Category: Syndicated

For ponder, it’s mostly “simple”: if the stuff is not game-winning and you don’t have ways to shuffle away 2 or 3 bad cards separately (no fetches in hand or uncracked fetches on the table or other discard available), use the shuffle option. Because as you rightfully contemplate, the bad ones will bother you. Not drawing one good card but having the chance to get rid of two bad ones in the next three draws is damn good.

I think people far too rarely use the shuffle option of Ponder. It quite often is more powerful than the “draw this specific card now”. Reverse it’s text to “shuffle your library and draw a card unless you happen to see 3 game-winning bombs” and you get your priorities straight 😉

Why no [[Hooting Mandrill]]? It’s evasion should be nice, as lots of creatures in pauper are /3 and it comes in quite early while staying a 4/4 through graveyard nukes.

How about some [[Firebrand Archer]]? I think their more immediate effect makes them more comparable to YP – the classic YP+Probe play now becomes FA+Probe. The Alchemists has a bigger bum for blocking, but I don’t think it is where this deck wants to be. And if the Archer survives, it can go in for two more. I would split with the Archer maybe, since they can survive Electricity or Shrivel or such like. And I think to go up against removal heavy decks you want some [[Stormbound Geist]] SB, especially since your only defense in the air would be a flipped Delver. But they might be a bit hard to play in a 3 colour deck.

Additionally I probably would switch the ratio on Ash Barrens and Expanse. Ash Barrens is horrible in a starting hand, as you might end up where you can only play them as a land due to missing mana for the cycle.

Dang, I really want to try this, it looks very good on paper. I’ve tried to do Grixis in pauper, but sadly it never really felt that better than straight UR or UB when actually trying it. But I was going with [[Whirlwind Adept]] as a finisher in a Grixis control shell, only taking removal from black.

But what I think we are missing in Grixis to really make it worthwhile is some way other than delve creatures to make use of the graveyard. I am not asking for a Snapcaster, but some efficient way to make use aside from just four threats would make this much better. I tried RUG Delver with [[Reclaim]], but that didn’t feel that great. But I still was on Whirlwinds then, so now I wonder if [[Hooting Mandrill]] could be it?