Abzan Rhino Fit

Legacy BGW (Abzan, Junk) Competitive GWUB Midrange

davidfischer

Land (23)

• 1x Bayou
• 1x Field of the Dead
• 1x Forest
• 1x Karakas
• 1x Nurturing Peatland
• 1x Phyrexian Tower
• 2x Prismatic Vista
• 1x Savannah
• 1x Scrubland
• 2x Snow-Covered Forest
• 1x Snow-Covered Plains
• 1x Snow-Covered Swamp
• 1x Swamp
• 3x Verdant Catacombs
• 1x Volrath's Stronghold
• 4x Windswept Heath

Creature (17)

• 1x Eternal Witness
• 1x Gaddock Teeg
• 1x Hexdrinker
• 1x Knight of Autumn
• 1x Meren of Clan Nel Toth
• 1x Plague Engineer
• 1x Primeval Titan
• 1x Questing Beast
• 1x Scavenging Ooze
• 1x Tarmogoyf
• 1x Thragtusk
• 2x Tireless Tracker
• 4x Veteran Explorer

Enchantment (3)

• 1x Mirri's Guile
• 1x Pernicious Deed
• 1x Sylvan Library

Instant (6)

• 3x Abrupt Decay
• 1x Assassin's Trophy
• 2x Path to Exile

Sorcery (10)

• 4x Cabal Therapy
• 4x Green Sun's Zenith
• 2x Thoughtseize

Planeswalker (1)

• 1x Vraska, Golgari Queen

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Sideboard

Instant (6)

• 1x Abrupt Decay
• 1x Assassin's Trophy
• 2x Surgical Extraction
• 2x Veil of Summer

Creature (5)

• 1x Collector Ouphe
• 2x Faerie Macabre
• 2x Plague Engineer

Enchantment (4)

• 2x Carpet of Flowers
• 2x Leyline of the Void

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Despite the name, Siege Rhino is an endangered species and might get the axe for something like Tarmogoyf .

I would like to have 4 Verdant Catacombs but I only own 3.

Tournament Reports

October 9, 2019 - 16 People - 2-2

R1: 2-0 against Slivers

• G1: I knew what this guy was on before the game started as a bunch of us had been talking about Slivers before the tournament. He had to mulligan game one and I opened with a Cabal Therapy naming Aether Vial which missed. He had a hand with a Cavern of Souls and a bunch of slivers including 2 Hibernation Sliver . He played a Striking Sliver and passed. I followed up with a Veteran Explorer , flashbacked the Therapy getting the 2 Hibernation Slivers and followed up with a Hymn to Tourach . A Pernicious Deed took care of his other 1 mana slivers and a Tireless Tracker ended the game shortly after.
• I boarded in only the 2 Golgari Charm for Nissa, Vital Force and Nissa, Vastwood Seer  . After thinking about it, perhaps I should have removed Archon of Valor's Reach since they run 8 non-creatures (4 Force of Will and 4 Aether Vial ) although blocking fliers seemed valuable.
• G2: Again I had a T1 Therapy into T2 Vet. I missed naming Muscle Sliver on the draw since he'd have played a Vial if he had it (he played a Striking Sliver). I played Meren of Clan Nel Toth and began recurring the Veteran Explorer every turn with Phyrexian Tower . He had no basics. Pernicious Deed wiped his board. I played an Archon of Valor's Reach naming planeswalker and it closed the game out in 4 turns while Meren held the ground.
• We played a couple more games of practice since we were done with literally 25 minutes left. He won ~50% of them so I don't think the matchup is that good. Slivers get big fast although Deed is an all-star.

R2: 0-2 against RUG Delver

• G1: I was blind in this matchup and did a T1 Cabal Therapy on the play naming Brainstorm and got a hit! He had 2 Delver of Secrets  , Wasteland , Daze , Flooded Strand , and Spell Pierce . I had kept a hand with 4 lands, Scavenging Ooze , Therapy, and Hymn to Tourach . I played around Daze by not playing the Hymn T2 and played it instead T3. Unfortunately, even after thinning the deck with a Veteran Explorer , I didn't see any other non-lands. The 2 Delvers were enough.
• I boarded in the 2 Carpet of Flowers and 2 Ethersworn Canonist for some of my top end curve like Nissa, Vital Force and Titania, Protector of Argoth .
• G2: I had a T1 Therapy naming Force of Will but missed. I did see a Sylvan Library . The game went pretty slow after that although I did cast Assassin's Trophy on Wrenn and Six and got a Carpet online. He took 8 from the Sylvan the first turn and then 4 more a turn later. He was able to get through the Canonists although I did get to Path to Exile a Tarmogoyf in response to him killing the Canonist and he couldn't counter it! With fetch lands and I got 1 attack in, he finally got to 1 but even with my own Sylvan Library , I couldn't finish. He was killing me slowly with a Delver and a fully leveled up Hexdrinker who was sitting there to block my Ooze until he had lethal.
• Overall, I felt this was very winnable. I didn't make any play or selection errors that I noticed.

R2: 1-2 against Moon Stompy

• G1: I knew he was on mono-red Stompy although I wasn't super familiar with the matchup. I was on the draw and he had a T1 Goblin Rabblemaster off a Chrome Mox and an Ancient Tomb . I was able to block a token with a Veteran Explorer which ramped me enough to Pernicious Deed away the goblin threats. Titania, Protector of Argoth and Tireless Tracker closed it out shortly after although he did get me to 5.
• I boarded in the 2 Golgari Charm for Nissa, Vital Force and Archon of Valor's Reach . Knowing the matchup better, I think Archon is a keep (naming Planeswalker).
• G2: He started with 2 Leyline of the Void in play and a T1 Legion Warboss off a Simian Spirit Guide . I had 2 Pernicious Deed in hand but I had to Green Sun's Zenith just for a Veteran Explorer (which couldn't trigger due to Leyline) to stay alive long enough just to Deed away the tokens. He was simply too fast and had an excellent draw.
• G3: This game was a little slow with him opening with no T1 play other than a Mountain although he did start with another Leyline. He took some damage from a Scavenging Ooze and his own Ancient Tomb and eventually had a Chalice of the Void on 1 and 2. I was able to Pernicious Deed them away although he kept his Chandra, Torch of Defiance which was slowly able to close out the game. Notably in this grindy game there was a situation where he was able to kill Shifting Ceratops with Chandra and a Siege Rhino would have survived. While I know Ceratops is better in control matchups, it's definitely a card I'm not set on.
• I made a small play error game one which didn't matter much but overall I played well. He had some good draws and got there. If I knew the matchup better, I would have prioritized Gaddock Teeg . I didn't realize this deck ran 4 Chandras.

R1: 2-0 against Eldrazi Aggro

• G1: I was blind in the first game although my opponent had to mulligan. On the play, I opened with a basic plains holding back a Path to Exile with the intention of a T2 Sylvan Library (I also had Meren of Clan Nel Toth , Pernicious Deed , and an Assassin's Trophy ). I figured out the matchup when he played an Eldrazi Temple . He cast Thought-Knot Seer and took the Deed. I cast Meren and over the next few turns was able to recur Veteran Explorer into my hand to pitch when casting removal on 2 Reality Smasher . Thragtusk , Meren, and luck in drawing quite a bit of removal was able to get there.
• I didn't board anything.
• G2: He had to mulligan again and opened with another Eldrazi Temple but didn't have an Eldrazi Mimic or any other T1 play. I responded with a Cabal Therapy naming Thought-Knot Seer which missed revealing an Oblivion Sower , Simian Spirit Guide , Ratchet Bomb , and lands. No matter though because he drew TKS and cast it off of a Karakas and the guide. The Karakas was pretty annoying as I had Meren again. I took a couple hits from it but I was able to ramp to an Archon of Valor's Reach (naming Sorcery because with Archon I was ahead on the board) which he couldn't deal with. It closed the game and he showed me All Is Dust !

Overall

I was pretty happy overall and my preparation for the Eldrazi Aggro matchup paid off. I think the Delver matchup still favors me, but just couldn't win it. It was nice to not have to play against any combo even though it wasn't any better on the W/L. The two 3-0 decks going into the final round were a Wrenn and Six Maverick variant and an Emry, Lurker of the Loch deck which seemed cool.

In both cases I boarded it in, I wished the Golgari Charm was a Toxic Deluge or a Dead of Winter . With Wrenn and Six making people reconsider 1 toughness creatures, I will probably change those charms to something else.

July 31, 2019 - 14 People - 2-2

R1: 0-2 against Slow Depths

• G1: I knew what he was on before the game started. I was on the play and had a T1 Cabal Therapy naming Exploration which missed. He didn't have a great hand but he did have a Gamble and Thespian's Stage . I got pretty lucky and got the Thespian's Stage randomly with Gamble , but he got very lucky and made a 20/20 on T4 or so.
• I boarded in Leyline of the Void , 2x Surgical Extraction , 2x Ashiok, Dream Render and Lost Legacy
• G2: Again I had a wiff with a turn 1 Therapy but he revealed a very slow hand with 2x Life from the Loam and Punishing Fire and no Dark Depths or Thespian's Stage or any way to get them. The next turn, I flashbacked Therapy getting the Loams and exiled them with Surgical Extraction . My hope was this would be a slow game without dredging Loam. I was able to get to 6 lands and cast Archon of Valor's Reach but he drew naturally into Marit Lage a turn later without Gamble or Crop Rotation and I didn't have an answer. In my notes on the matchup, I say to save Surgical for Depths or Stage but they never hit the yard and I think my play to try to race him was fine.
• After thinking on this a bit more, I think letting him Loam and dredge is probably a better play line and then surgical Depths or Stage in response to Loam. This should slow him down at least 1 turn and then he'd be in top deck mode which is not where he wants to be without his combo and against a clock.

R2: 1-2 against Reanimator

• G1: I was blind in this matchup but figured it out when my opponent revealed a pre-game Chancellor of the Annex . He didn't do anything T1 and I didn't either as I was trying to save my Cabal Therapy until after the Chancellor effect. He Exhumed Griselbrand T2 and won pretty quickly after that.
• Ten cards came in: Leyline of the Void , 2x Surgical Extraction , 2x Ashiok, Dream Render , Lost Legacy , 2x Ethersworn Canonist , and 2x Thoughtseize .
• G2: He had to mulligan to 6 and I had a T1 Thoughtseize which got Reanimate . I followed it up with Cabal Therapy turn 2 and got an Animate Dead . I did have to dodge one draw step, but I had Tireless Tracker followed by Scavenging Ooze which sealed the game.
• G3: He revealed another Chancellor and was able to cheat it into play turn 2. I Pathed it although I should have done that on his upkeep because it allowed him to Faithless Looting one turn earlier. I'm not sure it would have made a big difference though because he was able to then get Griselbrand and Iona, Shield of Emeria (naming white) which sealed the game. He said he was brand new to Reanimator and this was literally his 2nd round with it total.

R3: 2-1 against Dredge

• G1: This game went pretty poorly and he was pretty quickly able to get a few Bridge from Below and Ichorid off of a T1 Putrid Imp .
• All the grave hate came in.
• G2: I was able to Surgical Extraction on Narcomoeba after his T1 Faithless Looting and that slowed the game down a lot. He made a couple zombies one per turn from Bridge from Below sacking Ichorid but scooped almost immediately when I GSZed for Scavenging Ooze with a few green open.
• G3: I mulliganed for more interaction and kept a good hand with Surgical Extraction . He went for it T1 sacking Lion's Eye Diamond in response to his Breakthrough cast off Cephalid Coliseum . He pitched a Golgari Grave-Troll , but I surgicalled it forcing him to simply draw 4 and pitch them. The game went pretty slow after that although he was able to build up a board eventually with 3 Narcomoeba and a few Ichorid . I got very low but was able to stabilize with Scavenging Ooze eating his yard. It came down to the final turn where I was at 3 life, no creatures in either yard, and he had lethal with 3 Narcomoebas but I drew Green Sun's Zenith . I had Sylvan Library so it wasn't that lucky and there was also an Assassin's Trophy in the 3 top cards which would have bought a turn. I fetched a Siege Rhino which coupled with a pretty fat Ooze at that point was enough.

R4: 2-1 against Reanimator

• G1: I went into the matchup blind. He had a turn 1 Griselbrand on the play with Chancellor of the Annex in hand. Must be nice. I played a couple turns to try to stabilize but it was over. My opponent told me he was also newer to Reanimator although he did own the deck.
• Like the last reanimator match, I boarded in 10 cards.
• G2: I kept a hand that had lands, Knight of Autumn , Cabal Therapy , and Veteran Explorer . I named Reanimate with Cabal Therapy and hit. He cast Unmask and took my Vet. I drew Surgical Extraction on turn 2 and on his turn cast it in response to Animate Dead targeting Griselbrand (very lucky). Over the next few turns, I found a Vet, and cast the Knight taking the counters to make a fast clock, followed it up with a GSZ for Scavenging Ooze after which he scooped.
• G3: He had to mulligan to 4. I mulliganed aggressively to 6 and kept a very strong hand including Leyline of the Void . On turn 3, I had Vet / Tower and cast GSZ for Titania which was a 2 turn clock and it was enough. He was able to deal with Leyline with Reverent Silence , but not fast enough and I had a Surgical Extraction in hand anyway although it wasn't needed.

Overall

This was a tough tournament playing against 4 combo decks and I was fortunate to go 2-2. I never got to play Shifting Ceratops and boarded it out actually a few times so more testing is needed there. Likewise, I never played my 2x Ashiok, Dream Render although I boarded them in in every matchup. With the exception of the one misplay I mentioned, I was pretty happy with my play overall. The Lands/Depths matchup especially seemed much better than the last time I played it (same person) although the result was the same.

July 10, 2019 - 16 People - 3-1

R1: 0-2 against Infect

• G1: This is not a matchup I'm very familiar with but I figured it out when he had a T1 Glistener Elf on the play. I had my T2 Hymn to Tourach Dazed and he finished the game turn 3.
• I boarded out the Siege Rhino , Knight of Autumn , Planeswalkers, and Recurring Nightmare for Choke , Thoughtseize , and Golgari Charm . In retrospect, the Ethersworn Canonist would have been good here but I didn't board them in.
• G2: I kept a 5 lander because it had Cabal Therapy into Hymn to Tourach and I knew he's running Wasteland . I removed most of his hand and we got into top deck mode which I thought might be favorable. He drew a Sylvan Library which he later said was a 1-of and I drew a Green Sun's Zenith but I'd boarded out the Knight of Autumn . He paid either 12 or 16 life over 2 turns with library and got there.

R2: 2-0 against Grixis Shadow

• G1: I've played this matchup a few times and I'm pretty familiar with most Delver of Secrets   variants so I felt prepared. I was on the draw and figured out the matchup when I wiffed my T1 Cabal Therapy naming Brainstorm after he had T1 Ponder and saw Shadow. I had a T2 Veteran Explorer flashback therapy into Assassin's Trophy on his Young Pyromancer . A Siege Rhino got there pretty quick after that.
• I didn't board too much. I think I only brought in Choke .
• G2: Pretty similar to G1 except I never drew a Vet. I just played out lands and shredded his hand and again a Rhino got there.

R3: 2-0 against 4c Loam

• G1: He was on the play and he played out a Bayou and passed. My hand had Archon of Valor's Reach and Titania, Protector of Argoth so I named Assassin's Trophy with my T1 Therapy. He had 2 Abrupt Decay , Wrenn and Six , a cycle land, a Taiga and Punishing Fire . His card advantage and cycling got to Life from the Loam and things were starting to look bad when he ulted W6 (killing it) but I just slowly got to 6 mana and played Archon naming instant. I decided on Instant because it shuts him off removal (Decay, Trophy?, PFire) instead of Sorcery which only really hits Loam. I figured I didn't care about his card draw engine as long as I kept removal for his 4x Knight of the Reliquary . I followed Archon up with a Thragtusk and Titania and he scooped shortly after.
• I brought in all the grave hate and Lost Legacy .
• G2: He must have boarded in Thalias because he played it T2. I relieved his hand of Liliana of the Veil and Liliana, the Last Hope with Vet/Therapy and played a Leyline of the Void T3. I had removal for his early KotR and slowly worked an advantage with Nissa, Vital Force (ulting her) and Archon naming instant again. Lost Legacy removed his Loams. He had a Maze of Ith which was annoying with Knight (he'd killed the Leyline) but slowly I got there.

R4: 2-1 against Urza/Karn/Paradoxical-Outcome

• G1: I had scouted this deck and this guy is a regular although his deck was new and he knows I'm a Nic Fit player so we both knew what was up going into the match. His deck runs both Mishra's and Urza's Baubles , Mox Diamond and Opal , both Karns, Sai and Urza and tries to overwhelm with card advantage and thopters/servos. I had Deed and later Archon naming Artifact which sealed the game pretty quickly.
• I boarded in Choke , Golgari Charm and Lost Legacy . In retrospect, I think between Seat of the Synod and Urza allowing artifacts to tap for mana, Choke probably doesn't do enough in this matchup.
• G2: This game was going ok and I'd just Deeded away the thopters/karnstructs and I had a Vet and a Tracker on board until he got a Karn, the Great Creator off of Urza's Temporal Aperture ability and played Mycosynth Lattice .
• G3: I don't think the deck ran any countermagic so I Therapied naming Urza and got a hit. He had a T1 Chalice of the Void off a Seat of Synod, Mox Opal and a Bauble which I mostly ignored. He played City of Traitors T2 and I blew up his Synod with a Knight of Autumn . He struggled a bit and Siege Rhino with Pernicious Deed got there. I was lucky to draw Deeds and without them this matchup seems very hard.

Overall

I made at least 2 misplays over the games although I think I won the games where I did. I had made a late addition of a 24th land over one of the Trackers and I never had to mulligan so that seemed ok. Archon was great and he ended all 3 games where I resolved him so he seems like exactly what I want in a 6 drop.

June 12, 2019 - 20 People - 2-2

R1: 2-0 win against Brain Freeze

This deck uses Archive Trap and Brain Freeze to mill you out. The hymns did work in this matchup.

R2: 0-2 loss to lands

Game 1 was over by turn 3 and I think I needed to mulligan more aggressively for the GY hate especially with London Mulligan in G2.

R3: 2-1 win against Death & Taxes

Deeds were my allstars. G1 on the play he had T1 vial , T2 Thalia , T3 other Thalia and I lost that one.

R4: 1-2 loss to UR Delver

Game 1, I kept a questionable hand without therapy/vet/hymn and he did Delver things. Game 2 was an easy win. Game 3, I kept a hand without a T1 play and got my T2 Hymn countered. I almost stabilized but he drew his sideboarded Sulfuric Vortex which negated the Rhinos. Again, I think I needed to mulligan more aggressively. I think a better pilot could have won this one.

Overall

Overall, the Hymns always felt good although there were a couple times that a Thoughtseize might have been a little faster and about as good.

Change History

Pending/Maybeboard

• -2 Marsh Flats , +2 Prismatic Vista - I want all my fetches to be able to find green mana.
• -1 Siege Rhino , +1 Tarmogoyf - Goyf is really well positioned right now and getting the curve lower is a big win right now.
• -1 Shifting Ceratops , +1 Questing Beast - Beast is a beast for lack of a better term and would be a strict upgrade if it weren't a Karakas magnet. Nonetheless, it seems very good with PWs everywhere.
• -1 Nissa, Vital Force , +1 Vraska, Golgari Queen - I'm trying to cut the overall casting cast and reduce my top end and Vraska has a more immediate effect on the board.
• -1 Titania, Protector of Argoth , +1 Hexdrinker - Again, reducing the top end
• -2 Assassin's Trophy , +2 Thoughtseize - these are mostly just trading positions as the Trophies are going to the sideboard now that I'm going to run 4 Decays.
• -1 Pernicious Deed , +1 Plague Engineer - I think Engineer accomplishes a lot of the same and is more recurrable in this deck even if it isn't fetchable.
• -1 Nissa, Vastwood Seer  , -1 Archon of Valor's Reach , +2 Abrupt Decay - Decay is very well positioned right now and I don't think I need Archon since I'm going to run Primeval Titan at the 6 slot.

• I'm removing the Hymns for Primeval Titan and Field of the Dead . Currently, Hymn is not well positioned. I think Primeval Titan now that Field exists is the premiere 6 drop threat that can close almost any game out. There's a few related changes:

  • -1 Twilight Mire for Volrath's Stronghold
  • Swap half my basics for snow-covered
  • -1 Swamp for Karakas - There's less need of 3 Swamps when not running Hymn. Also, Karakas is better with ways to get it.
  • -1 Dryad Arbor , +1 Tireless Tracker - Overall, I don't want too many comes into play tapped lands now that I run Field and with the curve lower overall, I think I can go to 22 lands + Field.

• SB: -2 Ethersworn Canonist , +2 Veil of Summer - I think Veils are fantastic in the meta right now.

• SB: -1 Leyline of the Void , +1 Faerie Macabre - This is more of a test than anything but a single Leyline wasn't doing much. Faerie Macabre can be recurred by the deck in a pinch too.

October 8, 2019

• -1 Volrath's Stronghold , +1 Mirri's Guile - It smoothed out a lot of early draws in testing and still seems very relevant later as long as it isn't Deeded away.
• -1 Kaya, Ghost Assassin , +1 Path to Exile - With Teeg taking a maindeck spot, I'm looking to have fewer uncastable cards.
• -1 Recurring Nightmare , +1 Gaddock Teeg - While I love Recurring Nightmare, I think Teeg in the main is probably a better percentage play so I think I'm going to make that move.
• SB: -1 Gaddock Teeg , +1 Collector Ouphe
• SB: -2 Choke , +2 Carpet of Flowers - I think Carpets are better in this particular build because they are better to board in for Vets against Miracles/Stoneblade and I don't have any other way to pressure mana so Choke has no other synergy than just being a good card.
• SB: -1 Lost Legacy , +1 Faerie Macabre - I decided I need something 1 more piece of grave hate that comes out a little faster than Ashiok . Lost Legacy also seemed to have a lot of overlap with Ashiok.

July 30, 2019

• -1 Siege Rhino , +1 Shifting Ceratops
• -1 Karakas , +1 Marsh Flats
• SB: -2 Tormod's Crypt , +2 Ashiok, Dream Render

I think the Ceratops is mostly better than the Rhino and I definitely want to try it. It trades with Gurmag Angler and gets around Baleful Strix . It also more directly counters Jace, the Mind Sculptor and it's a hasty beater that is Zenithable.

July 9, 2019

• -1 Tireless Tracker , +1 Twilight Mire
• -2 Thoughtseize , +1 Hymn to Tourach , +1 Sylvan Library
• -1 Plains , +1 Swamp
• SB: -1 Glissa, the Traitor , +1 Thoughtseize
• SB: -1 Choke , +1 Thoughtseize
• SB: -1 Path to Exile , +1 Ethersworn Canonist
• SB: -1 Damping Sphere , +1 Ethersworn Canonist

These changes were from a combination of goldfishing and feedback on the Nic Fit Discord. Hymn to Tourach is simply more impactful on average than Thoughtseize which I think can come in from the sideboard in matchups that will benefit from it. With Hymn, I also need the extra black sources. Since the curve was raised overall from the last run, I felt an additional land was needed as well especially considering this deck has a couple utility lands in Volrath's Stronghold and Dryad Arbor . The sideboard definitely needed some love and this should help more in the deck's bad matchups.

June 13, 2019

• -1 Swamp , +1 Plains
• -1 Siege Rhino , +1 Archon of Valor's Reach
• -1 Garruk Relentless  , +1 Kaya, Ghost Assassin
• -2 Hymn to Tourach , +2 Thoughtseize
• -1 Twilight Mire , +1 Nurturing Peatland
• SB: -2 Pithing Needle , +2 Tormod's Crypt

Sideboard Notes

Aggro: Maverick

• + Ashiok, Dream Render
• + Collector Ouphe (if they're on the equipment plan)
• + Dead of Winter
• - Questing Beast
• - Knight of Autumn (only if not on equipment)

The key card in Maverick is Knight of the Reliquary although they can really slow you down with Thalia, Guardian of Thraben . KotR is their only creature that can stand remotely toe-to-toe with Nic Fit sized threats. Save removal for KotR and usually name it with Cabal Therapy . You will win this game if they can't overwhelm you early. Deed wipes their board and Dead of Winter clears the Moms .

Aggro: Delver

• + Dead of Winter (assuming they run Young Pyromancer or True-Name Nemesis )
• + Carpet of Flowers
• + Assassin's Trophy
• - Thoughtseize
• - Primeval Titan
• - Field of the Dead

If you sac a Vet early, you'll probably win. Name Force of Will usually with Therapy unless you know they're running Stifle in which case prioritize that. Play around Daze by not tapping out unless playing something uncounterable and play around Wasteland by fetching basics and you'll have a lot more live cards than they do.

Aggro: Death & Taxes

• + Dead of Winter
• + Collector Ouphe
• - Questing Beast (they run 2-3 Karakas )
• - Gaddock Teeg

Prioritize Pernicious Deed and Plague Engineer (and recurring it with Eternal Witness ) but this should be a straight-forward matchup. Use removal early until you stabilize and just play creatures that are bigger than theirs. Play around Wasteland by fetching basics. Name Aether Vial T1 on the play with Therapy and either Swords to Plowshares (if you have good sized threats in hand), Phyrexian Revoker (Deed in hand), or Thalia, Guardian of Thraben .

Aggro: Eldrazi Aggro

• + Assassin's Trophy
• - Abrupt Decay

This is a pure value matchup where they are trying to kill you before you can stabilize although this is one of the few decks that can also go over the top with huge threats. Name Thought-Knot Seer with Therapy as most of their explosive hands have that card. Let Veteran Explorer do its best Moat impression as they don't even always run basics. Unless you have reason to suspect All Is Dust typically name Artifact with Archon as it shuts off Walking Ballista , Chalice of the Void , and sometimes Umezawa's Jitte while not affecting anything we have. If they exile Simian Spirit Guide to cast a T1 Chalice , you're typically ahead.

Aggro: Moon Prison / Dragon Stompy

• + Dead of Winter
• + Collector Ouphe
• + Assassin's Trophy

Despite the number of basics in our deck, this has proven to be a tough matchup since they put a lot of pressure on early. What to name with Cabal Therapy depends heavily on what you have in your hand. If you have multiple Therapies and/or Veteran Explorer , you might name Chalice of the Void on the play. With a hand full of fetchlands or other non-basics, you might name Blood Moon or Magus of the Moon . If not, or if you're on the draw, name Goblin Rabblemaster , Chandra, Torch of Defiance , or probably the best is Karn, the Great Creator . If you have some removal like Abrupt Decay , Pernicious Deed , or Path to Exile , lean toward naming the planeswalkers. Save creature removal for Rabblemaster and Legion Warboss while trying to save Assassin's Trophy or planeswalkers.

In this matchup, they have a tendency to go all-in on 1-2 threats so having early answers is key. Wether that is a turn 1 Blood Moon effect, Chalice of the Void , Trinisphere , or Goblin Rabblemaster , or possibly a turn 2 planeswalker, that is their game plan. Mulligan accordingly as losing 1-2 cards for more early interaction is easily worth it. Basics and removal are what you want! Gaddock Teeg does work in this matchup as he can block and kill any of their creatures and stops them from playing planeswalkers. While Veteran Explorer ramps/thins them just as much as us, it is a great blocker and fixes all our mana problems.

Control: Miracles

• + Carpet of Flowers
• - Swords to Plowshares
• - Veteran Explorer (keep 1)

Don't overcommit to the board to try to make Terminus a 1 for 1. Veteran Explorer isn't great in this matchup as they run as many basics as we do and have highly efficient cards like Jace. Field of the Dead or Vraska, Golgari Queen are really strong in this matchup.

Control: Grixis Midrange

• + Carpet of Flowers
• - Knight of Autumn

Just go for value. Save removal for planeswalkers and Gurmag Angler . If the game gets grindy, fetch Scavenging Ooze and remove their instants/sorceries/Snapcasters as they typically run recursion in Kolaghan's Command and Snapcaster Mage as well as delve cards. Bring in Dead of Winter only if you see True-Name Nemesis . Don't bother for just Baleful Strix . Name Force of Will with Therapy.

Control: Stoneblade

• + Carpet of Flowers
• + Dead of Winter (for True-Name Nemesis )
• + Collector Ouphe
• - Swords to Plowshares
• - Veteran Explorer (keep 1)

Similar to Miracles, you don't want to give Stoneblade too many lands and they run lots of basics so Veteran Explorer isn't as good here. Shred their hand by naming Force of Will and True-Name Nemesis although you can also save a Therapy for after Stoneforge Mystic resolves. Gaddock Teeg shuts off Force of Will and Jace, the Mind Sculptor so it's pretty good here (usually by eating a Plow). Field of the Dead does work in this matchup.

Control: Nic Fit Mirror

• + Ashiok, Dream Render
• + Surgical Extraction (lowest priority)
• - Veteran Explorer

In the mirror, you play for pure value. Whoever draws the most cards and the most efficient cards will probably win the game. This changes a bit if they are in a combo variant of Nic Fit but still not too much.

Name Cabal Therapy with your own Therapy on the play which is somewhat counter-intuitive. On the draw, name Green Sun's Zenith which is theirs and our most dangerous 4-of in the deck. Veteran Explorer is bad in this matchup as it is literally part of their game plan. Board them out. If they keep theirs in, they have a card in their deck actively helping you. The Surgicals aren't great from the sideboard but they're better than keeping Vets. Board in more grave hate against Rector variants.

Control: Loam

• + Surgical Extraction
• + Faerie Macabre
• + Ashiok, Dream Render
• + Assassin's Trophy
• - Veteran Explorer

This is the more midrange creature matchup that runs Knight of the Reliquary as its main threat and Loam / Bob as a draw engine. In this matchup, Knight is their key card and removing that with Surgical Extraction will most likely end the game very quickly. Sometimes they run a smaller Dark Depths / Thespian's Stage package but removing even one of either piece will usually shut that off. Save removal for knights, Liliana of the Veil , Wrenn and Six , or very rarely Depths/Stage. Without their knights, they simply have nothing that can stand toe-to-toe with your creatures.

Combo: Show & Tell

• + Assassin's Trophy
• - Abrupt Decay
• - Pernicious Deed

Shred their hand if possible. This is a tough matchup and should be over very fast one way or the other. Therapy should name Show and Tell . If possible, save a Green Sun's Zenith for Knight of Autumn in case they tap out for Sneak Attack .

Combo: Storm

• + Surgical Extraction
• + Collector Ouphe
• - Veteran Explorer
• - Swords to Plowshares

Get Gaddock Teeg in play ASAP and hope for the best. This matchup is hard. If you're saccing a Vet, you're probably giving them enough mana to go off so don't do it unless you're also shredding their hand or using it get lands to cast Teeg or Collector Ouphe on the same turn. Name Dark Ritual or Lion's Eye Diamond with Cabal Therapy although Internal Tutor isn't bad. A resolved Pernicious Deed can mess with their combo timing and stop Empty the Warrens .

Combo: Infect

• + Assassin's Trophy
• + Dead of Winter
• - Siege Rhino
• - Thragtusk
• - Knight of Autumn

Use removal on your own turn. Deed will win you the game. They only run 12 total infecters so removal is very strong and you can happily trade creature for creature with them. Name Invigorate if you're worried about an explosive start from them or Vines of Vastwood if you have spot removal.

Combo: Lands/Depths

• + Assassin's Trophy
• + Surgical Extraction
• + Faerie Macabre
• + Ashiok, Dream Render
• - Abrupt Decay (leave a few)
• - Veteran Explorer (depending on variant)
• - Gaddock Teeg

Save surgicals only for Dark Depths or Thespian's Stage . Depths is the primary target as there are other ways to activate Depths besides Stage. Don't bother on Grove of the Burnwillows or Punishing Fire . Bring in Dead of Winter if they are running Dark Confidant , Sylvan Safekeeper , or Vampire Hexmage . Save Assassin's Trophy for Stage after it copies depths. Use Deed on 1 for Mox Diamond and Exploration or use it on their creatures if they aren't creatureless. Always fetch basics to work around Wasteland . Leave in a few Decays even vs. Creatureless as they are good against Exploration and Chalice of the Void and the creatureless build typically boards in Tireless Trackers. Name Crop Rotation with Therapy unless you're sure they're running Exploration then name that.

Combo: Reanimator

• + Surgical Extraction
• + Faerie Macabre
• + Ashiok, Dream Render
• - Pernicious Deed
• - Gaddock Teeg (against typical BR varieties)

This is a tough matchup game 1 but prioritize getting Scavenging Ooze and shredding their hand of reanimate spells (prioritize Reanimate over Exhume and Animate Dead ) with Cabal Therapy . They typically don't run enough lands in their entire deck to hard cast any threats so use Veteran Explorer freely.

Combo: Dredge

• + Surgical Extraction
• + Faerie Macabre
• + Ashiok, Dream Render
• - Thoughtseize
• - Gaddock Teeg (leave in vs. Manaless)

This is a tough matchup game 1. Prioritize getting Scavenging Ooze to try to hold off their game plan. Sacrifice creatures to get rid of Bridge from Below . For Manaless, Teeg shuts off their spells although it doesn't turn off dredging.

Combo: Elves

• + Ashiok, Dream Render
• + Thoughtseize
• - Thragtusk
• - Primeval Titan
• - Field of the Dead

This is one of the few combo matchups that isn't absolutely awful although you need fast interaction or you're dead. Their deck is basically a bunch of mana dorks that they're trying to use to get Craterhoof Behemoth usually via Natural Order or Green Sun's Zenith . Name Natural Order with Therapy as that is in their most explosive hands.

Date added	5 years
Last updated	5 years
Legality	This deck is Legacy legal.
Rarity (main - side)	10 - 0 Mythic Rares 33 - 9 Rares 11 - 4 Uncommons 0 - 2 Commons
Cards	60
Avg. CMC	2.03
Tokens	Beast 3/3 G, Clue, Emblem Vraska, Golgari Queen, Experience Token, Zombie 2/2 B