Esper vs. Jeskai Control
Modern forum
Posted on Feb. 21, 2015, 4:24 p.m. by nutellaisgreaterthanlife
So I love American control and I have been playing it for some time. The other day my friend told me to try out esper control. I'm trying to come up with a list and I'm really enjoying the addition of black, but I don't know how good it is because in changing you lose the best removal of the format; Lightning Bolt. So I ask you, is Esper control better in the current modern meta? Is switching worth it?
nutellaisgreaterthanlife says... #3
I had another thread going and we determined that Jeskai > Grixis. Which is disappointing Cruel Ultimatum is soooo good. And yeah okay Abrupt Decay is dope but I don't think green is a color I would consider having in a straight up control deck
February 21, 2015 4:29 p.m.
Path to exile is the best removal in the format at the moment due to prevalence of siege rhino and Tasigur, the golden fang.
Exper control isn't that fantastic in modern.
February 21, 2015 4:39 p.m.
I'm not sure that switching is worth it, but giving it a try wouldn't hurt. If you are looking for help with a list, you could check out Gerard Fabiano's list he recently top 8'd an Elite IQ with. - Link - It has that Gerard Fabiano "flavor", but you could always change it up a bit (i.e remove Oust for Path to Exile).
February 21, 2015 5:20 p.m.
ChiefBell beat me to it. You lose Lightning Bolt, but you still have Path to Exile, which is way more important.
Not to mention black gives you access to a shitload of great removal spells, more so than any other color. Maybe none of them are quite as cheap and straightforward as the good ol' Bolt, but the diversity is more than enough to make up for it IMO. Besides, red tends to have a hard time getting past indestructible and hexproof, whereas black can pull it off fairly easily.
February 21, 2015 5:25 p.m.
JexInfinite says... #8
Considering that Geist of Saint Traft is an awesome card, I would expect at least 1 in the deck.
February 21, 2015 5:32 p.m.
MagicMan101 says... #9
Honestly, I would play 2. I used to play all three of these decks: Grixis, Esper, and Jeskai Control. From my experience, Esper has been the best. The cards are just straight up better in Esper compared to Jeskai. Sure, they share a few in modern, (Valorous Stance, Path to Exile), but Jeskai is better in fast, aggressive aggro strategies with multiple Prowess triggers via Jeskai Ascendancy, whereas Esper is more of a midrange/control deck, depending on the cards you play. If you do play Esper, use Dromar's Charm. It's just a good card. Geist of Saint Traft is usually a one or two-of in most Esper decks also, if you're looking to apply pressure early. Obzedat, Ghost Council is also a possibility. The best way to play Esper midrange/control is to play some big threats early (Geist of Saint Traft), some midgame (Obzedat, Ghost Council), and some late, filling in with black kill spells along with Path to Exile from white, and counters from blue (Dromar's Charm)
Also, make sure you have a good mana base, because accessing all of your colors is important.
February 21, 2015 8:36 p.m.
Femme_Fatale says... #10
I found that esper was a lot easier to access your colours than Jeskai. Jeskai was all over the place and it was riddled with one ofs and two ofs. Esper control was more streamlined, as a lot of their spells were really easy to cast. At least, that was the version I played.
Now if you run Esper Charm (Dromar's Charm isn't even modern legal, MagicMan101) then yes, you are going to need to have a hefty mana base. Especially with all the wraths (Damnation, Supreme Verdict and Wrath of God) and additional draw spells like Sphinx's Revelation. Obzedad isn't that good in modern. Restoration Angel, Geist of Saint Traft and Batterskull along with Celestial Colonnade and Creeping Tar Pit are your finishers.
Oh, and the bolt effects aren't that good in modern anymore. Not with Abzan's creatures evading them. I'm not saying that they shouldn't be used in red, but I'm saying that their effectiveness has been decreased because of the new meta.
February 21, 2015 9:44 p.m.
JexInfinite says... #11
Femme_Fatale The singletons in Jeskai are basically mainboarded sideboard cards. It may seem less consistent, but it's actually about the same. It's easier to draw a versatile and useful card in Jeskai than in Esper, because you have too many specifics.
You're also saying that Bolt is bad because midrange decks exist. Guess which very popular deck plays effectively 20 copies of Bolt? The red removal gets rid of the small fry, while you use good counterspells for the annoying big ones. The burn spells can also work as another win condition, giving Jeskai much more reliable kills, rather than waiting for a win con.
klone13 says... #2
Imo grixis control could be good. Also i think Abrupt Decay is the best removal in the format atm.
February 21, 2015 4:26 p.m.