Tips on improving Mardu Control

Standard Deck Help forum

Posted on June 17, 2016, 4:20 a.m. by readerrw07

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Mardu Control

Standard* readerrw07

SCORE: 1 | 56 VIEWS

Hoping for advice on improving this deck based on my first tournament with it. First paper games after about fifteen-ish XMage games (Sideboard is a bit wonky because I undid some changes to show the mainboard I played, though I cant remember the sideboard to put it back as well)

Just took this to the first real test: Wednesday night Standard at the LGS, and went 2-3 with the deck

Round1 Mirror Match: Won 2-1. Nothing remarkable about it, not real knowledge besides the amusement of both of us having about a 90% guess what the other was gonan do

Round 2: Ever After. Didnt expect this. Got wrecked. Diddnt have an answer to Dragonlord Atarka and Dragonlord Silumgar coming out the turn after they get killed (Dont actually have Hallowed Moonlight yet sadly)

Round 3: Lost 2-0 to Naya Walkers. Game 1 couldnt kill Nissa, Voice of Zendikar before she Ulti'd. At that point I was topdecking against an opponent with a full hand. Game 2 I misplayed and Unmade his Gideon before he declared what ability he was using. Not a good idea since he popped the emblem and that put everything in his deck above Languish and Grasp of Darkness, which sealed my fate

Round 4: Homebrew enchantment deck with it's main removal being Stasis Snare effects. Ended up being a rather east 2-0 win

Round 5: Bant Dragons. Sylvan Advocate that was above 4 toughness by the time I could [[Languish and Dragonlords out the ass.

So understandably I left feeling like.. well like shit after getting wrecked the way I did. So, the problems I ran into

Languish]] underperformed. By the time I could use it, the problem cards were too big for Languish to kill

Too many taplands. With 2 Manlands and a BattleLand, I often ended up a turn behind for most of the game because most of my lands would enter tapped

Walker Flood: Id get flooded with high-cost threats early-game. Double Sorin, Double Chandra, Dark Dwellers, all the stuff I cant play in my opening hand after the mulligan.

Smaller problem, encountered Twice. Could Ultimate Nahiri, the Harbinger but only good target was Goblin Dark-Dwellers, without a good target for the Goblins to recast or a target for the recast spell

Solution

I'm thinking of trying Planar Outburst over Languish. Besides just killing everything no questions asked, it can also animate a land, possibly a manland if its really late-game, and get me some value that way. Possibly sideboard Languish for token matchups

Landbase is more difficult. I found myself only animating Needle Spires once, to trade with my opponents Spires. Otherwise it just kept me a turn behind. I'm thinking replace at least some with Battlefield Forge, taking me to possibly only eight lands that enter tapped, helping the slowdown

Add in 1 Ulamog, the Ceaseless Hunger as a Nahiri target, allowing me to possibly win on the spot

Switch out 1 Sorin, Grim Nemesis for another Nahiri, the Harbinger This would give me 4 Walkers that can drop turn 3, with Nahiri able to end the game if she ulti's as early as turn 6, and both her and Gideon being walkers that my opponent has to answer ASAP, whereas Sorin isnt good until late-game, and should be fine as a one-of

What do you guys think? I welcome and suggestions :)

EDIT: May as well toss this in here too, to show the proposed changes in decklist form

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