Pattern Recognition #161 - Questing Brawl

Features Opinion Pattern Recognition

berryjon

23 July 2020

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Hello everyone! Welcome back to Pattern Recognition! This is TappedOut.net's longest running article series. In it, I aim to bring to you each week a new article about some piece of Magic, be it a card, a mechanic, a deck, or something more fundamental or abstract. I am something of an Old Fogey and part-time Smart Ass, so I sometimes talk out my ass. Feel free to dissent or just plain old correct me! I also have a Patreon if you feel like helping out.

So, with Core 2021 out, and Zendikar Rising on the horizon (after Double Masters), it's time to think Rotation. It's that time of year where the past year's worth of sets are no longer standard legal and a new year begins!

Naturally, the only deck of mine that's going to get through relatively unscathed is going to be the UW Flying deck, but even that's going to see some major changes with the loss of Healer's Hawk and Pteramander. My mono- Chandra.Dec Deck is going to have pretty much everything except Shock rotate, and my mono- control deck gets hit hard with the loss of Ill-Gotten Inheritance, Massacre Girl, and Vicious Rumors.

But what I'm really losing out on is the Brawl Deck, which for the past year has been led by Gideon Blackblade. And I enjoy it! But it's almost time to say goodbye to Beefslab for good (except for Commander) and look to my next year's deck.

In fact, here's the deck!

Gideon Brawlblade

Standard Brawl berryjon

SCORE: 2 | 30 VIEWS | IN 1 FOLDER

And so, today, I will be walking you all through the construction of my new Brawl Deck, made for Arena, and hopefully it will serve me well for the next year as I update and tweak things.

The first thing I need to do, actually, is choose my Commander.

Here is where I set the theme and tone for my deck. With Gideon, I had a good run with a solid aggro deck. It plays to my biases and strengths, and to be honest, with Ravnica rotating out, we're loosing a lot of reliable mana fixing. So I want my Commander to either be one or two colors, and with an aggressive focus.

This isn't actually that hard, all things considered. I'm on Arena as I type this, and I've chosen to look at all the potential Commanders that are 3CMC or less.

Taranika, Akroan Veteran would be nice, but I'm literally packing up the guy in the background of her image because he's DEAD. So let's skip for now.

Emry, Lurker of the Loch is certainly a watery tart, but she's an Artifact Commander, and not what I'm looking for at all.

Ayara, First of Lochthwain (ELD) is doing amazing duty in my mono control deck, and I don't want to double dip, so she's out.

Gadrak, the Crown-Scourge looks fun, but I'm not sure about the Artifacts clause - though sticking Embercleave on this guy is making me giggle in excitement. Definitely a choice, if I can invest in enough artifacts to make it worth while. Perhaps all in on Voltron?

Syr Faren, the Hengehammer gets points for the potential name of the deck - Syr Faren, the BrawlHammer - but he seems to be much better as a support card than as a leader. By the same token, Yorvo, Lord of Garenbrig has nothing really going for him except getting bigger, which isn't much of a thing at all.

The Royal Scions is neat, but I'm not sure how I would take it. Perhaps in the same deck as Rielle, the Everwise? A combo-deck of sorts? Eh, maybe, but not for me right now.

None of the Companions seem nice, and the more I look at Lurrus of the Dream-Den, the more I'm not sold on it.

Moving up to CMC, we get Questing Beast, but I don't see King Arthur breaking his sword on this guy anytime soon. A very good choice, I think, for a deck. Torbran, Thane of Red Fell is just too obvious, so let's skip.

And after thinking, I think I'm going to go with the Questing Beast. Now, don't get me wrong, My next two choices were Syr Faren for the follow-through, and Gadrak because you can't go wrong with a 5/4 on the cheap.

My Commander!

The Questing Beast is a commander that looks to put out an incredibly dangerous Commander, backed up by some useful utility creatures and effects and just beat the ever-loving snot out of whomever is unlucky enough to be in the way.

In addition, in a set that is blatantly a set based on the Arthurian Myth cycles, the Questing Beast is an actual character/plot device from the myths, and not just a name-change.

Now, for a card designed to hit and smash, it's lacking a certain ability that makes the smashing and the crashing and the smashing some more even more viable. Namely, it doesn't have TRAMPLE, so my first order of business is to make sure that's a thing. Looking through the available cards, Shadowspear is an obvious choice, and is pretty much an auto-include at this point. Titanoth Rex provides me with a late-game hitter, and I can Cycle it at instant speed for a surprise Trample. In you go as well!

Setessan Training and Garruk's Uprising both grant Trample, and a little bit of Card draw, so they're both in the deck now. Hornbash Mentor makes for a fifth card and can make Trampling creatures bigger, and thus I have enough to be liable to see one in my opening hand.

Moving on, what if my Questing Beast isn't big enough? Well, what's available to make it bigger? Rosethorn Halberd is a good choice, and as it's an Equipment, it doesn't go away if or when the creature does. Fully Grown is an additional source of Trample, but does cost . Might as well toss it in as I can always cut it alter. Hydra's Growth is a high-risk high reward type of card, one that will guarantee hate on whatever I put in. But you know what? What's life without risk.

But you know what's not risky? Garruk, Unleashed. He makes the Beast Bigger, and can make a creature if I need one. On the other hand, Klothys's Design is too expensive for my tastes. Out it goes. Primal Might does double duty, removing a creature and making the Beast even bigger.

That's 11 Cards, including the Commander, so let's move on to Acceleration. This is after all, so cards to get more mana are a dime a dozen. Sometimes literally.

Adventurous Impulse, Gilded Goose, Humble Naturalist to help smooth out the mana curve, as well as Ilysian Caryatid. Cultivate and Fertalid both work for the lower mana cost. At the same point, Llanowar Visionary and Omen of the Hunt.

Hrm, starting to feel weak at the point on the mana curve. Let's add an Arcane Signet for good measure.

Man, only 18 cards so far? Let's start to add utility, and see where we wind up from there. Return to Nature goes in, as it's too useful not to. Return of the Wildspeaker pulls double-duty as a card draw engine and as a creature buffer. Heroic Intervention and Ranger's Guile both provide vital protection for my Commander, so in they go.

Do I want Azusa, Lost but Seeking? After much deliberation, no. She's more useful at the front of the game, or in a deck built around Landfall. But here, she's of marginal use.

Looking through the cards, Gemrazer jumps out at me, both for Reach and Trample, but for acting as a redundant Naturalize as well. In it goes!

As does The Great Henge. I mean, seriously, what took me so long to get to this point?

This puts me at 26 cards. Let's look at having 23 lands in the deck, so that leaves me with 11 more cards. I'm not liking my card draw right now, so let's fix that up a little bit. Kenrith's Transformation is removal and Card Draw in a single package, so in it goes.

In the choice between Run Afoul and Plummet, I'll go with the Plummet backed up by Nylea's Intervention, the latter of which adds more acceleration to the deck. I'll also add Elder Garagoth as an alternate to the Questing Beast in terms of big beats.

Heraldic Banner does double duty, providing mana as well as making my creatures a little more powerful.

Hrm, sitting at 53 cards now. 9 Creatures, 6 Instants, 4 Sorceries, 5 Artifacts, 4 Enchantments, 1 Planeswalker and 23 Forests.

I'm seeing a distinct lack of anti-flying in the deck, so I'll include Skyway Sniper for redundancy.

You know what, I'm looking at Treeshaker Chimera, but as removal and as card draw. I do like it, and that's what's important to me! In you go!

Fungal Rebirth will help with recovering cards from my graveyard, and can provide a couple of Saprolings in the process. Thwart the Enemy is a Fog effect that asymmetrical, which is vital. Let's add in a Field of Ruin, lowering my Forests to 22 to deal with mana fixing or a Labyrinth of Skophos that my opponent might have. Actually, let's include that one as well.

2 cards left, and I'm running out of ideas. Eh... Nylea's Forerunner for additional Trample, and Beanstalk Giant because it'll be HUGE!

So finally, here is the deck:

Questing Brawler

Standard Brawl berryjon

SCORE: 5 | 470 VIEWS | IN 1 FOLDER

So, let's take this deck out for a spin on Arena, shall we? Get some real world test data on it.

My first game is against Abrohm, with Chulane as his Commander. I keep a hand of 4 Forests, the Sniper, Forerunner and Chimera. I go first, and stall out as I kept an expensive hand. He plays Uro. I frowny face at Uro.

Qusting Beast Drops on Curve, but I can't push through Trostani. Then he accelerates out with a mad dash thanks to Chulane and FUCK YOU Agent of Treachery.

Pardon my French. I concede gracefully.

Game two is against Goldjustin with Yarok. I keep a hand of 2 Forests, Primal Might, Heroic Intervention, Humble Naturalist, Setessen Training and Fully Grown. A narrow path, but I've got plenty of lands.

I pull the third forest, and drop the Beast on turn 3. Turn 4, I put Training on the Beast, and on his turn 4, he plays Yarok. I have Intervention, so I'm not worried and what I expect to happen does. I swing, he blocks with Yarok and Intervention keeps the Beast alive.

He puts down an Affectionate Indrink and I counter with a Fully Grown to survive the Fight. Then I cast Primal Might, take out something or other, and swing for the win with a very big Beast.

Third game, this time against "B1nn" who is piloting Rin and Seri. He... doesn't get off the ground as I keep a hand of 2 Forests, Adventurous Impulse, Skyway Sniper, Arcane Signet, Fully Grown and Garruk.

You can see how this goes down, right? So does my opponent as I turn 1 Sniper, turn two Signet into Impulse and all he's saying is "ooops" the whole way.

His turn 2 was a Cindervines, but as I drew Rosethorn Halberd, I'm not worried.

Turn 4, it's Garruk and the Halberd. The Questing Beast swings as a 9/8 Vigilance, Haste, Trample, Deathtouch creature! It's hilarious to watch as he doesn't block with the Bronzehide Lion. On his turn 4, I figure he'll put down his commander and double-block on his turn. Instead, he pops Cindervines on the Halberd when I attack, then makes his Lion indestructible on the block. Good for him, but play Fully Grown to put him down to 1 life.

He Banner's for on his turn, to trade with the Beast if he has to. Except I Mutate Gemrazer onto the Gilded Goose I had in play and my opponent realizes that he can't block a flyer and concedes.

I love this deck. It's fast, it's brutal, Agent of Treachery needs to die in a fire. This deck does what it does, and it does it very well. It smashes face. So, if I see any of you running a mirror match, I'll just smile and know that I helped you into a good Brawl Deck.

Join me next week when I talk about something. I dunno, maybe I'll take this deck and add 40 cards to turn it into a full Commander Deck. Maybe I'll do something else.

Until then, please consider donating to my Pattern Recognition Patreon. Yeah, I have a job, but more income is always better. I still have plans to do a audio Pattern Recognition at some point, or perhaps a Twitch stream. And you can bribe your way to the front of the line to have your questions, comments and observations answered!