Gentry Arena Leaderboard – Episode 9

By Niels Viaene

Just on the brink of M21, 20 players logged into Arena to duke it out. In many ways this event has showed that the metagame is settling in its diversity , we don’t really see completely new decks emerge and nothing looks truly dominant. Tweaks is the name of the game this week, with peeple trying out new cards in old decks.

4-0 Patricia Johnson
Dimir Control

Deck (60) 1 Mystic Sanctuary 1 Pharika’s Libation 9 Island 4 Witching Well 8 Swamp 3 Narset, Parter of Veils 2 Duress 3 Cry of the Carnarium 4 Dismal Backwater 3 Dimir Guildgate 2 Drown in the Loch 3 Thought Erasure 1 Lochmere Serpent 2 Ob Nixilis’s Cruelty 3 Essence Scatter 1 Negate 1 Tyrant’s Scorn 3 Thought Collapse 1 Saheeli, Sublime Artificer 1 Ugin, the Ineffable 1 Liliana, Dreadhorde General 1 Ashiok, Nightmare Muse 1 Mystical Dispute 1 Chemister’s Insight

Sideboard (15) 2 Pharika’s Libation 1 Duress 3 Dead Weight 2 Negate 1 Dark Bargain 2 Reave Soul 1 Spark Harvest 2 Whisper Agent 1 Devious Cover-Up

It is with great pleasure that I get to mention Patricia here, better know as the cuban mtger. She has brought a different deck to each event she has played in even without having any local community to rely on. More over, she has now started organizing her own events on MTGMelee.

For this event, she sided with her nemesis, Dimir Control, and chose to go for a very conservative and creatureless approach, save for the Lochmere Serpent. Patricia was the only undefeated player at the end of 4 rounds, scoring 30 points and climbing up the ladder with this great finish.

3-1 Renzo Verkooren
Orzhov Midrange

Deck (60) 8 Swamp 8 Plains 4 Scoured Barrens 3 Orzhov Guildgate 3 Dire Tactics 3 Omen of the Sun 2 Consecrate 1 Kaya, Orzhov Usurper 1 Gideon Blackblade 1 Ajani, Strength of the Pride 2 Foreboding Fruit 4 Blade Juggler 4 Healer’s Hawk 4 Ajani’s Pridemate 4 Impassioned Orator 1 Ob Nixilis, the Hate-Twisted 4 Bloodthirsty Aerialist 1 Banishing Light 1 Elspeth, Sun’s Nemesis 1 Final Payment

Sideboard (15) 2 Pharika’s Libation 4 Duress 2 Revoke Existence 1 Murder 2 Spark Harvest 2 Suffocating Fumes 2 Ill-Gotten Inheritance

Just like last week, an Orzhov deck almost managed to take the top slot in the tournament. And just like last week, it uses the Lifegain core to put pressure while having access to just enough disruption to make things hell for its opponent. Historically, Orzhov has been a scary threat to control decks . Is that the case here as well?

3-1 Jens Alden
Sultai Yorion

Companion (1) 1 Yorion, Sky Nomad Deck (80) 4 Omen of the Sea 2 Swamp 4 Cloudkin Seer 3 Portal of Sanctuary 2 Spark Harvest 8 Island 4 Ob Nixilis’s Cruelty 4 Healer of the Glade 8 Forest 4 Leafkin Druid 4 Dismal Backwater 4 Jungle Hollow 3 Acolyte of Affliction 1 Garruk, Cursed Huntsman 4 Thornwood Falls 4 Risen Reef 2 Meteor Golem 1 Ugin, the Ineffable 1 Thassa, Deep-Dwelling 4 Ilysian Caryatid 2 Witching Well 4 Evolving Wilds 3 Neoform

Sideboard (15) 2 Negate 1 Yorion, Sky Nomad 2 Negate 4 Burglar Rat 2 Duress 4 Suffocating Fumes

3 Sultai Elementals lists got 3-1 results (congrats Alan on getting that monkey off your back), but Jens deserves a highlight here for his version. Squeezing Yorion was not enough for this Swedish player, and he plays Acolyte of Affliction to return it to hand and Portal of Sanctuary to dig all the value. It also means that his board never gets static, the worst feeling for an Elementals player to have.

3-1 Peter Steenbeke
Izzet Tempo

Deck (60) 8 Mountain 8 Island 1 Nadir Kraken 1 Go for Blood 3 Sprite Dragon 4 Swiftwater Cliffs 4 Ominous Seas 1 God-Eternal Kefnet 2 Omen of the Sea 4 Fire Prophecy 4 Thrill of Possibility 1 Niv-Mizzet, Parun 4 Opt 2 Izzet Guildgate 1 Irencrag Pyromancer 4 Improbable Alliance 1 Reconnaissance Mission 3 Flame Sweep 2 Merchant of the Vale 2 Negate

Sideboard (15) 2 Negate 2 Kasmina’s Transmutation 2 Stern Dismissal 2 Scorching Dragonfire 2 Shredded Sails 2 Disdainful Stroke 2 Essence Scatter 1 Quench

The last archetype going 3-1 or better is Izzet Tempo in the hands of Peter. He adds Sprite Dragon on top of his full sets of Ominous Seas and Improbably Alliance, this is the second time we see the deck without Crackling Drake, which is surprising considering they used to be the namesake of the deck.

Other archetypes

A few interesting archetypes showed up as well, but all of them struggled to perform better than 2-2. The reason, I would still like to highlight them is because they are poised to drastically improve once Core Set 21 is released this week.

Temur Reclamation

Deck (60) 4 Wilderness Reclamation 5 Forest 4 Thornwood Falls 1 Evolving Wilds 1 Arboreal Grazer 2 Mountain 5 Island 1 Nightpack Ambusher 1 Shark Typhoon 1 Neutralize 1 Negate 2 Quench 4 Chemister’s Insight 1 Expansion 2 Narset, Parter of Veils 3 Scorching Dragonfire 3 Opt 1 Uro, Titan of Nature’s Wrath 4 Growth Spiral 2 Swiftwater Cliffs 3 Flame Sweep 4 Rugged Highlands 2 Swiftwater Cliffs 3 Essence Scatter

Sideboard (15) 3 Negate 1 Essence Scatter 1 Shock 4 Return to Nature 1 Devious Cover-Up 1 Didn’t Say Please 2 Stern Dismissal 1 Arboreal Grazer 1 Narset, Parter of Veils

“Esper” Artifacts

Deck (60) 4 Witching Well 20 Island 4 Corridor Monitor 4 Renowned Weaponsmith 1 Dance of the Manse 4 Arcanist’s Owl 4 Saheeli, Sublime Artificer 3 Scalding Cauldron 4 Golden Egg 4 Guild Globe 3 Shambling Suit 1 Tezzeret, Master of the Bridge 2 Mystic Sanctuary 1 Mystic Forge 1 Ugin, the Ineffable

Sideboard (15) 4 Negate 4 Essence Scatter 2 Devious Cover-Up 3 Stern Dismissal 2 Capture Sphere

Azorius Birds

Deck (60) 4 Healer’s Hawk 8 Plains 4 Empyrean Eagle 13 Island 4 Faerie Duelist 4 Faerie Miscreant 4 Faerie Vandal 1 Sephara, Sky’s Blade 4 Spectral Sailor 1 Skycat Sovereign 1 Teferi, Time Raveler 1 Dream Trawler 3 Rally of Wings 4 Winged Words 2 Cloudkin Seer 2 Triumphant Surge

Sideboard (15) 4 Disenchant 3 No Escape 4 Unsummon 4 Pacifism

Are these foreboding fruits of what is to come? Only time will tell!