For this set of videos, I chose to play a slightly modified Wolf Run Bant list that Melissa DeTora piloted to the Top 8 of Pro Tour Gatecrash.

"Wolf Run Bant"

• Creatures (13)
• 2 Augur of Bolas
• 3 Centaur Healer
• 4 Restoration Angel
• 4 Thragtusk

• Spells (21)
• 1 Syncopate
• 2 Dissipate
• 2 Think Twice
• 4 Azorius Charm
• 4 Sphinx's Revelation
• 3 Supreme Verdict
• 4 Farseek
• 1 Detention Sphere

• Lands (26)
• 1 Alchemist's Refuge
• 1 Sacred Foundry
• 1 Steam Vents
• 2 Kessig Wolf Run
• 2 Sunpetal Grove
• 3 Glacial Fortress
• 4 Breeding Pool
• 4 Hallowed Fountain
• 4 Hinterland Harbor
• 4 Temple Garden

• Sideboard (15)
• 2 Rest in Peace
• 2 Terminus
• 1 Supreme Verdict
• 2 Garruk, Primal Hunter
• 1 Detention Sphere
• 2 Negate
• 2 Dissipate
• 3 Rhox Faithmender

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With my previous experience with Bant, I knew I really wanted a minimum of twenty-six lands. In combination with four Farseek, two Think Twice, and four Azorius Charm, missing land drops should not happen too often. In addition, the deck wants to hit every land drop to maximize both Kessig Wolf Run and Sphinx's Revelation, both of which are huge parts of the late game in this deck. Garruk Relentless is a low-impact card, so I replaced it with the Tidings-esque Garruk, Primal Hunter, which also serves as a win condition.

With the rise of many creature decks in the Pro Tour (Naya variants, The Aristocrats, and various R/G aggro decks), I also added two Terminus to address those matchups.

"Reid Duke’s Jund Midrange (from Pro Tour: Gatecrash)"

• Creatures (14)
• 3 Arbor Elf
• 4 Huntmaster of the Fells
• 4 Thragtusk
• 3 Olivia Voldaren

• Planeswalkers (5)
• 2 Garruk, Primal Hunter
• 3 Liliana of the Veil

• Spells (16)
• 1 Ultimate Price
• 2 Abrupt Decay
• 2 Murder
• 1 Dreadbore
• 2 Rakdos's Return
• 4 Bonfire of the Damned
• 4 Farseek

• Lands (25)
• 3 Forest
• 1 Rootbound Crag
• 2 Kessig Wolf Run
• 3 Dragonskull Summit
• 4 Blood Crypt
• 4 Overgrown Tomb
• 4 Stomping Ground
• 4 Woodland Cemetery

• Sideboard (15)
• 1 Rakdos's Return
• 1 Pillar of Flame
• 1 Olivia Voldaren
• 1 Murder
• 2 Duress
• 2 Grafdigger's Cage
• 2 Staff of Nin
• 2 Acidic Slime
• 1 Tragic Slip
• 2 Underworld Connections

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Looking at his list, the expectation in matchups against Jund midrange variants is that Bant is ahead for Game 1 but that in post-boarded games—between all of the Duresses, Underworld Connections, and fewer dead cards—the matchup can be somewhat untenable.

My sideboarding plan involved taking out a few Supreme Verdicts, one Centaur Healer, and all four Azorius Charms for Dissipate, Negate, Detention Sphere, and Garruk, Primal Hunter.

Overall, we split the matches two and two.

Quite a few times, a turn-two Liliana of the Veil presented a huge problem for me. On the flipside, Kessig Wolf Run was surprisingly good against him, meaning that he had to answer all of my guys, and it also gave me time to actually draw into my late-game cards. Unsurprisingly, Garruk, Primal Hunter was an all-star on both sides. The Arbor Elf with Underworld Connections was very good for him as well, and made it so I needed to pressure his life total in those games, which is not the easiest thing for Bant to do.

I also look forward to trying Bant with black (again) in addition to trying a potential double-splash for both black and red. Gerry Thompson’s take on R/W/U Flash also seems quite strong if that’s up your alley.

I hope you enjoyed watching this set of videos between Reid and me, and I welcome any comments here or on Twitter @jkyu06.

Thanks!