I built this deck a while ago and played it casually, but last night was my first time taking it out for a competitive spin. In many ways I felt like it was weaker than many of the other decks out there, but the way it is set up definitely has very good ability to sneak wins out against more expensive more powerful decks.
My first match up was against a pretty scary green deck -- Whisperwood elemental was a real problem. I managed to 2-0 though, the second win was tense. I had gotten my opponent to 4 life when, during his second main phase, he cast End Hostilities clearing my carefully crafted board. At the end of that same turn I tapped 5 mana and used Secure the Wastes for 4 taking the game since they could swing through onto an empty board and finish off the last 4 hits.
My second match up was against a Red Deck wins. It was my one match loss. I blame my loss more on my misplays and that I had to mulligan to 5 game one and 6 game 2 (and kept game 2 with a mediocre hand). The misplays were: I killed a bunch of tokens because I forgot that, in order to give all your warriors menace Blood-Chin Rager actually has to attack. This quite likely cost me game one, even though I had mulled down to 5 he was almost out of cards in hand and our life totals were close with Brutal Hordechief gaining it back for me slowly. The second misplay -- which realistically didn't cost me game two but made me feel like an idiot, was I put down a Bloodsoaked Champion forgetting that he couldn't block. Remember to read your cards kids. It was sad, because out of all four matchups even though I lost I felt like I was strongest against this one. He couldn't easily answer my board presence and didn't really have enough burn to kill me purely based on that. I look forward to playing this match up again and seeing what happens if I don't have to mulligan and don't make misplays.
Round 3 was against a Jeskai aggro deck. It was a pretty strong deck, I suspect a home brew, running Seeker of the Way Monastery Swiftspear Monastery Mentor and Mantis Rider among other things. Game one again I had to mull down to 5, having only 1 land on both of the first two draws. The third draw I also had only 1 land, a plains, but I didn't want to go lower than 5, and 3 of my other 4 spells were white 2/1s I could drop on the board. I thought that might buy me some time. It did, but not enough. Before long two Mantis Riders were swinging to my face, and I had no significant recourse. I did eventually get a second mana, but both were plains which made things rough for me. I came back and one games 2 and 3. I can't remember how game 2 went, I remember game 3 being pretty close. He got out Outpost Siege choosing Khans, and on its first activation it showed the card that could blow me out -- another End Hostilities. Fortunately, though he had enough lands, he didn't have the double white required. It was then a matter of a single slightly complex swing from me and a bunch of math to show him that no matter how he blocked with his one Mantis Rider he couldn't stay alive. Over all a very close match. Similar to Match 1 I knew if I let him get a significant foot hold I was done for, so it was an all out race.
My third match was against Temur. I'm not sure if he was trying to hit the Ascendancy combo, but he definitely had a lot of neat synergies in the deck. Game one he quickly got to a point where he was rapidly dropping Savage Knuckleblades and Shaman of the Great Hunt, and drawing cards every time he did. I lost the first game pretty hard, but the second and third game I managed to overrun him before he could get set up. I think game 4 might have been one of my ideal lines. Turn 1: 2/1 turn 2: two more 2/1 turn 3: Arashin Foremost turn 4: 2x Chief of the Edge. That means 4 things swinging at you -- all at least 4/1 and two of which had double strike. Needless to say it was more than his 1 blocker could take -- even if he blocked one of the double strikers with the one knuckle blade he had just put out he would have taken 16 damage that turn.
Over all it was a lot of fun, and the games were tense and close. All of my opponents were very strong and it was pretty interesting to see all the different decks people had. Of the four, the first and the second I played against I'm pretty sure were top tier decks, and the latter 2 seemed like very interesting home brews.
