Being disappointed with Delver's consistency with flipping I was looking for an alternative to use for a Grixis Tempo deck. Creature wise Monastery Swiftspear, Stormchaser Mage, and Tasigur, the Golden Fang are the main damage dealers in the deck. The deck was playing three of
Abbot of Keral Keep
but there were too many occasions where I had an abbot on turn two that I didn't want to play in fear of exiling a card I'd like to have kept.
I'm trying Mishra's Bauble as a 4 of since I like it's ability to fill our hand trip prowess and fill the yard for no casting cost. I've removed thought scour which takes away the occasional turn 2 delve so it might come back.
Removal wise the deck is running 2 Terminate as well as 2 Liliana of the Veil. Additional removal/burn is available via Lightning Bolt and Kolaghan's Command. For early disruption the deck is running 4 Inquisition of Kozilek and 2 Spell Snare.
4 rounds at regions
Round 1 affinity 1-2
Game 1 mulled to 5 after no land and then 5 land bauble hands. Turn 1 cast inquisition to see I was playing against affinity and took Master of Etherium. Arcbound with cranial plating and vault skirge with carnial plating made it a pretty short game. In came smash, Hurkyl's Recall, and pyroclasm from the sideboard.
game 2 Turn 1 swiftspear with a turn two clasm led to a one sided board wipe that carried through for the rest the game. swiftspear and a pair of stormchasers got the damage done.
Game 3: one island + serum visions and no other blue spells mulligain to 6no land mull to 5. Pile shuffle one fetch with inquisition, kolaghans, terminate, bauble, serum visions. Fetch watery grave and serum visions and line up land for turn 2 we both have a bit of a slow start but he gets etched champion online with metal craft while I have 2 stormchaser's and Tas in play. I can swing for 8 but need to 9 while I'm looking at dying to etched champion next turn.
Round 2 W/U tron with gifts 2-0
Game 1 inquisition taking path seeing I'm playing tron. Turn 2 stormchaser bauble, turn 3 stormchaser after combat tasigur. low on life he gifts into iona and unburial rites. Next turn gifts into unburial rites and Elesh Norn. I've got him to 2 life cast bauble remanding it and recasting it while digging for bolt no dice peeking with bauble let me see my next draw would be a land so cracked a fetch to shuffle. Draw another bauble and fetch land tron swings in for 15 and I'm still looking for a bolt when I use the second bauble and see the bolt I need with remand and spell snare to back it up. bolt for the win.
In Blood Moon, Hurkyl's Recall, Smash out 2x Abbot, bauble, serum visions.
Game 2 turn 3 bloodmoon gets the win I cut off my access to black with snapcaster and hurkly's recall in hand. Eventaully drew a swamp and cast Tasigur to help with the offense. Using Azorius Signet he evenutally casts gifts that includes Wurmcoil Engine and Eye of Ugin. with recall in hand give him the eye and wurmcoil knowing he'll have to tap out to cast it and I can recall it on my turn swinging for lethal.
Round 3 Grixis Delver 2-0
Game 1: He's stuck with a one lander turn one fetch blood crypt inquisition taking serum visions on the play and casting bauble. He top decks visions keeping 1 and bottoming 1. I use bauble to see he put delver on top. I add an island with remand in hand. Remand delver on his turn 2. Turn three I cast Bauble and see Tasigur on his top deck. Cast snapcaster flashing back inquisition taking Delver. His turn 3 is a pass which leads to my turn 4 stormchaser with a third bauble. I have spell snare in hand to answer his turn 4 young pyromancer.
side in dispel taking out abbot
Game 2: Bauble continues to let me out draw delver while leaving mana for counters or removal. Turn three he taps out for his Tasigur with one blue left (he knows I have terminate so I suspect he has dispel or spell snare in hand. One my turn three I cast liliana having him sac Tas. His turn four he casts molten rain on my bloodcyrpt re-dirrecting dammage to kill liliana. I play a land and cast swiftspear. He plays fulminator mage and casts bolt at my swiftspear in response to bolt I dispel to save swiftspear. in responce to fulminator I fetch a mountain and a swamp to go with my island and watery grave. I go ahead and cast kolaghan's command to kill the fulimator and bring a swiftspear back to my hand. Swiftspears and a stormchaser end up finishing the game off baubles kept me ahead on cards in hand while he was top decking.
Round 4 0-2 Goblins
Both games went Mogg War Marshal turn 2 and 3 followed by Mogg War Marshal and followed up with a kicked Goblin Bushwacker.
I sided in pyroclasm and ratchet bomb but didn't draw either in time during game 2. I'm pondering if pyroclasm should be main decked over abbot. Looking at the eldrazi decks I'm also pondering if abbot should become ghost quarter, or spreading sea's, or molten rain, or blood moon for the main deck.
