Hello all! It's been a while since I've shared a cool brew, but I'm back to share this really cool concept that I have been doing really well with. So recently in pioneer, UW control has pretty much been the go-to control deck, Teferi is ridiculously strong and a very good source of card advantage (and also a win con too) and white generally has access to what typically black has had in the past: efficient spot removal, as well as strong sweepers. So why give up supreme verdict and Teferi in that case? For me, I really like playing control that can very quickly turn on a clock, and Thing in the Ice does just that.
The deck is fairly similar to the UR Control decks that have popping up recently, only this deck plays slower and much more like a control deck. Instead of trying multiple spells within two or three turns, this deck actually turns Thing in the Ice into a two-card combo. Heartless act is more than just a solid cheap removal spell, and in fact can remove all counters from your Thing in the Ice in one go. This means that the next spell you cast will instantly flip Thing. You could use any spell to flip it, however using a one cost spell to flip it makes it more reliable. Thoughtseize is easily the best card to flip Thing in the Ice with, as the flip trigger will go off, then you can snipe one of the creatures you just returned. Duress is also really useful, its also a one drop spell but equally it doesn't deal you any damage, making it better into red aggro decks. Opt and Dig Through Time are fantastic for flipping it too, they can help you dig for extra removal in case they play all their creatures again, or just find another set of Thing + Heartless act. As long as you can keep your flipped Thing in the Ice alive, a second flip will mean a total of 21 damage dealt, which "should" win you the game.
Largely, Thing in the Ice is looking at stabilising the board, it can end the game and most likely will end up doing so, but cards like fatal push and abrupt decay will end up dealing with it very cleanly. This is why I've added 1 Hullbreaker Horror and 2 Shark Typhoon. Aside from being just generally fantastic control options, they both turn some of your less impressive spells into the late game into a suddenly fairly scary engine to help lock your opponent down. Equally, Hullbreaker Horror can bounce a creature on your side that might die, or even bounce your own Narset once it hits 1 loyalty.
The Sideboard:
The sideboard for this deck was probably the most challenging set to finish with this deck. This deck has some fairly awkward matchups but it doesn't want to side out too many cards as you need plenty of spells to reliably flip thing in the ice. There is potential within this sideboard to completely side out the thing in the ice, and suddenly you have this mind game with your opponent, as they very well could be trying to play around thing in the ice in games 2 or 3. In general, the side board allows you to change up your game plan, but in other matchups, lotus field, mono red etc., have more specific answers to help win the game.
This deck has been very fun to play, it definitely feels much more proactive to play than typical UW and the games are certainly shorter. Let me know what you all think! :>
