a bad MU for RB. They have a few cards you
have to worry about, but realistically they are so terribly inconsistent that it doesn’t matter. Their
best draws involve Caryatid, so when they dont have that they cant realistically cast their spells
consistently. Even the times where they hit Niv, if you kill it and attack they are back on the back
foot. The cards they found with Niv have to be castable, and they have to be able to double
spell to keep up. I think if you stick to the plan of Thoughseize early, put pressure into play and
deal with the Niv problems as they come you can out grind them sometimes and also just
pressure them so it doesn't matter how many cards they have because they cant cast them.
 Post board you want to cut all pushs, the card kills nothing important. The PWs are a
different form of pressure Niv can have, so be wary of that. I like having some duress, but only if
you have enough things to remove. You can build your deck many ways also, if you want to
grind vs them or if you want to be aggressive, I think both plans are good.

These are all the decks I am going to cover for now, even though there are probably ten
different decks to talk about, I think most of them fall into a plan I have outlined above. Playing
against a control deck? Aggro, Midrange? Assess your roll and play accordingly. Is there a
specific nuanced situation where one card is good where it wouldnt normally be? Just make
room for it.

Questions People have asked me about the deck (That I remember)

Have you considered adding another colour to make some MUs better? (W for Vanishing
verse against Mono G for example).

The way I decide if a deck is good is three things: Power level, Consistency, and place in a
format. I think if you’re going to give up % points in one of those spots, you better be gaining it
back in a very meaningful way in another, and I think adding another colour losses so much
consistency it is not worst the power gain against decks like Mono G, and, there are plans that
are good enough VS mono G now. It is possible there are cards or other colours I could asdd for
other specific MUs, but the question remains, is this better than just being more consistent? I
dont think it is.

Why do you always cut thoughtseize in the Mirror?

I think as the format as grown, we can assess specific cards for specific spots, so we can bring
in those cards for those spots and beat these sequences consistently, rather than have a
generic answer. I think the heuristic of ‘Thoughtseize is a bad Topdeck’ is garbage. I mean, that
statement is usually true, but the concept of thoughtseize is that it is a 1 mana removal spell for
other spells, usually ones in higher power that we have a hard time answering (Fable mostly).
So why wouldnt I want a 1 mana spell that almost always beats a spell that has a higher mana
cost? For one, I think a lot of cards in the mirror are redundant, so the effect of TS is kinda low.
Yes, sometimes you can pick a removal spell to protect a creature, or a fable for t3, or a PW that
will get them more cards, but if you exchange that TS for a better, grindy card, you can simply
have more resources. Like I said, I see most resources as redundant, so a way to punch
through is to just have more of them. Of course, if we are identifying the specific cards for
specific spots that exist in the MU, then some cards are better than others, but they arent
drastically better that the game ends when they are cast or they are unanswerable (boat), so
picking those threats or answers dont swing the MU that much, so we shouldn't focus on TS to
be answering those things, but rather a well rounded card that is specifically good while also
gains advantage. To put this in practice, Bankbuster does this the best I believe, especially
when people are still playing Lili. K command is another card, etc. In short, TS isnt specific
enough, isnt grindy enough, doesnt win the game. I think you want a better card post board.

Visual Sideboard guide for my most recent list

https://www.mtggoldfish.com/deck/5164342#paper