Get To Know Your Metagame: Grixis Control
Features
KrazyCaley
15 May 2010
2310 views
15 May 2010
2310 views
Grixis Control has never really dominated this metagame, but it has always hung around respectably; it does well against the creature-based decks (Jund, Allies, Mythic, Polymorph), but suffers against decks that do not rely on creatures. This deck has two variants now that ROE has been released, but we'll talk about both the pre-ROE (low creature) and post-ROE (high creature) variants.
Core cards (pre-ROE, though may use ROE cards)
Terminate, Blightning, Lightning Bolt, Cruel Ultimatum
Secondary cards
Nicol Bolas, Planeswalker, Staggershock, Consuming Vapors, Thraximundar, Infest, Volcanic Fallout, Jace, the Mind Sculptor, Sorin Markov, Liliana Vess, Wretched Banquet, Spreading Seas, Duress, Inquisition of Kozilek, Slave of Bolas, Swerve, Countersquall, Negate, etc.
New variant typical cards (post-ROE new creature-heavy variant)
Terminate, Blightning, Cruel Ultimatum, Gatekeeper of Malakir
, Sedraxis Specter, Siege-Gang Commander, Jace, the Mind Sculptor.
How it works
Grixis Control is a murder machine. Not even Jund can keep up with Grixis' ability to wipe creatures off the board. Grixis will just sit there for turns and turns, doing absolutely nothing but answering enemy threats. The new variant tries to give its opponent a bit more to think about in the midrange with Jace TMS and several nice creatures, but don't be fooled- these are not the true win conditions.
The real win condition shared by all Grixis decks is Cruel Ultimatum. If you let Grixis get out three black, two blue, two red, there will be a Cruel Ultimatum coming shortly. And lest you doubt the power of Cruel Ultimatum, let us review that it is:
Raise Dead - Cumulative CMC 1
Diabolic Edict - Cumulative CMC 3
Fugue - Cumulative CMC 8
Concentrate - Cumulative CMC 12
Abuna's Chant - Cumulative CMC 16
Kaervek's Spite without the drawback- Cumulative CMC 19 and Kaervek's Spite's drawback.
So yes. Cumulative CMC 19's worth of effects, for seven mana. While Cruel Ultimatum is not always completely decisive, I would estimate that Grixis Control players win about 90-95% of the games where they get to resolve a Cruel Ultimatum. Some players use other finishers like Thraximundar, Eldrazi, or the ever-feared Nicol Bolas, Planeswalker, but Cruel Ultimatum is the one you will always see.
How to beat it
Have a way to win that doesn't depend on creatures, or at least use creatures that have shroud. It's really that simple. Counterspells are also very efficacious; the deck only carries around so many win conditions, and while you can't just bring 80 counterspells and expect to win against the new, creature-heavy variant, a smattering will help keep your mind at ease vis a vis Cruel Ultimatum.
If your deck is largely creature-free, as with one of the new Planeswalker decks, then you will probably have smooth sailing, though you will have to beware the Grixis sideboard, which is typically full of answers to creature-free decks; counterspells and Duress are to be found in many a Grixis sideboard. Also, beware of Swerve; this deck is the only major standard player that runs this dangerous spell. Especially beware if you run "target player" monster spells like Mind Sludge and the like, as they could quickly be headed right back at you; the real damage, however, comes from swerved Blightnings, Esper Charms, Sign in Bloods, and the like.
And as with Jund, your deck can't be too Blightning-sensitive. Mythic relies entirely on creatures and HATES to discard cards- Grixis completely destroys creatures and has the best discard spell ever printed. The more your deck looks like Mythic, the worse off you'll be. The more Planeswalkers and counterspells you have, the better off you'll be.
Good sideboard choices
Celestial Purge, any and all non-creature counterspells, any and all Planeswalkers, Sphinx of Jwar Isle and other shroud creatures, Duress.
Tomorrow's Meta: Polymorph
mattlohkamp says... #2
I have actually never managed to resolve a Cruel Ultimatum - I've been holding but one mana off colour, been forced to discard it, even had it Countersquall ed (which was sad) - someday, though. Someday.
May 16, 2010 5:25 p.m.
CarnagePool says... #3
Run a Grixis deck but its rather different than the standard..well sorta. Anyways. Cruel Ult is a beast when it goes off, especially when your teammate (In a casual 2v2 game) then hits your cruel ult with a Twincast so it gets doubled.
May 16, 2010 9:15 p.m.
mattlohkamp says... #4
wow, I stand corrected, I managed to kill off an out of control eldrazi green ramp deck with: Staggershock and two Lightning Bolt s on the end of another player's turn, and then Cruel Ultimatum on my turn. Didn't even end up winning that game overall (5-player free for all) but being able to say, "I've got an ultimatum for you," was great.
May 17, 2010 2:35 a.m.
KrazyCaley says... #5
I've resolved probably about three or four dozen Cruel Ultimatum s in tournament conditions. You don't get to cast it TOO often between losses where you never cast it and wins where other stuff gets you the win instead, but it's fun to cast. You have to do it right to get maximum enjoyment.
KrazyCaley's Guide to Casting Cruel Ultimatum
Step 1- Pick out the seven lands that you are going to use to cast the ultimatum.
Step 2- Pick out your two blues and put them to the left, three blacks in the middle, two reds in the right.
Step 3- When you cast the spell, before you announce it, put the mana in your pool in this order- blue, black, red, blue, black, black, red. Turn each land at moderate speed, looking up at your opponent briefly with a look of concern after you turn the fifth land. The look of concern should be absolutely sincere and should translate as "I'm sorry for doing this, but I have to pull out this win. Sorry, man, sorry."
Step 4- Ever so lightly, drop the Ultimatum for your hand.
Congratulations! You can now cast Cruel Ultimatum! I recommend you enroll in our next class, "Casting Cruel Ultimatum 405, Ultra Advanced Mode." Here we see Professor Gabriel Nassif giving the ultimate Cruel Ult. style lesson- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ju_LZGBN5qU
May 17, 2010 4:43 a.m.
KrazyCaley says... #6
Optional- Be helpful and run your opponent through each part of the Ultimatum's effect! "Ok, so sack one...yeah, discard three....and five life, yep. I get one from my graveyard (especially delicious if you actually HAVE nothing in your graveyard- "Oh, looks like there's nothing there, oh well"), draw three, ok, aaaand five life. Go."
May 17, 2010 4:45 a.m.
Negate seems good. Make them cast the Ultimatum two turns later then they want, just to have you play a double Negate .
Blue White Tapout took out my regionals.
May 17, 2010 9 a.m.
Dark_Confidant says... #8
I'm pretty impressed with just how much better the deck gets with Jace.
May 17, 2010 1:12 p.m.
CarnagePool says... #9
Played with my grixis deck lastnight at the local lan center/card shop. My opponent pulled what might have been something even more evil than cruel ult. I had 9 mana open. 4 Black, 3 Blue, 2 Red. I coulda done it at 7 but I wanted to be able to use a Countersquall I had in my hand in case they tried to counter it. So I cast Cruel Ultimatum and they cast cancel. I cast my Countersquall and they go "Ok fine". They then cast Twincast ..4 Times on my Cruel Ult...directing them all back at me. It was..painful. I had 3 life and shortly loss the game.
So yeh..you need to be ready for the cruel ult to be used against you.
May 17, 2010 4:22 p.m.
mattlohkamp says... #10
uh. I don't really think that your opponent having enough open blue mana to cast twincast 4 times plus a cancel is really something you can be ready for. wow.
May 17, 2010 4:45 p.m.
CarnagePool says... #11
Yeh I figured he had enough to get into a counter spell fight but I so didnt see the twincast's happening.
May 17, 2010 5:44 p.m.
I am not a fan. I've won a game because my opponent cast Cruel Ultimatum and only had two cards left in library. I've also been hit by two and still been easily on my way to winning the game. The third one that came turn SIX was the turning point though.
Also I only count 14. Kokusho, the Evening Star + Delirium Skeins + 3x Obsessive Search + Innocent Blood + Raise Dead .
May 17, 2010 9:43 p.m.
Tama, you're apparently disregarding the fact that Delirium Skeins and Innocent Blood are symmetric effects.
May 18, 2010 4:41 a.m.
@ Cirrus you are apparently forgetting that you need to discard 3x Obsessive Search and sacrifice a Kokusho, the Evening Star in order to have the full effect of the ultimatum.
May 18, 2010 6:03 a.m.
cadasaurus says... #16
I disagree with your assessment of grixis being strong against creature heavy decks and weak against controling decks. It's actually the opposite. Grixis does very well against UW(r) and struggles against decks that are very creature heavy like venge naya, venge jund, or RDW.
http://forums.mtgsalvation.com/showthread.php?s=6c74c55c825f567e0a7e9353a79cb759&t=219768
he's a link to one of the more popular grixis forums if you'd like to research more about the deck.
Darkness1835 says... #1
Went to regionals today. I gotta say, this deck is WAY good. I'm glad I didnt play one. Have a feeling my record would've been a little worse.
May 15, 2010 10 p.m.