My current Tron list for modern. Ive been playing a lot of Tron over the last few months. I top 4'd the SCG Baltimore Modern Classic with this list (sideboard has changed), and as the modern player for the Philly team open we made day 2 and finished 22nd overall.
http://www.starcitygames.com/decks/120690
I have some pretty unusual maindeck choices here, most notable being the 2x pithing needles and 2x natures claims. There are also no walking ballistas in the main.
Pithing needle is absolutely insane in the maindeck. I originally added it to help against all the field of ruins that I was seeing around the time of GP Hartford when U/W control was seeing a lot of play. I felt like even with lots of basics to find whenever my tron lands were being destroyed by fields or ghost quarters I was always behind. Pithing needle just straight up stops these land and protects my manabase. I can find it off of ancient stirrings, and with field of ruin offline my opponent cant use it to go grab a land that produces colored mana.
While it felt like a very situational card at first it turned out to be an absolute allstar. Against affinity when my opponent empties their hand turn 1, I can slam the needle and name cranial plating in the blind to assure I dont die to huge attacks starting on turn 2. Naming arcbound ravager, or even one of the nexus is very good. Against company decks with selfless spirit to protect them from my stones/returns I can name spirit to assure my boardwipe works. Against humans you can name aether vial in the early game and slow them down a lot. If its late game naming horizon canopy is a strong play. Shutting down troublesome planeswalkers is nice, but it truly shines in the mirror match. For example in the Philly open my team had to play against Todd Stevens team in round 9, and we both needed the win to make day 2. Todd and I were playing the Tron mirror and even with turn 3 tron I didnt have a payoff card so I just dropped the needle and named karn since Todd was presenting possible Karn on the next turn. He spent the following turn digging off spheres/stars and passed. I top decked a Karn which I slam, then play my forest and natures claim my own needle away and attack his lands. We went right to game 2. In game 2 he got Karn first and hit a land with it. I drew into a needle and shutdown Karn again. I was able to get tron back online and play a wurmcoil but he top decked a natures claim, took out the needle and exiled my wurmcoil, then played another Karn and went after my lands again. He won. Game 3 he elected to sylvan scrying for a ghost quarter, so I needled ghost quarter and took over with Karn and won with an Ulamog. Moral of the story... needle is insane.
