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Today I am going to be starting a new written series that I will be doing once or more a month that I will be referring to as "Stream Gems". I play a slew of awesome decks on stream based on submissions from viewers, and while I can offer a good deal of insight while live, there is also a few things I do not always have time to discuss.
The goal of this series is to take a slightly deeper dive into some of the decks that stick out to me as being a good balance of powerful and fun. I will focus on discussing the primary game plan of each deck and then break down how I would sideboard with the deck against some of the more common matchups you can expect to face in Modern.
It feels only natural to start this series with one of my favorite Modern Memes:
Grishoalbrand -- Modern | Jeff Hoogland
- Creatures (14)
- 2 Borborygmos Enraged
- 4 Griselbrand
- 4 Simian Spirit Guide
- 4 Worldspine Wurm
- Instants (16)
- 1 Lightning Axe
- 1 Manamorphose
- 2 Desperate Ritual
- 4 Goryo's Vengeance
- 4 Nourishing Shoal
- 4 Through the Breach
- Sorceries (11)
- 1 Collective Brutality
- 2 Cathartic Reunion
- 4 Faithless Looting
- 4 Night's Whisper
- Lands (19)
- 3 Mountain
- 5 Swamp
- 1 Blood Crypt
- 2 Blackcleave Cliffs
- 4 Bloodstained Mire
- 4 Temple of Malice
This is easily my favorite combo deck in Modern. Not only is it doing something objectively busted with the ability to win on the first and second turn of the game, but the ability to see lots of cards each game give it a good deal of consistency. Past this the fact that you have access to Through the Breach gives you a good deal of flexibility to play through opposing graveyard hate in the post board games.
If you are looking for a sweet combo deck that is outside the box, and love the idea of drawing your whole deck I would highly recommend giving this one a try. If you would like to see this deck in action, check out my video set here.
Here are some brief boarding notes for this configuration of Grishoalbrand against some of the more common decks in Modern:
VS Tron
In:
Out:
VS Humans
In:
Out:
VS 
Control
In:
Out:
VS 
Hollow One
In:
Out:
VS Burn
In:
Out:
VS Mardu Pyromancer
In:
Out:
VS Robots
In:
Out:
VS Storm
In:
Out:
Naya Landfall Aggro -- Modern | Jeff Hoogland
- Creatures (27)
- 2 Grim Lavamancer
- 2 Scavenging Ooze
- 3 Tireless Tracker
- 4 Knight of the Reliquary
- 4 Plated Geopede
- 4 Renegade Rallier
- 4 Steppe Lynx
- 4 Wild Nacatl
- Instants (8)
- 4 Lightning Bolt
- 4 Path to Exile
What I consider "honest" aggro decks in Modern tend to not be terribly competitive. The format is either so linear or so interactive that decks looking to end the game on turns 4-6 tend to end up in a bad spot. While this deck looks like one of these honest aggro decks on the surface, it is also capable of winning on the third turn. It does this by playing Landfall creatures on turns one and two, then playing a fetch land which we return with Renegade Rallier on turn three to attack for sixteen or more points of damage.
Past this linear aspect, this deck gets to play both of the most efficient removal spells in Modern -- Path to Exile and Lightning Bolt. These in conjunction with card advantage from Tireless Tracker let you transition seamlessly into a more controlling role against other aggressive decks when you need to.
If you are looking for an aggressive deck, capable of the occasional combo finish, I would highly recommend giving this one a try. If you would like to see this deck in action, check out my video set here.
Here are some brief boarding notes for this configuration of Landfall Aggro against some of the more common decks in Modern:
VS Tron
In:
Out:
VS Humans
In:
Out:
VS Control
In:
Out:
VS Hollow One
In:
Out:
VS Burn
In:
Out:
VS Mardu Pyromancer
In:
Out:
VS Robots
In:
Out:
VS Storm
In:
Out:
B/G Rock -- Modern | Jeff Hoogland
- Creatures (13)
- 2 Tasigur, the Golden Fang
- 3 Scavenging Ooze
- 4 Tarmogoyf
- 4 Tireless Tracker
- Planeswalkers (5)
- 1 Liliana, the Last Hope
- 4 Liliana of the Veil
- Instants (6)
- 2 Abrupt Decay
- 4 Fatal Push
- Sorceries (11)
- 2 Maelstrom Pulse
- 2 Thoughtseize
- 3 Collective Brutality
- 4 Inquisition of Kozilek
To wrap up with a deck on the opposite end of the spectrum as where we started -- this is my favorite interactive deck in Modern currently. One mana discard is the most efficient disruption Modern has to offer and we get to pair it with efficient threats like Tarmogoyf. Not only does sticking to two colors allow us to play utility lands like Field of Ruin, but it also gives us a relatively pain free mana base which gives us a better matchup against aggressive decks.
If you are looking for an interactive midrange deck with a consistent mana base, I would highly recommend giving this one a try. If you would like to see this deck in action, check out my video set here.
Here are some brief boarding notes for this configuration of BG Rock against some of the more common decks in Modern:
VS Tron
In:
Out:
VS Humans
In:
- 1 Cast Down
- 1 Collective Brutality
- 1 Damnation
- 1 Gaze of Granite
- 1 Kalitas, Traitor of Ghet
- 1 Languish
Out:
VS Control
In:
- 1 Golgari Charm
- 3 Fulminator Mage
- 1 Nissa, Vital Force
- 1 Obstinate Baloth
Out:
VS Hollow One
In:
Out:
VS Burn
In:
Out:
VS Mardu Pyromancer
In:
- 1 Damnation
- 1 Languish
- 1 Golgari Charm
- 1 Cast Down
- 1 Collective Brutality
- 2 Obstinate Baloth
- 1 Kalitas, Traitor of Ghet
Out:
VS Robots
In:
Out:
VS Storm
In:
Out:
Wrapping Up
Did you like this style of article? Why or why not? Are quick hits on multiple decks like this helpful or do you prefer something more fleshed out just focusing on one archetype at a time? Which archetypes that I play often would you like to see suggestions like this for in the future? Let me know in a comment below!
Cheers,
--Jeff Hoogland
