Oh well that makes sense. Yeah the only events I go to are prereleases. I usually just play casual with friends. I guess I'm just in the casual mindset. Thanks for explaining though.

How's Top working out? I'm curious, as a fellow Burn player and owner of several Tops...

For your sideboard, I've also heard that Exquisite Firecraft is outstanding against Miracles, but I haven't tested them. I picked up some for that reason. Ashen Rider is amazeballs against Show&Tell. Pyrostatic Pillar does work against Elves and Storm variants, unless Mindbreak Trap works better for you.

I would suggest you main a few Taiga or Stomping Ground to splash for Destructive Revelry, as being able to hit enchantments (as well as artifacts) like Leyline of Sanctity is relevant and worthwhile, IMHO. You run enough fetches to have 2-3 duals main. I haven't yet tested Atarka's Command in Legacy, but I know from Modern it's boss with Swiftspear. Could be another good reason to splash .

Edit: I see that you're already considering many of my suggestions. My bad for being a broken record lol.

aeonstoremyliver, I haven't played it a ton and I haven't taken it to any tournaments but so far I love being able to rig my topdecks.

You've commented on this deck a bunch lol. I prefer trap over Pillar because Trap is turn 1 interaction and it can beat Belcher whereas Pillar/Eidolon cannot. I haven't seen Sneak and Show being a relevant deck since Omni-tell was pushed into tier 1 status, even though Dig is now banned and Omni-tell isn't up there like it used to be. If Sneak and Show was bigger in the meta like it once was I might run Ashen Rider but nobody's really playing it right now. It's not really good against Omni-tell because Omni-tell can combo off and win with the Ashen Rider trigger on the stack.

The big problem with splashing for Taiga is that some of the decks we'd bring Revelry in run playsets of Wasteland. We have enough creatures and non-targeted burn after boarding to ignore Leyline of sanctity otherwise.

Gotcha. I may test out a few Tops. Thanks! Yeah, hope I'm not spamming, as you did clear comments.

Belcher is still a thing? Huh. Makes sense for the Traps now. There's a few S&T variants in my meta, no Omni-Tell, as that waned significantly with the Dig ban, as you mentioned. Hence my suggestion, and sideboard is typically a meta call unless a large competitive event is involved.

Good point about Wasteland, however one can play around it. Including not fetching duals game one. I've won against a Leyline a few times, but it's rough, and I'm two more creature heavy than you. Price of Progress, Flame Rift, and so forth help, as well as burning creatures in our path, as you've noted. But sometimes there's that odd card like Worship, or what have you, that shows up. And it's nice to have a 401 all purpose answer that also deals damage. Just saying. You do make a great point regarding Wasteland, and I'm considering it also.

aeonstoremyliver, a couple people in my store play it, and it was my round 1 matchup in the last IQ I played in. Storm can also win T1 with a good hand and I've lost to turn 1 storm with Eidolon in hand which annoyed me enough to side Trap in.

After I side in my Grim Lavamancers and Shushers, playing against Leyline becomes much easier. I haven't yet lost a match to a deck playing Leyline against me because of this plan (the belcher deck I mentioned earlier sided in Leyline against me games 2 and 3 lol).

I guess you could play around wasteland but there's just so many variables. What if you get a Taiga in your opening hand? What if you need to crack your last fetch but you don't have D-Rev in your hand yet? You're right though, I should still test it out, but I feel like we give up more opening ourselves up to wasteland decks like DNT and MUD than we'd gain against Enchantress considering how much each deck is played.

Also, I mostly clear comments because when I update the deck the old comments become less relevant to the discussion and I want new comments to focus on my current build. It's nothing against you or anyone else but I do see why keeping them around could be a good thing.

All of that makes complete sense, and worth me considering Trap...

I'd say proxy test with a splash with 2x of whatever land and see how it works. Couldn't hurt. I guess I really like blowing up Leyline with Revelry though lol!!!

Yeah, I could've checked the old comments, but was kinda lazy, so didn't. I like clearing clutter myself, if there's been many changes and the comments aren't relative anymore. Yep.

I actually own a Taiga. Yay me! :D

In the many matches I've played with burn over the years I've only ever played against Leyline of Sanctity a total of 3 matches, and 2 of them were against the same Leyline enchantment combo deck that mains 4 of them. It's not as common in Legacy as it is in Modern.

However I do think it's worth considering just because there's a guy in my store who runs a Rest in Peace/Helm of Obedience combo deck that can lock me out of the game as early as turn 2/3 using Energy Field. Sure I guess I could try and work Red Elemental Blast back in the deck, but D-rev seems easier. Again though, it's just one player and there's multiple DNT/MUD players in the local meta and without consistent local events there's just no way I can properly test this anymore.

Yay! I got drunk last weekend and decided it was a fantastic idea to buy a Revised Bayou, Unlimited Scrubland, and two Wasteland. I forgot about it until the wife saw the transaction. I'm currently sleeping on the couch for my safety.

Yeah, without testing it's hard to tell. I used to play a lot on Cockatrice and what not, which is helpful. And sideboard real estate is sparse. My thing is that I look at my bad matchups and side for those, without being extremely narrow. Destructive Revelry will hardly ever be a dead card in the format, then again Red Elemental Blast and Pyroblast won't be either. Because blue and stuff.

I feel like games shouldn't get to the point where you're messing around with Tops. I'd add another Fireblast and Price of Progress in their place, personally.

Rusty_Shackleford, Top in my deck is playable as early as turn 3 with 3 lands out. 1 mana to play it, 1 to spin it, and then 1 to cast the bolt I put on top of my deck. It's best to cast this later in the game when your hand is mostly depleted.

An analysis of my games gives me the idea that roughly 90% of my losses have come from a failure to draw relevant cards when I need them. There's been many games where I'll top deck a land instead of a burn spell and I lose as a result. Top is a very good mana sink if I do get flooded and I also feel that selection and consistency have become more important than raw speed in Legacy. You're right, games SHOULDN'T get to the point where I'm messing with tops, but they do with the traditional configuration due to variance.

I also get the ability to shuffle away cards I don't want with my fetches, and top gets a lot better after sideboarding as you now have the ability to dig for the sideboarded cards you need. I cut a Fireblast because realistically you can't cast more than 2 per game unless you're flooded out the wazoo. Price is more of a meta call, as most decks this card affects will attempt to play around it. It might be correct to cut a second Fireblast instead though because of my reasoning for cutting that card in the first place.

Here's what I don't understand though: would you ever realistically spend 2/3 of your mana that early in the game to fiddle with Top? On turn 3 you should arguably be casting business spells.

Burn isn't supposed to win the late game, which is what I think you're trying to do here; if you're really casting Top as early as turn 3 you're just extending the game for your opponent instead of burning them out--which in all likelihood is what they want you to do.

If you're worried about reach and dealing those last few points of damage I'd consider putting Lavamancers in your mainboard (work especially well with your fetches), perhaps upping the number of Sulfuric Vortexes to 3 or 4, or perhaps adding Flame Rift. But that's just what I'd do.

Rusty_Shackleford, turn 3 is the EARLIEST top is playable. I generally only play it late game (turn 4 and beyond) when my hand is depleted and I am in topdeck mode. I'm more worried about what I actually draw at that point as opposed to mere reach.

I'm also arguably extending the game for my opponent when I draw lands instead of burn spells when my hand is depleted, and therefore spend turns doing nothing. If I'm actually going to extend the game like you say Top does, I'd rather do so on my own terms with Top instead of randomly doing so during my draw step.

I just don't understand how you could possibly be top-decking lands and be out of business spells by turn 4 with only 19 lands; maybe try turning the 11th Mountain into a Barbarian Ring?

I ran 20 lands the last time I played burn--admittedly back when Keldon Marauders and Hellspark Elemental were still playable--but I never had an issue with mana flood. This was my list:

2 Arid Mesa2 Barbarian Ring4 Bloodstained Mire8 Mountain4 Wooded Foothills

4 Goblin Guide3 Grim Lavamancer3 Hellspark Elemental

4 Chain Lightning4 Fireblast3 Flame Rift4 Lava Spike4 Lightning Bolt4 Price of Progress4 Rift Bolt3 Sulfuric Vortex

The deck tried to do one thing, and one thing only--kill my opponent by turn 4. If that wasn't possible, Vortex, Lavamancer, and an unearthed Elemental were usually all that was needed. I really think in the name of simplicity you should stick to a singular gameplan.

Decks that try and do multiple things generally don't do any of them particularly well... except for blue decks because they're blue.

Rusty_Shackleford, I actually found a store that does weekly Legacy FNMs and I tried my build out. I never got screwed and I actually flooded pretty often in the 4 rounds (there was one game I played against miracles where I ended up with 7 mountains on the field by the time it was over lmao).

The thing is, top isn't me trying to do multiple things. Top is me trying to make sure I can consistently do one thing (burn my opponent). I lost 2 games to Jeskai stoneblade because I flooded out and did not draw a Top. Game 1 I lost because I got my opponent to 2 then proceeded to topdeck lands until he played Batterskull. That's literally one of my easiest matchups and I lost because I topdecked land. Game 3 was me racing my sulfuric vortex against his batterskull and 2 Stoneforges, and I lost that one because my vortex got him down to 1, but I drew a land instead of any of my nonland spells and ended up losing the race.

Compare this to a game I played against MUD where I actually had a Top in play. I was able to actually filter myself into Smash to Smithereens and other cards that I needed to win for game 2 depsite him having 2 Lodestone Golem on the table (game 1 I didn't get top and game 3 he was on the play with a chalice on 1). I notice I generally do better in games where I do draw top compared to games where I do not draw top.

Now this was just a 4 round FNM but there is a Legacy IQ I can go to tomorrow for even more testing. I'll probably comment back with my results then. I was one of the doubters like you were but Top has not disappointed me yet. If anything I might play a different deck because burn likes to fuck me over during my draw step when I don't have top out.

Mmmm, mmmm! This deck takes me back. Burn was the first Legacy deck I played, and it's always going to have a special place in my heart. And my opponents' life totals.

I see a criminal lack of Magma Jet in this list -- it accomplishes what your deck wants to do (burn) while also smoothing out your draws at instant speed. Frankly, you aren't looking to grind away games. The Jet is better than Top for you.

It's meta-dependent, but at least where I play, Searing Blaze lacks a target against too many decks (lands, Storm, etc.). When it's good it's great, but when it's bad it's an auto-mulligan. I'd slot that in your sideboard. Do you really need 3 whole slots against Storm via Mindbreak Trap?

You can crank up the speed with Flame Rift. Yeah, I know it hurts you too, but it's the most efficient face-burn you'll get, and you race better than almost any opponent. Alternatively, if you have to wade through a bunch of blue, Exquisite Firecraft as a 1- or 2-of can do wonders, as can Flames of the Blood Hand or Skullcrack if there are a bunch of Batterskulls flying around.

Of course it's been years since I piloted this thing, so some of these suggestions might be old-fashioned. Good luck out there!

trdl23, I originally had Magma Jet in my deck way back when, and it's probably valid if you're worried about Top not dealing damage, but I feel like top is just more flexible and less mana intensive. The draw ability on top has allowed me to win games a turn earlier than I would otherwise be able to while in topdeck mode.

Flame Rift is a bit dated. I don't know if you've played this deck with Eidolon yet because you said you haven't played this deck in years, but Rift and Eidolon do not mix well.

Searing Blaze is very good for me in my current meta. There's only a few decks where it's straight up useless, and sideboarding is relatively easy for those matches anyway. Mindbreak Trap is basically a must have against glass cannon decks like Belcher and I need 3 to ensure I can draw them. I also don't want to have to rely on drawing Eidolon to win, and trap gives me 7 hate cards in my deck as opposed to just 4.

Yeah, I definitely have not played with Eidolon around. I can see where Flame Rift gets a lot worse in that case. Whoops.

The problem with Top is that those games where you're in topdeck mode could have easily been won a turn prior... if the top had been a relevant spell instead. But I'm all for trying out new things. If it works, it works!

I'll take your word on the meta around you; no way I can argue about that. But at the very least, I'd put in one more Price of Progress in the board, just to put the screws to Delver decks and other greedy manabases.

trdl23, I was trying this out in an IQ yesterday, and I recall one game against Shardless BUG where top single-handedly won me the game. I spun top the turn after I played it and saw that I was about to be flooded out with 3 land on the top of my deck, and I immediately used a fetch to shuffle it away. I spun top again and found 3 burn spells: Lightning Bolt, Lava Spike, and Price of Progress. My opponent was at 13 and was about to stabilize with an active Liliana, but Top let me Bolt and Price him on my next turn for lethal.

None of that would have happened if I didn't have top in play. I would have just flooded out and he would have stabilized with Liliana and eventually used her ultimate. In addition, top let me get the second spell off the top of my deck. If I was just bound to my draw step I wouldn't have won on that turn.

You are right about working the fourth price back into the deck though, that card is an auto-win in some matchups. I'm thinking about cutting Swiftspears for 2 Lavamancers and having the other 2 slots be the fourth Price and Fireblast.

Now that you have Top in the deck, would Thunderous Wrath be back on the table? I did see it in the "Stop suggesting bad cards" update, but with Top being introduced its viability has to have improved a bit.

AndWelcomeToTheJam, I briefly considered it but Wrath would still be unplayable if it ended up in my opening hand or if I was on the draw and drew it turn 1. We're still not a Miracles deck that also has access to Brainstorm, Ponder, and Jace, the Mind Sculptor.

I'm not going to spend much time looking over this list cuz it's late but what I do notice are a few things that must be improved. You must always run a playset of Price of Progress and Fireblast. Also you must run 2 Grim Lavamancer mainboard, it's not an option. Also Sensei's Divining Top does not do you any good, the is not a single burn deck that has ever had it included in their 75 cards (and no it's not because nobody's discovered it yet). Also you really never want to run any more than 2 Searing Blaze mainboard. You always want to run 1 Barbarian Ring. You always must have exactly 8 mountain in legacy burn, no more and no less. You are definitely going to want to run 20 lands it's not an option.

I'm not sure about the 8 mountains--no more, no less--thing, but I 100% agree with literally every other thing Tyrannosary just said.

Tyrannosary, I'm not sure if you're aware of how long I've been playing with a list that was like your recommended configuration (4x Price/Fireblast and no top), but I made the change to include Sensei's Divining Top rather recently, because your suggested configuration is just not cutting it anymore. I lose to my own draw step too often, drawing land when I need burn spells and vice versa.

I'm not the only one trying out Top either, if you look at the MTG salvation forums other players are testing top as a 1-2 of and the general consensus is that it has been excellent. In my personal experience there have been games where top has singlehandedly won me the game. Being able to choose what card I draw and shuffling away unwanted cards using fetches is amazing in this deck, and it's an amazing mana sink if I'm flooded.

3x Searing Blaze has been fine for me so far, but I could probably cut one for the fourth Price/Blast. Creature decks like Death and Taxes are pretty popular in my local meta, however. Lavamancer is also not a 100% must-run, although I am considering working them back into the main to try something out.

Barbarian Ring is pretty questionable if I'm being honest. You can't fetch it, and if you have to play it early in order to hit your land drops you're taking damage and you're also open to Wasteland. You also can't sac it to Fireblast. To be honest I don't think those drawbacks are worth an uncounterable 2CMC shock.

Only thing I think I might agree with you on here is running 20 land. Like I said earlier, tax decks like DNT and MUD are pretty popular in my local meta so maybe a 20th land might help me out in those matches. The one thing holding me back is that I tend to flood out pretty often with just 19 land, much more often than getting screwed and getting the mana just right. There's no exact formula or list to constructing a burn deck and your suggestions are most definitely not law so don't act like they are. I definitely have my reasons for having my list configured the way it currently is.

Actually, I kind of like top in here: and I'd like to say you're quite wrong in claiming no one has ever tried top in burn. Here are 5 legacy burn decks from MtgTop8 with top in their mainboard:

• one
• two
• three
• four
• five

Maybe you don't like top, or maybe top doesn't work for you, but everyone pilots every deck slightly differently. There are some games he'll win with top and there are some he'll lose because of it. But if he find it works, if it's good in his meta, why stop running it? Legacy is much more of a format where you have to know the deck you're playing and any (I use the word any loosely) deck can be good if the pilot knows the deck and is familiar with it. Provided they're also a good player.